On Today's Episode: Nick has plans to ask Yuuki out on a date for her birthday on May 23rd, but when the Konno sisters mention something odd during the chaos of the floor 60 boss fight, it gets Nick curious. In the process, Nick may find out why exactly Yuuki decided to call their guild the Sleeping Knights, and how all of this relates to an old friend of the Konno twins...
Episode 8: Sister's Prayer
May 10th, 2024
6:52 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 60, Boss Arena
"HEADS UP!" Aiko shouted as the gigantic stone sword came crashing down onto the battlefield. Yuuki rolled to the side just in time, causing the blade to get stuck in the ground.
"There we go! Now watch how I take care of business!" Yuuki proclaimed as she charged forward, actually running up the flat edge of the sword while more members of the Knights of the Blood Oath, Asuna included, moved to chip away at the legs of their target, Henge the Immovable Sentinel.
While this was occurring, Silica moved between players so that Pina could heal the injuries many of them had taken.
Henge attempted to slap Yuuki off with its other hand, but she easily jumped over the offending appendage and continued her run to the face.
By this point in the battle, Henge had been reduced to about half of its final health bar, and Yuuki knew they needed a decisive blow to finish the boss off before it could pull out any new tricks.
And she knew exactly how to do that.
"Keep this guy busy for me!" Yuuki called out to the players down below. "I'm ending this thing right here and now!"
Henge again attempted to swat Yuuki off of its sword, but she slid under the hand and aimed for Henge's vulnerable face.
As she readied her attack, Yuuki's sword began glowing a bright purple.
"Sayonara, stone boy!" Yuuki shouted, gripping Elucidator tightly as she stabbed outwards five times, the stabs tracing a horizontal line down Henge's face. Not done just yet, Yuuki spun around and stabbed at Henge's face five more times, tracing a vertical line. This caused the lines she had traced to form an X. Finally, Yuuki reared back and, after a loud battle cry, thrust Elucidator forward with all her might, driving the point of the blade straight into the center of the X she'd formed with her earlier sword stabs. Purple trails of light exploded from the point of impact, the damage registering and completely draining what remained of Henge's health.
Her job done, Yuuki turned around and ran back down the sword to the ground level as Henge's face cracked apart and crumbled to pieces, followed by the rest of its body in short order. When it had finally completely crumbled into various rocks, those rocks all exploded into a shower of glowing polygons that covered the arena for a short time before the congratulations message appeared over the battlefield.
Yuuki proudly flourished Elucidator before sheathing it and returning to the group.
"So? How cool was I?" Yuuki giggled. Naturally, Nick and Aiko were impressed, as this technically was the first time she'd publicly used her new Original Sword Skill, Mother's Rosario. After all, she and Aiko had spent literal days perfecting the move to make sure everything would work as intended.
"Way to end the fight with a bang, huh, Yuu?" Aiko responded.
"You would call it a 'bang', sis," Yuuki teased as the Clearers regrouped and headed towards the now-unlocked Teleport Gate.
"To be fair, it is something I picked up from Merida," Aiko answered.
As Yuuki and Aiko hung back to talk to Asuna about her efforts to expand the Knights of the Blood Oath, they just missed Nick glancing at them in confusion.
This was the first time he'd heard of someone named Merida. That was only odd to Nick because he'd never heard Yuuki or Aiko mention Merida before, and those two were very chatty about their home life before SAO around him.
Nick had to wonder if there was a reason they didn't talk about Merida despite that. But, considering there probably was a reason, he decided not to push the issue and wait until they were ready.
Even so, Nick's thoughts once again drifted back to his own family as they tended to do after every floor boss fight. It had been nearly two years since Sword Art Online had begun, and Nick knew that his mother and sister must be worried sick.
But that only reminded him of the promise he'd made with Yuuki and Aiko, that they'd conquer SAO and return home to their families.
Nick smiled at the thought as he caught up with the rest of the raid party at the Teleport Gate, heading through it to reach Selmburg, the main settlement of floor sixty-one. Selmburg appeared to be a castle city located on a mountainous island in the middle of the lake of the floor.
"Woooooooooooooooooooow," Yuuki gasped. "Look at this place, Aiko! It's incredible!"
