"Mm-hm, I'm fine. I must have misheard, Sister Nanoha..." Alicia shook her head.
Then Arya's eyes darted around as she immersed her consciousness in the system.
Alicia asked tentatively, "Administrator... Brother?"
Judging by the voice, Alicia felt that it might belong to a man.
That's right... My name is Chu Chen, and I've already arrived in your world. Do you want to see your mother? I can take you to see her...
"Emmmmmm..."
Just as Alicia was about to speak, the system suddenly spoke—
Ding! A choice has begun! Choice time: 1 minute
An Administrator who had once kidnapped a loli was now trying to sweet-talk this system's host. Host, choose:
1. As this system's host, how could you be so easily sweet-talked? Please loudly answer, "You damned Loli Kidnapper, get as far away from me as possible! This loli won't be sweet-talked by you!"
2. As this system's host, you naturally had to treat the System Network's loli-kidnapping Administrator with utmost respect. Please loudly answer, "Loli Kidnapper, this loli will reluctantly go see Mother with you! But this loli can't get married yet, remember: three years minimum, death penalty maximum!"
Choice rewards: Choice 1: Skill: The Poor's Insight: EX (Able to see through another person's personality and attributes at a glance. Even verbal confusion, excuses, deception, and so on cannot affect the host.)
Choice 2: Title: Loli Charm (Whenever anyone sees you, their Affection Points will greatly increase. Even enemies have a certain chance of being charmed by the host and becoming unable to harm the host!)
Alicia: "..."
Chu Chen: "...One day, I'm definitely going to melt down and rebuild this foul-mouthed system!"
PS2: There will still be seven updates today, two of which are bonus chapters. You guys are seriously amazing. When I woke up this morning, the rewards had doubled again, and there were another two thousand flowers. Today's update times are 8 AM, 12 PM, 2 PM, 5 PM, 7 PM, 9 PM, and 11 PM. Since I update manually rather than scheduling releases, there may be an error of five to ten minutes.
Blonde Enthusiasts Are Terrifying!
At that moment, Chu Chen and the Takamachi family were staring at one another, while Alicia silently sat down beside Chu Chen.
The reason things had turned out this way was mainly because Chu Chen had come to the Takamachi residence claiming that he was there to pick up Alicia.
Furthermore, when Alicia had moved into the Takamachi household, she had barely mentioned anything about her family.
Therefore, no one in the Takamachi family knew whether Chu Chen really was Alicia's brother...
Still, all they had to do was call Alicia over, while Chu Chen had already spoken with her beforehand.
Thus, Alicia was not particularly surprised when she saw Chu Chen. On the contrary, upon seeing him, she had actively pounced on him and affectionately called him Brother Chu Chen, leaving Chu Chen rather stunned.
Tsk, tsk, tsk... Girls really knew how to act from a young age... Even girls like Alicia...
Chu Chen now seriously suspected that Alicia had been led astray by his system...
With such a bizarre system around, there was no way Alicia could stay entirely proper.
When he met Precia later, she probably would not blame him for leading her daughter astray, right?
Chu Chen really wanted to complain about that internally, then quietly began chatting with the Takamachi family.
Mm... Every member of the Takamachi family was monster-level among humans. Chu Chen could now tell at a glance that if some mages in this world let their guard down, they might even be taken down by these members of the Takamachi family.
"Thank you so much for taking care of Alicia. Her family has been looking for her all this time... Leave the rest to me! Of course, when I have time later, I'll bring Alicia over for a visit!"
Naturally, Chu Chen had not set himself up as her biological brother. After all, whether in appearance or any other regard, there was nowhere that Chu Chen and Alicia looked alike... So, Chu Chen's cover story was that he was a distant relative.
Because Alicia's mother often went out for work, Alicia got bored by herself and would wander around everywhere.
In truth, there was nothing wrong with Chu Chen's cover story. Alicia's mother, Precia, really did often go out for work, though that was the setting from twenty-six years ago. The current Precia's body probably could no longer endure such exhausting work.
Precia now suffered from pulmonary edema, something similar to tuberculosis, and often coughed up blood. She had contracted this illness after Alicia's death. Of course, it was also possible that medications used during the Fate Project had damaged her respiratory organs and caused it. In any case, she had only contracted it after Alicia died, and Chu Chen did not know the specifics of that time.
