Chapter 1: Let’s Create Culture

Kouki Arakawa’s Point of View

Roughly three days after returning from the other world, I had a lot of free time on my hands, so I was in my room watching some of the documentaries I’d recorded. Kon had been curled up in a ball beside me, but now she was slowly raising her head.

“What’s wrong?” I asked her.

Kon was looking over at the door to the room. There was the sound of the doorbell followed by Shingo’s voice. “Kouki, are you there?”

“Yeah, come on in.”

There was a rustling sound while Shingo did something outside. After a short while, he pushed open the door with his foot and entered the room with both of his hands full of large bags of candy that he’d bought from the post exchange.

“What’s with all the candy?” I asked. “Aren’t you spending time with Aikawa today?”

Shingo took a seat as he explained why he wasn’t with Megumi. “She’s going to the Space Development Group’s research facility with Alice. She said something about some sort of research report.”

Seeing the candy, Kon made a beeline for him. Shingo opened a bag of chocolates for her and handed it over.

Oh, I get it. Shingo came to see me because he was bored and by himself.

“So your precious Aikawa has abandoned you, and now you’ve come to see me. If you’re really that bored, you should go visit the other world.”

“Buh hee?! I-It’s not like that. And you’re no better. You’ve shut yourself up in this room just because Alice isn’t around. I don’t want to go to the other world, anyhow. If I had to live in a world with no internet, I’d die.”

Don’t go dying over something so small, Shingo... I sighed internally at the sight of my friend greedily eating candy in front of me. Still, when you think about it, there really isn’t a lot for us to do.

I could remember some of the ways people had killed time in my past life. There were things like video game consoles, anime, manga, movies, and other things that you could spend all your time on. I couldn’t remember anything about myself, but I suspected that I’d used these sorts of things to kill time with my friends.

“There’s none of that in this world,” I said to myself.

“Buh hee? Did you say something?”

“No, it’s nothing,” I said, brushing off his question. I was sure my friend would think I was crazy if I said to him, “I died one time and then got reincarnated.”

Anything that you might call “subculture,” “media culture,” or “otaku culture” wasn’t very well-known in this world. In fact, those things might not exist here at all.

I’d first realized this when I was very young. There had been barely any anime on TV that wasn’t educational. TV broadcasting had already switched over to satellite broadcasts at that point, and each household could select what programming they wanted to watch.

I’d thought that my mom didn’t want me watching anime while I was growing up, but one day I’d found the remote control left on the table and decided to find out how many different television channels we were getting. I learned that out of almost 600 broadcasts, we could watch almost every single one, with the exception of a dozen or so adult-oriented channels.

At first, I was just surprised that we could receive so many different channels, but then I discovered something even more surprising. Out of almost 600 broadcasts, barely any of them were categorized as music, movies, or TV drama. And the few that did exist would stop broadcasting from 2 AM to 7 AM each day rather than being 24-hour broadcasts.

I couldn’t help but feel there was something wrong with the world when I learned this. I tried asking my mom if she’d heard of any of the famous composers, musicians, movie directors, and manga artists that I knew of.

Mom must have been surprised by how distressed I looked when asking these questions. She looked troubled when she told me, “I’m sorry. I don’t know any of those people. Are they famous?”

A lot of these people had been written about in textbooks, yet Mom had told me that she didn’t know any of them. If someone with a memory a hundred times more powerful than the average person didn’t recognize those names, it could only mean that those people didn’t exist.

I could only come up with one explanation for how this could have happened.

There were three important considerations in forming this hypothesis.

The first was that the Second World War that had begun in 1935 in this world had reached its conclusion after half a year instead of becoming a quagmire with no real victors like in original history. I expected that this had made a big difference.

Although culture such as movies and musicals should have undergone rapid growth after the war, the people who were fortunate enough to have escaped the horrors of war after a short amount of time had felt that the future was full of hope. Rather than relying on entertainment, they had found strength within themselves.

The second consideration was the European tragedy.

The disease had killed roughly half of the world’s population. Humankind had lost many people who would have accomplished great things, along with would-be descendants of such people. I had been able to confirm that one famous person who would have gone on to become a bestselling author had lost their life before they could achieve their ambitions as a result of the European tragedy.

The third consideration was what I considered to be the biggest factor.

