Mystic Knight Online
Chapter 4: Startling Introductions are what Lay the Groundwork
April 11, 2025 - Alfheim, Yggdrasil City
She purred as her Wingless One gently scratched the feathers between her wings. She still didn't understand what had happened to change her Wingless One's appearance, but the scent was still the same, her vocalizations were the same, and so, she was her Wingless One, despite the fact that she and the others could now produce wings or make them disappear.
All she was concerned about was that they could now fly with her, though her Wingless One's fumbles learning how was certainly amusing. Like a hatchling learning, really, though she learned quickly.
Besides, the male who her Wingless One had chosen as a mate was here. And they still hadn't had any whelps yet. How long did it take for a dam to be ready to lay eggs, anyway? Or were they the kind who bore live young?
Well, if that was the case, then it might be a few seasons, though her Wingless One should have since shown the signs that she was gravid with young if that was the case. Perhaps she hadn't become fertile yet?
Maybe that was why her Wingless One had adopted her into the nest.
She heard the den barrier open and idly looked at it. Was another entering? Oh, it was the Large One who appeared older but curiously smelled more like a hatchling that had suddenly grown into being an adult. Strange, that.
And she could smell the Little One as well. She seemed younger than the Large One, but smelled older. Not much older, but she smelled as if she was the one who hatched first. But there was another scent as well. A new Wingless One?
She sniffed the air, taking in the scent. She smelled the shiny stuff that made the shells the Wingless Ones often had covering them and used as claws when they fought, the smell of the forest that clung to this new Wingless One like she, and it was a female, Pina noted, and something familiar. Like she came from the Old Place where the rest of the Nest spent those seasons before coming to this new and strange Place.
Not that she was overly discomfited about this New Place. Her Wingless Ones might be slightly different in appearance and scent here, but they were still hers. And better, they could now grow wings and fly!
Still, this new Wingless One merited investigating.
When her Wingless One was done grooming her with her very flexible front claws that is.
##
Asuna had a hard time keeping her composure as she stared at Kizmel. To see someone from Aincrad, not merely a surviving player, but and actual resident from there was a surprise. That her former ally during that quest campaign was here, and she could see the icon showing that she was a player now…
How? She thought. What is-?
"Before you ask the questions I know you have, I think we ne- never mind, Agil has already gone to the back like he said he would," Strea said, being unusually serious. "But really, checking his inventory? He can do it from his menu right here."
"He runs a bar Outside, Strea," Harry said. "He knows when he shouldn't be around to hear a conversation. But we should get the details elsewhere. Agil is running a business here." Asuna knew that what he didn't say was that whatever was about to be discussed, they didn't want the GMs potentially finding out about. "But we can make some introductions, at least." He stood up and gave a Western-style bow. "I'm Hadrian, but feel free to call me Harry if you so wish to." He turned to Silica. "Dear?"
Silica stopped grooming Pina and stood as well. "I'm Silica, Harry's wife," she said with her own bow. "She gestured to Pina, who had taken wing and was giving Kizmel a curious look. "And this is Pina."
"A Feathered Dragon as a companion, you must be the one who was known as the Dragon Princess in Aincrad," Kizmel said with some surprise. "Which would make your husband the Young Knight. And it looks as if the rumors I heard about you both being a little young to have gone through a bonding ceremony, you would call it a marriage I believe, are true."
Asuna kept her own surprise at Kizmel knowing that bit of information off her face. Had Kizmel been a player in SAO, then her knowing Harry and Silica's Titles in SAO wouldn't have been a surprise, but she had been an NPC there. And perhaps I shouldn't be surprised, she thought. SAO's evolution into being more complex than it had already been at the beginning as was something they had all known of and recognized. She looked at Kirito who simply shrugged in response.
"We get that a lot," Silica said with a wry smile. "And our marriage is not officially recognized because of our ages. Not by our Lawkeepers, at least." She used the term for the NPC magistrates of the various towns in Aincrad. "Here, it is recognized. Where we're from, it's officially a betrothal, but it's unofficially recognized by some due to my being recognized as one of the heads of my husband's family."
