March 31st, 2015
David woke up early like normal, but this time he chose not to train.
He got up, showered, washed his face, brushed his teeth, and went to find the director of the orphanage.
The director was a sweet old woman who enjoyed taking care of children, but David always stayed away from everyone so their relationship was never super close, though that's only from David's perspective.
The director treats all of the children like her own and understands that David chooses to isolate himself from others not because he dislikes all of them, but because he'd rather do things on his own.
Once David was all cleaned up and dressed in a white t-shirt, black jacket, dark blue jeans, and white sneakers, he arrived at the director's office and knocked on the door.
"Yes, please come in."
A frail and kind elderly voice sounded from the other side of the door.
David took a deep breath and opened the door, entering the office and closing the door behind him. He walked up to the director's desk and bowed at a 90 degree angle.
"Director Itsuko, I have to be on my way. I appreciate everything the orphanage has done for me until this point and I will pay you all back in the future, but I've recently found a place to stay and must take my leave before high school starts."
The director, Oba Itsuko, showed a warm, yet sad smile on her face as she heard David's words.
"Is that so... I understand, David-chan. While you always kept to yourself, I have always enjoyed having you around. I will always think of you as one of my children and I hope to see you grow into a wonderful man in the future."
Oba got up from her seat and walked up to David who was still bowing, stopping right in front of him, and gently patting his head.
"I don't know where you'll end up, but I have always believed in you and your intelligence."
David suddenly started feeling a pang of guilt and regret because he always stayed away from people, yet Oba was giving him such a strong feeling of familial warmth that he never felt before.
Holding in his emotions, David nodded his head slightly and stood up straight.
"Thank you, Director Itsuko. Like I said, I will repay you and everyone else at House of Blue Skies Orphanage in the future, I promise."
Without another word, David hurried out of the director's office so he wouldn't cry like a baby.
'Dammit, adjusting my mentality had bigger drawbacks than I expected...'
[It's fine, David. That just means you're growing as a person. You've spent 15 years as a reclusive, emotionless, and isolated person. Having changed your mentality overnight, it's going to take some getting used to. Not only will you be able to flirt, laugh, and have fun, but you'll also be able to feel sad, angry, and guilty. You'll adjust to your new emotions before tomorrow, I'm sure of it...]
'Mm... Thanks.'
As David was walking back to his room to pack up his things, he thought of something rather important.
'Now that I think about it, do you have a name I can call you by?'
[You can call me Chaos.]
'... Yeah, I guess that makes sense... Alright, Chaos-chan.'
[Hey, technically we're the same age, okay? My consciousness was created the same time you were, I just had trouble finding you, so use Chaos-san or just Chaos!]
'Got it, whatever you say, Chaos-chan.'
[David!]
David chuckled to himself and ignored Chaos-chan's complaints.
⟪ Huh, I can't remember the last time I felt amusement. It's a nice feeling. ⟫
After he got back to his room, he packed a large duffle bag with his new school uniform and some of his favorite clothes. He then used his inventory for the first time and stored his school supplies and the rest of his clothes in there, leaving the room empty aside from the furniture that belongs to the orphanage.
'Nice, now I have everything. If anyone asks, I'll just say I threw away the rest of my stuff or something... Anyway, Chaos-chan, I'd like to spin the lottery for the day.'
[...]
'Chaos-chan?'
[Hmph!]
'Oh come on, it sounds cute! Just accept it.'
[... Fine... Here's your stupid lottery...]
Chaos-chan grumbled, but she brought up the prize wheel for David to spin.
David reached for the wheel and gave it a spin, enjoying the colorful scene as he waited.
The wheel landed on a blue segment and the rest of the segments disappeared.
'Hmm...'
The blue segment rotated and written on the back was "¥1,000,000".
"?!"
David gasped seeing what he just got.
'Seriously?! That's supposed to be an R?! That's awesome!'
[Fufun~, pretty cool, right? Since you don't have a bank account, would you like it in cash?]
'Yes, please!'
[Alrighty! 1,000,000 yen in cash is now waiting for you in your system inventory!]
'Ohhh!'
This is the first time David has had so much money at once in his entire life so he's more than excited.
'This should definitely be enough to find a place to stay for now. I was planning on living in the school dorms, but I can get a cheap place outside of school now!'
David opened his inventory and saw one hundred 10,000 yen notes in his mind.
'Heheh~, things are lookin' good so far!'
[I'm glad you like it! Now let's blow this popsicle stand and find a cheap place to stay!]
'Right!'
With a bright smile on his handsome face and renewed vigor, David threw his duffle bag over his shoulder and headed out of the orphanage.
