Level Twenty Three: Self Assurance
Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture – May 20th, 2025
Three days after her encounter with Majin, Akemi was still trying to figure out who he was. Despite having tried to make as many connections as she could, an even asking for assistance from some people in her gaming circle, the girl was unable to determine where she'd seen this player before. But even though she was bothered by not knowing, she didn't want to cause her brother or Kazuto any concern. Kazuto had mentioned entering the Ballad of Bullets the day before, so today's venture was registering and getting through the preliminary elimination rounds. She walked into the hospital room, barely saying hello to her boyfriend or to Aki, sitting down on her side of the room and immediately preparing for diving into the game once more.
AGSO – Startup City Competition Hall
Upon entering the hall, Kirito and Black Fox registered themselves for competition and were currently preparing for the preliminaries in a waiting room. Kirito went to wait outside, wanting to check some things. Black Fox had just finished fitting her holster and weapon when someone entered the waiting room with her. "You took your time getting here, Kage."
"Yeah well, it wasn't easy finding you." The girl had shoulder length black hair and hazel eyes, her skin slightly tanned and her cat ears and tail twitching a little. "You're always hiding in the background, Ake."
"Don't call me that here." She sighed, turning to the girl and looking a little bothered.
"Sorry sorry, Black Fox, then." Kage said. "But really, you weren't easy to find."
"… did you find out anything?"
"Nope." She shook her head. "No one I talked to knew anything about this Majin guy. He just showed up halfway to last year's Ballad of Bullets and swept the competition like a pro… even took out the pro he ran into in the prelims within 3 minutes."
"3 minutes?" she asked. "How the hell did he do that?"
"I dunno." Kage shrugged. "I'm gonna go now… see you in there." She waved before she left the room, leaving Black Fox confused and with more questions than she'd had before. She made it out of the room and saw Kirito waiting, walking over and leaning on the railing next to where he stood, tapping his shoulder to let him know she was done. He turned to her and smiled a little.
"What's wrong?" he asked, seeing that she was thinking about something and that it was bothering her greatly.
"… nothing." She mumbled, looking at the screens, then at Kirito. "Are you busy tonight?"
"No, why?" he asked.
"… I need to stop thinking about this Majin thing… it's screwing with my head, trying to figure out who he is…" she leaned against Kirito's arm, her ear twitching a little. The boy smiled and reached over to pet her ear, earning a throaty purr-like growl from Black Fox.
"Mmmm, maybe." He chuckled. "Will you ask nicely?"
"Don't be coy." She pouted at him. "Or I'll bite you." She snapped at his hand playfully, making him smiled at her more. "I mean it, Kirito."
"I know." He said, patting her head a little. "Want to go grab something on the way, and we spend the night in your room?"
"Mmm, sure." She said as he pet her head, feeling it calming her down much quicker than she expected. "Can we go get ice cream too? I forgot to restock."
"Only if we can get all the toppings too." The younger of the pair stated. The pair stopped their conversation when the announcement was made for the rules. Kirito and Black Fox listened attentively, then turned to one another when the countdown began. "So, I'll see you later?"
"Yeah." Black Fox noticed someone eyeing up Kirito and grabbed him around the waist, pulling him into a kiss, shocking much of their surrounding competitors. "Don't get hit on, kay?" she smiled, glaring at the person who'd been staring at her boyfriend before she was whisked away to the competition field.
Upon returning from the field, Black Fox noticed Krito talking to someone. She looked confused, but as she approached, the person talking to her boyfriend looked up and waved. "Black Fox! Nice round!" he grinned, causing the girl to stare.
"… Falcon?" she stopped next to Kirito, who glanced over his shoulder at her.
"Oh so you do know him?"
"He didn't hit on you, did he?"
"No, I promise I didn't hit on your boyfriend." Falcon grinned. "Seriously, are you that worried? I can tell he's a guy." He added. "Besides, after that little show from earlier, I think everyone here gets not to mess with him." He shoved a thumb at the people behind him, Black Fox noting that everyone seemed to have backed off from her and Kirito. "Plus." Black Fox looked back at Falcon.
"Plus?"
