My wife is the stand-in.

The air was filled with the sweet aroma of white rice, which mingled with the rich fragrance of steamed fish.

The taste of home is so rich and comforting.

Even though he didn't want to wake up and wanted to linger in this dream for just one more minute, the unwell reality still woke Amanosaki up.

What catches the eye is a girl wearing a white cotton T-shirt, her silhouettes casting dim shadows under the orange light. She is extremely well-endowed; even when wearing Amanosaki's men's cotton T-shirt, the chest area is not hollow like the rest of the shirt.

Hinata had a handkerchief wrapped around her head, was wearing flip-flops, and was quickly chopping with a kitchen knife while humming a lullaby softly. Her eyes were slightly narrowed, radiating happiness.

With just that one glance, Amanosaki almost burst into tears.

Isn't this the life he's been pursuing? A cute anime girl cooking for herself.

"I, Amanosaki, swear to defend my life to the death!"

He clenched his fist and made a silent vow.

"You're awake. You ate so much ice cream and watermelon today. Even with my chakra helping to convert it, your stomach must be struggling. Get up quickly. I made some white fungus and lotus seed soup according to the recipe. Drink some to warm your stomach first. The other dishes will be ready soon."

Hinata gently wiped her hands on the sides of her apron before placing the bowl of white fungus and lotus seed soup on the low stool by the bedroom door. This natural, heartwarming gesture reassured Amanosaki that it was all real.

Damn, this is the best life ever.

Amanosaki took a big bite into the bowl, swallowed it down, and finished the soup in a few gulps.

His stomach, which had been pacing for half a day, was awakened by the soup and started rumbling; only then did he realize he was hungry.

After swallowing the hot soup, it felt like a ball of heat was burning inside his stomach. Amanosaki broke out in a sweat and felt instantly refreshed.

He tiptoed into the kitchen and saw Hinata setting the plates. Seeing the food cooking in the pot, he couldn't help but feel tempted and secretly reached out with his chopsticks.

Snapped!

Hinata, who was wearing an apron and a headscarf, had turned around at some point. She gently tapped Amanosaki's hand with the tip of her chopsticks and said reproachfully:

"Ara ara, wash your hands first."

In the midst of their pleasant conversation, Amanosaki completely forgot about his dinner appointment with a certain train hero.

Iron-Blooded Train Hero? Who's that? I don't know him at all!

Chapter Thirteen: Wife? Father!

After a silent and sweet dinner with Hinata, Amanosaki turned on his computer and skillfully entered the online forum.

He had originally planned to head straight to the "Romantic Forum," but his mouse was startled by the news on the cover.

On the forum's homepage, in the scrolling list of popular posts, he and Hinata were prominently listed.

"What's going on?!" Amanosaki almost spat out the yogurt in his mouth.

He frantically clicked on the link, and a series of scarlet words shot into his eyes:

A new sword immortal has emerged! He is suspected to be the personally appointed closed-door disciple!

The accompanying image shows Jie Laobin riding a roc-like creature, arrogantly bursting through the wall of what appears to be a building belonging to the Yushan branch. The photographer must be a paparazzi with extensive experience in candid photography and voyeurism to capture such a clear photo in such a short time.

This news unsurprisingly topped the list on the Jianghu forum, with its popularity exceeding one million.

Even with the news reports lacking sufficient evidence due to the fact that the channels before and after Jie Laobin drew his sword were cut off at his request, it still didn't explain who Jie Laobin actually took as his disciple.

It seems that a master-level knight is equivalent to a big shot on Earth. They usually keep a low profile, but when something happens, they can attract a huge amount of publicity.

It's so scary.

Amanosaki, the already chosen disciple, was completely oblivious, clicking his tongue in amazement as he scrolled through his mouse.

Shocking! Superpowers can actually create life!

The accompanying image shows Amanosaki leaping up from the railing, raising his fist, with Hinata Hyuga appearing behind him, her Byakugan open and exuding a menacing aura.

This must have been one of the sixteen cameras that were facing Amanosaki at the time, capturing his highlight moment of the day.

The shooting angle is excellent, perfectly highlighting the average level of attractiveness (8 out of 10) among Amano Saki's online novel readers.

"Following the guidance of the expert commenters, I successfully found information about this beautiful woman!"

The accompanying image is... it's the Hinata character art that Amanosaki uploaded yesterday! ??

What's going on? Weren't we supposed to be more focused on reality? How come some random person online has such a high level of skill? What should I do? Will their real address be found out? Should I rent a new place?

When considering moving, Amanosaki felt that the urban villages were a mixed bag and unsafe. Besides, a house with only one bedroom, kitchen, toilet, and small balcony was definitely not enough for two people.

Although her "ideal type" is a stand-in, she herself has said that she prefers vivid names to cold stand-in names. Perhaps she will rent a two-bedroom apartment next time and reserve one room for herself.

Maybe we won't stay, we'll sleep together...

"No, no, no, don't get the wrong idea, let's get back to the main topic."

Amanosaki gave himself a warning and quickly clicked on the post, only to find that the person who first mentioned where he had seen Hinata was a loyal reader of that post.

Now I feel relieved.

He let out a long sigh of relief, and his wildly beating heart calmed down a little.

