Syh'stehm.

A vast world inhabited by Nine Great Races and many others. It is a world of sword and magic. Honor and pride. But also, mystery and deceit.

Humans, one of many other races inhabiting this world, were indeed the tenth greatest people. And they were tenth most common on the great continent of Alfheim. Their territory, Aincrad- the name used for the territory, the capital, and the ruling family- was going through most dynamic changes compared to other lands. Be it territory's size, race ration human per other races or otherwise.

Our story, however, begins near a small village of Rulid near the borders of Aincrad and the WildRealms, the landscape that was not a part of any nation. Just outside the village there was a small hut, surrounded by trees as huge as siege towers. The sound of birds and occasional sounds of dears passing by. Accompanied by the rustling of the leaves on the light breeze. The sunlight beaming through the trees illuminating the bit of green grass just behind the hut.

Now there was a sound of wood hitting wood. As well as grunting. But they sounded… young. That is because there were two figures training using wooden swords. One was the adult with handsome features. Short black hair with long bangs on the right side of his face and sharp dark blue eyes. He was of average height and well build. And his training partner…

A small boy with short black hair and obsidian eyes. A surprising thing about the kid however were his features. He seemed rather feral. And there was almost nothing in his eyes you would expect of a 9-10-year-old. The boy was panting lightly, and a bit of sweat was running from his forehead down the side of his face. The young man could not help but be amazed by the kid's stamina. Any other child would be far more tired.

"That's enough for now, boy." The man said. The boy reluctantly obeyed and lowered his piece of wood. But the man could still see the young one was still tense, ready for a possible attack. he sighed. The boy was difficult like this. "I'm going to prepare us dinner. Don't overdo it." He started to make his way to the wooden hut, while seeing the boy already doing practice swings. Just as he knew he would. He wished the kid would relax more, but he was like in constant survival mode. Expecting an attack at any moment.

And his little friend did not show interest in anything else. And it disturbed him.

"Sir Kazuto!" a young voice reached the man, now named Kazuto, as he was reaching for the doorknob. As the man looked behind him, he found two children approaching in fast pace. One leading the was a young girl with long bright blond hair braided halfway. And just behind her was a boy Kazuto knew was a little younger than the girl. He had dark blond or light brown hair- Kazuto could never tell which exactly.

"Alice? Eugeo? What brings you here today?" Kazuto asked, as the two children approached him. He knew them very well. Whenever he had come to visit the village, these two would always visit him, asking him for stories or, in Eugeo's case, teach some sword moves. Alice was the daughter of the village leader. Always cheerful and, maybe because of her father's position, acting motherly to other children. She would even try that attitude with him, bringing him a basket of food and "making" him eat it. Something that amused him to no end. Considering she was only 11 years old.

As for Eugeo- he was an orphan but was trying to help around the village when not playing with the other kids. And he dreamed of becoming a knight, believing it would help him get strong enough to protect the village. Nice dream for a 10-years-old. And he was Alice's best friend.

"We thought we'd bring you something to eat, Sir Kazuto." Eugeo answered, as his female friend handed over the basket.

"Freshly made. And plenty considering your… guest." The girl was hesitant with the right word. Not that Kazuto blamed her. "So… can we speak to him?"

Kazuto took a moment to think how to answer them. He could tell by the look in their eyes they were curious about the boy even now. Even though there were still some concerns, things were better and better. At least the raven head was not trying to kill them.

"Do not leave my sight." He told them. And the two children happily nodded, understanding the instruction. After telling them that his trainee was behind the hut, the two started to walk.

"Alright, today's the day I teach him some manners." Alice said, confident in what she said.

"Maybe it would be better you stop." Eugeo suggested. "Remember how that ends?"

"Well today's going to be different!" the girl claimed, much to Kazuto's amusement. At least the new kid was not trying to kill her. Anymore. So now it was somewhat amusing watching the kids interact. Kazuto still remembered, and was disturbed, with how that child appeared in their lives.

Flashback…

About two months ago…

Kazuto just arrived at the village three days earlier. This land was where his mother came from. And he took the liking to the place. It felt so relaxing here, like at home. And relaxation was part of the plan why Kazuto came here. But business before pleasure. He had a job to do first.

