Author's Note: Of course, thank you to the audience who has read thus far. Anyway, little bit of an update. I previously mentioned I had up to Floor 4 written,and was just editing the stuff through when I could. With this being said, I have scrapped everything past this point, so am doing a full rewrite of everything past this point. Chapter 11 here was actually on the chopping block also, but it got salvaged. So I feel I should divulge a few details about writing thus far, and maybe why I scrapped what I had. The first problem I realised was It definitely felt like I was force feeding a lot of details or game mechanics. This chapter is admittedly guilty of that also. One of the original goals was to flesh out and highly detail the the game of SAO. While I am attempting that, I try to disguise details as them being displayed naturally, like through conversation. But this ends up leading on for a while, and the character kind of "drones on". I went back to read other works, not necessarily SAO related, and I notice a lot of books do this. Feed details about the world as we're witnessing a conversation, and even sometimes these conversations or "lines" so to speak are as long as what you find here. But for some reason, and I can't tell if it's just because I'm looking at it as the author who wrote it, it seems more forced. So, I am definitely being a lot more critical of myself in this regard.

Continuing, I do feel kind of trapped writing this. As I read more and more of Progressive, Kawahara does an amazing job of fleshing out the game there even more than he did in the original source material and of course the anime adaptation, I find out more and more of what sort of things I need to leave out, or change. I say it's a feeling of trapped because the world for this story needs to be similar but different. Or rather, different but still very recognisable. If I fail to accomplish this, than this just becomes an almost direct ripoff. I struggle to keep a balance of keeping everything recognisable but also different enough. And in order to fix this, I do keep going back and forth of deciding to keep the same mechanics of the game, but tell a different story of and with the characters, kind of similar to what some other writings on here do. Or alternatively, keep most of the events the same, but change the game around. I am of course leaning on the former, because that will make the story more original, and I doubt anyone just wants to read a story with game mechanics changed to an inconsequential degree. When trying to modify both characters/story as wel lot of game mechanics, I run into the issue discussed above of going into hyper-specific detail of mechanic's being brought up, in order to show they are different from the original. Another problem that I fear I have, but am not sure, is if I'm properly respecting my reader's intelligence, and if having these specific details laid out almost all at once insults the intelligence of the readers.

So, these are the things I struggle with when writing this, which is why some chapters seem a bit more fillery than others. I will say, nothing written has really been useless. Maybe certain tiny, insignificant details will pop up later.

When crafting the forward, I laid out that this was intended to be more of a crack filling improvement for SAO. As the story got written, I believe it slowly became more and more of its own thing. Which I'm happy it evolved into. So, I guess the way to sum up what I'm asking is, and I am asking for direct input of the readers here, is: Have enough mechanics changed that you would like to see the story adopt some of the other mechanics form the original and use them as elements, with little to change, but like to focus more on the characters? This would mean that a lot of the outcomes would be different, but the journeys to reach that point will be different. That's the best way I would describe it. Or, the next "option" or thing I'm asking for input on is do you mind the specific detail that is used to explain mechanics form the original that has changed? If a lot of the feedback gears towards this, than the story will largely be formatted and written as it is now, I'll just try to be a bit smarter about things. And of course, any other inputs that you have that you feel would contribute or be helpful, doesn't need to be the things laid out, are welcome as well. I do believe the website has a way to PM me. Or, if you have no username and wish to remain anonymous, I believe you can leave a review that need moderation on my end or something like that, so if it is input that you don't want to attach your name to or don't have an account, then just leave one of these reviews that needs moderation or whatever the wording is, just put something like "input don't approve for review section" in the review to leave your input. I'll of course read it. I read everything said about this story.

So thank you all. I just wanted to give an update of where I'm at on things. I look forward to reading all of the input. There is a soft time limit on when input directly regarding this will no longer be relevant, and I believe you'll be able to tell when that point comes. And of course, another thank you to the readers that have made it thus far.

Chapter 11: "No Man Is An Island"

6th December, 2022. Aincrad, Floor 1, Tolbana Catacombs. 8:00 AM, Aincrad Standard Time

The basement of Tolabana was dark and damp. Green moss could be seen growing between the cracks of the stonework. Everything was dark around Kirito, save for what the massive fire sconce lit in front of him. Behind the flames stood Egiru and Argo. People were still trickling behind Kirito, forcing him and the others already there to shift positions periodically around the flame to make room for everyone.