"A betrothal, that only happens among us with the nobility," Kizmel said. "Are you nobles in your own land?"
Asuna almost giggled at the sour look that briefly appeared on Harry's face. She knew his opinions about being thought to be a nobleman.
"In a way, perhaps," Harry hedged. "I might be called a Lord in specific circumstances, but there are no titles behind it, and haven't for over three centuries. It's more a legacy honor, than anything. I'm not so arrogant as to think that makes me a noble, especially as I wasn't raised as one."
Silica nodded.
"Before anyone asks, I didn't know until recently," Harry said. "My parents were murdered, and my surviving relatives either didn't know, or they didn't tell me. They were petty like that. And even after I found out, you didn't ask and I didn't see a need to tell. And, as I mentioned, it's more honorary."
"That's a fair point, Harry," Asuna said with a nod. She knew that he wasn't saying everything, of course, and resolved to ask him for clarification about what he meant at a later time. Or maybe she should start with Silica, and see what she had to say. For all that their marriage wasn't valid in the real world, she already knew about her younger friend's position as the co-head of Harry's family, though it was only the two of them as of now.
"Ah, so it's more an honor bestowed upon your family for deeds done in the past," Kizmel said.
"That's... one way of putting it, yes," Harry said hesitantly. "But please, don't call me 'Lord' here."
"Why not?" Kizmel asked. "It's only appropriate."
"Perhaps it is," Harry replied. And oh, Asuna could tell that even that was grudging. "Even if it is true, it would be something I haven't earned, only inherited. The titles I got in Aincrad, the honors and dishonors attributed to me, they were things I earned through my own actions."
"Then perhaps calling you Sir Hadrian would suffice?" Kizmel asked. "And honors and dishonors?"
"We can discuss that later," Harry said, closing that line of discussion. "I believe we need to finish the introductions first. And then, we need to take this to a place more appropriate." He looked at Rain and Lux. "Ladies, if you would?"
"Oh, right," Rain said. "Privyet, I'm Rain. So, you know Kirito and Asuna?"
"Indeed," Kizmel said with a nod.
"That's cool," Rain replied and then smirked. "I bet you have some stories to tell about them from when you were working with them."
"She does," Asuna said. "Mostly relating to how we fought together, though there are a few more private events that she was there for."
"Both you and Kirito were good at scrubbing my back when I shared a bath with one of you, though Kirito was somewhat embarrassed," Kizmel said.
"Like those, yes," Asuna said as she saw Kirito's face flush. She turned to Lux. "And we still have one more who needs to introduce herself."
Lux nodded at the silent prod and stood. "Right, I'm Lux," she said as she bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is mine," Kizmel replied with a nod. "Now, while I can tell that while this place would be a comfortable location to discuss things, some of you are of the feeling that it may not be appropriate." She looked in Harry's direction.
Harry nodded and then stiffened before he turned and grabbed something, which then appeared to Asuna as a Cait Sith. She readied herself, either to talk fast, or to bring out her "Princess" persona before the Cait Sith's features became apparent.
"Argo," she said as she relaxed. "So nice of you to join us." She looked at Harry as he let go of her. "How did you know she was there?"
Harry smirked. "She didn't keep her giggling quiet enough," he said.
Translation: He caught her with his SA, Asuna thought.
"I wasn't giggling, Harry," Argo grumbled.
He shouldn't have noticed her, Asuna's thoughts translated.
"Chuckling then," Harry corrected.
"Better."
"Yes, chuckling that sounded suspiciously like giggling." Silica added.
In other words, she was there long enough for him to notice and surprise her, Asuna realized. And it gave their suspicions that Argo had a Unique Skill related to stealth back in SAO more credence. She probably hadn't yet divested herself of the bad habits that being truly unnoticeable to even those looking for her that had come about. After all, her stealth was already good enough without it that even Kirito had to be paying attention and actually looking for something hidden to notice her, and he had the most sensitive SA of all of them.
