A warm light slowly spread across Akari's vision.
The darkness of logout gradually disappeared.
Then—
[Welcome Back To Evermount]
Akari blinked.
The familiar village streets appeared around her.
Stone roads stretched beneath her feet.
Wooden houses lined both sides of the path while colorful cloth banners hung between rooftops.
NPC merchants shouted from nearby stalls.
Players walked back and forth carrying weapons, materials, and newly purchased equipment.
Some beginner players were arguing over party recruitment.
Others were proudly showing newly obtained skills to their friends.
This place—
Village of Vareth.
Floor One's beginner village.
Memory appeared beside Akari in a flash of blue particles.
The moment she spawned—
She stretched her arms upward.
"Mmmmmm..."
"My back hurts."
Akari stared at her.
"...We're in a game."
Memory slowly looked at her.
"...Right."
"..."
"...I meant mentally."
Akari sighed.
Bubbles bounced on Memory's head.
Boing.
Boing.
The small blue slime looked incredibly energetic today.
Meanwhile Memory looked like someone who had just finished a week of exams.
The two began walking toward the center of the village.
Morning sunlight illuminated the streets.
Players filled the area.
Shops had become busier compared to the last time they were here.
Akari quietly looked around while walking.
Memory suddenly glanced toward her.
"So..."
Akari looked back.
"Hm?"
Memory tilted her head.
"You're really not gonna tell your sister?"
Akari instantly knew what she meant.
Her expression immediately became awkward.
"...No."
Memory blinked.
"Still?"
Akari looked ahead.
"...Not yet."
Memory puffed her cheeks.
"Why though?"
"Your sister would probably be super happy."
Akari immediately shook her head.
"That's exactly the problem."
Memory stared blankly.
"...Huh?"
Akari sighed.
Her eyes slowly moved toward the sky.
"My sister..."
"...gets really over supportive."
Memory blinked.
Akari crossed her arms.
"If she finds out I play Evermount..."
"...she'll immediately start helping."
"She'll give me equipment."
"She'll teach me everything."
"She'll probably force me into her guild."
"She'll protect me every five seconds."
Memory stared.
"...That sounds amazing."
Akari immediately looked at her.
"It isn't!"
Memory looked confused.
Akari puffed her cheeks.
"I want to discover things myself."
"I want to become stronger by myself."
"I don't want to just follow behind her."
Memory stared quietly.
Akari lowered her voice.
"I know she'd support me."
"...I know that."
"But I want to walk my own path first."
Her expression softened slightly.
"Then..."
"...one day."
"...I'll surprise her."
Memory smiled.
"...That's actually kinda cool."
Akari looked away awkwardly.
"...It isn't cool."
"It is."
"...It's not."
"It is."
"...Stop."
Memory giggled.
The two continued walking through the center of the village.
Suddenly—
THUMP.
Memory bumped directly into someone.
"...Ow!"
She stumbled backward.
Bubbles bounced off her head.
Boing!
The slime spun twice before landing safely.
"Ah—!"
"I'm sorry!"
Memory immediately bowed repeatedly.
The person she hit blinked.
Standing in front of them was a girl with blonde hair tied behind her shoulders.
She wore brown crafting clothes with leather gloves around her hands.
Several pouches hung around her waist.
Materials and tools could be seen attached near her belt.
Akari narrowed her eyes slightly.
Someone familiar.
The blonde girl stared at Akari.
Then—
Her eyes widened.
"...Rio?"
Akari blinked.
"...Eh?"
The blonde girl stared for several seconds.
Then slowly tilted her head.
"...No."
"...Wait."
"...You're not Rio."
Akari looked confused.
Beside the blonde girl stood another player.
A girl with brown hair and purple eyes.
She looked slightly taller than Akari.
A sword hung around her waist.
Judging by her armor and physique—
Warrior class.
The brown-haired girl looked between them.
Then looked at the blonde girl.
"Is that the white-haired swordswoman you were talking about?"
The blonde girl shook her head.
"No."
"...Just someone who looks like her."
Akari blinked.
Memory looked between both groups.
"...You know my friend?"
The blonde-haired girl looked toward them and smiled.
"Oh."
"Sorry."
"My name is Cynthia."
"I'm a craftsman from Oblivion Pledge."
Akari's eyes widened slightly.
