Here we are once again, folks! Been a little while, but it's actually justified this time…not only is this OPG, but this is a long chapter (15K words even without the Omake!). Things get crazy and insane in more than one way and unexpected developments are unleashed…we're heading for the end at top speed, folks!

Been a while, but if I could, I would recommend OPM's 'Seigi Shikkou' to play when Kirito 'stop the idiot' (You will get it later). And Kamen Rider Gaim's 'Ranbu Escalation' goes well with the 'fight' that follows, but ultimately, that is your choice :3 Enjoy reading, folks!

And, like always, TvTropes' page is appreciated!

Disclaimer: Neither SAO nor One Punch Man belong to me. I only use the plot of one and the idea of the other for my amusement and everyone's enjoyment!


Chapter 13: My Most Precious Person

16th day of the 12th Month - HEC 379. Underground of Southacroith. Night…

Despite telling himself that it wasn't the case, somehow, Kirito had always known.

Since the moment the golden-clad knight had first introduced herself as 'Alice'…no, perhaps even before that? Ever since he had first seen her, back at the Immortal Wall? When he had somehow 'felt' there was something about her that just made his soul shook?

Whatever the case, he had known, somehow…that despite the denials, that despite her saying she didn't remember anyone by the names of Eugeo or Selka and that Rulid Village didn't make her react in any way but confused questions…that she WAS the one.

The very same person that had indirectly started the journey of his first two companions, of the first two friends he had made when he arrived in that world.

A gentle young girl, burdened by the weight of seeing things that hadn't taken place yet, had lost her sister without being able to do anything to prevent it despite said ability.

A young boy yet powerless boy, unwilling to lose his best friend, had tried his best to prevent said event…and had gotten 'killed' in the process, awakening to a dark and terrible power and surviving with a scarred soul.

All because of a girl called Alice Zuberg, who had been unfairly taken away from her family, her home, her friends, for an unfair 'crime', for breaking a rule put on by the twisted ruler of that world and enforced by her parodies of 'Heroes'.

And now, after so many years, after leaving home both by necessity and also to try and find her…here they were, finally. Eugeo of Rulid and Selka Zuberg, both so broken and twisted from who they used to be that their past-selves probably wouldn't recognize themselves, were staring at the one person they had longed to see again the most.

Except that, with that same certainty that he knew the girl possessing Flashy Flash's powers holding a 'blade' of spinning golden 'petals' to his neck 'was' who they had been looking for…the caped hero knew that she, in fact, WASN'T.

Whatever the hell had happened to Alice Zuberg that had resulted in the one calling herself Alice Synthesis 30, it had created a completely different person instead of the sister and friend his two companions had longed to find.

Somehow, Kirito managed to clearly think and deduce all of that in what took Eugeo to take two hesitating steps towards him and the golden knight holding him captive with a raised hand, probably thanks to his inhumanly fast perception. Eyes widening, the boy from another world tried to warm his undead friend, his mouth starting to open…

Too late, as many golden petals had already shot from the 'cloud' surrounding them, shooting like lightning-fast spears and piercing through the green-eyed boy's arms, cutting straight through where they would have made them both useless to any normal person.

"I don't know who you are, but I think I told you to stay away, Criminal!"

Tiese's scream as blood shoot everywhere and Eugeo fell backward, eyes wide with shock, made Kirito curse and, with all the strength he could muster, slam his elbow against the girl's armored chest.

Barely acknowledging how Alice started flying back from his tremendous hit, only possible thanks to how she had been fully focused on Eugeo, the caped hero let his perception of the world slow down to a crawl, rushing forward as fast as his feet allowed him, grabbing his falling friend and mentally apologizing as he threw him towards his weapons and then turning to look at where Ronye and the slowly-awakening Telure were surrounded by the ever-spinning cloud of deadly petals.

"Consecutive Normal Pun-!"

The first of his punches had barely started flying out, dispersing a small fraction of the dancing blades around the two girls, when a golden blur all but slammed in his way, her fist lashing out towards his gut as she angrily glared at him.

Feeling as if a truck had rammed itself against his chest, Kirito spat blood as his feet dug onto the ground and left deep burrows on the earth as he slid backward, refusing to fall even as his arms came up faster than those of any normal human, lashing to the side and deflecting a hit that left his bones rattling, catching and redirecting another that should probably have crippled, his leg coming up to block a nasty kick that he was pretty sure had just fractured something but that would probably have sent him flying if it connected…

"…you're seeing my movements coming…and reacting to them in time." stopping from what, to everyone else's eyes, had been nothing but a couple of seconds of painful blurs, Alice couldn't help but stare in shock at the panting black-haired boy, some blood dripping from his mouth and where her nastiest blows had connected, but still standing. "Not even Ojii-sama could do that…"

"Yeah, well…I'm very stubborn."

"You don't even have a Blessing! How are you-?!"

"Kirito-san, get down!" screamed Ronye at the same time a swarm of small orbs of raw destruction annihilated most of the cloud of blades surrounding her and Telure, the girl's eyes shining as she raised her arm towards the Integrity Knight and created more spheres of annihilation within her palm. "I got-!"

Words couldn't express how shocked the Cursed girl felt when, half as fast as she blinked, Alice was THERE, a hand surrounded by her spinning blades and ramming into her side, blood flying about as she felt the horrifyingly painful sensation of the 'petals' grinding away at her flesh. A scream started erupting from her mouth as she saw Kirito screaming her name, all but trying to catapult himself forward to try and stop the golden girl from gutting her…

And then a dark aura of power engulfed Alice Synthesis 30 and painfully slammed her against the closest wall, taking her breath away.

Blinking, the caped hero stopped where he had rushed at Ronye's side, staring at the teary-eyed but clearly determined form of Telure now floating behind the gasping and crying Cursed girl.

Barely acknowledging that all the 'petals' in the air had also been caught by the psychic powers of their unlikely latest 'ally', the boy from another world was quick to grab Ronye, mumbling a quick apology at her pained whine as he borderline teleported to where they had their supplies, clumsily trying to summon a Sacred Art to help heal her.

At the edge of his vision, he saw how Sortiliena finally moved from where she had stood surrounded by blades before, rushing towards the clearly terrified Armored Draco, protecting Selka from harm at the uncertain enemy's presence, giving him a quick nod of acknowledgment.

Even as he did his best to calm Ronye down, tell her she would be fine in no time at all despite having no real idea of how severe her wound was or of recalling if Homeless Emperor's powers had anything that could make her less likely to die as she looked about to pass out, Kirito found his eyes moving towards the last two members of the group.

Tiese looked more confused and distressed than he had seen her ever since they first found her and her best friend, the vampiress trying to get Eugeo to react even as the blood-stained undead looked at his hands, as if trying and failing to understand how they had been hurt.

He was clearly in shock, something the boy from another world hadn't thought possible, but at least they were safe now. As good of a Flashy Flash rip-off as Blondie…as Alice was, she had nothing on Psykos' psychic powers, and as long as Telure kept her there nothing would…

"Fizel…Linel…has it been…long enough?!" all but screamed the gold-clad Integrity Knight as she tried and failed to oppose the unholy force keeping her pinned.

Confusion spread through everyone at the words, except for Armored Draco, the artificial Mysterious Being's visible eye widening in horror as his head shot to the darkness of the tunnel.

"N-no! Shit! Psychic-girl, quick, bury anything in that direction with!"

"Please by the Goddesses, let this work!"

"D-do it, Psy-Horse!"

In what it took for the confused little girl to turn around, the sickly-colored 'field' of static energy had flown over everyone, making her scream at the 'wrongness' of it as her brain suddenly felt as if it was going to burst. Without ceremony, Telure fell screaming and holding her head.

At once, the dark energy surrounding Alice Synthesis Thirty and all of her 'petals' failed, leaving the girl to fall to the ground, gasping for breath even as the golden flowers rushed to her side and started to reform into something.

"HENSHIN!"

"[Enhance Armament! Enhance Armament!]"

Sortiliena didn't hesitate for even a second, her belt not even finished chanting her transformation as she was already in front of the blonde warrior, let lashing out towards her head to try and knock her out of worse as her body was replaced by the form of the Valkyrie at the last instant…and was stopped by a hand moving faster than anything she had ever faced before combined, the massive lenses that had replaced her eyes filled with shock as the body barely moved despite the power behind her interrupted kick.

Not hesitating at all either, Alice roared and stabbed forward with the reformed golden sword that now rested on her free hand faster than anyone could even blink. With barely any resistance, the Fragrant Olive Sword pierced through the 'Kamen Rider' from side to side, the tip erupting from her back and her body going limp over the Divine Object.

"LIENA-SAN!"

The horrified/furious scream that escaped Tiese's mouth was followed by her trying to stand and rush madly towards the Integrity Knight, but was brutally interrupted as roaring little girl clad in prison clothes all but clobbered her in the head with a chain and mail, slamming the vampire into the ground and leaving a crater around them.

That seemed to finally snap Eugeo of whatever shock he had been in, green eyes widening as he looked dumbly at where the redhead girl that had been fussing over him now lay unmoving and with a lot of blood around her even as her attacker stood up, blinked, then released a feral laugh.

"Hah…AHAHAHAH! I did it! Took her down with just one hit! Linel-chan, these guys are actually weaklings! We can do this!"

"Please, Fizel-san, do not tempt fate." softly declared Linel as she emerged from the darkness, riding atop what looked like some overweight unicorn with a slightly oversized head, sickly-looking energy constantly emerging from the mechanic horn on its head. "Alice-san just injured the Anomaly and neutralized the Rider, and if my calculations about Psy-Horse here being able to block the frequency of that Dragon Level Cursed One had been wrong, we would be dead right now. Let's finish this without any more delay!"

"Sure, sure, take all the fun out of it if you must, but hey, victory is already here! Your little traitor pet is terrified over there, that girl he's guarding can't even move, the two fugitives are down, this guy who looked so tough before now seems as if someone switched his brain off and the feared guy with the cape has gotten his ass kicked so hard he can't even move properly! Truly, this-!"

"Would you please cease your incessant prattle and start doing what you're meant to, Synthesis Twenty-Nine?! Things should have never gotten to this point!" snarled Alice while looking clearly frustrated, still breathing a bit shallowly as she stared at the silvery warrior she was still impaling. "…you left me no other choice, Rider of Eastabarieth. At least I will always remember your-"

"Enhance…Armament."

Shock and surprise reaching her brain being still slower than her own body made the Thirtieth Knight unable to properly react when the 'dead' enemy that was half-leaning into her lashed out with a familiar-looking whip, which split into Seven as they bound her limps and made her let go of her sword as she was flung over the Valkyrie's head and slammed in a terrible angle against the floor. A scream of agony escaped her as she felt something in one of her legs break from the clearly superhuman strength.

"GAH! Ho-how…?!"

"It seems you grew overconfident without realizing it, golden knight."