Science and the technology that came with it had advanced at an abnormally fast rate. Consider what this meant for camera technology. Some groundbreaking new method or device would appear, but then just a year later, or maybe even half a year later, it would be replaced by something new. It must have been difficult to justify any investment into such short-lived technology. With the exception of a few enthusiasts, people had distanced themselves from media culture while the technology was changing at an incredible pace.

But what about now? Would a rapid growth in media culture be possible at this point in time? It seemed possible. There were two reasons for this. First was the existence of my mother, Miki Arakawa. In 2091, my mom’s explosive appearance in the scientific community had ignited a technological revolution. Thanks to her, Earth’s technology had leaped ahead by around 100 years. But even my mom wouldn’t be able to stop the pace of development from slowing down from this point on... probably. If we made a new games console, movie special effects technology, or an anime right now, the quality would remain high enough for people to enjoy it for a good amount of time.

My second reason for deciding that it was possible right now was because I existed.

The Japan where I’d lived in my previous life had been creating a subculture that was known all over the world! With someone who’d been reincarnated from that world working together with someone like Shingo who’d probably love the subculture, and a technological genius like my mom, taking over the world with that subculture would be a breeze.

“Have you ever seen an opera, Shingo?” I asked.

“Hm? I’ve seen one before, but it wasn’t very interesting.”

“Well, what if the opera’s script was in Japanese, and the music was something more upbeat instead of difficult classical pieces? Would you want to see it then?”

“That doesn’t sound like a theater performance. If it was anything like I’m imagining, I’d probably want to see it.”

Okay, so he’s interested in seeing something musical. Hm... Rather than a comedic opera, I wonder if some kind of all-girl opera would be popular? I suppose I’d have to get ideas from someone else about that.

“I was telling you Joachim’s story a while back,” I said. “If you could somehow experience that sort of thing for yourself using your terminal, would you want to try it?”

“Buh hee! Yeah, I’d want to try that!”

Oh ho. Looks like he’d enjoy an RPG or even a complete roleplaying experience that uses VR technology. Given the current level of technology, I think the best thing would be to use a miniaturized VR device. That way people could enjoy fantasy and action games, and maybe even supernatural horror games.

We could greatly reduce development time by producing and researching these things in a dedicated facility on Noa Island. The engineers that my mom employs could do something about the technology. Macho Man could be responsible for device safety and the effect on the user’s mental state because he’s got a heart of steel. It’ll take more than a little external stimulus to make him jump.

“All right,” I said. “Final question. Would you want to see an anime if it was about a stylized cute girl using magic to defeat an evil organization or some cool soldiers trying to prevent a terror attack?”

“Yeah! I’d love to watch that. It would be nice if there was something like that. It’s a nice dream.”

That’s right, Shingo, it is a nice dream. Subculture is all about making the impossible possible and giving you the experience of being a hero, like every man dreams about at some point. It might be that this world is a happy place now that there’s no great war and there are no incurable diseases. But that’s exactly why I dream of something beyond our everyday lives. We have the technology and we know where to find talented people... The only other thing is capital. Since we are doing something new, we should use our own money to take the first step so that we don’t have to answer to any sponsors.

I had $400 million that I could use freely. After making the onsen with Shingo, that was what was left out of the $500 million I’d received as a reward for developing a cure for the European tragedy. If I deducted the amount I’d need to pay for Alice’s birthday present, that left a little over $150 million. It was probably enough to get started, but if I was allowed to be greedy, I wanted a little more.

I need to gather allies to help me make this happen, I thought as I watched Shingo eat his fourth bag of chocolates.

“Shingo, how much of your reward money is left?” I asked in a serious sounding voice.

“I think I’ve got just over $300 million. But I didn’t waste it! I bought a piece of new equipment for my new research lab in your research complex. It was one of just three in the world, so it was expensive.”

“I see. I’ve got $400 million, but I can only spend around $150 million of it because I need to save some for Alice’s birthday present.”

“B-Buh hee?! W-Wait a minute! That’s 24.6 billion in Japanese yen! What kind of present is worth that much?”

“That’s a secret. So you’ve got $300 million?”

If Shingo combines $100 million of his money with what I’ve got left, that’ll be about 25 billion in yen. That’ll be enough to employ some of Noa’s engineers for my personal project with enough left over for miscellaneous expenses. Now’s the time to set things in motion!

I was already sure that Shingo would help me realize this crazy dream as I said to him, “Shingo, create a new age with me. Will you help create new culture?”

