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nA constant stream of guests arriving downstairs. After the Prodigy girls, it was Jenny with Meggie, Little Xuan, and Little Wu in tow. Then it was Kai, Tsuki and Elise. After that, Zhaojun, Daji, and Xuannu, trailed by Amadeus and Yudi who apparently ran into each other while shopping. And finally, Bai and Qing showed up with their respective lovers.

nIn short, it became a lively and cheerful party. Introductions going around as everyone greeted each other. Yue starting to get a bit frazzled as she dealt with all the people wanting to get a peek at Aurora.

nFortunately for Yue, Aurora didn’t mind the attention. In fact, the cute newborn baby girl happily babbled and gurgled at every new person she saw and in general was just a cheerful giggling baby.

nStill, it was a bit chaotic.

nBut things eventually settled down.

nAnd then it was time for the main event.

nJohn adjusted the camcorder on its tripod, peering through the pop-out screen to make sure everything was properly framed.

nThe towering Christmas tree. Meggie, Xuan, and Wu huddled up together in front of a pile of gifts that towered over them.

nAfter making sure the kids were in view, he stuck up his thumb and said, “Alright! You’re good to go!”

nMeggie glanced around at everyone else and blushed. Glaring back at John, she said, “W-Why do I have to go first, Dad?!”

n“Because you’re the youngest out of your sisters who can still open presents. And because you’re the most expressive out of the group too.”

nLaughter filled the air.

nMeggie’s face turned even more red and she pursed her lips together.

nOff in the crowd, Tsuki cheered and said, “You can do it, Meggie! Just have fun opening your presents!”

nMeggie glanced at her and muttered, “Easy for you to say.”

nXuan tugged on Meggie’s left hand and said, “Sister Meggie! May we start?”

nWu tugged on Meggie’s other hand and said, “Yes! Big Sister, may we help you open your presents?”

nMeggie relaxed at that and smiled. “Alright. How about you two pick the first ones?”

nXuan’s eyes lit up and she smiled. “Yes!” She let go of Meggie’s hand and quickly hopped over to the gift pile.

n“S-Sister! Wait for me!” Wu let go as well and dashed forward too.

nMeggie shook her head, watching the two circle around the gifts to pick one out. After a little while, she stepped forward to help them decide.

nJohn smiled at that.

n“You look like you’re having fun, Husband.”

nYue walked beside John, holding Aurora in her arms.

nThe newborn was finally napping, finally tired out from all the excitement.

nJohn chuckled and then glanced back at the camcorder to check the view. After adjusting it to zoom in on Meggie and the others, John nodded and said, “I am. It’s not every day I get to see my cute daughters get surprised by gifts, you know?”

nYue looked over at Meggie opening her first present and then shook her head. “You will spoil them silly at this rate.”

n“Mm.” John watched Meggie gasp as she pulled out a pristine Gameboi Colour along with the trio of CapsuMon games for it. “Maybe. But I’m making up for a lot of lost time.”

nXuan and Wu cheered at Meggie’s gift. But then Meggie walked over to their pile of gifts and pulled some out for them to open.

nYue watched as well, her gaze turning mixed when she looked at Xuan and Wu. “I suppose.” She pursed her lips and said, “…Do you think Little Xuan and Little Wu will enjoy the present I made them?”

n“Of course they will. Coming from you, anything would be fine.”

n“So you say. But…” Yue sighed and looked down at Aurora. Watching her sleeping face, Yue let out a soft smile and shook her head. “No. I will simply have to make amends. It won’t do to set a bad example for our daughter.”

n“That’s right-“

n“Especially when there is already one standing right next to me.”

nJohn gave Yue a blank stare.

nShe giggled and turned her gaze back to Meggie and the others.

nJohn shook his head and took a look around the room.

nFollowing Meggie’s outburst, the gift openings finally began.

nAsako and Rin stood next to Alphy, helping her carefully unwrap her pile of gifts.

nBetty worked her way through her own pile, getting help from Emily and Sakura.

nThe Prodigy girls had pulled out their gifts from the tree and were sitting at a table, passing them around and taking turns opening presents.

nThe members from the Legends Security Group chatting with the yakuza trio…

nAltogether, an exchange of Christmas joy and cheer.

nJohn shifted his gaze back to Meggie to see her reaction.

nAnd then he had to quickly adjust his balance as she ran over to hug him.

n“Gah!” John took a step back to handle the weight and then quickly reached out to steady the camera. “Meggie! You’re not a kid any-“

n“…Thanks Dad. You’re the best.”

nJohn stilled and then patted her back. “…No problem, Meggie.”

