Sword Art Online - Volume 7 - Mother's Rosario

by Reki Kawahara

  Shiune looked around at her companion’s faces. Jun, Tecchi, Taruken, Nori and Yuuki, the faces of all five of them were gleaming, and they nodded. Shiune also smiled gently, and continued speaking.

  “This world — Alfheim, the home of elves, as well as the floating city Aincrad, is fantastic. All of us will never forget about the time we’ve spent flying in the beautiful towns, forests, plains, the world tree — and also around this city. There is one more thing we want to do… We want to leave our footprints in this world.”

  Shiune’s blue, slightly closed eyes glew with a serious radiance.

  “If we defeat the boss, we can leave our names on the «Swordsmen’s Stele» in the Black Iron Prison inside the 1st floor’s «Starting City».”

  “Ah…”

  Asuna’s eyes widened for a moment, and nodded. She almost forgot about this, but the names of the players who have defeated the boss will be recorded in the Black Iron Prison. Asuna herself has her name left on the 21st floor’s column.

  “About that… Even though it’s just for self-satisfaction, we want our names etched there no matter what. However, there’s one problem. If a single party defeats the boss, the names of all the members will be recorded, but if there are multiple parties, only the name of the leaders will be left.”

  “Ah… Is that so. Yes, it’s definitely like that.”

  Asuna responded while thinking about the interiors of the Black Iron Prison.

  The «Swordsmen’s Stele» was a 3D object inside the virtual world, so its size is limited. They need to reach the 100th floor in the end, there’s not enough space to record the names of all the raid members for all the floors. At most, only 7 players’ name is etched for every floor. So, like Shiune said, all the member’s name can be etched on the stele if one party defeats the boss, while in a raid only the party leaders will be recorded.

  Shiune paused for a moment as though waiting for Asuna to understand, then lightly nodded and continued speaking:

  “In other words, if we want to leave the names of all the members of the «Sleeping Knights», we can only challenge it with a single party. We tried desperately on the 25th and 26th floor, but no matter what, we always fail by a finger’s breadth… Then, after discussing it together, we decided. The upper limit of a party is 7 people, there was still one space. Even though it’s presumptuous, we decided to find someone who’s at the same level or stronger than Yuuki, who is the strongest among us, and ask that person to join our party.”

  “So that’s it… This was what it was all about.”

  Asuna took a deep breath, and her gaze fell on the white tablecloth.

  Leaving their names on the 『Swordsmen’s Stele』. This wish was understandable.

  Not only VRMMOs, but things like online games require a lot of times from players, many people quit in spring due to reasons like going to a higher level of education or employment. Inevitably, a lot of intimate guilds which have continued for many years can do nothing but disband. Wanting to etch this memory on this monument which will continue to exist as long as this world lasted was natural.

  Not to mention others, Asuna herself doesn’t know how long she can continue to play ALO. If her mother took an even stronger approach, it was possible that she’d be forbidden from even using the AmuSphere. Wanting to spend every minute and second on something meaningful since the time remaining was limited, this thought of her’s was the same as their’s.

  “… How about it? Will you agree? Not much time has passed since we just transferred over, so we might not be able to prepare enough gifts as thanks…”

  Asuna stretched out her hands and stopped Shiune from operating a trade window to hint at the amount.

  “Ah, no, since the number of places requiring funding are as numerous as mountains, this money is better left with you. I can just take whatever the boss drops as a reward…”

  “So, you’ll agree?”

  The faces of Shiune and the other five glew. Looking at their expressions in turn, Asuna gave up thinking about how it ended up becoming this kind of situation. At first, she was just slightly interested in the rumors of the mysterious swordmaster «Zekken». Then she was absently brought from the competition grounds to the front lines, introduced to Yuuki’s companions and was even invited to challenge the floor’s boss with her. This all happened in less than an hour. The person who pulled Asuna into this jet-like development, «Zekken» Yuuki, widened her sparkling, amethyst-colored eyes as much as possible and was waiting for Asuna’s response. You can say that she’s impatient, and you can say that she’s unyielding, but this kind of strange encounter was also one of the joys given by VRMMOs. The most important thing is — deep in her heart, one hazy yet definite premonition sprouted. She can definitely become good friends with these mysterious swordsmen.

