Aincard, The First Floor.
Sunday, November 6, 2022.
17:25, Starting Town.
The warm, reddish sunset light stretched across the medieval-style rooftops of the Starting Town. The small alleys gradually faded into the darkness. The hustle and bustle of a few hours ago had quieted down.
The crowded market was now empty. Five hours earlier, around 1:00 PM, more than 10,000 players flooded into the Starting Town, causing everything to nearly spiral out of control.
Now, only a few players were leisurely walking, bathing in the twilight sunlight.
On the cobblestone road leading from the four main gates of the town.
They could be players just returning from hunting, friends, or teammates laughing and talking about their experiences in this game. Each one had a tangible sense of the virtual world they were now in.
The sound of a soft melody echoed inside the almost empty taverns, like a bell signaling that a lively night was about to begin.
Not far from the market, only about 5-7 minutes of walking from the entrance, was the town's central square, the first place where players appeared when they logged into Sword Art Online.
A tall tower stood boldly under the fading sunlight, splitting the sky of the red and yellow sunset in half, with one side glittering in the light, while the other was obscured by shadows.
It was the bell tower.
The tall tower, made of fine stone, was adorned with intricate carvings, and at its top, a large, ancient bell hung, clearly visible in the last rays of the afternoon sun.
Both players and NPCs were immersed in the peacefulness, enjoying the soft music. (Music: The First Town)
But then.
The bell rang heavily, tearing through the calm air. The sky seemed to grow heavier.
The light slowly faded away behind the alleys, reluctantly parting from the rooftops that had basked in the sun all day.
The low sound reverberated through the space. The echo reached the ears of the players, whether they were hunting monsters in the fields outside Starting Town, resting in inns, or simply relaxing in the main square. They could all feel a sense of unease creeping in.
It was as if something was about to happen.
Immediately, small glowing dots began to appear in the central square, and the light slowly dimmed to reveal players still bewildered, standing at the foot of the bell tower.
At first, the glowing dots appeared sporadically. But as the number of players being teleported to the square increased, the dots grew more frequent. Before long, the vast square was filled with people.
"What's going on?"
"I... I don't know!"
"It's a forced teleportation."
The players exchanged worried glances, panic creeping into their eyes. Some of them began to breathe heavily.
Once the last teleportation dot faded away, the bell's ringing quietly ceased.
None of the players understood why they had been teleported to the central square.
Whispers began to rise, spreading like a disease, and before long, the quiet atmosphere was shattered.
At that moment, someone shouted.
"Look up!"
No one knew who said it, but instinctively, everyone lifted their gaze to the sky.
The space became still.
The yellow-orange clouds floated lazily in the sky, resembling cotton candy. The weak sunlight struggled to shine through, illuminating the faces of the players who were anxious and worried. But it wasn't this that drew their attention.
A blood-red hexagonal sign floated in mid-air. It gave off an ominous and unsettling feeling. The blood-red color flickered, as if the light was faulty.
Then, in the blink of an eye, dozens, hundreds, no, thousands of identical signs appeared. They filled the sky, and the light surrounding them glowed red like blood.
Bright red liquid began dripping from the sky. It gathered together, forming a massive blob of blood. Dark tendrils of light surrounded the cocoon-like mass that squirmed.
"What... what is that?"
Some players shuddered. Their legs trembled, and they instinctively took a step back, as if signaling that the cocoon was extremely dangerous.
Before the gaze of thousands of eyes, the blood blob twisted and morphed. A bright red cloak emerged from the blood cocoon, resembling the robes worn by dark priests in anime or novels.
Time and space seemed to freeze, even the sound of breathing disappeared, as though it had never existed.
When the figure cloaked in darkness under the red robe appeared, all the players present felt a wave of relief. It was as if they had just put down a heavy suitcase after carrying it for an hour.
"It's the GM."
(Game Master, or "GM" for short, refers to the person who directly manages a game product published by the company they work for. Those in this position are required to have advanced skills and in-depth knowledge of the game they oversee, acting as a "judge" to resolve disputes within the game.)
"Why are they hiding their face?"
"Is it some kind of event?"
The murmurs returned, as if the GM was the one who allowed people to speak.
The figure, draped in the red cloak, hovered like an ancient deity. The flowing sleeves of the cloak reached above the players' heads.
Suddenly, the Game Master spread his arms wide and spoke in a commanding voice.
