After having lunch together, Rinko finally bid Shido goodbye with a satisfied smile. Honestly, if she didn’t have sothing else to do, she would’ve stayed a little longer since his apartnt was just too relaxing and comforting. Besides, being around Shido always made her feel a mix of emotions she rarely experienced.
Once Rinko had left in her car, Shido returned to his apartnt to do so research.
Opening his laptop again, he began gathering information on the person Rinko had ntioned. With his [Hacking Mastery], this kind of information gathering was very easy for him and Shido could find everything there was to know about his target.
Yuuki Kyouko.
She was the current CEO of RECT Inc. and the mother of this world’s main heroine, Yuuki Asuna. After Argus went bankrupt following the SAO Incident, RECT Inc. took over the managent of Sword Art Online and later developed the AmuSphere, a safer and improved successor to the NerveGear.
The company also created Alfheim Online. However, Yuuki Shouzou, the forr CEO and Asuna’s father, had planned to marry her off to Sugou Nobuyuki, the RECT Progress chief, under the pretext of ensuring the company’s succession and taking care of Asuna, who remained unconscious even after the end of the SAO Incident.
However, Yuuki Shouzou had been rather naive, believing that Sugou Nobuyuki was an upright and upstanding young man. But he didn’t know Sugou Nobuyuki’s true intentions, his decision backfired disastrously when the public discovered that Sugou had illegally trapped 300 SAO survivors inside ALO to conduct inhumane experints.
The revelation sparked a massive scandal, nurous lawsuits, and ultimately led to the collapse of RECT Progress Inc. In the aftermath, Yuuki Shouzou stepped down, and Yuuki Kyouko took over as the new CEO of RECT Inc.
"So, they’re looking for a larger company to acquire them and keep their operations running."
Shido thought to himself. It wasn’t hard to understand Yuuki Kyouko’s concern, after all, RECT Inc. had nearly gone bankrupt because of the scandal. They would need the backing of a major corporation to stay afloat.
Now that Yuuki Kyouko was looking for him and wanted to have a eting, it was clear that she hoped for Shido to invest in their company. In fact, it would also be beneficial for him, if he acquired RECT Inc., both Alfheim Online and the AmuSphere would fall under his managent. So Shido had no reason to turn down such an attractive proposal.
Actually, Shido had already instructed Ymir, a company under his managent, to acquire them since it was a good opportunity while they were in a desperate state. However, he didn’t expect that their CEO would personally contact him.
With that thought, he picked up his phone and dialed Rinko’s number, asking her to arrange a eting between him and Yuuki Kyouko.
"Rinko. Yeah, sorry for disturbing you while you’re busy... Mm, I see. No, it’s nothing urgent, but could you arrange a eting for with the CEO of RECT Inc.? ...Yes, set up a date that works on their side. Right, that’ll do. Thanks, I appreciate it."
After the call, Shido hung up his phone and looked up at the ceiling, wondering if he would et Asuna in the near future, after all, he was about to get involved with her family’s company.
Shido couldn’t help but feel curious about Asuna, after all, she was the main heroine of SAO and was also undeniably beautiful. Unfortunately, she was already in love with Kirito, and Shido had no intention of bothering their love life.
Rather than Asuna, Shido found himself more intrigued by her mother, Yuuki Kyouko, a woman known for her stern and composed disposition. He wondered what she would be like when they finally t, and the thought made a faint smile appear on his lips.
After all, he already knew everything about her after hacking into their family’s records. Shido was well aware of the situation surrounding them. While Yuuki Kyouko and her husband appeared to have a good relationship on the surface, there was actually a growing rift between them, one that had quietly driven them apart.
Asuna was unaware of all that. Her father was rarely ho, and she wasn’t particularly close to her mother due to Yuuki Kyouko’s strict personality. Because of this, Shido couldn’t help but wonder if sothing might happen between them in the future.
However, there was no point in thinking about that now. Putting those thoughts at the back of his head, Shido returned to his room and picked up the AmuSphere he had bought previously, deciding it was ti to try out Alfheim Online.
Shido looked at the device in his hands. He had been intrigued by the AmuSphere ever since he first saw it. Unlike the NerveGear, which covered the entire head, the AmuSphere consisted of two overlapping tal rings, almost like a pair of futuristic glasses.
