7 The Little Sister
I was a bit skeptical about this member called the Spider-Girl, but I realized who she was after trying to remember a few animes from my past life.
That was interesting at least.
I know none of them are hostile, and I got a full picture of their world's current setting.
Now then... We kept on chatting for a month without any of the predicted "Missions" that any dimensional group chat fictions usually have... well, they may have a slight change of plans, but I'll need to prepare nevertheless.
Cliché. It is a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.
A colossal tower appears in our modern world, Everyone gains a holographic system that tracks their power in the form of statistic numbers, and celestial beings watch your life as if you are merely a character inside the TV screen.
Sometimes the Constellations will offer you a "sponsorship" as if you are a streamer in this shitty game we call life.
[The Forgotten Dragon King is intrigued by you]
[The Monarch of the Beginning is astonished by you]
[The Monkey King is wondering how you are able to get out of the castle quickly]
[The Goddess of Night is cursing at you]
[A nameless deity is offering you a sponsorship]
[Would you like to accept their sponsorship? Y/N]
"No"
[Nameless Deity is angered by your actions]
Shut up, I'm narrating the story.
Anyway...
I wonder what Kirito thinks about this.
And so, I called him via the chat system.
[BallsDeep69: did you get any strange messages lately?]
He's not responding... Oh well, I'll leave it for later.
This was a part of my blunder...
"Hiromi... I won't be able to go out for a while."
The missing people are currently being reported by their own families. So Hiromi reported the fact that I am a player to the government.
Of course, it didn't go smoothly since there are players who lived by themselves before getting dragged to Aincrad.
"Ah... I- I'm sorry about that, Onii-sama..." (Hiromi)
"No no, it's fine..." Truthfully I too, just want to stay home like a hikkikomori.
But something else came across my mind...
"Hiromi..."
"Un?"
..."do you... Want to become a player?"
[The Monarch Of The Beginning is intrigued by your choice]
[The Monkey King is excited to see the next outcome]
There's no denying that common sense will start to slowly change by the time Aincrad appears in our world.
In the next 2 years, Players will be viewed as a hero of sorts. Someone who would fight the monsters that invade the earth.
Too much manhwa has made the same damn cliché plot.
But that doesn't mean everything was set in stone either.
Those are the sparkling gems of Korean manhwas, the fact that the cliché plot takes place did not drag down the variation of personality a main character can have.
Either the main character is a transmigrator, Reincarnator, Returner, or even an actual character that rose through the ranks with hard work... The plot twists will punch you hard enough for you to face the fact that it's not like any other clichés.
But... I am not a Returner.
My knowledge of SAO is basically useless.
And the only cheat I have is the Group chat, even though there is a huge chance this whole catastrophe was created by the same guy.
So the only way for me to actually protect Hiromi was not to drive her away from the dangers.
Rather... I should make Hiromi powerful enough that no one would ever dare to lay a hand on her.
"...yes." I feel conflicted with her words.
I might want to make her so strong, but in the process, anything can happen.
But what should I do now that she already said yes?
Even though I brought the issue out, I actually hoped her to deny it.
I don't know what she's thinking right now, but for one fact I know that... There is determination in her eyes.
"I see... I won't force you to change your goal but... I'd want you to at least wait. That's right... Currently, I am the only player that has escaped Aincrad. I have more levels, more experience, and unique skills..."
Thankfully, only low leveled monsters came out through the dungeons by this point. But that may change in the future.
"I checked my NerveGear in my room... It was still there..." (Akihito)
"Uh?" (Hiromi)
"So I put Pochi to sleep, and made him wear the NerveGear." (Akihito)
"Eh?" (Hiromi)
"Then I put him inside the game remotely with my PC"
"WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT! Pochi!?? Wasn't that our neighbor's dog's name????" (Hiromi)
"Yes." (Akihito)
"Huh!!????" (Hiromi)
"So anyway, it didn't end well. He disappeared, and I found him back at Aincrad's first floor with the system floating in front of him while he barked at me non-stop."
I never liked that dog anyway...
"Don't do something like that to someone else's pet!!!"
Hiromi sternly shouted at my flat face.
[The Hound That Guards The Gates Of Underworld is expressing his discontent towards you]
Well, it was a nice experiment...
"Well don't worry about it... I carried him until the floor boss, and tried my best to make him pick the option to leave Aincrad afterward."
If you go outside to our neighbor's backyard, you'd see a Shiba Inu running around with a midnight coat stuck on his back.
But what does that have anything to do with me amirite?
Anyway...
"With this experiment, I concluded that we can become players through using the NerveGear. However... Hiromi, I'd like you to keep your goals to yourself until everything has been taken care of." (Akihito)
"Wha-- what do you mean...?" (Hiromi)
"I want you to wait till the players in Aincrad finally made their way out by defeating the first floor's boss."
The worst-case scenario would be the government making a rule that all players should be registered as one. Even though there are a few advantages I could gain from that, it would be too dangerous for Hiromi.
By waiting, I would rush Hiromi's level as a player till the boss was subjugated then make my own guild for Hiromi to enter.
Of course... That doesn't mean I can't start training her now.
"For now... Accept this." (Akihito)
*Ding*
Hiromi's smartphone ranged.
[Administrator Y has invited you to the Dimensional Group Chat. Accept? Y/N]
"Eh?"
.
.
.
[Administrator Y just shared a skill]
.
.
.
["The Little Sister" has joined the server]
"Okay, now buy that and this..." (Akihito)
"Huh? Is this it?" (Hiromi)
[Would you like to buy a copy of the skill, 『One-Handed Sword: Horizontal』for 3 Compendium Points? Y/N]
[Compendium Points in possession: 5]
"Now tapped on Yes."
*Ding*
"Kyaaa!?"
At that moment, SAO's menu manifested in front of her.
[Aincrad has acknowledged your determination. You have awakened as a player]
[Welcome, to sword art online]
Interesting... What would've happened if I told her to buy Jin Woo's skill first earlier?
"There's... There's a screen here..." (Hiromi)
"Yeah, I can see that too. That's your SAO menu. I'll briefly explain this to you... Except for the health points that you can see in your left corner, you can only choose Strength or Agility when leveling up.
However, if you read carefully, other stats are mentioned that are hidden or boosted only by items. This includes Vitality and Luck.
For the rest, they are stats of weapon proficiencies. Either chose one of them to be your main and invest in all points on them or change a weapon from time to time."
"Un... I think I understand. I have this 'One-handed sword' more than the others though..." (Hiromi)
"That's probably because you gained my skill above leveling up first. From now on I will teach you a one-handed sword daily in the basement. Using skills are great and all, but you should know how to actually use a one-handed sword in combat." (Akihito)
"It's not known to everyone but... From my experience, you can increase your proficiency without adding the points from leveling up, you can simply train with a weapon until the system recognizes your skills to be sufficient enough." (Akihito)
"I understand..."
Good... Now that it is done...
I guess I'll have to get back to Aincrad for a bit...
.
.
.
[Showing The Little Sister's skills]
• [One-Handed Sword: Horizontal] (C)
• [Sprint] (C)
[Compendium Points in possession: 1]
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.
.
To be continued.