Caught completely off-guard at the spectacle, the two youngest Integrity Knights could do little more than stare in utter shock how one of the strongest members of their order was neutralized by the enemy she had supposedly killed in one hit. Capitalizing on that, Kirito (Who had been pretending to not move while Sortiliena pretended to 'be dead') only allowed himself an instant of hesitation before moving and slamming his right fist as hard as he could against Fizel's face.

Blood and even a couple teeth flew to the side as the girl in cliché prison clothes flew to the side and crashed against the wall, her partner screaming her name in horror while the black-haired boy wondered how his life had turned so messed up he had to punch a 10-years-old girl hard enough to break rock with her body.

However, if she had even a fraction of Puri-Puri Prisoner's true powers, not having done so would have put their lives at even more of a risk than they already were.

Which was why he only let himself a second to feel the pain in his body and take a breath as he spun around, ready to…be painfully hit by an obese horse monster, barely avoiding being skewered by its horn as he rolled to the side.

"Fizel! FIZEL!" running to her partner's side as fast as her small feet allowed her, Linel was quick to grab onto her prone body while her stupidly-named creation interposed itself between them and Kirito, trying and failing to look menacing. "Still breathing…thank the Goddesses…you! How did you-?!"

"Liena's armor is kind of empty when she transforms. A hit like that may have hurt her to a degree, but it wouldn't have 'killed' her…I knew she was pretending the moment she slumped over Blondie over there." spat Kirito while not lowering his guard, his gaze moving away from Psy-Horse for a moment to take notice of how Eugeo had walked over to where Tiese was lying and was now cradling the unconscious vampiress on his arms, looking at her bloodied face with empty eyes. "Now then, here is what's gonna happen…you're going to make this critter of yours turn off his fancy horn so it stops hurting Telure, then you're going to surrender, or I will have to…!"

"…Eldrie's whip…"

"Huh?"

"This is…this is Eldrie's whip…" as she spoke those words, Alice's trembling voice turned heavier, her eyes hardening as she looked at the whip tails coiled around her body and holding her blade, the sight of the handle firmly in the Valkyrie's hands seemingly making something within her snap. "You…damn monsters…it wasn't enough for you to kill him…you had to add insult to injury by stealing his Divine Object?!"

As she screamed those words with anger born from the depths of her soul, Sortiliena's body froze in place for an instant, even as she felt the grip she had on the Frost-Scale Whip tensing as some invisible force started tugging at the weapon harder than anything she had felt before.

"This…this is…!"

'Enemy's Incarnation Levels rising beyond anything ever detected before! Unit Sortiliena, mo-!'

"AS HIS MENTOR, I WON'T FORGIVE ANY OF YOU!"

A burst of golden Willpower all but tore the whips' tails away from the furious knight's body, her blade flying straight to her hand as that same aura surrounded her injured leg as she shot forward and slashed all over the 'Kamen Rider', tearing the armor in a way more fitting of a rabid animal moving faster than lighting than of any 'knight'.

Sortiliena started screaming as the 'emptiness' within her started 'bleeding out' of her armor, her enemy moving so fast and hitting so hard she could barely even see her movements, let alone react to them.

"LIE-!" Kirito started to scream before being hit on the side by a beam of sickly energy. "Guh!"

"You let your guard down, Anomaly!" shouted Linel while adjusting her glasses with an almost manic glint as she held Fizel's body tight against her and Psy-Horse readied another shot from its horn. "Now, Alice-san, finish that damn Rider so we can…!"

"…enough."

With a disgustingly loud sound, Alice's next attack was stopped, both by a white axe and, to her shock, flesh and bone, blood splattering over her face and her modified armor.

Lying on her knees looking more like a ruined sculpture than bleeding 'darkness' than the mighty warrior she was meant to be, the Rider nevertheless raised her head to look at her savior.

Standing there, with a face that was a terribly complicated mix of suffering and determination, Eugeo firmly held onto the Fragrant Olive Sword's blade with one hand, while his Dragon Bone Axe was grimly lodged between the hilt and the golden girl's gauntlet, slightly cracking the latter.

And despite how terrible the damage should have been for any normal living being, the Integrity Knight could only watch in shock as his flesh knitted itself back together and bones mended in seconds, muscle growing back even as the grip on her weapon tightened to inhuman levels.

"You…" muttered the girl while staring straight into the boy's orbs.

Emerald green and sky blue gazed at each other directly like they hadn't done in a long time.

From where she was lying on the ground, Tiese slowly lifted her head, the taste of the undead's disgusting blood filling her mouth yet making her feel as if it was the most delicious nectar ever, given how it had just saved her life.

However, seeing the way in which he was staring at their blonde enemy…it made something within her heart tighten in a way that she couldn't understand.

"Alice, please…this isn't you…" whispering the words almost as if they were more a desperate plea than anything else, Eugeo forced his face closer towards his opponent's even as he pushed with more force, making her grunt and take a step back. "It's me…and Selka is over there too! Can't you…can't you recognize us?!"

"E-Eugeo…?" muttered Tiese with an unknown fear, never having thought possible for there to be such uncertainty in his voice.

"I already told you…I don't know who you are, criminal!" the blonde speedster growled while letting go of her blade with one hand and ramming a fist into the boy's throat fast enough for it to collapse inwards, causing him to choke and break his lockdown on her weapon. "This ends now! Dance, my bla-!"

"Release…Recollection!" the undead choked out while slamming his icy blade downwards.

At once, the temperature in the entire cave seemed to drop to deadly degrees, Kirito feeling his next breath coming out like visible mist as a flower of ice 'bloomed' around where Eugeo and Alice had been standing…and stopped after extended a few meters, miraculously not reaching where Armored Draco was finally trying to move by dragging Selka away from the fight (Despite her vague attempts to reach towards it with the hand not holding her blade) and partially encasing the damaged body of Sortiliena.

Nobody moved at all for a moment, before the caped boy cursed and turned around once again, rushing towards Psy-Horse with as much power as his injured body could muster. Halfway there, he knew it would be enough, the slightly overweight equine gathering another beam in his horn that he had no way of outrunning in his current state…!

And that was when something jumped off his head and GREW out of nowhere, an inhuman sound startling the artificial Mysterious Being and making Linel scream when a now car-sized spider snarled and bit deeply into the screaming creature. Panicking, Psy-Horse fired its beam, tearing through one of Charlotte's massive legs, but the giant arachnid seemed to just use the pain as fuel to her anger and, with a quite disgusting sound, tore its head away from its body.

Lying on the ground nearby, Telure suddenly seemed to relax where before she had been squirming as if in a nightmare, though the deadly psychic remained unconscious. On the other end, though, Linel Synthesis Twenty-Eight suddenly found herself without any creature to command at hand, holding her partner's unconscious body and faced by a giant spider, a tired but still standing Kirito and a slowly-standing (If still somewhat injured) Tiese, who was looking at the place where Eugeo had basically encased himself and the golden girl in an icy prison with uncertain eyes.

She didn't even take more than a second before raising her hands in horror while making sure Fizel was still leaning against her, the mentally-twisted bespectacled knight feeling like the little girl she actually was for the first time in many years.

"I-I surrender! Ple-please, don't kill me or Linel-chan, i-it was all Alice's idea! I-if it had been up to me, I would have never come to directly confront you, a-at least not without a small army of my creations specially tailored to exploit your weakne…n-no! Forget I said that! PLEASE!"

"…don't move from there at all and we won't…hurt you." decided the caped boy before turning a tired look towards the massive arachnid still standing over the quickly-vanishing corpse of Psy-Horse, 8 reddish eyes the size of his head staring back at him. "Charlotte…I didn't know you could…change size."

"It's not something I go exactly announcing around…neither using too much, because it consumes a lot of energy." confessed the spider in that strangely soft and feminine voice of hers, which only looked even more unfitting coming out of her now massive body. "I managed to convince Mother of letting me do it, though…it was that or one of you potentially getting killed. I couldn't allow…I wasn't going to let that happen."

"You…thank you, Charlotte." using as much sincerity as he could muster within his words, Kirito reached out and put a hand on the arachnid's head, making her blink in shock with her many eyes at how casually he did it. "You probably saved me from something nasty there."

Of course, the giant spider had no way of knowing that something like her barely registered for the hero's 'weird-meter' even before he came to the Underworld. Tonky alone looked a lot more bizarre than Charlotte could ever hope to be, and as for the 'scary' factor…well, the forests around the UHA's house on New Aincrad's 22nd Floor were haunted by freaking Slenderman…which he was sure Strea and Yui had befriended.

Few things got scarier than that.

"Ki-Kirito-san, we gotta get Eugeo out of there!" Tiese suddenly shouted with a panicked voice, the vampire having apparently finally recovered from at least the shock Linel's earlier blow to her skull had caused her. "The ice, i-it could….!"

"Calm down, Tiese, you aren't thinking straight. You know very well Eugeo is the last of us that would die from the cold or even frostbite. In fact, Ronye probably needs more help than anyone else right now." Kirito's words made the redhead girl's eyes widen as she looked away from the icy prison and towards where Ronye was lying unconscious near one of the walls. "I'm pretty sure you know your way around Sacred Arts better than me, as little as that may be, so could you please check on her?"

"I-I…ye-yes! Hang in there, Ronye!" seemingly shouting more to reassure herself than for anyone else, the vampire ran towards her closest friend, lifting her injured body and getting ready to do her best to heal her.

"Thanks…now then, Draco? How are you holding up?"

Upon suddenly being called out, Armored Draco seemed to snap out of whatever 'daze' he had been it for the last few minutes while mostly staring at the fight, his gaze turning from the shaking and defeated form of his 'creator' to the caped boy.

"You…you beat them…you actually beat all of them…I mean, after seeing you all square-off against the freaking Elder Centipede and survive, it shouldn't surprise me, bu-but still…A-ah! I'm sorry for not having helped to fight! It's…it's just, seeing those two, a-and another Integrity Knights, I thought…tho-thought…"

"Hey, take it easy. You did well." walking towards the artificial Mystic Being with a tired smile, Kirito pointed towards where the youngest, and currently most vulnerable, member of their group was still trying and failing to reach towards the nearby ice-tomb with her only free hand, more or less guarded by the cyborg-reptile's bulk. "You protected Selka, which is what we asked of you earlier. Nobody here is going to blame you for not stepping in while ensuring her safety."

"Yeah, not even me…and I'm still waiting for Sleipnir to repair the armor enough for my human body to not fall apart as soon as I change back." joked Sortiliena from where she was still half-covered by ice. "Be that as it may, Kirito…unless you intend to let her die, I suggest you start getting to free that knight girl. Eugeo may be able to survive basically anything, but I doubt she has immunity to being frozen alive amongst her Blessing's po-"

Craaaack…!

For a second, everyone's heart skipped a beat at the unknown yet terribly foreboding sound, all gazes snapping towards the quickly-cracking ice. Then, just as the black-haired boy recognized the faint sound of something vibrating impossibly fast under the frozen surface, the entire thing exploded with a sorrowful scream, blood and golden petals dancing with deadly power.

