Orange Juice Trio and I am Elf

"Gives you!" Finally, Tetsuya took down the book from the bookshelf and handed it to Eriri. He had observed Eriri's strong attachment to this book, and being classmates, he couldn't leave her to struggle alone in obtaining it.

"Snort." Seeing Tetsuya deliver the book, the anger in Eriri's eyes gradually dissipated. She tilted her head back, emitting an arrogant hum/snort, and said, "Well, since you took the book, I guess I won't waste your efforts by buying it."

To Tetsuya's surprise, he found himself face to face with a tsundere character, a staple of anime. These words left Tetsuya with a bitter smile.

"Hey, help me buy it." At that moment, Eriri took out 10,000 Japanese Yen from her pocket, along with the book, and whispered to Tetsuya.

"Why don't you buy it yourself?" Tetsuya was left speechless.

Eriri blushed and retorted, "You, you fellow! I'm asking you to go for me!"

Tetsuya received the book and money, looking at Eriri strangely, he asked, "Aren't you embarrassed to buy the book yourself?"

"Snort, worst case scenario, I'll treat you to a fruit juice." "Deal!"

Under the persuasion of a cup of fruit juice, Tetsuya decided to assist Eriri in purchasing the book. He went out, gave Eriri the remaining money and books, and after she put the book in her bag, she left the bookstore contentedly.

"I'm too embarrassed to buy the book myself, so I brought this black handbag to conceal it..." Tetsuya glanced at the black handbag Eriri was holding, wanting to voice his thoughts. However, being a book artist, he understood the embarrassment it would cause if their classmates found out. Tetsuya knew that he hadn't completed his mission yet, but he wasn't worried. After all, he was acquainted with Eriri, they were in the same class, and if Eromanga-sensei refused to provide him with illustrations, he could find a way to ask Eriri instead. He knew that on the first day of seeking help for illustration, it could easily be misconstrued as intentional closeness.

"Should we look for Asuna now?" Eriri suddenly asked.

Rolling his eyes in response to Eriri's question, Tetsuya pointed at the vending machine in front and said, "Sawamura Ojou-sama, what did you forget?"

"I-I know, didn't I forget to buy a cold drink?"

With Tetsuya's reminder, Eriri clenched her teeth and approached the vending machine, not convinced. She looked at Tetsuya and said, "What drink do you want?"

While speaking these words, Eriri feared that Tetsuya would misunderstand her intentions. She added, "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only repaying you for helping me buy the book. I'm not asking you for a drink due to any other reason."

"Do I look like I care? Three-dimensional tsundere girls aren't cute!" Tetsuya rolled his eyes.

The tsundere archetype appeared cute in the world of two-dimensional characters, but in reality, it wasn't appealing. For instance, Tetsuya had seen Louis from the anime "Zero Caused Demon," and if she were in the three-dimensional world, most people probably wouldn't choose her as a girlfriend due to the difficulties associated with a tsundere personality. Naturally, when it came to choosing a girlfriend, as long as there was one, anything would suffice. However, Yuuki Asuna possessed all the qualities of an ideal wife, making her the best choice among three-dimensional girls.

"Get me some orange juice," Tetsuya said thoughtlessly.

"Huh?" Eriri's eyes flickered with astonishment. She looked at Tetsuya and asked, "Have you investigated me? Did you intentionally come to Akihabara today?"

"Did I investigate you?" Tetsuya was somewhat surprised.

"Snort, then how did you know that I like orange juice? And do you know my real identity?" Eriri carefully examined Tetsuya, asking.

"Blonde classmate with twin-tails, I happen to like drinking orange juice. And I know your name because I accidentally saw your information on Asuna's cell phone that day," Tetsuya helplessly shrugged, stating the facts.

"Hey, don't just call me by my name!" Eriri pursed her lips and complained. She then turned around and retrieved two bottles of orange juice she had prepared in her bag. As she was about to pay, she suddenly realized, "Oh no, I forgot to ask what Asuna likes."

"As a good friend, don't you know that?" Tetsuya stared at her with wide eyes. He found it hard to believe that Eriri, Kashiwagi Eri, didn't know what Asuna liked, as if she had become so focused on drawing Asuna's book. As long as it became a book, Eriri would be satisfied with Asuna.

