A/N: Hello, readers. I'm back with the 4th chapter of Mother's Reconciliation. I'm sorry it took 2 weeks this time to upload this chapter. The two weeks were kind of hectic and I had some work to do.
And man, is this story getting some attention! 600 views, 6 favorites within a month? I think that's a good progress, for a first fanfic! Thank you for taking your time to read this story! I'm always open for constructive criticism on the reviews. Again, if you liked it, please leave a review!
Lastly, have you guys seen the cover for the 'SAO: Side Story – Sisters' Prayer'? I can't wait for the thing to be translated! Apparently it will go in-depth about how the SK members met and hopefully formally introduce Clovis, Merida, and Ran (Konno Aiko). I'm so stoked for it to be released! Let me know if you're excited too!
To 'Autistic-Grizzly': I'm sorry to hear about your friend. May he/she have found peace.
To 'jokerk118': Thanks for the compliment! I'll do my best to make the story interesting. But you should know what would happen in the end if you've properly read the title of the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own SAO or its characters! They belong to Kawahara Reki-sensei!
Chapter 4 – Looking Back – Part 2
Asuna continued her story from where she left off.
"Anyway, the next day, we went to the boss room and attempted to try taking on the boss with just the 7 of us. And we were able to do it on our second try, thanks to Kazuto-kun and his friend helping us getting inside the boss room. But, it was after we defeated the boss and celebrated our victory when I started to feel something strange about the Sleeping Knights."
"Well, I can tell that they weren't really an ordinary guild, but what exactly was it that made you feel like that?" Kouichirou asked.
"I have 2 reasons: One, the way the Sleeping Knights moved their avatars in the virtual world, they were people who were very used to the Full-Dive environment, almost on par with the SAO survivors. It's not something that can be done in a short time. Their movements were far more natural than your average VRMMO player. And two, when I asked them to let me join their guild during our celebration, the reaction they gave was… strange." Asuna trailed off.
"Strange? How so?" Her father asked.
"They rejected it, but the expression on their faces when they turned me down, they all had a sad expression on their faces. From the atmosphere, it felt like they wanted to let me in, but they just couldn't for some reason. That's what I felt at that moment."
"But when I made that request, it suddenly made this melancholic atmosphere. So, to change the subject, I suggested going to the Monument of Swordsmen on the 1st floor. You know, to see if our names had been engraved there during the update. So we went and they were there. Everyone was so happy to have achieved their goal. So, we took a picture in front of the monument. This one, in fact." Asuna said as she showed them the picture in her cellphone that they had seen earlier.
"After we took the picture, Yuuki referred me as Nee-chan (Big sis) for the second time." Asuna said.
"Nee-chan? Second time?" Kyouko asked, her tone containing slight curiosity.
"Well, it was when we were fighting the Boss monster when Yuuki called me Nee-chan for the first time. I guess she wasn't really paying attention to what she was saying, since we were at the heat of battle then. So, I got curious as to why Yuuki was calling me Nee-chan, so when I asked… Well, Yuuki just suddenly started crying. And then, she just abruptly logged out on the spot. And for the next 3 days, she didn't log in to ALO or contact any of her friends. I tried sending her a message so many times, but she didn't reply to any of them. Or give any signs that she had read my messages." Asuna said.
"Well, what about her guild mates? They must have known something." Kouichirou suggested, but Asuna shook her head.
"3 days after Yuuki disappeared, I tried to ask the Sleeping Knights members what was going on, but even they wouldn't tell me anything…" Asuna said, as she remembered what had happened when she tried to ask Siune about Yuuki's disappearance.
Flashback: Sunday, January 11th, 2026. ALO, New Aincrad, 27th floor, Town of Ronbaru, Sleeping Knight's temporary base.
(A/N: This flashback will contain some omitted details from the fan-translated LN as well as the animated version.)
It had been 3 days after Yuuki had disappeared from ALO. Asuna was still trying to process what exactly happened 3 days ago. The crying image of Yuuki still haunted her memories. There was no way she could forget something like that. She needed to see Yuuki and talk to her, no matter what. But all the messages she sent to Yuuki were all replied with a The recipient is not logged in notice.
So, thinking that the other Sleeping Knights may know something about this, Asuna went to where the Sleeping Knights usually gathered; the inn at the town of Ronbaru, 27th floor.
But she didn't find anyone there. What's more was that the restaurant area that the Sleeping Knights usually sat at was shrouded in darkness with only a fireplace lighting the room.