"They could have picked a more spacious place for this little meeting." Kirito thought to himself as he yawned. He had stayed out too late grinding monsters in the Labyrinth, but to his credit, he managed to clear the entire second level of the Labyrinth. Kirito no longer gained experience from the monsters in the Labyrinth. It was known all other monsters on the floor besides the ones in the Labyrinth would either be weaker or of the same level, so if anything was going to level Kirito up, it would be the creatures in the Labyrinth. The creatures in the Labyrinth also offered the best chance at rare or powerful item drops, an incentive that enticed Kirito. And being solo, he wouldn't have to worry about sharing loot or materials that dropped. A sad note for Kirito was that no rare or powerful item had dropped for him on Floor 2 yet, but he had accumulated quite a bit of crafting materials. His Coat Of Midnight that dropped from Illfang was rather high level, sitting at a pretty level 20, as he checked this morning. Much higher level than at least any piece of gear that could be acquired on Floor 2, but Kirito was unsure how long the item would be viable for. Would he find a good replacement on the next floor? His experience in the beta led him to an initial conclusion of "no", but Argus could have tweaked the item level system and scaling upon full release of SAO.

Kirito didn't understand the discreteness of this meeting. Between the ambiguous poster and the hidden away location, Egiru and Argo certainly wanted to keep this as secretive as possible. There was a lull in the crowd of people, as the flow seemed to have stopped.

"Alright, it looks like everyone who is going to be here, is here. " Initiated Egiru. "I'll let Argo lead off this little meeting."

"Good morning, fellow beaters. Heh." Argo chuckled at the last word. "This meeting is to serve as a sort of after action report, as well as a general guidance meeting for the beta testers. We're not going to try and form a guild or anything, but well, I'll explain as we go on. Now the first order of business is the discussion of the Illfang fight. I look around, and it looks like I see….twenty…...nine? Of you? All of you who were in the beta and the first boss fight are here. The ones who decided to sit out the fight are here as well. But you…" Argo pointed her finger at someone, drawing the attention of the crowd. Kirito looked over. The man looked older, maybe in his mid forties, and had long grey and black hair. He stood with a full set of heavy plate armor, clad in white and red. To match the armor, he wielded a sword and massive shield.

"Well, he's certainly a tank." Kirito thought to himself.

The man gave off a massive sense of presence that was almost overwhelming when attention was called to him.

"Ah yes. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Heathcliff . I also played the beta, although I would understand if you don't recognise me. My appearance there was a lot different then it is now, as well as my fighting style."

"Well, glad you're here anyway." Continued Argo. "Overall, Illfang went well. The only casualty was Diavel. If it had gone like our first time in the beta, not many of us would be here right now. Let's get one thing straight, Diavel was a beta tester as well, but it was due to his arrogance and greed that he died. So those of you who were in the beta don't need to feel responsible for his death. He had enough game knowledge to be able to recognise a Nodachi over a Talwar, and should have made a different call then he did. I just wanted to clear that up before Egiru takes over for a little bit."

"Right," Started Egiru. "Overall, the strategy that we used for Illfang was very successful, so not too much more needs be said than that. His change of weapon was a surprise, but it was a wake up call. Although we all played the beta, we don't know what's exactly changed, but a lot of the fundamental systems are the same if not very similar to what we played in the beta. I have a feeling, and I think we all do, that it's little details like the Talwar and Nodachi that have been changed around, and that's what we need to watch out for."

