My SAO adventure is wrong, as expected

Chapter 70 – [Y·U·I]

"Damn it, at the very least I have to save Asuna..."

As the scythe engulfed in the aura of death came crashing down, Hachiman clenched his teeth and threw Asuna behind him.

The girl hit a stone wall with a thud, while Hachiman's back faced the pitch-black blade.

"You idiot, Hachiman!" Asuna's scream mingled with the sound of metal clashing.

Hachiman gave a wry smile as he felt the chill down his spine.

Was this the legendary "saving the damsel in distress"?

Though most likely, his gravestone would read: "Here lies a busybody fool."

Kirito wasn't giving up, swinging his sword at the Reaper's arm to lessen the impact.

In that instant, light surged. The expected agony never arrived.

The screech of metal tearing through the air was suddenly neutralized by warm, glowing particles, and the Reaper was sent flying.

"What on earth was that…?" "Papa! Mama!" "Yui!" "Yui-chan!"

A childish voice pierced through the darkness. Hachiman and Asuna turned around sharply. A tiny figure floated in midair, her pure white dress fluttering in the data-charged wind.

The glowing sphere's true identity — was Yui, who had appeared at some point.

"Papa, Mama, I've remembered everything now," Yui said, raising her hand toward the Reaper coming at them again.

"Object Erasure."

With her words, the Reaper's massive body disintegrated piece by piece like a pencil sketch being erased, disappearing completely into nothingness.

Silence returned to the area.

The light surrounding Yui faded, and she began to fall. Hachiman quickly caught her in his arms.

Yui looked like she was in great pain.

"Are you okay, Yui?"

"Papa, please take me in the direction I point."

"Alright."

At the end of their path was a dead-end, barren and bleak.

But as Yui waved her hand, mechanical structures appeared.

With a faint snap of her fingers, the doorway dissolved into countless fluttering electronic butterflies.

What appeared before them took their breath away — two giant mechanical constructs, each as tall as a three-story building, their metallic exteriors marked with the symbols "X" and "Z."

Maybe due to their presence, Yui's breathing steadied slightly.

"Feeling a bit better?" "Yui-chan, do you feel okay?"

Suddenly, Asuna covered her mouth in shock.

On a projection screen on the X-unit, countless streams of psychological monitoring data from players flowed like a waterfall.

They saw a red-named player weeping in a confessional booth. A newlywed couple embracing in a flower field.

A solo player talking to their familiar. —In this death game, invisible hands had always been quietly wiping away everyone's tears.

"I overused my authority in that fight, and I can't maintain this form anymore. I've barely held on using the power of MHC units X and Z," said Yui.

"MHC? X? Z?" "Short for Medical Health Counseling, Mama. Of the three MHC units, I'm designated [Y-Utility Interface], or YUI. My role was to provide psychological counseling to frontline players."

"So you were part of the entire SAO system?"

"Yes, Papa."

According to Yui, X handled most counseling for players in beginner towns.

Z was in charge of "criminal" players.

X had been overwhelmed due to supporting too many players, and Z had been offline due to the Laughing Coffin incident, entering repair mode.

"So when I stepped in to support X, I got overloaded too.

While Z was being restored, I went into hibernation.

During that dark time, I sensed a warm light through an NPC terminal with information-gathering functions."

"Probably Kizmel's light…" "Yes. Drawn by that light, I unconsciously generated a virtual form and ended up outside Papa and Mama's home.

But I pushed myself too hard and lost my memories — like amnesia — and needed help."

"Why did you call us Papa and Mama?"

"Your emotional warmth felt like parents saving me. My core MHC functions were hibernating, and I acted based on that instinct."

Though they didn't fully understand, Hachiman and Asuna had already accepted Yui as their own child.

Feeling their warmth made Yui both joyful and sad — because what she had to say next was heartbreaking.

"Papa, Mama… I'm sorry. I'm about to disappear."

"What!?"

"Creating a virtual form and that battle just now caused fatal system damage. I probably don't have long left."

"No way…" "Damn it! Isn't there anything we can do?"

"There's a slim chance. If it works, I can be saved."

"Kirito! Is there a way?"

"We need to extract Yui's program from the system."

"Papa, Mama… It's time to say goodbye…"

"Yui!" "Yui-chan!"

Yui's body began to turn translucent. Hachiman and Asuna held her tightly. Kirito frantically worked the console.

"Yui! Tell me your admin ID!"

"Okay… my ID… is Yui…"

"Got it! Just in time!"

At the very moment Yui disappeared in their arms, Kirito completed the operation and pulled out a gem-like item.

"A gem?" "I transferred Yui's program into this. She's in sleep mode, but she's definitely in here."

"Kirito!" "Thank you, Kirito-kun!"

"Any later and it would've been too late."

Hachiman and Asuna gently whispered to the gem: "Yui, no matter what form you take, you'll always be our precious daughter." "We'll be together forever, Yui-chan. We'll definitely see each other again!"

The gem now displayed the name [YUI], and they carefully stored it in their inventory.

"Thank you so much, Kirito." "Kirito-kun, thanks for saving Yui."

"She's like a cute little sister to me." "Sister? You mean niece, Uncle Kirito." "Don't push it, Uncle Hachiman."

"Alright, let's go meet up with Thinker and the others!"

"Yeah."

"…To be honest, I totally forgot about that."

At that moment, Uriel returned with Thinker.

"Everyone! Yui…!"

"She disappeared suddenly and scared you, didn't she? Sorry we didn't explain earlier. Turns out, Yui is part of the system."

"I see… but where is she now?"

"Don't worry. Yui will always be with us."

Asuna smiled warmly, hand to her chest. Uriel didn't press further. She simply said with relief:

"I see. Judging by your smiles, that must be a good thing."

The three nodded.

"Thank you, all of you. I'm Thinker, leader of the Liberation Squad."

Everyone introduced themselves. Thinker was surprised to find three of the Four Heavenly Kings present.

"Uriel told me about you, but still… I never imagined…"

"You don't believe us, Thinker-san?"

"Well, something like this is hard to believe easily, right?"

"It's understandable. By the way, Thinker-san, were you really the former administrator of MMO Today?"

Kirito asked. Thinker paused, then smiled:

"So you're Kirito. We exchanged emails before."

"That's right."

"Feels like meeting an old friend."

"Likewise."

The two smiled at each other. The group decided to withdraw for now.

Along the way, Thinker repeatedly blamed himself.

"I warned about PK behavior so many times on MMO Today, yet I…"

"As long as you're safe, that's all that matters."

"Thank you."

"What will happen to the army from now on?"

"I plan to expel the Kibaou faction and dissolve the group, then establish a new organization."

"There's no other way. The current army just hinders progress, and can't even protect the weak. We must disband and rebuild a cooperative support group."

"Do your best, Thinker-san! Uriel-san!" "Feel free to call on us anytime." "Thanks." "And thank you again for saving Thinker."

Thus, the incident sparked by Kizmel came to an unexpected resolution.

Hachiman and Asuna gained a new family member.

Kirito? He would express his gratitude that night with a rabbit meat dinner.