Greetings and Salutations once more! Thank you all again for your thoughts and constructive criticisms in the reviews! It actually gave me a couple ideas which I will expand upon after answering the individual reviews.

CaluArd: Ah yes, the ol' "scrape and lick". It would have been great, but t'was not meant to be. Though, still feel free to imagine it however you like.

Apex85: I already kind of answered you in an edit I made at the end of last chapter, but yeah it was super similar and only after looking back on it now did I realize that wasn't too great. I was kind of going for more introspection and world-building but I don't think it came across too interesting. I tried to change some more things up this chapter and I hope you enjoy it!

TheRangerBoy: Yeah, I was considering putting a reference in about that, but I decided against it :P I have kind of the same reaction to it usually but I just try and remember that they are actually speaking Japanese and I'm pretty sure that word is in English, so it doesn't really have the same connotation (as far as I know)

AmethystPone: I'm glad! Yeah, it really sucks when you find a fanfic with a super interesting premise but the grammar and spelling make it unreadable. I have come across that many a time.

Flo463: "Sugu? In my harem? It's more likely than you think." -Kirito, probably. But yeah, when I said it's a mix of the anime and the novels, I meant more for when I visualized it I was picturing Kirito in his anime clothes rather than his LN clothes. I am following the progressive novels… kind of. You'll see what I mean.

SaintInfernalNeos: Yep, Kikuoka is gonna be a really… interesting character in this fic. I go a bit more into him in this chapter. I have in fact read Lusus Naturae (which is great, by the way), but it is already an inspiration for several things that I plan on happening later in the story and I didn't want to just completely copy your work. I already had very similar imagery with the way Kirito's eyes are during his freakout moments (Though the colors for the sclera and iris are reversed). I do in fact have a plan though! I can't guarantee it's a good plan, but it's a plan nonetheless!

KnightEstoc: I'm glad that I'm doing well with the characterization! I hope I can keep it up! Yeah, after having a few people point out how the Vampirism isn't really making much of an effect, I decided to change up my plan for how things are gonna work a bit. Still keeping pretty much everything plot related the same, but with something a bit different going on which you will see later. As for the tenses, yeah that's just something I'm really bad at. I tried making it a bit better this chapter, so I hope it's not too distracting. I can just never get it to sound right in my head without being super inconsistent. Finally, yes, Argo is great, I really hope I don't screw her up :P

Guest: Thank you very much! I'm glad you're enjoying it and liked how I displayed his motivation :)

Taimpuro: Ah well, I'm sorry you're not a big fan of the spectator viewpoint. I hope it will win you over if you decide to keep reading! I understand what you're saying, but my viewpoint was that Kazuto is really just a kid who's had a whole lot dumped on him. He's pretty emotionally unstable and definitely has a pretty big hero complex. Combine that with the fact that overwhelming angst is clearly a vampiric power, and you have him making a super bad and poorly thought out decision because he thinks he's protecting Sugu. I understand if you're not a fan of that direction though, hopefully it wasn't too much of a negative for you. Finally, you were definitely right that my previous chapter was severely lacking in dialogue and was mostly exposition. I tried to correct that in this one so I hope it reads a bit better!

PassiveNox: Thanks!

Anyway, as you can tell I got several ideas of how things are going to change moving forward with this story. Hopefully you all like it! This chapter is where things start to diverge from the canon and it continues to do so in the next couple chapters after this.

I would just like to say that this is not going to be a necessarily "good" fanfic. I'm a really bad writer and I'm really just trying to have fun with the concept I came up with. I still welcome constructive criticism of course, just don't expect this to really improve past my somewhat lackluster ability xD. Anyway, on to the fic!

Disclaimer: In case you couldn't guess, I'm not Reki Kawahara, and don't own the rights to SAO. I just really enjoy it.

Chapter 2: Kung-Fu Vampire

Aincrad 2nd Floor, December 4th 2022

Vampires, besides their enhanced physical capabilities, naturally have several aspects which help them to survive and continue to "live" in the human world. One of the most powerful of these is their supernatural charm.

Though most vampires are unable to actually use a hypnotic gaze, those that do usually having lived at least a century in their infernal form, all vampires have an innate charisma about them which allowed even those vampires that were… less than pleasant to look at (and inspired the interpretation present in the film Nosferatu) to lure in their prey. They could be persuasive, deceitful, intimidating, anything that suited their purpose.

This is also a trait that Kirito shared with his infernal brethren, and one which he had used in order to convince the raid party, or most of them at least, that he was actually a "Beater". Someone who had made it to the upper floors in the beta-test, but chose to hide information for their own personal gain. He was very convincing too. When recounting the tale, some would even go on to say his eyes had turned from black to a deep maroon, making him look like a sinister demon. Most would believe this to just be people exaggerating or imagining things though.

He chose to do this in order to get the heat off of the other beta-testers and prevent them from being targeted and discriminated against. He had prepared for the consequence of this, being alone again, not having any one want to party with him, probably even having open hostility from most of the players he came across. He had prepared for that, planned for it.

