Hello everyone! I hope you all have been well. It looks like we are starting to handle this whole virus thing at last. Looking forward to not having to wear a mask so much in the near future.

For this chapter, I would like to suggest you load up and listen to "Break, Beat, BARK" from the Ordinal Scale movie during the fight scene in this chapter.

Disclaimer: Reki Kawahara is the owner/author of SAO. I own nothing from the franchise outside this idea.

Now then,

LINK START!

Chapter 32:

Differences

Grunts were heard as the two youths of Kirito and Alice strained to pull themselves over the lip of the Morning Star Lookout. They had climbed a good portion of the way to the top using the metal pikes, but they failed when they were close. Luckily, they had been near the lip when the pikes failed them

Still panting, Kirito spoke, "I thought we were going to die."

"It was a rather close call," Alice agreed, "I'm just grateful we got up as fast as we did."

Sitting up, Kirito suggested, "Let's rest a bit before finding Asuna."

She agreed, and the two looked out at the night sky. The stars shined bright as ever, and the moon was a pearl in the sky. It was an entrancing sight to be sure, one which they probably could have looked at the entire night.

But it was not to be when they heard voices coming up from stairs on the other side of where they came from. Very quickly, they recognized them as Bercouli and Eiji.

"I don't know why you have an issue with bringing her to the Pontifex," Eiji seemed to regard irritably. "She had her converted before."

"Disobeying an order from the Pontifex is not something I'd be proud of," Bercouli warned. "Besides, I don't understand why you didn't just kill her like you tried to do before."

"Like it matters to you, Commander," the younger knight spoke harshly. The way he emphasized 'Commander' with such distaste made Alice not like the guy even more. Could he not even have the decency to exercise proper etiquette?

Bercouli seemed to sense this, as he then said, "What matters to me are the people under my authority. She's just as much my responsibility as she is my foe."

As they appeared from the stairwell, Eiji commented, "Whatever. We just need to report about the other two being killed and we'll go back to normal."

As they began walking to the center stairwell in the lookout, Kirito posed, "The two you killed wouldn't happen to be us, would they?" The Integrity Knights paused when they saw him and Alice sitting at the edge of the lookout. Eiji looked shocked that they were still alive, while Bercouli seemed mildly astonished. But the two of them couldn't help but give harsh gazes at the Integrity Knights. Especially when they saw, slung over the younger knight's shoulder like a sack of flour, was their friend Asuna. Kirito's gaze was especially fixed on her.

Noticing, Eiji recovered and informed, "She's not dead, yet. The Pontifex wants her reconditioned after you both brought her back from the Fairy King. She'll be good as new once she's been returned to what she was meant to be."

"That's for Asuna to decide," Kirito said with a growl.

Moving on, Eiji noted, "I have to say, I didn't think you would survive that fall. But who cares? Now I can kill you properly this time."

"You already used your last chance to kill us," Kirito told him. "Now you're going to see what makes us better than you Integrity Knights."

Letting out a sigh, Bercouli replied, "Kid, you won't even last a minute against the two of us. Even with the Little Miss, you guys are outmatched."

"That never stopped us before Uncle," Alice returned. "We can succeed, because we already have before."

Seeming to sag from the declaration, the Commander asked, "Before we fight, I have to ask. The Vice Commander—"

"Is well," Alice answered immediately. "Someone very skilled in the Sacred Arts is already looking after her. Kirito didn't hesitate to call on them for aid after our fight."

"Ah, good," the man said in relief. "Then I'm glad the people I am about to face aren't what the Pontifex has been saying about you. I'm sorry to say that your affiliation with the ruler of Aincrad means I can't let you live. But I will promise that my first strike won't end you."

"How generous, Commander Bercouli," Kirito said dryly. "But I will assure you that you are not our enemy. We will repay what you had done for us in Aincrad."

Growing irritated by the sentimentality of the conversation, Eiji dumped Asuna onto the ground and shouted, "Enough! You may have survived by luck so far, but I am going to finish you both off here and now. This time, you won't get away from me."