For Kazuto, tough 19 years old, was a knight. Part of the Aincrad's Sword Sworn Knights, the order of knights given special privileges outside military custom. The people mistakenly believe them to be mercenaries, but truth is they have official training, but are not part of Aincrad's military. They are Aincrad's special order.

Kazuto was a prodigy swordsman. One Alfheim has not seen in decades, having been knighted at the age 15. Now he was out here on this frontier because there were rumors and kobold groups' sightings. Two days of investigation and Kazuto found no signs of them. Which would be weird, since Kobolds, while far from stupid, did not cover their tracks. But Kazuto was not going to just leave without making sure. Especially since word reached the capital about an amassing army of monsters. If a war was coming, it was more reason to investigate.

So, Kazuto had this small hut just outside the village, that would be his resting place. He would also train there when not in the field. And sometimes…

"Sir Kazuto!" yes… the two children coming to visit. Not that he was against them visiting. But they would come every day at noon or evening. Did these kids even have anything to do?

"You kids again? You really like coming to visit, don't you?" he chuckled.

"Of course, sir." Eugeo answered. "You always have great stories to tell and watching you fight is awesome." The boy had stars in his eyes, showing his enthusiasm.

That earned him a whack on the head from Alice. "Behave, Eugeo. We only came here to look after Sir Kazuto's hut while he is away scouting. Not to cause him trouble." She scolded her friend. She would lie saying she disagreed with him but knew better than to disturb the knight when he was here with an assignment. "We also brought you something to eat while you're out in the field."

"Why thank you, Alice." Kazuto happily accepted a small package from the blond girl. But soon met a harsh gaze from her.

"Just be sure to eat it when you're hungry. No picking!"

And there it was. Her motherly attitude. While she was only 11, he would not argue with the girl. He chuckled nervously as he placed it into his backpack. "Well, I am entrusting you to keep an eye on the place."

"No need to worry, Sir Kazuto. You can trust us." The long haired blond reassured.

"Yeah. Your place is safe with us around." The boy added with confidence. It only made Alice sigh and rub her face.

"Well, I'm off, kids. Try not to cause too much trouble." The raven-haired knight said as he started to make his way into the forest. The children just waved him goodbye, wishing him luck. They knew he would be gone for hours. Likely return after dark. While the kids could play at his place, they would also do chores while he is gone. He never asked them to but was grateful the little ones were that thoughtful. And hard working. And knowing Alice, he would not go to bed on an empty stomach. And Eugeo was a kind enough boy to sweep the place.

Of course, being kids, he would find out that the two returned home all covered in mud and leaves. Those two are amusing.

"So, Alice. What should we start with?" the boy asked a bit sadly. He would probably prefer to do something fun first. But Alice would likely tell him to clean up the place or something.

"We should start with the weeds…" she started, earning a groan from the boy… "After a little hide-and-seek game." She surprised him.

What? They were still kids. And they both laughed starting their game.

Kazuto was entering another clearing. And again, no sign of kobolds in the area. "This is ridiculous." He murmured under his breath. He has been searching for nearly half a day now and even after all these days found no tracks. The sightings were of red tip-ear creatures passing through fast and silently. That description fit the kobolds. But there were NO TRACKS. And kobolds did not bother with that. So, he should have found them a long time ago. He could understand overreacting to the rumors about an army. But monster sightings were no jokes.

Kind of stupid, I know, but think about it. People see several monsters in the area and assume there is a big army organizing. There monsters around for years and someone would have found something by now. But a sighting of specific monster in this area was something not to ignore any less. Kobolds usually do not venture this far south. And that is a sign to worry.

But he could not find anything. "Were the people wrong?" he sighed. Nothing of the ordinary again. Maybe he would just take the days off and rest. Maybe the villagers were wrong. Maybe… something caught his eyes. Kazuto saw something in the corner of his eye. By the rather thick pine was something grayish. And red. He approached it slowly, unsheathing his blade. Maybe this was a kobolds' trap. Or campsite. Either way finally something. As he approached it, he found a wolf's corpse. It was all covered in cuts and burn marks. And as the young knight placed his hand on the dead animal, he could tell it was killed quite recently. But who did this? He studied the animal corpse some more. That is when he found it. Orange substance on the animal's teeth. He took a closer look.