"Your show in the Prelims just now probably scared the pants off of any weaklings." He said. Black Fox sighed, averting her eyes.
"All I did was take out a small ambush." She grumbled.
"Yeah, but 3 targets with just one bullet? That's waaaaaay intense."
"Yeah, well." She grumbled, latching onto Kirito. "Having the ricochet booster on top of an accuracy base makes it a hell of a lot easier to land those shots…"
"Whatever, kid." Falcon pat her head. "Anyway, I'm in the next block." He saluted before he was whisked away. Kirito and Black Fox took a seat to wait for Kirito's turn, the girl watching the matches going on for a while.
"So… what shall we eat tonight?" Kirito asked as Black Fox leaned back in the chair, having just watched Falcon dodge a small barrage of bullets and take out 2 competitors. "… you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." She put her hand over her face and sighed. "I guess… I'm still worrying over nothing." She muttered. "You know… it's getting to be kind of dumb for me to panic every time I see someone almost get shot… right?"
"… Well considering why we're here…" he pet her head and made sure she was calming down. "I don't blame you for being upset…"
"… But there's no way we can continue if I'm like this…"
"Well then." He leaned over, making sure no one was looking before he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I suppose I'll have to go back to being the strong knight that protects you, huh?"
"… maybe." She mumbled, tugging on his sleeve. "But… promise me you'll come back safe, ne?" she smiled. "I think Sinon's in your block."
"What?" Kirito looked up and stared at her, seeing the next set of matches up, Sinon being in his block. "Oh man, are you serious?"
"That's right." She nodded, smilng. "So come back safe…" she chuckled, leaning against his cheek. "My Black Horse."
"Oh, a new nickname?" he asked, smiling. "Well, I'll let it slide." He stood up and pet her head. "See you when I come back."
"Right." She nodded, watching him be transported to the field before slumping back into her chair. She noticed someone sit next to her and paused, seeing Kage with arms crossed. "What's up?"
"Found this on the boards." She opened a file transfer and sent it to Black Fox. "Not about Majin, though."
"Oh?" Black Fox opened the file and read it over, eyes going wide a few lines in. "This is…"
"Yeah… there's some weird stuff going on, just like you said…" she muttered. "So what do you want us to do?"
"I'm not your leader, do what you need to." She stated. "I came to you and Falcon with the favor cause you are the only two in here I know personally…"
"Aside from your boyfriend."
"Yes aside from him." She sighed. "Anyway… I've got another match soon… if you hear anything else-"
"You'll be the first to know." Kage stated, getting up and slipping away into the shadows. Black Fox looked back up at the screens and watched the matches progress. But when Kirito was finishing his match, she was transported to another battlefield.
Kirito returned to the waiting area to see that Black Fox had already been sent away to her next match. He stood to watch her battle starting, but suddenly he heard someone asking him a question. "Are you… the one?" Kirito jumped away and turned, seeing someone behind where he had been standing. "Are you… the one?" the person was masked and covered up in cloaks.
"What are you talking about? And who are you?"
When Black Fox returned, she noticed Kirito sitting and Sinon talking to him. She noticed that he seemed distressed, but Sinon soon stepped away and she went over to check on him. "Hey."
"Huh?" Kirito looked up at her, smiling weakly. "H-hey."
"… you look shaken… something bad happen when you got back…?"
"N-no nothing." He shook his head, averting his eyes. Black Fox sighed, sitting on the table and perching in front of Kirito. "B-black Fox…?"
"… don't go looking so sad…" she smiled. "… and talking to other girls." She added, leaning over and pinning him to the wall, making his eyes go wide. "Or I'll have to do something unsightly~"
"Wh-whaaa-?!" his face colored bright red and he backed as far up into the wall as he was able. "D-don't bring that kind of stuff up here." He said, face even redder. "… I was… just remembering something from Ryuuko…"
"Something…?" she asked.
"… You said… you killed Florien… right?"
"… I hit him till his meter fell to 0… so essentially yes I did." She stated.
"… I killed someone too, didn't I?" he asked.
"Huh…?" she tilted her head. "When was that?"
