Mystic Knight Online: Worlds To Sow

Chapter 9: A Time for Meetings

May 12, 2025 - Alfheim, Yggdrasil City

Asuna looked at Crysheight as he approached the table she and the rest of her group were sitting at with a careful eye. The fact that someone was asking questions about them had been unsurprising. SAO Survivors made up a minority of ALO's player base and the ALO players were naturally curious about them, after all.

But she wasn't getting the usual curious player vibe from the Undine approaching them. This will be interesting, she thought.

She glanced at everyone, observing how they watched the Undine's approach with reserved caution and mentally nodded. It had been decided earlier in the day that she would lead and direct the conversation as the group's leader.

"So, you have been looking for us?" She asked.

The Undine stopped.

"By all means, take a seat and order something to drink," she said. "I have no doubt that this conversation may take some time."

She watched as Crysheight hesitated a moment before he took the seat they had intentionally left open for the meeting. She knew that he probably considered politely refusing the seat before deciding to accept it anyway. He knows he lost the initiative, she thought.

Crysheight ordered a Moonberry Wine and looked at everyone. "I thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules," he said.

"When we heard that someone was looking for us, it is only appropriate to make the time for a meeting," Asuna replied. "So, why have you been looking for us?"

She watched as Crysheight briefly got a thoughtful look on his face, the fact that he was trying to think up a proper response clear to her and the others.

He wants to avoid putting us on our guard, she thought. Or more on our guard, at least.

"I feel I need to disclose some things first," Crysheight said. "I am working with the Ministry of Interior and am a part of the SAO Task Force. Even now, months after it has ended, we are still compiling data and investigating it. Alongside the investigations, we are also responsible for observing the recovery and rehabilitation of all the survivors."

Or he was deciding whether he should tell us up front who he works for, Asuna noted. The fact that we caught him off guard and the fact that he knows that Argo was aware of his inquiries and told us means that he probably decided to not try and hide that fact.

"Keeping an eye on us, in other words," Harry said drily.

"Correct," Crysheight said. "We are observing your recovery and rehabilitation back into society, along with the Ministry of Justice, who have some concerns of their own. We are aware of a great deal of what went on, so I hope you can understand why several parties may have some concerns."

"That's fair," Asuna said. "We have discussed this amongst ourselves and we all admit that the school opened for those of us still in school had a secondary purpose of allowing for the government to keep a discrete eye on us is a wise move."

Crysheight blinked. "Oh?"

Asuna gave him a thin smile. "While none of us are happy about that secondary purpose, given what several parties, us included, did to survive or ensure that others survived, would give the authorities reason to be concerned." She said. "It's no secret what the six of us have done there and none of us take any pride in several of our actions."

Crysheight nodded. "And the other two?" He asked. "With you six, the original members of Steel Phoenix, here, I am surprised that they are not present."

"They are busy with other things," Asuna smoothly replied. And while both of them know how to interact with people and avoid giving tells that they are AIs, it's better to not chance it. Besides, you were looking for Steel Phoenix in general, not specific individuals.

Not to mention that even if they wouldn't give any obvious tells, there were plenty of less obvious ones they could give. And they both were still busy as well, getting Kizmel up to speed on how to interact and not give away that she was not human.

##

He's getting what he wants, Harry thought ten minutes later as the conversation continued. Or at least some of it.

Crysheight wasn't asking the kinds of questions they were all worried about, but he was getting a great deal of insight into how they dealt with SAO and its aftermath on a personal level. What was going through their heads, why they reacted in certain ways, how they coped with the stress of it all, and more.

In other words, asking questions that requested little on their own, the kind which would not have one think carefully about how to answer. Questions that, while simple, when answered and combined would paint a fuller picture, even when the person answering the questions was careful about what he or she said.

And they had been careful about what they said.

He was well aware that what was not said could be just as informative as what was said, given how the Wainwrights avoided confirming or denying his suspicions as to who was ultimately responsible for his being in Japan and getting caught up in SAO in the first place. And their careful avoidance of the topic of AIs was just as telling. Not enough to confirm or deny any suspicions Crysheight may have, but enough for him to suspect that they knew something if he did.

