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Kaede squeezed Risa's hand, who returned the gesture. The two of them stayed locked together a little longer before leaning back.
"It's not quite the same, huh?" Risa said after a couple of heavy breaths.
"Mmm... close. But not quite," Kaede agreed. Her face had a nice pink hue to it. "But I think I like it a little better. I can actually feel your warmth here, after all." She smiled affectionately.
Risa blushed. "And I guess there's less chance of electric shocks," she said with a goofy grin.
Kaede giggled. It was true that VR wasn't a complete recreation of human sensation, but it was still pretty amazing. And it was unlikely that either of them would be any less affectionate in the virtual world just because they had gotten closer in real life too.
They were currently in a secluded spot behind the school, which was one of two private spots they had managed to find on. The other being on the roof. Of course it was hard to be completely safe anywhere on school grounds, but they had managed well enough. Someone had happened across them a few times, but only one of those could be counted as being 'caught in the act'. A close embrace wasn't such a bad thing though, right?
Risa leaned her back against the wall. "I think people are talking about us at school."
"I see..." Kaede blushed a little deeper. She was pretty oblivious to these things, but trusted Risa's insight. "I guess we're not exactly very subtle." They held hands to and from school for one, and at least one person had seen them embrace more closely than could be considered merely 'friendly'. Maybe there were other things the other students had picked up on as well. She kinda hoped no one had actually watched them kiss, though.
"Mm... does it bother you?" Risa asked.
Kaede shook her head. "Not really. I'm happy I can show my love for you, Risa." She smiled. "Though I hope no one causes any trouble for us."
"You're way too sweet..." Risa mumbled, though Kaede could just barely hear it. It made her feel a little happy. "Um... do your parents know, Kaede?"
"I... I'm really bad at lying... so... yes," Kaede admitted. "Sorry."
"Eh, it's fine," Risa said with a shrug. "Mine do too. My mother is way too sharp, and asked me over the weekend. Didn't feel right to deny it. You know?"
Kaede nodded. She knew it made sense if someone wanted to hide it, especially if it could cause trouble, but she was happy Risa hadn't. "So, um... what did she say?" She couldn't help being curious.
"More or less the usual thing. So long as my grades stay good, she won't object to it. Though I wonder if maybe she's a little relieved it's you," Risa added with a smirk. "She's always liked you. I'm... actually not sure if she's told dad. He hasn't said anything, at least. What about yours?"
"Well..." Kaede shuffled a little closer to Risa. "Mum seems to think I'm too young yet, but at least she hasn't told me to break it off or anything. Dad... uh..." She started to blush thinking about it. "He just patted me on the back, and said 'nice catch'."
"He..." Risa went bright pink. "Oh my god." She buried her face in her hands.
"I know... he can be so embarrassing." Kaede sighed. "Hm... I wonder if people are talking about us in-game too?"
"Probably," Risa said quite simply.
They couldn't exactly call themselves subtle in-game either. Especially not after learning about Paramour's secondary effect. They couldn't see it themselves, but Iz had told them about the pink glow that surrounded the two of them. It wasn't like anyone had tried to cause them any trouble, though. And the buff was nice.
* * *
Sally was looking at her skill screen. The list was quite long, but there was one in particular she was looking at. "I wonder if rank V is as high as it goes?" she wondered out loud. It had been a little while since they hit rank V, and it hadn't changed since, no matter how much kissing they did.
"10% boost to all stats is already huge," Maple said, sitting on the bed right next to her. The two of them had rented a room at the inn, as they often did to get some privacy. Whether that was to avoid people sneaking a peek at their stat screens, or for other reasons. They had tried touching a bit while in private, but it hadn't gained them any new skills (so far). It had still been... enlightening. There were certain parts you just didn't have in VR (at least not in this game), but you could still... feel things. "I can't imagine them giving us any more."
