Chapter 1004 - In the Intervening Night Sky
“—————Huh?”
High, high up in the sky.
In the virtual world of Arcadia, far above the first player-run district of the [Garden of Divine Creation], the [Safe Area], in a practice field beyond the clouds and hidden from all eyes.
“Wait, you're not coming?”
Her long white hair swayed against the backdrop of the night sky, where a huge, perfect moon hung—and beneath that curtain of hair, her yellow eyes blinked. The senior kitten’s voice… was it my imagination, or…?
…sounded somewhat displeased as it rode the strong winds, stronger than those on the ground, to reach me.
The date was December 9th. The night before the fourth [Starry Paradise] event.
“Not this time, for a few reasons. Nia’s staying here with me too.”
“Wait, both of you? Huh… you’re telling me this right at the last minute?”
Since the ‘Green Connect’ raid. It wasn't exactly regular, but we had continued to hold these performance practice sessions whenever our free time happened to overlap. Because it’s out of sight and the high-altitude winds provide a perfectly exquisite interference, we can always expect a convenient level of difficulty—or so…
…that was the opinion of Nacchan-senpai, the seventh-ranked member of the Southern Faction, also known as [Thread-Weaver], so I couldn't be sure if she was serious or just being random. Anyway, we were meeting up again as usual in the middle of the sky.
“I’m really sorry, but the option literally just came up at the last minute. This afternoon, from none other than my master, in a ‘if you would be so kind’ sort of way…”
“So it started with the [Sword Saint]…”
White and black. One of us was now quite adept at suspending her body in mid-air, while the other simply stood on the empty space. We were both busy with our own thread manipulation.
“Hey, just so you know, Ui-san was aware that it was a sudden suggestion, and she really did mean it as a ‘if you would be so kind,’ so I was the one who decided to take her up on it—”
“Oh, whatever, I don't want to hear it. Yes, yes, what a devoted little disciple you are.”
The senior I was talking to still seemed slightly out of sorts.
Well, it can’t be helped. —Since she didn’t particularly want to go anywhere else, she had been planning to join our ‘Eto Mori’ group for this event as well.
In other words, I was basically bailing on her at the last minute.
It’s not like it was a firm promise between the two of us, but if you asked whether it was a pleasant or unpleasant situation, it was definitely not pleasant.
“Sorry. A three-night, four-day training immersion was just too appealing for me right now…”
I bowed my head without hesitation. All the more so since it was the result of prioritizing my own desires.
And so…—or rather, perhaps she hadn't even realized she was making a displeased face herself. Seeing my penitent state, Nacchan-senpai faltered slightly in both her words and her thread manipulation, then transparently tried to smooth things over. “Well, it’s not…” she said, averting her eyes.
“That’s, well, fine. I’m a little disappointed, but—Nia. It’s a shame that Nia can’t come, but ultimately, events are things that everyone should enjoy as they please, so I’m not going to whine and complain about your decision. I won’t.”
“Oh, is that so…?”
She looked away, launching into a tirade. …She didn't have to emphasize Nia so heartbreakingly much; as she well knew, I’m not the type to have a high, conceited opinion of myself.
“As long as you understand…—Ahem, so then… I wonder what I should do. If you two aren’t going to be there, I don’t really have anyone I’m that close with… Hmmm.”
“What about Nono-san or Ri-na? You seemed to be getting along pretty well with them last time.”
What should she do? Seeing her ponder whether to participate or not at this late hour, I asked, and Nacchan-senpai gave me a half-lidded look, holding down her hair as it played in the wind.
“Well, I was a bit used to it from the girls' parties.”
“Girls' parties?”
“A social gathering for the female rankers.”
“Ah… I see. So that’s a thing?”
I myself had been hanging out with Uni and Tiger the other day. The guys’ gatherings were usually spontaneous and random like that, but I suppose the ladies had their own proper get-togethers.
“So, yeah. I can have a normal, friendly conversation with them without any problems, but…”
And from the way she trailed off… I sort of got the picture.
