Breathing Techniques in SAO

The food was brought out shortly after.

Seeing that the dishes looked relatively normal, Asuna let out a small sigh of relief.

The so-called Soye Leaf was essentially lettuce with altered color and appearance.

Paired with just the right amount of cheese and salad dressing, it actually tasted pretty good.

The Baked Meat Soup was also a perfectly normal kind of soup.

Inside the entire bowl was a single large piece of meat—the kind you'd see in comics, with a bone running through the center.

Judging by its flavor and texture, it had likely been roasted before being stewed; the outer skin had a conflicting yet somehow harmonious combination of crispness and tenderness.

As for the main dish, Roast Poroporo Bird, it fulfilled every expectation one could have for roasted poultry—crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, bursting with aroma and flavor.

Every bite filled her with happiness.

On the other hand, the dishes on Akimi's side looked… a little strange.

The Tenmei Porridge seemed to be a mixture of egg yolk, crushed rice, and oats stewed in milk, with a distinct banana aroma.

It actually looked pretty decent—aside from the deep brown objects floating on top.

The Apa Tea resembled an over-steeped black tea, but with a lemony scent.

Its color had strayed far from what you'd expect of tea—reddish-brown, and not particularly appetizing.

But when it came to strange colors, the Balk Pork Chop was clearly the winner—it was blue.

Though the rich, grilled meat aroma was incredibly tempting, the bizarre color was enough to make most people hesitate.

The only somewhat normal item was the Siffle Cream Bread.

"Mm… actually, everything tastes pretty good…" Akimi commented after bracing himself and taking a bite.

Asuna remained skeptical of his statement—those dish colors were just…

Seeing the doubt written plainly on her face, Akimi shrugged and said, "Just try it yourself, and you'll see."

After a moment of internal struggle, Asuna decided to give it a try.

After all, a true foodie doesn't judge the taste of food by appearances alone.

"Hmm—mm!"

After scooping a spoonful of Tenmei Porridge into her mouth, Asuna took a moment to savor it before commenting, "Hmm… the combination of milk and banana is surprisingly well balanced. Both flavors complement each other nicely. And that brown stuff… turns out it's semi-melted chocolate."

"But if I'm being honest, this dish feels more like baby food than actual porridge."

"This blue pork chop… so it's pork marinated in a special blueberry sauce?"

After swallowing the porridge, Asuna took the piece of pork chop that Akimi handed over and tasted it.

"It's marinated with blueberries, but the blueberry flavor doesn't overpower the pork."

"Yeah, the light berry notes cut through the greasiness and give the meat a unique flavor. Aside from the color, there's really nothing to complain about."

"This Apa Tea is just regular lemon black tea, so why is the color so dark? That's really weird."

Finally, Asuna's eyes turned toward the Siffle Cream Bread.

After sampling the other dishes, she had high hopes for this one—especially since it looked completely normal.

She reached out and picked up one of the breads.

The surface was warm to the touch, freshly baked, and carried a rich buttery aroma.

Confident, Asuna took a big bite without hesitation, and then—

"MMF—!!"

Case closed: the person who designed the Taran Bun and the Siffle Cream Bread was obviously the same culprit.

Asuna now looked just like she had when she'd bitten into a Taran Bun.

The difference was, while the Taran Bun had custard filling, the Siffle Cream Bread was filled with a combination of mayonnaise and cream.

And since the Siffle Cream Bread was about twice the size of a Taran Bun… the amount of filling that exploded out was also double.

With a dark expression, Asuna silently took the handkerchief Akimi handed her and began wiping the cream and mayo off her face—without saying a single word.

"Erase what you just saw from your memory," Asuna said coldly.

"Can you do that?"

Her tone carried the very clear implication: Say no, and you die.

Akimi originally wanted to say "no," but instead he nodded furiously—because he had a strong feeling that if he pulled a smug "Rohan Kishibe-style 'no'" right now, he'd go from "Akimi-chan" to "Akimi-chan sashimi."

Trying to appease Asuna, Akimi quickly pulled the wooden cork from the bottle of Fickle Wine and poured her a glass.

The liquid was a faint yellow as it poured from the bottle, but the moment it touched the glass, it turned into a soft, girly shade of pink.

Akimi then picked up another glass and poured again—this time, once it entered the glass, the wine turned into a crystal-clear white, like sake.

"Huh? How… how did that happen?"

The cold expression on Asuna's face gave way to surprise. "Did you tamper with the glasses?"

"Nope," Akimi replied.

"Then why…"

Holding up the white-colored wine, Akimi took a sip and explained, "Fickle means unpredictable. This wine changes color every time it's poured—randomly turning red, white, or pink."

"I see," Asuna said. "Do the colors actually taste different? Or is it just for show?"

"Oh? Sharp one, aren't you? Of course, it's not just about color." Akimi grinned.

"Go ahead, try it."

At his urging, Asuna picked up her glass, gave it a sniff, then took a sip.

Tiny bubbles exploded across her tongue, delivering a strong fizzy kick.

The texture was similar to beer, but the flavor leaned more toward fruit wine.

"Not bad at all."

"The one you drank is the fizzy-flavored one. The red one is sweet, and the white one has a sharp, sake-like bite. But since there's no alcohol, you won't get drunk no matter how much you drink," Akimi shrugged, sounding a bit regretful.

"I see," Asuna nodded in realization, then raised an eyebrow as she caught the slightly regretful look on Akimi's face.

"What? You actually want to get drunk? Sounds like you're used to drinking?"

"Not that I want to get drunk..." Akimi rubbed his earlobe and said, "As for drinking—yeah, I guess I do it pretty often. My dad's pretty fond of alcohol, but my mom never lets him drink."

Picking up the gradually cooling Siffle Cream Bread, he took a small bite before continuing, "So my dad always tried to sneak drinks in private, but for some reason, I always managed to catch him."

"And every time, he'd try to bribe me with pineapple beer or fruity cocktails so I wouldn't tell Mom."

Asuna rested her cheek in one hand and quietly listened to his story.

Seeing the gentle smile on his face, she softly said, "Sounds like your home life was pretty warm..."

As she spoke, she looked up at the sky and noticed that the deep indigo night was already dotted with stars.

In the center of the sky were three diagonally aligned stars—Orion's Belt.

Above them to the left was Procyon, and below was Sirius.

Together, they formed the so-called Winter Triangle.

"These stars…"

Akimi explained, "They're arranged to match real-world constellations."

As she gazed at the stars twinkling above, Asuna fell silent.

Her eyes gradually welled up with tears—her body was still in a hospital not far from home, yet her soul was wandering in a distant, virtual world.

The emotions in her heart surged all at once.

Just as the tears were about to fall, a blue handkerchief appeared before her eyes.

As Asuna stood there dazed, Akimi said with a half-smile, "What? Want me to wipe them for you?"

Before Asuna could react, he added, "Alright, alright, I'll do you the favor."

With that, he gently pressed the handkerchief to her eyes.

As he helped wipe away her tears, Akimi softly said, "Alright, don't cry. Don't be sad. I'll get you out of here. Once we're out, you can cry however much you want."

Asuna silently reached up and grasped his wrist.

She took the handkerchief from his hand and wiped her eyes herself.

Then, carefully folded it and placed it into her inventory.

Akimi hesitated, wanting to say something as she took his handkerchief.

He really wanted to say, That's actually my handkerchief...

But after an intense internal struggle, seeing Asuna's reddened eyes, he ultimately chose to keep quiet.

"There's nothing to be afraid of," he said, gently patting her head.

"Don't think about anything else right now. I'll protect you—always."

Asuna bit her lip and nodded.

"…Mm."

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