Sally had to agree with that, as much as she wanted more. It was a very nice boost for her, though for someone like Maple who only levelled up a single stat it was genuinely huge. She wouldn't be entirely surprised if they decided to nerf this skill, but even a 5% boost would be pretty nice.
*Beep!*
"Hm?" Maple suddenly had a pop-up in front of her. It was an announcement letting her know someone on her friends list had sent her a private message. She clicked on it. "It's from Iz. She says there's been a community announcement, and that we might find it interesting." She closed the message again. "I wonder if it's about another set of nerfs..." She sounded a bit disheartened at the idea.
"Now now, let's not jump to conclusions," Sally said, suppressing a giggle. "Let's see..." She brought up the in-game front page, and there was indeed a newly posted update about what was coming in the next patch. Maybe Level 3 was dropping soon, or the next event was announced. The first page was about the next round of bug and balance fixes, though she didn't immediately spot anything that affected them greatly. Second page... "Whoa!"
"What? What is it?" Maple leaned in to look at the screen too. "Huh? Bonding ceremonies?"
"Yeah. In-game weddings."
"Weddings?!"
In-game marriage ceremonies weren't exactly a new thing for MMOs. Especially ones that encouraged role playing. Though even ones that didn't have an official system for it often had players work something out for themselves. But as far as Sally knew NWO would be the first VRMMO with official in-game weddings.
"You think that's what Iz wanted us to see?" Maple asked.
Sally quickly flipped through the other pages. New furniture. Crafting recipes. A brief FAQ column. "I guess so..." she said, and flipped back to the bonding ceremony page. Iz had been very supportive of them since she found out, so it wasn't a great surprise she would alert them to something like this.
"So how does it work?"
"Well..." Sally speed-read through the article. "You book a time, invite guests, the ceremony happens, and you're officially declared married. It says you even get matching rings." There were some more details, and it said the full explanation would release when they were implemented, but that was the gist of it.
"Ooooo~. It says you get a 2% exp bonus while partying with your spouse, because two is heart." Maple giggled. "That's cute."
"No, because two is less than three," Sally said.
"Huh?"
Sally tried to think of the best way to explain. "While <3 looks like a heart on its side, it can also be read as 'less than 3'. And two is less than three. Ergo 2 is <3." She drew a small diagram for Maple to see. It was also two people getting married, so it worked in that sense too. Apparently they weren't adding polygamy. At least not yet.
"Ooohhhhh!" Maple suddenly grabbed both of Sally's hands. "Let's do it!"
"Huh?" Sally blinked at her.
"Let's get married!"
Something went poof in Sally's brain. "M-m-married??"
"Yeah, let's do a bonding ceremony!" Maple's eyes were sparkling. "You and me!"
"Oh." Right. In-game. Sally had been reading it like five seconds ago, and still she had immediately forgotten. Apparently Maple was as bad for her brain as she was for her heart.
"You don't want to?" It was like she could see Maple's heart sink in real time.
"N-no, that's not-" I'm making it worse. "That's not what I meant! Of course I want to!" Whether that was a save or overkill was something Sally would have to contemplate later.
Maple's eyes lit up again. "Then..."
"Yes. Let's do it," Sally said with a firm nod.
"Yay!" Maple gave her a big kiss. "Can we book a time right away?"
"Uh..." Sally looked at the announcement again. "No, we have to wait until the update is in the game."
"I guess we have no choice. I'll make sure to mark my calendar!" Maple grinned wide.
"Mhm." Sally closed the system window. "And now..." She pushed Maple over, and crawled on top of her.
"E-eh?" Maple blinked up at her. "Weren't we going out exploring today? To find a new dungeon?"
"Later. You made me too excited," Sally said with a wink. "I need to get it out of my system first."
Maple let out an exaggerated sigh. "You're hopeless, Sally."
"You're no better, Maple," Sally said as she leaned down.
