Chapter Summary: After watching the interview where Kayaba informed everyone of the changes to SAO, we see Kazuto train to get ready for the game. Train so that he could be one of the best players when it comes out.
Chapter One…
Training for a Game!
31st of May 2025 - Kurosaki's Dojo:
It has been over a month since Kazuto saw the interview with Kayaba, where he learned about the changes to Sword Art Online. Since then, wanting to be ready for the game, the young boy began to exercise daily. Exercises like running, push-ups and other exercises to build up his strength, stamina, and endurance. Sure, he wasn't sure if he would need to do this, if being strong would transfer into the game like his skills would, but just in case, it wouldn't hurt to do so. Even if it didn't, Kazuto thought it wouldn't hurt for him to get stronger.
Along with exercises, Kazuto had planned to restart kendo again, which was why he was standing outside his old Kendo Dojo. He knew kendo would help him greatly if he could get more experience, which he hoped would give him an edge in Sword Art Online.
Now normally, he would have needed to be thirteen to start kendo, but because his grandfather knew the dojo master, he and his sister were able to start early. By the time that he left the dojo, he was 2nd Dan in kendo.
However, he was having second thoughts about doing so. Not because he didn't want to do it, but because he would be around others and Suguha, his sister.
If Kazuto could remember, he had problems with interacting with others and preferred playing computer games. As he wasn't sure where he belonged in the world. He only interacts with others who he could feel a connection with. Which was very few.
In fact, he was forced to do kendo with his sister when he was younger, even though he wasn't interested in it at the time. But his grandfather wouldn't give him any other option. Truth was, even at a young age, he was more interested in computers than anything else. When he was six years old, he was able to build his own computer from an old computer and spare parts from other computers.
Kazuto could admit he was thankful for it, as he slowly began to enjoy it. However, because of his aunt's influence as an editor for a computer systems magazine, at the age of ten, Kazuto became more interested in computers and dropped kendo after two years.
This decision earned him a heavy beating from his grandfather, not liking that his grandchild wouldn't take up the skill. It could have been worse if it wasn't for his sister, who came to defend him. She promised their grandfather that she would practise twice as hard for both of them. Whilst he was sorry that he put so much onto her shoulders because he no longer wanted to do kendo so much, he was thankful that she did that for him. Although as time passed though and seeing how their grandfather pushed her, he was feeling guilty for this. But he knew Suguha wouldn't let him help her with this, unlike other times that he helped her.
But there was another problem, at the age of ten, shortly after giving up on kendo and started playing mainly computer games full time, he discovered that he was adopted. Don't get him wrong, he loved his family and tried his hardest to be part of it and in most part, seceded, but there was a part of him that felt out of place, whispers from his parents when they thought he was asleep. Something about when they should tell him something.
Curious about what they were hiding from him, he searched for information, as he knew his parents wouldn't tell him if he asked. At the start of his search, he began to realize something was wrong. For most of his life, he thought he and Suguha were brother and sister, even if their birthdays were a few months apart. But shortly after hearing his parents talking about him, he discovered something strange.
During his first sex ed class, where girls and boys had the class separately, one of his classmates asked when children come from. Most of them knew by now that they came from their mother, but other than that, they didn't know. So, the teacher explained the truth about it, which shocked and surprised many of them. The teacher explained that it took about nine months for a child to be born. This got Kazuto thinking, seeing how his sister had their birthdays about six months apart, he asked if it was possible for mothers to give birth sooner, like after six months.
The teacher admitted it shocked her that someone would ask such a question, but admitted that, whilst super rare, it was possible. But it would only happen if the child was in severe danger health wise, as it was dangerous to do so, but if it meant life or death, they would allow the child to be born sooner. Otherwise, they would wait to give birth to a child.
Kazuto had to wonder if Suguha had a health reason to be born early, if not, what does it mean for him? Kazuto didn't know why, but he started off by looking at his Juki Net records, and what he found shocked him. He found that there were some changes to it, mainly the part about his parents and his family name. This made him realize that the people who he thought were his parents weren't.
When he talked to his 'parents' about this, they admitted they weren't his parents, but they were related to him. Instead, they were his aunt and uncle, that his mother was his aunt and the sister of his true mother. And that Suguha was his cousin and not his sister. Because of this, with his own feelings being mixed already, he wasn't sure where he belonged. Since then, unintentionally, he began distancing himself from Suguha and his family. Unsure what to feel. Even now, about two years later, he was still unsure about how to feel about it. Sure, he cared and loved them in his own way, and he would help them, but he just couldn't get a connection with them.
