Valkyria Saga

I sat inside a local ice cream shop with Yumeji, Kikyo, and Orika, our shopping bags placed beside us as we gossiped with one another about our day so far. I was halfway listening to the conversation as my focus was on the TV screen along the wall. Yumeji noticed my distracted gaze and looked at the TV as well, gasping and patting Kikyo's shoulder excitedly.

"What is it, Yume?" Kikyo asked, looking at Yumeji's hand rapidly patting her shoulder.

"Look!" Yumeji exclaimed, pointing at her TV screen.

The four of us looked at the screen, seeing a music video playing and Yumeji and Kikyo immediately recognized the girl on the screen while Orika and I were left wondering who it was. The girl on the screen looked to be some form of idol, a very pretty one at that.

The girl had silvery-white hair styled in two voluminous, curled pigtails that created a distinctive and futuristic look. Her hairstyle was complemented by red and black hair accessories that added a touch of sophistication and technology.

She wore a white dress-like outfit with a structured, high-tech design. The outfit had red and black accents, likely indicating a specific theme or uniform. The style incorporated mechanical and armor-like elements, suggesting she might be an android or at the very least an artificial human. Her gloves and stockings featured similar red and black patterns, enhancing her sleek and coordinated look.

"Who is that?" Orika asked, her gaze unable to leave the screen as she watched the girl dance and perform on the music video with the sounds of techno-pop music playing.

"That's our good friend, Saito Hirai. She's actually our third partner when we go out on missions if there are any. She is a super popular idol in four Continents with her group called Electrica Bunnies," Kikyo explained, turning her gaze to us.

"She's supposed to be coming home today so she can attend classes again. She was out on tour all last week for her newest song, Cyber Bunny! I miss my beautiful Techno Enhanced girlie~" Yumeji hummed, moving her head to the song playing on the TV.

"Techno Enhanced?" I asked, leaning back in my chair, raising an eyebrow at Yumeji.

"Saito in her past was experimented on by anothet evil organization named Demon Order. She was once a normal girl like you and me, but became...I guess you can say a synthetic human, a Biodroid? It's still hard to explain," Kikyo said, trying her hardest to explain what Saito was exactly.

I nodded my head at her explanation, faint remnants of my old memories with Judgement flashing in my head. I knew all too well what it was like to be experimented on to become the Perfect Agent for them. Part of me resonated with that part of the explanation for Saito.

"She should be back today, so you'll be able to meet her at the dorms. We should probably be heading back to the academy though, our free period is nearly up," Yumeji said, collecting our empty ice cream cups and stood up from the table.

"Right, don't want to have to run laps again because we were late. Liao Ru is very strict with her discipline," Kikyo said, getting up from her seat as well.

Orika and I got up from our seats as well then the four of us left the ice cream shop and made our way back to the academy with out bags in tow. I offered to place our bags at the dorms so Yumeji and Kikyo didn't have to risk being late to Liao Ru's class.

With that, I took the bags from Kikyo and Yumeji, hauling them to the dorms while Orika headed to her own dorm for the day since we didn't have any other classes for the rest of the day. As I walked to the dorms, my mind drifted off to the music video of Saito and I felt slightly excited to meet an actual idol.

It was rare for me to even think about fun things when I was working for Judgement due to the fact that I was always training or on missions with the higher ranks. Now that I was here, I could finally feel the excitement that I was desperately missing.

I made it to our dorm room, using my key card to enter inside then closed the door behind me, locking it. I walked toward Yumeji's and Kikyo's room, placing their bags on their bed then walked to my room to put away my new clothes.

"I wonder how these would look on me. I'm not too knowledgeable on women's fashion. I practically let Yumeji pick everything our for me...and she's got some interesting tastes," I said to myself, walking to the room and noticed the door was cracked open.

I rose an eyebrow, knowing I didn't leave the room door open. I carefully walked to the door, slowly opening it and swinging it open. "Show yourself intruder!"

A girl looked back at me, her gaze calm and slightly emotionless. She had paused in her action of sliding on her panties, locking eyes with me for a moment. I locked eyes with her as well, noticing she had the same appearance as Saito on the TV. After staring at her for a moment, I realized that the girl I was looking at...was Saito.