Alice glanced to her side to see Kirito looked calm, confident. He must have figured out how to best Eiji by this point. She knew that for him to succeed, she would need to confront Bercouli. She never did have the chance to fight him before he was sent to Aincrad, so she didn't know what to expect from their exchange. She only knew how he fought from seeing him face off against Dungeon Masters and Kayaba. Even so, she would not be deterred, nor would Kirito. The sword at her side and the ring on her finger gave her the will to face this challenge.

As the two drew their swords, Eiji cried out, "Ordinal Scale, activate!" As energy radiated out of him, he rushed forward. In response, Kirito charged to meet him. Their blades clashed, and Alice slipped by to go after Bercouli. The Commander slashed in the space in front of him, but Alice already knew the tactic. She slipped under and brought her sword up to strike at his chest. He met her blade with little effort, and they locked.

"I'm sorry Little Miss," Bercouli told her mournfully, "but I can't disobey the Axiom Church. Even if it means striking you down."

Grunting, Alice responded, "I know the kind of man you are Uncle. You are not one to bend to the will of others without knowing why you do. I only ask that you see Kirito and I are not the heretics she claims us to be."

"I don't entirely agree with her decision, but I still have a duty to uphold," Bercouli informed. He then pushed her back, but Alice regained her footing just in time to avoid the Time-Splitter Sword's technique of cutting through time. Only a couple strands of her hair were harmed by the art. She then went for a stab that she would draw around for a slash to the shoulder, both of which Bercouli parried.

"I had honestly been wanting to see how I'd fare against you," Bercouli told her as he batted away another diagonal slash before swinging down and missing her as she ducks to the side. "I only hope you show me that power I've seen in you."

Her expression cold as steel, Alice replied, "Don't worry. I won't disappoint."

As she went for an overhead swipe, she saw to the side Kirito pushing Eiji away before running along the rim of the lookout with Eiji running parallel to him.

"I take it back," Eiji remarked. "I see now why you were able to defeat Kayaba as you did. You're quite strong, Black Swordsman."

"Wish I could say the same about you," Kirito retorted. "Strongest Integrity Knight, my ass!"

The two went for another quick set of exchanges that rang out in the open space. Eiji was as fast as ever, blitzing Kirito left and right. But Kirito was more aware of the knight's speed and power, moving his sword to deflect more effectively, parry appropriately, or duck around his strikes. He also didn't engage too long with Eiji, pulling away when it was appropriate before re-engaging when he chased after him.

As Kirito retreated with Eiji pursuing, the knight called out, "You fighters on the frontlines were celebrated back in Aincrad. I remember hearing about the feats of the Black Swordsman. But those of us left behind? We're not even remembered. We're treated like we didn't even exist."

As the boy in black turned to lock blades with him, he questioned, "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Like you would care," Eiji replied in a low tone. "You have everything. You have a legacy, a home, and her." Indicating the unconscious Asuna, he told Kirito, "You are lucky she was as strong as she was in Aincrad. But me? The girl I loved wasn't so lucky."

The mention of a girl in his life surprised Kirito. With Integrity Knights like Deusolbert, there had been no past to speak of but vague recollections. But Eiji said there had been someone before in Aincrad.

"I had to watch her go off to slaughter, I watched her perish," Eiji shouted. "The girl I loved died in my arms, and I couldn't do a thing to save her."

His strikes now were more forceful than before, but the force didn't have any real purpose behind it aside from pure rage. The blows were causing Kirito to stumble and barely hold him back.

Back with Alice, as she refocused on her battle, she had to weave as Bercouli left multiple slashes in time in her path. He used both his own sword strikes and maneuvering the field to try and get her into the slashes he left behind. But Alice was aware of the tactic and avoided them as much as possible. But her dodges weren't perfect, as she still suffered some minor cuts to her uniform. Her cape, skirt, and armor received some cuts and slashes from the strikes. It wasn't long before one of these finally struck true, when she was pushed back from a failed swipe. She regained her footing too late and got a moderate cut by her hip.