Oh no…

He sheathed his sword back and ran towards his hut. Now he knew what was happening. It was not the kobolds. It was something much worse.

Alice was humming a happy tune as she was cutting the vegetables. She enjoyed cooking. Especially since it was her meals that would make Kazuto… ahem, Sir Kazuto tell them some stories. Mother was right. The best way to get the man talk was through a good meal.

Eugeo was a little busier with personal training. Once he was older, he would need to be strong to protect the village. So, finding a practice sword, well, what would fit as one anyway, he started to do some practice swings. He and Alice were done playing. Did some chores for the knight. Now, while Alice was making lunch, he was training. Maybe today Sir Kazuto would find some time to teach him some.

"Eugeo!" the boy paused. He turned to Alice as she called him. "Could you come over for a moment. I'd like you to help me with the pot." Indeed, the pot was a little too heavy for her alone. The boy nodded in confirmation and placed the piece of wood against the tree before running over to the girl. It took them a little while. The pot was so much heavier than he thought. Why was she making lunch in the big one?

"Honestly, you're making enough to feed two families." The boy voiced his opinion.

"W-well, Sir Kazuto will no doubt be very hungry once he comes back." Alice replied with a small blush. Maybe she was making a little too much. But she knew the man had a big appetite.

"I hope he'll come back soon." Eugeo spoke. "I mean… you know Mr. Jethro's the one to had been the one to have seen the kobolds. His sight's been getting worse in the last few months. What if just saw a fox or something?"

Alice was a little upset Eugeo spoke like that about the local huntsman- former huntsman- but could not argue. It is true the man stopped being a huntsman because his eyes got worse. Maybe Eugeo was onto something. But Sir Kazuto was smarter than them. Surely, he considered the possibility. What if he was just cautious? Or maybe he knew something they did not? Well, not like they could ask him this minute. Might as well prepare the meal and ask him the first chance they get.

"The meal will be ready in a while. Don't run off anywhere."

"Yes, mom~." Eugeo playfully replied, much to his friend's displeasure. The boy just chuckled at the sight of Alice's pounding face. Now he was going to train some more.

Or so he planned. But he could not. as he opened the door, he was expecting a clearing with a sole tree against which his makeshift practice sword lied. The sight of natural peace and tranquility. Instead he found twelve figures walking into view. All dressed in red and black. Majority wearing what looked like horned helmets or masks. There were even two canines with them.

The boy did not know this yet, but these figures were Salamanders, one of the Nine Great Races.

What are The Nine Great Races you ask?

Once there was one Elven Race- Alfs, the original race. But at some point, of history they split into nine.

Cait Sith- beast tamers with great eyesight and speed. Recognizable through cat ears and tails.

Gnome- size-wise largest of all nine races with natural affinity for earth magic.

Imp- people of the night and darkness with superior night sight.

Leprechaun- a technologically advanced race with a natural affinity for tinkering.

Pooka- People of the music, finding balance in fighting and aiding others.

Spriggan- masters of illusion magic and having the strongest awareness of their surroundings.

Sylvan- a stoic race considered the fastest of all The Nine with affinity for wind magic.

Undine- a race of healers born strong with water magic.

And Salamander- an aggressive warrior race with powerful fire magic.

They were the dominant races. Thus, The Nine Great Races. But as time passed, their roles slowly changed. Their standing in the world, be it territorial or political or influence in the form of magical or military power begone to change. And not necessarily for the better. Like the Salamanders. Their lust for battle made them viewed for enemies no different than kobolds or goblins. While there were exceptions, the reputation of the whole race still burdened them.

And now Eugeo was facing them. The Alfs of war and fire. He just stood there. And the sight of the biggest guy amongst them raising a mace, seemingly made from six two-handed swords fused into one, nearing the boy. Eugeo could tell what was happening. Every fiber of his being was screaming to run.

But he was paralyzed in fear.

"EUGEO!" Alice screamed, as she barely managed to pull her friend away from getting hit. The floor was severely damaged. That guy was not joking around.

One of the hulking Salamander's companions, wearing a better-looking equipment, along with an obsidian mask, chuckled as he was approaching the hut. "Well look at that, EAson. The little rats are fast." He commented with amusement in his voice. "Maybe they'll make for good slaves. Or maybe we'll safe ourselves the trouble and just kill them." He suggested, bringing his left hand as it begun to burn. No, not burn. It was covered in fire magic.

