While he waited, Kyoji let his imagination run wild regarding what might have happened to Shino at school.
Timing it for when classes would be over, he successfully made contact with a former classmate he used to be friendly with. Choosing his words carefully, Kyoji asked about Shino.
"Oh, Kyoji? Long time no see. How've you been?"
"Yeah, well, I'm getting by. My parents are nagging me to take the high school equivalency exam soon, though."
"Kyoji, your family runs a hospital, right? That's rough, going from an equivalency exam straight to med school."
Kyoji's father was the director of a general hospital in Tokyo. As a condition for allowing him to drop out of high school, his father had issued a strict decree: he must pass the equivalency exam and get into a medical school somewhere—anywhere.
"So, what's up? calling out of the blue like this."
"Well, actually, there's something I wanted to ask..."
"Something you want to ask? If it's something I know, sure. What is it?"
"It's actually about Asada-san... Did anything happen to her at school recently?"
"The Princess... ah, oops, I mean Asada-san? Kyoji, were you close with Asada-san?"
When the classmate almost said "The Princess," Kyoji became convinced that something extraordinary had indeed happened at school. Calling a classmate "Princess" was hardly normal behavior.
"Y-Yeah. You know how Asada-san and I were in similar situations at school? We were both isolated, or, well, something like that. I quit school first, but because of that connection, we still keep in touch. I noticed recently that she seemed a bit different, but I hesitated to ask her directly..."
"Ah... I see. Sorry, man. When you quit school, I couldn't do anything to help..."
"N-No, don't worry about it. I'm having fun in my own way."
"I see. That's good then. But... I get it now. So that's your relationship. Well, I don't know every little detail, but it's not exactly a secret. Pretty much everyone in the school knows about it, so I don't mind telling you."
"Really? For one person's business to be that widely known... that's kind of amazing."
"No, seriously. Including how it all played out, it was a pretty shocking event."
"Shocking...?"
Hearing that word, Kyoji braced himself, sensing something significant had occurred. He focused intently, determined not to miss a single word.
"A little while back, this incredibly cool, expensive-looking car pulled up at the school gate. Oh, and by the way, despite being a car, the thing talked. That seriously freaked me out. Anyway, the owner looked a little older than us. He was standing next to the car like he was waiting for someone, and a bunch of the girls were surrounding him, squealing and making a fuss."
Kyoji was slightly confused by the bizarre opening to the story, but he decided to listen silently without interrupting.
"Then, that guy suddenly called out to the Princess... Asada... Ah, geez, actually, a huge chunk of the students, guys and girls alike, secretly call Asada-san 'Princess' now, so I'm just gonna call her that. I think her close friends—Hiraoka-san, Yugumo-san, and Yano-san—call her that to her face sometimes, but she hates it, so the rest of us just do it in secret. Secretly."
"R-Right, got it."
(He must mean those three from earlier,) Kyoji concluded, recalling the scene he had witnessed.
"So, this guy suddenly calls out to the Princess. I was actually there, too. At first, the Princess looked totally blank, like she didn't know who he was. She approached him fearfully, they exchanged a few words, and then she just collapsed right there, shouting 'No way!' It was definitely their first meeting. They probably met on social media or something."
(No way... No, there's no mistake. It's Shana.)
Though he thought "no way" himself, Kyoji was certain. It was Shana.
"The problem was what happened next. Right after he whispered something in the Princess's ear, she pointed at Endo with a totally dazed look on her face. So the guy walks over to Endo, whispers something in his ear, and the next second, Endo turns pale as a sheet and runs away with his cronies. The rumor I heard later is that the guy knew Endo had been messing with the Princess, so he gave him a terrifying threat to make him stop. And actually, Endo has been avoiding the Princess like the plague ever since, so it must be true. After that, the guy gently scooped up the Princess, who was still sitting on the ground, in a princess carry, put her in the car, and they drove off somewhere. The look of pure joy on her face... that really left an impression."
"I... I see..."
Faced with such an impossible story, that was all Kyoji could manage to say.