So, you can imagine his surprise when he found the chestnut-haired beauty known as Asuna following him. He had expected her to leave after delivering him the messages from Agil and Kibaou and discovering how he knew her name, but she didn't. He then expected she didn't know the way to town and just needed a guide, but by the time they were nearing the starting town for the second floor, she still followed him. His exasperation from this wasn't helped by the fact that apparently at least three people saw through his ruse.

Hopefully they wouldn't reveal the truth and endanger the other testers, he silently prayed.

When they started nearing the teleport gate at the center of town he finally decided to ask.

"How long are you gonna be following me for?"

"Huh?" came the confused response of the girl.

"You really should stop following me soon. They're gonna start thinking you're associated with me, that wouldn't be good for you."

Kirito was being honest. Anyone who associated with him now was at risk of suffering the same fate as he was, the one he was trying to spare the other beta testers from.

Despite this, Asuna rolled her eyes. "Oh please. I don't care about that. We're supposed to be partners, right? Besides, you told me that there were better baths on the upper floors, and I have to hold you to that."

Kirito chuckled under his breathe bitterly as he prepared to activate the gate. "Don't be stupid. Find someone you trust. Form a guild with them. You need to get allies in order to survive and beat this game."

With that he activated the gate. He spared a brief glance at the gate beginning to flash blue, ignoring Asuna muttering under her breath something about 'Trusting someone' and 'having an ally'. Then, in a blur of black, Kirito fled to hide somewhere so any of the boss raiders who went straight back to the town of beginnings to teleport wouldn't find him. After finding a place he could hide but still observe those who entered the town, he prepared to hunker down.

He settled in, but nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the red-clad girl he just left sitting next to him. Damn she was fast! Kirito calmed himself down and glared slightly at the girl before him. "Stop following me."

"It's crazy for you to try and bear all the hatred for the beta-testers by yourself. You at least need some sort of friend."

She was right. Kirito knew she was right. But he couldn't allow her to throw away her chances for his sake. He had to protect her. So he does what he always does.

"What I can or can't do is none of your concern. Now go away. I don't want to be the next roundabout way you try to kill yourself."

A look of genuine hurt appeared on Asuna's face as she stared at him with an open mouth, taken aback by the ice in his words. "That's… I'm not…"

Whether she was going to continue or not, she didn't have the chance when Kirito looked down and saw a girl being chased by two black-clad figures. "… Argo?"

After following the figures, no easy feat considering their apparently massive AGI stat, Kirito and Asuna, who was still following him, finally caught up with them in time to hear the tail end of their conversation.

"… We have the col, so tell us how to get the Extra Skill!"

"I already told you! I'm not gonna sell you that information! I don't wanna be blamed for what happens!"

Argo's pursuers did not take kindly to this. "We will do anything we must to get that information! We will even resort to-"

Whatever it was they were planning to do, they didn't get the chance, as Kirito jumped down between Argo and her black clothed assailants, doing a three-point landing to reduce the damage he would take. He stood up and immediately almost fell over again when he saw who had been chasing Argo.

"E-eh? The ninja-wannabes?" The two in front of Kirito wore armor clearly the same as the guild who had tried imitating ninjas during the beta. What was their name again? Fu… Food… Fuma…

"It's Fuumaningun!" Ah, right. That was it.

"Yes, and who are you!" Continued the other ninja.

"U-uh. I'm…" Kirito thought for a moment before responding "I'm hired muscle. The Rat's bodyguard."

"Bodyguard?" He heard Argo mutter behind him, but ignored it when he saw that the two in front of him beginning to draw their blades…

And stop upon hearing a thump behind them. Turning around, they see Asuna, who had previously reequipped the cloak she shed in the boss fight. She held onto the hilt of her rapier and was crouching while looking at the group.

"Bodyguards." She corrected, adding emphasis on the plurality.

The ninjas, not liking their odds against Argo and her two 'bodyguards', growled slightly before saying "This isn't over" and fleeing back towards the town.

Kirito sighs in a mixture of relief and exasperation and starts to comment "Those guys are seriously still roleplaying even though-" but is stopped by the feeling of arms being wrapped around him from behind.

"Thank you, Kii-bou." Argo softly mutters this into his back as she leans her head against it.

Kirito feels his face heat up slightly and replies "Yeah, well, you're gonna want to stop that rumor of me being your bodyguard from spreading. I'm not exactly the most popular guy in Aincrad right now."

Argo's grip seemed to tighten with this as she chuckles lightly. "Yeah, you just can't seem to stop taking care of me today, can you? That won't do." She mumbles this before releasing Kirito and positioning herself in front of him. "Alright then. To make it up to ya, I'll give ya one bit of info for free. Anything you want~"

Kirito was taken a bit by surprise that Argo was acting as… normal as she was with him, he had expected her to cut ties in consideration for her business and reputation, though not as surprised as he was with Asuna's obstinance. Still, not being one to refuse free information, he thinks for a moment before responding. He could have asked for her personal info, that sold for a hefty price of 100,000 col, but there was also something she apparently wouldn't sell for any price…

"Tell me about that Extra Skill the cosplayers wanted."

