"Hey, where are you taking me? Oh, kidnap me, kidnap me~! Driver, turn right up there—there's a nice hotel district!"
"Rosalia, don't engage her."
"Ooh, so the driver's Rosalia-chan? I'm Pitohui, nice to meet you!"
The person Yahata had called was Rosalia. After finishing tailing Em, she'd been on standby nearby. At Yahata's request, she drove his car from the office to pick them up.
"For the record, this is Rosalia," Yahata said. "When I'm not around, she'll be handling intel-gathering in GGO."
"Got it! Rosalia-chan, looking forward to working with you in-game too!"
"Uh, yeah, same here," Rosalia replied.
Next, Yahata formally introduced Elsa to Rosalia—though, naturally, not as Elsa Kanzaki.
"Rosalia, this is Pitohui. A bird with poison."
"A bird with poison?"
Elsa, delighted that Yahata knew her alias, spoke in a cheerful, lively tone.
"So, Shana, you've known about me for a while? Wait, did I ever introduce myself in GGO? I feel like this is the first time you've called me by name. I didn't think much of it before."
"I don't care what you think, but among us old-timers, you're kind of a big deal. Of course I know your name—and where it comes from."
"I see, I see! So you've been into me for that long, huh?"
Elsa nodded enthusiastically, as if it all made perfect sense.
"Let me be clear: your reputation is entirely bad."
"What?!"
"Seriously, what part of you thought you'd have a good reputation?"
"I mean, being a girl gets me a lot of attention from players! It's honestly a bit annoying. When strangers talk to me, it makes me want to take them out."
"See? You're practically begging for a bad rep."
"Fair point, I guess!"
(Talking like this, she doesn't seem that bad. But the real issue is that streak of madness lurking inside her… As long as I'm around to keep her in check, it's fine. The problem is what happens when I'm not. Well, whatever.)
As Yahata feared, after the third BoB, when he logged in less frequently, Elsa would meet a girl named Ren and spiral into a volatile mental state until her defeat. Not exchanging real-world contact info was partly to blame. Later, Shana, learning of this through mutual friends, would give Pitohui a stern lecture, stabilizing her mindset—but that's a story for another time.
"Anyway, didn't you say I'm, like, second place or lower to you?"
"What? Even after meeting me in person?"
"Yup."
"Ugh, that's harsh!"
Elsa looked a little deflated and turned to Rosalia weakly.
"Hey, Rosalia-chan, is Shana telling the truth? He's not making up some fake girlfriend to brush me off, is he?"
"No, she's real. And the 'world's number one' part is true too."
"Seriously?!"
"Yup."
"Double harsh!"
Elsa's disappointment was palpable now.
"Wait… is Shana's girlfriend… Rosalia-chan?"
"Nope, not me. Me, the world's number one? That'd be an insult to the world."
"Oh… Man, if only I'd met Shana sooner… like, in SAO…"
Elsa shot Yahata a reluctant, sidelong glance, prompting a blunt response.
"No chance of that either."
"What?!"
"I met her right after logging into SAO."
"Ugh, no way…"
Elsa sank even deeper into her funk.
"So… she's a fellow player…"
(Asuna's playing GGO too, so they'll probably cross paths eventually. Might as well make Pitohui's impression of her a bit better now. Komachi's personality should handle itself fine.)
"Alright, I'll introduce you sometime."
"Really? For real?"
"Shana, you sure?" Rosalia asked.
"She's joining GGO, so introducing them there shouldn't be an issue. Besides, Pitohui, you already know my girlfriend."
"Huh?"
Pitohui furrowed her brow, thinking hard. The only SAO players she knew, aside from those she'd interrogated, were the four big names.
"Wait, is your girlfriend the Black Swordsman or the Flash? Wait, she's a girl?!"
"The Black Swordsman's a guy. It's the Flash."
"The Flash is a girl… and she's coming to GGO? Awesome! We can have a deathmatch!"
"No way that's happening. She's not converting, so the stat gap would be too big."
Pitohui blinked, tilting her head in confusion.
"Huh? Why no conversion?"
"Come on. Converting would risk Laughing Coffin's remnants recognizing her by name."
"Oh… so you too, Shana?"
"Yup. This character's a fresh one I made a few months ago."
"I see…"
"If you want to fight the Flash, though…"
Shana grinned, as if struck by a brilliant idea.
"The Flash and another friend are joining later. You can help them grind experience."
"Count me in!"
Pitohui agreed instantly, and Shana smirked, thinking this would lighten his load. Despite her chaotic personality, Pitohui's skills were top-notch.
