Hey there everyone. Hope everyone is doing alright with everything going on in the world.

Just wanted to let everyone know thanks again for the reviews so far. You guys really help encourage me to continue working on this story, and help me to be careful with what's to come. I hope you continue to enjoy what is brought forth.

Disclaimer: Reki Kawahara is the owner/creator of SAO and all its content. Thus, I own nothing save an idea. Now,

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Chapter 7:

Another Way

After calming herself down, Alice destroyed the bindings on Kirito and Eugeo. Once she did, she dropped her sword and embraced the two boys tightly as she let the tears spill at last. Kirito and Eugeo were still shell-shocked that Alice was not only alive, but that she was an Integrity Knight to boot. It didn't make any sense to them. But before long, relief and jubilation set in as the two returned the embrace.

"I'm so happy," Alice muttered the best she could through the tears. "You both fulfilled your promise. You came for us."

"Of course we did Alice," Eugeo replied. "We made an oath in the sacred tongue. We were born in the same year…"

"… And we would be together to our last," Kirito finished.

"Yes. We swore we would," their childhood friend returned. Her relief was overwhelming, so that she soon lost strength to stand with the two. They helped set her in a sitting position on the ground as she wiped her tears away in a futile gesture. Once she got it under control, she asked, "How did you fell the Gigas Cedar? The Dragonbone Axe can't have—"

"We used something else to cut down the tree with," Eugeo explained. "Remember the Blue Rose Sword we found when looking for ice? I used that to topple the Gigas Cedar."

"But how?" Alice inquired. "None of us could pick it up then. It was too heavy."

"Well it's a bit of a long story," Kirito told her. And the boys conveyed the entire ordeal in their exploit to rescue Selka and Suguha from some goblins that had made it into the caves, including when Eugeo picked up the sword and wielded it effortlessly.

"I see," Alice mused after hearing all of this. "I do know there are tales of Divine Objects that sometimes have a specific wielder they select. They say those wielders can use such weapons even if their Object Authority isn't on par with the weapon itself. Perhaps the Blue Rose Sword had chosen you somehow Eugeo."

"Maybe," Eugeo replied abashed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Be proud Eugeo," Alice urged. "It's rare for a Divine Object to still be around, let alone be waiting for its wielder to arrive." Then she mentioned, "But that doesn't explain why you both would be foolish enough to violate the Taboo Index. You both aren't killers, so why would you do such a thing?" With that, the boys detailed everything the night they went to rescue their pages and stop Raios and Humbert from violating them.

When they finished, Alice dipped her head in shame. "I am so sorry," she told them. "You were right to act and protect your pages. While what you did was wrong by all accounts, you did it with every viable reason needed. But without an unaffiliated party to witness everything, there can be no defense against your sentence."

"Hold on, what about you?" Kirito pointed out. "Can't you act as our defense?"

"Kirito, my job is to enact justice for this crime," Alice reminded. "I can't just vouch for you on a whim. I have to uphold the law." In an undertone, she added, "Even if I know the criminal is innocent like me."

Then Eugeo brought up, "Maybe Asuna can vouch for us. She should be here too. You both were taken to Centoria then, so she could provide a defense." But the very mention of Asuna made Alice's fists clench, which confused Eugeo.

So Kirito asked, "Alice, where is Asuna? Did something happen to her?"

To that, Alice replied, "I need to recount everything that happened since we were taken all those years ago." With that the boys got into comfortable sitting positions as Alice relayed her story.

"When we were taken by Deusolbert, Asuna and I were brought to the Axiom Church to be sentenced for execution. We were put in a cell like you were and told to wait for our judgement. I remember having nightmares all that night of Selka crying over my grave, even though it did not have my name. When we were brought before the head of the Church, the Pontifex, we pleaded for her to spare us. That we wanted a second chance. The strange thing was, the Pontifex told us we were being given new Callings now that we were in Centoria. She would have us practice and improve our skills in the sword and Sacred Arts. For a couple years we trained as we were told, isolated from the outside world. We were forbidden from leaving the church and mingling with the people outside. However, Asuna and I would sneak out sometimes to see Centoria and its people. I remember we even met a little girl and the blacksmith who cared for her."

"Lisbeth and Silica," Kirito uttered out in realization.

Surprised, Alice questioned, "How do you know their names?"

"Well, Lisbeth is the one that made my sword when we came here," Kirito explained. "And Silica kind of stole our shia once or twice before we decided to help take care of her and Pina."

