Preferably, it would be better if all of Tokyo’s skies were covered in arcades[1].

Avoiding the puddles that hadn’t been absorbed into the water-permeable pavement tiles as he walked, Haruyuki thought that with a sense of desperation.

He had hated rain since long ago. The signal connection level of his Neuro Linker would go down even if it was only drizzling, one of the two hands he used operating his virtual desktop would be occupied by an umbrella, and as if that wasn’t enough, his dampness-prone body would get even more wet..

Stopping at a stoplight along his route home from school, he looked up past the edge of his umbrella and saw that, even though they said that there wouldn’t be any rain today on the first day of the month, the sky was still filled with plenty of moisture as it remained a sunken lead color. At the edge of his vision, the rain-probability prediction that was displayed alongside the headline news showed the numbers at 80 to 90 until tomorrow morning. It seemed that the seasonal rain front didn’t intend to leave Kanto for the time being.

It would feel good if he could take a short flight and pierce through those clouds until he flew above them. The pure-white sea of clouds that spread out forever, the ultramarine sky, and the intensely shining sun. It was a scene he had seen several times in the ?Storm Stage?, but of course he had never experienced it in the real world.

At the very least, he could imagine it, and so he stood on his tip-toes as he flapped his imaginary wings, and—.

“The light’s turned green!”

*BACHIKON*?Haruyuki’s back was suddenly struck, and he stepped toward the pedestrian crossing as if falling forward. After he narrowly avoided falling, he started walking quickly to hide his embarrassment, and turned to speak to the person now beside him.

“..Ossu[2].”

“Ossu.”

The one that answered him back while turning her vivid yellow-green umbrella round and round was his classmate, Kurashima Chiyuri. As if she didn’t feel the gloom of the rainy weather, but actually enjoyed it, she made splashing sounds with her water-repellant sneakers.

“Did you buy a new umbrella?”

When he inquired about her unfamiliar belonging, his childhood friend blinked her cat-like pupil bashfully, and nodded her head.

“Yeah..Don’t say anything more, I already know what you want to say! I know that I let myself be influenced about something like the color of an accessory. By my avatar.”

“That’s just how it is..I’ve also noticed that I’ve gotten things like memory card containers and Direct Connect cables in silver, after all.”

The armor of Chiyuri’s duel avatar ?Lime Bell?, which she had gained two months ago in April, was a lime color just as its name suggested. She herself hadn’t seemed really accustomed to that color at first, but without noticing it, she had changed some of her personal effects, including her trademark large hairpin, to a bright green color.

“But, you should stop it when it comes to your Neuro Linker. Going that far may cause your real identity to be identified.”

After he said that while looking at the pale purple exterior of the VR device attached to her thin neck, Chiyuri puffed her cheeks.

“What, but Haru, Takkun and Kuroyuki-senpai[3]?all have Neuro Linkers with the color of your avatars, don’t you?”

“I..I’ve just always used this one since long ago. The next time I change to a different model, I’ll get it in a different color.”

“It’s going be piano black[4]?anywa——y.”

He glared at her with a side glance, and unconsciously his eyes swam.

His childhood friend laughed with an expression that said ‘Yare-yare[5]’, and then she leaned her brand-new umbrella back and looked up towards the sky past its edge.

“But it’s really coming down, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, really..By the way, what about your club activities?”

Haruyuki belatedly realized that Chiyuri normally, as part of the track-and-field club, and he, part of the go-home club, never found themselves together on the way home from school, and so he tilted his head in puzzlement. Then, Chiyuri shrugged her shoulder and answered idly.

“Whenever it rains, we always do muscle training in the gymnasium or long-distance swimming in the indoor pool. Since both places were full today with the other athletic clubs, I took the day off. It’s unfair that Takkun and the kendo club have a dojo for their exclusive use..Aah, it’s unpleasant how my muscles feel dull if I don’t move my body for even a single day.”

“Heeh, so that happens..”

As someone who took pride in being the exact opposite of an athlete, Haruyuki murmured with just a little bit of admiration.

Hearing that, Chiyuri blinked as if she had thought of something, and then she suddenly took a step closer and put her hand on Haruyuki’s arm—and as Haruyuki became flustered at the sudden physical contact, she looked into his face and spoke.

“I know, Haru. Exercise with me.”

“Ha..Haa!?”

Widening his eyes with a jerk, he flapped his mouth open and closed, before somehow asking again.

“E-Exercise, you say..where..what kind of..”

“..What’s with that reaction? Ah, ah, you just thought of something weird, didn’t you!”

After staring at him intently once again, Chiyuri gave a teasing smile.

“I was just thinking of going into a ?duel? as a tag team. What other possible meaning could I have, Arita-sensei~.”

“I-I also naturally meant that too.”

After giving an unnatural cough, Haruyuki feigned calmness and continued.

