WARNING: This story includes mature and sexual elements. Readers, proceed at your own discretion.

Chapter 5: A Goddess Never Goes Defeated

Architectural marvels was something he felt that he'd gotten relatively used to, what with having played countless games and the difference in approach to world-building. 'SAO' had gone for medieval and the occasional sprinkle of fantasy, and 'ALO' dipped all of its toes into magic and nature. Each world was unique in their own ways.

Underworld was no different. Granted, it had the benefit of looking utterly immaculate and incomparable to real life, but the fact was that this world was blessed with untouched soil of wilderness, claimed by the trees and animals that breathed life into it. The naturality of everything made the world feel larger than it could have ever been.

Sure, it wasn't the most impressive thing he'd ever seen. He'd definitely seen way cooler stuff. But the awe at seeing new places with his own eyes had never faded—and that hadn't even changed now.

"It's huuuge!" He yelled, looking left and right upon the stony exterior of the town they stood outside of. "I know that Zakkaria is massive, it being Norlangarth's main city and all, but this is insane!"

"Yeah…" Eugeo said in a whispery voice, just as taken aback. "I've never been outside of Rulid my whole life. This is a huge difference from what's normal to me. I feel like a kid leaving the boonies and showing up in the fanciest of cities…"

"Bet you my liver that Centoria's way fancier than this."

"I'd double down on that and bet mine as well. Of course Centoria would be much grander."

From behind, Medina made a sound that crossed between chagrin and embarrassment. "Can you stop acting like fools? I don't want to be associated with you if you can't."

"To be fair, we've never visited anywhere outside of Rulid Village our whole lives," Eugeo offered. "The same could be said for Kirito too, since he doesn't even have memories of his old home or anywhere else. This is a first time for him too, so I suppose the excitement is something we can't help ourselves with."

"Yeah."

"Urgh. I hate when you manage to bring up reasonable points."

"Well, no point standing out here forever," grinned Asuna. "Let's go take a look inside, shall we, everyone?"

"Only up until the gate. Afterwards, we split off, alright?"

Aww… That's right. The agreement was for them to stick together only up until they reach Zakkaria, which was a shame. Having another girl in their group had probably been fun for Asuna, though he supposed there was no helping it anymore. "Yeah. Come on, everyone."

It was a strange transition from nature and greens to stone and greys, but he supposed it wasn't any different from 'SAO' and 'ALO'. There had been plenty of times where he'd just been as awestruck when he moved to the next floor and travelled to the city. The sights were never not amazing.

But here, it feels a little more exaggerated because the wilderness had truly felt wild, for a lack of a better term, seeing that there had been no other humans they'd come across until they arrived here. At least in the game worlds, they came across other players or NPCs, but this really did feel like going in a completely open world. It was awesome.

And now that they've arrived at an actual spot of civilization? It was hella' sick. He literally feels like he's experiencing culture shock in real time.

The arched gate stood firm and grand. With the sun positioned behind it, it cast a massive shadow towards them and the plains, swallowing a wide area in shade illuminated by the orange firelight of torches. There were guards stationed outside and patrolling the perimeter. A few caravans passed through the gate, the number considerably little since it was late into the evening. Faint music could be heard from the distance, likely originating from an inn and giving off a comfy vibe.

"Well then, guess we'll have to split off here, Medina-chan?"

"Yeah, I guess it is."

"Shame. It'd be nice if we could all hang out together for longer, but we've all got things we need to do," he faced Medina, giving her a grin. "Good luck on your endeavours, yeah? And if we see each other in the future, don't be a stranger."

"Hmph. Don't hope on it. Just focus on your own goals and work towards them."

Do these people have terms like 'tsun' and the like? Medina was kind of acting like it. But even when she's trying to act standoffish, there was no mistaking the curve at the corner of her lips.

"Yup. You can bet we'll work hard. Well, see ya'!"
"Take care, Medina."
"Bye, Medina-chan!"

The girl didn't verbally respond to their farewells, though she did offer a quick nod before walking off in one direction. They watched her disappear, Kirito pondering on what her mission was; perhaps she was aiming to be an Integrity Knight as well? That felt like the most logical outcome for wanting to train in swordsmanship.

Oh well. She's left already, and now it's time for them to focus on their own things too. First things first; getting to the meeting venue.

Zakkaria was certainly as great on the inside as the outer walls looked. There were so much more buildings here than there were in Rulid—and far more diverse kinds. Where Rulid lacked things like a dedicated florist, jewellery store and the like, he could already see a couple here and there. That there was also an inn and a couple of restaurants here was also something that the village didn't have, on account of having to cater to the occasional visitors.

What certainly caught his eye, however, was the fact that they used a lot of red for everything; the houses were built using red bricks. The path was paved with red rocks. They planted red flowers in slightly reddish pots. Hell, even the people wore red! It was red everywhere! Really took the phrase 'let's paint the city red (like blood)' to the extreme!

