Sword Art Online - Volume 9 - Alicization Beginning

by Reki Kawahara

  “Eugeo…”

  I felt that Eugeo’s steady voice suddenly had what can be considered a somber tone, which shocked me. However, that feeling immediately vanished as the boy’s lips slowly showed a smile again.

  “…That’s why I only treat those as rumors. But during the past 2, 3 years, there were a lot of new tombstones. Jii-chan said that this situation is normal.”

  Speaking of which, now is the time to ask that question. I pretended that nothing was up and cautiously asked,

  “…I say, Eugeo. sacred arts…can they revive people?”

  He’ll just shoot me a look of disbelief again anyway. Unexpectedly, Eugeo bit his lips slightly with a serious expression and nodded while looking like he’s not really certain either.

  “…Almost everyone in the village don’t know of this, but amongst the highest levels of sacred arts, there’s a spell that can increase lifespan. That’s what Alice said.”

  “Increase…Life?”

  “Un, all people and items’ lives…including yours and mine, can’t be added on normally, Kirito. For example, the Life of a human continues to increase from a baby to a toddler until the adult stage, and the maximum Life is about 25 years. After that, it will slowly decrease and become 0 at around 70, 80 before being called back to Stacia. You forgot about all these, Kirito?”

  “Ah, ahh.”

  Of course, this is the first time I’m hearing this as I cautiously nodded. What Eugeo’s saying is probably that the maximum value of Hit Points will increase and decrease with age.

  “However, if a person is sick or wounded, their Life will drop greatly. If the injuries are too grave, one may die just like that. However, one can recover Life by using sacred arts and medicine, even though it won’t exceed the maximum value. An old person can’t regain the Life he had when he’s young no matter how much medication he takes, and those with wounds too severe can’t recover…”

  “But there’s a spell to do such things, is that right?”

  “Alice said that she was really shocked when she saw this in the ancient books. She asked this question to Sister Azariya, and only saw her make a very horrified expression and told her to forget everything she saw…so I’m not so sure about the specifics. However, it’s said that that’s a spell that can only be used by the Great Priests of the Axiom Church, and isn’t a spell used for healing or curing illnesses, but directly affects the life…or something like that. Of course, I’ve never seen the specific spell at all or something.”

  “Heh…Great Priest? That means that the monks of the church can use sacred arts?”

  “Of course. The source of power behind the sacred arts is the «Sacred Power» God Solus and God Terraria scattered throughout the skies and earth. Large spells require a large amount of Sacred Power. If it’s a really powerful spell that can control a human’s life, it won’t be enough even if all the Sacred Power in this forest is gathered. I suppose not even Zakkaria town has a spellcaster that can control such large power.

  Even so; he paused here for a while, and then continued with a low voice,

  “And…if Sister Azariya could use that kind of spell, she won’t see those kids’ parents and those parents’ kids die like that.”

  “I see…”

  —In other words, even if I die here, I won’t return back to the altar in the church and wake up with a beautiful organ sound. If I die, I’ll probably wake up in the STL in real life. No, if that’s not the case, I’ll be really bothered. The STL doesn’t have the capability to destroy Fluctlights—probably. It should be different from Nerve Gear.

  However, trying death should be the final means to leave this place. The existence of Underworld is already a sure thing inside my mind, and even if I know of this, is it really alright for me to leave without knowing my purpose in this world—my soul’s giving off such a voice to me from deep inside.

  I really want to get sent to the capital and barge into the headquarters of the Axiom Church or something and ask all sorts of questions in my mind to the «Great Priests», but I have no way to do this. No transport can be carried out from town to town, and there really should be a limit to this lack of play ability. Even that SAO had transfer gates in almost all the cities.

  If this were an ordinary VRMMO, I might consider sending a mail of complaint to the operator. However, if I can’t do so, I’ll just have to try my hardest as long as the system allowed me. Yes, I did think this often during the boss conquest battles in Aincrad.