Kirito once told him that hacking relied just as much on knowing the psychology and sociology of people as it did knowing coding and how to exploit any holes and vulnerabilities in it. Crysheight was building a fair picture of them by talking to them and his paying attention to what they were saying and not saying.

"One thing that I wonder about is how you all knew that Heathcliff was Kayaba months before he revealed himself," the Undine said. "How did you figure it out, and why did you not confront or expose him immediately?"

"We confronted him," Harry said, bringing the Undine's attention to him. "Or to be more precise, I confronted him. And in public as well. The thing is, he used the same trick Argo did to ensure that no one would know what we were talking about. Not that I expected any less. As for why we didn't expose him, the simple fact is, who would have believed us? You're underestimating his reputation back then and he made sure that we couldn't simply tell all and sundry." He gave a bitter chuckle. "Nothing like having your avatar completely locked up and the system telling you off for being naughty to make a point. And he controlled what the streams showed."

"But not the hard line feeds," Crysheight countered.

"Would it have mattered if they had passed it on?" Harry asked back.

Crysheight's initial pause said that the man knew the answer. "No, no it would have not," he admitted with a sigh. "Granted, how he did that is a matter of interest to some."

Harry shrugged "Well, if you're hoping we know how he did it, then I am afraid that you're in for some disappointment," he said.

"I expect as much," the Undine replied.

Harry gave Crysheight a nod and settled back in his seat. If he were to be honest, he was surprised that it took this long for the Japanese Government to send someone online, or for someone to use his own initiative for that matter, to meet with them. The Shibas and others may have run interference to keep the government at bay, but no one with any sense believed that it would last for long, let alone for as long as it had.

Then again, a lot of parties probably wished that the entire thing was forgotten so that everyone could move on as if nothing happened.

Easier said than done, he thought as he idly gave Pina a scratch when the feathered dragon flew from Silica's shoulder to land right in front of him.

##

"Well, that explains why things seemed to have gotten tense between them and the Knights of Blood," Sasamaru noted. "And they really have to be quieter if they don't want to be overheard."

"Who says they don't want to be overheard?" Keita asked. "If they wanted all of it to be private, they would have arranged for it to be private." He took a pull from his tankard and paused. It was a beer that Harry recommended, meaning that it would at least be decent, but this didn't taste like any beer he had had beforehand in either SAO or ALO. Far less bitter, almost creamy and slightly sweet, but still beer. "Hm, not bad." He noted. "Looks like the Mystic Knight found a good one again."

Sasamaru chuckled. "I swear, the Mystic part has to be because of his ability to find good beer," he said as he finished his wine. "Hey, finish it up so we can get back to the others, it looks like that group that they have been training is almost ready to make an attempt at the Grand Quest. Might as well help them finish training for it and see if we can get in on it as well. You know, give the Grand Quest a shot?"

Keita finished his tankard and nodded. "Yeah, let's grab Sachi, Ducker and Tetsuo and see if we can get in on it," he said. "Would be nice to not have to watch how long we're in the air."

The two stood up from their seats and headed out of the tavern. As they left, Keita shot a look at Asuna and her group and noticed that all six of them were giving the Undine who had been asking questions about them very neutral looks. Except for Asuna, who was giving him the familiar smile that wasn't a smile that anyone from SAO who knew her would recognize.

And it's best for us to find somewhere else to be right now, he thought as he quickened his pace.

##

Crysheight felt the chill in the air as Asuna smiled and tried to keep himself from shivering, which was odd. He wasn't in any place that a cold breeze would be possible, and he wasn't in the way of any such breeze coming in from the door either. So, what?

"Crysheight, I'm sorry, but would you care to repeat that?" Asuna asked in a sweet voice. "I'm fairly sure that I heard you mention something related to certain incidents that we usually prefer to not talk directly about."

"I don't know, Asuna," Kirito chimed in. "That one time in Mol Einsen where you-" He yelped as Asuna gave him a piercing look.

"Wait, was this the time where…?" Hadrian began before pausing and then paling. "You know what? Never mind. There's no need to bring that up."

