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  At that moment, the girl called out confidently and loudly, “Oh, right. Do you prefer fighting on land or in the air?”

  Asuna was taken aback—she had assumed they would be fighting in the air. She stopped herself in the act of drawing her blade.

  “…You’re fine with either one?”

  The Absolute Sword nodded with a grin. Asuna suspected another bit of mental gamesmanship was at play, but there wasn’t a hint of malice in the imp girl’s smile. She simply believed that she would win in either arena, that was all.

  If that was the case, Asuna would indulge her. “On the ground, then.”

  “Okay. Jumps are allowed, but no using your wings!” the girl bubbled, folding her distinctive wings behind her back. The batlike appendages quickly faded in color until they were nearly invisible. At the same time, Asuna held her shoulder blades as close as she could for two seconds, the action command to eliminate her wings. She heard a faint jingle over her shoulder, the sign that they were gone.

  From the very first day that she dove into ALO as a proper player and not a prisoner, Asuna had mastered the “voluntary flight” system, which didn’t have a handy flight stick. At this point she was able to hold her own in air battles against ALO vets who had been around since before Aincrad was added to the game.

  But it was hard to get over the battle instincts that had seeped into her core over two long years in SAO. Fighting on land would actually be quite an advantage for her. She could feel the solidity of the ground from her toes to her heels.

  Next, Asuna checked the color cursor of the girl who went by “Absolute Sword” by focusing her gaze in the vicinity of the girl long enough to automatically bring up a long, horizontal window. In addition to revealing the target’s name, HP/MP bars, and any buff/debuff icons, the window’s color identified the nature of their relationship to the viewer. The reason it was called a “color cursor” was because it shifted in tone depending on if the target was a friendly, neutral, or hostile race, or if it was a friend, guildmate, or party member.

  As it was their first meeting, Asuna couldn’t yet see the girl’s name—the space above the HP bar was blank. Instead, there was a small icon to the left of that known as a “guild tag,” the sign that she was a member of a guild. This logo was player-customizable, and hers was a cute image of a pink heart with white wings. Asuna did not have a tag of her own, as she wasn’t a member of a guild yet. The idea had arisen among her friends to start a guild on several occasions, but they’d never gone through with it.

  The girl’s brilliant red-purple irises fixed on Asuna’s after a brief period of being off focus; she must have been checking Asuna’s cursor in turn. She grinned and waved her right hand, bringing up a system window. Immediately following that, a window notifying her of an incoming duel offer burst into life with bold fanfare. At the top, it said:

  YUUKI IS CHALLENGING YOU TO A DUEL.

  So the girl’s name was Yuuki—it was spelled with katakana, but the first thing that came to Asuna’s mind was “courage.” It was a fitting name for her—both cute and gallant at the same time.

  At the bottom of the window were three options that she recognized from SAO: “first-strike mode,” then “half-finish mode,” and finally, “full-finish mode.” In the old Aincrad, nearly every duel was first-strike, in which the first clean hit by either player ended the fight. A full-finish duel meant that the loser would die, and in half-finish mode, if the finishing blow was a critical hit, it could easily drop the loser’s HP into extremely perilous territory.

  Naturally, without the threat of death hanging over their heads, full-finish mode was selected. Asuna hit the OKAY button, thinking about how the times had changed. The name Yuuki appeared in the girl’s cursor. That meant that from her end, she could see the name Asuna as well.

  The duel window disappeared, replaced with a ten-second countdown. Asuna the Flash and Yuuki the Absolute Sword grabbed their hilts at the same time, drawing their blades forth. Two high-pitched shinngs overlapped.

  Asuna’s foe used a narrow, one-handed longsword, as dark and translucent as her obsidian armor. Based on its brilliance and detail, it looked to be the same rank of weapon as Asuna’s. In other words, it probably didn’t have an ultrarare, unknown Legendary trait.

  Yuuki held her longsword at midheight and easily took a sideways stance. Meanwhile, Asuna kept her right hand close to her body with the rapier held horizontally. The cheering of the crowd faded away like the drawing of a wave.

