“Wha……”
“Because, he was the one who killed her. My most important Admii-chan.”
“Ad… mii…?”
Yanai looked down at Higa, who was confused by the unfamiliar name, and screamed like he was furious:
“Her Eminence, the Highest Minister Administrator of the Axiom Church! I promised her that I would do my best to help her establish total rule over Underworld. And I agreed with her that I would safely store her Light Cube away if the server were to be formatted.”
Higa’s eyes opened wide in shock.
The Axiom Church was the organization that ruled over the Human Empire in Underworld.
It held total control over the entire populace by way of extremely strict laws and powerful military force.
The reason Higa had not obtained the limit-breaking Fluctlight «Alice» when she had first appeared was that, in the time-accelerated Underworld, the Axiom Church quickly whisked Alice away and applied memory modification upon her Fluctlight.
Yes, their speed was much too fast, and their methods were much too effective.
As though they were completely aware of what an Artificial Fluctlight was.
Yet the truth was just that. The Axiom Church — or at least the Artificial Fluctlight by the name of «Administrator», who seemed to be in charge, understood the structure of this world.
“… Was it you who corrupted Underworld?…”
Higa moaned lowly, and Yanai smacked his lips exaggeratedly.
“No, no, that kid came and contacted me first. I was working a shift at the time, and then I suddenly heard a girl’s voice coming from the speaker, it damn near scared the shit out of me… She had discovered Underworld’s entire command list by herself, and then opened a contact line with the outside. If we’re being technical, you’re the main culprit for forgetting to delete the command that called up the entire list, Higa-san.”
Neheheheh. Yanai chuckled deeply a few times as though he were reminiscing about something, then continued with an absentminded gaze:
“I kept thinking that, at that rate, Underworld would immediately be totally formatted. It was all going to be deleted anyway, so it didn’t matter, and that’s why I secretly used an STL to go in and see Admii-chan. And then… God, I’d never seen such a beautiful girl. The kids that Sugou-san locked up in ALO were pretty cute, but Admii-chan’s personality, her voice, and her manner, it hit all of my buttons… — That kid promised me before. If I helped her, then in return she would become my number one servant. In the future she would rule the real world together with me, making me a king…”
— No.
The corrupted one was this man.
Higa seemed to feel all of the hairs on his body stand upright in fear. Yanai might be a silly traitor, but he was no idiot. What kind of person was Administrator, to be able to beguile and control someone like him so exquisitely?
Just then, Yanai’s seemingly reminiscent face went blank again.
“But… that kid’s dead now. Murdered… That brat not only hindered Sugou-san’s experiment, he killed Admii-chan. If I don’t help her get revenge, that would just be too sad for Admii-chan…”
Yanai widened his bloodshot eyes and aimed the gun at Higa again. Automatic handguns would automatically cock the hammer after firing a round, so the second shot would require much less pressure on the trigger compared to the first. If his index finger pressed just a bit, another bullet would be fired.
“… Yeah, that’s right… Yeah, I gotta kill at least one, as a sacrifice for that kid…”
Yanai’s shrunken pupils trembled slightly in the middle of his widened eyes.
… Damn it. He’s serious this time.
Higa couldn’t help but close his eyes.
***
— I won’t make it.
Sensing that Asuna, Klein, and Lisbeth far away had plunged into dire straits, Leafa couldn’t help but bite her lip.
But before her eyes, nearly 3,000 red-armored soldiers were blocking her way.
She had requested a favor of Rirupirin, who appeared to be the Orc tribal chief: to bring reinforcements towards the south in order to assist Asuna and Kirito, but the ones whom they had spent a great amount of effort to locate were not those Human Empire Defense Army troops.
According to Rirupirin, the few hundred people who were being surrounded by the army that dived in from the Real World were Fist Fighters, who were all attached to the Dark Army like the Orcs. Leafa was bewildered for a moment upon learning this, but very quickly decided to help them.
“I’ll charge into the enemy alone. Rirupirin, you guys group up with the Fist Fighters, and you only need to fight back against the enemies that attack you first.”
At this suggestion, Rirupirin protested fiercely: “I want to fight too!” But Leafa firmly shook her head, tightly gripping the Orc’s gnarled hands, saying:
“No, I don’t want any more of you to die. Don’t worry about me… even tens of thousands of those kinds of enemies are no match for me.”
After saying that with a smile, Leafa stood solitary before the red legion.
She already knew that Terraria possessed sufficient HP and near-unlimited regeneration. Moreover, the people from the real world in front, like her, had virtual lives. Even if it were too late to get to Kirito and help, Leafa couldn’t watch the Orcs die in vain here.
After executing tens of enemies with her ultra-long range combo attack, Leafa stormed straight into the direct center of the enemy without hesitation.
For some unknown reason, she was able to activate Sword Skills with ranges several times greater than those in ALO, without stopping. Every time crisp light burst from Terraria’s GM equipment the «Verduras Anima», a great splash of blood sprayed in a radial pattern.
But during the cooldown time between Sword Skill and Sword Skill, uncountable blades would seize this chink in her armor and come flying. She was unable to evade all of them, and the number of wounds on her body grew; excruciating, scalding pain threw dizziness into her head and stars into her eyes — But.