n—–AI|IA—–

nWhile the Christmas party and gift exchange started, a certain UTube channel quietly started up a stream.

nStraightGarbage Eh? Titor’s streaming?

npurplepig It’s Christmas, isn’t it?

nyellowrat Why’s John streaming instead of spending time with his family?

nAt first, the screen was blank. Nothing but a dark screen. But as time passed, faint static filled the screen, followed by muffled voices.

nsnoopdoggo A Christmas special?

ndiceydemon So is this Titor or John streaming?

nazuredreams Is this a secret Project MirAIs BTS?

n“Can you hear me?”

nA hushed male voice echoed. Titor’s.

nrighteousfrog Oho?!

nsneakysnake An incognito stream?

nlittlelion Yep! Loud and clear!

nThe screen shook, like someone adjusting the camera lens. After that, a familiar face came into view. Titor’s.

nHe looked the same as usual, showing up in that realistic but stylized Anime appearance. However, instead of his usual labcoat, he was wearing a bright red Santa outfit.

nStaring at the screen, he smiled and said, “Good. Looks like the signal’s going through.”

nAn annoyed female sigh echoed from offscreen. After that, a beautiful woman with long red hair leaned into the frame. Amadeus.

nShe frowned and said, “Are you sure this is a good idea, Titor? Won’t John be pissed if he finds out?”

nTitor waved his hand and said, “Don’t worry about it. *I’m* the protagonist now. And if I’m not getting screentime, I’m taking it for myself.”

ngrassygopher www

nfishyfan Titor jealous of John’s riajuu energy?

ndelusionaldevil Chuuni being chuuni, huh?

nAt that time, someone else came into view. Like Titor and Amadeus, he was stylized by whatever filter or software they were using to stream.

n“So this is the communication device you are using to record the celebrations?”

nA regal but old male voice speaking in fluent Japanese, like one of the ancient Emperors.

nAnd the speaker looked exactly like that.

nAn elderly man with flowing silver hair and a long beard. Wearing a majestic emerald robe, he stook in stark contrast to the Christmas themed Amadeus and Titor.

nicyiguana Who’s the old man?

nrudolfreindeer Santa!?

nconfusedcook wtf is going on here?

nTitor glanced over and said, “Yep! Say hi to the… hundred thousand people watching? Huh. You guys have no life, huh?”

nHana_fan101 Says the one streaming on Christmas!

ndillpickle Our family’s watching the stream on TV!

nStraightGarbage We’re just making sure not to miss anything!

n“Anyway,” Titor said. “Are you sure you want to play along with this, Yudi?”

nYudi rubbed his beard some more and nodded. “This Regal Self shall oblige with your plans. It would be wonderful to record these festive times for posterity as well.”

nTitor turned to Amadeus and said, “See? He’s fine with it.”

nAmadeus covered her face and muttered, “Why are you two getting along so well now…? Ugh. I’m *totally* going to have to clean up this mess later, aren’t I?”

n“You worry too much, Ama-chan.”

nAmadeus snapped and said, “Don’t call me that!”

nTitor laughed.

nloreowl Wait, so is this a secret liveleak stream?

nstan4eva It’s totally a BTS!

ncrazycoin John doesn’t know about this, huh? RIP Titor.

nTitor glanced off to the side and frowned. “Oi. Don’t count me out just yet. It’ll be fiiine. Now I’ll just set you guys here…”

nThe camera shifted, turning away from Titor’s face before panning out to reveal the rest of the room.

nA towering Christmas tree in the middle, with presents beneath it. People milling about opening gifts. Christmas themed decor, like giant snowmen, the Arctic Express, animatronic reindeer…

nAnd cookies. Lots of cookies. Including a life-sized gingerbread house off in the distance.

nnighthawk Whoa!

ndigitaldevilcaller That’s… CG, right? Right?

nmirais4life Hey! I see Hana and the others!

nAmadeus walked in front of the camera and frowned. “…I’ll admit, you hid it pretty well. But you made sure the auto-filter is on, right? Both for names and faces? Because John will literally kill you if it isn’t.”

nA hand appeared on screen, waving off to the side. Titor’s, which indicated that the camera perspective was from somewhere on Titor’s body. “No worries, Waifu. I checked that a hundred times.”

nAmadeus covered her face and muttered, “I still think this is a terrible idea.”

n“It is. But think of the content, Ama-chan!”

n“Stop calling me that.”

nYudi chuckled and walked forward, hiding his hands in his sleeves. After that, he glanced back and said, “Well then. This Regal Self shall take the lead.” He looked at the camera and winked. “Merry Christmas, you mortals.”

nrational_rabbit …Oh god. We’ve got a Chuuni Gramps too now…

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