  Having finished the second bun, I put the water bottle Eugeo handed over to me at my mouth, drinking up as I looked up at this large tree trunk that reached the skies.

  I have to get Eugeo to help me if I have to head towards the capital, but it’s probably impossible to make him give up on his duty seriously, since that is probably forbidden by the Taboo Index. In that case, there’s only one way, and that’s to find a way to deal with this overly large cedar.

  I turned back to look, and saw Eugeo pat his pants before standing up.

  “Alright, time to get started with our work in the afternoon. I’ll start first. Can you hand me the axe?”

  “Ahh.”

  I used my right hand to hold onto the handle of the Dragon Bone Axe beside me and was about to hand it over to Eugeo.

  Suddenly, a strong electric shock-feeling flashed in my mind. The tail end of the thing that was about to escape my palm seemed to be caught back, so I cautiously thought.

  Eugeo did say that an ordinary axe would have its blade easily shattered, which was why they went to the capital to order this large Dragon Bone axe.

  In that case, we just needed a more powerful axe. We’ll use one with more attack power and durability that required more strength.

  “I, I say, Eugeo.”

  I held my breath and asked.

  “Is there a stronger axe in this village? Even if it’s not in this village, if it’s in the town of Zakkaria…it’s been three hundred years since you ordered this axe, right?”

  But Eugeo just shook his head.

  “How can there be one? Dragon bone is the highest grade material for weapons. It’s harder than the Damask metal in the south and gem metal in the East. If there’s anything harder, it’ll be the ones the Integrity Knights use…the Divine Instruments…”

  The tail end of these words faded off with the trembling voice, so I tilted my head and waited for the back part of the content. After about 5 seconds of silence, Eugeo whispered as if he was worried about the surroundings.

  “…There’s no axe, but…there’s a sword.”

  “Sword…?”

  “I mentioned in front of the church that there’s another Divine Instrument beside the «Clock that Tells the Time», do you remember?”

  “Ah…ahh.”

  “In fact, it’s near this place…and I’m the only one who knows about this. During these six years, I’ve been hiding it from everyone…do you want to see it, Kirito?”

  “Of, of course! I want to. Please show it to me!”

  I said with enthusiasm, but Eugeo still looked like he was hesitating. He soon nodded though, and handed me the axe.

  “Then, please start the afternoon work, Kirito. It’ll take quite some time to take it out.”

  “Is it far away?”

  “No, it’s just inside the storage shed nearby, but…it’s unexpectedly heavy.”

  It’s just like what Eugeo said as once I finished the 50th swing, he finally returned, looking rather tired and giving off lots of sweat on his forehead.

  “O, oi, are you okay?”

  On hearing this, Eugeo, who had lost his strength to answer, simply nodded and tossed the thing he’s been carrying on his shoulder onto the ground. DONK. With a blunt sound, the moss carpet had a large dent on it. I handed over the container with the Siral water over to the panting Eugeo and started to stare at the thing on the ground.

  I seem to have seen it before. It was a long and thin leather jacket that was 1.2m long. Undoubtedly, this is
the packaged item that was randomly placed inside the hut when Eugeo was putting the dragon axe aside.

  “Can I open it?”

  “Ah…ahh. Be…careful though. If it lands on your leg, you won’t be just…hurt there.”

  The panting Eugeo said. I nodded at him and carefully reached my hand out.

  After that, my waist just felt a shock like it’s about to be snapped. No, even if it’s reality, my waist will really dislocate for real. Seriously, this packaged item is really heavy. I’m holding it with both hands, but it just won’t budge as it seems to be nailed to the ground or something like that.

  My sister Suguha has been training in the kendo club and is already monstrously muscular, so I have to say that she’s a lot heavier than she looks—of course, I can’t say these thoughts of her—and without being over-exaggerating, this wrapped item makes me feel like it’s like her in that sense. I steadied my legs again and exerted strength into my waist to exert all my strength like I was raising dumbbells.

  “Fuu…!”