"It's certainly more upscale than our apartment in Grandzam, that's for sure," Aiko quipped.
"Are you kidding me?" Nick proclaimed. "This makes Grandzam look like the slums, if you want my personal opinion."
"Look at this lake, Aiko!" Yuuki exclaimed. "Doesn't it look like the one in Serene Garden?"
"Now that I look at it, it kinda does," Aiko answered. "Makes you wonder if Kayaba knew about it when he developed SAO..."
"Ooh, Merida would be so excited to see this!" Yuuki giggled.
There it was again. Nick's curiosity was starting to get the better of him, but he resisted for the moment.
"Everything okay, Nick?" Silica asked him as she and Sachi approached.
"Just... thinking about stuff, Silica," Nick admitted, wondering how he was going to go about asking them about Merida.
"NICK NEEDS A HUG!" Strea shouted, leaping in from nearby to tackle Nick to the ground in one of her famous crushing hugs.
"Ack, Strea, really necessary?!" Nick gasped. "I don't know if broken bones are a thing in this game, but I'd rather not take the risk!"
"But I gotta cheer you up, right?" Strea giggled. "It's my duty as your friend to give you hugs when you're feeling down. And you looked a little concerned about something, to be honest."
"I mean, if all of you can see it..." Nick teased. "Yuuki keeps mentioning someone named Merida, and it's weird to me because they've told me practically everything else about their life since we formed the Sleeping Knights, except for this one thing. And I'm pretty sure there's a reason they haven't said anything about it, and I want to ask them, but..."
"...you're worried they'll think you're meddling, right?" Sachi answered.
"Honestly, I don't think there's anything to worry about," Strea replied. "Those two tell you everything, right? I'm sure they're just waiting for the right time to say something about it."
"Here's hoping," Nick admitted as he walked ahead to join the Konno sisters in their excitement.
"Hey, Yuuki, I heard that there's quite a few rare bugs around this floor," Aiko quipped after reading up on Selmburg's datalog. "Probably why this floor's nicknamed 'The Insect Land', huh?"
"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure a lot of women would consider that kind of thing an absolute nightmare, especially given the circumstances," Nick laughed.
A tiny ladybug landed on Yuuki's finger as she glanced around, and she tapped it lightly with her finger before letting it fly away.
"Nostalgia hitting ya, Yuu?" Aiko giggled.
"Merida loved ladybugs," Yuuki replied, only to gasp in shock and slap her hand over her mouth, like she'd just blabbed forbidden information. "Did... did I just...?!"
"Yeah, you did, Yuu," Aiko responded, much calmer than Yuuki was at the moment.
"Um..." Nick started, trying to think of a way to word this delicately. "Since that cat is apparently out of the bag, if I can ask... who exactly is Merida?"
Yuuki and Aiko glanced at each other for a few seconds, silently communicating like they tended to do at points.
"Hey, if it's too hard to talk about, I understand completely," Nick stuttered, now unsure if he'd stepped over a line. "I just heard you mention her a few times, and my curiosity just would not shut up..."
"It's not that, Nick," Yuuki finally answered.
"How about this?" Aiko continued. "We'll tell you anything you want to know tomorrow. I think it'd be fitting, honestly."
"Promise?" Nick asked.
"Hey, when do we ever break promises?" Yuuki giggled.
"Yeah, we learned that from you," Aiko stated.
May 11th, 2024
12:32 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 55, Grandzam
Knights of the Blood Oath Headquarters
Nick glanced around the hallways as he waited for Yuuki and Aiko to show up, his mind going in many different directions as he pondered the question he'd asked yesterday: who is Merida?
He was hoping he hadn't unearthed any unpleasant memories, but from the looks on Yuuki and Aiko's faces, he probably had, though not intentionally. Yuuki had stressed that part multiple times.
And lo and behold, there they were now.
"Why am I not surprised you got something from Fortune's Market?" Nick teased as he eyed the sandwich Yuuki was currently carrying.
"This was Madam President's recommendation today, so how could I not?" Yuuki giggled, taking a bite of the sandwich. "Ooh, it's so good..."