Bercouli descended on her with a guttural roar, and she tried to roll out of the way. But once again, she ended up in another of his slashes, and got a cut across her cheek that sprayed some of her blood on the floor. The flare from the cut was tough to muscle through, but Alice did as she went for a feint to his right before trying to strike at his legs. She managed to graze his legs when he was forced to move, thus breaking his stance. Alice kept the pressure up, striking at him to keep him on his toes.

"Did you truly care for Asuna and I when we first came to Centoria?" Alice yelled as she swung at Bercouli. "Or were we just an obligation to you? To cut us down so readily because of what someone says. How can you live with that decision Uncle?"

Managing to lock another sweeping slash at his legs with his Time-Splitting Sword, Bercouli returned calmly, "Little Miss, if there is one thing I know, it's that being the kind of knight I am means doing things you cannot live with. I have had to take people like you, treating them like criminals. But with you and Asuna, I saw a chance at redemption." Pushing her back, he continued, "You two were my only hope to relieve me of these burdens. Though I may strike you down, I only hope that you won't let my will define your lives."

As Alice rushed forward to keep Bercouli's massive sword from gaining too much momentum, she began to see the sadness behind his eyes, the long years of anguish he had to live with being an Integrity Knight as long as he had. Even if he was fighting her, he was being dragged by the weight of his orders to bring them in. And beyond that, there was a plea behind them as well.

Settling her mind, Alice whispered back, "I'll set you free Uncle." And she went back at it, invigorated enough to overcome him in a way that would sever his ties to Quinella.

Kirito had to block a three-strike combo and was skirting around as best as he could. Eiji wasn't letting up, but he was beginning to slow down. It might not have been a big reduction in speed, but it was noticeable to someone like Kirito.

"Once I finish with you, I'm coming after all those dogs from Aincrad that left people like us behind," he informed as he pressed Kirito. "I'll take them all out. And then, Administrator will bring her back. She'll give her back to me."

And then, he made a minor mistake that Kirito took full advantage of. After making a thrust, Kirito grabbed the guy by the shoulder and wrapped around. Seeing the device that seemed to be giving him his power, he grasped it fully and worked at it.

"Let's see how you do that without this!" he called before wrenching off the device. Effects were immediate when it was pulled off. The aura of power Eiji radiated before vanished, he seemed to pant as if taxed, and his stance was not as established. He reached to feel the spot behind him where the device was.

Enraged, he did a clumsy strike while shouting, "Damn you!"

But Kirito, seeing a memory of Zink coming at him, held a calm stance with his sword at his side. It only took him one stroke to slip under his strike, slicing him at the side just enough to take him out of the fight but not kill him. As the knight collapsed to his knees, Kirito sheathed his sword.

"We've all suffered, one way or another," he told him. "But robbing other people of what's precious to them isn't the way to go. You can't cling to the past and make it your sole reason to do what you do." Looking at his beloved, he concluded, "You have to do what you do for them, not yourself."

Back with Alice, the two were clashing with equal skill now. Bercouli wasn't using as many time slashes as he did initially, but it hardly mattered to Alice. She might have been cut up in places, but her will was overflowing as she met each of Bercouli's strikes.

"You've gotten good, Little Miss," he noted as he regarded her. "But this has to end."

"I agree," Alice replied before backing off. Raising her sword, she called out, "System Call! Enhance Armament!" And her blade transformed into thousands of flowers that soared in a flurry towards Bercouli. He braced against the onslaught, knowing striking at them was pointless. While this went on, Alice rushed forward. As she got close, she dropped the Osmanthus Blade's hilt, causing the flowers to return to it. Only seeing her making a reckless charge, Bercouli let out one guttural roar while making a horizontal slash meant to take her head off.

But when she was just a few feet away, Alice drew the Blue Rose Sword and blocked the strike. Not only that, but the tip of the sword just about touched the skin on the Commander's neck. A small trickle of blood creeped down from the cut she made, and the battle froze.