Somehow, he found that to be more hilarious than it probably should be. It must be some kind of national colour for them, albeit for just a city. He'll probably get sick of it at some point, but for the time being, he welcomed the change in scenery from Rulid's traditional design.

The group walked around the bustling city, passing by workers and carriages and wagons and horses. It was far busier compared to their village, likely because countless traders would come here to sell their wares and purchase things they couldn't find elsewhere. And seeing that its population was five times of Rulid's, then yeah, this place is massive.

"Does Rulid frequently trade with Zakkaria, Eugeo-kun?"

"It does," Eugeo nodded. "With Rulid being far north, we have access to a lot of natural resources like timber, herbs and fruits. We trade them with Zakkaria for metals, rarer medicines and tools—stuff that we can't make on our own, or stuff that we can only get from Centoria through Zakkaria."

"That'll take a long time to transport items from Centoria to Rulid, though. I bet there's a high taxation rate for just transportation alone."

"Probably."

He wished he didn't feel like a nerd listening to his best friend talk about this world's economy, but it was just really fascinating! The last time he'd had a brief taste of virtual politics was that silly argument between the Sylphs and Cait Siths with the Salamanders. That it was all machinated by some man who wanted to betray his side, and that they all wanted to make such a big deal out of it, was dumb.

At least he got a pretty good fight out of it with Eugene. And now that he thought about it, that name was pretty close to Eugeo.

Eugeo's better, though. Bias at its finest.

This world, however, was a dynamic experience where one thing correlated to the other. It meant that every city and town relied on each other to develop itself, making learning this world a very fun and fulfilling thing. It was why just learning of its history and religion and familiar mechanics applied in different manners such as «Sacred Arts» and «Secret Techniques» was never boring.

The sight of a merchant bartering with a customer has him gazing over to his best friend. "Is there something that Rulid's got that no other places have?"

"Hmm… I guess we don't have a particular specialty. Though I expect the Gigas Cedar will come in handy as lumber, though even that wouldn't last forever… I think."

"You kidding? With a tree that massive, it'll take a whole long time for them to finish using up the entire thing. I'm betting at least ten years. Maybe."

The skepticism he was met with had him shrugging back. Who was he to know how long it'll take the people to pick the tree apart and exhaust its entirety? Maybe they'd be done in a year if they really put their backs into it, but that'll depend on the amount of manpower and the tools they have.

In any case, the group continued checking out the town before finally taking a look at the meeting avenue, where the annual tournament was held. A notice board was set up, with the date 'Day 28, Month 8' posted upon it, with the words Zakkaria Sword Arts Tournament right above it. They checked in with the registry, citing their intentions of joining the tournament.

"Sure thing. Just fill in these documents for me. Shouldn't take too long."

There wasn't much to fill out. Just his name, his age, his calling and his home. Afterwards, he returned the piece of paper to the old guy manning the counter, Eugeo and Asuna doing the same. They then looked up the notice board, quickly checking it out for the information at hand.

Held every year, with competitors from all across Norlangarth, it had two brackets with eight people in it. That meant that two people would be qualified to become guards, and if they worked hard enough, they would receive letters of recommendations to enter the Swords Mastery Academy in Centoria.

The boy sighed. "Maaan… If only all three of us could enter the academy together…"

"Oh, don't you fret too much. I'll figure out something to occupy my time then."

"It does feel like a shame," Eugeo hummed sadly. "The image of the three of us heading to class together, eating lunch and training… that sounds so nice."

"Yeah. But guess that's just not meant to be," Kirito sighed. "Only two winners. Talk about stingy—"

"Funny that you mentioned that, sonny. They're changing the rules this year."

As one, the group of three turned to look towards the man. Asuna was the first to ask: "What do you mean?"

"Ah. Well, take a look at the notice board," they did just that, and were equally surprised to see a change; rather than two blocks, there would be four blocks.

"Wait, is this allowed? I thought it was tradition to keep it to just two winners from the tournament."

"That was supposed to be the case, yes. But it's a curious story, I'll tell you that," the old man at the counter said. "See, Zakkaria received quite a generous donation this year; money to be used for reparative efforts, clearing more land, building more homes and securing more rations. You could say that this donation has singlehandedly quadrupled the total funds we have."

Kirito's eyes almost bugged out of his sockets. "Quadrupled? Seriously?"

"Indeed! It was such a big deal, and the noble was insistent that they do something as a form of repayment. And the person—who, for some reason, none of us have been able to ascertain the identity or address of—requested us to make this year's tournament have four brackets."

"That's… a very specific," and convenient went unsaid. "Criterion."

"Mmhm. So that means there'll be four winners in total. Quite an unusual demand, I'll tell you that, but the big shots aren't complaining. If anything, they're quite happy with the donations. We've been having some financial issues of late, so this is a huge help."

