Astra

When those words had left Bliss' lips, Astra immediately stopped his searching and looked towards her. His mouth was slightly agape, almost in a comical "O" shape, because he was truly taken aback. Favorite person? M-me? Really? If someone else had said that to him he would find it hard to believe, but every word Bliss had spoken towards him was bathed in sincerity. Astra felt his face getting a bit warmer, as his cheeks became tinted with a rosy-pink hue. He probably stared at her with that shocked face for what felt like an eternity, but eventually he pulled himself together and changed his

Nothing seemed more appealing in the current moment than having a mid-battle snack. Whether that be to satiate the hunger that built up from the expenditure of energy, or to boost some stats to help out in the battle. The latter seemed more important in the moment, because these boarlets were slippery little things. When Wulfrin produced his feast, Astra couldn't turn it down. He'd also probably be foolish to turn down any sort of boost. With his sword still drawn he made his way over to Wulfrin and Siren to get a portion of the Creme Brûlée. "Thanks Wulfrin! I've been working up an appe

"Cobean," Astra repeated when the blue-haired boy pronounced his name. "Nice, I like that." When Cobean extended his hand, Astra offered his in return to complete the handshake. Generally speaking Astra was more used to waving at people as opposed to giving handshakes, and that was due to his ability to overthink the smallest of actions. Was it a good handshake? Was it secure? Firm enough? Too limp? Oh well, in the end it didn't matter, it was just a cordial gesture between the two. When Bliss had handed Astra's shirt back to him, it had taken a moment for him to register that he'd even

Astra nodded along as Wulfrin ruminated on the state of the VRMMO genre post-incident. It was definitely a matter of when, as there was seemingly no ending in sight at the moment, but Astra did often find himself pondering what the world will look like if the game is cleared. He felt like VRMMO's were too groundbreaking and immersive to just throw away entirely. Even being trapped in one, it was still a technological marvel. Maybe there would be less dangerous clones, or new developments in the technology. Hopefully this will be the last incident where someone traps thousands of players in the

Astra continued to munch on the snacks Wulfrin supplied and nodded along to his companions words, before turning his attention to the newly arrived veteran player before them. He had yet to meet her, but he could tell from her gear and the way she held herself that she was another strong player, someone who has been risking their lives on the frontline. Astra offered another smile and introduced himself as she approached, because that was the polite thing to do. Plus, if they're going to be working as a team to battle this boss, they'd need to be acquainted. This was Astra's first foray into t

Astra watched as Siren regained her footing and bounded back into the action once more. She was resilient and fighting with a similar determination to himself, which just reaffirmed that even if they were missing some attacks, they were still making the right moves. Astra nodded and flashed a quick smile to Siren as she told him to "show the little fucker who's boss". That was exactly what Astra planned to do. With a quick breath, Astra briefly twirled his sword in his hand, before gripping its hilt tightly once more. The boarlet in front of him continued to snort and squeal, taunting th

Even just sitting next to Bliss on the picnic blanket was an intoxicating feeling for Astra. He hadn't really been on a real date before, well, not at least in his adult life, and he could've never even imagined that he'd be here with someone so gentle and beautiful. When she sat down, he couldn't help but find himself staring, his gaze fixed on her. There were no other words he could think to describe her besides "perfect". The light from the sun that cut through the trees seemingly lit her up and gave her a glow, as she was reposed next to him. Astra could feel his mind running marathons as

When Astra gets his mind set on something, it's usually hard to derail him. Ever since he started finding his footing again he's moved with a certain determination and renewed sense of self. The actions he takes were no longer just about his survival, there were people he cared about now. People he wanted to protect. As he sifted through bushels of shrubbery and fungi, his mind began to wander as he thought of the friends and connections he had been making. Thoughts of cooking them a meal to keep them warm, or provide a stat boost, danced around his head. That was the end goal of his quest tod

Every time he found himself back in the Town of Beginnings since he moved away, the ghosts of his past would bite at his heels. He tried to kick them away as much as he could, fighting the voices and images that played in his head, but sometimes it felt like there was no escape. It was the reason why he didn't find himself coming back to the first floor that often. It was the reason he did his best to get along with his business and get out of there. There were two years of history spent on this floor that now weigh heavily on him, and sometimes it felt hard to shake. Sure, he was making the s