"You don't need to be so polite. We wouldn't mind even if such a cute child like Alicia stayed in our home every day! Isn't that right, Nanoha..." Takako Nanoha smiled at Chu Chen and Alicia.
"Mm-hm!" Nanoha hurriedly nodded in agreement.
Shirou Takamachi, who knew full well that his wife was a blonde enthusiast, gave his wife and Nanoha a rather speechless glance.
Even Miyuki Takamachi and Kyoya Takamachi could not help rolling their eyes at their mother and younger sister.
Who in the family did not know that those two were Blonde Enthusiasts...
Nanoha being so close to her classmate Alisa was also somewhat related to Nanoha's obsession with blondes.
Alicia silently moved away from Takako Nanoha. She did not dislike their goodwill, but this enthusiasm was a little too excessive... Even Alicia could not quite handle such exaggerated enthusiasm.
Still, come to think of it, even her own mother was not as excessive as Aunt Momoko...
"I'll often bring Alicia over to visit. I just hope Aunt Momoko won't find us bothersome when the time comes!"
"Of course not... I really like Alicia..."
Meanwhile, Nanoha and Alicia were saying goodbye, while a certain lecherous ferret stood on Nanoha's shoulder.
"Alicia, make sure to call me then..."
"Mm-hm... You take care too, Yuno..."
Just like that, Chu Chen left Nanoha's home with Alicia. As for their destination...
"Brother Chu Chen, do you know where Fate is?" Alicia looked curiously at Chu Chen beside her.
"Of course I don't, but I know Fate is looking for the Seeds of the Holy Stone... So I picked one up while I was on the way!" As he spoke, Chu Chen took out a sapphire-blue, diamond-shaped stone that looked like a little pebble from nowhere.
The stone contained astonishing magical power, and even Chu Chen had slightly frowned when he obtained it.
The magic on it would gradually cause its holder to lose themselves according to their desires, transforming in the direction the holder wished for in their heart. Chu Chen had no means of sealing the thing, so...
Chu Chen had been extremely careful while bringing it over, afraid that some desire in his heart might cause him to stumble.
According to Yuno, the Seed of the Holy Stone was a magical stone capable of granting its owner's wish. In essence, it was somewhat similar to the Holy Grail, except the Seed of the Holy Stone's power was far too unstable. If humans or animals found it and failed to use it correctly, they would be fused with its power and lose their reason.
"So Brother Chu Chen plans to use this as bait?"
Alicia looked curiously at the Seed of the Holy Stone in Chu Chen's hand.
"That's right. As long as the Seed of the Holy Stone's power erupts, Fate will definitely come! Then we can use Fate's power to travel to the Time Garden where your mother Precia is... Alicia, stand behind me..."
To release the Seed of the Holy Stone's power, Chu Chen had specifically chosen a location far from the city.
If the Seed of the Holy Stone went berserk, destroying an entire city would be a matter of minutes. Chu Chen had to be careful too.
Although the thing going berserk would not cause Chu Chen much harm, dealing with the aftermath would be troublesome!
"I understand..." Alicia obediently stepped behind Chu Chen.
The next moment, Chu Chen slowly extended his right hand, and vast magical power began gathering around the Seed of the Holy Stone.
The instant he released that magic, Chu Chen severed his connection to it.
At the moment that magic merged with the Seed of the Holy Stone, a colossal pillar of light pierced through heaven and earth!
In an instant, the Seed of the Holy Stone unleashed power enough to shake the entire world... Fortunately, Chu Chen had restrained it well. The reason it gave off such an exaggerated display was simply to attract people more effectively.
Just as Chu Chen had expected, both Nanoha and Fate noticed the magical power erupting from the Seed of the Holy Stone.
Alicia felt slightly nervous, and her little hand unconsciously grabbed the corner of Chu Chen's clothes.
Taking in Alicia's expression, Chu Chen smiled knowingly, and then—
Chu Chen pressed a button, and a voice immediately sounded in Alicia's mind.
Alicia Testarossa has successfully entered the System Network!
Ai, You Seriously Have No Integrity!
Alicia Testarossa has successfully entered the System Network!
Haibara Ai: "Welcome, newcomer!"
