A/N: Before we start, I just want to mention my sponsor for today's chapter, Rai- wait wrong script... Oh right, I just want to mention that I updated the previous chapter based on the reviews I got from you guys and some of my friends, so thank you guys for that. Go read it if you haven't, please, and if you did, then please enjoy this chapter.
Aincrad's seasons are based on reality, so it's early summer here as well. Fuutarou looked up just as they were teleported to the plaza, taking in a deep, warm breath.
Around 300 meters above, the bottom of the second floor can be seen glowing lightly in a purple color. As his gaze wandered along the uneven surface, a tall tower near the edge of the town came to view. It's the [Labyrinth] that Miku told everyone about earlier.
It was then that they heard it, the echoing sound of a bell – or perhaps a warning chime – resounded loudly, making the 6 jumped in surprise.
"Uwa…"
"What is this?!"
"A special event?"
"Uesugi-san, this is making me feeling restless…"
"I agree with Yotsuba, Uesugi-kun, please remain cautious…"
Fuutarou said nothing, opting to nod while vigilantly scanning his surroundings. A large road paved with stone, medieval streets surrounded by steel street lamps and a huge black palace reflecting dark light quite a distance up ahead.
Surrounded the 6 is a bustling crowd of people, the dazzling beauty and variety of hair color was a dead giveaway to their identities, players, like them. There were at least a few thousand people here, and it occurred to Miku that everyone in the game may have been forcefully transported to the central plaza.
For a short while, the whole plaza was quiet. Everyone just looked around without speaking. Then there were mumbles here and there, gradually building up to a cacophony of sound.
"W-What's happening?"
"Does anyone know anything about the log out button?!"
"Can't the GMs take care of this already?"
Comments like these can be heard from time to time. A look was shared between the 6 before they quickly pulled up their own menu. Looks of shock turned worry as they found out their only way out of this game, the log out button, has disappeared without a trace.
"Miku, do you know anything about this?"
Fuutarou ask, a grave tone to his voice. Miku just shook her head nervously before replying.
"N-No, I've never encountered anything like this before. It'd make sense that there are a few bugs here and there during the first launch day, but a major error like this is very rare."
Nino, being the more outspoken one between the 5, voiced her opinion.
"Then shouldn't the moderators or technicians do something about this already? From what I can hear, this has been a problem for quite a while now."
"That's what I'd like to know as well Nino…"
Miku replied weakly, feeling helpless at her lack of knowledge in this situation. Her sisters seems restless as well, and Fuutarou is still looking around them.
"Alright, let's not pressure Miku with this, I'm sure she's feeling just as worried as the rest of us. For now, it'd be for the best to calm down and wait for any notification from the game operator. They ought to have a service department to deal with things like this, right Miku?"
The young tutor stated calmly, surprising the quints with his demeanor. Seeing how he handled himself in this circumstance, the Nakano sisters began to calm themselves down as well.
'Fuutarou-kun is right, we shouldn't fret ourselves over something like this. And I don't know he can show such a calm and serious expression like this…'
'It's as Fuu-kun said, the company behind this game should be solving this issue soon. Also, seeing Fuu-kun's cool side like this is nice~'
'Thank you Fuutarou, for calming us down like this…
'As expected of Uesugi-san!'
'Uesugi-kun, you are reliable as always…'
'Phew… I managed to calm them down for the time being, but if this goes on for any longer I think Dad and Raiha is going to be worried about me… On second thought, Raiha might, but the old man may just laugh it off and tell her I'm having fun with the quints…'
Tensions are rising around the 6, people were getting more agitated at the lack of response from the developers, some even began shouting.
Then suddenly…
A shouting voice of somebody can be heard above all the comments.
"Ah… look up!"
Almost everyone turned their gaze upward. Up there, a strange sight greeted them. In the sky between them and the bottom of the second floor, were red hexagons.
Ichika squinted her eyes and looked closely, making out the two phrases crisscrossing each other, [Warning] and [System Announcement] written in red.
Some of the players around them visible relaxed and told each other that the operators are going to inform them now, but Fuutarou instead grew wary at the sight.
The chattering died down and a sense of expectation could be felt around the plaza. But what happened next was something nobody expected.
From the middle of the pattern, a liquid that looks frighteningly similar to blood started oozing down slowly. It came down at such a speed that almost emphasized its viscosity, but it didn't fall all the way down, instead it congealed mid-air.
What appeared what a roughly twenty meters tall figure with a hooded robe draped around it. No hands and legs are visible, and the inking darkness within the robe did not quell Fuutarou's sinking feeling one bit.