The children were frightened. Alice tried to steal herself but could not muster the strength to do so. Eugeo however seemed to have an idea. He caught Alice's hand and started to run. The Salamanders playfully allowed them to run out. Of course, the kids could not escape them. Human kids at that. Seriously, why did humans think they were the tenth race? As the two ran outside, Eugeo lead Alice to the stump. The axe was there. It was no sword, but it would have to do. The boy picked the axe up, took a fighting stance and tried to look threatening.

"Oh no." One of the Salamanders spoke, before turning to the supposed to boss. "Look, Boss. The boy's got an axe." Of course, he was just acting scared. The boss humored them.

"What ever shall we do, boys?" he asked sarcastically. "It's not like we all have weapons and magic… Oh wait. We do. We ALL got swords."

As if on command, all the Salamanders pulled out their swords. Well, half of them did. The other half had daggers, a mace, spears and even a bigger axe. the two blonds were sweating nervously. Eugeo tried to swing the axe to scare them off but he miscalculated. Not only did Alice had to duck to avoid getting hurt, the tool fell out of his grasp. He wanted to pick it up fast, but a small fireball hit it, forcing Eugeo back to his friend.

"Enough of this. Take them." The boss ordered.

"You got it, Frit." The scrawny one in the group responded, approaching the kids. He looked at the girl and gave her a lecherous smile. "The girl might turn into a nice cutie. I am so looking forward to toying with her 'til she's old enough." He giggled perversely. Alice did not understand what he was suggesting but did not like the sound of that. In fact, it was scaring her even more. She and Eugeo were backing away, but the mace-wielding giant, EAson if they recalled, got in their way. It was clear. They were messing with them. Now they were serious. They would not escape. But the boy thought about giving Alice a way out. But how to distract them?

He had no need to. The wolves cried in pain and fell. When the salamanders turned around, three of them fell. Those three had only plain shirts and no armor. There were throwing knives in their necks. The Salamanders looked around the clearing, towards the trees, trying to find the one or ones who attacked them.

Frit however approached the bodies and studied them. Then looked in a specific direction. He knew where the knives came from. "Good aim." He complimented the attacker. "But you gave away your presence." He said before shooting a stream of fire in the direction the attacker hit from. He knew the one to throw those knives was no longer there. After potentially giving away their position, it reasons to relocate.

"If you won't come out, then EAson will make the kids into paste." The boss of this Salamander group technically gave the hulking one an order. As the mace wielder approached the kids faster and was about to squash them, much to the lecherous one's dismay, and the kids' eyes widened even more in fear, a blur jumped out of the trees and kicked EAson in the face. HARD. The mace-wielding Salamander stumbled back a bit, while holding his face in pain. The kids looked up to smiled widely when they saw their savior.

"Sir Kazuto!" the children cried happily.

"Stay close to me." He instructed the kids. It is be better to have them near him to protect them. He was slowly backing with the kids. The Salamanders approaching them. Everyone waiting for an opening to strike. What the fire-affiliated people did not notice was the Kazuto was leading the kids towards the hut. Towards the wall and not the door. At least they would take them from behind. The spear wielding Salamander rushed forward, letting out a battle cry. He had a good chest piece. Kazuto parried the spear, causing it to get stuck in the wall. That was an opening. He stabbed the salamander in the gut. Another one down.

Six left. The mace, two swords, two daggers and the boss who was resting his sword on his shoulder.

"You're too composed to be a bandit. The fact you could tell where I threw the knives from and your sword suggest you had actual training. Military I take it." Kazuto started to speak, surprising both his young friends and the Salamanders. "So, you're either scouts or… deserters."

Frit just stood there for a while, tapping his sword against his shoulder, as if thinking. True, unlike the others in his group he had very descent gear. No wonder that guy went for his lackeys. A throwing knife would not have taken him down. So, he had just reduced their numbers by hitting the poorly equipped members. Then came out to protect the kids when he saw an opening. Now eliminated taking the kids hostage by approaching from behind. The kid was smart.

"So what?" Frit commended. "Kill him!" he ordered.