“Ah... Kouki, I don’t know what you mean.”

Shingo’s mouth was left hanging open.

It was exactly the reaction I’d expected. I opened a bottle of soda that was sitting on the table as I got ready to give Shingo a long explanation.

August 12, 2102: Kouki Arakawa, a boy referred to as the “greatest genius in history,” the “demon child,” and a “monster of knowledge” by the world’s governments and many researchers and military officers, made a conscious decision to make his work public for the first time.

No one could have imagined that he would later become known as the “father of the new age,” the “media prodigy,” and the “anime industry mastermind” for creating the “Special Media Entertainment Department” that would bring in 40 percent of the overall sales made by the large conglomerate Noa.

**

As I drank the soda, I explained the subculture that had been popular in Japan before my reincarnation as simply as I could.

“But anime is for kids,” Shingo said, looking doubtful. “You can’t just suddenly start making anime that’s aimed at everyone.”

“I know. That’s why the first step is character art. We can start by selling posters.”

“Art? But if no one understands the art style, then who’s going to draw it? Don’t tell me you’re going to draw it all yourself?”

“That’s right. I’ll draw it myself. What I’d like you to do is take my art and sell it in online auctions. If it actually sells, I’d like you to invest when we take it to the next level.”

Shingo’s right. If I don’t make the initial images myself, I won’t be able to express the art style to other people. I’ll just have to try my best. I’ve gotten pretty good at drawing after being involved in the Creation Program that Mom started. I’ve made some simple design sketches. I think this is going to work out.

The problem is what to draw on. Drawing on ordinary paper would be a little boring. I could make a painting on canvas, but then I’d have to stretch and wet the canvas first. I’d also have to get ahold of specialist painting tools.

What I need is something unusual that’s easy to get hold of here in the Hakone base. A front armor plate from a powered suit could work. If I take a scrap armor plate from the scrap heap, paint it white, paint an image over the white background, and then spray a protective coating over the finished painting, I could easily throw together a highly durable poster.

“Buh hee! Okay. I’ll decide whether to invest after seeing how well it does in the auction.”

“All right,” I said. “First we need to try making something. Let’s go get a suit’s front armor plate to use as a canvas! We’ll also need to borrow some paint and tools for working with armor.”

“Ah... You’re going to paint on an armor plate?! Won’t we get in trouble?” Shingo still looked doubtful.

“Don’t worry. I’m going to use scrap parts. This sort of fancy material is going to grab people’s attention. Hey, Kon! Come with us.”

Kon came running over with a half-eaten chocolate bar held in her mouth. I picked her up and was about to leave, but then we heard the doorbell again.

It was too early for Alice and Megumi to be back, and Macho Man and Mom were on Noa Island. I can’t think of anyone else who’d visit my room.

Unsure what to expect, I opened the door to find Baldy standing outside and looking as stern as always.

“Oh. Long time no see,” I said. “Did something happen?”

Baldy smiled at me wryly and said, “No, it’s nothing like that. I’m just making the rounds. Mrs. Arakawa asked me to drop in on you once in a while. It looks as though you’re about to head out somewhere?”

The sight of us in our jackets and preparing to leave seemed to have made him curious. I wasn’t sure whether I should be honest and tell him we were going to the scrap heap. He’d ask why we were going there, and it’d be hard to explain. On the other hand, I felt like there’d be trouble if we didn’t tell him and he found out later.

Before I could make a decision, Shingo went ahead and answered the question himself.

“Buh hee! We’re about to go to the scrap heap on the third level. We need to find a powered suit’s front armor plate so Kouki can paint a picture on it.”

“Huh, he wants to use an armor plate for a painting? That sounds just like Kouki. But what kind of picture do you want to paint?”

“We’ll explain while we walk there,” I told him. “It’ll take a long time to explain everything. It’ll be quicker just to show you the painting.”

“Then I’ll come with you, if you don’t mind.”

Now I’m going to have to explain things to Baldy on the way there, I thought with a sigh. On the plus side, having a responsible adult with us should make it easier to borrow the tools.

I was a little annoyed about having to repeat the explanation I’d just given to Shingo as I picked up Kon again and stepped out of the room.

As we walked along the corridor, I explained to Baldy that this world didn’t just lack the concept of anime and manga, but was lacking a subculture like that altogether.

Baldy knitted his brow and asked, “Is this the kind of thing you’re talking about?”