  “About that… Wait a moment.”

  It was because of this that she can’t deal with it casually. Asuna once again took a deep breath, fixed her gaze on the glass on the table and calmed her slightly chaotic thoughts. She put her doubts and shock aside, and focused her thoughts on Yuuki and the other’s lofty goals for a moment.

  A long time ago, as the sub-leader of a guild which no longer exists, Asuna planned the raids on many bosses.

  She can’t remember how much hours she spent discussing with other guilds and solo players, roaring at each other, and even prostrating and begging for help when there weren’t enough people. She worked so hard because in that world, there was one requirement which must be kept. There can’t be a single death.

  But now, everything has changed. There was only one obligation and right which players in this elves’ home had, and that was to enjoy. Can you enjoy the game if you tell yourself that you can just retreat if you have no chance of winning? Yuuki and the others have already challenged the bosses of the 25th and 26th floors with only 6 people, and it seems like they did pretty well.

  Rather than thinking about what happens if you fail, just go without thinking about anything first. She hasn’t played in such a rash way for a long time. Even if they were wiped, the only thing they lost was a little experience.

  “… If we’re going to do it, let’s do it. This time, put aside things like success rate.”

  Asuna lifted her face, and mischievously smiled. At the same time, a smile bloomed on Yuuki’s adorable face. In the tremendous cheers of her five companions, she leaned forward and grasped Asuna’s right hand from the table.

  “Thank you, Asuna-san! Even in the very beginning, when we fought each other with swords, I knew you would say this!”

  “Call me Asuna.”

  Asuna smiled and responded, and Yuuki in turn, smiled and said.

  “Then you should also call me Yuuki!”

  After shaking hands with the five people who hurriedly stretched out their hands and drinking a toast with newly ordered fruit beer, Asuna asked Yuuki a question which suddenly came to her mind.

  “Speaking of which, Yuuki-sa… Yuuki, you were looking a strong person through duels, right?”

  “Ah, yes.”

  “If that’s the case, there should have been lots of strong people before me. Specifically, a Spriggan dressed in black who uses one-handed swords, do you still remember him? I feel that that person would probably be more useful than I am…”

  “Ah—…”

  Yuuki remembered about Kirito with just that. She kept nodding, and held her arm with a complicated expression for some reason.

  “I remember. That person was also really strong!”

  “Then… Why didn’t you ask him for help?”

  “Yeah…”

  Yuuki was unusually silent, and a mysterious smile flashed across her face.

  “As I thought, that person won’t do.”

  “Why… Why is that?”

  “He realized our secret.”

  Yuuki and Shiune didn’t seem to want to say anything more about this, and there was no way to learn more. Perhaps this «Secret» is related to Zekken Y
uuki’s outstanding strength, Asuna thought about this, but she can’t see what Kirito noticed at all.

  While she tilted her head and thought, the Leprechaun Taruken spoke up as though to change the topic.

  “Then… the specifics of the raid, how… how are we going to organize it?”

  “Ah… Let me think…”

  Asuna washed down the questions stuck in her mouth with fruit beer, and raised her index finger.

  “First of all, the most important thing is to understand the boss’ attacks. Avoid when you should avoid, block when you should block and attacking with all your strength when you should attack, that way we might have a chance of winning. The problem is, how we are going to get information on this… It’s probably pointless even if we ask the large guilds which specialize in hunting bosses. I think that we have to challenge it once with the premise that we’d be wiped.”

  “Yeah, we’re fine with that! Only… The previous floor, and also the one before that, it gets defeated by other guilds immediately after we get wiped.”

  Yuuki showed a downcast expression, and the young Salamander boy Jun across the table frowned and continued.

