Mash-up Anime World: Creating the SCP Foundation to Contain Anomalies

"Please, both of you, follow me. Mr. Kayaba will take us to the root server for a closer look. You don't mind, do you, Mr. Kayaba? After all, only there can the full potential of the game be showcased."

Yuuki said with a hearty laugh.

He was a businessman, but his ability to judge people was somewhat lacking.

Whether it was choosing investment targets or picking a son-in-law, his judgment was astonishingly poor.

Kayaba Akihiko kept a straight face and walked toward the exit.

However, his complexion was naturally pale, so even if he appeared displeased, no one would pay much attention.

Yuuki quickly tried to smooth things over,

"Please, go ahead. Kayaba is deeply immersed in technological development—he's a genius, after all. It's only natural for him to be a bit reclusive."

Haruto merely shrugged nonchalantly and reached out to ruffle Shiro's small head.

Among all the geniuses he had met, no one was as purely brilliant as Shiro.

As for being reclusive… that was debatable.

Exiting the conference room, they took the elevator and soon arrived at the development floor, where the root server was located.

Numerous computer devices were set up here, all connected to a central host.

In the deeper part of the room, countless server units were stacked, covering what seemed to be over a thousand square meters.

Clearly, the computational power and data storage required to run SAO were beyond imagination.

Shiro took a quick glance and immediately lost interest.

To her, the equipment here was far too outdated.

Even if all the devices were combined, they might not be as powerful as a single computer within the Foundation.

Kayaba Akihiko stepped up to the main console and activated the SAO program.

A towering structure was projected into the air, surrounded by floating streams of data.

When it came to showcasing his work, Kayaba Akihiko was not stingy.

In his mind, no one else in the world could possibly grasp this level of technology.

"It really is quite impressive," Haruto remarked in admiration.

Yuuki also smiled.

Although he didn't understand much, he had invested heavily in this full-dive game because he recognized its potential.

Now that even a representative from the Momobami Clan praised it, his decision was clearly the right one.

Kayaba Akihiko operated the main console again, pulling up some finished in-game footage.

It displayed test images from SAO.

Some players were fighting monsters, while others were leisurely strolling through the town—it looked just like a real world.

This demonstration was meant for outsiders, as Kayaba assumed they could only comprehend what they saw on the surface.

However, at that moment, Haruto suddenly spoke:

"Mr. Kayaba, may we have a look at SAO's data ourselves?"

Hearing this, Kayaba Akihiko frowned.

To him, Haruto seemed like an ignorant outsider trying to act knowledgeable, attempting to do something foolish just to show off.

However, Kayaba Akihiko was a true genius. He knew this was not the time to openly display hostility.

Moreover, his confidence was unshakable—he believed that SAO's data was something no one else could easily tamper with or replicate.

So in the end, Kayaba Akihiko nodded.

Haruto chuckled softly.

Geniuses were always arrogant, it was perfectly normal.

Casually, he tugged at Shiro and discreetly handed her a small metallic module.

Shiro immediately understood and walked toward the main console.

Seeing that it was the Shiro approaching the console, even Yuuki sighed in resignation.

However, the next scene made both him and Kayaba Akihiko widen their eyes in shock. The small girl's fingers moved swiftly across the virtual keyboard, typing commands with ease.

Under her manipulation, the towering projection rapidly deconstructed into detailed submodules.

She even pulled up segments of the underlying code.

Kayaba Akihiko was in utter disbelief.

As the person most familiar with SAO, he could immediately tell which modules and code Shiro was accessing.

They were the most crucial and complex parts of SAO.

Even he himself, if given an unfamiliar, large-scale program like SAO, wouldn't be able to break it down so effortlessly and pinpoint its key components so quickly.

The data kept flashing until it settled on a particular section.

Kayaba Akihiko looked closer, and his heart trembled.

It was the NPC behavior code.

This section was still incomplete—he had been striving to develop true artificial intelligence.

But there was still a vast gap before reaching that goal.

Although AI technology had been advancing, true artificial intelligence was still far from reality.

Shiro pulled up a blank document, typed in a piece of code, and then stepped away from the console.

"This part was incomplete. This code should make it work."

After saying this, Shiro casually leaned against Haruto, as if she had done something insignificant.

