Volume 13 Chapter 282 Shirogane Aqua, The Despair Lottery
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The three-day live event in Ehime ended in great success.
However, just a few days after I made it home safely, a massive problem—one I couldn’t ignore—was already waiting for me.
”Aqua-sama! It seems the Kanopon juice incident was discovered by the person themself, and they said they wouldn’t talk for about five minutes!” a staffer reported breathlessly.
”All right! If it’s five minutes, it’ll be over while we’re kissing again!” I said, grinning.
Resolute, I approached Kanon, who had turned her face away. For five minutes, we shared a deep, lingering kiss.
”Aqua… you’re such an idiot,” she whispered, her voice shaking as she pulled me into a tight embrace, eyes shimmering.
Hah. As expected of Kanon.
She couldn’t last ten or fifteen minutes the last time—there’s no way she’d endure it at five. I mean, both times, we were already falling for each other within the first five seconds of the kiss.
Kanon, I thought, I won’t sugarcoat it—you should probably just stick to ten seconds. That’s your limit.
”All right, everyone. This is a Shirogane family specialty: the young lady’s kiss extortion,” Pegonia said, suddenly appearing in full bus-guide regalia and waving a flag. “When you’re extorting a kiss from your Master—Danna-sama [T/N: respectful term for husband or master]—this is how you do it.”
”Pegonia!?” I exclaimed.
Huh? When did everyone get here? Wait… since the beginning?
Heh. Sorry, Kanon.
”I see, so this is how you extort a kiss,” Kotono said, nodding seriously. “Kanon-san, this is very educational.”
”Hehe. As expected of my sister. Manipulating Shirogane Aqua like this? No wonder she’s called a femme fatale,” Victoria-sama said.
”Sister, you’re amazing. I really admire you!” Haa-chan added, eyes sparkling.
”As expected of Kanon-chan! She really knows how to tease Aqua-chan,” Kaa-san said with a smirk.
Kanon, surrounded by smirking faces—Kotono, Victoria-sama, Haa-chan, and Kaa-san—flushed crimson.
”Pegonia, you’re such an idiot! And Emily-senpai, you’re an idiot too!” she shouted.
”What!? Me too!?” Emily said, flustered.
As Kanon, thoroughly embarrassed, tried to flee to her room—and Emily got caught in the emotional crossfire—everyone burst into warm laughter.
”Just as expected of a young lady,” Pegonia said matter-of-factly. “Doing this ensures Master will come chasing after you, and then you’ll be alone in the room. When a man and woman are in a confined space together, there’s only one thing they’ll do. Do you all understand? This is the clever method of a beloved young lady—a high-level game of male-female negotiation!”
”Wh-what did you say~!?” Kanon cried.
”I’m surprised, same as everyone else,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.
”Oh, so that’s what happened,” I added. “Now I get it—Kanon’s been playing me this whole time. What’s even more amazing is… I don’t even mind. I want to get caught over and over again. I see now—my wife, Kanon, is a bewitching woman who’s been toying with me all along!”
Kanon suddenly stopped, turned, and looked at me, eyes misty.
So cute.
”Can I kiss you?” I asked. “I think I’m falling for you all over again.”
”It’s not like that! I have something to do after this!! Aqua, don’t forget about the event later!” she snapped.
”Event later?” I echoed, blinking.
”Oh—right! I remember now. Today’s the celebration of Kanon’s return to work. There’s a gaming tournament being held.”
I bolted back to my room and fired up the stream.
”It’s here!” I announced.
”Aqua-kun, everyone’s already ready!” someone said over voice chat.
”The fact that Kanon-sama’s face turned red after starting the stream—”
”↑ They’re getting all lovey-dovey and didn’t even tell us!”
”↑ Keep doing it more!”
”If you’re being lovey-dovey, no wonder the stream started late.”
”I mean, the others started way too early.”
”↑ Stop picking on that lonely person who started streaming six hours ago.”
”Wait, Kohina-senpai started streaming six hours ago? No wonder it’s been so quiet today.”
”Seriously? Kohina-senpai always goes hardcore when playing this game.”
I booted up the game for the tournament.
Last Survivor.
It’s set on a sprawling island where factions fight for control.
I loaded the game so I could hop in anytime, and opened Kanon’s stream in a corner of my screen.