"You even know about the dragon?!" Alice asked, sounding desperate.

To which Kirito hesitantly answered, "Um… yeah?" Alice seemed to relent at that and went back to her story.

"About three years after we had been brought to the church, the Pontifex summoned us to her chambers. She then told us we would fulfill our Callings if we recited specific words in the sacred tongue. She told us what they were, but we refused. We both knew such words were dangerous for both of us. So she did something different and performed a ritual with us there while there were other people nearby. I cannot recall even to this day who those other people are, only that they are the most skilled of any Sacred Arts users. We felt our minds be invaded and something was trying to take root inside us. I cried along with Asuna for it to stop. Then, however much longer after, it stopped. The Pontifex seemed angry at us, though we knew not why. All she said was, 'something inside you stops me. We will try again later.' Every three months, she would summon us to try and use that ritual on us again. By the fourth time did I realize what the ritual was. It was one that rewrote one's memories, implanting them or changing them to the caster's will. After that, we resisted on our own. We stayed on the lowest levels of the Central Cathedral, always with each other. We spoke with what knights we could and made some friends here, but we dared not become someone else's puppets. Asuna even confided in me that she was scared about what might happen should the ritual succeed. Apparently, she had specific memories being attacked in each ritual, always about someone very close to her. I thought she meant myself or someone like Suguha, but no. She said it was Kirito. She was afraid she would forget Kirito."

This confused said individual, who asked, "Why would she forget about me? I never once forgot about her."

"Kirito, can I please finish?" Alice requested, rather miffed at the interruption. After he became silent again, Alice continued,

"One day, about a year and a half ago, the Pontifex summoned us one more time. This time, she told us something that chilled our bones. She said that, if we would not submit to her wishes and complete the ritual, she would send an Integrity Knight after the one she found in our memories. She said she would take you two from your home and perform the ritual on you, turning you into her Knights in our stead. Neither of us could bear to let that happen, but it was Asuna who surrendered. She pleaded with the Pontifex to spare you both and leave you alone. In return, she would surrender to her and allow the ritual to be performed on her. But she begged that I be spared and allowed to be an Integrity Knight so long as I willingly followed her orders without undergoing the ritual. At first, the Pontifex seemed like she would refuse Asuna's request. I even thought she would instead target me and overwhelm me to submit and become a mindless Integrity Knight. She accepted the conditions and gave us a brief bit of time to say our farewells. I begged for Asuna to reconsider and let me take the fall. I was willing to surrender everything so she wouldn't lose what was precious to her. But her mind was set, and you two know how she is when she has decided something. Even as she surrendered everything to the Pontifex, I screamed and begged her to change her mind, to take me instead. But no matter what I said or how loudly I cried out, she went through with it. When it was over, Asuna changed. She became cold, lifeless, zealous in her allegiance to Pontifex. She called herself Asuna Synthesis Thirty-Three. I knew not why, but that was all she was known as.

"Then a week after the ritual, I saw her speaking with a man in red armor that was not like those of the Integrity Knights. They were standing by the entrance to Aincrad, a portal which takes all criminals to the floating castle. I tried to stop her, but she followed the man inside. And before I could follow, the portal closed so I could not enter. And for the last year and a half, I served as a dutiful Integrity Knight to the Axiom Church. But it was a façade to protect myself. I tried to sneak out at times, cloaked and hidden from prying eyes. I sometimes attempted to go to Lisbeth's shop to check on her and Silica, but I stayed away. I did not want them to suffer because of me. But I did try and go far away at times to get away from it all. To be Alice Zhuberg again, not Alice Synthesis Thirty like I was pretending to be. That even included making a trip to Rulid the other day."

At this, Eugeo asked, "You went back to Rulid?! Is everyone alright? How are Selka and Suguha?"

"The village is doing well," Alice told him. "Very well after you both took down the demon tree. I only saw Selka on my last visit, but she seemed depressed. Like someone she knew had passed away. I wonder if that was because of me. I had to hold myself back from revealing who I was to her."

But Kirito spoke up and said, "Selka wasn't depressed after you were gone. I mean, she still remembered you, but she seemed happy when Eugeo and I left to come here. I can't think of why she would be so distraught." It was curious to consider, but they would handle that matter another time.

Alice concluded, "And that is about everything you need to know. I was given this Divine Object, the Osmanthus Blade, a couple days after Asuna's ritual. And last month I had an apprentice Integrity Knight: Eldrie. The very man that brought you here."