"And whenever anyone demands an explanation from Endo, he just says: 'That guy is the Princess's boyfriend. I have nothing to do with it anymore, leave me alone.' So, basically, the Princess was dating a guy she met on social media whom she'd never even seen. I mean, they probably swapped photos, and in this day and age, that happens, right? But man, the partner she picked was a jackpot. It's amazing, right? Coming all the way to school to protect a girlfriend he's never met, solving everything in an instant. His decisiveness, his wealth, and his friendly attitude despite all that... That's why we call him the 'Black Prince' out of respect."
"Black... Prince."
"So yeah, the Black Prince is super popular at our school right now. And from the next day on, the world changed for us, and for the Princess."
"The world... changed?"
Kyoji hadn't fully discarded the possibility that Shino and Shana's relationship was only within the game, so he was shocked to hear it had extended this far into reality. Still, he managed to ask the question.
"Part of it is probably that people aren't scared of Endo saying anything anymore, but a lot of people went up to the Princess wanting to hear about the Black Prince. Me included, obviously—though I mostly wanted to hear about the car. The Princess was bewildered at first, but she carefully answered everyone without giving away his private details. She was shy about it, but polite, and she didn't act stuck-up at all. That made us realize how wrong we'd been. After that, it was like a rush of apologies. For a while, there was practically a line. Since then, we started calling Asada-san 'Princess' in honor of the Black Prince. She made three really close friends, and the atmosphere in the class has gotten incredibly bright."
"I-Is that so... So that happened..."
"The Princess might have killed someone, sure, but it was an accident. We looked away from that fact, got carried away by Endo's talk, and ostracized her based on image alone. But the Princess... even though she's in a position where she can't be bullied anymore, she told us not to ostracize Endo. Seriously, I feel pathetic for how I used to be. If you actually talk to her, she's interesting, and incredibly kind. She's such a good person. So, we swore we'd never do anything like that again. Since then, bullying has disappeared from other classes too. I think the whole school has a really good vibe right now."
"That's... amazing..."
Kyoji was completely devastated by this story of heroic achievement.
Both of them—Shana and Shino—were on a completely different level as human beings compared to him. Even if he were in the same position, Kyoji knew he could never have done what they did. He was forced, once again, to confront his own smallness.
"Since then, the teachers have basically turned a blind eye to the Black Prince coming to school. If anything, they seem grateful. Though, he's only come one time since then."
"Oh, he came one more time?"
"Yeah. That time, he took not just the Princess, but those three friends of hers for a ride in the car. Damn, I'm so jealous... I just want to ride in that car once..."
"A-Haha..."
"Well, that's about the gist of it. How about it? Feel relieved?"
"Relieved?"
"Yeah. You called me because you were worried about the Princess, right?"
"Oh, y-yeah. Hearing that makes me feel really relieved."
Remembering the excuse he had given at the start, Kyoji hurriedly agreed. Of course, inside, he felt anything but relief.
"Thanks for telling me everything today."
"Sure thing. See ya, Kyoji."
"Yeah. See you."
After hanging up the phone, Kyoji muttered to himself.
"A hero in the game, and in reality, he's kind, cool, and rich... What the hell... What the hell is that..."
Shana, whom he had vaguely thought of as a fictional existence until now, suddenly felt like a physical reality closing in on him. The pressure made his body go rigid.
Kyoji wasn't bad-looking, and his family had money. He was smart enough to be planning for medical school. If Shana hadn't existed, it wouldn't have been impossible for him to eventually date Shino.
But in that scenario, Shino would never have been saved like this. All Kyoji could have done was endure alongside her. They likely would have tried to solve her trauma regarding guns by simply running away from it. After all, unless someone like Endo was involved, guns rarely appeared in daily life in Japan.
Kyoji's misfortune was simply that his opponent was Shana. It wasn't his fault. It was the result of Shino grabbing the hand Shana held out to her with all her might. The hand Kyoji had held out was weak; it was never something that could have supported Shino's weight.
Really, that was all there was to it.
"It's true I couldn't do anything. But so what? What's so wrong with me being the one beside Asada-san?"
It wasn't wrong, per se. But it wouldn't have been good for Shino, either.
