In the middle of the night, Shino showed a very uneasy expression. When I asked him why, he said he dreamed that I was dead, but I couldn't believe it was Yuichi's reason. There must be other reasons.

\"Hey Shina\"

“？”

"What did you dream about last night?"

When I turned my head to look at Shino's expression, she had a worried look on her face. I wonder if I'm not listening well.

"I'm sorry.

"When Night Falls"

Shino interjected and turned her head, a little surprised to me.

Shiina's face flushed slightly and continued.

"May I ask you again when night falls?"

"Say it again, please"

When I understood what Shino wanted to say, my heart also felt a little hot. By the way, something Shino wants to ask

"It's okay, but is it okay?"

"Don't make me say it again. It's because you're the one I asked you to do."

"Got it"

\"I'll talk to you then, so please listen carefully?" \"

“... I'll listen. ”

I held Shino's hand tightly and continued to walk among the falling cherry blossoms.

61st Floor, Ayn Grant

"This is Asuna. Asuna's home has never been more lively, and Jupiter is happy to take care of Lilan and Yui. However, when it comes to the reason why Jupiter is so happy, it is understood that the first reason is the appearance of the small animal Lilan, and the second reason is Yui. In this sense, Jupiter's reaction is unambiguous.

"Fluffy, fluffy, warm"

"Yes, Mr. Liran's fur is indeed very fluffy, and it has evolved recently and become more rugged."

Asuna and Ariki sat in the dining chair, sipping tea while watching Jupiter and Yui admiring Lilan in the living room.

"It's a little complicated."

Yuki replied with a tilted head.

"What's complicated, Asuna? \"

According to Alice and Kirito, Jupiter is an MHHP, an AI created to heal the player's mind, and has higher performance and advanced evolutionary abilities than Yui. Also, Yui was created after Jupiter, and Jupiter was MHHP, so in other words, Yui was Jupiter's sister, but now Jupiter looks too young and it is safe to say that she is Yui's younger brother. For Asuna, it seems a bit complicated.

"Jupiter is an AI born before the summary.

Yuki nodded as if she understood Asuna's words, and then smiled bitterly.

\"Indeed, Jupiter now feels more like Yui's younger brother than Yui's older brother. But according to Teacher Alice, Jupiter was born. \"

"But the kid"

Asuna smiled happily, but was surprised to feel as if something had suddenly attacked her. Just when I thought something was wrong, Jupiter, who was supposed to be in the living room, suddenly hugged me to my chest.

"Wait a minute, Jupiter?"

When I said this impatiently, Jupiter muttered as he touched his cheek.

"Mom is the warmest and most comfortable."

Hearing this, Asuna's heart welled up with love and gently stroked Jupiter's silver hair. In this way, although Jupiter is not even a related mother, he calls himself a mother, is very kind to him, holds him, sleeps with him, and is very warm. In my opinion, it would be a mistake to say that AI is present in the game.

"No, it's AI, but it doesn't matter if it's AI or a game." Jupiter is definitely my son. Asuna thought so and hugged Jupiter's tiny body.

"That's right. I'm as passionate as Lilan. Jupiter knew. ”

"Hey, hey, hey"

Jupiter rubbed his cheek against his chest again, looking comfortable. However, immediately afterward, Asuna felt the weight that was not Jupiter, and was taken aback for a moment, and then turned her face to Jupiter's. Next to Jupiter is a dark-haired maiden Yui, who hugs him as much as Jupiter.

\"You, Xiaoyou!? \"

Indeed, Miss Asuna was also very welcoming. \"

Asuna smiled wryly and stroked Yui's head. It was as soft as silk and had a distinctly different texture to the touch than Jupiter's hair.

"Come on, you two don't use me as a heater."

Asuna smiled awkwardly, and Yuki said to Asuna with a look of uncertainty.

"Oh, it's a kid like Asuna, after all. I think I can see why Ms. Alice is recruiting a childcare teacher. \"

\"Wait, there is a discipline\"

Indeed, when I walked on the first floor, I was often greeted by children who came to me, and for some reason, when I first went to Alice's church, I was greeted by them. And until now, I have not been rejected by Yui, and Jupiter has become like my son. Lately, Asuna has felt like there's something about her that kids love.

"I wonder if the kids like me that much."

