Chapter 120 – Conversation with Asuna
"This ID is… Dad! Mom is directly above us!"
The moment those words left Yui's mouth, Hachiman shot straight up into the sky at an astonishing speed. The event happened so suddenly that no one had time to react.
The first to move was Kirito. Upon seeing Hachiman's sudden flight, he gasped.
"Klein, Agil—go after him! Everyone else, stay here!"
"O-oh!"
"Got it, let's move."
Klein and Agil snapped to action at Kirito's command and chased after Hachiman at full speed.
"I remember there's a barrier between the upper levels and here, set up after we took those photos, right?"
"Hey, Yukino… if we hadn't done that, we all could've flown up together by now, huh?"
"The probability is high. But if Komachi hadn't taken those pictures of the upper level, no one would've thought of trying that at this stage."
"Besides, the seniors weren't present back then either."
"Which means, in hindsight, our actions were correct. Don't overthink it, Yui."
"13… 13…"
"Um… may I ask something?"
Leafa, still confused about the situation, timidly turned to Yukino.
"Of course. Go ahead, Leafa-san."
"Well… about that large-scale mission Hachiman-kun mentioned…"
Leafa voiced the doubt that had just occurred to her. Yukino nodded as she explained:
"Actually, our real objective isn't to complete any kind of major quest."
"Eh?"
"Challenging a major quest isn't wrong per se.
But the content might not be what you expect. Our true goal is to get Hachiman-kun—possibly along with a few others—up to the top of the World Tree.
That's why we need to reach the deepest part of the main quest hall."
"If Hachiman-kun's hypothesis is right, that path should be a dead end, isn't it?"
"That's correct. But as long as one more condition is met, we can overcome that problem."
"A condition?"
"As for the next part… I'm not sure if I'm the one who should say it. When Hachiman-kun returns from above, I'll confirm with him what can be shared."
"Okay, got it. Sounds like there's some complex backstory to this."
"I'm sorry—it's not that we're trying to keep you out. It's just that things tie into real-world sensitive matters."
"It's okay, Yukino. No matter what the backstory is, I'll do everything I can to help you all."
"Thank you, Leafa-san."
"But back to the point…"
Leafa looked upward and said:
"He said 'Mom is up there,' didn't he? Hachiman-kun's reaction was so abnormal after that. And Kirito, Agil, Klein, and even Silica—they all acted weird too…"
"They'll explain everything later. For now, let's just be patient and wait."
At that moment, Hachiman and Yui were pounding desperately on the invisible barrier that blocked their ascent.
"Damn it! Open up! Get out of the way!"
"Mama! Mama!!"
Kirito and the others caught up and quickly restrained them.
"Hey, Hachiman!"
"Calm down!"
"Yui, breathe, stay calm!"
With the three of them working together to calm them down, Hachiman and Yui gradually regained their composure.
"Sorry… I lost it."
"Sorry, Kirito-nii…"
"We get it. But Asuna really is up there, right?"
"This player ID is definitely Mama's!"
"Looks like that confirms it. What's the plan now, Hachiman?"
Hachiman turned to Yui: "Is there any way we can make Asuna hear us? At least let her know we're here."
Kirito nodded. "She's been isolated up there for two months. The sooner she knows help is coming, the better."
Yui's eyes sparkled. "Maybe if we use the system's warning mode to shout, our voice will reach her!"
Switching into warning mode, Yui shouted toward the sky:
"Mama! It's me—Yui!"
At that exact moment, in the upper level, Asuna was agonizing over how to deliver her ID card.
Suddenly, a faint voice reached her ears.
"...Mama... Could that be... Yui?"
"They're below! I have to drop the card down!"
As she flung the ID card down, Hachiman caught it midair.
"This is… an ALO ID card! That means Asuna knows our plan!"
"Seems someone's been able to reach her."
"Can we use this ID to break through the barrier?"
"No—but we can use it to communicate with Mama!"
"Great job, Yui!"
"There's a time limit, but I'll open a connection now, Papa!"
The instant the voice chat connected, Hachiman shouted with urgency:
"Asuna! Can you hear me? It's me—Hachiman!"
"...Hachiman? Is that you, Hachiman?!"
Hearing his voice, Asuna trembled with joy.
"?! It really is you!"
"I'm here too, Mama!"
"We'll definitely rescue you tomorrow!"
"Klein, that's too loud—Asuna, are you alright?"
"Yui… and Kirito-kun! And Klein-san, Agil-san too?"
"Ah, Silica is down below. Unfortunately, Liz and Argo aren't with us."
"I just heard from Argo—Liz has also been captured and is here with me."
"Argo? She's here too? So Argo was the collaborator!"
"Yes. Argo-san figured you all would be coming soon, so she gave me this ID card."
"I see. Sorry to keep you waiting. We're going to get you out very soon."
"Yes… thank you, Hachiman. Thank you, everyone."
"Asuna—I need to ask you something. Are you sure this is Sugo's doing?"
"Yes, that man is definitely the culprit. He even bragged about using human experiments to control people and force them to obey."
"That bastard…"
"Papa, time's almost up."
"Ah, sorry, Asuna. This chat seems to be time-limited. We'll do everything we can to reach you tomorrow, so please wait just a little longer!"
"I'll be waiting, Hachiman!"
The voice connection cut off. Yui gave a small shake of her head.
"Tomorrow's the final battle, Hachiman."
"Yeah. We'll reach her—and we'll bring both Asuna and Liz back."
"Let's do our best!"
"I want to see Mama soon!"
"Yeah, Yui. Anyway, my wings are almost at their limit. We'd better go report back to the others."
The four began their descent. Asuna, still thrilled from speaking with Hachiman, reminded herself she couldn't relax just yet.
'No matter what happens, I'll stay calm and keep watching. I won't lose focus until the very end. Once everything is over and I see Hachiman again, then… I can finally rest. Tomorrow is the final day. Let's all do our best.'
At the same time, Hachiman and the others returned safely to their group.
"Sorry for worrying you."
"No problem. So? How did it go?"
"Ah, everything went smoothly. There's a lot I want to talk about."
"Same here. I want to discuss what I talked about with Leafa."
"Oh? Something happen?"
"Yes."
Yukino explained to Hachiman what she had just told Leafa.
"Sorry, Leafa. It probably felt like I was hiding something from you."
"No, I didn't feel that way. It's totally fine."
"After this, I'll explain everything, including our situation. But for now—do you know a place in town where I can get some rest?"
"I'll show you around. Let's go now."
"Thanks. I really appreciate it."
Afterward, the group entered the city, looking for a quiet place to talk.