"Mmmmmmmm~." Maple seemed to melt into the kiss. "True," she admitted, and wrapped her arms around Sally. No matter how impervious to damage she was, she was still soft to the touch.
* * *
The big day had arrived, and Maple and Sally were getting ready. The ceremony took place in a private instance where only they, and people they personally invited, were allowed to enter. It was also a combat-disabled zone, so skills could not be activated, and most of the environment was indestructible. You got to pick between an indoors or an open-air ceremony when you booked it, and they had gone for open-air. It was a brilliant blue sky, with some small, cute clouds dotting it.
The guests they had invited was everyone on their friends lists. Iz, Kuromi, Kasumi, and the others. Not a huge crowd, but they didn't want or need one either. While they had said they didn't need gifts, Iz had still taken it upon herself to ask a fellow crafter specialised in tailoring to create dresses for them. Free of charge, she insisted. They didn't know what Iz had had to pay for them, but she was adamant they weren't allowed to pay her back.
Maple got a red dress with a rose motif, and Sally a blue one with sword lilies. Apparently it was symbolic. Maple had sort of envisioned them both in white dresses, but she didn't want to turn down Iz's gift. They were beautiful, even if they weren't colours she expected from wedding dresses.
She peeked out from behind the curtain at the people in attendance. While she felt a little nervous, she was honestly mostly excited. To further enhance the privacy of the setting, all direct messages, system notifications, and alerts would not be shown while they were in the instance, and instead pop up after they left. Only an emergency was allowed to interrupt the ceremony. So all they needed to do now was walk to the officiant's podium.
They had decided to walk up there side by side, and their guests fell quiet as the two of them came out from either side, and met in the middle. Syrup and Oboro followed right behind their mothers, each pet holding a small flower bouquet in their mouths. Since they had to walk at Maple speed anyway, it was no problem for Syrup to keep up. The officiant waiting for them at the end was none other than the game's mascot Dorazou, dressed smartly in a black suit, and wearing a flower crown that looked like it was made from white roses, with the horn stuck through it in the front.
After Dorazou got through the whole speech about the importance of bonds, the beauty of love, and how companionship should be treasured, it was time to say 'I do'. Or rather, both of them had to hit confirm on the text-box that appeared on the front of the podium that the dragon hovered behind. It wasn't necessary to do it synced, it was only important that they both did it, but Maple and Sally shared a look, then took each other's hands, and used their free hands to click the buttons at the same time.
"I now declare you wife and wife, dora!" Dorazou shouted excitedly. Whomever provided the voice for the mascot did a good job.
When they had booked the ceremony, one of the questions they'd had to answer was how they wanted to be addressed. Maple had immediately pointed at the 'wife and wife' option, and gone: "That's it!"
And Sally had immediately agreed: "Yeah, that's the one."
The text-box blinked away, and a light started forming on their left hands. They held them up to watch as a wedding band materialised on the ring finger for them both. In appearance they looked like they were made from white gold, with a small, plain diamond in the socket. Maple and Sally had already made other plans though.
One of the bits of information in the file they had received was that they could set their own gemstones into the sockets if they wanted. Which brought to mind the red mother of pearl stones they had gotten from the sunset area where they'd had their first date. The decision to use them hadn't taken long to make. So now that they had their rings, they retrieved the stones from their inventories, and carefully placed them on the ring sockets. They slotted in automatically, and even gained a more refined cut as the rings changed to reflect their new gems.
Thus satisfied, they turned to the small crowd in attendance, and showed off their rings along with big, bright smiles. A round of applause was given, and there were maybe a few tears shed too.
* * *
The final part of the ceremony was the cake. Thankfully that was supplied by the venue, and very tasty. Three layers, each smaller than the one below, and at the very top miniatures of Maple and Sally. Honestly they looked less like figures, and more like a miniaturised copy of their in-game models. They were dressed in armour as well. Maybe the devs should have at least put them in dresses, but the booking form they had filled out hadn't included any options for 'what do you want your cake topper to look like', so maybe this was the best solution. What if one, or both, of them had wanted to wear a suit, but then the cake toppers had both been in dresses? That might have been even weirder. A lot of people might just get married in their regular gear anyway.
