Maggie sat still as usual. Azgold Caral climbed on her arm and sat on her shoulder for a change of taste. Instead of resting, the little snake became interested in the girl's curly black hair. Clusters of straight hair writhed slowly, as if they were alive, and the snake seemed completely unsure if they were its own kind. Its little head swayed up and down, from side to side, trying to analyze the noodle-like curls. Its owner looked at the little one with his usual smile, but a strange vague sensation welled up in her chest. For some reason, she always wishfully believes that Azgold Caral is mimicking her inquisitive nature and studious personality.

In fact, if one doesn't think too closely, the snake's behavior can be interpreted as the creature doing its best to solve the mystery it discovered. It flicked its tongue, sniffed the air, and looked hard with its big eyes. Then, it seemed to hiss in frustration and poked the strange thing again in the old way to see what would happen. In snake parlance, this means that it tries to bite a snake-like hair, and ends up with a mouth full of hair. It certainly wasn't all that pleasant, as it let out another faint hiss and walked away.

After determining that the strange creature's anomalous hair did not actually pose a threat to its "territory", Azgold Carral was able to rest comfortably on its shoulder pillow.

The barely perceptual pod in the room hissed, the glass door opened, and Joe poked his head out.

"You're ahead of schedule," Maggie said. "Are you not training properly?"

"Almost, yes." The man rubbed his eyes. "Ryan- I told you about Ryan, right?"

Ryan Foster (Rya

Foste

is an aspiring rap artist who struggles to grasp the simple concept of matching a set of syllables to a similarly sounding syllable, known as 'rhyming,'" she nonchalantly lashed out at the man.

"Strength. yes, he, don't say it to his face, okay?"

"I know."

People don't like their shortcomings to be made public, or to be reminded of past failures. This was the first "human lesson" Maggie learned from Joe. She still insists that this is a stupid and unhelpful attitude, but has given up arguing about it. Flesh tends to be indifferent to facts and logic when frustrated because they are emotional creatures. That's exactly why Maggie was so fascinated by them in the first place, and until recently, she herself relied almost entirely on logic, statistics, and probability to function.

"Anyway, his pods seem to be bad," Joe continued. "Apparently, some dried Noot-Goop debris gathered together and clogged his feeding tube, which then ruptured, completely destroying the electronics inside. Said it would take at least a week to fix. ”

Maggie understood what was going on. With just four days to go before the big game Joe and his friends were training for, they suddenly found themselves missing a player. Under such adverse conditions, they are unlikely to survive the first round, and they probably haven't considered a substitute in case something like this happens. Considering how Joe told Maggie all this, she was able to anticipate his intentions.

"I understand. I'll help," she smiled comfortingly.

"Great!" Joe smiled. "Then I'll take you to his house, and you can fix his pods as you did with mine."

"Oh," her enthusiasm waned.

"What?"

"My research found that this pattern is that you invite me to take on the role of an absentee during a game."

"Oh."

An awkward silence hung over the small room, and the ignorant man had just realized that this was an opportunity.

"I'm sorry, Maggie. It's just that we don't often gather everyone for such a big event," he tried to explain himself. 'It's not just about the game, it's about hanging out with the lads. And...... You said it would be okay if you didn't participate this time, so I thought you wouldn't want to participate. ”

"I'm grateful that you're trying to comfort me, but there's no need," she smiled again.

"Really? You're not crazy, are you?"

"Definitely. I shouldn't base my expectations on fictional situations in Run to the Heart. ”

"Ah," he chuckled softly. "Yes, soap operas don't really reflect reality. I'm sorry I had too much hope for you, but I'd appreciate it if you'd be willing to help us. ”

"Of course, Joe. I will do my best to accommodate your request to the best of my ability. ”

"Great, you're the best!" Give me a minute, let me call a taxi and we'll be right away. ”

Unlike Cullen and Benny, Ryan's residence is not in the same building as Joe. In fact, he lives in a completely different city. Supercity Dave-157, to be exact. It is about the same as the Dave-156, but much smaller at a distance of about 2000 km. To get there, you need to take a taxi to the metro station and then take an intercity train. Of course, it's a bit expensive, but Maggie doesn't mind "scavenging" the necessary funds to pay for transportation. She's reluctant to exaggerate Joe's finances unless there's an emergency, and that's pretty much Butte

po

The closest thing to this situation that is usually obtained on the D-4.