Argo deflated a bit at this but tries, and fails, to hide it behind a wry smile. "A-are ya sure Kii-bou? I got lotsa other good info. You want Aa-chan's measurements over there? I got a good look, all up close and personal like, ya know."

Both Kirito's and Asuna's faces burned a bright red at this statement, with the latter releasing an embarrassed exclamation that would be best described as a squeal. Kirito, closing his eyes and turning his head to the ground, simply shouted "Just shut up and give me the info!"

Argo drops her smile and sighs. "Alright. But you gotta promise you won't hate me for whatever happens." At Kirito's irritated nod she shrugs her shoulders and says "Follow me." She starts walking but stops and turns around once more with a sly smile. "You can feel free to come too, Aa-chan~"

This makes how many times Asuna's face has burned red from Argo's teasing in the last 24 hours?

Goddammit Argo.

That was the single thought that ran over and over through Kirito's mind as he repeatedly punched the rock. It has already been a day since the group of three arrived at the hut belonging to the old martial arts master NPC and since then Kirito has been punching a nigh-immortal rock night and day to try and get the marks on his face, which had made Argo compare him to an animated cat, removed.

By this point, the sun had set on the second day of Kirito's "Training" and Asuna, who had ended up following him and Argo, had gotten back from grinding on mobs and gone to sleep. Kirito wiped his brow and prepared to do the same, the unpleasant numbness from punching the rock having spread past his wrists at this point. He walks to the house, which held several small cots, but stops and sees Argo looking up at the sky, her back turned to him. He looks between the house and her for a moment before his curiosity overtakes him.

He didn't try to hide his presence as he walks to her, but Argo must have been pretty deep in thought due to how she jumps when Kirito spoke from behind her.

"Hey, what's up?"

Argo turned to look back, startled, but relaxed when she sees who it is. "O-oh. Hey Kii-bou. I'm just, star-gazing I guess."

Kirito glances up at the sky/ceiling above them. All the skies in Aincrad were quite beautiful, but this one doesn't seem to have anything particularly spectacular about it. Regardless he sat down next to her and spoke again. "Hm. It's nice huh? Irl it would be hard to find a place with as little light pollution as you have in these games. Did you star-gaze a lot before?" He asks this before realizing this was definitely breaching the unspoken rule to not talk about real-world affairs. "S-sorry. I wasn't thinking."

Argo shakes her. "No, your fine Kii-bou. Truth is, it's kind of the opposite. I guess you could say I'm not really star-gazing as much as… moon-gazing." She looks back up at the night sky, particularly at the silver sphere shedding bright light. "I never really… got the chance to appreciate the moon back there. I stayed inside most nights, my parents were pretty over-protective. But now I'm here, and every night I can just look up and there it is, so big and bright, and it's the only thing that's exactly like it is there. It's just… real pretty, ya know?"

Kirito looked at his friend, taken aback by how much she revealed, without even asking for a single col. Still, he felt he could understand her to a certain extent. "I was always kind of a… night owl myself. I would see the moon so much I got a little bit sick of it, heh." He chuckled slightly while scratching the back of his head. "Still, I think I get what you're saying. I… burn, pretty easily in the sun. Sensitive skin I guess. So I couldn't really enjoy being outside during the daytime. Then I got here and I could feel the sun on my face without having to worry. It was pretty great." He paused for a moment before adding one more thing, having forgotten for a moment that he was supposed to be pushing Argo away to protect her. "I'll tell you what, once we reach floor one hundred, you and I will find a nice clear field or something and we'll go ahead and watch the moon together. No fake skies from the ceiling, the real deal."

Kirito looked up to the sky and failed to see Argo's face turn a bright red in response to his suggestion. She chuckled lightly as she replies, "Don't make promises you can't keep, Kii-bou." She looked up to the sky once again. "But yeah, that sounds nice. Wish I could see the real one, though."

"You will," Kirito promises, "just as soon as I destroy this world."

Argo look sad for a moment before masking it with a wry smile. "You're really the type of guy that puts the weight of the world on his shoulders, huh? Beatin' this game is gonna be pretty hard if ya try to do it alone."

"I work better on my own."

"Ya sure about that?" Argo asks this with a laugh. "How many times in the beta did me and Meri-chan have ta bail ya out of somethin'? And I don't think ya woulda done near as good during the boss fight without Aa-chan."

Kirito frowned as he saw where his friend is going with this. "I can't let her stay with me Argo. You either. I did what I had to in order to protect the other testers, and you guys hanging around me is just gonna harm you. It's for your own good."

Argo remains silent for a moment before replying "Ya know, you're kinda a self-righteous prick sometimes." She cackles jovially. "I mean, jeez Kii-bou, did all that black you're wearing give you the extra skill Angst-lord or something?" She returned to being serious but retained a small smile. "Aa-chan actually gives a damn about you. I do too, for whatever reason. You don't have to do things alone."

