After a month of discussions, negotiations with major businesses, and even foreign involvement, the ban on virtual reality games was unexpectedly lifted.
However, as of now, the only VR game available on the market was Pokémon.
This name left everyone bewildered.
Before this, there had been no news of any other VR games aside from SAO.
Strangely, the game itself was completely free to add to one's library—players only needed to purchase their own gaming equipment, the globally released second-generation NERvGear.
This only deepened the mystery.
Why would someone create a game without charging for it?
Many were skeptical, but what was even more bizarre was that no one could track down the company operating the game.
Several manufacturers of the second-generation NERvGear attempted to contact the operators of Pokémon, hoping to negotiate some form of partnership to capitalize on the game's sudden surge in attention.
But no matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find the game's developers.
At the moment, the game was downloadable and could be stored in a player's library, but it hadn't officially launched.
According to the game's official homepage, however, the mystery of Pokémon would be unveiled at precisely 8:00 PM tonight.
...
8:00 PM
Shinozaki Rinko lay on her bed, NERvGear securely in place.
Others might not know what was going on, but as the lover of Kayaba Akihiko, how could she not recognize the truth behind Pokémon?
This game was a direct adaptation of the recently ended SAO death game.
"How did you even do this, Akihiko…?"
Closing her eyes, Rinko murmured to herself as she waited for the game to launch, her thoughts in turmoil.
She was certain that Akihiko was dead.
Yet, why had he told her that if she logged in when Aincrad reopened, she would be able to see him again?
"Could Akihiko still be alive?"
The thought flickered in her mind but was quickly dismissed.
She believed that Kayaba had likely left a fragment of his consciousness within Aincrad. It was something they had once researched—a technology that wasn't entirely impossible to achieve.
However, another pressing question loomed in Rinko's mind.
Who was running Pokémon?
After the SAO incident, SAO's original publisher and development company, ARGUS, collapsed under the weight of massive lawsuits and compensation debts.
Originally, Asuna's father, Yuuki Shouzou, had intended to take over the servers and continue operating the game.
But when RECT Technologies conducted an internal review, they discovered that Kayaba Akihiko had secretly revoked all of ARGUS's access permissions a year before the incident.
RECT didn't have control over SAO, meaning they couldn't take over its servers.
If even RECT couldn't run the game, who else in Neon had the ability to do so?
Countless questions raced through Rinko's mind until a brilliant white light flashed before her eyes.
She had entered the game.
The scene before Rinko was a serene town infused with the essence of nature.
At the heart of the town stood a towering tree whose peak seemed to vanish into the sky.
Surrounding the tree and within the town itself were countless creatures that looked straight out of a fantasy.
As she took in her surroundings, the game's title floated into view:
Rinko immediately understood.
Those creatures must be the so-called Pokémon, and they were clearly the core of this game.
Had the players who reached the 101st floor of SAO chosen to stay instead of traveling to Pokémon Island, they would have immediately recognized this starting screen as Yggdrasil.
However, since those players had long since left, only the remaining SAO survivors were now logging into the game.
Despite most of them developing a deep aversion to VR games after the SAO incident, curiosity still drove some of them to log in.
And when they saw the creatures in the opening scene, their first reaction was—
"Wait a second, aren't these Pokémon?!"
Some of the smarter players quickly pieced things together.
This wasn't a brand-new virtual world developed by some unknown genius.
This was Aincrad—just modified into a different game.
However, they couldn't be sure of one thing.
Since Akihiko was dead, the fact that this VR game had been released could mean two things:
The new version had already been prepared before his death, and someone else had simply published it. The SAO server permissions had been transferred to someone else, and that person had modified the game accordingly.
After all, creating a virtual world from scratch was incredibly difficult. But modifying an existing one? That was much easier.
Regardless of the truth, the moment they realized this game was connected to Kayaba Akihiko—
Almost all SAO survivors immediately logged out.
They were still physically weak from their prolonged time in SAO. They couldn't afford to be trapped in another VR nightmare for another year or two.
Only a handful of players chose to continue playing—those who had missed their chance to reach the 101st floor.
