"Lastly, let me show you proof that this world has become your only reality. There's a gift I prepared for everyone in your item slots. Please take a look."
Following his instructions, Asuna's finger almost moved on its own, swiping downward. The players around her made the same motion, and a string of electronic chimes rang out across the plaza.
She tapped the item tab on the main menu that appeared. At the top of the list of items she owned was the gift Kayaba had mentioned.
The item was called "Handheld Mirror."
Asuna muttered, wondering why he would give her something like that, then tapped its name and selected the materialize button in the window that appeared. With a bright sound effect, a small rectangular mirror appeared in her hand.
Reflected in the mirror was a youthful face with sharply defined features.
The next moment, blue light flashed over Asuna and all the other players in turn. It lasted only two or three seconds, but when their vision cleared, they found themselves looking at a crowd of strangers.
The handsome, refined players had vanished. Many players wore bewildered, disbelieving expressions as they looked one another over. Nearly the entire plaza echoed with the same question:
"Who are you?"
Then they realized what had happened. They hurriedly felt their faces, then looked at their reflections in the mirrors.
They were looking at their real-world selves.
Asuna's hairstyle had changed a little, and her face looked somewhat younger and more innocent, but otherwise she was still more or less the same.
Kazuto Kirigaya glanced around casually and spotted several players who had changed from female to male. They were definitely not uncommon. He understood how they felt. After all, he liked playing female characters in games, too.
It wasn't that male characters weren't fun. Female characters were just better value.
But the players were all groaning in dismay.
Most people had made a few adjustments to their appearance, more or less, to hide their private insecurities. Everyone had improved their looks a little. That wasn't unreasonable, was it?
But now, everyone was showing their real faces.
Before Kazuto could react, a player beside him asked in surprise, "How come you haven't changed at all?"
He was an unremarkable, middle-aged fat man, visibly overweight and sporting a large belly that made him look comical.
Kazuto Kirigaya shrugged. "This is what I look like in real life."
The fat man fell silent. He wasn't the only one; the male players who had heard Kazuto's reply fell silent, too.
The silence around Kazuto was suddenly deafening.
What were you supposed to do when there was a very handsome guy of the same sex nearby?
Handsome guys were popular with the opposite sex, but most of them were also shunned by people of the same sex.
And when someone was at the very top of the scale among their peers, most people might not consciously resent him, but they would instinctively keep their distance.
No one wanted to admit they were inferior to someone else.
If they felt inferior and it was within their power to do so, they would try to make things difficult for him.
They didn't need to do anything overt. They could ignore him when they met, or egg someone on at a crucial moment and watch him make a fool of himself. Then, as more people joined in, things would escalate until it became school bullying.
That was how Japan was. The targets of school bullying usually fell into three categories: handsome but quiet, good grades but quiet, and handsome, good grades, and quiet.
In short, bullies usually picked on people who didn't speak up and lacked confidence.
Akihiko Kayaba continued speaking without pausing.
"Everyone must be wondering why. Why would Akihiko Kayaba, the developer of SAO and NERvGear, do this? Is this a large-scale terrorist attack? Or a kidnapping for ransom?"
Kayaba's voice, which had been completely devoid of emotion until then, now carried a certain feeling. Even Kazuto had to admit that Akihiko Kayaba was a charismatic man.
Kazuto had read about the young genius.
Akihiko Kayaba was famous as a quantum physicist and a brilliant game designer. He had designed the foundation of NERvGear and the game SAO, and created The Seed.
An unremarkable-looking man with the power to change an era.
It was a shame he had chosen this path.
"Neither of those is my aim. In fact, I could say that I no longer have any aim or reason. Why? Because this situation itself is my ultimate goal. I invented NERvGear and created SAO to make this world and watch it. And now, all my goals have been achieved."
After a brief pause, Kayaba's cold voice began to echo through the hall once more.
"...That concludes the official launch announcement for Sword Art Online. Players, I wish you luck."
His final words lingered in a faint echo, then vanished.
The enormous scarlet cloak rose soundlessly. Starting at the tip of its hood, it seemed to melt away, gradually blending into the system messages covering the entire sky.
Its shoulders, chest, and limbs slowly sank into the blood-red surface, until only ripples spread outward. Then the messages covering the sky abruptly disappeared, just as they had appeared.
The wind blew over the plaza. The town's background music, played by an NPC band, gradually drew closer from the distant streets, its steady rhythm stirring the players' senses.
The game returned to normal. The only thing that had changed was that some of its rules were different.
Only then did the group of ten thousand players react as they should have.
In short, deafening cries erupted from all over, shaking the entire plaza.
The instant the red barrier around them disappeared, Kazuto Kirigaya grabbed Asuna and ran without a second thought.
Asuna hadn't even had time to react before the boy dragged her away. He also sent Kirito a private message.
Roa: Move! Let's go grind. Do you want Suguha crying over your corpse? We'll split up and grind; it'll be more efficient. Message me privately if anything comes up.
Kazuto Kirigaya: .
Kazuto Kirigaya hadn't yet had time to react when he saw the message. His pupils suddenly contracted, and he swallowed before grabbing Mito and urgently saying, "Come on, let's go grind."
Then he turned and saw a pretty, delicate-looking girl with short purple hair.
She was lovely, her purple eyes like amethysts.
But her body had changed from nearly two meters tall to only about 165 centimeters, and Kazuto Kirigaya hadn't quite processed it yet.
Feeling the warmth of her hand in his, Kazuto Kirigaya swallowed unconsciously.
It wasn't his fault. Apart from holding his little sister's hand, he had never been physically close to another girl.
It really wasn't his fault. It was all because his shut-in older brother had dragged him into gaming every day, turning him into a shut-in, too.
Once I finish writing the first-floor boss, I'll continue Jobless Reincarnation. We'll be at the Eris arc then.
Before you continue