Once they were done, they bade the man farewell and headed out. It was nice to know that someone (or a group of people) were generous enough to donate that much money. It couldn't possibly be easy trying to fund a town's development, and the fact that they did so spoke of great financial backing or a family of high esteem.

And how freaking convenient it was that they wanted four winners out of the tournament! Granted, that might mean that there would be even more challengers coming in, but Kirito was hopeful that it would work to their favour.

'And Asuna would get to come with us…'

He would be lying if he said he wasn't relieved by the change. It wasn't like he doubted Asuna's ability to look after herself; it was simply loneliness. He couldn't just imagine them being separated again when she'd gone into Underworld to join him.

Plus, it would allow him to keep watch over her. Just to make sure that she doesn't go off somewhere and commit unspeakable horrors. It was the least he could do to make sure some poor sod didn't accidentally incite her wrath or anything.

…Now that he thought about it, things have just been one deus ex machina after another. First with Asuna's appearance in the cave to save him, Eugeo and Selka. Now this? There was no way all of this good luck would remain forever.

Pushing that aside, now they have to figure out what their next move was going to be. They didn't really have much money between the three of them, so it would be close to impossible to rent rooms at an inn for five months, let alone a week. Maybe they could find a place to work at and stay..?

That was all until a pair of children, twins as it turned out, approached them, requesting their aid with pushing their wagon back home, since their horse literally ran off to who-knows-where. Kirito looked up, spotting said wagon by a florist shop, of which their parents stood by discussing with one another with frowns on their faces.

Kirito, Eugeo and Asuna exchanged glances before shrugging, deciding that they may as well as lend a helping hand.

As it turned out, helping a couple of strangers with something as menial as pushing their wagon was the best thing they could have possibly done.

Now, something like this feels like a videogame quest. Sure, it felt ridiculous to liken the two, but could anyone blame him? Some children had come up to them out of the blue and asked them for help, and if that wasn't like a quest, he didn't know what was. But it sure as hell was another stroke of good luck, and he wasn't going to turn down such fortune.

The Woldes were a family of farmers working on the outskirts of Zakkaria, their farm just west of the massive town. They maintained an orchard of fruit trees, mostly apples and peaches. They even had stables to care for their horses (and guess what? The horse that ran off apparently returned here hours later, the cheeky thing), so they were pretty well-off.

In any case, the area of their plantation wasn't as wide as Rulid's wheat fields, but it was hard enough to maintain a farm between just the two of them—both daughters were still young and small, so they couldn't help out with the tougher jobs, mostly delegated to taking care of the horses. And while the couple could handle things fairly well, some additional help was desperately needed.

That was where they came in. In exchange for manual labour with both the horses and the orchards, the three of them were offered shelter for however long they'd have to stay here. They'd been quick to jump on it, even if they had to bunk with the horses in the stables. And look, he didn't care. They'd camped outside enough that having a roof over their heads was already a big boost.

Even if it did smell like manure and, to the surprise of absolutely no one, horses. And holy crap it smelt like horses!

"Dorte, stop it..!" He groaned, the scent of equine overwhelming him as he attempted to swat aside the horse who was trying to rouse him from his nap by licking his face. "Oh, for the love of—Eugeo..! Give me a hand here!"

From the distance, he could hear him call out loud: "No can do! I'm busy giving the others a bath. And before you ask for Asuna, she's with the twins in the orchards."

Grand. Well, nothing he could do now. He relented in the end, shooting to his feet and trudging off to the well nearby to wash his face. Hopefully, they'd be able to get some breakfast soon. He was positively starving.

It's been well over two months now. Working for the Woldes family had been nice so far, helped by the fact that they were all nice people. Twins Telin and Telulu may be cheeky (particularly towards him because he was just an easy target), but they were just really friendly. The husband was stern in a fatherly way, and the wife was always accommodating of their every need, even when she didn't really have to be.

Even the jobs weren't all that difficult. All they needed was additional manpower and hands, so there'd been nothing too difficult; making the rounds, harvesting fruits that were ready, tending to the horses, make the occasional run to town to buy groceries—all the simple stuff, really.

Oh, and there was that one time where they had to scare off a couple of Norlan Birds that got too close to the orchard. That had been hard enough without trying to kill them (and man, he wished they could have hunted it. It probably tastes good), but fortunately, everything went down without any problems.

Asuna would help with other things, though. Having culinary skills had her involved in cooking a lot more, and she would frequently be the one to do the shopping because she had an eye on picking out the fresh produce. Good on her.

"Alright, Dorte," he said, hands on his hips. "You ready for a walk?"

Dorte stared him in the eyes, then huffed.

"Great. Let's get moving."

"Kirito, you usually walk a dog. Not horses."

