“Urgh...”
When I came to, I was met with light so harsh I had to blink a few times before I could register anything around me. In my mind, it had been night only moments before, and my brain struggled to keep up with this sudden sunlight.
It feels like I’m lying on a bed of sand...
I immediately reached out.
“Hah!”
I heard the soft sound of nearby footsteps, as if someone had just dodged out of the way.
This sensation...is strangely familiar.
“Hey, you. You’re finally awake. Sorry for calling you out of the blue. But we need a bit of your expertise.”
Shaking my head to clear it, I...took in my surroundings.
Harsh sunlight pouring down relentlessly over the sands and skies that seemed to stretch out for an eternity in every direction I looked. And in front of me...my sister Kanade was extending a hand. Her face was half-apologetic, half-pleading.
“Hah... I don’t think I even have to ask, sis. But did you...invite me to a development event?”
“Something like that. I was just called here myself.”
“I see. So where exactly are we?”
My mind was still a little fuzzy. I was still stuck in the nighttime mindset.
“The Prado Desert, apparently.”
They have an event like that in the desert? I mean, it’s probably something similar to Cal Mira, but...
“I apologize for calling you out like this. If only I could have asked in advance...” said a somewhat familiar voice.
I turned toward it, and there stood...a girl, about the same size as me.
Her race was Demihuman, just like Tsumugi...though a bit more fox-like. For one, her tail was super fluffy and she was clearly going for that kitsune aesthetic. She was overall pretty striking in her traditional Japanese outfit.
Ah, an older, stern tone and a loli design...that’s a stereotypical fox girl for you. Like, a loli-fox-eared-granny, huh?
I’d played enough games to have seen characters like her before. It was a popular design choice.
“You must be Kanade’s blood relative, Kizuna. Lord of Cal Mira Island.”
“Yeah. Never thought I’d be called on.”
To be fair, I was a well-known player; the chance of me being summoned was never zero. L’Arc had hinted at something similar, but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon.
“Aye, you see...”
“I recommended you.”
Kanade proudly puffed out her chest. Of course it was you.