"To all players, welcome to this world! My name is Kayaba Akihiko, and I am the only one with the authority to influence this world!"
As soon as his voice trailed off, the players on the stone floor below began to murmur.
"A real person?"
"He must be a genius!"
"Surely... everyone has noticed, the [Log Out] button in the main menu has disappeared," the self-proclaimed Kayaba continued.
He extended his pure white-gloved hands forward and gently brushed the air.
This was a gesture used to summon the personal system, something every newly logged-in player had been taught.
His fingers, hidden behind the glove, navigated to the [Settings] menu and scrolled down to where the Log Out button used to be—now completely gone.
"But this... is not a technical error. I repeat: This is not a mistake. It is entirely a feature of Sword Art Online."
The world seemed to crumble after the GM's words. A wave of shivers ran through the crowd as doubts began to grow within them.
"A... a feature?"
"You can't log out of Sword Art Online, and no one in the real world can remove the NerveGear headset from your head. And if they try, an enormous radiation wave will be triggered from within the NerveGear, burning your brain and leading to death," the Game Master continued, pausing briefly when he mentioned death.
The crowd below began to stir, some sitting down on the ground, their eyes losing the last glimmers of hope.
Others stood frozen like statues in the cold, quiet space.
Then, a crack appeared on their faces.
"Wh-what's going on?"
"Surely this is just a setup to heighten the atmosphere, right?"
"This is boring, let's leave!"
Some experienced players recognized these tricks as typical of game companies trying to enhance the player experience, so they weren't worried and turned to leave the central square.
Instead of wasting time here, they'd rather level up or do some quests to earn money.
But what awaited them outside was an invisible wall.
"Hey! We can't leave!"
The smiles on the faces of a few brave players disappeared, replaced by confusion and tension.
It seemed like the GM was serious.
"What's that guy talking about? Who would do something like this? Right, Kirito?" Klein turned to his new friend, looking uneasy.
His heart raced, just like when riding a roller coaster, as he tried to focus and listen to his knowledgeable friend's response.
The young man named Kirito, still calm, stroked his chin and muttered seriously.
"The signal emitted from the NerveGear's wave... it really resembles radiation. If the safety lock is opened... then... burning the brain in an instant is entirely possible!" His voice was laced with worry and anxiety.
"So if we cut the power...?" A thought suddenly flashed in Klein's mind. With a spark of hope, he looked at Kirito and said, trying to sound optimistic.
But the budding idea was quickly extinguished by Kirito's cold, matter-of-fact reply.
"No. The headset has a backup battery."
"Impossible? This... this is crazy," Klein unconsciously swallowed hard, his hands trembling, drenched in sweat.
Please, tell me this is just a joke!
The hovering figure in the sky continued speaking.
"It's unfortunate, but there have been cases where players ignored the warning. Friends and family of these players tried to remove the NerveGear, and as a result, 213 players have left both this world and the real world."
The space seemed to shrink, and the atmosphere grew tense, suffocating.
The players trembled. Their eyes were filled with unease.
"Two... two hundred and thirteen?"
"N-no, no no, I don't want to play this game anymore!"
The GM's voice was calm but clear, reaching the ears of all the players gathered in the central square.
His voice held no pity for the unfortunate ones.
"As you can see, news of the total number of deaths is being increasingly reported in the media."
The white gloves worn by the Game Master waved gently, and hundreds of news pages popped up in front of everyone.
"But this also minimized the number of deaths from people trying to remove the NerveGear."
"You... can safely complete the game. But... remember, from this moment on, players will lose the ability to respawn after dying."
"If your HP reaches 0, your avatar will be permanently deleted, and at the same time... the NerveGear will destroy your brain."
His voice trailed off indifferently. Each word pierced their minds.
Even if they closed their eyes, covered their ears, the hateful voice still rang in their heads, as if someone had opened their minds and stuffed the information inside.
The entire square seemed to freeze. The players, anxious, stood in the silence that stretched on forever.
They waited for the next words of the Game Master. Hoping that this was just a cruel joke by the developers or a hacker.
Once again, the only sound that lingered in their minds was the cold, indifferent voice of the towering figure cloaked in red.
"There is only one way to leave here. That is to beat the game."
The GM then created a 3D model of Aincard.
"The place where you are standing is the lowest floor of Aincard. Defeat the main boss of this floor and move on to the next. Keep going, and when you defeat the boss of the 100th floor, the final floor of Aincard, the game will end."