Premature Meeting

--- Asuna ---

[Link Start]

Sword Art Online.

The most hyped and anticipated VRMMORPG of our time. There was not a single soul in the gaming community who was unaware of it.

Today, November 6, 2022, was the day of its official release.

As such, I was one of the first few users that managed to log in.

.

.

.

The character creation process was straightforward, and I quickly completed the setup as instructed by the short tutorial.

[The player 'Asuna' has been registered]

"It's just like reality...!"

I couldn't help but exclaim in amazement as I took in the sights and sounds of the world around me.

The vibrant colors of the trees, the rustling of the leaves, the gentle breeze against my skin—it was all so incredibly real.

As I marveled at the wonders of this new technology, I followed the tutorial as it explained the basics of the game to me.

The NerveGear, the device that allowed to experience this virtual reality, was truly a marvel of modern engineering.

The news about it being groundbreaking had not been an exaggeration—it had exceeded all of my expectations.

I could feel the weight of my sword in my hand, the texture of the leather on my armor, the sensation of my feet against the ground - it was all so incredibly lifelike. It was hard to believe that I was just playing a game.

After understanding the mechanics of the game, I immediately set out to start farming.

To do that, I had to step outside the so-called [Safe-Zone] and venture into the wilderness.

Since I'm just a level 1 player, I shouldn't go too far for now, especially since I don't even have any quests from NPCs to help me level up.

But just as I stepped outside the Town of Beginnings, I noticed someone had the same thought process as me.

A solo player with black hair and blood-red eyes.

He was facing one of the first monsters in the area, a Frenzy Boar.

It looked incredibly menacing, with blue fur, glowing red eyes, a flat snout, and sharp tusks protruding from either side of its mouth.

Despite knowing it was one of the easiest monsters to kill in this game, I felt a twinge of hesitation due to its lifelike details.

I still had to get used to it, after all.

But for this player, it didn't seem like that at all.

The boar charged at him with a ferocious roar, its hooves pounding the ground.

Yet, he remained calm, sidestepping with effortless grace that contrasted sharply with the beast's savage aggression. His movements were precise and fluid, something that couldn't be replicated by an amateur.

In one swift motion, he reached out and grabbed the boar's head. His muscles bulged with raw strength, and with a grimace of mild annoyance, he slammed the boar's skull into the ground.

The impact was so powerful that the creature's head caved in.

Not even a full second later, the monster dissolved into experience points.

"Damn it, I lost a few hit points..."

....???

In my surprise, I didn't even realize he had turned his head to look at me.

"It's dangerous to step out of the city as soon as you finish the tutorial, miss. I suggest completing some side quests to increase your level first."

...How shameless!

He didn't bother to complete any side quests either.

The game had barely launched a few minutes ago.

There's no way he could have completed side quests to gain levels and appear here so quickly.

Was he mocking me?

Hmph.

I'll show you.

"No need to worry about me! I can do it too."

I confidently stepped out, a rapier in my hand as I was ready to crash any monster in front of me.

.

.

.

That's how I almost died by the weakest monster in the game.

--- Akira ---

After the countdown reached zero, I found myself transported to the Third Trial World.

A quick scan of my surroundings revealed a somewhat normal room.

It had a modern Japanese style. Could it be...?

I didn't have enough information to be sure.

For that reason, I turned my attention to the prompts that appeared in my vision.

[Welcome to the Third Trial of Fate]

[Description: You have entered the [Sword Art Online] World. In This Trial, you will have to become the true Antagonist.

Background: You are Temiya Haruto, an otaku gamer that wants nothing more than to play the newly released game, [Sword Art Online].

Tasks:

Defeat Kirigaya Kazuto on the 75th Floor(0/1)

Become the No. 1 in the Rankings(0/1)

Obtain a [Unique Skill] (0/1)

Reach level 100 (0/100)

Difficulty Rating: Hard++++

Conditions:

Keep your real identity secret from everyone.

You cannot tell anyone about your knowledge of the future.

You cannot die within the game.

Additional Information:

Your [Combat Prowess] has been adjusted to [Extreme].

You will not be able to use [Magic] in this World.

Time Limit: None

Tip(s):

Kirigaya Kazuto has already gone through the beta testing period. He will hold a slight advantage over you, as his information is richer than yours.

Even a monster like you would not be able to clear this Trial following the [Best Possible Path] without allies.

An Antagonist is not always the Villain of the story.

]

'The Sword Art Online world, huh...'

Now that I knew where I was, I set the Trial Quest aside for a moment. Even though the tasks and their implications were pressing, I will think about them properly when they became more relevant.

I returned to my new train of thought.

Something felt different.

I see, so that's how it works.

Luna had told me her Combat Prowess was restricted when she entered the world of [Spy x Family] to let her exist there. So, I knew this kind of thing could happen.

But now that I'm the one facing this suppression, I must say it's quite unpleasant.

Although it wasn't like my strength was completely sapped, it still felt uncomfortable, like a lid had been placed on my body.

I wanted to test a few things, but there was no time for that.

Sword Art Online is incredibly popular. If I'm too slow, I might get rejected by the servers because they'll fill up in no time.

In a second, I reviewed the new identity I was given.

This person was... normal, compared to the other two identities I had been issued so far.

He was just a gamer, excited about a new game, who had spent all his money to buy the Nerve Gear and a copy of [Sword Art Online], just as the Background information remarked.

If only he knew the game he just bought was nothing but a gamble with his own life.

Well, that is not important right now.

Without much of an hesitation, I rested on the bed and plugged the Nerve Gear onto my head, uttering a sentence I never thought I would've found myself using.

[Link Start]

It's time to show you all how crazy of a gamer I was back in the day.

---

Author's Note:

Here it is! We're starting the 3rd Trial!

What do you think so far? :D

(The Statuses I'm missing will be filled out when I have more time, sorry)