This was why he was thinking twice about entering the dojo, as it would mean spending more time with Suguha. He wasn't sure if he was ready for that. But as he stood there, he knew that if he wanted to be the best for Sword Art Online, if the ability to transfer his skills into the game come true, then he would need to put his feelings to one side.
Taking a deep sigh, Kazuto entered the dojo. Once he entered the dojo, he saw his old kendo master, Ichigo Kurosaki. He was a man in his forties, with spiky orange hair, with a muscular body. He was wearing his black shihakushō. He has two white shoulder plates crossing his chest in an X shape that hold his kendo blade in place, with the first plate on his left shoulder having three sections adorned with red scales. The second plate has three sections adorned with red scales on his right waist, and a white cloak with black markings tied around his waist.
Upon seeing Kazuto, the dojo master walked up to the young boy, and with a slight smile he said, "Young Kirigaya, it's a surprise to see you here."
"I'm sorry for leaving when I did, master," Kazuto apologised with a bow, "but I lost interest in kendo at that time. And as you said to all newcomers, if we ever lost interest in doing kendo, leave. This is to save time for both of us, for you and the other teachers, so you can spend more time with those who want to train. And those for those who lose interest, to give us time to find what we are interested in. That, and we wouldn't learn much if we didn't want to be here in the first place."
The dojo master smiled at this, glad to see that Kazuto remembered his suggestion for those who didn't like the class so well. But Kurosaki had to wonder why the young boy was back now. So he asked, "Not that I'm not happy to see you again Kirigaya, seeing how you were one of my best students, but why are you back? I didn't think you would return here again."
"I think it's the same reason as to why you have so many new students." explained Kazuto, as he looked over to the corner where the new students were. Sure, there were new students every so often from what he remembered, but that's normally a handful, about three or four students. But here, it looked like there were fifteen new students, and that was only for today's class. "To learn how to use a sword for a game that's coming out in a year or two."
"For a game?" asked the dojo master, confused about this. Before he has Kazuto follow him to his office, "How does learning kendo help in a game that's coming out?"
As they got to Ichigo's office, both of them took a seat. Once setted, Kazuto began to explain about Sword Art Online and the new system where if it works, people can use their skills in the game. This shocked Ichigo. He wasn't expecting this, nor did he think it would be possible to do so. But it would explain why his dojo got more students in the last month.
"In fact, master, if this new system works, you could teach new students all across the world." Kazuto told his former kendo master, before he explained to Ichigo about learning skills through the VR game. "So, if it works out, people could create a VR problem to teach people certain subjects, be it cooking, kendo or martial arts. Meaning they could teach those all around the world or in parts of their country that they couldn't reach before."
As Ichigo listened to what Kazuto told him, the idea of teaching through sounded more interesting. Being able to teach those who couldn't leave home for whatever reason through VR would make things easier. He knew of a few people who couldn't learn kendo for medical reasons because they couldn't leave their home, but yet still wanted to learn. If this ability worked, the dojo master might be able to create a program to teach them again.
But there was a concern, though, so he asked, "Are you sure that I could do this? I mean, learning from a game is one thing. But do you think I could create a program to teach one on one?"
"To be honest, I can't say for certain it would work," admitted the young boy, "however, at the same time I can't see why it shouldn't work. It might take a few years to get things sorted, and the data worked out, but in theory, if you have the program done right, I believe it should work."
"Hmm." the dojo master hummed in thought. It would be useful to have such a tool in his hand if things worked out. He would have to think about this more and see if he could get into this somehow. For now, though, he needed to deal with young Kirigaya and why he wanted to rejoin kendo. Sure, he would like those who only wanted to learn because they were interested in learning the sword, but at the same time, though, he needed people to keep his place going too. So he couldn't be too picky. Even so, he was worried about the boy. He already left because he lost interest once before. What would stop him from doing so again?
"Can I ask, why should I teach you again?" asked Ichigo, "You already quit kendo before, what is stopping you from doing so again?"
"Honestly? Nothing." admitted Kazuto, "But the thing is, back then I had no interest in learning about the sword. I only did so because my grandfather made me and my sister learn it. I was more interested in playing games, and when NerveGear came along, I decided to take it up instead. As it suited my interest more. But now I have a reason to keep at it. If this new ability in Sword Art Online comes true, I want to be as strong as possible."
