Accel World Vol 1 Chapter 3 (1/2)

Chapter 3

Haruyuki opened his eyes with a sigh

Froh the , he could see that it was 6:30AM on the clock He calculated that he had been sleeping for about 12 hours

His entire body was full of sweat, and the rehtmare made his skin feel sli about his dream

He dimly remembered Kuroyukihime’s last words to him yesterday

‘Don’t reht’, was her directive, it can’t be that this has some relation to his dream?

After he idly thought about that while taking a shower, he changed into his school unifore juice for breakfast in the kitchen alone He put the dishes in the dishwasher then knocked on histo school

“I a”

Saying that to the di unclear froht

While he waited for his e his Neuro Linker with 500 yen, she suddenly said with an irritated voice

“Haruyuki, your Linker is disconnected”

Oh no, he put his hand to his neck While feeling that he forgot so, he connected his Neuro Linker to the Global Net, soon with a ‘chariin’ sound effect, his electronic money balance increased

“I a”

He said it again, but there was no more reply He softly closed the bedroom door, put on his sneakers at the entrance, and left his home

He took the elevator to the first floor, while saying hello to residents he did not reh the front entrance

The automatic door closed, he stepped into the mansion’s front courtyard, just 3 seconds

Bashi+!! That sound reverberated in all of Haruyuki’s brain

What!? «Accelerate»!? However - why, by itself!?

While he held his breath, in front of his eyes in the fa font, was a line of alphabet

[HERE COMES A NEW CHALLENGER!!]

Where had he seen these words before The words burnt out before he could re even e appeared

In the center, a [1800] nuht of that, blue bars extended Under those is a sreen bar which extended

Finally, in his view’s center, with flame letters - [FIGHT!!]

The number became 1799

Not sure what to do, Haruyuki first looked at the four digit nu down

1800 seconds 30 minutes Where had he heard those numbers before Oh yes - Kuroyukihi of a number

But this time, Haruyuki did not even say the ‘B’ of «Burst Link» that was the Acceleration start command The world’s color also, instead ofof ‘Challenger’ and ‘Fight’ anyway

In order to get a handle on the situation, he desperately looked around, and soon noticed so

The breezy Octoberarea was still within his memory, he was still in front of his home The two lane street on the left side, the convenience store and office buildings on the side of the street, and if he turned around, he would see the high-rise mansion that he just left stand with the darkness

However, the group of cars filling the street heading to shi+njuku, and the students going to school that filled the ays, both had disappeared Also, the street was cracked and had sinkholes here and there, the guardrail and signs were bent, and the glass on buildings were flashi+ly broken

At the intersection a bit away, rubble was piled up like a barricade, and fla was burning inside The scares of destruction included Haruyuki’s mansion hoe hole and other awful likeness

He wanted to go back hoht now to check out his house, with that motivation, he strolled a few steps and looked in the entrance from between the rubble

Then, his eyes widened in aon building that was rey flat surface box No - not looks like It is just that

This is real but not reality Haruyuki is now under «Accelerate» function, in a Full Dive in the virtual net, the surrounding scene are 3D ies made from Social Camera video Like the blue frozen world he saw yesterday in the lounge

Even so, Haruyuki has never seen such a detailed virtual space He could not see the pixel pitch Each s detail

If it’s like this, what has became of his body, Haruyuki looked down

He thought he was going to see his fa, but -

“Wh What is this”

Amazed, he involuntarily leaked a sound

What cas, chest and arms that were slender like wires, a body like polished silver It was like a robot - however, it did not have the fighting iames or anime

He hurriedly put his hand to his face, but instead of a nose orhard like the shape of a helmet He took a moment to look around, and saw a crackedon the front wall of an apart on the other side of the street from the mansion, with ‘cachin cachin’ foot steps he ran there

The shape reflected by large glass was a truly full-body metallic robot The body was slender and se To say it in one sentence - it’s a very small-fry look

At least his forehead should have horns or both eyes should shi+ne with golden beacon

While he was coner, at that time

Behind his reflection in the glass, on the other side of the street, a feriggly human shadoere seen

Shocked, he crouched his metallic body and turned around Unknown since when they appeared, three shapes stood under a destroyed convenience store Since they were surrounded by darkness, he could only see their silhouette, but each of theer than Haruyuki

The shadows see Haruyuki involuntarily tried to listen

“Souy”

“I don’t remember his name, a newbie?”

