Chapter 4: The Black Swordsman
Detroid: Well, I'd say it's time for another smashing escape from the killer game, SAO!
sakuraphoenix: You can say that again my adorable Raichu
Detroid: Stop it. You're making me blush my cute Fennekin. But anyway, shall we do the disclaimer?
sakuraphoenix: Yes we shall
Disclaimer: We do not own Sword Art Online. Just our OC's
Detroid: Now then…. before we forget. Check out my profile for stories that my girlfriend and I are doing together but we should try to get out of here. LINK START
Of all the quests we could've been stuck doing, why this one? I mean, it's a bunch of overgrown lizards for crying out loud! I swear, if the reward item at the end of it all isn't worth it, once we're out of this game, I'm going to find the creator myself and punch his lights out!
"This is getting harder but we can handle it, right?" I said
"I don't know. I was thinking it was starting to get easy." said Sakura
"I agree with Sakura. Blade, switch!" Asuna replied
"Right!" I quickly reacted
I quickly took Asuna's place and activated a sword skill, the skill Vorpal Strike. With the skill, I managed to take care of three monsters in one hit before they turned into crystalline fragments as they disappeared and an experience bar appeared with the item they dropped. It looked like a B-class ingredient.
"Man, you were right about this babe but we can't give up. Not after the ingredient I was able to get from those monsters." I told Sakura
"What kind of ingredient? B-class or something?" asked Sakura
"Right on the mark. It's a B-class ingredient." I replied
"In that case, let's hunt down a few more. Asuna and I can cook something with those." said Sakura
"Right…." I started to say before I heard something then looking at both Sakura and Asuna and said:
"Shall we?"
The girls then nodded as more of the lizards from before respawned. We managed to collect quite a bit of the ingredient, so we decided to head into town to get to our guild headquarters when we saw Kirito with a little girl.
"What's going on?" I asked before I saw Kirito with someone
"Blade. Sakura. Asuna. What are you three doing here?" asked Kirito
"We could ask the same for you. It's not that often we see you on the lower floors unless you were planning on doing that lizard quest." said Sakura
"I'll be in a party with him for a while." The brown haired girl explained to us while grabbing Kirito's arm
"Kirito, who is this?" I asked while pointing to the girl next to him
"This is Silica. I'm going to help her get a Pneuma Flower." said Kirito
"Then you're planning on going to the 47th floor, the Hill of Memories. But if you're getting a Pneuma Flower, doesn't that mean that's she's a Beast Tamer?" Sakura asked while looking at Silica
"I was about to say the same thing but why are you going to the Hill of Memories, Silica besides getting the Pneuma Flower." I added in
"According to Kirito, only a Beast Tamer can get the flower. I'm not at a high enough level, so I can't clear the level by myself. But I have to try! For Pina..." Silica said while looking down at the ground with a sad look on her face
"Well, if there's one thing I can't stand, it's seeing someone in distress. If you want, we could help you out." said Sakura
"Hey! Who made you the boss?" asked Asuna
"It's not like we have anything better to do." said Sakura
"Besides, since Kirito and I knew each other from the first boss battle so you got two of the best people to back you up, Silica." I told her while smiling
"Oh yeah! We almost forgot to introduce ourselves. My name's Sakura." said Sakura
"My name is Blade and this is Asuna." I replied while pointing to Asuna as well
"It's nice to meet you, Silica." said Asuna
"Anyway, we'll go get your friend back, Silica." I told her
"Thank you." Silica said while smiling
"No problem." I told her
"Oh, if it isn't Silica." A voice suddenly rang out
We then saw a woman with red hair clad in black and red. One part of her hair was over her right eye, and she appeared to be a lancer
"You made it out of the forest. I'm relieved." The same woman said to Silica
"Is something wrong?" Kirito and I both asked Silica
"No. Nothing." Silica replied
"Huh? What happened to the lizard? Could something…" The woman started before Silica said:
"Pina died. But I'm definitely bringing her back!"
"Then you're going to the Hill of Memories… but at your level, will you be able to clear it?" the woman with red hair asked her
"She will. It isn't that hard." Kirito and I told the women
"You two are another one she's seduced? You two don't look particularly strong to me." The woman said
"Let's go." Kirito and I told Silica
"The sooner the better. That woman wears too much perfume." Sakura said as we walked away, which looked like that got the woman mad
The cafe wasn't much, but it was simple. Just the way I liked it. There were wooden tables and old-fashioned kerosene lanterns that seemed to lighten the mood, even if it was a small amount.