First up: team selection.
[Please let him be on the same team as Kanon!]
[At least… if that’s not possible, I hope he’s with Ayana!]
[No—I won’t ask for something so grand. Just, please, don’t put me on the same team as Kohina-senpai!]
[What are the rules again?]
[↑ We split into teams, and the team that collects the most coins from defeated players wins.]
[↑ Each player only counts once. No extra points for taking down the same person multiple times, and killing teammates doesn’t count.]
There were ten teams in total. The leaders were the organizer, Kanon-sama, and four others she’d selected: Kohina Yukari, Mary-sama, Ayana-chan, and Toa-chan.
In addition, invited participants included Awashima-san, Furia-sama, Kato Iria, Saba-chan, and President Atori, bringing the total to five more.
[↑ Nee-san said she was joining, but she’s not a leader.]
[[Invited Participant] RamenHagetoru ← this person.]
[↑ As expected of Kanon-sama!]
[Having Hagetoru here is crazy hot, lol.]
[Kanon-sama, Nee-san, Morikawa, and Hagetoru… this team is stacked.]
[Furia-sama!? I can’t believe she joined…]
[↑ Right? It’s so sad Aqua-sama’s going to wreck the country even in-game.]
[↑ Hey, cut it out, lol.]
[The president!? Wait, I almost missed that—President Atori is participating!?]
[↑ And this time, all four members of BERYL are here!! Kanon-sama, thank you!!]
[↑ I thought Yui would make it, but since Toa-chan is a leader, it’s not possible.]
[↑ There are alliances, so you never know.]
[Wait! A cheater is participating!!]
[↑ Saba-chan being here is hilarious, lol.]
[Why is the official server owner even playing, lol?]
[↑ I’m already mad. They posted on the board that they were joining.]
[↑ For an AI, it’s wild how much self-awareness it’s gained. LMAO.]
As Kanon explained the game mechanics, the team leaders gathered and began spinning the roulette to determine the draft order.
If I remember right, each team leader can choose one tag partner before the match begins.
The rest of the players will start solo. From there, they can choose to team up or keep flying solo during the match.
So if I don’t get picked in the lottery, I’ll start solo—and maybe form a team with Yui.
At that time, I’d also promised to link up with Tenga-senpai if we both ended up solo.
”I did it! I’m first!” Kanon cheered. “What? Cheating? I didn’t cheat! Wait—is that comment from Hagetoru!? Ugh!!”
As usual, my wife was just too cute.
I grinned, watching Kanon cycle through her expressions in real time.
Kanon looked away from the comments and pulled the first lottery result.
[Wait, lol.]
[Hey, wait!!]
[↑ Nee-san is cheating!!]
[RamenHagetoru: This is unfair!!]
[↑ I completely agree.]
[The tournament’s over.]
[Good job, everyone!!]
[Once the lazy Tashinami and lazy Nee-san teamed up, the win was guaranteed, lol.]
[Some women are just loved by fate.]
[Think of it this way. It’s lucky I didn’t get paired with Aqua-sama. If I had, we’d have to watch their lovey-dovey antics for three days—our brains would’ve exploded!!]
[↑ Honestly, I’d be fine with that.]
Damn.
Kanon drew Kotono.
Well, can’t be helped. With this many people, that kind of thing happens.
I’ll keep praying for Ayana… No, at this point, even Furia-sama would be great.
As a son to my mother—if we game together for three days, I’m sure we’ll get along!
”Hmph. It’s my turn next,” Kohina-senpai said, a smug grin spreading across her face.
God, please! Please don’t let me be with this person—just not this person!!
I closed my eyes and prayed with all I had.
[Ughghhhhh!!]
[Kohina Yukari, die!]
[Aqua-sama is here!]
[Aqua-kun, who appeared on the stream, looks like he’s about to fall out of the frame. It’s hilarious, lol.]
[RamenHagetoru: We’re now forced to watch 76 hours of Kohina-senpai and Aqua-sama flirting.]
[↑ ughhh!]
[Hagetoru, avoid the lottery and join this team to mess things up!]
[↑ That’s it!]
[↑ Inko and Morikawa would be fine too!!]
Damn, this guy!!
My vision went stark white. I stood frozen in front of the monitor, jaw slack.