“HA — AAH!!“
She cried sharply and stamped her right foot on the ground. Green light erupted from underfoot and instantly healed all of the wounds on her body.
Leafa endured the lingering pain, unable to be completely purged, and concentrated on swinging the sword in her grip.
Even if every inch of her body were pulverized, she at least had to drive all of the enemies here back to the real world.
Although her dive coordinates had displaced her somewhere other than her intended location, if she had to name any of her responsibilities, it would undoubtedly be to save as many Underworld residents as she could. These were the people whom Kirito loved and vowed to rescue.
“She’s such a boss!!“
Leafa used her left hand to stop a sword stabbing towards her during that shout.
“Haiyah!!“
One mere counterattack vanquished the owner of the sword.
Leafa clamped her teeth onto the sword stabbed into her hand, wrenched it out, and spat it onto the ground along with a mouthful of blood.
***
Their second shots seemed to discharge at the same time.
Bullets fired from two anti-material sniper rifles grazed past each other, then deviated greatly in their trajectories and disappeared into the sky.
Sinon did not lose her balance this time; she stamped both feet hard onto air, suppressing the recoil. Before her eyes, Subtilizer was also standing steadily on the back of the winged creature, which was furiously beating its wings.
It was Sinon’s first time experiencing a space where all directions were extremely wide open, and a battle pitting two anti-material sniper rifles against each other. A game like GGO would naturally not support player flight; moreover, the Hecate was supposed to be fired with its bipod down and the shooter lying prone. The recoil from shooting it while in the air was far beyond her expectations.
This showdown —
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Whoever was able to control their recoil and fire the next round before the enemy did, even by just an instant, would win. Sinon thought this as she pulled back the bolt.
Subtilizer probably had the same idea. As Sinon flew right to try and outflank him, he began flying left to counter her.
At virtually the same time, both of them began hurtling around at breakneck speed.
Under the condition that she didn’t lose balance, she maneuvered around at sharp angles in arbitrary directions. While she tightly captured her enemy with the barrel of the gun, she had to be careful not to let the enemy’s barrel lock onto her.
But Subtilizer’s raised Barrett suddenly moved at a barely discernible speed, seemingly predicting Sinon’s movements before she could do the same.
— It’s coming!!
Sinon grit her teeth and opened her eyes wide.
Flames spurted from the Barrett’s barrel.
Sinon flew as fast as she could while twisting her body to the left.
The deadly bullet roared past her chest, close enough to almost char the skin on her chest. Her blue armor split with a crack.
— Dodged it!
This was her first and last chance. She must fire in the instant that Subtilizer had stopped to control his recoil!
However, by the time Sinon had raised the Hecate.
She saw another bullet flying directly at her.
Repeated fire — why?!
Ah… damn it.
Differing from the Hecate, whose bolt needed to be pulled back with each shot, the Barrett was semi-automatic.
When this thought floated into her brain, Sinon’s left leg was torn to shreds above her knee.
***
Making a stand against the despairing situation, fighting on the battlefield until the very end, were Asuna, protected by a Super Account, Integrity Knight Renri, a resident of Underworld, and his dragon, along with Trainee Swordswoman Tiese and Guardian Leader Sortiliena, who were being protected by the knight yet bravely swinging their own swords.
Though her exceedingly exhausted eyes throbbed with agony, Asuna watched as Knight Renri battled valiantly.
Around ten minutes ago, this diminutive knight had appeared here at the front line, and immediately began lobbing out his cross-shaped throwing knives. The throwing knives soared through the air as they pleased, killing every single enemy who charged towards them. This terrifying power was enough to beat back for several minutes even the fury-fueled assault from the neighboring countries’ players. The flames spurted out by the dragon struck extreme fear into the enemies, solidifying the Integrity Knights’ status as the true dragon knights born and raised in this otherworldly place, Underworld.
But it didn’t take long for the enemies to notice. While Knight Renri had cast out his throwing knives and was controlling them, his person was virtually defenseless.
On his umpteenth time casting out his throwing knives, the instant he was about to make a clean sweep of the very front line of red soldiers, innumerable long spears were flung from the enemy’s rear. The enemy was finally using the battle tactic that had appeared during their battle against the Americans, which Asuna feared in her heart.
The spears fell like a torrential black rain from the crimson sky.
Renri’s dragon spread its wings and body, protecting its master from the first wave of attacks.
But it then collapsed to the ground with shattered scales and spraying blood.
Immediately, another wave of spear rain was lobbed their way.
Knight Renri looked up to see countless spearheads roaring his way and spun around to wrap Tiese behind him in a hug, shielding her with his body.
In the next instant, two spears buried themselves into Renri’s back, forcing him to fall forward on top of Tiese’s body. Having lost control, the cross-shaped throwing knives glinted once in the air before splitting in two, then stabbing into the ground far away.
At that moment, in the other parts of the battlefield, the fighting had all concluded.