The tour itself was really interesting. The flying taxi trip isn't all that exciting, as Maggie experienced something similar when she was arrested, but the train is really fascinating. First of all, its long, smooth chassis was reminiscent of a giant snake, which intrigued her. Of course, it wasn't Azgodkalar, because it was neither lifeless nor small enough to fit in her hands. Speaking of which, the pet snake was also brought along. It was tucked tightly into the left sleeve of its owner's coat, and its head poked out of the slit in the shoulder.

Another thing that Maggie really likes about trains is that it's a piece of precision engineering with extraordinary efficiency. It uses magnetic tracks to travel along a vacuum-sealed tunnel of pipes, which allows it to easily reach and maintain supersonic speeds. The only downside is that there are no windows to see the scenery, but for Maggie, peeking through the hard substance is effortless. She looked forward to seeing for herself what the wilderness between civilizations looked like.

Unfortunately, this turned out to be disappointing. Where the train sped past was a monotonous, featureless wasteland, almost completely devoid of life. The only sign is the canyon-like fissures left behind by huge mobile mining equipment that violently tears metals and minerals from the earth's crust. Maggie now understands why there are so few animals around Joe's house. Growing industry and colonization may well have driven away or killed all native flora and fauna. This is regrettable because she is looking forward to researching various life forms during her travels.

A brief online search shows that only the areas around large cities are like this, while Butte

po

The rest of the D-4 is truly a lush world, full of life. Maggie had in mind that she wanted to explore the planet thoroughly at some point, but for now she controls her supernatural perception and focuses on her surroundings. The inside of the train is a bit cramped, but it's well-lit and very stable. Such a vehicle does not need to struggle with air resistance and can fly along an almost completely straight magnetic track. The trip was very smooth and felt like standing still, even at the speed of sound. After taking into account the need to slow acceleration and deceleration in order to carry flesh-and-blood cargo, the subway train will arrive at Dave-157 just two hours after leaving Dave-156.

During this time, passengers sit in so-called smart chairs, which subtly change the cushions and armrests to provide the user with the best possible comfort. A well-dressed lady patrols the central alley with an old-fashioned food truck, offering free snacks and drinks to anyone in need of nutrition or refreshments. Maggie doesn't have such a need, but she still takes advantage of some of the treats she hasn't encountered before. Joe makes use of the public data port on his seat to watch movies through his P

The P-chip broadcasts the movie directly into his brain.

The couple got off the station and hailed another taxi, and on the way to Ryan's house, Maggie suddenly realized something.

"Joe, it looks like I've allowed a possible point of misunderstanding."

"Huh? About what?"

"I didn't make it clear that I can't modify your friend's pod in the same way that I modify your pod."

The man apparently used the word "the same as me", but the girl was momentarily stunned by her false assumptions and forgot to correct him on the spot.

"Hmm," he frowned in confusion. "Then there's no point in us going to Ryan's house, isn't it?"

"I remain confident that the necessary maintenance and repairs will be carried out," she clarified. "I just can't tie a longsword to it."

"Oh, that's what you mean. Yes, that's good. I must have said the wrong thing just now. ”

"I'm glad this unintentional misunderstanding was corrected," the girl nodded softly.

"Wait, wait." Joe was aware of some underlying concerns. "Are you talking about the general?"

"Yes," Maggie said happily.

"Are those big, ugly touches?"

The full name of the game he was referring to was C

ucible of The Dead God 2: Eclectic Boogaloo》。 It's a survival horror-themed game with a wide variety of monsters and creatures, and now that Joe thinks about it, this might not be entirely fictional. Maggie also perused the game, mainly to verify how bad the developers were at presenting realistic cosmic horror. She even prepared a three-hundred-page report describing every detail they had gotten wrong, but she kept it for the time being because it was tricky to send it off Earth.

"The description of the shogoths is basically accurate, yes," is her assessment of the topic at hand.