“In other words, I meant ‘where is the battle area we’ll go to’ and ‘what kind of rules will we fight with’.”

“Heh, hoh, hmm.”

Fortunately, as if she were feeling inclined to post bail for a suspect, Chiyuri changed her expression in a wide smile, and pointed with her umbrella at the overhead structure of the Chuo Line railway that was visible ahead of them.

“Since it’s still early, let’s go to Shinjuku. We may get above the clouds if we’re at the viewing platform of the government office.”

“I don’t think that would happen, but..Well, it’s fine.”

While answering with a shrug of his shoulder, Haruyuki was once again conscious of the weight of Chiyuri’s hand, still placed on his right arm.

Arita Haruyuki and Kurashima Chiyuri had been born into the same combined multistory high-rise apartment building in north Kouenji fourteen years ago in 2033. Since their homes were separated by only two floors, they had grown up almost as twin siblings since they were infants.

Since their apartment building was huge, there had of course been many other children the same age as them. However, the only one of them that had remained steadfast close friends with him until today besides Chiyuri was Mayuzumi Takumu, who lived in a separate apartment. Since he had gone to a different elementary school than Haruyuki and Chiyuri, Takumu had been able to associate with him without any worry. And, even though Haruyuki had frequently gone to the same school as Chiyuri, his relationship with her had not changed—probably because of her earnest strength and kindness.

When he had begun to be the target of bullying from upperclassmen in elementary school, Haruyuki had tried to keep his distance from Chiyuri, because he hated her seeing his wretched state. But Chiyuri had stubbornly tried to keep close to him. Haruyuki also understood now just how huge the pressure was to ?remain friends with a bullied kid? for elementary school students at that age. And yet, she had continued to return home to their apartment building together with him every day, and playing games and going on make-believe expeditions with him along with Takumu until fifth grade. The memories of the three's time spent together after school were now stored deep within Haruyuki with a golden color.

—No, those memories may be even more important to Chiyuri.

Because, the source of the pseudo-healing ability that Chiyuri’s duel avatar ?Lime Bell? possessed was most likely..

“Let’s take the train.”

When she poked his elbow while saying that, Haruyuki raised his head and saw that they had reached the Chuo Line platform without him being aware of it. After looking at the orange train cars approaching from the west and then nodding with a “Sure”, Haruyuki added something else in a low voice.

“..ank you, Chiyu.”

“Eh, did you say something?”

When his childhood friend turned around towards him with a sway of her short hair, Haruyuki felt a moist and choked sensation in the middle of his chest, and then frantically shook his head.

“I-It’s nothing. L-Let’s get on!”

An astounded voice he was used to hearing followed after Haruyuki as he jumped into the train.

“Hey, there are only two stations, you know!”

Arriving at the government office after walking on the pathway that extended out from the underground west entrance of Shinjuku Station, the two of them jumped into the direct connect elevator that went up to the viewing platform on the highest floor.

*GUGU*?A momentary feeling of acceleration hit them, then disappeared. The digital floor indicator on the wall changed numbers at a staggering speed. The wall outside soon changed from concrete to glass, and Chiyuri immediately flew forward and raised her voice in exclamation.

“Uwah..amazing, it’s all grey..”

“You can’t really see well with the rain..”

It was expected, but the view of the evening landscape of the huge metropolis that spread out to the south was obstructed by the incessant curtain of rain and mostly wasn’t visible. Moreover, something like a haze coiled around the glass as they went farther up and further obstructed their view.

The elevator slowed down as a floating feeling gently went through his body, and then finally it stopped with an announcement of arrival. The other side of the opening doors was dyed all in white.

Rebuilt in the 30s, the Tokyo Government Office Building reached up to 500 meters in height. The only other building of such a height in Tokyo, or rather in all of Japan, was the Sumida Ward’s Tokyo Sky Tree. But since the viewing platform there was the second-highest at 450 meters high, the highest floor here at the government office was actually the closest to the sky in the center of Tokyo.

Running out of the elevator, Chiyuri spoke as she placed both her hands against the huge window glass at the front of them.

“Uwah....Amazing, it’s pure white..”

“Rather than raining, this place is already within the clouds.”

While smiling bitterly, Haruyuki stood next to Chiyuri. The window simply shone a milky white color as if the other side was covered in thick cotton.

“It’s unfortunate that we can’t see the sky.”

Saying that, Chiyuri became even more resigned and scowled out through the window, but she soon turned around and smiled.

“Well, it’s fine. Thanks to this, we have this place all to ourselves.”

Certainly, no one would care to go up to the viewing platform in the middle of such bad weather and furthermore on a weekday evening, so there was no sign of anyone on either side of the passage. Chiyuri suddenly latched her left arm around Haruyuki’s right arm, and pulled him forward while shouting.