Saito immediately held her hand out, summoning her robotic companion and her companion aimed its cannon arm at me, charging an energy blast. "Decision: Saito will eliminate intruder immediately..."

My eyes widened as I looked at the cannon that was aimed at my face, something I was not prepared for. "W-Wait! I'm not an intruder, I live here!"

"Correction: Saito lives here. Proposal: One is lying and it is not Saito. Action: Eliminate unknown lifeform in Saito's room," Saito said, her voice a mix of calm and robot-like, almost apathetic.

My breath hitched as I noticed her cold gaze, almost like she was dead set on blowing me up without hesitation. My hands shook as I tried to find a way to defuse the situation. I dropped my bags and fumbled with my phone, immediately calling Yumeji and waiting for her to answer.

Once she did answer, I immediately began to speak. "Yumeji! I need help! Saito is here and she's trying to kill me!"

Yumeji looked at the screen while jogging around the track, raising an eyebrow. "What? Sorry, Hisu, my reception is kinda weak out here. Can you say that again?"

"I said, Saito. Is. Here. In. The. Room! Trying to kill me!" I yelped, turning the camera to show Saito to Yumeji.

Yumeji looked closer at the screen, squinting slightly then gasped. "Saito—"

Kikyo squeaked in the background as Yumeji ran into her, the two of them falling on the ground. Saito noticed the two and looked at me, realizing that I wasn't an intruder since I knew Yumeji and Kikyo. She lowered her arm, her robotic companion going back into a dormant state and returning invisible.

"Reflection: Lifeform in front of Saito is not dangerous nor an intruder," Saito said, calming down and returning to getting dressed.

I let out a sigh of relief, the breath I didn't realize I was holding finally coming out. I looked at my phone and noticed both Yumeji and Kikyo on the ground. "Uhm... I'll call you back.."

"Okay..." Yumeji said groggily, setting down her phone with her camera pointed to the sky.

I hung up the call, cautiously picked up my bag and made my way to the dresser to put away my new clothes. Once everything was put away, I turned to Saito who was sitting on the bed, now fully dressed and staring at me.

Having her stare at me was very awkward, unnerving even. Due to our awkward, misunderstanding first interaction, I didn't know what to say to break the silence. I took a step to the side, Saito's gaze followed me. I took a step to the other side, her gaze followed me again.

'This is very awkward now, kinda scary even...I have to say something to break this silence,' I thought, gulping lightly.

"Uhm...my name is Hisumi Nomura," I began, introducing myself to Saito and held my hand out toward her.

Saito looked at my hand then glanced back up at me. "Greeting: My name is Saito Hirai."

I lowered my head and scratched the side of my head, clearing my throat slightly and narrowed my gaze. I was left hanging, making the interaction feel even more awkward.

"Uhm... It's nice to meet you. Sorry if I startled you... although you startled me more than I startled you. I do want to let you know that I do live here also, and..." I began, my voice trailing off as I glanced at Saito, noticing her gaze was still calm yet intense.

"Saito will not harm you. An ally to Yumeji and Kikyo is an ally to Saito as well. Request: Become Saito's friend," Saito said, holding her hand out to me.

"Become your friend..?" I asked, my voice becoming slightly softer.

"You have seen Saito's natural body, it is only fair you become Saito's partner and friend. Proposal: Become Saito's friend," Saito said, still holding her hand out toward me.

I stared at her for a moment, looking at her hand and still a bit hesitant. I gulped lightly, not knowing if this was a trick or not, still having slight trust issues from when I was betrayed. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Proposal: Become Saito's friend," She repeated almost like a notification repeating itself and awaiting for a response.

I reached my hand out to her and took her hand, her grip on my hand surprising firm. I shook her hand gently, solidifyingy friendship with Saito. "Sorry...for walking in on you. Maybe I should've knocked first."

"Agreement: Saito agrees you should've knocked before branding someone as an intruder," She said, still shaking my hand.

I grunted softly and closed my eyes, turning my head away from Saito with a soft scoff. "Hey, I didn't know anyone was going to be here. Plus I'm not the one pulling cannons out on people..."

