Chapter 168: What Happened to Nymph
"Sword Art Online? Master, what does 'Sword Art Online' mean?"
Looking at Ikaros's completely blank expression, Franklin scratched his head in embarrassment. He really didn't know how to explain it properly.
After a short pause, he just grabbed her hand and started walking upstairs.
"Sword Art Online is a full-dive VR game. Your consciousness goes inside the game world and you live a completely different life in there.
It's kinda hard to explain in words. Better to just try it—otherwise no amount of talking will make sense."
Ikaros still looked confused and didn't really understand what he meant, but she obeyed the basic order without question.
She let Franklin pull her upstairs and followed him into the separate dimension where Momo and Nana were staying.
"Momo, why did you make big sister sacrifice herself to that beast?! You went way too far!"
"Nana, that's a horrible way to put it! It wasn't 'sacrificing herself.' Big sister and Mr. Franklin are in love.
When feelings are that strong, it just happens naturally. I only gave them a tiny push. Even Dad didn't say anything about it."
The moment Franklin stepped inside, red warning lights started flashing all over the hall.
"BEAST ALERT—BEAST ALERT—BEAST ALERT…"
Franklin was utterly speechless.
The door flew open. Nana stormed out, cheeks puffed up in anger. She waved her hand through the air a few times, and the alarm instantly stopped. The red lights vanished.
"What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're planning to lay your hands on Momo too?!"
The hostility and threat in her voice made Franklin even more speechless.
"It's really okay, Mr. Franklin. I wouldn't mind at all. I'm sure Daddy wouldn't blame you."
A faint pink glint flashed deep in Momo's pink eyes. Franklin instinctively took a step back.
"No, you've got it all wrong! Nana, I swear I'm not here for that. This time it's for Ikaros."
The moment the words left his mouth, Nana's face darkened even more.
"You beast… you won't even spare a robot?! I knew I wasn't wrong about you!"
Franklin slapped his forehead.
"Do I really look that bad in your eyes? Like I only think with my lower half?"
Nana looked at him with pure contempt.
"Isn't that exactly what you do?"
Franklin had no words. Once someone sees you through colored lenses, it's almost impossible to change their mind.
"Explaining is pointless. Think whatever you want. I'm here for Ikaros.
She's an artificial angel—she doesn't have a sleep function. While the rest of us are either sleeping or playing the game at night,
I just wanted to ask if you still have any more consciousness-transfer devices. See if Ikaros can join us in the Sword Art Online world."
Hearing that he was actually thinking of someone else for once, a flush of red crossed Nana's face and vanished just as fast.
"A robot doesn't even have a soul. Her consciousness is literally just data. How could she possibly enter a game? Are you stupid, beast?"
"Uh… Ikaros isn't a normal robot. She should have a real soul. Let's at least try. If we don't try, I won't be able to relax."
Even though Nana thought he was a beast, she could still grant a request like this. She glared at him hard, then stomped back into her room. It took a while before she came out again.
She pressed a finger against Ikaros's forehead. In that instant, a red light flashed across Ikaros's emerald-green eyes, and her face instantly filled with the majestic aura of the Queen of the Sky.
"Unknown intrusion detected. Commencing counterattack."
The next second, black smoke poured out from between Nana's finger and Ikaros's forehead.
Nana's expression changed. She jumped back.
"Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!"
She frantically shook her hand. Franklin completely ignored her and focused only on Ikaros.
The moment the smoke appeared, the red in Ikaros's eyes was replaced once more by emerald green.
The overpowering presence vanished instantly, and her usual blank, confused look returned.
"Master? Did something happen?"
Seeing the puzzled look she gave him, Franklin gently shook his head.
"Nothing serious. It just means you'll have to spend the nights alone for now. But after a while…"
After thinking for a moment, Franklin made up his mind.
"Once my strength grows a bit more, I'll try summoning Nymph here.
When she arrives, she should be able to transfer your consciousness straight into Sword Art Online.
When that time comes, I promise I won't leave you waiting all alone."
"Nymph? Master, who is Nymph?"
That was exactly the same question Momo and Nana had. Both girls looked at Franklin in confusion—especially Nana, whose contemptuous stare made Franklin's heart skip a beat.
"Uh… Nymph, Nymph…"
Realizing there was no escaping this, Franklin scratched his head helplessly.
"Nymph is another artificial angel. Her specialty is electronic warfare. Once she's here, she should be able to solve a lot of problems."
As soon as he finished speaking, he braced himself for Nana's inevitable mockery.
When he looked over, though, he froze for a second.
Nana actually looked worried. She opened her mouth a few times but couldn't find the words. Franklin was totally confused, but Momo instantly understood what her sister was thinking.
She winked at Franklin and asked, "Mr. Franklin, is the situation Nymph is in right now… really dark and awful?"
In that instant, Franklin understood what Momo was doing—she wanted him to exaggerate Nymph's suffering, trigger Nana's kind heart, and give him a free pass to add another girl to the harem.
But did Nymph's suffering need any exaggeration? Not even a little.
"I told you before that Ikaros is a combat-type angel, right? The only reason she thinks she's an entertainment-type angel now
is because her memories were partially sealed and altered, and most of her processing power was restricted.
Nymph, on the other hand, has an extremely rich emotional system—richer than most humans—and unmatched computational ability.
But because of the imprinting system, all those emotions just exist for the Master of Synapse to toy with.
The Master of Synapse loves nothing more than crushing Nymph's pride and forcing her to destroy or kill the things she loves most.
For example: he'll threaten to scrap her, watch her get on her knees and beg not to be thrown away, then insult her while she's on the ground thanking him for not discarding her.
Or he'll take a little bird she adopted, order her to call it over under the pretense of 'putting on a show,'
and halfway through the performance, with a smile on his face, command her to tear the bird apart with her own hands.
She can't disobey a direct order from her master. The bird ends up splattered in blood right there.
And all Nymph can do is smile through her tears and thank her master for not throwing her away."