Asuna sat at one of the tables near the fireplace and decided to send one last message to Yuuki, praying that she would answer or give any signs that she read her messages. But once again, the same notice popped up again, much to her frustration and disappointment.
Then she heard a familiar feminine voice: "Asuna-san?"
Looking up, she saw Siune with a pained expression on her face.
"Siune! Nee, what happened to Yuuki? She hasn't logged in at all for 3 days!" Asuna said, getting straight to the point. Siune sat down beside Asuna.
"We haven't been able to contact her either since then. It's not just ALO. It seems she never even FullDived again since that day. And we don't know anything about her in the real world, so…" Siune said, shaking her head. Then she gave Asuna a worried look.
"Asuna-san. Most likely, Yuuki doesn't want to meet you again. It's not about anyone else, but for your own sake." Siune continued.
Asuna was so stunned that she couldn't say anything for a few seconds. Then she asked: "Why?"
But Siune just stared at the ground wordlessly.
Asuna continued: "No… I understand, actually. You're all trying to keep your distance from me. If I'm being a burden to you, then I'll leave you alone." When she finished that sentence, Siune gasped and looked at her.
"But… If you just say that it's for my own sake, I won't be able to accept it!" Asuna said wistfully.
"A burden? We were really happy to have met you. In this world, we were able to make so many wonderful last memories because of you, Asuna-san. Helping us defeat the 27th floor boss, and even saying that you wanted to join our guild. We can't even begin to express our gratitude to you. I'm sure Yuuki feels the same way. But… I beg of you… Please, just forget about us…" Siune said, standing up. Her voice was quivering.
Siune paused at that moment. Then she summoned her menu to operate it. A few seconds later, a small trade window appeared in front of Asuna.
"It's earlier than I expected, but we need to disband the Sleeping Knights now. Those are all of the items we earned from the boss raid as well as our equipment…" Siune said.
But Asuna dismissed the trade window.
"No, don't. I can't accept this…" Asuna said as she looked up at Siune.
"Is this really goodbye? I loved spending time with Yuuki, Siune, and everyone else. I thought that we could become friends… Even after the guild disbanded, we could remain as friends, but… was I really the only one who was thinking that?" Asuna asked, at the brink of tears. But Siune merely lowered her head and shook it, her pained expression worsening.
In the past, Asuna would have never said such things. However, spending the previous few days with Yuuki and the Sleeping Knights, Asuna felt that she had changed somewhat. Even though the time she spent with them was short, they had left a deep and unforgettable impression on her. Forgetting about them was unthinkable. She didn't want their parting to be like this.
"Gomennasai (I'm sorry)… Gomennasai, Asuna-san… But this is for the best. Gomennasai… soshite sayonara… (I'm sorry… and goodbye...)" Then Siune waved her hand to summon her menu then pressed the log out button, as if she was trying to run away.
"Matte! (Wait!)" Asuna called desperately, but Siune had already disappeared in a pillar of light. Asuna collapsed onto her chair, sad and confused.
"What in the world is going on?" Asuna asked herself.
She was left in the dark, both literally and figuratively.
After Siune's abrupt departure, it wasn't just Yuuki and Siune. The rest of the Sleeping Knights never logged into ALO afterwards.
Flashback End
"So no one would tell you anything?" Kouichirou asked, confused.
"No. I was so confused as to what was going on. I kept thinking of what could be the reason for everyone trying to keep their distance from me, but I couldn't think of anything." Asuna explained.
At this point, Kyouko decided to ask the question that had been on her mind ever since her daughter explained her desire to join the Sleeping Knights guild.
"Asuna… Why exactly were you so insistent on finding Yuuki again? After leaving so abruptly and no one telling you anything, wouldn't you have gotten frustrated? Why pursue the matter if they wouldn't tell you anything?" Kyouko asked. If that happened to her, under normal circumstances, she would have just tried to forget about those people.
Asuna contemplated for a few seconds before answering.
"It was because of something Yuuki told me. Do you remember me saying that Kazuto-kun and his friend helped us for our second attempt? Well, the reason they helped was because you see, when we went to the boss room again for our second attempt, a large group of a different guild had gathered around it and didn't let anyone else through. They were waiting for their other groups to arrive and so since they weren't going to in immediately, we asked if we can go ahead first. But they refused and made some unreasonable excuses for them to go first. The reason they were so insistent on trying first was because during our first attempt on the boss, one of their guild members had used us as pawns to get the information about the boss without fighting the boss themselves. And from what the Sleeping Knights told me, in the previous 3 floors of New Aincrad, that guild had already used the Sleeping Knights without their knowledge as pawns to get the information about the floor bosses." Asuna explained.