Ichigo had to admit that before Kirigaya left kendo, the kid had a lot of potential for the sword. The only problem was that Kirigaya didn't have the drive, something that would keep him going to learn. But now, it would seem that he had a goal, a reason to learn kendo, even if it was to be better in a game. But the kendo master had to wonder, though, if he was going to let Kirigaya back how much work he would need to do with him. So, Ichigo asked the young boy, "Tell me Kirigaya, did you give up kendo altogether or did you continue it at home?"
"Not really, no," admitted Kazuto, "although, whilst I might not do it often. I do use what I had learned every so often. I find it useful when I spend a long time lying in bed playing V.R. When I feel my body getting stiff, I use kendo to stress out and make sure I don't go stiff."
Ichigo had to admit that was a useful way to use kendo. In fact, many people wanted to learn this skill not only to learn to fight with a sword and keep fit, but so as not to become stiff when they have jobs setting down a lot. Either way, he was happy that Kirigaya still used kendo, even if not much.
"Okay, Kirigaya, before I put you in a class, I would like to know how good you are." explained Ichigo, "Would you mind doing a spar with a second year?"
"No, I don't mind." said Kazuto, "But, if possible, I would like to take classes with those with higher skills than me."
"Are you sure about that?" Ichigo asked, worried about his former student. Sure, Kirigaya had potential, but the kendo master didn't want to put his students in, "I don't want you to get hurt."
"I understand, but this is something I want." Kazuto told his kendo master, "I have about a year or two before the game starts and I want to be at my best. If it means that I need to train harder and get hurt a bit for this, I'm willing to do so."
Ichigo could see how determined the young boy was. It reminded him of when he was young, where he was determined to learn karate. Not because he enjoyed learning it, but because he wanted to defeat his friend Tatsuki, who would always defeat him in a duel. He trained hard until did so, once he did, he stopped learning karate. So, he couldn't say much about it, even if he wanted his students to learn kendo for more honourable reasons, but he learned that as he grew older and learned kendo himself.
"That's fine, but if I think that you're not ready, I'll knock you down to a lower level until I think you can handle the higher training." Ichigo explained to the young boy, which Kazuto agreed to.
From here, Ichigo led Kazuto to the dojo floor, where he picked a second-year student to fight the young boy. During the duel, Ichigo noticed that whilst Kazuto's forms for attack were better than expected for someone who hadn't been to class for two years. As for his forms to block and parry, they needed some work, but seeing how Kirigaya might not have had someone to spar with.
After the duel, Ichigo took Kazuto to his office and informed the young boy that he wanted him to take a week to relearn how to block and parry. If Kazuto improved his blocking and parrying skills by then, the dojo master would allow him to go on with tougher opponents. But if he couldn't, the master wouldn't allow to fight tougher opponents until Kazuto could black and parry better. This was something that Kazuto agreed with.
So with that, Ichigo allowed Kazuto to join that day's class, where one of the other teachers there helped with his blocking and parrying skills. After class, Kazuto went home to inform his mother about him returning to kendo. She was happy about this, hoping that he and his sister would grow closer once again. Kazuto said nothing, as he wasn't sure that it would happen.
o0OoO0o
19th of July 2025 - Kurosaki's Dojo:
It has been over a month since Katuto restarted kendo. It was much tougher than he thought it would be. Katuto thought it would be easy to catch up to where he used to be in blocking and parrying and be able to train with tougher opponents. But he was wrong. Whilst he got some of the basics back to where he was when he left, his master wanted him to be much better if he wanted to face someone stronger.
The reason for this was simple: the opponents that Kazuto would be facing would be much stronger, and Ichigo wanted to make sure the young boy could block and parry attacks with ease. So that he wouldn't get hurt as much. Whilst Katuto wanted to learn to fight sooner, he could understand why his master would want this. In fact, he was thankful that his master would allow him to fight stronger opponents than him so soon, as he could easily have told him no, that he had to stay with his own level. So having to master some more blocking and parrying skills is a small price to do this.
