Chapter 78: Silver Soul (Earth Arc)

After dealing with all the remaining threats, Take Okakura swung her spiked club to shake off the blood. Carrying the weapon, she leapt down from the rooftop. The thick, metallic scent of blood assaulted the senses of the onlookers, making them unconsciously take a step back.

“It’s all taken care of,” Take Okakura announced with a smile.

“You were quick. That means we can start the celebration banquet sooner,” Otose said, stepping through the crowd.

“When you have the victory feast, invite me, Granny Otose. And tell that useless curly-haired guy for me—I’ve repaid his favor.” With that, Take turned to leave.

“Are you leaving?” Otose asked.

“Yes. What’s left is your battlefield now, Granny Otose. As a guest in Kabukicho, it’s time I made my exit,” Take replied.

“A guest, hmm… I’ll have the good sake ready for you next time. Thank you, Take,” Otose said, smiling gently.

Take Okakura smiled, waved, and walked away. Her work here was done. Now… she just wanted to go home and take a shower.

On her way back, she gazed up at Kabukicho’s sky, feeling in unusually high spirits. This was the kind of Kabukicho she liked best.

Just then, her phone rang. Seeing it was Orsay, she was a bit surprised he was calling at this hour. She answered, “Hello, Orsay? What’s the matter?”

“Chief! Emergency—we’ve discovered a fleet from Spring Rain has slipped onto Earth under the cover of the Earth Fleet.”

Spring Rain! A cold gleam flashed in Take Okakura’s eyes. What were those pirates doing on Earth again?

“I’ll be right back.” She hung up, glanced down at her bloodstained clothes, and sighed. No time for a shower, it seemed.

Leaving Kabukicho, she flagged down a taxi. The driver was so startled by her appearance, covered in blood, that he assumed she was injured. Eventually, Take cut off his rambling and told him to just drive.

When she arrived at the Interstellar Auxiliary Police Alliance branch, she saw Orsay waiting anxiously at the door. She couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at how flustered he looked.

She paid the fare and walked over.

“Chief! You’re finally here!” Orsay hurried over, but when he saw her state, he panicked. “Chief, why are you covered in blood? Are you hurt?”

Take waved a dismissive hand. “It’s not my blood, don’t worry. Let’s discuss this upstairs…” She looked up at the office building, still under construction.

Their office still wasn’t finished; lately they’d been borrowing space from other departments to get work done.

“Orsay, let’s talk at my place,” Take suggested.

“All right, Chief. I noticed you didn’t drive, so why not take my car?” Orsay offered.

“Sure,” Take nodded.

Orsay hurried off to fetch his car. Watching him go, Take thought, having a boss like me must be a real headache for him.

Orsay drove them to her apartment. Once inside, he handed her a stack of documents from his bag.

“Chief, please take a look.”

Take flipped through them, her expression growing darker with each page. When she finished, she slammed the file onto the table, her face twisted with anger. “Those bastards! They’re colluding with Spring Rain behind our backs?!”

“Chief, our situation is dire. Originally, Earth’s customs supervision was handled by the Earth Immigration Bureau. But ever since the last director had his accident, all the alien departments stationed on Earth have been fighting for control of customs. Now, we’ve got that piece of the pie…” Orsay’s face turned grim. “Chief, they’re planning to move against us.”

“I know.” Take rubbed her forehead. She’d been prepared for backstabbing, but she hadn’t expected them to be working with Spring Rain as well.

—How infuriating!

“Chief… what should we do now?” Orsay asked.

Take bowed her head in thought for a moment. After her eyes darted back and forth, she looked up and said, “For now, don’t interfere with them.”

“Huh?” Orsay was baffled.

“I want to see what those people are really up to…” Take grinned, a smile that made Orsay shiver.

A few minutes later, Orsay finished briefing Take on the recent events.

“Well, Chief, I’ll take my leave,” he said when he’d finished.

“Drive safely. Goodbye.” Take walked him to the door and saw him off.

After Orsay left, Take returned to her living room. Looking at the pile of documents on her table, she suddenly felt exhausted. She slumped onto the sofa, the coppery scent of blood filling her nose. She longed for a hot shower, but realized she didn’t even have the strength to move.

“So tired…” she murmured.

That was when she remembered the new game console she’d recently bought. Crawling over, she picked it up and powered it on. An image of a handsome man with straight golden hair, dressed in a white and blue kimono, appeared on the screen.

“Gintoki, are you all right?” Take typed into the dialogue box.

“Miss Take? It’s been a while. I’m fine… but I can’t help feeling a bit lonely, not seeing you,” the golden-haired man in the game replied, his expression forlorn.

If that useless, curly-haired idiot were here, he’d never say something like that with such an expression!

“It’s definitely not an old man Gennai game—this one’s really well made,” Take said as she typed.

Yes, old man Gennai had actually made a sci-fi romance simulation game based on Gintoki. Take had no idea what possessed him. But since he claimed he couldn’t sell the game, and Take had mentioned her newfound love for gaming when she visited his shop for a weapon repair, Gennai had simply gifted her the unsold game.

“Miss Take, did I say something to upset you?” the Gintoki in the game asked cautiously.

“No, Gintoki, I just spaced out for a moment. Sorry,” she replied.

