Real Life Standard Time: [14:00] June 12th 2026
Location: [New Aincrad - Rakshasa's Cave]
After I saw Hikaru, Keiko, Amaterasu, and this Sinon leave the cave, the others gathered around the center of the room as we ponder what to do
"Hm...Miharu, Sachiko; do you guys mind helping Madoka level up a little? She's pretty weak since she just recently began playing MMOs. Feel free to ask Asuna and the others to help if needed. I just...I just need to take care of something." After saying this, Sylvia gently patted my head and dashed off.
"Onee-chan." I mumble rather despondently as I see her run out of the cave since she looked rather troubled about the situation going on with the others.
"I actually need to follow suite; I have to get to work soon. I work second shift." Morita says as he walks away to log out.
"Same here you all." Cobert speaks up almost immediately and follows Morita.
"If what XANA said is true, I should try doing my own investigation on the matter. If Senryaku has gone missing, I should atleast try to find out why. I'll see if I can find answers through MMO Today." Thinker says with a passive tone as he and Yulier walk out, leaving just me, Asuna, Rika, Miharu, and Sachiko in this cave.
"So Madoka-pyon, let's get going. Sylvia-san wants me to watch over you while you're here." Sachiko grins as she pulls me under her arm and rustles my hair rather aggressively.
"Wants us to Sachiko. Don't twist her words for your benefit." Miharu groans as she frees me from Sachiko's grip to my relief since it was terrifying me beyond belief.
"Ahaha, it looks like you're caught in between a lover's quarrel Madoka-chan." Rika teases with a hearty laugh and while I'm used to it after living with her and the other friends my sister has, it's still embarrassing to hear her say stuff like this.
"W-W-WHAT?!" Although I'm dead embarrassed from Rika's tease there, seeing Sachiko and Miharu utterly freak out is worth it since their faces are redder than Miharu's bright crimson armor "Lizbeth, please tell me you are joking." Miharu pleads with a great deal of stammering in her voice.
"Not telling." Rika puts her right hand on her waist after saying this, with a strong smirk on her face.
"You two had it coming for dragging Madoka-chan into this situation. I am surprised Sylvia would ask you to help her when Liz and I would be far more willing; and we know her far better too."
"Ugh, that's a low blow Asuna. And remember that Sylvia did say that she wants us both helping Madoka."
"Tell you what Miharu; I'll cut you a deal. If you can beat me in a half-loss duel, you and Sachiko can do what you desire in this commission. If I win, I'm taking charge."
"Heh, I've been dying to fight you since Ragnarok. I would've participated but I was rather sick at the time and I thought I lost my chance to fight the Black Swordsman's right hand seriously, but lady luck is on my side."
"Well then, let's take this fight outside where we can fly." Asuna proudly smirks as she walks outside the cave with Miharu in tow.
After this, the last of us leave the cave and the duel between Asuna and Miharu begin as soon as they take off into the air. It's actually quite a spectacle witnessing this brawl since these two are both veterans and appear specialized in their own combat styles: rapier and sword & shield respectively. While they appear equal in terms of strength, it's a bit easy to tell that Asuna is just slightly better in battle. I can only presume that her strength came in part from her time in Sword Art Online, and it's easy to see a fearless aura shining in Asuna's expression, though I often wonder if she was always like this or if Aincrad and Alfheim instilled it in her. While I never knew the others before SAO, I knew my sister very well and she was very timid; but the day I saw her awaken from that three year sleep, I was surprised beyond belief at how emotionally strong she had become, and that's not counting the strong bonds of friendship she made in that world.
Before SAO, she would never have the courage to confront my ex-employer like she did to protect me, but the day she came back, she not only confronted them, but she even offered herself as a substitute even though she was not good with what she'd need to handle accounting. And she even had friends willing to go to the ends of the earth to help her; Mamoru got us all a place to live, Karen helped my sister through the issue with Koizumi Designs; and I don't know where to begin explaining with the others, they've just been so kind and gentle to me and Tsubasa; it's as if we're actually family to them. Keiko in particular spends a lot of time with us when she's not busy with that tournament MMO with Katsuo and Hikaru or school work.
Anyway, the fight has been proceeding with neither side giving an inch as Asuna is extraordinarily fast with her rapier though it doesn't appear to be enough as Miharu is carrying an indomitable defense with her sword and shield, which gets this remark from Asuna, which I can hear even though she's pretty far in the air.
"You remind me of my old commander Miharu. He was a sword and shield user like you are and many of the movements you're using are similar to both his and Katsuo's." Asuna remarks with a smirk on her face seeing how strong Miharu is.
"I've been playing VRMMOs for quite some time you know. I practiced my skill extensively to cope with Ayano being trapped in SAO, well at first. But after a while I began to enjoy sword fighting and I sought to be one of the best as a goal. General Yamakage and Eugene have been some of the best trainers I had in the subject."
"I see now. Although I feel sympathy for why you were driven toward this, I respect your resolve. However, it's time I end this match!"
As soon as she said this, Asuna overtook her by using what Sylvia called an Original Sword Skill, which I think she named Starry Tear. The attack sent Miharu back a good deal and the match was officially finished with Asuna as the winner and afterwards, the pair touched down on the ground.
