Why did Hikigaya save the anime girls in Sword Story?

"I also want to go see my sister, but at this time..."

"I'll take you there tomorrow. Rest up today. Kirito, you'll have to stay glued to your phone all night tonight."

"Yeah...well, all night."

"What's up?"

"This guy made Liz keep a note with his name and number on it next to her pillow."

"I see"

"I will contact everyone tomorrow to discuss visiting arrangements."

"Then Komachi will log off first to inform Sister Yukino and the others!"

"I also need to explain the situation to Leafa. See you all tomorrow!"

"I also need to log off quickly to explain to the police. I'll see you later, Hachiman-kun! Yui will definitely see you too!"

"Okay mom, see you next time!"

"Oh, see you later."

After the three of them logged out, Hachiman shouted to the sky:

"Are you watching, Mr. Akihiko?"

ALO: Chapter 129: Conversation with Mr. Kayaba

"Dad, there's something coming over there! This aura... is the Grand Master!"

Yui shouted.

"Got it. Thank you, Yui."

Hachiman stared at the passageway. Emerging from there was a slug-like virtual entity he had never seen before—the very being that had previously captured Asuna and even controlled Argo.

Seeing this, Hachiman said with interest:

"Mr. Jingyan, when did you become like this? Your image as a handsome guy is completely ruined."

"I'm sorry, but this is the only avatar I have available for immediate use. It's been a while. Also, since it's so rare for us to meet again, could you please call me by the more affectionate name 'Heathcliff'?"

"Understood, Heathcliff."

Hachiman understood Kayaba's intention, and his tone returned to the familiarity of a former companion.

"Sorry for being late. I just finished integrating my consciousness."

"Heathcliff, what is your state now?"

"Well, I am here right now, a shadow of Kayaba Akihiko. It's not an exaggeration to say I am his 'echo'."

"Kirito might understand, but this metaphor is too abstract for me."

"Just think of me as a fragile being that could dissipate at any moment."

"That's it"

Hachiman moved to Heathcliff's side, and they both looked up at the sky.

“It’s a beautiful view.”

"If you trace it back to its origin, you also created this sky. Xu Xiang just made some minor modifications."

"To be honest, the memory of him is almost non-existent."

Hearing this, Hachiman jokingly said:

"To borrow the famous words of the lamprey vampire—I guess Heathcliff's standard of judgment is probably based on 'meters'. To Heathcliff, Suxiang is just a few insignificant millimeters on the observation scale."

"I see, maybe that's true."

As he spoke, Heathcliff placed the slug's tentacles on top of Hachiman's head and gently rubbed it.

"Hello, hello..."

"Thank you for eliminating the one who tarnished my final work. I can finally bring this to an end."

"……Um."

Hachiman acquiesced to the slug's touch. This scene seemed to be similar to how they interacted two years ago. At this moment, Heathcliff suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke:

"By the way, that little elf you're carrying seems to be part of the Cardinal system I designed?"

"It's the medical health consultation program [Y·Utility·Interface], commonly known as Yui! Grand Master!"

"You chose this name too, right?"

"Ah, yes, it seems she has become independent in this world. The fragment of SAO I created will remain with you forever."

"Heathcliff..."

"Hachiman-kun, I transferred 'that' into your neural link device memory through Yui."

Heathcliff took out a silver egg-shaped object.

"This is?"

"'World Seed'. You can research its specific uses with Kirito, Argo, and the others. How it's used is up to you."

"understood."

"Then I shall be leaving."

"Where are you going?"

"Towards a world I've never seen, if our destinies cross again, we'll meet again then... Hachiman."

"Jing... Yan..."

"Goodbye, and get along well with Asuna."

Before he could finish his words, Heathcliff—Kayaba Akihiko—disappeared.

"Dad, the Grand Master's aura has disappeared."

"I see. By the way, Yui, what will happen if I log out now?"

"Hmm—the coordinates when you log back in will be set in front of the door to the Grand Quest Room!"

"That's reassuring. Okay, Yui, Daddy's going to pick up Mommy."

"Okay, Dad! I'll wait for you to come back!"

"I'm sorry you're lonely."

"It's okay! I told you before, I'm now bound to Daddy's ID, and I'll go dormant when you're not around. So the next time we meet will only be a moment away, Daddy!"

"Oh, right. Then... I'm off."

"Yes! Looking forward to seeing Mom!"

"Goodbye, Yui."

"goodbye!"

The moment he pressed the logout button, his consciousness briefly fell into darkness. Hachiman, regaining consciousness, grabbed his luggage and rushed out of the room. The hospital where Asuna was staying was just across the parking lot.

(The conversation with Heathcliff took up some time, so I need to hurry up!)

As they were crossing the parking lot, a car suddenly barreled towards them. Hachiman dodged, but the car reversed course and continued in pursuit.

"Whoa!"

After barely dodging, a familiar figure walked out of the car that had crashed into the wall.

"You are...Sugo!"

"You hid pretty fast... brat!"

"How could you"

"Didn't you say so? Go to that woman's ward! There are police officers there, right? But there aren't any around you!"

Xu Xiang showed his dagger, his left eye twitched slightly, and his legs turned inward unnaturally.

(He actually chased me to the hospital and ran away? But this guy will definitely hurt the medical staff!)

Hachiman dodged while thinking of a countermeasure, but was tripped and fell to the ground.

"Oops!"

"It seems like reality isn't as flexible as in games? Go to hell!"

The moment the dagger was swung down, two figures suddenly rushed out - Hubu knocked Suxiang away, and Yeshan kicked the dagger away.

"Hikigaya, it's really dangerous."

"Miss Yang Nai asked us to ambush, but we didn't expect there would be thugs. She had it perfectly calculated."

The two quickly subdued Su Xiang.

"I'm saved. My body is indeed slow in reality."

"Don't be so stubborn now that you've just recovered. Leave this to us."

"Hikigaya, can you help contact the police? We're tied up."

After contacting Kikuoka, Hachiman explained:

"The remaining hundred SAO players mentioned in the news—the culprit was him. Finally, everyone has been rescued. Thank you very much."

"It's actually true, as expected of Hikigaya!"

"It's not just me, it's the result of everyone's collective efforts."

After the police arrived and took over the scene, Kikuoka informed them:

"Miss Yuuki has awakened, let's go see her."

Hachiman looked at Hayama and Tobe:

"Want to come along? I'd like to introduce you to Asuna."

The two whispered:

"Hayato, he said we are friends!"

"Well, let's leave them alone first and then introduce them later."

In front of the ward door, Yeshan and Tobe stopped and waited. Hachiman took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

ALO : Chapter 130 The Weight of Life

"Um"

A familiar voice came from the ward. Hikigaya Hachiman's heart roared like a symphony orchestra. He took a deep breath and shouted towards the other side of the door.

"it's me"

"Please come in"

Hachiman took another deep breath, trying to control his nervousness, then opened the door and walked in.

The smell of disinfectant filled the ward, and Asuna, whom she had been thinking about day and night, was lying on the hospital bed.

However, Asuna reached out her hand to stop Hachiman from getting closer, and turned her gaze to the window, preventing Hachiman from seeing her face.

Hachiman asked timidly:

"S-Sorry...Are you mad that I'm late?"

"No, no...it's just that I haven't showered in a long time, that..."

"what"

Hachiman immediately understood that the other party was concerned about body odor.

Looking closely, Asuna's ears were red, and she was utterly embarrassed. The boy smiled reassuringly:

"It's okay, I'll clean your whole body every day."

"Hey hey hey hey hey hey hey hey?!"