Author's Note:

Hey, guys! obscureuser here! I got the inspiration to write this on a whim and just began typing on my phone, and before I knew it, wound up with a decent start to a story. For those of you who read the original version, then the second, I've made some changes but kept the same plotline. If you're just reading this now, then you're fortunate enough to not have seen the first two. It's my first Fanfiction, so let me know what you guys think in the review section. I don't own Sword Art Online, unfortunately. Enough of my babbling. On with the story!


Babe, I'm leaving. I must be on my way
The time is drawing near
My train is going, I see it in your eyes
The love, the need, your tears
But I'll be lonely without you
And I'll need your love to see me through
But please believe me, my heart is in your hands
And I'll be missing you


"Hey guys, is it really a good idea for us to be here..? I mean, it is a higher floor and we already have good hunting grounds..." I said warily.

"We'll be fine, Kirito," Sasamaru said with a smile.

"Yeah, why are you so worried? We can all hold our own," Tetsuo added.

"Okay..." I sighed. In all seriousness, I'm more worried about them than myself. I want to tell them about potential dangers in this dungeon, but if I do, they'll suspect I've been here before. The last thing I need is for them to find out my real strength now. I mean, if they learn that I've been lying to them all this time about my level, what else are they going to suspect me of lying about? At the very least, I'd get kicked out of the guild!

Anyway, we were in the Floor 27 dungeon looking around for mobs to hunt. This morning our guild leader, Keita, went out to buy a house for us to use as our permanent headquarters and living space. Because of this, we figured it'd be a good idea to go earn some col for furniture and things of the like by hunting on a higher floor. The problem is, if they bite off more than they chew, I might not be able to save them. Even at my higher level. I've spent most of my days training alongside and getting to know the Black Cats that welcomed me so eagerly into their circle, so I don't want to do anything to screw that up.

Thanks to our endless time out on the field (and a few last-second saves on my part), everyone in the guild treated me like they'd known me forever.

First, there's Keita, our guild leader. He's about 165 cm tall with an average build and short, dark brown hair. He preferred using his two handed staff. Next, there's Ducker. He's about 150 cm tall with a light frame and fairly long, blonde hair who prefers daggers. After him, there's Sasamaru. He's also165 cm tall and a medium frame and long, curly brown hair who uses a spear. Next, there's Tetsuo. He's a tall 170 cm with a medium frame and slightly long brown hair who likes to use maces. Last but not least, there's Sachi. She's a little taller than Ducker at about 155 cm tall with a smaller than average frame and blue shoulder length hair. She uses her two handed long spear. As for me, I'm a fair 160 cm tall with long black hair and a small frame. My favorite weapon is a one-handed long sword.

Much to my surprise, hunting in the dungeon went pretty smoothly. Don't get me wrong, there were a couple of moments where somebody wound up in the high yellow, but overall went off without a hitch. After about 2 hours, we had finally collected our goal of 15,000 col and everyone but me leveled up once.

It was really nice... I mean, during my solo days, I'd be out in the dead of night and wouldn't allow myself to rest until I leveled up at least once or twice. But seeing the rest of the Black Cats out here train so relaxed and consistent made me feel great. Their sheer closeness and friendship more than made up for iron discipline on the battlefield. Without talking, they had each others backs, and would often take a hit if that meant their friend didn't suffer.

"Ok, Kirito, NOW we can head out of here," Tetsuo said with laughter in his voice.

"See? Nothing bad happened, man. Now let's go tell Keita the great news!" Sasamaru exclaimed.

We began heading back to the entrance to the dungeon when all of a sudden, Ducker began running ahead of us like a fly to honey.

"Wait up, Ducker! What is it?" Sachi asked as we started following him.

"A secret door!" Ducker replied excitedly.

Wait... secret door? Oh shit!

"Ducker! Don't go in there! It's a trap!" I screamed.

Too late. By the time I covered half of the 30 meters to the door, he was already inside. Once I finally reached the door, the dagger user was picking away at the treasure chest that resided in the center of the room.

Damn it! That idiot!