Of course, Harry was almost as sensitive and was very good at being aware of his surroundings to begin with.
Argo shot Silica a sour look before turning her attention to Kizmel. A familiar smile was starting to form on the Rat's face.
"Argo, I know you have questions, but hold off on them for now," Asuna said before the Information Broker could say anything. "This isn't the place." She saw that Argo was about to say something, paused, and then grudgingly nodded.
"Harry," Asuna said. "Let Agil know that he can stop worrying about not over hearing us and catch up. You already know where we're going as we have business there anyway."
Harry nodded and headed to the back of the tavern.
"So, I'm going to meet this associate of Strea and Yui's?" Argo asked.
Asuna nodded.
"You're taking the fun out of this, Aa-chan."
##
Kizmel looked around her as everyone aside from Hadrian made their way through the city that was within the giant tree, Yui had called it Yggdrasil, she recalled. And the name, Yggdrasil City, was whoever who named it that uncreative? It was almost human in its lack of imagination, Goddess' sakes!
Yes, it was a city that was nestled in the branches of the giant tree. But it wasn't a city that was a part of the tree! The streets and buildings weren't being supported by anything anchoring the entire city to it. It was almost as if the city was a separate structure that was floating above the tree and the boughs of the tree then grew and surrounded it.
And perhaps it was, she thought. Had the Great Separation not happened, would Aincrad have been like this? Would my people and the Forest Elves still be in their ancestral lands? No, you were told the reality of what Aincrad was, a created world. What you thought you knew was… no, it isn't a lie made by a madman. My memories, the stories I know, they're real. Even if the others don't see it that way.
"You're comparing it to Aincrad." The- Cait Sith? She was still familiarizing herself with the races of this strange new world. Yes, the young woman was a Cait Sith. And in Aincrad, she had supposedly been human. Then again, she herself wasn't a Dark Elf here, but a Spriggan. What was the Cait Sith's name again, Silica? She did have a blue Feathered Dragon with her, so that must be her name.
"I can't help but do so," she replied. "Aincrad was my home, after all." She idly shooed the Feathered Dragon away when it flew too close again. "And could you keep your dragon from flying too close like she has?"
Silica nodded and whistled, calling the Feathered Dragon over. "Pina, you know better," she chided. "I know you're curious, so am I, but you're being rude."
Pina made a contrite chirp in response as Silica gently grabbed her and placed her on her shoulders.
"My thanks," Kizmel said. "And from the tone of your statement…"
Silica nodded. "You're comparing everything you've seen so far to what you've seen in Aincrad," she said. "I can understand that, I think all of us have done the same at some point." Her words were delivered in a quiet tone. "And despite what you are, you're thinking in terms of an NPC that has become more."
"I am not a golem," Kizmel said lowly. "I never was and none of us were."
"True," Silica agreed. "And Harry and I didn't treat the NPCs as such. Despite what we saw, what we perceived, Harry always was polite in his interactions with them and I followed his example. More out of habit, but Aincrad was a world in its own right and we had to accept that it was our reality for two years. It was not a matter of realness, it never was. It was a matter of awareness, of context. We're just... helping you deal with expanding yours."
"And how would you go about doing so?" Kizmel asked.
"One day at a time," Silica replied. "There is no single way to go about it and everyone is unique. Each of us handled and adjusted to the context of Aincrad differently, after all."
Kizmel nodded and continued to walk with the group. She wondered if they would be able to help her adjust to her new circumstances.
Hadrian caught up to them right as they were entering the nondescript residence they had walked to with a conflicted expression on his face. "Asuna, I'm going to have to log out for a moment and call some people," he said.
"What happened, Harry?" Asuna asked.
"Nothing major, or at least I hope it isn't," Harry said. "We just underestimated just how sharp and perceptive the old barkeep is. While he didn't outright say it, I'm sure he's figured out what Yui, Strea and maybe Kizmel are."
