Ah, wow. Fast update. Well, thank you to Reeves-san, Kanrei, Guest, fan, Are all names used, NNeko, Thatonekidthatnobodylikes, and IRISofBLUE for reviewing last chapter! Sorry, Are all names are used! Looks like it will be a very loooooong week.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own da karakters or da canon thingy!

Chapter 5: Beater

The lanterns flickered on as night quickly came. Kirito had just finished purchasing a loaf of black bread and a small jar of cream from a small bakery and looked for a place to relax. All day, he was trying to hide from Klein and his other used-to-be party members as they were searching for him. Sadly for him, they were practically everywhere. Kirito had to hide in the second floor of a NPC's house to keep away.

He stretched as he walked, trying to wake himself up. Looking around warily, he spotted the familiar figure of a hooded girl sitting on a ledge. She held a loaf of black bread in her small hands and just stared at it. Kirito stood in his place for a second and debated if he should go up to her. He watched her take a small bite of her bread. He sighed and took his first step toward her.

"It's a nice evening, huh?" Kirito said lamely. Asuna turned her head in his direction with a frown.

"Oh, it's you." she sighed as she turned back to her bread. Kirito fought the urge to frown and forced a smile.

"Aha... Can I sit here?" he asked politely. She didn't answer and decided to ignore him. Taking that as a yes, he sat next to her and took out a loaf of black bread. Kirito glanced over to Asuna. "I guess you like black bread, too. I know it tastes good by itself but if you add a bit of this..." Kirito digged through his pocket, brought of the small jar of cream and placed it in between them. "It'll taste a lot better."

He tapped the jar with his fingertips and quickly dragged them over the top of his bread. A white cream appeared on his bread. Kirito smiled when he heard Asuna gasp in surprise. He turned to her and slid the jar towards her. "Here, you try."

She hesitantly reached for if with her left hand and followed Kirito's example as she applied the cream. The jar shattered into tiny particles of data as a he took a small bite. Asuna froze for a couple seconds before suddenly inhaling the rest. Kirito watched her with wide eyes and slowly ate his own bread. She sighed in satisfaction.

"See, it's really good. I got the cream from a side quest I did with a couple others. I can show you if you want." Kirito said as he only ate half of his bread. A habit he got IRL. Asuna folded her hands on her lap.

"I didn't come to this town for good food." she said suddenly. Kirito rested his hand on his lap with the half eaten bread since he wasn't hungry anymore.

"Then why?" he asked. She didn't answer for a moment. Kirito thought of apologizing to her for asking suddenly but she spoke up.

"So, I can still be myself. I won't allow myself to rot away in this game - in this world. Not when I can still be myself. Even if a monster kills me, I won't let this world beat me. No matter what happens." she said. Kirito sat silently as she spoke. He inwardly smiled.

"Then, live. I don't want someone to die on me. Especially if you're in my party. Just... Don't die tomorrow." Kirito said. Asuna turned her head toward him.

"You, too."

._._._._._.

"Okay," Kirito began as he walked next to Asuna at the very back of the group of players. "Since we're the extras, we have to target the boss's helpers."

"I know." came Asuna's blunt reply.

"I'll use a sword skill and knock their axes upward. The moment I do, you ≪Switch≫ with me." Kirito continued.

"≪Switch≫?" Asuna asked. He gave her a disbelieving look.

"You don't know what ≪Switch≫ is?" he asked.

"No." said Asuna.

"Wait, is this your first time in a party?!" Kirito asked.

"Yes." Her answer was blunt and emotionless. Kirito stopped in his tracks and just stared at her in utter disbelief as she walked past him.

"You have got to be kidding me..." He muttered under his breath.

._._._._._.

An hour later, the whole group finally made it to the boss room. Kirito had told Asuna all he could about fighting in a party and all the other things that he thought were needed. Diabel stabbed his sword into the ground as everyone gathered around him.

"Alright everyone. I only have on thing to say: Let's win!" he said with strength and encouragement behind his words. Everyone nodded with agreement and determination. Kirito shared a quick glance with Asuna. Both of them sent each other a silent message as they told the other not to die.

"Let's go." Diabel said. Everyone readied themselves as he turned to open the doors of the boss room. Diabel entered first and everyone followed him with Kirito and Asuna at the back.