Kyoji didn't understand that. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to hate Shino, nor did he feel capable of opposing Shana. He could only pray, relying on some external power, that Shino's eyes would turn toward him once again.
How much time had passed since then? When he came to his senses, it was already dark outside.
Kyoji's mother told him it was dinner time. Dragging his heavy body, he headed for the dining room.
"Kyoji, take this to Shoichi first."
"Okay."
Kyoji's older brother, Shoichi, was actually an SAO survivor.
Shoichi and Kyoji weren't particularly close, but Kyoji had still felt joy when SAO was cleared and his brother woke up. To Kyoji, Shoichi was his only sibling.
After waking up, Shoichi didn't do much of anything. He spent his days freely. He didn't shut himself in his room completely—he went out normally enough. But he did nothing productive. Strangely, their strict father silently tolerated this. This was the same father who forced Kyoji toward medical school and refused to listen to a word of protest.
(At first, Dad treated Shouchi normally. But that changed... probably after he talked to that man, Kikuoka...)
One day, a government official named Kikuoka had visited the Shinkawa household. Kikuoka and his father had spoken alone for a long time. Kyoji had heard his father's voice raised in anger at one point, but thinking it had nothing to do with him, he had stayed in his room.
Then came the sound of multiple footsteps going up the stairs. His father and, presumably, Kikuoka entered Shoichi's room and began talking. His father's angry shouting was audible again, but Shoichi had simply covered his ears, feigning ignorance as if it were someone else's problem.
It was after that day that his father's behavior changed. He began walking on eggshells around Shoichi, basically just giving him money and letting him do whatever he wanted. Shoichi accepted this meekly. Despite living in the same house, it was as if he were living alone.
Shoichi generally caused no trouble for anyone, with one exception: Kyoji.
Because Shoichi took his meals alone in his room, bringing him dinner became Kyoji's job. Though he found it a hassle, Kyoji continued to carry dinner to Shoichi's room every day as his only point of contact with his brother. Incidentally, clearing the dishes was their mother's job. Kyoji understood that this was her only connection to her eldest son.
And so, today as well, Kyoji carried dinner to Shoichi's room as part of his daily routine.
"Brother, I'm leaving your dinner here."
"Ah."
It was supposed to be the same unchanging exchange that had repeated for years.
But today was different. For the first time in a long while, Kyoji heard his brother say something other than "Ah."
"Wait, Kyoji."
Wondering what it was, Kyoji stopped in his tracks.
"That's rare. Is something wrong, Brother?"
"You... You're unhinged. Yesterday you were still normal, but today you're completely different. You've got an atmosphere about you that feels nostalgic to me."
"Unhinged...? That's impossible, Brother. I'm completely normal."
"That's what all the crazy ones say. You... You're thinking about killing someone, aren't you?"
"Hah?"
Despite his scoff, Kyoji felt his heart leap in his chest.
It was true he had been beaten down by various truths today. In that process, he had indeed imagined killing Shana and standing by Shino's side.
But imagination was just imagination. There was no way he could actually kill a human being. Thinking this, Kyoji denied his brother's words as a matter of course.
"There's no way a civilian like me could do something like that. I mean, sure, maybe I've thought about it, but..."
"...Then, do you think I could kill a person?"
Kyoji was at a loss for words for a moment, but he answered his brother naturally.
"Of course I don't think that. Isn't that obvious?"
"Obvious... huh."
Shoichi looked at Kyoji's face and grinned.
It wasn't a smile; it was a leer. The expression looked twisted somehow, and Kyoji gulped audibly.
"I never told you this. My player name in SAO was XaXa. They called me Red-Eyed XaXa. If you're interested, go ahead and search that name. You'll probably find something written about me somewhere. If that doesn't bring anything up, try searching for 'Laughing Coffin,' or maybe 'Johnny Black' or 'PoH'."
After speaking more than he usually did in a year, Shoichi turned his back on Kyoji again.
Feeling a chill run down his spine, Kyoji silently left Shoichi's room. He ate his dinner normally, returned to his own room, turned on his PC, and typed in the words he had been given to find out what they meant.
And a few hours later, Kyoji learned the true nature of his brother.
Thus, the curtain rises on the stage of madness.
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