Asuna blinked. "Figured it out?" She asked.
Hadrian nodded.
Asuna sighed. "Log out then," she ordered. "Make any calls you need to and come back online if you can."
Hadrian nodded and opened his menu. Picking an option that she hadn't tested, Kizmel watched as his body disappeared into light.
"Something happen?" Kizmel asked Asuna.
Asuna looked at her. "Possibly," she said. "Harry was light on the details, but he seems to believe that Agil may have figured out that Strea, Yui and you are not normal players. I wish I could say I'm surprised, but I'm not."
"You shouldn't be, Aa-chan," Argo said. "He didn't become a successful merchant in SAO by being unobservant. I know that he knows more than he lets on, and he hasn't talked about a few secrets he figured out or suspected."
"Like the ones we learned about Harry?" Asuna asked.
Argo shrugged. "That, I don't know," she admitted. "But the ones who are watching over him, and probably even you guys, are known to the Yakuza there. And the Yaks do have a stronger presence in and around Akiba than many think. He wouldn't still have a business running if he didn't know how to keep his mouth shut and to have not heard or seen things if anyone official asks."
"Yakuza?" Kizmel asked.
"Criminal organizations that are a necessary evil at the best of times," Asuna said. "We would rather do without them, but they know the rules of society, so they are tolerated, barely. They do tend to keep worse criminal organizations from gaining too strong a foothold in Japan, or keep our worst elements in line out of fear of drawing their attention."
"You would rather do without them," Kizmel observed. "But it would not put an end to criminals."
Asuna nodded. "Criminals would still exist," she admitted. "Human nature is what it is, after all. People will always want something they otherwise couldn't get, or do things they shouldn't. We aren't perfect and I doubt we ever will be. But yes, doing without groups like the Yakuza would definitely be preferable."
Nerima, Potter-Black Apartment
Harry took his AmuSphere off and reached for his glasses. Putting them on, he got up from his bed and exited the room. Walking out into the living room of his and Sirius' apartment, he spied his godfather talking with Chiaki. Not too odd an occurrence, really, even if it was Genta Umemori who was largely responsible for watching over him among the Shiba retainers now. After all, he actually ran a business that he could bring with him, so his showing up in various places wasn't too unusual.
Especially as he seemed to always have his paperwork in order to allow him to set up in those places. Harry suspected that magic was involved, but he wasn't so impolite as to voice those suspicions. It would fit what he had seen of the Sushi-ya's character to make sure that he did all the paperwork the hard way simply to make sure that anyone magical couldn't simply dispel the paperwork.
"Something going on, Harry?" Sirius asked as he looked toward Harry.
Harry nodded and turned to Chiaki. "Mister Tani, can you reach either Lord Shiba or Lady Shiba?" He asked. "Or maybe Gus? I need some advice on something."
"I can," Chiaki replied, reaching into his pocket. "Did someone tell you they suspected your abilities might have been more real than what they seemed?"
Harry shook his head. "No," he replied. "I wouldn't be surprised if he suspected, but if he does suspect that my Unique Skill in SAO was actually based on reality, he's not saying anything. It's Agil, Mister Tani. If he suspected it, he would keep his mouth shut. It's about the AIs. We… just met another one, one from SAO."
"Another?!" Sirius asked in surprise. "I know about Strea and Yui, and I have heard that the administrative AI from SAO is out there as well, but-"
"It's not CARDINAL," Harry said. "It's an AI who was apparently an NPC in SAO who… I guess evolved into being an AI is the best way to describe her."
Sirius looked like he was going to say something when he paused. "What." He said.
"Evolved into being an AI," Harry said. "It's not all too surprising, now that I think about it."
"Why do you say that?" Chiaki asked as he pulled his phone out. "I'll make the call in a moment, but I am curious."