"So, then, buddy," Aiko proclaimed. "What exactly would you like to know?"
"Anything you can tell me would be appreciated," Nick responded.
"Well, then, we're gonna have to go back a couple years to start this tale," Yuuki replied. "We first met Merida around four years ago..."
"Hey there!"
Merida looked up to see two girls with dark purple hair approaching her, one with a happy and exuberant smile, and the other wearing a confident smile.
"You new around here?" Yuuki asked.
"Um... yes, I am," Merida replied. "My name is Merida."
"Nice to meet ya, Merida!" Yuuki proclaimed. "My name's Yuuki, and this is my sister Aiko!"
"Why aren't you with the others?" Aiko asked. "There's a pretty interesting dodgeball game going on out there."
"I'm... not really one for sports," Merida admitted.
"Hey, is your garden okay?" Yuuki asked, taking note of the flowers Merida was tending to. "Some of them look... well, not so good."
"I was just helping them recover," Merida responded. "Some bullies stomped all over the old flowers, and..."
"I know exactly who you're talking about," Aiko proclaimed.
Before Yuuki could ask another question, however, Merida's body started shaking for a few seconds, before going completely limp and falling to the ground.
"A-Aiko?!" Yuuki shouted. "W-what just happened?!"
"I'll get the nurse!" Aiko responded, already dashing back into the school building. "You just stay there with her!"
Yuuki just held Merida in a more comfortable position, her mind going every which way.
"The nurse immediately took Merida to the nearby medical hospital, and they eventually discovered that Merida had a brain tumor," Aiko explained. "And... it was inoperable. The doctors only gave her a year at most to live, maybe two."
"Honestly, I was really upset," Yuuki admitted as the memories of their friendship with Merida continued to replay in her mind. "We had just made a friend, and then we learned that she wouldn't be alive for much longer... it hurt. But... Aiko and I both agreed that we wanted to make the time Merida had left the best time of her life."
"She was still able to come to school, though she lost the use of her legs because of the initial shock of the tumor," Aiko proclaimed. "Yuuki and I pretty much became her unofficial caretakers at school after that."
"We helped her with anything she wanted to do, even if she wanted to just have some company and not feel alone," Yuuki stated. "Merida really worried about us, especially when I defended her from some snarky jerk making mean-spirited comments about her."
"We actually got our philosophy of living life to the fullest in the time you have thanks to Merida," Aiko replied. "She... she felt like she didn't have a purpose because of the diagnosis."
"Naturally, Aiko and I decided that we'd do everything we possibly could to keep her happy, so she could enjoy the time she had left," Yuuki answered.
Aiko scooted over to hug her sister, since they were getting to the part of this story that was still hard for them to talk about even three years later.
"Here's something you might not know about us, Nick," Aiko proclaimed. "Yuu and I weren't initially going to get the NerveGear."
"R-Really?" Nick asked. "Any particular reason?"
"We weren't really the gamer types," Yuuki admitted. "Though we both thought the NerveGear was really cool, Aiko and I initially didn't see any reason that we absolutely needed to have one. ...until Merida called us a few days after the NerveGear's launch."
Nick had a sinking feeling where this part of the story was heading.
"It turned out her tumor had gotten worse to the point that... she only had a few more days to live," Yuuki continued, a few tears beginning to fall. "Merida wanted to talk to us one last time before her time was up... but we couldn't go to the hospital she was at, since she wasn't allowed to have any visitors."
"She said she'd be waiting in Asuka Empire, a free-to-play VRMMO that launched with the NerveGear," Aiko explained. "Yeah, people say that SAO is the first true VRMMORPG, but it's probably because Asuka Empire wasn't as fully advanced as SAO is that people kinda forgot about when SAO was making its rounds."
"That clinched it, and we basically begged our mom to let us get NerveGears so we could, at the very least, properly say goodbye to Merida," Yuuki replied. "Thankfully, the post-launch sale was still happening, so mom and dad didn't have to break the bank to get us both a NerveGear."
"So... on the last day the doctors said she was going to live, Yuuki and I dived into Asuka Empire to make Merida's last day the happiest it could possibly be," Aiko stated.