The first of was a swordsman with some stupid hairdo and a dual dagger-wielder with a cliché evil mustache. Kazuto jumped onto the wall of his hut and leaped into them. The dagger-wielder was fortunately much faster of the duo. Kazuto took advantage of the range difference between their respective weapons. The Salamanders daggers went flying and landed before the kids. The young knight quickly stood up, pulling his sword out of the defeated foe and blocked the swordsman. After quickly pushing him back, the two traded three blows. The Salamander tried to stab Kazuto, aiming for the head. Poor choice of targets. Kazuto not only got out of the sword's path; he was in his opponent's guard. First, he slashed the Salamander's leg, forcing him to drop to his knees. Then slashed him across the neck. It was then he allowed himself a moment to watch as the body seemed to incinerate, turning into a small flame.

That was another thing that The Nine so amazing. The soul flames. Should any of the nine find themselves dying, their bodies would burn and become these little flames burning for another minute or so. And within that time, it was possible to restore them back to life. Should that minute pass… they would die to reborn again later.

But Kazuto's mind returned to the situation at hand. Another swordsman attacked. This one was skilled. He was using simple slashes. Whatever stab attacks seemed to be only provocative. He was being more careful.

And that was bad. "Alice! Eugeo! Run! Get out of here! NOW!" he ordered the kids. Seeing the seriousness of the situation, the two younglings quickly picked up the daggers and ran towards the trees. With them away, Kazuto could focus on these three Salamanders. Wait. Three?

He suddenly felt cold. Turning to see the kids, he saw the perverted one dashing after them. Likely to use them as hostages. How could he be so stupid? He just put the kids in a vulnerable position. Kazuto gave chase. He needed to reach that guy before he got to them. But he was not fast enough. He would not make it. He could try the sword skill but was too far away. That left him with one option, though he was hesitant to use it with Eugeo and Alice in the line of fire. But he had little choice left.

He was going to use magic. He was average at best when it comes to it. But it should suffice. He just needed to give Alice and Eugeo time.

"Ek skýt fjórir ískaldur ör" he recited, as runes made from light appeared around him. He was going to use ice arrow. He needed to hit that guy.

But the other dagger-wielder would have none of it. Another distinguish feature of The Nine Great Races- flight. The dagger-wielding Salamander formed red wings coming from his back. He was flying towards him. Dammit. Kazuto had to turn around and bend down. As the salamander was right above him, the knight fired the spell. He hit the airborne enemy at point blank. The Salamander cried in pain, falling to the ground eventually and rolling along. Too bad for him, his own dagger stabbed him. He was not dead, but he was now out of the fight.

Unfortunately, the boss and the muscle-head caught onto him. He would not get a chance to protect the kids now.

Speaking of which, the two made it to the tree lines. But the Salamander was so much closer to them. So much closer that Alice could feel that dirty, lecherous breath of his on her neck. A horrible feeling, worse than fear was filling her heart. She wanted to escape. She wish she could have just vanished.

It cost her. She tripped over a branch or a root. She could not tell. She cared not. She tripped, hit the ground, face first. It hurt. First thing she saw when she raised her head was Eugeo who saw her tripped and was now coming to her aid. She turn around to find the pursuer now just walking towards her, a sword out.

"We're gonna have some fun now, kids~." He said, grinning mad. Eugeo got closer, ready to stab this perverted bastard, only to get punched hard and send flying into the nearby tree. Alice cried his name out as she tried to get up. She got rewarded with a solid kick to the gut and send flying to where the boy was lying. They were fortunate to still hold the daggers. Kazuto saw it all and tried to make their way to save the two blonds, but the two Salamanders were not making it easy. He was closer, but he was being slowed down a lot and the ice spell was the only one he could cast.

He would not make it.

The kids, despite the pain, looked up to see the predatory grin on the hostile man. Alice tried to put a brave face, while the boy next to her tried to stand up. But it was futile. The Salamander raised his hand and soon flames started dance on the surface of his limb. Fear gripped them by the throat. All their surrounding disappearing. The only thing these two could register was the pointy-eared man with a flaming hand.

"First, Imma gonna burn the boy's legs so he doesn't go runnin' anywhere." He started talking, slowly reaching for the boy. Then the girl's gonna entertain me…" He could already hear the boy's cries of pain. He would enjoy hearing the boy suffer. Then he would make the girl into his pleasure toy.