"I'll leave Em behind then."
"I don't care if Em tags along."
"But I dedicated my private life to you, not Em. The fewer people sharing secrets, the better, right?"
"Huh… you've actually thought this through."
"Yup! Praise me more, praise me!"
"Don't get cocky."
"Fiiine."
(Truth is, I don't want Em interrupting my time with Shana.)
"By the way, I get why you and the Flash aren't converting, but what about Rosalia-chan?"
"I'm a convert," Rosalia said.
"So you're not tied to Laughing Coffin?"
"Well, uh…"
"She's deeply involved," Shana cut in, speaking clearly for Rosalia.
"What? Really?"
"Nobody would guess she's with me now, so if they approach her, it's a bonus for us."
"Huh? What's that mean?"
"Simple. She used to lead a group under Laughing Coffin. I took her down. Now she's my subordinate."
"Top subordinate!" Rosalia interjected.
Shana clutched his head at her outburst.
"Top subordinate? What's with you and 'subordinate'?"
"I've got an objection," Pitohui declared, leaving question marks over both their heads.
"Objection? To what?"
"The top subordinate spot is mine!"
"You too?! What's wrong with you two, fighting over this? Are you idiots?"
"It's important!"
"Very important!"
"Alright, alright…"
Shana, overwhelmed by their fervor, could only mumble in defeat. Rosalia pulled the car over on a quiet street and stepped out, with Elsa following, her expression belligerent.
"I gave Shana a copy of my driver's license. You know what that means, right? My life's in his hands now! I'm ready to be ravaged!"
"Pitohui, go to a hospital. Now."
"And Shana gave me this," Rosalia said, holding up a collapsible whip—a gift he'd promised her for self-defense, as she emphasized. "Proof he's itching to discipline me!"
"Rosalia, that's not what it's for. It's just a charm or for protection."
"Rosalia-chan, nice move!"
"I'm not backing down, even against a celebrity."
"Enough with the pervert contest!"
"Ow!"
"Ouch!"
Yahata smacked both their heads, and they crumpled to the ground.
"Ugh… Look, Pitohui, your place is nearby, right? Go home and mess with Em. Rosalia, I'll drive you home."
"What? You're not taking me home?"
"It's, like, a one-minute walk. I know your address. Plus, it'd be a hassle if Em saw us."
"No fair…"
"Alright, Rosalia, let's go."
"Uh, okay."
Yahata slid into the driver's seat. Rosalia, feeling a bit sorry for Elsa, leaned in and whispered.
"He acts tough, but he can't ignore girls like us. If you keep the right distance, he'll stick with us for life."
"Really?! Got it, I'll play it smart! Rosalia-chan, you're actually kinda cool!"
"So, I win this round, right?"
"Grr, maybe not that cool…"
"See you in GGO!"
"Bye-bye!"
Elsa waved until the car vanished from sight.
"Today was, like, one of the best days of my life… Things are gonna get fun from here. I can't wait to hear more from Shana… It's gonna be a blast."
Muttering to herself, Elsa headed toward her apartment.
After dropping Rosalia off, Yahata returned home and logged back into GGO. He'd logged in today to prepare for Asuna and Komachi's upcoming sessions, hoping to sharpen his sniper instincts after a break. Might as well get some practice in before bed.
"Guess I'll hit a nearby hunting ground… Mobs are fine, but a player-hunting team would make a nice target."
"Shana!"
"Whoa!"
Someone called out, leaping onto his back with unbridled joy—Pitohui, beaming ear to ear.
"Why are you here?"
"Well, after all that talk, I'm too hyped to sleep!"
"Figures… I'm here to get my sniper senses back. Running into you guys threw me off, but that was my plan."
"Oh, right, you're a long-range sniper, huh? Still pretty rare in GGO."
"You saw the gun behind me in that tournament video, didn't you?"
"Yup!"
At the time, long-range snipers were a rarity in GGO. Mid-range snipers were common, but long-range specialists were practically nonexistent, mainly due to the lack of suitable guns.
"So, where we headed? I'm coming, obviously!"
"Don't care, but I specialize in hunting player-hunters."
"Hunting the hunters? Taking down cocky players who think they're hot stuff? Sounds perfect! Oh, I might've seen some earlier."
"Oh? Know where they went? Lead the way."
"Got it! Let's go!"
The two set off, with Pitohui guiding them to a hunting ground. There, they spotted a group of players gearing up to ambush a mob-hunting team. Among them was a mid-tier player trying mid-range sniping for the first time—a rare female GGO player with short, aqua-blue hair.
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