"Uhh, aren't you bathing the horses? That's right. Do your job and shoosh. Let's go, Dorte."

Their time with the Woldes had been utterly peaceful. Some might have hoped for a bit more excited, but he quite liked it here; not having to worry about fighting someone or something, or dealing with monetary issues, or some dumb task that was impossible to finish.

Instead, they got all the time they needed to train with one another. He would have to use his basic iron sword since he didn't have a proper weapon unlike Eugeo, though it helped that even Asuna hadn't summoned her fancy weapon.

Because nothing like summoning an OP weapon out of thin air to break her cover of being a completely normal human girl, right?

Really now. He knew he was just being ridiculous at this point. Asuna had promised him to never rely on her powers, and she'd never needed to do anything like that ever since the cave incident—and he had to suppress a shudder at the memory of the carnage. She sure was pissed that day, he could imagine.

But even without her goddess powers and weapon, she was a force to be reckoned. Eugeo knew that too, but even he was making progress with his techniques.

'Eugeo's gotten close to getting a feel for «Vertical Square», though he's not there just yet. It'll be really useful if he'll be able to get that under his belt. And Asuna is flawless as ever.'

Leaving him. Objectively speaking, he liked to think that three years of time spent playing VR games (two of which was him actually trapped in 'SAO') had served well in ingraining the motions into his body. For sure, he would never be able to pull off even a tenth of this stuff IRL… sort of, but this being a simulated world, realistic as it may be, it still acknowledged the existence of «Sword Skills», so that helped plenty.

That didn't make him perfect, however. He knew there were plenty other nuances and details that differentiated this world from VR worlds. He'd have to keep a watchful eye and take in every information to further better himself as a fighter.

Half an hour later, the three teenagers joined the Woldes family inside the house for breakfast. Freshly baked bread served with mushroom cream soup was the best way to start the day off, and he happily dug in after a small prayer.

A giggle from the side has him looking over at Telin, who looked amused. "What?"

"Nothin'."

"Uh-huh. And I suppose you saw something funny behind me, and you looking my way was just coincidental," the snort she earned made him grin back. "Fess up, Telin. What is it?"

"It's just! You're always devouring all the food in front of you like some kind of lion. It's amazing how you can always eat so much."

Erk. He can't refute that. The one thing he'd noticed since he entered this world was the fact that he had a large appetite. He never ate this much in the other VR worlds, let alone the real world! "Maybe because I'm growing?"

"Or because you're a glutton!"

"Telin, don't be rude," chastised her mother, making her flinch. She looked over to him with an apologetic smile. "Please don't mind her, Kirito. I like to think that having a healthy appetite is a good thing. You're still young, after all, so it's only normal for you to eat plenty."

"Ah, it's okay, really. I'm not the only one who's noticed that I eat quite a lot."

"To be fair," Asuna piped in. "The three of us do a lot of physical work, considering the things we do in the farm and our swords training. It's no surprise that we'd burn a lot of energy and get famished quickly. Though…" Her lips quirked into a grin. "Telin's not wrong to say that no one eats quite as much as you do, Kirito-kun."

"Yeah, rub it in, why don't you..?"

While everyone shared a laughter at his expense, he took the moment to consider his girlfriend's words. It was true how they moved so much more in this world than they did in the real world, and with this world working with many of IRL logic and mechanics, metabolism functioned almost similarly as well.

Perhaps, if he was active in kendo IRL as he had been, he might have an equal amount of metabolism too. Nowadays, though, he isn't really all that involved in physical activity. He's mostly occupied with school and playing VR games with his friends.

…Man. That sure does make him sound like a lazy, fat ass who does nothing but laze around all day. Guess that's another thing to work on improving once he gets back.

"So," the father spoke up first, helping to change topics. "Anything that the three of you will be doing for today?"

"Training, mostly. We don't really have much other obligations or things requiring our focus."

"Is that so? Then I have an idea that might help you prepare for that tournament in Zakkaria."

"Oh?" He put down his spoon, interested. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I understand that you boys and Asuna can train with one another. And seeing how you three are, I've no doubt that you're all really good. What do you think about training with other people, though?"

Others, eh..? That would be really good experience, actually. So far, his combat experience had only ever been that singular battle against Ugachi and the goblins, with nothing else thus far. Even Eugeo's gotten some experience when he duelled against Jink. They should be considering more battles with other people.

"That… would be really helpful, actually. But how would we find more people?"

"The meeting venue over in Zakkaria," he replied, making him perk up. "Granted, it's not like I can bring all three of you over. Two people at the very least must stay to watch over the farm. Today, though, I actually have to make a trip into Zakkaria today. Plenty of things to do," with one hand, he began listing down. "Selling fruits, buying groceries, and to see a friend of mine. Recently, her kid got sick, and we've got spare medicine that I intend to deliver to her. And I was hoping one of you could come with."

