Chapter 500: An ‘eerie’ negotiation |
After around a half hour or so, Erie called John back inside.
When he entered again, Erie handed John's phone back and said, "Hope is nice."
Seeing that she was visibly lighter than when he first arrived, John smiled and said, "Yeah. It's in her name. She makes people feel better, you know?"
Erie giggled. "You're terrible, you know that?"
"If you're talking about my puns, get used to them."
Erie rolled her eyes and sat up straighter in her bed. "...You said you wanted to hear my wish, right? Is it for the lore? Or... do you mean my real wish?"
"Both." John pulled a chair over and sat down. "They don't have to be the same thing."
Erie was quiet. Then she took a deep breath and said, "...The CEO of Variant Hue. I want you to take him out."
John blinked. "Titor? You want me to get rid of him? But he just bought the company though?"
"...Oh. OH!" John snapped his fingers, laughing. "You don't know, do you? I guess you've been on media blackout?"
Erie pursed her lips. "...Don't tell me something stupid happened like it went bankrupt and someone bought Variant Hue out?"
"...If you don't want me to tell you, I won't. But-"
"Are you for real?!" Erie threw her arms in the air and then winced. "Owowow..."
John unwrapped another chocolate bar from his suitcase and handed it over. "Here. Caramel chocolate."
Erie huffed and took the offered chocolate. "Should I be concerned that you have sweets to offer girls on hand?"
"No, because this is how I keep my wife from ambushing me. That one is homemade by the way."
Erie paused and looked at the chocolate bar, her emerald eyes wide in surprise. "Homemade? ...Really?" She took another bite. "...This tastes like luxury chocolate though?"
"Thank you. I try."
Erie rolled her eyes. "That confident demeanor isn't just an act, I see."
"Of course not." John chuckled. "I am unapologetically myself most of the time."
Erie raised an eyebrow. "Only most of the time?"
"The other times I'm roleplaying as Titor, Jenny, or Hana's Onii-chan in chat."
"Pft." Erie laughed. "...You're ridiculous. This is ridiculous. The fact that I'm still even here on this planet is ridiculous."
John smiled. "Well. Maybe heaven just decided it's too soon for you to be an angel."
Erie snorted. "Yeah. Maybe-" She paused.
John paused too. "...That look. I know that look. It's the look a girl gets when they have an idea that's ridiculous, but they're about to say-"
"Hear me out."
"...Hear me out." John sighed. "Okay. What is it."
Erie smiled. "What if my VTuber avatar is like, an angel? Or like a literal ghost."
John looked amused. "I mean, Hope was joking about literally being the goddess of hope Elpis. You could be like an angel if you wanted."
Erie's emerald eyes sparkled with mischief. "Yesss. And then we could get the next girl to be like, a devil. Or maybe a priestess? But like, not a goddess priestess, but a CULT priestess. No, an OCCULT priestess."
"What, like Heather?"
Erie blinked. "Heather?"
John nodded. "Yeah. Heather. I knew a gal once. Apparently the reincarnation of an eldritch deity."
Erie snapped her fingers. "Right! That! Exactly that! And the lore can be like... I'm a real angel who was abandoned by God who Elpis picked up! And then the other girl is like, a lost lamb who thinks that Elpis is her god, but she isn't, but Elpis is too nice to explain! And then-!"
"Whoa there." John laughed. "I'm not the one making the decisions here, you know? I don't know what it was like in Variant Hue- Actually, that's a lie. Discovery is a thing, so I know. But at Project MirAIs, we don't do the creative decisions, you know. That's all on you girls."
Erie paused. "...Really?" Her voice came out soft and fragile. "...You mean... we can do what we want? Alfi, Aoko, everyone... they aren't doing those streams because you told them to?"
"Well." John hummed. "I tell them to do singing streams at least once a month so we can market ourselves as an idol group still... but other than that, nope. Because in the worst case scenario, I'll just beg my sister to make her once in a moon appearance so we can cosplay Len and Rin."
"Pft. You WOULD do that, wouldn't you?" Erie let out a warm smile. "Make a fool of yourself just so everyone else is okay."
"I mean, have you SEEN my concert to find my wife back in... November? Winter? It's been a while. Memory's fuzzy with being a dad."
Erie chuckled. "That's true... How did you get the rights to broadcast all over the world anyway?"
"Top secret. And I'm also lowkey wondering why none of the girls have asked yet." John shrugged. "Maybe they want to do it on their own merit? I dunno. But anyway." He pulled out his phone and said, "We're getting sidetracked."
"Right." Erie calmed down and said, "...So, this is real? You want me to be part of Project MirAIs EN? This... 'Protest' or whatever Hope said?"
"Protest sounds like a good name." John nodded. "And yes. You and Hope are very on-brand for that for various reasons... but also you and Hope want this. Like, really, really want this."
