Chapter 456: Nyx’s Weakness

Chapter 456: Chapter 456: Nyx’s Weakness

Chapter 456: Nyx’s Weakness

Meanwhile, inside Year 1 Class A at Shuchiin Private Academy.

"Did you see the news online? Is any of that actually real?"

"The bosses from SAO, like Shadow, Violet, and Necro... they’re real people? And supposedly even stronger than their game versions?"

"That’s ridiculous. It has to be some kind of promotional stunt."

"Are you stupid? SAO already has the highest number of concurrent Players in the world. Why would it need a stunt like this to boost its popularity? Besides, the government officially confirmed it."

"Wait... the Ashikaga Budo Association?"

"That name sounds familiar. Isn’t it connected to Ashikaga-sensei?"

"A Death Game... Nyx invading our world..."

"This is insane. Who would actually believe any of this?"

The Year 1 Class A classroom was in complete chaos.

In fact, the same was true throughout Shuchiin Private Academy.

Even though it was supposed to be class time, the teacher had yet to arrive.

The flood of information released to the public was simply too shocking.

To ordinary people who had known nothing about the truth until now, the revelations sounded like something from a fantasy story.

Even with official confirmation, most people could not immediately accept it.

Kaguya Shinomiya and Iwanaga Kotoko quietly listened to the conversations around them.

Complicated emotions flickered through both their eyes.

Since the information had already been released...

That meant Asagiri had entered that world.

Iwanaga Kotoko, Kaguya Shinomiya, Yuuki Asuna, and the others had naturally wanted to accompany him.

But they also understood the situation clearly.

If even Asagiri encountered danger while investigating that world, bringing others along would only restrict his movements.

Letting him operate alone was the safest option.

Besides, all of them had already appeared inside SAO using the forms and equipment they wore when entering Dungeons.

Rather than relying purely on government statements, it would be far more convincing to let doubters witness the truth for themselves.

"Tap... tap... tap..."

The sharp sound of high heels echoed through the corridor.

A moment later, Miwa Ashikaga entered the classroom.

She wore an expensive business suit, her expression calm and imposing as she walked behind the podium.

Her gaze swept across the room.

The noisy classroom immediately fell silent.

"Classes are suspended for today."

Miwa Ashikaga spoke slowly.

"Everything you’ve seen in the news is true."

"Nyx is approaching this world."

"Ashikaga-sensei!"

"Quiet. I haven’t finished."

Miwa Ashikaga immediately stopped the student who had tried to interrupt.

Her gaze briefly shifted toward the empty seat beside the window in the back row.

Asagiri’s seat.

A complicated expression passed through her eyes.

Then she continued.

"I know it’s true because I am also a Player."

"And I personally know people such as Shadow and Violet."

Her words struck the classroom like a stone thrown into still water.

The students instantly erupted into shocked whispers.

They had already speculated about her connection to the Ashikaga Budo Association after seeing its name in the news.

But none of them had truly expected Miwa Ashikaga herself to be the founder of the organization.

Much less an actual Player.

"Dismissed."

After saying only that, Miwa Ashikaga left the classroom.

Not long afterward, she gathered with Kaguya Shinomiya, Yuuki Asuna, Fujiwara Chika, Iwanaga Kotoko, and Hayasaka Ai inside the Student Council room.

Kato Megumi and Yamauchi Sakura were already on their way from Toyosaki Private Academy by car.

"This really is the end..."

Iwanaga Kotoko murmured softly.

Then she looked toward Miwa Ashikaga sitting across from her.

"Ashikaga-sensei, have you already selected the locations where the Players will demonstrate their abilities?"

"Everything has been arranged."

Miwa Ashikaga nodded.

"We chose the busiest locations in every major city."

"Even if the crowds become too dense for everyone to enter the area directly, the demonstrations will also be broadcast live on television."

"The Players selected are all those whose abilities have highly visible effects."

"Once ordinary people see them, it will be impossible to deny that supernatural powers exist."

Iwanaga Kotoko and the others had spent a great deal of time discussing exactly how to shock the public strongly enough to make them accept the existence of Players.

In truth, combat types such as Yuuki Asuna and Kato Megumi were not ideal choices for public demonstrations.

Yuuki Asuna’s greatest strength was speed.

If she moved at full power, ordinary people would barely be able to perceive her.

Even if she deliberately slowed herself down, the visual impact would still be far less spectacular than magic.

And this stage of the plan was extremely important.

They needed ordinary people to understand that Players possessed power far beyond normal humans.

Only then could that belief eventually become hope.

That hope would be directed toward Asagiri and the others.

Because of that, Miwa Ashikaga had chosen Players with magic focused classes for the demonstrations.

Whether it was large scale offensive magic or the ability to summon ghosts and monsters, the sheer visual impact would be enough to leave ordinary people speechless.

Once the existence of the Death Game and Players was accepted as reality, the next step would begin.

Footage from SAO showing Players challenging the bosses modeled after Asagiri and the others would be edited into combat compilations and uploaded across the internet.