It was then that Miku spoke up.
"I- I have seen that robe before… it was the same robed used by the Argus employees who worked as Game Masters during the beta testing phase… But back then the male GMs had the face akin to an old sorcerer while the females had an avatar of a bespectacled girl."
'They might have used the robe because they lacked time to prepare a proper avatar, but the emptiness inside it is giving me an unexplainable sense of anxiety… And it seems I'm not the only one feeling it…' Miku thought as she glanced up and saw the tight expression that Fuutarou's wearing.
Unconsciously, all the quints reached for Fuutarou's shirt and took a tight hold of it as they shared the same expression.
The countless players beside them are no different.
"Is that a GM?"
"Why doesn't it have a face?"
There were a lot of hushed whispers like these flowing around…
It was then that the right sleeve of the robe moved, as if to silence them. A pure white glove appeared from the folds of the long sleeves, but just like the rest of the robe, it didn't cover any sort of body.
The left sleeve soon followed, slowly lifting itself upward. Then with its two handless gloves spread out in front of thousands of players, the faceless figure opened its mouth… No, it felt like it did. Then came a low, calm, male voice resonated from high in mid-air.
"Players, I welcome you all to my world."
No one could understand it right away. It is of course that the GM had godlike powers in this world, enabling him to change it at will, but why is he pointing this out right now?
Fuutarou and Miku shared a look, the latter held confusion in her gaze. As the young man took a glance at the sisters, he saw they all held the same dumbfounded expression. Especially Yotsuba…
The anonymous red robe lowered its arm and continued talking.
"My name is Kayaba Akihiko. Right now, I am the only person who can control this world."
Time seems to stilled as everyone was shocked. Kayaba… Akihiko!
Fuutarou tried to dig up his memories of the man, when he recalled an interview he overheard on his way to the quint's apartment.
The man, a genius in quantum mechanics, was responsible for both raising Argus into one of the leading companies in the world as well as creating the NerveGear. It seems that he was also the director of SAO…
"I-Impossible… he has always refused media exposure, and I've never seen him even once during the beta testing phase, so why?!" Miku muttered out in a low voice, unable to contain the incredulity in her voice.
"I think that most of you have discovered the fact that the Log Out button has disappeared from the main menu. This is not a bug, it is all part of [Sword Art Online]'s system."
"It's… part of the system?" Ichika whispered, her voice broken with disbelief.
The announcement continued in a smooth fashion as if to cover up all the sound.
"Until you get to the top of this castle, you cannot log out of your own free will."
… Castle? What is he talking ab-
"… also, the disruption or dismantling of the Nerve Gear from outside is strictly forbidden. If these things are attempted, the signal sensors in your Nerve Gear will emit a strong electromagnetic pulse, destroying your brain and stopping all your cerebral functions."
A moment of stillness dwelled upon thousands of souls there. The silence hung in the air was almost palpable.
Fuutarou shared a look with Nino, who unconsciously gripped his shirt tighter. Her eyes were wide open, and they looks so lost Fuutarou almost felt sorry for her, if it wasn't for the fact that he was in the same position.
In fact, it is not just Nino in front of him. When he looked around, Ichika, Miku, Yotsuba and Itsuki all shared the same look, they seems so vulnerable…
Destroying the brain, or in other words, kill them. It was a appalling thing to think about. Fuutarou raised a hand slowly, trying to grasp the headgear that would be situated right there in the real world. As he did, he let out a dry chuckle and started talking.
"Haha… w-what is he saying? Has he turned crazy… T-This doesn't make any sense… Ho-How is he going to destroy our brain, right, Miku?"
His voice broke at the last question. He stared at Miku hard, desperately hoping to hear her agreeing with him… but to his and her sisters growing horror, she just gave them a head shake.
"There are countless signal transceiver in the Nerve Gear that emits small electromagnetic pulses to send virtual signal to the brain, not too dissimilar to a microwave…"
Kayaba started his explanation once more, as if to address any doubt left in the player base.
"To be a little more specific, disconnection from an outside source of electricity for ten minutes, being cut off from the system for more than two hours, or any attempt to: unlock, dismantle, or destroy the Nerve Gear. If any of these conditions are met, the brain destruction sequence will start.
These conditions have been made known to the government and the public through mass-media in the outside world. On that note, there have been several cases where the relatives or friends have ignored the warnings and tried to forcefully remove the Nerve Gear. The result...
...regretfully 213 players have already exited this game, and the real world, forever."