"The next topic to bring up is our social status." Began Argo. "The aftermath of the Illfang fight was rather illuminating. I'm sure you've all read my book…..heh…ok honestly that's irrelevant. As we learned in the moments after the fight, the mass population of players, we'll refer to them as Mijukus, feel like they're owed something by us beta testers. I honestly hate the term "Beaters" that they have coined for us. So we'll refer to experienced and beta players as Keikens. Any how, and some of them expressed this more than others, there is a sense of anger among the Mijukus. While most of us, as far as I'm aware have been good at this, it's not a good idea to go blabbing about how you're an experienced beta player. At least for the time being. If you add pieces of knowledge from the beta to a conversation, and someone asks you how you know it, find any excuse besides "Oh, I played the beta." Find an excuse like "I found out from the information broker named Argo." If these people peg you as a beta tester, not only will unhealthy levels of paranoia grow, but it will also foster anger and resentment. For whatever reason, a lot of Mijukus resent and blame the beta testers for the over 2000 casualties of Floor 1. They feel like we should have done more to safeguard less experienced players. And I'm sure some of you did. I can recall beta players giving little mini tutorials and combat tips to new players on day one. However, they feel that we needed to do more. I did my best, but hey, a girl can only write so fast." Argo joked with a smile. "The current etiquette standards that have developed in Aincrad among players are beneficial to conceal your identity and experience level. For example, it's rude to glance up at a player's name and level, and is considered more polite or formal to verbally ask. While name is always ok to ask, it can even be considered rude to even ask a player's level. Luckily the system is designed in a way so that you really can't accidentally glance and see it. The simple action of glancing up has to be intentional. It helps when the NerveGears read our brainwaves to discern this intention. I assume, and I think it's reasonable, that these social etiquettes in part formed in order to combat class, or in this case, "experience" warfare. And then of course besides this, there's the general stuff like it's impolite to bring up real life, etc. Anyway, enough of social norms. As I was saying, try and keep it hidden that you are a beta tester. It'll work out better for everyone. Please don't blame yourselves for the casualties suffered. We may be good at the game in the sense of combat or other things, but we had to learn to live in this world too, just like everyone else. Some of us are still getting used to it. Apologies, I did kind of get side tracked."

"Don't worry about it." Continued Egiru. "So, the real point is, well, we need to organize. The Floor 1 raid squad could best be described as "ragtag" or "thrown together". While that may have worked with Floor 1, Argo and I think, and I believe many of you will share the same logic, that we need an experienced and dedicated team capable of clearing Floors. And the sooner we organize this, the sooner we all escape. I'm not saying we all need serve combat roles, this team will be a very diverse group of people. Nor does it exclude Mijukus either. Deemed "The Clearers", this organization will have three "heads" or "teams". For the "Assault Team", what we're calling the primary military and combat head of this team, we need all the players we can get who are already proficient or quick to achieve proficiency at combat. Ideally, players that are more than proficient at combat, but if they're willing to learn, adapt, and have an unbreakable will and desire to fight, we'll take them. Regardless of being a Mijuku or Keiken. The same can be said for the other heads. We just ask that they honestly and properly gauge themselves in the role their signed up for. If they feel they aren't up to par, we expect them to leave and pursue another team. It's all at their own risk. The next head to introduce is the "Supply Team", very original, I know. This encompasses the craftsmen and artisans who are tasked with providing food, potions, weapons, and of course armors to the Assault Team. The Supply Team will also encompass who still want to fight, but maybe not the harrowing experiences the Assault Team offers. These players will go around killing world monsters and creatures for material drops to bring to our craftsmen in order to make better and better gear. The combat part of the Supply Team is also a great opportunity for players to train and get combat experience before joining the Assault Team, if they wish. The last head, and this will be the smallest and most discreet, is "The Information Team". This encompasses people like Argo who have a knack for acquiring and distributing information about the game world. Furthermore, to clear some things up, we don't wish to make a giant guild or anything like that. Think of this more of like a coalition, where many different groups of many different players all work in a semi-organised manner to accomplish a unified goal. We wish to respect rules and customs of other guilds that wish to help. All players or guilds need to do to support the cause is show up and help in what portions they can. The first few floors will still be kind of unorganised, but once we get a feel for which guilds or players wish to contribute the most, then we can determine things like the "leaders" of The Clearers, the guilds or players who act as the face of the coalition. This guild will take up the duties of things like establishing the intra organizational structure and economics of The Clearers, as well as determining other things like goals or strategies. But, we'll cross that bridge in a few floors. For now, Argo and I will serve as the tentative heads for The Clearers."

"Are you finally done?" Argo asked with a yawn. "I was starting to think that would go on forever."

"I...yeah, I am."

