Seiya, Did You Turn on Cheats?!

Still clutching his crotch, Klein watched the boar's body gradually shatter and disappear. His expression immediately turned rather displeased as he looked at Seiya. "Oh, come on, Seiya. I thought of you as a close little brother, but you and Kirito were in this together, fooling me?

You're actually an Open Beta Tester too, just like Kirito, aren't you?"

It was no wonder Klein thought that way. If Seiya really was a complete newbie, then what did that make Klein?

They were both newbies. He was still trying to figure out how to use the game's sword skills, while Seiya had already managed to one-shot a monster of the same level.

That move just now had nearly blinded him with its flash. And they called that newbie behavior? Even Kirito wasn't as good at pretending as he was!

"Klein, you've really misunderstood. Like you, I'm indeed an Open Beta Tester playing this game for the first time.

If you don't believe me, you can ask this guy."

Seeing Klein's expression of "You actually played me," Seiya spread his hands and gestured with his lips toward Kirito beside them.

Though he was clearly quite reluctant, Kirito's integrity was apparently beyond reproach. He nodded unwillingly and said, "This guy really is playing SAO for the first time.

There were very few slots for the game's Open Beta. If he had been one of the testers, there's no way I wouldn't have known."

Kirito didn't look like he was lying, and Klein also felt there was no point in two gaming pros setting him up, an ordinary office worker.

Still unable to believe it, he excitedly grabbed Seiya by the shoulders. "I get it now. Seiya, you must be using some kind of cheat software, right?

We're brothers, so you've got to share the good stuff. Sure, it might lower the gaming experience, but letting me experience the thrill of one-shotting monsters first and build up some confidence isn't a bad idea either."

Clearly, Seiya was not an Open Beta Tester like Kirito, yet he could still one-shot monsters. Klein figured Seiya must have been using some illegal third-party software.

Otherwise, there was simply no explanation for why they were both newbies, yet Seiya was so ridiculously overpowered.

Seiya looked speechless at Klein's words. Just as he was about to explain, the gaming nerd beside them seemed as though his faith had been challenged and immediately shook his head. "That's completely impossible.

SAO is the first game released using NERvGear. ARGUS is currently the most advanced hardware manufacturer—forget cheat software, not even bugs could possibly exist in this game.

And that has already been thoroughly proven during the Open Beta."

Any hardcore gamer would rack their brains trying to exploit loopholes and bugs in a game.

Naturally, the players who had joined SAO's Open Beta had done the same.

Unfortunately, even that group of hardcore domestic players had been unable to find any fatal exploits in SAO. Cheat software was even more absurd.

"Then why was Seiya able to one-shot it...?"

"Seiya was able to one-shot the Raging Boar entirely through his own strength.

I told you before, didn't I? Aside from system skills, SAO also lets you chain sword skills through your own technique. Seiya is the champion of a Kendo Championship in the Real World. The skill he used just now was a sword technique he learned in reality.

And because his strike happened to hit the Raging Boar's vital point, it triggered multiplied weak-point damage. That was why he could kill the monster in a single blow despite having the same-level stats."

After hearing Kirito's explanation, the relieved expression on Klein's face froze once more.

He looked at Seiya with even greater disbelief. "Seiya, you're actually the champion of the National Kendo Championship!"

"It's just a trivial little achievement. After all, it was only a middle school-level competition."

Klein and Kirito were both left speechless by Seiya's words. Kirito, who knew Seiya better, bluntly said, "But as far as I know, you crushed the runner-up back then, didn't you?

And the judges said at the time that with your current kendo skill, you could still place highly in competitions at the high school level... or even adult level."

"And more importantly, the main reason Kendo Championships are divided by age is to ensure fairness.

Compared with half-grown children who are still developing and have weaker physiques, adults have a much greater advantage.

But that difference doesn't exist in SAO. Other than the differences brought by levels and equipment,

the starting stats of everyone's characters are the same, whether they're adults or children.

In other words, in SAO, even a geek who has never trained can defeat a muscle-bound tough guy who spends every day at the gym, as long as he has better technique."

As Kirito explained the differences between SAO and reality, he slowly drew the one-handed sword at his waist and looked seriously at Seiya.

"Seiya, have a PvP match with me. I've already explained the differences between SAO and reality.

In this world, our physical abilities are equal, and our levels and equipment are both practically at their starting states.

I may have some experience from the Open Beta, but you have formidable real-world kendo skills. This duel should be quite fair."

PvP referred to a combat mode between players. Put simply, it was what people called a "PK"!

Originally, Kirito had not intended to challenge Seiya so soon, since he had always thought Seiya was still a newbie.

But after seeing the sword technique Seiya had used to one-shot the Raging Boar, Kirito could no longer sit still.

He had long understood that Seiya would quickly get the hang of a game like SAO, where swords were the mainstream weapon, but he had never expected him to adapt this quickly!

Judging by the level Seiya had just displayed, Kirito was even worried that if he did not take advantage of the fact that Seiya had yet to fully adjust, then after a few more days, he might lose his chance for revenge entirely.

No... judging by how quickly that monster was improving, after another ten days or half a month, he might be the one getting thrashed instead.

"So that's how it is. All that stuff about SAO helping me train my kendo, and good friends playing games together... it really was all nonsense.

Your real goal was to beat me up, wasn't it, Kirito?" Seiya grinned as he watched Lord Kirito reveal his true purpose.

"Then, Kendo Champion, will you accept my challenge?"