  “It has already ended when we got there again three hours later. Perhaps I’m just worrying too much… but I keep getting the feeling that they’re waiting for us to fail…”

  “Really…”

  Asuna placed her hand next to her mouth and thought. Recently she heard rumours about disputes over raids as well. They were mainly about the large guild being too peremptory, but would this kind of group pay attention to a guild with only 6 people? However, this information cannot be ignored.

  “Right, for the moment, we should make preparations for challenging the boss immediately after we’re wiped. When does everyone have time?”

  “Ah, sorry. Taruken and I aren’t free at night. How about tomorrow at one in the afternoon?”

  The tall Spriggan Nora scratched her black hair and apologized.

  “Yeah, I have no problems with that. Then, let’s meet in this inn tomorrow at one?”

  OK, I understand, everyone responded in various ways. Facing the nodding «Sleeping Knights», Asuna once again smiled, and loudly said.

  “— Let’s try our best!”

  Asuna stroked Yuuki’s head while Yuuki kept talking about how thankful she was. She reluctantly left the inn, and first returned to where Lizbet and the others were. They would probably be startled by this unexpected result, Asuna’s heart pounded as she walked quickly towards the teleport gate in Ronbaru’s plaza.

  Relying on her unreliable memory as she passed through alleys, the festive plaza finally appeared in sight, at this moment.

  Beep, as though the power switch was pressed, the world darkened. All her senses disappeared, Asuna was left in complete darkness.

  Chapter 4

  As though falling into a bottomless pit, she was assaulted by the sensation that she was rapidly falling.

  The world abruptly turned 90 degrees and she suddenly felt a pressure against her back. Right afterwards, her five senses reconnected with a crash, causing Asuna’s entire body to stiffen.

  Her eyelids twitched a couple of times as she laboriously opened her eyes which were blurred by tears, and she saw the ceiling of her room.

  Finally, she felt the soft feeling of her familiar bed coming from behind her back. Repeatedly breathing shallowly a couple of times, the confusion in her nervous system gradually went away.

  What in the world happened? Was there a momentary power failure, or did her AmuSphere malfunction — She thought about this, and finally took a deep breath. Asuna felt that it was rather strange that there was the scent of a perfume which she doesn’t use in the air, she held herself up with her arm and immediately opened her mouth dumbfounded.

  Her mother stood at her bedside with a terrible expression, her right hand holding a light gray wire. This was the power cord that should’ve been connected to the DC port of the AmuSphere which Asuna wore on her head. The reason she disconnected abnormally was because Kyouko unplugged the machine’s power source. Understanding this, Asuna didn’t hold back her flustered voice.

  “What… What are you doing, mom!”

  However, Kyouko frowned deeply and silently looked at the north wall. Asuna followed her line of sight and noticed the hands of the embedded clock, it was around five minutes past 6:30.

  Asuna can’t help but bite her lips, and Kyouko finally opened her mouth.

  “Mother has already said so when you were late for dinner a month ago. The next time you play this game until you’re late, I’ll cut off the power source.”

  Facing the overly cold tone which seemed to be flaunting her victory, Asuna almost reflexively shouted back. However, she lowered her head and desperately swallowed the impulse, and said with a quiet, quivering voice.

  “… Forgetting the time is my mistake. However, you didn’t have to cut off the power source. If you shake my body and shout in my ear, I’ll receive an alarm inside…”

  “When I did this in the past, didn’t it take another five minutes before you to opened your eyes?”

  “That’s… Moving away, saying goodbye, various things like that…”

  “What goodbye? You’re placing partings in that kind of incomprehensible game over actual promises? Don’t you feel sorry for the housekeeper if the food she painstakingly prepared goes cold?”

  — The other person is real even if it’s inside a game, moreover, isn’t mother the one who makes a phone call before going to university and completely wastes the food — many similar retorts flashed across her mind. However, Asuna once again lowered her head and deeply breathed out her trembling breath. What came out of her mouth was just a short sentence.