With a gasp and a strangled shout, Eugeo flew on the opposite direction while Alice stood like some wrathful goddess, countless small cuts covering her face and even parts of her body where ice had seemingly cut through her outfit and slight armor, even as a storm of blades flew around her anger-filled eyes and pale (From the cold) skin. Grunting, Sortiliena was flung back several Mels too, unable to do more than flail her damaged armor/body during the 'explosion'.

"She…made her own body vibrate so fast it cracked the ice enough for her blade's released form to shred it apart from the inside?" were Kirito's incredulous thoughts as the scene played at slow-motion for him for a brief instant. "Is she utterly insane or…does she just want to…beat us that badly…?"

"Ali-"

"NO! NO MORE WORDS!" the golden knight roared as she lashed out with her hands, a torrent of golden petals shredding into Eugeo's body, cutting him off mid-word and starting to rend his flesh apart even as another crashed down onto the Rider's prone form like the hammer of a furious deity. "Just…DIE!"

"Leave them alone!" screamed Tiese as her body broke into a swarm of bats that rushed hatefully and hungrily towards Alice's form, intent on draining her of all her blood in an instant…only for the knight to blur out of existence, appearing again behind the rushing black cloud with her still raised hands now filled with 10 burning orbs in every extended finger. "Wha-?!"

"…BURST ELEMENT!" mercilessly declared the blonde girl as all 10 Thermal Elements in her hand exploded forward like the breaths of angry dragons, the vampire's screams piercing everyone's souls as the bats were incinerated by the dozens in less than an instant. "This is…for Eldrie…!"

At that very same moment, Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One twisted in his sleep within the backup hideout of Eastabarieth's Cursed Ones, mumbling his mentor's name in his sleep for a moment, before the massive wings of Frenica covered him too and drew him closer, somewhat calming him and dispelling the nightmare he was having.

Back where the nightmare was a reality, though…Eugeo's horrified scream at seeing Tiese slowly being reduced to ash managed to pierce through the blades grinding his throat into mincemeat, even as Kirito didn't think and just moved, the ground cracking around him as he all but warped behind Alice and snaked his arms around hers, crushing downwards in a brutal hold, ending the fire stream.

The sounds of bones breaking, both those of the Integrity Knight and the one holding her down, echoed through the cavern louder than even their pained howls, even as the few bats that were left painfully coalesced together and crashed down into an inhumanly thin vampire, the redhead girl sporting many wounds through her skeletal body as she tried to drag herself away through the ground with unfocused eyes.

"Le-let me go!" snarled the blonde girl while fighting against the caped boy's hold.

"Like…hell!" Kirito denied while doing his best to make his hold as excruciatingly painful as he could, knowing what would happen if she was able to get out for even half a second. "Now, don't make me hurt you, Blondie! Let them go or I will break both your ar-!"

"I said…let…GO!"

Sortiliena's scream when the blade's tearing into her armor suddenly flew away in an instant wasn't one of pain. It was one of fear. Noticing it too late, the caped boy's eyes shout open.

And with Alice's shout, the blades slammed into his half-raised fist, tearing through his way-too-human flesh, bones, and muscles and all but tearing his right arm off, blood exploding everywhere as his eyes rolled to the back of his skull and he passed out immediately from the agonic pain.

Eugeo STARED, the world seeming to slow down to a crawl for him as he took on everything at once.

Kirito's mangled body falling backward in a torrent of blood, even as the golden blades took away and shredded apart his arm.

Tiese's withered form curling into a ball, barely coherent and unable to get the sustenance she needed to regenerate.

Selka's crying body being dragged back by a terrified Armored Draco, the beast realizing he would just die immediately if he tried to do anything.

Ronye weakly fighting to regain consciousness despite her wound and try and save the hero's life.

Sortiliena trying to force her armored form to stand, the destroyed Rider unable to find purchase with her mangled body.

Charlotte's massive form shrieking as she rushed forward, only to be swept away by the blades that had been tearing into him a few seconds before.

And finally…Alice, covered in blood and wounds, screaming her heart out, a mix of pain and…regret (?) in her eyes as furious tears fell from her face while she watched the caped boy fly back.

So much blood.

So much death.

They were all going to die…he had finally found Alice, but…they were all going to…!

[That is Impossible]

IT echoed, within that moment where time seemed to freeze for Eugeo of Rulid.

Not a voice. Not a sound. Not a thought.

More like…an intent, something that his feeble human brain forcibly translated into words in order for his mind to not break at being addressed by the barest fraction of whatever all-powerful…something that had just 'spoken' in his general direction.

Yes…not even 'at him', just 'in his direction', and a direction in which she (How did he know that bit?) could be addressing to endless other beings at the same time.

[You died years ago. That which is dead cannot be killed. That which has died cannot be…stopped]

With a painful gasp, the horrible memory of his life's worst day slammed into the undead's mind yet again…Deusolbert Synthesis 7's blade going through his chest, falling down towards the river, Alice's horrified face being the last thing he saw before something within his soul 'broke'…

"I died, yes…but I came back…"

[No. A bizarre combination of your world's nature and a particular joke of Fate allowed you to 'keep going'…but that can't change the fact that you died, as you were destined to. Ever since that day, whether you know it or not…you have belonged to Me]

He could not turn around. He could not look anywhere but at what he was seeing with his own eyes in that moment where time seemed completely still.

Yet, Eugeo knew that, if he had been able to just gaze at the edge of his vision, to try and stare at whatever was so casually dismissing his existence…his mind would be gone forever, crushed under a weight no simple living being could stand.

But…

[The one you seek is dead too. You knew that for years now too, didn't you? The one who stands before you is an imposter…a thief in your precious one's body. Nothing more, nothing less]

Alice…yes, that's right. Ever since he had managed to recover and come to terms with his new twisted nature, a part of the undead had accepted it…that there was no way his dearest one would be allowed to live once the Axiom Church got their hands on her. Not after how the Integrity Knight had taken care of him [and Nobody Else] when they…HE tried to save her.

The only reason he had recovered any hope of that, going against what he had accepted internally for so many years was…because of him.

The boy from another world. The 'Hero'. The one who had helped him and Selka believe once again that they could find their dearest one again…

"Kirito…"

[The Usurper will die too. There is nothing you can do to stop it. You're already dead, yet you let that thief best you. You let mortal Concepts like being injured, needing to breathe, needing to feel, hold you back. Make you weak]

No…that wasn't right…he…he couldn't let Kirito die…not after…

After…everything he had done for him…

He could have just run away with Selka and hid in the forests. It would have been a harsh life, but they would have been fine.

Instead, they decided to push forward with trying to get to Centoria…to find Alice.

Finding Ronye and Tiese. Facing off against Renly Synthesis Twenty-Seven. Crossing the Immortal Wall and surviving the hordes of Subterraneans that tried to stop them during that ordeal…

Nobody would have blamed them if they had given up after that. They had been overwhelmed, clearly shown they were way out of their league, and barely escaped with their lives. Living with the rest of the 'Criminals' was harsh, but quite nice all things considered. Amongst all the Cursed Ones, they could more than likely have been happy for the rest of their lives. For Ronye and Tiese especially, it would have been what they had been dreaming of almost ever since they escaped Wesdarath.

But they didn't. None of them, for even a second, considered to just forget and abandon Him. So they planned, waited with pain yet determination, trained to get stronger…and managed it. They saved Kirito. And once he had been back with them, there had been no hesitation that their journey to find and save Alice would continue, even before the attack on the hideout forced them to speed up their departure.

Time and time again, he had been the one to drive them forward. Regardless of their background and of how different they were, if they knew each other for long or not, whether their goals were just to survive or actually had a reason to go into this journey…somehow, Kirito had done it. He had pushed them all to keep going and surpass themselves.

'Hero'. That's how he called himself. Or, at least, how people in his so-called world called him.

Ever since he was a child, back when he used to hear the tale of Bercouli and the Dragon, Eugeo of Rulid had stopped believing in heroes. Dying did that to a kid, especially when the one who did it was one of the so-called protectors of the Human Empire.

Yet, that boy with ridiculous claims, a cape, and nothing but his fists, time and time again doing the impossible and defying all odds, had managed to make him believe once again. To make him have hope for the one he had failed to protect.

Kirito was their light…their hope…their Hero…even now, as his body crashed against the ground, he could almost imagine him doing his best to recover consciousness, to stand up and keep fighting despite lacking an arm and being literally bleeding to death.

But this time…he was surely going to die if he tried.

There was…no way he would…allow that to happen…he wouldn't let it happen…no matter what…!

[What could you hope to do? You're weak. A dead soul thinking itself still alive. The imposter wearing the face of your precious one will end you. Unless…]

Dead…he was already dead, right? That's right…the THING speaking all over him saying so was just a formality for something he already knew deep inside…and, if it was saying the truth…

"Then no matter what this…Fake Alice does…it shouldn't be able to stop me. Because…b̴́͡e̢̡͢ç̷a̴͡u̶͘s͟e̶͜͝ …!"

[Everything Dies. From the smallest cell to entire Multiverses. And Death…is Inevitable]

Something Crumbled on the back of Eugeo's mind, down to his very soul. For a moment, within the Light Cube Cluster, one of the many Artificial Fluctlights within the cube units 'glitched', darkening…

Just as Alice Synthesis Thirty raised her hand to call forth her blades to finish the job, hesitating for a second as she stared at the young man she had just crippled…the undead boy 'glitched' to his feet, everyone's eyes turning to him at seeing his injured form impossibly standing while his wounds basically seemed to snap out of existence.

At once, his eyes opened, fixed upon the blonde girl…filled with nothing but an emptiness that made her heart tremble at the sheer wrongness on them.

"K̷͢i͜͞l҉͟ĺ̕…̡͠t̶́͢h́̕͠e͏…͜i͟͏m̴̴҉p͠o̷s̴̸̡t̸̡è̛͝r̢…̧"

"Wha…?"

Without even the slightest ounce of hesitation…the green-eyed boy impaled himself with his blade and his axe, blood and flesh splashing around him while bones were pierced/cut through.

"[Release All Recollections]"

Bones exploded angrily through his body from the inside out, growing insanely fast and twisting around and over his flesh at the same time as all his blood froze, red ice growing like a cancerous tumor alongside the bones as they covered him.

Finally breaking away from the golden knight's shocked form, Eugeo's eyes finally closed as his weapons warped memories fused all around him…

And when they opened again, the only thing remaining was…[Death].

On its Throne above Everything, [FATE] did the Omniversal equivalent of looking to the side with a raised eyebrow, even as the Chains continued their almost-complete hold of the Universe he had been intently watching.

Deep within Unreality, [DEATH] did not even react, the third oldest Absolute One pretending to not even have been paying attention to anything in particular.

At the Edge of Reality, [DESTINY] watched with something akin to dread as one of the pieces, the ice/bone covered Knight, was warped by the familiar presence of his sister, the uncontrollable and self-destructive Concept of Reality looming ominously over the Golden Queen piece.