"… I'm used to being alone."

"I am too. Doesn't make it any less unpleasant."

Kirito let the silence sit for a moment before sighing. "Yeah, alright." He looks at Argo with a tired smile. "You know, you're actually pretty good at giving advice for a "Rat". You gonna charge me for that?"

Argo smirked at him and replies "Tell you what, let's just say this was me paying back the rest of a favor." They both chuckle, but after a moment Argo's face turns deadly serious. "There is one more very important piece of information I need to give you, though."

Kirito looked at her with a confused expression and tilts his head to the side slightly. "What's that?" He asked with a somewhat worried tone.

Argo looks him in the eyes and inches closer. She says in a low voice "All that black does make you look like an edgy teen's sith lord OC."

If someone on the mountain listens closely, it is said you can still hear a palm hitting a face and a devilish cackle spreading into the night.

Kirito completed the quest the day after his conversation with Argo. While he and his two companions walked down the mountain, he grabbed Asuna's arm and slows her down so they are a few meters behind Argo.

"Asuna," he began "I… I wanted to apologize. I know I said some hurtful things and… I'm sorry. I know you just want to help."

The girl looked back at him for a few moments before laughing. Kirito is taken aback by this and looks at her in confusion. "It's okay, Kirito-kun. What you said did hurt, but I know you were just trying to protect me. It doesn't make it right, and you definitely need to make it up to me, but I understand what you were trying to do."

Kirito nodded readily. "Yeah, of course. Man, I'm relieved."

Asuna smiled at him. "I'm glad, Angst-sama."

Kirito stumbled at this. "A-ah. I see you've been talking to Argo."

Asuna nods. "Mm-hmm, she's been teaching me MMO jargon too. And that also brings me to how you're going to make it up to me. Argo told me that there's a mob that drops what I need to upgrade my rapier here on the second floor. They're supposed to be pretty annoying to deal with, but I figured with the both of us it should be easy-breezy."

Knowing the mob she talking about, and knowing that it was indeed very annoying, Kirito was desperately trying to think of a way out of it, but in the end simply replied "A-alright…"

"Hey!" Argo called mischievously from in front of the two, "Quit makin' out back there and get a move on!"

Outskirts of Kawagoe, December 7th 2022

"Good afternoon Kirigaya-san."

Sugu waved to the woman at the front desk of 'The Nakamura Foundation for Society's Improvement: Saitama Branch'.

"Good morning Suzuki-san."

"Here to see Kazuto-san again?" Sugu's nod prompted the woman to reach into her desk and pull out a small key. Handing it over she says, "You know the way, right?"

Sugu nods again and takes the key. "Thank you. See you in a while Suzuki-san."

Walking into the elevator, Sugu looks at the button pad holding a button for floor one and one for floor two. It also had a keyhole beneath it and bit of empty space beneath that. Sticking the key in the hole and turning, the empty space flips revealing 4 more, smaller buttons labeled B1-4.

Pressing the B4 button, Sugu steps back as she feels the elevator descending deep into the earth. Once the door opens again, she steps into a brightly lit hallway and starts walking down it, passing several doors before coming to the 5th on her left. She walks in to find a room that would be nearly indistinguishable from any normal hospital room. The only major differences were the lack of windows and the leather straps with magic symbols on them attached to the bed. The latter of which were currently restraining the room's only occupant.

Sugu sat down on the chair next to the bed. "Hi Onii-chan," she says, "sorry I'm a little bit late today. Kendo practice ran long."

It had been a little over a month since Sugu's adoptive brother became trapped in the game of death known as "Sword Art Online" and since the man named Kikuoka had taken him to this secret facility. That man, as Sugu had learned later that same night, was a government employed hunter who Sugu's father had met several years ago. Minetaka called him as he and the rest of his family did not have the resources to care for Kazuto on their own, not even knowing how long a "half"-vampire who only drank animal blood could survive without said blood.

This had been a big risk, as government employed hunters hunted both monsters and freelance hunters who had gone rogue. Luckily, Kikuoka didn't seem to consider harboring one's monstrous nephew as "going rogue".

Still, Sugu didn't like it. There was just… a feeling she got around that man that made her danger-sense go off the charts. She had begun doing her monster hunting training at that facility, due to the top-quality equipment they had, but stopped when Kikuoka had told her she had "talent" and offered to "recruit" her. It just, for some reason, felt as though she would have been selling her soul to the devil.

Still, Sugu made sure to go visit her adopted brother every day. As much as she disliked that man, she disliked the idea of leaving Kazuto alone with him for a full day even less. Most of the time she would just watch over him, but sometimes she would talk to him about her day, regardless of the fact that he couldn't hear her.

Today was one of the latter.

