"Suzanne, that's not something you should say. Do you have any idea how important it is that Yuki comes every day?"
"That's right. Youth is precious because of the ordinary days that make it special," my parents chimed in with a lecture. Dad, especially, was always going on about youth. It was hard to believe he could say such clichéd things with a straight face.
But I understood their point. What once seemed ordinary could become incredibly valuable when lost. Yuki and I had always commuted to school together; our routine had been a given. Even though I had insisted it wouldn't matter if we weren't together, now that the idea of going to school separately was on the table, I felt an undeniable emptiness.
"I know, I get it," I replied, trying to brush off the feeling.
"Maybe he caught a cold or overslept; that's why he can't make it today. I'll stop by Yuki's house before heading to school, so that works, right?"
I grabbed my bag and hurried out of the house, eager to avoid any further lecture.
"Alright then. Take care," my mom sighed, shaking her head as she watched me leave.
I soon arrived at Yuki's front door and rang the bell, waiting. The response was quick; Yuki's mom opened the door and greeted me.
"Oh, Suzanne! Good morning!"
"Good morning. Is Yuki around?"
"Yuki still hasn't gotten up at this hour. Seems he was up late playing games again."
So it was oversleeping after all. He's been late before, but this was unusual.
"Wait for him and you'll be late for school, so go ahead without him. No matter what, he's going to be tardy, and I'll talk to him before he heads out," she said.
"Yeah, you're right. I'll go on ahead then."
"I'm sorry for making you come all this way."
And so today—well, aside from the times Yuki was skipping school—was the first time I would go to school alone.
The absence of Yuki, who was always by my side, left me feeling unsettled that morning.
◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇
"Hey, Suzanne! Good morning!"
"Morning... wait, isn't Harumi with you today?"
"What the heck? Is it a couple's quarrel? Wait, what?!"
As soon as I entered the classroom, my friend made another pointless comment, prompting me to glare at him more fiercely than usual, radiating intimidation.
"Wow, you're really scary today…"
"Of course, I'd be in a foul mood without Hayami around. Seriously, how can you say something like that knowing I'd glare at you?"
My friends had lowered their voices even more, whispering among themselves.
"Oh, Yuki overslept today. Apparently, he stayed up late playing AIWOn yesterday."
"That's unusual. Hayami oversleeping?"
"Yeah, but I get it. AIWOn is super popular right now."
"I don't really get it. It's a game, but it feels like you need the same training as in real life. Doesn't seem worth it to me."
That was actually why I turned down Yuki's invitation yesterday. AIWOn feels like it has already surpassed the limits of a VRMMO-RPG.
"Yeah, you might be right. Calling AIWOn a game is kind of off; it's more about an isekai adventure."
"The catchphrases are 'Reality beyond reality,' 'A second world,' and the best one is 'Survive in the other world!'"
Survive in another world? I heard AIWOn is harsher than other VRMMOs. If we're talking about activities in another world, it's only natural to face challenges similar to those in real life.
"Oh, by the way, I heard there are rumors about a death game in AIWOn."
Just as my friend, who had been cowering under my intimidation, finally spoke up, he launched into another ridiculous topic.
"A death game? Come on, it's not like it's the Angel In incident from 23 years ago..."
"If that were the case, it wouldn't just be a rumor; it would be a huge commotion already."
My friends expressed their disbelief, shaking their heads.
"No, listen! With taglines mentioning alternate worlds and reality, people are starting to speculate that if you die in AIWOn, you'll die here too."
"And the fact that Harumi is late might mean—wait, what!?"
"Huh?! Did you say something?!"
"Yikes! S-sorry! I was just joking!"
Why does he have to blurt out such silly things?
I applied my overwhelming presence to silence my friend's nonsense.
"Hey, do you think he's doing this on purpose?"
"Yeah, it seems like he's aiming for it..."
I silently agreed with my friends as they whispered among themselves.
"Okay, everyone, take your seats. We're starting homeroom."
It seemed like homeroom time had arrived while we were lost in foolish chatter.
The homeroom teacher stood at the front and directed everyone to sit down.
"Ah, looks like Harumi is late again. And Konoha is absent."
A moment ago, I found myself engulfed in an inexplicable anxiety, all because of my friends' silly gossip, despite my homeroom teacher just dropping a casual remark.
***
***
Knock, knock, knock.
I scribbled away at my desk, sipping from a juice carton to distract myself from my growing irritation. My classmates could sense my frustration and merely observed from a distance. Yuki was nowhere to be found, even after one hour, then two.
As lunch break rolled around and Yuki still hadn't arrived, my annoyance boiled over. I called Yuki's phone, but there was no sign of an answer. I even tried calling his house, but his aunt didn't pick up either. This situation felt like it was beyond just oversleeping. A creeping worry settled in my gut—what if something had happened to him?
"Hey, Bug. Where's Yuki?"
Kouki had appeared out of nowhere, surrounded by a gaggle of girls, his condescending gaze fixed on me.
"Huh? Why do I have to explain anything to a stone?"
"Just answer my question, Bug, and keep quiet."
"I won't say a thing to a stone."
"Pretty bold for a Bug, aren't you? You think it's all right to act tough just because I'm being decent? Don't forget I can squash you anytime."