Stunned by the maneuver, Bercouli inquired, "That sword… How did you get that?"

To which Alice answered, "The man I love, whom the Pontifex stole back in Aincrad, left this behind. In it lies a piece of his spirit, which I take up to bring him back."

Smiling, Bercouli let his sword drop to the ground and let his arms hang at his sides. "I always knew you had it in you," he said in a relieved tone. "I don't think there's anything more I need to do." Closing his eyes, he instructed, "Go ahead and strike me down. Do what you must. I'll answer for my crimes."

The golden knight held her position for a bit longer, as if gauging what the Commander might try. But when no deception or malice was found, she removed the Blue Rose Sword from his neck and returned it to its sheath. Then she walked away, picked up her discarded sword to sheath it as well, and then went to the limp form of her friend, joined shortly after by Kirito.

Just before they could do anything, they heard a grating chortle as someone descended from the stairway leading to the higher floors. And quick as a flash, the figure tapped both Bercouli and Eiji on the foreheads before calling out, "System Call. Deep Freeze." Stunned, Alice turned as she saw both Integrity Knights be gradually turned to stone. The caster was a man she was sickened to see since she was first brought in for the Synthesis Ritual years ago. A man in blue on his left and red on his right, bulbous in shape like a ball, wearing pointed shoes like a jester that also had split colors. He even had a jester's collar and similar-styled cuffs on his sleeves. His face was painted white like a clown, with a couple red spots on his cheeks, and no neck or hair that could be seen. He also had an angled, golden cap that was similar in design to Cardinal's but less tasteful.

It was none other than the Prime Senator, Chudelkin.

As the Integrity Knights were slowly being converted, Chudelkin reprimanded, "Foolish Integrity Knights. You both were supposed to suppress the traitors and heretics. And instead, you botch the job. Her Eminence will not be pleased. Least of all with you, Number Thirty-Five. To think Her Eminence wasted her glorious talent making that special contraption for you only to have it ripped off by a child."

"Prime Senator," Eiji struggled to say, "give me another chance. I'll kill them all."

Chudelkin simply huffed, stating, "You had plenty of chances. You let them escape in the gardens, you did not finish off the failed Thirty-Three in the Cloudtop Garden, and you were soundly defeated by that boy." Looking over to Bercouli, he went on, "And you… It seems your reconditioning didn't kick in like it should. We will have to fix that when we are done with these blasphemers."

"Don't get too comfortable Chudelkin," Bercouli warned as the stone conversion reached his neck. "You don't want to mess with these three. It'll be the last thing you do."

"Wrong!" the Prime Senator yelled. "I will finish what you two failed to do. Assuming they even make it as far." With a chortle and a hoot, he bounded back up the stairs as the Deep Freeze art finished on the two Integrity Knights.

"Chudelkin, get back here!" Alice called, about to give chase.

But then she heard Kirito call, "Alice, wait! We need to tend to Asuna. She looks like she's hurt really bad." That stopped the golden knight in her tracks, forcing her to look back and see her friend and the state she was in. She looked quite scuffed up, with some cuts here and there that didn't look fully healed. Drawn back to the bigger matter, Alice used a Stacia window to check her status. Thankfully, her Life value was hovering above a third of what she had. But healing her with normal Sacred Arts would not help, and they couldn't transfer their Life without endangering themselves. They needed help to get Asuna back on her feet.

Reaching into her uniform, Alice pulled out her dagger from Cardinal. But she was stopped by Kirito grabbing her wrist before she could pull it out.

"We need that to help Eugeo," he reminded her. "We can figure out what to do with Quinella later, but you need to hold on to your dagger."

"Kirito, there is no other way," Alice told him sternly. "As good as I am with Sacred Arts, this kind of healing is beyond even my skill. Cardinal is the only one with the ability to restore her Life now." Seeing how conflicted he was, she assured, "I'll figure out a way to save Eugeo. You've done something similar with Asuna back in Aincrad. Let me do the same for him. It's the only way."