So, for the next month, for a few times a week during the week, Kazuto was learning to block and parry better. But then two weeks ago, Kazuto's kendo master allowed him to start fighting a few 3rd Dan students, to see how well he could handle them. If he couldn't handle them, he would need to train with 2nd Dan students. Thankfully, although it was hard, Kazuto was able to pass his master's test and was allowed to fight 3rd Dan students. Although Kazuto wanted to fight 4th Dan students, his master wouldn't allow it yet. As 3rd Dan students had two years of training ahead of him, and his master wanted him to have at least a year's worth of training before thinking about allowing Kazuto facing the 4th Dan students. To prove that he was ready to do so. Only a rare handful can advance early, and only if they can prove that they should.
This was Kazuto's goal, to try to become 3rd Dan even a 4th Dan before SAO comes out.
Now kendo wasn't the only thing that he was training in. He was also learning to cook. He had heard that with games that have level skills such as daily skills, cooking was always there. So Kazuto decided to have his aunt/mum teach to cook.
When his 'mother' asked why he wanted to learn how to cook, Kazuto told her the truth, that it was to get ready for a game that was coming out soon. That any skills that he learned in real life would help him in the game. His mother playfully scoffed at this, telling him that she should have known that this had to be about a game, seeing how someone like him at his age wouldn't want to learn to cook without a reason.
But happy to see her son willing to spend more time with his mother, seeing how he slowly drifted apart in the last two years, she was happy to teach him to cook. To start off with, his mother started to teach her son how to cut and peel food properly. It might sound stupid about learning how to cut and peel food properly at this age, but the thing was that until now, Kazuto had no interest in cooking. So, he was learning the basics right now. After cutting and peeling, his mother began to teach him skills like weighing, mixing, and kneading, just naming a few of the skills he learned.
During their time together, Kazuto and his mother talked a bit. Not much, but a bit. One thing that they talked about, or at least what Kazuto's mother tried to, was about Kazuto trying to reconnect with his sister. But Kazuto told his mother that he wasn't ready to. Not that he didn't care for Suguha, but the bond that they once had was gone, and he couldn't connect with her as he used to. Until he could get this bond back, he couldn't connect with her as they used to.
Kazuto told his mother that he would protect Suguha, should she need help, but that's all for now. His mother sighed at this, wanting her children to be close once again, but knew that it wasn't to be for now. But she was glad that her son would protect his sister no matter what happens.
Back to the present, though, Kazuto was at the dojo, like every weekend where he would spend most of the day training. Right now, he was taking a break, when he saw his master's wife, Rukia, enter the dojo and walked up to him. Rukia was short and petite, with light skin and purple eyes. Her hair was black, with several strands of hair always hanging between her eyes. Like most of the teachers at the dojo, she was wearing a standard black shihakushō.
It has been about two years since Kazuto last saw her. He thought that when he returned to the dojo, he would have seen her sooner. But he learned that Rukia had some family business to take care of, so she couldn't be there for a while. But today, she had returned.
Upon seeing the young boy, Rukia smiled at him and said, "Kazuto, nice to see you again. Ichigo told me that you returned."
"Hey Sensei." Kazuto said as he stood up and bowed to his old teacher.
"Please set Kirigaya." Rukia told the boy as she sat down too, "So, is it true that you came back because of a game?"
"It is, Sensei." admitted Kazuto.
"That's amazing. Who would have thought that knowing skills from real life could help you in a game?" Rukia said in awe at this fact.
"If it works, that is," Kazuto told his teacher, "right now, from what I understand, they are still working out some bugs and problems with the system. But if it works, any skills we know in real life should be useful in the game. It's why I want to learn kendo. The new game that I'm doing this for is mainly for swords, so if learning kendo can help me in the game, I thought I would give it a try."
"Makes sense if you think about it." admitted Rukia, seeing why new students were starting her husband's dojo, "So other than kendo, what other skills are you learning for the game?"
"At the moment, I have my mum teach me how to cook." answered Kazuto, "From what I have learned, with such games with these skills, knowing how to cook would help you with healing if you don't have potions. So, I thought knowing how to cook could help me out in the game."
"Makes sense." admitted Rukia, once again. Then, as she thought about the skills that Kazuto could use in this sort of game, she asked, "Have you thought about learning some first aid and martial arts?"
"Hmm, I did think about learning some first aid," admitted Kazuto, "but I don't know anyone who knows first aid. As for martial arts, I haven't thought about it, as I don't see the point of it."
"Well, if what Ichigo told me about this game is true, trying to make it realistic, then martial arts could be very useful." explained the sensei, "What if you lose your blade? How are you going to defend yourself? With animal-like monsters, martial arts can do very little. However, if you're facing humanoid monsters and humans, martial arts could help you a lot."