He showed us the personal terminal he was carrying. I was speechless when I saw the image he was using for his desktop. To me, it looked a little old-fashioned. In my previous life, his desktop image could have been described as a 1980s style loli bunny girl.

Has this sort of thing been gaining popularity without me realizing?

Feeling concerned, I asked him, “What is this? Is there some kind of specialist website where you can find this sort of image?”

“No, it’s... Well... I drew it.”

“Huhhh?!”

Wait just a minute! This old guy who looks like the sort who’d erase anyone who gets in his way drew a picture like that? He’s got to be lying. I can’t even believe someone like him would have any interest in something like this.

He noticed how shocked Shingo and I looked and threw his hands up in front of his face. “Wait! I don’t know what the two of you are thinking, but I’m not into little girls or even young girls! I mean, I don’t exactly hate them. I like them in the sense that I find them cute. And I don’t mean that in a weird way.”

“We get it! Calm down! Shouting about ‘little girls’ in the middle of this corridor just makes you sound like a pervert.”

“Ahh. Sorry. It’s not like me to lose my cool like that. Anyway, I can explain this, so you can stop looking at me as if I’m some sort of criminal, Shingo.”

I looked over at Shingo and saw that he really was staring at Baldy as if he was a criminal. And he was doing something with his terminal...

That’s the emergency report screen for making reports directly to the security department!

“Whoa, Shingo! Let’s at least hear him out. You can decide whether to report him afterward.”

“Buh hee?! Sorry. I reacted on instinct.”

Now that Shingo had come to his senses, he stopped making the report to the security department.

This feels awkward. We’d better let him give us his excu— his explanation. I glanced at Baldy to urge him to continue.

“I used to be in the Russian armed forces,” he explained. “Toward the end of my service, I was in a special forces unit attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but I started out in the air force. I painted aircraft nose art. My job was to paint a personalized image on each plane to suit the aircraft or the pilot’s personality. That’s how I learned to draw.”

“I see. I understand how you learned to draw, but why is the image of a little girl on your desktop?”

“Oh? Ah... Just like now, there weren’t many women in the armed forces back then. I got a lot of requests for sexy girls when I was painting. But I’m into cute girls more than sexy girls, so I still use a picture of a little girl as my personalized image.”

So it is what you’re into! I don’t mean to judge, but maybe we really should report him to the security department. I had no idea how to deal with Baldy after hearing him passionately explain his interests to us while continuing to act like a perfect gentleman.

“Different people are into different things,” Shingo said, sounding tired. “I don’t want to judge. Since you can draw, will you help Kouki with his work?”

That’s not a bad idea, I decided. The image that he drew is a little different from what I had in mind, so it’ll help us determine what’s popular with the people of this world. And it seems as though he likes making this sort of art and has some understanding of subculture. He might actually be a useful ally.

With that in mind, I decided to repeat the same request I’d made to Shingo in my room.

**

Baldy’s Point of View

I was using my personal terminal as I watched Kouki and Shingo search through the powered suit scrap some distance away.

The email I’d received from Mrs. Arakawa this morning had said, “My son will be up to something soon, so keep a very close eye on him.” But I hadn’t expected that he’d actually be up to anything.

Perhaps Mrs. Arakawa was worthy of admiration for being able to predict her son’s actions so well, or perhaps Kouki was just easy to predict because he took after his father, Shuuichi, by causing trouble on a daily basis. It was a tough one to call.

“But I couldn’t have predicted he’d ask me to create new culture with him,” I murmured.

This year I’d turn 35. If I could get so fired up over the words of a young boy who had lived only half as long as I had, maybe I wasn’t as sharp as I used to be. I had no great talents. I didn’t have the courage of Shuuichi and the members of his ghost unit, nor was I as smart as Mrs. Arakawa or her researchers.

All I had was an above-average level of combat skill. And in comparison to the population of the Hakone base, even my combat skills might have been below average. At this rate, I would die of old age as just another face in the crowd. At least, that’s what I’d thought. But now Kouki had given me new hope.

“Your artistic talent is just what I need right now! Won’t you try to create something new with me? It won’t matter if we fail, but if we succeed, you’ll leave your mark on history. You’re a man, so you’ve got to have big ambitions.” Then Kouki had smiled a pure smile that reminded me how young he was. I’d been dazzled by it.

Big ambitions...? How long has it been since I gave up on my ambitions? It must have been when I entered the armed forces. No... I’d already given up on a lot of things by then. Is it too late to chase after some big dream just one more time?