Kirito shook his head, replying, "No, there is another way." And without a moment's hesitation, he pulled his dagger out, snapping the string in the process, and stabbing Asuna in the thigh.

When the connection was made, he called, "Cardinal, we need your help to heal Asuna. We'll deal with Eugeo and the Pontifex another way, just help us save our friend." As he said this, Alice expected the little girl to make some remark about their extensive compassion or how they weren't thinking in the long term with these daggers. She was ready for whatever insult Cardinal threw their way.

But instead, she replied, "It's a good thing you did. If you left these wounds untreated, Asuna might not have been allowed to recover before you got to the top floor." Without another word, a veil of light engulfed Asuna and began healing her injuries. Cuts healed, her outfit cleaned itself and was repaired, and color began to return to her face. In addition, portions of the light went into the two and restored their persons and outfits as well.

"You all must be careful on the final stretch," Cardinal warned once she finished. "Once you reach the top floor, do not take Quinella lightly. Compared to Kayaba and Oberon, her power is beyond anything you have faced. Exercise caution. And remember, it will take all four of you to have even a chance of taking her down. Whatever plan you have for your fourth member, I only hope you know what to do." And with that, the connection disappeared.

Immediately after, Asuna stirred and began to come around. As she became more aware, Kirito helped sit her up. "How do you feel?" he asked her.

"I'm alright," she assured him. Flexing her hand, she added, "Actually, maybe more than alright. What did you two do to heal me?"

"That was Cardinal's doing," the boy informed. "We had to use my dagger to have her heal you with Sacred Arts."

Alice was a bit confused why Asuna didn't berate him for using another of their daggers to get Cardinal's aid, but it seemed she understood why they did.

But it was set aside as Asuna rose to her feet, followed by her friends. When she saw the state of Bercouli and Eiji, she let out a soft gasp.

"What happened to them?" she asked, horrified by the sight.

To which Alice simply said, "The Prime Senator." Nothing else needed to be said. They both knew how Chudelkin worked and what his actions usually entailed.

The only one not aware asked, "What exactly did he use on them? I've never seen or heard of a Sacred Art like that."

Alice then explained, "It's a Deep Freeze art. Essentially, the person afflicted with the art is frozen unless the caster dispels the art or is killed. Even if the person tries to move, they are more likely to expend their Life in the process. Even destroy themselves. It's an art the Prime Senator and Administrator primarily use when needing to recondition Integrity Knights."

Even though she talked about the use of such an art, she still found it quite detestable. To use the Integrity Knights like stallions, even breaking them with Sacred Arts. She looked forward to striking the tyrant down and freeing her home. She wanted it so badly her fist shook as she clenched tightly.

She was broken from her thoughts when Kirito suggested, "Let's go. We take out that clown, we can free Bercouli and Eiji. Maybe by then, we'll have some allies to help fix things."

"I doubt it'll be that simple, but Alice and I also have a stake in the matter," Asuna brought up. "You see, Chudelkin was there each time Quinella tried to turn us into Integrity Knights. He may look silly, but his mastery of Sacred Arts is nothing to sneeze at. I would honestly equate him to Kayaba, I mean the Commander's level of power."

"All the more reason to take him out then," Kirito stated. The two girls agreed and followed him up the remainder of the stairs, leaving the statues of the final Integrity Knights in the Morning Star Lookout.

The three walked down a rather cramp and dark hallway on the next floor of the Central Cathedral. They moved at a slow pace in case Chudelkin or Quinella had any surprises waiting for them as they progressed. The very air in this place made them all tense for a confrontation, which wasn't helped when they sensed the build up of sacred energy behind some doors up ahead. Once they approached, the three looked at each other and nodded. They fell back on an old scouting tactic from Aincrad: one would open the door and venture inside while the rest would hang back to either pull them to safety or rush in to back up their friend.