The rest of the Black Cats met at the doorway with me a few seconds later. I turned back to them and barked out a stern order before I ran inside.

"Wait here! Do not go into that room no matter what happens! I'm gonna go save Ducker!"

"What about you?!" somebody asked.

"Don't worry about me! I'll be fine! Shut up and stay put!" I called as the door closed.

As soon as I was in, a red blinking light flashed and several mobs began appearing from the walls. In seconds we were surrounded by dozens of Dark Dwarf Miners and Mineral Elementals. I quickly materialized a dagger I came across on the front lines and tossed it to Ducker.

"Take this and stay alive you idiot!" I yelled at him.

"Wait! I have a crystal!" He exclaimed.

"Don't bother; they're useless!"

In spite of what I told him, he had a blue prism in his hand the next second.

"Teleport! Taft!" He said as he held it in the air. Needless to say, it didn't work.

Why do they never listen to me?! Maybe I should have told them my level.

I'd been in this situation in more than one occasion when the assault team was clearing the dungeon some time ago. There were a lot of traps here meant to kill players and this was obviously one of them. Though there were plenty of chests that gave a handsome reward, they were branded as too risky regardless of the payout. A shiny, new sword or riches are no good if you're dead.

"We can get out of here! Just do what I say!"

Thinking back to when I went through this dungeon, I remembered that there was one of two ways to leave this particular player trap: kill all of the mobs inside, or have a high enough thief-type skill to disarm the trap. The problem with the latter option was that most players never bothered with the skill, since it never helped in real combat. Well, almost never helped.

"Ducker! How high is your lockpicking skill?!" I shouted.

"357/1000! Why?!" He replied.

Damn it! You need at least 400 skill points to disable the trap.

"Keep fighting! I'll explain later!"

For the next hour, we cut, stabbed, and slashed away at the mobs until we emptied the room. Since I was much stronger than the monsters in the room, I was able to cut them down with little effort. Ducker, on the other hand, needed saving on several occasions. By the time the room was clear, he was left with only 3% of his HP. As for me, I had about 18%.

"Man, that was too close... I'd be dead if it wasn't for you... I can't thank you enough, Kirito... gosh I'm tired," Ducker mumbled as he laid on his back, half-finished potion flask in hand.

"Thank heaven we're both alive... Now come on, let's get out of here.."

Ducker let out a groan as he pulled himself up, then stretched his upper body.

"Hold on, there might be something useful in the chest," he protested.

The iron door to the room was now open, and the chest was completely open.

Him and that stupid chest! All that work had better be damn well worth it...

"We could sell the different things in there and put it towards the HQ... Sorry... It just would have been a waste to go through all that and leave the loot there."

"Hurry up," I said coldly. "Everyone must be worried sick about us back home."

Ducker nodded sheepishly and began heading towards the door.

I swear, him and the others are going to get an earful for this.


Two hours later

Location: Floor 1, Moonlit Black Cats Headquarters

"You idiot! How did you not think that was a trap?! It's a treasure chest in the middle of an empty room!" I yelled towards Ducker out of anger and concern. He almost got himself killed! I mean, come on! A player locked up on the first floor wouldn't have been so quick to run in!

All he could do is look down in shame. What could he say back?

"Kirito, don't be so hard on him..! He was caught up in the moment and understands that he messed up! Just look at him!" Keita said.

"You don't get it! Yes, you guys are strong, but you're still really näive! If you guys act on impulses and get yourselves killed, how you do you expect to join me and those on the assault team?!"

Wait, did I just...

Oh crap.

"You... You..." Keita started, "You're one of the clearers?! All this time you lied to us about your level?! How strong are you really?! 30?! 40?!"

Damn it..! How could I have been stupid enough to let that slip?!

*sigh* "Level 51.." I muttered. The air stood still for what felt like an eternity.

When I finally looked up, everyone except Sachi was giving me a look of disbelief and betrayal.

Why isn't she surprised?

Can I blame them for hating me.? After all, Tetsuo was the strongest of the group, and he just got to level 28. If I told them the truth from the start, they probably wouldn't have been in that situation.