"Good. This pretty much adjourns the meeting. We will be posting what could best be described as sign up sheets next to informational sheets describing all of this. By signing this sheet, you agree to help whichever head of The Clearers you choose until at least the end of Floor 2, think of it like a temporary contract. We also encourage you to tell other players you may know of that will be a good fit. The more people we get, the better. Please encourage them to sign up. We will leave a sign up sheet here, and later in the day be posting them all around Urbus and The Town Of Beginnings. After seven days, we will collect the sheets and go from there. Thank you all for attending."

Argo turned to Egiru. "Whew, feeling a little light headed from talking so much. I don't know how you managed to do it."

"Just takes practice." Replied Egiru.

"This is quite the noble vision." Kirito thought to himself. "But, they can suit themselves." Kirito was irked at how long the meeting took. He could be clearing the third level of the Labyrinth with this time, but instead, he believed he attended a sales pitch and got told how to behave properly.

"So, Mister Beater, your name was absent on the sign up sheet." Egiru stated, as he approached Kirito, who he found sitting on a bench in the town square of Urbus.

"What? Oh yeah." Kirito lowered his head, staring at the ground.

"Not only that, you left in a hurry."

"It was dark and dreary down there, I needed some fresh air."

"Fair enough. That still doesn't change the fact that you're not on the list."

"I didn't need to be told how to act, Egiru. I didn't need to be told how to conduct myself. Why do you think I'm a solo player? The guilds that have formed so far all have rules and mannerisms to conform to. I wish to act on my own, be who I am, and not be dictated to."

"You're limited in your capabilities as a solo player."

"I would argue I may be able to achieve more solo than working in a team."

"If you don't like the guilds that have already formed, then make your own."

"Too much work. In the time that's spent running and organizing a guild, I could use that time to clear the Labyrinth or train harder."

"So, you are interested in clearing Labyrinths, then why didn't you sign up? Didn't you pay attention during the meeting? The Clearers is a coalition, and doesn't have any rules it imposes on the players or guilds apart of it."

"It still ties me down. Call me greedy, but even having to work as a team in a party to clear the Labyrinth decreases the chance of good drops. You know from the beta, loot drops are improved if the creature was killed in a solo manner. This game, this life, rewards risk. Egiru, if The Clearers are there when I'm there, maybe I'll help. Don't expect me to go out of my way."

"No man is an island, Kirito." Ended Egiru, who turned and walked away towards the market.

"Klein! Urbus is so beautiful!" Cheered Lis, looking up from her bento. The two were enjoying lunch on this clear day.

"Yeah, the change of scenery is nice. It was hard to look at The Town Of Beginnings for a month, that's for sure." Agreed Klein.

"Have you heard anything about clearing Floor 2 yet?"

"No, not yet. But I'm sure something is in the works. And I get the feeling Kirito is part of it. Knowing him, he probably has a plan in place already. Dude is smart at this game."

"Yeah, that's right. I've started hearing stories from the boss fight. Apparently he made a really good team with another awesomely skilled fighter."

"Well, you heard right! The girl he finished the boss with, she moved quick as lightning. Damn, she was fast!"

"I want to be as strong as her."

"Well, that'll take a lot of hard work!"

"I'm ready for it, don't worry!"

"Well, after lunch, let's try our luck at the Labyrinth. We should be ok with just the two of us, especially on the lower levels. Who knows, you or I might even get a rare drop!" Klein exclaimed, making Lis giggle.

"Sounds good."

"Oh, Lis, I forgot one thing."

"What is it?"

"Allow me to formally extend an invitation to Fuurinkazan!"

"You uh, created a guild?"

"Yup! That's right. Figured it might be best way to go."

"Well, I accept your invitation." Lis giggled, and shook Klein's hand in a sarcastic manner, as if the two had just made a business deal.

"Hello, miss, welcome to Cherry Red. How can I help you?" Asked the shopkeeper.

"Excuse me, but are you a player or NPC?" Asuna asked timidly.

"Well, I'm as real as can be in this world. The name is Fuji, pleased to meet you miss."

"You as well."

"So, what brings you into my shop?"

"I'm looking for a weapon, but I don't see any of the type I want on your shelves."

"Well miss, I'd be happy to handcraft a brand new weapon for you, if you can't find one you like. But I assure you, you won't find a larger variety of weapons on Floor 2!"

"That may be the case, but I don't see any Rapiers."

"Well miss, the demand for those is miniscule, to be quite honest. Not many people use them or come looking for them, so I really don't keep a stock. Have you fought with a rapier before?"