A long, horrified scream was heard from somewhere within the crowd. But none of them paid it any attention, because they were too busy wrapping their minds around what they've just been told.
Ichika's knee shook violently, but she managed to avoid falling by holding on to Fuutarou and her sister. With a dry chuckle, she muttered.
"I-It must be a joke, right?! I-I mean, over 200 peoples have already…"
Nino followed, trying to put up her usual strong front but failed miserably.
"That's… that's right! There's no way that much people have… He-He's just trying to scare us… or else how would he do such a thing…" Her voice grew weaker as she continued on, the tears are already pooling on the corner of her eyes.
Miku was screaming the same thing inside her head, while Yotsuba's ribbon drooped down as her body shaken in fear… Itsuki fell onto the ground, her eyes lifeless as she looked at the sky, where the robed figure of Kayaba was suspended mid-air…
As if to further cement their despair and squash any semblance of hope remaining, Kayaba's businesslike voice resumed its explanation.
"Players, there is no need to worry about the bodies you left on the other side. As of this moment, all TV, radio, and Internet media are repeatedly reporting this situation; including the fact that there have been numerous deaths. The danger of having your Nerve Gear taken off has already all but disappeared.
In a moment, using the two hours I have provided, all of you will be transported to hospitals or similar institutes and be given the best treatment. So you can relax... and concentrate on beating the game."
"What…?"
"What the hell are you saying?! Beat the game?! How can you expect us to play in a situation like this?!"
"This isn't a god-damned game anymore!"
Shouts began erupting from the crowd, and the anger of nearby players can be felt clearly. Kayaba, despite all the interruptions from the players, continued announcing with his monotonous voice.
"But I ask of you all to understand that «Sword Art Online» is no longer a simple game. It is a second reality... From now on, any form of revival in the game will no longer work. The moment your HP reaches 0, your avatar will be gone forever. And at the same time, your brain will be destroyed by the Nerve Gear."
A dreadful feeling overcame Fuutarou and the quint as they simultaneously laid eyes upon the shining green horizontal line in their field of vision. Hit points, the virtual representation of their life force, illuminates ominously… The moment that number hit 0, they will die. The waves emitted by the transceivers will fry their brains, killing them instantaneously, as Kayaba said so himself.
This, is without a doubt, a game where your life is at stake. In other words, a death game.
"Players, there is only one way to be freed from this game. As I have said before, you must get to the top of Aincrad, the one hundredth floor, and defeat the final boss that resides there. All players still alive at that time will be immediately logged out of the game. I give you all my word."
Kayaba droned on, ignoring all the pleas and scream. Fuutarou took in a deep breath, forcing himself to come to term with the situation at hand.
'I can no longer get out of the game, and so do they' He thought grimly, looking at the Nakano sisters still in disbelief.
'We can't go back to our lives, the only way to get back is for someone to defeat the game… If any of ours HP reach zero, we will definitely die. I can't let that happen, no matter the cost…' Fuutarou gained a determined gleam in his eye at this, his fists tightening as he directed all his anger towards the robed figure in the sky of floor 1.
Then, it spoke. The red robe, who was always a step ahead of us, swept its right glove and started speaking with a flat tone.
"Then I will show you evidence that this is the only reality. In your inventories, there will be a gift from me. Please confirm this."
As soon as Fuutarou heard this, he pressed his thumb and finger together and pulled downwards. All the players did likewise and the plaza was filled with the sound of ringing bells.
Yotsuba pressed at the item on the top of her belongings list, a [Hand Mirror]. Pulling it up, she stared at it curiously, as did her sisters and Fuutarou.
Then…
Suddenly all the avatars of the players were engulfed in a white light. They weren't able to take it in due to its suddenness… Almost 2, 3 seconds later, the surrounding appeared to be the same as they were before.
But unlike Fuutarou, Ichika, Nino, Miku, Yotsuba and Itsuki's avatars, whose figure remained exactly as they were before, the same couldn't be said for the players around them.
Shrieks of surprise erupted from the crowd, people were looking left and right at the other players surrounding them, trying to take in their new features… No longer there were people who looked like characters from a fantasy game, only a bunch of normal looking young people remained in their place.
Fuutarou imagined it's not to dissimilar to a school festival of sort where everyone dressed up in armor. And somehow, the sex ratio had also changed drastically.
Kayaba surely didn't let them down as he answered the question remaining inside their mind since the beginning. Why would someone like him do something like this?
"You will all most probably be wondering, "Why." Why am I —the creator of both the Nerve Gear and SAO, Kayaba Akihiko— doing something like this? Is this a sort of terrorist attack? Is he doing this to ransom us?"