What are they talking about? Chrysheight wondered, though he knew what they were doing. Changing the direction of the conversation away from a subject one was unwilling to talk about by bringing up a different subject that was interesting was an old trick. An effective one, at that, given that he was curious about what they meant by that.

Though he reminded himself to exercise discretion when bringing up certain sensitive subjects again. Not unless they chose to broach the matter themselves. Still, any further probing can wait for a later date as well.

"I see, and I apologize for any offense I may have given," he said as he stood up. "And I believe that it would be best if we finish here."

Asuna gave him a nod. "I believe you're right," she agreed, standing up as well.

"Should we continue another time, then?" Chrysheight asked.

"Perhaps," Asuna replied.

Chrysheight made his farewells and mused that he may have pushed the conversation a bit further than he should have. If he had been a point of contact for them in the real world, especially one who had been helpful, he would have had something to use as leverage to slowly get the answers he sought. But without that leverage, he didn't have anything he could use.

Worse, he knew that at least one of them was sufficiently connected to make bringing up the scrutiny FullDive VR was under and how someone could put in a word to hinder its development pointless. Despite nothing in the conversation indicating anything in that direction, he believed that they had a personal investment in keeping it going.

He would respect it if they didn't mention or indicate why.

He already had some suspicions and he didn't want to make them outright hostile to him in his desire to confirm them.

##

Kirito waited until Chrysheight left the Sword's Rest Tavern and snorted. The Undine hadn't seemed to realize that they had specifically planned Asuna's reaction to him bringing up, either directly or via insinuation, their use of lethal force. Which was a mild surprise to him.

The man never said or hinted as much, but if he wasn't aware of their psychological profiling and the general content of their counseling sessions, then Kirito would be surprised. Pleasantly surprised, but still surprised. The details may not be known by Crysheight, the Japanese took matters of privacy and confidentiality seriously to begin with so patient confidentiality was far less of a concern to him and the others than they would be under other circumstances. The results, however, would have been sanitized and published as the authorities wanted to know whether they were all potential ticking time bombs waiting to go off.

Which, when he thought about it, was not an unreasonable or unexpected concern.

Not that Asuna had been lying about their preferring to not talk directly about it, but that was in public. They wouldn't hide their past actions, but they also wouldn't bring them up and it wasn't as if anyone who knew their reputations didn't already know what their euphemisms meant when used in certain contexts.

In other words, they were acting, but also delivering a warning to the man to consider his questions carefully for the next time he approached them. And he would approach them.

"So, how long do you think it will take until he approaches us again?" He asked.

"How long do you think it will be before he realized that our response was planned?" Harry asked.

Kirito looked at his younger friend. "What do you mean?" He asked.

Harry shrugged. "The fact that someone from the government approached us in the game rather than try to set it up Outside," he replied. "I know that we are largely being left alone and I have an idea why he's going about it this way..."

"Oh?" Asuna asked.

"Someone got the government to leave every SAO Survivor alone beyond what's currently being done," Silica replied in response. "Some of us have connections and, even if we don't use them, we are more obvious suspects than most SAO Survivors."

Kirito nodded in response to that. Asuna, especially, has a family that was well connected beyond her father being the owner and CEO of RECT. But they would use their own connections mostly to protect her from any fallout, rather than the general blanket protection that all the SAO Survivors had.

"And it's not like the government wouldn't have jumped on an excuse to sweep as much of this under the rug as they could," Rain noted. "They can't ignore what went on, and they can't pretend that it was all Kayaba because of the Streams, but anything that gives them an excuse to simply leave as much of this be as they can would appeal to them."

Lux nodded. "They wouldn't want to rock the boat more than it has been already," she noted.

They all agreed with that sentiment but an unanswered question remained in the back of their minds.

They had some suspicions, if no confirmation, but what was Crysheight really after?

May 16, 2025 - Chiyoda, Nihon University Hospital

Shino sat in one of the available seats and looked around. She had arrived fifteen minutes early, so she had time for her thoughts. Her first meeting with Doctor Ikuda had apparently gone well, or at least the Doctor wasn't making any blatantly obvious and damning judgments on her for what she did. Or tell them to her face when she was still trying to come to terms with it.

At least this counselor was being professional about it.

