<Nocturnal Harmonia>

"They've mostly been sorted into categories. I think there are seven or eight of them," Ren claimed. While Hunters' work was seemingly endless, those who documented their findings had even more work to do. There were eight known major classifications for magic beasts, but multiple subcategories within each. Ren knew of a few types from encounters alone, but that was neither here nor there. What he didn't know, was the details behind Mage types and catalysts. That didn't seem to matter. Miko switched topics, wondering if he worked at this establishment. Her questions seemed a bit on the random side to him, but it wasn't a very big deal at all. "Sometimes," was all Ren said as response.

Meanwhile, Yugi was conversing with the doctor who may prove more useful than most others he might encounter throughout this journey. She wasn't too different, however, arguing that locking the door was more for him than anyone else. "Whatever floats your boat, doc," he said. Tae stated a simple fact: she wasn't the only scholar doing research secretly. While that was an objective truth, he didn't imagine there were many in her specific position. "But you might be the only ousted doctor who refuses to give up so hard, you perform technically illegal experimentations against your own questionable license... all because some little girl who never got to live might never get the chance if you give in now," he stated. Why was he here? The point that would answer that question was mostly made. Still, Yugi saw nothing wrong with being a perfectionist about making it. "I'm here to fix the Eternal Slumber, and I know Oyamada isn't the one I should waste my time with. If anyone's going to fix it, it'll be you. But... you might need me to do it. I'm a bit of a special case in this freaky ass world right now."

Seven or eight categories of magic beast existed. That as good information to have. It was a bit weird, she wondered if the ones she'd seen already counted. Those little fanged static creatures, the mosslings, the phantom, a few other such things. "Mm-hm♪~ Definitely would like that school. Or maybe even just an intro class," Miko decided after learning that sort of information. she was however content to drink her water, and gain information from both things said an unsaid to get to the bottom of the young man known as Amamiya Ren. For now she was content to find out that he did in fact work at this establishment... sometimes. "Good♪~ I was thinking I liked the food here, and I'm technically local I could justify coming back even more now♪~" she claimed earnestly. Even if he couldn't tell her the finer details of certain things, she'd only been asking those questions to work through him as a person. 'Rogue type, doesn't want to talk about himself. Hiding something... but he doesn't actually give me bad vibes,' Miko thought as she looked him over again. He had a head fully of fluffy black hair and while Miko looked at his rather passive face she imagined a strange visual of the lad beneath her, and the ability to run her hands all through his hair while her thighs were wrapped around his head. "Box it!" she muttered quickly closing her eyes and shutting down that thought process as quickly as it started, not because she was uninterested but because it was a little too vivid. "Oh, and thanks... you could have made me freak out really hard when you first got here, but you've been really nice," she stated honestly.

At the same time, Dr. Takemi Tae, was dealing with an enigmatic individual. This young man was standing in her personal clinic making a lot of strange commentary. He called her 'doc' and that was an odd thing to hear, but she didn't hate it either. Whatever the case, this rather young individual definitely came with way too much of an adult manner of speech. She'd call him persuasive but only as much as a punk or hoodlum type could be. He spoke perfectly reasonable sentences, but there was an odd edge to them. This became even more obvious as he picked her life apart in a single moment of speech. "Oh? Is that a parlor trick to pick up women or did you do research?" she questioned rhetorically, it was an emotional cover. It took everything in her not to react directly to the initial provocation. He seemed to place a great deal of faith in her, even though he had no idea who she actually was, unless he truly did research her. And as she finished up her work in putting away her plant and soil samples she locked up that small environment and went over to a sink to begin scrubbing her hands the way that medical professionals got used to doing such a thing. "You are sounding like you have a lot of faith, in someone who is quite literally called the Plague. Still, all I want to do is help people, which is why my work doesn't stop even when it looks bad. And I've seen some pretty freaky things since the start of all this, you're going to have to be something crazy if you think that it will make much of a difference. Though I could use an actual guinea pig, assuming you actually have the constitution for it." she stated as she reached for paper towels dried her hands and then cut off the water, with the paper towel before she tossed it. "Family Member? Girlfriend? Boyfriend? I don't judge... and you don't seem like the pure scientific curiosity type..." she questioned why he cared to try and solve the Eternal Slumber in the first place.