"Why is she so mean?" Silica asked us
"Is SAO your first MMO?" I said Silica
"Yes." Silica answered us
"In most of the MMORPG's I've played, I've met people who were really nice in real life, but in the games, they acted like villains, but I wasn't one of them." said Sakura
"Our player indicators are green, right?" I asked Silica
"Once you commit a crime, your icon will turn orange. Then there are the worse kind of criminals, the player killers. They have a red-orange icon. In other words, they're the people who've killed someone in this game." said Asuna
"You mean murderers?" Silica asked in shock
"In any other game, they could've had fun while roleplaying as the bad guy. However, Sword Art Online is different. This game isn't really a game at all." I told her as Kirito gripped his cup even tighter
"Blade, Kirito, Sakura, and Asuna…" Silica started to trail off
"I'm sorry." Kirito stated
"You're all very good people! Kirito saved me in the forest, and you three offered to help me even though we just met!" Silica said as she jumped up and held Kirito's hands
"Seems like you've cheered me up instead. Thanks Silica." Kirito said to Silica while smiling
Silica's face then started to turn red as she jumped away from Kirito before she started fanning her face as she said:
"Our cheesecakes are late! Excuse me, our dessert hasn't arrived yet!"
Sakura's POV
Well, that was one heck of a day. First we went from food hunting to finding a flower to revive a fallen monster. Why am I suddenly thinking of the Pokemon episode 'To Find a Fairy Flower'? Maybe it's because both the episode involved finding a flower like what we would be doing tomorrow once we all got some rest.
"Silica, are you still up? Kirito and I forgot that we had more to tell you about Floor 47… Want to go over it tomorrow?" Blade was yelling to Silica after knocking on her door
"It's fine! I was just thinking about that..." Silica said as we heard her running to the door
After a few moments, she opened the door, and we saw her in a green nightgown as Kirito pulled up the table, Asuna and Blade pulled up chairs, and I was looking for that stupid Mirage Sphere. It's somewhere in here… ah-ha!
"Silica, is something wrong?" Blade asked Silica
"No, it's nothing." Silica said as I placed the Mirage Sphere on the table before she asked:
"What's that item, Sakura?"
"It's called a Mirage Sphere. I'll show you what it does." I said as I tapped the purple button on the sphere twice as a 3D map appeared while making the room glow in an ethereal light.
"It's so pretty!" Silica said in wonder
"Here is Floor 47's town area" Blade spoke while pointing to it
"And right here is the Hill of Memories. So we'll be following this route…" Kirito started before he became silent and turned to the door
"Kirito, Blade-" Silica started to say before Blade made the sssh sound
"Kirito, did you hear what I heard?" Blade asked him
Kirito nodded as he rushed to the door before saying:
"Who's there?!"
All we heard was the sound of running as the guy who was listening in ran away like a coward. That guy must've had a high listening skill. He must not have any free time to do that.
"So Kirito?" Blade asked Kirito
"What was that?" asked Silica
"They heard us." said Asuna
"But unless you've knocked, you can't hear through a door…" Silica said while trailing off
"It's different if your listening skill is high enough. But few people invest the time to raise it." said Blade
"Why would they listen in on us?" asked Silica
"Who knows. But it's safe to say this. We're going to have to keep our guard up tomorrow." I said
The next day…
February 24, 2024. Floor 47: Floria
Blade's POV
We arrived on the 47th floor in the town of Floria, and I have to admit, it was beautiful!
"It's like a dream!" exclaimed Silica
"Yeah but we're not out of the woods yet." I said
"Come on, you're not interested in hearing what this floor is nicknamed?" Sakura asked me in a playful tone
"And why not babe?" I asked her in a playful tone back
"I know that tone, mister." Sakura said in a playful tone
"And I can't be playful around you?" I told her while picking a flower for Sakura
She then started blushing as I put the flower in her hair, which got her to blush even more.
"You look beautiful with that flower in your hair." I told her
"Thanks." Sakura said while blushing
"This floor is known as the Flower Garden. The entire level is covered in flowers." Kirito explained to Silica
Silica excitedly bent over to one of the flower beds while I imagined me and Sakura someday living here, if I ever decided to marry her in the game.