...
After looking around the city and talking to multiple people for hours, David ended up unable to find a place to stay.
⟪ Dammit, I have money, yet people don't want it? Why the hell do I need someone to co-sign? I'm an orphan for fuck's sake! The only person to co-sign would be Director Itsuko, but I can't go back now; I've already told her I found a place. Ugh, I'll just find a bridge to sleep under or something... I'd rather not stay in the school dorms if I can help it and I don't want to waste money at a hotel. ⟫
⟪ With my plans, I need a building that I can modify in the future and the dorms are definitely not it. I want to use magic to create a nexus with multiple portals leading to places across the world for convenience in the future. Can't exactly do that in a small school dorm, can I? ⟫
It was already 8:00 pm. It was now dark and raining. Needless to say, David was in a rush to look for a place to sleep for the night. He didn't look at a map so he wasn't sure where exactly he was at the moment, nor did he think to buy food before so he was currently lost, homeless, and hungry.
*growwwwl*
⟪ Dammit, I really should've bought some food. The hell was I thinking...? ⟫
David looked around to make sure nobody was near him and when he saw the coast was clear, he stored his duffle bag inside his system inventory, keeping it out of the rain.
⟪ It just had to start raining, huh? I'll just wait it out inside this apartment complex and hope that nobody calls the cops on me or anything for loitering. I'm minding my own business and I'm not shady, okay? It's just cold as fuck out here right now and I'm soaked. ⟫
Despite David's strong and sturdy body, he doesn't have any passive ability to negate the temperature and he didn't even think to use his new magic.
Thus, David was sitting up against an apartment complex, curled up into a ball with his head on his knees, shivering and hoping the rain would stop sometime soon.
After about 20 minutes of waiting, the rain increased in intensity, dashing David's hopes of it being a quick drizzle.
⟪ Maybe I should've waited in the orphanage for another day or something. Haaa, whatever... If I catch a cold, I catch a cold. ⟫
As David was contemplating his next plan of action, he heard the entrance to the apartment complex open.
⟪ Whoever just came out of the building, please ignore me. I'm just a ghost, you don't see me. You definitely won't call the cops on me and force me to leave, right? ⟫
"Uwahhh~, it's pouring out! Hm...? Hey, are you okay~?"
⟪ Ah, she has a pretty voice. She's not asking if I'm okay, right? I'm invisible, aren't I? ⟫
"Person on the ground, can you hear me? You're soaking wet!"
⟪ Well, it seems she is indeed talking to me. Maybe if I just pretend I can't hear her, she'll ignore me. And yes, I am aware that I'm soaking wet. The rain is rather obnoxious tonight after all... ⟫
'The hell? This is the guy I've been hearing! Why can I hear his voice? Does he know about it?'
"I know you can hear me~!"
⟪ Mm, I suppose I should put my new confidence to the test. I would prefer not to flirt with some random girl, but maybe if she gets creeped out, she'll at least leave me alone. I have plans, okay? Plans! None of them involve accepting pity from some random girl! ⟫
David lifted his head up so he could respond to the girl that was talking to him, but as soon as he saw who it was, he froze.
⟪ No way... Blonde hair with pink ends that reaches her waist, pink colored contact lenses, multiple piercings in both ears, long pink glittery nails, and a ring on her right pinky finger and left index finger. That's Marin Kitagawa! The heroine from the franchise My Dress-Up Darling! Is she in this universe, too?! Oh gods, she looks way more beautiful than in the anime! ⟫
⟪ Okay, calm down, David... I don't want her to be creeped out by me, but now I don't know what to say! It's not as easy to adapt to talking to new people as I had thought and I'm still not shameless enough to say whatever is on my mind yet. ⟫
⟪ Do I ignore her again? Do I greet her? Do I tell her I want to marry her? No, wait, that last one is a bit off; that's already way too forward and wouldn't make sense at this point in time. Plus, even though I know her from the manga and anime, she doesn't know me whatsoever. Hmm, this is troublesome... Maybe I should just run away? I would prefer to handle more rain rather than messing up my first meeting with one of my favorite heroines. ⟫
Marin looked wide-eyed at David ever since he started using his inner voice and seemed to know who she was. When she wanted to ask a question, she kept getting stunned by whatever David said next.
'It seems he doesn't know I can hear his voice! And oh my gosh, his face is so hot! I don't normally focus on that, but seriously, this guy's looks are insane! And franchise? My Dress-Up Darling? More beautiful than in the anime?! Wahhh, no way, am I an anime character?!'