Kayaba Akihiko rushed forward, staring at the document's contents, his expression growing increasingly frenzied.

Seeing this, Yuuki Shouzou wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

A monster.

Truly, an entity that held absolute dominance over Japan.

Even a child from their ranks was an unfathomable prodigy, completely beyond ordinary comprehension.

Haruto, however, remained indifferent.

That piece of code wouldn't create true artificial intelligence, it would merely push Kayaba Akihiko's NPC system one step further.

At the same time, the small metallic module in Shiro's hand vanished.

She had embedded it into the main console.

Its function was simple, it served as a hardware backdoor into the system.

Haruto's objective for this trip had been accomplished.

Of course, he still needed to maintain appearances.

"Shiro, how is it?" Haruto casually asked.

Shiro pondered for a moment before speaking directly:

"It's a very novel game, but it's a little too realistic, which makes it kind of disgusting."

Shiro's remark left Haruto feeling both amused and helpless.

In Shiro's view, reality was a terrible game because the rules were fundamentally unreasonable.

And a game that was too realistic… might be terrible as well.

"Apologies, my sister misspoke," Haruto casually replied before preparing to leave.

Yuuki glanced at Kayaba Akihiko, who was still immersed in his coding, and twitched the corner of his mouth.

Finally, he forced a smile and said,

"Not at all. Your sister is a true genius—her thoughts are naturally different from those of ordinary people. If the Momobami Clan is interested in investing, we can discuss the specifics. Would the two of you be available to join me for a meal?"

Haruto was about to decline.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

A small head peeked in.

Long, chestnut-colored hair cascaded down, smooth as silk. Her bright eyes sparkled like stars scattered across the mortal world.

Seeing the girl peek in, both Yuuki and Haruto were momentarily stunned.

Then, Yuuki quickly walked to the door, opened it, and led the girl inside.

"Excuse me, this is my daughter, Yuuki Asuna. She's here with me today for some hands-on experience at the company."

In truth, no introduction was needed—Haruto had already more or less recognized the girl.

Asuna, huh?

The combination of cuteness and resilience blended seamlessly within her, giving her a unique charm that was hard to ignore.

Suddenly, Haruto found himself interested in that dinner invitation.

Shiro glanced up at Haruto and pouted.

"々｀ Asuna, this is Haruto. Just call him 'senpai'."

Yuuki introduced Haruto to his daughter.

If his daughter could build a connection with a key figure of the Momobami Clan, her future path would be much smoother.

Though Yuuki had previously considered other candidates for his daughter's future husband, in comparison to Haruto, they all seemed utterly insignificant.

Changing his mind so suddenly wasn't ideal, but wasn't adaptability the essence of business?

Hearing her father's words, Yuuki Asuna looked at Haruto in surprise, trying to guess this young man's identity.

He wasn't much older than her, yet her father spoke of him with such admiration—almost reverence.

She had never seen her father behave this way before.

"Internship, huh? Asuna, you still look like a middle schooler. The Yuuki family sure is strict."

At this, Asuna immediately retorted,

"I'm already a JK (high school girl), actually."

She had just entered high school this year and was only one grade below Haruto.

Being mistaken for a middle schooler clearly annoyed her.

Wasn't that just another way of calling her childish?

As for the strict upbringing, Asuna could deeply relate to that.

As the eldest daughter of the Yuuki family, her life felt like it was completely controlled.

Everything had been arranged in advance—even from her father's tone, Asuna had faintly picked up on something.

Even her future husband had already been chosen for her.

This was something Asuna found difficult to accept.

Yuuki, however, simply assumed that Haruto's words were just polite business flattery and waved his hand with a laugh.

"It's nothing, it's nothing. So, shall we head to the restaurant? I happen to know a pretty good one nearby!"

Haruto nodded in agreement.

Yuuki immediately went to make the arrangements.

Asuna watched her father, who was busy organizing everything, then shifted her gaze to Haruto.

He wasn't much older than her, so how could he be so influential?

Having reached her rebellious teenage years, and with her father trying to dictate even her future marriage, Asuna felt an instinctive urge to resist.

And in the midst of defying her father, she suddenly noticed a young man whom her father seemed to defer to.

Strange and complex emotions began to take root inside her.