While I was debating with myself, Kouki brought over some armor plates of just the right size that he’d found. “Mr. Baldy! I found some unpainted armor plates that look perfect. The size is about right. Let’s paint on them as they are! You must have a lot of ideas. Go ahead. Paint whatever you like, however you like.”

Kouki handed over an armor plate with a smile. It was a prototype armor plate that was already painted white. This meant there would be no need for us to paint these white first. But it was hard to figure out what I was supposed to paint onto it after being told to paint whatever I liked.

After thinking about it for a while, I was about to ask Kouki what kind of picture I should paint, but then I stopped in surprise. On his own armor plate, Kouki was painting an elegant-looking girl with black hair dressed in a traditional Japanese kimono. On her head, he’d given her fox ears.

“That’s... such a cute girl,” I said.

“Thanks. You can paint whatever you like too. Everyone here likes this sort of thing, so go ahead and paint whatever you’re interested in without feeling embarrassed.”

My own interests...? In that case, I’ll paint something I’ve been thinking about for some time! I’ll follow Kouki’s lead and use the full size of this armor plate to paint something I’ve had in mind ever since I’d first learned to draw! I should be able to paint it now better than I ever could in the past.

With that in mind, I gave my full concentration to painting on the armor plate. I’d been painting for some time when I realized that someone was standing over me.

“You’re really focused on that. I finished my painting. How’s yours going, Mr. Baldy?” Kouki asked me with a smile.

Has it already been so long? I checked my terminal and was surprised to find that three hours had passed since I’d started painting.

“Sorry. I got carried away and took longer than I thought. It’s done now.”

“Buh hee... This is... the only word I can think of is amazing. Don’t you agree, Kouki?”

“Yeah. I didn’t expect that he’d be able to paint something on this level.”

The two of them were looking at my painting and showering it with praise, but I was so embarrassed that I raised my hands to cover it.

Kouki laughed and asked me, “We want to sell these paintings at auction like we said. Does your painting have a name? There’s only one suitable name for it that I can think of.”

“Right... How about ‘Girl in the Moonlight’?”

For me, this was my greatest masterpiece, and these two boys were the first like-minded people I’d encountered. When I told them the name I’d given it, they told me that they thought it was a great name. Despite my age, I felt my face turn red as I took another look at the painting.

This really is my greatest work. It might even fetch a high price. Maybe, just maybe, this painting will sell, and I’ll have one last chance to chase after big ambitions.

As I looked at the smiling girl lit by the moonlight in my painting, I decided, Together with Kouki and Shingo, I want to do something that’ll make my name known throughout the world.

**

Kouki Arakawa’s Point of View

Now that Baldy’s finished his painting, we can go get lunch, I thought.

“Shingo, do you think now is a good time for lunch?” I asked Shingo, who was taking some photographs to use in the auction.

Shingo looked up from his terminal. “Buh hee, is it that time already? Okay, let’s get some lunch. Do you want to come with us, Mr. Baldy?”

Will he want to come along? I wondered. I’ve tried inviting him before, but I always got the feeling that he didn’t want to eat with me, so I stopped asking. Maybe this time it’ll be different.

“Hmm... Yeah, why not? Why don’t you let me treat you both? Order whatever you like.”

Ohh! He’s not avoiding me this time. He must have become more friendly now that he knows we have similar interests. I’ve always thought of Baldy as the type to constantly frown, but he really does look friendly today.

Hey, maybe Baldy will even tell us his name!

I tried asking as casually as possible. “Okay, let’s head to the cafeteria. So I guess that ‘Baldy’ is just a codename. What’s your real name?”

“My name? I don’t remember... If you really want to know, I doubt anyone could stop you from finding out for yourself. Though I’d rather you didn’t concern yourself with things like that. Mrs. Arakawa wouldn’t like it.” Baldy folded his arms and reverted back to his usual stern face.

“If you don’t want to tell me, you don’t have to,” I said quickly. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.”

Baldy nodded a few times as if he’d decided on something. “Do you know what job your dad, Shuuichi, had originally?”

“Yes.”

He explained anyway. “Shuuichi’s a former member of a secret unit of the United Nations Standing Army. I was in a similar unit in my home country, Russia.”

So he was assigned to some ridiculously highly skilled special forces unit just like Macho Man? That means he must be an elite soldier who’s just as battle-hardened as Clare or Cote.

