Chapter 1: Falling into a Trap
The loading system blinked and disappeared, revealing the sunlit city of the ground floor in front of me. A crowd of players were already wandering around the central square, looking at the shops, checking inventory, and chatting with each other. Everything seemed surprisingly realistic — it was not for nothing that NerveGear was called a revolution.
I sighed. "Still... it's cool."
—Ren!" a familiar voice called out to me.
I turned around and saw Kirito, the same friend with whom I went through the entire beta test. He waved his hand and approached with a big smile.
— You still came in! I thought you'd be late," he grinned.
—Yeah, I wasn't going to miss the premiere of the centennial," I replied, punching my fist. "Shall we begin?"
Kirito nodded, and together we left the starting city. We knew that we had to level up first, find equipment, and then move up the floors.
Several hours have passed.
We fought with wild boars, shared drops, and discussed combat skills. I started using a heavy one-handed sword, focusing on reaction and accuracy, and Kirito was already training with a light sword and high speed.
And then... the sky turned black.
A moment later, we were transported back to the city. Red light flooded the square. The players looked at each other in confusion until... he appeared in the sky.
— Greetings, players.
A figure in a crimson cloak and without a face loomed over everyone. The voice boomed like a sentence.
"I'm Kayaba Akihiko." Welcome to my world... and your new reality.
We listened as he announced: this is not a game.
We can't get out.
If you die here, you die in reality.
And you can't remove the NerveGear.
Panic spread across the square. Someone was screaming, someone was sobbing. Someone was just standing in a stupor.
I was looking at my hands.
—Kirito...— I whispered. "Is this all true?"
He clenched his fists and nodded softly.
— It looks like it is.
I turned to him.
—Then... let's cut our way through." Together. Until the very end.
He looked at me and smiled faintly.
—Until the end, Ren."