CHAPTER 3

Right now, the 35th floor is as crowded as the 29th floor and Jyun did not like this one bit. She hoped that her instincts are right as she moves her head and her eyes left and right to see any signs of the color red orange.

Surely, anyone with that hair color would stand out like a sore thumb but within the large crowd of players and NPCs making it difficult to search for the person she's looking for. She sighed, and this time she tries to see if there's any spot in the town that's not that crowded so she could use her searching skills.

Her eyes took notice of a small unoccupied area between two stalls and she quickly headed for there. Despite her feminine stature, she is used to sneaking in crowds like she could in real life when it comes to concerts or anime conventions. Quietly and carefully, she snakes her way through the crowd as she gets closer and closer to that spot. When a player cruelly pushed her back, she shot a murderous glare at the man who flinched before walking away at a faster pace.

"Damn bastard..." she cursed, her teeth slightly gritting together. But she continued blending in with the crowd until her feet are finally on something free and spacious. She dusts off her clothes before looking at the crowd. Her eyes dart back and forth, but she still found no one with red orange hair.

Jyun closes her eyes for a second and when she opened them, the bluish-gray color of her eyes turned to a yellow-green color. Her view became better, sharper, larger, and she could see clearly even from very far distances.

Slowly, her eyes zoom around the place and she looked very closely for her target. When she caught a shade of red orange near the town square – which is far from where she's standing – she quickly tensed and she snaked through the crowd again with more speed than a while ago. Whenever she sensed that people are about to push her or shove her forcefully, she would evade it and she continues to persist until she's close enough.

Without even caring about the reactions of the other people, she takes out her longsword and nudges the very tip at the man's back. The latter flinched slightly before turning his head around to know who poked him, and he narrows his eyes when he sees the holder of the sword.

"Huh? Why the hell is a chick pointing me? You wanna duel? Well sorry but I'm not in the mood." He replied with sarcasm in his voice, waving his hand in a dismissing manner. Jyun fearlessly and boldly walked closer to the man, holding out her hand and grabbing the back of the man's shirt.

Despite his tall height compared to hers of 5'3, she doesn't care whether she's dealing with a bulky guy or a midget. If they get on her bad side, she doesn't care what kind of person makes her feel irritated because she has had more than her fair share of tormentors.

She leans close to his ear, her hand still gripping the back of his shirt. With a venomous tone, asked in a very dark tone, "Listen, I'm not in the mood for anything else but a duel with you. You can do that, right… Bloodsucker?" The last word is said so sharply and she made it audible enough for the people nearby to hear. She felt a slight flinching from the man who smacked her hand away and turned around so they would face each other.

There is silence between them but the people are shocked at the mention of the word 'Bloodsucker'. They know very well what she meant, and the younger players cringed in fear as they looked at the orange-haired teen, who slowly let a grin grow on his lips.

"Whoa now... didn't expect a chick to bust me out. But clever you are, considering that I took a lot of precautions to not get caught by anybody." He mused, shrugging his shoulders while holding his arms a little high.

Of course, it's not good that he's now exposed but he's amused as well that it's a girl who exposed him in public, and with such bold bravery. Usually most girl players often flinch in his presence but he knows that she's different. She doesn't seem to be like the others, as that cold and serious expression on her face proves his point.

"The other players – or should I say jerkwads – didn't even bother to help your previous victims. But I managed to save your latest victim since I owe him for something he did back then, and he told me enough of what I needed to know to track you down. I'm actually grateful that you have unique features, or it would be harder to find you." Jyun answered without the slightest hint of hesitation.

"How could you even know that I'm here?" the man added, placing a hand on his hip in a carefree manner.

"It's just instinct. Turns out I'm right to trust my gut." She raises her sword and points it at the man in a threatening manner. She didn't care that others looked at her like she's the bad guy in the scene. She doesn't even give a damn for what the so-called 'jerkwads' think.

"So, are you going to duel me or not? Or is it, are you going to chicken out just because I'm a girl?" she challenged with a mocking tone. She's not looking down on him, but she can't help but see if he'll really take her on.

The man stared at her for a moment with wide eyes, surprised at how cold and direct she's acting towards him. He lets a short breath come out his mouth, before he starts to cackle like a crazed madman in an asylum. This doesn't faze her, and walks even closer before holding the blade at his throat, like she's ready to have his larynx slit into pieces any minute. The man immediately stops laughing and looks at the girl. Even though he's taller than her by almost a foot, he has to admit that she's scary.