Trying to outdo each other, the red soldiers pounced all at once, lunging towards the Japanese players who had collapsed from exhaustion, plunging sharp blades into their bodies. Flesh and blood danced in the air, while feeble screams of agony ensued, but were very quickly snuffed out.
A great many people’s armor and shields were wrecked and destroyed, and they were pushed to the ground, utterly defenseless. The tears of repentance running down their faces were as unbearable to watch as the blood flowing from their injuries.
The two thousand converted players who made up the defensive array were completely incapacitated, until the Human Empire Army being protected in the middle was finally exposed.
In order to protect the unarmed supply team and Ascetic team, nearly 400 Human Empire Guardians had assembled themselves into a circular formation and raised the swords in their hands. Their faces were filled with an almost tragic determination as they waited silently for that moment, preparing for the approaching, unstopping red legion to launch their fatal assault.
“……… Stop………”
Asuna heard such a voice squeezed from her own lips.
It was not a voice emanating from the pain enveloping her body, but a voice of despair and sorrow, of her spirit finally surrendering.
“I’m begging you… Please stop…”
As she spoke, the rapier in her right hand fell to the ground. Tears slid over her cheeks, splashing onto the mutilated blade.
But the red shadow before her instead emitted an expletive filled with hostility, and raised its two-handed sword high into the air.
— In that instant.
A thunderous roar rang out, stopping the blade hurtling towards Asuna and all of the battles taking place in various locations on the battlefield.
“STOOOOOOP!!” The one who had bellowed at an absolutely deafening volume was the man in the black poncho, who had been observing the battle from afar until now. He was the ghost of PoH, the leader of the murder guild — Laughing Coffin.
The neighboring countries’ players seemed to confirm that the man in the black poncho was indeed the commander through some sort of mark on him, and reluctantly lowered their weapons. The man about to execute Asuna smacked his lips loudly and sheathed his sword, but still delivered her a savage kick.
Asuna fell forward onto her face, but desperately pushed her body up with her powerless hands.
She raised her head and looked, only to see a tall man walking towards her, his black poncho billowing. He seemed to say something to the surrounding red players in a low yet carrying voice, but since it was in Korean, Asuna was unable to understand anything.
Then, the red soldiers around them nodded one by one, and began relaying some sort of message to their partners beside them.
Suddenly, the man standing beside Asuna seized her by her hair and yanked upwards. She couldn’t help but let out a scream of pain, but the man ignored her completely, instead violently dragging her forward.
The same situation was occurring all around her. They seemed to be rounding up the surviving Japanese players into one place.
The man in the black poncho walked nonchalantly to the Human Empire Guardians, who still had their swords raised. He turned and waved a hand, making some sort of sign towards the man with a fistful of Asuna’s hair in his grasp.
Then Asuna felt a foot kicking into her back and she flew several meters out, landing on the ground. One by one, the Japanese players were thrown around her.
There were fewer than 200 survivors left.
It seemed that health points directly correlated to survivability; the remaining people here were mostly high-level players. Asuna scanned them, but was unable to immediately spot the ALO Lords, or the members of the Sleeping Knights.
Their equipment had either been destroyed or snatched away; all they had left were the tattered clothes on their bodies. Many had exposed skin that was criss-crossed with scores of wounds, and even bits of sharp blades th
at had snapped off inside them. Yet everyone’s faces were trickling with the same deep, deep powerlessness and frustration.
Asuna couldn’t bring herself to watch them anymore. She very much wanted to lay down just like that and wait for the end to come.
But she still watched the converted players through her tearful eyes, intending to thoroughly burn their appearances into her mind.
Her eyes scanned the entire area once, and spotted a female player hugging her knees not far away, her shoulders trembling. Her short pink hair was matted with dirt, her maroon clothing torn to shreds.
With movements that were almost to the point of crawling, Asuna came beside her and wrapped her arms around her best friend.
Lisbeth’s body suddenly went taut, then she rested her head on Asuna’s chest. Her face trembled, splotched a complete mess of blood and tears, and she whispered hoarsely:
“Everyone… I did this… to… everyone…”
“No… No, Liz!”
Asuna said tearfully in a loud whisper.
“It’s not your fault, Liz. It was me… if only I could have thought this out more, if only I could have predicted this…”
“Asuna… I… didn’t know anything. How horrifying war is… how painful it is to lose… I didn’t know anything…”
Asuna couldn’t think of an answer, and could only hug Lisbeth tightly. Tears began to slide from her eyes. Then she heard low sobbing, causing her to turn around and see Agil motionless on the ground, and Silica kneeling beside him.
Agil’s injuries were so severe that it was astonishing to see him still alive. Perhaps they were from long, intense battling in order to protect Silica. His gigantic frame was stabbed with many snapped swords and spears, and his limbs were smashed beyond repair. It was a sight more wretched than any other. Asuna watched him as he tightly clenched his teeth; he must be enduring unimaginable agony.
Near Agil she could see Klein, sitting cross-legged and crestfallen on the ground. His left arm had been severed past his shoulder, and he had tied his wound with what could be called his signature headband.
All of the survivors were in essentially the same condition.
Sword Art Online Volume 17 - Alicization Awakening Page 21