"Finally, I get a day off from those 2. They're too energetic" I say to myself as I walk into a bar on the 5th floor.
The town's surprisingly lively. The streets are filled with people, the bars are always full, just overall it's pretty fun. However, I doubt it'll stay like this for long. The higher up we go in this floating castle, the higher the death toll will be. The more floors we clear, the more space opens up. The game has a clear design, and while it's not bad, the later floors will look like ghosts towns. There will definitely be largely populated areas on certain floors, like the town of beginnings, hosting thousands of players. However, all of the work put into future floors' towns was probably been wasted.
In any case, now that I've got time to spend, I shouldn't waste it. I cherish time I have alone, so I was thinking doing some sword swings and grinding on my own. Other than when I'm sleeping, I don't really have time to myself, so maybe doing some sword swings and killing some monsters alone might be a good way of spending my time.
If only that actually happened.
As I sat down at a table, I noticed a familiar player with a dark blue coat around him. He was getting several hostile glances by everyone passing by. If we were in an actual school, you'd see him getting beat up by the local bad boys.
"Pretty pathetic to see you in this state Kirito." I said as I took a seat in front of him. He woke up from his train of thought as he noticed me sitting in front of him. He looked surprised. Of course he would. After parting ways the last thing he expected was for me to talk to him so casually as if nothing happened.
"Come one, what's wrong? Aren't you happy to see your old friend again." I said even though we just met in SAO.
He sighed and said "I thought the message was clear. It's better for you to stay away from someone with my reputation".
"Always so serious aren't you? It wouldn't hurt to smile occasionally" I said poking fun at him.
As we were catching up, something, more like someone caught our attention. Someone had pulled up a chair at the center of the bar. They had something in their hands. It kind of looked like a mace, but they were holding it upside down.
"Don't tell me that's meant to be a guitar!". I exclaimed in surprise. "That thing barely looks like an instrument. Right Kiri-" as I looked back at him, he was already gone. He really doesn't want me to get involved with him. Well whatever.
Hold up. I recognize these notes, I know how to play this song in the piano! They're from... Ugh, what was it called again? Ummm. Hikari, no. Hikaru Nara. HIKARU NARA! That's it. I loved that song. Leave it to a professional weeb like me to know that song. As they opened their mouth, a young beautiful feminine voice could be heard across the room. The lyrics echoed throughout the room, as the soundwaves bounced against the walls of the bar. Everyone was looking in awe at this performance.
I noticed some icons at the top left of my field of vision, below my healthbar. These seemed like stat buffs. As I looked more into it, I saw these weren't minor buffs. A 20% buff to every single numerical stat. That's insane! But I didn't take any items to get any buffs, and i haven't ordered any special food. Could it be this girl's singing?
As she finished the song, everyone in the bar cheered and clapped. She began walking out of the bar, but there were some things I needed to clarify before she left.
"Maaaan, that performance was amazing! I would never be able to sing and play the guitar so well." I said as I approached this girl.
"Thank you very much. I appreciate the compliment". The girl said said standing firm with a smile on her face. You could tell she's really passionate about what she does. She had honey colored eyes and fairly short light brown hair, with a neatly tied ponytail running down the left side of her face. She wore a white hood with a plain deep red-tunic. "That was Hikaru Nara right? From Your Lie in April"
"Yeah! You someone recognized! Have you watched it all?" She asked in excitement, forgetting for a second that we're complete strangers. So much for formality I guess, though she soon regained her composure.
"Is it OK if we sit down to talk for a bit?"
"That's fine by me. However, would you mind if we went somewhere else? Because of my performance I attracted a bit of attention, and- well, you can see the rest right?" I looked at the other tables in the bar, and almost everyone was looking at us. Well, mainly to her, but it still felt awkward.
"Oh, that's fine. Do you know a place?"
"Yes, if you wouldn't mind?"
"Course not. Let's go."
As we were leaving the bar, I realized that I forgot something very important to say.