The boys took a moment for everything to set in. But for one of them, things seemed bleak. Asuna had surrendered herself to a ritual that overwrote her memory and turned her into someone entirely different. Kirito couldn't even begin to imagine how that was to be. It just meant their quest to get the girls home to Rulid was not only much longer, it was even harder than before. A ritual that robs your very personality and implants a new one sounded terrifying. But still, they had come too far to fail. They needed to do this and save their friend.

Working off what they had been told, Kirito questioned, "You said someone took Asuna to Aincrad?"

"Yes," Alice affirmed. "There is a portal in a remote garden in the Axiom Church. If a criminal is so vile in their offense, we use that portal to send them to the floating castle. In that way, they are forever banished and will most likely die in such a wretched place." Kirito pondered this info for a moment, which made Eugeo eye him warily.

"Kirito, what are you thinking?" he asked, leering at his friend.

"Well don't freak out, but I have an idea on what we can do," Kirito told the other two. "Eugeo and I are still criminals who violated the Taboo Index. You need to sentence us to death in some way Alice. So, why not just send us to Aincrad?" Silence met his proposition for a moment.

Then, Alice cried in outrage, "Are you wanting me to kill you?! Haven't you been listening to a word I said? No one comes back from Aincrad. Not a single soul in 300 years."

"Look, you can't exactly hide us forever," Kirito reasoned. "Either the other Integrity Knights, the Church itself, or even just a random person is going to spot Eugeo or I wherever we are. Sending us to Aincrad gives us a chance to set the record straight. And besides, Asuna's there. We said we were going to bring you both back, and that's exactly what we are going to do."

Sighing in resignation, Eugeo added, "We did promise. And it isn't right without Asuna with us. All four of us need to make it home after all."

Seeing the two boys' conviction, Alice stood up and said, "Then I shall go as well." Before the boys could utter a word, she stated, "All four of us are bound by our oath, remember? No point in my staying behind while you two dare the death prison that is Aincrad. Besides, there are also Integrity Knights up there trying to clear it. Ones the Pontifex either believes are becoming too dangerous, or that she wants to strengthen in such a horrid place."

The two boys got to their feet, and Kirito voiced, "Well, let's go."

"Just to be clear," Alice addressed with emphasis, "once we enter that castle, the only way we return to Rulid is clearing its 100 floors. That is the only way the sacred barrier isolating it will be removed."

"Well, let's hope they made it halfway up by the time we arrive," Eugeo said nervously.

"I will retrieve your weapons so you can at least manage to survive once we arrive," Alice added. "And you both will need armor."

But Kirito shook his head and reasoned, "We've trained ourselves without armor, so the additional weight will throw us off. Just get us some new uniforms and we'll make do." Alice had to repress the urge to sigh at Kirito's reckless suggestion. Instead, she went out of the room to go retrieve what they needed.

About ten minutes later, she returned with both the black sword and the Blue Rose Sword, as well as two uniforms for the boys. She gave a black one to Kirito to replace his Elite Disciple uniform, and a light-blue one to Eugeo. She left after dropping the gear off to give them privacy to change. Once they were done, they knocked and were let out by Alice. Their swords were strapped to their sides and both had determined expressions for the battle that was to come.

Seeing they were ready for the journey ahead, Alice told them, "We'll need to act fast. Eldrie will no doubt wonder what is taking me so long to dispatch you, and we cannot afford complications." So she led them out of the prison.

It took quite a bit of sleuthing and careful timing to make it past all the church members and knights stationed in the place. Alice even had to use her authority as an Integrity Knight to make way for the boys at times where guards were stationed. It was touch and go for a while, but they eventually reached the secluded garden.

The place was devoid of almost anything here. Just beds of grass sectioned off by stone segments that bore markings foreign to anyone. As they ventured to the center, the three noted statues of grotesque monsters lining different parts of the garden. At the outermost border, Kirito bent down and read the label for one of these monsters: "Illfang the Kobold Lord." The corresponding statue had something that was a mix between a rat and a goblin with a large belly, wielding an axe and buckler with a peculiar-looking sword strapped to its back. The further they went, more monsters appeared that had varying designs. One looked like a stone golem, while another had two heads with hammers and a chain.

"What are these things?" Kirito questioned, looking at one that said "Kagemaru, the Samurai Lord."

"Monsters of the Dark Territory, most likely," Alice figured. "Perhaps belonging to Aincrad based on these being the only representations here."

