[Nightmare]

People quieted down.

"I'm sure helping people would get me nowhere in the real world." Helix said with a mysterious smile.

"I wouldn't know because I never left my room."

Laughter erupted in the restaurant again.

"I have no clue how normal women think, and I doubt the nice guy act would work." Helix said with a slight smile.

"It's an abomination to the laws of equivalent exchange."

Peter wiped tears from his eyes.

"However! I don't think people liked me because I had a stunning personality." Helix chuckled.

"I think it's because I was an otaku like everyone else.

So when people found out that they could talk to me, they naturally liked that we were similar."

Many people stopped laughing in contemplation.

They looked at Helix as if they had helped them see the light.

"I honestly believe that most women here are anti-social but would love the men if they just talked about themselves." He continued with a warm smile.

"We're the same people from the same high culture.

Unlike the real world, where our kind is scarce, here… everyone's an otaku."

Helix panned the crowd.

"All you need is to be approachable because people won't reach out on their own." He mused.

"Perhaps, Marie, Charlotte, Riley, and I can help bring friends together somehow."

Gasps washed through the audience.

"Women… are you okay with having conversations about light novels, anime, and video games with the men?" Helix asked.

"Ummm… yeah." Mary replied bashfully.

"I'd be okay with that." Petra added.

"It couldn't hurt." Lily shrugged.

The men's eyes glittered with happiness.

Three men that were creeping Helix out with their admiring gazes were looking at him like he were a god.

"Men? You cool with us trying something?" Helix chuckled.

He knew the answer, but it was only natural.

The male otakus and weebs cheered.

Helix turned to Marie with a hopeless, apologetic smile.

However, her eyes were sparkling.

She understood what Helix was doing.

Bringing men and women together would be a permanent solution to the violence issues.

If men were friends or lovers of women, they'd protect them.

Everyone would fight for a world where they could be free to love each other.

Then if Ronka showed up again, he'd get beaten to death by a mob of men that were friends or lovers of the women he tried to covet.

Someone would have to be Helix's strength, and Marie, Charlotte, and Riley would have to be gone for that to be overturned.

"Okay! As a show of appreciation for coming out here today, we'll be giving you up to ten new Roshak cards." Helix announced.

"Having fifteen cards should help everyone trade and start playing to get to know one another."

Cheers exploded in the room.

"However, to get the cards, you must meet a person of the opposite gender and tell them about a certain question."

People quieted down.

"However… every woman in this room will gladly talk to you because they need to at the very least." Helix gave everyone a mysterious smile.

"I know because they need to use you to get something useful.

So all you men get to experience what life for me was like!"

The room exploded with laughter and cheers.

"We'll give you questions to answer and limit conversations to two minutes to avoid awkwardness." Helix chuckled.

Many people sighed breaths of relief.

"Marie will oversee the process once dinner is over. Sound okay?" Helix asked.

Clapping followed.

Helix gave the waiters a hopeless, apologetic smile.

"Now our staff wants to feed us." He laughed.

"So let's give them a round of applause and eat!"

The atmosphere became festive the moment that food came out.

Once the eating and laughter died down, Helix stood up.

"Alright. We won't be doing the official trading until later." He announced.

"If you want to get a headstart, we'll be watching men and women if they speak to each other now.

However, we ask that the women approach the men, as it would be better for both genders.

The question is—who's the most overpowered character in existence.

You may begin."

The entire room erupted into pandemonium.

Men started getting [swarmed] by women.

Helix watched with bewildered eyes.

Heated debates broke out, but they were happy, and people laughed at the various names used.

He looked down and saw Marie and Riley watching with gawking expressions.

Then he turned to Charlotte, who had a shit-eating grin on her face.

Helix sat down in confusion and found a light pull on his peacoat sleeve.

He turned to his right, and Millie was staring up at him with pleading eyes.

"Hey, Millie. Who's your choice?" Helix asked with a warm smile.

Many people turned to the two with gentle expressions.

"Ummm… I think you are."

Laughter and chaos followed, and Millie turned bright red.

Helix chuckled in bewilderment.

He was depressed because he would normally be sighing extravagantly.

However, he wouldn't deny [anything] that Millie said.

So instead, he gave her a thankful expression.

"Thank you, Millie. Thank you for always being kind to me." Helix replied with a gentle gaze.

"You gave me the strength that you see here today.

I wouldn't have practiced and risked my life to get stronger if you didn't help me recover.

Thank you."

Gasps and gentle sighs followed.

Millie turned bright red but didn't freak out.

Helix was smiling and making her feel safer.

"I think War Commander Helix is too!" Lily announced.

"Me too. The dude's pretty badass. I'm Peter." Peter said while turning to Lily.

"Still not stronger than One Kick Man." Samuel laughed.

"Who do you think would win between War Commander Helix and Spiky Vegetable?" A power-weeb named Carla asked.

"Depends on whether War Commander has a second form." Samuel chuckled.

"He'd win over SV's fourth form if he had even one."

