Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 144

Chapter 144: The Boy and His Best Friend

Sunday, August 29th.

In Kamisato City, there is an annual event held on the last Sunday of summer vacation to mark the end of the season. Stalls line the streets along the Kamisato River, and this event is called the “Kamisato End-of-Summer Festival.” It’s a major summer event that draws many participants.

Having just completed a huge country-level festival quest in a game recently, I found it much more relaxing to simply stroll through the stalls as a regular person at this festival.

After changing clothes, Sora Kamijo tied her long silver hair into a simple ponytail. Instead of her usual casual outfit, a short-sleeved hoodie and shorts, she wore a black “jinbei” for men that she had bought with her younger sister, Shiori.

Looking at his current reflection in the mirror, Sora let out a deep sigh.

It’s been almost a month now.

However, the reflection in the mirror wasn’t her original appearance: a typical high school boy with black hair and black eyes.

What stared back at her was a girl with silver hair that matched the black “jinbei” perfectly. She had deep blue eyes, a small, well-proportioned face, and despite being short, barely over 150 cm, her face could easily rival that of any idol on TV.

Why had this boy turned into a girl? The answer lay in the game she was playing, which involved a helmet sitting in front of her.

The cause of her transformation was a game that had been released this summer: a new VRMMORPG called ?Astral Online?.

Playing that game had sparked what could only be described as a nightmare for Sora.

Despite it being her very first time playing, Sora was inexplicably thrown into an impossible battle. A fight against the final boss, the Demon Lord Shaitan, with her level 1 avatar, completely skipping over all the usual gameplay progression.

Even though she fought valiantly, she was easily defeated. As a result, she was cursed and transformed from the male character she had into a beautiful silver-haired, blue-eyed girl within the game world.

On top of everything, the game’s influence didn’t just affect Sora’s body, but also manifested in the real world, plunging humanity into crisis twice—once at the end of last month and again in the middle of this month.

The first time, the entire surface of the Earth was nearly covered by a forest.

The second time, everything was blanketed in flowers, the ground cracked open, and magma started erupting.

If it hadn’t been for the efforts of many adventurers, including herself, the world would likely have either turned into a forest by now or become a hellish landscape with magma constantly spewing from the ground.

“I wonder what kind of disaster is going to happen next…”

Sora’s gaze shifted beyond the window, towards the enormous Yggdrasil, the World Tree that had manifested in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean in the real world.

After the forest and lava zones, the next map is a sea map, located past a large country beyond the wastelands.

Speaking of the sea—it’s water.

Could the real sea level rise next? That would be the worst possible scenario, with no way to escape.

As Sora was pondering this, there was a light knock on the door, followed by a voice.

“Sora, can I come in?”

It was her cousin, Kurono Takanashi.

When I replied, “You can come in,” the one who entered was a silver-haired beauty who was like a mirror image of myself.

Unlike Sora, whose hair was messily tied to keep it out of the way, Kurono’s hair was neatly braided and pinned up, showing off her slender nape. This sight made Sora’s heart skip a beat, a reminder that her pure, male heart was still intact.

But there was more to notice. Unlike Sora, who stubbornly wore male clothing, Kurono, a proper girl, was dressed in a sunflower-patterned yukata with a light blue fabric.

The impact of seeing such a beautiful girl—so stunning that if you asked 100 people, all 100 would agree—was overwhelming.

S-So cute…

Sora’s mind blanked as she stared at her in awe, while Kurono blushed slightly and twirled around like a model, showing off her outfit.

“Hehe, how do I look?” she asked.

“You look amazing, Kurono.”

“R-Really?”

“Yeah, if a girl like you were walking around, I’d definitely call out to her because you’re so cute.”

“Yay!”

Kurono, in her yukata, clenched her fists in excitement and expressed her joy as she walked over to Sora and took her hand.

“Everyone’s calling for us. Let’s go downstairs.”

“Yeah, I got it.”

Sora grabbed her smartphone, then held Kurono’s hand, and they made their way downstairs together.

Alright, time to get focused.

Because today, I’m finally going to meet my two best friends in real life.

……………………

Arriving an hour before the agreed time, Sora waited anxiously for the moment to arrive.

The other members who had been with her when she left the house, including Kurono and the women from the professional gaming team ?Valkyrie?, led by her sister Shiori Kamijo and Shino Tsukimiya, were waiting a short distance away.

The silver-haired girl was now alone in a simple park that had just a slide and two swings.

On weekends, kids would often run up and down in a game of tag.

Of course, Sora, Shinji, and Shiro had spent all their time at home playing ?Sky Fantasy? together, never engaging in that kind of physical play.

Sora sat on a bench, typically used by parents resting after playing with their kids, waiting for the moment to come.

“I wonder what kind of faces they’ll make when they see me like this…”

They were already used to seeing her in the game, so maybe they wouldn’t be too surprised.

At least, I hope so.

Hoping for the best, the silver-haired girl, with the heart of a boy, let out a quiet sigh.

As Sora absentmindedly gazed at the sunset sky, she recalled the time when the three of them first met here.

She lowered her gaze to the ground, allowing her mind to drift back to that memory.

It was six years ago.

After purchasing the newly released VRMMORPG ?Sky Fantasy?, Sora took a break on this very bench when two boys, looking utterly exhausted, sat down next to him.

With expressions that made it seem like a terrible game had ruined their lives, Sora asked them what was going on. At first, they gave him puzzled looks, but then slowly began to share their stories.

Shinji, the eldest son of a family that had passed down the *Takamiya Spear Arts* and a regular competitor in VR world tournaments, was tired of the daily training his father forced upon him, which left him no time to play with other kids.

Shiro, on the other hand, was overwhelmed by the constant attention he received from girls due to his appearance, while being resented by the boys in his class—a classic case of being caught in the middle.

After listening to their rather stereotypical game-like problems, Sora thought for a moment before declaring:

“Alright, leave it to me—I’ll fix this!”

Sora still vividly remembers the two boys’ synchronized, bewildered expressions at that time.

But Sora had been serious.

To convince Shinji’s father, Sora used the various skills he had learned from Shino, who would later become the world champion in VR fighting games. After an intense, evenly matched battle, Sora emerged victorious, proving that “strength can expand by learning beyond spear arts.” With that, Shinji’s father allowed them to play games together.

As for Shiro, who was in the same elementary school as Sora, they simply took him out of class with Shinji’s help.

Both of their problems, when compared to bad games, were relatively simple, and solving them had been easy.

In exchange, the once-lonely Sora only asked that they play ?Sky Fantasy? together.

The amazed expressions on their faces when they first saw the fantasy world remain saved in Sora’s image folder even now.

Just as Sora was lost in these memories, she heard the sound of footsteps crunching on the park’s gravel, slowly approaching.

Two sets of footsteps, moving in rhythm, came closer and then stopped—one on either side of her.

Just like back then, two boys sat down beside her.

Her heart pounded heavily in her chest.

Nervously, Sora raised her head from the ground and glanced to her left and right. Just as she expected, there they were.

The two boys—Shinji Takamiya and Shiro Kozuki—sat beside her, both wearing slightly exasperated expressions.