A Socially Anxious Night of Battle!

9 p.m., at the tavern in [Horunka Village].

"So the labyrinth area really is that difficult? More than a dozen skilled players have already died... Kirito, aren't you guys progressing a little too fast?"

Wang Shui marveled at how daring they were as he took big bites of the smoked-meat pizza Kirito had treated him to.

"Judging by their levels and stats alone, the players who've reached the outskirts of the labyrinth area could definitely clear the first-floor boss. But along the way... everyone only has one life, and nobody has the courage to take that risk."

Me neither.

Kirito added his own cowardice silently in his heart.

"There's nothing wrong with valuing your life. The game has only just begun. Losing promising players in a low-level labyrinth like this would be an insult to their abilities."

Kirito nodded in agreement, though he also felt he had no right to judge anyone. He was talking freely to Wang Shui about what he had seen and thought of the front line, but he was actually just a solo player. Most of the players on the front line were solo players at present, and they didn't have much contact with one another.

"I don't know about the labyrinth area itself yet, but the layout of the outskirts is completely different from the beta. Maybe it's because the first floor's map is ten times bigger... Also, Heavenly Book, were you really not a beta tester?"

"Does the way I fight look like that of a veteran player?"

Fair enough. Kirito recalled Wang Shui's way of fighting, trading blows right in his opponent's face. It was downright reckless!

Yet he had been saved by that very beginner. On the way back, he had also learned that this reckless beginner was the one who had discovered the information about stat training.

What was this, beginner's luck?

"Fighting is easy to learn, but your courage is hard to come by, Heavenly Book. Thanks again for saving me."

"That's because I'm a good person who likes helping others. But fighting the way I understand it might not be easy to learn. What about you, Kirito? Haven't you learned the [Hide] skill? Why did the monsters chase you so far?"

Wang Shui finished the last of his pizza and began sipping his iced lemon black tea. It wasn't cheap.

"It wouldn't have helped. Once there are enough monsters, it's hard to stay out of all their sight at once with a low-proficiency [Hide] skill. They take turns regaining sight of you, which keeps adding to their aggro. Besides, like I said on the way here, the ruins they were guarding are just north of where we met."

"Hmm... A tiny set of ruins? The guide didn't mention any signs of kobolds around these woods. Four monsters with linked aggro are obviously meant for a party to handle."

Kirito could only nod helplessly and say:

"The drawbacks of playing solo are pretty obvious. Heavenly Book, you'd better find a party soon too. Ah, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with your skills. I just think that since you didn't choose [Hide] or [Searching], going solo will be especially dangerous for you."

You little brat, rubbing salt in my wounds, are you? If I hadn't really been cheating, I'd have made you buy me another pizza today!

Wang Shui, who had activated cheat mode, smiled at this future [Beater] (beta-testing cheater) and said:

"Now that we've eaten our fill, how about a little exercise, Mr. Kirito?"

"What, go grinding monsters at night? Even if they're low-level monsters nearby, fighting them in the dark would be pushing it, wouldn't it?"

"No, no, I mean," Wang Shui said, standing up, "let's go exchange a few moves at the militia training ground."

"P... PK? Oh, you mean a duel, right?"

Wang Shui nodded and walked out of the tavern before Kirito could refuse. If he kept talking, Kirito's personality might really lead him to turn it down.

"There's no need to be so nervous, is there? Even I know I'm not as good as you, and I still have the courage to challenge you. Besides, we're [inside the safe zone]. A half-HP duel won't put our lives in danger."

As he spoke, Wang Shui equipped the [Anneal Blade], which had just been repaired, and unequipped the [Supernatural Instinct] jewel. His strength stat shot up by seven points,

and the sword in his hand felt a little lighter. "O... Okay! I'll show an arrogant guy like you what a beta tester can do!"

The lighthearted, cheerful conversational style Wang Shui had deliberately maintained had finally rubbed off on Kirito. From his eyes to his demeanor, Kirito had visibly let down his natural social guard. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Young people were too easy to read.