Strangely, Kayaba's voice, which seemed emotionless until now, has gained some semblance of emotion in it. The term [empathy] crossed Fuutarou's mind briefly, but he dismissed such ridiculous notion immediately.
"These are not the reasons why I am doing this. Not only that, but for me, there is no longer a reason or a purpose in doing this. The reason is because... this situation itself was my purpose in doing this. To create and watch this world is the only reason I have created the Nerve Gear and SAO. And now, everything has been realized."
Then, after a short pause, Kayaba's voice grew emotionless again as he finished.
"... As a compensation for the sudden nature of this announcement, I have made all the miscellaneous commodities unrelated to combat free for the next 2 days. Please think of it as my gift for the starting of your journey.
Now, I have finished the official tutorial for «Sword Art Online». Players—I wish you luck."
The last sentence trailed off with a slight echo. Then, without warning, the huge robe began falling soundlessly, dispersing into polygons before it could reach the ground. Right after the robe's disappearance, the blaring red system messages that had been covering the sky also vanished abruptly, as if it never existed in the first place.
The sound of the softly rustling winds returned, as with the music that the orchestra was playing. The game has returned to its normal state, apart from the fact that some rules have been changed.
Then, at last.
The crowd of hundred thousands of people finally gave out a proper reaction. In other words, countless voice and shout started resounding loudly through the plaza. Ranging from denial, to despair, to outrage, every single negative aspect of the human emotional spectrum has been covered.
The people that had changed from game players to prisoners in a matter of minutes crouched, clutching their heads, waving their arms about, desperately grasped each other or started to swear loudly.
This… is now reality.
The fact sunk deep into Fuutarou's mind with the force of a wrecking ball.
Miku, still in her distressed state, remembers all the time she died during the beta phase, before respawning to the north of this plaza, at the [Black Iron Palace], before rushing back to the farming grounds again.
'But now… this game is where you can't die and learn from your mistake and level up… Because once you die, you'll lose your life?... Who in their right minds would go out in these conditions… No way…'
Tears threatened to overflow from her eyes as a sense of helplessness washed over her form, but before she could break down, she heard Fuutarou muttered softly.
"Don't fuck with me…"
All the sisters' eyes widen as they hear their tutor's crass words. Their normally calm, collected tutor is now cursing out loud? The world must be ending tomorrow… Oh wait, it may as well be…
"… Uesugi-san?"
Yotsuba asked timidly, her minds still shaken from the announcement. Fuutarou looks straight into her eyes, his gazing burning deep in her minds, and despite the situation they're finding themselves in, Yotsuba can't help but blush at her tutor's strong eyes.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure we all get out of this game together… is what I'd like to say, but sadly I lack the prerequisite knowledge to make such claims. That's why, Miku, will you help me help keeping you and your sisters safe until the game is cleared?"
The girl in question shared a dumbfounded look with her sisters, before they all burst out giggling.
"Pfft… Ahaha… You sounded so sure of yourself at first Fuutarou… I almost forgot that you knew next to nothing about gaming… ahaha…"
"Yes yes, laugh all you want…"
Fuutarou grumbled good naturedly, before reaching out and give each one a headpat. Seeing the mood has lightened and the quint regained their bearings, he moved on.
"Now that you all have calmed down, we should get somewhere to stay for the night soon. After that, Miku, I'll be relying on you to tell us as much as you can about this game. Is that good with you all?"
"Aha, our tutor is back to his lecturing mode… although Onee-san doesn't dislike this at all…"
"Fuu-kun…"
"Uhm, let's go, Fuutarou."
"Roger that Uesugi-san"
Right as when they were about to move out, Itsuki unexpectedly gave him a hug from behind. Leaning into Fuutarou's back, Itsuki gave her thanks to Fuutarou, who now sports a small blush at the close proximity they're sharing.
"Thank you, Uesugi-kun, for being reliable for us…"
"No need to thank me, I'm just doing what needed to be done." Fuutarou took hold of Itsuki's hand and pulled her along with them, following Miku's lead to a nearby inn.
"Let's go, I want to get to the inn before it gets dark. And you must be getting hungry soon, right? Even if this is inside a game, from what Miku told me, hunger can still affect your mental health somewhat, so I'll be making sure to order extra for you." Flashing her a grin, Fuutarou nodded in amusement as she pouted like a hamster before hitting his back repeatedly. Her sisters didn't help in the slightest, they even joined Fuutarou in teasing her… And what's with that teasing look Ichika's sending her?!