I looked at Baldy with newfound respect and was about to ask him what kind of work he did, but Shingo spoke before I could.

“Buh hee... Was that internal? Or was it external?”

“You know about that sort of thing, Shingo? It was external.”

Shingo seemed to understand what Baldy meant by that. He turned around to face me and said, “Kouki, let’s stop talking about this.” He sounded as though he wouldn’t accept any objections. “If we wait any longer, the cafeteria will be too crowded. You shouldn’t ask someone who’s been in the special forces about their past.”

“Ha ha! Looks like I’ve made you both worry,” Baldy chuckled. “Thanks for your concern, Shingo. Let’s stop talking about it. All right! I’ll take back the tools we used while you two go and get us a table in the cafeteria.”

Baldy put the tools into a case and happily walked off towards the storeroom.

Did I say something I shouldn’t have? All of the military people I’ve met so far, mostly people in Macho Man’s unit, are proud of the work they’d done. I thought Baldy would be the same way... Maybe I was wrong.

I decided to ask Shingo. “Did I say something I shouldn’t have? For a moment there, Baldy was looking a little sad.”

“Maybe. He might be worried about what we’d think of him.”

“Why would he be worried?”

“Let’s get moving. We can talk on the way to the cafeteria.”

I picked up Kon and followed after Shingo.

Once I’d caught up to him, Shingo began using the terminal on his arm. Eventually he found the data he was looking for and sent it to me.

I told Kon to climb onto my neck so I could use both hands for my terminal. The information that Shingo had sent me was an excerpt from some information found online.

“Special forces unit attached to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs? External operations division... intelligence service... special operations... This is...”

“Yeah...” he said. “This is all just rumors, but it looks accurate based on the things it says about your dad.”

Now I understood why Shingo had put a stop to the discussion. Baldy hadn’t exactly been a military man. He had been more of a hitman working as a sort of intelligence officer. “Assassin” was probably a better way to put it.

Now I understood why he’d “forgotten” his name. He was one of those people who don’t officially exist.

So why is someone with that kind of exceptional skill taking care of me? I wondered.

I tried asking Shingo.

“This is just a guess,” he said, “but you need a counter sniper to take down enemy snipers. So if an assassin tried to snipe us, you’d need someone like Baldy there to deal with them, right? But let’s forget about that. How are you going to handle this?”

“What do you mean?”

“How are we going to act around Baldy? He’s probably worrying about that.”

“I’m not going to act any differently. He was risking his life for his country back then. And now he’s risking his life for us. I have to respect him for that.”

“Buh hee! You’re right,” said Shingo, sounding relieved. “I’m glad you feel the same way as I do! And from now on, he’s one of us.”

Shingo’s poker face turned into his usual smile, and he started talking to Kon about what they were going to eat for lunch. I watched them while remembering a novel I’d read in my past life.

It was about a lone assassin who’d had the world turn against him, yet somehow managed to identify the terrorists who were to blame. In my world, that was an old idea that had been used many times already, but here it would be a new type of story.

If my plan went well, I wanted to create a story where the main characters were people like Macho Man and Baldy who were always active in the darker corners of the world. Maybe it was selfish of me, but I wanted to raise the profile of the people doing that kind of dangerous work by telling the world that these people were risking their lives for the sake of world peace.

**

Miki Arakawa’s Point of View

As I passed through the transfer gate from Noa Island, I felt the unique gloopy feeling of the gate across my entire body. Shuuichi and Kouki had told me they were used to it now, but I’d never get used to it. The same inexpressibly unpleasant feeling hit me every time I used the gate.

“I’m so tired. This always makes me feel terrible.”

I stood there in front of the gate complaining to myself as I waited for Elise. After a few minutes, she came running over to me.

Her right eyebrow is raised a little... Judging from that face, we’ve got some minor problem to deal with.

I got my personal terminal ready so I could deal with whatever it was immediately, and I braced myself for her report.

“Welcome back, ma’am,” she said. “I know this is sudden, but I have three things to report regarding your son.”

“Okay. I’m guessing from the look on your face that it isn’t something we can just cover up. Tell me about it on the way to my office.”

I started walking and Elise brought the information up on the terminal as she walked beside me. “Firstly, after stating an intention to ‘create new culture,’ Kouki went to the scrap heap with Anton and recovered front armor plates from sixth-generation suits. The two of them then painted pictures of girls on the plates and then sold them in online auctions.”