Then again, wasn't that one young woman she saw before her first appointment an SAO Survivor? She had been wearing what was already being known as the uniform for the SAO Survivor, after all. Though she seemed to be a year or so too old to be going to high school at that.

Then again, being an SAO Survivor could explain why someone who seems to be of college age would still be in high school, Shino mused before dismissing the thought. It wasn't any of her business and that was the only time she saw her. It's not like they would be conveniently scheduled back to back again any time soon.

The door to Doctor Ikuda's office opened and she saw the same young woman she had been musing on come out.

Or we could be scheduled back to back today, Shino thought. You can thank me for the temptation later, Fate.

"Thank you for your time, Doctor Ikuda," the woman said. "Same time in two weeks?"

"Yes, Miss Karatachi," came the counselor's voice. "Also, if you see Miss Asada, my next appointment, please inform her that I will see her in ten minutes."

"I will," the young woman replied and quietly shut the door. She looked around the waiting room and her eyes zeros in on Shino, who was taken slightly aback by how old those eyes seemed, clashing with the fact that the young woman was in her late teens, maybe early twenties at most.

"Miss Asada?" She asked.

Shino nodded.

The young woman nodded as well. "Well, I take it you heard her when I left her office," she said. "She'll be ready in ten minutes, so if you need to do anything like go to the bathroom, you have time to take care of it. I found it makes things a lot more comfortable and I really should have done so my first session. Almost made for a shitty session, if you ask me."

Shino couldn't help it and snorted. She saw the amused smirk on the young woman's face and it wasn't hard to see that the reaction was exactly as she hoped. "That was crass and uncalled for," she said.

"It made you laugh, though," the young woman replied. "I don't know why you're here. I don't need to know. You have your reasons and I can guess that you already suspect mine."

Shino nodded. The young woman was in her school uniform advertising what she was, after all. "You're an SAO Survivor," she said.

"That I am," the young woman replied. "Nijika Karatachi at your service."

"Shino Asada."

##

Nijika looked at the teen in front of her and gave a mental nod. She could see it in the girl's eyes that she was here for a similar reason to herself. Not SAO, the girl's uniform said as much, but she could see the ghosts of past trauma in the girl's eyes.

Ghosts that were closer to the surface in the girl's case than with herself or those of her peers.

Not my business, Nijika thought to herself. Doctor Ikuda already knows, she wouldn't be here otherwise, and she probably already has a handle on it.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Miss Asada," Nijika said as she made her way to the door.

She heard the girl ask herself something, though she couldn't quite make out the words. Something about how living with themselves. She didn't know what the girl was talking about but she had her suspicions.

"It depends on what you mean by living with ourselves and because of what," she said clearly. At the girl's startled twitch, she smirked. A smirk which she dropped before the girl turned to face her. "Yes, you asked that aloud, even if you didn't mean to." She glanced at the old analog clock on the wall and noted the time. "Anyway, I think Doctor Ikuda will be wanting to see you in a couple of minutes."

As she left the waiting room, Nijika idly wondered, again, what the signs of past trauma were about, though she had an idea if she had the context of the barely made out question the girl asked herself before dismissing it. Not because she felt it was improbable. It simply wasn't her business. Besides, she could be wrong about her guess.

Anyway, the group she and the others had been helping Leafa train up to tackle the Grand Quest were planning on making their first attempt at it tonight. First attempt, because regardless of what they may think of their chances, she expected the entire thing to turn into a bardak and fail spectacularly.

Call it an expectation of schadenfreude on her part, but she definitely wanted to be there and see how it goes. So would some of the others of Steel Phoenix, though they would salve the hurt feelings of the ones whose failure was about to entertain them with stories of their own spectacular failures in ALO, not to mention amusing incidents from SAO, like the time Harry actually got eaten by a mob and had to cut himself out of it.

And who knew, even when everything went tits up, they might be able to salvage it and succeed.

May 17, 2025 - Kamakura, Japan

Gabriel looked over the report one more time and put it down. Another failure in penetrating ALO since it patched the security hole. Grayson is probably spitting fire at her teams right now, he mused. The hacker was a perfectionist and didn't consider a job done right if the other side coined onto their activities, even if it was too late to do anything about it.