  She took a deep breath, then let it out. The countdown hit zero.

  At the very moment that the word DUEL flashed between them, Asuna leaped forward as far as she could. She closed the twenty feet between them in a blink, twisting her frame to the right.

  “Shi!”

  Her right hand shot forward like an arrow from a bow. With all of that inertia and torque behind her, she thrust twice just left of Yuuki’s body center, then a moment later, once more to the right. They were ordinary attacks, not Sword Skills, so they weren’t very fast, but they were unerringly precise. While she might be able to dodge the first two hits to the right, it would be impossible to dodge the last one.

  Just as Asuna expected, Yuuki spun to the right to evade the initial jabs. But the third strike would sink right into the spot where she stopped…

  Instead, Yuuki’s own sword turned into a blur just before the rapier point hit her breastplate. The aim of Asuna’s thrust was thrown off by just a bit, and a tiny spark shot up from the right side of her weapon.

  By the time she realized her opponent had accurately parried the blindingly fast thrust, Asuna’s sword had already just grazed the Absolute Sword’s armor and flown past it.

  The nape of Asuna’s neck crawled with the anticipation of a counterattack. But if she pulled her sword back now, it would immobilize her body and make it an easier target. Rather than fight the momentum of her thrust, she spun left into it.

  At the same time, she caught sight of a black sparkle leaping up toward the base of her neck.

  “!!”

  The lightning flash of its speed sent a sharp thrill racing through Asuna’s body. Her breath stopped, and she put so much force into her toe spin that her foot drilled into the ground.

  There was short, fine grass at her feet, and the friction of that surface was set slightly lower than cobblestones or bare earth. That differential cost Asuna, and her right foot slipped, causing her whole body to buckle.

  But that was fortunate, as it meant Yuuki’s blade only grazed Asuna’s chest. A terrific shock wave roared right into her ear as it passed. If the game had ruled that it struck her hair, she would have lost about half of her light blue coif. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the air waver with the expulsion of all that unleashed energy.

  With her boots properly gripping the ground again, Asuna leaped hard to the right. She bounded again with her left foot so that she was a safe distance away.

  Yuuki was unbalanced with the force of her attack, but she kept her smile in place as she retook her mid-level stance. Asuna tried to calm her racing heart enough to return that smile—but on the inside, there was a waterfall of cold sweat coursing through her.

  An incoming thrust was nothing more than an approaching point, and the only way to avoid it was to step sideways out of its path, but the Absolute Sword had successfully deflected it by striking the side of Asuna’s rapier.

  It was less the speed of the counter than the incredible reflexes that stunned Asuna. Despite all of the stories of her might, the cute exterior of her opponent caused her to let her guard down, and now it was as if a cold bucket of water had been thrown onto her. She’d suspected that Kirito’s defeat was due to the fact that he went easy on a girl, but now she realized that suspicion was unfair and untrue. Even he had never succeeded in parrying one of Asuna’s best thrusts that easily.

  She took a deep breath to steady herself. This was a formidable foe, but she wasn’t much of a warrior if she was ready to give
up after trading a single round of blows…

  Suddenly, she heard a little voice in her ears.

  Oh, now you’re a warrior? In a stupid little game…

  She gritted her teeth and shook the mental noise out of her head. This was another real world, and every battle here was deadly serious. It had to be that way.

  Asuna swung her sword to hold it above her right shoulder, snapping herself into focus. This time she pointed it directly at her opponent.

  If normal attacks weren’t going to work, she’d have to risk using a Sword Skill. The problem was that every Sword Skill was followed by an unavoidable period of delay, so missing with any of her hits would leave her open to a fatal counterattack at the end. She needed to unbalance her foe somehow, to ensure that her skill would strike true. Asuna clenched her empty left hand.

  When she leaped forward again, her mind was cold and focused. She could feel a sense of acceleration throughout her body, the burning of her nerves and synapses—a sensation she hadn’t felt when fighting in the world of ALO yet.

  This time, Yuuki came toward her as well. The smile was gone from her lips, but the crystal-purple eyes still sparkled.

