Chapter 2: Night and Day

A few months have passed when I first met Yuuki and Ran, I'm getting used to the name "Damai" ever since Yuuki started plotting "Kun" at the end of my avatar name.

Today's date is May 11th, 2024, Yuuki and I was relaxing in the Teal Hills area of the Serene Garden.

Yuuki was dozing in the gentle wind, while I was scrolling through an article mentioning a plan to release all SAO victims from their NerveGears by breaking into the hardware and destroying the batteries.

I kept scrolling through engaged by the article to be interrupted by Yuuki staring at me in the reflection of the terminal.

Hastily closing the article, I met a pouting Yuuki.

"Hey! I was reading that!"

"Well, you startled me!" I yelled, "And can't you access another terminal over there, without covering my shoulder with your chin like a parrot!"

We kept up this small squabble for fifteen minutes, with Yuuki on the receiving end.

After I realized what came out of my mouth, and my words became relentless apologies.

Ran was leaning on an oak tree, watching how weak I am to Yuuki. She trotted over; her hair was swaying in sync with the light breeze.

"If you're done crying, I need Yuu for something," Ran gestured me to walk away in a "shoo, you heathen" hand motion.

I took a ten-minute stroll back to the village of "Roite," wondering if the government's plan to free the SAO victims is right or wrong.

It is plausible to shut-down the hardware, but it has been done before leading to SAO taking 213 lives in the first five hours after the server started.

Then after the first month, at least 3,000 more lives were claimed.

Perhaps it could be possible to disconnect players from the server, not for too long though, and then go through with the proce--

*Thump!* Hrm?

Something put my brainstorming on hold and brought me back from the clouds my heads in most of the time.

A petite girl, a few inches smaller than me, stumbled backward on her butt, "Oww...!"

She looked to be in her teens with long strawberry blonde hair covering her back, and she had one deep-purple eye open with her right hand scratching her scalp.

That isn't where you hurt yourself, I complained.

The clothes she wore seemed to be beginner's culottes, dull, light-brown, and down-right boring. I sold my clothes for 30 curren when Yuuki hooked me up with some villager robes she had that were "meant for boys," I've been trying to find the right materials to make a dress as a "thank you" gift.

I peered at the clumsy girl's username, Loona... huh?

Her cheeks began to glow a shade of red. I soon realized why.

"Sorry about that, I have a knack for getting lost in my thoughts," leaning down I reached and opened my hand with a gentle smile... well, an attempted gentle smile.

The little lady was hesitant to accept my strange kindness.

Eventually, she took my hand and ascended to her feet, "Thanks... Mister...?"

"Damai," I quickly answered, "You need to be a bit more careful, you know?"

She looked up and down, inspecting my appearance, "You're quite tall, Mister Damai!" My eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. I'm only 5.8" That isn't even close to tall.

"Loona!"

Raising my head, I see a very tall guy jogging in my direction.

Loona swiftly took cover behind my right leg, the giant aged between 16 to 20 stood a meter in front of me panting excessively.

"Loona, ya shouldn't wander off like that! Ya made me run around all of Roite looking for yer," the dude wore a deep-blue leather tunic with dark-grey sleeves, his hair styled in a strange pattern with dreadlocks; colored silvery-white and covered in sweat making the color a dim white-grey.

His face told me that he'd been munching on rye bread from the crumbs-- wait... you can consume food in VR?

Aside from multiple explosions going off in my brain, I continued to observe the person gasping for air, "Hey! Y'see somethin ya like or yer just starin for the hellovit?" His accent and tone made me jump.

Crap! He noticed. I needed to make my staring less obvious and briefer.

Loona was still hibernating in my right shin, "Go away, Hardt!" She yelled, "I don't wanna go hunting for that rare beetle; it takes forever!"

Loona gripped my calf tighter cramping my right leg, I shrugged my waist to the left, breaking free from her grasp.

This rare beetle Loona was talking about was the "Royal Triton Stag Beetle," which appears more often this season in the Serene Garden.

I saw a request on the village bulletin board from someone named Merida who'd been searching for the beetle a while now.

"Uhm... can I ask something?" The dude supposedly named Hardt made eye contact with me, "You mind telling me why Loona here ran off in the first place?"

God, I hope I'm not imposing.

Hardt's facial expression undertook a sudden change of emotions from a concerned frown to a welcoming smile.

"Ah, yer lookin' for the bug too?" His kind, enquiring demeanor forced me to answer.

"No, but from what I hear, the Beetle is easier to catch this time of day." You still haven't told me your issue with Loona, I silently grumbled.

Loona shuffled out from her human meat shield, "Did you hear that Hardt? We could grab that beetle today!"

I beg your pardon?

Both me and Hardt shared the same reaction to Loona's sudden enthusiasm.

Sending Loona's strange change of mood to the back of my mind, I made eye contact with Hardt again, "So... what do you need this beetle for?"

"We need it for curr--"

"To participate in the Bug Battle Tournament!" Loona's high pitched answer rudely cut off Hardt.

She grew a smug devious smile and darted her eyes at Hardt, whose brows were furrowing with increased intensity.

Ignoring the glow and flare in the two's eyes, I opened my mouth, "Well, I'm not busy at the moment, so I'll help you out."

That isn't what I wanted to say!

I felt both of their glares like the sun and moon were beaming at me.

"A-Are yer, sure?" asked Hardt.

"Yeah sure, I got nothing better to do," my words instinctively made their way out my throat.

I'm digging my own grave here!

Loona's eyes sparkled like stars while Hardt's burned with passion.

I sighed deeply, slowly and laboriously, steeled myself for a massive amount of time and effort ahead of me, then continued making my six-foot hole deeper, "My name's Damai, by the way," Introducing myself.

Loona scuttled over to meet shoulder to top hip-bone with Hardt and bowed in sync with him.

"I'm Brytehardt, and this my little sis Loona, it's a pleasure to meet ya, Mister Damai!" Hardt spoke humbly.

Goodness... I thought You're calling me that too?