They entered a dark, ridiculously large throne room with caution. Kirito could see the faint outline of the boss at the end of the room. He drew his sword ≪Panzerstecher≫ with his right hand to ease the fear that began to build up.

The room suddenly erupted into colors as the room lit up. The Kobold Lord, Illfang, jumped from his throne and landed not too far ahead of the group, swinging his huge axe to show off. In front of him, several white lights appeared and revealed three Ruin Kobold Sentinels. With a loud roar, Illfang rushed forward.

Diabel pointed his sword toward the boss. "Commence attack!"

Everyone quickly jumped to action. Those who were assigned to the boss rushed past the Sentinels. Diabel yelled out orders and stayed at the back. Kirito held his sword up and made a quick dash toward the closest one and used his sword skill ≪Vertical Slash≫. The sentinel's axe was thrown up, just as Kirito predicted. He quickly jumped back.

"≪Switch≫!" he yelled. Immediately after his yell, Asuna zipped past him with a shocking speed. Kirito watched her with awe as she quickly attacked the sentinel with a sword skill. He began to wonder if she really was just a beginner. She was so fast that he couldn't really follow her movements.

The sentinel shattered into several bits of light from her attack. Kirito smiled.

"Good job, Asuna." he whispered to himself. Another sentinel approached him with the intent to harm and Kirito slashed at it with his sword. It backed away stunned. A loud roar caught his attention and he looked at the boss. Next to its face was three empty bars and one other in the red. Illfang was growling at the other players and threw his axe and shield away.

"Look like that book was right!" said Kibaou with a cocky smile.

"Stand back!" called Diabel. Everyone turned to Diabel's direction and quickly moved out of the way as he ran past them. "I got this!"

Kirito watched Diabel run toward Illfang. He felt that something was amiss.

"Wait, Diabel's not supposed to..." Kirito cut himself off as he caught Diabel's eye. Diabel smirked and continued to run as he started up a sword skill. Illfang reached behind himself and pulled out a sword. But it wasn't ≪Talwar≫. No, this sword was different. It was like a butcher's knife with two tips. Kirito felt his body run cold when he recognized the blade.

"≪No-Dachi≫!?" Kirito exclaimed in his head. He took a deep breath and yelled at the top of his lungs.

"NO! DON'T DO IT! JUMP BACK! JUMP BACK AS FAST AS YOU CAN!" he yelled desperately. But his warning came too late. Illfang jumped up and landed near the top of a pillar only to jump off to another. He leaped to several pillars as Diabel watched in confusion. He suddenly dashed at Diabel and slashed at him, leaving a gaping red gash in his avatar. Kirito froze in place as he felt helpless. Diabel was thrown mercilessly into the air.

"DIABEL!" Kibaou cried out. Illfang suddenly appeared behind him and the other players. He spun on his heel and jumped away. Illfang growled horrifyingly.

Kirito abandoned his place and quickly ran over Diabel. He fell to his knees beside him and supported him with his right arm. Diabel's HP was quickly declining to the edge of his HP bar.

"Why did you go alone?!" Kirito asked with worry lacing his voice. He quickly dug into his pocket and pulled out a potion and brought it to Diabel's mouth, but was stopped by a hand. Diabel's hand.

Kirito froze and his eyes widened in horror. "Why-"

"You were...a beta tester, weren't you?" he asked as he started directly into Kirito's eyes. "You know what I was after."

Realization dawned on Kirito and his eyes immediately became sad. "You were after the last attack rare item. So, you were a beta tester, too."

Diabel struggled a smile. "Please... Defeat...Defeat the boss...for the sake of everyone else." he said. Kirito was about to say something but Diabel suddenly shattered into particles of light.

"Whoa! Wait!" Kirito breathed out as he watched the fragments float upward. A feeling of dread crashed upon him when he felt the weight of Diabel's words fall on his shoulders. Diabel had been a beta tester that did what he couldn't do. He lead the other players and helped them out. Kirito could do nothing but stand at the side and barely have a say in things.

A quick flash of pain streaked through the back of his head. He held back a cry of pain and forced himself to stand up. Kirito tightened his grip on his sword, half of the reason was the determination and guilt he felt and the other was for the sharp pain in his head. Asuna appeared next to him in a flash.