"I'm sorry..." I said softly, breaking the silence, ".. I didn't know how or when I was going to come clean about it... I just wanted to be a part of something nice... and I thought that maybe I can be a part of it and help train you guys for the assault team... since you guys are more of a team than the Knights of the Blood Oath or Holy Dragon Alliance... I'm sorry.. I better just go.."

"You damned beater! Never come back!" Keita called as I ran away from the guild house. I didn't really care where I was running; I just need to get away from here.

Through the streets of the town, to the outer walls, down the road towards Tolbana, and into the meadows overlooking the cities, I ran without looking back.

How could a player of my numbers get torn apart by a few mid-leveled candidates for the clearing team?

Before I knew it, I was in the spot where Klein and I trained on the first day. Tears in my eyes, I sat down near the edge of the cliff overlooking the Town of Beginnings. By now the sun had long set.

"Has it really been that long.. since this God forsaken game started...?" I asked myself aloud.

"Well, it's late June now, and this game started last November, so it's been about seven months," a voice behind me responded.

Instinctively, I drew my Teutonic Battlesword and turned to face the source of the answer.

"Sachi! What are you doing here..?" I asked as I put my sword away and wiped my tears.

Thank God... Not an attacker.

"Making sure you did nothing stupid.. I got worried when you left, so I came after you," she said softly. "Are you okay? Why'd you leave like that?"

"I'm fine.. thanks.." I started as I sat back down, "Well.. None of you knew my real level... and I didn't tell you guys important info about the dungeon... I almost got Ducker killed.."

"It's not your fault!" She began as she put a hand on my right shoulder. "He didn't listen to you when you told him to stay out of the room. Not to mention the fact that you went in there and saved him.. which was both really brave and stupid of you to do that by the way.!" A punch on the opposite arm followed.

"Ow! Be careful... if I lost any HP you would've become an orange player," I whined, "But still... Keita would've never let me into the guild if he knew my honest level.."

"Yeah, you're probably right... but... I knew how strong you were," she said, sitting in the grass next to me.

What?

"The other night, when you were going through your menu, I saw your level.. and I was happy! I felt even more safe sleeping next to you at night... I knew you had your reasons for not telling us, so I was going to wait for you to tell us when you were ready. But.. I can't help but wanna ask you now.. why didn't you tell us..?" She asked with a solemn expression.

"Well.. it's a bit of a long story."

"I have plenty of time," Sachi insisted. "All night if need be!"

*sigh* "Okay. As of lately, the front lines haven't been the place they started as. For the first dozen floors or so, they were filled with people who actually gave a damn about freeing everyone and going back home. There were leaders, fighters, and scouts who would dedicate dozens of hours each week to helping those still alive get back to their families; our cause was noble. Somewhere between there and now, most of the clearers lost their purpose. They became filled with greed, pride, and elitism. And who could blame them? They were the 'liberators' of Aincrad while other players cowered in their inns or within city walls. Though there are a good handful of players who haven't lost sight of the original goal, they make up a small percentage of the clearers. When I ran into you guys, I saw that you all were those players who want do be at the front to liberate those too young to fight or those who can't bring themselves to do so. You all are the kind of players who made up the original clearing team, and all you need is the XP and equipment to kick it in the front.

Clearing aside, I got ridiculously lonely at the front. From the start of the game, beta testers were given a bad reputation because others thought they were selfish and greedy. There were some like that, don't get me wrong, but a few bad apples ruined the bunch for regular players. 'Beaters' as they were called, were often shunned, turned away from groups or guilds, or plain and simply harassed. When the first boss raid came around, I found a way to take the heat away from innocent 'beaters' and became the living embodiment of one. Pair the bad rep with social ineptitude and you'll end up with a kid who makes hermits look approachable.

When I met you and your guild, I realized that none of you knew what I was, let alone who I was. I saw a chance to start fresh, fit in somewhere, and make friends with good, kind-hearted people. Plus, you guys want to work hard to join the clearing team. Again, not for glory or riches, but because it's the right thing to do. When the elitist assault team sees mid-leveled players come in from almost nowhere and lead the charge, it could change the mindset of the entire team and help us clear floors more efficiently. If the Black Cats could make it there. As much as I hate to say it, the guild came really close to a demise today. Only God knows what could've happened if everyone rushed into the room and got killed.