Though he was now a hand short.

…

Wait, wha…?

"AAAARGH!" the Salamander roared in pain. His arm was gone. Orange blood shooting and spilling from his… what is left of his left arm. How did this happen? He was about to grab one of the kids before his freaking limb got cut off. Nearly entire forearm was now gone. What the hell? HOW? The human was still a good distance away and was still holding his stupid sword. And the kids certainly could not have done this. So, what happened?

The man managed to pull himself enough to find a small cloaked figure holding a sword. Was that the one responsible for cutting the Salamander's limb off? Who was this dwarf? Where did he- or she- come from? And more importantly…

HOW DARE THAT LITTLE SH*T CUT OFF HIS ARM?!

The now one-arm-short Salamander raised his sword for a vertical strike, crying in fury. He was not going to let this one live. He was going to annihilate that dwarf. His sword came down, only to hit nothing. The short-cloaked person whirled around, dodging the blade, and delivering their own attack, nearly cutting the man's head in half. The cut was running from just below the man's left cheek to the height of the right eye. It was a brutal slash, but it did the job. The Salamander fell to the side and in a few seconds his body begone to burn, turning to a soul flame. Even his amputated arm burned to seemingly rejoin the rest.

Everyone else watched in disbelieve at what transpired. A swordsman out of nowhere jumped in and killed the Salamander with relative ease. Saving the kids along the way. Kazuto was impressed, but mostly thankful. He would not have been able to make it. Meanwhile this stranger saved the boy from getting burned and the girl from getting likely raped.

The two Salamanders were furious after they got over their shock. EAson roared and dashed at the shorty, ready to crush the newcomer. Kazuto intended to stop him, but Frit would have none of that. The hulking man swung his mace but missed. The cloaked fighter managed to jump out of the way. EAson lifted his weapon back up and charged at the small opponent and tried to strike him again. Only to miss again. It was obvious that the hulking mace-wielder was too slow for a smaller sword-wielder. Not to mention how agile and graceful were the cloaked person's moves.

Kazuto could only admire these moves for short moments. The leader of this band was his primary concern. This Salamander, unlike most of his accomplices, knew how to fight. He needed to focus. So, Kazuto parried another two strikes and tried a horizontal slash, only to be blocked. The two were now struggling to overpower one another. That was the plan. Now was the risky part. Kazuto allowed his foe to push him back. Only thing was, he kicked Frit's leg, causing them both to fall. The raven-haired young adult quickly brought his other leg up and toss the Salamander to the other side. Now he had to be fast, take advantage of his enemy's confusion. He got up and dashed, prepared to stab him. That would not happen. The band leader got his baring and blocked the attack.

Eugeo and Alice kept watching in amazement as their savior continued to dodge the much bigger foe's attacks. Though they were concerned about whether he would fight back or not. The giant's swings were becoming more and more powerful. This Salamander was clearly getting mad. Finally, the mace managed to pin the small warrior's cloak. He could not move. EAson reached out to grab and crush the dwarf's head. He was going to end it this instant. But the short warrior just removed the cloak and distanced himself away. Now everyone was genuinely surprised.

It was a boy younger than the kids. But there was something odd about him. His black hair was long and messy. Dirt and scratches covering his face. His clothes have seen better days and seemed too small. But the look on his face was what caught the attention. The boy looked like an animal. Like he was feral or something, baring his teeth, snarling, growling. Eyes focused. Who was this kid?

EAson did not care for it. He just lifted his mace again and charged at the kid again. He swung his mace again, horizontally, only for the boy to jump upwards, and the mace to hit the tree. This was bad for the hulking Salamander. As the boy landed, his big opponent could not pull his weapon out of the tree. It was stuck. The boy saw this as an opening. Eason tried to punch the boy away but failed. After ducking an attack, the child swordsman thrusted his sword into the mace-wielder's neck, killing him instantly.

Frit saw this and lost his focus. Or rather, lost it. He pushed his opponent off and made a mad dash at the kid, wanting to make him pay. He closed the distance fast. And started to deliver wild strikes at this insolent child. Much to his surprise, the kid was doing very decent blocking and dodging. Sparks were flying whenever metal hit metal. The boy showing incredible strength for his age and stamina. But the Salamander had more experience. So once there was an opening, he backhanded the boy, sending him rolling.