"Ugh, you're a monster Asuna. No wonder you were able to stand among the Black Swordsman and other Aincrad legends."
"Don't shoot yourself down Miharu, you were tough to beat. You've been trained by one of the strongest people I know. Take heart in that at least."
"Thanks for that Asuna. But I know the score; I just don't have the experience you all have when it comes to VR battling. You're on a whole other league."
"Hehe, you're just flattering her now Miharu. We're hardly anything special, but the fact is that we've been through the experience of having our lives on the line. But come on, I want to show you all something. I just pray it's where I remember it to be."
"Liz, is it that spot?"
"Exactly. It's my third favorite spot in all of Aincrad. If I ever needed to cool my head, I'd try to schedule things about so I can go see it or atleast bring the image into my thoughts. Follow me."
Real Life Standard Time: [14:30] June 12th 2026
Location: [New Aincrad - Emerald Plateau]
While we were following Rika to where she wanted to lead us, we got to see many sights this world had to offer and if it weren't for the monsters, this place might have been a form of paradise and I feel like a part of me understands why they all spoke highly of Aincrad sometimes. Getting to see sights like these on a regular basis must have been exhilarating and perhaps sights like these helped everyone get through their day to day lives. When I see Rika touch down, we follow suite and our flight has been rewarded as we have reached a plateau that lets us see for what feels like miles of distance.
"Wow." That one word was all I could say when I join the others in staring at the surroundings.
"No kidding. I had no idea you could see sights like this here in Aincrad. If it weren't for the fact people died here, I'd proudly proclaim I'm jealous." Sachiko weakly mutters as she stares out into the surroundings. While I myself am still rather engrossed in this sight, I see Sachiko and Miharu are the same way though both Asuna and Rika have this strange indifference which differs a great deal from our feelings of awe.
"I guess I'm lucky; or perhaps-" Miharu mumbles as she slowly draws her sword and simply stares at it while keeping it in front of her and she speaks without facing any of us "There is something I must confess. I didn't wish to say at the time until I had a chance to confirm my feelings, but I feel like I indirectly caused my little sister's death years ago. Asuna, Lizbeth; I was actually one of SAO's beta testers since I work as a MMO reviewer. I wasn't the only one according to what I heard: Argus actually contracted twenty five to fifty MMO reviewers to spread popular feedback about SAO to potentially millions, and I was one of those people. When the game was released, my mother got me a pre-order copy of the game in part of the work I did even though I was rather rushed since the beta only lasted one month, but my sister pleaded me into letting her play SAO for a day since I had lived in the beta, and I obliged. It was only going to be a day and yet…"
"Akihiko Kayaba had trapped everyone inside the game. Miharu, I'm so sorry." Sachiko joylessly says as she pats the girl's shoulder.
"I have wondered what would happen if I were the one trapped and not her. I knew that world; I knew how to fight with VR controls; I was experienced since I had been playing MMOs since I became a reviewer five years ago and made a living off it from my subscribers though I recently joined a reviewer coalition called MMO Stream since they have been offering perks of not having to personally pay for any MMO on the market and receiving income for what you do, though the fact that you couldn't exactly do what you wished since they were in charge turned quite a few away. Despite that mindset, they've been surprisingly relaxed about what topics the reviewer does."
"Or you could have died and made your sister and parents dreadfully upset; just like what happened when you lost your sister. It'd be like a swap, but more painful. It'd be cruel to your little sister if you died." Asuna says with a rather stern voice since she apparently didn't want her thinking like this.
"Perhaps."
"Miharu, I can sympathize with you a little." I say as I feel like I can relate since my big sister was trapped in SAO like her little sister "My big sister was trapped in SAO for three years; she was the closest thing I had to a mother during my life and it was a nightmare dealing with those three years. I was always so worried that the game would've claimed her life like everyone else; before it, I depended on her for everything when she was having trouble getting by as it was. I was always beyond worried that I'd lose her forever. I tended to spend my time either working or watching over my sister to the late hours of the day, simply staring at her comatose body. I imagine a fair number of families had complications like this."
"Huh. Now that I've been shown new perspectives, it sounds like I'm whining like a child about my problems when others have suffered like me in the same situation. My parents atleast were still alive and I had an informal job playing games."
"Huh? How exactly were you able to work when you were so young?" Sachiko inquires and the situation was not one of my best moments when it came to the future since I put my future at risk when I lied about my age to get employment. But I was in a really bad situation at the time and even with my uncle's stipends, that only really covered rent alone at best.
"That's uh...a bit of a private matter. It's not something we like talking about." Asuna gently says as she helps cover the situation since it's rather uncomfortable talking about.
"Alright, enough chit-chat. Let's go get Winter some EXP so she'll stand a better chance here in New Aincrad. Horunka Forest is nearby and if it's like how it was in SAO, it should be a good training ground. But if it isn't, we still shouldn't have any problems since the four of us are strong enough for this place. We do have to remember that Fimbulvet players have incredibly long casting times and very subpar weapon capabilities, but their magic is stronger than any other race. If we can keep monsters off her, she'll be fine." It's clear by what Rika said, that she wants us to get back into the habit of calling each other by our avatar names and also desires to get us moving so we don't have to think about our rather horrid pasts right now.