The overwhelming difference in strength would make the public understand just how terrifyingly powerful Shadow, Violet, and the others truly were.

And after that...

The final stage would begin.

Every Player would enter that world.

And the last battle against Nyx would start.

...

A little later, inside the Cursed world.

"This contains Blackwatch’s current troop strength, Mr. Asagiri."

The Blackwatch Commander handed a stack of documents across the table.

Asagiri accepted them and skimmed through the contents.

"Only ground forces?"

"And your weapons are mostly conventional firearms?"

"The strongest equipment here is a rocket launcher?"

"Yes."

The Commander nodded.

Then he immediately explained.

"This world is saturated with Cursed dangers."

"To avoid attracting the attention of powerful Cursed entities, we abandoned most weapons that create excessive noise or large scale destruction a long time ago."

"Over the past several months, our development has shifted away from conventional technology."

"We’ve focused instead on biological weapons and research into Cursed powers."

"At this point, rather than functioning as a large conventional military, Blackwatch operates more like a covert strike force."

"We use Special Infected and limited Cursed abilities for combat."

"I see."

Asagiri nodded noncommittally.

Then his expression became thoughtful.

"The first problem is locating Nyx’s true body."

"That needs to be solved before anything else."

"Without helicopters or other large scale transportation, rapid movement across long distances will be difficult, even for Players."

"And during that movement, we’ll inevitably encounter Cursed entities and be forced into unnecessary battles."

"That would waste stamina and spiritual power before the real fight even begins."

"We need to determine Nyx’s location as quickly as possible, then calculate the safest and most efficient route."

Asagiri suddenly paused.

Then he looked toward the Blackwatch Commander standing across from him.

Both of the Commander’s hands rested against the edge of the table.

Asagiri asked calmly,

"Among your people..."

"Are there any who haven’t completely broken free from Nyx’s curse?"

The Blackwatch Commander immediately understood the implication.

"Yes."

Asagiri smiled.

"Then we’ll have to wait for the rest of my team to arrive."

Alice could track Cursed auras.

But this world was already saturated with too many different Cursed presences.

The overlapping traces were so dense that even Alice could no longer accurately distinguish one source from another.

There was only one person Asagiri knew who could accomplish something like that.

Iwanaga Kotoko.

The God of Wisdom possessed a unique talent for understanding and tracing Cursed phenomena.

They had only one chance.

At the moment, Asagiri still had no way of knowing whether Nyx had detected his arrival.

The safest strategy was therefore simple.

Once Iwanaga Kotoko entered this world and located Nyx’s true body...

They would launch the full assault immediately.

No preparation time.

No warning.

No opportunity for Nyx to react.

From everything the Blackwatch soldiers had told him, Asagiri had already begun forming another theory.

Blackwatch personnel had started breaking free from Nyx’s curse in large numbers roughly one month ago.

That timing was almost identical to when Nyx began preparing to invade Asagiri’s world.

Could the two events be connected?

Perhaps their ability to escape Nyx’s control was not solely the result of becoming stronger through the Dungeon.

Maybe Nyx had been forced to divert a significant portion of its power toward connecting with another world.

And as a result...

Its control over this world had weakened.

If that hypothesis was correct...

Then Nyx was currently weaker than before.

...

Meanwhile, in the real world.

It was nearly midnight.

Everyone sat inside the living room of Iwanaga Kotoko’s home.

The atmosphere was unusually heavy.

"These people..."

Yuuki Asuna stared at the comments beneath one of the news reports.

Her fingers tightened around her phone so hard that she nearly crushed it.

She gritted her teeth.

"The government already confirmed everything."

"And they’re still saying it’s a conspiracy."

"Some of them are even accusing us of having some hidden motive."

"Why can’t they accept what’s right in front of them?"

"Asuna, calm down."

Kaguya Shinomiya placed her phone on the table.

Her tone remained composed.

"There will always be people who reject a cruel reality because accepting it would mean confronting something they fear."

"Some will question everything simply because they don’t want to believe it."

"Even when we first learned the truth behind the Death Game, none of us accepted it easily."

"It’s only natural that a significant number of ordinary people would react the same way."

Yuuki Asuna pressed her lips together.

Frustration still burned in her eyes.

"But if this continues..."

"If we can’t gather enough power..."

"We’ve already done everything we can."

Yamauchi Sakura gently placed a hand on Yuuki Asuna’s shoulder.

She offered an energetic smile.

But even she could not completely hide how forced it was.

"No matter how much strength the people of this world can ultimately give us..."

"No matter how much their hope can strengthen the System..."

"The most important thing is still our own will."

Her expression softened.

"We absolutely can’t let him leave us."

"Right?"

"Sakura..."

"I feel the same."

Hayasaka Ai, who had remained unusually quiet throughout the discussion, suddenly stood.

Determination filled her azure eyes.

Her right hand slowly clenched into a fist.

"I still have so many things I haven’t told him."

Her voice was calm.

But there was no hesitation in it.

"This time..."

"I won’t pretend to be someone else anymore."

....

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