“Since it’s rare to have it empty like this, let’s do a once-around!”

“Uh, s-sure.”

Recently, Haruyuki was also able to somehow talk normally with Chiyuri in person like he used to in the past, but whenever she got a little too close, his mouth and tongue became fumbled. Laughing as she saw Haruyuki like that, Chiyuri began to walk clockwise along the passage that ran along the circumference of the viewing floor.

Naturally, the view outside the window didn’t change no matter how far they went. Beyond the drops of water that clung to the glass, there were only surging lumps of white clouds. Even so, Chiyuri did not make a dissatisfied face, and moved her feet rhythmically.

His relationship with this childhood friend of his had been hard to grasp for a while now. Immediately after the absurdly tough and painful battle two months ago had finished, Chiyuri had wrapped her arms around Haruyuki and Takumu’s necks, and shouted out while crying, ‘I love you two’.

Since then, she had continued trying to talk carefreely and come into contact with both Haruyuki and Takumu just as she declared. It was as if she was trying to rewind time back to those days when the three of them played every day until it became dark.

“Ah, that’s right, Haru.”

Haruyuki raised his head when she suddenly called out his name.

“W-What?”

“If we’re going to duel anyway, let’s connect globally. If we do that, the sightseeing guidance tag will appear on the other side of the window.

“Ah..I see.”

The two of them were currently cut off Neuro Linkers from the Global Net. They did so because, since the Shinjuku Ward was the territory of the Blue Legion ?Leonids?, they didn’t know when other Burst Linkers would suddenly intrude on them while they were connected.

For example, it would be dangerous if they ?waited for a duel? while on the road, but now that they were in the viewing platform where no one was present, there wouldn’t be a problem even if they automatically accelerated from a challenge. Haruyuki nodded, and first opened the console for ?Brain Burst? and made a team with Lime Bell. With this, it would be clearly written on the matching list that the two of them were a tag team, and the opponents that could challenge them were also limited almost exclusively to two-player groups. After that, he connected his Neuro Linker to the Global Net simultaneously along with Chiyuri.

Immediately, countless small holo-tags appeared in his vision. These were the guidance markers of famous places and large-sized building that would have commanded the view outside if the weather had been clear. When the two of them turned towards the east, the names of the nearby Shinjuku Station and Southern Terrace, and Kabukicho[6]?beyond them also appeared.

“..Like I thought, it’s no fun to see only the tags.”

When Chiyuri said that with a bitter smile, as if the god of weather sympathized with the two of them, the thick clouds broke apart for a moment, and the evening view of the center of Tokyo spread out suddenly beneath their eyes.

Letting out a shout of joy, Chiyuri flew over to the window. Haruyuki also hurried over next to her.

As they looked down from an altitude of 500 meters high with their naked eyes, the metropolis was laid out chaotically beneath them as if it were a tapestry with 500 years of history woven into it. As he thought of how the laminated-structured streets shined dazzlingly, the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden and the Akasaka Estate[7]?that hadn’t been changed at all since the last century were sunken in dusk within those streets.

And furthermore, over towards the west, there was, like a large black hole that existed in the center of that galaxy, a vast space that was an even deeper black—the Imperial Palace.

It was a place that, of course, Haruyuki and Chiyuri couldn’t enter in the real world, and they hadn’t experienced virtual images of the palace’s interior as Burst Linkers either. That was because that space’s security system was not connected to the social camera network, a very special exception in present-day Japan. As a result, the Imperial Palace in Accel World’s ?Unlimited Neutral Field? couldn’t have its actual appearance reproduced from the camera images like other place, and instead it always existed as an evil fortress-like original structure.

However, what if the opposite was done?

The Brain Burst Program was, for the time being, confirmed to be able to hack into the entire social camera network in Japan, and generate a field from it. It extended as far as even the Okinawa prefecture that wasn’t connected to the mainland, and Kuroyukihime had once even covered the whole distance from Okinawa to Tokyo on the Unlimited Neutral Field. —In that case, what if there were also places under social camera surveillance outside of Japan as well? Would Burst Linkers be also able to ?go? there..?

“..Hey, Chiyu.”

Haruyuki whispered while gazing absentmindedly eastward.

“Hmm, what is it?”

“About the recent talk on the export of social camera technology on the news..”

Did you hear about it?

Haruyuki was not able to finish saying the question at the end of his sentence.

*BASHIIII*?A familiar sound effect struck his ears, and at the same time his vision blacked out. Automatic acceleration—in other words, some Burst Linkers in the Shinjuku area had discovered the tag team of Haruyuki and Chiyuri on the matching list, and had instantly applied for a ?duel?. Within the darkness, the flaming characters of [HERE COME NEW CHALLENGERS] blazed brightly.

The excitement of a duel in an outside area for the first time in a while immediately washed away his earlier thoughts.