"… When we were on level Sixty-six… we were leveling up in the dungeons…" he mumbled, looking like he was really upset. "… there was this group that snuck up on me when you were off getting your chi-meter up in that side dungeon and I was guarding the door… they were all red players with Florien's group."
"What? You were ambushed?" she asked, getting off the table and moving to sit in the booth with Kirito. "Why didn't you say anything-?"
"Because!" he gripped the leg of his pants, looking as though he might be sick. "Because I killed them… 3 players I took the lives of…"
"… Kirito…"
"I killed them…" he mumbled as his next match got scheduled.
"Kirito, that's-" but before she could finish her sentence, he was teleported to the battle field. She turned to the screen, seeing him standing there open on the field. Watching him fight made her shiver. He looked so… angry… so hurt… "Have you been carrying this burden alone…?" she asked. "… Why didn't you tell me?"
Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture – 10:30pm
When Akemi sat up, Kazuto was already awake. She thanked Aki for watching over them before she walked her boyfriend out. They had both made it to the main tournament along with Sinon, Kage, Falcon, and everyone else who'd managed to make it into the top 2 of each block. When they got to Kazuto's bike, Akemi stopped the black haired boy and pulled him against her so they leaned against the wall. "You didn't tell me…"
"You didn't have anything to do with it."
"It's not your burden alone to carry." She whispered. "I killed someone too… remember?"
"But-!"
"Don't argue." She pulled Kazuto against her chest and made sure he was wedged into her bosom before speaking again. "… Kazuto… you're so brave… so strong… but something like this? A burden like this…?" she ran her fingers through his hair. "We both carry one… and you helped me through mine, so let me help you through yours… please…" she whispered. "Don't do this alone… I know how much it hurts, so please Kazuto…"
"… Akemi." He gripped her shirt and looked up at her, leaning up to lean his chin on her shoulder. "… Sorry…" he felt his eyes water a little. "Sorry…" he felt the tears forming, trying to keep them from falling by burying his face against her neck. She let him stay there until he was ready. "… you still hungry?" he asked, putting on his helmet and handing his girlfriend her own.
"Mmmm, a little." She smiled, getting behind him on the bike and wrapping her arms around his waist and grabbing a little at his legs to make him jump a little before he started the bike. "I could go for something… but I kind of want to eat you too~"
"O-oi oi, don't start that now." He said, revving the engine before driving off to the market. "Just for that, you need to cook dinner."
"Awww, okay~ I'll be a good little housewife for you then~" she said, watching the night streets fly by. "You're just lucky that the store on the way to my place is open 24/7." She added as they stopped at a red light. "Anything in particular you want?"
"… Teriyaki chicken sandwich…"
"Alright." She smiled as they started forward again. Once at the market, the pair headed inside to the veggie section. "How about these?" she asked, Kazuto making a face as Akemi picked out spring onions. "I promise you'll like what I make from this." She chuckled, noting his expression.
"Mnn." He took her hand and lead her to pick out the other things they needed; Lettuce, tomatoes, some chicken and sauce ingredients. Potatoes and fresh bag of buns too. Kazuto carried the basket while Akemi found the things they needed, occasionally getting a tug on a belt loop or on the hem of his shirt and a smile from his glasses-wearing woman. "Stop tempting me." He whispered to her, having felt her finger loop into his belt hole again.
"But it's sooo fun~" she turned to him and took his hands with a smile. "Come on, humor me~ Please?"
"…" Kazuto sighed before pouting. "You're paying me back at home."
"Of course." She nodded adamantly, smiling wider. "For now let's get home and eat dinner, okay~?"
"Yeah yeah." He sighed, ending up being unable to pay for things again since Akemi always beat him to it. They headed back to Akemi's apartment, walking inside.
"Makoto? Are you home?" No response. "Mmm, might be sleeping…" she put the groceries down. "Do you mind getting the knives out for me? I'm gonna check on him."
"No problem." Kazuto nodded, getting to work finding the knives as Akemi walked down the hall to her brother's room.
"Makoto?" Akemi knocked, hearing no response and opening the door. She noticed Makoto withn amusphere on, smiling a little and closing the door. "Ahh, as absorbed into his games as he always is." She sighed as she headed back down the hall.
