I'm back.
January 6, 2026 — New Aincrad, Floor 22 —
"His fast-acting mind is..."
Hey, if you nap, you won't be able to sleep tonight.
There are only three days of winter break left.
You need to finish your homework.
Before she went home, Shinonon said she finished all hers.
I'm tired.
Maybe the room's too warm.
Should I lower the temperature?
No.
I think it's because of that.
That?
Oh, I see.
Ever since he came back from GGO, it seems he's been working really hard.
You know?
That thing we saw in Agil's shop that he's been working on for Yui-chan?
Something-onics!
Mechatronics.
But she really looks comfortable.
It makes me sleepy, too.
Forest House
December 20, 2025
Here you go.
You know, you don't have to come
to a dingy place like this for a date every time.
You could go somewhere more fashionable, right?
Compared to your place in Algade, this place is fashionable.
I liked that place.
Why? It was a rip-off.
You were living there for free, Kirito-kun!
But it doesn't change anything.
What are you grinning at?
Nothing... I was just thinking
when you're this way, you really don't look like the lead group's two best players.
I could say the same to you.
Have you been an MMORPG player for a long time, Agil-san?
Yeah.
I met my wife in a game.
She lived in America then,
but a year later, she and I started a café.
You never know what will happen in life.
If he heard that, who knows what Klein would say?
And so, we were going to buy two NerveGears.
But we could only reserve one.
The two of us played a game to see who'd go first.
I'm still glad I won, and she didn't.
Yeah.
I joined the lead group because I had this place.
I can't let my wife run it forever.
Yeah, my desire to return to my family saved me.
I'm sure all the lead group felt that way...
No, maybe all the players in Aincrad.
You had some kind of motivation like that, right, Asuna?
I...
I didn't really like my family.
So, in Aincrad, there were times when I nearly forgot why I was fighting.
I felt like there wasn't a place for me
in the real world or the virtual one.
But Kirito-kun gave me a home.
A place that felt more like home than the house I lived in.
I knew that if we cleared SAO, our home on floor 22 would disappear.
So believing the day would come when Kirito-kun, Yui-chan, and I
could live there again gave me power.
That's what I think.
About that...
The contents of the next update were just revealed.
There are new weapons and Sword Skills.
Announcing the details of New Aincrad's third update!
And floors 21 to 30 of New Aincrad have been unlocked
Does that mean...
If we can beat floor 22's boss,
can we buy that log cabin again?
Yeah.
But New Aincrad's details have been altered a lot,
so we don't know for sure if the same player homes exist.
Yeah.
But I have faith.
That house is waiting for us.
But the update's Christmas Eve...
December 24, 2025 — ALfheim, Gnome Airspace —
Seir Shal Vind Ashuna.
Bat Eilie Ougsu Sverg!
Take care of the rest!
Asuna!
Just a little more!
You can do it!
Asuna, let's go!
Daddy!
Its punch attack is incoming!
Switch!
I'm first!
Okay! We made it to floor 22!
Asuna!
We'll activate the teleportation gate,
so get going.
Thanks, everyone!
Kirito-kun!
Kirito-kun... Yui-chan.
I'm home.
Hey, Asuna-san!
You fell asleep yourself!
You, too, Liz?
I wonder why looking at that makes me so sleepy.
Shall I make some tea to wake us up?
The snow stopped!
Come to think of it,
have you heard about Zekken?
Zekken?
A new rare item or something?
No, no...
It's someone's name.
More like a nickname, I guess...
They're so strong, someone started calling them
"Zekken," the absolute blade.
An invincible blade.
A blade that's better than any other.
That's what I think it means, anyway.
Strong...
So? What are they like?
Around New Year's, I started hearing the rumors...
A week ago, maybe?
I see.
So that's why you don't know.
You've been back home in Kyoto since then.
Don't make me remember that when I'm here.
It's tough being a rich girl.
It really was.
I had to wear a kimono and kneel the whole day, greeting people.
At night, I wanted to dive when no one was around,
but the separate house I was staying in didn't even have wireless LAN.
I brought my Amusphere, and it was a waste.
And...
Asuna?
Hey, Asuna?
Are you listening?
S-Sorry, I was remembering something that wasn't too great.
What?
Did they make you do an arranged marriage meeting in Kyoto?
No, no, it's nothing like that!
That was a joke.
Then if they're strong, does that make them a player-killer?
No, they just duel.
Were they in a tournament?
No, they're completely new.
But their skill points are high,
so they might be a convert from another game.
You know that little island
north of floor 24's main town, with the big tree?