On the top of the Underworld, the eyes of the one called Administrator snapped open, her gaze immediately shooting towards the walls of her room, in a very specific direction, as if she could somehow see exactly what was hundreds of Kilolu away and deep underground.

"…another one?"

Back within the underground cave on Eastabarieth…Tiese Shtolienen managed to look up, despite the gnawing hunger and pain all but consuming her, and looked at IT.

The first thought within her agony-consumed mind was…that it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, despite the sheer wrongness it exuded.

A vaguely humanoid form standing almost 3 Mels tall, like a demented parody of a draconic armor made of bones and blood-red ice, jagged edges all over it seeming like some macabre blooming roses.

It was such a simple design…and yet, somehow she knew it was just a shell, a carcass meant to protect them…no, to protect the very World from what was inside.

There, vaguely in a familiar humanoid shape, an 'emptiness' stood as the core of the armor. Neither black nor grey, but something that seemed to eternally fluctuate between both colors…or, at least, that was the only way in which mortal eyes could perceive it.

Whatever was the case, though, the Concept of [Death] seemed to not care, its nonexistent eyes fixed upon Alice's paralyzed form. Then, before she could even think of a reaction, he was there already, before her with one of its clawed icy hands raised.

It had not moved. It did not, could NOT move because of how the laws of Reality worked…so it had simply killed the Concept of distance between himself and the blonde girl. Surpassing speed and logic itself to occupy the space it needed.

Only an angry 'void' was left behind where a part of the World had been 'killed', closing itself violently as the natural order tried to assert itself again, causing the cavern around them to shake.

Screaming with an unknown fear, the Integrity Knight shot backward, narrowly avoiding the clawed red hand as it 'glitched' through reality itself and killed the distance between itself and the space she had just occupied. Even then, she could feel a coldness that seeped through her flesh, bones, and into her very soul from having been close to the Conceptual ice.

Undeterred, the Concept of [Death] 'looked' at her, the 'armor' that should have been a solid chunk of bloody ice and bones 'shifting' against the laws of physics to once again do so…and a dozen tendrils…no, a doze of thorn-filled rose vines, grew from its back, snaking through the air and literally killing the distance between themselves and her body to surround her.

"Do-don't touch me!" roared Alice as she called forth her blades, the golden petals rushing to slash through the ice-vines threatening to catch her-

Dead.

The very instant the blades touched the vines, they 'died', the blonde girl physically feeling parts of her beloved sword's Life being erased from existence even as the abominations in the shape of ice did not even slow down.

The realization that nothing within Reality could damage or even interact with a Concept came too late for Alice Synthesis 30, her end now inevitable as the vines surrounded her body…only for black roots to sprout from the ground and yank her down and away from her sure death, not even letting her scream as she was dragged underground and then painfully slammed down upon emerging again.

Angry tears filling her eyes, the Integrity Knight turned to glare at her 'attacker'…only to look in shock how the tea-haired girl that couldn't even move by herself was staring at her with unseeing eyes, lying on the ground while somehow holding onto the jet-black sword from which the 'roots' that just dragged her were now retreating into.

"…neesama…" came out a weak whisper from Selka's lips.

"What…you…? Why would you…even save me?!" clearly doing her best to ignore the pang in her heart caused by the unknown longing those eyes provoked, Alice demanded while forcing her injured body to stand. "A-aren't you on his side?!"

"Are you blind, Synthesis Thirty?! Does it look to you as if that thing is on anyone's side right now?!" Armored Draco roared while taking several steps back, though still half-hovering at Selka's side.

Hearing those words, the girl's gaze moved back towards her unnatural enemy, who was simply standing there and 'staring' at the point where his vines had failed to catch her. Then, its nonexistent yet still somehow present gaze scanned the area around it, dismissing the existence of everything and everyone it had once cared for, until they zeroed on the blonde girl once again.

[Death] no longer saw friend or foe, indeed. It just saw 'living things'.

He would correct that mistake…but first, he would deal with the Imposter…for that was the only thought, the only 'echo' of his buried 'User', who had let himself been completely overtaken by the Conceptual power, that was still driving the Concept forward.

As such, the entity impossibly tilted its head yet again, 'killing' the distance between himself and-

"Take Selka and run!" screamed the artificial Mysterious Being while interposing himself between the Integrity Knight and the Concept of Reality, unleashing its deadly beam at almost point-blank into the entity, even as Alice acted more by instinct and blindly obeyed the order, holding Selka's body close to her and shooting to the opposite side of the cave, near the downed form of the Rider.

But…there was no explosion. No rushing feeling of a deadly devastating blast many times more powerful than any dragon's breath-attack (As Fizel and Linel had told her Armored Draco had been equipped to shoot) having been unleashed. Even as her head whipped around, Alice somehow already knew what she would see…and yet, the impossibility of seeing the beam of energy completely vanishing from existence as it crashed against the 'chest' of the armored abomination still shook her to her very soul.

Idly, she felt Selka's grip on her tighten, a warning trying and failing to scape her weak lips, her empty gaze fixed on the artificial Mysterious Being as it screamed and uselessly pumped everything he had on its strongest attack.

And then the laser weapon failed, overheated, turning off even as the panting dragon found himself staring straight at the Concept's face.

"[Iņ̀ ̷̕t̷̢͘h͢è͠..̶͞͏.w̷̡a̵͘y͠.̢.̧͢.̸͢͠]" the icy armor housing the end of Life 'spoke' with a distorted sound, more akin to noise than anything else.

"…heh…not a bad way to go out, all things consi-"

Faster than the human mind could understand, [Death]'s armored left arm grew and warped, bones and ice forming a crude facsimile of a fanged axe, the limb moving by ignoring the laws of physics and erasing the distance between itself and its target, cutting through reinforced armor, dragon scales, flesh, and robotic parts as if they did not exist, a cold that announced the End spreading from the wounds to…!

"Stop it already, you idiot."

A hand closed around the conceptual ice in the shape of a warped war axe.

It stopped.

Somehow…there was a loud guitar riff.

The World skipped a beat. Alice Synthesis Thirty froze, a small blonde specter 'glitching' at her side for a moment even as those same words called forth the image of a little boy slamming his open palms on the faces of his equally young friends, standing before a massive black tree.

[Death]…blinked, even his unnatural mind unable to understand what had happened.

It made no sense. It wasn't logical. Nothing within Reality could even interact, let alone stand up to, a Concept of Reality.

Despite that absolutely undeniable truth…the white glove closed around its axe-arm did not move an inch. The black-clad arm it was connected to didn't either.

A white cape flapped on the wind suddenly sweeping through the cavern, even as the pale light of the still-burning fires within the cave illuminated the ridiculous-looking black jumpsuit.

Almost casually, as if he wasn't stopping [Death] with just one hand, the black-haired young man reached out and brutally tore a piece out of Armored Draco's mangled chest, the same one over which colorless ice had started to eat away at the creature's very existence, and crushed it with one hand, all but erasing the thing from Reality.

Even as the Mysterious Being fell back, though, a beautiful young woman of chocolate skin, black eyes, hair and wearing an equally dark kimono, was there with several Elements in her hands already, changing a Sacred Art to close the wound on its chest as best as she could.

"…he will live, Kirito!"

"Good job, Charlotte….hey, Blondie! Is Selka safe there with you?"

Alice, for her part, could only stare with incomprehension at the scene, trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

"Who…who is he…?"

That thought consumed the Integrity Knight's mind. Because, despite the voice, despite what her eyes were telling her, despite what her brain was saying…there was no way the one standing there holding onto the Life-ending abomination as one would keep back an angry puppy was the same person she thought it was.

In spite of that, though…the blonde girl nodded her head dumbly, holding the now crying form of Selka as she stared at the Caped Hero with the barest hints of light within them.

"Okay…keep her safe. I will deal with you after I have smacked some sense into my friend here…"

Just as those words exited his lips, the Concept of [Death] seemingly had enough and 'moved' his other arm, reforming it into a long and wicked blade surrounded by thorn-filled vines and slashing straight into the boy's head. Everyone within the cave cringed in horror, their very souls seeing the result of his head being cleanly bisected like it didn't even exist to-

The blade-arm shattered into a million pieces, conceptual bones and ice crashing around and piercing through the ground like shrapnel through melted butter. The result that defied the logic through which the Universe worked actually making everyone wince in incredulity. From where he was lying being healed by an utterly awed Charlotte, Armored Draco started laughing, the wheezing and breathless sounds somehow seeming a full-blown cackle while [Death] stared in incomprehension at his shattered limb.

"[No͏t.͜.͘.͟p̀o̕ssib̨le.͘...?͝]"

"Okay…you asked for it, Eugeo."

Without saying anything else, Kirito reared back his fist…

And punched.


Just a few minutes before, he had felt so much pain he had blacked out.

When was the last time he was hurting so badly? He couldn't quite remember it…

Was it when Johnny Black stabbed him with the 'Death Gun'?

When he had to rush through Tokyo trying to arrive at the Utopia Servers?

Maybe when he tried to save Sugu from drowning in the pond and had accidentally swallowed quite some water himself in his panic?

It did not matter, though, because the darkness around him was so comfortable and pain-free…he wanted nothing more than to…just sleep there…until everything was over…

Didn't he deserve it at this point? After everything he had done, all the times he had tried, with and then without his 'powers'…wouldn't it be okay if he just sto-?

"No…what the hell? Why would I even think that?"

The darkness around his consciousness shook, disturbed. Growling, the boy tried to recover his consciousness, put his scattered thoughts back together and his mind as it should be.

…but there was so much pain…and he was so tired…so maybe…he could just give up now…and when he woke up, he would just have to worry about a normal futu-

'So, yeah, we're nor normal, at all! What about it? We will just grow into weird adults together!'

"Asuna…"

Shaking, the black-haired bo…the Hero claws at the darkness around him, the words of his closest friend, his first girlfriend, his lover, reminding him of one simple thing.

He had already chosen, hadn't it? Even when trying to deny it…when trying to escape about it…

"Normality…isn't for me. I'm a weirdo…who wants to keep…playing hero for fun…!"

No…that wasn't right, though, was it? How could he expect to have a real future to enjoy if he kept clinging to the hopeless childish fantasies that his messed up life had cau-?

'Do you need to be reminded of who was the first of us who started going around in a bicycle beating up criminals? I may be a 'weird' girl, but I don't care about growing up into an equally weird woman because I know I will have you and the rest with me!'

"Sugu…!"

Growling, Kirito let the words of his adoptive sister, girlfriend and also lover sear into his mind, giving him the last push to shatter the darkness around him, shaped oddly like endless Chains, and allowing his eyes to open.

He found himself staring up to a desperate-looking young woman, her dark skin and features relaxing a lot despite the small cuts and minor injuries covering her and the kimono (Or something very similar to the aforementioned piece) she was wearing.

"Thank mother, you're awake! I managed to stop the bleeding on the stump of your arm, but we need to…!"