“But he is metallic color Maybe he has some ability?”

Those guys - were not NPCs[1]

Haruyuki felt that directly That manner and speech pattern, without a doubt they are hurams

But this place was the «Accelerate»’s virtual net That means they are, like Haruyuki and Kuroyukihime, people who installed Brain Burst, this would be how it is

Then, they would knohat this situation is First let’s ask those three about the circu that, he tiot as far as the white center line

Suddenly, he felt so at him He stopped his feet and turned that way

There More than three people Unknohere they appeared fros, on top of rubbles, all around were strange silhouettes watching Haruyuki However they did not see for so

Haruyuki was bewildered, he moved his view back to the center of the road The count on top of his view has decreased to 1620 The bars to the left and right of that nued -

No, he did not notice it until now, under the left and right bars were lines of small alphabet

The left side read as «Silver Crow» And the right side was «Ash Roller»

This screen structure, he felt very familiar with it

Haruyuki had a strong sense of déjà-vu as he thought that

This is not so new - over 30 years before Haruyuki was born, near the end of the 19xx era in japan, it dora That was

Haruyuki as standing there searching through his memory, jumped as an explosion suddenly sounded behind him

“!?”

He lost his balance while turning around and fell down on his rear, in front of his eyes was a huge towering silhouette

It was a bike Even so, it was not a fao, an internal cout, from which a ‘Doddoddo’ heavy vibration sound came

The front fork was ridiculously long, and the tire it connected to was jokingly fat Frorey tread, a faint burnt odor drifted over

Haruyuki looked up, behind the excessively curved handle, his gaze fearfully captured the figure of the rider sitting on top of the leather seat

Full body covered in black leather with tacks, two feet with boots spread apart, and both arms crossed at the chest Head too covered in a black hel

Fro voice appeared, Haruyuki listen while dumbfounded

“A long tie, Luckkyy~”

Froled left and right

“You as an opponent are a shi+ny newbie Mega Luckkyy - !”

The skeleton rider lifted his right boot and put it on the handle bar, doing a skillful thing At thatwail sounded, and Haruyuki juain

No matter how he sees it, this is not a friendly opponent Instead, if his previous thoughts were right, this is a «Fighting Stage» - and this rider is -

“U Uwa”

Haruyuki inched back, and turned

“Uwa -”

With the robot’s s, he ran desperately

“Whahahaha!! Run away, run away!!”

Another engine roar sound fro continued - just one second later, his back suffered a huge hit and he felt sharp pain, Haruyuki flew high up into the dark night

At the same time, at the top left of his view, «Silver Crow»’s blue bar shrank

After seeing that, Haruyuki thought as he spun in the air, ‘Ah so it really is this’

That is, this is a «Fighting Gaht, and his opponent was a veteran player that knoin

There’s no way he can win

“Hahaha, you got hunted right away That was because you did not stick to our promise, boy”

Lunch time

Same as yesterday, Haruyuki was Direct Connected to Kuroyukihi patch below her front hair, she shook her head and skillfully laughed with thought only Her injury, which showily bled, seemed to have left only a scratch All his speech for thanks and apology was stopped with a wave of her right hand

“It’s not a laughingto die Well, it wasmy Neuro Linker to the Global Net”

Kuroyukihi Haruyuki, and took the tea cup froratin that was next to the cup was left intact, it put out hot steae pork curry in front of Haruyuki

The student counciltheir chopsticks or spoons, Haruyuki’s sto pathetic sounds, but it see will not be ending any time soon

“- But well, this way, it saves h, but you already understand right?”

“Understand what?”

“The identity of «Brain Burst» prograrand conspiracy, just a - “

Haruyuki nodded, and continued hat the words should be from where Kuroyukihime left off

“Just a fighting gaeous”

“Fufu, it sure is an outrageous talk that caused false alarm”

“Using the treht «Acceleration», and what did they do with it, a fighting gao!”

Hearing that, Kuroyukihiave an ironic smile

“H Haruyuki-kun, we Burst Linkers do not «Accelerate» just to play fighting ga «Accelerate» We are forced, that is this program’s unpleasant part”

“That what does it mean?”