It was already enough to make me feel lightheaded. If anyone other than Kouki had taken away armor from a sixth-generation suit, it would have been a major incident. But why did he paint on it and then sell it? It’s too overt to be a diversionary tactic. Did he want to show our enemies the technological might of Noa? Or was this a warning to other nations? It’s impossible to be sure.

“Secondly, the two pieces of armor were quickly sold to buyers for the upper bidding limit of ¥150,000. The buyers took care to cover their tracks, but we’ve determined that one was purchased by a front company for the United States intelligence services and the other by the British government.”

I could have predicted that much. The powered suits used by the major powers of the United Nations are merely fifth-generation suits... I’m sure that they’re desperate to get their hands on the sixth-generation suits that we’re using.

Still, although we did use some new technology in the armor plating, the main points of improvement in the sixth-generation model are the actuation of the joints and the internal piloting unit. We don’t have to worry about them making major progress after obtaining a single plate of armor. Perhaps Kouki sold them so those nations would have something to quell their appetites.

“Thirdly, after seeing how quickly the items sold at auction, Kouki declared that ‘the project starts now,’ and made several requests directed at you, ma’am. He asked for the establishment and purchase of Noa’s own satellite broadcast channel and the acquisition of a standard broadcast license. The acquisition of advertising rights in newspapers, digital media, and paper-based magazines. The purchase of old-style internet and radio broadcasting channels. Purchase of movie broadcasting rights and rental of Noa’s PR department. Also—”

“S-Stop! What about the budget and the personnel for something like this?”

“He appears to be funding the whole thing using the reward money that he received for developing an effective treatment for the European tragedy virus some time ago. This is just my personal opinion, but I think Kouki is serious about this. I think we should offer him our support while making sure we monitor his activities.”

But why would he want media broadcasting and publishing rights of almost every kind? I wondered, baffled. It would be easy to refuse and use my authority to stop him from getting what he wants, but there are no legal barriers stopping him, so I couldn’t stop him forever. If he knew that we were refusing to cooperate, he’d move things ahead without considering our advice. It might be wise for us to help him.

What I really can’t understand is how the sale of an armor plate relates to the acquisition of media rights. We already have a PR department that releases propaganda and engages in information warfare. Could there be some deeper meaning in those paintings?

“Elise, did you see the painting that Kouki made? What sort of painting was it?”

“It’s difficult to describe... It was made in an art style that I’ve never seen before. Would you like to see it?”

I opened the picture that Elise sent to me on my terminal. It was unlike the art style I’d seen in educational broadcasts; the painting was of a girl wearing provocative clothing.

I don’t know what this has to do with armor, but Kouki is a genius... he doesn’t do anything without a reason. I’ll just have to trust in his genius, even though I have no idea what he’s trying to do. I can put a stop to it later if he attempts something dangerous, I decided.

“Very well,” I said. “Grant all of Kouki’s requests.”

“Understood. Please take a look at this document. This is a project plan that Kouki has provided to ensure that the project can run smoothly once you’ve given your approval.”

I looked at my terminal once again and opened the document. Some of the instructions were fairly detailed, and there was also a wide variety of projects described that appeared to be still in the planning stages.

One of the things that caught my eye was an advertisement for the cosmetics department. It was an instruction to make changes to commercials we were showing via internet broadcasting and on movie websites.

The project document said that we should request cooperation from women in the Merkava Kingdom of G-88 and have each woman use magic to transform herself into a “princess” the moment they applied a makeup product, and then say something like ‘I can’t believe how beautiful it made me!’

I can see how that would have a big visual impact, but is that really going to resonate with customers? I suppose there are more important things to worry about...

“Elise, make an amendment to my previous instruction,” I said. “If we’re going to go through with everything in this project, have a new department of Noa established. Call it the ‘Special Media Entertainment Department’ and put Kouki Arakawa in charge. Contact every existing department and ask them to provide support however they can.”

“Understood.”

“The project plan states that we should be capable of replacing the commercial within five days if it’s created on Noa Island. Have it done within two days. This is a great opportunity. Let’s see how fast we can complete a project with every department cooperating.”

“Understood. If I may be excused, I’ll begin coordinating with each department immediately.”

I watched Elise as she hurried off to relay my instructions. I opened the door to the office while still thinking about what I should do next.