I don't want that for you or anyone else in our guild! I want for all of us to help scout dungeons, plan boss attacks, and get everyone the hell out of this game and back to our families. The Moonlit Black Cats can really go places with the clearing team! You all are definitely more than capable than catching up to, then surpassing everyone on the front lines right now," I finished.

I hope that made sense... I'd really hate to alienate Sachi too...

"Wow... so you really think we can be as strong as the players on the front lines..?"

"Of course. At the rate you guys are leveling, you'll be seasoned clearers by Christmas," I said with a half smile.

"I'm glad you have so much faith in us, Kirito. But what level were you when you joined?"

Good question.. I remember that I said about level 20 when I joined, but she knows that was a big fat lie at this point.

"If I had to guess... Level 40.?"

Now is she going to hate me?

"Hold on, if you were only level 40 when you joined a month ago, how are you already level 51?!" Sachi exclaimed with a shocked expression.

"Well.. before you started sleeping in my room, I'd sneak out after everyone went to sleep and go clear out the dungeon on the highest floor.. I would stay out there either for 4 hours our until I was ready to pass out from fatigue, whichever came first. But you began staying in my room, so I didn't think it'd be best to leave you alone at night..."

"You know what? I want you to start doing that again, Kirito. On one condition."

"Are you sure? I mean, last night I woke up to you drooling on my shoulder and holding my arm. I wouldn't wanna take that away from you" I said as a half joke.

"Shut up..! That's not what I meant!" She started, while her face turned bright red. "And I didn't mean to do that..."

"Don't worry about it, silly. So what's the condition?"

"Well... I want to go train with you.. maybe it'll help me get over my fear of dying.." She said as she looked away slowly.

"Like you being with me to train, or me taking you places to train?"

"Well.. maybe a little bit of both.."

"Well... I'd be more than happy to.." I responded as my face grew a light shade of pink.

"Thanks, Kirito!" She said as she threw her arms around me, making my face about a dozen shades darker.

"Don't mention it, Sachi," I said with a laugh.

"Too bad, Kirito! I'll mention it if I darn well please!"

"Then forget I said anything," I countered.

"Haha, all right. Hey, it's getting late.. Can we go back to the guild house?" She asked as she let me go.

"Ummm... I think I'll rent an inn tonight.. I don't think I'll be welcome back there tonight.." I responded, checking the time.

Wow! 23:13! I've been out here that long?

"Oh ok. Well.. what time do you want to meet at the teleport gate?"

"I usually start at 2:00, but I guess we'll have to push it back an hour to get more rest before hand." One night a few days before I ran into the Black Cats, I'd made the mistake of sleeping for only an hour before heading out and passed out in the middle of nowhere. Thankfully, I had a high evasion skill and it was a medium to high floor, so nothing bad happened to me, but I wasn't going to risk that happening again.

"So 3? Ok! Can you walk me back to the house.?"

"I don't see why not."

We both walked to the town, her telling me stories from before I joined the Black Cats and me telling her stories from the frontlines.

"You're really reckless, you know!" She started after I finished my last story. "You had better be careful when we go training!"

"I don't think I can promise you that. How do you think I got to be as strong as I am? Besides, facing danger in moderation helps you get used to it and make decisions more effectively in the midst of it."

"Hmmm.. I guess you have a point.." she said with a pout.

"I know. Hey, we're here. I'll see you at the gate," I said as we reached the entrance of the HQ, "I'll be at the Queen's Tavern and Inn."

"I'll see you then," she said as the climbed up the steps into the house.

I checked into the inn about ten minutes later and made my way to my room. As I was taking off my battle gear and changed into pajamas, I found a PM from Sachi.

Hey Kirito, I'm sorry if I woke you up. I can't sleep over here at the HQ.. is it ok if I stay in your room tonight.? I don't feel comfortable asking anyone else here. -Sincerely, Sachi

I looked at the message for a few minutes and tried to think of a good response.