You get in without leaving a trace, get what you want, and get out the same way, no being sidetracked by anything. That was the woman's modus operandi and may as well be her own personal motto. Fitting for someone who had been a hacker for more than twenty years and knew the mistakes, common and uncommon, that made a hacker a former hacker.

Just as Gabriel knew that she was aware that it was always a matter of when, not if, those mistakes were made. After all, that's how she got recruited, though it wasn't an explicit case of "work for us or go to jail" and more a case of, "we know it was you even if we can't prove it, how would you like to work for us before we catch you doing something we can prove?"

Needless to say, she took the hint and the job offer.

Actually... come to think of it, something Grayson repeatedly brought up might fit here. He was debating on how to move forward. The hacker's hacker always said three quarters of a good hack was people. Social work.

It would probably take time for the hacking team to find a new vulnerability that was unlikely to be spotted and patched post-haste. But a team of, admittedly good, hackers, wasn't his only option that he could place on the table.

He had contacts on the magical side. And to best find the magical assets to use, he needed Leon.

The man was one of those rare magicals who seemed to not have the unconscious biases about the non-magical world that those capable of using magic seemed to always have in some form. If he did have them, he at least was a convincing actor about it and had probably dropped more than a few as he interacted with the non-magical side of things out of simple pragmatism.

And pragmatism itself was a rare trait among magicals. Though that could be his own biases talking there. He was self-aware enough that he knew that he also wasn't immune to having them, no matter how hard he tried.

May 20, 2025 - Shiba Compound, Undisclosed Location

"It was the Turks," Eden Blake admitted as she hugged her son.

"I hate it when I'm right about these things. Veil breakers?"

Eden grunted the affirmative as she pulled away. "'The statute is outdated!', they say," she groused. "Yes, that's nice, and some of us even agree in theory, but being asses about it only makes it harder."

"And it's only a matter of time before the shaky foundation the Statute is on finally gives way under its weight as it is," August admitted. "If only they would just wait, or better yet, came up with a plan to ease the transition and start laying the groundwork for when it does. Jesus, these types are almost as bad as those Scourer jackasses we finally managed to get rid of back during The War. So, it got handled without the likes of Edrogan knowing?"

Eden nodded. "As far as our contacts in the Sihir Bakanlığı can tell," she replied. "But enough about idiots and lunatics that get in the way of me being able to take some much needed time off from getting a fat ass and working myself into an early grave."

"But it would be such a nice grave, Mom," August replied cheekily. "And the fact it causes your ass to grow only makes you fill out your clothes better, as I'm sure Dad appreciates."

Eden snorted. "Smartass," she replied. "Anyway, Luke gave me the Abridged version of what happened from your perspective in SAO, so we won't have to waste our time with that. Now, there is a granddaughter I need to finally meet."

Nerima - Saotome-Tendo Dojo

Harry looked at the middle aged woman as he and Keiko quietly entered the dojo, spotting the low table she was seated sipping some tea. He also noted the snacks and such that were arrayed as he and his fiancée walked over to her. He had no doubt that she had noticed their arrival, despite her apparent focus on the tea and snacks in front of her.

Nabiki Tendo, the Founder and CEO of Magatta Yanagi Enterprises. He had heard plenty of stories about her from Keiko, some positive, some less so, and all telling him that the woman was as sharp as a razor and that little slipped her notice.

"Ah, you two are here," she said as if she only just noticed them. "Take a seat, both of you."

"Yes, Miss Tendo," Harry said as he took off the satchel he carried and then assisted Keiko in taking a seat on the cushion on the right. She didn't need the help, but it had long been a habit of his in SAO and he saw no point in breaking it. "Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule for this meeting, ma'am." He said after he took his sown seat. "I hope it's not being a bother."

"It is no bother, and I enjoy the occasional opportunities that will allow me to sit and relax even if some work is going to be done," Nabiki replied. "Besides, I have been meaning to meet with you since SAO ended, but we always seemed to miss each other. Whether it be business obligations on my end, your own obligations with your recovery and now schooling, finding an appropriate time to meet has been challenging."

Harry nodded. "Such is how things are," he replied.