("Everything I Need" by Skylar Grey plays)
"Merida? Are you here?" Yuuki bellowed as she and Aiko, dressed in their Thief and Mage class outfits, respectively. Thankfully, the initiation quest to choose their starting classes hadn't taken too long. "Please tell me you're still here..."
"Hey, Yuuki."
Yuuki and Aiko spun around to see Merida standing there, looking almost exactly like she did in real life, with the sole exception of her bright green hair and her ninja outfit.
"I didn't... keep you two waiting, did I?" Merida asked.
"We actually just got here," Aiko admitted. "It took us a bit longer than we thought to finish the initiation."
"M-Merida?" Yuuki asked, already wanting to cry. "I... I don't want to say goodbye yet... it's not fair that life had to treat you like this..."
Merida immediately moved forward so she could hug Yuuki. "It's not your fault, Yuuki," Merida stated. "If anything, I'm happy that you two gave my life so much light."
"And hey, we have all day to play around," Aiko proclaimed. "So let's not worry about the sad stuff for the moment and just have some fun, like we promised."
With that, the trio set out into the world of Asuka Empire, determined to just have fun while they could.
Sadly, despite all the adventures they had, learning about the Spell Circle, the different prestige classes available, and just exploring the game world, their day would end in tragedy.
When they returned to the starting city, Merida suddenly collapsed to the ground, much like she had when they had first met her.
Yuuki ran over to catch Merida before she could hit the ground, even as her scared expression showed that she knew Merida was most likely out of time.
"M-Merida?" Yuuki asked. "P-Please, please say something, Merida..."
Though weakly, Merida was able to open her eyes and smile at Yuuki and Aiko. "Hey," Merida whispered. "Remember what we said? 'This boat runs on happy faces'. You don't have to grieve for me the rest of your lives. Just... remember the good times. As long as you keep me... in your memories... that's... that's all... I could ask for..."
Merida reached out to touch Yuuki's cheek with her hand...
...and then her entire body fell limp in Yuuki's arms.
Yuuki started panicking, only for Aiko to solemnly place her hand on Yuuki's shoulder and shake her head.
Merida was gone.
Yuuki's walls finally shattered, and she started crying loudly while cradling Merida's body in her arms. Aiko hugged Yuuki from behind as they both grieved for their friend.
"And... the saddest part of this story?" Aiko stated. "Initially, Merida's parents weren't going to let her use the NerveGear because of its microwave emitter. They knew it most likely would affect her tumor and give her even less time."
"But a few days after the funeral, Merida's mom actually told us that we were the reason that Merida was allowed to use her NerveGear, despite knowing it would most likely kill her," Yuuki replied. "Merida really wanted to see us one last time, so her parents relented and let her dive into Asuka Empire to meet us."
"It's been three years today since we lost Merida," Aiko continued. "Yuuki and I decided that if we ever joined a guild in SAO, we would call ourselves the Sleeping Knights, in honor of our fallen friend."
Nick honestly didn't know what to say when Yuuki and Aiko had finished their story. And when Yuuki finally started crying, he felt horrible for forcing them to relive those painful memories just to sate his own curiosity.
However, Nick didn't get a chance to apologize for it, as Yuuki lunged forward to hug him tightly, her tears unstoppable now. Nick simply returned Yuuki's hug while trying to think of something to say to them.
"Hey, don't worry, Nick," Aiko stated as she walked up to rest her hand on Nick's shoulder, knowing exactly what he was thinking. "You don't have to feel like you hurt our feelings. We just miss Merida, that's all."
"I just... I felt like I'd forced you to tell me," Nick admitted.
"Hey, we were the ones who said we'd tell you," Aiko answered. "And look at Yuuki right now. She's hugging you like her life depended on it. I don't think she'd be doing that if she was actually mad."
"Life just wasn't fair to poor Merida," Yuuki stated. "But she taught Aiko and I a very valuable lesson. She taught us that we need to live every moment to its fullest, no matter how bleak things may look. I think... I think Merida passed on without any regrets because of us."
"Again, I'm really sorry that I made you relive those memories," Nick stated again. "I felt so bad when I saw you crying, Yuuki."
