Seeing Asuna approach, little Yui felt the grievances and reluctance in her heart surge again. Large teardrops once more fell in torrents as she buried herself in Asuna's ample bosom, crying bitterly.
"Mama... Papa... Mama... Yui doesn't want to leave you."
Seeing Yui cry like this, Asuna's heart ached terribly. She quickly comforted her daughter, "It's okay, Yui won't be separated from us. Definitely not!"
"Wah... Yui... Yui isn't human. Yui is an AI from SAO, responsible for managing the players' emotional states. Once the game is cleared... Yui will disappear... will die."
Yui sobbed, her tear-filled eyes looking at Asuna, filled with immense reluctance.
She now knew she was just an AI. But the days spent by Yusei and Asuna's side made her feel like she truly had a family.
Yusei was Papa, Asuna was Mama, and she was their daughter. There was also Aunt Shiro, Auntie Kanna, Auntie Kiriko, and Auntie Kaguya... everything was so wonderful.
Hearing this news, Asuna was first stunned, then tears silently streamed down her face as well. She held the Yui in her arms tightly, not saying another word.
She didn't care that her daughter was an AI.
But what she did know was that she had no way to stop her daughter from disappearing. The players couldn't just stop clearing the game.
Suddenly, she thought of this method, and her dim eyes regained a bright light. She looked joyfully at Yusei.
"Yusei-kun, as long as we stop clearing the game, Yui will..."
But halfway through her sentence, she found she couldn't continue.
Stop clearing the game? She could. Her husband, Yusei, could. But... what about the others? The other players?
Even if they held a knife to their necks, they wouldn't agree, right? Because they would die eventually anyway. Not clearing the game? Just wait around to die?
Furthermore, their physical bodies outside wouldn't allow them to stay in the game forever. Time... couldn't stand still forever.
Thinking of this, Asuna's head drooped again, her eyes lifeless. She held Yui close, her cheek gently rubbing against Yui's hair, strands of her own hair falling by her ears, making her look utterly dejected.
Seeing the state of this mother and daughter, Yusei felt terrible too. He made a decision… to leave SAO and take Yui with them!
Yusei remembered that the reward from the last quest to save Kanna was still unclaimed. It was said to be a divine item.
The kind that makes wishes come true.
It was even said it could make someone 'willingly' become his beloved pet.
That was a rather... colorful topic.
Opening the system menu-
Yusei directly found the final reward item. But he didn't use it immediately. Instead, he asked the system in his mind:
'System, if I want Yui to leave the game and have her own physical body in the real world, can that be done?'
[No. Rewards cannot involve matters related to Life Alchemy.]
The system's answer made Yusei pause, then he asked, puzzled, 'What is Life Alchemy?'
[That is, reviving the dead, creating life, etc. The host's request involves creating a physical body.]
Yusei opened his mouth, but in the end had to accept it. He asked again, "Then, is there any other way for Yui to return to the real world with us?"
[Yes, spiritualization. This system does not deal with Life Alchemy, but materializing a soul is fine.]
'...Hah,' Yusei was somewhat speechless, 'You really are a... principled system.'
'Fine,' Yusei nodded helplessly, 'Then, what would it be like if Yui were spiritualized?'
[The host can designate few people who can see and touch Yui. Others cannot see Yui. Yui would be in a spirit state... without a physical body... has strength... can actively interact with the physical world.]
Hearing this option, Yusei's eyes immediately lit up. This was practically tailor-made for their family of three.
"Good, then set my reward item to this: Yui is spiritualized in the real world. Those who can see and touch her are Kazami Yusei and Yuuki Asuna."
[Reward distributed.]
Then, Yusei saw that the reward item in his system had disappeared. He breathed a sigh of relief.
'This way, Yui wouldn't leave us.'
Yui, who was crying in Asuna's arms, suddenly froze, as if sensing something. She spoke puzzledly:
"Mama, wait a moment, I think I..."
Suddenly, Yui disappeared from Asuna's embrace. Asuna was stunned, then panicked.
"Yui? Yui-chan?"
She called out twice, but no one answered, as if Yui was no longer in the Kazami Residence. This made Asuna very anxious. She looked at Yusei.
"Yusei-kun, Yui, she wouldn't have...?"
But before she could finish, she saw Yui appear out of thin air in the air before them, her cute little face still wearing an expression of disbelief.
"Mama! Just now... just now I went to Papa and Mama's world!"
"Our world?" Asuna was taken aback... then said uncertainly, "The real world?"
Yui's little face was still full of excitement and curiosity. She nodded seriously: "I saw it! It's raining heavily outside right now. But on the big screen in the middle of those buildings, I saw news about SAO."
"I think... that must be Papa and Mama's world. I can go to Papa and Mama's world now!"
Yui's voice was filled with delight and surprise. She didn't quite understand how she could do this, but undoubtedly, it meant she wouldn't be separated from her Papa and Mama.
Asuna cared even less about the details, all she thought about was her husband and child. With joyful tears on her face, she looked at Yusei.
"Yusei-kun, did you hear? Yui-chan won't be separated from us anymore."
Yusei lovingly pulled Asuna and Yui into his embrace, wiping away their tears, and said softly,
"I heard. Perhaps this is the power of love."
"Yes, it's Yui's love for her Papa and Mama that caused this change in Yui," Asuna said with a laugh, tears still on her face.
Yui nuzzled against Yusei's chest, then against Asuna's chest. Hearing her mother say that, she also smiled, but shook her head.
"No, Yui thinks... it's Papa and Mama's love for Yui that lets Yui be with Papa and Mama forever."