"Beautiful, isn't it Silica, Sakura?" I asked them
"It sure is." Sakura said while smiling
"Yes! Sorry to keep you all waiting." Silica said as she was cleaning her skirt
"What's wrong?" Kirito asked her
"Ah, nothing at all…" Silica said while fixing her hair
"Let's go." Asuna said as we started walking
"Right!" I replied while following her
Silica soon began following as well, and once we reached the bridge to the Hill of Memories, Kirito pulled out a teleport crystal for her to use for later, but why?
"What's this?" asked Silica
"If anything unexpected happens, and I tell you to warp out, use this crystal to jump to any town." said Kirito
"But…" started Silica
"Promise me." Kirito said to Silica
"Alright." Silica replied
"Shall we take our leave then?" I asked in a playful tone before saying in a serious tone:
"This path leads to the Hill of Memories."
We all then started walking on the path towards the Hill of Memories as Silica then ran to catch up with us.
"Um, Kirito…" Silica started to say before she was grabbed by a monster and was hung upside down as she grabbed her skirt and started flailing around her dagger before Asuna said:
"Calm down, Silica! It's not that strong of a monster!"
"K-Kirito, Blade, Sakura, Asuna! Save me! Don't look, but save me!" Silica screamed as she kept swinging around her dagger
"Hang on! Asuna and I will be right there!" Sakura exclaimed as I covered my eyes with one hand and Kirito's with my other
"We shouldn't look, Kirito. It's not polite. But Silica, it's kinda impossible." I told him before saying that last bit to her
"S-Stupid thing…. That's enough!" Silica started to say before the monster started swinging her around and she managed to free herself before she, Sakura, and Asuna finished it off, based on what I could hear
"Can Kirito and I look now since, ya know? Sakura is my girlfriend and since… nevermind. Forget that last bit I was going to say." I told them
"Even if you said it, I would've said 'you can look now' anyway." said Sakura
"I know but still….. we were about to see what was going on and well, ya know." I told her
"I know what you mean, but in any case, you're my boyfriend. I could never be mad at you. Kirito on the other hand…" Sakura trailed off as I felt her holding my hands
"And I won't forgive neither you nor him." Asuna said to Kirito and I
That caused us to gulp a bit before we kept going on the way to the top.
"Kirito, could I ask you about your sister?" asked Silica
"Why now, all of a sudden?" asked Kirito
"You said I look like her. I know it's impolite to ask about the real world. But would it be okay?" asked Silica
Kirito then nodded as we continued on the path towards the top.
"I called her my little sister, but she's actually my cousin. We grew up together, so I don't think she knows. Maybe that's why… I've been distancing myself from her. Our grandfather's really strict. When I was eight, he made us attend a local kendo dojo. I stopped after two years. My grandfather beat me up." said Kirito
"That's terrible…" Silica said while trailing off
"That nearly sounds like someone we currently know babe." I turned to her about it
"Someone named my mom?" asked Sakura
"Bingo!" I said to her
"I agree with you on that one. Not only that, but try having to endure that from your father when you were five. He abused me every day until my mom finally divorced from that monster." Sakura said while looking away sadly
"Or try growing up without a father, Silica." I added in
"So my sister said that she'll put in enough effort for the both of us, and to stop hitting me. She worked really hard after that and made it to the nationals." Kirito explained
"That's amazing." said Silica
"But I always felt bad about it. LIke maybe she would rather have been doing something else, and secretly holds it against me. So it's possible that I'm helping you because it feels like a way to atone to my sister. I'm sorry." Kirito explained
"I don't think that your sister hates you. You can't work that hard for someone who you don't like. I'm sure that she really loves kendo." Silica replied to Kirito
"You keep reassuring me. Maybe you're right. I hope so." Kirito told Silica
Silica then started blushing before she turned around and said:
"Okay… I'll do my best, too!"
It was then a Land Anemone appeared directly underneath Silica and right when Sakura was about to save her, she was hung upside down by one of the anemone's tentacles. She quickly pulled her skirt so Kirito and I wouldn't see, well… you know...
"Uh….. do you need help babe?" I said while covering my eyes
"I would love some!" exclaimed Sakura
"Alright then." I told Sakura while unsheathing my sword
"Kirito!" Silica exclaimed as we heard one of the tentacles lick Silica's cheek
I then charged the same time Kirito did, and we both defeated the monster at the same time. After it burst into crystal fragments, I held out my arms and caught Sakura, whom then started to blush.