"…Charlotte?" muttered the caped hero with a weak voice upon recognizing the one with which the 'stranger' was speaking, sitting up and giving her a deadpan look. "You can…also turn into a human?"

"Yes, but the only thing this form is good for is to cast Sacred Arts…that's how I healed you. Otherwise, it leaves me too vulnerable and…"

Armored Draco's voice shouting interrupted the transformed spider and caused both of them to look, Kirito's eyes widening upon fixing themselves into the…thing he deduced was Eugeo from all the ice and bones.

"It's…just like Yuuki…"

Except that it wasn't, because the boy's mind could still recall the majestic presence of the [Worthy] existence in which Yuuki had become when they had that amazing fight, and the impossible power within the [Blade] in her hands.

However, whatever in which his zombie friend had turned was nothing but pure, dreadful, and ominous emptiness that seemed to seek nothing but to harm…no, to End, everything in its way. That's what his brain told him the moment his eyes settled over [Death]'s form.

Also…once again, unlike the vibrant Imp that also called herself a girlfriend of him, it looked as if that idiot of Eugeo had let himself be consumed by the power of his…Concept, instead of being the one in control. That fact was obvious for how it apparently was trying to kill Alice…to kill the very same person he had been trying to save.

Sure, maybe Blondie S30 wasn't exactly 'his' Alice, but it was still the girl they had been looking for in one way or another. Kirito was sure of it. The way in which Selka had clearly saved her despite the sorry state she was in was more than enough proof for him.

So then…why was he still there, lying on the ground like an idiot, when even the borderline comatose young girl was putting that much effort?

Grunting and ignoring the protests coming from Charlotte, the caped hero forced himself to his feet, disoriented for a moment by his lack of arm before taking a deep breath and staring forward just as [Death] 'killed' the distance between himself and Alice, causing Armored Draco to foolishly try to face him to let the girls escape.

No…he had failed enough since he got to that damn crazy world. Nobody was dying that night, at the very least.

"Charlotte, when we get there, heal Draco…he's going to need it."

"Wait…what are you going to do?! We have to run! Mother can use part of my Life to hide us if we run fast enough and-!"

"I'm not…abandoning anyone in this damn cave…let alone Eugeo there losing his fucking mind." cutting off the spider-turned-woman's words, the crippled and injured young man walked forward, his vision swimming for a moment and his balance faltering from the blood loss, the pain and the lack of an arm.

He saw Armored Draco shooting his beam, though, the energy blast not only failing, but even its aftereffects being erased from Reality itself as they crashed into [Death]'s unmoving body.

Ignoring the terrible agony, he took a step forward.

It hurt so much.

"…so what? My pain in this world is just temporary…their lives aren't."

Another step. He ignored Charlotte's pleas yet again.

She meant well, she was worried about him.

"I know…but that's no reason to…abandon them…no matter what she or that 'mother' of hers…think…!"

Yet another step. Finally, Armored Draco's laser tapered off, the machine dangerously overheated even as the cyborg-dragon raised his head to stare at the Concept about to end him in the face.

You don't even care about him. He's just an enemy that tried to kill you not long ago and-

"He protected Selka…he told Blondie to save her despite knowing he would die…that makes him a Hero in my eyes…and that means I'm not…abandoning him either…!"

After all…hadn't once upon a time, one ordinary just-fired-salaryman faced off against a humanoid crab monster to save an annoying ugly kid he didn't even know?

That mad had a dream once, as a kid. To be a Hero who could send all rotten villains flying away with One Punch. And, consequences aside, he had managed it, just through hard work and determination.

If he had been able to do all of that despite having such terrible luck…then how could he, who had always had luck on his side, not try his best in this single agonic moment?

Another step forward…halted him. He couldn't take another. The World itself denied him from advancing, as if afraid of whatever was going to happen if he did. A terrible weight crashed upon him, holding his remaining limbs back like unbreakable Chains.

Stop already. Surrender. You can't-

"SHUT…UP!"

Something snapped. Painfully. For a single instant, Kirigaya Kazuto felt as if his very soul was being torn apart in every possible direction.

Yet, his eyes never left the sight of his corrupted friend warping his arm into an axe and swinging the Conceptual weapon towards the artificial Mysterious Being. With a mental scream fiercer than anything he had ever felt…Kirito took another step.

The sound of a million Chains shattering like glass exploding deafened him for half a second. Half of that was his mind registering how the image of his injured and dirty body 'glitched', Reality being denied even as an image seared deep within him, the one his Imagination knew the best, replaced it, his missing arm becoming a familiar white-gloved form as a fist clenched. Charlotte's following shocked gasp didn't even last that much.

"Stop it already, you idiot." escaped from the One Punch-Gamer's lips almost by instinct.

Without even fully acknowledging all of that, his left hand closed brutally around [Death]'s arm while his right one tore Armored Draco away from the weapon, then quickly tore off the flesh that had been touched by the Concept meant to end all Life.

Only half of him paid attention to what quickly followed, from Charlotte rushing to do what he had just said to warning Alice off. The rest of his mind was…soaking on the feeling of what he had just done, so to speak.

Hilariously, he had never actually been able to fully imagine what would mean to fully recover his 'powers' within this world, both because of its cruel reality and how a part of himself was just unable to 'see' them existing there.

Within the Underworld, pain, suffering, and death were real for them all. Struggle, conflict, submission…and, to a minor extent, rebellion.

There simply was no place for such a cartoonish concept as 'someone who could beat everything with just one punch'.

But now…now he realized, it was not only a 'he' problem. It was as if something else, something way beyond his understanding, had been preventing him from reaching that ever-distant image of himself doing the absolutely impossible, ever since he arrived in that world.

He could feel it, as if a weight had been lifted off his soul, however brief that was. Suddenly, he was light as a feather, and not just because he had recovered his crazy abilities (And his beloved stupid costume too). It was like-

Eugeo tried to bisect his head with a sword arm of pure Conceptual [Death], causing it to shatter against his bullshit invincibility. Whatever 'image' within his soul that kept his current 'form' up (Was this the so-called Incarnation he had heard so much about?) shuddered, as if it had been stung by a particularly annoying bee.

Right, no time to be marveled at things. His closest friend in that world had been taken over by some crazy power from beyond Reality that he had called upon to save him and that was now pushing him to try and kill the person he wanted to save the most…and anything that got in his way (Quite literally, most likely, since now he apparently could literally 'Inflict Death' into what he touched). He could have an existential revelation later.

"[No͏t.͜.͘.͟p̀o̕ssib̨le.͘...?͝]"

"Okay…you asked for it, Eugeo." Kirito declared softly, before summarily punching his friend in the face…or whatever passed for it in his current body.

There was a brief moment when the world 'blinked', just as his fist connected with the bloody shell of bones and ice that covered [Death]'s form. As if the supercomputer that ran that entire world had impossibly crashed and experienced some nonsensical lag.

Then, an explosion of sound and of Reality screaming at the impossibility made the entire cavern shake on itself as the Ultimate Concept was thrown backward at terminal speeds, 'killing' the space behind it as it flew through the air, erasing oxygen and then dirt and rock from existence as it went through the wall and kept going for a few Kilolu.

Reality violently filled the spots of space that had been 'killed' by his passing an instant later, making everything shake once again.

Everyone around felt their mouths drop open, staring in absolute shock.

Half-sitting, Ronye pinched herself, as if trying to ensure all the blood loss hadn't made her start hallucinating. Despite her terrible state, Tiese had a similar reaction, her eyes shooting from the 'changed' boy to the uneven hole through which whatever Eugeo had turned into had made.

From where her severely damaged armor-body was lying, Sortiliena looked on in muted awe, even as Sleipnir within her made a single declaration.

'Confirmation = True. He's the one I was sent out to seek…to kill master.'

Fizel's grasp on Linel tightened yet again, her mouth flapping open and closed like a fish's, her inhumanly smart mind trying and failing to grasp what she had just seen.

Armored Draco let out a wheezing sound, akin to a nervous chuckle, even as Charlotte's stupefied form at his side could only let a few words come out of her mouth.

"…did you see that just now, mother…?"

Within a certain library, the small form of the sage known as Cardinal had let her teacup fall to the floor, ignoring how it shattered and vanished in order to look through her Familiar's eyes, her small glasses almost falling off her nose from how utterly flabbergasted she was.

However, none was more impossibly shaken than Alice Synthesis 30, who was still staring in the direction where [Death] had vanished in complete disbelief. Then, her gaze finally turned towards the one who had caused that total impossibility. To the one that, without any Blessing or Curse at all, had just…punched away something her very soul had told her was utterly untouchable. Unbeatable by the likes of them.

It made no sense. It couldn't be possible. It…went against everything she and the Integrity Knight Order stood for, and yet…how…did he…?

Feeling something stir in her arms, the blonde's eyes moved to see how Selka had leaned closer to her chest…and that she was now smiling, her empty face having morphed into the barest hints of happiness with a seemingly supreme effort, even more than what continued to hold that blade of hers costed her.

"Ki…ri…to…sa…ve…"

Meanwhile, the black-haired young man was staring at his now smoking fist, idly noticing part of his gloves had seemingly vanished from punching the Concept head-on, only to quickly reform as his Image overpowered the World and returned them to pristine condition.

"Uh, this Incarnation stuff sure is handy…and man, I can't believe I'm so childish." Kirito muttered while shaking his head, his calm face betraying the myriad emotions he was currently feeling. "After all this time…all I can feel about having this back is 'About damn time!', huh?"

Space being killed from somewhere far away to the exact spot behind him in a single instant immediately followed his declaration. Horror couldn't even begin filling the eyes of those watching before [Death]'s thorn-covered vines had already closed all around the Caped Hero, an icy claw blossoming into the shape of a hungry dragon head to-

Without even turning around, Kirito's arm shot up and backward, the Conceptual tendrils shattering and cutting through the cave all around (Miraculously not killing anyone as they did) while the corrupted Eugeo's threatening limb all but exploded out of existence, causing the Concept of Reality to impossibly stumble back even as his friend turned to look at him again.

"[N̨͝o͢͞…̨̀śé̕ņ҉s͝è͢…]"

"Yes, I know everything I do is nonsense." sighed the black-haired young man before reaching out and holding [Death] by the 'shoulders', shocking the Conceptual being when he actually found a grip on his reality-erasing body. "Now then, Eugeo, please…listen to me. I know you're still in there. I know you're stronger than this. Please, think about everything we have been through so far and what you're fighting f-"

With an unholy roar of madness from beyond Reality, [Death]'s chest blossomed into a giant dragon maw of icy bones, chomping down onto the Caped Hero and making everyone scream or just pale in utter horror, Charlotte and Ronye even calling out his name with despair.

"[B̷͝e͝͠ ̕҉g̕o͡ne-̵̢]"

Then, the Concept found itself all but exploding as his new body part was unceremoniously destroyed from the inside; an annoyed-looking Kirito emerged as his now ruined costume quickly restored itself in a second.