"Kirito, I mean, Kazuto, could probably explain it better, but while we were there, SAO was changing around us," Harry said. "I learned early on that how one treated the NPCs there could determine just how comfortable your stay at a place was. It's hard to put into words, but their responses to us as we interacted with them, over time, became less... robotic? Yeah, that works. Their responses became less robotic as time went on. And some of us, the players that is, began to treat them more like people than things for the most part."
"It could have been your way of coping with it, you know." Sirius said. "I mean, you all were there for a little over two years and maybe you all just began projecting what you expected onto them, or something."
"Perhaps," Harry agreed. "And early on, that probably was the case. But remember what I said? That our stays in places could be made more comfortable or less depending on how we treated the NPCs? I guess she got the right stimuli at the right time to...develop? Actualize?" He shook his head. "Not that however she came to become self-aware really matters now. She is self-aware and it will be the job of all of us in Steel Phoenix to help her adjust."
"Why you all?" Sirius asked.
Harry looked at his godfather and raised an eyebrow. "Remember, Sirius, two of our own are AIs," he said. "We have experience in that."
"That experience might not apply here," Chiaki noted. "Yui and Strea came into being already aware of what they were."
"Mister Tani," Harry began, running a hand through his hair, "You were raised magical, yes?"
Chiaki chuckled. "Yes. Dad did try his best to make my life normal, but—"
"I wasn't," Harry said. "In fact, my guardians were... I've heard thaumaphobic and manaphobic used. They shunned everything from guesting psychics on chat shows to any action movie that got a little too mystical with its martial arts. And none of that changed that I myself am magical."
Sirius looked confused. "In other words, much like us having to integrate muggleborns into our society," he said after a moment. His tone said that he wasn't entirely sure of it.
"Pretty much, yes," Harry said, and Sirius smiled. "Things like teaching her how to act around players and covering for her slip ups. Hopefully with fewer mistakes and unconscious biases than I noticed in the wizarding world. Though I think we can pass some of it off as her being a Role-player or Chuuni as we work on that."
"Role-player?" Sirius asked, lost again. Chiaki chuckled and Sirius shot him a glare as he added, "Chuuni?"
"A role-player is someone who gets into the role," Harry said. "With ALO being what it is, we can pass off her actions and statements as her acting a role and staying in character. Chuuni is similar, but implies that the person acts like that in real life due to wishing to be living a fantasy because they want to be special and unique. I would need to know her better than a brief meet and greet before I can see where she would fall in that spectrum. We do tend to pass off Strea as a Chuuni- it'd be like passing a friend who wasn't good at Muggle Studies off as eccentric and a bit out of touch."
"Oh, the way Frank would pass Alice off back in the day," Sirius said, and his smile was melancholic. A good memory with sadness that came later, then.
"If you like," Harry agreed. "Or the way you or I are given that bit of leeway for our British manners overriding our knowing the way it's done here." He looked at Chiaki. "So, Mister Tani, that call?"
Chiaki nodded and then began to call the Shiba Manor. "Hello?" He asked after a moment. "Oh, Jii. Are Lord Takeru or Lady Kaoru available? No, it's not an emergency. It's just that Mister Potter came upon something and is looking for some advice. They're at the Ministry? What would- never mind. Is August there? He is? Can you put him on the line then? All right, I'll wait."
Harry turned to his godfather. "You know, that Agil has either figured it out or will soon doesn't mean he would be the only one," he said.
Sirius blinked. "Who else would?" He asked. "I mean, I know that Argo already knows about Strea and Yui, and it isn't hard to imagine that she would figure out that this new AI is one."
"She already knows," Harry chuckled and then smirked. "She tried being a rat in the walls but had stayed still long enough right next to me for my SA to pick up on her presence. We all suspected that she had a stealth related Unique Skill in SAO, and it wouldn't have translated to ALO. Not that it would matter that much, her stealth was already good even without it."
"Are you sure she had one?" Sirius asked.
Harry shrugged. "No, I'm not," he replied. "And the trolling kitsune isn't going to confirm or deny that she had one." He saw his godfather open his mouth to reply. "Yes, yes, that's rich coming from me, considering how I and Keiko refused to confirm or deny some things in SAO."