They both knew that the difficulties being alluded to weren't entirely true. They could have easily arranged a meeting sooner if they wanted, but it didn't change that she was a busy woman and he had plenty of obligations of his own that took up his time.

"Indeed," Nabiki said. "By all means, help yourselves."

Both Harry and Keiko poured themselves some tea and sampled several of the snacks that had been laid out. From the taste, Harry suspected that they were made by one of those smaller stores that made high quality snacks for a reasonable price. The same with the tea, as he recognized the quality as being similar to that one tea shop he went to in order to pick up some proper English tea. A little more expensive than what you could pick up from your standard tea shop, but of a worthwhile quality for a reasonable price. Not a demonstration of wealth, but a demonstration of taste.

After a few minutes, Nabiki finished her tea and placed the cup down, with both Harry and Keiko doing so a few seconds later.

"Not bad," Nabiki said approvingly. "Not potentially giving offense by finishing well before or by finishing too long after the host of the meeting does, but shortly after. That's either good observation, or simple luck. But I wonder, would you have stopped drinking the tea if you still had too much in your cup to leave unattended without seeming rude?"

"Harry nodded. "I would have," he replied. "And I would have apologized for my rudeness." And that would be regardless of whether an apology is warranted or not, he thought.

Nabiki nodded approvingly, or at least Harry thought she was nodding in approval. Keiko had shared some stories about the woman, so he knew that she could hide her actual thoughts rather well. So be it. He would consider it approval unless otherwise noted.

"Keep the context in mind," Nabiki cautioned. "It may have been an intentional maneuver by the other party to take your measure. Too much apologizing, or apologizing when it is unnecessary, can give insult or send the wrong message."

Harry nodded. "I will keep that in mind," he said. "Now, as much as I will find myself enjoying learning from you during this meeting, we do have some matters to discuss." He reached down and brought up the satchel he brought with him. Opening it, he took out several sheets of paper. "I am sure that you will find what is here to be informative." He said as he handed them over.

##

Nabiki took the offered sheets of paper and began to look them over. The top sheet summarized how much of his finances he and Keiko directly controlled as the Potter Family Heads, which were a fair amount. Half a billion yen was not pocket change for anyone to have direct access to, let alone two teens who were only fifteen. And that was the assets that they had personal control over. True, most of it was earmarked to be put into investments which was not a bad decision when one's needs are less than what they have. But more than enough was not reinvested and kept as personal funding to support both and to serve as an emergency fund.

She noted that four percent was earmarked to go to their friends until they were twenty. Even if it was coming out of the non-reinvested money, which it was not, it was easy enough for them to absorb. She also saw the note that it was money redirected from investments that hadn't been turning a profit, money sinks in all but name, for years.

I bet his bankers and advisors were less than thrilled, but were content with the fact that he was pulling money that was already being thrown into bad investments, she thought. This way, he was actually losing less money by redirecting the money this way. It still made her mentally frown, but that was the part of her that had wholly managed to keep the family afloat through means that were admittedly less than ethical when she was younger by being the tight fisted mercenary bitch she had once been.

The part of her that had grown past that was approving. It implied that he felt he owed them a debt and was being responsible in how it was settled. There was a great deal of mutual saving of lives during those two years and she knew that many on his side of the divide took things like that very seriously.

"Before you ask, it's not out of any sense of owing them anything," Harry said. "We all saved each other's lives so many times that it was pointless to keep track. This is me making sure that my friends have something to start out with. What they do with it, and whether I get a return on that investment into them, is up to them and out of my hands." He shrugged.

"Some would still see it as you trying to buy their friendship," Nabiki noted.

"I would like to see what happens if those 'some people' are crass enough say that in their hearing," Harry replied with a smirk. "Especially if Asuna gets to them first."

"Oh?" Nabiki asked.

Alfheim, Arun

"So, can someone tell me who among you gentlemen had the bright idea of starting a brawl right here in the middle of town?" Asuna asked.

"Don't tell me you're defending that maniac, she's-" The Salamander stopped as Asuna gave him a look.