…
It's now night. The party of 6 has just finished their dinner at the inn they're currently staying, and as promised Fuutarou did order extra for Itsuki, much to the latter's chagrin…
Now that they've had their fill, Fuutarou and the quint gathered around the single table in their room. Yotsuba was the first to speak up, breaking the silence that has been emanating around the place.
"… Uesugi-san, what do you plan to do now?"
Fuutarou sighed, before straighten his back and reply.
"To be honest, I'm not really sure… I was planning to ask Miku to help me with the first few hunts before I can get the hang of it, then I can go out and make enough Col while you guys are safe her-"
"NO!"
5 identical shouts of denial resounded. Ichika chopped Fuutarou on the head, drawing a flat "Ouch" from him before leaning down and looked straight into his eyes.
"Fuutarou-kun, while I'm appreciating the fact that you care about us that much to risk your life, it's honestly grating me. We can fight too you know, we're not some damsel in distress waiting for you to do all the hard work and get us out of here.
And we care about you too. Do you ever think how we'd feel if we let you go out there alone and possibly never return?"
She was teary at the end of her little scolding. Fuutarou's eyes widen at the sight in front of him. He was about to speak up, wanting to rebut her, but Nino beat him to the punch.
"Ichika's right, Fuu-kun, all of us care a lot about you. And I haven't even receive your reply to my confession, so don't think I'm letting you go that easy!"
Flashing him a confident smirk, Nino tried, and failed to hide her atomic blush at proclaiming to her sister that she had already confessed to their tutor. Ichika, wiping away her tears, now sports her trademark Cheshire grin.
Miku was blushing at how straightforward Nino is, but she managed to gather her courage and speak up.
"I'd never agree to teach you, if only to keep you here safe with us, Fuutarou. We are tutors and student, yes, but aren't we also friends? As friends, it is our duty to look out for you, not just the other way around, don't you agree?"
"I-…"
"That's right, Uesugi-san." Yotsuba came forward and pulled him into a hug.
"I'm thankful that you're serious about getting us out of here safe, but we'd never forgive ourselves if you were to be hurt because of us, even if this is inside a game."
"Uesugi-kun, we're partners. That's what you told us time and time again. And right now you're not doing a good job at being our partner by not listening to our desires as well as yours. If you've decided to fight and try to clear this game, then you'll do that with us right beside you.
… I admit, I'm scared of dying, and I'm certainly clueless when it comes to fighting. But I won't be able to live with myself if I just let you risk your life for us. Won't you reconsider, Uesugi-kun?"
Hearing the quint's words left Fuutarou bewildered. He never thought they'd be this stubborn when it comes to him… Smiling exasperatedly, the young tutor gave the sisters a nod.
"Alright then. If that's what you all want, then we will all fight and try to clear this game. But I have a condition. Aside from fighting, we'll also have our study sessions as well."
Fuutarou's triumphant expression was quickly overturned when he saw each one of them nod resolutely, not even trying to argue with him.
"Alright, now that's out of the way, let's go to sleep already. We should get up early tomorrow, right Miku?" Ichika asked, her exuberant expression was infectious as her sisters began brightening up as well. Miku gave her a nod, and as they were about to head to bed, Fuutarou spoke up.
"W-Wait, there's only one bed here?! And why did we only rent a single room in the first place?" His voice, filled with shock and worry now that he realized the implications of the wink the inn owner sent him earlier when they chose to rent a single room.
"We did it to conserve our fund, didn't you agree with it as well? It's not as if you're untrustworthy or something, Fuu-kun, so what are you scared of now?"
Nino asked, her grin matching with Ichika's own. Yotsuba also nodded happily, and even the usually conservative Itsuki expressed no displeasure, gaining a slight blush at the notion that she is going to sleep together with her tutor, on the same bed nonetheless.
And Miku… well she's lost in her own world at the moment, dreaming about Fuutarou doing 'things' to her in the night right under her sisters' nose…
Seeing no possible way out of this, Fuutarou just hung his head low and agreed reluctantly, grimacing to himself about how this is going to be a sleepless night for him…
A/N: Ladies and gentlemen, good to see y'all again after a week. Sorry if this chapter was a bit lackluster for you, because I wanted to spend a whole chapter going through the Nakano quintuplets' thoughts and emotions when they discovered that they are now trapped inside a death game. Don't worry though, because I promise the next chapter is going to be packed with action scene (I hope…) As always, I'm eagerly waiting for your reviews to constantly better my writing. Anyways, have a nice day. XXAlter, out~