Looking at a monster that looked like a boar with an axe on a chain, Eugeo questioned, "Why would the Axiom Church have these here in the first place?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Alice replied, then urged, "Now hurry, the portal is just ahead." In the center of all the statues lay what looked like a monolith with a platform before it. Some ancient writing was on the face of the monolith, but it was indiscernible due to being worn away. The three approached this with trepidation.

Once they got up to it, Kirito asked Alice, "Now what? Is there some Sacred Art or ritual we need to do to get in?" But just then, a strange portal opened before them that lit the courtyard up with a bright light. On the other side, they saw a small palace behind a much larger monolith with the same setup as the one in front of them. This surprised them all, but Alice glanced back because of the attention it was drawing to them.

"We don't have time," she told them. "Go in, quickly. Before we are spotted."

Kirito and Eugeo just managed to go through before someone did arrive. Before Alice could follow, Eldrie came into the courtyard and gasped, "Lady Alice?" Said Integrity Knight looked back to see her apprentice was within the inner rings of the garden, barely a few mels away from her. "What are you doing?" he questioned. "Why are you letting those criminals get away?"

Turning her back to him, Alice responded, "I apologize Eldrie, but I have a new mission I must enact. I may not ever return to the church. Watch over the people in my stead and take good care of Amayori."

"I won't let you!" Eldrie proclaimed. He drew a whip from behind him and moved to ensnare his teacher. Alice reached out as she hurried to the portal, where the boys caught her hands and yanked her inside. Just as the whip reached the portal, it closed in an instant, making the whip strike only stone.

Temporarily blinded by the teleportation, Alice took a moment to allow her eyes to adjust. Once she did, she found herself, Eugeo, and Kirito standing in a large courtyard in what had to be the center of the town. The courtyard was circular and only had the monolith in the center. Looking around, the finality of the situation finally settled upon her. They were in Aincrad, now and forever.

Eugeo was nearby, asking if she was alright. Shaking off her disorientation, she assured him she was well. She then told him, "We should find someplace to rest for the night before beginning our search." She looked up to see Kirito at the foot of the monument, looking at a notice posted on a piece of the monolith. The two went to check it out and saw that it had what looked like floor numbers and town names.

"If I had to guess, I'd say we are on the first floor of this castle," Kirito surmised. "Which means this place is the Town of Beginnings. The notice only goes up to floor 61 though, so I'm guessing that is as high as everyone has gotten in 300 years."

Pondering for a moment, Eugeo spoke, "So that means everyone has only gotten up to three fifths of the way to the top. We might just have a chance then of getting back home."

"I doubt it," Alice pointed out. "This is as high as they have gotten in 300 years. It would mean the groups have only been able to clear 5 of these floors every 60 years. We may not even see beyond floor 70 at that rate."

"Speaking of, how do we clear these floors anyway?" Kirito questioned.

At that moment, a voice answered, "A fine question to ask, Kirito." And from out of nowhere, a cloaked figure appeared that made the two boys gasp in surprise, much to Alice's confusion as she drew her blade to meet the figure. "Lay down your arms, Alice Zhuberg of Rulid," the figure commanded. "Here in this town, a Sacred Art keeps all from losing Life no matter what they are afflicted with. As it is with all towns."

"Kayaba?!" Kirito responded, shocked at meeting someone like this. Alice was even more concerned that Kirito knew his name.

"I see you have followed your friend to this place," Kayaba regarded the boys. "A wise decision. Here, no other power can interfere in the affairs of this world. The Pontifex, the Integrity Knights, and all others outside this castle are powerless to interfere. And the rules of your home have no power over what you do here. This includes the Taboo Index."

"You mean we are free from the church's persecution?" Eugeo asked earnestly.

"Correct Eugeo," Kayaba answered. "Here the only rule is this: survive and clear the castle. Right now, the three of you are on floor 1, the lowest floor in Aincrad. In each floor is a dungeon, and inside the innermost sanctum of the dungeon is a powerful monster you must defeat. These are Dungeon Masters. Defeating a Dungeon Master opens the way to the next floor. Defeat the Dungeon Master on floor 100 to dispel the barrier imprisoning you in Aincrad and escape. This is the only salvation for those sent here."

Sheathing her sword as Kayaba explained this castle, Alice demanded, "And what are these Dungeon Masters?"