  Asuna swiped to the right to deflect an obsidian slash that came roaring down on her from above. In addition to the sparks and clanging, a tremendous shock ran through her hand. The girl leaped back, but Yuuki snapped her weapon forward instantly, as if it had no weight of its own. Swing after swing, so fast that reacting once seeing them would be too late. Asuna had to watch every detail of her opponent’s moves to predict the next attack and then deflect or evade it. At times, one of their swords would land briefly, and both fighters’ HP started to drop, but neither had secured a clean hit yet.

  In the midst of this ultraspeed battle, Asuna was struck by a sudden off sensation.

  Indeed, Yuuki’s attack and reaction speed were frightfully quick. She might be faster than Kirito when it came to pure speed. But the only reasons Asuna could keep up were the enormous backlog of experience she had with battle in SAO and the straightforward nature of her opponent’s attacks. There were no stop-and-start jolts or feints to throw off Asuna’s sense of timing.

  Maybe she just didn’t have much experience fighting against human players, Asuna thought. If that was the case, just a single instant of surprise might be the key to victory.

  Asuna evaded a three-part attack from upper right, upper left, and side left, then leaped forward at right, into Yuuki’s wheelhouse. They were practically touching. At this range, a single step wouldn’t provide enough distance for either of them to dodge.

  Asuna dropped down and prepared to thrust straight for the center of her opponent’s body. Yuuki reacted and started to swipe upward from below.

  At that instant, Asuna drew her right hand back and threw a quick left punch into her foe’s unguarded body—she’d learned the Martial Arts skill from a training hall in the far-off capital of the gnomes. There was little damage, as she was not equipped with a knuckle-style weapon, but it carried a stun effect that wouldn’t be present without the skill.

  A dull thud ran through her fist, and Yuuki’s eyes went wide with shock.

  This would be her only chance. Asuna instantly initiated the four-part Quadruple Pain Sword Skill.

  Her rapier flashed bright red, and her right, guided by the unseen hand of the game engine, ripped through the air like lightning.

  Asuna was certain that her skill would land. Her opponent was off balance. She was at close distance. Evasion was impossible.

  But as she let the system do all the work, Asuna was watching her opponent’s face, and another shock ran down her back. The Absolute Sword’s eyes were still wide, but there was no surprise in the reddish-purple irises. Her pupils were focused intently on the tip of the rapier.

  She can follow the path of the sword?! Asuna marveled, just as Absolute Sword’s right hand twitched.

  Four quick, hard scrapes rang out, like the sound of a sword briefly being placed against a spinning whetstone. Asuna’s four-part skill was deflected in all directions, without a single hit landing. All she’d seen was the black inkblot afterimage of Yuuki’s sword.

  After her final blow, Asuna was left frozen for less than a second with her hand outstretched—but the pause filled her with despair. The deadly Absolute Sword would not possibly pass on that opportunity.

  The obsidian sword whipped backward and glowed bluish-purple.

  A counter Sword Skill!

  “Yaah!”

  It was the first vocal utterance Yuuki had made in the duel. A direct thrust so fast that she couldn’t have dodged it even without the skill delay bit into Asuna’s left shoulder. It was followed by a breathless five-part combo. Every blow rang true, and Asuna’s HP dropped quickly into the yellow. She didn’t recognize this as a One-Handed Sword Skill, which meant it must be an Original Sword Skill. It was a tremendous five-part thrusting combo…

  But throughout Asuna’s absent admiration, Yuuki’s sword never lost its brilliant shine. And now, she held it up to the left.

  Five wasn’t the end of the combo—there was more. A third shock ran through Asuna as she finally recovered after her skill delay.

  Five more of the same thrusts meant she would run out of HP. But there was no way for her to dodge. If a futile attempt to escape got her cut across the back, she’d be better off putting all her hopes on a last-ditch attack. Asuna clenched her rapier and started another Sword Skill. It was the five-part OSS she’d managed to create, called “Starry Tear.”

  Bursts of red and blue intersected. In the same formation as the last five-part combo, Yuuki hit Asuna with an X-shaped attack starting at her right shoulder and crossing her body.