  Mishi mishi. I felt that the joints all over me seemed to be rubbing, but the package finally started to move. I lifted the part with the rope knot on it and turned it 90 degrees before letting the bottom end of the item rest on the ground. I used my left hand to support it with all I had without letting it fall. My right hand undid the knot of rope tied around it and moved the leather cover down.

  Inside it is a long sword that’s so beautiful that even I can’t help but be amazed by it.

  The sword hilt was delicately crafted with silver, and the handle was carefully covered fully with white leather. The Knuckle guard was decorated with foliage, and it’s obvious what kind of plant was used. Whether it’s the top of the handle or the white leather scabbard, they’re all covered with a sparkling rose that’s carved out from jade.

  It gave off an antique vibe, but didn’t have any stains on it at all. It’s like it’s been sleeping all this time without being able to meet its owner—this sword gave me such a feeling.

  “This is…?”

  I lifted my head to ask, and Eugeo, who finally recovered, looked at that sword with a nostalgic expression and said,

  “«Sword of Blue Rose». I don’t know its real name, but that’s the name that was used in fairy tales.”

  “Fairy tales…?”

  “Any kid from Rulid village…no, even the adults know this—300 years ago, amongst the initial pioneers who found this land, there was a swordsman called Bercouli. There were many legends about his adventures, but the most famous of them is the «Bercouli and the Northern White Dragon»…”

  Eugeo suddenly looked far away and continued on with a sad expression,

  “…Simply put. Bercouli went to the mountain range at the edge and lost his way deep inside the cave, and caused him to fall into the white dragon’s cave. The white dragon guarding the human world was having a nap, and Bercouli took the chance to escape. However, amongst the pile of treasures that were scattered inside the cave, there was a sword he wanted to get no matter what. He took the sword silently and was about to leave, but a blue rose suddenly grew out and tangled Bercouli. He fell, and the sound woke the white dragon…that’s how the story was.”

  “Wha, what happened next?”

  I can’t help but be attracted by this story, and so I asked. Eugeo said that it’s a long story as he smiled and continued on with this,

  “Anyway, a lot of things happened, and Bercouli was finally forgiven. He put the sword back and escaped to the village. That’s really something worth being happy about…but really a boring story. If only we didn’t have the urge to check whether it was real during our childhood…”

  The voice seem to have a thick sense of regret, and I finally realized that the our childhood refers to Eugeo and his childhood friend, the girl called Alice. In this village, the only kids with such mobility would be them.

  After a moment of silence, Eugeo continued.

  “6 years ago, Alice and I went to the mountain range at the edge to search for the white dragon, but we didn’t find it. What we saw was a hill of bones with a blade slash.”

  “Eh…dra , no, did someone kill the dragon? Who, exactly…?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe some people…were interested in the treasure. There were a lot of gold and treasures scattered all over the place. This «Sword of Blue Rose» is amongst them as well. Of course, I didn’t take it as the sword was heavy…—and on the way home, we went through the wrong exit, passed through the mountain range and entered the dark world. What happened next is just like what you heard.”

  “I see…”

  I turned my eyes to the hands supporting the sword.

  “But…this sword, why is it here?”

  “…During summer two years ago, I went to the cave in the north again and took it out. I moved it for several kilometers every day on my rest days and hid it inside the forest…until I moved it into the storage shed. It took me 3 months, and as for why I did this…to be honest, I don’t know either…”

  He probably still can’t forget about Alice? Or maybe he wanted to wield this sword to save her.

  Such a thought flashed through my mind, but my respect for this boy called Eugeo didn’t allow me to simply say these words. I regained my momentum and raised the sword, using my right hand to hold onto the hilt of the sword.

  I thought that this sword that’s stabbed deep inside the ground like a pillar would be hard to move with so much resistance, but I just moved it slightly, and the blade itself slid out from the scabbard smoothly. Swoosh. With that crisp sound, the sword was drawn, and I felt a lot of weight from the right shoulder to the wrist. I hurriedly threw aside the scabbard in my left hand and used both hands to hold onto the sword.

