Brush D. Rush groaned as sunlight hit his face.
Blinking rapidly, he realized he wasn't on a battlefield this time. The sounds of distant servers and crashing code were gone. Instead… the faint hum of an old hotel AC filled the room.
He rolled over, only to notice he was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts.
"What the…?" Brush sat up, glancing around. The room was surprisingly normal: a bed, a nightstand, and a window that overlooked… a slightly pixelated city skyline.
Crunchyroller floated lazily in the corner, sipping on some kind of digital coffee.
"Morning, chosen one. You slept through three pop-up attacks and one probability reset."
Brush blinked. "Wait… what happened last night?"
"You don't remember?" Hikaru stepped into the doorway, armor slightly dented but still intact. "You passed out right after the Finisher… and somehow ended up here."
Mia Rika—Daji—peeked from behind the curtain, tails twitching nervously. "You're… very… unprepared for a hotel room, sir," she said, her kimono slightly misaligned.
Brush groaned again. "Of course… of course this is my life. Battle the Dark Gods, summon millions of gacha SSRs, awaken a Finisher… and now I'm just… wearing shorts in a hotel."
Equinox appeared from nowhere, smirking. "At least you're comfortable."
Brush buried his face in his hands. "No, I mean really—this is ridiculous. I'm literally the Chosen One, saving the internet, and this is how I wake up?"
Crunchyroller floated closer. "Relax, Brush. Everyone has to recover before the next domain collapse… and besides, your shorts give you maximum mobility."
Brush muttered under his breath, "I swear the System is trolling me…"
Somewhere outside, the faint echo of Arcadia's laughter could be heard through the city… or maybe that was just a delayed server alert.
Either way, Brush knew one thing: he'd have to get up eventually—and probably fight while half-dressed. Again.