“…………Nacchan-senpai, could it be that you have few frie—Ow!”
“You foolish junior, you’ve crossed the line. What should I do with you?”
And then, a divine feat of manipulation with no room for evasion.
Believing our relationship could permit it, believing our relationship could forgive it, I had started to tease her, only to be instantly bound up in a flurry of brilliant white snow threads.
What a move. If this were a real battle, it would have been my loss—
“I-It can't be helped! They're all my seniors!! Every single one of them!!!”
I’m sorry. I knew that when I teased you, I’m really sorry, please don’t strangle me.
“Honestly… You don’t actually think everyone can be like you, all buddy-buddy with anyone and everyone, do you? You people-charmer. You [Acrobat].”
“Could you please not use my title like it's a synonym for ‘people-charmer’…?”
Perhaps my silent plea for mercy reached her, or maybe it was the kitten’s innate compassion. As I spouted apologies through the gaps in the loosening white threads, my senior let out a sigh.
“If you mean friends, then yes, they are my friends. All of them. …………—It’s just that I have few people I can be around without having to ‘be on my guard.’ That's true for everyone, except for people like you.”
“Am I being praised or mocked?”
“I’m not praising you. I’m not trying to mock you. I am exasperated, though.”
“Well, in that case…”
I’m used to being exasperated with. …Anyway.
If that’s the case, then all the more. The feeling of having done something wrong was starting to swell—
“…………Hm? Wait, is Ri-na-senpai coming? Even though you're not there?”
As I was trying to formulate an additional apology and some follow-up words, another question came flying my way first. Her way of speaking, as if my self-proclaimed little sister and I were a definite set, was extremely vexing.
…But since I was the one who'd done something wrong, I’d swallow that complaint.
“Ah, yeah. Ri-na, or rather, Minalina will be joining ‘Eto Mori’ this time.”
“Huh? —Wha?”
“Actually, I asked Irori to be my substitute for the guardian role. They're kind of tagging along with him.”
“Wh-huh!? H-Hey, you, wait…! That's some huge late-breaking news…!!”
“So, in terms of combat strength, there's no problem at all. I don’t think you need to worry even if you decide to go somewhere else, Nacchan-senpai, but…”
“Well, of course… If [Peerless] is there, then—”
“But still, I’d really like it if you went with our group…”
“Why!? —…Hey, wait a minute. I see. I thought it was rare for you to invite me to something. That was your goal from the start, wasn't it!?”
Yes, it was.
As I nodded, I braced myself and took the full force of the disciplinary threads that came flying at me instantly.
“Well, I mean, as a guy, I’m one thing, right? But with Nia, who will undoubtedly attract hordes of players, not only snatching away their expectations but also losing another ‘crimson’…”
I just feel bad for them, or rather, I’m worried about the motivation of all the guys.
“Haaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?? I don't care! ‘Minalina’ is more than enough of a draw, isn’t it?! I’m just a rounding error!!!”
“No, no… No, no, no…”
“What’s with that reaction! What is it, it’s so annoying!!”
She was furious—but I could also see a hint of bashfulness, which was a good sign.
How should I put it? It’s not that she has low self-esteem or anything like that, but she’s just… bad at this? Or rather, her self-awareness is lacking by a notch or two.
She probably doesn’t know that the moment rumors started circulating that [Thread-Weaver] would be participating in our ‘Eto Mori’ group for this event, the already hellish flood of applications for the attendant lottery exploded even further.
Well, I didn’t know either until I got a message from Nono-san that made me recoil.
Apparently, you’re really popular these days, Nacchan-senpai.
And so…
“Please, senpai, I’ll owe you one for this. Okay?”
“This makes no sense…! Besides, what could you possibly do to repay a favor like this!?”
“Hmm……………my overflowing respect for you, senpai, perhaps?”
“This very situation already lacks respect, you idiot Haru, you bastard…!!!”
In any case, there was only one thing I needed to do right now.
With a truly sincere and selfish request, I had to rely completely on my great and dependable senior.