When she heard the door close, Silica's back, still crouched on the floor, trembled slightly.
"You don't have to be afraid. I won't do anything…"
Standing behind her, Kai raised his hand to cover his eyes and continued, "You should put your clothes on first. Don't worry, I won't peek."
"R-really, no peeking…?"
Turning her head slightly, Silica glanced at the black-clad swordsman with a suspicious look. Seeing that he was indeed covering his eyes, she blushed, let go of her arms crossed over her chest, and quickly opened her system window to select a familiar set of pajamas.
A silver-white glow from the system enveloped her petite figure. Moments later, the light faded, and Silica was dressed in a fluffy pink pajama dress.
"U-um… I… I'm done…"
Standing up from the floor, Silica turned around and looked at Kai, who still had his hand covering his eyes. Her hands nervously tugged at the hem of her dress, and the blush on her face refused to fade.
"Just now… you peeked, didn't you…"
"Ahem…"
Kai lowered his head a little, an awkward smile forming at the corners of his lips. Then, peeking slightly through the gaps between his fingers, he said,
"I'm an adult. I'm not interested in little kids like you. Of course I didn't peek."
…Yeah, right.
Hearing Kai sound so confident, Silica finally let out a small sigh of relief. Her hands relaxed, no longer gripping the fabric of her skirt so tightly.
Still, after this little mishap, the atmosphere in the room suddenly turned ambiguous. Her blush only deepened.
She had hardly ever been alone with a man, especially not late at night in such a private inn room. On top of that, he had just seen her in nothing but underwear…
Taking a deep breath, Silica gathered her courage and asked, face still flushed,
"Mr. Kai, is there something you needed to see me about at this hour?"
"Well… it's a bit hard to explain… or maybe it just sounds too unbelievable…"
Scratching his head in frustration, Kai tried to find the right words, but what he wanted to say was difficult to convey. Eventually, he just said it plainly.
"Someone might try to eavesdrop later. A member of a criminal guild. I don't know exactly who it'll be, so I can't go on the offensive. I came here to wait it out and also make sure you're safe."
"..."
Hearing what Kai said, Silica froze. She stared at him for several seconds, her eyes clearly saying, "Do I look like an idiot to you?"
Kai tugged at the corner of his mouth helplessly. He stood at the doorway, hands hanging loosely at his sides, looking harmless while waiting for Silica's judgment.
Finally, the girl spoke. "Sorry… it's just a little hard to believe. But how did you know there would be a member of a criminal guild eavesdropping? I don't think I've done anything to provoke anyone… or is it that actually, Mr. Kai, you're the one…?"
"I haven't had any dealings with any criminal guilds," Kai shook his head frankly, and before Silica could respond, he added, "Like I said, it's complicated. I really can't explain it. If you really don't believe me, just wait a little longer. The eavesdropper should be showing up soon."
Silica stared at him scrutinizingly, then finally nodded and relented. "Alright… but if you want to sit, there's a chair over there you can use."
"…"
Seeing the guarded look on her face, Kai was truly speechless.
Come on, I'm a grown man. Do I look like I'd come deceive a little girl in the middle of the night?
Besides, I literally saved your life this afternoon. Is this how you treat your savior?
And "there's a chair you can use"… you say that like I'm dying to sit on your bed or something. That soft thing...
"No need. I'll just stand here."
He smiled at her, then leaned casually against the wall beside the door, arms folded, expression neutral as he tried to look deep in thought.
Seeing that he made no inappropriate moves, Silica backed away and sat on the bed, resting her chin in her hands. She stared at the black-clad swordsman by the door, her eyes slowly losing focus as she drifted into thought.
"Beep, beep, beep…"
To keep an eye on the time, Kai brought up the system's time display in always-on mode. With each passing second, a clear beep sounded.
In the silence, time crept toward 11 PM. Just as Silica stretched sleepily—
"They're here."
Kai's voice suddenly broke the silence.
As a level 78 high-level player with strong detection skills, he could clearly hear the faint rustling of clothes and breathing sounds outside the door.