As Kazuto thought about it, Sensei Rukia made sense. If the game was as realistic as Kayaba wanted the game to be, having another way to fight with a sword would be useful. "I have to admit you do make a point, but I don't know where to learn them."
"Well, I was going to talk to Ichigo about me using part of the dojo to teach some martial arts, as this is something that I wanted to do for a while but couldn't." explained Rukia, "As for first aid, you should talk to my husband. His family runs a medical clinic in a small city called Karakura Town, so he knows some first aid. If you ask him, I believe he would be willing to teach you a few things about first aid."
"Do you think that Master Kurosaki will teach me first aid?" Kazuto asked with interest.
"I don't see why not," admitted Rukia, "he has done it before when someone asked him to train them in first aid. You have nothing to lose in asking him to teach you first aid."
Before Kazuto could say anything else, the sensei that had been teaching him that day signalled him to say it was time to return to training. So, with a smile and a few ideas as to what to train in the future, he went back to training.
o0OoO0o
7th of June 2029:
It had been almost two years since Kazuto talked to Rukia about his learning first aid and martial arts. Since then, Kazuto has been busy. With Rukia being able to start her martial arts class, after school, or school clubs, Kazuto had been learning that during the week, when he wasn't learning kendo.
In fact, other than the weekends, from the moment he woke up until he went to sleep, Kazuto was training for Sword Art Online. When he woke up, he would do some exercises, then go to school, then if he had any school clubs go there, then learn either martial arts or kendo, then go home do some homework, have some dinner and if he had time to do some more exercises to get stronger.
He would do martial arts or kendo during weekends, too, but his mother and his teacher wouldn't allow him to. Saying that he needed some time off or he would burn out. So, he would only do some exercises in the morning and in the evening, too.
For the school clubs that I mentioned, Kazuto decided to do some carpentry, wanting to know how to build things with wood. In his mind, knowing this could allow him to build and sell wooden items in SAO, maybe even build furniture or buildings.
These weren't the only things that he did for training. During the holidays, after asking Master Kurosaki to teach him first aid, Kazuko would be seen at the dojo learning it with other students who wanted to learn. In fact, another skill he learned during the holidays was hunting, thanks to Sensei Rukia. This was to help him search, track, hide, and detect things. In fact, he was also taught how to build and disarm traps, pick locks and how to pickpocket.
Now you would be wondering why Kazuto would learn these skills, but it was down to Rukia. She pointed out that sometimes when fighting people or monsters, the detract route wasn't always the safest thing to do. And finding an animal isn't always easy. So knowing these skills could not only help him but also protect him, not only in the game, but in real life too.
Kazuto could honestly say that he wouldn't normally learn these skills, trying to be cunning and the like. However, he had been having strange, vague dreams. Many of them were of him fighting some sort of monsters. He wasn't sure what the dreams meant, seeing how he couldn't remember them clearly. But he knew one thing. When he awoke, he was sweating and knew he needed to learn more and learn these skills. It was like his life depended on doing so. So he learned these skills.
Thankfully, he wasn't the only one doing them. Other than a handful of students who were learning kendo because of SAO, Rukia's daughter, Ichika, from before marrying her husband, was doing this.
Kazuto had to admit, if he wasn't as smart or determined as he was, he feared that he might not be able to deal with it all. That he would break down. Thankfully, he didn't.
All this hard work was now going to be tested, as he was lucky enough to get into the next round of beta testing for Sword Art Online. In fact, he was even luckier, seeing how he got there in the first place. About a few months ago, he entered a competition to win a grand prize of the new NerveGear, which had the castle from the game and the logo on it. They would also get a copy of Sword Art Online, and a few hidden alchemist quests just for the winner.
There were a few runners up prizes: the first five runner ups would get NerveGear and a copy of Sword Art Online, and ten other runner ups would only get the NerveGear. The competition said that the reason for this was because Argus knew that not everyone would be able to buy the new NerveGear, so they set up this competition. Hoping that those who really couldn't buy the new NerveGear would win it.
But these prizes weren't what people were excited about. No, the sixteen winners would be allowed to beta test Sword Art Online. The other reason for the competition wasn't for the prizes,but to find a thousand people to beta test the game. And those who didn't win the main prizes would have a copy of the game reserved, so when the game comes out, they wouldn't have to worry about not getting the game. This, to many people, was the true prize. Having a copy save for them and being able to play it before anyone else.