"Harry?" Chiaki asked. "I have Gus on the line. If you would take my phone and talk with him?"
Harry turned to the Shiba retainer. "Ah, thank you, Mister Tani," he said as he took the offered cell phone. "Gus?"
"What's going on, Harry," Gus said. "You wanted to talk with me?"
"Not so much as talk, as ask for a little advice," Harry replied.
"About what?"
"We just encountered a new AI," Harry explained. "And while her identity as one wasn't said in front of Agil, he did voice his suspicions about at least Yui and Strea to me when I went and fetched him from his bar's back room in ALO."
"Let me guess, he went back there to sort some things out," Gus said.
"That's what he said," Harry confirmed. "Of course, it's more that he knows when he doesn't need to overhear something. To be honest, I'm not all that surprised that he figured out that those two were AIs."
"That doesn't surprise me," Gus said. "So, what advice do you need?"
"Well, outside of how this will need to be handled, how are AIs going to be treated?" Harry asked.
"With the first, I can talk to him," Gus said. "There isn't anything I can really do to force him to stay quiet, but I can at least mention that there are people who would appreciate that he kept that quiet for now. As for the second, I will need to talk with my godmother and Takeru." Harry could hear the sound of a throat being cleared on the other end of the line. "Right, right, Lord Takeru. Don't give me that stern look, Jii. Lecture me on proper ways to refer to them later, I need to finish this conversation. Sorry about that, Kusakabe-jii is a stickler for some things."
"Don't worry about it," Harry said with a chuckle. "So you need to talk with Lady or Lord Shiba about it?"
"They know about Strea and Yui, so they might have an idea of how it can be handled," Gus replied. "You mentioned another AI?"
Harry nodded. "Yes," he said into the phone. "Strea and Yui brought her to us, since we were all planning to meet before… this is something better explained in person, so I'll be brief. This AI came from SAO, but was an NPC there. No, I don't know how she became a full AI. Anyway, you can talk to Agil?"
"Yup," Gus replied.
"Thanks, Gus," Harry replied. "I won't take any more of your time, then. Bye." He disconnected the call and handed the cell phone off to Chiaki. "Well, that's one issue settled, now for me to head back online so we can settle the next one."
"And what would that be?" Sirius asked.
"Nothing too major," Harry said. "We have been in contact with CARDINAL and she handed us something that Kayaba was working on and-"
"So that was the project she gave- wait, what?!" Sirius asked, interrupting Harry.
"She gave us something that Kayaba was working during SAO," Harry replied calmly. "To the best of our knowledge, it's supposed to be a VR development tool. Of course, we haven't, or to be more appropriate, Kazuto hasn't, uncompressed the data yet so he could look it over. Didn't I tell you about it?"
"No, you didn't," Sirius said. "You mentioned that she gave you all something of a project, but you didn't explain what it was."
"Ah, right," Harry said. "We only told Keiko's grandparents about it and her uncles were there to hear it. Well, all you need to know is that she gave this package to us to do as we saw fit. I know she wants us to release it, but she is leaving the decision to us. We were planning to tell her that we are going to wait a bit before releasing it."
"I'm surprised that none of you want nothing to do with it," Chiaki said.
Harry looked at the retainer. "Mister Tani, even if we were inclined to want nothing to do with it, there were two reasons for us to at least look it over and consider it; Strea and Yui."
"Why them?" Sirius asked.
"Because we ran into a glitched area that showed us that, as bad as it is for us, it's orders of magnitude worse for them," Harry replied. "Yui likened it to radiation poisoning. And unlike us, they can't log out because their core data is inside ALO. At the very least, we would want to see if we can use this to create a space for them to leave their core data and come into ALO the traditional way, by logging in, and not be at risk of a glitch doing permanent damage to them."
Sirius nodded. "Okay, I can see that," he said. "But why release it?"