Since his body would enter a state of stasis once he logged into the ga, Shido lay down on his bed and carefully put on the AmuSphere.
He adjusted his body into a comfortable position before closing his eyes and saying softly, "Link Start."
The mont those words left his lips, Shido felt his consciousness being drawn into another world. A stream of glowing lights in various colors rushed past him, making it seem as though he were traveling through a tunnel of light.
Then, a large ssage appeared before him, [Welco to ALfheim Online.] followed by a chanical female voice that seed to be the system guide.
Looking around, Shido realized he was standing in a small, circular room illuminated by shifting lights. He also noticed that his attire remained the sa as what he had been wearing just monts ago.
A mont later, a transparent virtual keyboard appeared before him as the system guide spoke again, instructing him to enter his character’s gender and na.
He placed his hand on his chin, thinking about a good na to use for his avatar.
"A na, huh? I wonder what would be an interesting one. It’d be too la to just use my own, so I’d rather make a new one."
After a mont of thought, Shido finally decided on a na. Typing on the virtual keyboard, he selected his gender as male and entered the na ’Satsuna (An Instant)’.
After pressing Enter, the system guide’s voice echoed once more.
[The next step is race selection.]
[Please choose on of the nine races.]
A holographic display appeared before Shido, showcasing nine different types of fairies, each with distinct traits, wings, and colors.
"Oh, this is interesting."
Shido looked over the various fairy races, reading through their descriptions and backgrounds with curiosity. Eventually, he stopped at a dark-thed race called "Spriggan."
Studying the race’s details with a thoughtful expression, he recalled a certain player from SAO.
"This should be Kirito’s fairy race, right?"
Reading through the race description, Shido nodded slightly. "Well, I admit, even though this race isn’t the strongest in terms of physical power or speed, their and are really useful."
Still, while the Spriggan race was impressive, especially since the main character had chosen it, Shido was more interested in another race. He switched to another race, stopping before a fairy associated with the color purple, which sohow reminded him of Tohka.
The system guide’s voice continued to echo.
[Imp, correct?]
[Your character’s appearance will be randomly generated.]
[Is that okay?]
Without hesitation, Shido pressed the "OK" button.
[You will now be transferred to the Imp’s hotown.]
[We wish you the best luck.]
As the system guide’s words faded, a bright light enveloped Shido’s body, forcing him to close his eyes. A mont later, his figure dissolved into the light.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself floating in a dark, empty dinsion. He could feel strange sensations coursing through him, his body was changing. Then, streaks of light began to gather around him, forming the silhouette of his avatar piece by piece.
When the process was complete, Shido was transferred once more, this ti, he imdiately felt a strong gust of wind rushing past him.
Opening his eyes, he realized that he was falling from the sky. Yet, there wasn’t even a trace of panic or fear in his gaze as he was already accustod to fighting from such heights.
However, when Shido saw the location where he had been transferred, the corner of his lips twitched as he wonder why does the area where he was supposed to land different from what he know.
Beneath him stretched a vast forest, its canopy made up of towering trees that seed to go on endlessly.
Although slightly puzzled, Shido decided not to dwell on it for now, after all, he was still in the middle of falling.
When he was about fifty ters above the ground, a pair of transparent, bat-like wings sprouted from Shido’s back. With a skilled movent, he spread them wide and slowed his descent, coming to a smooth hover in midair.
Shido was slightly amazed as he looked back at his wings, which now felt like a natural extension of his body. Normally, he didn’t need wings to fly, he could do so effortlessly on his own.
But now that he was flying with them, it felt a little strange, as if a new set of bones had been attached to his shoulders. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just oddly unfamiliar.
Curious about his new wings and the flight system, Shido began experinting, performing sharp turns, loops, and even sorsaults in midair. Despite being his first ti flying in this world, he moved with the ease and mastery of soone who had been doing it for years.
He didn’t even bother using a support controller like most beginners like most beginners do.
"This is fun!" Shido laughed, performing a few more playful twists before finally coming to a stop.
After enjoying himself with a bit of flying, Shido finally decided to take a look around to figure out where he was. Gazing at the vast forest stretching beneath him, he muttered.
"Now... where am I?"
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