"Right, okay…Shonen speeches don't work, that was stupid of me. Back to punching it is."

No sooner had those words left his lips than his fist was already deeply buried over the spot where [Death]'s nonexistent face was, the corrupted version of Eugeo reflecting something akin to shock before he was once again sent backward…and abruptly stopped mid-flight, righting himself unnaturally as it glared at the young man and restored the cracked icy armor surrounding him.

"…did you just 'kill' the Concept of your momentum? Gods, that's just bullshit of-"

This time, Kirito interrupted himself in time to raise his arm, catching the axe-arm aimed to his side with a punch…that did nothing but send shockwaves around them, as the entity Conceptually killed the momentum and damage of the attack the very second it connected, then morphed it into a hungry maw, trapped it in place. Undeterred, the Caped Hero lashed out with his other fist to counter the other, now sword-shaped, arm coming from him, getting the same result as before. Staring down at his trapped form, [Death] let vines sprout from his back once again while staring him down from less than half a Mel away, this time sure it would be able to end the impossible obstacle on his quest to destroy the imposter.

His face not betraying any expression, the young man head-butted the Concept of Reality, the World screaming even as Eugeo's corrupted form was forcefully separated from him, leaving its broken arms behind. The shock it suffered was so great it actually flew several Mels before it froze itself in midair, killing the effects of momentum and gravity upon himself and once again turning to stare at Kirito.

The black-haired young man could feel it…the complete and absolute confusion that this being from beyond Reality in which his friend had become was feeling, at him not dying and somehow pushing him back, despite being nothing more than a 'normal human' and-

Movement to the side. [Death]'s awareness moved away from him for the first time since he appeared, fixing upon the suddenly pale-faced Alice, who had tried to take a few steps back when she saw the Concept getting so close.

Cursing, the Integrity Knight moved, the speed she was so proud of sending him down the cave and away from everyone, Selka firmly in her arms even as she became faster than anything in the Underworld for an instant…and it wasn't enough, for the Conceptual being was suddenly THERE, before her, having killed both the distance between them and the Concept of her very speed at the same time. Screaming, she tightened the hold on the girl she was holding, something within her just roaring and unwilling to let the young criminal be harmed despite everything, her hand moving to reach her sword despite the futility of it. A clawed hand of icy bones that were nothing but the end of life was already before her face, ready to.

Safe. She was safe.

"What…?" mumbled the blonde girl, unable to understand what had happened, before realizing she was now firmly held by an arm clad in black and white the other hand closed firmly around the cracked claw that almost killed her even as she and Selka were half-squeezed against his chest. "How did you-?"

Anything Alice Synthesis Thirty was going to say died in her throat, even as she stared at the one holding her once again.

His face was nothing but a carpet of shadows deeper than a night without Lunaria's light. His eyes nothing but two white dots more blinding than Solus herself. And, somehow, his muscles had suddenly become ones that rivaled, maybe even surpassed, those of Bercouli Synthesis One (Or had she just become aware of it all of a sudden?), the once unimpressive jumpsuit he was wearing now somehow highlighting every detail of the godly body she was pressed against in an unbelievable way.

"Consecutive Normal Punches."

Kirito's words tore through the weird haze in which her mind had been submerged (And why were her cheeks feeling so hot all of a sudden?!), disbelief and awe once again flooding her very being as she saw the arm that wasn't holding them lash out faster than even she could follow and turn [Death] into a devastated mess, the Concept flying away several Mels even as it killed his momentum once again and pulled itself back together in quite a disturbing way.

"…not good. Blon…Alice?"

"Ye-yes!" the Integrity Knight did not squeak upon hearing his voice addressing her. Anyone who said as such would be a filthy liar.

"Grab Selka and…get everyone back there under cover, okay? As fast as you can. I don't care how you do it, just…put them all as far away from here as you can."

For a single second, the part of her that was still firmly an enemy of the caped boy felt like refusing him. Like pointing out that they were Criminals and she was still there to take them all in…or kill them, as she had almost done when she lost it before. A throbbing within her right eye seemed to agree.

But then, even if she hadn't literally seen him be the only one able to face against something she had doubts even Ojii-sa…even Bercouli-sama could be able to handle, the weak hand holding onto her chest convinced her otherwise, her eyes flickering towards Selka's diminutive smile, which almost seemed to be saying 'Trust him'.

"…I will need a few seconds."

"You have them. Go."

The Integrity Knight flashed away just as Kirito's form blurred from view, arms and fists coming in every direction and stopping [Death]'s vines as they tried to reach out beyond him, after her.

Once again, the entire Concept of Reality tried to rush past the young man, his armored form all but crashing on his suddenly flying fists, kicks, and head-butts, both of them starting to move so much they vanished from view, the walls of the cavern around them cracking and filling with holes and irregular marks in seconds.

Just as he had predicted, the corrupted form of his friend was getting smarter, learning and becoming more adept at controlling everything he could do in that unnatural state the more he used it, just like Yuuki had done during their fight…no, even faster than the Imp girl, Eugeo's own insane potential maybe even surpassing that of the one called Zekken and letting him each a level beyond human understanding in seconds. Every time his fists crashed against the bloody icy bones that acted as his outer 'shell', [Death] became more adept on his unnatural capabilities, his attacks being less effective, the armored form flinching less and less from every hit, the 'speed' at which he reacted and counterattacking starting to almost feel overwhelming as it kept 'killing' all disadvantages it suffered…

"It's done!" screamed Alice as she blurred into view sweat now also covering her already dirty and bloodied face. "They're all safe!"

"Then you get out of here too." the One Punch-Gamer replied without missing a beat, his next movement taking him directly to his opponent's face as his left arm lashed out and gripped tightly into his body, the Concept's 'eyes' widening as he saw the other fist being cocked back with more intent than before. "Super Skill. Serious Series…!"

Despite all her instincts screaming at her to obey…the Golden Knight did not move. No, more like…her very soul prevented her to move.

Because if she did, she was sure, she would miss…

"Serious Haymaker."

…something amazing.

Kirito's fist crashed into [Death]'s chest with the silent fury of a God. Reality itself screeched around the impact point, even as the entirety of the bone/ice armor shattered into dust in an instant, the following shockwaves causing the entirety of the cavern to crack for Kilolu in every direction.

However, all of that was nothing compared to the impact of the Concept being directly exposed to the World, an unholy sound escaping its entire form as the End of Life ravaged everything around it, outright killing parts of the Underworld and removing them from existence so fast that the supercomputer in which it ran experienced countless impossible glitches.

Standing where she was, not far behind him, feeling her cape and hair flying in every direction from the shockwaves, her body about to be thrown away, her bones rattling in place…Alice Synthesis Thirty felt awe like she had never before even as she stared at the young man's punch fully connecting with [Death] for the first time.

For a moment, the Conceptual Entity and the Caped Hero stared each other directly, his fist still firmly slammed into his exposed figure and clenched with unmeasurable power.

"Give me my friend back, you ugly thing."

With that declaration, Kirito twisted his fist in place, the action immediately silencing the unholy scream from beyond reality.

"[Im̨͠p̸͘͟o҉̶̕s̵̷t̶̀-̢̧͜!͜ ̸̡Bzzt…ce…Alice…Ki…Kirito…]" petering out, [Death]'s 'voice' vanished alongside the Concept of Reality, the Blue Rose Sword and Dragon Bone Axe reforming on the ground from the shattered remains of his icy red armor, and then all that was falling on the Caped Hero's arms was the battered and half-naked form of Eugeo. "…part…ner?"

"It's okay, Eugeo. It's all over now." the otherworldly boy comforted while patting him on the back.

"…did I do…something stupid…? I think…I was trying to…kill Alice…"

"Just a little bit, but you're fine now. Everyone fucks up at some point…also, everyone is still alive and you technically beat the 'bad guys', so in a way, you were the Hero of the hour!"

"…then why am I…feeling and looking like crap…while you seem like…you're about to do some dumb play for children…?"

"Well, guess I'm just much better at this of being a Hero than you." chuckling, Kirito let a tired smile overtake his face as he casually spun around and put his friends over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Don't worry though…with practice, you will be amazing at it too."

"Being a Hero…that actually sounds…fun…" Eugeo's eyes slowly closed as his consciousness faded away, his wounds fully regenerating as he finally fell asleep.

"…Alice? Where did you put the rest?" softly spoke the Caped Hero once he confirmed his undead friend was simply unconscious.

"…some…somewhere in that direction." was all that Alice could say from where she was now sitting on the ground, her hair a mess and her cape all but gone as she stared at the boy with wide eyes.

The moment she blinked, though, she became vaguely aware of the sensation of having been moved, now finding herself amongst where she had left both her creepy fellow knights and the other Criminals she had originally come to chase, idly noticing the damage from the earlier 'punch' had extended all the way there and beyond.

Slowly looking to the side, she saw she had been placed beside…Selka, was it? Even now the girl trying vaguely to reach towards her, and she found her own hand grasping hers as if by instinct. Further beyond, the blonde girl saw Kirito casually put Eugeo besides the now skeletal-looking redhead she had almost vaporized before, who all but broke down crying on top of the pale boy. Then, trembling a bit, she looked up at the Caped Hero, receiving a judgeless smile in return before she sank her fangs on the undead's neck with a grimace, tears still flowing as she drank deeply from his blood.

"Wha…?"

"Tiese needs blood…but Eugeo's tastes disgusting for her. Like swallowing putrid water that has been heated with something dead on it, or so she says." muttered Ronye from where she was lying against a rock nearby, holding her mostly healed side even as Charlotte continued casting Healing Arts on her. "And yet, he's the only one with a basically unlimited supply of it, so she doesn't have to kill anything if she drinks from him…"

"She considers the 'punishment' worth it…and she truly detests the fact that she may be 'hurting' him more than the revolting taste." the spider-turned-woman informed her as her hands finally stopped glowing, an exhausted look on her face as she smiled at the sight. "Despite how terrible her Divine Curse is, she's a pure soul at heart."

Alice said nothing in response, though if it was because the words had caused her inner conflict or because she was staring at how the jumpsuit-clad form of a certain impossible boy was now walking towards her was anyone's guess.

"Those two will be out of it for a while, I guess…how is everyone else, Charlotte?"

"Ronye will be completely fine after she gets something to eat, Sortiliena over there says she will be okay in a few hours and given I can't exactly use Sacred Arts to heal her while she's in that form, I have no choice but to believe her." pointing out towards where the 'Kamen Rider' was lying near the while, a sleeping Telure at her side and Armored Draco breathing with some difficulty under them. "The little one with the insane power is perfectly healthy and I would assume she could wake up at any time now that whatever that horse-thing screwing with her powers is gone, while the dragon-machine just needs some rest. But…Kirito, what is…this? How did you do all of-?"

"Questions later, and please tell that 'mother' of yours that we need to have a long talk about everything she knows as soon as possible." interrupted the Kirito with slightly narrowed eyes, making her gulp even as he turned to look at the suddenly tense Integrity Knight. "…your little friends are over there."