Erie paused. Then she let out a soft smile. "I do. I really, really do." She placed her hand over her heart. "...It hurt. Not being able to be with everyone. And... it'll hurt. Not ever being able to be Meryl Kodomo again. But..." She clenched her hand into a fist and nodded. "...The ones who are there for me will find me again. Right?"
John smiled. "That's right. And there's a saying in Chinese, you know?"
Erie smiled back. "Yuanfen, right? If it's fated, no matter the distance, no matter the circumstances, we'll meet."
John paused. "I was thinking about the saying that sharing a glance in one lifetime makes you strangers in the next, and then friends in the life after that. Or something along those lines. Translating ancient sayings are complicated."
Erie laughed. "That's a good saying." She placed her hands over her heart. "...Strangers in the last, friends in this life. Then... if we go by that, we'll be family in the next, right?"
John hummed. "That, or lovers... I think that's how it usually goes."
Erie nodded. "Alright. Then... for all the ones who were my friends as Meryl Kodomo." She smiled, warm. As if the weight from her burdens had finally been cast away. "...I'll meet them again and welcome them as family in my next. As whoever I become in Project MirAIs."
John nodded. "That's good. Then... here." He reached into his briefcase and said, "I know the doctors don't let you have a phone just yet, so I brought you physical copies of both the contracts and the employee handbook. Illustrated edition with annotations by LoreOwl."
Erie took the leatherbound copies of both with a mildly concerned look. "Should I be worried about the fact they're leatherbound...? Like, these look almost like grimoires..."
"They are."
Erie froze.
"Just kidding." John laughed.
"...I hate you."
"Lies. But anyway." John waved towards the leatherbound contract and the leatherbound illustrated employee handbook. "I figured you might want to keep these as souvenirs... and to keep rereading when you're bored here. They're pretty sturdy, so don't worry about breaking them. They're also waterproof."
"...Why are they waterproof?" Erie paused. "...Do I even want to know?"
"Oh, it's no big deal. Lore just wanted to make sure that they're multi-environment friendly. Apparently he reads stuff in the bathtub and the pool, so he makes sure all his sources are printed on waterproof material."
Erie slowly blinked. Then she laughed. "Well. That sounds like something a person named LoreOwl would do."
"Yep. So... You can read all those on your own time at your leisure. But in the meantime." He pulled out his phone. "Do you have another wish? You know, since Titor apparently already preempted yours."
Erie paused, thinking. "...It's something stupid."
"No wish is too stupid. To put it into perspective, Hana wished for her mom to be cured of cancer and we made it happen."
Erie froze. "...What?"
"What?" John smirked. "We have mysterious resources, you know~? Are you scared?"
"As if. But like... are you serious? Or just joking?"
"Read the handbook and come to your own conclusion."
"...I'm kind of scared to now."
"Then join the crowd consisting of Miya, Rhea, and Aoko. They all refuse to read the updated handbook too since they're afraid to be right on things."
"...You REALLY aren't selling me on joining."
"Because you already decided~"
"...I mean, true, but..." Erie paused. "Wait. You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? Distracting me."
John chuckled. "Guilty as charged. I figured it's been a while since you've laughed and smiled. Is it working?"
Erie snorted. "...I'm concerned at how well you can do this. You really only have one wife? You aren't cheating?"
"I reject the words you said, sever the karma, and politely ask you to never say that in earshot of my wife. She's better now, but she still gets triggered."
"...Right. Yandere wife. Not surprised one bit..." Erie hummed. "But a wish... It really can be silly?"
John nodded. "Of course. As silly as you want."
"Then... I want to own a pizzeria."
John paused. "What?"
Erie looked at him and said, "You heard me. I want to own a pizzeria. With animatronics, arcade games... all of that. Not for the streaming or anything. Just because."
John blinked.
Erie stared at him.
Then John opened up his voice notes on his phone. "Note to self. Look into buying Freddy's Pizzeria chain and revamping it."
Erie's eyes widened and she let out a genuine smile. "Really?! Freddy's?! Oh my god, you're getting me FREDDY'S!? With the creepy animatronics who DEFINITELY didn't kill kids in the past? And who DEFINITELY aren't haunted?!"
John paused. "...Please tell me you aren't a fan of paranormal activity and haunted buildings?"
"What are you talking about?! Those are amazing! I've always wanted to go to a real one! Wait, Hope said you moved her to Japan, right? Oh my god, can we go to a real one? Like, the haunted hospitals and everything? Or like abandoned houses? Oh! And can I like, get an advance to buy equipment? I've always wanted an EMP reader and stuff!"
John stared at Erie as she continued ranting and raving about ghost hunting, paranormal activity, cryptids, and everything tangential to all of that.
And as he did, he only had one thought.
'...Hope really is the only normal girl I've met since coming to this world, huh...?'