But a sword stabbed him from behind before Frit could press his advantage. Looking back, he found the older raven head behind him. How could he have forgotten him? His body immediately ignited, turning into a soul flame. It was finally over.

"Sir Kazuto…!" Eugeo called. The young adult just smiled seeing the two kids alive and well.

But when the kids got up, their attention returned to the newcomer as a snarl hit their ears. Looking at him, they saw him shaking of the dizziness. As his obsidian eyes looked at them, he took notice of the daggers in their hands. He just tensed up and raised his sword, growling. Eugeo and Alice got nervous at this. Why was he so aggressive? And Eugeo, ready to defend himself, raised his dagger.

That was a mistake.

The feral child leaped at the two. After closing half the distance, Kazuto jumped in between and deflected the sword strike. The boy, surprisingly, tried to use the momentum of the deflected sword for another slash. Parried. The boy used it to roll out and got up. He went with a combo attack. Kazuto observed this kid's fighting style. It was wild. No sword style or school. Some move he recognized as basics for fencing, katana, the school of the phoenix or dragon…

And just now the move Frit used earlier.

This child seemed to be using moves he had just observed others use. While lacking in strength, due to his age and size, the boy would use his agility and acrobatics, the momentum to compensate. Such wild way of swordsmanship… so much potential.

Having seen enough, Kazuto grabbed the boy by the head and slammed his knee into his face. Then hit him with the pommel of his sword. The kid was finally knocked out.

End flashback...

After knocking him out, Kazuto had the boy tied to his bed. Nothing like what you might think, you perverted idiots. It was a precaution. And it was the right call. This boy was aggressive and acted violent. Kazuto spend days with him before he finally calmed down. Alice once ignored the knight's instructions to stay away, tried to calm him her way. It earned her a bite. Once the boy was finally calmed, the first thing Kazuto tried was to communicate. Much to his surprise, the boy's first word or words were 'Ki-ri-to…" It must have been his name. When was the last time Kirito spoke to anyone? What had this kid gone through? Kazuto, once he got the chance to check the boy for any wounds, found his body covered in all sorts of scars, burn marks, claw marks… This kid has gone through hell. And as the boy finally started to open up, Kazuto learned that the boy's family was attacked. He couldn't tell why but remembered his parents' final words- survive.

That must be why the boy was like this. He has been surviving on his own for so long. Learning to wield his sword on his own- which he clearly had great talent for, by the way, and worked hard. A little hesitant, Kazuto decided to take the boy under his wing. The young knight was hesitant mostly because he did not know what the boy might do. But Kirito proved to be a good student. Tough he would apparently not show him much trust. Kirito must have figured that he would not have stood a chance if he tried to fight. But as days were passing by, the boy show a bit more trust.

Now he was thankful he send that message back to base. He did not write about meeting Kirito. He figured he would introduce the boy in person should the boy choose to come with. He only wrote about finding something needing his attention for a while and would send weekly reports to let his superiors know.

It also made Kazuto smile to watch Kirito interacting with Alice and Eugeo more. Turns out back then, when Kirito saved them, he turned hostile against them because, seeing the daggers in their grasps, the boy reacted as if seeing a threat. Now the boy was more in control of himself.

Kirito was rather cold and a little hostile towards the two- especially Alice. Clearly her attempt to slap him for misbehaving already made damage. Now, while willing to speak with her, Kirito kept his distance. They were more acquainted than friends. It upset her. And when she tried to scold him for being too rude, much to Kazuto's surprise and amusement, Kirito did not back down. He seemed to take it more as a challenge. This kid was brave or did not learn yet how horrifying a woman's wrath could be.

Eugeo was a different story. The two would train together for the past week. Eugeo was learning something new everyday from his new friend, yet everyday he would learn one thing for certain- Kirito was already a superior swordsman.

This boy was an enigma. He was wild. Unpredictable. Yet he was learning fast and adapting. He was intelligent. A natural with a sword and not shrugging off hard work and practice.

Kazuto could not help but feel Kirito would make a great change in this world.

Only question was: for the better… or worst?

To be continued…

Author's note: My first SAO story. I hope you'll like it. If you don't... JUST DON'T READ. We don't need flames just because your lives are that empty.

Until next time.