But that was how it should be. Game fanatics with shared interests ought to have the air of each being the other's father!

Both sides confirmed the duel request, and the large duel UI instantly lit up the small militia training ground. Many players passing nearby turned to look.

"Hey, isn't this lighting effect a little too flashy?!" Kirito demanded of Wang Shui in a nervous whisper.

Heh. Wang Shui suddenly broke into a smile and dashed forward the instant the countdown hit zero! [Linear] was good for an opening move. Its preparation was troublesome, but it was extremely fast!

Kirito, who had been somewhat flustered by his social anxiety, faced the Sword Skill charging fiercely toward him. He raised his hand with exceptional speed, completing the motion for [Horizontal], then swung forward in a slash with his body leaning slightly back.

Clang!

A piercing metallic ring erupted between the two nearly identical one-handed straight swords. Wang Shui's charge came to a halt, and he followed up by moving in close and twisting his sword through a flourish. The close-range attack startled Kirito, but he quickly adjusted and lunged toward Wang Shui's front right. As he slipped past him, he followed up with a [Slant].

Kirito had triggered the Sword Skill with incredible proficiency. There was only about half a second between his first Sword Skill, [Horizontal], and his second, [Slant]!

[Slant] covered a wide arc. Wang Shui had neither the space nor the time to use a Sword Skill, so he could only duck his entire body low and lunge toward the front right, turning over to land on his back as he did.

The purpose of turning over was to thrust his sword beneath Kirito's left ribs!

Red fragments flew. Wang Shui quickly got up after landing on his back, while a small chunk disappeared from Kirito's HP bar and a small red wound appeared beneath his left ribs.

"You trigger Sword Skills so fast, Kirito."

"You seem to have mastered swordsmanship specifically for fighting people, Heavenly Book?"

Wang Shui was somewhat speechless. "Apart from in this world, isn't all swordsmanship specifically for fighting people?!"

Oh, right? Swordsmanship had originally emerged and developed to kill one's own kind efficiently. Kirito suddenly realized that too.

"I don't know much, so try to make me remember and use more of those sword techniques, Kirito."

Kirito said nothing more, silently looking for an opening as he faced Wang Shui. Then, in an instant, he suddenly drew his sword back and leaped forward. All Wang Shui could see was a rapidly advancing mass of blue light and a blade swinging down from above.

[Sonic Leap]! A particularly difficult one-handed Sword Skill that also required a skill proficiency of at least 100!

Though Wang Shui had been prepared, Kirito's signature skill was incredibly fast. Wang Shui felt his heart contract sharply and every muscle in his body tense.

Kirito swept through the air, his blade chopping down heavily in a blaze of blue light. Wang Shui stepped and leaped forward too, turning in midair in the same way, as if he meant to repeat their first exchange.

The difference was that Kirito had changed Sword Skills, and Wang Shui, nearly horizontal as he leaped into the air, also used the Sword Skill [Slant]!

Clang!

After an exceptionally long clash, Kirito landed on both feet, turning and lowering his stance to brake. Before his body had fully stopped, his lowered braking stance, combined with the position of his beloved sword, quickly satisfied the conditions for the Sword Skill [Rage Spike].

"Wow!" The players who had gathered around without anyone noticing were dazzled by Kirito's two consecutive charges in opposite directions: "[Sonic Leap], land, turn and slide into [Rage Spike]." A spontaneous chorus of amazement erupted from the crowd.

Kirito wasn't distracted. His sword point and his mind remained fixed on Wang Shui, and his legs instinctively pushed him forward in concert with the Sword Skill. As the charge began, the scenery around him blurred while his target grew larger and clearer. Kirito felt the whole world slow down, and he liked the feeling.

Whoosh! Clang!

A red light, accompanied by the sound of rushing wind, struck first despite being launched later. A pebble turned to powder against the tip of Kirito's sword, and the Sword Skill's light effect on his blade vanished with it.

