Like I said,
the gyro is too sensitive this way.
If you want to prioritize visual tracking,
you need to loosen this parameter a bit.
But then, won't it lag during sudden motions?
You just have to hope your learning program in the optimizer can keep up with it, Kazu.
Are we done yet?
Lunch break is almost over.
These will do for default settings, I think.
Okay, Yuuki-san, can you hear me?
Yep, I can hear you just fine.
All right, I'm about to initialize the lens.
When your vision clears, says something.
Roger that.
There!
Okay, we're done.
Asuna, I installed stabilizers, but try not to make sudden movements.
Right!
Beginning of a Dream
What a huge courtyard!
I'm sorry, Yuuki...
I wanted to show you the school first, but lunch is nearly over.
It's okay.
I can't wait to watch the class, too.
Okay, let's go say hi to our next teacher!
Faculty Office
What's wrong?
I never liked the Faculty Office.
It's all right.
None of the teachers in this school seem like teachers.
Excuse me!
About what I told you yesterday...
It's fine.
So, what's this student's name?
It's Yuuki. Konno Yuuki.
Konno-san, come for classes whenever you like.
Starting today, we're reading Akutagawa's "The Truck."
It's boring unless you go all the way to the end.
O-Okay... Thank you!
Sure.
Thanks.
Yuuki-san, is that...
How do you know my name?
No...
It's my last name.
Oh, right! Sorry, sorry!
This is Konno Yuuki-san.
Right now, she can't leave the hospital,
so she decided to attend class like this, with us.
I'm Yuuki.
I'll be staying with you for a while.
Wow!
Nice to meet you!
I'm Kouta. Nice to meet you.
Yeah, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, too.
Stand.
Bow.
Sit.
So starting today, we'll be using page 97 of the textbook.
Akutagawa Ryuunosuke "The Truck"
Akutagawa Ryuunosuke's "The Truck."
Let's start by reading it.
Konno Yuuki-san, can you do it?
Huh?!
U-Um...
You can't?
I c-can read it.
Yuuki, can you read it?
Of course.
I've done a lot of studying on my own.
"The construction of a rail line between Odawara and Atami
began when Ryouhei was eight.
Every day, Ryouhei would leave the village
to go and watch the construction.
More specifically, the trucks carrying the dirt.
That was what he wanted to see.
Two workmen rode on the truck, behind the pile of dirt.
Since the truck was descending a mountain,
it didn't need anyone's help to move.
The chassis would shake from the speed,
the cuffs of the laborers' jackets would flap,
and the tiny road would bend and twist.
Ryouhei would watch it go,
and sometimes he'd think he'd like to be a laborer.
At least, he would sometimes think
he wanted to ride the truck with the laborers."
You're so good at reading, Yuuki-san!
Hey, have you already gone around the school?
We'll show you around.
W-Wait a second...
Hey, are you into soccer?
Thanks, everyone.
That was fun.
I'm glad.
Asuna, thanks so much for today.
It was so much fun.
I'll never forget this.
What are you saying?
The teacher said you can come every day.
Tomorrow's Modern Japanese class goes until third period.
Don't be late.
Yeah.
Anyway, is there anything else you want to see?
Um...
Actually, there is one place.
Where?
This town is so pretty, Yuuki...
The sky is so clear.
Yeah. I'm sorry, Asuna.
It was really selfish of me to ask this.
Is it okay for you not to go home?
It's fine.
I sent them a text message.
So where do you want to go, Yuuki?
Well...
Is Tsukimidai around here?
Yeah.
When you turn up ahead, stop beside the white house.
This is your house, right?
Yeah.
I never thought I'd see it again.
Thank you, Asuna, for bringing me here.
Want to go inside?
No, this is plenty.
Okay, we need to go home, or you'll be late.
I still have a little time.
I only lived here for less than a year.
But I remember each day so well.
I'd always run around that garden with my sister.
We'd have barbecues, and one time, I made a bookcase with my dad!
It was so much fun.
That's really nice...
But they're tearing down this house.
Why?
My grandma says she wants to either sell it or turn it into a convenience store.
But...
So I wanted to see it one final time.
Then let's do this.
You're fifteen now, right?
When you're sixteen, marry someone you like.
And then they'll protect this house forever.
Asuna, that's crazy!
But too bad... I don't think I have anyone I could marry.
N-No?
You were getting along well with Jun.
No way, he's such a kid!
Hmm...
I know... Asuna, want to marry me?
But you'll have to be the wife.
Otherwise, my name will be "Yuuki Yuuki."
B-But I don't think two girls...
Sorry, sorry. It was a joke.
You already have someone you care about, don't you?
Well... Yeah...
You should be careful.
I get the feeling that he lives outside reality in a different way than I do.
Thank you so much, Asuna.
I'm really satisfied that I got to see this house again.