Dear Sachi, I guess it'd be ok if you spent the night here. I'm in room 7. Just hurry if you're coming; I'll be up for about another 20 minutes.-Kirito

Shortly after I sent the message, I began thinking about what I'd say to the rest of the guild tomorrow.

What are they going to say? Sachi obviously doesn't mind, but I can't be too sure of the rest of the guys. About ten minutes of thinking passed when I heard a knocking from behind me.

"Sachi!" I exclaimed as I opened the door. "There's a second bed if you'd like to take it," I offered, letting her in.

"Actually.. umm.. can I stay in yours like usual..? It's helped me sleep better..." she asked as she looked down with a pink face.

"No problem. Whatever makes you comfortable."

As I lay down on my side of the bed, Sachi put her pajamas on and climbed in.

"Good night, Sachi," I yawned as I drifted off to sleep.

"Good night, Kirito."


Three hours later

*yawn* is it 3 already? Why's my chest wet?

As soon as I hit the bedside lamp, my face turned beet red at what I saw: Sachi's head resting on my sternum.

"Umm... Sachi.." I said as I began nudging her shoulder, "Wake up! It's time to go train!" She stirred a few seconds later, her face turning red-hot when she realized how she was positioned.

"I'm sorry, Kirito! I didn't realize I was like that.."

For lack of a better response, I changed the subject to our training. "Let's start on a floor ten levels below you. What's your level?"

"26. So I guess we go to floor 16?"

"Yup! Let's head out," I said as I equipped my battle gear. And the next minute, we headed out for the dungeon.

After I showed her a few sword skills that she could use, we headed out to find mobs. Since the mobs here are a lot weaker than those on Floor 27, she was able to take them on by herself while I sat down and watched.

I was pretty surprised at how well Sachi was throughout her first night of training; she had no signs of distress, and she even leveled twice .

"Ok, Sachi! It's 7:04, let's get back to the inn," I called out.

"Ok, Kirito!"

Time: 13:27

Location: Outside the Moonlit Black Cats Headquarters

*Sigh* "I'm not sure if I'm welcome back here, Sachi... Keita seemed really pissed off when I left... Can't we go and get lunch first?"

"Well maybe he's had time to cool off; he's not the kind of person to hold a grudge. Besides, we ate breakfast 3 hours ago!"

Maybe she's right about Keita. Besides, the worst thing that could happen is me getting kicked out.

As we walked in, we saw Keita, Ducker, Sasamaru, and Tetsuo talking in the living room.

Ok... here it comes...

I braced myself as Keita stood up to speak.

"Kirito, I'm sorry. I went too far yesterday when I insulted you and told you not to come back. I should've thanked you if anything for saving Ducker and probably even the rest of the guild. I don't know what I'd do without them.. Thanks a lot, Kirito. I hope you can forgive me.." Keita said quickly with his head down.

Wait, what?

I looked over at the other guys, thinking they'd convinced him to apologize.

When they shook their heads no, I looked over at Keita again.

*sigh* "I'll forgive you," I started, "on one condition."

Keita picked his head up with a curious expression.

"What's your condition?" He asked warily.

"You let me train all of you until you can join the Assault Team on the front lines."

The rest of the Black Cats turned their eyes to me, all lit up with excitement.

"O-of course! When do we start?!" Keita exclaimed happily.

"Today. Right now, I'm gonna go to the market to buy something for all of us to eat on the road. The rest of you get your weapons repaired and wait for me at the teleport gate plaza."

"You heard him, guys! Let's go!" Sachi said.

About a half hour later, I met up with the guild in the plaza.

"Did you guys fix your weapons?"

"Yup. We found this great place called 'Lisbeth's Smith Shop' on one of the middle floors. She did a great job on my mace. My Xino Smasher is good as new," Tetsuo said with a grin.