Real Life Standard Time: [15:30] June 12th 2026
Location: [New Aincrad - Horunka Forest]
After we departed the Emerald Plateau, we proceeded to the nearby forest to officially begin our training though all of these dense trees are making it difficult to see as all of these tall trees are blotting out the sky with only tiny rays of light breaking through the thick canopies of the forest above us, and that's not counting all of the fog seeping all around us.
"This is going to be problematic. Horunka was never this dark in the old Aincrad. Stay close everyone, we can't afford to get separated. Take up a triangle formation; Elwing in front, Liz to the left, and I'll be to the right. Winter and Liatris will be in the center. Liatris, could you use night vision on us all? We need to see better than we can now."
"Sure thing Asuna." Sachiko says with a calm tone as she closes her eyes and raises her staff and the spell's sphere surrounds her "Give us eyes that illuminate the night." After she finished this incantation, a wave of gray colored light bursts from her staff and I see everyone's eyes turn a very bright green.
After the gray light passed me, I see much of the darkness in this area fade though it's still rather hard to see what's around us aside from these oversized trees. When we make it a short distance into the forest, I see a group of eight really unusual spider monsters that seem to have what appears to be cannons on their arms and legs.
"What in the world are those things?" I mutter rather fearfully since I've never liked bugs and insects like these things.
"Those are Tarantulas Winter. They're some of XANA's more powerful monsters. Thankfully, after we were freed from Alfheim months ago, XANA agreed to play more fairly, but they're by no means weak. Winter, you have any spells you want to test here?"
"I er...I only have one because of how new this character is and I haven't been in many battles yet so I don't have any other magic. But I'll test it." I respond to Asuna's explanation and request to test my combat parameters. I strongly grasp my staff and begin casting the incantation of the only spell I have: Frozen Blizzard. According to the update reports, many of the ice spells that the Undine race had access to were given to the Fimbulvet with specialized bonuses and the Undines were given all new spells to remedy their combat spells being robbed by the update. However, the spells that were given to the Fimbulvet were utterly redesigned even though they keep the same name "Servants of the demons who reside in the frozen underworld, I call for your service and demand that you surrender yourselves to my will. By the terms of this contract, I solemnly request that you use your ethereal powers to disable my foes with your frozen spears and annihilate any who would cross my path. Come forth and fulfill your summoner's orders!"*
After I finished the incantation, a large storm appears above the enemies and large frozen spears and impales all of the enemies in front of us, though my spell isn't strong enough to kill any of them yet because of my low level, but I can see it has dealt a significant blow despite my low level, however these monsters have now turned their focus on me since I attacked first.
"Okay, move out!" Asuna proclaims as she dashes forward with Miharu and Rika following suite.
The Tarantulas meanwhile repeatedly fired their arm cannons toward me but Miharu firmly planted her shield to the ground to deflect all of the rounds fired toward me though I see her flinch and cringe with every hit she takes.
"You two had better be speedy! I can only take so much of this you know!" Miharu states rather solemnly as she does her utmost to remain stationary.
Immediately after this, I saw Asuna smirk as if she felt insulted by Miharu's statement to take care of the monsters quickly as she and Rika gracefully sidestep attacks directed toward them; Asuna jumping to stab the monsters with her rapier while Rika is rather blunt with her hammer and slams it into the eye marks of the monsters to destroy them. When all of the Tarantulas are destroyed, Asuna, Rika, and Miharu group up to walk back to us when some new type of monster that resembles an eyeless rock with a large 'Eye of XANA', as they call it, on what I can only presume to be the monster's head burst out of the ground to our right.
"It looks like XANA has been making new monsters. Liz, you're up."
"Yep. Leave this to me." Rika grins rather proudly as she dashes toward the new monster to attack it and is able to get one hit in which doesn't seem to do anything as her hammer bounced off the armor, but it swiftly spins a full 360 which forces her back toward us.
Immediately afterward, the monster begins rolling around us all at a very fast speed when Rika attempted to attack it.
"Be careful everyone. We have no idea what this thing is capable of and its weakness since the Eye doesn't seem to kill it." Asuna urges rather solemnly as we gather together, backs to each other since we don't know anything about this thing.
After hearing this from Asuna, I see Miharu simply following the monster as it spins around us, incinerating the field with the lava all around it, with her eyes as if she's trying to uncover something she may have developed a suspicion of before letting out a simple 'hmm' sound.
"I can see a vulnerable underbelly underneath that rock armor since this thing is spinning on its side. It must be what helps vent all of the lava it generates. Problem is: It's going so fast we can't hit it. Perhaps the only way to truly defeat it is using magic when it's passive. Regardless, this one needs to be either patched or we spread the word that melee screws you over."
After Miharu revealed this to us, all of the lava that had been surrounding us quickly envelops us and I look around to see the others vanish and I find myself being the last to vanish, immediately being knocked out.
When I came to, I find myself inside what appears to be a small forest hut with the only other person here being a familiar Sylph player with long blonde hair tied up with a flower headband, wearing her signature green and white attire, which I hear she has kept the same since August of last year at the very least.