"And you're thinking of checking out the venue while you're at it?"

"If you'd like."

He looked over at his friends before nodding. "Eugeo should go?"

"Eh? But…"

"Don't worry about it. Me and Asuna have got plenty of experience," he said with a shrug. "You, on the other hand, are still wet behind the ears. Since this is a chance to go fight someone, you might as well give it a shot."

"That's… Asuna, are you okay with that?"

"Mmhm! I don't mind going another time."

Eugeo looked hesitant at first before eventually conceding with a nod. "If you say so," he looked at the patriarch next. "I'll come and help."

"Oh, can we come too, papa?" Telulu begged. "We haven't gone in so long! We want to see Zakkaria too!"

"And, and, we want to see Elisha! Pleeaase?"

"Hmm. Well, I don't mind, but…"

Kirito noticed the look the man was giving him, and simply nodded back. "We can handle things well with just the two of us. Really."

"Are you certain? If so, then that would be appreciated. I'll be sure to leave you a checklist of all the duties you need to take care of. If possible, try and have at least a majority of them done. There's no guarantee as to how long it'll take, so you don't need to rush through them."

"Well, with the both of us on the job, we'll be sure to get all of it done by the time you come back. You can bet on it!"

With further reassurance from the both of them, the large group finished up breakfast before they helped prepare the farmers for the trip. With their carriage set up and the horse properly fitted to pull it, he exchanged a short fist-bump with Eugeo before he and Asuna watched them depart for the town, waving in the air as they did so.

Genuinely a shame that they couldn't tag along. He couldn't remember when the last time was that they'd visited the town. Still, the farm wouldn't be able to run itself, and seeing that they were being offered stay in return for their work here, there was nothing in the world that could convince him to be a lazy bum. And at least Eugeo will get something good out of this.

"So, ready to get started?"

"Yes! Let's get to it."

"So, Eugeo. Are those two dating?"

"I don't think so, but I pray to the goddesses that they eventually get together."

"I know, right? Ah, they're so cute together!"

Eugeo chuckled, nodding his head in agreement with the matriarch. Try as they might to act normally around one another, there was no denying the fact that they were… softer, with one another. A little more loving.

But there was nothing else there. A little disappointing, but Eugeo understood if they were taking things slow just to better know each other. And a couple of months was pretty good, but there would definitely be a need for more to truly come to a point of agreement.

Thinking back on their charted plan—attending the tournament, enrolling in the academy, then becoming Integrity Knights—he wondered which moment would be appropriate for them to finally start dating. He'd assume it's the academy part, because he'd read several books depicting people falling in love in school settings. That must be a very common occurrence, then.

It'd be impossible otherwise. They'd be too busy with their jobs as Zakkaria's guards after the tournament and as Integrity Knights to really do things together, so the academy phase was the best timing.

'But who knows? If it happens any other time, then that's great,' humming to himself, he then looked at the twins, both of whom he was sitting with in the back of the wagon, whereas the married couple sat at the front. "So Telulu, Telin, you mentioned someone earlier. Do you know them?"

"Hmm? Oh, you mean Elisha?" He nodded. Telin grinned at him. "Well, she's a friend of ours! Her family's are all merchants, so they usually have some cool things. They travel a lot too, and this week, they should've returned to Zakkaria for a bit."

"Ahh, I see. Actually, I'd like to ask; is the venue only ever available during important rituals like the tournament?"

"Nope! It's actually open to the public. A lot of tough guys go there a lot to train with one another from time to time, so you'll see plenty of people there," wait, really? Huh. He would have never known since they hadn't gone there a lot. He continued to listen. "Oh, oh! And listen to this! Recently, there's been rumour of this reeaally strong girl who's been beating all the swordsmen who go there!"

"A girl, you say? Does she have red hair?"

"No one knows. She wears a hood over her head, so no one can tell what her features are, except for the fact that she's got green eyes," green… Well, Medina's sort of like green, right? But if she's not a redhead, then it's definitely not her. "Oh, and she uses this really weird sword. Like, it's long, and slightly curved…"

"Curved?"

"It's called a katana," the father's words had everyone focused on him instead. "It's not a weapon you frequently see. Some believe it originated from Eastabarieth, on account that really old weapons crafted in the day had several designs that point to the eastern country."

"What differentiates it from a normal sword, sir?"

"Unlike your sword, Eugeo, a katana is single-edged, making it only suitable for cutting in one direction. However, because of how thin it can be, it can be swung rather quickly, hence making it a very deadly weapon in the right hands. And supposedly, this mysterious opponent who's been showing up in the venue only a handful of times has proven herself to be incredibly proficient with it," he raised one hand. "To date, eight battles in total. All victories, no losses."

"No losses? That's incredible!"

