Earlier that night, Kirito and Asuna logged into ALfheim Online to meet their friends and gather materials for Lisbeth's latest creation.
After logging in, the two materialized to their temporary home, a cozy place they'd rented in Yggdrasil City that also served as their usual gathering spot for discussing quests and celebrating.
When they arrived, they found Leafa (Suguha) and Silica (Keiko) already logged in, sitting together in the living room chatting happily, while Pina slept peacefully on Silica's lap.
"You two are already here. Huh? Where are Klein and Lisbeth?" Asuna walked toward the two girls with Kirito beside her. Not seeing Lisbeth anywhere, she glanced around before asking.
Leafa let out a wry smile and thought that the two of them have called each other first and exchange words of love before logging in which made her feel jealous. "You two are finally here! We've been waiting for you."
Silica also turned her face to Asuna and Kirito and revealed a smile seeing the two of them and said "Hello, Asuna-san, Kirito-san! It seems Liz was doing something at her shop. She might be quite busy since she didn't reply to my messages."
"Is that so?"
Hearing Silica's words, Asuna opened her friend list and discovered that Lisbeth was already online, and just like what Silica said, she didn't reply when she sent her a message.
After waiting for a while longer, there was still no response, but it didn't worry her since Lisbeth often ignored messages whenever she was busy crafting a weapon or piece of equipment so she wouldn't lose focus.
Opening her map, she saw that Lisbeth was really inside her shop in Yggdrasil City which she nodded and know that she might be in the middle of something.
Thinking for a bit, Asuna then glanced at Kirito beside her, then two girls before she said, "Well, there's still some time before we go for the quest. Want to go pick her up at her shop?"
"Of course!" Leafa and Silica.
Kirito however said "You girls can go on ahead. I need to drop by Agil's shop first. It seems that Klein's been complaining about his single life again."
Hearing his words, the three girls couldn't help but laugh dryly and shake their heads helplessly as Klein was just too desperate to get a girlfriend.
"Then let's meet up again here later." Asuna said.
"Got it. Then I will go now." Saying that Kirito walked to the door and left their home under the gazes of the three girls.
Asuna waved at Kirito until he finally disappeared from sight, then look at Leafa and Silica "Well, shall we go too?"
"Okay!" 2x
"Still, it's pretty rare for Liz to be busy when we're about to start a quest, right?" Silica said thoughtfully.
"Well, you know her, she's kind of clumsy sometimes so it wasn't really that surprising for her to subconsciously ignore her messages." Leafa chuckled.
Even though they weren't that surprise that she didn't reply since she would occasionally do this once in a while when she was busy. It was still rare for her to do so.
"We will know, once we arrive." Asuna replied.
As she said that the three of them headed out of their home and went straight to Lisbeth's Arms Shop. Her shop was also located in Yggdrasil City and it was near their home so the three of them simply walk to her shop.
Yet, when they arrived, they were greeted by an unexpected sight, instantly making the atmosphere in Lisbeth's shop awkward.
...
"Nice to meet you, my name is Setsuna."
Shido greeted the three girls who have suddenly come and interrupted them. However, Shido could still see a faint blush on their cheeks as the scene before still lingered in their minds.
"N-Nice to meet you, Setsuna-san, you can call me Silica." Silica shyly said as she clutch the hem of her skirt while looking at Shido bashfully.
"...Hello, my name is Leafa." Leafa said.
Although she was also still a bit embarrassed by seeing what was about to happen earlier, she wasn't as embarrassed as Silica and only showed a slight pinkish cheeks.
The calmest among the three was Asuna since she had already a boyfriend and also experienced being intimate with Kirito. However seeing another person, especially when the other party was her friend in this kind of scene, Asuna have to say it was kind of awkward and embarrassing when she saw them.
"Nice to meet you, Setsuna-san, my name is Asuna."
Lisbeth introduced herself to the others with a slightly flustered, awkward smile. After all, she had just been caught by her friends right as she was about to confess to someone.
She was disappointed, but also kind of relieve when she didn't manage to finish her words. With a sigh, Lisbeth thought to herself '...It's also good this way. Maybe I was just being impulsive.'