"Hey Madoka-chan. I'm guessing you fell for the same trap too?" Suguha asks me with a small guilty smile. I actually met her a few months ago when she stopped by the apartment to visit Kazuto, my sister, and her friends from Aincrad.
"Suguha-san? What happened?" I ask as I glance at the surroundings around me. Considering the situation here, I can only presume that this is a safe zone.
"I can only assume you got ambushed by that new monster in the forest considering I found you unconscious out there. It ambushed my group and it separated us all. I told them all to rendezvous with me here but they're wandering aimlessly trying to find this safe zone. Were you in a group as well?"
"Yeah. I was with Asuna, Rika, Elwing, and Liatris before we got attacked by some new rock monster of XANA's making; they were helping me gain levels."
"Yep. That new monster devastated us pretty bad with its- huh? I thought your sister and her friends from Aincrad were helping you?"
"They all had business to take care of in real life so they had to go." I would continue, but I immediately stopped as I hear Asuna through the game's audio chat system.
"Are you okay Madoka? I'm trying to find you and the others."
"I'm fine Asuna. I'm with Suguha-san in what I presume is a safe zone here in the forest."
"That's a relief. Stay with her until Liz or I find you. We'll stay online a little longer before going to meet with Kana since Sinon said she wanted to say something to us before we log out."
"Got it Asuna."
After I say this to Suguha, she sincerely smiled for a moment and stretched her arms, with a noticeable jiggle with her chest, making me blush nervously and look away.
"Okay then, let's just stay put until Asuna or Liz gets here. Er, are you okay Madoka-chan?"
"I'm uh...a little uncomfortable with the er...bust thing. The others dress rather conservatively." I stutter rather awkwardly since I'm not used seeing such things since I have spent a lot of time in professional situations.
"Oh yeah; you're a rather innocent sort of girl; just like Hikaru, hahaha. Anyway, truth be told, I just got a new set of armor from Lady Sakuya, same with Hikaru. She said it was a gift because of our positions as the leaders of her royal guard. She's actually been bugging me to start wearing it more regularly." While Suguha was rather casual during most of this statement, she made a rather mean joke about Hikaru at the start and it was apparent that she was trying to keep a calm face but utterly fell apart when her voice began cracking out of laughter "Oh god, he would so kill me if he heard me say that." Despite the choice of words, she was outright laughing as she was hiding her grin with her hands.
After saying this and taking a few minutes to stop her laughing fit, Leafa opens her inventory and changes out of her usual green and white clothes to full plate armor colored hunter green and white with gold colored spikes on the pauldrons and a dark forest green colored cape trimmed half-way down her back. The size of her armor covers her figure entirely while still retaining a feminine form.
"Does this help any? If anything, I have been told that I need to start wearing this from now on."
"It'll work. Sorry for imposing such things."
"Don't worry about it. It was going to happen sooner or later."
After we passed time with mildly one-sided conversation leaning toward Suguha, I see Asuna and Rika enter the hut rather calmly. However, considering that Miharu and Sachiko aren't with them, I assume that they must still be lost in the forest.
"Suguha, it's good to see you again."
"Likewise Asuna. It's rare that I see you using your Sylph account; I usually see you using your Undine character."
"Sometimes I prefer using a character purely built for combat. I originally assumed I'd be able to count on Haruka handling healing in the party so I came with my combat account. Anyway, I need to thank you for watching Madoka."
"Don't worry about that. I got separated from my own group by some lava rock monster and I told them to meet me here. I just happened to find Madoka-chan passed out outside this hut so I brought her inside until she woke up again. Anyway, I ought to get going, I need to go find my team. See ya." Leafa says rather casually before heading out of the building.
"Anyway, we need to go meet with Sinonon."
"Eh? Sinonon? Who's Sinonon?" I inquire, wondering who she's talking about here.
"It's a nickname I came up with on the fly for Sinon. Anyway, since Elwing and Liatris had to leave because of stuff in real life coming up; we'll go ahead and meet with Kana and Sinon. Kana told me that they're waiting in the new shop she bought in the City of Beginnings. It'll be our base here in New Aincrad."
Real Life Standard Time: [16:30] June 12th 2026
Location: [New Aincrad - City of Beginnings]
After we left Horunka Forest, we flew back to the City of Beginnings and walked through the apparently enlarged city toward Kana's new shop to talk with Sinon. When we enter the large shop, I can feel a strong 'homely' environment making me think of the dorm we live in.
"Hey guys. Welcome to the new Mystic Emporium." Kana calls out with a rather upbeat tone befitting the experience she has lived with as a shopkeeper/blacksmith.
"The 'new' Mystic Emporium? What happened to the old one you owned in Arun?" Asuna inquires as she walks toward the front counter of the shop.