  “… Sorry. I’ll pay attention next time.”

  “There won’t be a next time. Didn’t I already tell you, the next time you’re negligent because of that thing, I’ll confisicate it. Besides…”

  Kyouko curled her lips slightly, and glanced at the AmuSphere which was still on Asuna’s head.

  “Mother really doesn’t understand you. Didn’t you already waste two valuable years because of that strange machine? Don’t you feel disgusted just looking at it?”

  “This… is different from Nerve Gear.”

  Muttering this, she removed the two metal rings from her head. Reflecting on the SAO event, AmuSphere was filled to the brim with safeguards, but she immediately felt that it was useless to explain. Moreover, even if the hardware was different, it’s true that Asuna fell into a vegetative state for two years due to a VRMMO. During that time, Kyouko was also very worried and was once even prepared for Asuna’s death. She had to understand, understand why her mother hated the machine.

  Asuna kept quiet, Kyouko let out a large sigh and turned towards the door.

  “Let’s eat. Change your clothes and come down right away.”

  “… I’m not going to eat today.”

  Even though she felt sorry for the housekeeper Akiyo who prepared dinner, she really didn’t want to eat face-to-face with her mother.

  “Do what you want.”

  Lightly shaking her head, Kyouko walked out of the room. Once the door closed with a click, Asuna stretched her hand towards the control panel and changed the mode to rapid ventilation in an attempt to drive away the remaining fragance of her mother’s strong cologne, but it continued to linger annoyingly for a long time.

  The excitement from meeting «Zekken» Yuuki, her fascinating companions and the foreboding of a new adventure vanished like a snowball exposed to sunlight. Asuna stood up, opened her wardrobe, pulled out a pair of faded jeans with a hole around the knee and stretched her leg into it. She put on a rather thick cotton hoodie, and wore a white down overcoat over it. These were one of the few clothes which weren’t chosen by her mother.

  Quickly tidying her hair, she grabbed her purse and mobile and quickly walked out of her room. As she walked down the stairs, put on her shoes in the foyer and was ab
out to open the heavy door, a sharp voice came from the panel set in the wall to her side.

  『Asuna! Where are you going at this kind of time?!』

  However, Asuna didn’t reply, she turned the handle before her mother can lock the door remotely. The instant she opened the door, metal bars flew out from both sides, but Asuna just managed to leap outside first. The damp, ice-cold night air hit her face.

  Quickly crossing the road, she exited the courtyard from the door next to the main gate and finally let out a large breath. The air she breathed out turned white and floated before her eyes before gradually thinning and disappearing. She pulled up her overcoat’s zipper, put her hands in her pocket and rushed towards the Miyanosaka station of the Tokyu Setagaya Line.

  She wasn’t running away from home, although she ran outside as though to lash at her mother, Asuna understood that she was being nothing but childish and rebellious. This anxiety further increased the powerlessness she felt in her heart.

  Arriving at a residential area with large, contiguous houses, Asuna stopped in front of a small children’s park which stood alone. Sitting on a reverse U-shaped metal pipe at the entrance, she took out her mobile from her pocket.

  She slided her finger across the screen, and called out Kirito — Kazuto’s page from her phone book. Asuna put her finger on the call button, but closed her eyes and lowered her head in the end.

  She wanted to call Kazuto and tell him: Bring an extra helmet and come pick me up on your motorcycle. Sitting on the back seat of the small, noisy yet fast motorcycle, tightly holding Kazuto’s waist, and speeding straight forward towards anywhere in the new year’s empty highways. If it’s like that, the confusion in her mind would surely disappear right away, like when she’s flying full speed in Alfheim.

  However, if she saw Kazuto now, she’d definitely be unable to hold back her emotions and would weep while telling him everything. About how she must transfer schools. About how she might not be able to go on ALO again. The cold reality which had thrust Asuna in a set direction since she was young, and herself who couldn’t do anything against it — in other words, she’d tell him everything about her weakness which she had hidden up till now.