"I believe you have seen statues on your way here of monsters looking quite distinct from those in the Dark Territory," Kayaba explained. "Those statues are the Dungeon Masters that reside in this castle. 60 so far have been felled by warriors like yourselves over the course of 300 years. It is now your task to defeat the remaining ones to rescue all those here. Including the fourth among you."

"Asuna is here?!" Kirito questioned. Then he shouted, "Where is she? Where is Asuna? The Pontifex did something to her and we are going to undo it."

Giving a sigh, Kayaba told him, "What Quinella has done to her is beyond any of your power. She has overwritten her very soul in a forbidden ritual, as she has done with almost all her Integrity Knights."

"Only because she surrendered to it," Kirito argued. "Alice told us the ritual was blocked by something. I bet that something can help bring the Asuna we know back."

Pointing his gloved hand at Kirito, he challenged, "Can you figure out what that is that prevented the ritual from working? Can you discover what lies in Asuna that would force Quinella to make her submit and surrender her very will? Only this very object is the key to freeing the girl you once knew. But it must come from within her to break the shackles." Resting his hand at his side, he uttered, "Until we meet again, children of Rulid." And his form faded in a haze until there was nothing left of him.

Holding his chin in thought, Eugeo questioned, "What did Kayaba mean? What in Asuna stopped the ritual from working? Alice said it was our bond, but—"

"That's what it is Eugeo," Kirito interrupted. Turning to face them, he declared, "Our bond is what is going to bring Asuna back."

"Don't tell me you trust that man," Alice snapped. "We don't even know if what he says is true, let alone if it even can work. Besides, the ritual is powerful and none of the other Integrity Knights have ever remembered anything beyond being summoned from heaven to serve the Pontifex. And why does he call her 'Quinella' anyway?"

"That doesn't matter Alice," Kirito argued. "Kayaba was the one to teach Eugeo and I our sword style. He was the one who lead me to get my sword made by Lisbeth from the branch of the Gigas Cedar. And he met with us that day you two were taken. We trust him enough that he wants us to succeed. Beyond that, we'll take it with a grain of salt."

Holding her head, she groaned, "I cannot believe you two have become so dependent on a stranger to get this far."

"To be fair, we wouldn't have gotten anywhere without his help," Eugeo reasoned. "Besides, he had even told us to avoid drawing attention from the Integrity Knights."

"And that certainly worked out well," Alice mumbled.

"Look, let's argue about this later," Kirito suggested. "Let's find an inn or something to rest at, then begin our search for Asuna in the morning." With the matter settled, the three went into town to find an inn to rest at.

The following morning, the trio were awoken by loud knocking outside. Alice was up and ready within seconds, with Eugeo not far behind her. Kirito, to their dismay, was trying to sleep in despite the noise. The knocking became more incessant the longer they took to answer it. Foregoing her armor for the moment, Alice went to the door to see who was bothering them this early while Eugeo struggled to wake up Kirito.

Alice, upon opening the door, was met with three men wearing armored helmets with visors over their eyes, dark-green capes, black chest armor, pants with armor plates over their hips, and boots. In addition, their capes had red tassels and their gauntlets were fingerless. This puzzled Alice as to what they were doing here.

The one in the center then addressed, "Good morning miss. We couldn't help but notice that you and your companions are new to this town. And we have a rule around town that all residents have to pay a tax to the Aincrad Liberation Army."

Giving a hard stare at them, Alice retorted, "Unfortunately for you, we are not residents. Further, you are not an acting government in this town, as far as I am aware. We have no obligation to pay you anything. Good day." She tried to close the door, but the men forced it open and invaded the place despite her efforts to kick them out.

"I don't think you understand how things work around here, little miss," the man spoke down to her. "You and your companions are going to pay the Aincrad Liberation Army. That's the law here."

"So I am supposed to surrender shia for our travels to brutes who barge into a room without any reason? I think not," Alice shot back. The man on the left looked over to the side and spotted her Osmanthus Blade resting against the wall by the door.

"We'll just take that fancy sword of yours and be on our way," he offered. Alice was about to contest this until an idea popped into her mind.

"Certainly," she returned. "If you can even lift it." This seemed to put the men off. But the center one scoffed and went over. He wrapped his hand around the hilt, but then found the sword unmoving. He tried again with more effort, and the sword didn't budge. He then tried to use both hands to no avail. No matter how much he tugged, hefted, grunted and cried out, the Osmanthus Blade remained rooted at the spot. He gave up after it was established he had no strength to pull it, allowing Alice to come over and pick it up with no effort. She drew it from its sheath before pointing it at the men.