Sugu finishes her recap of the events that led to her being late that day and then released a sigh. "I wonder what it's like for you in there. Are you staying safe? Knowing you, probably not. You're probably jumping into deadly pits of lava just to save someone, aren't you?" She looks him over fondly at the memory of him doing almost exactly that for her. "You're still alive though. I'm glad. I don't think I could take it if you died in there. Losing you for a third time would just be too much." She reaches her hand out and places it over Kazuto's. Despite his vampiric origins, his hand never lost its warmth. "How about this, you make sure you're safe over there, and I'll make sure you're safe over here, deal?"

She squeezes his hand slightly. Don't worry Onii-chan, she thinks as her eyes dart over to the camera in the corner of the room, I won't let anything happen to you.

Aincrad 3rd Floor, December 15th 2022

Since Kirito and Asuna had reached the third floor, things had gone quite well. Kirito was surprised to see the Dark Elf they fought with, Kizmel, survive past their initial encounter, but it was quite a pleasant surprise, as she reminded him of a character he had made for Sugu during the short stint of her watching him while he played games. She had then become quite a nice companion in the short time they had known each other, having even opened up to Kirito one night about the loss of her sister, in turn making him feel concern for how his own sister was faring in the real world. Kirito hoped that their… time apart had made it so she wouldn't be concerned for him in his digital prison.

Regardless, he was happy to have Kizmel accompanying him and Asuna, curious as to how long it would last and awed at the level of, for lack of a better term, consciousness that the NPC had. She truly did feel as real, or at least close to as real, as Asuna or Argo or Klein, if a bit odd.

So, of course, something had to come along and ruin it.

This 'something' came in the form of a field-boss known as Nephilia Regina, the Queen Spider, which was very different from the one Kirito had fought in the beta. Not only did it summon nearly two dozen small, not particularly powerful spiders known as Spider Hatchlings in a nightmare inducing way every time it dropped down 30%, it also shot out small spine like hairs which, while doing minimal damage, would cause a slight dizzying effect.

Kirito's knowledge of the attack patterns, minus these two new effects, as well of the attack patterns of the Hatchlings were the only things that had kept them alive long enough to get the field boss down to 50% health. Kizmel was not far off from that and Kirito and Asuna were already below that mark. There-in lied the problem.

If Kizmel fell below 30% health, or either of her companions fall into the red, she would activate her self-sacrificing skill she had used in the beta. She would die.

Kirito logically knew that this didn't really matter. He knew that she was really just a bundle of code. There were probably many more 'Kizmel's around for whenever the other players began the Elf War questline. But still… he didn't want to lose her.

Maybe it was because of how… alive she seemed, being closer to an AI than a simple 'Prompt-Response' NPC. Maybe it was because of how she made Kirito think of Sugu. Or maybe it was because Kirito had a total of four friends in this world and he was seeking companionship anywhere he could find it.

(He could almost hear Argo in his head saying 'Or maybe it's because of the… assets she demonstrated in the tent that you got a view of~' before shaking off those thoughts with a blush)

Regardless, he had resolved to do everything within his power to protect both of his companions. He also resolved to try and work on his increasingly apparent hero-complex because, as anyone taking a peak into his head could tell, it was getting somewhat out of hand.

The battle forged on. The spider was brought down to 45%, 40%, 35%. Kirito saw that he and his companions were also dropping steadily, but not enough to activate Kizmel's last resort. The problem came when the Arachnid boss dropped to 30% and the second to last volley of dizzying spines, which seemed to have been buffed for the last stages of the battle, shot out. This also coincided with when Kirito was defending Asuna from the last of the current wave of Hatchlings, causing him to get bit and drop 3%, down from 32% to 29%.

Into the red.

Asuna quickly turned around and finished off the small spider, but not before a small gasp escaped Kirito's throat, making Kizmel look over to him and see his ragged appearance.

"Kirito!" She shouted before glaring towards the enormous spider. "Do not fear. I will not allow you two to fall, I shall destroy this creature with a single blow."

No. No no no. I can't let this happen. Thought Kirito as he started moving

As Kizmel began reciting the incantation to release the power of the holy tree and pointing her hands towards the Queen Spider to aim, Kirito leapt in front of her with his arms spread wide.

"Stop!" Kirito shouted, causing Kizmel to lose her concentration and stop reciting.

"Kirito? What are you doing?"

"I don't want you to sacrifice yourself. Not for my sake at le-"

Kirito's explanation stopped when he felt a numbness spreading through his side. He looked down to see one of the boss's legs had struck him on his left flank. It was one of the weaker attacks the boss had, but it dropped him 6%. He watched his health bar drop once again.

Kizmel and Asuna both yelled his name again at his being hit, but Kirito didn't hear them. As the red bar slowly dipped beneath a quarter of his health, it was almost as if something snapped inside of him. A truly terrifying instinct rose up within him, one he had only felt two times before in his life. It was similar to the adrenaline one felt when confronted with a dangerous situation, only stronger and more wild. It was as if anger and instinct exploded within him telling him to kill everything around, do anything, in order to survive.

The first time he experienced this, he didn't know what it was and simply gave into it, hurting his grandfather and causing the alienation from most of his family in the process. The second time he suppressed it so he didn't end up hurting his sister. He immediately wanted to do the latter again.

