Chapter 7: Homesick
Mikoto's thoughts drifted away from that night half a month ago, returning to the warm familiarity of the Parker household's dinner table.
Aunt May was still loading her plate with food, muttering softly, "Eat more, Mikoto. You're still growing, you know."
Uncle Ben watched her with a gentle smile, his eyes warm.
Scenes like this had become routine over the past two weeks.
Mikoto picked at her food but in her mind, she was tallying up her "assets."
Since that night, the blue panel in front of her eyes had become a secret only she could see. She had long grown accustomed to summoning it in her mind at any time.
[Guardian Faction Player: Misaka Mikoto]
[Current Total Reputation Points: 14,000]
Compared to her initial eight thousand points, the extra six thousand mostly came thanks to Peter's two friends.
Just a week ago, Peter had introduced her to his best friends with an awkward excitement that felt like he was showing off a new addition to his team.
"Harry, Gwen, this is Mikoto, my... my sister." He scratched the back of his head, cheeks reddening, trying to act like the responsible older brother.
The girl named Gwen Stacy had long, beautiful blonde hair and a radiant smile that immediately won Mikoto over.
Like a friendly big sister from next door, she took Mikoto's hand and curiously asked all sorts of questions about life in Japan. There was no hint of rejection or suspicion in her gaze, only pure friendliness.
[Detected Key Character "Gwen Stacy" has reached "Trust" level with you. Reputation Points earned: 3,000.]
The other, Harry Osborn, was a completely different type. Dressed in sharp designer casual wear, he had a handsome but slightly roguish face.
When they first met, he scrutinized Mikoto with a critical eye, a playful, cynical smile tugging at his lips.
"Parker, where did you find such a cute Japanese doll?"
Peter immediately snapped, "Harry! She's my sister!"
Mikoto merely raised an eyebrow, saying nothing. She had seen this rich-kid attitude plenty of times back in Academy City.
However, when she responded to all his jokes and tests with the poise and elegance honed at Tokiwadai—a grace that would make any socialite feel embarrassed—Harry's expression changed.
The initial frivolity gave way to genuine admiration and curiosity.
[Detected Key Character "Harry Osborn" has reached "Acknowledgment" level with you. Reputation Points earned: 3,000.]
So, building good relations with "key characters" in this world was also a shortcut for earning reputation. Mikoto silently noted that.
Of course, the most significant development over the past two weeks wasn't meeting new friends—it was finally shedding her "illegal resident" status.
This had required enormous effort from the Parkers.
They were law-abiding citizens who didn't want to cut corners. Uncle Ben had spent his modest salary consulting several lawyers, only to be met with frustrating answers.
For a sixteen-year-old girl with no legal identity records, obtaining legitimate citizenship was a process as complicated as climbing to the heavens.
Just when they were at a dead end, a breakthrough arrived.
Gwen, upon learning of the situation, told her father.
George Stacy, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department.
A few days later, a serious-looking man in a trench coat knocked on the Parker household door. He brought no entourage, only arriving as "Gwen's father" to visit the family of his daughter's friend.
He asked detailed questions about Mikoto's "background"—a tragic story fabricated by the Parkers and Mikoto about a distant Japanese relative who survived a maritime disaster alone but lost her memory.
Mikoto kept her head low, playing the timid, trauma-stricken girl with such skill that even she almost believed it herself.
George Stacy listened silently, then glanced at the case file he had brought regarding a recent robbery.
In the file, the robber's injury report was classified top secret. The forensic conclusion: "The hand was instantaneously vaporized by an unknown Gauss kinetic weapon."
His gaze lingered on Mikoto for over ten seconds, as if trying to discern something from this seemingly harmless girl.
In the end, he simply closed the file and told the anxious Parkers, "I'll take care of it. This child needs a normal environment to grow up in."
With the commissioner's special approval, everything cleared smoothly. One week later, a brand-new ID card and Social Security card bearing the name "Misaka Mikoto" arrived in her hands.