"Now I am aware your Life will not drop should I strike you with this sword while in town," she told them. "So I will not violate the Taboo Index if I struck you here and now. That being said, I doubt it will be pleasant for you upon my doing so. Therefore, I would recommend you leave my company and I alone." The two men backed away, clearly intimidated by her show of force. So they took off without another word. With them gone, Alice sheathed her sword and went to retrieve the rest of her armor.

As she entered, she saw Kirito was finally awake while Eugeo was in the washroom freshening up. Upon seeing her, Kirito asked, "Did I miss something? I thought I heard you draw your sword." Alice refused to answer, annoyed at the complete ignorance of Kirito in their mission. She went about fastening her armor together while the boys finished getting themselves ready. Once they were all done, they left the inn for the outskirts of town. Their hope was to find a way to the upper floors as quickly as possible, as that was where Asuna was most likely to be. The minute they stepped outside, various monsters ranging from small boars to wolves came at them from various directions. These were no match for the trio, which they found out quickly that their weapons were more than efficient in cutting down any opposition. By the time they got to the next town, they had slain 21 boars and 14 wolves without suffering a scratch.

"It's a good thing we're so strong," Eugeo commented. "We might be able to make it to the upper floors and manage just as well there."

"I don't think we can celebrate just yet," Kirito pointed out. "Those monsters weren't all that tough. And there's no way they delayed the people imprisoned here for 300 years. I bet the further up we go, the stronger the monsters will become."

"I agree, we must not become complacent," Alice affirmed. "This is far from indicative of what's to come."

As they came to a plaza, someone called out, "Hey you!" They turned to find another man with brown hair styled in spikes that reminded Alice of maces, wearing the same garb as the men from this morning and having a longsword strapped to his back.

"And who the hell are you three supposed to be?" the man demanded.

"It is of little concern who we are," Alice sternly replied. "And you should introduce yourself before demanding for our names."

"So, you like being a smart aleck, huh?" the man retorted angrily. "Let's see how you like being a smart aleck in prison."

"Please calm down sir," Eugeo intervened. "My name is Eugeo. I am a Swordsman. These are my companions."

"Kirito," the black-haired boy greeted, straight-faced, "Swordsman."

Then Alice addressed, "I am Alice Synthesis Thirty of the Axiom Church."

This seemed to catch the man off-guard, as he questioned, "What the hell? What's the Axiom Church doing sending another Integrity Knight?"

"How about you give us your name before we answer any of your questions," Alice proposed. The strictness in her voice made the boys sweat a little. She hadn't changed much, but some things had differed from before.

Giving a 'tsk', the man introduced, "My name is Kibaou. I'm a lieutenant in the Aincrad Liberation Army." Then he barked, "Now what the hell is the Axiom Church doing here in the first place? We already have three of your Integrity Knights giving us grief. We don't need another one with two flunkies tailing them."

A vein seemed to pop on Alice's forehead, and she stormed over to the man. "You listen here and listen well," she warned in a dangerous tone, "you will not speak so lowly of my friends. However prestigious your rank may be, these two are better men than you would ever hope to be. If you ever give me a reason to seek you out and deliver retribution, you can be sure I will take it without question." Her manner and address made the man cower despite being roughly the same height as her. Even the boys were intimidated by the aura she was emitting.

To cut the tension, Eugeo asked, "Mr. Kibaou, would you be able to direct us to a path to the highest floor? We need to get there as soon as possible."

Recovering enough to step away from the knight, Kibaou cleared his throat and directed, "The Teleport Gate is back at the Town of Beginnings. All gates lead to the other floors. Just call out 'Teleport' and what floor number or town name you want to go to." He reached into a pouch behind him and pulled out three blue stones that were rectangular in shape. "You can also use these Teleport Crystals when you can't get to a teleport gate, like say if you were in one of the dungeons. But they shatter after use, so don't waste them." He gave each of them one Teleport Crystal, though he hesitated in giving one to Alice because she still frightened him a bit. With that, Kibaou huffed off without another word.

The three decided to return to the Town of Beginnings and use the Teleport Gate to get to the highest-most floor. By the time they returned, it was already past noon by the way the sun was positioned. But they pressed on regardless. They needed to get to the highest floor to find Asuna.

Once they were at the Teleport Gate, they called out in unison, "Teleport: Floor 61." And disappeared in a flash of light.