But he had an idea. He couldn't let it overtake him like it did when he was first exposed to holy water, but maybe he could direct it. Maybe he could simply point himself at the boss, let himself go wild and end up saving everyone.

… It was risky, but he didn't know if he had another choice.

This all went through his mind in a moment and when Kirito looked up, he saw Kizmel with a shocked expression looking into his eyes which had, unbeknownst to Kirito, gained an animalistic glint.

"Keep Asuna safe." This was all Kirito said before turning towards the boss and releasing a noise that was somewhere between a hiss, a scream and a shout.

And then he moved.

Most videogames allowed for some pretty unrealistic feats, and SAO was no exception, but Kirito moved beyond what his AGI parameter should have allowed. He was like a blur of black leather and gray steel as he rushed in, swinging his sword and crashing his fists into the Queen Spider.

Anyone would be shocked and awed by the sight, but there were two points that particularly surprised the only two witnesses to this event.

The first was that even though Kirito seemed to be fighting with reckless abandon, he was still dodging most of the boss's attacks. He moved his head to the side here, twisted around there, moving before either of them could even see the attack was coming. He was still being damaged and wouldn't be able to keep it up forever, he still lasted longer than anyone else could have.

The second point was how he was fighting, in that he was only using sword skills. For most, this would be a horrible idea as it risks their life due to the moment you are frozen after a skill, something he had scolded both Klein and Asuna for in the past. But… Kirito didn't have his cool down. He was chaining his skills together one after another, quickly positioning himself to move directly from one sword skill into another. While this was theoretically possible, few had been able to actually succeed in a combat setting, let alone continuously do it against a boss. But Kirito, seeming to disregard what was "possible", continuously moved with either hi sword or some part of his body shining with the signature light of a sword skill's activation. Even when the final wave of Hatchlings spawned he quickly adjusted his movements to deal with them before returning to the boss. The way he moved was beautiful in a terrifying way.

Overall, Kirito's deranged state lasted for 42 seconds.

Nephilia Regina went down after 40.

As Kirito's virtual heart finally began to slow, he looked up too his health bar sitting at 2%.

Well, that was certainly something- was the last thought that went through his head before he blacked out and fell to the ground.

When he awoke, he saw Asuna leaning down next to him holding a now empty potion right over his mouth and Kizmel kneeling by his other side.

"Ah, I see that that worked out. Well, that's good. I'm gonna have to tell Argo that the boss was buf-" Kirito began saying before he was interrupted by Asuna grabbing onto both of his shoulders hard.

"Why did you do that?!" Asuna shouts at him. "I almost… I almost saw you die. I… what was I supposed to do if that happened? What were you thinking?" Her eyes were beginning to gather tears at the edges as she glared down at him.

Kirito looked away. Honestly, his thinking had just been 'save everyone, kill the big spider, put my curse to good use for once'. He hadn't really… though of how Asuna would've reacted to watching him "die" (Which he still didn't think would necessarily kill him, but he would still like to avoid the risk when possible).

After a moment he finally looked back at her. "I guess I wasn't. I just… didn't want to let either of you die. I'll try and be more careful next time."

Asuna looks at him for a moment more before turning away and closing her eyes, a small pout on her lips and her cheeks tinted a faint red. "You better, idiot." She loosened her grip on his shoulders but didn't let go.

She's probably trying to make sure I don't do anything stupid before I finish regen-ing my health. Kirito thought as he released a small laugh. It was then that Kizmel finally spoke up.

"Kirito… how did you do that?" She looked flabbergasted. "I have never seen even the most dexterous of knights do anything of that sort."

Kirito stiffened slightly as he reached through his mind to try and find an answer that would work for this situation. By the time he replied Asuna was looking at him as well. "Ah, well, I guess it was just adrenaline. I kinda just let my instincts take over." He released an embarrassed laugh and rubbed the back of his head, a bit awkwardly considering he was still being semi-pinned by Asuna. "Humans can do some pretty incredible stuff if someone they care for is in danger. Speaking of which," his eyes harden slightly as he looks at Kizmel, "I don't want you trying to sacrifice yourself again. At least not for me. I don't want to see you die…" … again, he almost added.

Kizmel looks at him with surprise and… something else he can't quite figure, before she responded "Very well, if that is what you wish."

Kirito sighs with relief before thinking of something. "Hey, did either of you see the spider drop something after it died?"

In an endless void of endless digital nothingness, a system known as cardinal detected an anomaly in the world it was running.

Error Detected.

Error report: Player has surpassed parameters set by system. Unknown stimuli has effected player's NerveGear. Player ID: Kirito

Scanning Error… Scanning…

Scanning complete. Subsystem O activated. Activating system command: 01001101 01101111 01101110 01110011 01110100 01100101 01110010 00100000 01001101 01100001 01110011 01101000

Researching… Complete

Interpreting… Complete

Sending system command to NerveGears… Complete

Implementing… 1%... 2%... 3%...