"You put one of them in my pod?"

"Yes."

"It's not going to eat me, is it?"

He believes that Maggie will never put him in danger, but in order to reassure him, he needs verbal confirmation.

"I assure you, he's a good boy," she paused, raised her hands, and rolled her index and middle fingers twice, "a good boy." ”

"You...... The ......" Joe shook his head slightly. "That's not ...... Good way to use quotation marks, Maggie. ”

Once again, the girl was stumped. She was convinced that her gesture was correct. After all, the Abrupt people have no sense of morality and have no gender at all. Therefore, her lover is neither "good" nor "boy", so she tries to show that these words are not literal. It looks like she needs to study this signal more seriously, but for now she's focused on solving Joe's problem.

"My lover is trained to obey me in everything. It exists to keep you safe, and it will protect you with all its strength and ferocity if needed. ”

"Aren't those things supposed to be stupid?" Doesn't it hurt someone by mistake?"

"I have taken the necessary precautions to ensure that such accidents do not happen."

When Officer Maloney showed up at Joe's residence and brought him in, Maggie clutched the spear tightly, which is why it didn't do anything ugly. He went willingly and did not resist the police, which also helped.

"Good, good," he visibly relaxed. "So my pods are still alive, huh?" It's actually quite succinct. Does it have a name?"

"It's not worth bringing one," she said coldly.

"So, do you mind if I call it Shoggy?"

"I strongly advise against interacting with it in any way that is beyond the capabilities of the virtual reality pod."

Joe was going to say that Maggie should be careful with all her pets, but later realizes that she probably knows more about real shogoths than he does. After that rare moment of relative intelligence, he decided to trust the girl's judgment and took her advice to heart. The hapless taxi driver who gave them a ride was different. This stranger had also played the game of "Puff Two", so he could not ignore this suspicious conversation. Thankfully, his ability to deceive himself is quite strong indeed. By the time he arrives at his destination, the man has managed to convince himself that all the talk about a sentient killing pod is just a few stupid kids role-playing outside of VR.

After arriving at Ryan's skyscraper, Joe effortlessly finds his friend's apartment and rings the doorbell of his house. At first no one answered, so he asked again. The doorbell rang for the third time before the door opened. A teenage brown-haired young man poked his head out from behind.

"Leaves? Wait, Joe?"

He stared at the smiling guest with a look of disbelief.

"Hey, Ryan!"

"Hmm...... Hey? Who else - wow. ”

Then he noticed Maggie, which made his jaw open wide as his brain struggled to remember how words worked.

"Hello," she smiled and waved.

He shouted to Joe.

"Yes," he said proudly.

"She really looks like Melinda Sparksta

!”

"I know, right?" I see her every day, but I still can't believe it!"

"Not true, man. Wait, why is she here? Why are you here?"

Joe was confused for a second, then realized something.

"Ahh Maybe I should tell you I'm here to visit you, right?"

"Well, yes. Possibly. Ryan started sarcastic. You can't just show up on someone's doorstep, you idiot!"

Joe said a few half-hearted apologies, laughing at his own stupidity before talking about the matter at hand.

"Anyway, we're here to help you with the pods."

"What did you say?"

"yes, it's shabby, right?" It's all Noot-Goop or something?"

Ryan looked away blankly, then realized, then panicked, and finally ended with a skeptical look.

"Man, I don't believe you're going to fix the doorknob."

"yes, so do I. It was Maggie who did it. I'm just here to show her the way. ”

"She? He glanced at the girl. "Don't get me wrong, Maggs, is that so?" You don't look like a pod technician. ”

"Trust me, man, she's smart. It only took her ten minutes to get the beeping sound out of my cabin. Noisy doors have also been fixed. She'll get you back to normal soon, and then we can go back to training for the tournament right away!"

"Oh. The timing wasn't good, man. The pod technician just passed by, picked up some parts and left. He said he would order a replacement, but it wouldn't arrive until a week later. I'm sure Maggs is great, but she can't do anything when she's missing a bunch of parts. ”

"Ah, shit." Joe's mood quickly went down. "That would be unfortunate."

