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Chapter 537: 537

Opening my eyes, I found myself standing in a city in the middle of the night .

Surrounded by skyscrapers that seemed to pierce the heavens and bright light that drowned out the starlight, I looked around the area in the middle of a wide road . The road was about six lanes wide, and I could tell from the surrounding scenery that this place looked high-class .

The first thing that came to mind was the Metropolitan Expressway…… Yes, the scenery here was just like the Earth .

Of course, there were some differences . Most of the buildings that stand tall are circular in shape and are so large that they should be called towers rather than buildings . Moreover, the light that illuminates the road isn’t like the streetlights littering the streets of Japan, as they’re like a glowing tube that extends to the end of the road .

In other words, this scenery around me could be described as the Sci-Fi Future Metropolitan Expressway…… A- Amazing . It’s as if I’ve moved from the world of fantasy to the world of Science Fiction .

Yes, seriously, I couldn’t believe that I’m in a virtual space . I could feel the slightly chilly breeze, the feeling of my feet standing on the road, and I could even move my body as I wanted to .

[What do you think, Kaito-san? Isn’t it great!?]

[Y- Yes, this is really great . If I didn’t know that the body I have now is a mental clone, I wouldn’t have known the difference . ]

Alice had appeared next to me before I knew it, but I couldn’t hide the excitement that was welling up in my heart .

[Isn’t it? I’m proud of this item after all . It’s modeled after Kaito-san’s world, but just integrating your world here isn’t really interesting, so I’ve made some changes . ]

[I’m seriously impressed . For me to play as I want in such a realistic virtual world……]

[H- Hmmm……]

[Unnn? What’s the matter?]

For some reason, Alice’s expression turned a bit awkward when I excitedly told her this . When I questioned her about it, she slightly scratched her cheek and spoke .

[……No, well, I’m going to give you the freedom to play around the place later but…… to be honest, this isn’t really finished yet . ]

[Really?]

[Yes, the only thing that’s been completed so far is the “racing game” . ]

[……Ahh, so that’s why we appeared on the expressway . ]

I see, I still think it’s awesome though . I’m looking forward to playing it . It’s going to be really interesting to play a racing game in such a realistic world like this .

[……No, well, I’ve actually been discussing the idea of playing in this virtual world with Kuro-san for a long time but…… I guess it really isn’t that easy . ]

[Is that because it requires some amazing technology?]

[Of course, the technology needed to construct a virtual world is great and complex . But more than that…… In order to maintain the virtual world, we would need a tremendous amount of high-purity magic crystals…… no matter how rich Kuro-san is, magic crystals are indispensable for magic tools and are needed all over the world . We would need a huge amount of magic crystals, but we couldn’t just monopolize them, so this had just stopped as a mere idea . ]

[……Arehh? But now, even though it’s not completed, you can already offer it as an attraction though?]

[……No, you see, the “sponsor for the Six Kings Festival is Shallow Vernal” after all…… so we can use all the rare materials we wanted . ]

[A- Aahhh…… I see . ]

[So, we’ve gathered enough magic crystals to build and maintain the virtual world, but since we’ve stopped at the planning stage…… the VR hasn’t been completed yet . Well, we’ve finished some things to some extent, so we implemented the racing game and made it an attraction . ]

For Shiro-san to easily provide the materials needed by Kuro and Alice, materials that they had difficulty gathering…… Shiro-san really is the most cheat-like of all .

[Well, it’s already awesome as it is . I’m looking forward to playing the racing game . ]

[Ahaha, then, let’s get started…… Let’s get you starting with the menu screen . ]

[Errr, how should I do that?]

[Draw three circles in the air counterclockwise with your hand . Doesn’t matter whether you use your right or left hand . ]

[Roger that…… W- Whoaa!?]

When I moved my hand as Alice told me to, I saw a translucent display pop out of empty air…… The menu screen appeared . W- What a futuristic feeling, this is…… I’m feeling even more excited .

