Translator: P411

Editor: Xia

Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!

Chapter 15 – After a Smug Face, a Forced Logout

I thought about asking Kyle-san before it escaped my mind. As soon as I opened my mouth, Kyle-san looked my way with a questioning gaze.

“After this, I wanted to go through the books from your father’s room.”

I knew it was cheeky of me to ask for more, but I then turned to look at Vidello-san. 

“I also wanted to read the books in your room. I don’t know what kind of books you have, so I’d like to read them all. Is that too much to ask?”

Both of them looked at me in amazement. Was my suggestion that unexpected? Books are important, you know? Knowledge is wealth! 

“I’m surprised that you’re so diligent, but then again, you went through almost all those mountains of books in such a short time. Are all pharmacists like this?”

“Most of the pharmacists I know work under someone else and do nothing but beg for information to be handed to them. You don’t work for anyone, so I guess you have to be diligent.” 

Looking at the two who were nodding their heads in admiration, I panickily denied it.

“It’s not like that!”

It wasn’t that I was diligent. I was doing it for fun. Wasn’t it fun to get new recipes or skills or so forth?

“Anytime is fine. You’re welcome to come by and read them whenever you want. I’ll open the room while I’m awake.”

“I’ll have to bother you a lot, but thank you. I’m happy.” 

As I was thanking Kyle-san, who responded to me so good-naturedly, Vidello-san put down his empty glass. 

“Mac, be sure to come visit my room also. You can read whatever you like, I don’t mind. But in my case, I can only accompany you when I have a day off.”

“Even if I entered your room alone, I wouldn’t know what to do, so it’s better if we’re together…”

As I was comforting Vidello-san, who seemed apologetic, I felt a piercing gaze out of the corner of my eye.

When I quickly looked that way, Kyle-san was staring at me with a huge grin on his face.

“Aya~~ So you two were already like that. You’re already at the stage of visiting each others’ rooms. Well, now that I think of it, this is the first time Vidello has gone outside, even on his off-days. I see, I see.”

Kyle-san didn’t stop grinning. 

Stop it! Don’t look at me with eyes like that!

Unable to endure it any longer, I looked to Vidello-san, but somehow, he had a smug look on his face. Why?

Then, without giving me a moment to resist, he suddenly put his arms around my shoulders.

“Don’t make moves on my man, Kyle. We’re already in a committed relationship.”

This ikemen¹, he could say something like that with a straight face! My face started to turn red. 

What commitment! What commitment! Certainly, we couldn’t commit to anything right now! My clothes couldn’t even come off right now!

Was that really something you could tell others so openly, though?! Or was it just my Japanese nature making me feel embarrassed? 

When I was in a panic, Kyle-san broke into loud laughter, banging the table. 

“Don’t make such a bold declaration! Look at Mac! He’s as red as a tomato!”

As red as a tomato! So faces here could really turn red after all.

Why was this VR game so accurate for the most useless details? I wanted to wear an expressionless face, at least for now. Just for this time when he declared that promise!

I looked down to hide my reddened face and then remembered that I had a bad status called [Sleep Deprivation] attached to my status. 

I turned to the table and expanded the status.

[ Sleep Deprivation : (18 hours) Reduction: Speed 20%, Consciousness 20% 

(22 hours) Reduction: Speed 50%, Consciousness 50% 

  (26 hours) Collapse ]

Ah, so it was this [Sleep Deprivation] bad status that had been causing me to feel a bit absentminded. 

Wait, just how long had I been logged in for?

Had I been in a state neglecting my bodily needs for some time now? 

This was dangerous. 

[Collapse] meant a forced logout, right?

It was already nighttime in the real world.

“I have to go home now.”

I didn’t know what would happen to my avatar when I logged out, but I would have to go back home and sleep. The light in the timer panel had already started to flash, warning me.

The moment I stood up from my seat, I was overcome with dizziness once more. 

“Mac, you’re staggering. Won’t you stay the night here?”

“No, my home is not too far, so I’ll go back…”

I wasn’t sure if I still had time to go back.

“I’ll see you tomor..ro…w…..”

What? Was my speech slurred?

This, this might be it.

If I’m being forced to logout here, I should at least sit on a chair…

At the end, a strong dizziness came over me, and I lost consciousness while looking at the panicked faces of those two through my half-closed eyes. 

---

When I next opened my eyes, I saw a familiar ceiling. 

This was my first time experiencing a Forced Logout. Up until now, I had been doing well with coming back when it was about time. 

As soon as I removed my headgear and put it on my desk, my stomach started growling with hunger. 

“Uu…… I’m hungry….. I need to go to the toilet too, but I’m sleepy……”

It seemed like the sleep deprivation bad status continued even in reality, as I now felt like I was starving.

I fulfilled my needs one after another, and after taking a shower with the last remnants of my strength, I sank into my bed, feeling refreshed. 

When I woke up, it was already Sunday. Saturday had been quite a hard day for me. 

Despite being so sleepy last night, I unexpectedly woke up while it was still early in the morning.

Maybe it was because I slept well, but my head felt much clearer now.

When I left my room and went into the kitchen, my mother was already making breakfast.

I called out to her, “Mom, good morning.”

“Good morning, Kengo. Aren’t you playing games too much? You skipped your meals yesterday, right? I put a note on the refrigerator saying I stored lunch in the refrigerator, but you didn’t eat it since you were playing games the whole time, weren’t you?

Yes, I got found out by my mother who was supposed to be working the whole day.

“More importantly, is there anything I can eat now?”

“I thought you were going to sleep until noon, so I didn’t think to make anything. Just heat up yesterday’s lunch.”

“Yeess.”

Despite it being early in the morning, Mom was quite energetic. My ears hurt from her lively scolding.

I took out the cooked rice leftovers from the refrigerator and put it in the microwave. After heating it, I put it on a plate and went to the dining table alone. 

That reminded me, I left Vidello-san at Kyle-san’s place. I wondered what was really happening to my avatar. Would my avatar disappear when I logged out? Or was it still lying there asleep? I was a bit curious. 

…Did that mean players’ avatars that were occasionally seen lying on the roadside were the results of forced logouts? Some players who were caught in that position would get scribbled on by others who found it funny.

No way. 

After having my breakfast, I thanked my mother, who was now preparing lunch, for the meal. After I washed my plate, I went back to my room. 

Instead of sleeping a second time, I reached for my headgear. 

I put it on, lay down on the bed, and logged in. 

---

When I opened my eyes, there was a handsome man in front of me. 

“Whoa?!”

It wasn’t my fault that I shouted in surprise. Why was such a handsome man sleeping on the same bed with me, and giving me an arm pillow, no less?!

Vidello-san’s eyelids trembled at my voice. 

His eyes opened gently and his beautiful, dark green eyes caught mine. 

“Mac.”

“Go-good morning.”

Under his serious gaze, I greeted him, stammering unconsciously. He suddenly put strength in the arm wound around my waist and hugged me tightly.

I was held tight in a passionate embrace first thing in the morning. In the physical sense, though. 

“Vi-Vidello-san?”

It was hard to breathe, and Vidello-san was only wearing one thin layer of clothing, so the pressure from his muscles was amazing, and to get my face sandwiched between those splendid pecs and biceps, it felt stuffy and hard to breathe, and I felt a little jealous of those muscles and I was already in trouble!

I unconsciously tapped his back with my free arm. There were muscles there also. Good for you~. I wondered if Vidello-san had ever heard of the term ‘Body Fat’.²

When Vidello-san finally relaxed his arms, and looked at my face, his expression softened as if he was relieved.