Lilan, whose mane and fur have become messy due to Yui and Jupiter's play, makes a "sound".

"You have a good heart. Your kindness will guide the children.

"I even lead the kids.

"That's it. Everyone is leading by you and trying to move forward. Because of your guidance, everyone can move forward with peace of mind. You should be proud of it. ”

"Leading others, I thought I wasn't fit to be a leader"

"Not really. You have the qualities of guiding people, but you also have kindness and warmth. That's why everyone will try to follow you, and Jupiter will also become attached to you. If you're arrogant, Jupiter won't fall in love with you, even if people follow you.

Asuna closed her eyes, remembering what she had been. When I was chained by my parents and bent on returning to the real world, I was called a strategy demon. If I were like then, people might follow me, but Jupiter wouldn't have taken me for his mother, and I wouldn't have approached him in the first place.

"But Lilan changed me."

"I'm not alone. The most important thing is that you yourself try to stop it. If you reject me completely, I can't do anything.

"Maybe so, even so, your words are still very convincing, you have also become my strength, and now I want to help you, but"

Lilan tilted her head.

"What's wrong?"

"Run again, do you remember anything?

Until now, Lilan has continued to move forward without losing her memory. According to Kirito, the first time he met Lilan, he hit her head with a sword several times, causing her memories to go blank, but at the same time, if he continues to climb the castle, maybe one day he will regain his memory.

However, despite climbing so far, Lilanne doesn't seem to have regained her memory, and Kirito has never said anything like that.

"Unfortunately, my memories will never be restored. Although I feel like one day I will be able to get it back.

"By the way, how can I restore Lilan's memory?"

At this time, Ariki said a sentence as if in a flash of inspiration.

"I wonder if everyone should hit Lilan on the head.

Lilan replied with a surprised look on her face.

"Don't stop! If you hit me on the head, my memory of you will be gone! \"

"Hehe, just kidding, sure enough, I didn't want to hit Lilan on the head!"

When Yuki waved her palm impatiently, Lilan sighed helplessly.

However, I can't help but worry about the content of Lilan's memories of spending time together and fighting together, not the content of the hundred-story Golden Jade Palace. Who the hell is Lilan and what did Lilan do? Paddy field.

"Mother"

"Hey, Jupiter."

"I'm hungry"

Asuna looked at the clock in surprise. The time is already 18:30. This is my usual time for dinner.

"No, it's time for dinner, I'll go get ready."

Asuna stood up, Yui said.

"I'm looking forward to seeing how it's different from my mother's cooking."

Asuna replied with a smile on her face.

"I'm the one who taught Jie Jie's mom to cook, so I'm sure she'll be surprised!"

After answering, Asuna's eyes reflected Yui's expectant smile and she walked towards the kitchen.

70th Floor East: 12 midnight.

There was almost silence around the village, no players except us, not even NPCs were sleeping. There were no villagers outside, only the sound of trees and grass being blown by the wind.

However, in the inn room, only us unnatural objects make sounds. It rings only in this room, and often makes sounds that come and go in this room.

"Ahhhh

A high-pitched, sweet, glossy voice that you wouldn't normally make at all. Her voice was audible only to me, and I was the only one of the six thousand who didn't wear anything.

I couldn't help but feel the shine and charm in her expression that only I could see.

"Shino"

Shouting her name, sliding her hand so as not to hurt her soft, fair skin, she jumped in surprise when she touched where she was reacting. I thought my skin was damaged, but I found out that her voice wasn't.

\"Kirito, hello, hello\"

"She's accepted me." But even so, when I let go of my hand to touch her like this, I felt uneasy, because I gave her an extreme discomfort and pain that should not have existed.

Even when I heard her voice, I couldn't shake the uneasiness, so I stopped and called out to her, who was having trouble breathing.

"Shino, are you alright?"

She opened her eyes softly, and my black eyes reflected me.

\"I'm sorry because Kirito is kind\"

She put her hand on my cheek and just smiled. You can feel the softness and warmth on your cheeks.

"But I'm a little scared that I won't hurt so easily, and the shoulder relaxes a little"

I nodded to her, relaxed my shoulders a little, and touched her skin again. She twitched, moving her body, but finally made a calm and calm face and held out her hand to me.