"Indeed. And it's frustrated everyone else because absolutely no one knows who she is, or where she came from. The most we can ever know is the fact that her weapon's from the east, but at that point, even that's hard to assume."

"If we're lucky, she might be there today, and you'll have an opportunity to test your sword against her, Eugeo!"

Did he want to, though? It's not like it was really necessary. Plus, he's had his training with both Kirito and Asuna, and those had been incredibly challenging. And yet…

He knew. Ever since he took to the Blue Rose Sword, something awakened in him. A conviction, a desire to grow stronger. And the thought of meeting new, stronger opponents than himself to test himself against was oddly tantalizing.

Was that bloodlust..? No. That wasn't it. He didn't want to kill anyone. He simply wanted to become better than he was before, and strength didn't just drop onto someone's lap. This was something that had to be honed through battles with others, and this felt like a really good chance.

"Yes please!" He shouted. "I would be honoured for the opportunity!"

The couple chuckled at his motivation, while the twins cheered him on for it. Eugeo took it all with a smile, deep down growing excited at meeting this supposed uncontested girl. Who was she? How strong was she? And could he possibly defeat such a person?

Man. And now he understood why Kirito enjoyed fighting so much.

Their business concluded relatively quickly. Having sold off their crops and paid a visit to the father's friend, they even got to see the merchant family for a bit. Telin and Telulu took turns to introduce Eugeo to their friend, citing that he was an 'awesome up-and-coming swordsman', much to his embarrassment.

After they stuck around for a bit more, both to chat and grab a bite, they finally moved to the meeting venue, where he could definitely see a crowd of people hanging outside. He wondered if there was ongoing commotion inside that's drawn people here.

It was upon getting close to them that he heard whispers and chatters about 'the unbeaten swordswoman', making him perk up.

"Oh, oh!" Telin hopped on the balls of her feet, looking excited. "I think she's here! You should go try and fight her, Eugeo!"

A disgruntled-looking veteran looked down towards her, a kind voice emanating. "Well, Little Missy, if your big brother here wants to—" Big brother? Well, their hair colours are almost similar, but he couldn't really see anything else that's similar. "—then he'll just have to head in there and ask her himself. At the moment, she's about to start a new match."

"How many does that make it?"

"If she wins this next one? Thirteen wins."

Thirteen? Jeez. Talk about impressive. "When did she first show up?"

"Only about a month ago. Came out of nowhere, and said that she wanted to practise against other fighters here," shrugged the man. "I fought against her myself, and I'm shocked to know that even I lost! 'Course, I ain't try'na brag, but I like to think that I'm fairly good in a fight."

That was an underestimation. He certainly looked older than anyone else here, and he had the beefy body and experience to boot. He must be some kind of wandering mercenary or guard. So if someone like him lost…

Bidding him farewell, Eugeo and the Woldes headed for the spectators' seating area, already able to make out the sounds of combat. Climbing the stairs and reaching the seats, he could see it was only a tenth of the entire venue filled up, plus a bit more. He's certain it'll be full when the tournament is in full form, and wasn't that a terrifying sight?

Taking their seats, Eugeo was just in time to watch a particularly strong reposte, the hooded girl knocking back her opponent. Yeah, the guy going up against her was not having a good time.

A sharp whistle resounded in the air, the curved katana cutting an immaculate figure in the air to shrug off the broadsword that tried to clip her. Her opponent charged right back in to deliver a thrust, following it up with a couple of slashes that she easily sidestepped through. They then began to trade blows against one another, metal clashing against metal in fast bursts.

From this distance, he couldn't make out their features and builds very properly, but Eugeo could tell that the hooded figure was relatively tall and slim. And her opponent was a strong-looking guardsman who had the right level of training, judging by his good stances and timing.

But there was no denying how one-sided this battle was. The hooded girl was easily pushing the man back, weaving between his attacks and dishing out equal amounts of attacks to match his. There was simply no holes or weak spots for him to take advantage of. It felt like she was in control of absolutely everything.

Most curious thing of all, however, were the stances she took.

Having backed away from each other, the man put up a position ready for a thrust. She, in turn, had a stance where the blade of her weapon was aimed upwards, tilted slightly towards the back and the hilt close to her shoulder. He wasn't sure what kind of stance this was, for it left much of her body relatively open.

Not like it mattered, however, for she was the one to initiate the assault this time, charging at him with one fast downwards. He, in turn, raised his sword to tank the hit, but misjudged her strength—she struck once from above, then quickly reversed the direction of her swing to slash upwards and knock his sword out of her grip, flying off into the distance. Left disarmed and with the tip of her blade tickling his throat, the winner had been decided.

"And another win for the swordswoman of the east!" A loud applause broke out amongst the crowd. Eugeo and the Woldes family joined in as well, though Telulu and Telin were shooting him excited gazes. He smiled nervously in turn. "Thirteenth win in her streak, and it doesn't look like she's stopping anytime soon! We've got two more people going up against her immediately after, and then anyone else anyone seeking to test their blade against her will be free to ask her!"