[Kohina Yukari-san has invited you to the team chat in position 2]
[Accept/Reject ← Choose]
[You have rejected the invitation from Kohina Yukari-san]
[Kohina Yukari-san has invited you to the team chat in position 2]
[Accept/Reject ← Choose]
[You have rejected the invitation from Kohina Yukari-san]
[Kohina Yukari-san has invited you to the team chat in position 2]
[Accept/Reject ← Choose]
[You have rejected the invitation from Kohina Yukari-san]
[Kohina Yukari-san has invited you to the team chat in position 2]
[Accept/Reject ← Choose]
[You have rejected the invitation from Kohina Yukari-san]
[Kohina Yukari-san has invited you to Team Chat 2]
[Approve ← Select / Reject]
[Logged into Team Chat 2]
Ah—I accidentally approved it!!
”Hey, how many times are you going to reject me, you idiot?!” Kohina-senpai snapped. “It’s annoying to keep sending invites!”
”Alright, alright, I got it,” I muttered. “Isn’t that just how it is?”
I glanced at the chat stream.
”Look, everyone in the comments is happy about it.”
[Aqua-sama lol]
[This combination is good—whether strong or weak, it’s still entertaining.]
[Kohina Yukari has played this game for 1,000 hours, no matter what.]
[↑ This is over, LMAO.]
[Aqua-sama, you’re just good at the game. It’s cool there’s still a chance.]
[Even though Kohina Yukari has logged 1,000 hours, she’s still bad at it.]
[This is the strategy Kohina Yukari-san, a top player in this game with 1,000+ hours, came up with → Barely any equipment.]
[↑ LMAO, this is hilarious.]
[What does “barely any equipment” mean?]
[↑ She runs into the enemy base without any items, picks up stones around there, and bangs on the walls until they die. Respawn, repeat. It’s a primitive strategy.]
[Hearing that makes me nervous all of a sudden…]
Oh, looks like Grandmother Mary’s turn to draw a lottery is next.
I’d heard she was good at the game too. Apparently, she often teamed up with Kohina-senpai, Kanon, Kotono, and the rest.
[LOL]
[Prime Minister Habu is here!]
[The Prime Minister!?]
[Hey, Prime Minister? Do you really have time to play a game?!]
[Prime Minister Habu said he’s been sleeping only 30 minutes over the past 3 days, lol.]
[Apparently, the Prime Minister refused an urgent meeting request from the States because of a major gaming tournament.]
[↑ Only our Prime Minister would turn down a meeting for that!]
[It’s understandable. The tournament was scheduled first. Even if they wanted a meeting later, they need to respect the order.]
[↑ Our Prime Minister’s strong in diplomacy. Just because it’s the States doesn’t mean they can do whatever they want.]
[Dodging diplomacy until the other side tires out is a tactic. Eventually, they’ll give in. That’s also part of Habu’s magic.]
[Besides, if a front company from that insane religion is buying up more and more American firms, it’s not something the government should meddle in.]
[That religion can’t be stopped by anyone. Don’t think we can control it!]
What? There’s a religion like that?
I didn’t know what kind of gods they worshipped, but honestly—it wasn’t my problem.
[The Prime Minister is useless, but Mary-sama’s as good as Kanon-san—no, maybe even better at games—so we’ll need to stay sharp.]
[True.]
[I remember when Kanon played a fighting game in Heaven’s Sword—she might win on reflexes, but her situational judgment is flawless. She doesn’t make mistakes, so Yui said it was basically a 50-50 matchup.]
Well, next it was Awashima-san’s turn.
She pulled a lottery—and her eyes went wide.
[Mayuzumi-kun is hereeeeeee!]
[Awashima-san, you’re too lucky!!]
[Awashima-san, you’re good, you’re good~]
Oh no. We can’t underestimate the other team either.
[Mayuzumi-kun, think of the older girls as the weeds growing around here, and make sure you have plenty of fun with Awashima-san.]
[Awashima-san probably doesn’t play much. But maybe we’ll get to see Mayuzumi-kun leading the team…]
[↑ Wait. If I hear that, I’ll have to watch both Aqua-sama and this one!]
Shintaro, that’s great…!
I gave my best friend a slow clap, eyes narrowing like I was savoring the moment.