"I sold it. To be dead honest, I didn't exactly like the place much. I bought it since I needed a place to act as headquarters while we were trapped here; I bought the cheapest place I happened across. While this place was more expensive, it was worth it in the end. This place is perfect as a store and base. Anyway, Sinon is upstairs waiting for us, let's go see her. Kiyoko, can you handle the shop for me?" Kana explains as she lifts a section of the counter leading to what I presume are the other rooms in this building; beckoning us to follow her. She then asked the question to the navigation pixie she has had ever since she joined Alfheim when she was trapped in the game like the others. However, because of a recent update, all Navigation pixies were given the ability to transition between their natural pixie forms to full-sized human forms and to better work as a shop clerk, Kiyoko is in human form, wearing an outfit Kana made for her sole use.
Kana tried to design the clothes to match the Norse mythology the game was based off of and went with a gentle blue wrap dress modeled after several of their fictional goddesses with short gathered sleeves, cerulean lace shoes and a circlet with a bright scarlet gemstone embedded within it.
"As you wish master."
We follow her through the building, finding Sinon in a makeshift dining room sitting in a lotus stance around a small kotatsu table drinking a small cup of tea as she looks up toward us
"Sorry about earlier. I never anticipated I'd find myself forced into a battle when I got teleported back to Earth."
"Yeah, about that; are you serious about all this? No matter how hard I think, I can not bring myself to believe it." Asuna admits rather frankly, walking over and calmly sits across from Sinon.
"Yeah…even I know that is a lot to take on faith. But I am telling the truth. But that's not why I asked you to come here. I'd like to ask one of you to keep an eye on my body until this XANA can restore the link to my AmuSphere."
"I presume you mean you want us making sure you stay healthy and all that?" Kana inquires, sitting down at the table with Rika and I following suite.
"In part. But Senryaku mentioned that they were hunting an individual plaguing Gun Gale Online called Death Gun that's supposedly killing people in a manner similar to what happened in the MMO Sword Art Online. They said that me associating with them might have made me a target. So until this guy is taken down, I'd appreciate someone making sure that no one harms my body. Just in case you know. That and getting my school work." Shino remarks as she talks about information she got from when she was in Gamindustri, back when Karen was comatose after her first battle in that world. The information being intimate knowledge of why Karen, Katsuo, Kazuto, Mamoru, Ophelia, and Yuuki was in Gun Gale Online in the first place. She getting involved in all of it was a very unfortunate case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time since she was caught up in Histoire's unspoken trap when she sent a special type of computer virus to direct Cardinal to bring the group to Gamindustri to help defeat ASIC.
"Hrm...that brings up the question of who to ask. Kazuto, Katsuo, Hikaru, Sylvia and Mamoru are the best when it comes to self-defense but the problem is that Kazuto, Katsuo, and Mamoru are gone; Hikaru is busy with his school work and his tournament MMO contests and Sylvia...when isn't that girl busy? She has her own school work, helping you and Tsubasa with yours, and she works in Koizumi Design's VR server during the school day. That girl works harder than any of us and she was considered the most sickly of us all and normally shouldn't exert herself like this." Asuna mutters as she tries to ponder who would be ideal in this situation since the best candidates are gone.
"I'll go. Sure, I know I'm not that good compared to the others, but I do carry a small baton with me for self-defense. And I know how to use it."
"You sure Kana?"
"Yeah. You guys are busy enough as it is and I have time to spare. Sinon, can you send me everything I'd need for this?"
"Sure. Give me a minute to make a document and send a PM. You can record in your AmuSphere afterward. I'll also include a story and details you'll need to tell my landlord. It's a sort of code I made when I began renting the place. Thank you Krisaga."
"Don't mention it." Kana simply smiled as she said this to Sinon and looks toward us afterward "So that's the plan guys. Until the situation is resolved and Sinon is able to get back to reality, I'll be keeping an eye on her. I'll still go to school but I won't be going to the apartment for the time being."
"Very well. Just be careful. Remember that I'm not exactly fond of losing friends."
"I know Asuna. I'll exercise full caution. Hell, I may even try asking Nichiren for help. He did save our lives last month and we've kept in touch since then. I could ask a certain someone for help if needed, but something about him rubs me the wrong way and I don't want to risk getting wrapped up in all the politics."
"Right. Chrysheight. The one who put them up to this in the first place. I feel like there's more to him than we can imagine. He may be helpful, but I feel like he has a hidden agenda. Let's try to keep this discreet and do this on our own." Like usual, Liz did have a bit of a talent when it comes to finding out if people are hiding things or not though she loved downplaying it as coincidence.
"Agreed. Well, it's time I get outta here. I want to take a break with a game of billiards. Sinon, feel free to stay here while you're stuck here in Alfheim. Here. If you need anything, use this to get it." Kana was rather relaxed but took a pouch out of her inventory and gives it to Sinon via a trade "Twenty thousand Yuld."
"Thank you for the generosity Krisaga."
"Don't even mention it. Generosity is my middle name, hahaha. Later."
Real Life Standard Time: [17:00] June 12th 2026
Location: [Dorm - Common Room]
After we learned of what is going on in this new Gun Gale Online, and the fact that onee-chan is involving herself in a situation that would put her in danger's way yet again terrifies me after everything she's already been through it seems to fit her new character but I truly hope she'll be careful. Tsubasa and I were always so worried about her during those two years in Aincrad; worried that she would die. She may be far stronger than she was in the past, but I still worry for her safety since we're still family. When we logged out of Alfheim, Asuna told me to leave the situation to her as the eldest of this makeshift family, aside from Mamoru who's not here and Rika, who tends to leave such matters to Asuna, and the thought of this made me happier than I have been for quite a while now. While I was able to maintain a confident and composed attitude before, that was as my alias of Tamika Mitsuya, not who I really am.