"Well yes, it's all I've really fought with before."

Asuna thought back to the real world, recalling her younger school days. She participated in fencing years ago as an activity, not favoring Kendo over it, much to the disdain of her mother and father, who thought she was abandoning her culture to a certain extent. In recent years, Asuna had stopped Fencing practice, to better focus on her studies. A reason which seemed to at minimum appease her parents.

"Well, I do have the basic materials on hand, so I could go make you one right now. For some extra coin, I can throw in any special materials you may have on you to better enhance the weapon during crafting."

"Special...materials?"

"Once the first floor was cleared, every player got an item in their inventory. A Stats Crystal, have you heard of it or used it yet, miss?"

"Yeah….yeah I have." Asuna said in a slightly soured tone, recalling the experience in the Labyrinth.

"Well good. Chances are you've only seen durability on armor and weapons thus far. People with the blacksmithing skill got to see another system that was previously unknown to us. We call it the Enhansumento system. During the forging of a weapon, or even after a weapon has been forged, certain materials can be used to "upgrade" the weapon. For example, look at that mace over there. If you pull up the item text and info window, you'll see t named as "Ironfist Hammer +1" The "+1" indicates the sum of enhancements on the weapon. Then, if you look at the details of the weapon, you'll see +1 Strength. There are 4 upgrade stats for weapons, that we know of, at least. The two primary ones are Strength and Sharpness. The two secondary stats, as we refer to them, are Durability and Speed. Weapons can only have one primary upgrade on them at one time, so you couldn't have both primary upgrade stats on the same weapon. Strength, just like that mace you're looking at, increases an item's damage output and durability, it effectively makes the weapon tougher. The drawback is the weapon becomes much heavier, so it's attack speed slows down. The other primary upgrade stat is Sharpness. Like Strength, Sharpness increases a weapon's damage but reduces its durability, while at the same time also providing a weight reduction, allowing the weapon to be swung faster. With regards to the primary stat, a weapon can only have one upgraded at a time. So either Strength or Sharpness. Also, certain weapons can only be upgraded with one stat, while others can have either applied to them. For example, you can't apply a Sharpness upgrade to a Mace, but you could theoretically apply either Strength or Sharpness to a Rapier. Although I don't know why you would want a heavier Rapier. Those things are supposed to be fast. Anyway, oh that's right, the other two stats. The secondary upgrade stats, and can be applied to any weapon, are Speed and Durability. They both do as they sound, where Speed further decreases the weight of the weapon so it become faster to wield but has the drawback of reduced Durability, and Durability increases the Durability of a weapon, while making it a bit heavier as well. These secondary stats are more used for fine tuning a weapon to a user's preference, and can be used on either Strength or Sharpened weapons. For example, a user may apply a Speed upgrade on top of Strength in order to offshoot the weight increase if they feel it is too heavy. They'll lose most of the benefits of the Durability increase the Strength upgrade offered them, but overall it works out a slight net gain, in most cases. It's all up to the wielder. Oh, and if we want to consider upgrading this Rapier, there's a percent chance it fails. Only blacksmiths and appraisers can see this, but each weapon also has an upgrade limit, and it's mostly based on the un-upgraded level and quality of the weapon itself. For example, that Mace with +1 is fairly basic, so it has an upgrade limit of 1. But a weapon dropped from a floor boss even here on Floor 2 could probably have up to a +6 in possibilities. Aside from upgrade potential, there's the aforementioned upgrade chance, also exclusive to blacksmiths and appraisers. When adding an upgrade to the weapon, there's a percent chance it will fail. This goes down through factors like quality of materials and the craftsmen's level and skill. Each failed attempt at upgrading the weapon adds to the counter. Once that counter's limit is reached, the weapon will actually shatter.. I'll tell you on that Mace right there, it's counter is at 2/3. Which means I failed twice at upgrading it before succeeding on the third try. Say if the Mace had a higher upgrade potential to 2, I could even attempt to try and make it to +2 but it would be very risky. If I fail, the weapon is destroyed And also...oh I'm so sorry miss, I've been talking none stop near 10 minutes now. I must have bored you immeasurably. "

"What? Oh no it's fine. I certainly learned a lot." Asuna giggled, and waved it off.