"Confusion: What are you referring to?" She asked, trying to act clueless.

"Oh don't act like you weren't just trying to delete me from the maps five minutes ago!" I barked, gripping Saito's hand harder.

In response, Saito gripped my hand even harder, her grip nearing the crushing stages. "Saito has no recollection on that."

I grunted heavily and pulled my hand out of hers, looking at it and feeling my hand throbbing slightly. "Alright...alright, you have no idea what I'm talking about. I'll drop it..."

Saito stared at me, a slight smile cracking through her calm expression. "Saito will drop the situation as well..."

After a few moments, I watched as Saito used her robotic legs to hover off the ground to float toward the living room. Curious, I stood up and followed her to the living room to see what she was up to. I noticed her sit on the couch, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV to put on a show.

I crossed my arms as I watched her flipping through the channels until she landed on one that played a detective show named Detective Pamu. I glanced at Saito, noticing her fixation on the show then turned my gaze back to the TV.

"What is this?" I asked, walking to the other couch and sat down.

"Detective Pamu, one of the greatest detective and mystery shows to ever exist. Saito loves this show ever since she was a little girl," Saito answered, her gaze not breaking from the screen.

I leaned back against the couch, resting my elbow against the arm of the couch and my cheek against the palm of my hand. I glanced at Saito, my mind racing with many questions. 'Why does she keep referring to herself in third person..?'

I turned my gaze to the screen once again, watching the show with Saito, but couldn't help but to steal glances at her from time to time. After watching a few episodes in one sitting, Saito finally broke out of her hyper fixation and got up from the couch.

"Question: Do you want something to eat? Saito will make something for us," Saito said, looking at me with her deadpan expression.

I met her gaze then looked down at my stomach, hearing it growling softly. I rubbed my stomach with my free hand then looked at Saito again. "Sure, but—"

After hearing my confirmation, Saito didn't need any other words to be spoken before she walked off to the kitchen to prepare something for us to eat. I watched as she walked off, letting out a soft exhale and leaned further back into the couch.

Soon, Yumeji and Kikyo finally returned home from their training with Liao Ru, the both of them tired and drained beyond belief. I watched as the two sat down on the couch together, Yumeji leaning against Kikyo and groaned softly.

"Whoa, Liao Ru worked you both to the bone huh?" I asked, sitting up straight to look at them.

"Yeah...to the bone is an understatement, more like worked very atom in our bodies. You think we'd be used to this but today...she had us in the Battle Simulator against enemies with power levels of over 9000!" Yumeji groaned, laying her head down on Kikyo's lap, covering her eyes with her arm.

"Yeesh... Somehow I'm glad to be starting as a D Rank," I said, rubbing the back of my head.

"Enjoy it while you can. Being a B Rank and higher is physically demanding," Kikyo sighed softly, gently placing her hand on top of Yumeji's head.

"Trust me, I'll be basking in the privilege of being a D Rank for as long as I can," I said, a soft chuckle escaping my lips.

Soon, Saito left the kitchen carrying two bowls of ramen for me and herself, glancing at the couch and looked at Yumeji and Kikyo. "Yume, Kyo, you're back so soon?"

Yumeji sat up slightly, looking at Saito and smirked at her. "Heh, we could ask you the same, Cyber Bunny..~"

Saito walked over to the other couch and handed me a bowl of ramen then sat down beside me, setting her bowl on her lap. "Saito's tour only lasted a week, but she's having her last concert in Shibuya this Friday then she's on break from being an Idol to focus on her academia."

"Aww, so no more music for now?" Yumeji playfully whined, laying her head back down on Kikyo's lap.

"Not for a while. Saito has been falling behind and Saito doesn't like to be left behind," Saito said, beginning to eat her noodles.

Kikyo chuckled softly and relaxed on the couch with her eyes closed. "Classic Saito..."

I glanced between the three, eating my noddles that Saito made, enjoying how well made the noodles were. As Yumeji and Kikyo rested on the couch, Saito and I continued to watch Detective Pamu on the TV. I was surprisingly enjoying the show more than I thought I would, which seemed to please Saito as we talked about the show as we ate.