"Damn it, just what kind of monster feed did Seiya grow up on?!
Being gifted in kendo is one thing, but his learning ability is this ridiculous too?!"
At first, Kirito still held the advantage in their blade-to-blade duel. Judging by the rate their HP bars were dropping, the final victory should have been his.
But that was two minutes ago. By the time only one minute remained, Kirito realized something terrifying—
Seiya, whose movements had been stiff before, was now growing agile.
Not only that—
Just moments ago, Seiya had actually used "Dash" to close the distance, then mimicked Kirito's own skill chain—Dash into Diagonal Slash—sending Kirito flying with a single strike!
This bastard wasn't just talented; his learning speed was off the charts.
Kirito could see it clearly now—
If Seiya continued to adapt at this pace and seized the rhythm of the fight, then no matter how fast Kirito's reflexes were, he'd be the one to lose.
Realizing this, Kirito knew he had to end the battle quickly. The longer it dragged on, the slimmer his chances would become.
Having been knocked back, Kirito skidded across the ground, but quickly steadied himself. He picked up a nearby stone, then activated a Throwing Weapon skill.
This wasn't dirty play. This wasn't a regulated kendo match—it was game PvP, and any skill was part of one's combat strength.
"Throwing Weapon" was a legitimate sword skill. The system simply treated the stone in his hand as a makeshift blade.
Clink——!
Seiya reflexively raised his sword, slicing the flying stone apart.
And in that very instant, Kirito's Dash skill cooldown had just finished.
Gripping his rusty sword tight, he launched himself like a cannonball once again.
Seiya had just swung to cut down the stone, so his body was still caught in the stiffness of the animation lock.
If Kirito's strike landed—even if it wasn't a critical hit—it would still shave off a huge chunk of Seiya's HP.
But right before Kirito's blade could connect, an invisible wall suddenly appeared before Seiya, glowing with the words "Unable to Attack."
The reason was simple.
The three-minute PvP time limit had expired. Any further attacks would be considered malicious PK.
The result popped up in front of them—"Draw."
Seiya and Kirito both fell silent.
"This duel should count as my win. Even one second longer, and I'd have struck you down."
Kirito was unwilling to accept the draw.
Inviting Seiya to play SAO had partly been for this exact reason—to vent his frustrations by beating down this annoying normie.
But Seiya was even more outrageous than he had imagined. Despite holding the advantage for most of the fight, Kirito still couldn't defeat him.
"That's not certain. How do you know I didn't have a hidden move prepared for the very last moment?
If you can't accept this outcome, we can always have another round. After all, it's just three minutes. What do you say, Kirito-kun?"
Seiya's calm suggestion made Kirito hesitate, but in the end, he refused.
The reason was obvious.
Seiya hadn't even fully grasped the game earlier, and yet he had already fought Kirito to a standstill. Toward the end, his movements had noticeably improved.
If they fought again, Kirito was almost certain he'd lose.
A draw was regretful, yes—but it was far better than being crushed outright.
"You two… would you mind sparing a thought for us normal players?
After watching your duel, I'm convinced we're not even playing the same game anymore!
Kirito, fine—you're a beta tester. But Seiya, you…"
Klein's words cut off as he suddenly froze.
His lower body was dissolving before his eyes, vanishing rapidly.
And it wasn't just him—Seiya and Kirito were experiencing the exact same thing.
"Force teleportation? But there aren't any traps or mechanics like this around here… What the hell—"
Kirito's shocked voice was cut short as all three vanished from the field.
When they regained their senses, the trio found themselves standing in a vast plaza.
The tolling of the town's great bell echoed through the air. All around them, countless other players were appearing—teleported here just like they had been.
Seeing the confused crowd, Klein grinned, still trying to rationalize it.
"Oh, I get it! This must be one of those, right? Like a special opening ceremony to hype up the game?"
But unlike Klein's optimism, Kirito felt a creeping dread.
Nothing like this had happened in the beta.
If it were really an official opening event, there should at least have been a system announcement.
While Klein looked relaxed and Kirito grew tense, Seiya opened his game menu. He scanned the options, then smirked knowingly.
"Don't you notice? The logout button… is gone."
He didn't lower his voice. With the plaza packed with players, many others overheard him.
One after another, players opened their menus—only to discover the same horrifying truth.
The logout button really was missing.
Panic spread quickly. After all, this was a full-dive VR game. If they couldn't log out… how could they ever wake up in the real world?
"We… we can't be trapped in the game, right?"
It started with just one player's fearful words, but once voiced, the anxiety spread like wildfire, rapidly engulfing the crowd…
(End of Chapter)