For these Trainers and Defectors, seeing the Pokémon on the title screen stirred something inside them.
They needed to see this game through.
Most players opted to observe cautiously, waiting to see if Kayaba Akihiko had set another death trap for them. Others chose to publicly share what they had discovered.
Rinko, however, was oblivious to all this.
She was busy creating her character.
Character Creation
Ordinarily, Rinko didn't care much about her appearance.
As a woman immersed in scientific research, she had little time or energy to spend on trivial things like makeup.
But since she was about to meet Akihiko…
She decided to put in a little effort.
Choosing "Original Appearance," Rinko made a few adjustments.
First, she removed the freckles from her face. Then, she changed her short hair into long, waist-length locks.
With just these two modifications, she already felt more attractive—at least, she looked a bit more feminine.
Finding the process amusing, Rinko's gaze shifted downward to her chest.
Before she realized it, she had adjusted herself from "sugar tangerine" to "honeydew melon."
"…!"
The usually unshakable iron-willed woman blushed furiously.
Hurriedly, she clicked the "Create Character" button, as if afraid someone would catch her in the act.
...
First Floor – Starter Town
Upon entering the game, Rinko found herself surrounded by a growing crowd of players. More and more people were logging in.
"Aincrad…"
Having helped Akihiko test SAO, she recognized some of the game's maps.
The Starter Town on the first floor was undoubtedly the same SAO first floor—at least, at first glance, there weren't many differences.
This meant that while the map itself might not have been heavily altered, the game's mechanics had likely undergone significant changes.
She confirmed this suspicion the moment she opened her inventory.
The usual equipment slots—weapon slots, armor slots—were all gone.
She wasn't even given any starter items.
She was simply dressed in a plain linen shirt and shorts.
"No equipment slots, no starter items… How are we even supposed to play this game?"
"I have no idea… By the way, what exactly is Pokémon?"
"Whoa! This is amazing! It looks just like reality! And everyone's character is ridiculously good-looking! That girl over there—her chest is huge! That's gotta be watermelon-sized!"
"Finally! I missed out on SAO, and I was so jealous of those players getting to experience such an intense adventure. But now, it's my turn!"
"Oh? There's a main quest! Let me check it out..."
As the noisy chatter of players filled the air, Shinozaki Rinko quietly opened her inventory. A frown crossed her face as she quickly slipped into a secluded corner, ensuring no one was paying attention to her.
[Inventory]
[???]: Using this item will send a friend request to the GM account 'Heathcliff.'
Rinko raised an eyebrow.
Without hesitation, she used the item, then glanced around once more to confirm that no one had noticed her actions.
Based on the surrounding players' comments, it was clear—this item was exclusive to her alone.
And as for the account name Heathcliff...
She knew it all too well.
It was Akihiko's administrator account in SAO.
In the original story, this account was later lent to Kirito to log into ALO and defeat the final boss, Sugou Nobuyuki.
Opening her friends list, she found it still empty.
For now, she set the matter aside and shifted her focus elsewhere.
[Quest Log]
[Main Quest: First Partner]
[Objective:
Proceed to the Arceus Research Institute located in the southeastern part of the map and obtain your first Pokémon.]
[Hint:
Until you receive your Pokémon, your movement will be restricted to prevent attacks from wild monsters or Pokémon.]
"Arceus…"
Rinko murmured.
She had read the news before.
This so-called Arceus was one of SAO's final three bosses, supposedly an AI resembling a human.
"Might as well check it out."
Since her movement was restricted and she had nothing better to do, Rinko decided to give the game a try—the game her beloved had created.
Following the directions on the map, she exited Starter Town—only to find herself captivated by the scenery.
Outside the town was a vast grassland.
It was exactly the same as the one she had seen during SAO's beta testing, with scattered yellow health-bar monsters roaming about.
But…
There were also creatures with green health bars.
A small bug with a tiny horn on its head.
A purple rat with sharp fangs.
And little Bellsprout dashing around wildly.
These creatures had been mentioned many times by SAO survivors.
Each species had its own name, but collectively—
They were called Pokémon.
(End of Chapter)
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