"Oh, crap. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is JP, what's yours?"
"My name is Yuna".
"So, is this the place?" I asked as she stopped in front of a restaurant. We had traveled down to the 4th floor, since according to her, she hadn't performed there yet, so not as many people would recognize her. We entered and reserved a table for 2.
"Oh, yeah. I should probably change into my regular clothes" The girl said as she opened her menu. Suddenly, with a press of a button, her outfit changed into a vivid royal-blue one-piece dress with golden frills and buckle, supplemented with a pure white cape and lute, a pure white feathered hat on her head, and a dagger on her right waist, giving her the image of a troubadour.
"That's a surprisingly detailed and rare outfit, taking into account that we're on the first 5 floors" I say surprised.
"Oh, that's because it's a field boss drop. I managed to get the final hit in by sheer luck and got this outfit. It's a bit flashy, so I don't wear it that often".
"It is definitely flashy. I wonder how many gazes you get from the men eh?" I jest
"Please, I'm only 14. Stop with the teasing" She said as she chuckled slightly.
"Oh, getting back on track, Hikaru Nara" I almost forgot what we were talking about. "It's been a while since I heard those notes and lyrics".
"Oh yeah, are you into music as well? Can you play any instruments?"
"Ehhh, Kind off. I never really took classes, but I can play a bit of piano, and while I suck at it, I also know the basics of playing the guitar."
"Seriously? Those are the 2 instruments I play! Maybe I can teach you someday".
"Yeah, sure. Just don't get your hopes up about singing. I couldn't be any worse at that".
"Surely you can't be that bad".
"Oh, ignorance. Perhaps it's better if I don't show you. Like ever"
We spent most of the day chatting like this, whether it was about music, anime or just SAO stuff, we both had a good time. But I have to look into stuff. I'm not in this game to just have a good time. Any new information or skill learned will be important.
"Quick question. About the singing you do. Do you know how it buffs everyone?" I finally ask her the question. The real reason why I talked to her in the first place.
"Oh that. It's a skill I've gained. It's called Chant. But it's just a skill, so it doesn't matter that much".
"Here's the thing. I've researched quite a bit about the game,and no one has ever reported cases of random buffing or a skill called that. Even beta testers haven't mentioned it once. So it has to be a rare skill that only appears when a player meets certain criteria.
"Have you cleared any quests before the buffs started appearing?" I ask in order to try to figure this thing out.
"No I haven't" she responds.
So it wasn't because of a quest. Then it must have something to do with her stats and overall abilities. If I had to guess, it's probably her singing. What I find odd is that no one else has it. Either no one out of the current 8,000 players in the game can sing well enough to meet the specific criteria, or that the skill is only given to one person. I'd find the former very unlikely, and while the latter seems absurd as well, it would make more sense. I guess Kayaba wanted some heroes in Aincrad to appear with unique skills. Now the real question is how many of these unique skills there are.
"Ummm, is something wrong?" she asks, getting me out of my train of thought.
"Sorry, just spaced out for a sec. I was so focused on figuring this whole thing out that I forgot I was even here. In summary... Actually, no. I'll tell you some other time". It's probably for the best that people with unique skills are kept hidden for now. There have been rumors of a murderer going around killing players left and right, so announcing that you have a unique skill will just put a target on your back.
"Don't worry, it's fine. If you don't want to tell me I won't pressure you". She is really the opposite of Yuuki. If I was talking to Yuuki, she would pester me about it until she either got bored or I gave in, but she understands. Actually, why am I even thinking about Yuuki right now?
Soon, a message popped up in front of me. It was a guild message. It said: Tomorrow morning we're having a raid at 10 in the morning. The 3 of us will meet up right outside the inn of the Main town in floor 5, and meet up with the rest afterwards -Asuna
I sighed as I saw this, and knew I'd have to sleep early today. I've slowly started sleeping later, while waking up later, so I'd have to cut my other plans for today. I glanced at the clock on my menu, and noticed it was already 9 pm.