"This is wonderful!" Aunt May hugged Mikoto, tears of joy streaming down her face. "Now you can finally go to school with Peter."
Uncle Ben patted Peter's shoulder excitedly. "Peter, you better take care of your sister at school."
And so, Misaka Mikoto officially enrolled at Midtown Science High.
The catch was, she was a freshman, while Peter, Harry, and Gwen were already graduating seniors.
"Hey, Peter," Mikoto nudged the boy beside her with her elbow, who was still lost in thought. "The chicken wrap on your plate is getting cold."
"Ah? Oh!" Peter blinked as if waking from a daze and quickly picked up his knife and fork. Lately, he had been spacing out like this often, sometimes staring off into corners with a distant look.
Mikoto cast him a brief glance but didn't ask further.
Since becoming "siblings," Peter had entered a strange "big brother mode."
Every day going to and from school, he insisted on walking with Mikoto, claiming it was to "protect his sister." At school, any boy who dared glance at her twice would immediately meet Peter's watchful, almost territorial gaze.
Once, the school's notorious bully, Flash Thompson, deliberately tried to bump into Mikoto in the hallway to show off.
Peter was about to rush forward, but he saw Mikoto not even stopping, or even giving the other party a glance, and just walked straight past him.
Flash's burly body collided with Mikoto's petite shoulder, but the expected scene of the girl being sent flying did not occur.
Instead, Flash himself seemed to slam into an invisible wall. He let out a yelp, staggered backward several steps, and ended up plopping onto the floor, his expression more shocked than if he had seen a ghost.
The surrounding students were stunned into silence.
Mikoto merely turned her head, cast him a look of utter disdain, and said lightly, "Eyes on the path while you walk, will you?"
Then she walked off, leaving behind a stunned Flash clutching his shoulder and questioning his life choices.
From that day on, the entire Midtown High knew that the pretty Japanese transfer student freshman was not someone to mess with.
And Peter Parker, the newly appointed "older brother," finally realized that his protective instincts… might be a little redundant.
Still, that didn't stop him from fulfilling his big brother duties. For instance, as soon as he saw Mikoto finish her plate, he asked with habitual attentiveness, "Mikoto, want more? I've got plenty."
"No thanks, I'm full." Mikoto wiped her mouth with a napkin, leaned back in her chair, and wore a satisfied expression.
She had to admit, Aunt May's cooking really was excellent.
Watching this family's smiles, Mikoto felt an odd, comforting warmth settle in her chest.
She knew this peace was only temporary. The red skull symbol of the Assault Faction on her system panel felt like a thorn, a constant reminder of the dangers in this world.
She needed to grow stronger. She needed more reputation points—not just for that astronomical ticket home, but to protect the rare warmth she had found here.
"Alright, kids," Uncle Ben said, standing up and beginning to clear the table. "Go do your homework, especially you, Peter. College applications are coming up, you can't slack off."
"Got it," Peter replied, getting up to help.
Mikoto hopped down from her chair, telling Aunt May and Uncle Ben, "I'm done eating," then turned back to her room.
Once the door closed behind her, the only light in the room came from the orange glow of her desk lamp.
She sat at her desk but didn't take out her textbooks. She had already finished her homework in class.
She reached out her hand and gently swiped in the air.
The blue virtual panel appeared once more.
Her gaze skipped past the dazzling array of shop items and landed directly on the "Bond Summon" list.
Familiar names and avatars lay quietly, each followed by a long, daunting string of zeros.
Her fingers slowly glided down the list until they stopped at the name that always stirred her frustration.
[Kamijou Touma — Reputation Points Required: 1,000,000]
One million…
Still an unattainable number, but compared to Kuroko and the others' four million, it felt… a little closer.
"You idiot…" she murmured softly, her cheeks warming.
Almost in a fit of stubbornness, she slammed the system panel shut.
Silence reclaimed the room.
Mikoto rested her head on her arms, burying her face.
She missed home.
But she also knew that, until she earned enough to return, this was her home.