[DING]
[OBJECTIVE ACCEPTED: CLEAR AND DESTROY PORTAL 1]
[PORTALS DETECTED: 3/3]
[STATUS: CLEARED 0/3]
[PORTAL 1: Northern District — Shibuya Riverbanks]
{SYSTEMATICAL CONDITION: Stable. Distortion remains contained, but activity is rising.}
{THREAT LEVEL: Low–Moderate.}
{DETECTED ENTITIES: Rank E–D demons, swarm behavior likely. Unstable signatures suggest possible commander-class presence.}
{TIMEFRAME: 24 hours until Portal 1 Expansion. The expansion rate will double with each failure cycle.}
{FAILURE OUTCOME: If the portal is not cleared, contamination will spread across Shibuya's northern district. Higher-rank entities (C-class or above) are expected to manifest.}
[REWARD PARAMETERS:]
(Rewards scale based on performance.
Greater efficiency, minimal collateral, and survival rate increase outcome quality.
Hidden rewards are possible for extraordinary achievement.)
[NOTE:]
Portals are linked. Progression through one may affect the conditions of the others.
Minato intensely stared at the glowing text of the system floating in front of him, his stomach knotting tighter with every line he read. He swallowed quickly. His fingers were red around the strap of his bag.
Amelia watched him for a second, noticing his usual hesitation, then sighed and reached out, giving his shoulder a quick tap.
"Hey. What's wrong with you?"
He blinked twice and looked at her. "Nothing… It's just… these weird visions again," he lied, though it wasn't his fault because he couldn't explain the system to her yet.
Amelia's eyebrow creased. "You're shaking."
"I'm fine," he muttered, forcing out a weak laugh. "Really. Just… give me a second."
She turned to him, her eyebrows narrowing simultaneously, her voice a bit low and sharp. "Minato… seriously, what are you really hiding from me?"
He blinked twice at her, caught off guard by her sudden question.
Amelia stopped walking and turned towards him; her red eyes started glowing.
"Minato," she responded, her voice low and firm. "I've been quiet for a while because I figured you'd tell me when you were ready. But we just walked into a portal. You're on some Elves' hit list. And you're still keeping secrets."
She took a step closer. "Don't treat me like an idiot. If there's something I need to know, tell me, because we are in this together."
Minato exhaled shakily, rubbing his palms against his pants. "Look, Amelia… we've talked about this, it's not that I don't trust you. There's something in me... some kind of system... that's literally stopping me from talking."
Her eyes widened a little. "System... what do you mean?"
Minato then glanced back at Amelia, who was still staring at him, confused and tense.
He lowered his voice. "The Eternity System… It's a…" before he could finish talking... the system popped up again, but this time with the exact thought in his mind.
[DING]
[WARNING: INFORMATION CLASSIFIED]
[User attempting to disclose restricted data...]
[Eternity System: Temporary Access Protocol available.]
{Do you wish to grant [Familiar: Amelia Alexander Earhart] direct access for 30 seconds?}
[YES] / [NO]
He hesitated for a second.
If he said no, Amelia would keep thinking he was hiding something, and the suspicion between them would grow.
But if he said yes… her trust toward him would increase, but he had no idea what the system would do to her.
He bit down on his lip, but it all came down to one question: How long would he keep lying about the system? And besides, from what he read just now, it should be fine.
"You wanted the truth, right… just... don't freak out."
He took a breath... "Yes," he whispered, "grant her access."
[ACCESS GRANTED]
[Establishing temporary neural link with Familiar: Amelia Alexander Earhart]
[Time Remaining: 00:30]
Amelia's body stiffened instantly. Her pupils dilated as lines of light red code ran across her irises. The forest around them dimmed in her vision, briefly replaced by flashes of strange data, symbols, and fragments of Minato's past few notifications...
[DING]
[OBJECTIVE ACCEPTED: CLEAR AND DESTROY PORTAL 1]
[PORTALS DETECTED: 3/3]
[STATUS: CLEARED 0/3]
[PORTAL 1: Northern District — Shibuya Riverbanks]
{SYSTEMATICAL CONDITION: Stable. Distortion remains contained, but activity is rising.}
{THREAT LEVEL: Low–Moderate.}
{DETECTED ENTITIES: Rank E–D demons, swarm behavior likely. Unstable signatures suggest possible commander-class presence.}
{TIMEFRAME: 24 hours until Portal 1 Expansion. The expansion rate will double with each failure cycle.}
{FAILURE OUTCOME: If the portal is not cleared, contamination will spread across Shibuya's northern district. Higher-rank entities (C-class or above) are expected to manifest.}
=========
Her breath was caught in her throat. "W–what in the damnation is this?" she whispered. "I can… see it..."
Minato stepped closer, steadying her shoulders. "It's a weird system that appeared the day you got summoned into my apartment. The Eternity System."
[DING]
[Access Time Remaining: 00:05]
Amelia's eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to process everything. "This… thing, it's connected to you?"
"Yeah," Minato replied quietly. "And now..."
[DING]
[ACCESS TERMINATED]
Amelia blinked twice, staggering slightly as the light faded from her eyes. "What… just happened?"
"The link's gone," Minato replied. "Thirty seconds are up."
She steadied herself, still catching her breath. "So that's what you were hiding all this time."
He nodded once. "Yeah. And now you see why I couldn't tell you."
Amelia then straightened up and began brushing her hair back as her lips curved into a faint smirk.
"I'll admit… I didn't expect that," she responded, tilting her head at him. "That system of yours... It's powerful. I could feel it watching me."
Minato frowned slightly. "Watching you?"
She nodded, still smirking. "Yes, calculating… like it was judging whether I was worthy to even look at it."
He let out a breath, with a little smile... Now it would become easier to give out orders, rather than going with the lie of dreams...
Amelia's gaze softened just a little, with a hint of pride. "You're full of surprises, Minato. For a so-called 'Asian,' you keep getting more interesting by the day."
He nodded in agreement and then adjusted the strap on his bag and glanced around the forest before turning back to Amelia. "This place, do you recognize it?"
Amelia's eyes shifted, faintly glowing red in the shade of the forest. "Yes, it's somewhat similar, but I am sure. We're in a pocket dimension... something the Elves created to contain the demon or other foreign entity."
"So… everything here is fake?" Minato questioned her.
"Not fake," she corrected him. "Borrowed. The spell pulls pieces of your world and merges them with mine. That's why it feels familiar."
Minato nodded slowly, his hand tightening around his bag.
A distant roar rumbled through the trees and the ground, guttural and wild. The leaves around them rustled briefly.
Amelia's expression hardened instantly, as she sensed something nearby. "They've noticed us."
"Who?" Minato froze.
"The titans that inhabit this area."