“That’s great. I never did those kind of things before.”
Asuna’s house had what could be said to be an overly wide garden, but she didn’t remember playing there with her parents or her brother. She would always be alone playing house or drawing. Thus, the family memories Yuuki talked about reverberated strongly through her heart.
『Then, we’ll have a roast meat party at your house on the 22nd level next time.』
“Un!…then, it’s a promise. I’ll invite my friends and Shiune and the rest over…”
『Wa, I have to make lots of meat then. Jun and Thatch really can eat.』
“Really? They didn’t look like it!”
Both of them laughed, and then, they looked over at Yuuki’s house again.
『Right now…my relatives are arguing over this house.』
Yuuki muttered as she sounded a little lonely.
“What do you mean by they’re arguing so much…?”
『Like whether they should tear it down and remake it into a convenience store or turn it into empty land and sell it, or rent it out directly…everyone has their own suggestions. Before that, Papa’s elder sister would even dive in to meet me. She knew that I was sick, and avoided me in the real world…yet came here…and told me to write a will…』
“…”
On hearing that, Asuna couldn’t help but gasp.
『Ah, sorry. I shouldn’t be grumbling about such things to you randomly.』
“It…it’s okay—just say it, let it all out until you feel comfortable.”
Asuna finally managed to squeeze out a calm voice. On hearing that, Yuuki used the probe to nod.
『I’ll continue then. In the end…I told her this. In the real world, I can’t hold a pen or stamp, so how can I write a will? In the end, aunt was gobsmacked and speechless.』
Fufufu, Yuuki chuckled at this point. Asuna smiled back at her.
『And then, I requested her to keep this house back then. As for the maintenance fees, Papa’s inheritance should be enough to cover it for about 10 years. But…I don’t think it would be enough. I guess it’ll most likely be torn down. So, I wanted to look at this house before that happens…』
Yuuki was probably using the lens to zoom in on several parts of the house as Asuna’s right ear could hear the servo control device letting out a slight sound. On hearing Yuuki’s reminiscing voice, Asuna, who had lots of mixed feelings, finally said what she wanted to say.
“Then…do it.”
『Eh…?』
“You’re 15, right, Yuuki? Once you’re 16, get married to someone you like. That person can continue to protect this house for you…”
Once she said that, Asuna realized that she had said something wrong. If Yuuki really liked someone, that person would be one of the males amongst the Sleeping Knights. And these members were fighting diseases that were difficult to cure, and someone had even been told that he only had a few months left to live. In that case, even if Yuuki got married, the situation wouldn’t change much, and would even become more complicated. Besides, one had to consider the other party’s situation and feelings when it came to marriage…
But after a moment of silence, ahahahahaha, Yuuki started laughing.
『Ahahaha, A, Asuna, you’re amazing! I see. I never thought about that. U~n, that may be a good idea. If it’s a marriage certificate, I might try writing it—but I don’t have any partner~』
Asuna cringed and asked Yuuki who was still laughing,
“Is, is that so…? I noticed that you and Jun have quite a good relationship.”
『Ah, no no. he’s still a kid! Oh yeah…erm…』
Yuuki suddenly said in a mischievous tone,
『Asuna…do you want to get married with me?』
“Eh…”
『Ah, but you have to join my family in that case, Asuna, or else I would become Yuuki Yuuki.』
Fufufu, as Yuuki laughed, Asuna could only roll blank white eyes. Every year, the media would report that Japan was ready to accept homosexual marriages lawfully, like in America, but there wasn’t any bill introduced—after hearing that, Asuna immediately wavered, and Yuuki chuckled happily again,
『Sorry sorry, I was just joking. You have someone you like, right? That person who helped adjust the lens for me, right…』
“Eh…that…un, well…”
『You have to be careful~』
“Heh…?”
『That guy also seems to be living in a world different from reality, in a different sense from me.』
“…”
Asuna wanted to think carefully about what Yuuki meant, but her confused brain couldn’t calm down no matter what. She rubbed her face that was becoming red, and Yuuki used the lens to look at the side of her friend’s face before saying in a steady voice,
『Thank you very much, Asuna. I’m already happy that I could see this house again. Even if the house disappears in the future, my memories will remain here. My Papa, Mama, nee-chan, our happy memories together, will always be here…』
Asuna knew that the ‘here’ Yuuki referred to wasn’t the land that the house was on, but her own heart.
This house’s gentle and peaceful state finally left a deep impression in Asuna. She then nodded hard, and Yuuki continued,
『…If nee-chan and I cried as we couldn’t take the pain with the medication, Mama would talk to us about Lord Jesus. She said that the Lord Jesus wouldn’t give us pain which we couldn’t endure. I would then pray with Mama and nee-chan. But back then, I was a little angry, because I didn’t want to hear about the Bible, but Mama’s words…』
In this short time, the sky had become completely deep blue, and there were even a few bright red stars starting to flicker.
『But as I saw this house again, I understood. Mama was actually talking to me all the time. She wasn’t saying it with her words…but her heart. She continued to pray for me, allowing me to go on until the end…I finally understand now.』
Asuna’s eyes seemed to see the mother and two daughters kneeling near the window at the white house, looking up at the sky and praying. She looked like she was guided by Yuuki’s calm voice, and said the words that were jammed deep inside her.