Kirito pushed the door open, sword drawn as he took careful steps inside. There was a nasty, cold air in the room, like rotting food. The room was large and tall, in a cylindrical shape like Cardinal's library. There wasn't really any light from something like lanterns, but rather from flickering purple lights coming from the walls. When Kirito took another step, a purple light appeared nearby, which the three identified as a Stacia window. And behind that, a human head.

Kirito took a step back in disgust, before questioning, "Don't tell me this guy's just a head?"

But as Alice looked at the person more closely, she noted, "No. There are shoulders visible in there. I think he has a body. This room is the senate room." As soon as she said that, a horrible realization fell upon her. She and her friends looked around the room and found other boxes like the one the first figure was in, with similar heads shown inside. All pale and expressionless, with nary a pupil or even a head of hair. Their skin was ghostly white, and they were packed into these boxes rather tightly.

As they listened, they heard the one in front of them chant, "System Call. Display Rebelling Index." It seemed to repeat this command over and over, and the others took notice of the other senators doing the same.

Thinking on it more, Alice stated, "It's them. This is how Administrator finds out about people who violate the Taboo Index. It was how she learned about Asuna and I crossing the border with the Dark Territory so quickly, or how she discovered you and Eugeo killed someone."

It all made sense. Both incidents were too isolated to be reported. They were not reported right that minute and there was no way for someone to even call an Integrity Knight to tell them about the violation. Aside from Kirito and Eugeo's offense, it's impossible for the church to react within the next day to arrest whoever acted as so.

But even more than that was the role these senators played. They had detected a simple mistake from two little girls and deemed it enough for a knight to whisk them to the Central Cathedral. Who knows who else they condemned and aided the Pontifex in her pursuit of total order. The lives lost because these people deemed someone dangerous when it might not have been as simple as all that. This wasn't justice, this wasn't making the world safer, this was slavery. They weren't even considered human to Administrator.

The three were startled when they heard some kind of alarm go off. They stood ready to fight, but nothing came. Instead, the senators stopped chanting as what looked like tubes came down before them. They seemed to take the tubes into their mouths and seemed to swallow something coming out. They saw that the one they were watching had some brown liquid leak out of the sides of his face and down his chin. The smell in the room seemed to elevate a little with the introduction. Another alarm went off shortly after, and the tubes returned to the tops. After that, the senators went back to their chanting.

"This is wrong," Asuna spoke, her voice wrought with horror. "These are people. Maybe they were brought here because of their abilities using Sacred Arts, but they are still human. Not even cattle, sheep, or chickens are given this kind of treatment. It's like their nothing more than… than…"

"Nothing more than tools," Kirito finished, his own voice laced with anger.

But Alice was wrestling with a myriad of emotions at the sight of this. This is the world the Pontifex created after claiming power? This was what would result in her rule? Everyone would just be made to fit a niche that they would be forced into, given the bare minimum, and forced to do their task day in and day out? Was that possibly the fate of the Integrity Knights some day in the future? Just being autonomous drones serving her every whim?

Driven by this suppressed rage that threatened to break loose, Alice took her blade and levelled it to where the senator's heart would be. She would give this tortured soul mercy, release him from his bindings in this mortal world. She would give him back to Stacia to remake as she needed. But even as she looked at this lifeless face before her, the will to kill began to leave her. Her blade thus far had only been used to kill those that meant harm to others. Monsters, murderers, whoever meant wrong in the world. And while these senators had indeed played a part in hers and Asuna's fates back then, they weren't the ones that remade her friend. They weren't the ones that were forcing their will onto others. They were just observers, frozen where they were, never to act or hug or mourn.

Her rage still boiling, Alice let out an anguished cry as she swung her sword. She made a cut into the wall near the senator's box, but he kept going with his chanting as if nothing happened. Her friends were startled by her sudden outburst, watching as she let out breaths to quell her growing rage.