"That was so beautiful!" Iz told them. She seemed to be having the time of her life, and a champagne glass in her hand. They had no idea if the game could simulate alcohol's effect at all, nor did they want to ask Iz if she was old enough to drink, but at least it had the appearance of champagne. "Maybe I should find myself a wife too. But who to pick..." She glanced around, and a mischievous glint appeared in her eyes. She raised her voice a bit as she went: "Maybe Kasumi wants to marry me?"
"W-w-what?!" Kasumi's face went as pink as her shirt. She had simply been enjoying a slice of cake in peace at another table, but Iz had probably raised her voice to make sure Kasumi heard her.
"Ahaha..." Maple laughed awkwardly.
"Please don't tease her too hard, Iz," Sally said.
"Mm... no promises," Iz said. "Though maybe I should put more effort into teasing you instead?" A playful grin spread across her face.
Maple suddenly grabbed Sally's arm. "My wife."
"Haha. I didn't mean-" Iz was struggling to hold it together. "I didn't mean it like that, I just- pffffft, hahahaha." She needed a minute. Or two. "You two are too adorable, seriously."
Maple beamed, but all Sally could do was blush.
* * *
It had to end eventually. Especially because the booking only gave them two hours in the private instance. They said farewell to everyone, then retired to a room at the inn. The alone time was nice, but they also wanted to check their missed messages.
There were three, and all of them system alerts about new stuff they had acquired. Everyone on their friends lists were at the ceremony after all, so it made sense they had no new messages of that sort. The first message was for their wedding rings.
--
Item acquired: {Ring Of Vows}
Proof of the Bond you share.
Remains equipped so long as {Bond of Vows} is active.
Gem slot. Indestructible.
Earned from: Successfully complete a Bonding Ceremony.
--
Instead of replacing any of their already equipped rings, they had gained a Special Accessory slot on their equipment screens that it sat in. And of course the custom gemstone slot currently read: Red Mother Of Pearl.
Next up.
--
Skill acquired: {Bond of Vows}
Remember to treasure each other, and the time you spend together.
2% bonus to experience gain while in a party with your Bondmate.
If this skill is lost or disabled, you will lose {Ring of Vows}. Your Bondmate will also lose {Bond of Vows} if you do.
Requirements: Successfully complete a Bonding Ceremony.
--
That seemed simple enough. There was no guarantee a union would last forever, so there was a way out if two players had lost interest. Maple and Sally planned to work hard to make sure that wouldn't happen to them though.
So what was the last alert?
--
Advanced Skill acquired: {Paramour [V]} has advanced to {Deep Bond}
10% bonus to all stats while in a party with your Bondmate.
Allows you to share one (1) skill from your Bondmate's skill list, and use it as your own. They do not lose that skill. Skill remains active even when not in a party.
You are allowed to change which skill to share, but only once per day.
Restriction: Can not use class-specific skills unless you are the same class.
Requirements: Have both {Paramour [V]} and {Bond of Vows} skills at the same time.
--
"What?" Sally stared at it, then rubbed her eyes (even if that didn't make a difference in VR), and read it again. "Huh."
"Share one skill..." Maple mumbled. "So that means you can use one of mine, and I can use one of yours, right?"
"That's... what it says, yeah." Sally scratched her head. That seemed very powerful. And it was hidden away from anyone who married just for convenience. It was only for those who had also gotten intimate. She wasn't entirely sure what sort of message the developers were trying to send by including that.
"My build is only defence-focused though," Maple said while looking through her skill list. "I'm not sure what I have that would be useful for you, Sally..." She sounded almost apologetic about it.
