"Well, I've had a lot of dealings with her… To be honest, I'm constantly being dragged around by her."
"Is that so?"
"Her character's name is Pitohui. Also, there's a sniper named Sinon and my younger sister, Benkei, with us, so please get along with them."
"Your sister? Yes, I've definitely remembered!"
"And there's also Rosalia, who's in charge of information."
Nezha recognized the name and casually remarked:
"What a coincidence. I recall someone who tried to kill Silica-san once had that name. I remember her being sent to prison, but I wonder what she's doing after being released."
"No, that's her herself."
"Eh? Ehhh!?"
Nezha was astonished once again.
"By the way, Rosalia also calls herself my servant, to rival Pitohui."
"I-is that so…? You really are amazing, Hachiman-san…"
"Well, I don't feel praised at all."
Asuna, as if struck by an idea, said to the two of them:
"Speaking of which, there was an Amusphere, probably company property, right? Couldn't we use that to log in too?"
"You're right… Alright, Nezha, since we're at it, how about we play GGO together?"
"Oh, yes, I'll make sure I can start playing immediately, even tonight."
"As expected of Nezha, you work fast. For now, let's meet at the starting point. By the way, since it's sudden, you might not have decided yet, but what will your character name be?"
"Let's see… Oh, by the way, what are Hachiman-san's and Asuna-san's names in GGO? Are they the same as in SAO?"
Hachiman scratched his head at Nezha's question, realizing he had forgotten such a crucial detail.
"To forget such an important thing… My name is Shana, and Asuna's name is Shizuka."
"Ehhh!?"
"What's wrong, Nezha?"
"Nezha-kun, did something happen?"
Nezha took out his smartphone, seemed to operate it, and then showed the screen to the two of them. On it was the original video of the infamous clip they had watched recently, directed by Yukinoshita Haruno.
"This is it…"
"I happened to see it yesterday because it was trending, but this is you two, isn't it?"
"…Ah."
"…Yeah."
The two hesitantly confirmed, seemingly embarrassed. But Nezha, eyes sparkling, showed them the next video.
"S-so, this one too, right?"
It was footage from the first BoB. Since this wasn't embarrassing, Hachiman answered with confidence.
"That's me. Well, I lost that time, but I don't intend to lose next time."
"I knew it! You two are amazing! I can't be outdone either, I'll definitely become the best blacksmith in the game!"
Nezha said that, brimming with motivation. The two were also pulled along by his enthusiasm and actively began discussing future plans.
"Basically, Nezha's abilities will probably be focused on increasing only Strength and Dexterity for blacksmithing. What we call STR and DEX. Other players shouldn't be able to allocate their stats so drastically, so at that point, it's almost certain that Nezha will be at the top."
"So, muscle strength is still needed to some extent, I see."
"Yeah, the higher performance the hammer, the higher the required STR."
"I see."
Their stat growth policy was decided, and they also decided on power-leveling for combat. Regarding materials, all existing materials would be provided, and for tools, initial investment wouldn't be a problem thanks to Hachiman's abundant financial resources.
"If that's the case, we should rent a base somewhere."
"Like a secret base!"
"You're right. Not many people try to have a fixed base, but a workshop is essential."
"Yeah, and we can make it our meeting spot."
"Alright."
The three then decided on a meeting time. At the same time, Nezha's character name was also decided.
"Then, Ikoma."
"Ikoma? Is there a particular origin?"
"Written in Kanji, it becomes '一駒' (one piece/frame), I suppose. Actually, one of my ancestors was a great man named Ikkansai, who lived about two hundred years ago and made air guns and reflecting telescopes. So, I thought about naming myself Ikkansai, but it was too long, so I shortened it."
"Seriously? As expected, a family with history is different…"
With their plans decided, the two returned to the hotel for now. And in front of them at the hotel, Kikuoka appeared with a smug smile. Hachiman immediately complained to Kikuoka.
"Hey, black-hearted glasses, isn't that a bit too much of a surprise? Though honestly, I'm grateful."
"H-black-hearted glasses!? Well, it's hard to complain since it's accurate… But from the looks of it, you managed to meet Nezha-kun."
"Well, the timing was perfect, so honestly, it helped. Now that our purpose for coming here is almost achieved, all that's left is to beat up that stubborn old man."
"That man is quite elderly now, so please be gentle."
"If I do that, he'll be the one to get me. That old man is pretty strong."
Hachiman replied and then asked Kikuoka another question:
"So, what has that black-hearted glasses been secretly doing since coming here?"
Hachiman had been suspicious of Kikuoka, who never accompanied them. He didn't quite understand the reason for him coming along on this trip. To Hachiman, Kikuoka simply said:
"You're overestimating me, Hachiman-kun. I haven't done anything since coming here. If anything, I've been sightseeing."
"Sightseeing?… I see, so it was just slacking off."
"That's a nasty thing to say. I just took some voluntary time off."
"Looks like you'll have a mountain of work when you get back, though."
"Ah~ I don't want to hear it, I don't want to hear it."
Kikuoka said that, covering his ears and crouching down. Leaving Kikuoka there, Hachiman and Asuna returned to their room.
"Well, if we're logging in from here with the Amusphere, it's a bit late to ask for separate rooms now, isn't it?"
"You're right, it can't be helped, yeah, it can't be helped."