"Awesome. I just might stop by there some time. Before we start, I just thought I'd tell you guys what we're shooting for. Right now, the front lines are on Floor 33 if I'm not mistaken, so most of the clearers are at about level 40. That means we need to do nothing but be out in the dungeons of higher floors 6 days per week, at least 8 hours per day. Sachi and I were out for 4 hours last night and she leveled up twice. Keep in mind that it gets harder to level as you get stronger. We work as a team every second we're out there; no superstars. Now let's go!" I said as I stepped onto the Telepad with the rest of them. "Teleport! Floor 18!"


Date: 25-December-2023

Location: Floor 50

Time: 19:35

For the past six months, the Moonlit Black Cats trained long and hard. Sure enough, they became strong enough to join the assault team just before Halloween, and got pretty famous in the mean time. Not because of standouts or sheer strength like the KoB or DDA, but because of their teamwork. As a guild, we've been a part of the past 8 boss fights, and today we celebrate both Christmas and our success.

Ducker suggested we did a Secret Santa thing this year, so I was out buying a gift for Tetsuo, as he was the person I pulled. His best mace shattered in the last boss fight against the Ant Queen on Floor 49, so I picked up a new one for him at Lisbeth's Smith Shop. We've all been been regulars to her shop since June, so Liz knew what I was looking for.

"Hmm... 20 minutes until the party.." I thought to myself as I checked the time. I was already level 72 by now, so I decided against going out hunting. I guess I'll go see how I could help out back at the guild house.

After the 40th floor had been cleared, we moved to the 35th floor to be closer to the front lines and hunting spots. Thankfully, things ended up working really well for us in Mische, and we've even held a few boss meetings in our living room.

As I walked into the house, I found Sasamaru setting up decorations, so I helped him until the party started. After a few falls from the ladder, we had green rope and little stars all over the walls and doorways.

Apparently, Keita touched up on his cooking skill while we'd been training, so he was able to prep enough food to feed half of Aincrad, NPCs included, and it looked amazing. All over the table, he left foods ranging from mashed potatoes to traditional curry!

"Ok, guys!" Keita said as everyone took their spots, "help yourselves!"

I got a rather large serving of Western-style steak, potatoes, rice, and tea to wash it down. For the next hour, we all ate, drank, and joked around before we decided to hand out presents. Once all the plates were put away in the sink and leftovers put away, we all made our way to the living room, where we each retrieved the gift we were to give.

"Okay, I wanna go first. Tetsuo, I know how upset you were when your Kodora Hammer shattered, so I got you this. I hope you like it," I said as I handed him the Haganeeru Club. His eyes widened with excitement as he took the mace from my hands.

"Ahh! Kirito! This is awesome!" He said as he checked the stat window. "It's got twice the durability and every stat is at least 20% higher than my old one! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"I'm glad you like it!" I said as I patted his back.

Keita went next, he got Ducker a new cloak and Ebon Dagger; Ducker gave Keita a new spear in return. Sasamaru followed, giving Sachi a pair of Lizard Skin boots that raised her Speed stat. Tetsuo came after him. He gave Sasamaru a ring that raised both Strength and Agility.

Last, but not least, Sachi. She looked rather nervous as she materialized a long, black coat.

"I figured you'd been wanting a new coat... I hope you like it," She said as she handed me the Bomanda Skin Coat. It looked a lot like my old Coat of Midnight, but had a higher Hiding skill boost.

"Sachi! This is awesome! Thank you! How'd you know I've been wanting a new coat?"

"I saw the way you got when we walked by player shops.. So I'm guessing you liked it?" she replied with a blush.

"Of course! Thank you!"

We were still messing around for about a half hour and talked about how far we've come with the assault team. At about 22:00 we finally called it and began going to our rooms. I stayed behind and cleaned up with Ducker, then went to my room after we were done.

I changed into my pajamas and climbed into my bed when I heard a knock on my room door.

"Come in," I called out.

The door opened and an all too familiar face was there.

"Hey, Kirito.. can I stay in here for a bit.?" Sachi asked from the doorway.

Ever since the Moonlit Black Cats joined the clearing team, Sachi became more comfortable in her own room, so it was a bit of a surprise hearing her request.

"Umm, sure," I said as I sat up in my bed, "what is it?"