"If you are complaining about her enthusiasm for a fight, I know about it," Asuna said drily. "She wasn't as bad in SAO, but that's only because of the consequences should something go wrong, which she knew. At least when it came to players. Mobs were fair game for her though. But that's not the reason you started a brawl here." She looked at the crowd of players. "And with more than a dozen of your friends, too. Are you so lacking in your endowments that you need all this assistance?"

"What?" The Salamander asked in puzzlement as several onlookers laughed.

"Why don't you go to a different establishment and puzzle out what I said," Asuna said.

"I don't need to do what you want, you Undine bitch," the Salamander said.

"That was a mistake," Lux commented.

"Bitch?" Asuna asked. "Please tell me that isn't the extent of your insults, not that I find it all that insulting. I know I can be a bitch. It came with the territory in riding herd on the pack of lunatics that was my guild."

"Did she just call us crazy?" Rain asked in feigned shock.

"Why yes, she did," Kirito said drily. "Which is fair, given everything. You will note, however, that she only called us crazy, not stupid."

"Quiet in the peanut gallery," Asuna said, giving them a look. She paused when she saw Strea happily munching on peanuts and shook her head.

"Strea dear, you guys were plenty nuts. You didn't need to add more." She chided.

Strea shrugged. "I was hungry and felt a need for a snack," she replied.

"Yes, but diet is not why Pina's saner than you all combined," the Flash replied.

"Just hungrier," Rain said with a nod. "And saying she's saner than all of us combined would be fixed if you were to add yourself to the mix, Asuna. Then, we would be saner, or at least as sane, as a group than she is as an individual. Maybe."

The assembled players looked at each other, confused, as the group of SAO Survivors continued to talk and then dispersed. The fact that Asuna turned the entire thing into a discussion of their relative sanity, or lack thereof, of the group as being more important than the group that seemed bent on trying to start a fight with one of their own, was probably a more effective targeted insult than anything else.

And they thought that the Sylph who had ripped into that one idiot back when the Grand Quest was still more a test of a group's skill than a completable quest could make someone feel inadequate.

Nerima, Saotome-Tendo Dojo

"She has a way with words," Keiko said drily.

Nabiki nodded at her grandniece's response. The young woman who had been the leader of their group was known to her. She idly wondered how Harry had persuaded her to accept the gift he was giving, considering that she came from money.

She turned her attention back to the papers in front of her, looking for things she could advise the young man on when it came to money. That he was willing to let the current regime continue as it was profitable at least demonstrated that he was wise enough to not mess with something that was working and which he had no idea on how to manage properly.

It was rare for a youth to know to leave well enough alone when money was involved. Or anything, really.

May 21, 2025 - England, Smeltings

Dudley stretched as he walked back into the dorm room to drop off his morning materials and gather everything for his afternoon classes. The math, history and literature homework due today was completed yesterday and his Japanese Language studies were not due for another day, which reassured him. He already knew that he would be going back to Japan over the summer and he had been working heavily on studying the language. And Japanese was not an easy language to learn.

Harry had a couple of extra years to get a handle on the language, at least the spoken part, and he was most likely capable of reading basic Japanese by now as well. But he had no doubt that his cousin was struggling with Kanji just like he was. Probably less, with the years of immersion and all, but it was one thing to be able to speak the language, it was another to be able to read and write it. Dudley knew that he wouldn't develop the conversational competence with the language his cousin already had any time soon. Which was fine for him, he only wanted to know enough to be able to get around and have the basics taken care of right now.

Which would come handy for the Summer, as he would be in Japan for a little over a couple of months and it would be nice if he wasn't dependent on either Harry or Sirius for even basic communication. Yes, a number of Japanese people were at least somewhat familiar with English, but try getting them to use it.

Well, there was that one time he had one of their police stop him and Harry and had simply struck a conversation with them in English so he could practice it, all while they showed their papers showing that they were in Japan legally. That was an interesting experience.

He finished gathering his materials and headed back to class. As he locked his dorm room's door, he reflected that he was glad that his coach had insisted that he maintain his grades. While not spectacular, he was passing all of his courses within an acceptable margin.

Though meeting Nanairo Arshavin, a girl with a Ph.D. who was younger than him, over the holidays did show that he was never going to be an intellectual giant. Not that he didn't already know that.