Tamika was a calm, composed individual who was accustomed to the world of business and its inhabitants, but the real me is still remarkably spineless and timid around next to anyone. Living this kind of double life seemed really simple at the time because of my skill at acting, but now it's a lot more uncomfortable when my sister got involved in my mess. Making friends as Madoka Miyagawa was always something of a challenge but I've never felt as comfortable with other people like I am now.
What did catch me a little off-guard was that Asuna asked me to stay here in the common room until onee-chan returns from wherever she had gone to when she unexpectedly logged out of Alfheim earlier so I'm passing the time with my school work, which is tougher than I'd like to admit since I haven't been in a school for a few years now and I'm working with high school level material when I'd technically be in middle school right now. It also doesn't help that I sacrificed a couple of years of school to focus on the two jobs I had at the time. Thankfully, Keiko had finished the tournament she, Hikaru, and Katsuo participate in so she's been helping me with my school work while doing her own in addition to passing time with a degree of stimulation from the TV we have on to provide background noise which helps us out since we have a music channel on right now, though to be polite, we're both wearing headsets so no one else in the room can hear since we have the volume relatively high.
"Madoka-chan, you have the date here wrong. The Biwa Canal's construction began in 1885, not 1883." Keiko said to me as she was looking over my history assignment and rectified the error I had made.
"Eh?" I mutter as I quickly look to the question I was working on and noticed she was right and I groan in irritation at the mistake I made.
"Don't worry about it so much Madoka-chan. It's a simple mistake and don't forget that this is high school level material we're working with, when ordinarily, we would be in middle school right now. Even I have trouble with this stuff. Rika and Asuna have to help me out a lot. I was tempted to ask Hikaru once but he's hopeless in all subjects aside from physical education." Keiko truly did sound like an older sister when she was helping me, but she laughed when she made that jab at Hikaru which truly makes me wonder if people seem to hate him or something. First Suguha made her jab of Hikaru practically being innocent like a girl and now Keiko is taking one at his grades. While I can't deny the grades issue, I can't help but question the friendship everyone has with him.
"I want to ask you something. Why do people seem to dislike Hikaru-san so much? Everyone's making fun of him."
"That's not really the case Madoka-chan. Hikaru really isn't the kind of person to let such minor trifles bother him. He usually always carries a composed aura and is perfectly fine with his friends making jokes about him. He has no problem being the subject of teasing as long as it doesn't go too far and it helps vent the day's stress. If anything, Rika is the one who tests Hikaru's patience the most and seems to like it to strengthen his resolve."
"I...see. I don't get it though."
"Putting it a little simply, Hikaru tends to let himself be a bit of a verbal punching bag and help his friends vent some stress when needed. He's perfect for when you need to vent anger over a stressful day since he calmly listens to it all without letting his emotions overshadowing it all."
"Oh." My response was really short since I got my answer of what Keiko was trying to say to me regarding the subject.
"Madoka-chan, you have experience with math because of your old job right? Could you help me with my own math homework? It's my worst subject."
"I can try. Acclimating to school has been a challenge for me after everything I've been through."
"I can only imagine. But it's the same for us all Madoka-chan. We've missed three years of our lives because of SAO and ALO." Keiko said this while I was looking at what Keiko herself was having trouble with and happened to see that it's primarily quadratic equations. While I never directly used these in my work, some of my old co-workers would often quiz each other with various math trivia questions and we'd have to try solving them. And back when I was the 'new guy', I'd often be subjected to these trivia questions rather frequently, though it paid off since I know a lot about this subject now.
"Okay, I think I have it: Try using this formula to answer those questions." I say as I write down a formula for her on a spare piece of paper from my notebook which I tore out for her.
Keiko quickly looks at the notes I wrote for her and tests it with the problems she has do and proudly grins within a minute "Yatta! Thank you Madoka-chan!"
"Ehehe...you don't need to thank me. You helped me with my history so I consider this as repayment." I nervously chuckled when Keiko became far more giddy simply for me helping her with her school work. Keiko is one of the first people who I've gotten comfortable talking with as my own person aside from my sister and little brother and it only took me fifteen years "It's funny that I can talk so casually with you Keiko-san. I'm usually so timid that talking is near impossible. While I was rather composed as Tamika Mitsuya, the real me is well, timid."
"Trust me, you'll get better the more you do it. But c'mon, we have more work to finish."
"Mhm." I nod with a small impish grin as I quickly get back to my homework.
Almost immediately after I got back to my work, I saw onee-chan enter the building carrying two bags of groceries and walks past Asuna as she puts them down on the kitchen counter. I then see the pair having what I presume is a mild argument regarding the Gun Gale Online incident Sinon was talking about. Despite that, I see that Asuna caved in really quickly when onee-chan began exhibiting a stern expression which I had only seen when she returned to reality after those long three years. And if I were in Asuna's shoes, I would've done the exact same thing since she is certainly very scary when she's mad despite her usually kind disposition. I then see her calmly walk in the direction of our rooms, presumably to begin her journey within GGO.