As Cardinal began its process of recognizing and implementing the unknown stimuli, a little girl in a white dress, imprisoned and prevented from performing her duties, her purpose, tilted her head in confusion at the events taking place. She waved her hands and pulled up the footage of what Cardinal was analyzing. She was shocked at what she saw.

… Not at the battle taking place, no that wasn't really very much up her alley. No, what shocked her was the sight of a young boy standing in front of an NPC and preventing said NPC from sacrificing herself, putting himself in harm's way and risking his life in the process. He risked everything… for a program. For nothing but a few lines of code. He put everything on the line and…

… He saved her.

She reached out toward the projected images of the dark clothed swordsman. Will you save me too? She questioned within her mind

Kirito was many things. A swordsman, a vampire, a gamer, a guy with a major hero complex, a really shitty adopted brother. But above all else, he was a teenage boy. So, you can imagine how he felt when his bath at the Dark Elf camp was intruded upon by his very unabashed ally Kizmel.

"U-uh" He stuttered, seemingly unable to form a coherent thought.

"Oh, Kirito, I see you are taking the chance to wash off the grime of today's journey as well." The dark elf replied, referring to the quests the two of them and Asuna had been on that day, similar to those of the previous two days as well. She then reached for her clasp and removed her armor and cloak, the sound of a bell signaling this within the game.

"A-ah. Yeah, I was, uh, just getting out now, so I'll leave you to it."

Kirito began to get out before Kizmel interrupts him. "Oh, before you go, can you wash my back for me?" Kirito froze and began to refuse before Kizmel frowned and spoke again. "I haven't had anyone do it since Tilnel…"

And that's how Kirito found himself washing the very… "well-endowed" NPC's back.

"I am glad I found you, there's something I wished to speak to you about." As Kizmel spoke Kirito tried his best to avert his gaze and prevent his face from reddening even further. "I've been having dreams involving you. About when we first met. Visions of me dying, sacrificing myself, and you are always there. You are with people I haven't seen before. A group of other men, a young girl with bright green hair. Whoever you are with, you are always there, and you always look at me with sadness as I fade away."

Kirito felt his body stiffen slightly at the mention of events that clearly took place in the beta. "Ah, well, that's odd. I haven't teamed up with anyone besides Asuna in a while."

"Yes, I too was confused. I thought perhaps they were windows into other worlds, like the one you and Asuna came from." Kizmel suggested this, likely based on Kirito and Asuna's explanation that the players were really 'Humans from another world who had been trapped in Aincrad'. "Regardless, seeing those dreams has made me feel as though we are… connected. And I think I know why. Do you remember when fighting the Queen Spider, the power you unleashed when close to death? I think I know why that happened." She turned around causing Kirito's face to turn a shade akin to a ripe tomato before she continued her thought. "You are not truly human."

All the color that had previously rushed to his face immediately drained. "A-ah? W-what are you talking about?" He spluttered out while in his head furthering his questioning with What's she talking about? She can't know I'm a vampire, right? I mean, I'm not a vampire here, really. So… what's going on?

"Well, not completely human, at least." That was… not much more comforting for Kirito, honestly. "I believe you are a Night Touched. A human blessed by Sarela, the first of the Dark Elves. I believe yours to be a blessing quite powerful, but with a cost as well."

"A-ah. I'm not sure if that's really-" Kirito was interrupted by the sound of Asuna calling from outside the tent.

"Kirito-kun? What's taking so long? You said you would only be a minute."

"A-Asuna! I, uh, was…"

Before Kirito could finish, Kizmel got out of the bath and quickly re-equipped her clothing and armor. "Thank you for washing my back Kirito. I hope our partnership may continue for as long as the gods allow." She then exited the tent and Kirito got a small glimpse at Asuna's face, slowly shifting from utter shock and embarrassment to a look of… what could lightly be described as 'seething anger'.

"… Kirito-kun…" Kirito heard this outside the tent and decided he should probably get some armor on…

… Quickly.

Kirito had a hard time sleeping that night.

It probably didn't help that he was sleeping on the ground outside Kizmel's tent at Asuna's… 'suggestion'.

The main reason, though, was the conversation which had taken place between him and Kizmel in the bath. What was this 'Night-Touched' thing supposed to be? Had he triggered some kind of special event? And why did it seem to be at least vaguely similar to vampirism.

(Well, at least that's what his panicked brain thought. He didn't actually get much other than 'powerful and with a cost')

Honestly, that was what was making him so uncomfortable. He had come into this game to escape from all that, to live in a world where he didn't have to worry about it. Even with him trapped there, he still felt like it was a better life he was living in the game than out of it. At least within SAO he was actually helping people by trying to get them out of there.

If something happened in Aincrad to bring his life outside there, he didn't know what he would…

"Kirito-kun?" Kirito's thoughts were interrupted by Asuna, who had walked out of the tent and then stood in front of the black-haired boy.

"A-ah! Yeah, Asuna? What do you need?"

Asuna looked away from him and he thought he could see her cheeks turn faintly red, though it was quite dark.