Astra watched as Siren was thrown from the back of the boar, hitting the ground with a thud. "You okay Siren?" She seemed like she took the fall well, but there was still concern in his voice. Thankfully Wulfrin was doing a great job at holding most of the boars' attention, leaving room for the others to make their attacks. Turning his attention to the already weakened boar nearby, Astra planned out his next strike. From the looks of the damage the boarlet had sustained, one good hit could take it out and provide him with more of the tusks he needed. With his sword readied and poised, he

Astra had to let out a small laugh when Wulfrin said that VR game development was his passion. It seems like a cruel joke to want to create an expansive virtual world and then get trapped in one. Although, Astra himself was enamored by Full-Dive technology since he heard about it too, and throughout his life always wished for a way to live in a Fantasy RPG world. Maybe not like this though. Aincrad and it's dangers weren't exactly the perfect escape he was looking for. "Do you think you'd go back to that, once we make it out of here?" Astra asked his friend. Once we're out of here. It'll

The cavernous expanse of Floor 21, and the settlement of Tomoika within it, were completely new sights for Astra. His eyes widened at the city of metal and stone that surrounded him, as he stepped off of the teleport gate with Wulfrin. When he had some spare time Astra would frequent the library in the Town of Beginnings, digging through different types of books that caught his eye. Oftentimes the young swordsman would find himself searching for books on the lore of Aincrad and the discovered floors that lay within its walls. From what he knew of Tomoika, it was originally a trading post estab

"Nice, so you were a scout? I always wanted to join, but never had the opportunity when I was younger." Astra reset his line and cast his baited hook out once more. He watched as the bobber dipped up and down in the water, but it didn't seem like there was a lot of activity. He would notice a nibble here or there, but nothing worthwhile. Even if he wasn't catching this rainbow fish right away, a small catch of something else wouldn't hurt. Astra looked over to his companion, who had just fished out a bass from the lake. "Nice catch!" He said with a thumbs up. So far he wasn't having much

Even though the boarlets weren't striking back at the swordsman just yet, the exhilaration of the battle still sent a rush of blood to Astra's head. The boarlet stood in front of him, squealing wildly, covered in slashes and matted fur. One more good slash or strike was all that was needed to finish this thing off, and then Astra could turn his attention to the other boars so he could collect those tusks. His feet were planted firmly in the grass, ready to switch and move at a moments notice to deliver the final blow. No matter how small and miniscule this mob seemed to be, Astra's focus was s

A rosy redness spread across Astra's face when Bliss complimented his name in return. He knew when his ears began to feel warm that she was blushing a little bit, so he looked away from Bliss briefly and looked towards his feet in the water. "T-thank you! I chose this one for a pretty special reason," he chuckled. He could hear it in Bliss' voice that she was a bit nervous too, so that eased his own nerves quite a bit. At least he wasn't alone in that. When Bliss expressed that large groups could get her feeling overwhelmed and a bit anxious, Astra understood that completely. "You're def

"Oh so the bait isn't really that special? Well...That's alright. I've got all day to catch this thing," Astra said, lowering himself into the seat that materialized before him. The sprawling lake in front of him rippled lightly and shined as it was kissed by the sun overhead. One thing was for sure, it was the perfect day to try and do some fishing. The weather was perfect for this time of day, which brought a comforting calm to the activity. "I've baited a hook back in the "real world". It was a long time ago, and I was a pretty small kid," Astra looked up at the sky as he reminisced a

Astra rubbed the back of his head and chuckled a bit as Wulfrin playfully chastised him for forgetting to include location details in his message. It makes sense, if it weren't for the tracking features he would virtually have no way of finding Astra. Astra didn't even stay in Coral, he just started wandering into the wilderness. What a goofball move. "Heh, sorry about that. Completely slipped my mind." When Wulfrin produced the new sword and armor that he had crafted for Astra, Astra's eyes widened. He was incredibly thankful for Wulfrin helping him out. Not only teaching him how to sur