"Yes. You should tell me you're coming, man. Will ask the technician to come back tomorrow. ”

"Well, don't worry. It's my own fault, I'm so bad. He perked up a little. I guess the practice isn't going to happen, so while I'm here, do you want to go out for a drink?"

"I'm, uh, actually going out. Bode was exhausted, so I was going to stay with my mom for a while. ”

Most VR pods have multi-user support, so it's not uncommon for family members to share when needed. Therefore, Ryan's excuse is completely plausible, except for one problem. It's all made up.

"Foster Ryan."

Maggie's shrill voice streaked through the air like an icy comet.

"To the left of the equal sign? He replied meekly.

"Why are you deceiving Joe?"

"Is he?"

"I-I didn't!"

"If you try to play such a dastardly trick again, I will be very unhappy."

“…… Yes, ma'am. ”

"Ryan? What happened?"

After being utterly shouted, the young man could only sigh heavily and push the door open, only to find his pod intact and functioning well.

"Look, man," he turned to Joe. "I'm sorry to lie to you and the kids, but I can't stand this bullshit training anymore"

"But...... The whole thing is your idea!"

"No, man. Not like that," he shook his head. "I was going to join this competition just for fun, but then you all got really competitive. I tried to keep up, but it didn't work for me. ”

"But you like to play underwater yoga blasting!"

"Yes, playing. As you see fit. Like, for fun. That's not what you're doing now. I tried to keep up, but I really couldn't. I'm exhausted, but I can't...... You know ......."

He was clearly guilty about the whole thing, especially since someone had crossed the city's boundaries because of him.

"Oh my God...... Oh well," Joe shrugged. "That's too bad, man. I'm sorry I dragged you away like that. ”

"Wait, you're not crazy, are you?"

"It me a little that you're lying, but I understand. You don't want to come across as a complete idiot, so you make up a story that your pods are broken. We've all been there. Well, not me. I'm shameless, but Cullen always makes excuses not to go to dinner with his dad. Besides, it's just a joke for us. I'm sure you won't lie about what really matters. ”

"Hey, Joe," Ryan cursed. "If you're right, the world must end."

"I may not care about your pranks, but have you forgotten someone?"

He turned his head towards Maggie, who was staring at Ryan, a nervous look that hinted at her considering whether or not to push him into the sun.

"She's come all the way here for you," added Joe, "but she doesn't know you." ”

"That's right. I apologize for lying. Joe. Respect you too. It's not going to happen again, is it?"

The girl's face relaxed, revealing her usual smile with her lips closed.

"Good. I will forgive your trespasses. ”

"Ahh Your girl is scary when she's angry. He muttered to Joe, then turned to look at her. Uh, no offense, Maggs. ”

"Nope."

"But it's okay, don't worry," Joe picked up. "I'll settle with them."

"And what about the tournament?" Wouldn't they be angry that they had tried so hard and got nothing?"

"It's okay, it's okay!" He insisted. "I'll let Maggie take your place. She's really happy to do it. ”

"Really? That's great! Once again, I'm really sorry that you two have come all the way because of me. If there's any way I can compensate you - is it, Mags? Do you have a snake in your hair?"

It took him a while, but it seemed that Ryan finally noticed the snake sticking out of her black hair.

"Yes. This is my pet, calm Azgold Caral. She proudly declared.

"So you like animals?"

Maggie had never really thought about it before, but now that she did, the answer was obvious.

"Yes."

"Perfect!" Ryan clapped his hands and said. "My uncle works at the zoo across the street. If you want, I can send him a message to let you in for free. ”

"I accept these conditions."

When the girl heard this, she was visibly happy and immediately went to call the elevator.

"You're so nice, man," Jo said with a smug smile. "You really don't have to."

"That's the least I can do. Go ahead, you two have fun. ”

"Don't you really want to go along?" It's been a long time since we've played together in real life. ”

"We can do it another day. If I follow along, I'll be a light bulb. ”

He blinked and patted Joe on the shoulder.

"Take care, man. See you online. ”

With that, Ryan disappeared into his apartment, and Joe realized he didn't know what to do.

Strictly speaking, he's dating, isn't he?