"I wonder what he'd look like with spiky hair!" Tanya cried.

The corner of Helix's mouth was twitching savagely.

So he closed his mouth, but his eyebrow picked up the slack.

"Now you know what it feels like, Com~man~der." Charlotte smacked.

"At least you're not a Fairie." Marie giggled.

"I think it's cute." Riley commented.

The people sitting at Helix's table burst into laughter.

"Question~is, who would win in a fight between you and Yakuza~kitty." Charlotte asked with a grin.

"Yakuza kitty? Is that like a snow bunny for gangsters or sumthin'?" Miskie asked.

"Snow bunny?" Tammy asked with suspicious eyes.

"Don't look it up." Helix sighed.

"It's like looking up [green hat china]. I'll make you laugh your head off and then ruin your faith in humanity when you learn it's serious."

The table burst into laughter.

"I guess you really are an otaku." Maze commented with fascination.

"Hmmm? Of course, I am." Helix laughed.

"I wouldn't be outside right now if I wasn't."

More laughter followed.

"No, I mean… how do I put this?" Maze fumbled.

"It's like… I'm from a wealthy family, so I was forced to dress and look like this."

Everyone at the table quieted down.

Maze's face heated up, but he continued because he was talking to Helix.

"So life is strangely difficult. Otakus think I'm a spy, and my peers think I'm a loony."

Helix burst into laughter, and everyone followed.

Maze gave him a wry smile.

"I get that, a little bit. But why are you surprised I'm an otaku then?" Helix asked with a strange smile.

"I don't know." Maze replied while gliding his eyes to the left.

"You're confident in your likes to an envious degree, I guess."

Helix caught Maze's self-deprecating remark.

Everyone did.

The young man had captured the attention and hearts of everyone at their table.

Helix thought about the point for a little while, while everyone waited with anticipation.

"I'm not confident. I've always been melancholy and moody." He began.

"I think I'm like that because people treated me like a loser, but I didn't have the emotional capacity to care."

Bewildered giggles and chuckles followed his words.

Maze looked at him with trembling eyes.

"So… I just did what I wanted on Earth despite what other people thought and accepted it." Helix chuckled.

"Then I came to Myriad, people got jealous of me, and I just sighed and accepted that.

When people didn't like me hanging out with the popular crowd, I accepted that too."

Helix gave his partners a warm smile.

They returned bright smiles.

"I like reading, magic, and fantasy worlds." He continued.

"So I've read about Myriad, learned magic, and treated it like a fantasy world.

That was my greatest strength.

You wouldn't know this, but I can't use my Nightmare, and I can't learn intermediate spells."

Gasps of shock exploded through the room.

Maze stared at Helix with trembling eyes.

Helix looked at Marie and Riley, then to Charlotte.

Everyone confirmed.

Even Miske froze in disbelief.

"It was too dangerous to use in the beginning." Helix sighed.

"Then I got stronger, and it got worse.

Even Master Tyrene and Master Tilo couldn't make it safe for use."

The super-otakus were stunned, speechless.

"However…." Helix said with a slight smile.

His smile captured the attention of everyone present.

"I'm a battle circle master now, and I can battle with anyone."

Marie and Riley nodded, and Charlotte gave everyone an evil grin.

"W-What!?" Maze cried.

"As I said, I accept things and move forward." Helix chuckled while looking at the man.

"I can't use magic or normal spells, so I became a certified circle master.

Now I can use Level 5 magic circles so dangerous they can level a small city.

p Usually, you need a Circle Master or higher to create these spells.

I just need chalk and 30 minutes."

Shock filled the room.

"It's true. Hellie is a boss." Charlotte said with a grin.

"Marie can level half this city with an earthquake, Riley can hit it with a tornado, and I can toast a Colossus.

Hellie can't do any of that, and despite being at a higher level, he has the lowest stats.

But none of us would want to fight him."

Dead silence filled the room.

The otakus couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"It's true. I would cry if Helix and I were enemies." Marie giggled.

"I agree." Riley giggled.

Helix panned the super-otakus and power-weebs listening.

"My love for magic, fantasy, and video games helped inspire me to learn magic." He continued.

"I embraced Myriad for my interests, and I was able to accomplish great things.

For the first time in history, we have the option to bring our fantasies to life in the world we belong."

Helix smiled and looked at Maze.

"Your parents aren't here, and you're where you belong." He said with a gentle voice.

"You can dress how you want, talk how you want, and learn what you want."

Maze's eyes welled with light tears.

"Unless you want to be an asshole."

The restaurant erupted with laughter again, and Maze's eyes dried as he joined in.

"Marie, Charlotte, and I are here to ensure that you all can embrace this world as your new home." Helix said with a warm smile.

"You're speaking to a gaggle of anti-social otakus in a fantasy world.

So live the life you've always wanted to."

Maze flashed everyone a truly warm smile for the first time as light tears streamed down his face.

Warm applause detonated when they saw his expression.

"Welcome home, Maze." Helix said with a gentle smile.

—

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