-1816- Another type of person

"This is how things went."

In the living room of the small cabin, Rozen, holding Asuna in his arms, finished recounting the story and looked into her eyes.

In those beautiful eyes, only complexity remained.

"...Why?"

Asuna murmured.

"Why did Yuuki have to do this?"

Asuna really didn't expect that Yuuki would ask Rozen to keep all of this from her, to forget her entirely.

Was it really necessary?

"Even if we can't log into the game anymore, even if the guild has disbanded, we're still friends. We can still chat online, meet in real life—why did it have to go this far?"

Asuna was truly puzzled.

However, deep down, Asuna had a vague, ominous feeling.

Looking back on Yuuki's behavior and recalling her endless sadness and yearning expressions and gaze, Asuna had a sense that there might be a huge secret behind it all.

A secret that might be too much for her to accept.

Otherwise, Yuuki wouldn't have gone this far, and Rozen wouldn't have gone along with Yuuki's request to hide it from his fiancée.

Not to mention, the way Rozen treated Yuuki and their conversations all hinted to Asuna that things were far more complicated than they seemed.

Perhaps the truth was even more serious and weighty than Asuna could imagine.

With that thought, Asuna couldn't help but look at Rozen.

"Tell me," Asuna said seriously, "What kind of secret does Yuuki have?"

This was the first thing Asuna needed to understand.

Only by learning this could Asuna understand the deeper connections involved.

Rozen naturally wouldn't keep it a secret any longer.

"Don't worry, Yuuki and I agreed that if you still care about her and can't forget her by now, I'll tell you everything I know and take you to meet her."

Rozen said this in a calm tone.

"Before we do, I want to ask you—what kind of person do you think Yuuki is?"

Rozen asked this question.

"What kind of person is Yuuki?"

This question caught Asuna off guard.

Rozen then reminded her.

"Think about it. Do you really think Yuuki's incredible skills came from just wandering around different VRMMOs?" Rozen said, "You must have noticed her remarkable adaptability to full-dive and her deep immersion in the imagined world—she's beyond even SAO players. Even those from the 'Laughing Coffin' group can't compare to Yuuki. Doesn't that seem strange to you?"

Of course, it was strange.

Rozen had only met Yuuki once or twice, and yet, he noticed it right away. Kirito had also picked up on Yuuki's ability to fully immerse herself in this world after just one duel. Given that, how could Asuna, another SAO player, have not noticed it?

Asuna had been adventuring with the Sleeping Knights recently, even defeating a floor boss, and had seen Yuuki and the rest of the Sleeping Knights' remarkable adaptability to complete full-dive and immersion in the imagined world. Asuna had often felt curious and suspicious about it.

Could it be...

"Is Yuuki also a survivor of SAO?"

Asuna thought to herself.

"No, Yuuki is not an SAO survivor."

Rozen immediately shook his head, denying that idea.

"Why not?"

Asuna was surprised, unsure why Rozen was so certain.

Actually, it was simple.

"Look at Yuuki's reflexes. They're so incredible that even Kirito can't match them," Rozen explained.

"Kirito's unique skill in SAO, 'Dual Wielding,' required the highest reflexes of any player. If Yuuki were an SAO survivor, Kirito wouldn't have been able to acquire that skill.

Moreover, with Yuuki's level of skill, if she were a real SAO player, do you think we would know nothing about her?"

Indeed, if Yuuki had Kirito's reflexes, she would have gotten the 'Dual Wielding' skill. And if she were truly an SAO player, given her skills, Rozen, as the leader of the Clearing Group, and Asuna, as the vice-captain of the Blood Oath Knights, would have known about her long ago and would have tried to invite her to join the clearing group or guild.

There was no way they wouldn't have heard about a player that strong.

Furthermore, would Yuuki be the type to hide from the battlefront?

Asuna felt certain she wouldn't be.

The girl who always smiled would, without a doubt, fight alongside others, battling all kinds of monsters just like herself.

No, Yuuki was even better than her.

Asuna herself had been just pushing herself, with no room to smile, unlike Yuuki, who even in the most hopeless of circumstances, would keep smiling and inspire everyone around her, fighting alongside them on the frontlines.

If Yuuki hadn't done that, then she definitely wasn't an SAO player.

In one of the versions of the game...

Then...

"What is the explanation for her incredible adaptability to full-dive and her seamless immersion in the imagined world?"

Aside from SAO players, there should be no other VRMMOs capable of allowing such adaptation and immersion, right?

Other VRMMOs were just games—death was nothing in them, and they were fundamentally different from SAO.

Therefore, only SAO survivors could truly treat the imagined world as their real world, adapting to it to such an extreme.

Asuna thought this.

But...

"There is another type of person who can also treat the imagined world as their real world."

Rozen suddenly said these words.

"What... what do you mean?"

Asuna was utterly stunned.

Rozen didn't explain further but said this instead.

"Let's log off now."

Rozen spoke calmly.

"I'll take you to meet Yuuki right now."

Upon hearing this, Asuna suppressed her thoughts and nodded.

Rozen smiled slightly and turned his head to look at the girl still nestled in Asuna's arms.

"You come too, and tell Asuna everything about your investigation, Yui."

Rozen said to her.

"Got it, Papa."

Yui obediently nodded.

"Gu!"

"Gu!"

Saichou and Hanachou immediately made sounds, almost like they were sending off their owners, master, and little master.

The family of three then disappeared in the next moment, returning to reality.