[Most of the entries haven’t been implemented yet but…… Try pressing the “game” button at the top of the screen with your finger . Then, select the racing game, and you’ll see the vehicles you can pick . ]

[……I don’t know how many times I’ve said this, but this is seriously awesome . Uwaaahh, there’s a lot of options to choose from……]

[Each vehicle has a few characteristics, but the performance between them isn’t very different . For a beginner like Kaito-san, I’d recommend this one . It has a good overall balance and is easy to operate . ]

Saying that, Alice pointed to a black motorbike with a cool sleek form . H- Hmmm, it certainly looks cool and fast but……

[……But Alice . I’ve never driven a motorbike before……]

[Ahh, it’s alright . The Support-system is always activated, so you basically will not fall or stumble . In the case of a car, if you press the accelerator, it would run forward, while pressing the brake would make the car stop…… We made it to be something simple like that . Furthermore, it’s only a game, so even if you have an accident or something here, it won’t hurt you nor would you break your vehicle . It’s designed so that even children can play it . ]

[I see, that’s a relief then . ]

[Yes, but if you have an accident…… like hitting a wall perhaps, your speed will drastically decrease, so be careful . ]

They’ve really thought about this . I’m sure I’ll have a lot of fun playing this . For the time being, I decided to choose the bike that Alice recommended .

Selecting the bike on the screen and pressing the button, the motorbike appeared right next to me .

[Ohh, it really looks cool, looking at it like this……]

[That motorbike is called the “BC-96”, designed by Kuro-san!]

[……Fumu . ]

BC…… Baby castella . 96…… Kuro . Nah, there’s no way she named it just like that……

(T/N: 9 = Ku/Kyuu 6 = Roku, so 96 is Kuro . )

[Well then, let’s get started! It’s boring if it’s just the two of us playing, so I’ll add 4 NPCs, okay~~]

As she said this, Alice operated the menu screen and four new vehicles appeared beside us . Whoa, you can even add NPCs…… non-player characters in, this really is a game out of my dreams .

Their vehicles also look…… cool…… huh?

[……Hey, Alice . ]

[What is it?]

[Ummm…… Doesn’t that vehicle kind of look like a mini-sized Megiddo-san?]

[Ahh, that’s the “Red Gorilla Mark II” . It’s not a very fast vehicle . ]

[……Ahh, I see…… Try not to get into a fight with Megiddo-san, okay?]

Red Gorilla, she said…… No, let’s just forget about that……

I felt like I had found something that they would fight about again, but I decided to just ignore it and play the game . Before I knew it, a small buggy-like vehicle was set up next to Alice, and it seemed like everyone was ready to go .

Straddling my motorbike…… It was indeed very stable, and I didn’t have to balance myself to keep the motorbike from wobbling . I think I can drive this without any problems .

[Well then, I’ll start the count, okay~~]

[Yeah!]

As Alice announced in a bright voice, a red signal light appeared in the air…… and after a few seconds of counting, it turned blue, signaling the start of the race .

(T/N: Japan has red, yellow, blue traffic lights instead of the red, yellow, green of other countries . )

Dear Mom, Dad————- The VR that Kuro and Alice have created seems to be a work that is still in progress, but it’s really great and I’m extremely impressed . We’re going to play a racing game, and as I’m feeling excitement rise through the roof————- I started my motorbike .

? ? ? : [Alright, let’s start with the count!]

Serious-senpai : “Wait a moment, the goal is that way though…… Uwaahh, where the heck is that motorbike going? There definitely are some races where you have the advantage when you get the high-ground, taking shortcuts that’s normally inaccessible, but is that rider going to ride up to the highest point before trying to overtake the others?]

? ? ? : [!? That motorbike…… Do you know its model?]

Serious-senpai : “……If I remember correctly, it’s a B-series motorbike…… Probably related to that castella guy . 96…… It’s BC-96 . “

? ? ? : [……What about its color!?]

Serious-senpai : “Why the heck have you been asking me all that? Anyway, it’s black…… A black baby castella . ]

? ? ? : [……So you’ve finally shown yourself huh…… I’ve been waiting for you . ]

Serious-senpai : “……Hey, we still going to continue with this farce? Some of the young people these days can’t tell the difference between the original and a parody, you know?”

T/N: 88/281