A crossover anime/manga story, set in everyday Tokyo, but within a loop of a game.

018 A peaceful campus life

Asagiri nodded, thinking to herself that it was indeed Yuuki Asuna. If it were an ordinary girl, she would probably avoid dungeons like the plague after just clearing a dungeon a few hours ago and witnessing the bloody scenes of dead people. But she made the right choice after rational consideration.

"Then let's set the next time we enter the instance this Saturday."

"Saturday?"

Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki frowned slightly: "Why don't we start registering now? That way, we can enter the dungeon on Thursday."

Asagiri spread his hands and said something that Yuuki Asuna never expected him to say.

"Thursday is class time."

"what?"

Asuna Yuuki looked surprised and asked in confusion.

"Are you... the type who doesn't like skipping class?"

Asagiri shook her head and smiled.

"How could that be? I can only go wild."

"Then why..."

"What if there are other players in our school?"

Asagiri's smile faded, and she explained earnestly.

"This is the first week of school, and it's also our first day as players. If there are other players at school, we can both ask for leave on Thursday or skip class altogether. Plus, we entered the school together this morning, so the clues are too obvious."

"Yes, you're right, that's something I hadn't considered."

Yuuki Asuna nodded first, then said thoughtfully.

"The app's rules don't specify the exact time to enter the instance on any given day, so Fridays when we have classes are also out of the question. If we suddenly disappear while we're in class, then it's all over. But the good thing is that if we're friends and queue up together, we're guaranteed to enter the same instance."

"Then it's decided. Hopefully, this game won't use the dynamic difficulty that's considered the root of all evil."

"Dynamic difficulty?"

Asuna Yuuki had never played any games before, and she couldn't quite understand the technical terms Asagiri was using, so she couldn't help but ask curiously.

What is dynamic difficulty?

Asagiri patiently explained, "Dynamic difficulty is a measure taken by game manufacturers to prevent the game from becoming too easy and causing players to lose interest. Simply put, the monsters in each area will become stronger as the player's level increases."

Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki frowned, her face showing worry.

"You mean... because we got too high a rating after clearing the newbie dungeon for the first time, it might cause the dungeon difficulty to increase significantly the next time we enter? Then... if that's the case, what's the point of trying to get the highest clear rating every time?"

"So...this is very important."

Asagiri looked very expectant and spoke with a light laugh.

"If even this can be handled well, this game will be really interesting."

Asuna Yuuki sighed softly, rubbing her forehead in exasperation.

"I'm starting to suspect that your act of playing the kazoo in class wasn't because of your promise to that Ashikaga-sensei and a desire to attract attention, but simply because you wanted to have some fun..."

"No doubt about it."

Asagiri answered honestly without any attempt to conceal her true feelings.

"I'm just having fun."

After saying this, Asagiri stood up and walked out of the office.

"Alright, I'm going to buy lunch. I remember there's a gym inside Shuchiin. Let's meet there after lunch."

Upon hearing the words "bento," Asuna Yuuki seemed to remember something and suddenly stood up.

"I feel like I've forgotten something. I've been thinking about the dungeon and I even forgot to bring my lunch to school. Let's go buy lunch together."

"you sure?"

Asagiri smiled and asked in return.

“I’m a celebrity at Shuchiin now, and a lot of guys are hostile towards me. You’re a freshman who just came to Shuchiin midway through the semester. If people see you walking with me, you might also be targeted and ostracized.”

Without the slightest hesitation, Yuuki Asuna replied immediately.

"Hmph, it's my freedom to make friends with whomever I want. Besides, we've been through thick and thin together, so why should I pretend I don't know you just because you're not popular at school, and then rely on your help when we enter a dungeon? I'm not that kind of person. I can't do that. So what if I'm ostracized? I don't care."

Asagiri chuckled: "Oh ho, you're quite rebellious."

.............

After locking the office door, Asagiri and Asuna Yuuki went to the supermarket window inside Shuchiin.

To be honest, Shuchiin is Shuchiin.

The bento boxes sold here include regular ones priced around 800 yen, as well as high-end bento boxes such as steak sets up for 5,000 yen and seafood sets up for 7,000 yen. After all, not every Shuchiin student comes from an extremely wealthy family. Some students' parents are too busy with work to prepare bento boxes and feel that the bento boxes sold in convenience stores are not healthy. That's why there is a supermarket window on campus.

What kind of bento do you want?

Upon hearing Asagiri's question, Asuna Yuuki looked up and glanced at the bento box styles and prices listed above.

"I'll just have... a regular tonkatsu bento."

"Okay, two tonkatsu bento boxes, how much?"

"Thank you for your kind offer of 1,600 yen."

"Okay, let's get married together."

Seeing Asagiri reach into her coat pocket as if to take out her wallet and pay, Asuna Yuuki quickly took out her own wallet and spoke up.

"I'll treat you."

"it is good."

To Asuna Yuuki's surprise, Asagiri was quite unceremonious and quickly moved aside to make way for her spot in front of the supermarket window.