"Kirito, hug me. \"

"Got it"

I gently put my hands on her body and hugged her. At this point, she shouted with her mouth closed and put her hands on my back. She called out to me as I touched her soft skin with the palm of my whole hand and felt its warmth, breathing a little heavily.

"Kirito, tell me what you saw in your dreams. \"

"Yesterday's dream?"

\"yes. That's when I was back in the real world. When I woke up, I didn't find Ian Grant's home, but the real world, my home in Tokyo. That's where I looked for Kirito. Where, where? ”

Her voice weakened.

"But no matter where I look, whether it's into the city, into the back alleys, or into the buildings, I can't find you." When I realized this, I couldn't stop screaming. I woke up when I screamed in my dream. ”

Her hugging hands became more powerful.

"When I woke up, you weren't there. I can't help myself, I found you, but I can't get rid of my anxiety about you, I ask you to do it."

I instinctively turned my face to her. She turned her face to me, too, but her eyes were full of tears.

\"In this way, you will feel that Kirito is alive and be able to feel his warmth\"

She smiled wryly with tears in the corners of her eyes.

"I couldn't, I thought I wanted to be strong, but I couldn't get strong at all. On the contrary, I was spoiled by you, and I was thinking, when you are gone, if I go, I will be scared and unbearable."

When I looked into her eyes, I felt my heart burn and my whole body ached.

"She's usually very mature and calm." So much so that they don't need my help or be protected by me.

But the truth is that she is very dependent on me and even dreams about me. The thought of this made my heart beat even harder, and my whole body ached.

"She lives with me, but she depends on me." It was supposed to be bad, but now it feels good.

"But that's all I can say." Even for me, my heart is still fragile and I can't rely on her with peace of mind.

\"Me too, Shino. The thought of you disconnecting or disappearing from my sight due to a medicuboid glitch scares me and I can't control it. I'm just like you. Everybody says I'm strong, I'm strong, and I want to be strong, but I also rely on you in a lot of ways...... I've created a wall and I have to overcome myself. I'm not good either. ”

"She couldn't hide her surprise at what I didn't expect."

"But I don't think it's a good idea to continue spoiling you. If you feel the same way."

"Now, I might just want to keep it the way it is."

"Ugh"

I turned to face her. She continued.

"Even back in the real world, we agreed to be together, but I don't know where Kirito lives or when we'll see each other again. Besides, we broke up in SAo, but this is the last time, and I may never see you again, so I want to spoil you.

"Impossible, I think"

She whispered in my ear.

"So, unless there's something special, I'll not consider relying on you anymore. Even me, who jumped out of a dream to hug you, may not be convincing. But "

"Indeed, unless there is something special, she will not be spoiled by me, if nothing happens, she is also mature, she will not let me worry about her, she is a down-to-earth girl."

（... ）

"Maybe I'm the one who gets spoiled." Because she was strong and emotionally supportive, I couldn't help but pet her.

"Even so, it's not like I don't want to be spoiled by you, and now, if I do, I'll be able to forget everything I've ever done with a gun and be trapped in the game. But I can forget everything you might lose."

"She met me."

"I try not to be spoiled by you too often, I try not to be spoiled too much by you. I think I want you to forget everything, just this once."

"When I was told this, I immediately wanted to do the same." I found out that I was already spoiled by her, so I had to be careful not to spoil her anymore.

"If I'm too dependent on her, I'm definitely going to put an extra burden on her." The burden of this world is close to death - I must protect her so that she can live and not be a burden until she escapes this castle. I swore when I confessed to her.

However.

"It doesn't matter. Only this time there was an exception. Shiina, please take care of me as much as possible. It's not a good thing to say, but let me rest assured. I want to forget about it. \"

"It doesn't matter. Because it's you."

She gasped slightly and whispered to me again.

\"Kirito do it again really, until I'm exhausted\"

"As you wish, my princess Yuichi"

I got a little carried away and covered her cherry-colored lips with my own lips and continued to warm her.

Only when she has been living in the ice and snow world is warm, let her be spoiled, and at the same time be spoiled by her. Because I also get warmth from her. While thinking like this, I gave her warmth and continued to accept it. Until you're really tired.

◇◇◇

The strong sunlight shone on my eyelids and I woke up, but I immediately closed my eyes. I had the illusion that my eyes would really turn into fried eggs because of too much sunlight.