"I'll go with you." she said quietly. Kirito closed his eyes and willed the pain to go away, but it didn't happen. He forced himself glance at Asuna.

"Thanks." Without another word, the two dashed forward and headed straight to the boss. Kirito readied his sword.

"We'll use the same tactic we used for the sentinels!" Kirito yelled as they neared the deranged Illfang.

"Right!" Asuna replied. Illfang noticed the two approaching and knocked any players out of the way. He brought his sword to his side and activated a sword skill. Kirito repeated his action as a counter. With a battle cry, Kirito slashed his sword, colliding with Illfang's ≪No-Dachi≫.

"≪Switch≫!" he yelled as he was pushed aside. Asuna dashed in front of Illfang while he was dazed, but he recovered faster than expected. Kirito immediately yelled out her name desperately.

"ASUNA!"

She looked up and dodged just before Illfang was able to strike her. Her red cloak was destroyed and finally revealed her long hazelnut colored hair. She quickly recovered and activated her sword skill and thrusted forward. Illfang was thrown back.

Kirito was a bit dazed by both the attack and Asuna, but he quickly snapped out of it and stood up. "He's coming back!"

He dashed up to Illfang and threw him off with another sword skill. Asuna rushed in and jabbed Illfang in the stomach. He stumbled back and came back again, catching Asuna off guard. Kirito was quick to save her and blocked the attack. Illfang roared in anger and brought his sword down heavily on Kirito several times, but each one was blocked.

With another cry of anger, Illfang slashed at Kirito horizontally. Kirito felt his sword fling upward and immediately tightened his grip. It was then when he realized he was wide open. Illfang brought his sword back and slashed at Kirito.

Kirito was flung back by the force of the attack as he rammed into Asuna, taking her with him. They were thrown back several feet back and Asuna had to take the rough landing. His sword flew out of his hands and skidded to a halt. Asuna saw Kirito's HP go down by half and was quick to help support him. A shadow loomed over them as Illfang raised his sword above his head.

"Ah!" Asuna closed her eyes and raised her sword to block the attack but felt a strong gust of wind behind her. She opened her eyes to see Agil standing before them. He lowered his axe as the other players rushed past them to distract Illfang.

"We'll hold him off while you recover." he told Kirito. Before Kirito could say anything, Agil already rushed into the fray.

The pain in his head intensified and Kirito bit the back of his lip to keep from crying out. He forced himself to get up as he watched the other players fight Illfang. For a second, it seemed that they had the upper hand until Illfang activated yet another sword skill. He swung his sword and knocked everyone out of the way. And suddenly, he jumped.

"Oh, crap!" Kirito cried out as he leapt to his feet, dashing toward Illfang. He jumped up and activated a sword skill of his own. "No, you won't hit them!"

He slashed downward and sent Illfang crashing to the ground. Kirito landed clumsily and ignored the pain his head. He ran toward Illfang.

"Asuna!" he called out, "One more hit! We'll do it together!"

Asuna got up from her place and ran to Kirito. "Right!"

The two ran next to each other and ran at full speed to Illfang. The Kobold Lord roared when he was struck with Kirito's sword.

Slash!

Illfang was knocked back by Asuna's sword as it cut through him.

Slash!

Kirito's blade came shortly after as he was knocked further back.

Slash!

Asuna's sword slashed his side.

Slash!

Kirito's sword cut his chest.

Slash!

Illfang roared when Asuna's sword cut across his stomach. Kirito charged up his sword and unleashed a sword skill.

"Riaaaaaaaaaaah!" cried Kirito as he dug his sword from the bottom of Illfang's stomach and pulled it upward with both hands. His sword pulled free from the Kobold Lord.

Illfang flew up into the air and glowed white before shattering into tiny particles of data. Kirito landed on his feet and stood there for a moment before collapsing to his knee.

"We-we did it!" stuttered a player. Everyone suddenly erupted in to cheers as the "Congratulations!" notification showed up. Kirito was at the back trying to catch his breath and hoping that the pain in his head would go away. In front of him, was a window saying, "Congratulations! You got the last attacking bonus! You got the ≪Coat of Midnight≫!"

"Good job." said Asuna behind him. Kirito turned to see her standing next to Agil.

"Good swordsmanship. Congratulations." Agil said with a smile. "This victory belongs to you."