"I've been waiting for you to say that. Okay, come on then."

"No, you..."

Asuna Yuuki glanced at Asagiri with a slightly speechless expression, thinking to herself that although she sincerely wanted to treat him, the problem was that Asagiri agreed too quickly and too impatiently.

Asagiri waved her hand with a calm expression.

"No need to thank me."

"Thank u?"

Asuna Yuuki was both amused and exasperated.

"I'm treating, shouldn't you be thanking me?"

"Huh? What kind of logic is that?"

Asagiri explained in a matter-of-fact tone.

"To be able to treat the esteemed Asagiri-kun to a bento, and even have the opportunity to eat a bento with Asagiri-kun, don't you feel any gratitude for such a gift from fate? That's not good, Yuuki-kun."

019 - Team member's code name

Yuuki Asuna had a complicated expression on her face, not knowing where to begin her comment. She first paid for the two bento boxes, then handed one of them to Asagiri. Only after leaving the supermarket window did she speak.

"I felt something was off when we were in the dungeon, and it got even more obvious at school. Your personality... is really strange. How can you say such narcissistic things with such a matter-of-fact tone..."

"Because I'm telling the truth."

Asagiri and Asuna Yuuki found a quiet corner in Shuchiin and sat down on a bench before smiling and speaking.

"It's the truth, why try to cover it up?"

Asuna Yuuki rolled her eyes and said irritably.

"Yes, yes, thank you for giving me the opportunity to treat you to a bento box, is that alright?"

"It's good that you know how to be grateful, but I'm afraid you don't know how to be thankful."

Asagiri opened the bento box, took out the chopsticks inside, and continued eating while talking.

"Oh, right, there's one more extremely important and urgent matter that requires our immediate decision."

"whats the matter?"

"Code name".

Yuuki Asuna asked, somewhat puzzled, "Code name?"

"Yes, code name, which is the code name we use to address each other when entering a instance."

Asagiri explained, "Think about it, if we still use our real names to address each other when other players are around, wouldn't that be a flaw? Like, 'Utsunomiya-san, come save me!' 'Utsunomiya-san, I'm so scared, can you come closer to me?' 'Utsunomiya-san, I'm afraid to sleep alone, can I sleep with you?' 'Utsunomiya-san, I should be called Utsunomiya Asuna from now on,' and so on."

Asuna Yuuki sighed helplessly and couldn't help but complain.

"I can let the first sentence go, but what about the next few sentences...? Are you trying to slip in your own agenda?"

"That's basically the gist of it."

"A code name... we definitely need one."

Asuna Yuuki nodded, seemingly calm, but in reality, she didn't know why, but she felt... a little excited?

Code name...

I always felt... he was very handsome.

Of course, given Asuna Yuuki's personality, she definitely wouldn't want Asagiri to know that she had such childish and somewhat chuunibyou-like thoughts.

"Since you suggested it, have you thought about what code name you'll give yourself?"

"of course."

Asagiri smiled and slowly spoke, her voice full of confidence.

"Butter Shooter!"

Yuuki Asuna: "..."

"Are you kidding me? According to what you just said, if I needed your help in the middle of a battle, would I have to yell 'Butter Shooter, come help me!' or 'Butter Shooter, I'll draw the enemy's attention while you flank!'? Even if you killed me, I couldn't bring myself to say that..."

"Alas, that's such a pity."

Asagiri seemed quite regretful as she shook her head.

"Such a good code name, but it can't become the official code name because of my teammate's sense of shame. Oh well, that's the sacrifice I made for the team."

Asuna Yuuki sighed, looking like she didn't want to argue.

"Yes, I'm sorry that I held you back because of my personal shame, so can we start a serious discussion now?"

"Okay, so what do you think my code name should be?"

After thinking carefully for a while, Yuuki Asuna finally spoke.

"Hmm... based on your abilities and personality... how about Monarch? The word 'monarch' in English perfectly suits your arrogant and disdainful attitude."

Upon hearing this, Asagiri bluntly stated with a look of disdain.

"Hmm, this code name has a kind of chuunibyou vibe that's both cringeworthy and doesn't want to appear cringeworthy, so it tries to act mature but only makes it more cringeworthy. Let's just forget about it."

Asuna Yuuki blushed slightly, clearly feeling that the code name she had chosen was inappropriate. She tried her best to hide her embarrassment while scolding him playfully.

"If you think the code name I gave you is bad, then you can choose one for yourself."

"Let's call him Leader. It means leader, which is perfect since I'm the team leader. It's concise and to the point."

"Hmm, that's a good codename. As for me..."

Yuuki Asuna pondered for a long time, trying to find a name that was cool, wouldn't be ridiculed by Asagiri, wasn't too blatant, and still sounded cool when called out...

Before she could come up with an answer, Asagiri asked.

"Violet, how's it going?"

Asuna Yuuki nodded slightly, seemingly quite satisfied with the code name Asagiri had given her, but she couldn't help but ask curiously.