CHAPTER 79: REALITY TV IS MY SOCIAL LINK GRINDING SPOT

"Fuck this," I muttered, shoving the VHC manual aside. The bureaucratic nonsense was designed to bore people into compliance, and my brain had hit its limit. I needed a different kind of stimulation. My gaze landed on my phone. An idea, sharp and predatory, took shape. I scrolled to her name: Emi Aoyama.

The blue-haired healing specialist was practically broadcasting her availability, and our scheduled study date was still three days away. Why not establish some additional groundwork tonight? Strike while the iron’s hot and all that manipulative bullshit.

I tapped her contact and waited, mentally preparing my approach.

She answered on the second ring, her voice carrying through with surprising clarity. "H-Hello? Satori-kun?" She sounded higher-pitched than I’d anticipated, her tone nervous and breathy with unmistakable surprise.

"Hey, Aoyama-san," I replied, deliberately dropping my voice to a relaxed, intimate rumble. "Sorry for the late call. I’m buried in VHC regs and my brain is starting to melt. Tell me I’m not interrupting anything."

"No! No, not at all!" The enthusiasm in her voice was almost comically transparent. "I was just about to watch the new episode of ’Gate to My Heart.’ Have you heard of it? It’s that reality show where Hunters try to date each other while completing challenges, and—" She suddenly stopped herself mid-sentence. "Oh, but you probably think that’s stupid, right? A serious guy like you wouldn’t waste time on something so silly."

"Oh, the one with that pyrokinetic hothead from Crimson Fang?" I countered smoothly. "The guy’s a complete self-absorbed moron, but he makes for entertaining TV. My mom actually loves that show." She really did. "Mind if I watch it ’with’ you? Could use something mindless after all this studying."

"Really?" The shock in her voice was palpable, like I’d just told her I was secretly an S-Rank Hunter. "You actually watch it too? That’s... that’s so awesome! Yes, let’s totally watch together! It’s starting in like five minutes!"

I quickly located the streaming app on my tablet, settling back onto my bed as I pulled up the show. The Hunter entertainment industry was an absolute cesspool of staged drama and manufactured personalities, but it would serve my immediate purposes perfectly.

"Okay, I’ve got it queued up," I said, propping the tablet against my pillow and getting comfortable. "So what’s happened so far this season? Catch me up on all the manufactured drama I’ve missed."

It was like I’d turned a key. Emi launched into a breathless, enthusiastic torrent of information describing the current season’s contestants, their Aspects, their guild affiliations, and the various romantic entanglements that had developed over the past few episodes. Her commentary was surprisingly insightful and genuinely funny, punctuated by infectious giggles and theatrical gasps as she recalled particularly dramatic moments from previous episodes.

The opening credits began rolling across my screen—a flashy montage of impossibly attractive young Hunters posing dramatically with their Aspects activated in brilliant displays of power, interspersed with glamorous shots of romantic locations scattered throughout the safe zones of New Vein City.

"Oh, there he is!" Emi squealed with such genuine excitement I could practically see her bouncing on her bed. "Kaito Hirokawa, B-Rank pyrokinetic from Crimson Fang. He’s such a shameless player, but I kind of think he actually has real feelings for Mina, the water manipulator from Celestial Sentinels."

"Classic elemental opposition," I commented with deliberate dryness. "TV producers eat that shit up. Fire and water, destined to clash but irresistibly drawn together by forces they can’t control. Did you know Crimson Fang actually has the highest mortality rate among all the major guilds? They’re notorious for sending their B-Ranks into Red Gates with minimal backup just for the ratings boost."

"Really?" Emi sounded genuinely intrigued by this darker side of the Hunter world. "How do you know all these insider details? I thought you were completely new to the Hunter scene."

"I read a lot," I replied. "Once I discovered I had an Aspect, I wanted to learn absolutely everything about the industry I was entering. Guild statistics, mortality rates, operational procedures—all of it. Knowledge is power, especially for someone starting from zero like me."

I tuned out the scripted drama on the screen, my focus entirely on the stream of intel pouring through my phone. Every time she defended a contestant’s "pure heart" or gushed about a romantic gesture, she was handing me the keys to her own cage. She valued loyalty, believed in true love, and saw the best in people.

When a contestant from a smaller guild appeared on screen, I saw my opening. "I’ve never heard of the ’Azure Knights.’ Are they any good? Do you know anyone trying out for them?"

"Oh, they’re mid-tier at best," Emi replied. "They specialize in aquatic Gates, so they’re pretty niche. My friend wants to join them because his Aspect lets him breathe underwater. He says their requirements are easier than the big guilds."

"Smart strategy," I noted. "Better to be a big fish in a small pond than cannon fodder for Aegis Prime or Crimson Fang."

"That’s exactly what I told him!" Emi sounded pleased that we were on the same wavelength. "I’m hoping to get into Celestial Sentinels myself. They value healers more than the other guilds."

When the show’s host mentioned the upcoming Hunter exams, I seized another opportunity. "Must be intense, having the whole country watch you compete for your future like that," I said, my tone casual. "Is the competition at your school as cutthroat as they make it out to be on TV?"

"Well, there’s Joshua Palmer," Emi began, her voice tightening with anxiety. "He has a sound manipulation Aspect that’s already at B-Rank. He’s practically guaranteed a spot at New Vein. And Natalia, of course. Everyone knows she’s going to get in because of her telekinesis—oh, and her dad being who he is." She paused. "But I shouldn’t say that. Natalia works really hard."

"She does," I agreed. "But connections still matter in this world. That’s just reality."

The show reached what was clearly meant to be its climactic scene—Kaito the pyrokinetic and Mina the water manipulator sharing a romantic moment in a hot spring. Steam rose dramatically around them as they leaned closer together, the camera cutting away just before their lips met.

"Wow..." Emi’s voice became softer, a little breathless. "It’s getting kind of... hot in here, isn’t it?"

"Must be his Aspect," I replied.

"Oh! Right! Haha!" Her nervous laughter told me everything I needed to know. "He’s, um, definitely raising the temperature!"