"It would be nice," Ren said about the school. So many Hunters of lower rank reported terrible lives and equally terrible experiences in Dungeons. If they had a bit more knowhow when entering, surely things could be at least a little better. Not everyone could have his experience, the young man thought. Moving on from that thought process, the girl spoke of boxing something. What could that have meant? Ren hadn't a single clue, so he nonchalantly sipped from his glass while receiving unnecessary gratitude. Apparently his behavior saved the girl from a freak-out of epic proportions when he arrived. "Iia. It's nothing worth making a big deal about. I'd have done the same thing if I had the chance," he commented about the brunette's devious activities.

Yugi was on the receiving end of questions he'd become very adjusted to. What was his mental breakdown of the doctor's situation? As always, he'd sum it up in a single word. "Clever," was his only answer. "But if that works as a pickup line, I'm fine with that too," he commented absently afterwards. He'd taken to loosely following the woman around, pacing for seemingly no reason. His arms were crossed, and those eyes that were the only visible part of his face were darting about the clinic. According to Tae, he'd have to be something ridiculous to become what she needed. Yugi had a couple of levels he'd yet to use, acquired around the time he and Kaguya wrapped things up. Those would prove quite useful in the near future. "If I don't have the constitution, I can get it. That'll be your job: telling me what I need to improve for whatever experiment you're running. You're S-rank? I'd place myself somewhere around C-rank right now... but I can get stronger," the lad asserted casually, moving directly on to address Tae's questions about his purpose. He wasn't the type to be curious for scientific purposes alone. The specific connection he had would not be given, but... surely this woman would get the point from the name alone. "A little girl who never got to live, and might never get the chance if you and I don't get to work. Aiba Yumi. Either we solve Eternal Slumber, or I will."

If Miko was to interpret the words of the Silent Protagonist, the world hadn't yet completely worked out the kinks of Dungeons and their clearing. It would appear that many could use a bit of extra knowledge before going into Dungeons. As a person who'd already had her time in a training Dungeon (even if it was just something given by the System), she had more combat experience and general flexibility than could be expected of many of the fresh Awakeners. Moving on from that point and into another one, it would seem her gratitude was unnecessary, he would have done the same thing she'd been doing if he had the opportunity. She looked up at him in the moment studying his face. She imagined he'd be much easier to handle than the S-rank she'd been having sex with, besides that she'd already imagined a sexual activity or two, with him. 'Really? Not just a watching me in the shower testing about the abilities thing, but a general pervert. Still not sure what he's hiding but that is much easier to work with♪~' Miko thought about things happily. "Box it." she said for the second time in just a few moments, mostly because her mind was all over the place currently. But she'd also been considering something else. "I'm not accusing you of anything but what do you think the viability of using an ability like yours to sneak into a Dungeon is?"

Clever. The boy that had followed her into her shop, just to proposition her in the oddest way possible, claimed he was just clever. She chuckled at that, "I am clever. You're something else," she said first and foremost. "After which, fifty-fifty. Either doing something like that works as a pickup line, or you weed out the weak-minded and willed. It works either way," she said given what her own personality was like she was far from one who could judge anything like that. Beyond this pont the young man before her was making some rather crazy claims. If he didn't have the constitution she required he could get it. He could level up... he currently saw himself as about C-rank, but he would be getting stronger. "That isn't possible. There are limits and mana viability to consider. You don't even feel awakened but it's very unlikely for another oddity of that nature to be present," Still, there was her other question. Why she'd take him on at all. She needed to know what he wanted out of this, as that would determine how committed he'd be to the kind of work. His speech was an odd one and the mention of one of her more recent former patients made her look at those eyes of his through the light in the hood. "Sou ka, I guess that makes you the missing brother but.... hmm," she had a pretty good understanding of human bodies, better than most and he was supposed to be a boy approximately 2 years older than his younger sister, there was no way a fifteen year old boy wsa built like what was currently standing in front of her. "Well, it's definitely my aim to figure it out. I don't mind using you as a guinea pig while I get there... but I need some baselines and the like," she mused. He was at minimum a bit of a medical curiosity, but as someone in the same family who wasn't suffering from what she assumed to be mana incompatibility, she could definitely use him to figure things out. And while she thought that over her phone would begin ringing, the caller id reading Shidou Makima.