"Hey, if anything I made myself cry," Yuuki admitted. "But if you want my two cents, Merida would want us to keep trucking on no matter what."
"And that extends to our promise to kick this game to the curb, too," Aiko proclaimed. "We owe it to everyone, even those we've already lost, to beat this game so everyone who's still with us can see the people they love again."
"Yeah, so cheer up, buddy!" Yuuki stated, and Nick was glad to see that she was back to her happy and cheerful self again. "Remember, our boat runs on happy faces!"
"I'll definitely never forget that," Nick quipped. "Thanks, you two."
"All right, now that all of that's been settled, what say we hit the West Mountain again?" Yuuki offered. "I still say it's one of the best grinding spots in the game."
"You go on ahead, Yuu," Aiko stated. "I just wanted to confer with Nick about something."
Yuuki nodded before charging out towards Grandzam's Teleport Gate, leaving Nick and Aiko to discuss their 'secret'.
"So, did you think of something, Nick?" Aiko asked.
"I've actually had an idea locked down since yesterday," Nick answered. "I wanna take her dancing in Selmburg."
"Good to see that you agree Selmburg's a beautiful city," Aiko giggled.
"I saw the sights when we got there yesterday, and it's breathtaking," Nick stated. "I'm confident she'll love it, Aiko."
Aiko easily noticed how Nick was blushing when he kept talking about his plans, and she smiled tenderly.
"...you really love her, don't you, Nick?" Aiko asked.
"She's amazing, Aiko," Nick admitted, unable to stop blushing.
"Then go and make her happy, 'kay?" Aiko giggled. "I know she'll be in good hands with you."
Unable to help a huge smile at receiving Aiko's blessing, Nick leaped over to hug Aiko.
"Hey, you two, hurry up!" Yuuki called from the hallway, having just poked her head back out. "You know I'm gonna out-level you guys if you keep stalling!"
"Says the girl who only got to level 85 after I did," Aiko teased.
"And then there's me, still stuck a level behind you two," Nick laughed. Currently, Yuuki and Aiko were level 85, while Nick was level 84.
"How about we make it interesting?" Yuuki giggled. "Last one to level up has to buy lunch tomorrow. That sound fair?"
"You're on, Yuuki," Nick and Aiko proclaimed as they rushed off to playfully chase Yuuki to Grandzam's Teleport Gate.
Strea couldn't help but smile as she watched the Sleeping Knights teleport away, smiles on their faces.
"See, Nick?" Strea giggled. "I knew it would work out."
"Wow, you can tell just by looking at them, Strea?" Silica asked. "That's pretty neat."
"Mom always said I could read emotions really well," Strea admitted. "It's something I picked up from dad."
Strea glanced briefly at her hand. Good, it wasn't glitching like it had the other day.
Ever since she'd met Nick, Strea had often wondered why her 'glitches' were happening. Was something wrong with her NerveGear?
Here's hoping I can get them under control before something bad happens, Strea thought. I wouldn't want any of my friends to get hurt because of my troubles...
May 23rd, 2024
6:21 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 61, Selmburg
Yuuki glanced around at the night-soaked city of Selmburg, illuminated by the sunset and giving the city a beautiful glow.
Still, she wondered why Nick had called her up here to one of the city's rooftops. Did it have something to do with the surprise he'd mentioned earlier?
"Hey, Yuuki, sorry if I kept you waiting," Nick proclaimed as he finally arrived, looking like he'd ran a marathon just to get here. "I just had to let Aiko know where I was going."
"Yeah, you said something about a surprise," Yuuki replied. "If it's a birthday gift, you didn't have to do it on the rooftops, as anime cliché as that might be."
"Well... that's actually part of the surprise," Nick stated, summoning all of the courage he had stored away for this moment. "The whole reason I brought you up here is because... well... oh, lordy, of course I'd clam up..."
"Calm down, silly," Yuuki teased, gently grasping Nick's shoulders to calm him down. "There we go."
"I just wanted to ask you something," Nick stated. "Yuuki... would you like to dance with me?"
Yuuki's face lit up at the idea. No one had ever asked her to dance before, so it was a little surprising.