"Well, that's dirty; using you as a scapegoat." Kouichirou said, slightly appalled.
"Their methods were a bit underhanded, but they were effective. And because we knew that, we knew we had to do something go get through. So we had to get a little… forceful. Actually, it was Yuuki that initiated the fight between us against the guild." Asuna said, remembering how she and the Sleeping Knights took on the rival guild with Yuuki leading the way.
"But when I was about to protest, thinking that there was a better way than just starting a brawl, Yuuki told said this: "There were some things that you can only share by fighting. For instance, to show them how serious we are." What she told me wasn't something that she just thought up on the spot. It was a belief that she had. I could tell just by the tone of her voice when she spoke it. And also, her word did have some sense to it. Actions can speak louder than words. Yuuki was conveying her feelings through fighting.
Just by hearing Yuuki say what she said, I could see that she had something I didn't at the time: the courage to speak her mind and voice her opinion." Asuna said.
"You should know. Before SAO, I was always afraid of voicing my opinion. Ever since I was little, I found myself hiding behind someone. But my time in SAO, and the people I met there… Kazuto-kun, Rika, Keiko-chan, and others… they all helped me to have confidence in myself. Because of that, I was able to become the sub-leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath guild and escape from SAO." Asuna had, of course, explained to her family about her time in SAO and her progress to becoming the sub-leader in detail after her comeback from the virtual world.
"So, I thought, after I escaped from SAO, I would be able to confront you and be able to voice my opinions and thoughts to you as I was able to with my guild mates. But once I did come back, nothing had changed between us. I knew that I had gained a lot of confidence in myself, but every time I was face to face with Kaa-san, all the confidence I had in myself just… disappear. The strength I thought I had gained, the proud sub-leader of the most powerful guild in SAO, 'Senkou no Asuna (Lightning Flash Asuna)' only existed in the virtual world. It felt like, all the progress I made to become stronger were all in vein." The Yuuki's, especially Kyouko processed what Asuna said.
"Asuna…" Kyouko said.
She had pressured her children and hardened herself so that they could become strong enough to handle themselves when they grew and went into society. Of course she meant well by doing this. But after Asuna had a heart-to-heart talk with her inside ALO, she had gained a better insight to her daughter's desires and opinions. And the reminder of her deceased parents and hearing about their pride in her also helped her open her eyes to her daughter's choices in life.
But before all of that happened, had she really have been that much of a discouraging figure in the eyes of her family? She did what she thought was the best for her family, but looking back, and looking at the events that happened throughout the past few years, could she truly say that what she had planned for Asuna and Kouichirou really have been for the best?
"But then, I met Yuuki and her guild. I felt like they had the key to finally gain the strength I needed. So, wanted to be with them so that overtime, I could have the confidence I needed to confront Kaa-san and convey my thoughts to her someday. I needed to see where and how Yuuki got her strength and confidence from…."
"And… well, a day after the Sleeping Knights left, the new term had started for our school. And during lunch break, Kazuto-kun called me out onto the roof. He asked me if I really wanted to find Yuuki again and I said yes. So, Kazuto-kun gave me the location where Yuuki could possibly be at." Asuna explained.
"Kirigaya-kun found out where Yuuki was? How did he manage to find out?" Shouzou asked, curious.
"He had been doing an investigation of his own on Yuuki. He wasn't 100% certain if Yuuki was there, but he deduced that it was possible that she was at where he described. And Kazuto-kun always had a keen eye for detail, especially in regards to the virtual world." Asuna explained with a slight tone of pride.
"That boy… He's always full of surprises." Shouzou said, impressed. Asuna nodded. After all, it was one of the reason she loved him.
"So, after school, I went to the place Kazuto-kun told me to go… Yokohama North General Hospital…" Asuna said, bracing herself, for she knew that the next part of her story would not be pleasant.
A/N: That's it for this chapter. Next chapter will be more emotional as Asuna reveals Yuuki's secret to her family.
Please send me either a PM or leave a review if you want to take a guess at how this story will unravel. I have the entire general storyline planned from start to end. I just need to write them down, that's all.
Thanks again for reading my story.
Yours truly, KiritoIRL.