She remembered hearing that name before.
It was one of the names Ryota mentioned when he was talking about the adventures during dinner
Cynthia pointed toward her companion.
"And this is Leila."
The warrior girl raised her hand slightly.
"Hi."
Akari bowed politely.
"I'm Akari."
"This is Memory."
Memory waved happily.
"And this is Bubbles."
Boing!
The slime proudly bounced.
Leila stared.
"...You introduced the slime too."
Memory nodded seriously.
"Of course."
"Bubbles gets lonely."
"..."
Leila slowly looked away.
"...Right."
Cynthia however kept staring at Akari.
Specifically—
Her hair.
Her face.
Her eyes.
Akari noticed immediately.
"...Is something wrong?"
Cynthia scratched her cheek awkwardly.
"Sorry."
"It's just..."
"You seriously look almost identical."
Akari tilted her head.
"...Identical to who?"
Cynthia looked at her.
"A friend of mine named...Rio."
Akari froze.
Memory froze.
Bubbles froze.
Silence.
Complete silence.
Memory slowly turned toward Akari.
Akari slowly turned toward Memory.
The two stared at each other.
Sweat slowly rolled down Akari's face.
Memory's eyes widened.
Very slowly—
Very carefully—
Memory pointed at Akari.
"...Akari."
Akari immediately looked horrified.
"...Don't."
Memory pointed harder.
"...AKARI."
Akari's face turned pale.
"...DON'T."
Memory's mouth slowly opened.
A massive grin appeared.
"...YOU HAVE A SISTER WHO LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE YOU?!"
Akari grabbed Memory immediately.
"SHUT UP!"
"MMMMMMMMMM!"
Bubbles bounced around in complete confusion.
Meanwhile Cynthia and Leila stared blankly at the two girls wrestling in the middle of the village.
"..."
"..."
Leila looked toward Cynthia.
"...Should we ask questions?"
Cynthia stared at Akari.
Then slowly smiled.
"...No."
"...I think things just got interesting."
After the chaos from Memory almost exposing Akari's secret finally settled down, the four girls slowly continued walking through the busy streets of Village Vareth.
Akari still looked embarrassed.
Very embarrassed.
Meanwhile Memory had somehow recovered from being strangled earlier and was now happily walking beside Cynthia.
Bubbles bounced around between everyone like a tiny blue ball of energy.
Boing.
Boing.
Boing.
Cynthia glanced backward and smiled.
"So..."
"Since we already met like this..."
She pointed ahead.
"What do you think about grabbing something to eat?"
Memory's eyes immediately lit up.
"FOOD?!"
Akari looked at her.
"...You literally ate before logging in."
Memory looked offended.
"That was real world food."
"This is game food."
"...Totally different."
Akari stared.
"...How?"
Memory crossed her arms proudly.
"Because game food has emotional value."
"..."
"...That makes no sense."
Leila sighed.
"...I regret coming."
Cynthia laughed.
"So?"
Akari looked around for a moment before nodding.
"...Okay."
Memory immediately raised both arms.
"YES!"
And so—
The four girls and one slime started walking toward a nearby restaurant.
The village wasn't huge compared to cities like Nendu, but the center area had become noticeably crowded.
Players were everywhere.
Some carried oversized swords.
Others had staffs.
A few tamers walked around with small creatures beside them.
NPC workers shouted from stores while the smell of cooked meat floated through the air.
Eventually they arrived at a small restaurant near the center square.
The building was mostly wood with hanging lanterns near the entrance.
The sign above the door read:
Golden Leaf Kitchen
The moment they entered—
Warm air immediately greeted them.
The scent of cooked meat and spices filled the room.
Several players sat around chatting while NPC waitresses moved around carrying food.
Memory's eyes sparkled.
"...This place smells amazing."
Leila looked at her.
"...You really are easy to please."
They eventually sat near the window.
Akari beside Memory.
Cynthia beside Leila.
Bubbles sat on the table.
The little slime somehow had a tiny spoon beside it.
Nobody questioned it.
After ordering some food—
Cynthia leaned slightly forward.
"So..."
Her eyes moved toward Akari and Memory.
"What are you two doing near Dragon's Peak anyway?"
Memory blinked.
Akari tilted her head.
"Hm?"
Cynthia folded her arms.