"Well?" Telin said. "You should go down there later!"

"Well, I guess I could…"

"Take the opportunity as it is. She might not ever show up again in the future."

That was true. Kirito often said that an opportunity presented should never be passed up on. Even if it ended up being a loss on his part or whatever, it would be a valuable teaching experience that could far outweigh the consequences. And that was something he needed to jump on with this mysterious fighter.

After a while, the girl continued fighting through her next two opponents. Both of her opponents had been good; scarily good, in fact. The first one had been a nobleman using the High-Norkia style, while the other was special for the fact that he was fast. They were good, he could tell.

But in the face of this single girl, there was just no matching her. Despite her slim nature, she was not lacking in the body strength department, and she had great reflexes to time her attacks to fast ones. Her first opponent was defeated because she made full use of her speed, and the second was woefully unprepared to have his undefended flank struck at. Assured victories, all in all.

That was his cue to go. Parting with the family, he headed back downstairs and moved towards the fighters' ring. It was bright out, and it felt more obvious down here, where light shone directly down on them and made it impossible for them to hide from the other people. Somehow, he was already getting anxious already.

'Can't imagine how much worse it'll be on the day of the tournament… Urgh, whatever. Now's not the time for that,' shaking his head, he approached the swordswoman, noticing her polishing her blade with a rag. Clearing his throat, he spoke up. "Um, excuse me, miss?"

"Hmm? Oh, hey!" She turned around, and close as he was now, he could make out a bit of her features; a gentle smile adorning a relatively light complexion, with bright green eyes that he'd never seen anyone else have. From the bang showing on her forehead, she had yellow hair that sort of reminded him of Alice's—though he'd describe Alice's hair as being the colour of the light of Solus, whereas this swordswoman's hair was like a daffodil. Did that make sense? "You're a new face. You wanna' have a match too?"

"If you don't mind, though I'm okay if you can't. You just finished your third fight today, after all."

"Naw, it's fine, really! It's been a real good workout, so I'm more than happy to accept challenges."

Talk about friendly. He'd expected her to be a little less approachable, either because she was exhausted or because there was this misconception in his head that all strong people were unfriendly. Insert Kirito and Asuna.

"Thank you. But I'm not in any rush, so take all the time you need."

"Cool. Just give me a sec to wipe down my sword and get a drink. It's been pretty hot as of late."

"You're not wrong there. Oh, the name's Eugeo. And you are..?"

"Leafa," said the blonde, all smiles. "Nice to meet you!"

The two chatted for a little longer, Leafa taking her time to polish her katana and refresh. He'd wanted to ask her things about herself, but he was afraid to come off as prying, so he was the one who kept the conversation going by talking about his motivations for coming to Zakkaria and his intended participation in the upcoming tournament.

It didn't take long. It'd only been ten minutes, and though he'd insisted that she take a little longer, Leafa was already rearing to go again, so they were getting ready to fight once more. He took his spot, drawing the Blue Rose Sword from its scabbard. Leafa whistled.

"That's a pretty-looking sword," she complimented. "Did you craft it?"

"Err, no. I uhh… found it lying in a cave?"

"Oh, that so? Maybe it belonged to someone else? It looks way too intricate to not have been someone's work."

How was he supposed to explain to her that it was actually the sword from the legend where the ice and the rose merged and became a sword atop a mountain? Sounded silly, but so was that story of Bercouli killing a dragon—and they'd actually found the dragon's bones in the cave with all the gold, so not as silly as they first thought, huh?

"Looks like we've got a new competitor on the scene! Will he be the one to break miss warrior's winning streak so far? Hold onto your seats, ladies and gentlemen, this will be a match you won't want to miss!"

The two chuckled at the commentary, facing off against one another. "You ready for this?"

"As ready as I'll ever be!" Exclaimed the blonde. "Let's do this!"

Nodding, he positioned his sword in front of him in order to protect himself, while Leafa took a stance for a «Heavens and Mountains Break», katana raised in the air. Could a weapon use a different «Secret Technique» for a different weapon type?

He shook away that thought. Guess he was going to find out, won't he?

The world slowed before him, his vision almost tunnelling solely on Leafa. The smarter choice would be to make the first move, but Kirito once told him that allowing the enemy to make the first move could be a good way to discern their strength. Watch their movements and get a feel for how they fight.

And then, go in for the killing blow.

A second ticked by in his head, his green eyes watching hers with rapt attention. Every shift in muscle, every minute change in her stance, every breath taken—all of it felt magnified before him, focus sharpening so much that nothing else registered in his mind at that moment.

Eugeo took in a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.

And Leafa darted straight for him.