"Well... I wanted to come in and thank you for everything. Saving us six months ago, saving Ducker, training me and the rest of the guild, and saving me in all those boss fights..."

"It's no problem, the pleasure was mine," I started, "but why bring all that up now?"

"Because... It's Christmas, and we're celebrating the things the guild has done. We couldn't have gotten as far as we have if you didn't come in and have everyone train the way we did. Assuming we would have made it out of the Ant's Nest when we met. I'm glad that you've been with us for all this time, and I also wanted to say that I can't wait to see where else the six of us go!"

Oh man... about that...

"It feels great to know that you guys value me that much... but I have something I need to tell you and everyone else... I need to leave the guild... soon if not tomorrow.."

"W-What.?! Why?! You can't leave m-us!" She started as she looked down. "Why do you have to leave? I thought you loved the company that the five of us offered... You're one of us, for crying out loud!"

*Sigh* "The day I saved Ducker, I told you guys that I joined to help you all become a part of the assault team. You guys have helped clear the past 8 floors, and Sasamaru even got the last attacking bonus on one of them. All of you are much stronger now. You don't need my help anymore.. my job is done."

It's not like I want to leave... I care about all of them too much to go, Sachi especially. But sometimes I pushed them too far during training or made a bad decision in a boss raid and nearly got them and others killed. As great as it is to be around them, I don't want to be the reason they fall.

Honestly, I miss having her in my room and finding her sleeping either right next to me or partially on me. Sometimes, I'd even put my arm around her. At the same time, I have to go for the better. I don't want my reckless, arrogant nature putting them in great danger. As much as I want to stay and protect them, I feel like I can't.

"Kirito... please don't leave.." Sachi said as she sat next to me, "It's been really great having you around and none of us would want you to go..."

"You don't get it..! I'm reckless! I'm arrogant! I'm overconfident in myself! I'm going to get somebody killed if I stay!" *Sigh* "Actually, I think I'll go to an inn for tonight.. I'll be back in the morning to explain everything to the rest of them."

I stood up and opened my menu to equip my street clothes.

"I'll see you then."

I turned to leave the room when all of a sudden I felt a strong grip on my wrist spin me around.

"You're not going anywhere.!" Sachi said with her face showing less confidence than her voice.

Damn it, why does this have to get so frustrating? Why couldn't she see I'm trying to protect not only her, but the whole guild?

"Oh yeah?! Why should I stay here?! Do you want to get killed because of me?"

"Because... Because..." she stammered.

"Because why?!" I demanded.

As if her actions would express her thoughts better than words, she pulled me into a tight hug and pressed her lips against mine.

W-what is she doing?

At first, I thought of pulling away, but something about the way she embraced me made me pull her in closer. We both stood there in that position for a minute or two before we pulled apart, gasping for air.

"I don't want you to leave because.." Sachi began after we caught our breath, "because I've started falling in love you.. and I don't want to be away from you. If you go... something bad can happen to you, and I don't want that!"

I stood there in silence, still in her embrace, and desperately trying to think of a response.

What in the world could I say back? How do I know she's not just saying that so I could stay? And what am I supposed to do about those feelings?

After an agonizing thirty seconds, I finally opened my mouth to talk.

Don't screw this up, Kirito.

"Sachi, I'm going to be completely honest with you, I don't know what to say. I really like you.. I think you're really nice, beautiful, but above all, a great person to be around. I do have feelings for you, but I don't know they're the same feelings you have for me. I want you to be safe. I want you to see the real world again. I can't help but be afraid that I'll be a reason to prevent that. That's why I need to leave. I hope you understand." I said softly as I hugged her around her sides. She didn't respond for about a minute or so, with her sobs and sniffles being the only sounds breaking the silence. Soon after, she finally spoke up.

"I understand.. Could you stay one more night..? For my sake? To say goodbye for now.?"

She looked at me with an expression I hadn't seen since first told me of her fear of dying.

"I'll stay one more night," I began, "and if you want to stay here.. you're more than welcome to."

"Y-you mean it.?"

I nodded my head yes.

