Asuna's body trembled slightly.
The voices of the younger students gradually faded as well.
"Good luck, Senpai! We'll be cheering for you!"
After encouraging Asuna, the kids slipped away.
Asuna remained seated, her head lowered.
"I've never found playing the piano enjoyable..."
[Oh my god] [Her mom is way too cruel] [That's what tiger moms are like] [Feel bad for my wife for one second] [Damn!] [The pressure is really crushing now] [QuQ] [Ahhhhh] [Seriously though, what's wrong with fencing? I think it's totally fine for a girl to learn fencing!]
Quite a few viewers in the danmaku began speaking up for Asuna.
—Of course fencing was an aristocratic sport.
In a sense, fencing was also an elegant sport.
It was just that Yuuki Kyoko did not really understand that.
The Yuuki Family could not be considered an "old-established" power. In a sense, even the family inherited by Kazuto Kirigaya, the Sword Art Online protagonist who lived in an ordinary household, would not have been too shabby.
Oh, there was no Kirito here—only Kiriko.
In any case, using that information gap to create this sort of atmosphere was still possible for Asuna.
But the viewers did not need to know about those behind-the-scenes matters. The role Asuna was meant to play was that of a gentle, beautiful girl who was outstanding yet had her nature suppressed.
From the moment the stream began until now, that was the impression Asuna had been shaping.
"...Next contestant... Yuuki Asuna... Performing Liszt's arrangement of Beethoven's Symphony of Fate, Fourth Movement."
The announcement reached Asuna.
Asuna took a deep breath, then stood and left the backstage area.
The sound of the piano slowly rang out.
``` [Holy crap, Liszt arranged Beethoven's Symphony of Fate]
[That's insanely difficult]
[Liszt's arrangement of the Ninth Symphony