Asuna said that happily. Hachiman also didn't want to deliberately make Asuna sad, so they ended up keeping the same room arrangement. And when the appointed time arrived, the two lay comfortably on the double bed and logged into GGO.
In an instant, their vision shifted, and for some reason, Pitohui's figure appeared before them.
"…Eh?"
"…Huh? Hey, why are you here? I don't understand."
"Heh, just as I expected! Um, I somehow sensed Shana coming in, so I ran full speed to the point where I last logged out!"
"Eh? Really?"
"Yeah!"
"You pervert…"
"That's why, Shana, you praise me too much every time!"
Shana, thinking "here we go again," stared intently at Pitohui's face. Shana, who thought Pitohui looked eager to be retorted to, told Pitohui with a full smile:
"Ah, I can never praise you enough, so I just can't help but want to praise you again and again."
The moment she heard those words, Pitohui rushed to Shizuka with a stunned expression, grabbed her hand, and said, happily pumping it up and down:
"Shizu, did you hear? Shana finally fell for it! This is my big victory, right?"
"No good, huh…"
Shana slumped her shoulders, thinking that this response was also ineffective. Shizuka, watching their exchange, gave a wry smile and said:
"Shana, let's leave Pito for now and go pick up Ikoma."
"Oh, you're right, let's hurry a bit."
"Eh, what? We have a new teammate? What kind of person is it?"
Pitohui eagerly latched onto their conversation with an excited expression.
"Alright, I'll give you a quick explanation."
"Yes, please!"
Then Shana told Pitohui about Ikoma's identity.
"Ikoma is another, and the last, hero you don't know yet."
"Another hero?"
"That's right. Listen, I'll tell you about the final battle concisely right now. Understand it properly."
"Okay."
Saying that, Shana quickly rattled off:
"Black Swordsman VS Divine Blade, Black Swordsman paralyzed, Flash IN, shielded and died. Time limit ten seconds, Silver Shadow IN, restrained Divine Blade's weapon with her body. Black Swordsman reactivated, Divine Blade Shield Bash, remote attack to the forehead for paralysis. Black Swordsman pierced Divine Blade along with Silver Shadow, both died, clear. That's all."
Pitohui seemed to have a good memory, as she strangely traced Shana's words repeatedly in a rap-like rhythm, trying to grasp the situation, but after a while, she said in a resigned tone:
"Shana, I can't understand that explanation, YO!"
"Why the sudden rap…? And you're surprisingly versatile."
"When it's a song, it's easier for me to remember."
Hearing those words, Shizuka praised Pitohui with an impressed look.
"As expected of Pito, you're truly a goddess of music!"
"Ehe."
"Anyway, I'll explain in detail later when things calm down, but the one who fired that remote attack is the person waiting for our arrival now. By the way, due to certain circumstances, he generally doesn't fight, but he's going to be our exclusive blacksmith. His name is Ikoma. You should also have him enhance your weapons. So, please take care of him."
"Oh, a craftsman, and exclusive! Welcome!"
Shana, feeling good about Ikoma being praised, said proudly:
"Moreover, Ikoma is from a family of gunsmiths that has continued since the Sengoku period. In other words, Ikoma still possesses that artisan's spirit."
"Oooooh, the artisan's spirit residing in a sealed right hand! My chest is pounding!"
"Which means the synergy effect of him joining, you see…"
"Not just Pito, but Shana too is acting strange…"
"That's how it always is, though."
"Kya!"
The three suddenly heard a voice and hurriedly turned around. The owner of the voice was Sinon.
"You guys, don't have strange conversations in the middle of the road."
"S-Sinonon, since when were you there?"
"Since Pito's chest started pounding, I guess."
"Ah, so just now then."
"Well, yes."
Then Sinon, looking at Pitohui with a baffled expression, said:
"Honestly, Pito suddenly said 'I smell Shana!' and ran off at incredible speed, so I chased after her in a panic, but I never thought Shana would actually be here…"
"What do you mean 'smell'…?"
Shana said that in a tone of resignation.
"Smell is smell, Sinonon, don't you understand? Shana's smell."
"Of course I don't!"
"Eh~? Isn't that a lack of love?"
"I don't need that kind of love!"
"Then what kind of love do you mean?"
"Well, for example…"
Sinon was about to say something but then seemed to come back to her senses, her face looking startled. On closer inspection, Pitohui and Shizuka were staring at Sinon's face with smug smiles. Sinon's face turned red in an instant, and she clenched her fists, trembling. Then, Sinon suddenly punched Shana in the stomach.
"Guh, w-why me…?"
"Hmph!"
"That's unreasonable…"
Shana said that and then painfully collapsed on the spot. And in that position, Shana said to Shizuka:
"Sorry, Shizuka, we're making him wait a bit, so please go pick up Ikoma first… It's a bit impossible for me to stand up right now…"
"Ah~… Sinonon is also an STR type, huh… Okay, then I'll go pick him up."
"Please…"
Sinon, hearing that conversation, tentatively asked Shizuka:
"Ah… C-could it be, you were meeting someone?"
"That's right, but he knows my face, so it's fine even without Shana. Sinonon, please stay with Shana for now. Pito, let's go."
"Okay! Oh, a new comrade, I'm looking forward to it!"
"Eh? Pito, what do you mean by that…?"
Sinon heard Pitohui's words and tried to ask for the situation, but the two had already run off to the meeting place.
And there, Shana and Sinon were left behind.
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