After she walked off toward her room, Asuna rejoins Rika in the kitchen to cook dinner, and I see Hikaru sitting in a chair reading a book of what I presume is about martial arts since he's usually always trying to improve himself in some way. He tends to study new styles before he goes off to the fenced backyard to practice the style by himself to start and with Kazuto, Katsuo, or sometimes onee-chan when he has a good grasp of it to see 'how to properly incorporate it in combat situations' as he calls it. Of course, the two people I can't see among us all are Kana and Tsubasa, since Kana said she wanted to play pool to pass a little time and Tsubasa is in his room working on homework like I am. I'm actually ashamed to admit this, but my little otouto is a lot smarter than I am and it scares me that he can actually handle senior high school work when I'm struggling so much even though he's still two years younger than I am. Ordinarily a fourteen year old like me and a twelve year old like he is should be in junior high school, not senior high like we are now. It even makes me question what the plan will be when we complete our four years here. We'd still technically be too young to officially graduate from senior high school. Will the school overlook this fact and officially deem us as graduates after four years when I'll eighteen and he'll be sixteen or will we be sent to a different school to complete our final years? What worries me the most of this concern is that the school doesn't truly know how to deal with that issue at the current moment. I hope that changes by the time we finish our first year next March. I don't like our future being so at risk like this, as much as I put my own in such straits when onee-chan was trapped in SAO.
I was quickly forced out of this line of thinking when Keiko flicked my forehead with a frown on her face with her obviously wanting me to focus on my schoolwork, though thankfully, I was able to complete my work rather quickly in time for me to start eating the dinner made by Rika and Asuna and because of how Tsubasa and Kana aren't in the room, Keiko and Hikaru were asked to go get them. When I walked over toward the dinner table, I can see both Asuna and Rika making multiple trips from the kitchen since they just tend to make rather huge shmorgishborg meals when they work together; and it seems rather excessive since Keiko, Mamoru, Kana, and even Katsuo tend to make more standard meal sizes considering that thirteen people live in this apartment complex while Asuna and Rika purposely go out of their way to practically supersize our meals when they work together. The only one not allowed to cook, aside from myself and Tsubasa, is Hikaru and while I've never seen it firsthand, they have mentioned that Hikaru somehow managed to make explosions happen whenever he cooked in Aincrad, which was supposed to be an extreme impossibility within the game's system, but he apparently made it possible somehow if what they say is true. They say that they just don't trust him until our best chef: Asuna herself confirms it.
I look over the food currently here and see several large plates and bowls already on the table and see servings of rice, wakame salad, soba noodles, karaage, a few taiyakis, which I presume have filling from the blackberries Kana bought the other day, goma-ae, katsudon, and tebasaki. I can only wonder what else these two have made and I always dread the days when they work together, especially now since our full group isn't here and that'll mean we'll have even more leftovers to deal with in the coming days. Thankfully, my worst fears were allayed since they just went to get the silverware after bringing in the food and Tsubasa, Kana, Keiko, and Hikaru walk into the room, sitting down and eating after giving simple 'itadakimasu', but when they see that I'm the only one who not immediately eating when the food was served to us all, they stop and simply glance in my direction.
"Is something wrong Madoka-chan? Are you not hungry?" Asuna worriedly asked me since I usually tended to be one of the first to dive in and eat though I'm the last one to do so today.
"It's not that. I just think that considering what onee-chan is doing and how long it may take her; I feel too guilty eating all this when she's throwing herself into danger."
"Hm, she does have a point there. She's basically reliving the constant life of death environment of Sword Art Online in this new GGO. She deserves something akin to a perk for her doing this. But what exactly can we do in this situation?" Hikaru mumbles as he agrees with my line of thinking about what we can for onee-chan right now.
"This might be a bit generic, but how about we just split parts of our own meal and combine it for her for when she gets out of the game? I don't know why she likes it that way, but she insisted on having the heat in her room practically cranked up to max at all times, so we don't exactly need to worry about it getting cold while she's out shooting a bunch of guys. Probably in the face." Rika muses rather amusedly though she outright chuckled at the end when she apparently made a joke regarding what onee-chan was probably doing, though Tsubasa, Keiko, and I cringe with unease, and Hikaru and Asuna practically shot her death glares and she nervously scratches the back of her head "Sorry. Even I know that was a bit out of line. I really need to start saying this stuff in my head first so I can realize how bad it is before I open my big mouth."
"Anyway; yeah, I don't get why she likes her room so hot. But let's start figuring out what to divide into Sylvia's meal since she'll likely need that food later." Kana chirps in as she clapped her hands and kept it close to the right side of her face with a rather big grin on her face as she said it.
"She can have my goma-ae. While I'll eat just about anything since XANA didn't exactly know much about taste buds when he made me this body so it likes everything, this isn't one of my absolute favorites here. Besides, I prefer meat over vegetables."
"Hikaru...I hope you know that ordinarily, that would be rather rude to the chef who went out of their way to make this."