"I don't mind that you're laughing, but I don't have all day to wait for your answer. Yes," she pushes the blade a little closer to the skin of his neck. "Or no?"

He goes back a few steps after nudging her away, and he brings out his greatsword and swings it violently. The people watching retreated and made more space for them. He chuckles maliciously and is eyes spark with bloodlust as a small screen appears in front of him.

Without even having to read the message, he presses the yes button and when he's asked to what kind of duel he wants it to be, he looks at Jyun for her choice. She narrows her eyes as a sign that it's up to him. He grins wider than before, and he clicks the option that allows two players in a duel to fight until one reaches the yellow zone.

The countdown starts.

60…

"I don't think of myself as a knight or anything of the sort, but I guess it's fair that we say who we are."

"In public? Aren't we supposed to be discreet?" he sneered, but she doesn't flinch as she responds in her unsympathetic tone, "We're only going to say our avatar names, dumbass. But if you want to say your real name as well, do as you see fit then."

47…

He laughs loudly, "Man, you really are different from the other girls I see. So, you first."

"I'm Jyun. Level 64." She says straightforwardly, her grip on the hilt of her sword tight and secure. Her other hand doesn't hold a sword, but her arm carries a small round shield that looks like it's made from plain steel.

Others flinched and gasped at the mention of her name. As they could recall, she is the second player in SAO to be recognized as a Beater after Kirito. It was during when Floor 4 had yet to be cleared, since even though the players are given hope that they can clear the game after the first floor was cleared, doesn't mean that the next levels will be any easier.

If Kirito made it up to Floor 8 in the beta test, Jyun made it up to Floor 6. There's a time that Jyun was fighting monsters in areas where they spawn the most, and for the second time she got caught by a guild. They knew that she's a beta tester by then and started to bother her with so many questions about what she knows in the beta test. She couldn't think of any way to drive them off her, and so she consented.

The next day after that, they were gone. When Jyun questioned why, it was because they did an incredibly reckless act by trying to clear the fourth floor by themselves without even the Clearers assisting them. It was insane, and everyone knew it. Jyun didn't expect them to do such a thing either, and the only thing she could do was pity them, even if she lacks the ability to trust the people around her.

Some player got word that she's the one who told the guild what drove the members to go directly to their own deaths, and like Kirito, everyone started to treat her like she's the real monster. The event didn't humiliate her or anger her, because she doesn't care what they're thinking. Hell, it's even better for her so that no one would pester her.

"And you?" she asks, her eyes glinting for a second.

40…

"The name's Kusanagi. And wow, compared to your level I'm 5 levels lower than yours. And also, I'd like to introduce my real name as well. To hell if everyone knows who the Bloodsucker really is." he exclaimed, giving his sword another swing.

32…

"My real name is Hachirou Adachi." He introduces with an evil growl, and Jyun doesn't make a reaction. They point their swords at each other, their eyes boring into the other with fierce intensity.

The aura around them is so tense and powerful that it feels like the atmosphere is turning into fire and it makes the people nearby sweat from their foreheads to their napes. Some even swallowed audibly as large knots formed in their throats from what they're seeing.

21…

Jyun didn't show any expression aside from the dispassionate look she's showing on her face, but inside she feels like thunder is striking her. She knows who he is very well, and not because of what he does in the game. She knows him in their real lives, and she's not happy about knowing that. He used to be her classmate in elementary.

16…

They were classmates in elementary from the second grade to the fifth grade, and Jyun deeply loathed the memory of her life there. The man she's about to duel with in less than a minute played a big part to why her childhood was not something worth enjoying.

He abused her so many times, bullying her for no reason at all, making sure that every single day in school is hell for her, and no matter how many times she tries to evade him and ignore him in order for him to stop, he never ceased to stop. The same goes to her other tormentors.

10…

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5…

Jyun realized that she's actually going to fight someone who bullied her and tortured her when she was a child. She slightly felt fear. She's not afraid of him, but more specifically at the thought if she can really stand up to him when she did nothing when she was being bullied before.

4…

"Ah. Why am I thinking that?" a very small smile crosses her lips, and it's not sweet. It's menacing and full of the want for revenge. "Of course... this is a game. I didn't even tell him who I really am. None of us are going to die. So that means, I can beat him to a pulp in the very least." For some reason, Kusanagi felt like the girl's sword is glowing with ominous energy, even though there's no sword input in the blade.

"Heh." She chuckles briefly, but no one noticed, not even her opponent. The duel is very close now.

3…

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1…

BEGIN!

To be continued...