Today was the day where people were able to correct the prize of beta testing Sword Art Online. Those who won the chance to be beta testers were meant to meet. Kazuto was thankful that Argus had a gaming centre in Kawagoe, and they had arranged it so people would pick up the NerveGear that they want the beta testers to play Sword Art Online on, and the game.
So here Kazuto was, at the gaming centre, which was closed for the day thanks to Argus hiring the place out. Kazuto was looking around the place, seeing the different people there. To be honest, there was no one there that Kazuto wanted to be near to, to try to be friends with.
As Kazuto was waiting to get the NerveGear and the game, a girl who looked in her early teens with brown eyes and curly golden-brown hair walked up to him and said, "Hey, I'm Carina."
"I'm Kazuto." Kazuto said in return, not really bothered about talking to her. He wasn't here to make friends, but to get the gear and game.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but I would like to take a few moments of your time, if possible." Carina told him.
Sensing that this girl might not leave him be, he asked her, "How can I help you?"
"Well, I would like your help in gathering information about Sword Art Online." explained Carina, "You see, I write guides to help people in games. If I'm able to get into beta testing a game, I go around asking people for help to write guides. In MMORPG games like SAO, I write basic guides at the start and then once the guide is finished, I become an Information Broker. Here I gather information from people and sell it to other players."
"Are the guides free?" asked Kazuto.
"Normally yes," admitted Carina, "that way, people will know my information is real. As who would use an Information Broker who sells fake information? I only sell guides to those who piss me off." What she didn't tell him was that she would sell guides to those who don't know that they can get it for free. She was a businessperson after all, and so she would get her money wherever she could.
"Can I ask, what's your game handle?" asked Kazuto, wondering if he had heard of her guides.
"I normally go by the name of Argo." admitted Carina, although she did go by other names, but those were ones that she sold her guides instead of giving them away for free.
Kazuto had heard of Argo before. Whilst he didn't read them personally, he knew of her by word of mouth. They were meant to be good and give as much information as Argo knew of. If she didn't have the full information, Argo would warn people in the guides. She didn't want to be connected to something that hadn't been proven or if there's information missing.
So, knowing who Carina was, Kazuto couldn't see why not to help her out, as she was doing the hard work of gathering information that he would use to help him in the game. The very least he could do was to help her. "I'm willing to help you, just tell me what you need." Kazuto told her.
"After playing the game for the day, write down quests, weapons or other useful information down, and once you look it over, send it to this email address." explained Carina, as she handed a card with her email address, "I'm not expecting you to give me everything you learned, as I know some keep some quests with good rewards to themselves. In fact, I even do that sometimes. All I'm asking is to give me information that you're willing to share, and if possible, a few decent weapons and quests. As I can't give away guides if they don't have a few rare items and quests, how would I make the money in the future?"
Kazuto had to agree with that, he wouldn't use a guide if it doesn't have a few rare items and quests in it. So he said with a smile, "I see what I can do for you."
"Thank you." Carina thanked the teen, "When you send the report, please let me know your game handle so that if you want, I can let people know who gave me the information."
Before Kazuto could tell Carina that he didn't want people to know who he was, a man in a black suit entered the centre. With him were a few people who work at the place, pushing a trolley with them that had the NerveGears and the game on it. The people brought in a few trolleys with the NerveGears and games on it. They put them in three groups for some reason.
After a few minutes, the man in the suit stood in front of the trolleys and called out, "Welcome everyone. I would like to congratulate you all for becoming beta testers for Argus' new game Sword Art Online."
Here, nearly everyone cheered at this, happy to be here. They couldn't wait to see what this new version of SAO was going to be like.
"Now, before we hand out the NerveGears and the game, there are a few things I have to say." the man told them, "The first thing is to explain why we're giving you a NerveGear when most of you might already have one. The answer is simple, that's because it'll be easier to track any bugs or problems you might face, so we can see what it is and have an easier time to fix them. If you find them, you'll be able to mark them in the game and we'll deal with them later."
This was something that those who create VR games have been doing for the last two years, recording the VR feds. They did this so that they can see the bugs and problems that the gamers find, this made it easier for the creators to fix the problems. As they would be able to see it firsthand. Sure, they would need to try to copy the problem/bug, but this way they know what they were looking for.