"I'll kill her," she said in a low voice. "I'll stab that black heart of hers for every person she has mutilated and tormented in her rule. I want her to suffer in the darkest abyss for what she has done." Her mind became fixated on this goal. It was bad enough she lost Eugeo to the Pontifex, but seeing the other atrocious things she had done made her so focused on this burning desire to kill.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced over to see Kirito next to her. "Don't lose yourself looking for revenge," he told her. "Remember why we are fighting her. To save everyone we care about. Bercouli, Fanatio, Deusolbert, Fizel, Linel, Eldrie, Eiji. Not to mention everyone back home. Klein, Agil, Silica, Lisbeth, Liena, Ronie, Tiese, Selka. All of them. That's why we fight."

His words helped calm her fury. She stood back to her full height and said calmly, "Thank you, Kirito."

It was just then they heard a new voice further ahead. A high-pitched, grating screech. "Your Holiness, what a waste… Not on this…" they moaned. The three were briefly disgusted by the sounds but decided to follow them to find their source. They went down another hall to a new room where they found it to be smaller, but more bizarre. Every fixture in the room from furniture to cabinets to even the candle holders were garnished in gold. Taking up most of the space appeared to be toys of all shapes and sizes, mostly stuffed animals, but there were also button-eye dolls, animals like pets and livestock, and even some monsters that looked like the ones in Aincrad and Alfheim. There were even building blocks and wooden toys like rocking horses.

And sitting amongst them on the other side from where the trio entered was the owner, which they quickly recognized as Chudelkin. He was the source of all the moaning and other weird sounds, though why they couldn't say. He appeared to be watching something, but they couldn't tell what from where they were standing. Still, just hearing and seeing this imposing figure act rather pathetically before them made them drop their guard a little.

Her rage returning, Alice stormed over to the Prime Senator and yanked him into the air by his collar, her Osmanthus Blade pointed right at him. "You even try to chant a Sacred Art, and I will cut out your tongue from its roots," she threatened.

After getting over his initial shock, Chudelkin exclaimed, "I should have known you would come here after seeing what I saw down there, Number Thirty."

Tightening her hold, Alice retorted, "My name is Alice Zuberg!"

"I can scarcely fathom why you would rebel against the church, you little bi—" Before he could finish, Alice smacked him in the head with the butt of her sword.

In addition, Asuna came up beside her and had her rapier pointed right in front of his eye. "I'd advise against using our numbers to label us. You know our names, having tried to steal them for years."

Seeming to become red with fury, the Prime Senator ranted, "The gall! You Integrity Knights are nothing more than puppets meant to serve Her Eminence's will. A will I uphold with my very being. When I tell you to fight, you fight. When I tell you to kneel, you kneel."

"You don't have the right to tell us anything," Alice spat at him. "You monsters forced such servitude on dozens of people. That chamber back there, that was where it happened. Where you subjected a girl pleading for mercy to be rewritten and tormented until she was your slave. I know because I was there, watching it all unfurl as I myself begged and cried to take her place."

Going from anger to smugness in a second, Chudelkin said, "Yes. I remember quite clearly. You two were dragged from that dump of a village before the Pontifex. Her Eminence, in her vast wisdom and compassion, let you both stay as sisters of the church. But only when you were proficient enough did you learn the truth. That you would remain as loyal servants. As Integrity Knights."

Forming a scowl, he mentioned, "But the first time, it failed. The forced ritual was rejected without even a sliver of torment. I was beside myself, distraught of what I was denied. Again and again the Pontifex struggled to force you to be subservient, digging through your minds and trying to take your memories so she could remake you. But every time, you damn wenches resisted her. Her Holiness was furious, absolutely livid. But, in confidence, she informed me of your weakness. You both held on to the memory of two boys from your village. It was so powerful Her Eminence was incapable of breaking your wills."

Looking smug once more, he told them, "And when she threatened to take them away, you both crumbled without effort. And it wasn't a hollow threat. I already had an Integrity Knight lined up to sail for the village and take the boys. There had been talk about them wanting to defy the church, not to mention being taught by the villain Kayaba. Had you not cowed, we would have had you all before us, our little puppets." He chortled as if reveling in the idea of taking two more children to turn into Integrity Knights.