  The scabbard looked like it was made of metal, but seemed to have a lot of weight as it stabbed into the ground with a thud. It nearly hit my left foot, but I didn’t have the time to back away as I continued to maintain the sword’s balance.

  Luckily, the sword was 3 times lighter once I took off the scabbard, and I could continue to maintain this for a while. I continued to look at the blade of the sword in a seemingly attracted manner.

  It’s really an inexplicable material. The slightly metallic object that was only 3.5 cm wide gave off a light blue glow as it reflected the sunlight shining through the leaves. Looking closely, the blade reflected off the sunlight with the image surface, and some of the light seemed to remain on the inside of the blade, giving off a diffused reflectance. Anyway, it just looks somewhat transparent.

  “This isn’t an ordinary metal nor silver. It’s different from dragon bone too, and obviously not glass…”

  Eugeo said with a slightly awestruck tone,

  “—In other words, this isn’t something made by human hands…that’s what I feel. It’s made by a powerful Sacred Arts caster borrowing the power of god, or something that may be made by a god …such a item is called a «Divine Instrument>. This Sword of Blue Rose is definitely a Divine Instrument too.”

  —God.

  The names «Solus» and «Stacia» that Eugeo and Selka often talked about, the names that often appear in the Sister’s prayers; these should be a setting in this fantasy world, and I didn’t pay too much attention to that as I made such a decision.

  However, with the appearance of a god created weapon or something like this case, I felt that I have to reconsider this. The gods of the virtual world—will that mean the people managing from the real world or the main process in the server?

  This seemed to be a question that can’t be answered no matter how I think. Even right now, I can only feel that this Axiom Church is an existence similar to the «Central System».

  Anyway, this sword should have quite the high priority level given by the system, and now we have to compare it with the Gigas Cedar that has priority and see which priority level is higher—this outcome will decide whether I can go to the capital with Eugeo.

  “Eugeo, can you check on the Life of
the Gigas Cedar?”

  I continued to wield the sword as I said this, and Eugeo gave me a doubtful look.

  “Don’t tell me, Kirito…you intend to use this sword to hit the Gigas Cedar?”

  “If you moved it here, is there any other reason why?”

  “That’s true…but…”

  I continued to say things to Eugeo, who had his head down, to convince him not to hesitate.

  “Or does the Taboo Index has a clause that states that you can’t use a sword to chop the Gigas Cedar down?”

  “No…about this, it didn’t mention at all…”

  “Or did the village chief, or the predecessor…Garitta jii-san said that you can’t use anything other than the Dragon Bone Axe?”

  “No…he didn’t mention…I feel…something like this happened before…”

  Eugeo muttered, but still got up to stand in front of the Gigas Cedar. He drew a seal with his left hand and knocked on the tree trunk, staring at the window that appeared

  “Well, 232,315.”

  “Alright. Remember this number.”

  “But Kirito. You can’t possibly wield that sword properly. You’re being unstable just by wielding it now.”

  “Anyway, just watch. You don’t use strength to lift a heavy sword, you use the center of gravity.”

  It was a memory from a long time ago, but in the old SAO, I liked swords with weight. I preferred the feeling of using one hit to smash an enemy more than weapons that relied on speed and continuous attacks to win. As my level increased and my strength stat rose, the weight of the sword in my hand would continue to decrease. That’s why I continued to change swords—the first time I wielded the swords that became my last partners felt like how it is right now as I wield the Sword of Blue Rose. Also, the old me had a sword on each hand as I continued with such manual labor-like intensity.

  Of course, the basis of the world system is different here, so I can’t simply use the same method. However, my impression of the body movement should work here. Eugeo waited slightly far away from the tree, and I moved to the left of the cut in the tree trunk, bent down and maintained a low sword-drawing posture with the sword that caused my arms to be worn out just by maintaining it.