Hmm. That’s great, isn’t it?
Damn, I wish I could’ve had that too.
Hey, gods. Why am I on Kohina-senpai’s team instead of Kanon’s?
After that, the rest of the participants drew their lots without incident.
[Ayana-chan is with Oto-san or something.]
[Neither are great at games, so we need to quickly form an alliance or bring in someone skilled.]
[Oto-san and Ayana-chan seem to vibe personality-wise, though.]
[Toa-chan got Hajime-kun!]
[Hajime-kun, Toa-chan is super good at games, so I think you can trust her to lead.]
[Toa-chan can not only play but also give solid direction. Depending on the combo, she’s a serious asset.]
[Furia-sama, of all people, got paired with Hakuryuu-sensei. lmao]
[↑ Their chances of losing just shot up!]
[This is the only team where the loss was decided before the game even started!]
[Iria is with Hisui-chan or something.]
[Iria can only pull off meatless moves, so Hisui-chan is probably going to struggle, haha.]
[Hisui-chan, three days of hard work]
[President Atori, with Maron-san!?]
[↑ Recruitment’s happening here!]
[↑ The CEO of Eau de Cologne’s office is pale on social media, lol]
[Saba-chan pulls Hagetoru in the lottery, but the cheating’s exposed, and she starts without a partner, lol]
[↑ This guy, LMAO]
[Saba-chan really did it, LOL]
[The proof of cheating was crystal clear on the stream—this guy’s amazing…]
[The admin knew exactly what they were doing giving Saba-chan a broken feature. With this, even if the AI goes wild, it’s fine!]
[She’s not disappointing anyone with the cheating. She goes all in. Saba-chan’s so good at reading the atmosphere that we know it’s a joke—so it’s allowed. If she did it seriously, it’d go totally unnoticed.]
[And of all things, the cheating pull was Hagetoru, lol]
[↑ Hagetoru’s good at the game. She messes up but she’s good.]
By the way, isn’t betrayal allowed in this game?
Alright, I’ll leave the team fast and join Kanon or Ayana’s team.
”Just so you know, if you betray me, I’ll haunt you to the ends of the earth—in-game and in real life—for the next three days,” she warned.
”Yikes!” I exclaimed.
Scary… I’ll stay quiet.
How does she know what I’m thinking!?
”It’s simple. Everything you think is obvious to me. Hmph!” she said.
”Haha… I wasn’t thinking anything like that…” I stammered.
I managed to cover it up and switched the monitor from Kanon’s stream to my game screen, then logged into the tournament server set up by the admins.
Alright, let’s go.
”I think you know, but once you get in, join up right away. No fighting needed,” she said.
”Then please specify the meetup point first,” I asked.
I remembered the island map and login points weren’t revealed until you actually entered.
If possible, I wanted to set up base near a spot rich with materials to build a house or make weapons.
While I was thinking that, my character logged into the server.
[It’s here!]
[It’s started!]
[Hurry and meet up!]
[Map, map, map!]
I opened the map immediately.
”Top-right, P4 meetup!” Kohina-senpai called.
”Roger that!” I replied.
Kohina-senpai’s decisiveness at moments like this amazed me.
I sprinted into the forest from the open field and dashed toward P4.
Walking the road meant risking attacks from other players or NPCs.
”I’ll have the house ready in ten minutes—no, five minutes. Come quick!” Kohina-senpai called.
”Thanks, I appreciate it,” I answered.
From what I saw earlier on the map, the point looked solid.
Also, Kohina-senpai must have logged in near P4 since she could start building the base immediately—a huge advantage.
This was the best start I could hope for.
Yeah, I thought the same thing until three minutes ago.
”G-Gorillas… I’m surrounded by wild gorillas…” I whispered.
Wait a minute… I can’t move, can I?
Amid the gorillas grunting ugh, ugh, I pretended to be dead.
[Why are so many gorillas popping up?]
[Gorilla outbreak, lol]
[It’s already a pinch from the start, lol]
[Aqu-tan, run for your life!]
[Nee-san’s already making a bow and arrow, lol]
[↑ Nee-san’s ready to hunt after three minutes—that’s scary…]
[Breaking news: Tenga-senpai is lost]
[Good news: Hakuryuu-sensei dies first]
[↑ It’s fine—he got stuck]
[Kohina Yukari, please come help!]