Usually, Kouki ignored my remarks when Yuki was around, but today, he seized the opportunity to confront me.
Hikari grabbed my shirt collar and pulled me closer, glaring fiercely.
"What the hell!? When have you ever taken the low ground? You, acting all high and mighty like some pebble lying around!"
I shot back, grabbing his collar and glaring right back.
As we both tugged at each other's shirts, the atmosphere in the classroom shifted to an intense tension.
BAM!
In the next moment, our fists flew out, ready to strike, and our faces nearly collided.
"Whoa!?"
"Eek!?"
"Wait! That's way too far!"
"Shiba-kun, stop!"
My friends and the girls surrounding Hikari rushed in to prevent the brewing fight.
For a few minutes, we remained separated, exchanging hostile glares.
Hikari finally said, "It's okay now," as the girls let him go, and he strode out of the classroom.
I grabbed my bag and prepared to leave as well.
"Hey, Suzanne. Where are you going?"
"I'm going home."
With the anxiety over Yuki potentially being in trouble gnawing at me, Hikari's foolish provocations pushed my irritation to its peak.
Rather than stay there, frustrated and confused about the situation, I decided it was best to head home and check on Yuki's safety.
Seriously, that girl always makes me worry for no reason…!
As I hurried home, I found myself cursing Yuki in my mind, perhaps to mask my anxiety.
"Hey, I'm back!" I called out. I tossed my bag into the room and immediately planned to head over to Yuki's house, but then I spotted my mom in the living room, and I stopped in my tracks. I expected her to scold me for leaving school early, but instead, she looked pale and worried as she gazed at me.
Seeing her expression confirmed my worst fears.
"Suzanne… Yuki is…"
◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇
I pedaled furiously on my mountain bike toward Akasaka Hospital, the largest facility in the city. Yuki had been found still wearing her VR headset, the Amulet II. At first, my aunt thought she had just been playing online games all night. When she forcibly logged Yuki off the system, she turned off the Amulet II, but Yuki showed no signs of waking up.
Though she was breathing, no matter how much my aunt shook her or slapped her face, Yuki lay unresponsive. Realizing that something was seriously wrong, my aunt quickly called for an ambulance and rushed Yuki to Akasaka Hospital.
Upon arriving at the hospital, I hurried to the reception to find out which room Yuki was in. They told me she wasn't in intensive care, as I had feared, but was instead in a regular private room.
I hurried into the room and found Yuki lying on the bed, surrounded by four others: his uncle, his aunt, Ayako—who was the director of this Akasaka hospital and my mother's brother's wife—and oddly, my own father.
While it made sense for Ayako to be here as the director, I couldn't understand why my father was present. He could be here as a neighbor and friend, but that didn't seem like enough reason for him to be in this room.
"Uncle, Aunt..." I said quietly.
They noticed my arrival and turned to look at me.
"Suzanne," Ayako called out, "Look, Yuki, Suzanne has come to see you. You shouldn't be sleeping all the time—wake up!"
Despite her urging, Yuki showed no sign of waking up.
"...What happened to Yuki?" I asked, my voice trembling.
Ayako answered me, "He's in a coma of unknown origin."
"Unknown origin? So… is there a chance he might never wake up?"
Ayako fell silent, and her silence spoke volumes.
...Yuki might never wake up...?
The weight of that realization constricted my chest. Just yesterday, he had been right next to me, laughing, getting angry, exasperated—just like always.
How could our ordinary lives crumble so easily like this?
My pent-up anger has nowhere to go, and I clench my fists tightly.
"There's a medically unexplained condition, but the process leading to the coma is known," my dad finally speaks up after a long silence.
"! Then is there a way to cure Yuki!?"
"Yes and no," he replies cryptically.
"Which is it?"
I feel frustration boiling over at his indecisive answer. I'm already on edge, and such an ambiguous response is pushing me closer to my breaking point.
"...Follow me. Your shouting is causing trouble here."
My dad steps out of the room, and Aunt Ayako instructs a nearby nurse before following him. I bow my head to the adults and follow my dad.
We arrive at the director's office, which is definitely away from the patient rooms, making it a more appropriate place for raising my voice.
Aunt Ayako takes a seat behind the director's desk while my dad settles onto a sofa meant for visitors. I sit across from him at the table.
"So, what exactly is going on?"
"To put it bluntly, VRMMO 'Alive In World Online' is the cause of the coma," he says.
It's true that Yuki played Alive In World Online, but blaming a VR game for this situation seems far-fetched. Are we really supposed to believe that some special signals from the game caused him to fall into a coma?
But my father revealed an even more shocking fact.
"In reality, although it hasn't been publicly disclosed, there are about 200 people like Yuki-chan who have fallen into unexplained coma-like states."
"To be precise, including Yuki, that makes 214 people. However, the number of patients currently in comas has decreased to 114. Life support systems have proven ineffective, and more individuals are succumbing one after another."
Aunt Ayako's supplemental explanation sent a chill down my spine.
So what does that mean? Does this mean that if Yuki remains in this coma, she too will die? The gravity of the situation hit me hard.
"And the common thread among these comatose individuals is that they are all players of Alive In World Online."