Chapter 31

A sphere of bluish light appeared on the teleport gate of the Corral village at the 22nd floor. After the light was disappeared a few moments later, Asuna could be seen stood there instead.

She looked as though in a hurry because she didn't waste anytime at all after that and ran hurriedly outside the village, right away to the forest and the direction of where Nao's log house was.

She ran with all her might. With gritted teeth and clenched fists, her heart filled with fear and complicated feelings along the way.

Just a few moments before she teleported here, she met with Kirito coincidentally and found out about what actually happens yesterday.

A while after she left the KoB's Headquarters and headed to the teleport gate, Kirito teleported and appeared on the gate just before she could reach it.

Without any ado, she ran straight at him, made him surprised and startled because he stared by the dangerous eyes of her. Just a glance and Kirito knows almost immediately that she was really in a pretty bad mood.

"A-asuna? What's wro-"

"I want to ask you about something. Come with me." She said even before he could said the rest of his words.

She Gripped his collar from the back and dragged him out of the plaza like a bag of potato.

"Wha-?! Wait, what's going on?" He said, couldn't understand what was going on.

But his wail was futile because Asuna kept silent and didn't said anything.

She didn't want to waste the time to explain about the matter to him.

She drags him out of the plaza, until they arrived at a place where no one could heard what they would talking about, she let him go.

"What happened yesterday?" She asked him straight to the point.

"Is Nao-kun really..." She wanted to confirm about what she had just heard from her two guild members but somehow, she couldn't said the rest of her words and it stuck there, inside her throat.

She take a deep breath to calmed herself down, then asked him about that again after felt a bit better. "Is Nao-kun really killed them?" She manage to said the words finally, asked him.

As the words left her mouth and clearly heard by him, Kirito, who was confused about what actually was going on with her, went silent without any words.

He finally understood why, but still didn't said anything and just nodded as the respond to her question.

Asuna already anticipated what his answer would be, so she didn't too surprised because of that. But even if she was already prepared, part of her still couldn't believe it and shock written clearly all over her face.

She closed her eyes and take a deep breath to rearrange her mind after that.

"Tell me what happen." She said to him, want to know about the event in detail.

Asuna was Nao's girlfriend, so Kirito thought that she had a right to know what actually happened yesterday and about what he did. He nodded and started to told her about what happened yesterday, while Asuna silently listened to his story.

Kirito didn't hide anything and told her everything what he knew.

He told her about how they accidentally met Silica in the forest first. How that coincidence became an unexpected factor for them, lead them to the leader of the guild that they are searching for, Rosalia.

After that, he told her about how they lure the guild with the Pneuma flower from the field dungeon. How Nao deliberately leaked the information about the route they would take, by let the one who eavesdropped on them escaped just like that and all.

Finally, he told her about how they got ambushed on their way back after they manage to obtained the flower, what they are talking about at that time, and how all of them got killed by Nao in the end.

He told her everything he knew and didn't left or hide anything from her.

Asuna just silently listened his story the whole time, didn't said anything and let him said what he need to said.

However, her expression changed when the story reach the ambush part. Especially when she heard about Yuna in the story and how Nao's reaction at that time.

"She insulted her?" Asuna asked with a low voice after Kirito finished his story.

Kirito nodded silently made Asuna clenched her fists with unease feelings.

Asuna didn't said anything and Kirito knew the reason, so he said again to add his opinion.

"In my eyes, from the start of everything when we met with the guy five days ago, Nao had a very lack of interest about the matter. How he took the matter lightly, and he even just sat on the side while I was talking with Rosalia in both of our encounters."

"Also," He said again. "I know he didn't had any intention to kill them to begin with. When I said about using a poisoned blade to paralyze them, he said lightly that chopping their legs off would be enough to prevent them from escape. So there isn't the need to paralyze them with with poison, not to mention killed them. That's why...." He stopped before he could said the rest.

'The reason he killed all of them must be because Rosalia insulted Yuna.' was what he want to said, but he didn't because he knew that Asuna understands already.

Asuna was silent and no one know what she was thinking at that time. While Kirito didn't said anything and let her be. No one said anything for a long time after that.

Time passed and after the long silent, Asuna said "Thanks" to Kirito and ran straight to the teleport gate.

Kirito only nodded, understand what she felt. After all he felt a bit unease to because of it.

"He look fine lately and like overcome it already. But it was only from the outside and no one know what actually he feels inside." Kirito said. He sighed while looking at Asuna's back and turn around to leave after some time.

*

Panting hardly along with moist eyes, Asuna headed to the log house direction with all her might as if chased by the death itself.

She didn't want to see that lonely back of his again, her heart screamed. The moist in her eyes trickled down before finally fell down, left on her wake.

There is a considerable distance from the house to the gate and more or less 20 minutes was needed to reach one from the other. But just in a few minutes after she arrived, Asuna could seen the house already and increased her pace.

She arrived there soon after that and the door was opened just right after she reached the porch.

The one who opened it was the owner of the house, Nao who had a worried look could be seen all over his face. He opened his mouth wanted to said something, but even before a word could be said, Asuna jumped at him and hug him tightly.