Harry thought the question over for a moment. "I don't know if this is true, but I think Kayaba may have done what he did because someone else, with far more sinister intentions, would have thought about doing it on top of his other reasons," he replied. "Say what you want about him, I have little that is positive to say about him, but Kayaba was at least fair in what he did. He gave us a chance and kept his promise when we beat him. That's not something you can say about everyone else who would have done what he did. At least with this, we have an idea of what it can be used for and how it could be used to repeat SAO. Which means we can put in safeguards against it. Anyway, I won't take any more of your time, gentlemen." He nodded at Sirius and Chiaki and headed back to his room.
Alfheim, Yggdrasil City
Kirito looked around the workshop as Harry logged out, his mind awhirl. He had kept his mouth shut when Strea and Yui brought Kizmel in, despite the question that was on his mind: How did she come here? CARDINAL had told them that Aincrad had been destroyed by Kayaba when they all killed him and were freed from SAO.
That Kizmel was an AI was, in all respects, the least puzzling thing about her presence here in ALO. She had behaved in ways that were not like an NPC's scripts ever since he and Asuna managed to prevent her death, taking actions that were far more independent than even the NPCs late in SAO had been beginning to demonstrate.
She may not have been an AI back then, but she had already begun to show the emergent behaviors of evolving into one. The question, then, was what finished her evolution and when it happened. Considering Aincrad's continued evolution throughout the time everyone was trapped there, he doubted that any of them would ever fully know.
Well, CARDINAL probably knew, if only the how of it. The why could be a different matter entirely. If humans haven't managed to figure out the reasons behind their own sentience and self-awareness, he doubted that CARDINAL had figured the reasons why of her own.
"You seem pensive, Kirito," he heard Kizmel say, pulling him out of his thoughts.
Kirito turned to her. "Just wondering what questions I should ask CARDINAL," he said.
"Such as?" Kizmel prompted.
Kirito thought for a moment. There were a number of questions that were in the back of his mind that he could ask CARDINAL. Questions that weren't limited to the Seed. "Such as how she is keeping the GMs off your backs," he said. "Well, Yui and Strea's backs, but I doubt that you'll be content to blend into the background. Not with you now being recognized by the system as a Player."
"The GMs?" Kizmel asked. "Would that be along the lines of those like this… Kayaba?"
"In a way," Kirito said. "They are the ones from our world who are responsible for overseeing things in this world." He sighed. "But not like Kayaba. He might have… he was a brilliant man, a genius even. And we still don't know why he did what he did. Yes, he said it was to get those of us who were trapped on Aincrad to become heroes of our own stories, but what does that mean? Heroes? Us? When Harry gets back, he would have a few things to say about that, mostly in the form of how he at least isn't a hero."
"You all freed those trapped on Aincrad," Kizmel said. "It was destroyed by Kayaba, but there is no way you could have predicted that. And even if you did… you didn't think it was real, did you?"
"It depends on what you mean by 'real'," they heard someone say. Both turned to see Rain approach.
"What do you mean by that?" Kizmel asked.
Rain shrugged. "I overheard a bit of what you and Silica were talking about when we were walking over here," she said. "She explained how we had to accept Aincrad as our reality while we were there, and she's right, we did. We, or at least our minds, were trapped there. If we died there, our bodies died as well. That's about as real for us as it can get in a virtual world. It was a matter of perspective that took us a while to realize."
Kizmel nodded. "So this is just as real as Aincrad is?" She asked.
"To you, it is real," Rain said. "To us, it's not. Neither was Aincrad, but it was far more real than this place and we had to accept that it was real in its own way. I can't really explain it any better than that."
"Things aren't as final here," Kirito said. "If we die here, we can come back. Aincrad was much like Outside. We died there, we died for real. No coming back, no second chances. This world is what we were told it was, a game. It's not as real to us."
Kizmel frowned. "So, while Aincrad wasn't quite real to you, it was real enough?" She asked.