"Next, as you can see, we have put the NerveGears and the game into three groups." the man said as he waved his hands at the items, "The reason for this is that I'll be splitting you all into three groups. The first group will have games set up with avatars who'll handle mainly quests. The only time you'll be facing monsters will be if the quest asks you to defeat next group will have designed avatars to fight monsters and bosses. The last group, they'll be able to design their own avatars, to do whatever they like."
Hearing this, there was an uproar, not liking that there would be a group who can do whatever they wanted whilst they might only be able to fight or do quests. A man with blue hair called out, "Why is there a group who can do whatever they want, whilst the rest of us will only be able to do either quests or fighting monsters or bosses?"
"Good question," admitted the suited man, "and the answer is because of the avatars. The avatars that are doing quests or fighting, they will have skills that'll help them in doing just that. Skills like blacksmithing, cooking, hunting and other skills that'll help them. Those who have to create their own character won't have any of those. They'll have to search for NPCs who'll teach them those skills. You see, each group is set to search for bugs and problems within the game. For those who do quests, they'll be making sure that quests work the way they meant to. Those who are fighting, they'll make sure that the monsters and bosses are acting the way they should be. As for those with their own avatars, they'll be doing all that along with making sure character creation works as they should and to make sure that the NPCs are acting the way they should be."
Whilst many people there didn't like this idea, wanting to create their own character, however, many of them understood why they were doing this. This would be the easiest and fastest way to find problems and bugs, having a group of people doing certain jobs.
Whatever the case, liking this idea or not, Kazuto heard someone call out, "Are we able to play as an alchemist?"
"For those who are doing quests or fights, half will become an Alchemist whilst the other half will be Warriors." explained the man in the suit, "For the others, they can pick their class, as we want them to see if those quests and NPCs work as they meant to."
Whilst many wanted to be a Warrior Class, a few, like Kazuto, wanted to be an Alchemist if they were part of doing the quests or fighting monsters. As they really wanted to see what an alchemist could do. But, if they were able to create their own character, they could find the missions to become an Alchemist.
"Anyway, the last thing we need to tell you is that before you play the game, you'll have to sign a disclosure, so that until the game comes out, you're unable to tell anyone what you see or did."
This shocked a few of them. Kazuto suspected they were new to beta testing. As Kazuto had signed a few in the past himself, when the creators, for whatever reason, didn't want the testers to tell people what they have seen until the game is out.
"Now, before we give out the NerveGear and the game, are there any questions?" asked the man.
Kazuto looked around and saw that no one had their hands up, as they were too excited to get the gear and game and play it. However, Kazuto had two questions he wanted to ask, so he raised his hand. Upon looking around the room and seeing Kazuto's hand, the man asked, "So, young man, what's your question?"
"I have two questions sir." Kazuto informed the man, "The first question is will we find any hidden quests that alter the floors and add people? The second question is will we be able to do any of the teaching classes that Kayaba mentions, learning new skills whilst in the game?"
"For learning new skills in a game, that you can't do right now." explained the man, "It's not that it isn't fully done yet, but we at Argus want to test this out ourselves for health and safety reasons. We don't know the effects might be by doing so, so we don't want to risk testing it on the public."
Whilst many of the testers were hoping to try this skill out, they understood why they couldn't. If the risk was too, it would be foolish for Argus to allow the public to test such a skill. It would be best if it was done in house.
"As for the hidden quest, most of them won't be in this beta tester version." explained the man, "Whilst a few will be in it, like finding blueprints for alchemist weapons, one of the kind quests where completing the quest will alter the floor or floors won't be in the game. As it would be unfair to the other players, not only here but those who'll play it when the game is launched. As whoever finds it in the next two months would know where to find it later, and so would be able to get to it before anyone else. Same with one of the kind quests for weapons, armour, and items. So those sorts of quests won't be in the game until launch day."
Once again, the players were hoping to try these quests out, but they understood why they weren't. As if one of them found it in the testing, they would have an upper hand and get stronger before anyone else. That would be unfair for everyone.
But still, Kazuto had to ask though, "What about the quest that allows the weapons into the world? Will we be allowed to do that or not?"
"Unfortunately, not, as we want everyone to have a fair chance at finding those quests on launch day. But once you clear the first floor though, it'll be like that quest is already done and so you'll be able to find the NPCs with those blueprints." explained the man. "If there's nothing more, we can begin handing the gear and games out."
