My System: An Evolved Computer I Made With My Unique Ability—

Chapter 238 Civil War Conclusion

Tatsuki's energy poured forth as he lost himself. Fuming with anger, he charged at Star Spangled and pinned him to the ground. Tatsuki then unleashed a punch that landed squarely on Star Spangled's face. And he didn't hit him once, he hit him a couple more times before he activated one of his plundered fire superpowers, shooting off an ember of flame point-blank at Star Spangled's face.

A moment ago, it was Star Spangled who had been underestimating Tatsuki and his weak usage and implementation of his superpower but now he's got his rear side handed to him on a silver platter as Tatsuki beat him on a one-sided fight. There was no contest whatsoever, and Tatsuki showed no mercy.

All beat up and coughing blood from his broken lips and mouth, Star Spangled raised his hand in surrender. "I... I give up." He muttered.

For the span of a minute, Star Spangled tried as hard as he could to retaliate but his superpower just won't activate. At first, he thought that it had something to do with one of Tatsuki's plundered powers but such wasn't the case. IT was actually Ayumu's doing. With her superpower 'Counter', she had been countering Star Spangled's attack all this time.

As a last warning, Tatsuki grabbed Star Spangled by the collar. "I know that we've been to countless battles together, Star Spangled, but what you did is unforgivable. You tried to kill my son." After saying that, he dropped Tatsuki to the ground with a thud before walking away.

Not only were Satoshi's classmates received their dose of shock, but even Satoshi was appalled at how the situation turned out. Of course, it was understandable that he'd have died if the attack connected, but it didn't.

Then again, his parents' reactions were understandable. Any parent would've done the same if they were in their shoes.

Star Spangled struggled to stand up. "I'm sorry about that, um Satoshi, I thought you were a monster coming out of the Dungeon. Your energy level is over nine thousand." Before Tatsuki could say anything, Star Spangled bowed his head towards Satoshi since it was really an honest mistake.

Tap.

Tap.

"Ah, I see all of you have finally gathered here." Fury came in the nick of time before another trouble ensued. "I just received a memo from the higher-ups, telling me that the attack was called off. I don't know why they did that but it was probably due to the pressure of the citizens."

"Furthermore, having Tatsuki as the face of the opposing group made the Japanese Government and the SAO look bad to the public. That probably played a huge factor in their decisions."

While Fury was updating them about the recent changes, Satoshi then extended his hand towards Jack Michael, aka Star Spangled, so the two of them could shake their hands. Star Spangled obliged, ending the unexpected feud between him and Satoshi's father.

A meeting amongst the group commenced and they talked about the recent incident regarding the Dimensional Portal. Still, they had no idea as to why the Japanese Government along with the SAO attacked the harmless Dimensional Portal. The only thing they could do was try to guess whatever the cause actually was.

Quite frankly, Star Spangled already knew the sole reason why but he didn't bother telling anyone since it would only jeopardize the world beyond the Dimensional Portal even more. That's why he kept quiet.

A couple of minutes later, Eye Goddess arrived by the foot of the Dungeon Spire where everyone was having a meeting. Just as she thought, the one and only Star Spangled was there. "Why is he here?" She asked herself as she seated herself between Star Spangled and Satoshi.

'If I don't want 'that' to happen, then I must get in the way as much as I can. I can't let Star Spangled take Satoshi away no matter what!' Eye Goddes said to herself, sticking close to Satoshi so Star Spangled wouldn't have a chance to talk to him.

"..."

"Right,"

"Now, about the Dungeon Spire. I'm afraid we won't be able to proceed as scheduled." Fury heaved a sigh of disappointment. What happened inside the Dungeon was his responsibility. If it weren't for him pushing Tatsuki's party, they wouldn't have overextended themselves. Fortunately, his wife and son swooped in to save the day. If it weren't for them then Tatsuki's party would've been erased.

"So we're going to stick to the previously decided schedule of using multiple parties and have them rotate in an efficient manner. I will also list out a couple of missions and post it on agencies so anyone could volunteer to join the dungeon exploration."

"Also, Star Spangled is here, right? Would it be all right if we extend the deadline of the agreement? One month, give us one month and that would be more than enough time for us to clear this Dungeon." Fury continued.

Everyone then stared at Star Spangled who was left to decide whether America would stick to the one-week deadline or not. While he may not be the president, Star Spangled actually has a huge influence in America. That's why he could decide right then and there even though he was just a pseudo-representative. "I mean, after everything that's happened I think it would be in America's best interest for the deadline to be extended. We don't want a war happening between our countries due to unnecessary pressure... and also, think of this as my apology for attacking Satoshi. Once again, I'm really sorry." Star Spangled bowed once again.

"You attacked Satoshi?" Eye Goddess's eyes widened in confusion as she received a nod from the Midoriyama, confirming that Star Spangled really did attack Satoshi. "Why would you do that?" She continued.

"I thought he was a—"

"Good thing you didn't hit him. You'd have long been dead by now." Eye Goddess brushed off her comment as she turned towards Satoshi, giving him a warm smile. Even though she said that with full confidence, she was actually just kidding.

However, Star Spangled didn't take the comment as a joke at all. Thinking about it now, Satoshi easily avoided his attack even though it came at him while his guard was down. Not only that, he was even able to prepare a counter— assuming a fighting stance and calmly talking to him as if he had just done something minor. Judging from what transpired a moment ago, Star Spangled could tell that Satoshi was actually strong, perhaps stronger than both his parents combined.

As his eyes wandered around, he noticed the White Lion licking his paws while lying down by the corner of the spacious tent. 'Now that I think about it, they did mention that the White Lion was tamed by Satoshi, right? How strong is this kid?' Star Spangled said to himself.

.....

With the incident reaching its somewhat underwhelming conclusion, the entire group headed home in one of the government-issued vans driven by Fury himself. Everyone was there including Star Spangled who felt really out of place due to his unforgivable actions a few moments ago. No one brought it up again though so it didn't really matter.

A lot has happened in the span of two days. Even Satoshi started wondering how everyone could keep up with everything in the superhero world. It was only his first day in the field as a licensed superhero but things were already getting out of hand. One thing transpired after another, giving Satoshi no leeway to catch a break.

Exhausted, he collapsed on his seat, hoping that sleep would soon visit him so he could regain all the energy he expended. However, before he completely dozed off, someone touched him by the shoulder, making him flail around in surprise before turning his head in all directions. "Wha- where- what? Is it the end of the world?!" He sleepily asked.

"Are you all right, Satoshi?" Shiroi then cupped her hands so she could whisper at Satoshi.

Only then did Satoshi realize that they were actually sitting together!

"Wah! Shiroi... san? What are y— ah, yes, I'm fine. Why'd you ask?" Satoshi didn't know what to do but he managed to regain his composure while talking to Shiroi. For a moment there, his mind almost went blank after seeing Shiroi's face so close to his.

"Why were you left behind in the Dungeon a while ago?" Shiroi directly asked. "You cleared it, didn't you?" Her eyes then turned into slits as she whispered in excitement.

"What me? How can I even..." Somehow, Satoshi felt guilty. Before he could even utter the lie, he heaved a sigh accepting his defeat before turning the other way towards the windows. (He didn't turn away from Shiroi because he felt guilty, but because her face was too close and he couldn't help but feel flustered.)

"Yes, yes I did... well, I didn't really clear it per se, but I managed to reach the last floor. Sigh~ it's a long story." Satoshi continued.