"Huh?" blinking in confusion at the unexpected declaration, the blonde girl looked at a point slightly further away from the group, where Fizel and Linel where lying now, hugging each other and unconscious, a thick-looking rope keeping them unable to move their arms or legs. "He did that faster than I could even blink…"

"Now, I know we're still enemies and all that, but…if I could ask you for something? Please…don't try and kill anyone until we have gotten some explanations done, extracted some answers from whoever sent the spider-girl over there, and made sure the little sister of the unconscious psychic hasn't woken up and is now hungrily creeping towards us in the dark, okay? Also, Selka would cry if you started trying to attack us again now, and I would hate to have to hurt her big sis now."

"…her what?!" all but screamed the Alice while looking back to the half-catatonic girl holding her hand. "But that's…I'm not…what…?!"

"I will take that as a sign that you won't attack us for a little while at least…good. Now, if you will excuse me…I'm afraid I have been forcing this 'Image' of myself upon this world way too long, and I would very much like to use it again later given what we gotta do…which means I sadly have to…let go and go back to my 'normal' self…who is currently missing an arm and half-dead." chuckling awkwardly at the declaration, Kirito pointedly ignored the stupefied looks everyone was giving him before he released a long sigh. "Man, I really hate my life sometimes."

Then, with a sound of shattering glass, Incarnation broke and the One Punch-Gamer's figure vanished, Chains snapping back into place as Kirito the Underworld Criminal was left behind, grinning softly as he raised the stump of his arm to look at it.

And he promptly passed out, falling forward into a squeaking Alice's arms, who looked down at the injured boy with countless conflicting feelings.

"…are you really going to comply with his request, Integrity Knight?" asked Sortiliena while weakly raising her helmet/head in her direction. "If you wanted to, you could probably kill most of us before anyone could react, after all."

"…I…maybe I should. You all killed Eldrie, after all, and…his power is…a threat to the…Underworld…" cursing herself by how weak she felt every time Selka weakly squeezed her hand as she said those words, the blonde girl opted by just glaring down at the unconscious anomaly in her arms.

"…Kirito helped me deal one blow…but I'm the one who defeated Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One, stole his weapon, and left him for dead. I may not have finished him off, but I'm the one you should blame." calmly revealed the Valkyrie as she made a vague attempt to move. "If it makes you feel better, you can kill me after you have heard us out. It's the least I owe Kirito after everything."

"…very well. I will do as he wanted…but you better pray to the Goddesses whatever explanations come are to my liking, criminals."

The harsh words would probably have felt more threatening if Alice hadn't been squeezing Selka's hand with one of her own and had Kirito half-draped over her at the same time. As it was, the visage was such that Ronye couldn't help but let out a few chuckles, especially when the caped boy started loud snoring, causing the knight's face to redden in outrage.

Watching it all while having a mental conversation with her 'mother', Charlotte was sure of only one thing…whatever was about to happen, it would perhaps be the great change they had been waiting for so long…


Bercouli Synthesis One woke up that morning with a terribly ominous feeling.

Then again, given that Alice hadn't returned yet and that Fizel and Linel hadn't been answering the damn machine they had specifically to communicate with the lab they usually were in (He was SO going to scold the brats for not having taught at least a few people how to operate the damn thing whenever they showed up), his worries may have been quite warranted.

He loved the blonde one like a daughter, but there was no denying she was a bit too hotheaded sometimes, despite her usually calm demeanor. The First Knight, of all people, knew it was a very flimsy mask to hide someone always wanting to rush forward before anyone else to accomplish her duty, to protect the Human Empire, fighting for what she thought was right.

Maybe as a reflection of her quite powerful Blessing…or maybe just because Alice was too good for their messed-up 'order'.

After all, Bercouli knew quite well that nothing 'just' remained in the Axiom Church or the laws the Integrity Knights upheld. Or, if there still was, it was so distant he couldn't see it…and, perhaps, there never had been, at least not beyond his own naïve if selfless intentions.

Ever since the world had changed, though, ever since he had heard that 'engine' drumming within him every time he was in danger and then everything had started going crazier…it had just become fully evident. She had stopped trying to hide it…and he had continued to go ahead and follow her, despite all of that.

Not because of something as petty as personal feelings or admiration, though…not anymore, at least. It was because…it was the only option left for this world to not collapse.

Because no matter how much power he now had, no matter how much more he could reach by unleashing his blade's forbidden power…he knew it was no match for her.

He was Bercouli Synthesis One. The Most Powerful Man in the Underworld.

And he was nothing but an ant in the face of the True God's power…

A sudden distant 'Boom' broke the First Knight out of his quite dark thoughts, the following mini-quake that shook the cathedral underneath him making him go from confused to fully alarmed in a second even as his eyes shot all around the baths of Floor 90, where he had been sitting looking outside the windows after a morning soak to try (And fail) to ease his mind.

"What the…?!"

"Emergency, emergencyyyyy!" the usually terribly smug and annoying voice of Chudelkin interrupted Bercouli before he could even fully voice his question, the overweight clown's face reflecting a panic the likes he had never seen. "Synthesis One! Move your ass! Organize all of the knights! We have to protect the cathedral! Quick, before that giant bug from hell arrives and smashes through the capital's walls!"

For a single moment, the oldest 'human' alive within the Human Empire could do nothing but stare in muted shock as the Chief Elder all but rolled past him, heading upstairs.

Then, the First Knight was at his side, easily keeping up with the messy yet shockingly nimble way in which Chudelkin rolled up the stairs.

"What…what did you just said?!"

"Are you deaf, Number One, or is old age finally catching up to you?!" even as he screamed those words, both the clown and the man almost tripped down the stairs when another distant explosion shook the cathedral. "It's coming, straight here, destroying everything in its path…the Elder Centipede! It's charging straight for Centoria's South Wall…and there are other damn monsters aiding it!

Without even bothering to ask for more clarifications, Bercouli Synthesis One rushed up the stairs so fast he left imprints of his feet on the stone steps, heading for the Star Morning Lookout at Floor 95.

He arrived just in time to see the distant waves of destruction tearing the landscaped of Southacroith apart, coming from a distant, yet massive, form charging forward as it unleashed unholy roars.

Meanwhile, atop the Elder Centipede…Ronye's eyes were closed as her hands were extended to the sides, a small apology escaping her lips as she shot a dozen orbs of raw destruction once again, only for the dark field of psychic power surrounding them to compress them and redirect them, the following shockwaves harmlessly splashing off it and their giant ride's exoskeleton as entire forests and hills were completely obliterated in seconds.

Holding her firmly, Tiese encouraged her best friend while looking straight ahead, to the ones standing at the front of their mad dash, even if her attention was undeniably more focused on the boy on the left.

Eyes closed, Eugeo didn't even shift in place, his new clothes firmly in place as his arms were rightly closed, as if to prevent himself from acting up…or for reaching for any of the weapons he was carrying.

Be it the icy blade on his side, the ivory axe on his back…or the golden sword hanging opposite it.

Opposite himself, Sortiliena looked oddly rough with her hair out of her usual ponytail, which she was currently calmly redoing with a sturdier-looking hairpiece, the whip at her hips almost seeming to hiss in anticipation even as her belt hummed ominously, ready to Change her.

Floating slightly above them, and using her powers both to keep them standing there and the air pressure from touching them, not to mention redirecting all of Ronye's blasts in the 'right' direction, Telure stopped mentally whispering encouraging words to her sister to keep going forward to look down at the one standing at the front and center of their formation, near where Teline's human face was located.

The one-armed boy never let his gave move away from Centoria's ever-closer walls, even as the small spider on his shoulder looked worriedly from him to the 3 chained-up and face-covered forms lying near the rest of the group, with Armored Draco standing vigilant over them.

Selka was laying on the dragon's back, her eyes closed and hugging the sheathed blade as she mumbled something within her unnatural dreams.

"…is your mother still ready, Charlotte?"

"I…yes, she is."

"And is everyone still ready for this?" the silence he received was all the answer he needed…not that the caped hero had expected anything else. "Okay then…if they want us to be the 'villains', then let's go and show them how to truly break the rules."

"Break…rules…" came a garbled voice from the massive monster they were riding, which caused happy tears to appear on Telure's face.

Raising his remaining fist in response, Kirito's eyes shone golden for an instant, even as the outline of a white glove flickered over it.

"Let's go destroy the world."


Arc 4: The Will of Five-END


Next…

Worlds collapse…

Higa: Ki-Kiku-kun, we're getting all sorts of crazy reports from the mainland! It looks like the end of the world out there!

Kikuoka: And we have monsters and madmen fighting it off with super teenagers and a robot here, Higa, so let me try and keep us alive as limitedly as I can before worrying about that, okay?!

Last Stands are made…

With a sinister sound, Xaxa's red eyes finally settled on the corridor leading to where STL #1 was…where the target of his hate was within his reach.

And standing between him and it, a robotic figure slowly raised up what looked oddly like a broken metallic door, wielding it as if an oversized blade.

A distantly-familiar voice snarled at the Mysterious Being through its speakers.

?: You're not touching Kirito, monster!

Impossibility is rejected…

Suguha:…let me go, Argo.

Shiori: Suguha-chan…! You have a bicycle and a shinai! And I have fucking claws! That thing, though…it looks as if it could give fucking Son Goku a run for his money! What are you even planning to do?!

Freeing her hand, the young kendoka…threw away her helmet and glared at the sphere in the sky, surrounded by the Endless Chains.

Suguha: To protect the world everyone lives in…like Onii-chan would.

…and Ghosts protect the living.

Staring at the feed on the screen, the woman felt utter despair gripping her heart.

Rinko: Is this…is this truly the end?

?: Don't worry, Rinko…it's okay. He's coming…finally.

Eyes widening, Koujiro Rinko turned to look at the nearby screen, knowing who that voice belonged to in an instant.

Rinko:…Kayaba?

Next time on 'One Punch-Gamer: Chains of Fate':

Interlude: United Heroes

?:…sorry to keep you waiting, Asuna. I will take it from here.


Author's Notes: Man, that was a hella long chapter! Hopefully you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it!

Also, yes, epic cliffhanger there at the end, sorry but it was needed XP And yeah, whatever happened between everyone during the 'talk' of that night was skipped straight to the next day purposefully, all of it and more shall be revealed…well, not next time because the last Interlude comes, but after it :3 We're ever-closer to the big finale of this mad story…

Regarding the chapter itself, hope you liked the main 'fight' of it…let's be real, it couldn't be Alicization without some dramatic 'Kirito vs. Eugeo'. Funnily enough, Best Bro reaching [Death] itself was planned a long time ago, but the details of his bout with Kirito changed at least 2 times during the planning and actual writing of this fic. Originally it was even going to be during the Cathedral, but I realized that was me sticking to Canon too much in a bit too awkward angle. Hope it delivered, with the temporary (For now) return of the One Punch-Gamer to start leaving the Underworldians open-mouthed :D

On a minor note, Alice IS broken, yes, but that's just 'cause Canon S30 was broken as fuck herself, and that with her never actually trying to hurt Kirito and Eugeo during their fight at the cathedral. Add to that the powers of Flashy Flash and years to hone them in a world of crazy conflict…yeah, the only reason they didn't all die right away is that she was genuinely trying to just detain them before she snapped.