"I've heard people say that the view from up here is wonderful for things like this, and I figured I wanted my gift to you to be a little... let's call it 'unconventional'," Nick explained. "But then I had to confer with Aiko and ask her if this was okay with her, because of..."
Yuuki stopped Nick's rambling with a "boop" to the forehead. "You don't have to ramble about the process, Nick," Yuuki giggled. "I would love to dance with you!"
Okay, this is going well so far, Nick thought. Don't muck it up.
Nick opened his menu and navigated to the music player option so he could find a song that Yuuki wanted to dance to.
"Ooh, ooh, that one!" Yuuki exclaimed, pointing to one specific option she'd seen. Nick smiled before scrolling back to that option and selecting it, putting it on a thirty-second delay before starting so they could get set up.
Yuuki walked up and looped her arms around Nick's neck while he gently laid his hands on her waist.
"I'm... not exactly the most graceful dancer, to be honest," Nick admitted.
"Then we're in the same boat," Yuuki laughed. "Let's not worry about 'grace' and just have fun, 'kay?"
Nick couldn't help but inwardly swoon at how radiant Yuuki looked in this light, but decided to wait until he was ready for that. Right now, it was time to dance.
("Beautiful People" by Ed Sheeran feat. Khalid plays)
"Ready, Yuuki?" Nick asked.
"Whenever you are, Nick," Yuuki replied.
When the lyrics began, Nick and Yuuki started dancing slowly, unsure of how they wanted to keep going, but enjoying the rhythm regardless.
As they danced, Nick felt his confidence rising as he started to get a little more energetic in his dancing. Thankfully, Yuuki responded in kind and their movement started slowly getting more bouncy.
When the chorus hit, Nick and Yuuki quickly began dancing like they were at a party, attempting all kinds of flashy moves. Though their relative inexperience at dancing was showing easily, they didn't care, too focused on having fun.
As they continued to dance, Nick began reflecting on the memories he'd shared with Yuuki and Aiko, right from the beginning of Sword Art Online, through the friends they'd made, the battles they'd fought, the hardships they'd endured.
Among every memory, one thing stuck out to Nick.
Yuuki's smile.
How radiant and, in his opinion, beautiful it made her look.
How the hell had he not noticed that for so long?
Well, besides the obvious reason that is this accursed game, Nick thought.
But looking back at Yuuki, and savoring the sight of that majestic smile, Nick finally cast all of his doubts aside, ready to take the plunge.
When the song finally ended and they were settling down to decide on what song to dance to next, Nick decided that now was the time.
"Ah, that was fun!" Yuuki laughed. "We have to do that again! Come on, let's pick another song and go at it!"
"Before that, Yuuki," Nick quipped, hoping his next line didn't sound too cheesy. "I just wanted to mention something. Did you know that you look radiant next to Selmburg's lights?"
Naturally, Yuuki blushed madly when Nick had said that.
"R-Really?" Yuuki squeaked. "I mean, this whole city looks radiant, but... even if our song was about beautiful people... I wouldn't really call myself beautiful..."
Determined to silence that treasonous thought ('treasonous thought'? God, what was Strea's prose doing to him?), Nick reached out to pull Yuuki closer to him. Oh, wow, is he actually... Yuuki thought.
"You're beautiful to me, Yuuki."
With that, Nick leaned in and kissed Yuuki.
Yuuki's eyes instantly shot open in surprise, as despite her earlier thought, she hadn't expected Nick to actually kiss her. But after that second of surprise, she closed her eyes and surrendered to Nick's embrace, kissing him back as passionately as she could.
The kiss lasted about ten seconds before both of them needed to part for air.
"Do you... really think I'm beautiful?" Yuuki asked.
"You're one of the most gorgeous women I've ever met, Yuuki," Nick proclaimed. "And... you can probably understand why I didn't say anything until tonight..."
"...you were worried that I wouldn't feel the same way," Yuuki answered. "Can I tell you something, Nick? I've kinda been holding similar feelings since we defeated Galeem. I really do owe you more than you realize, you know. I don't know what would happened to me and Aiko if you hadn't saved our keesters on the first day. I was really worried that we weren't far behind Merida, but you came to our rescue and reminded us of what she would have wanted for us."
