Chapter 40: Yui's Clothes

  After solving Rosalia's Murder Association problem, Yagiyama Sumi directly rushed back to Yagiyama Residence.

  There, Asuna had already prepared dinner and was quietly waiting for his return.

  After telling Yasnaya about the whole thing, including Algo's affairs in detail, the two of them completely put this matter behind their minds.

  The following days were the same as before, Asuna went to the raid team during the day to raid and came back at noon and night to cook. Yui Kanzaki always went to the dungeon area alone to level up, every now and then she would trade all the items she couldn't use to Kirito's guild "Moonlit Black Cats", and all the ingredients were given to Asuna.

  Asuna gazed at her backpack, where more than half of the space was filled with all sorts of food ingredients, including many ultra-rare S-grade items that other players might not even see once in their lifetime, and smiled foolishly.

  Because she obtained a large amount of ingredients from Yui, Asuna's cooking skill level rose much faster than in the original story, reaching the top level several months ahead of schedule, becoming the first player in SAO to reach the top level of cooking skills.

  As the first player to reach the top level of cooking skills, the system also rewarded Asuna with a cooking utensil.

  A kitchen knife that looks almost like an ordinary one, but its effect is really enviable.

  A kitchen knife that can increase the flavor of ingredients by 50%, and also restore those with zero durability back to full durability!

  And this knife's name is actually called Eternal Spirit Knife!

  Baiyun Mo was beaming with pride as he placed the knife in front of himself, showing it off to Asuna.

  Is Kayano Shigenaga also a fan of "Chinese Little Masters"? Even the legendary cooking utensils have appeared...

  Not mentioning that weird kitchen knife that made Bayun Mo feel like he was going to lose his temper, such a peaceful life went on for over ten days.

  Asuna was finally able to face Yui normally again.

  Time has come to the end of February.

  That afternoon, Bayan Mo didn't go to the Labyrinth District to level up, but instead came to the dock by the lake to fish.

  Nishida was also with him, who had previously introduced Asuna.

  "By the way, Yakumo, have you heard about the rumors of a ghost appearing in this forest recently?"

  Nishida-sensei put away the small fish that had been caught and turned around to face Yakumo Sumi.

  Ghost?

  A flash of insight suddenly appeared in Bailing's mind.

  Mr. Nishida continued, "It's said that it was a little girl who wandered alone in the forest, and people who saw her would blink and then she'd be gone, very eerie."

  Little girl?

  Baiyun Mo had basically confirmed in her mind that the so-called little girl ghost was likely Jie Yi.

  Yui was originally SAO's MHCP, an AI in charge of maintaining players' mental health through counseling. Shortly after the game started, Yui received a command from an AI with higher system privileges, prohibiting her from providing psychological counseling to players. As SAO became a death game, a massive amount of despair and resentment filled the entire game, causing Yui's program to malfunction and crash due to being infected by these malicious emotions.

  In the original work, Yui was drawn to the strong positive emotions between Kirito and Asuna and appeared beside them, eventually becoming their daughter through a series of unexpected events.

  But now, Yui seems to have appeared earlier than in the original story.

  Yun Mo was pondering in her mind, perhaps it was because of her own reasons that Jie Yi appeared ahead of time in the game world, and this time what attracted Jie Yi was probably herself.

  "Has Mr. Nishida seen that ghost?" asked Yakumo Sukeichi, gazing at the fish float drifting on the water's surface.

  Mr. Xī Tiān stroked the back of his head and burst out laughing, "This old bone of mine doesn't dare to see those things! What? Is Eighth Cloud little brother interested in this matter?"

  "It's just a bit."

  Baiyun Mo watched as the float began to rise and fall, his eyes lit up, and with a skilled wave of the fishing rod in his hand, a fat fish was hooked.

  "Good boy! Indeed formidable!" Looking at the big fish caught by Yakumo Mokuto, Mr. Nishida was full of admiration.