Kirito turned away and shook his head. "No..."

But even when he denied it, everyone cheered for him. He stared at them with slight surprise. Kirito was about to get up when someone stopped him.

"Why?!" Kibaou yelled. Everyone turned to him in shock. "Why did you let Diabel die?!"

"E-eh? 'Let him die'...?" Kirito asked as he tried to blink away the pain.

"Yeah! You knew what sword the boss was using!" Kibaou cried out. "If you told us earlier, then Diabel wouldn't have died!"

One of the players suddenly pointed an accusing finger at Kirito. "He must've been one to the beta testers! He must have known all the attack patterns and never told us! There are other beta tester here, right? Come out!"

Everyone fell into a tense silence as they looked accusingly at each other. Kirito frowned. He knew that if this were prolong any longer, then no one would ever trust each other. He turned away and saw that his window was still open. Dread began to grow again when an idea came into mind. It was a risky one, but there wasn't much if a choice. Kirito had to do this. He swallowed his fear and pain and forced himself to go with his plan.

"Oi, will you cut this out?" Agil asked. A loud mocking laughter echoed through the room and caught everyone's attention.

They all traced it to the small, frail looking boy kneeling on the ground. Kirito forced himself to get up. His dark bangs covered his eyes as he faced everyone.

"A beta tester?" he began as he walked through the crowd. "Don't go comparing me with those idiots."

"W-what?!" Kibaou yelled as he got up.

"Those thousand players were beginners. They didn't even had the slightest idea of how to level up. You guys are better than them." Kirito walked past Agil and Asuna and stood before Kibaou. "I am nothing like them. During the beta, I made it higher than anyone else. I knew the boss's pattern because I've fought a monster with katana sword skills in the floors far above us. I know a lot more, too. More than any information broker."

Kirito mustered his courage to talk and act like a cocky brat. He never done it before, but he desperately needed to do so. He couldn't let the other beta testers suffer anymore players accusing them. He must've pulled it off when he saw the look of horror and shock on Kibaou's face.

"T-that's worse than a beta tester!" he stammered as he took a step back. "You're a-a-a cheater! No, a beater!"

Kirito faked a dark smile. "Beater... Sounds good. I like it."

He opened his menu as he spoke. "From now on, I am a beater. Don't confuse me with any other beta tester." With that, he equipped the ≪Coat of Midnight≫. It appeared suddenly and reached down to his ankles. It was a simple black coat. He gave Kibaou a final, cocky smirk before turning away and heading upstairs to unlock the second floor.

No one bothered to intercept him as he passed them.

._._._._._.

After Kirito was sure no one was following him, he took a seat at a step and grabbed his head. It was pounding and it seemed like the pain just became unbearable. He knew that in the real world, he wouldn't live for much longer.

Kirito sighed and buried his face in his hands. "Please don't tell me I just made everything worse." He wasn't aware of the footsteps that were climbing up the stairs.

"Hey!"

Kirito looked up and saw Asuna not too far away. "Asuna..."

She looked flustered, most likely from running up the steps. She gave Kirito a serious look. "How do you know my name? I don't ever recall you ever saying it."

Kirito stared at her for a second. "Do you see little HP bar underneath your own at the top left corner of your eye...?" he asked. Asuna looked to her left and blinked.

"Kirito...?" she said. He got up and ignored the biting pain as he turned away from her. She laughed to herself. "Wow, your name was right there all along."

"Yeah. Listen, Asuna." Kirito said without looking at her. "You can't party with me anymore. Go and find a guild that will accept you. You'll survive that way."

There was a slight pause.

"What about you?" she asked. Kirito shook his head.

"I can't. I have to go on alone." he said, more to himself than Asuna. He climbed the last remaining steps and opened the door. Opening his menu, he removed Asuna from his party. "Just live."

Asuna blinked at the window that popped up saying that she was removed from the party. She quickly dismissed it and took a step to follow him but when she blinked, he wasn't there. Well, he was there, but he disappeared. She looked around and found absolutely no trace of him. Her eyes widened.

"He's...gone..."

That was a looooooong choppy I guess. I was supposed to NOT write this until after next week Monday, but oh, well. Tell me what you guys think! Maybe the next update may be just as fast as this one.

-CloudyLight