Ren's parents arrived at his home on a Sunday. They wore the new clothes Ren had bought for them, looking quite spry. However, the large bags of local products they carried made them seem a bit out of place, creating an odd contrast between their fresh new clothes and the rustic bags.
"I told you, there's no need to bring all these local goods. We have everything at home," Ren said, exasperated, as he saw his parents carrying the big bags at the station.
His parents were great in every way, except they always felt the need to bring things whenever they visited.
"These aren't for you!" Ren's mother retorted, giving him a sharp look. "They're for Yueyue. She loves the pickled vegetables I make!"
She then asked, "How's your wife doing? Any contractions yet?"
The last time Ren had called them saying Jada might go into early labor, it had given them a scare, though it turned out to be a false alarm.
"She's doing fine, eating and sleeping well." Ren started the car and continued chatting with his parents.
The drive from the station to his home wasn't long, and time flew by as they talked. It felt like they had barely started chatting when they arrived at the villa.
As they got out of the car, Ren's mother looked at the garden and remarked, "I've always said that if we planted some vegetables here, they'd grow beautifully. Just look at how fertile the soil is!"
Ren was unloading the car and glanced at the garden, casually responding, "Well, it should be. Little White fertilizes it every day."
"Grandpa, Grandma~~~" At that moment, the villa's front door swung open, and Yueyue came running out in a little white coat.
Ren's father rushed over and scooped her up. "Oh, my sweet granddaughter, Grandpa missed you so much~~~"
He rubbed his stubble against her cheek, making Yueyue giggle.
"Dad, Mom, thank you for coming." Jada came out to greet them, but Ren's mother, seeing her pregnant daughter-in-law, smiled brightly and said, "No need for thanks. You should head inside; it's cold out here."
She gently pulled Jada inside, not taking no for an answer.
"Oh, let's go inside with Grandpa~~" Ren's father carried Yueyue inside as well.
Standing there with his hands full of bags, Ren watched them go inside, feeling a bit left out as a cold wind blew past him.
...
The arrival of Ren's parents brought some changes to his daily life, though not major ones.
His mother, being more experienced, took over the care of Jada, doing it much more meticulously than Ren could.
With her grandfather around, Yueyue felt safe and no longer worried about Ren stealing her snacks.
This freed up some of Ren's time, allowing him to focus more on his manga.
At this point, the *SAO* arc of *Sword Art Online* was nearing its conclusion.
In the game to reach the 100th floor, players had finally discovered the 75th floor!
They invited Kirito and Asuna to join the battle.
However, the fight turned out to be much more brutal than many had expected.
In the original series, *Sword Art Online* was criticized for its depiction of boss battles. Early on, it could be excused that players struggled due to being new to the game. But later, when experienced players were still being defeated like novices, it didn't make much sense.
So, Ren made some changes, illustrating the guild battle scenes with more intensity and excitement, giving readers the thrill they felt watching *The King's Avatar*.
Tanks drew aggro, archers attacked, and wizards healed...
The strategy was executed with great skill.
Unfortunately, the game's bosses were incredibly powerful, designed to be beaten only with overwhelming numbers and repeated revivals. But in a game where each player had only one life, the battles were tough and cruel.
In a space where teleport crystals couldn't be used, experienced players fell one after another. Though they eventually defeated the boss, the heavy losses left everyone disheartened.
Readers felt the tension too.
Yes, they were only on the 75th floor, and it was already this difficult.
What about the rest? The bosses would only get harder!
"It feels like the Porter messed up the power levels here."
"I agree. If so many died on the 75th floor, there'll be even more deaths later. Will it just be Kirito and Asuna left to fight on the 100th floor? That's too much plot armor."
But the most shocking moment came when Kirito suddenly attacked Heathcliff with his sword, Elucidator!
Was it an internal conflict? Or a mistake?
"This man's HP bar never goes into the yellow zone!"
As Kirito said this, Heathcliff finally revealed his true identity! He was Kayaba, the final boss who should have been on the last floor!
"No way, he was a spy among us?"
"No one saw this coming!!"
Many readers were stunned by this revelation.
Who would have thought that the final boss was the leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath, who had been helping them beat all the other bosses?
Kirito and Kayaba then had a one-on-one duel!
But no matter how strong Kirito's Starburst Stream was, it couldn't match the power of someone cheating.
Kirito was being overwhelmed and was about to be killed by Kayaba!
Then...
The readers were shocked!
Yes, shocked.
Just as Kirito was about to be killed, Asuna moved and used her body to shield Kirito from the attack! Asuna died.
How could the readers not be outraged?
"Damn author!" was their collective response.
At first, the Porter killed off many players, and the readers didn't react because they didn't know those characters;
Then, he killed off Yui, and the readers didn't say anything—because they hoped for future plot twists;
Later, the Porter killed off their daughter Yui, and the readers didn't complain—because Yui seemed to have a chance of survival stored in the system;
But now, he killed off Asuna, and the readers couldn't hold back their anger anymore.
However, they soon realized they might have spoken too soon.
The Porter hadn't really killed off Asuna!
At the end of the *SAO* arc, Kayaba acknowledged Kirito as the winner of the game and revived Asuna, though the players who had died before could not be brought back.
Still, the readers were somewhat relieved. After all, it was just a manga.
There was also a difference from the original series.
In the original, Kirito, having been on life support for so long, was able to move immediately after removing the IV. Never mind the strength needed; the fact that an unconscious person would need a urinary catheter that couldn't be removed by the patient themselves made it unrealistic.
Ren made some changes.
"End of the chapter!"
"It feels like it went by so fast!"
As they watched Kirito search the hospital for something, the readers felt a sense of closure.
But soon, they noticed something—they hadn't seen the words "The End," but "To Be Continued!"
The game was over, so what could continue?
This made the readers even more excited.
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