"I really didn't mean to make you sad when I asked about Merida," Nick replied.
"And like we both said, it's okay, Nick," Yuuki responded.
"I just hate making the people I love cry," Nick stated.
Yuuki gave Nick a sly smile. "What did you say, Nick?" Yuuki teased.
"Um..." Nick stuttered, wondering why he was turning into a blushing mess now of all possible times. "I mean, I... um... you just..."
Deciding right then and there to banish this stuttering fool that was controlling him, Nick pulled Yuuki into another kiss, one she happily returned.
"Screw it. I love you, Yuuki," Nick proclaimed.
"I love you, too, Nick," Yuuki answered. "Do you... maybe want to keep dancing?"
"If that's what you want," Nick replied.
Yuuki kissed Nick on the cheek, her smile never leaving her face. "Good. Glad we got that settled."
Nick scrolled through his music player and selected another song for them to dance to, and set it to autoplay so they could keep going.
They danced long into the night, long after the sun had set on Selmburg.
May 23rd, 2024
1:32 A.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 61, Selmburg
"Okay, where are those two?" Aiko asked as she entered the city of Selmburg via its Teleport Gate, wondering where exactly Nick and Yuuki were. They'd been gone for the past six hours, and she was getting worried.
At that particular moment, Aiko heard her HUD beep, indicating that someone had sent her a message. When she opened it, she couldn't help but smile brightly at the sight within.
Nick had taken a selfie inside one of Selmburg's inns, and it showed a fast-asleep Yuuki in the bed with him.
We're gonna stay the night here, Aiko. We're officially in a relationship now.
That was all Aiko needed to see, closing her inbox after texting a quick reply to Nick and doubling back to the Teleport Gate to let Nick and Yuuki have their night.
The next morning...
"Ah, it's another beautiful day!" Yuuki exclaimed as she and Nick stepped out of the inn. The only difference from a normal inn stay was that, now, Nick and Yuuki were holding hands as a testament to their new relationship.
"Let's just hope the weather doesn't change rapidly like it did during that one event quest, huh?" Nick laughed.
"I swear, I hope I never have to see the Thunder Plains again..." Yuuki groaned. "That place is literal insanity!"
"Don't I know it," Nick quipped. "I don't know if SAO can get update patches the way it is now, but that's one place I would definitely want them to nerf."
"Ehehehe, I think we should get back to Grandzam before Aiko has a conniption," Yuuki laughed. "She's probably wondering where the heck we've been all night."
"I actually sent her a message after you fell asleep last night," Nick answered. "Just to be sure."
Yuuki leaped forward to hug Nick once again. "You're so warm, Nick," Yuuki giggled. "I'm a lucky girl, aren't I?"
"If anything, I'm the lucky one," Nick replied. "Now, while we argue over who's lucky, let's actually jet back to Grandzam, because I just got a message from Aiko that Asuna wants us at a KoB meeting."
"Wonder what's up?" Yuuki asked. "Eh, guess we'll find out when we get there."
Nick and Yuuki rushed for the Teleport Gate, holding hands the entire way and even leaning in for a kiss as the gate transported them to Grandzam.
To be continued...
On the next episode...
Yuuki: Um, you guys, I might have a problem here.
Aiko: Is it mister "BETA TESTERS ARE TEH SUCK" again? Because he's still jawing off about it.
Yuuki: Worse! I... might have broken one of Lisbeth's best swords.
Asuna: How did that happen?!
Yuuki: Well... I wanted to make a custom order, so she recommended one of her own swords, but... I accidentally broke it testing it out.
Strea: Well, at least she's not mad at you, right? You didn't intentionally do it, after all.
Yuuki: Guess I should be thankful for that. I almost thought she'd get on me for destroying her "baby" and asking if I'd do that to someone else's "baby".
Nick: "Would I slam a baby into another baby to test its durability? No, that's not something I'd typically do." Ah, that conversation would have been awkward...
Yuuki: Which means Lis and I are off to floor 55 to get a rare material for a new sword. So, I guess I'm going mountain climbing on the next episode of Sword Art Online: Twin Memory, "Cold Hands, Warm Hearts"!
Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko: This may be a game, but it's not something you play!