Chapter 130: The Weight of Life
"Mm."
A familiar voice came from within the hospital room, and Hikigaya Hachiman's heart thundered like a full orchestra. He took a deep breath and called toward the door.
"It's me."
"Please come in."
Hachiman inhaled deeply again, trying hard to suppress his nervousness, then opened the door and entered.
The smell of disinfectant filled the hospital room. Asuna—whom he had longed for day and night—was lying on the bed.
However, Asuna stretched out her hand to stop Hachiman from approaching and turned her gaze toward the window, not letting him see her face.
Hachiman asked timidly:
"S-Sorry… are you mad that I came late?"
"N-No… I just haven't bathed in so long, so… um…"
"Ah."
Hachiman immediately understood that she was self-conscious about her body odor.
Looking closer, even the tips of Asuna's ears were red.
Embarrassed beyond words, she wanted to vanish.
Hachiman showed a comforting smile:
"It's fine. I wiped your whole body clean every day."
"EHHHHHHHH?!"
Asuna predictably fell for the trick and turned around in a panic.
Hachiman, wearing a mischievous grin of success, added:
"Of course, I was lying."
"…!"
Before she could retort, Hachiman hugged her tightly.
"Don't worry. Your parents took great care of you. You smell nice, you're not thin like Kirito and me—you're still a stunning beauty."
"Really?"
"Absolutely. It took two months to get here. I'm sorry."
"Mm, I know you worked so hard."
"I've finally fulfilled our promise from back then. From now on, we'll be together forever, Asuna."
"Hachiman-kun!"
The two embraced and wept. Over two months after clearing SAO, they finally reunited in the real world.
After a tender moment, Hachiman remembered the two waiting in the corridor:
"Right—actually, before I got to the hospital, I was attacked by Sugo in the parking lot."
"Eh? Are you okay? Ah… if you're standing here, you must be fine… So the police rushing out earlier was because of that?"
"Thanks to my friends. They're just outside. Want to meet them?"
"S-Sure."
After apologizing at the door, Hachiman brought the two into the room.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Hayama Hayato."
"Tobe reporting in!"
"I'm Yuuki Asuna. Please forgive my appearance."
"Not at all—dropping by unannounced is what's rude."
"Um… thank you so much for saving Hachiman-kun!"
"Whoa~ Asuna-san is like a goddess! As expected from Hikigaya-kun!"
"Eh?"
"Ah, sorry—not Hikigaya-kun, I meant Hikitani-san!"
Hachiman stared in disbelief at Tobe:
"You actually knew my real last name?"
"Of course! But 'Hikitani-san' sounds so unique, I just kept saying it that way!"
"O-Oh… Well, Tobe, you can keep calling me 'Hikigaya-san.'"
"Pfft."
Asuna smiled gently at the exchange. Tobe's cheeks immediately flushed red as he stared in awe, and even Hayama blushed slightly.
Seeing this, Hachiman smugly ran his hand through Asuna's silky hair:
"Well? Isn't my girlfriend super cute?"
The two were stunned for a moment.
Hayama responded with an awkward smile:
"I'm not sure what's more shocking—how gorgeous she is, or that you said that."
"You're amazing, Hikigaya! Total respect!"
"Right? My Hachiman-kun is the best!"
Asuna suddenly puffed out her chest with pride. Hachiman hurriedly tried to stop her:
"Hey, don't do that. It's embarrassing…"
"Ah, sorry, I just got so happy…"
"Hahahahahahaha!"
"Asuna-san is totally worthy of respect too! You two are perfect for each other!"
As laughter filled the room, Kikuoka knocked on the door.
"So lively in here."
"Kikuoka-san."
"Thank you so much."
"The incident is completely resolved. Congratulations to you both."
"Mm!"
"Thank you very much."
"There are still a few things I'd like to ask Asuna-san."
"Then we'll take our leave. Asuna, here's my phone number and email."
"I'll contact you as soon as I get my phone. Hayama-kun, Tobe-kun—thank you again."
"Let's all go hang out after you recover!"
"See you another day."
"Goodbye, you two! Hachiman-kun, see you tomorrow!"
After stepping into the corridor, Tobe suddenly locked Hachiman in a headlock.
"Whoa!"
"Damn it! I'm so jealous!"
Hayama sighed as Tobe sobbed and said:
"Hayato, even you were stunned, right? Asuna-san's so beautiful."
"True."
"But seeing Hikigaya so happy… really makes me glad."
"Let go already! …Tobe?"
Hachiman noticed something odd in Tobe's voice.
He managed to escape the headlock and looked at Hayama's face—upon closer inspection, Hayama was crying.
"…Mi—"
"Sorry, I'm not used to crying in front of others."
"Thank you both… for crying for me."
Hachiman's voice also started to choke up.
"I finally got back the one I treasure. These past two months… felt like a lifetime."
"Let's do a victory cheer!"
Wiping away their tears, the three of them called out like children:
"We won! We finally won!"
"YEAHHHH—!!"
By the hospital window, Asuna watched it all with a gentle smile.
.
.
.
Kirigaya Kazuto (Kirito) tightly gripped his phone. He knew compared to Asuna's awakening, this would take time—but he couldn't bring himself to put the phone down.
So he simply waited.
After what felt like ages, the moment finally came.
The phone vibrated. Without checking who was calling, Kazuto immediately answered.
"This is Kirigaya Kazuto."
"Um… me?"
"Lisbeth, it's me—Kirito."
"Kirito… it's really you."
"Are you okay? You just woke up, right?"
"Mm… It feels like I had a really long dream. There was pain… but also joy."
"We ended that dream together. It's okay now, Liz."
"Is everyone there?"
"Yeah. We'll all gather once you're better."
"Mm! I'll get better as soon as I can!"
"I'll come visit tomorrow. Tell me which hospital."
"You'll come?"
"Of course. I still haven't given you an answer."
"Kirito… Mm, I'll wait for you!"
.
.
.
And so, the two of them finally woke up.
At the end of the game, all surviving players were released.
In hospitals across the country, the remaining players took off their NerveGear helmets. Emerging from the haze of the virtual world, the sense of relief and return to reality brought many to tears.
Lisbeth's hospital was very close to Kazuto's home, so he began regularly visiting her and helping with her recovery.
Asuna's parents were busy dealing with the aftermath of the incident.
On Kikuoka's recommendation, they decided to transfer Asuna to the Yukinoshita Hospital, where Hachiman and the others had been hospitalized.
Hachiman's presence was no doubt a big factor.
From Kikuoka, Asuna's parents learned of Hachiman's contributions during the incident.
For their daughter's sake, they approved the transfer, and Hachiman stayed by Asuna's side every day during her recovery.
Two months passed.
At last, the day arrived when both Asuna and Lisbeth were discharged from the hospital.
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