"What's wrong?" Nao hugged her and said.

But Asuna didn't said anything. Instead, she hugged him more tightly as if she let her guard down even for a moment, he would disappeared into thin air.

Nao knew that she need time, so he let her to calmed her mind first and hug her gently.

"It's alright. I'm here." He said and caressed head softly.

Asuna nodded in his embrace and buried her face on his chest, let out all of her vent up feeling.

From the moment Asuna entered his field of detection field, Nao knows almost immediately that the one who ran at here was her. Normally, he would just let her be and wait until she entered the house herself. But when he realized how in haste she was, he knew that something was off and opened the door himself to ask her what happened.

But looking at how her condition right now, he could guess that something indeed happened, but the immediate action was unnecessary. So he let her be and help her calmed herself down before he could asked about what happened.

They remain like that, hugging each other, for a while, and Asuna finally felt a bit better with him around.

"Are you... alright?" She said in his embrace with a low voice.

"Hm?" Nao tilted his head and blinked his eyes several time with confused look all over his face.

Nao didn't understand why she asked that question. He think that he was the one who should be asked that question and not vice versa.

Asuna knew why he confused, so he said again.

"About yesterday," She said softly. "I know about what happened yesterday." She added afterwards what she meant.

"Are you alright?" She asked again.

Nao a bit surprised with what she said, but also realized what happened with her and smiled happily after that.

"You worried about me?" He asked softly.

Asuna didn't said anything and only nodded as the answer.

"I'm fine. Don't worry." He said and hug her more gently.

"Really?"

"Um!" He nodded.

No one said anything again afterwards and remain like that for a long time. Suddenly, Asuna snapped by the voice of a little girl she heard from inside the house.

"Tou-sama..." The voice said. Asuna lifted her head to looked at the source of the voice.

'Ah! I forgot about that.' Nao thought.

Inside the house, Asuna could seen a little girl with long black hair sat on the sofa. She was hugging Haku like a doll and looked at the both of them, who hug each other at the entrance of the house, with curiosity.

Asuna looked around and could found no one inside but the little girl. She then looked at Nao with a stare that made him somehow uncomfortable.

"Tou-sama?" She said with strange eyes. No one inside the house but the little girl, so the one who she called father 100% must be Nao.

Nao sighed a bit and said to her with a low voice.

"I don't know how she could reach this place, but I found her unconscious in front of the door yesterday, so I took her inside."

"Huh?!" Asuna said unconsciously.

Nao nodded and said again afterwards.

"She regain her consciousness this morning, and said that her name was Yui. But when I asked her about the other things, she couldn't remember anything else." Nao said, made Asuna shocked and looked at Yui with pity after that.

Yui couldn't heard what the two was talking about, so when Asuna looked at her, she simply looked at her back with her childish and innocent expression. Asuna smiled warmly because of the look of her eyes and walked slowly towards her after that.

She crouched down in front of her and said, "Good morning. Yui-chan, right?"

Yui nodded to answer her question, still with her innocent expression and curious eyes.

"I see." Asuna smiled and said.

"Nice to meet you, Yui-chan. My name is Asuna." Asuna said again.

"A-una." Yui said, made Nao who was came at them and stood behind Asuna chuckled.

'Well, let's just straight to the point.' Nao thought and stepped forward.

"Just call her Kaa-sama, then." Nao said with a smile and pat Yui's head gently. He then looked at Asuna and said again, "Right, Kaa-sama?"

Asuna was, of course, surprised by how sudden his words was.

"That-" She wanted to said something about that, but before the words could leave her mouth, "Kaa-sama." Yui said, made her stunned. Asuna turned her head to look at her afterwards and could seen that Yui, who sat there in front of her, looking at her with teary and pleading eyes.

Nao chuckled a bit inside, recalled that it was the same look she used to looked at him before.

Looked by that kind of eyes, Asuna couldn't said anything and her heart melt completely in an instant. She smiled warmly then nodded at her in confirmation.

"Un!" Reached out her hand, she caressed Yui's head gently. "That's right. It's Kaa-sama, Yui-chan." She said.

"Un!! Kaa-sama!" Yui said, smiled brightly and hugs her.

Asuna hugged her too, gently, with a happy smile on her face.

To think that a little girl like her, trapped inside this kind of game, and even right now, she couldn't remember anything but her name, Asuna just couldn't imagine how hard it was for her up to now. But if she become her mother, Asuna thought. At least, Yui wouldn't feel alone anymore and slowly could make her feels better afterwards.

'Also,' Asuna thought with a smile.

"That's unfair you know." Nao said suddenly.

"I want a hug too." He added and hugged the both of them, the mother and daughter together.

Yui laughed cheerfully and hugged him too, while Asuna only pouted and said, "Mou~" at him but smiled after that and rested her head on him.

Her heart filled with happiness. It was feels like as if she had a little family with him, in this warm house with a daughter.

'Family...' She thought, then closed her eyes slowly to enjoy this feelings together with them, her husband and their daughter.