Eyes shooting wide, he barely managed to raise his blade to block her downwards slash—feeling his arms rattle from the impact, teeth gritted—before moving away to put distance between them. Leafa relaxed herself only slightly, blade up once more. Eugeo felt a brief tremble in his movements, jaw clenched tight.

That attack was powerful. And she didn't even use a «Secret Technique».

There was no time to think of his next move because the blonde girl was on the move once more, katana glowing a great red as she dashed towards him, blade pointed downwards and indicating a slash up. Eugeo clicked his tongue and met her attack head-on, positioning the Blue Rose Sword on his shoulder.

With a loud battle cry, he vaulted off the ground with a «Sonic Leap», sword meeting katana in a loud clang that sent him flying over her. He landed and quickly blocked her follow-up attack, then her next, and the two began to trade blows while they searched each other for a weak point.

Eugeo had thought that, with a weapon like this, it would be hard to pull off a second swing, considering what the patriarch had said earlier. But with how close they were, he could see just how quickly she rotated the weapon in her grip, making the sharp edge face towards him each time she attacked. In a live combat situation, that would easily cut right through him.

Flicking his blade, he deflected her katana off to the side, but she spun on her feet to slash him from his right. Eugeo hastily blocked that, and was taken aback to see her quickly lower her stance to execute a «Sword Skill».

'Crap..!' Without thinking, he raised his blade over his shoulder and swung down in a «Vertical», striking her katana at the right timing. When she prepared to swing back down, he converted it into a «Vertical Arc».

And was not prepared for the faster thrust forwards.

In any other situation, that should have struck him in the chest, thus ending the fight right away. But adrenaline was surging heavily throughout his entire system, every single muscle working to obey his command as quickly as possible.

That was the only way he could have possibly leaned out of the way of her attack, feeling the brief gust on his clothes and hair that prompted him to move back and raise his guard, panting.

'She's so fast… How could she wield her weapon in such a flawless manner? I literally couldn't find an opening.'

She was almost as fast as Asuna, actually. She also had the benefit of knowing just what kind of attack to use to catch him off-guard, showcasing a level of expertise that he never thought possible with a weapon he had never seen before.

The fact that her katana was so slim greatly negated the air resistance she would have to deal with, hence why she was able to attack him so quickly and react to any incoming attacks. It's no wonder she's already beaten fifteen people before him.

But man, was he excited to end that streak.

'Just focus,' he thought to himself with a grin, readying himself to execute a multi-hit technique. 'If I can catch her off-guard with this one, she won't be able to block off each attack. It can work,' and if it didn't, well… he could say that he tried, yeah?

With a beat of his heart, Eugeo kicked off the ground and slashed right into her katana, metal ringing against metal as sparks showered off of them. A downwards slash is blocked, and a stab is deflected. He blocked a consecutive two blows, sidestepped her thrust and lowered his blade to his right. The Blue Rose Sword ignited in a spectacular glow of crimson, ready to strike her down.

'Here we go! «Sharp Nail»!'

A diagonal slash lashed out at her, Leafa dodging back with a cry of surprise. He did not relent, moving forwards with a horizontal slash, and finally unleashing a downwards diagonal that bit into her katana with every buildup of momentum.

Great was the impact that it rattled all the way up his arms, a gust blowing around them that forced her hood off of her head. Green eyes and bright yellow hair was revealed in its entirety, and Eugeo was forced to a halt at the sheer strength in her eyes.

The kind of strength that only those who have tasted true combat could ever bear.

His thoughts come to a halt as she lunged at him, and Eugeo slashed into her attack to force her backwards. He did the same as well, letting out a breath as he observed her movements.

'There sure are a lot of talented swordsmen… Guess I've got a long way to go.'

"You're good," her voice cut through his thoughts, a bright grin on her face. "I've only ever had fights with all these guys, and they're pretty predictable… but you're great!"

"T-Thanks. You too," he chuckled back, a little flustered from her words. "Looks like everything I heard about you so far have been pretty spot-on too."

"Eh? Wait, what have people been saying about me?!"

"Nothing too ridiculous, I promise," despite what he said, she looked panicky, demanding to know. "Really, it's fine. Just people calling you a great fighter. Now then…" Flicking his sword to the side, he let his sword rest on his shoulder, a blue hue surrounding him. "Ready to finish this?"

Her expression shifted to battle-readiness, nodding as she drew her blade back behind her, glowing red. "Yeah! Let's do it!"

And with their final clash, the crowd erupted into cheer.

Author's Notes:

Welcome, 2024. A new year, a new beginning—or, as can be put accurately, the same ol' same ol'.

I really didn't think I'd update this story first rather than the others, but I already had this chapter ready for some time now. Just gotta' work on the other stories next.

And hey, would you look at that? Leafa is here! And if there's one new goddess showing up, then you can expect the rest to join the fray eventually.