As I looked over to Yuna, I noticed she had also received a message. As she finished reading her message, she also gave a loud sigh. When she looked up after reading it, she also noticed my message, and we both laughed a bit over the funny coincidence.
"So, something bothering you?" I asked seeing how her reaction to her notification was pretty much the same as mine.
"Umm, kind of. My friend, his name's Nautilus, is just reminding me of something. We both decided to play this game, but he was the one that invited me to play, so he feels partially responsible for us being trapped. I don't feel that way at all, but he always reminds me to stay in safe zones so that I don't die".
"So in summary, he doesn't want you to die, so he keeps you inside of towns, making sure you don't leave". I say just to make sure I comprehend the situation
"Yes, that's just it". She affirms
I might be getting a little too involved in this, but I'm gonna say what I think.
"And are you OK with that?" I ask
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly what I said. Are you satisfied with doing exactly as he says? I get that you're an obedient girl, and if your wish in this game is to stay safe and live a long life then no problem, but if you don't want that, it's better to say it that keep it in. Consider it life advice from your average foreigner".
I didn't give her a chance to comment on it because we both had to leave. Sometimes sleepiness in SAO feels worse than in real life, so I'd rather avoid that feeling.
"In any case, I should go in and report with my guild leader. So I'll be heading out now" I say as I'm about to leave the restaurant.
"Wait!" Yuna said behind me, reaching for my sleeve. "We should add each other on our friends list"
"Oh yeah. I forgot. I haven't really met that many people in here, so I tend to forget."
We quickly friended each other and began leaving the restaurant.
We were nearing our destinations, which were coincidentally both on the 5th floor. Since our raid was on this floor, and our guild doesn't have a headquarters, we just sleep at the inn closest to the dungeon entrance.
She was staying on the main town in the 5th floor, and I was staying on a different town, so we would have to part ways on the teleporter.
We were both saying our goodbyes, and promised to hang out again some other time.
If we get out of this game, it would be great if we met each other IRL.
"Huh?" she asked in a weirded out tone. Did I say that out loud? GOD, I'M SO CRINGEY. HELP ME!
Yuna moved closer to me, which made me slightly nervous. "Don't say if. Say WHEN we get out". And she teleported right after saying that.
I layed down on the inn's bed, finally being able to rest. I decided not to tell Asuna or Yuuki about the skill Yuna possessed. Not really sure why. Maybe just dumb pride. In any case, I still got an earful when they noticed that none of my stats nor EXP changed. But they kept quiet when I asked them what they did.
Apparently the 3rd floor has some armor that looks a lot like casual clothes, so they went there to buy some. While I understand wanting to look good, I think staying alive is just slightly more important
I was just about to fall asleep when I heard some noises. I opened the door to see if someone was outside, but as I stepped outside of my room, the sound stopped.
I went back in and closed the door, and as soon as I did that it came back. As I focused more, it sounded like it was coming from the room nextdoor. Another exploit in SAO is that while you can't hear sound through doors, you can through walls, so it was definitely coming from there.
If I recalled correctly, next to my room was Yuuki's room, and in front was Asuna, so the sound was definitely coming from Yuuki's room.
I'm not the kind of guy that likes to eavesdrop, but out of curiosity, and the inability to sleep again, I did.
As I got closer to the wall, putting my left ear next to it, I could hear the sound more clearly. It sounded like someone was sobbing, trying to hold it in, but unable to. These noises sounded exactly the same as before. The day we met, she was crying on an alleyway. This was definitely Yuuki. Whatever happened to her that day, or before that day, the wounds hadn't fully healed. In fact, they might not have changed very much.
I wanted to help her. I really did, but there was nothing I could do at the moment. If I said something through the wall, she'd get mad that I was eavesdropping. If I'd knocked on the door, she'd hold back the tears, since she's been pretending to be completely fine all this time. I felt helpless.