It hadn't previously occurred to Astra that people may assume "himself and Miyukii as siblings for their similar colored hair, but when she raised the point, it did make sense. Astra stopped for a moment to consider whether or not other players would get that idea. "You know, they might! I guess you could pass a younger sibling. Your hair has some nice highlights, though." He smiled at Miyukii and waved her to follow along as he began to leave the tavern. It was time for him to start gathering materials for Maggie, so she could teach him the cooking skill officially. Astra opened up his

"I guess you could say I'm heading out on an adventure. I'm about to head to the Town of Beginnings and start the quest to earn the cooking skill. I'd like to be able to start cooking on my own, and eventually open up a shop to help others here in Aincrad." Astra cleaned up his tea setting and made his way back to Miyukii. "If you'd like to tag along, I wouldn't mind the company! Anyone who is a friend of Bliss' is a friend of mine." Astra offered another smile to the girl in front of him. "Alright, time to head out!" Making their way back to the first floor of Aincrad, the pair found th

Astra sat and sipped at his cup of tea, ruminating on when he should kick into gear and head to the Town of Beginnings. As he battled with himself eternally over when he should move, he noticed a player enter Fondante's Inferno. The player was a small girl, at least 9 inches shorter than Astra. She had white hair like himself, but it was streaked with blue highlights. He looked up from his tea as she approached and asked him a question: "Do you know if Ciela is around? Bliss sent me here to try her amazing food." It wasn't a surprise to hear that word was spreading about Ciela's amazing c

The encouragement from Oats and Siren helped invigorate Astra has he faced off with his first boarlet. He could see out of the corner of his eye that Siren had gone to strike the boar with her rapier, but unfortunately had ended up missing. Next thing he knew, Siren was straddling the boarlet and riding it as if it was a (smaller) mechanical bull at a rodeo. Astra couldn't help but let out a chuckle at the sight of his companion on top of the boarlet. "Keep it up Siren! You've got this!" He had hoped his words of encouragement would do the same for his friends as theirs did for him. Focu

It was an average off-day from adventuring and trying to build himself up as a frontliner for Astra, where he spent most of his time at Fondante's Inferno helping Ciela around her kitchen. The knightess was mentoring Astra in the art of cooking, something he didn't realize he would develop a passion for at this point. He'd always had a passion for food, but that was namely eating anything and everything he could get his hands on. He had a passion for trying new foods, eating classic favorites, and stuffing himself to the brim. It was a miracle that he had managed to keep his slim frame in the

When Astra's attack missed he felt a wave of frustration come over him. It wasn't an anger, just a disappointment, as this moment was supposed to be his turning point in this world. Perhaps the enemies they were fighting were just low tier boarlets, but he couldn't afford to miss attacks. Every movement and every attack counted, especially when anything here could kill you, and you'd simply cease to exist. Pivoting his head to see his companions, Astra noticed that Oats and Siren continued to hit their targets. Nice, at least they're getting it. Time for me to pull my weight too. Astra wa

When Bliss called Astra handsome, he couldn't help but blush. "H-handsome? Thanks so much." His soft smile widened, and he had to look away so that she couldn't see how red his face had become. Once that seemingly wore off, and he was done riding the high of being complimented by Bliss, he turned back to her. He noticed she was twirling her hair, a quirk of hers that he picked up on when he first met her at the beach. Maybe it's something she does when she's nervous, but nonetheless Astra thought it was cute. He liked her quirks. They were all small things that made up the whole of her, a trul

Astra found himself at the gates of the settlement of Fortaleza, which was nestled between beds of large sand dunes that stretched for miles on the fifth floor. It was his first time on the desert floor, so there was a bit of excitement to be had for being somewhere new. However, as new and alluring a new floor was, this floor didn't come without it's drawbacks. It was hot and arid here, and Astra may have been a tad bit overdressed. He'd be fine in the cold desert at night, but during the day the sun beamed down on him and raised his bodily temperature to an almost uncomfortable amount. That,