[Single Shot], a Sword Skill derived from the [Flying Sword] skill. The unbelievably precise interruption made the crowd erupt in amazement once more.

Kirito was thrown off balance, while Wang Shui had finished preparing [Rage Spike]. In the blink of an eye, the blue-glowing blade was closing in on Kirito. His gaze suddenly sharpened, and he righted himself with unscientific speed. Then, enveloped in a dark light, he shifted strangely to the right in a low stance before rising in a fluid movement, [Horizontal Slash] gathering on his sword as he cut at Wang Shui's rapidly passing body.

Wang Shui's HP bar plummeted by a large chunk, and a long red wound appeared beneath his left ribs. Inside the broad wound was a mesh of structural lines. There was some pain, but it wasn't intense.

[Horizontal Slash] carried great force, but it only made Wang Shui stagger. Yet in the brief moment it took him to regain his balance, Kirito had already completed a second [Sonic Leap]...

The battle panel quickly tallied the result. A huge [WINNER] appeared in the middle of the field, with an arrow pointing to Kirito's avatar, which was displayed anonymously.

Roar! The crowd erupted in enthusiastic cheers and applause. Kirito, the victor, was a little self-conscious. He lowered his head and walked over to pull Wang Shui up.

"Hmm... You really are stronger. The speed at which you trigger Sword Skills is on a different level." Wang Shui muttered, "I guess I've fulfilled a dream for all the Sword Art fans, too. By the way, how much have your strength and agility increased through training? Why does it feel like there's such a big difference in our stats? Can you tell me? I'll only ask this once."

"Uh, just as things stand now, my strength bonus is 15 and my agility is 18. Okay, don't look so surprised. Argo will add the details to the next guide update. Basically, you wear equipment that puts you right at your combat weight limit. There's a general store that sells [training bindings] with adjustable weight, over by the outskirts of the labyrinth..."

Kirito stopped there, meaning that telling him more now would be useless. Once Wang Shui reached the outskirts of the labyrinth, he would naturally be able to buy them.

"All right. With your monstrous stats, I'm already very satisfied that I could fight you to this extent."

"Same goes for you. Compared to this afternoon, you're practically a different person. Back then, you actually got in close and traded blows just to kill a scimitar kobold..."

"Don't mention it! Name your price to delete that memory!"

As the two chatted enthusiastically, a tall swordsman suddenly walked over from the crowd, which had been about to disperse after the duel.

"Sorry to interrupt. To the young man in black, was that special movement at the end [Phantom Slide], the special Sword Skill under [Hide]? This may be presumptuous, but my friends and I are debating whether to choose [Hide] or [Reaction Evasion] as our third skill."

Kirito was a little tongue-tied by the tall swordsman's approach. Wang Shui patted Kirito on the shoulder and said:

"[Reaction Evasion] also has a similar actively triggered escape skill called [Side Step]. If you have a regular party, you can learn [Reaction Evasion] first. The extra evasion bonus and small critical-hit bonus are very helpful against monsters that are harder to beat. Evasion is a valuable way to reduce injuries to vital points. You can learn [Hide] later too; for now, it's better suited to solo players. Hey, am I right?"

As he spoke, Wang Shui patted Kirito again, signaling him to speak too.

"Ah, yes. In a party, [Reaction Evasion] really is better suited to the main damage dealers. But for clearing content, I'd recommend that vanguard players using one-handed weapons learn [Shield Defense]. Its effects are much stronger and more useful than other skills."

"Thank you very much. We'll take that into consideration."

The tall swordsman thanked them and left. Kirito, who hadn't revealed his name, breathed a sigh of relief as if he had just endured a punishment and said helplessly to Wang Shui, "I really do still get a little nervous talking to strangers."

"Do you? I thought you were natural and lively when you talked to me."

"That's between acquaintances." Kirito also found it strange. "Or maybe there's something especially approachable about you, Heavenly Book. It makes me unconsciously think of you as an old friend. Talking to you really is relaxing."

There it is, those words again. One more friend.