"Well..." Sally leaned over to also look. She noticed Maple's skill screen was glowing faintly for her, and if she moved her finger across the skills, they would highlight. "It's true there's not a lot..." All of Maple's damage reduction skills went against what Sally's build was doing anyway. If she got hit, 1 or 2 points of reduction wouldn't help much with her 0 Vitality. And stuff like Cover Move was Greatshield only, as useful as having a literal teleport might be. However... "I think I will share Hydra Eater," she decided. "Being completely immune to your poison would allow me more options." Not to mention paralysis immunity might be helpful, even if Maple's Paralysis Shout didn't hit her because it counted as a direct attack for the purposes of 'no friendly fire'.
"Ooohhh!" Maple cheered up again immediately. "Then you can also ride in a Venom Capsule!"
"No way. I refuse. Never," Sally said immediately, and firmly.
"Eeeehhhh?"
"Now what do you want from me?" Sally brought up her much longer, and more varied list to let Maple look through it. "Another attack skill maybe?"
"Hmmm..." Maple studied the list. "Even if I got Double Slash my lack of Strength would make it virtually useless." Her main use of her sword was to activate the Hydra attack skills. "And even if I got one of your spells like Fireball I still have very little MP. Taking one of your stat boosts might just mean I lose my Giant Killing bonus." At the point they were at it was unlikely a small boost like that would actually exceed anything they fought, but Maple's reasoning was still understandable. If her defence was suddenly halved against certain enemies it would increase the odds of her being hurt.
"Let's see..." Sally put some thought into what might help boost something Maple truly needed. "You could take my Light Magic so you get Heal. Even if you only get a couple of casts, it might occasionally work better than Meditation?"
"Maybe..." Maple didn't look entirely convinced.
"Or how about Super Speed? It's just a temporary dexterity bonus, so at least you could run a short distance sometimes." It might be useful to get away from something she couldn't block. Or to help her keep up if Sally couldn't carry her for whatever reason.
"Hm..." Maple was rubbing her chin, which Sally took to mean she was a little more intrigued.
"Though considering how you keep stumbling into things, maybe Sensory Awareness would be best for you," Sally teased.
"Ooo~. I mean, that's rude! But... I also want it," Maple said. "I wanted to get that early on, before you were able to make your character, but my attempt... er... failed." She was awkwardly scratching her cheek.
Sally wanted to ask more about it, as it wasn't that hard of a skill to get. Though it might be hard for someone like Maple. Maybe she could prod her about it later. "Alright, that's settled then."
"Yeah!" Maple beamed as they both close their stat screens. "Hm... the Deep Bond description didn't have the warning about the pink glow any longer."
"Well, we have these now..." Sally mused as she lifted her left hand to look at her ring.
"Oh, good point." Maple lifted her hand too, and held it alongside Sally's. They really made a pretty pair. "I love you, Sally." Then she turned her head, and whispered close to Sally's ear. "And I love you, Risa."
Risa shivered back in her room, and Sally turned a bright pink. "I love you too, Maple. And..." She gave Maple a kiss on the cheek before also lowering her voice to a whisper. "I love you, Kaede."
Maple giggled happily as she also turned pink.
"And now..." Sally gently put a hand on Maple's cheek so she could turn her head, and kiss her right on the lips. "How about we start our wedding night?"
"Hm? But it's not night yet," Maple pointed out before giving Sally a kiss of her own.
"I'd like to take my time," Sally said. No speedrun for this part. Thankfully the next day was a day off regardless.
Maple giggled. "Are you having lewd thoughts, Sally?" she asked in a playful tone.
Sally blushed again. "Maybe..." They hadn't done much beyond kissing up until now. Just some experimental touching. But if they were to try going a little further, it certainly seemed like the right time for it.
"Alright~."
They weren't even sure how much was possible to do within NWO, but decided to unequip as much as they could, and see if they were able to push the boundaries a bit. Both their own, and the game's. Maybe private areas like this gave them a little extra leeway.