"Thank you!" she exclaimed as she tucked her tear-stained face into my shoulder.

Don't worry about it... If it makes my leaving any easier... And gives me a positive way to say goodbye to you.

"So.. you like me, but it's not quite love..?"

"I guess you can say that... I wish I could do a better job of explaining it," I said as we separated and crawled under the covers.

"Ok... I understand."

Sachi quickly changed into her light blue night shirt and sweatpants, adjusted herself under the blanket, then turned over to face me.

"Hey.. umm.. can you," *sniffle* "Hold me..?"

I rolled onto my side to face her back.

"Of course, if that's what you want. Honestly, I would do that a few times when I'd find you clutching my arm in the middle of the night." I said with a blush as I wrapped my right arm under her pillow and pulled her closer with my left.

"I know," she said as she rested her head on my shoulder, "I wanted to ask you about that, but I thought it'd be better if I left it alone. Even if you don't quite love me, I'll wait for you. As long as it takes."

"I'll let you know when that happens," I said with a smile.

"Promise.?"

"I promise," I responded preceding a kiss to her forehead. "Goodnight, Sachi."

"Goodnight, Kirito."

Sweet dreams, Sachi... Hopefully, I won't be out permanently and I could see everyone outside of combat.


Time: 0913
Date: 26 December 2023

"I'm sorry, but it's for the best," I responded solemnly.

"But Kirito.." Sachi responded.

After Sachi and I woke up, we changed out of our pajamas and headed down to the living room. The entire way down, she kept begging and trying to convince me to stay..

Ducker and Tetsuo were in the kitchen finishing their breakfast, and Sasamaru was reading Argo's weekly newspaper in the corner of the living room.

"Where's Keita?" I asked.

"He's still asleep. Do you need him for something?" Sasamaru said.

"I'll go get him. I need to tell everyone something," I responded softly.

Why does it have to be so hard?

After I brought Keita downstairs, I gathered everyone on the sofas in the living room. I hadn't even started and Sachi already had tears forming in her eyes.

"Guys.. I need to leave the guild. Today. I don't want for you guys to be in serious danger and not make it under my watch. I'm afraid that I won't be able to protect you guys when we go hunting or in boss fights and I feel an obligation to do so because of my level."

Find a better wording, you idiot! You're sounding like an asshole!

"Besides, you guys made it to the clearing team like I'd wanted you all to in June. My purpose has been served, there's nothing for me to do anymore. I can't help but feel that at this point I could only do more harm than good," I said slowly and calmly. They all looked at me in silence for what seemed like forever.

"K-kirito, you can't! You're one of us.!" Keita said.

"I'm sorry.. it's for your safety," I said solemnly as I went through my menu.

Favorites

Weapons

Apparel

Crystals

Misc.

Social

Search

Friends

Guild Menu

-Inventory

-Members

-Locations

-Leave Guild

A new window popped up as I clicked on the last option.

-Are you sure you want to leave the Moonlit Black Cats? You cannot rejoin without an invitation from the leader. (O) Yes (X) No

I bit my tongue as I hit the blue "O" on the window.

You have now left the Moonlit Black Cats. Best of luck, player.

"I'll see you guys at boss meetings. Please keep in touch."

And then I walked out the front door uncontested.

Did I make the right choice?

I couldn't help but feel a part of me inside grow cold and empty with guilt.

No! I did do the right thing! I want to save players here in SAO, that's part of the reason I joined the clearing team. Heck, it's the reason I met the Black Cats in the first place. It's not like I'll never see them again... I'll still lend a blade if they need it in boss fights, as well as any new info I come across.. *sigh* Well.. sometimes to save somebody, it's better to be away from them.. even if it means feeling miserable, the thought of them thriving is worth it..

Well, I guess I'll be off to the Floor 50 dungeon.


Author's Note: Well there you have it! A newer, hopefully better version of Chapter 1. The lyrics in the beginning were to a song called "Babe" by Styx. Nearly two years after the initial publishing and I'm still trying to fix a story on my favorite pairing. Well, have a great day, everyone! I'll see y'all soon.