Ascension: Online

I slept peacefully, dreaming about my old Reality Plane. It was a memory from when I was younger, when I had just turned six.

"Happy birthday, Kaze-kun!" Hina-nee said, embracing me tightly. She was seven at the time.

"Mm...thanks," I murmured, letting her hug me all she wanted.

"Go on, blow out the candle," auntie said, smiling warmly as she pushed the cake closer to me.

I nodded, and did as told.

"Now now, make a wish!" Hina-nee quickly added, clapping her hands together.

I closed my eyes and adopted a praying gesture. After several moments, I opened them again, and blew out the candles.

"Hooray! Congratulations on turning six, Kaze-kun!" Hina-nee hugged me once more.

"What did you wish for?" uncle asked, chuckling.

I looked down. "I asked...for my parents to come back."

The mood immediately darkened. Hina-nee's smile froze on her face, and auntie and uncle looked at each other in worry.

"Kaze...your parents...they'll be back soon, okay?" auntie said, walking over to my chair, bending down, and grabbing my hands.

"That's what you said last year..." I muttered quietly.

"Ichika...I think it's time we tell him the truth," uncle said to auntie, his expression stern. "He's six now. He deserves to know."

Before this year, I've only been told that my parents were off on a business trip, so they left me under auntie and uncle's care. I believed them at first. But going on a business trip for six years straight? That's quite hard to swallow.

"But..." auntie still seemed uncertain. Hina-nee didn't say anything, and instead just hugged me tighter.

"Please tell me, auntie," I said, my mind set and decision made.

She clenched her fists. "...Alright. But...you're sure you're mentally prepared for this?"

I nodded. "I've been ready for six years."

Despite being only six at the time, I had already matured beyond my age. That was true, even now.

Auntie sighed, and looked away, unable to meet my eyes. "Kaze...you're parents...they're dead. They passed away in an unfortunate car accident right after you were born. The reason we didn't tell you until now is because...we thought you wouldn't be able to handle it."

"...Kaze, your parents were great people. Your auntie and I have been friends with them since our school years. They left you to us - and so we will treat you like we treat our own daughter, Hina," uncle added. "So, don't be sad, alright? You're a big boy now. We're here for you."

"I see."

The only two words I replied with. Brisk and emotionless. In a way, I had kind of expected this to be the outcome. I didn't want to think it was really the case, but turns out, it actually was. Still, this was fine. Better than living by a lie for the rest of my life, anyway.

"Kaze..."

"Kaze-kun..."

I pushed Hina-nee away gently, and headed upstairs to my own room. It was rude, but at that moment, I didn't care. I shut the door tight, and crawled into my bed.

I cried myself to sleep.

*****

Later, Hina-nee came to my room. She knocked gently on the door.

"Kaze-kun...are you there?"

I didn't want to answer. I just felt like pretending to be asleep, and ignoring her words.

"I...I know you're there. So I'll just talk to you from out here, you don't have to open the door," she said.

"..." I didn't know how she could tell I was awake, but that didn't matter right now. I slowly went over to the door, and sat down, leaning my back against it. I could feel that Hina-nee was doing the same thing, on the other side.

"The whole thing with your parents...it must be hard digesting," she began uncertainly, as if unsure where to start. "I understand that. Mom and dad do as well. You can take as long as you need to readjust, okay? I'll come here everyday and place food and water at your door, so you don't have to worry about any of that. For now..."

I heard the clanking sound of something ceramic being placed on the wooden floor.

"...I left something for you to eat here. I know you probably don't want to see anyone right now, so I'll leave. But...before that, I just want to say something."

I listened intently.

"We're here for you. Mom, dad, and most importantly...me. We're all here for you, Kaze-kun. Even if your biological parents aren't here anymore, we still are. We will fill the role of your family, when you need it most."

With that, I heard the shuffling of footsteps outside, signaling that Hina-nee had left. After a short period of silence, I opened the door, and saw what she had left at my footsteps:

A slice of my birthday cake.

Seeing that scene, despite my sadness and loneliness at the time, I smiled, ever so slightly.

Amidst the dark storm of emotions washing over my body, that single slice of cake from Hina-nee was like a ray of sunlight, piercing through the grey clouds.

*****

[Human. Wake up.]

"W-What...?" I slowly rubbed my eyes, barely awake.

[Wake up.]

"A.R.X.A...?"

[There is a situation going on outside. You may want to investigate.]

"Oh, c'mon...who cares?" I complained. "It has nothing to do with me...you just want to see me do something for your own entertainment..."

I smirked, closing my eyes once more, attempting to fall back sleep. Hmph. If you think you're going to make me obey your wishes that easily, A.R.X.A., you've severely undererstim-

[This is a good opportunity for you to get stronger.]

-I sold out.

*****

Slipping on the clothes that hadn't even completely dried yet, I quickly splashed some water all over my face to forcefully clear away any remaining drowsiness left in me, and headed out of my inn room. The moment I did, I noticed the loud noises coming from outside. Yells and battle roars cried out alike; it was utter chaos.

Still, despite the pandemonium going on outside, I found it in me to take a moment to admire how great the soundproofing abilities the walls of this place was. I was almost impressed at how calm I was.

I quickly rushed out of the inn, and looked around to try and get a glimpse on the situation.

A crowd had gathered, armed with weapons. They charged forward, with mages standing behind them launching spells - or rather, hidden arts. Using my eyes, I followed the direction they were heading, and saw a horrific sight.

The western gates of Tianyin City have been completely demolished.

Hundreds of hostile Magic Beasts poured into the city through the destroyed entrance, with countless more behind them. I wasn't talking easy sickleboars. I was talking full-on lion-esque animals, serpents the size of a two-story building, and enormous flying butterflies equipped with razor-sharp drills. The defenders of the city desperately tried to fight back, but they were slowly getting pushed back. Dozens of guards had already been trampled over by the stampede of Magic Beasts, and lay on the bloodstained concrete, motionless.

We were losing.

"Holy shit..." I muttered, and pulled out my dagger. I had it equipped ever since my encounter with Ichigo, so I didn't have to waste time getting it out.

The question now is, do I join, or do I just get the hell out of here?

I noticed that among the crowd fighting back against the Magic Beasts ravaging the city, there were several individuals wearing similar attire as me. They were players, who probably all just assumed this was simply a quest, or some kind of special in-game live event.

I tightened my grip on the dagger. "Well...A.R.X.A. did say this was a good opportunity to get stronger."

Having made my decision, I left the audience, and joined the ranks of the defenders.

"Kill them all!" yelled a guard in the frontline, who appeared to be a captain of some kind. He drove his sword upwards straight into the abdomen of one of the lion-like beasts that had charged forward. The animal roared in fury, and swiped downwards at the guard.

There was no chance he was dodging this attack, so he tried blocking it instead, raising his shield up to defend against the furious beast's claws. However, it stood no chance. The guard was blown backwards, straight into our own ranks, toppling over several other soldiers in the process.

"Ngh..." he muttered in pain, slowly getting back up. "Get back in formation, soldiers!" Luckily, he didn't seem to have suffered any fatal injuries.

However, the Magic Beasts weren't about to just let us do as we wished. The one who had been stabbed by the guard howled, and immediately, several other lion-like beasts leapt towards us, roaring in fury. Wild and ruthless, they crashed directly into our formation, swiping their claws at anything they could reach. Numerous guards were blown away by the sheer impact. Some managed to stab their weapons into the creatures, and the mages launched their hidden arts at them from the backline, but the damned beasts didn't slow down at all, continuing to wreak havoc.

With every swipe of their claws, dozens fell. And they were slowly making their way over to me.