When my eyes adjusted to the brightness, when I finally opened my eyes, I noticed the presence in front of me.

"Shino"

\"Good morning, Kirito. You woke up late. \"

"Oh, good morning"

She, Shina, was awake, but she was still standing motionless in front of me.

\"In other words, Shino got up early??? \"

"yes, about fifteen minutes faster than you."

"What's that? I think I woke up almost an hour early. ”

"I don't get up that early. Today is not my usual day. ”

When I moved my right hand to open the window, it was already 8:30 a.m.

Shino usually wakes up about an hour earlier than me, but according to the story, Shino wakes up 15 minutes earlier than me, which is 8:15. Compared to Shino in peace, she overslept a lot.

Indeed, the usual poet would get up around seven thirty o'clock.

"Yes"

That's when I turned my attention to Shino's body, and then I understood. Although he was covered with a quilt, he didn't look like he was wearing anything. This may not have abolished the code of ethics either.

Or poetry. Haven't you changed your clothes yet? \"

"Yes, I want to feel your warmth until you leave. And, I don't want the sound of changing clothes to wake you up. ”

"I see, let's change our clothes now, shall we?"

"I will."

With that, we got up from the futon, re-equipped, and returned the moral code to Shino, and me, Kirito as always, and Shiina, who was wearing a hoodie and shorts. I am back.

"Then, Shino. What are we going to do today? Do we still enjoy this layer? \"

Shino folded her arms.

"So, I want to know what's going on. Springfield has had a tough turn, and it's time for Yui and Lilan to start complaining, so let's go home, right? ”

"Of course, Shino and I are enjoying this kind of trip right now. Yui and Lilan, who didn't make it, began to complain at Asuna's house.

I couldn't help but laugh when Yui's puffy face came to my mind, saying that it was cheating to only enjoy the trip with my mom and dad.

\"yes. Yui and Lilan will soon start complaining to us, and with Jupiter, Asuna, who is in charge of Yui and Lilan, may also be exhausted, so let's go pick them up. \"

Shino nodded.

Leaving the hotel means that the era of being spoiled by Shino is over, and the era of Shino being spoiled by me is over. In order not to add to the burden, I had to do my best.

"Alright, then let's go back to Yui and Lilan. \"

"Ugh"

I took Shino out of the room, went downstairs, finished breakfast, and continued along the cherry blossom forest road in Springfield, where the season had stopped, to the 70th floor of the city, and then to the portal. Go through the 56th floor where Asuna's house is located.

So we put on the gear we received from Heathcliff and made our way through the crowd that Springfield didn't have. A 56-story city is like an aristocratic district, with luxurious houses lined up one after another, like palaces. Maybe it's because I've been to Springfield, a place where there are almost no people or artifacts, and I feel like I'm in a completely different world.

"It feels like you've come to another world."

"Shino, do you think so too? \"

"yes. I mean, do you think so too? ”

"Ah, coming from such a place to such an aristocratic town, it seems that the world has changed, and it should be in the same world."

"Even so, we still live in this world, but that fact hasn't changed."

"Required"

Chatting about these trivial matters as we walked, we came to the lake and eventually to Asuna's house nearby.

In the real world, some sounds can be heard inside the house, but the buildings in the game have special soundproofing, so the sounds of the children inside cannot be heard.

"Is Asuna there, Asuna? \"

As I was looking forward to seeing my daughter and partner for the first time of the day, I knocked on the front door and a few seconds later the door opened. I thought Asuna would come to greet me, but it turned out to be a silver-haired, blue-eyed child much shorter than Asuna, Jupiter.

\"Kirito Shin, Sister Shino\"

He bent down slightly and stroked Jupiter's head, who looked pleased.

"Oh, Jupiter, how are you?"

As Jupiter nodded, something behind him "plopped" at us. Before I could see it, it jumped into Shino's chest next to me. That was the first time I saw it, and I was immediately relieved.

"Mom, go home."

Jumping into Shino's chest was Yui, who Asuna took care of, and had just come to pick her up.

\"I'm back, Yui. Are you causing trouble for Asuna? \"

"It doesn't matter. Miss Asuna, Miss Araki, Miss Jupiter, and Lilan all survived uneventful. \"

If Yui had been like this, nothing would have happened - I thought, and when I looked inside the house, I found Lilan, who was going to pick her up like Yui. But Lilan wasn't alone, he was on Asuna's shoulder. Next to Asuna is Aki.