Silica blinked in surprise and looked up to see the young man's face—serious and solemn.
"Here? As in…?"
"Yeah."
He nodded toward her, then slowly placed a hand on the door.
The next moment, his figure shot out like the wind. The door flung open as he charged through it.
Thud!
As he exited, a crouching figure at the door was pressed hard to the floor. The impact with the hard ground let out a dull sound.
"Ha! Got the rat!"
One hand pinned the man's head, the other gripped his vest, and Kai drove a knee into the man's lower back. Staring coldly at the man beneath him, the spiky explosion of hair triggered a sense of familiarity.
He remembered this guy from the anime version of SAO—one of the Titan's Hand guild members.
Heh, this guy's got guts...
As Rosalia, the guild leader of Titan's Hand, flashed through his mind, a cold smile appeared on Kai's face.
He applied more force.
Players inside the safe zone couldn't hurt each other, but using physical pressure and roughing someone up? That was easy—especially in a place without any guards.
"Ah…! Ow, ow, ow, ow! You bastard! Let go of me!"
The man howled in pain as Kai twisted him up, not forgetting to throw in some threats.
"...Let go! I'll report you to the guards tomorrow! You're dead—I swear—ow! You still dare to press harder?! I—owww!"
Every time he opened his mouth to threaten, Kai applied more pressure. He now grabbed the man's right arm and twisted it in the opposite direction.
Silica walked to the door and stood watching with a conflicted look—part fear, part pity. She stood there for a while, unable to take a single step forward.
After a few minutes of this, Kai finally released the man, though his knee remained pressed to the man's back.
"I'm letting you go tonight so you can take a message to your guild master… This is the second warning. There won't be a third."
The man, who had been struggling moments ago, froze when he heard the words "guild master." He turned his head in shock and stared at Kai.
"You… What do you know?!"
"What do I know?"
Kai stood up, scoffing. "Not much. But I know enough about your guild… Now get lost."
The man, rubbing his aching back, scrambled to his feet, backed up cautiously, and then turned and ran.
"Tch, small fry…"
Watching the man flee, Kai shook his head and was about to turn away when a shout rang out from downstairs.
"…I'll remember this! You hear me?! One day—!"
Kai looked toward the staircase in slight surprise but didn't bother chasing. He turned back to Silica.
"See? Now do you believe me?"
"…Yeah."
Though still confused as to why a criminal guild would target her, Silica could no longer deny the truth.
Seeing the complex, uneasy look on her face, Kai smiled and reached out to gently pat her head.
"Don't worry about it too much. There's always a way forward. And besides, I've got your back."
She looked up at him—this black-clad swordsman who now wore a warm smile, his once sharp gaze now soft and reassuring.
"I doubt anything else will happen tonight. Get some rest. I'm heading back to my room. Need to wake early tomorrow."
Having soothed her, Kai turned and started to leave.
"W-Wait…!"
She stopped him.
"Can you… stay with me a little longer?"
Turning back, he saw her brown eyes filled with fear.
After locking eyes for a moment, Kai almost burst into laughter.
Hey now… Wasn't this the same girl who acted like I was some burglar a few minutes ago? And now you don't want me to leave?
Though he had some snarky thoughts, Kai kept a calm, reassuring smile on his face.
"Scared?"
"…Yeah."
She nodded.
The thought of someone possibly eavesdropping right outside her door every night was horrifying.
"You're really something…"
With a sigh, Kai turned and walked back into her room. He closed the door and looked at the girl standing not far from him.
"So… where should I sit? That chair over there?"
He pointed to a set of furniture deeper in the room and made a move toward it.
"You can sit on the bed…"
Her voice was so soft he almost didn't hear it.
But what stopped him wasn't her voice—it was her hand tugging on his.
Kai looked at his hand, then at the blushing girl, and asked, "Do you like listening to stories?"
"…Huh?"
"I mean, is there a type of story you enjoy?"
"Let me think…" Still unsure why he was asking, she pondered a moment and said, "Probably… prince and princess kind of stories?"