"Normally players don't stay around this area."
"Most people immediately rush Floor Two."
Leila nodded.
"Especially beginners."
"Floor One mostly becomes empty after people level up a little."
Akari looked outside the window.
Then smiled softly.
"...Nothing really."
Memory looked at her.
Akari continued.
"We just wanted our own adventure."
"We want to have fun in Evermount."
Her eyes reflected the bright village outside.
"I don't want to rush everything."
"I want to explore."
"I want to see things."
"I want to become stronger little by little."
Memory smiled.
"And we also almost died like six times."
Akari immediately looked at her.
"...Why would you add that?"
Memory tilted her head.
"...Because we did?"
Cynthia laughed softly.
Leila looked exhausted already.
"...You two are weird."
Memory proudly puffed her chest.
"Thank you."
"...That wasn't a compliment."
After a few moments—
Memory suddenly looked at Cynthia and Leila.
"What about you two?"
"Aren't you heading to Floor Two?"
Leila immediately groaned.
A long painful groan.
"Ugh..."
"Don't remind me."
She dropped her head onto the table dramatically.
Memory blinked.
"...What's wrong?"
Leila slowly raised her head.
"Our new guild officer assigned us material gathering."
Cynthia sighed beside her.
"We're supposed to gather resources for Floor Two preparations."
Leila looked irritated.
"And guess where they wanted us to go?"
Memory tilted her head.
"...Where?"
Leila pointed toward the mountain range outside the village.
"...Dragon's Peak."
Akari immediately froze.
Memory blinked.
"...Oh."
Leila sighed heavily.
"We wanted to climb it yesterday."
"But we couldn't."
Memory looked confused.
"...Why?"
Leila looked dead inside.
"Apparently..."
"...ever since some White Swordswoman released an attack so ridiculously powerful..."
"...and somehow caused a giant avalanche before returning alive..."
"...the entire mountain became a nightmare."
Akari:
"..."
Memory slowly looked toward Akari.
Akari slowly looked away.
Very slowly.
Very suspiciously.
Leila continued complaining.
"The creatures there became absurdly hostile."
"The cold is horrible."
"The terrain already wants to kill you."
"And now monsters are attacking in groups."
Cynthia nodded.
"Most people now recommend at least four players before climbing."
Memory stared.
"...Seriously?"
Leila crossed her arms.
"At first I thought it was fake."
She snorted.
"A White Swordswoman creating something that ridiculous?"
"No way."
"Sounded like some exaggerated rumor."
Then—
She pointed beside her.
"But my good friend here..."
"...was actually there."
Akari froze.
Memory froze.
Slowly—
Very slowly—
Both turned toward Cynthia.
Cynthia smiled awkwardly.
"...Ah."
"...Yeah."
"I saw it."
Akari's soul almost left her body.
Memory's eyes widened.
"W-WAIT REALLY?!"
Cynthia nodded.
"There was this huge battle."
"There were monsters everywhere."
"And then suddenly—"
She raised her hands dramatically.
"BOOOOOOOM!"
"Everything exploded."
"The entire mountain shook."
"I thought the world was ending."
Leila nodded repeatedly.
"And she came back alive?!"
Cynthia looked toward the ceiling while remembering.
"Not just alive."
"She looked surprisingly calm."
Memory's eyes sparkled.
"SO COOL!"
Akari:
"..."
Inside Akari's mind—
A small version of herself sat in darkness while holding her knees.
"Sis..."
"Why..."
"Why would you do something like that..."
"You're making it impossible for me to hide..."
Meanwhile outside—
Memory looked incredibly excited.
"WOAAAH!"
"I wanna meet that White Swordswoman one day!"
Akari immediately looked horrified.
"...No."
Memory blinked.
"Huh?"
Akari realized what she said.
"...I mean..."
"...No pressure."
"...No need to rush."
"...Meeting people is unnecessary."
Memory stared.
Cynthia stared.
Leila stared.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Leila narrowed her eyes.
"...You're acting weird."
Akari immediately looked away.
"...I'm not."
Underneath the table—
Bubbles looked upward.
Then innocently bounced toward Akari.
Boing.
Boing.
Boing.
The slime tilted slightly.
As if wondering—
Why the girl with the divine lightning suddenly looked like she wanted to disappear from existence.