Everyone cheered at this, happy to get their hands on them, but before they could do this though, the man had one last thing to say. "I almost forgot to tell you this. The NPCs, or as they are called in the game Tians, they aren't your normal NPCs. Thanks to the extra time we had to add more things into the game, we were able to add a program that makes them different. I won't say how but be warned when they don't act like you might expect them to be. Also know this: by killing a Tian, you might alter things in the game in ways you might not dream of. It could fail a quest or quests, make old quests disappear or create new ones. The system that we have for SAO is unlike any you have seen before.
"A few years ago, it would only interact with quests, adding or altering quests as it wants, depending on how you were all playing." explained the man, "But thanks to this new program we added, the system is now able to alter the characters in ways you could only find in fantasy. Either way, let's begin handing these gear and games out. Afterwards, you'll play at least an hour of the game here, so we can make sure everything is set up right, and then you can go home and play the game whenever you want. Once the beta testing is done, you can bring your gear and game back to one of your nearest Argus Gaming Centre. Before any of you think about keeping the gear and game, don't. On the final day of the beta testing, the 31st of August, the game and the NerveGear will be locked, so that no one will be able to get back into them."
This only made everyone more excited.
"Now, as you know, when you came today, you were given an envelope to keep hold of," explained the man, "in them was one word. Either Quest, Battle or Avatar. If you haven't already, please open your envelope to see which word you have."
Kazuto took his envelope from his pocket and opened it. He had wondered what was inside, but he waited until he was told to open it. As he knew, it would mean nothing to him until then. Now he was told to open it. He did and pulled out a piece of paper with a picture of the SAO castle on it with one word on it: AVATAR!
After hearing what was said about the beta testing and how it was meant to be played, he could guess what the word meant. He would be one of the players who is able to create his own character.
Once everyone opened their envelopes, the man in the suit said, "Now, as you can see, you have either the word Quest, Battle or Avatar. Now if you haven't guessed already, those who have the word quest, they'll have the gear and game fitted to do the quests. Those with battle, they'll have the gear fitted to fight monsters. And those with the word avatar, they'll have the normal gear and game to play it as they wish. So, you know, there'll be two hundred and fifty people doing quests, two hundred and fifty people fighting monsters and bosses, and the rest doing whatever they want."
There were a few people that mumbled here, not happy that there were so many people who were allowed to do what they want, whilst they were only allowed to only do quests or fight monsters/bosses. But the rest could understand this, as this was the only real good way to find bugs and problems in the game and so allow Argus to fix the bugs and problems.
"Now, I wish you all the best and hope that you enjoy Sword Art Online." said the man before he left and let his assistant deal with the beta testers. The assistants would call for people either with papers with the words Quest, Battle or Avatar. When there were fewer people crowding the assistants, Kazuto went to the person handing out the Avatar items, before he set the thing up and sat down at one of the gaming chairs and logged into the game.
To be Continued!
Author's Note: Here ends chapter one of Sword Art Online - Alchemy Edition. I hope you enjoyed this and things that I had Kazuto learn for the game. I used Ichigo as Kazuto's kendo, and used some of Ichigo's backstory, as I couldn't come up with a decent OC to help train Kazuto.
I need the real-life name for Sachi, not just a player name seeing how she'll be more important in this story.
Working on the next chapter now. In the next chapter, you'll see my take of the start of the beta testing. If there's anything you would like to see, please let me know, just going to do the first floor.
Warrior Class:
Tsuboi Ryoutarou - Klein.
Yuuki Asuna - Asuna (Was thinking of making her an Alchemist, but decided to do otherwise, but if you can give me a decent enough of a reason to make her as an Alchemist, I'll think about it.)
Andrew Gilbert Mills - Agil. (Changed him to Warrior from Alchemist, as he is a marcent and not a blacksmith and so doesn't need to be an Alchemist.)
Alchemist Class:
Kirigaya Kazuto - Kirito. (As the MC of this story, it didn't feel right not to make him one. :P)
Hosaka Carina Tomo - Argo. (With being an informant, being an Alchemist makes some sense to me to have her one.)
Shinozaki Rika - Lisbeth. (Like Agil, being a blacksmith in the anime, it makes sense that he would be an Alchemist.)
Sachi (Thanks to a reader, I have an idea for her. Along with a porn comic, I got some ideas. Can't say if I'll use the idea, but I have a decent idea for her.)
Undecided Class - please let me know what class you think they should be in:
Ayano Keiko -Silica (Still need to figure her out.)