Shortly after Ren disregarded the girl's previous statement, she said that line again. Her personality wasn't the sort one ran into with any sort of frequency, but that was a particular oddity Ren just didn't understand. He watched her over his water glass, curious... too curious to do anything but ask. "Why do you keep saying that?" he wondered. Ah, but Ren wasn't the only one with questions. As the one who'd been asking them this entire time, Miko had yet another... of a more suspicious nature. How easily could an ability like his sneak into a Gate? Whether he'd done such a thing himself or not, Ren's answer wouldn't change. "It would depend. Someone with good enough senses could figure out there's a person sneaking around, I think. Depending on what guild has rights to the Gate, they might be on the lookout for people who do that. Are you trying to sneak into a Dungeon?"

Tae had an argument for Yugi's claim. The way he saw things, he was simply clever. She, however, insisted that she was clever... with him being something else entirely. "Potato, avocado," he replied as if that made an ounce of sense outside of his own head. He had nothing more to say about that potential pickup line, but everything to say about his ability to grow stronger. "Didn't you just say you were clever? You're a doctor; impossible is more of a 'right here, right now' type of thing. I don't feel awakened because I'm not. Whatever power I have isn't the same as what's been spreading this past year. But... now I'm curious what this mystery person you're talking about is like, and how that compares to me," he rambled. Moving on, Tae managed to figure out who he was despite the changes in his physical form. That would likely serve as evidence toward his more recent claims, but it would be even better for their eventual partnership. Speaking of partnerships, Tae's phone wasn't the only one ringing. There was a notification on Yugi's phone ─ one he viewed instead as a System notification on the spot.

〔SYSTEM NOTICE — BOND ROUTE DETECTED〕
Target: Takemi Tae
Route Name: Clinical Trial
Affinity Conditions: Unstable
Initial Intimacy: 5%
Anomalous behavioral alignment detected.
Risk and benefit parameters are interlinked.
Proceeding may result in unpredictable outcomes.

[ACCEPT]
[DECLINE]

'... Fuck yeah! Fucking edge me harder, System; I've been hoping for that!' Yugi thought the moment he saw that route appear. "Accept," he said, hesitation having no place in his agenda.

Meanwhile, Miko was having an interesting conversation and a question was finally being asked of her. Pure curiosity showed itself on the face of Amamiya Ren as he questioned her 'Boxing' behavior. Miko was a rather open individual, and because she planned to spend at least a reasonable amount of time with this young man, she'd not be keeping secret the oddity of her mind. "It's part of my CBT♪~" she said aloud seeming to think the better of the acronym she used. "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, not to be confused with the other one," she said quickly. "I have an issue concentrating my thoughts on singular subjects. Random things pop-up sometimes or I have really strong visualizations. When this happens I think of myself placing said stray thought or visualization in a box and placing a lid on it. Box it, is a phrase used to trigger that logic in my brain in a short corrective way, it allows me to clear my head. It also helps me organize my thoughts and memories. I've been using it to better my recall among other things," she explained fairly easily. Simple psychology was easy to explain, and she technically explained it in the abridged way it was explained to her, by the man who was in charge of correcting her behaviors. Beyond that point though there was her question of a rather suspicious nature. It would seem that her question had a pretty finite answer. Those with good senses might be able to tell, and beyond that Dungeons could have Guild owners who might be on the lookout. So... maybe. "Hmm..." she seemed to be giving it some thought. "That's another question. I would like to see inside of one without having to out myself. I'd like to test the waters and gather a bit of information. But I am not actively trying anything like that, Amamiya-kun♪~" she stated being playfully evasive.

Meawhile, Yugi was proving himself to be quite a nonsensical lad, aside from his innate genius. Tae could easily put his brain power higher than most other individuals but his choice in word associate was strange. "One of those is a fruit and the other is a root vegetable," she stated in rhetoric. Still, she could appreciate a bit of light-hearted joking, even if she was herself a bit more morbid and sarcastic under most circumstances. "Clever isn't infallible, if you haven't learned that yet, life's gonna get really awkward at some point~" she said in her general manner. As for the matter things possible, "I'm aware speaking in terms of accepted understanding... scholarly impossibility if you will," she said clarifying her statement with an eye roll. Moreover the power structuring of this particular individual was apparently different at base from what was going on with everyone else. If that was true, there were even more variables. He was curious about the other one, "For privacy purposes, I will call him Subject 1. Subject 1 is a male specimen. An Hunter with perfect body, but no measurable Mana. Even so, he can kill magic beast and hypothetically other Hunters, as he doesn't tip off anyone's senses," she explained of the way she was drawing her conclusions. "Though S-rank Hunters tend to be a bit anomalous regardless, several are special or have characteristics that make them terrifying even just to other humans... " she was going to go on explaining but... her phone was ringing and as she pulled it out to look at it she froze. "Speak of the Devil and they will answer..." she paused, stepping outside of that room to answer the call but being strange about it. "Moshi moshi, Shidou-san." she answered. "Who did you let into your clinic when you returned from the Dungeon?" that was one loaded question. She looked at the lad seemingly surprised. "A patient."