“I’ve…I’ve…been unable to hear my mother’s voice. Even when we face each other, I can’t hear her heart. She never even bothers to understand my words. Yuuki, you said that we have to sometimes use forceful means for the other party to understand our intentions, right? What should I do to be like you, Yuuki…? What should I do to be as strong as you…?”
To Yuuki, whose parents have died, these words may have tugged at her wounds. Normally, Asuna would think about this and wouldn’t be able to say it out. But at this moment, what came from Yuuki through the probe on the shoulder was a fortitude and gentleness that melted Asuna’s mental wall away completely.
Yuuki answered Asuna’s question with a bothered answer,
『I’m…not strong here, you know?』
“That’s not right. You won’t be scared because of how other people look and back away. You’re always…always so natural.”
『Un…but, when I used to be in the real world, I often felt that I wasn’t acting like myself. I know Papa and Mama were sorry for giving birth to nee-chan and me…so I felt that I had to give them an energetic look and pretend that I wasn’t bothered over whether I was sick or not. Maybe it’s because of this that I could only show myself like this once I entered Medicuboid. Perhaps, I was naturally a kid who hated everything around me, screaming and shrieking all day long.』
“…Yuuki…”
『But then, I thought later. It’s alright even if it’s an act…even if I pretend to look strong, it’s alright. If I can increase the time that a smile remains on my face, it would be enough. You know that I don’t have much time…so I felt that when interacting with others, wouldn’t it be a waste of time if I try to guess people’s feelings all the time? I might as well as present the most realistic side of me. It doesn
’t matter even if I get hated, it doesn’t matter. Besides, I managed to end up in that person’s heart.』
“…That’s right…it’s because of your attitude, Yuuki, that we became such good friends in these few days…”
『No, that’s not because of me. It’s because even if I tried to run away, you would persist and chase after me, Asuna.—Yesterday, when I saw you in the observation room, when I heard your voice, I understood your intentions completely. Once I knew that this person would still be willing to face me even after knowing that I was ill…I was really…really so happy that I cried out.』
Yuuki choked a little, and she continued,
『So…try using that feeling to talk to your mother. I think that if the will is there, she would definitely understand how you feel. It’s alright. You’re a lot stronger than me, Asuna. Really. Sometimes, both sides can only understand each other’s feelings by ignoring everything else…it’s because you came to me, Asuna, and showed your true self, that I felt ‘if it’s this person, I can definitely hand this over to you’.』
“…Thank you. Thank you very much, Yuuki.”
After finally squeezing these words out, Asuna lifted her head to hide the tears in her eyes. She also found that in the sky of this capital that would not become completely dark, there were still some stars flickering hard as they tried not to lose to the artificial light.
Once they returned to the station, the battery alarm of the probe suddenly rang. Asuna and Yuuki agreed to turn up for lessons tomorrow, and Asuna cut off the power to the mobile phone.
It was past 9pm once Asuna took the train back to her house in Setagaya.
The girl heard the sound of the door opening as it echoed loudly through the icy cold air of the corridor hall, and sighed deeply. Her right shoulder still felt the weight of Yuuki sitting there. Asuna used her left hand to lightly grab the warm spot she left behind, took off her shoes and quickly walked to her room.
She changed into her indoor clothes and immediately came over to the corridor. Her destination was the room of her elder brother, Kouichirou, which was also deep inside the 2nd level. Asuna felt that Kouichirou, who was hardly at home, like her father, probably wouldn’t be home yet, but she knocked on the door, and as expected, there was no response inside. She then opened the door on her own, similar to the first day the SAO server began operating, and walked in.
There were no furnishings inside. In the center of the plain room, there was a somewhat large office table placed there. The thing Asuna wanted to find was on the left side of the table. It was the AmuSphere Kouichirou used to set up meetings in the virtual world.
Kouichirou’s AmuSphere could be said to be a lot newer than his sister’s. Asuna gabbed the headgear and returned to her room. She then installed the memory card of ALO Aincrad into the card slot on the side of the machine, laid on the bed, adjusted Kouichirou’s AmuSphere till it fit her, and put it on.
Once she turned on the power, the machine started its connecting sequence. She was then brought to the ALO log in space. However, having dived into the kingdom of elves, Asuna didn’t use her familiar main account, but a side account she would occasionally use when trying to act as someone else.
She appeared at a living room of the house in the forest on the 22nd level. However, her body wasn’t that of the familiar Undine named «Asuna», but another Sylph character called «Erika». She checked her clothing, put the two daggers on her waist into the chest, and summoned her menu to press the temporary log-out command button.
After a few more seconds of diving, Asuna immediately found herself back in her room in reality. She took off the AmuSphere, but the blue connecting indicator continued to flicker on the machine. This showed that the connection to the VR world was on suspension. She could immediately skip the log-in process and return to the game by putting on the headgear and switching on the power.