But Alice returned, "Even if you had taken them, your rule would have failed." As Chudelkin returned to the real world, she added, "Your reasoning for taking our friends was flawed. Even if they had voiced discontent at the church, they had done nothing against it. They still followed its laws and rulings. And while Kayaba might be an enemy to you, he wasn't an enemy of the church. The people would have found out, or Kayaba would have otherwise intervened. Either way, your plan would not have gone through."

Lowering her sword to his torso, Alice plunged it in without remorse or hesitation. "You have enjoyed your position far too much, Prime Senator. I am done with you and your ilk."

But rather than gulp and gawk at being stabbed, Chudelkin sneered. Before Kirito could get a word of warning in, the Prime Senator's body seemed to expand. Then, with a bang, his attire exploded and caused something red to spread throughout the room. A moment after the initial shock, the three realized it was smoke. And the Prime Senator was escaping through another corridor that curved upwards. Before he had made it, Kirito made a wild swing that knocked his hat off.

He then called to the girls, "After him! We're not letting that sick bastard get away." The girls rushed after him, both intent on finishing what they started with Chudelkin. The hallway they began running through got a bit tight for them, probably more accommodating for Chudelkin due to his smaller stature. They soon arrived at an ascending staircase that seemed to go for three floors. Before too long, the three of them would make it to the top. This whole nightmare would soon be over.

As they raced up the stairs, they barely heard Chudelkin call out, "System Caaaaaall! Generate…"

"Be ready, he's preparing an attack," Asuna advised. Alice was ready. Whatever he threw at them, she would meet it without any hesitation. Kirito rushed ahead in a burst of speed, leaving the girls to trail behind. Alice expected to hear a commotion from Kirito countering the spell Chudelkin was preparing, perhaps from fire or ice. But no sound came from the room up ahead. As the girls finally arrived, they were confused when they only found Kirito in the room. A circular room with little in it aside from a couple lit lanterns, but nothing else.

"Where did he go?" Alice asked, searching the room fervently for any signs of the snake that slipped through her fingers.

"I don't know," Kirito reported. "When I got here, there was no one."

"He can't have gone to the one-hundredth floor, could he?" Asuna questioned. "That's the room for Quinella. She wouldn't let him in, right?"

"Hard to say, but we need to get up there regardless," Kirito reminded. That just left how they would get up there. What did Chudelkin do to ascend the last floor?

Looking at the boy in black, the golden knight asked, "Kirito, were you able to make out what element Chudelkin was summoning?"

Holding his head with his free hand, Kirito wracked his brain before muttering, "Lu… Lu… Something with 'Lu' in it. Maybe 'Luminous Element?'"

"It's the only element with that prefix, so we'll have to try it," she figured. Sheathing her sword, she held out both hands and recited, "System Call. Generate Luminous Element." She generated ten light elements that dispersed throughout the room. Whether by Alice's intention or the design of the room, the balls of light spread around the room before landing at different points in the circular room. They then seemed to trail up before forming a rather large circle like a platform above their heads. The three regrouped near the entryway they came from as the platform slid down.

They braced themselves for the final confrontation, but they weren't quite prepared to see what was coming down with the platform. There was someone on it, wearing silver armored boots. A blue cape was trailing behind them, much like Alice's. As more of the figure appeared, they saw bits of deep blue mixed with the silver metal of their armor. What worried them was how eerily similar the armor style was to Integrity Knight armor. But as the head of the figure came into view, that was when they were reminded who else was here.

As much as she had thought about it, as much as she had prepared for it, as much as she envisioned meeting him like this, Alice was not prepared for the actual confrontation. Her breath left her as she gazed at his flaxen hair and pale complexion. When he opened his eyes, the radiant blue he once possessed now seemed dampened, almost mechanical.

"I see you have arrived," he addressed cordially. "My Lady told me you were coming."

"I am Eugeo Synthesis Thirty-Two."