"Well that's your fault Asuna! You and Rika always make these massive shmorgishborgs when you two work together in the kitchen! Why don't you learn a lesson from the others?! Their portion sizes are less outrageous!"
"Now now Hikaru-san, Asuna-chan; don't start fighting when our meal is right in front of us. Don't forget we need settle on a meal for Sylvia-chan." Keiko speaks up to break up the conflict before it escalates when it felt like sparks were beginning to break out between Asuna and Hikaru.
After hearing Keiko speak up, Hikaru and Asuna took a moment to cool their heads and deeply breathed in and out "She's right. Let's keep this civil since we need to get a meal set up for her." Asuna quietly responds as she takes a spare taiyaki and puts it on the plate we're putting together for onee-chan.
After we finished putting her meal together, I was the one to volunteer to bring the food to onee-chan's room with a note I quickly wrote and brought it to her room, where I see her lying down on her bed and that Gun Gale Online game is visible on the screen and I see her character with two guys based on the general appearance of their characters in the game riding a buggy. One of them is wearing full silver and blue tinted armor hiding any hint of their appearance and the other guy has short silver hair wearing a rather fancy military uniform. While I do feel awkward watching her when she's not aware of it, I can see that she appears convulsed about something since she's frowning rather grimly but I quickly shake my head to get this out of my mind as I put her dinner on the center table and dashed out of the room since I couldn't help but have the feeling onee-chan would suddenly awaken from using that AmuSphere. After that, I return to the others in the dining room to eat and with that out of the way and our homework finished, Hikaru, Keiko, and Tsubasa chose to stay in the living room while Asuna, Rika, Kana, and I went to the rec room to play a few games of billiards but we quickly learned that Kana appeared to be an absolute master at this since she was always managed to hit the ball no matter how far or obscene the challenge was to hit it, giving Asuna and Rika very few opportunities to actually play.
"Jeez, if I knew you were this good Kana, I wouldn't have accepted this. I'm not too fond of getting defeated this soundly. I can barely get one in." Rika groans as she's practically being forced into a spectator position like I am, since I just wanted to watch them play since I've never played billiards before, because of how good Kana seems to be at this.
"Well that's your fault, I told you I'm good at stuff like this. Games was my life growing up. That and physical activities since I would often go swimming; had to drag Katsuo along a lot when we were little since he was always a bit of a recluse back then. You wouldn't know it by how he acts now, but he used to be very timid. His mother, poor woman, always asked me to do stuff like this back then." Kana laughs as she puts her cue stick away and puts her hands behind her head.
"That last part is actually kind of sweet in a way. While I do have an older brother, I'm the youngest sibling in my family. To be honest, since you've kept it a bit secretive, I need to know. Are you younger or older than Katsuo?" Asuna gently smiled at what Kana had said though she was curious about the subject she brought up.
"Mm, I'm only a few days older than Katsuo; we've never truly thought it important so we never brought it up. Besides, we don't like talking of our past a whole lot. I hope you understand that?"
"I do. Come on Rika, let's just play a few more games, but Kana, please try to hold back atleast a little."
"Sure. Sure. It's not exactly much fun beating you guys so easily. I'm going to go get some green tea out of the fridge in the kitchen, so go ahead and play without me."
After this, we continued playing several games in the rec room before we eventually grew tired and turned in for the night since we had school tomorrow morning, so shortly after onee-chan got out of Gun Gale Online and told us about the plan she and Hikaru formulated about telling anyone who asks about the disappearance of Karen, Katsuo, Mamoru, Kazuto, Ophelia, and now Haruka that they had to abruptly go with Mamoru to Croatia on business for the Uchimaya family. According to what Mamoru had said before, the Uchimaya family keeps all of their business classified and could only be disclosed by either any Uchimaya, with Haruka being the last one alive since her foster parents died in SAO, or the executor from the Nakasone family whom are their closest affiliates, with it currently being Mamoru, and if he's right, the Nakasones are used to internal . Hopefully, this'll allow us to work with a degree of secrecy since this cover allows us to claim confidentiality will prevent us to know what they are doing. The problem in front of us however, is how long we can keep this charade going since it'll eventually begin to fracture if this goes on too long. Doing this may ensure we have a few days atleast, but sooner or later, our story will crumble.
A/N: Okay, while it may seem odd that Asuna left out Madoka in the argument involving Sylvia's decision to take on Death Gun in Gun Gale Online, but Asuna, after spending time with everyone, has not exactly become the kind of person to guilt trip her friends; and besides, Asuna knows that one way or another, Death Gun needs to be stopped and Sylvia is the one stepping forward to stop him.
Also, to be specific regarding Shino's situation, her body has returned to her room but her mind is stuck in Alfheim; it's similar to what happened to victims of the SAO crisis and the NerveGear.
Lastly, I am switching the spell incantations to English for the simple sake of sanity. According to the official wikia, the spell incantations are in a language similar to Old Norse, and realize that I am far from fluent in the language, (the previous spells I used in this format were either pre-existing or me simply taking parts of two or more spells into a custom spell.) so I am switching to a language I am fluent with and attempt to make it sound magical in nature.