"Since you... dislike talking to strangers so much, why don't you move farther away, under the eaves over there? Or you could just go rest."

"Huh? Why? What are you going to do, Heavenly Book?!"

As Kirito asked in a quiet voice, a look of surprise on his face, Wang Shui walked toward the crowd, which had shrunk to less than half its original size. He jumped onto a large wooden barrel nearby and shouted to the crowd:

"Hey! Are you all just going to leave like this?! It's rare to get so many front-line players together. You all saw our duel just now, and you were just as excited, weren't you?!"

Wang Shui's shout stopped the crowd in its tracks. Even some who had already left heard him from afar and came back over.

"As fellow front-line players, didn't you all feel like having a go just now? Haven't you ever wondered how strong you could be if you threw yourselves into a high-intensity battle? Honestly, that fight just now was the best I've performed so far. Duels are that exciting and fun, and they're an efficient way to bring out your combat potential. You understand that too, don't you?!"

"That [Flying Sword] skill just now was really cool, and your Sword Skills were beautiful too!" a dagger user suddenly called out from the crowd.

Wang Shui immediately raised a hand and sent him a friend request:

"My name is [Half a Heavenly Book], but you can call me [Heavenly Book]. In real life, I'm just a hobbyist in weapon-based combat, and my skills in the game are nothing special either. Now, in this death game, there's a fantastic feature-half-HP duels [inside the safe zone]. Doesn't fighting so realistically and safely tempt you?!"

"I think everyone who's overcome their fear and fought their way here must have that courage and desire. So I'm issuing a formal invitation: does anyone want to get stronger?! Does anyone want to fight me?! Also, where's that dagger user from just now? Want to have a go? Huh? Your name is Li Harvey?"

"Hey, don't shout my name out loud!"

"Hahaha, I told you ages ago that name was weird!" The dagger user's friends seemed to burst out laughing. "Go on, go on! Show this guy what our party's chief assassin can do!"

Amid increasingly enthusiastic and friendly encouragement, the dagger user named Li Harvey finally sent Wang Shui a duel invitation.

The two stood about five meters apart in the open space at the center of the militia training ground, taking their stances as they waited for the countdown to end. The surrounding crowd burst into cheers, even attracting many NPC militiamen and villagers.

Beep.

The countdown ended, and the UI expanded and dispersed. A red light cut through the night sky almost the instant the duel graphic disappeared. After launching a surprise [Single Shot], Wang Shui immediately entered the stance for [Linear], a universal charging Sword Skill.

Then he saw the red line of his surprise attack pass straight through dagger user Li Harvey's... afterimage!

The afterimage left in place froze at the final moment of the dagger's rotation. A dark figure, barely visible in the nighttime lamplight, swept out in a wide arc from behind and to the side of the afterimage. Li Harvey deftly shifted the dagger in his hand to a forward grip. As he ran along the curve, he tensed his arm and gathered strength, preparing a Sword Skill.

That afterimage effect was the Sword Skill [Phantom Slide]! It was under the [Hide] skill tree, the same Sword Skill Kirito had just used!

Not only did the same Sword Skill look different when the two used it, but the power and speed they displayed were completely different as well.

Unable to lock onto his target, Wang Shui stopped his charge before it took shape and could only watch Li Harvey close in along the arc. The more pressing the fight, the more it tested a fighter's abilities. Wang Shui couldn't yet be considered an expert, but he had learned to trust himself in a tense battle!

He controlled his sword and lowered his stance. When the distance between them reached a certain critical point, Wang Shui suddenly shifted his weight forward and sprang out sideways, then stepped, turned, and launched a high roundhouse kick!

The kick swept toward Li Harvey's face without any Sword Skill effect. The dagger user reacted extremely quickly, immediately leaning back and bending at the waist to evade the high kick. At the same time, he somehow kept moving forward nimbly!

But as the high kick passed over Li Harvey, Wang Shui suddenly lowered his body, changing the kick's trajectory into a downward strike!

