'It must have been a dream…'

"Junior, how are you feeling right now?"

Smoke Demon… whoops, Mai Houjou was in front of him.

"I had a really long and strange dream, and I still feel like I’m in a daze," Seiji replied.

"That wasn’t a dream; you entered the Spirit Realm while Visualizing, which is the best state you can possibly achieve during Visualization," Mai explained.

"'Spirit Realm?'"

"It means that you Visualized wholeheartedly enough to enter an entirely different mental realm."

"Then, what I experienced there… Is everything in the Spirit Realm the product of a dream?"

"Yes, that's one way of putting it. What each person sees in their individual Spirit Realm is unique. Some will witness old memories, and others will experience a modern-day situation. However, a fantastical or chaotic sequence of events is more common, much like a real dream."

It was similar to a dream, yet it wasn’t a dream.

Seiji recalled the time when his awareness entered s.h.i.+ka’s soul. That was also similar to a dream, yet it wasn't a dream.

Seji a.s.sumed anything related to Mana and the soul probably functioned this way.

"If I’m in the Spirit Realm and meet with misfortune there—say, for example, I die—what would happen?"

"You’ll end up harmed in some way, but it’s difficult to predict the severity of your injuries. If you're lucky, you’ll only be left with the memory of a frightening experience when you wake up. In a less fortunate scenario, your soul would sustain damage. This is one of the risks a.s.sociated with Visualization."

Mai looked at Seiji. "Judging by how calm you seem, you must have woken up naturally. Are you feeling fine?"

"I’m fine… but I almost met with some trouble." Seiji recalled the difficult battle he faced in his Spirit Realm.

"Was it dangerous?"

"A little."

"Although it's risky to encounter a dangerous situation in your own Spirit Realm, your Spiritual Power will improve at a faster rate as a result. There are upsides and downsides," Mai explained before blinking. "At any rate, it’s good that you’re okay."

"Yeah… Senpai, how long did I Visualize for?" he finally asked.

Mai looked at him searchingly. "You’ve been Visualizing for an entire night," she stated calmly. "It’s already 6:30 A.M. now." 

Seiji paused in surprise.

"That long!?"

He searched his memory and attempted to calculate approximately how long he had spent in his Spirit Realm. After a while, he came to the conclusion that Mai's figure actually seemed reasonable.

It was almost as if he had lived a second life.

Or should it be said that it was similar to an overly realistic VR game?

Hey, if he thought about it like that, Visualization actually seemed rather fun!?

The Spirit Realm… it seemed much cooler than VR games that still relied on headgear and controllers!

It was rather embarra.s.sing that all his friends and acquaintances were his retainers, but at least n.o.body knew about it. As long as he was having fun, everything…

Suddenly, Seiji froze as he came to a sudden realization.

He had accidentally trodden upon a subject which he'd forbidden himself from thinking.

Visualization was akin to living another life in a different reality.

But what about the current ‘reality?’

In this world where he could even save and load, what evidence was there that this wasn’t all a dream, or… an amazingly high-tech virtual reality game as well?

The answer was that there was none.

His current situation bore resemblance to the "brain in a jar" theory, which was a famous hypothetical situation from his previous world. The hypothesis stated: how would one know that he or she wasn’t simply a "brain in a jar?"

The answer was that they couldn’t… That’s right, there was no method at all!

Seiji’s current situation was the same; it could also be stated that any person in ‘reality’ faced the same dilemma as well.

n.o.body could provide evidence that the world they were currently living in was the so-called ‘reality.’

Absolute reality was a concept that was inherently unprovable.

In the end, whether or not one perceived their world as ‘reality’ relied on oneself.

Seiji recalled his experience when he first arrived in this world.

Back then, he felt as if the question was similar to walking circles around the edge of a deep pit.

Finally, he decided that regardless of the true nature of this world, he would treat everything as he wanted to. He decided not to treat this world as a fictional game.

He closed the Pandora’s Box. He designated this endless dark abyss as a forbidden zone.

That was why Seiji could remain Seiji.

This Visualization accidentally led to Seiji encroaching on his own forbidden zone. Seiji, however, instantly throttled such thoughts and instead began a new train of thought.

The Spirit Realm was a place that resembled a super-realistic VR game… And damage to his real self was possible as well…

Wasn’t this just like a less serious version of Sword Art Online!?

The deepest, most thought-provoking aspect of SAO was the boundary between the real world and the virtual world. When a group of people were unable to exit the VR game and could really die inside it, the game transformed into reality for those people.

Visualization was similar. Since it was like another life entirely, he would do well to treat it as another life and take it seriously.

Seiji came to a decision.

It took him a few minutes to organize his thoughts and decide on his path.

Mai had been watching him silently all this while.

"Have you been taking care of me for such a long time, Senpai? I’m sorry to have troubled you for so long… and I’m truly grateful." Seiji apologized for inconveniencing her and thanked her sincerely.

‘That’s your only reaction?’ Mai thought to herself.

Didn't he have any special reaction to hearing that he Visualized for so long?

Then what had he been thinking about for several minutes just now? Did he truly not know how astonis.h.i.+ng his Visualization time was!?

Mai really wanted to believe that Seiji was merely acting the part of a fool, but she didn’t think that was the case.

It seemed that this guy truly didn’t know the magnitude of the feat he'd just accomplished.

Even though she did expect that it was his first time, this feeling was still…

For an untalented girl to have to tell a boy who used to be a complete sc.u.m with the lowest spiritual stats that he was actually a genius... just how was she supposed to feel about it?

Who could answer her? At any rate, this particular girl, Mai Houjou, was unable to come up with an answer.

If she absolutely had to find a way to describe it, she sort of wanted to beat someone up right now, but a sense of helplessness was mixed in with her complex emotions.

Well, regardless of her complex feelings, it was her duty to tell him.

"I’ll accept your grat.i.tude. But... I also need to explain to you just how amazing your Visualization really was," Mai said in a serious tone of voice.

"Eh?" Seiji was surprised yet again.

Moments later.

"Oh, I see." Seiji rubbed his chin. "Visualizing for so long isn’t something an ordinary person… or an ordinary spirit ability can accomplish. My Spiritual Power is increasing at a far swifter rate than others… Got it."

Mai stared at him incredulously. "If you understand, then why are you so calm about it? You should know what this means, right?" 

"Ha, of course."

Seiji suddenly smiled wickedly as he placed one leg’s ankle on his other leg’s knee and took a condescending pose. He looked like a figure who held nothing but disdain for the entire world.

"I shall soon become the supreme ruler. I will make all those who previously disregarded and harmed me pay a painful price for their sins! My family that exiled me will wallow in regret!! I shall take back everything that rightfully belongs to me!!!"

Mai was rendered speechless by Seiji’s act.

"Did you hope that I would react like this?" Seiji kept up his immature pose as he looked at her mirthfully.

The maid’s eyes seemed rather hollow. "Er… well... I feel like it is, but it also isn’t." 

"Your commenting ability is lacking, Senpai."

"What’s commenting ability supposed to be!?" Mai commented forcefully.

"Exactly that." Seiji gave her a big thumbs-up and flashed a smile.

"Ha… Junior, you’re…"

"I know what you want to say, Senpai: I’m just a novice beginner right now, aren’t I?" Seiji shrugged. "Even if I really do become much stronger in the future, I’ll still be me. Perhaps some things will change, but the important parts will remain the same." He smiled gently. "That’s why Senpai only needs to treat me the same as always."