The story rewinds a bit.
That afternoon, after the decision to integrate Aincrad into ALO was finalized, Argo was meticulously examining the Cardinal System under The Seed specifications.
"Man, Kayaba Akihiko was something else…" Argo muttered, staring at the screen. "Told to build this from scratch, I can't even imagine how many years it'd take me."
As she grumbled, her eyes caught a particular program name. Her face paled instantly, and she scrambled to make a call.
A few hours later, Hachiman and Asuna, summoned by Argo, sat at Dicey Café.
"Hey, you two, good to see you," Egil greeted from behind the counter. "Rare to see you at this hour."
"Egil, is Argo here?" Hachiman asked, skipping pleasantries.
"Argo? Nah, not yet. You guys meeting her?"
"Yeah, she called us for something urgent," Asuna said.
"Hmm…" Egil mused.
Just then, the door's bell jingled, and Argo appeared.
"Speak of the devil," Egil said. "You sounded pretty frantic, Argo. What's up?"
"Haa-bo, A-chan, sorry," Argo said, her voice tense. "We've got an unexpected problem."
"Unexpected?" Hachiman said. "Spill it."
The three settled at the counter, and Argo took the lead. "You guys see the news about the next update?"
"Yeah, Aincrad, right?" Hachiman said. "Had to double-check to believe it."
Egil, wiping a glass, chimed in excitedly. "Hell yeah! Blew my mind!"
Argo glanced at Hachiman and Asuna's puzzled faces and explained. "The next update's bringing the Floating Castle Aincrad to ALO."
"I saw that," Hachiman said. "What's the deal? They recreated it from memory or something?"
"Nope, it's the real deal. All hundred floors," Argo said.
"What?!" Asuna gasped.
"No way! What kind of trick did they pull?" Hachiman demanded.
Argo shrugged. "Nothing fancy. They dug into Rect's systems and found Aincrad's data, that's all."
"Damn, that's wild!" Hachiman said.
"Amazing!" Asuna echoed.
Their excitement fizzled with Argo's next words. "But if we go through with it as is, there's a high chance Yui-chan will disappear."
The two froze, minds blank. Then, snapping back, they leaned in. "What do you mean? Why's Yui's name coming up?" Hachiman asked.
"Yeah, what's happening to our daughter?" Asuna pressed.
Argo raised her hands to calm them. "Hold on, let me ask you something. What exactly is Yui-chan?"
"She's our daughter," Hachiman said.
"Our daughter," Asuna echoed.
"Not like that…" Argo said, exasperated. "The Mental Health Counseling Program, Y·Utility·Interface. Ring any bells?"
"That's Yui's formal designation, sure," Hachiman said. "Wait, you don't mean…"
Asuna, familiar with the term but unsure of its implications, looked to Hachiman. "What's going on?"
Hachiman voiced his worst fear. "Don't tell me there's another Yui in that Aincrad data."
"Bingo," Argo said. "Makes sense when you think about it. I just found a blank version of Yui-chan—no self-awareness, just the base program. If Aincrad goes live and ALO's Cardinal System gets replaced with The Seed's version, what do you think happens?"
Hachiman's voice dropped. "They're the same entity… so she'd get overwritten?"
Argo nodded, and Hachiman's shoulders slumped. Asuna, catching on, looked down, tears welling up. After a moment, they both snapped up, glaring at Argo.
"You've got a plan, right? There's a way to fix this!" Hachiman said.
"Argo-san, I trust you! You've got this, right?" Asuna pleaded.
"You think I dragged you here just to drop a death sentence?" Argo said, half-amused. "Chill, you two are way too dramatic."
They sighed in relief.
Egil, who'd been listening quietly, piped up. "Uh, mind filling me in? Is Yui-chan some kind of special entity?"
"Oh, right, we never told you the full story," Hachiman said. "My bad."
"Yeah, we just said she's a high-spec Private Pixie," Egil replied.
"I'll explain to everyone soon, but here's the deal," Hachiman said, diving into Yui's origins.
Egil nodded gravely. "Got it. Yeah, with that setup, overwriting's almost guaranteed."
"Sorry," Argo said. "I should've caught this sooner. Thought it wasn't an issue."
"Nah, I dropped the ball too," Hachiman admitted. "Never really questioned how Yui came back in the first place."
"Same here…" Asuna added.
The four sat in silence, arms crossed, sighing.
"So, what happens to Yui?" Hachiman asked, still wary despite Argo's assurance.
"We'll have to seal her away for a bit," Argo said. "Sorry, but it's the best option."
"Seal her? That'll work?" Hachiman asked.
"Yup. We'll isolate her from the Cardinal System's interference. Meanwhile, we're overhauling the Private Pixie system, tying it to housing. Yui-chan and Kizmel will be linked to that."
"Whoa, Kizmel too?" Asuna exclaimed, surprised.
"Yeah," Argo said. "MMOs always have solo players, right? This isn't just for them, but we wanted a solo-friendly feature. Too much leniency's no good, though, so we're limiting it to players who own a house. They can have up to two Pixies—slightly weaker than themselves—follow them."
"Damn, that's generous," Hachiman said, impressed by the convenient setup.
"You'll need maxed-out proficiency in multiple skills to unlock the second Pixie," Argo continued. "Haa-bo, you've already cleared that. You can customize their appearance, size, everything. Yui-chan and Kizmel can return in their original forms, and they can switch to Pixie mode anytime."
"Argo, you're a god," Hachiman said.
"Order whatever you want, Argo-san! My treat!" Asuna said. "Egil-san, the menu, please!"
"You got it!" Egil grinned.
Argo flipped through the menu and, without hesitation, ordered the priciest dish. Hachiman and Asuna, clearly overjoyed, went further, ordering the most expensive dessert for her.
"It'll be lonely not seeing Yui for a while," Hachiman said. "But I'm worried she'll feel lonely. How's that work?"
"It's like closing your eyes and waking up as a new version of yourself," Argo explained. "To Yui-chan, it'll feel like a split second."
"Got it. No reason to object then," Hachiman said. "We'll log in tonight and explain it to her."
Hachiman and Asuna exchanged a glance, nodding. Their eyes said, It's lonely, but it's necessary.
"The boss is taking charge of this one," Argo added. "Wants to make sure nothing goes wrong."
"Haru-neesan?" Asuna asked.
"Haru-neesan…" Hachiman echoed.
Argo, usually stone-faced, cracked a rare smile. "She's going all out for you two's happiness."
"We owe her big time," Hachiman said.
"Yeah, we'll think of something," Asuna agreed.
"She even said she'd pull out all the stops, no matter how much it blurs the line between work and personal," Argo added.
"Is that… okay?" Hachiman asked, unsure how to respond.
Argo laughed. "Nyahaha! Once Yui-chan and Kizmel's issue is sorted, there won't be much need for that. It's fine."
"Fair enough," Hachiman conceded.
"One last thing," Argo said. "You'll need a house."
"A house, huh? Gotta be that one," Hachiman said.
"No other option for us," Asuna agreed.
"Alright, let's get everyone together soon and make a plan!" Hachiman said.
That night, after hearing Argo's explanation, the two logged in to talk to Yui.
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The battle isn't over... and the truth has yet to be revealed. Read the next chapter now on Patreon! [patreon.com/Greyhounds]