“Miss Take, is something wrong? You look exhausted… Could you tell me about it?” Gintoki pressed gently.

“It’s just work stuff. By the way, Gintoki, any new missions today?” Take typed.

The game Gennai created was called “Golden Soul” (…). Take always felt embarrassed just saying the name—no wonder it didn’t sell. Who would want to buy a game with a title that sounded suspiciously like a certain male body part?

Golden Soul’s protagonist was Sakata Gintoki, a sci-fi romance sim set in the future. Gintoki ran a small bar, but secretly, he was the only being in the world with a “golden soul.” Every time, Take wanted to mock that—what the heck was a golden soul anyway?!

Besides robots, the world also featured cyborgs—humans not fully mechanized. The heroine, or rather the player’s character, was a cyborg girl adopted and raised by Gintoki.

As the main character, Gintoki was both the player’s guide and the target for romance. The game featured a job called “Hunter,” whose task was to hunt down criminals and monsters. Players needed to register as Hunters to progress the story and earn money. Gintoki was secretly the mission handler for the Hunters’ organization—a fact only the heroine (Take) knew.

At first, Take had ridiculed the game’s character setup. But the more she played, the more she found the monsters interesting and the battles exhilarating. As for the romance part… Real-life Curly was enough of a headache; she had no interest in pursuing Gintoki in the game.

“Today’s missions are tough, Miss Take. Will you be all right?” Gintoki asked with concern.

“Tough? That only makes it more fun. Tell me!” Take replied.

After a moment’s hesitation, Gintoki gave her the mission details.

Take was delighted and went off to hunt monsters, completely missing Gintoki’s disappointed gaze. After all, to her, he was just a game character.

After finishing her battles, Take felt completely refreshed. Gintoki, who had been watching her play, spoke up: “Miss Take, you’re really amazing. By the way, have you heard about a new game that’s become popular in Edo lately?”

“What game?” Take asked, curious.

“Lovechoriss,” Gintoki replied. Take didn’t notice the flicker in his eyes as he spoke.

“Lovechoriss? What kind of game is that?” Take asked.

“It’s a romance sim, but its AI realism is top-notch. Players can even customize the characters to look however they like. Um…” Gintoki hesitated.

“What’s wrong?” Take prompted.

“Miss Take, I have an unusual request. May I ask you for a favor?” Gintoki finally said.

“What is it? Tell me,” Take said.

“Well, there’s a character in the game called Shirataki Heiko. She’s the least popular romance target because her character is based on… Izumi Hinako,” Gintoki explained.

Take was speechless. With that kind of character design, no wonder no one wanted to pursue her!

“But this character hides a huge cheat—she can transform into whatever the player most desires! The other two heroines can’t do that,” Gintoki said, a bit excited.

“Wait, how do you know so much about another game?” Take asked.

“Well, games exchange information among themselves sometimes, but you humans don’t know about it,” Gintoki replied.

“I see… So, what do you want me to do?” Take asked.

“Miss Take…” Gintoki paused, then gathered his courage. “I want to see the human world, so could you please buy Lovechoriss for me?”

“Sure,” Take agreed without hesitation.

“Huh? You’ll do it just like that?” Gintoki was astonished.

“It’s no big deal. I wanted to try it anyway,” Take said. She made a call, then told Gintoki, “All set. The game will arrive soon.”

“That quickly? It’s really popular right now—hard to get,” Gintoki said in surprise.

“I know a game shop manager who saves all the new releases for me since he knows I’m a big fan,” Take typed.

An hour later, her new game console arrived.

She started it up, and a little angel with a dialogue box appeared: “Welcome to the world of Lovechoriss. Please enter your name.”

Take entered her name—Take Okakura.

The game began, and the three heroines appeared.

The first: Saya Okitakai, president of the kendo club—brilliant in both scholarship and martial arts. “Classic ice queen with glasses,” Take remarked.

The second: Yuri Anozaki, the protagonist’s upperclassman—caring and the big-sister type next door. “The standard childhood friend archetype.”

“Miss Take… you just said something very suggestive,” Gintoki commented dryly.

“And the last one… Shirataki Heiko,” Take read the introduction.

Shirataki Heiko, owner of the diner “Bittersweet” frequented by the protagonist, widow of Takui Kadoya, who died shortly after marriage, and mother to her son Enari, whose catchphrase was, “Even if you say that, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

Take was speechless. This character was straight out of that old TV drama!

“Miss Take, please choose to pursue Shirataki Heiko,” Gintoki urged.

With trembling hands, Take chose her.

In the next instant, a woman’s bloodcurdling scream erupted from the console, followed by a boy’s cry of “Mom!” Her screen flooded with crimson…

Take was dumbfounded.

What the hell was this? Was this really a romance sim?

Author’s note: Thank you to Ge Qin Qin for the thunderous support—so happy! Haha, I’ve introduced Gintoki here, but don’t worry, he won’t be around for too long. By the way, there are quite a few hidden homages in this chapter, especially to Gunnm (Battle Angel Alita) in the game setting—fans might enjoy looking for them.

Random musings from the author: I think my sense of aesthetics is getting weirder. After watching Godzilla today, I thought he looked so cool that for a moment I wanted to write a Godzilla fanfic… Someone please snap me out of it!