“Un what’s ahead, is better explained in practice Go into «Accelerate» mode”

“Oh, ok”

Haruyuki cut his attachht in his chair, and shouted the Accelerate command silently

Burst Link!

Bashi+, that sound hit his body and consciousness, the surrounding student’s movements stopped At the same time, many colors disappeared, replaced with a translucent blue

Kuroyukihime in front of him stopped too, but soon fro the body, a bewitching black clothed avatar stood up Haruyuki’s pink pig avatar too got down fro at his real round self, moved forward

“Then what do I do?”

“Your view’s left side, are there any new icons added?”

He moved his focus as told, and for sure in the line of application icons, he noticed a burning B mark new icon He raised his left hand and clicked that

“That is the Fighting game «Brain Burst»’shistory, and search the surrounding for Burst Linkers to challenge to a fight Push the Matching button”

Haruyuki nodded then clicked the button at the very bottom of the menu Immediately a ne opened, after an instant of the ‘Searching’ display, a name list is shown

Even saying so, there were only two na, his own «Silver Crow» and - the other one «Black Lotus»

Haruyuki has no doubt that is Kuroyukihime’s Burst Linker name, he raised his face a little to confirhtly nodded and said

“Noe are disconnected from the Global Net and connected to the school local network, the list is just you and me - or should be”

“Yes Black Lotus-san”

‘Beautiful name’, and, ‘fits you perfectly’, of course he did not actually say that out loud, all that happened was his pig nose tre

“Ok Then, click ht”

“Wh Whattt!?”

“We don’t have to actually fight Just let the time run out and end it as a draw is all”

With a light bitter sed him on

In an era where tens of thousands of people connect to have a huge battle in the sa that, he clicked the name in the list, and from a new pop-up ue that showed up next - [YES]

Instantly, the shape of the world changed again

Froe, all the students disappeared The pillars and tables, while color returned to thelass has thick dust caked on them

And then the sky, was dyed with a deep orange color A dry wind blew frorew here and there on the floor

The familiar 1800 number is clearly carved at the top of his view Blue bars extend to the left and right, and at last - the burning word [FIGHT!!]

“Oh «Twilight» stage We pulled out a rare one”

Beside Haruyuki as looking around, Kuroyukihime’s voice sounded

“The stage’s attributes are: burns well, quickly destroyed, and unexpectedly gloomy”

“Ah, oh”

While nodding, Haruyuki checked out his own body Unknown since when, his pink pig was changed to the slender silver robot

Then, ould Kuroyukihi that he moved his viehat he saas the sae

“So that is your duel avatar «Silver Crow», nice name Color is nice too I like the form too”

Kuroyukihime extended her hand, and patted the slippery silver head

This sure sense of touch, Haruyuki again realized that this place does not have the «Contact Forbidden» kind of code to protect children, and that this is the real virtual reality

“Th, thank you but this looks like a sned and named this anyway? In the first place, what is a duel avatar?”

“As the naht, you had a very long and scary dreaht?”

“Yes”

He did not re that it was a very bad nightmare was left behind He involuntarily rubbed his robot’s two slender arms with his hard hands

“That’s caused by the prograe Brain Burst uses the owner’s desire, fear and obsession to chop andthe duel avatar”

“My ie Fear and desire”

While whispering, Haruyuki looked down at his body again

“This small, weak and sht about being more skinny but If it’s like this, I want to be a bit ”

“Hahaha, it’s not that siram reads and uses, is not the ideal but the inferiority co-kun was not used for your duel avatar just like that Although, I like that too”

“S stop it I don’t like it”

He should ht avatar for school net use, while thinking that he asked

“Then, does this mean senpai’s school avatar is also made by Brain Burst? That is a symbol of senpai’s inferiority complex? But it’s so pretty”

“No”

With a light shadow in her eyes, Kuroyukihime frowned

“This is ht now, have sealed inal duel avatar I will tell you the reason later, when the time comes”

“Sealed?”

“Unfortunately, ly to the extre it well, never mind about me”

Kuroyukihied, and soon returned to her norain caressed Haruyuki’s helmet head