"You alright?" I asked Sakura
"I'm better now that you're here." Sakura said while smiling before she nuzzled me
"Ow!" Silica exclaimed while rubbing her butt before she quickly sat in a way so that no one would see up her skirt as I helped Sakura onto her feet
We then kept walking up the hill until it looked like we finally made it to the top.
"The flower of revival is here?" Silica asked
"Yeah, if I remember…." I started to say before Silica ran ahead of everyone
We then made it just in time to see the Pneuma Flower bloom. It was so beautiful. I can see why it's called the flower of revival now.
"Take it." Asuna said to Silica
"Yeah, you deserve it." I added in
Silica smiled as she picked the flower and it was added into her inventory.
"This will bring Pina back, right?" asked Silica
"Yeah." Kirito and I replied to Silica
"I'm so glad…" Silica said while smiling
"But there are still monsters around this place. It'll be safer if we all go back to town to revive Pina." said Sakura
"I'm sure Pina would want it." I added into Sakura's statement
"Yeah." Silica said in agreement
We all then headed back to town, but once we were on the bridge, Kirito suddenly stopped us. I guess he sensed the player that was nearby too, huh?
"Kirito?" asked Silica
"Whoever's lying in waiting in there! Show yourself!" I yelled
The woman we saw from the 35th floor was here. But why did she follow us?
"R-Rosalia?" asked Silica
"If you can see through my hiding skill, your detection skill must be quite high, swordsman. It appears you managed to get the Pneuma Flower. Congratulations. Now hand it over." said Rosalia
"W-What are you talking about?" Silica asked in shock
"That's not going to happen, Rosalia. Or should I say, the leader of the Orange Guild, Titan's Hand." Kirito said with a serious look on his face
"But she's green!" exclaimed Silica
"It's a simple trick. The green players would trick and lead other green players to where the orange players are waiting." I explained
"So it was one of your friends who was eavesdropping on us last night, right?!" exclaimed Asuna
"Then, the reason we were in the same party for two weeks…" started Silica
"That's right. I was assessing its strength, while waiting for them to earn money from adventures." Rosalia said while licking her lips before she continued by saying:
"You were the prey I was most anticipating. It was unfortunate you left, but then you said you were getting a rare item. However, you knew all that but went with her anyway. Are you idiots? Or did she actually seduce you boys?" asked Rosalia
"No, neither of the above." I told Rosalia
"You see, you've got your name out there, Rosalia." said Sakura
"What are you talking about?" asked Rosalia
"Does the guild name, Silver Flags ring any bells?" Sakura and I asked together
"Ten days ago, you attacked that guild. Four people, except the leader of the guild, were all killed." said Asuna
"Oh, the ones with no money…" Rosalia said while twirling her hair around on one finger
"Their leader went from warp point to the front lines from morning until night, begging someone to avenge them. But he didn't want you killed. He wanted someone to jail you. Can you understand how he felt?" I asked Rosalia
"Nope. What kind of idiot would take this seriously? There's no proof that killing someone here means they die in real life. Anyway, shouldn't you be more concerned for yourselves?" Rosalia asked as she snapped her fingers
From behind the trees, more members of the guild Titan's Hand showed up, and they all had orange icons.
"Kirito, Sakura, Blade and Asuna, there are too many! We should run!" Silica exclaimed
"It'll be okay." said Sakura
"Until we tell you to run, just keep the crystal ready. Stay put and watch." Kirito told Silica
"Okay. B-but…" Silica started as Kirito, Sakura, Asuna and I walked forward and prepared to draw our swords, then said:
"Kirito! Blade! Sakura! Asuna!"
"Kirito? Blade? Sakura? Asuna?" One of the orange players said before continuing by saying:
"Black clothes… a one-handed, no shield style. Blue clothes… also a one-handed, no shield style. Pink hair and clothing… and holds a rapier like a sword. Orange hair with red and white clothing like the Knights of the Blood Oath. They can't be… the Black Swordsman, the Dual Blades, and the Lightning Flash?"
"Rosalia, this is one of the beaters who solos one the front lines with the other three… they're in the lead group!" exclaimed another orange member
"The lead group?" Silica wondered out loud
"Someone from the lead group wouldn't be down here! Go get them, and take everything they own!" exclaimed Rosalia
"Die!" one of the orange members exclaimed before they all charged at us
We all just stood there, letting them attack us. I even yawned as they did as my HP kept regenerating thanks to Sakura's Christmas gift and my Battle Healing Skill.
