Early morning, Millennium Science School.
"Hello, welcome to the Game Development Department!"
The android girl who came to greet me at the door spoke with a serious expression.
"I am Aris. Everyone calls me a great master of the gaming domain. Before beginning the adventure, please select the Game Development Department member you favor, Sensei, to serve as your initial student."
…What is she talking about?
After hesitating for a moment, I said solemnly, "Then I choose you, Aris."
At once, a bright smile bloomed on Aris's face.
"Bum bum bum!∼ Aris has been captured by Sensei!"
I did not really understand what was going on, but she was unbelievably cute.
Putting aside whether her language skills had improved or not, was Aris cute or not? That was the real question.
I affectionately rubbed Aris's head. The girl showed an expression of enjoyment, then obediently stepped aside.
I walked inside and looked around. After taking in the current state of the Game Development Department's activity room, I could not help raising an eyebrow.
I saw Midori lying on the sofa, eyes tightly closed, breathing steady, a trace of glistening drool at the corner of her mouth. She looked completely at peace in her sleep.
Aside from her and Aris, there seemed to be no one else in the room.
That explained why Aris was the one who opened the door for me.
"Where are Momoi and Yuzu?"
"You came too late..."
Aris said sorrowfully.
"Yuzu exhausted all her stamina and sealed herself inside a coffin of steel. All we can do now is wait for a miracle to occur."
…Why does she make it sound like she is critically injured beyond saving?
I glanced at the tightly shut locker door.
"So she is sleeping in the locker, right? Then where did Momoi go?"
Aris thought for a moment.
"Momoi encountered an urgent emergency. Aris accepted the main quest of welcoming Sensei from her."
That Momoi. Calling me over early in the morning and then running off on her own without even telling me on MomoTalk.
Honestly, it fit my impression of Momoi perfectly.
I smacked my lips, planning to find a place to sit and message Momoi to ask when she would be back.
However, just then, hurried footsteps came from the corridor outside, growing closer.
Holding something in her hands, Momoi pushed open the door that Aris had just closed, slightly out of breath. Her eyes lit up.
"Ah! Sensei, you came so early!"
Bang!
"That hurts!"
I was just about to respond when I heard the sound of a hard object colliding from inside the locker in the corner, followed by Yuzu's cry of pain.
Immediately after that, Midori suddenly opened her eyes and sat upright. Her expression went from blank, to clear, then to panicked.
"S-Sensei?! Why did you come so early?!"
Momoi puffed out her chest proudly.
"I was the one who called Sensei over. Hey, Midori, what are you doing?!"
With a creak, the locker door opened. Yuzu, clutching her reddened forehead, tears welling at the corners of her eyes, crawled out while whimpering. What greeted her was the chaotic sight of Momoi and Midori tangled together, and she hurried over to break it up.
In truth, it was just Midori clenching her fists and lightly pounding Momoi without much force. Momoi barely resisted at all, probably because it did not really hurt.
After they were pulled apart, Midori was still furious and demanded.
"If Sensei was coming, why did you not wake me up earlier?!"
Yuzu did not say anything, but she also stared intently at Momoi, the culprit.
I could completely understand. Showing up in front of the person you admire while still half asleep, unwashed and unprepared, was a devastating blow for a lovestruck girl.
Personally, I thought it was quite cute.
Of course, I had no intention of speaking up for Momoi. In this situation, saying anything rash would only make things more awkward.
Despite being an idiot, Momoi vaguely realized what she had done wrong. She scratched the back of her head apologetically and laughed foolishly.
"...Ahaha, sorry about that, I was in such a rush that I forgot."
I chose that moment to ask, "So, what is that you are holding?"
"Hehe∼ ta da∼!"
Like she was presenting a treasure, Momoi proudly showed everyone the card with a large photo of Aris printed on the front, then handed it to Aris.
"Here, take it."
Aris looked puzzled for a moment.
"Aris∼ Aris obtained the [Mysterious Certificate]!"
"Oh, your tone sounds more refined than yesterday. This is a Student ID."
Hearing Momoi's praise, Midori sighed and complained.
"Can that really be called refined? It sounds exactly like the speech style from some retro game."
Aris looked at the student ID in her hand and repeated.
"Student ID...?"
Momoi explained.
"It is the thing we got yesterday after enduring all that bureaucracy and running all over the place. Um, you could say it is a quest reward."
At that, Aris's gaze immediately sharpened.
"To put it simply, with this, Aris officially becomes our companion!"
"Proof of companionship... I see, I understand."
Aris smiled in realization.
"Bum bum bum!∼ Aris has joined as a companion∼"
I applauded from the side.
"Congratulations."
With this, the issue of the Game Development Department not having enough members should finally be resolved.
Given Aris's intense interest in games, joining the Game Development Department was a natural outcome for her.
"With this, the uniform, the student ID, and even the way of speaking are all settled... next would be... weapons, right?"
Momoi nodded.
"Yes. Aris, we will take you on a tour."
"A tour...?" Aris tilted her head.
"We...?" Midori and I exchanged a glance.
"That is right. Next, we will take Aris with us to tour our school, Millennium!"
Momoi paused.
"Ah, Midori, it is fine if you do not come. Me and Sensei are enough."
"Who said I am not going?! Wait for me a second!"
Midori shot her sister a fierce glare, dug out a washbasin, towel, cup, toothbrush, toothpaste, and other necessities from the locker, then ran outside to fetch water and wash up.
Yuzu hesitated.
"If we are going out... I will... but I will also excuse myself for a bit..."
As she spoke, Yuzu glanced at me and followed after Midori.
"Then while we have this time, I will explain first!"
Momoi cleared her throat.
"At Millennium... no, all students in Kivotos have their own weapons. So we also need to prepare a weapon for Aris."
As she spoke, she showed off her pink painted assault rifle, fitted with cute decorations.
"There are many methods, but in Millennium, the most convenient place to get good weapons..."
At this point, Momoi quietly winked at me.
And I had already guessed the place she was about to name, as well as the reason she had called me here.
"As expected," Momoi said, "it is the Engineering Department."