A startled Li Harvey took the heavy kick to the chest and fell flat on his back. Once Wang Shui had steadied himself, he quickly gripped his sword with both hands and stabbed downward. No Sword Skill lit up; it was an ordinary ground-execution attack. Its damage might not have been high, but it was fierce and imposing.

He hadn't lost much HP, but dagger user Li Harvey was already starting to panic. He hurriedly rolled to his feet, only for Wang Shui to catch up and land a diagonal slash, bringing his HP almost down to half.

At the critical moment, the elite veteran player suddenly erupted with an imperceptible aura. During the brief recovery after Wang Shui's diagonal slash, Li Harvey lowered himself and turned, the dagger in his right hand rotating as it bit down viciously like a venomous snake twisting its head!

The dagger's high-speed, two-hit Sword Skill, [Side Bite]!

The two attacks struck Wang Shui's right upper arm and chest respectively. Li Harvey's motion resembled a turning whip strike, but instead of a fist, he struck with a dagger held in a forward grip. With the Sword Skill's bonus included, both hits were genuinely powerful and heavy, making Wang Shui's HP plunge by a chunk.

Daggers were a weapon type whose Sword Skills all had extremely short recovery times and exceptionally fast attacks.

So after [Side Bite], Li Harvey still recovered before Wang Shui. He continued forward, circling from Wang Shui's right toward his back. At the same time, he raised his dagger and stabbed down hard, orange Sword Skill light shining once more.

[Armor Pierce], a single-hit heavy-strike Sword Skill that could be used to charge and had the additional effect of damaging an enemy's defense stat. Its starting motion only required a thrust, making it a very simple and powerful Sword Skill.

In a flash, Wang Shui's HP also fell close to the halfway mark. Li Harvey's explosive damage over roughly one second had left the spectators no time to react. Just as he prepared to quickly add two slashes to deal enough damage to end the fight, Wang Shui regained his balance and broke out of his stun, quickly raising a leg in a side kick.

He kicked Li Harvey a short distance away, then stepped forward with a [Horizontal] to follow up. A straight thrust would have made it easy for the nimble assassin to slip past the blade and stab him at close range.

Li Harvey instinctively stepped back, dark light appearing around his body. He was preparing to use [Phantom Slide] again to create room to attack!

But Wang Shui's weapon was a one-handed straight sword.

The stun after [Horizontal Slash] was minimal, much like recovering after a fast sword swing missed. Normally, when holding a sword in one hand, the other arm swung with the body to maintain balance, but Wang Shui hadn't done that this time. His left hand had remained in front of the right side of his chest, a pebble pinched between three fingers!

[Single Shot]!

The red Sword Skill line struck Li Harvey's chest. The force of the pebble nearly knocked him down, but the duel icon descended from the air and enlarged.

[Winner-Half a Heavenly Book]

This duel hadn't concealed their names. Every spectator present saw the victor's full name, and the crowd immediately erupted in applause and cheers.

"That burst of Sword Skills was incredible. If your damage had been a little higher, you might have killed me instantly."

Wang Shui stepped forward and pulled Li Harvey up, praising him from the bottom of his heart.

"Don't mention it. Daggers have a big advantage against small and medium-sized targets, especially humanoids. Your Sword Skills are average, but you really do have a lot of little tricks. You got one over on me."

With that, the two laughed and high-fived, forming a simple friendship just like that.

After the dagger user returned to the crowd, he was praised with pats on the head and shoulders, and of course there was no shortage of fatherly affection from his troublesome friends. Rather than frightening them, the fierce battle had stirred their enthusiasm. Many looked at Wang Shui with eyes full of excitement and fighting spirit.

"All right, friends, it's only a little after seven, and there's still plenty of time. Let's have some fun tonight. And don't keep your eyes on me the whole time. Do you have acquaintances or friends here, or new friends you want to make? Come on up and spar together! The training ground is plenty big!"

With Wang Shui's terrifying social skills, the time that followed turned into a carnival of dueling and socializing.

And so the players gained another way to relieve the pressure of fighting.