When I lived in that house,
my mother would always say this to me after prayers,
"God does not give us more suffering than we can bear."
But I was a little dissatisfied with that.
I always wanted to hear her words, not the Bible's.
But seeing this house again, I understand.
It wasn't the words themselves.
Mom was surrounding me with her feelings.
She was always praying, so that I could keep
moving forward until the end.
I finally understand that.
I...
I haven't been able to hear my mother's voice for a long time, either.
Even when I face her and talk to her, I can't hear her voice.
And she doesn't hear what I'm saying.
Before, you said that there
are things you can only share by fighting.
How can I be strong like you?
I'm not strong... Not at all.
That isn't true.
You don't get scared by, or flinch at, what other people feel like I do.
You don't ever do that.
You seem so natural.
But you know,
when I was in the real world,
I was always pretending to be someone I wasn't.
I always thought I had to act cheerful,
so Mom and Dad wouldn't be sad.
Yuuki...
But I think it's fine to act.
If that means you spend more time smiling,
it's just fine.
I don't have much time left, you know.
It feels like I don't have time to waste on stuff.
I always say exactly what I'm feeling,
and if they don't like me, that's fine!
It doesn't change the fact that I was close to their hearts.
You're right.
That was the reason we got so close in only a few days.
No, that wasn't me.
It was because, even when I ran, you tried your hardest to catch me.
So why not talk to your mom like you did to me?
If you try to share how you feel,
I think you'll be able to.
It's okay.
You're a lot stronger than I am!
It's true!
Yuuki...
You hit me with everything you had,
so I decided I could trust you with everything I had!
Thank you.
Thank you, Yuuki...
If you try to share how you feel,
I think you'll be able to.
It's okay.
You can do it, Asuna!
Come in.
You're late.
I'm sorry.
If you want something to eat,
take something from the fridge.
Tomorrow's the last day for that transfer test I told you about.
Have the paperwork ready by morning.
About that...
I need to talk to you, Mom.
Out with it.
It's hard to explain here.
Then where can you say it?
The virtual world.
It doesn't have to be for long,
but I want you to come somewhere with me.
No!
I don't want to hear something you can't say face-to-face.
Please, Mother!
There's something I really want to show you!
Just five minutes!
Please.
Right here, I can't tell you what I'm thinking and what I feel.
It doesn't have to be more than once.
I want you to see my world!
Just five minutes.
But no matter what you say,
I have no intention of letting you attend that school next year.
And when we're done, you're filling out that paperwork.
All right.
What do I do with this?
Get into a position where you can relax.
Once I turn on the power, it will automatically connect to my sub-account.
Once you're inside, wait for me.
I'll turn on the power.
Link start!
This is pretty strange.
Having a face that isn't yours move when you do.
And I feel strangely light.
Of course you do...
That avatar's weight is set at forty kilograms or so.
It should be very different than your real weight.
That's rude.
I'm not that heavy.
Come to think of it, you look the same as you do on the other side.
Yeah, I guess.
But the real thing seems a little pudgier.
Now you're being rude, Mom!
It's the exact same as reality!
You're running out of time.
What did you want to show me?
Come here.
Well? Don't you think it looks really similar?
Really similar to what?
They're just some stupid cedar trees—
Doesn't it remind you of Grandma and Grandpa's house?
I loved my grandma and grandpa's house in Miyagi.
Do you remember what happened over Obon, when I was in seventh grade?
You and the rest of the family went to Kyoto,
but I went to Miyagi on my own.
I do.
I apologized to Grandma and Grandpa then.
"I'm sorry that Mom can't come to visit the graves."
There was a service I absolutely had to attend with the main family.
No, I'm not blaming you.
Grandpa said that you were their treasure.
You left the village, went to school, became an academic,
contributed to lots of magazines, and kept getting bigger and bigger.
That made them really happy.
After that, Grandpa added,
"But someday, your mom might get tired and want to stop."
And said that they would protect the mountain and the house forever,
so if you ever wanted a place to go, you had one.
Lately, I finally think I understand what he was saying.
Life isn't just about doing things for yourself.
It's possible to live in such a way that other people's happiness
makes you happy, too.
I want to live in a way that makes all the people around me happy.
I want to live in a way that lets me support those around me
when they get tired.
And for that,
I want to keep doing my best
with my studies and other things at the school I love!
Mom?
Hey, what is this?
I'm not crying...
Mom...
In this world, you can't hide your tears.
When you want to cry, you can't stifle it.
What an inconvenient world.
Good morning, Mom.
Good morning.
You're prepared to support someone for the rest of your life, aren't you?
But to do that, you have to be strong yourself.
You need to go to university.
And for that,
you need to raise your grades for third trimester and next year.
Mom...
Then I don't have to transfer?
I told you...
That depends on your grades.
Work hard.
Thank you, Mom...
Thank you, Yuuki.
I'll be back.
Next Time Mother's Rosario