Chapter 1: The Journey Begins
"Umm… Ohhh~~"
In a dimly lit room, a teenage boy sat in front of his computer, his right hand moving rhythmically up and down.
"Haaaah…"
After a while, he let out a deep sigh and slowly lowered his slightly trembling hand. With a straight back, he grabbed a white tissue from beside the desk, wiped his fingers clean, and muttered under his breath,
"Man… picking your nose just hits the spot sometimes…"
After tossing the used tissue into the trash can, Kamikawa Hikaru inhaled deeply. He was just about to resume his newly downloaded anime marathon. But as he shifted slightly in his chair, his foot accidentally kicked the power strip under the desk.
Whether it was bad luck or fate being playful, a surge of electricity burst from the socket and violently coursed through his body. His limbs jerked uncontrollably, as if suffering from withdrawal. Then, smoke rose from his twitching frame as it collapsed onto the floor—scorched and unconscious.
In the last flickers of thought before his consciousness faded, only one wish echoed through his mind:
If only I could cross over into an anime world… I'd protect all those beautiful girls with my life...
— — —
No one knew how much time had passed.
But eventually, Hikaru's eyelids fluttered open.
A white ceiling greeted his vision. He tried to move, but pain instantly surged through every joint like fire in his veins.
"Guh…" he groaned weakly, gritting his teeth against the agony.
Then, a soft voice reached his ears.
"Thank goodness… you're awake…"
"Huh…?" Hikaru turned toward the voice and saw a short-haired girl with jet-black hair and porcelain-white skin. Her features were so perfectly arranged, it was obvious—she was beautiful. But what truly stunned him was her expression… She looked embarrassed?
"K-Kamikawa-kun, you're really awake… Thank you, for yesterday. If it weren't for you… I don't even want to imagine what could've happened…"
Hikaru tried to respond, but suddenly, an onslaught of foreign memories surged into his mind.
The pain was blinding. It felt like his skull was exploding.
And just like that—he blacked out again.
The girl panicked and immediately pressed the emergency call button for the doctor.
— — —
The next time Hikaru woke up, things started making sense.
He had crossed over.
And not just to any world—but into Toaru Majutsu no Index.
He was in Academy City, a place home to 2.3 million people, brimming with cutting-edge science and supernatural powers.
According to his new identity, he was a first-year middle school student… a recent transfer from abroad.
"…Seriously? And I'm an orphan, too?" he muttered bitterly, scrolling through the newly embedded memories in his mind.
Turning toward the girl seated beside the hospital bed, he studied her face and offered a faint smile.
"Are you okay?"
After absorbing the previous owner's memories, he finally understood. It was a classic story.
The girl had been harassed. The original Kamikawa had jumped in to protect her, got beaten half to death, and… well, now Hikaru was in this body.
"I'm fine, Kamikawa-kun. Thank you again for what you did. The doctor said you suffered minor trauma to the head, so you'll need to stay here for a bit. I'll take care of you in the meantime… so let's get along, okay?"
She gave him a shy smile before adding, "I'm Suzukawa Keiko, a first-year student at Sakagawa Middle School. I'm sorry for not introducing myself sooner. That was rude of me."
"That's a nice name, Suzukawa Keiko," Hikaru replied gently.
He glanced down at his bandaged body and sighed. Yeah, in this state… I definitely need help.
"Well then, I'm in your care, Keiko-san. Is it alright if I call you that?"
"Of course, Kamikawa-kun," she answered with a soft smile. "I still have class today. You just rest for now. I'll bring you something to eat after school, okay?"
"Thanks. And hey, feel free to just call me Hikaru," he said politely.
"Alright, Hikaru," she replied, testing the name with a faint blush. She checked her watch, stood up, and grabbed her black bag. "Your school excuse has been submitted, so no worries there. I'll be back later. Rest well."
"See you," he waved.
As the door shut behind her, Hikaru's smile faded.
He stared up at the white ceiling and muttered, "Okay, I made it into another world... But this is Toaru—a place with insane power levels. And I've got nothing. How am I supposed to survive here?"
— — —
[Ding!]
[Full consciousness detected. Initializing Explorer System…]
[Initialization complete.]
Hikaru's eyes shot open.
Wait… that voice just now… a system?!
Being an avid reader of web novels, he instantly recognized the implication. With cautious excitement, he whispered,
"System?"
[Greetings, Host.]
[Explorer System is now online and ready to serve.]
His eyes darted around. No hallucination.
He let out a stunned chuckle. From afar, he probably looked like a lunatic, but he quickly composed himself with a light cough.
"So… what kind of services do you offer?"
As soon as he asked, a transparent virtual screen appeared in front of him, displaying four main options:
> | Personal Info | Inventory | Skills | World Travel |
His heartbeat quickened.
Trying to stay calm, he mentally selected Personal Info. The screen shifted to show his current stats:
— — —
Name: Kamikawa Hikaru
Level: 0
Inventory: None
Skills: None
Exchange Points: 0
Identity: First-Year High School Student
— — —
"…That's so empty it hurts," Hikaru muttered, twitching slightly.
He returned to the main screen and selected Inventory. Immediately, a dazzling array of weapons from every genre imaginable appeared.
He sorted them by price and nearly drooled. Legendary weapons from every world he'd ever dreamed of… but of course, they all cost points.
Forcing himself to close the tab, he opened Skills next.
Two categories appeared: Bloodlines and Abilities.
Under Bloodlines, he found rare options like: Dragon Bloodline, Angel Lineage, Demon God Heritage, True Ancestor Gene, and more. Naturally, all required insane amounts of points.
Then he opened Abilities—and his eyes sparkled.
There were names like Lady-Killer Technique, Massive Rasengan, Railgun, Vector Control, Sword Mastery, Blood Frenzy, Meteor Strike Slash, Boundary Technique, Requip Magic...
He blinked. Requip Magic? Wasn't that from Fairy Tail?
…Whatever. Not complaining.
Finally, he tapped on the last option: World Travel.
Only one world was available, glowing faintly:
> [Sword Art Online] (Enter? Yes/No)
Seeing the name, Hikaru asked reflexively, "System… is this the world I'm going to next?"
[Correct, Host. Given your current level, only Sword Art Online is available. As you grow stronger, more worlds will unlock. Quests will be issued upon entry.]
"…There are quests, too, huh?" he murmured. "Wait—shouldn't I have some sort of starter pack?"
[You do, Host. Given your current physical state, your starter pack has been delivered. Please access the system space via the Personal Info tab.]
Excited, Hikaru navigated back and noticed a small pouch icon in the corner.
He tapped it. A red bundle appeared. Without hesitation, he opened it.
— — —
Starter Pack Contents:
• Healing Potion ×1
• Iron Sword ×1
• Ability Gacha Ticket ×1
• Exchange Points ×1000
— — —
"…That's it?!" he almost shouted, but held back.
He was about to use the healing potion when he remembered—this was Academy City, a place with surveillance systems practically controlled by Aleister Crowley himself. Healing too quickly would definitely draw unwanted attention.
Instead, his gaze shifted to the Ability Gacha Ticket.
Without hesitation, he tapped it.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations. You've obtained: Absolute Memory!]
"…Huh?"
He didn't feel any different.
But then he closed his eyes and visualized the poster across the room.
Every letter, every detail—perfectly remembered.
A low chuckle escaped his lips.
"Heh… things just got a whole lot more interesting."
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