"Aren't you the same?" Eriri retorted, glaring at Tetsuya. "I only discovered what Asuna likes when I visited her house last week during family time. How could I have known all this time?"

"In that case, get her a cup of orange juice too," Tetsuya could only say helplessly.

"Okay." Eriri finally bought a cup of orange juice as well.

Returning to where Tetsuya and Asuna had separated, Asuna stood at the entrance, looking for the two of them. She was about to take out her cellphone to make a call when Tetsuya and Eriri appeared in front of her.

"Asuna!" Eriri's face brightened with joy at the sight of Yuuki Asuna. She raised the fruit juice and ran over, her attitude towards Tetsuya completely transformed.

Seeing Eriri's actions, Yuuki Asuna immediately relaxed and couldn't help but ask, "Eriri, Tetsuya? Where did you go earlier? And how did you come back now?"

"Oh, we ran into a classmate earlier, so we chatted for a bit. Sorry for making you wait," Eriri quickly replied before Tetsuya had a chance to speak.

"It's alright," Yuuki Asuna shook her head.

Young ladies, don't you feel guilty?

Tetsuya looked at Eriri with a speechless expression, but he had no interest in revealing other people's secrets and had no desire to speak the truth.

"Hey, watch your language!" Detected Tetsuya's gaze, Eriri stared at him and then turned around, taking out a bottle of orange juice from her bag. She smiled and changed the subject, "By the way, Asuna, this is the fruit juice I bought for you."

"Thank you." Yuuki Asuna expressed her gratitude and accepted the fruit juice. A hint of joy flashed in her eyes as she said, "Eriri, how did you know that I like orange juice?"

Eriri blinked and pointed at Tetsuya behind her, saying, "He helped me choose it."

Blushing, Yuuki Asuna thanked Tetsuya, saying, "Schoolmate Tetsuya, thank you."

"Oh... it's no problem," Tetsuya shook his head. He realized that both he and Eriri liked orange juice, so he chose it without much thought. Unexpectedly, Asuna happened to like it too, leading to this surprising turn of events.

Tetsuya couldn't help but feel like Asuna was looking at him differently, as if he had intentionally investigated her interests.

...

Then, the three of them continued browsing the bookstore in Akihabara. Tetsuya seemed to be quite familiar with the types of best-selling light novels in this world, thinking about what book to read after finishing Accel World. However, compared to the next book, Tetsuya contemplated other ways to make money. It seemed that Eriri's picture book would likely attract more gentlemen.

Tetsuya admitted that he didn't know much about the previous generation's books, such as * or Ghost Father.

At that moment, they stumbled upon a café.

"A Maid Café?"

Such a simple and straightforward name for a café!

Tetsuya widened his eyes. He had seen many cafés in his previous life, but it was the first time he came across a name like that. He couldn't help but feel curious. It was estimated that the café would feature beautiful young girls dressed as maids, surely attracting many gentlemen to visit Akihabara.

But certainly not me...

______________________________

"Maid Cafe?"

Tetsuya thought to himself. In a place like Akihabara, where otaku culture thrived, he expected the prices at such a café to be quite high. Even if he wanted to visit, a café with such a name might be too expensive for an average person. He couldn't afford to spend freely and needed to save money for his own frugal lifestyle.

It seemed like he would have to work hard at his part-time job in the Food Department on Monday to earn some extra money. Fortunately, he could enjoy free meals at the restaurant, which would help increase his income.

In the afternoon, Yuuki Asuna invited Tetsuya to Eriri's home. The three of them decided to stop window-shopping in Akihabara and returned to the car. Asuna and Eriri sat in the back while Tetsuya took the front seat. The car sped along, and within a few minutes, they arrived at their destination.

"We're here, this is it," Tetsuya pointed to the house's garden.

"This is your home?" Yuuki Asuna looked slightly surprised as she observed the two small buildings outside the car. Housing prices in Japan were generally high, so having a house not far from Akihabara was a sign of a good standard of living. Moreover, Tetsuya's house had its own garden, resembling a small villa.

"Yes, this is it. If you have time, feel free to come and visit. You're always welcome," Tetsuya opened the car door and stood outside.