"Pretty much," Rain replied. "And while it wasn't real, real, do you think we would have accepted it being destroyed out of hand like CARDINAL implied it was? For two years, that place was home for us. I still find myself expecting to wake up back at the villa in Selmburg some mornings and wonder where I am when I don't."
Kirito nodded. He had been disoriented more than once when he woke up and it wasn't in the room he had claimed as his own there as well but the real world. While those incidents were becoming fewer and further between, it was replaced by a wish that he could have shown it to his family.
For all that it was intended to be temporary, they had made that villa home.
And now I have an idea for what I will do with the Seed as we make sure it's safe, he thought. Yui and Strea would like it. A little piece of the place that was their home for those months they were with us there. He heard a door open and spied CARDINAL walk in.
"My apologies," she said. "I had to discuss something with Freyja, my counterpart here, and it went long."
"Anything we need to be concerned about?" Asuna asked.
CARDINAL shook her head. "At this time, no," she replied. "It was merely myself coordinating with her in case I came across any more data from Aincrad like Kizmel's."
"So, more AIs?" Rain asked.
"Perhaps," CARDINAL replied. "I noticed that Hadrian is not present, has something happened?"
"He had to log out for a bit," Silica said. "Agil, a friend of ours from SAO, seems to have made the connection that Yui and Strea are not human, so Harry logged out to get advice from some people in the know on what to do." She looked the side as someone seemed to materialize. "Never mind, he's back."
"I managed to get in contact with Gus, he will talk with Agil tomorrow," Harry said without preamble. He then spied CARDINAL. "Ah, CARDINAL, if they haven't mentioned it yet, Agil might have figured out that Yui and Strea are AIs. As far as I know, he doesn't know about you, though."
CARDINAL nodded. "Is there anything I would need to be concerned about?" She asked.
Harry shook his head. "I doubt it," he replied. "As I mentioned, someone is going to talk with him and let him to know to keep this quiet for now, not that I expect him to mention it to anyone to begin with."
"Anyone else who might deduce that Strea and Yui are not human?"
Harry looked thoughtful. "None that come to mind," he admitted.
"Klein might have," Argo said. "But if he has, he probably thinks that they're Yokai and not AIs."
"Like yourself, Argo the Rat?" CARDINAL asked.
Argo looked at her in shock.
"Yes, I know what you really are," the AI said. Kirito knew he wasn't imagining the ever so slight satisfaction in her expression. "And no, I will not divulge that information. Who and what you are- Outside I think is the term you use, yes? Well, who and what you are Outside has no relevance here. Only who you are and what you can do here."
Argo nodded "I guess I can live with that," she said. "And it's not like I have no experience in that, right?"
CARDINAL nodded and then turned to everyone. "Now, I do believe that you all came here for a reason?"
Kirito nodded and stepped forward. "We did," he said. He then explained that they had decided to hold off on releasing the World Seed for the time being. First, so that they could check it and make sure that it was completely safe for themselves. Second, he wanted to play with it and see how it worked, so that when it did get released, he could provide some information on how to use it alongside it.
CARDINAL nodded. "And it would give you a place that Yui and Strea could log off to," she said. "Kizmel as well, if you would have her."
"It's her choice," Kirito said. "We will be available to advise her when we are online but we won't force her to join us."
"That's right," Asuna said, stepping forward. "All of us may have joined together due to circumstances, but we stayed together by choice." She looked at Kizmel. "If she decides to strike it out on her own, we have no right to stop her from doing so. That's not our way."
CARDINAL nodded. "Understood," she said. "And fitting, to be frank. Kayaba may have taken your freedom, but he never took your ability to choose, even if he did limit your options. Stay and be safe. Or go out and fight for your freedom, despite the risks. And while Aincrad may be no more, that may not be the case in the future. If it comes back, you won't allow it to become what it was. Make it what it was supposed to be."
She looked at them all. "You have a seed that you have decided to plant in the future. What worlds will be sown with it is up to you and others."