"He's in game? What's he playing right now?" the blackette looked over at the girl as she came into the kitchen again. "He said he was thinking of starting something new but he never told me which game." Kazuto moved aside for Akemi as she washed her hands and began chopping things up and beginning to cook.
"I think he said he was picking up an old cyber VMMO, but…" she pondered on it. "I don't think he ever told me which game it was either…" she said, slicing the tomatoes. "He always loved to pick up every new game when we were younger, and usually he was the one who got me playing a new game before I got really into gaming with Hiwa and the others."
"Really? So he was basically your own game-rater."
"Heh, I guess so." She nodded. "… the only reason he didn't get into Ryuuko was because he was too sick to play when the open server came out." She stared at the cutting board for a minute, Kazuto turning to look at her. "… Aya told me that for the first month, he was blaming himself for recommending the game to me… that he was really upset about it." She turned to meet his gaze. "… you know, when AGSO was still GSO, he recommended it to me too…" she looked like she might cry. "He looked so upset when I told him that I was entering it now, while it was a death game…" she put the knife down and tried not to spill her tears. Kazuto moved over and took her hand to calm the woman down, letting her cover her face with her free hand and silently sob. Kazuto knew after all this time with her that Akemi was always worrying about her family, but her brother especially.
"Your brother seems pretty strong to me." He whispered, hugging her to help her relax. "He knows you're doing this to protect people, so I'm sure he gets it…" He recalled Suguha telling him she was worried too, but… well, she seemed to understand.
"… You think?"
"I know." He let his hands rest on her lower back. "So… don't worry. Makoto's your brother, if there's anyone who knows you well enough to know how stubborn you are when you've made up your mind, it's him."
"… ehe." She smiled and wiped her tears. "Geez, today's full of crying, huh?" she laughed a little, Kazuto smiling and letting her get back to what she was doing. A news report came on from the gamer channel that Akemi kept the kitchen screen tuned to, mention of Majin sweeping his competition once again in the Ballad of Bullets. The pair listened for a moment but did not pay it too much mind. However, when Akemi put the chicken in the pan to cook it, Kazuto pulled her aside and slid his hands under her shirt. "Wah!" she froze. "K-kazuto, your hands are cold." She pouted, the boy having just rinsed the lettuce for her, hands dripping wet. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing." He slid his fingers across her sides, making her jump again. "Just trying to make you laugh, is all~"
"Wh-why do you need to do that?" she asked, looking concerned.
"Mmmm, because." He slid his hands down to the line of her skirt. "It's the one way I can take advantage of you without having the tables turned on me in the middle of it." He chuckled. "Of course, I can always do that thing you like so much when-"
"Oi oi." Makoto walked into the room. "Quit molesting my sister. Go into her room if you're gonna do that." He grumbled, looking sleepy. Kazuto grinned and greeted his friend with a handshake, the boy seeming to calm down after saying hi to his friend.
"Morning, sleepy head." Akemi ruffled her brother's hair. "Hungry?"
"Yeah." He nodded, looking at his sister a moment before going to the fridge to get something to drink. "… So how did it go today?" he asked, striking up the conversation with Kazuto as Akemi finished up the food, the woman smiling as her brother seemed to be okay with everything going on. She stared at the screen, seeing Majin's avatar and feeling something, glancing back at Makoto. He smiled when Kazuto brought up Akemi's gamer contact, Falcon. "That old man still games? That's impressive for a game as intense as AGSO."
"He's only old to you, kiddo." Akemi said, placing the food on the table and turning to the pair. "Now quit gawking and come eat while it's hot." She chuckled, Kazuto and Makoto both nodding and digging into their meal quickly.
((Ahaha, finally ; v ; Sorry for the wait everyone
Introducing two of Akemi's gamer contacts, Falcon and Kage~ Thank you to uqoxe24 for putting in some characters to freshen up the character pool~ I was running dry on interaction inspiration with new characters...
Anyway, hope you like this chapter, look forward to more of Kirito's insecurities and Akemi's suspicions in the next chapter ; v ; and hopefully more screen time for Sinon, since she's one of my favorite female characters in the series ; 7 ;''
Until next time~
-Winter Cheshire))