Every day, at 3:00, they stand there, and fight anyone
who challenges them, one at a time.
At first, there was a post on MMO Tomorrow's message board,
Seeking the strongest challengers.
that they were seeking challengers.
People wanted to teach this bratty newcomer to ALO a lesson,
so the first day, about thirty or so showed up, but...
They beat them all?
Every single one.
Their HP didn't fall below seventy percent in any of the duels.
Must be pretty strong...
It's kind of unbelievable.
The way they flew, despite being a newcomer.
It took me six months before I was able to really fight in the air.
P-Pina!
Did you fight them, Silica-chan?
No way.
Just by watching, I could tell I had no way to win.
Well, Liz-san and Leafa-san challenged them yesterday, though.
They're really brave.
Shut up.
Everything is a learning experience.
Snow?
It's snowing again.
About that Zekken...
If they kept showing off their strength,
doesn't that mean no one will want to fight them anymore?
Not so much.
What they're betting is amazing.
Is it some really rare item?
It isn't an item.
They're betting an Original Sword Skill.
And a super strong special-move class!
An Original Sword Skill?
For what weapon? How many hits?
Um...
It looked like a general skill for a one-handed sword.
And it's an eleven-hit combo!
Eleven?
Right now, how many hits does the strongest Original Sword Skill do?
It's General Eugene's "Volcanic Blazer."
It's eight hits, I think.
But it seems the general isn't teaching it to anyone else.
That explains why so many people want to fight.
Did you actually see them use it?
No.
I guess they demonstrated it the first day...
But since then, they haven't used it in a fight.
No one's gotten them down enough to where they've needed to use it.
Does that mean even you weren't able to do it, Leafa-chan?
I was doing well until both our HP bars went under sixty percent.
But...
In the end, I was overpowered with only the default skills.
I forgot to ask the most important thing.
What's the race and weapon?
An imp.
The weapon is a one-handed straight sword.
But it's about as slim as your rapier.
They're really fast.
My eyes couldn't even follow the movements.
I've never seen anything like it.
It was a real shock.
A speed type, huh?
If you can't see them move, I don't know if I have a chance.
Speaking of movement speed,
someone with incredible speed is right over there.
What about Kirito-kun?
He'd be interested in that...
Wh-What's wrong?
My brother already fought.
And when he lost, he looked very cool.
Was he serious?
It sounds silly to say it,
but in a fight like that,
I don't think I'm capable of saying whether he was serious or not.
Well, he wasn't using two swords.
In that sense, he wasn't going at it for real, but...
And you know,
I don't think Kirito's ever going to fight for real
in a normal game again.
The only time he'll be serious is if the game isn't a game anymore.
When the virtual world becomes the real world.
So it's better that he doesn't have to fight for real anymore.
He already gets involved in plenty of trouble on his own.
Yeah, you're right.
But as near as I could tell,
he wasn't messing around.
I don't think he was slacking off.
But something bothered me a little...
Just before the fight ended, the two locked swords,
and they didn't move.
And it seemed like my brother was saying something to Zekken-san.
After that, the two of them broke apart,
and Brother couldn't completely dodge Zekken-san's charge.
What were they talking about?
Well, he won't tell me.
It felt like there must be something.
I see...
Then I'll have to ask Zekken-san myself.
Then you'll fight them?
I don't think I can win.
But they kind of interest me.
It feels like they came to ALO for some reason other than fighting duels.
Yeah, I felt the same way.
But if you want to know what it is,
you'll have to fight as well as Kirito did.
I know.
Will you all watch me?
Of course.
I couldn't miss a fight like that!
Which character will you use?
You have that sylph account, right?
I'll go with this one. I'm used to it.
If they're a speed type, I'd rather be able to keep up than focus on DPS.
Then that's it.
Um, the small island on floor 24, at 3:00, right?
Yeah.
So we can meet here at 2:30, right?
Oh, no! It's already 6:00?
I'll be late for dinner!
Then let's call it a day.
It's tough being a rich girl.
He still isn't awake?
He isn't awake after all we've done to him? Brother's amazing.
Hey, Liz...
What?
You said Zekken was a converted player, right?
But if they're that strong, do you think they might be a former SAO player?
Yeah, that was the first thing I thought.
So when Kirito fought Zekken, I asked him what he thought, but...
Come on, Brother! Get up! We're leaving!
What did he say?
"There's no way Zekken was an SAO player.
Because...
Because if they were in that world,
the two-sword skill would've gone to them, not me."
Next Time Zekken