  But this time, Asuna’s rapier found purchase as well. Five thrusts bit into the black armor in a tiny star shape.

  After they had traded five-hit skills, a moment of silence descended. Neither had fallen yet. Yuuki’s HP bar was halfway drained and colored yellow. Asuna’s HP was down in the red zone, just a tiny sliver left. As a character inherited from her old SAO data, Asuna’s HP value was higher than even the oldest-running ALO member. And that stunning ten-part OSS had nearly finished her off entirely…

  But no. Yuuki’s longsword was still glowing purple. The Sword Skill wasn’t over.

  It drew back and aimed right for the center of the glowing X of damage that crossed Asuna’s chest.

  Eleven hits.

  To her astonishment, she recognized that this was the very OSS that the Absolute Sword was wagering in the duel.

  The power and speed were off the charts. And beyond that, it was beautiful. She had no regrets in being defeated by such a skill. Asuna closed her eyes and waited for the finishing blow.

  The eleventh attack, which was poised to eradicate the last tiny line of health left on her HP bar, stopped still.

  With the skill canceled, the tremendous light and impact of that blow scattered into empty air instead, rustling all the surrounding grass outward.

  “?!”

  As Asuna stared wide-eyed, the Absolute Sword lowered her namesake and walked closer, of all things. She patted Asuna’s shoulder with a free hand and gave her a dazzling grin. Her lips opened wide, and she made a bold proclamation.

  “Yes, you’re very good! I’ve decided on you!!”

  “Wha…Err…?” Asuna stammered stupidly, taken aback. “Um…what about the duel…?”

  “That was enough to satisfy me. Or did you want to keep going to the finish?” Yuuki replied with a smile. Asuna shook her head. Either way, her HP would have gone down to zero if she hadn’t blocked the final attack.

  The tomboy nodded happily, continuing. “I’ve been looking for someone who struck me as just right. I finally found you! So, do you have some free time still?”

  “Uh…yes. I’m free…”

  “Then come with me for a bit!”

  Yuuki the Absolute Sword slid her blade coolly into the sheath on her waist and forcefully extended a hand.
Asuna hesitantly stashed her weapon as well and took the hand.

  The other girl stretched her shoulders wide, the bodily command to deploy wings. The translucent, batlike wings popped out and propelled her into the air.

  “Um, hang on.” Asuna hastily spread her shoulder blades and leaped into flight. Yuuki grinned and turned, still holding Asuna’s hand, then shot upward like a rocket.

  “Wait! Where are you going, Asuna?!” came a high-pitched voice. Asuna looked down as she was hurtled upward and saw Lisbeth, hand to her mouth, looking both shocked and annoyed. Leafa, Silica, and Yui—who was sitting atop Kirito’s head—all looked stunned, but the black-clad spriggan was grinning as though he expected something like this to happen.

  Bolstered by his expression, Asuna smiled back and sucked in a deep breath.

  “Uh, um…I’ll get in touch later!” she yelled to Lisbeth, just as Yuuki’s wings glowed purple and burst into a dash. Asuna desperately beat her wings to keep up with the force yanking her onward, in the trail of the mysterious warrior.

  Yuuki headed directly south over the lake that covered the twenty-fourth floor and plunged straight through the outer aperture of Aincrad, breaking out beyond the flying castle.

  “Pwah!”

  A mass of thick, wet cloud hit Asuna’s face. After several seconds of flying straight through whiteness, the clouds gave way, and there was an infinity of cerulean blue around them.

  Far below and straight ahead, there was a green cone piercing the clouds—the foliage of the World Tree that loomed over the center of Alfheim. Directly below that, barely visible, was the faded blue surface of the earth. Based on the round, carved coastline and the circular island floating in the water, Aincrad seemed to be flying over Crescent Bay, the home of the undines.

  Just as Asuna started to wonder where they were going, Yuuki made a sudden ninety-degree turn directly upward.

  She was faced with the looming sheer cliff that was the outside of Aincrad, several dozen feet away. As they climbed, they cut across floor after floor, each one three hundred feet tall, but the Absolute Sword kept pushing upward.