Asuna held her brother’s AmuSphere in her hand and immediately got up. Due to the high powered router and wireless network that had a large range, she could remain connected no matter which part of the house she was in.
She opened the door and arrived on the corridor. This time, she used somewhat heavy footsteps to walk down the stairs.
She looked at the living room and the dining, found the tables were already tidied, and couldn’t find her mother anywhere. Asuna continued to walk deeper, and saw a slight ray of light from below the door at the end. It was her mother’s study.
She stopped in front of the door, then raised her right hand as she got ready to knock, but just couldn’t take the next step.
Since when did coming to my mother’s room become such a terrifying thing? Asuna bit her lips as she thought. However, the reason why it became like this was largely because of Asuna herself. As she didn’t pass her thoughts seriously, her mother couldn’t understand her real feelings. It was Yuuki who made her realize this.
The girl felt a small hand pushing her right shoulder. At the same time, a voice rang,
—It’s alright. You can do it, Asuna…
Asuna nodded her head, forcefully took a deep breath, and then knocked the door hard.
Quickly, a slight ‘please come in’ voice came from behind the door. Asuna turned the handle, turned her body sideways into the room, and grabbed the door handle.
Kyouko was facing the thick teak table as she continued to type on the keyboard of the tabletop PC. She continued to type at the keyboard loudly for a while, and then forcefully pressed the enter button even harder before leaning her back on her chair. The mother pushed the glasses and looked at her daughter’s eyes, seemingly harboring an invisible impatience.
“…Why did you come back so late?”
Kyouko said, and Asuna immediately lowered her head to apologize,
“Sorry.”
“I handled dinner already. If you’re hungry, find something to eat inside the fridge. The school transfer application I mentioned to you before will only last until tomorrow. You have to finish it by tomorrow morning.”
Once Kyouko finished saying that, her hands returned to the keyboard, and Asuna said the words she wanted to say to her mother first.
“Mom, about this…I want to talk to you.”
“Say it here then.”
“I can’t explain it here.”
“Then where?”
Asuna didn’t answer as she walked to Kyouko. She then reached her left hand out to point at something that was dangling behind her—the AmuSphere that was in suspend mode.
“The VR world…just for a while. I hope that you can come with me to some place.”
Kyouko glanced at the silver ring for a moment, and seemed to see something she hated as she frowned. Then, she looked like she had nothing better to say as she waved her right hand.
“I don’t want to wear such a thing. If we can’t even talk face to face, I’m not going to listen.”
“Please Mom. Please look at this, for just 5 minutes…”
Normally, Asuna would apologize and leave the room. However, she continued to take a step forward and closed in on Kyouko, before saying,
“Please, you must come here with me so that I can express my current thoughts and feelings. Just once…I want Mom to see my world.”
“…”
Kyouko frowned even harder as she merely kept her mouth shut and stared at Asuna. Several seconds later, she sighed hard.
“—Just 5 minutes. Also, no matter what you say, Mom won’t allow you to remain in that school. Once you’re done, you have to fill in the application form.”
“Okay…”
Asuna nodded and handed over the AmuSphere in her hand. Kyouko frowned and gave a look like she wasn’t willing to touch such a thing, but received the device and put it over her head with a stiff motion.
“How do I operate this?”
Asuna quickly adjusted the belt, and then said,
“Once you switch on the power, it will automatically connect. Please wait for me when you enter.”
r /> Kyouko nodded her head slightly and leaned on the chair. Asuna then pressed the power switch on the right side of the AmuSphere. The net connection indicator light continued to flicker irregularly, and Kyouko’s body immediately lost its strength.
Asuna hurriedly ran out of the study, sprinted through the corridor and the stairs and returned to her own room. She leapt on the bed and immediately put on the AmuSphere she normally used.
After pressing the power switch, a firing-shaped light appeared in front of Asuna, and her consciousness left the real world.
Asuna landed in the familiar white wooden living room in her Undine main character, and immediately looked around for «Erika». She immediately saw her. The light grass-colored short-haired Sylph was sitting in front of the full-body sized mirror beside the cutlery sideboard and looking at herself.
Asuna went close, and Erika/Kyouko turned behind slightly, frowning in the exact same manner as she would in the real world.
“It’s strange to see a different face act according to my own will. And…”
She used her toes to tiptoe up and down.
“My body feels extremely light.”
“Of course. This character’s weight is about only 40kg. it should be a lot different from your weight in real life, Mom.”
Asuna smiled as she said that, and Kyouko again frowned unhappily,
“How rude. I’m not that heavy—speaking of which…your face here really looks like the one in the real world.”
“Un…yeah.”
“However, your real figure seemed to be a little plumper.”
“You’re the rude one, Mom. I’m completely the same as I am in the real world.”
As both of them talked, Asuna thought. When was the last time she could talk to Kyouko like that? She wanted to keep this conversation going, but Kyouko had her arms folded in front of her chest, indicating an attitude of which no random talk would be entertained.
“There is no time. What do you want to show me?”
“…Come over here”
Asuna sighed lightly as she crossed the living room and opened the small room that was normally used as a storeroom. She waited for Kyouko to move her imaginary feet over, and led her to a window deep inside the room.