"Anyway, how about we get back to business? A Rapier was it?"

"Yes, that's correct. I'll give you what I think might count as an upgrade material. Although I'm not sure."

"Well, let's see it."

Asuna stumbled through navigating her menus. Even after a month, she still had troubles using the system to a certain degree, but she managed to get by. She hated using the menus to store stuff, so she always manually performed the actions that whisked items away to her inventory. Asuna navigated to a drop she got off of the creature that Kirito saved her from. Quicksilver Ingot.

"Here you go, if I had to guess, it's a speed metal."

"Well you would be correct! Say, want to learn the smithing trade?" Fuji kidded. "Anyway, Quicksilver happens to be the highest quality upgrade material available to us right now. You're almost guaranteed a +1 speed upgrade to this Rapier. However, me adding it will cost you a bit extra…"

"That's fine, I'm sure I have enough to cover it."

"19,000 Cor sound fair?"

Asuna was taken by surprise at the price. She only had 20,000 Cor to her name.

"Y-yeah, I suppose so….If you don't mind me asking, why is it so expensive? Blades on Floor 1 only costed around 16,000 Cor.

"Well miss, not only are the quality of materials being used higher than what could be used on Floor 1, but it is also being enhanced upon creation and is custom made. So it is a bit more expensive. I'm sorry to offend you miss. If it's too much, maybe we can discuss another weapon that can be made or maybe you'll find one around the shop that you'll like?"

"Oh no, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be a bother and haggle. I just got curious about it. It's no issue at all. Here you go." Asuna initiated the menus to send the currency to Fuji.

"Thank you very much miss. If you'll follow me outside to the forge, I'll have this right out and made for you."

Asuna followed Fuji outside. The process was very quick, as it mostly comprised of Fuji gathering materials in his inventory, and initiating the commands. Pretty soon an "in progress" bar came up and began filling out over the course of a minute while the Rapier was actually being made. At the end of the minute, a brand new Rapier lied in front of Asuna and Fuji.

"Well here you are, miss. It says here she's called Hayaidesu. A lovely name if you ask me. And oh? What's this? You lucked out on this one miss. It says it has a +6 upgrade potential. Well, 5 more now because Speed was infused successfully. And because the upgrade was successful during forging, it didn't add to the upgrade attempt counter, so you're sitting at a pretty 0/10. I must say, I should charge you a lot more, the potential of that blade will last you a while. But we agreed on the price, so you are of course free to keep it. Please come back to my shop when you need the durability repaired. I would love to work on her again."

"Thank you. You did an amazing job. I'll be sure to come back. Thanks again!"

Asuna sheathed the newly forged Rapier and began to walk out of the shop. She was still turned around, waving to Fuji. She didn't see the next customer coming into the shop and bumped shoulders with him. She turned around into a figure clad in all black and grey. She recognised him, but the swordsman's name escaped her.

""Oh Sorry. Excuse me."" They both apologized at the same time.

"It's you. Hi Asuna." Kirito stammered out. A strange sense of nerves overcame Kirito when just saying this simple greeting. He could see Asuna's hair down again, as she was in rare form of not having her hood up. The sight almost stupefied Kirito. The same sense of amazement he got when Illfang tore the hood off with one of his strikes and her hair flowed down. As much as Kirito tried to project otherwise, he was still the 14 year old mildly introverted MMO enthusiast, and the beauty of a girl his age (she had to be around his age right? Maybe a little older maybe a little younger? He thought), especially one playing an MMO, was undeniable. Who could blame him?

"Oh. What are you doing here?" Asuna asked.

"I see you got your weapon situation figured out. I ran into a little bit of an issue myself. It's not a big deal though."

Asuna stretched to see over his shoulder. The height difference between them wasn't massive, but it was still present. She noticed his scabbard was empty.

"What happened?"

"Let's just say I got a little reckless."

This drew Asuna's curiosity. The calculating Kirito, Mr. Perfect as far a some were concerned, made a mistake? She decided to stick around the shop for a bit, to see what Kirito needed.

"Hello, uh-...sir." Kirito greeted the shop owner.

"Howdy! The names Fuji!" Came the over enthused reply. "What can I do for you today?"

"I need you to recreate a weapon."

"What kind of weapon are we talking here?"