\"Replay, Asuna, Araki, we're back. \"

Asuna said with a smile.

"That's a good place, isn't it?"

"It's not mediocre, it's really good. It's a great place to hide. ”

Ariki said with a smile.

"A city with a lot of people is good, but remote villages with no one are even more attractive.

"The border village is a strange metaphor.

Asuna turned to face Yui.

Yui-chan is also a good girl.

If it's Yui and Jupiter, it's true that Yui has a relatively high mental age and knows a lot of things. According to Alice, Yui was born later, and Jupiter can be said to be Yui's older brother, but now looking at the two, Yui is the older sister and Jupiter is the younger brother.

"So, the two of us can touch my hair as much as we want. Thanks to you, everything is messed up. \"

At this point, I noticed that Lilan's fur was worse than usual and had become like a bed bug. Of course, if such a young Jupiter touched it, it was only natural for such a thing to happen. Do I need to brush it when I get home?

"Lilan, thank you for protecting Yupiter and Yui."

"Hehe, thank you even more. One day, I was forced to go through something more severe than the battle.

"Okay"

Imagining the moment when Lilan was turned into Yui and Jupiter's toy, he inadvertently smiled wryly, and the expression on his face was calm.

\"Then again, Kirito. The expression on your face is pretty refreshing, but now, is something good happening? \"

\"yes. Asuna told me that the place was better than I thought. Next time I'll take you with Yui. \"

"Oh, that's funny"

Shino shouted at Yui.

"I think Yui and Lilan will love it there.

Yui said "yes" and rubbed Shino's chest with her cheek.

"Then again, we can't talk to Asuna's door all the time. "It's been a day, but I have to go home.

"Then Asuna, thank you Yui and Lilan.

"Thank you very much Kirito-kun for having a great time here. Next time, please bring Yui with you. \"

"Oh. See you later."

With that, I put Lilan on my shoulders and waved to Asuna and Yuki, preparing to leave, when a message suddenly appeared. It seems that it was also sent to Asuna, and the two inadvertently came face to face.

"What is this, sending two messages at the same time?"

I paused, unfolded the email, and read its contents. The sender was Heathcliff, and it read, "I'm going to have a boss strategy meeting, so please go to the Knights of the Blood Council as soon as possible." "Apparently, over the past day, the capture team advanced to the boss room and met the boss.

"The summons of the boss battle meeting?"

\"Did you receive the same thing from Kirito-kun?" \"

I turned to face Asuna. \"

"Sent by Heathcliff. Does Asuna also have the same name? \"

"Yes, the leader also asked me to participate in the boss battle strategy meeting."

"I put my hand on my chin and thought." I thought about it many times, and as I told others, the current number of floors is 75, and 100 floors are divided into 4 layers, and this number has become a milestone. In this milestone, there is a boss that is extremely powerful compared to other floors, and you are actually forced to fight to the death.

"The fact that Asuna and I were summoned this time shows that the boss we found is very powerful, and there is nothing we can do unless we are good at it, so we have to ask you guys. "Come on. ”

"Let's go, I'm sure I've found a ridiculously strong boss."

"yes. It must be so. ”

Yuki, who was listening to me, shouted at me with a slightly serious expression.

\"I'll go too. Kirito and Asuna are summoned, which means that something unusual has happened. \"

Next, Shino also made the same expression as Yuki.

"Of course I'll follow you, I don't feel good about it at all."

"So do I. Hurry up and ask what's going on. Yui, may I ask you about Jupiter? ”

Yui moved her body away from Shiina's chest and nodded at me.

"Let me handle this"

Asuna immediately turned around, sat down, and looked at a worried Jupiter.

"Jupiter, mom is going out for a while, can Yui stay at home with you?"

Jupiter nodded weakly.

"It's okay."

Asuna smiled and hugged Jupiter's body.

"Wait for me, I'll be back as soon as possible"

After confirming that Jupiter nodded in her chest, Asuna let go of Jupiter's body and stood up.

"Let's go, let's go. Headquarters of the Knights of the Blood Oath. ”

As soon as Asuna's words came out, everyone except Yui and Jupiter ran towards the city portal.