After half an hour, James had showered. He thought Tsukiumi had let them go. Mero said she will swim. He smiled. He thought that Tsukiumi was now playing the role of Miya. James wore his clothes and summoned the lift. He walked into the lift and pressed the Eleventh button. The lift went down and the doors opened. He looked and saw his Throne Room.
"YOU NEED A LITTLE REVIVE!" a jingle played.
James thought it was a little loud. He looked and saw Quick-revive, Mule Kick, Speed Cola, Juggernog, Double Tap, Stamin-up, the two Pack-a-Punch Machine and Who` Who`s. He thought he had a number of perks. He still wondered what Quick-review and Who` Who` does.
"James," Lefi called out.
James turned around and smiled. "Good morning, Lefi," James said. "How are you doing?" he asked.
"I am doing fine," Lefi responded as she walked over.
"Did you have breakfast?" James asked.
Lefi nodded. James walked to the tablet. He looked to see his points, and they were increasing rapidly. He thought that it must be the Perks. He clicked on the food tab. He scrolled down and saw cakes. James clicked on the cakes. In his hand, a cake appeared. "Lefi, here, have this," James said.
"Is this a cookie, pray tell?" Lefi inquired.
"No, it is a cake," James replied.
Lefi looked at the treat. She took a bite and ate it. Her eyes widened with delight. She felt a warmth in her heart. "This treat is wondrous," she declared.
James smiled. "It will be a treat," James remarked. He walked towards her and hugged her from the back. "Thank you for everything," he added.
Lefi felt the hug and blushed. "James," she stammered. Her face turned red.
"But I have not done aught of consequence, James," Lefi replied.
"You have done a lot, Lefi," James said. He had a genuine smile. "Thank you for helping to train Musubi," he added.
"I would have helped her regardless, for we shall need stronger fighters to defend this dungeon," Lefi replied as she took a bite of the cake.
James smiled. "Yes, you are right," he chuckled.
"What do you think about the rest of them?" James asked.
"They are strong, but as I said, they all stand in need of greater strength," Lefi replied. She looked serious.
"They are strong in their own way," James remarked. "But a little training won't hurt," he added.
Lefi looked at James. "Pray tell, who was that woman who did assail us?" Lefi asked as she took another bite into the cake. "Have we discovered aught more of her nature?" she asked.
"Drowned. Well, all we know is she is from the Dark Multiverse, a place where the worlds are corrupted and imperfect because of some flaw or imbalance. They are usually missing an anchor. Most are usually destroyed, however, some survive," he replied.
"She was mighty, James. Unusually so," Lefi stated plainly. Her eyes narrowed as she considered the threat.
James thought she was right. "We are stronger now," James responded.
At that moment, they heard footsteps and saw Matsu and Rei. Rei was wearing a small, white or tank top. She also had small, matching white shorts with an elastic waistband. She wore simple white slip-on sandals. She had a matching small jacket on top.
Matsu was wearing a white lab coat which was long-sleeved and knee-length. It had two large pockets near the hips, and was open to reveal the undergarments beneath. She wore a bra and matching high-cut panties. She also wore glasses and a pair of pink closed-toe heeled shoes.
"Wow," James remarked, his eyes widening at them.
Rei smiled at his reaction. "Wow?" she asked as she tilted her head. "We are just wearing normal clothes," she added.
"She is not," Lefi pointed out dryly, nodding toward Matsu.
"This is my home now so I can wear what I like," Matsu said with a cheeky smile on her face. She adjusted her glasses.
"Shizuka was walking around butt naked this morning," Rei remarked with a shrug.
James thought that would be quite a sight. "I guess it is fine," James said. He had a smile on his face. He looked at Rei and Matsu. "Rei, Lefi, Matsu, let's head to the lab," James added.
"Lab?" Matsu questioned. She wondered what this could be.
"Is this the one that you created before?" Rei asked.
"Yes," James replied as he summoned the lift.
They all nodded and entered the lift. James pressed the Fifth Floor button, and the ascent was quick and silent. The doors slid open to reveal a massive, open floor plan that stretched out before them. The main area was dominated by a single, large screen mounted on the far wall. The space felt enormous. It had a polished floor and bare walls. From the central open area there were multiple wide corridors which led to numerous rooms.
"This is a big room," Rei remarked as her voice sounded small in the open space. "I can count 20 rooms," she added.
James walked down the short set of stairs leading from the lift landing. He looked into the side rooms as they passed. He thought each door opened onto an identical, starkly empty room. There were no benches, no specialised equipment, no chemical fume hoods, just cold, unused space.
"Is this the lab?" Matsu asked as she walked into the central area.
"Well, yes, however, there is not much here yet," James responded.
"It is empty," Lefi said.
"The floor was created, but we don't have any equipment, besides this screen," Rei said, as she walked over and looked at the large display.
Matsu walked over to one of the empty side rooms. "There is a computer server here, though," Matsu said, pointing to a single rack tucked into a corner. "I have my laptop so I can work on it," she added.
James walked on the Open space and saw a small, specialised transparent storage case. He could see the glowing pieces of the Aprotican Severant.
"That is good however we are going to need to get specialised equipment," James responded.
"It is a shame the tablet does not offer it," Rei remarked.
"It is but we can go and get anything we like," James said as he held the Multiversal Remote.
"Just steal it?" Matsu asked.
"Yes," James replied with a smile on his face. He wondered where he should go first to get equipment for the lab. He thought some basic things would be needed first. "Well, we are not going to make any more progress here today," he added.
Suddenly, an alarm was heard. "Hostile Intruder," it shouted.
"I will go and deal with it," James said as he summoned the lift.
"I am coming with you," Rei said.
"Okay, use the lift but I am going first," James said. "Lefi be with Rei and the others, there might be more," he added.
Lefi nodded. "Be careful," she said.
James nodded and pressed the button to take him to the cave.