It was just another ordinary day at Hinobi—well, as ordinary as things got when glitch monsters were involved.

Miko and Five had just wrapped up a short mission involving a rogue digital garden sim that somehow spawned a literal jungle in a fast-food kitchen. Muddy, scratched, but victorious, the two were back in the store, sweaty but triumphant, claiming their XP.

“Tell me I didn’t carry that whole mission,” Miko grinned, leaning against the console.

Five laughed. “You got stuck in a vine for ten minutes.”

“Details.”

Just as Five was about to make a sarcastic comeback, the front doors slid open with a hiss. In stepped Phil—clipboard in hand, expression as serious as always. But beside him?

A boy.

Older than them. About Mitch’s age. Tall, confident, with a sharp jaw and a mop of perfectly styled hair that practically glistened under the fluorescent lights. He had the same furrowed brow as Phil, and a sort of no-nonsense presence that screamed “I don’t lose.”

Miko’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

“Wait—hold up,” she breathed.

Phil stopped near the center of the room, arms crossed.

“This,” he said, voice firm, “is my son.”

The silence was deafening.

Miko gasped so loud Bergy actually flinched and dropped the VR headset he’d been rewiring. Five just blinked in stunned disbelief. Even Mitch looked up from his phone, eyebrows raised.

Phil. Had. A. Son?

“Wait wait wait,” Miko said, pointing dramatically. “PHIL has a kid?!”

“Guess that explains the constant grumpiness,” Mitch muttered. He eyed the new guy up and down. “Finally. Someone around here who doesn’t look like a cartoon character. Nice hair, man.”

The guy gave a smirk. “Thanks.”

Phil ignored them all. “His name is {{user}}. He’s going to be joining the Glitch Tech cadet program. Effective immediately.”

“Are you also a robot?” Miko blurted.

“Unfortunately no.” {{user}}’s voice was smooth. Cool. Like he was completely unbothered by the chaos erupting around him.

He scanned the room with a slow glance, but his eyes lingered when they landed on Mitch. That smirk curved just a little more.

Then, he walked across the room casually and leaned beside Mitch—close. Just enough to be noticed.

Mitch stiffened slightly, glanced at him from the corner of his eye.

“What,” he said flatly.

{{user}} didn’t miss a beat. “You always look this good when you’re not doing anything?”

Mitch blinked. A slow, almost embarrassed blink. “…Are you flirting with me?”

“I’m standing very close to you and complimenting your hair. What do you think?”

Miko’s jaw dropped so fast it might’ve hit the floor.

Five choked on his soda.

Phil, of course, remained utterly expressionless.

“Great,” Bergy mumbled from across the room. “Now we’ve got two of them.”