…Seriously?
Seeing the odd expression on Kai's face, Silica's blush deepened. In SAO's exaggerated character rendering, it looked like she could bleed from embarrassment.
Annoyed, she lightly punched Kai's arm a few times.
"What's wrong with a girl liking love stories?!"
Her punches were light and ticklish.
Kai quickly reined in his expression and answered seriously, "Nothing. I think it's perfectly normal."
…
Past 11 PM.
On the wide double bed, Kai sat at the edge while Silica lay near him, one hand stretching out from the blanket to tug on his sleeve.
"…The little mermaid dove into the blue sea. In her final moments, she heard the prince calling her name…"
Just then, the small hand tugged hard, cutting Kai off.
"What is it?"
Looking into her bright eyes, Kai asked, "Don't like the story? I can tell another."
"It's not that…"
She blinked and pouted. "Mr. Kai, that story's too mean… Why couldn't the mermaid be with the prince?"
That's not my fault… I didn't write it.
Sighing internally, Kai figured fairy tales didn't exist in this world, so he shamelessly borrowed from them. And now, he had to accept the complaints too.
"But stories are interesting because of their ups and downs. If you don't like it, I'll tell another."
Following her taste, Kai told her other fairy tales: Snow White, The Frog Prince, Cinderella…
Only, since it'd been a while since he read them, he filled in the gaps with his own takes, even "darkening" some parts. (You know if you know.)
Silica began nodding off, and by the time Kai got to "the prince, Snow White, and the evil queen all lived a happy and fulfilling life together," she was curled up and fast asleep.
Kai stopped speaking. Looking down, her eyelids were closed, and her lashes trembled slightly.
Finally asleep…
He sighed in relief. Honestly, he'd been getting impatient, but pride kept him going. Now that she was asleep, he couldn't wait to leave.
As for doing anything to Silica?
No matter how cute or moe a loli might be, she was still only thirteen.
It'd take centuries of loneliness to be that desperate…
Kai stretched his sore neck and was about to get up—but his hand wouldn't move.
He tugged slightly, and Silica's sleeping face instantly frowned.
…Well, guess I can't force it.
Half-sitting up, Kai hesitated.
What now…?
No matter how he looked at it, this seemed like one of those scenes.
And this was a game world… no police, right?
Looking down at the sleeping girl, Kai gulped.
Screw it!
He gritted his teeth and dove—onto the empty half of the bed.
…Sorry, I just can't do it!
He apologized silently to his desires. Aside from holding her hand, he kept the rest of his body completely respectful.
Her face was inches away. The scent of jasmine reached his nose.
I really want to touch…
Kai gulped again.
"Hold on… You've got principles, right…" He bit his lip and muttered, "You're a gentleman, not a pervert. Not a pervert…"
With all sorts of strange thoughts swirling in his mind, Kai gradually drifted off to sleep.
…
The next morning, as Silica woke up, she felt warm and soft all over—like hugging Pina in the past... no, even bigger than Pina, a super-sized version of her.
Opening her eyes, she immediately discovered the reason.
Kai was lying beside her on the inner side of the bed, used as a human-sized body pillow. Silica had her leg wrapped around his, arms tightly hugging his back, face resting against his chest. There were visible wet marks on his shirt—she didn't need to think hard to know what caused them...
This... did she really spend the night sleeping in the same bed as a guy she had only met yesterday?
As the reality sank in, her mind went completely blank, and her face turned bright red, almost steaming like a kettle.
While she was still dazed, Kai opened his eyes.
His dark pupils were sharp and cold. With a quick glance, he fully grasped the situation.
"If you're awake, get up. We'll go downstairs to eat something, then get ready to head out."
Leaving behind that one reminder, Kai sat up as if nothing had happened, got out of bed, and walked out of the room, expression calm and indifferent.
Silica watched him blankly until he disappeared from the doorway, then gasped for air like someone who had been holding their breath for too long.
Clutching her chest, she tried to calm her racing heart. A strange feeling slowly began to stir in her chest…