In truth, this was the only house he had left. With the memories of the previous owner fused with his own, he felt a sense of discomfort upon learning about his parents' passing. However, now that he had grown up, he couldn't show those emotions in front of his younger sister anymore. Nevertheless, he couldn't bear to sell these two houses, which held sentimental value, even if he faced financial difficulties.

"Sure, I'll come visit when I have the time," Asuna smiled faintly. She handed Tetsuya the two game devices she had placed behind her and said, "Here, these are yours."

"Thank you. See you tomorrow, Yuuki-san, and Sawamura, my classmate," Tetsuya received the game devices and bid farewell to the two.

"See you tomorrow!"

"Who wants to see you tomorrow?" Eriri naturally retorted, her words reflecting her honest nature. Tetsuya couldn't help but smile wryly. She was a tsundere through and through, and he had grown accustomed to her personality. After watching the car drive away, he swept a glance towards Gabriel's room.

"Hmm, he cleaned half of the garden yesterday, but he didn't clean it today. Baymax also drew the curtains. I wonder where he went," Tetsuya furrowed his brows. However, he couldn't be bothered by the meddling little angel and turned around to open the door and enter his room.

"I'm back!" Upon entering the room, Tetsuya heard a voice from the building. He understood immediately and went into the kitchen to prepare some golden fried rice for his younger sister, Sagiri. After satisfying his own hunger, he entered his room and followed the instructions to set up the game devices.

Actually, connecting the game devices was quite simple—just plug in the cables and supply power. According to the instructions, this game contained countless signal programs buried within the device, forming multiple electromagnetic fields. These signals directly connected to the user's brain, bypassing the senses of sight and sound, and transmitted virtual sensory experiences directly to the brain, creating a virtual space. The user's electronic signals were also sent through the brain, allowing the in-game character to react. Even though the character could perform various actions in the virtual space, the real world wouldn't respond.

"This is quite different from traditional VR games," Tetsuya thought curiously as he wore the game devices on his head.

"Let's give it a try. This game promises to surpass the VR experience!" Tetsuya lay on his bed, closed his eyes, and started the game. He felt like he needed to say a few words.

"Link Start!"

Right, this was it!

...

Although Tetsuya hadn't completed the character customization, the instructions in the manual mentioned that players could set up their accounts ahead of time and start playing directly when the customization phase began.

The next moment, Tetsuya's world underwent a drastic change. A breathtaking scene unfolded before his eyes. He stood in the vast sky, looking down at a towering city constructed of rock and steel that seemed to float in the clouds.

The floating city of Aincrad!

Just like the promotional pictures on the official site, but now it appeared before Tetsuya as a real scene, as if he were experiencing it firsthand.

Information about the floating spatial castle came to Tetsuya's mind. The massive castle contained numerous floors, each resembling a metropolis with streets, villages, prairies, forests, and other perilous areas. Staircases connected the high and low floors, but they were often guarded by dangerous monsters, forcing players to rely on the weapons in their hands to explore these floors and defeat the protective beasts known as "bosses."

Some players had managed to clear up to the 100th floor in this game.

Apart from battling monsters, this world also had features like forging and leatherworking, tailoring, fishing, cooking, and music. Players could experience a variety of daily activities in addition to taking risks. It was exactly as described in the promotional material—a life in a virtual world.

"What an amazing game..."

The stunning visuals far surpassed any VR game Tetsuya had ever played. Perhaps this game was truly the start of his new life.

"Finally, master, you remember me! I'm awake!"

At that moment, a delightful female voice from complained discontentedly in Tetsuya's mind.

Hearing the voice, Tetsuya found it strangely familiar and couldn't help but look around, asking, "Who is speaking to me?"

However, he didn't see anyone standing beside him. Instead, it seemed like the words were coming from inside his mind.

"It's me, your system elf!"

"System elf?" Tetsuya exclaimed in astonishment. "SAO, the game I never expected to be so advanced, actually gives each player a system elf to treat as a pet? Allowing everyone to be their master?"

"No, you misunderstood! I am your fantasy system elf!"

"Ah, so my system has an elf? Like a monster?"

"..."