"A one handed sword. But it's a +6, to be exact."

"I-I'm sorry. A +6 weapon? You do understand what you're saying, right?"

"I understand. Now can you create one or not?" Asuna heard a sense of anger or frustration in Kirito's voice.

"I certainly have the skill to." Replied Fuji.

"Good. I acquired a blade with a potential of +6 from a drop a little while ago. It dropped as a +5, and I took it to another blacksmith shop to try and have it reach its maximum potential. But, neither me or the shopkeeper noticed the attempt counter. The other smith attempted and failed, and that was already the end of the blade. A stupid mistake I know."

"Don't worry about it. Mistakes happen to the best of us."

"Maybe they do."

"Now, what were the specifics of this blade?"

"It was one handed, as previously stated, and was a Longsword. +3 Sharpness, and +3 Durability. Or at least, it was intended to be. Please don't lecture me about some of the cancelling benefits having those two upgrades applied have. I'm aware. The reason I have it configured this way is the feel. To be quite honest with you, I really couldn't care less about the actual stats of a weapon. To me, it has to feel right when I use it. It has to match my pace and flow in combat. This combination feels the best to me. These stats change the system, not just damage numbers."

"I can understand that. Now you're asking for kind of a lot here. I certainly have the base materials, but will need all of the special materials from you."

"That won't be an issue." Kirito assured, as he navigated his menu and instantly made all sorts of metals appear, they encompassed the shop's countertop table, and even fell onto the ground. "Is that enough?" Kirito asked almost sarcastically, as Fuji's jaw dropped to the ground.

"Yes, I'm sure this will be plenty. You can have some of these back if you want."

"No, you can keep them."

"Do I even want to know how you got so many?"

"Let's just say I've killed a lot of monsters."

"Well, if you'll follow me out to the forge, we can get started." Fuji beckoned as the three exited the side door into the yard where the forge was. "Now, am I to attempt to put all of the enhancements on during the creation process? It has a lower chance of success but will not tick the attempt counter up. If it fails, all the materials will be wasted."

"I'm aware of the risks, and yes I want you to."

"Customer is always right."

Fuji initiated the creation process. The progress bar came up as usual. Kirito grew tenser as the bar neared the finish. At any given point, it could turn red and the entire process would be for naught. After what felt like an eternity to Kirito, the bar reached the finish with a little sound effect of a ding. Of course the word "Success!" popped up. After a few seconds, the blade was resting on the anvil. The blade was pure black, with a silver outlined hilt.

"Well would you look at that. That is one beauty. +6 just as you specified, and oh, what's this? It's telling me she has a potential of +8. And of course, her counter is a 0/2. Well, I guess things can't always be perfect. Be very careful when trying to achieve +8. Her name is Kahō. Memorable, if you ask me."

"Thanks." Kirito said as he took the sword and sheathed it. It faded away and appeared in his equipment list in the inventory, before reappearing in the scabbard. This little process was SAO's way of processing and acknowledging formal ownership of the weapon. "Also, we never talked about price."

"I didn't even want to begin about the price. But if you insist…"

"I have enough, whatever it is. Just name it what you want."

"45,000 Cor."

Asuna's was silently stunned. She could hardly fathom the amount of Cor Fuji was asking for. Did Kirito really have that much? She wondered.

"Here you go." Kirito used his menu to create and transfer the 45,000 Cor as a game object. The object he chose was fittingly a coin pouch. "Thanks."

"Make sure you stop by again sometime."

"Thanks." Kirito turned to walk out of the shop. Asuna followed him out.

"Hey, you didn't have to be so rude back there." Asuna began to scold Kirito, as she pulled her hood back up, concealing her face and expressions.

"What do you mean?" Kirito replied, puzzled and slightly surprised at Asuna's new found courage to take up an issue.

"You acted like a complete know it all towards the poor shopkeeper. He was just trying to help you, making sure you knew everything. If you ask me, he was being responsible. Making sure a customer didn't get irate because of an issue causing a problem that they weren't informed about. Honorable, even." Asuna concluded with a matter of factual tone.

"Oh well, I guess. Have you eaten anything today?"

"You're already thinking about food?"

"What? I haven't eaten anything today. And it's already late in the afternoon. Come on, let's go to the market."