When asked about her odd and random phrase, Miko answered that it was part of her... CBT. Ren's eyes widened. He gulped water rapidly to avoid choking, but didn't lower the glass from his lips. There was such shock appearing on his face in a single moment, at least compared to its resting state of curiosity... but also something resembling excitement? Ah, but she was talking about cognitive behavioral therapy ─ something very unlike what he initially thought. During a rather long explanation of the method, Ren swallowed the remaining water in his cup ─ perhaps even to calm himself down by the time Miko finished. "... Sou ka. I understand," he said, adding nothing more. Why did those things have the same acronym? What a strange world this was. Well, maybe Ren could manage to keep the topic shifted away from that matter by talking about... the illegal entry of dungeons. "If you're a registered Hunter of any rank, you can get into one even if it's just as a porter or miner. Sneaking into one would be easier in a Field-type Dungeon when nobody else is around. Probably," he answered.

An avocado was a fruit, and a potato was a root vegetable ─ Tae insisted as much after Yugi's comparison. His response was rather quick. "A potato is a tuber. It doesn't grow straight down," he corrected first and foremost. "And they're both things humans decided are edible, but... how? Who looked at a potato and lost twelve teeth trying to take a bite, just to not learn their lesson and figure out how they could eat it anyway? And who ate a raw, skin-on avocado and added it to their regular diet after that nightmare of a digestion process and a disgusting flavor to boot? They're dumb foods to discover," he ranted. Whatever the case, there was another exceptional individual in this world apparently. As a doctor, it was no surprise that Tae gave no names. A person without mana who managed to be a noteworthy Hunter, though... he'd definitely find that person's identity at some point whether he looked or not. He even had a couple of indirect hints to go by. "S-rank, no mana, local, totally jacked and... local. Got it," he said before both he and Tae were occupied by alerts. Interestingly enough, Yugi discovered another when he viewed his stats...

〔SYSTEM UPDATE — PROGRESSION ADJUSTMENT〕

Following internal calibration, Player growth parameters have been revised.

Stat Allocation Update:

• Points gained per level increased from 3 → 5.
• Adjustment applied retroactively.
• All previously earned levels have been recalculated.
• Unassigned Stat Points have been credited accordingly.

Compensation Issued:

• Skill Rune ×1 has been granted to each Player.

Status:
This update is permanent and applies to all future progression.

Naturally, Yugi had only one thing to say when he suddenly saw an extra 50 points on his stat sheet as opposed to the expected six. "... Fucking what?!"

Miko's initial mentioned of CBT had an odd sound entering her ears. The gulping of water became something quite intense, and drew her eye while she spoke. There was more expression on Ren's face in this moment, then she'd seen thus far... was he really interested in such a thing? She wasn't judging him at all, it was however a rather intense thing to catch someone's interest. she wondered in that moment if it would be worthwhile to press at that information, it seemed like he was into quite a few things, voyeurism, CBT, exhibitionism. All of those things implied an amount of sexual openness which was something Miko would likely be better off addressing directly. "Yeah, I do it a lot, I usually swing back around to them," she mentioned quietly. Still the lad was content to move on, not push those boundaries himself... he instead chose to discuss entering a Gate illegally, or legally. New information came forth in the form of porters and miners which could be tasks even if she was 'weak'. "Field-type? There are different types?!" Miko seemed a bit agitated, still as her phone vibrated and she found herself reading a System Notification.