First I’ll enjoy a cup of strong tea before making an appearance in the engineering department. Then I’ll need to visit the weapons department.

That was as far as I got before I couldn’t hold in my laughter any longer.

“Ha ha ha! They must be so pleased about getting hold of a sixth-generation armor plate. Well, too bad. Too bad indeed. We’re already developing a next-generation suit that’s going to change everything.”

My terminal held a design specification, protected by heavy encryption, describing a tenth-generation model, known as the “Type 0.” It would be at least a few more years before the suit was completed. But it would change the very concept of the powered suit, and would place Noa almost eighty years ahead of the world standard in terms of our level of technology.

Go ahead and delude yourselves into thinking you can follow in our footsteps... You’re about to get hopelessly left behind. I’ll use whatever means necessary to make sure my child can be happy.

I firmed my resolve once more as I heard bubbling sounds from the kettle as the water began to boil.

**

United States President William Auld’s Point of View

Hearing a knock, I looked up from my work to check the time. It was 4 PM.

I can’t believe it’s this time already... I instinctively began massaging my aching shoulders, but then I heard knocking once again.

“Come in,” I hastily replied.

“Pardon me.” A man wearing glasses entered the room looking quite unwell. I recognized him as an army engineer with the rank of lieutenant general. I gestured for him to sit down, but he refused and then handed me some documents on paper.

“I’m here to report that the inspection of the Noa armor plate we obtained is now complete. Our conclusions are as follows: It is already within our ability to mass-produce armor plates of this type. We discovered no particular points of improvement. We have been unable to obtain a full powered suit, so the full extent of the suit performance remains unclear. However, based on our inspection of this armor plate, we believe that the sixth-generation suit is not significantly different from the fifth-generation suit. In other words, the sixth-generation suit is merely an improved form of the fifth-generation suit. Or to put it more bluntly, the suit is a sham created to—”

“A sham? Have you been watching TV recently? Not just TV. Have you visited any online video sites?”

“Not recently. Though I don’t see the connection,” replied the lieutenant general with a blank face.

It was difficult to stop myself from yelling at him as I told him to look at the screen on my desk as I played back the “Cosmetics Commercial” from Noa that had started airing the day before.

The lieutenant general began to look even less well after watching all five variations of the commercial. By the time he was finished, he looked so pale that I worried he might pass out. “I-Is this CGI?”

“You’d think so. There’s no way for a woman to transform into a princess by using makeup in reality.”

“B-But Mister President! This level of production is...”

The lieutenant general was understandably surprised. My government had asked a major movie production company to inspect the video, and they had told us that there was no evidence that CGI had been used. In other words, Noa had already far surpassed the capabilities of American companies despite having only just established themselves as a movie production company.

Why would Noa resort to making sham weapons when weapons development is their specialty? This lieutenant general must be clueless.

“Now that you’ve seen this, do you still think the suit is a sham?” I demanded.

“But the technology involved in movies and weapons development are so different...”

“You fool!! Weapons development is Noa’s specialty, and yet you think it’s a sham? I’d love to hear how you can be so optimistic. Listen to me. A day after this commercial started airing... at around noon today... Noa’s products completely sold out in cosmetics stores around the world. I’m sure even you can understand how much of an impact this commercial must have had? What’s more, we recently received an audio message from Miki Arakawa herself.”

“The demon lord...? What did she say?”

“She said that the armor plate we’d obtained was an unfinished product. She said that she will deliver a new armor plate via a ‘legitimate route’ in several days from now. She also said, ‘This is merely a gesture of goodwill, and we ask nothing in return.’ What I want to know is whether this country’s intelligence agencies are inferior to a commercial entity? No, it’s more than that... Why did you offend Noa despite all my warnings?! They’re no ordinary company! This incident has already damaged our relationship with Noa. In the future, take more care not to incite their anger!”

I couldn’t resist any longer. I was yelling at the lieutenant general now. He apologized repeatedly and then left the room.

Unbelievable! If they wanted an armor plate, they should have used a legitimate procedure to ask Noa to provide us with one, I fumed. Not only did they anger the demon lord by using covert methods to obtain it, they’ve also created a huge setback for my plans to invite Kouki to visit as a state guest and honored researcher! My wife and my daughter Mary have been looking forward to meeting him...

I’ve scheduled a cabinet meeting this evening to discuss how we might somehow regain Noa’s trust, but this is going to take some sort of ingenious plan.