Even a hero can be brought down by a penny. Amanosaki has now registered his household registration, and apart from the money he earns from posting posters during the day, he really has no savings. If he moves immediately, he may not be able to last a month.

Although Hinata relayed what Jielabin said at the dinner table, telling him to register as a knight within three days, her words were full of arrogance, implying that "just go and mention my name," which made Amanosaki feel that the matter was a sure thing.

But he himself was quite resistant to it.

Because this means that I, who need to train day and night, will have to give up my grand dream of "depicting the ACG world from this shore".

He will also lose a potential dream in the entertainment industry.

The main thing is that risking your life once or twice is fine, but who can stand it if you have to do it every day?

Furthermore, what is the biggest weakness of a Stand?

The answer is Stand users!

Why does Chili Pepper, who has a 5A-level stat sheet comparable to a national-level tourist attraction, frequently toy with JoJo in city battles, yet crumble completely when she loses?

Because his true form has been found.

Thus, the Stand, which had absorbed the electricity of the entire Morioh town and could merge into the power grid at any time, suddenly had a huge flaw and was destroyed within minutes of the story.

As a Stand that can maintain mid-to-long range and possesses intelligence and limitless possibilities, Amanosaki would not risk exposing his weakness by entering the battlefield.

Otherwise, what if your "ideal type" turns out to be a Super Girl on that day? As long as the evil spirits kill you with one blow, won't the substitute also be shut down?

With an idea in mind, Amanosaki's mind became much clearer, and he began to browse attentively.

"Hmm? So, because of the incident at the martial arts arena during the day, the post was dug up again, and that's why it's trending?"

A flame icon following a forum post indicates that the post is a popular one this week, with a significant number of people viewing, commenting on, and even tipping the author.

The current pageview count for "To That Distant ACG" is... 800,000?!

Despite such a high level of discussion online, Hinata's popularity hasn't increased further?

Amanosaki scanned the data in his field of vision and saw the relevant entries:

[Current Identity: Hinata Hyuga]

[Current Popularity: Emerging Talent (63%)]

“Ah…that makes sense.” Amanosaki quickly figured it out, rubbing his forehead and shaking his head self-deprecatingly. “The main character is, after all, a scabby guy, and Hinata and I are just bystanders. Most of the people who clicked on this post are probably the same group who watched the live stream and videos during the day. Duplicate people don’t count; that’s how it is in all games.”

Just then, a pair of cool hands touched Amanosaki's temples and gently massaged them. Hinata's voice sounded behind Amanosaki:

"What's wrong? Why are you looking so gloomy?"

"Reading rumors and thinking about things." Amanosaki closed his eyes, enjoying the rare coolness. He felt that the miserable life of last night's unbearable heat was as distant as a dream.

"It feels good to have the cooling balm on, doesn't it?" Hinata tilted her head as she massaged Amanosaki's various works.

Amanosaki, engrossed in Hinata's exquisite pressing techniques honed through Baguazhang, was completely unaware of Hinata's movements.

until……

"Oh... I didn't know you drew so many girls."

Amanosaki instantly went into alert mode. His instincts, ingrained in his genes, told him that this was a matter of life and death!

"Ah...this...this is..." Amanosaki was so anxious that he scratched his head and couldn't find a suitable reason to make excuses.

"Pfft!"

Hinata, seeing this, couldn't help but cover her mouth and burst out laughing: "Hahaha! I can't take it anymore, hahaha!"

Amanosaki immediately realized that Hinata didn't care about this at all; she only existed for one day, and tomorrow this form would belong to someone else.

Amanosaki, feigning anger, stood up and pounced on Hinata, yelling, "Fine, you tricked me, you tricked me!"

At the same time, they focused on tickling Hinata, and for a moment the room was filled with joyful laughter.

As night deepened, in the cramped rented room, Amanosaki and Hinata squeezed onto the narrow bed. The soft, beautiful body pressed against him, its silky smoothness palpable even through his cotton T-shirt.

Amanosaki had one arm around Hinata and the other scrolling through the forum. He watched as his posts were constantly updated with people claiming their wives and begging for updates under different character designs. He smiled silently, his mind replaying the day's events.

He didn't want to sleep; if he slept with Hinata, she would leave.

"It won't leave."

As always, Hinata understood his thoughts, just like during the day, just like when she was most confused and helpless when facing evil.

Hinata embraced Amanosaki with her broad-mindedness, holding him in her arms and gently comforting him:

“Didn’t I say from the beginning that I’ve always been myself? What has changed is only my appearance and abilities, but my core remains the same… Our connection doesn’t shift because of the change in identity…”

Amanosaki relaxed as Hinata's gentle voice rang out.

As soon as he relaxed, the drowsiness he had accumulated from staying up all night came crashing down on him like a tidal wave, dragging him into a deep sleep.

In his boundless, fragmented dream, Amanosaki repeatedly murmured words like "Too weak," "I have no power," "Give me a chance," and "Wait for me," although...

Hinata stroked Amanosaki's head until she heard soft snoring, then moved closer and whispered in his ear:

Goodnight, my eternal messenger.

Hinata transformed into a pixel and merged into Amanosaki's body, adding a new piece of text to the data panel in the field of vision.

[Identity Reserve: Hinata Hyuga (Popularity: Emerging Talent 63%)]

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