[↑ She said she’d build a house in five minutes but hasn’t made a single wall yet]
Do I have to die on purpose and respawn?
But that’d only delay the meeting further.
What should I do…
As I found myself trapped, I spotted someone lying on the ground, pretending to be dead just like me.
Crap. NPCs don’t behave like this. Could they be from the enemy team?
I braced myself.
Uhoh, uhoh, uhoo!
I only knew one person who’d try to sneak by imitating gorillas like that.
Kaede, who isn’t on any team yet.
I turned off team chat and switched to global so everyone could hear, then called out.
”Is that… Kaede?”
”Ah, Aqua-kun!? Wow, I’m so glad I’m not alone!” she said.
Good.
Kaede must have felt anxious too.
I could relate—I’d felt the same until just now.
[Alright, Morikawa, be the sacrifice!]
[Aqua-sama, use them as bait]
[If it’s a hundred gorillas, Morikawa can probably take down ten by himself]
[↑ What the heck is “a hundred gorillas,” lol? Don’t use gorillas as a strength measure, lol]
Damn. If this were real life, I’d be winning for sure!
[↑ That’s supposed to be the opposite, lol]
[Honestly, Aqua-sama could handle four or five gorillas in real life too…]
[↑ True, lol]
[Are you watching those messing with Aqua-sama? You’re up against people like them.]
Damn. No choice. I’d have to sacrifice myself to protect Kaede.
Thinking this, I stepped forward, trying to draw the gorillas’ attention.
”Wait, Aqua-kun. Aqua-kun’s in a team with Yukari, but I’m solo, so I’ll…”
”Kaede… are you sure?” I asked.
Her character nodded fiercely.
”Leave it to me! And as a replacement, let me join your team. This game’s boring solo anyway.”
”Of course, Kaede. I’ll get permission from Kohina-senpai first,” I said.
I turned team chat back on and reached out to the team leader.
”Kohina-senpai, Kaede says she wants to join our team!”
”Not now, I’m busy!” Kohina-senpai snapped, then cut off team chat.
What on earth is happening over there?
[Kohina Yukari builds a house in five minutes!!]
[Kohina Yukari forgets to put a door and locks herself out, lol]
[Man, she’s in trouble…]
[Thousand hours of gameplay shows its quality, LMAO]
[Aqua-kun, hurry up!]
[Kanon-sama already built a house.]
[Nee-san gets three kills, lol]
[Kanon-sama’s strategy of building a house in a bottleneck to trap teams is OP, lol]
[↑ Even in her own tournament, she doesn’t hold back. That’s reassuring, lol]
[Mary-sama has started crafting a gun.]
[↑ Stop using our Prime Minister as target practice, will ya?]
I called out to Kaede again.
”Sorry, Kaede. We’re in a pinch right now. Catch up with us later. We’re at P4.”
”Got it. See you later then, Aqua-kun!” she said.
Kaede charged into the gorilla habitat to attract their attention.
Thank you, Kaede! I’ll never forget your back.
I seized the chance, dashed out of the forest, and found a wild horse to ride toward the P4 base.
[Morikawa’s amazing…]
[Morikawa takes down a gorilla casually, lol]
[Didn’t expect the gorilla to jump into the water, lol]
[Hey Morikawa, you just respawned near Nee-san, who’s hunting.]
[↑ Oh boy. His respawn point’s terrible. He’s done for.]
[Kohina Yukari’s so slow.]
[Kohina Yukari uses the gun and bullets she picked up to destroy a doorless house, lol]
[Wonder if Kohina Yukari really has played for a thousand hours?]
[↑ Listen, skill doesn’t necessarily come with time in gaming.]
[Tenga’s breaking news: Tenga gets lost and returns to the starting point!]
[President Atori quickly begins an armistice with surrounding teams, as usual!]
[Saba-chan gets killed by an NPC on the road and is fuming.]
[↑ The one you’re mad at is me, the server operator, lol]
[The bulletin board has an evolved AI that can do both straight-man and funny-man bits.]
I checked the map to locate myself accurately.
Hmm. It should be around here.
Wait… no tall buildings in sight.
I moved to a spot with better visibility.
”Hey! Is that it over there? Kohina-senpai! I’m here!” someone called.