  Yayumi Moku put away the big fish and waved goodbye to Mr. Nishida before leaving the lakeside.

  Night.

  "Vice-Captain Asuna, we'll take our leave first!"

  A blue-haired man bowed his head along with the members of the Blood Oath Knights and left the Labyrinth District.

  That man is Diablero.

  Because Yui didn't die like in the original story, Diavel became an elite player with his own abilities and later joined the Blood Alliance Knights, becoming a high-ranking officer within the knights.

  Asuna waited until the Knights of the Guild had left before heading towards Yagura's residence.

  As she walked, she hummed a soft tune, and thinking that she would soon be back at Yagumo Residence, see Yagumo Taku, Asuna's mood became very cheerful.

  This pleasant mood became even better when walking along the winding small path paved with wooden boards and seeing Bayunju in the distance.

  Nowadays, Asuna is still serious and responsible when it comes to clearing the game, but once she has some free time, her mind always wanders back to Yui Kirito.

  Where is he now? Is he going solo in the maze district to level up again? Or is he fishing by the lake? What should I cook for him tonight...

  Such thoughts made Asuna extremely embarrassed. If others, especially Kirito and Keita, were to find out, wouldn't they laugh at her until she died?

  Although she was trying her best to remind herself to be elegant and ladylike, Asuna just couldn't suppress that feeling. In the end, she simply gave up and let go of her inhibitions. As a result, during battles, Asuna would occasionally space out and stand on one side, smiling foolishly to herself in front of all the members of the Knights of the Blood guild.

  Although most people are unclear about what happened to their deputy team leader, some thoughtful people know it clearly.

  For some reason, these people did not tell others about the things they had guessed, but instead secretly scolded them in their hearts.

  It's impossible for them to make some moves anyway.

  After all, Hachiguma Moku's reputation is strictly speaking, even higher than that of his own captain, Shunsui Kyoraku.

  Moreover, as elite players of the strategy group, they also respected the person who could conquer nearly half of the floors of Aincrad alone.

  After seeing Yagumo Inn, Asuna's footsteps quickened involuntarily.

  As Asuna approached the entrance of Yagura's residence, she was about to say "I'm back" as usual, but suddenly heard a little girl's voice coming from inside the courtyard.

  How can there be little girls in the middle of Ba Yun Ju?

  Yasna, who was suspicious, stopped the words that were about to come out of her mouth, and quietly hid by the door, her small and cute ears moving slightly as she carefully eavesdropped.

  "Daddy! Daddy! Listen carefully!"

  "Hehe, do you like Yui?"

  "Mmm! Yui likes it! Daddy is the best! Play another one, okay?"

  "The little girl is addicted!"

  "Ouch... Dad hit me on the head again! He's so mean!"

  "Dead? Just now you said Daddy was fine!"

  "Hehe......"

  Dad?

  Asuna's face was extremely colorful.

  When did Yaye become a father?

  With a sudden surge of anxiety, Asuna also didn't care about anything else and directly pushed open the door and rushed in.

  "Yakumo!"

  As soon as she entered, Asuna saw a scene that made her very entangled.

  The beautiful Yōsei-like Ba Yun Mo wore a comfortable and luxurious long gown, her hair let down, covering the bluestone floor with a dazzling layer of black. In front of her was placed a low table, on which was arranged an instrument of unusual style. Bai, this nine-tailed fox, lay beside Ba Yun Mo, its nine fluffy tails swishing back and forth.

  All of this was still okay, but what made Asuna somewhat unacceptable was that a little girl who seemed to be around ten years old was curled up in Yui's arms, rubbing her face against Yui's chest with an intimate expression. The little girl had the same shiny black hair as Yui, and her bangs were extremely neat. At this time, the girl's cute eyes were wide open, looking at her own eyes full of curiosity and confusion.

  "Hachiguma! Who is this girl!!!"

  Pointing at Jie Yi, Yaxi Na shouted loudly.