"I have to save Kirito, Sakura, Blade and Asuna….." Silica started to say before she saw our HP regenerating before she said:
"What's going on?"
And the orange guild members were all catching their breath after their onslaught. That was it? Really? The boss monsters put up more of a fight than these guys.
"What are you doing?! Kill them!" Rosalia yelled
"About 400 damage… that's the total damage that the 7 of you can do to me." I told them
"I'm level 78. I have 14,500 HP. My Battle Healing skill auto-regenerates 600 points every ten seconds." said Kirito
"Asuna and I are level 75. The total HP we have is 13,000. Our Battle Healing skill gives us 550 points every ten seconds." said Sakura
"I'm level 79. I have 15,000 HP. My Battle Healing skill auto-regenerates 650 points every ten seconds. We could stand here all day and you'd could never beat any of us." I finished
"Is that even possible?" a third member asked
"It is. High enough numbers will make you invincible. MMO's that use a level system are unfair that way." Kirito and I stated together before Kirito continued after he brought out a warp crystal by saying:
"Our client spent his entire fortune to buy this warp crystal. It's set to take you to the prison. You're all going there!" exclaimed Kirito
"I'm green, so if you hurt me, you'll go orange…" Rosalia started before Sakura and I put our blades at Rosalia's throat
"Just so we're clear. We're a guild. Sakura, Asuna and I. One or two days of playing while orange means nothing to us." I told Rosalia
Rosalia then dropped her weapon out of fright as we all took them to the prison. Once we finished, we returned to Silica's room in the inn on the 35th floor.
"I'm sorry we didn't tell you about Rosalia, Silica." said Sakura
"Yeah…. but she did have to be brought in but we didn't know how to bring her out of hiding." I added in
"We ended up using you as bait." Kirito finished
"We all thought you would be scared if we told you the truth." said Asuna
Silica then shook her head before saying:
"You're good people, so I wouldn't be scared. So, you're leaving, then?"
"Yeah. We've been away from the front line for five days and we need to get back." I told Silica
"T-the lead group is amazing… I could never be one, even if I tried for years. Um… I…" started Silica
"Levels are just numbers. In this world, strength is just an illusion. There are more important things. Next time, let's meet in the real world. Then we'll be friends just like we are now." Kirito and I said together
"Right. I'm sure we will!" exclaimed Silica
"Now, it's time to revive Pina." said Sakura
"Yeah!" Silica exclaimed as she jumped onto her feet
She then brought out what looked like a feather from her inventory. It must be Pina's heart. She then brought out the flower to use on Pina's heart in order to revive her. She then turned to us and we all nodded for her to use the flower on Pina's Heart. A drop of the flower's nectar landed on Pina's Heart and lit up the room with a bright glow. When it died down, a Feathery Dragon was curled up where Pina's Heart was before it opened her eyes and flew around Silica.
"Pina!" Silica exclaimed happily as she hugged Pina
"Glad that you have your friend back, Silica." I said
"That's Pina? She's cute." Sakura said while smiling
Pina then made a small cry and started licking Sakura's cheek, which got her to start laughing.
"H-hey! That tickles!" Sakura exclaimed while still laughing
"Guess she likes you babe." I replied while trying not to laugh at it
"I guess." Sakura said while smiling before she said:
"Pina's in good hands. Make sure you take good care of her Silica."
"I will!" Silica exclaimed while smiling
"Because we may not be around if she gets killed again." I told Silica
"Don't say stuff like that!" Asuna exclaimed before we all shared a good laugh
Detroid: Well, that's one way to end a chapter that adds romance between a person and a beast.
sakuraphoenix: Don't you mean friendship between a Feathery Dragon and a Beast Tamer?
Detroid: Point is, see all of you next time. We're out!
sakuraphoenix: Don't you mean we're logging out?
Detroid: We're signing off either way *puffs out my cheeks*
sakuraphoenix: I can't tease you?
Detroid: And I can't act mad around you?
sakuraphoenix: You got me. In any case, I'm sakuraphoenix…
Detroid: And I'm Detroid….
sakuraphoenix: Both of us saying we heart you, logging out. See ya!
Detroid: Bye ya'll! I should use this same line in Light of Hope as well.
sakuraphoenix: I know you will *smiles*