And another fun thing, I actually had planned to use the 'Charlotte has a human form' thing for this scene or 2 possible ones that got scrapped back when I first started writing this sequel…and then Reki Kawahara himself went and actually gave her one in a Sidestory AU that's basically 'Alicization: Good/Happy Route' (Aka 'If you were here', aka the Crab Timeline, aka the Cake Timeline). Yes, to the sentient spider that died protecting Kirito because, textually said by Cardinal, she had grown to 'love' him in Canon XP I recommend giving it a read, currently it has 2 parts and one spin-off, each one with an illustration, and all of them are currently fan-translated online. Charlotte's human form used in this chapter was based on the simple description given there as well as the small look at her in the first part's illustration.

Finally, before leaving you all with today's Omake, I have started playing SAO Alicization Lycoris, the latest (And supposedly last) entry of the SAO Gameverse, and despite not being too far in yet I gotta say I'm loving it. Saying it 'cause that may make my update rate slow down a bit for a while, but at least I'm getting tons of ideas for my fics from it :P

But with that said, I leave you all with more of Kiritama's adventures in the world of the fucked-up moon!


Capes and Roses 13

"Ruby, Kirito…I'm not a real girl."

If someone had asked Ruby Rose about how her last few days had gone, she would have said…that they were fairly fun, really.

There had been no big crimes going on around, they had actually been able to concentrate in class (As much as that annoyed her sometimes), met a few nice exchange students that were there for the Vytal Festival, Blake had actually kept her promise and stuck with them while being way more open, the monkey-boy that had been stalking her was too terrified of Kirito to bother them…oh, and yeah, that was the best bit! Kirito was around a lot more!

Sure, that usually meant more brutal training that had been branching into better use of their Semblance and perfecting their individual strengths/weaknesses, but besides it being quite fun all things considered, it also meant more time spent with her great friend who didn't mean and even appreciated her love for comics, videogames, and weapons, never once judging her negatively for it or joking about how non-girly she was.

It had also given her a ton of wasted opportunities to ask him about…that. Really, she didn't even know why she was so nervous all of a sudden; she had been quite ready to ask him the day of the food fight, but the more she delayed the more she found herself having cold feet about it, for some reason.

It was just a stupid school dance! Honestly, if her team, for some stupid reason (Curse you, Yang!) hadn't been the one organizing the whole thing, she wouldn't have even thought about it and found a reason to hole herself in her room that night with lots of snacks and movies.

But no, her sister had to insist and now this was a Team RWBY event that they all had to attend to make it worth it.

So, before being mocked by going to the dance without a partner (As if Yang all but declaring she had to wear a, ugh, dress for it wasn't enough), she had decided she would ask her first and kinda best friend (Sorry, Weiss, you were still too mean sometimes) to accompany her. It had seemed such a genius idea that she had even patted herself in the back for having it so quickly.

However, every time during the past few days she had tried to just walk up to her ghost superhero from another world (She didn't care of the rest sans Blake didn't believe it! That was way too cool to not be real!) friend to ask him, she had found herself weirdly tongue-tied and changing the subject to the first thing she could think of. Which was both annoying and confusing for the young reaper.

And then, this morning, as the rest of her friends had things to do, she had found herself walking out and been ready to spend a day maybe-relaxing-alone…when she had seen Penny. The overly-friendly girl that had all but vanished after the docks without so much a word. And, of course, when she was deciding if she should try and approach her, Kirito had appeared at her side (Was he like some sort of guardian angel too?) and asked with a smile if she wanted help talking to her.

Which had led to a weirdly awkward, if determined, walk through Vale, with Penny originally trying to act as if she didn't know them, then clearly nervous as she ran, with them easily following, until she apparently was out of sight of whoever she had…come with? Been with? Ruby wasn't sure, but she had been a bit more relaxed, if still awkward, when they had started trying to talk to her.

It was so at odds with how she had been the last time they met that the young reaper all about her particular problems even as they watched the Atlas Military showing off their combat robots in the middle of town. She had been quite unimpressed for them, even if the Paladin looked quite formidable, but Kirito had been looking at Penny intently during that time, before whispering to her how she looked quite upset and nervous about the machines, which probably had to do with whatever she was so worried about.

Ruby had allowed herself a moment to be amazed at how much more insightful and people-aware (Especially compared to her) her friend was before curiously asking him what he thought of the robots.

He had just snorted and commented about how it was very hard to be impressed by 'normal' mechas when you had seen Knightmare Frames and Gundams up close.

The leader of Team RWBY had no idea what those were, but she made a point to ask him about them later on…

That had been more or less when whoever Penny had been trying to hide from (Guards? Bodyguards?) had shown up and, before they could even properly ask her what was going on, caused her to jump in a quite painful-looking way inside a trashcan. Kirito had swiftly made a point of screaming about 'catching that weird orange-haired girl with green eyes' and ran to the other side of the alley at an impressive (If slow for him, as she knew) speed, Penny's pursuers following shortly after. And as soon as they rounded the corner, he had been there at her side once again looking not even winded, which had made her pout a bit thinking of how much faster than even her he was.

Of course, then Penny had come out, looking quite guilty and…revealed this, while showing off her 'scrapped' hands…and the metal under the 'skin'.

So…she was friends not only with not only a super ghost from another universe but also with a robot girl. Cool.

Maybe she should consider starting checking if her teammates were hiding anything like that? Blake had hidden that she was a Faunus from them, after all, so…

"What are you talking about, Penny?" questioned Kirito with a raised eyebrow. "You're as real as any of us."

"Huh? What? N-no, don't you see?" waving the exposed metallic parts of her hands before his phase for emphasis, Penny seemed quite confused at the boy's lack of reaction. "I am…"

"Made of metal? So what? This body right now is made of condensed Mana put into a pseudo-physical form. A robot? Please, my family had two AIs, a bunch of artificial souls, and we even had an elephant-jellyfish as a pet." saying all of that with a casual smile, Kirito clearly couldn't help but chuckle at the android's dumbfounded face. "Penny, if there is a lesson I learned since I was young, is that you don't need to have flesh and bones to be a real person or even a sentient intelligent being. Your heart and soul are what determine that not if they're organs or just a cube holding photons of light together."

"I…you…you really mean it?" asked Penny with an uncertain, if hopeful, look on her face.

"Of course he does, Penny!" Ruby chirped in with a smile on her own, though taking note of asking the Heroic Spirit later about like half the things he had just casually said. "And I think the same! It doesn't matter if you're a robot, a super ghost from another universe, or Weiss! You're as much of a person as I or Kirito are…you're nothing like those things from before!"

"Oh…you guys…" her voice suddenly overcome with raw emotion, the robot girl rushed forward, trapped both of her friends in a deadly hug…or, more like, squeezing herself and Ruby against Kirito's shockingly strong and unmoving body, but she didn't really mind. "You're the best friends I could have ever asked for!"

"Heh, it's fine Penny." smiled the Caped Hero while patting the android's back, even as Ruby's arms flailed around and she complained about a lack of air. "Now, I think I can hear your 'friends' circling back for you, so how about we move a bit?"

"Huh? What…?"

Those were the first and only words Ruby could say before she felt the world blurring a bit around her, causing a squeak to escape Team RWBY's leader before she blinked and found herself sitting alongside her two non-human friends atop one of Vale's walls, staring at the slowly setting sun in the distance.

"…how did we get here so fast?" Penny voiced out loud the question that the silver-eyed girl was also wondering, despite technically knowing the answer.

"I'm very fast when I want to." was all that the Heroic Spirit said before leaning back slightly. "Also…don't you think the sunset is lovely, Penny?"

"…yes, it's beautiful. Why?"

"Because that simple fact, my good robot friend, is proof that you're a person."

The way in which the android tilted her head to the side told Ruby she hadn't quite understood that.

But, as the three of them sat there watching the sun slowly going down, the young Rose realized that she did.

What a curiously simple thing, being able to say so much about yourself, huh?

Later on, after they left a smiling Penny on her own after she told them she would be okay now, that same thought was still echoing in her head even as, after asking for permission, Kirito got her back to Beacon in less than a blink, standing now on the main courtyard at her side while dusting his hands with a cheeky grin.

He really liked to grin, didn't he? When his gaze wasn't lost in the distance with thoughts she couldn't even hope to understand, at least. Probably came with being an ancient hero ghost or something…

"Well, I guess I will see you tomorrow then, Ruby. Wouldn't want your teammates to accuse me of keeping you out too late or something." joked the Caped Hero while turning around and waving at her. "Say hi to them for me, I gotta do a lot of reading to catch up on how to-"

"Kirito! Wo-would you please come to the school dance with me?!"

For the first time since she had met him, the young reaper saw the Heroic Spirit do something akin to tripping over his own feet, quickly stabilizing himself and turning to look at her with wide eyes.

"…huh?"

"Please! Yang roped the entire team into this and I'm already gonna be forced to wear a dress and I don't want to give her more excuses to tease me and…!"

"I-it's okay, Ruby, I got it! And, uhm, if you're fine with it, then, yeah, I don't mind accompanying you to the dan-"

"Thanksalotyouarethebest!" Ruby cried out while hugging him, before giving him a wide smile, letting go and flashing away into rose petals. "I will text you the time later at your scroll! Bye!"

Giggling to herself, the young reaper wondered why she suddenly felt so light. Whatever the reason, it was truly refreshing, probably for finally having done what she wanted for a few days…why had she even been so worried? Time to treat herself to some cookies and chocolate milk as a reward!

Still standing in the courtyard of Beacon Academy, though…Kirito simply stared after where the leader of Team RWBY had vanished, an uncharacteristic 'silence' filling his head as he deadpanned at nothing.

"…don't any of you start. She just meant that as friends. Nothing more."

The silence extended for a few more seconds…before the feeling akin to someone cracking up in laughter echoed through his link to the Throne.

"Dammit, Eugeo! Shut up already!"


Author's Notes 2: Unlike most of the Omakes, which so far had been from Kirito's PoV, this one is from Ruby-chan's! Hope you enjoyed it, we skipped over some parts from Canon that, as mentioned before, Kirito's meddling make all but impossible to happen, and we got through Penny's moment smoothly there (And also hope that it was relaxing enough after that crazy main chapter!). Also, Ruby got the courage to ask her friend to help her out as friends do, obviously :3

Next time, the Dance may actually get skipped or be just a short scene, as Canon-wise it was hilariously inconsequential, Cinder could have still done what she did without Ruby getting involved and nothing would have changed, funnily enough, and she will probably be a bit too distracted to notice the stranger sneaking into the CCT here XP

Until then, though, this is Saint signing off! Seeya next time in The Eroge's update!