⟪ Seriously though, even though she's looking at me with wide eyes and a confused expression, she looks incredibly cute. Just being in her presence is already easing my nerves. I wonder if she's already started working on her Shizuku Kuroe cosplay yet? ⟫
'HE KNOWS I WANT TO DO A SHIZUKU-TAN COSPLAY?!'
⟪ Honestly, if she hasn't already started on it, I'd like to do it myself. In the original work, she felt really embarrassed and cried when she made it because it turned out horribly and the protagonist was an insensitive asshole and said it looked like shit. What a bastard, how could you say such a thing to a cute girl like Marin?! She's so sweet and perfect! ... Oops, got worked up for a second... ⟫
'Eh? Someone said that...?'
⟪ It seems since getting my emotions back, it's once again easy to piss me off when it comes to men. Marin is an angel, dammit! Although she's a bit dense with some things, she means well and she's cute as hell! Ugh, I want to steal her from the protagonist now. With my new 'Perfect Househusband' talent, I could easily make her the Shizuku Kuroe cosplay she wants and even do her makeup perfectly, though I'd have to play Slippery Girls 2 first in order to do it properly. ⟫
'HE CAN DO WHAT?!'
As David was monologuing and Marin was having her own thoughts, they kept staring at each other in complete silence aside from the pouring rain. David's expression never changed, but Marin's expressions were all over the place.
Needless to say, it was extremely cute.
⟪ Right, we've been staring at each other for a while now and I haven't said a word... Yeah, she'll definitely be creeped out by me. Haha, should I break the ice by saying something stupid like, "Hello, my name is David Star and despite being the creator of this universe, I'm a powerless, moneyless, homeless, starving bum. Pleased to meet you?" Pffft, hahaha~! As if! Whatever, let's just get it over with and hope I don't fail. ⟫
David finally shook his head as if pretending to come out of his daze.
"Sorry, I got distracted. Am I trespassing by sitting here? I'm just waiting for the rain to subside and then I'll be on my way."
Marin waved her hand and shook her head vigorously, "No, no! That's not it! Are--".
Before Marin could ask 'Are you really the voice I'm hearing inside my head?', her voice was cut off and she couldn't speak.
David tilted his head in confusion.
Marin tried again, but this time she felt a chill in her heart and instinctively understood that she couldn't say anything to David about his inner voice.
"Sorry, hahaha~! I was thinking of something else for a sec! Anyway, why are you out here? Do you not live in this apartment complex?"
Marin, knowing that she couldn't say anything and had to treat him like a stranger that doesn't know who she is, decided to just play dumb.
"I was looking for a place to stay and it started raining, so I figured I'd just wait it out here for now. And no, I don't live anywhere at the moment."
"Hmm~. Well, you'll catch a cold out here like this. I was on my way to the convenience store, but since it's raining this hard, I've changed my mind. Do you want to come upstairs and use my shower to warm yourself up?"
⟪ Um... I know Marin is a sweetheart and everything, but a strange guy is sitting outside in the rain and you don't feel any alertness towards him? Darling, that's rather worrisome. Heheh, see what I did there? My Dress-Up Darling, then I called her 'Darling'... Yeah, that wasn't clever... ⟫
"Are you sure? You don't know who I am and I could be lying to get sympathy from you, only to assault you when we're alone?"
Marin walked closer to David and leaned down, looking at his face up close with a scrutinizing gaze for a few seconds before standing back up with a smile.
"Ehhh~, nope, I don't think you'd do that!"
⟪ Okay, I seriously have to protect her in the future if she's this naive. I'm most definitely capable of it, okay? I mean, I would never hurt an innocent girl like Marin, but I totally could, okay? ⟫
David just looked at Marin and blinked his eyes.
"Fine, but don't regret it later."
⟪ Marin, I'm telling you, if I'm around someone as beautiful as you for too long, I won't be able to control myself and will flirt like a dog. Even I don't know how it'll turn out, okay?! Be wary of strangers, dammit! ⟫
Marin covered her mouth and let out of loud laugh.
"Kyahaha~! I won't regret it. Come on, come on~! You'll seriously catch a cold!"
David just nodded his head, stood up, and followed Marin inside the complex, towards the elevators.
⟪ I can't wait until I get to the point where my body is immune to diseases, ugh... Wait, I could've used magic to avoid the rain this entire time... Dammit! What the hell happened to my increased intelligence, haaa?! Mental Reboot is a scam! I'm still just as dumb as I was in my past life! ⟫
While David looked calm and collected on the outside, he was raging at himself on the inside, though he was also thinking about what to do once inside.
After a couple minutes of silence, save for Marin's occasional humming, they finally arrived at Marin's apartment.