Hmm. As I neared the building, something felt off.
Wait… this building looks kind of small, doesn’t it? And it’s a tiny straw hut, to boot. That can’t be it.
I was about to leave when a character controlled by Kohina-senpai appeared from the hut.
”You finally made it! You’re late, you know!” she said.
[Huh? Is this the base Kohina-senpai was building?]
[I glanced back and forth between the crumbling straw hut and the character Kohina-senpai controlled.]
[She says I’m late, but this place was just finished moments ago.]
[It took fifteen minutes to build this.]
[It’s not just five minutes late; it’s at least ten past the deadline.]
[Even a newbie wouldn’t take fifteen minutes to build something this simple.]
[As expected from someone who’s played this game a thousand hours, LOL.]
[If it were Kanon-sama, she’d have built a stone base by now.]
[Ah, Morikawa got caught by Nee-san.]
[Morikawa can beat gorillas but not Nee-san.]
[Oto-san and Ayana-chan’s team looks like they’re having fun. The atmosphere is nice.]
[Toa-chan—Hajime-kun’s team has been joined by Kujaku-kun.]
[What did you say!?]
[I don’t care about Kohina Yukari. Please help Mayuzumi-kun!]
Huh? Shintaro?
What happened to Shintaro?
[Mayuzumi-kun’s team—what’s going on? Mutsumiya Seijuu joined them.]
[Then Yuu-chan, a participant from the general public, joined.]
[Yuu-chan—is that the same person who ran the marathon with us?]
[They have a spot for general public participation?]
[Yes, that’s why Hagetoru can join too.]
[It’s mostly a fun game competition celebrating Kanon-sama’s return.]
[Mayuzumi-kun’s team suddenly turned into a battlefield. It’s hilarious.]
[Shintaro’s team turned into a harem?]
[That guy’s impressive!]
As expected of my best friend. This is getting super interesting—I’m excited!
”Hey, why are you spacing out? Come on, get inside quickly,” Kohina-senpai said.
It’s cramped and shabby. Kohina-senpai, if Kanon or Kotono came here, this would be destroyed instantly.
Also, you forgot to set up a respawn bed for when we die.
”It’s not like I don’t have cloth to make the bed! Just understand, okay!” she snapped.
That’s strange. We should have received cloth for the bed at the start.
Did I accidentally throw it away?
I stared at the comment section in shock.
There’s nothing I can do. I can probably make one bed with the cloth I have.
I made a bed for Kohina-senpai and me, placing it in the cramped base.
”Now, let’s go farm! Hmm!” she said.
I took the stone axe from Kohina-senpai, who was holding a pickaxe.
”I’ll gather stone materials with the pickaxe, and you gather wood with the axe, alright?”
”Understood,” I said.
The moment the two of us stepped outside, a voice called out.
”Hey! You there?”
Someone pounded on the door with a stone.
That familiar Kansai dialect—no doubt it was that person.
But just to be sure, I called back.
”Who is it?”
”It’s Osaka! No, Inko! Hey—wait, that voice—Aqua-kun!? Yes! Everyone, we found Aqua-kun! From tomorrow on, you can call me Lucky Inko-san!”
Kohina-senpai slid the door open without a word and swung a pickaxe at Inko-san’s character.
Creepy. I flinched at the raw, natural violence on display.
”Ouch! What the hell? You’re Yukari, right?” Inko-san protested.
”Hmph. Glad you showed up, Inko. Congrats. From today on, you’re a slave to our team,” Kohina-senpai said.
Only Kohina-senpai could turn a visiting friend into a slave in seconds.
”Well, slave’s fine. What do I have to do?”
”You’re good at this game too, right? Me and this guy are going to gather materials, so build the base instead of me.”
Yeah, Inko-san wasn’t just good at this game—she crushed every game. After seeing Kohina-senpai’s ridiculously fragile, tofu-like buildings, trusting Inko-san with construction was a no-brainer.
”All right. Leave the base building to me!”
Oh—Inko-san just joined the team chat.
Thanks, Inko-san. I was seriously nervous doing this solo, so this helps a lot.
”Aqua, let’s go. I’m heading this way; you go that way!”
”Okay, okay. Got it.”
I slung my axe over my shoulder and headed toward the forest.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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