It was also a good thing they had been interrupted, it gave Lisbeth time to sort out her feelings and figure out whether what she truly felt for Shido was love, gratitude, or something else entirely.
It was the same for Shido. Even though he desired Lisbeth, he didn't want her to act on impulse and confess without being sure of her feelings.
In truth, he was rather thankful that Asuna and the others had shown up when they did, breaking the moment. Still, the awkward atmosphere lingered between them, making it hard for them to talk naturally.
Still, as they introduced themselves to each other, Shido quietly observed the three girls. He had to admit, they were all beautiful and cute. Their appearances in ALO were almost identical to how they looked in real life, except for Leafa, who hadn't customized her avatar at all.
However, the one who drew his attention the most was Asuna, not out of personal attraction, but simply because she was the main heroine of the series. On top of that, Rinko had mentioned Asuna's mother earlier had arranged a meeting with him, which naturally piqued his curiosity about her.
Unfortunately, Kirito and Asuna are already together, so Shido couldn't do anything about that.
Still, he had to admit, Asuna was truly beautiful. Which naturally made him wonder, if the daughter was this stunning, then her mother must be also beautiful, right?
The three girls was the same and look at Shido with curious eyes. They wondered who this young man was since it was the first time they saw him. He was tall, handsome and had an air of a person from a high-class background, which made them feel a little nervous in front of him. Yet there was also this gentle warmth that made them attracted to him like a moth drawn to a flame.
Now they understood why Lisbeth, who once had a crush on Kirito, had fallen for this man. While Asuna was genuinely happy for her friend, both Leafa and Silica couldn't help but sigh inwardly and think that Lisbeth was a little sly for trying to get herself a boyfriend first.
Nevertheless, the awkward atmosphere between them naturally dissipated and all of them warmed up to each other, introducing themselves and talking amiably to each other without Asuna, Leafa and Silica noticing.
It was only possible because there was a certain aura around Shido that made them feel relax and have a good impression of him.
Even so, Lisbeth couldn't help but pout a little as she watched Shido quickly get along with her friends, laughing and chatting as if they'd known each other for ages, which made her feel somehow irritated.
However, her face reddened when she thought about earlier, when she was about to confess. She was relived but disappointed at the same time. But what could she do? They'd already been interrupted and trying to confess again right now would just be too embarrassing. At least… for the time being.
In the end Lisbeth joined the conversation and ended up having fun with everyone.
But everything have to end since Shido said that he have to logged out.
After a few minutes of happily chatting with each other, Shido told them that he have to logged out.
"Eh? You're logging out already?" Lisbeth blurted out, her face showing a mix of surprise and disappointment. She was reluctant to see him go, but she couldn't bring herself to ask him to stay, she didn't want him to think she was being clingy. Besides, it's not like this would be the last time they saw each other… right?
However, before that...
"Then, how about we add each other to our friend lists?"
"Alright!" Lisbeth replied immediately with a bright voice .
Hearing that, Lisbeth's face lit up with joy, and they quickly exchanged friend requests. When Shido's name finally appeared on her friend list, she couldn't help but nod in satisfaction, her heart feeling light and warm.
"Ah! No fair! Me too!" Silica suddenly said, puffing her cheeks as she grabbed Shido's arm in a cute little pout. "Let's add each other too, Setsuna-san!"
"Then, me too." Leafa also joined in since she thought that it would be nice to add Shido to her friends list since she could have a chat and also meet him if there's a chance, maybe asking for help doing quest?
Watching her two friends act so close to Shido and add him to their lists as well, Lisbeth was left speechless. She wanted to tell them they were getting a little too familiar with him… but she couldn't say anything, since she was no different.
Seeing that, she could only sigh and said "Geez, these two are really..."
Unexpectedly.
"Then, can I add you too, Setsuna-san?" Asuna said shyly with a little hesitation.
Asuna also wanted to add Shido, which made him a little surprised.
"Of course." Shido nodded and added Asuna to his friends list as well. After all it would be a waste if he didn't take this chance right?
Also they were just adding each other as friends, nothing else.
Still, Lisbeth raised an eyebrow at the sight before shaking her head. Maybe she was just overthinking it. Her gaze then drifted toward Silica and Leafa, who were acting all chummy with Shido, and she couldn't help but let out a wry smile.