At the same time Tae was on the receving end of quite the rant. She paused, hearing out all the things the lad had to say, from correcting potato from root veg to tuber, all the way to his dissertation on the oddity of human food choices and the pioneering spirit such a thing took. "So, you'll just rant about anything?" she commented, though she couldn't find a flaw in his logic. She also had to admit that he was pretty spot on about his assertions concerning 'Subject' 1, but before she could properly comment, both of them seemed to be busy, her with a phone call concerning him and him with a notification on his phone. Still at the same time Tae, was fielding questions from the type of person she found it rather difficult to lie to, still such a thing didn't seem necessary. "A patient? It must be quite the emergency for him to go looking for you, while you were in a Dungeon..." Makima stated calmly. "Something like that... I haven't had time to finish his work up so I should really be getting back to it," Tae said with a somewhat earnest meaning. "Yes, be that as it may, he was still moving around during a lockdown. Hand him your phone, I'm going to speak with him," Makima demanded. Tae took a deep breath and simply did as she was asked. "Hai." she said pulling her phone away from her ear, she held it out to Yugi. "Shidou-san wishes to speak to you."

Luckily for Ren, it didn't seem like he was outing himself today. Well, that was his current take on the matter anyway. It seemed Miko was instead content to question the phrase 'Field-type' upon hearing it, not knowing there were different types of Dungeons. Well... type wasn't quite right, Ren thought. The strangest part remained the simple fact that she didn't know that term. "You didn't know?" he asked first. Rationalizing that she wouldn't sound so aghast if she did know, Ren figured an explanation was in order regardless. "When a Dungeon Break happens, it affects a large area around the Gate. If the boss isn't defeated, it becomes a Field type. You've never seen one of those closed-off areas this year? Some guilds even let Dungeon Breaks happen in remote areas so they can use them for farming," he explained.

All the while, Yugi was aghast. There was anger in his reaction to the System update, if only because those points would have been very useful when he nearly had his cock chopped off! However, there was also... satisfaction. This kind of update meant there was essentially game balancing to consider. He and Miko would get buffs when they needed, and he doubted any nerfs would be coming from something that wanted them stronger. 'Fuck you, Brainface, but that's awesome! Now what's that Skill Rune...' Yugi was prepared to inspect his Inventory for the aforementioned rune, but it seemed there would instead be an interruption. Tae returned offering him a phone and talking about someone named Shido. That name was familiar, yet foreign. He didn't think it was someone connected to his father, but it was worth some skepticism as he reached out to grab the device. 'That's annoying. Who the fuck...' he thought. Nevertheless, Yugi would be holding the phone next to his ear. What would he say? Well... nothing, actually.

Ren had outed himself, but Miko was kind above most other things. She wouldn't be drawing attention to him in a negative way, especially not when there were other things to discuss. "I know that seems outlandish but I've been having such a time," Miko exclaimed. Well, she couldn't explain currently that the year everyone else had experienced was only a singular day to her. Nor any of the other random things that had happened around her. No matter... there was an explanation incoming. Apparently the end result of a Dungeon Break, when a boss wasn't cleared, was... a Field of Mana rich area, which would by definition of 'farming' respawn the other creatures. "Okay, that's sounds like both a great idea and a horrible idea. So many things could go wrong with something like that, and it's so early after everything happening," Miko muttered as if her mind was burning through several areas of thought. Still, she was looking at her phone and finding a whole 52 skill points to distribute, due to balancing in the System. These updates were permanent, and would mediate Miko's OCD as well as giving her quite a bit of extra. She'd be seen rather quickly sending out a text message in her usual way, straight to Yugi. 'DID YOU FUCKING SEE THIS GAME BALANCING!!?!! ₍₍⚞(˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶)⚟⁾⁾' she put her energy into that text message and held only the excitement in her eyes instead of accidentally blurting out anything. Still her brain was moving so something else occurred and a pop happened. "Oh, box is open. So, thigh-highs and heels or just tights, Amamiya-kun♪?~" she asked of Ren.

Meanwhile, Tae soon had her hands free but her mind occupied by the oddity surrounding Shido Makima's interest in the boy who'd come looking for her. The phone was handed over, Makima had no doubts about this, but silence on the other end was unusual, at least from people who didn't already know her and weren't already used to dealing with her. "Oh? Not going to speak first? Good. Still, after watching you avoid every Hunter between the main street and the clinic the least you could do is follow directions and stay indoors during a lockdown. You'll put the population at risk and spread the Dungeon Break's radius," she gave that information and full knowledge that she'd been watching his activity.