Yukino Yukinoshita: "Welcome, newcomer!"
Ilyasviel: "Welcome, newcomer!"
Busujima Saeko: "Welcome, newcomer!"
Miyu: "...Welcome..."
Alicia Testarossa: "???"
Administrator: "Ai, don't tell me you live inside the System Network... Why do I feel like you're always the first one to speak? I've never seen you slower than anyone else... You aren't staying awake every day, are you? You need to take care of yourself..."
Chu Chen was genuinely concerned about Ai's health. If anything happened to her, not only Chu Chen, but everyone else in the System Network would be very worried too...
Hearing the concern in Chu Chen's voice, Ai could not help curling her lips upward slightly.
Haibara Ai: "Don't worry. I just stay up late often, not to the point where I never sleep... Besides, I need to keep an eye on system-related matters for many things. After all, all my materials are stored in the system space..."
Furthermore, Ai needed to constantly monitor Busujima Saeko's situation. She often traveled back and forth between two worlds now.
No matter what, the matters in Busujima Saeko's world had not completely ended, and Ai could not put her mind at ease.
Since she had accepted this task, she had to see it through to the end. Ai did not mind doing something that accumulated virtue.
Thus, Ai currently had two research projects: one was the antidote for APTX4869 in her own world, while the other was the antidote for the Zombie Virus in Busujima Saeko's world...
Alicia Testarossa: "Is this the System Network? Hello, everyone. My name is Alicia Testarossa, but you can just call me Alicia... Are you all from different worlds?"
Ilyasviel: "Um... Miyu and I are actually from the same world... Hehehehe..."
Miyu: "Wait! Illya! What are you doing to me! Eh... Why are you suddenly taking off your clothes..."
Haibara Ai: "!!!"
Yukino Yukinoshita: "!!!"
Busujima Saeko: "!!!"
Alicia Testarossa: "!!! Could it be that this is the kind of thing everyone talks about in the System Network!?"
Alicia's cheeks immediately turned red. For some reason, she even faintly felt a hint of excitement.
According to what Chu Chen had told her in advance, the other system holders were all girls like her. In other words, were two girls over there currently doing some indescribable things?
Haibara Ai: "Illya, I never expected you to be this kind of person..."
Ai's gaze instantly sharpened. She had to consider whether she should stay farther away from Illya.
Ilyasviel: "Uh... Well... I only wanted Miyu, who was wearing a maid outfit, to serve me a little. And it was only to the extent of helping wash each other's bodies when everyone bathed. It wasn't like what you all are imagining!"
Miyu: "But you directly pinned me to the bed, and we weren't even in the bathroom..."
Ilyasviel: "..."
Miyu's words instantly dealt Illya such a blow that she could not recover. She had only gotten a tiny bit excited, that was all!
Miyu: "And you kept making me call you Master. Even though I'm wearing a maid outfit, I'm serving Luvia right now... Illya, your condition seems a little strange..."
—Pfft!
Illya immediately felt the urge to cough up blood. Miyu, I seriously suspect you're secretly sadistic now!
I had already gone silent, so why were you still exposing what happened in the System Network!?
In an instant, Illya was completely finished!
Miyu: "Eh! Illya, what's wrong? Why did you suddenly pass out? Um... What should we do next? Should I call Sella? Or do we need some kind of first aid..."
Haibara Ai: "..."
Busujima Saeko: "..."
Alicia Testarossa: "..."
Yukino Yukinoshita: "Illya is completely finished! Carry her away!"
Administrator: "Tsk, tsk, tsk... Illya really has an unprecedented interest in so-called elementary school maids. Doesn't her family have maids too? I have no idea how her family raised her to develop such an inexplicable interest."
Haibara Ai: "Looks like I need to be more careful too... I should add never wearing a maid outfit in front of Illya to my list of forbidden options. If I appeared before Illya like that, I might be in danger of being pushed down by her!"
Although she spoke in such a serious tone, Ai's lips unconsciously curled into a smile.
Obviously, she was joking...
Ilyasviel: "It's not that exaggerated!!!"
Illya suddenly sprang back to life with a red face, startling Miyu badly.
Busujima Saeko: "Illya, you really are amusing... Couldn't you tell that Ai was joking?"
Before you continue