"I just thought you might be cold." She replied in a slightly irritated voice. "So I thought, since Kizmel said you didn't do anything inappropriate 'Even by human standards'," Asuna did her best to imitate the dark elf's manner of speech, "I might as well let you stay in the tent if you hadn't fallen asleep. But I'll be keeping my eye on you! N-not that I'm going to watch you sleep, obviously. I just mean…"

Kirito paused for a moment before responding. "O-oh! Yeah, yeah! Thanks a lot."

Asuna again looked away for a moment before responding "Yeah, sure."

As Kirito settled down for the night, now within the tent, a different set of thoughts ran through his mind.

This is going to be fine. I have Asuna. He looked at the girl who had turned her back to him, not doing a really great job of 'keeping an eye on him'. And Argo. And Klein and Agil. Kizmel too, I guess. I won't lose them, no matter what. I'll figure it out. I'll do whatever it takes. And I'll save them all. His thoughts pause as he realizes his 'Hero-complex' was showing itself once again. Ah, there I go again. He smiled slightly before turning his head once more toward the sky and lifting his hand up, as if reaching for the heavens. And after I destroy this world, I'm going home. I'll fix things with mom and dad. I'll go to grandpa's grave, pay respect to him. But above all, his fist clenches, I'll make everything up to you Sugu, no matter what or how long it takes. I swear.

Turning over Kirito found himself falling asleep very easily after that.

In the morning, as Kirito and Asuna walked out of Kizmel's tent in the sunlight, Kirito squints and holds his hand in front of his face.

"Kirito-kun? Are you alright?" Asuna asked with concern.

"Yeah," Kirito replied, his brow furrowing, "the sun just… seems really bright today is all."

Aincrad 9th Floor, January 14th 2023

Two figures strolled through the halls of a large palace set in the 9th floor of Aincrad, extravagant tapestries adorning the walls and sconces giving off seemingly natural light in spite of the lack of windows within the hall.

"So, is your health regenerating okay?" Asuna, now wearing improved cloth armor from her previous, relatively un-upgraded variety, asked as she shifted her eyes slightly to the side towards Kirito.

Kirito looked over to his health bar and nodded. "Yeah, almost up to full again. Man, the sun really does a number on me, huh?" He, unlike Asuna, had not had much of an apparel change, though he did carry a new sword as opposed to his former signature Anneal Blade. Thinking of this, he looks to his partner's waist and asks "How's your rapier doing? I know it was really great on the third floor, but you may want to think about getting an upgrade."

Asuna frowned at this and drew her Chivalric Rapier. "Yes, I suppose you are right. To be honest I'm surprised it has lasted as long as it has. We've been through quite a lot these past few floors."

Kirito's chuckle is accompanied by him scratching the back of his head. "Yeah, this whole Elf War questline got a lot more intense than in the beta. Honestly it was unlike anything I've ever seen before. I still miss poor old Escapane."

Asuna's head nods along. "Yeah, he really never saw that tusk coming. But you're right, it was pretty crazy for a while. I wouldn't be surprised if we never saw anything like it ever again."

Their conversation was then cut off by the sound of feet falling behind them and a familiar voice beckoning.

"Kirito, Asuna." They turned to see Kizmel behind them. "It is time."

"For your service to our Kingdom and helping us reach peace with our former enemies the Forest Elves, placing your own lives at risk and no doubt saving countless of my people, I, Queen offer you my sincere thanks and shall officially dub thee as Knights of the Lysulan Kingdom." The Dark Elf queen, a beautiful woman with flowing lilac hair and a womanly figure somewhat concealed by the modest yet stunning midnight blue dress, delivered her speech to a kneeling/bowing Kirito and Asuna, with Kizmel in the same kneel/bow about a meter behind them. "To commemorate your knighthood, I shall bestow upon all of you a gift." She stepped forward to stand in front of Kirito, gently lowering a One-Handed Longsword, which a guard had handed her, into his grasp. "This is the Queen's Knightsword, a weapon given only to some of the finest swordsmen to have fought by the side of the Lysulan Kingdom. May your aim be true and your strikes devastating."

Kirito took the blade, which carried a heft that he appreciated, and nodded his head. "Thank you, your Highness."

The queen then walked to stand in front of Asuna, now holding a cloak similar to that of Kizmel's only red with a silver trim and clasp. "Upon you I bestow the Cloak of Flurry. Given only to the fastest among my nights, this cloak shall disorient your enemies to make you even more difficult to hit. May your life last long and your health remain undisturbed."

Asuna repeated Kirito's actions. "Thank you, your Majesty."

The queen moved once again, however this time she walked behind the two players to stand in front of Kizmel. "And you, my dear knight, have been invaluable in assisting these two and saving our people. If there is anything you wish, I will do what is in my power to grant it."

Kizmel looked surprised for a moment and paused to consider before speaking. "Y-your Majesty, if it is agreeable to you, I would like to remain by the sides of my companions."

Both Kirito and Asuna had to fight back the urge to release a surprised shout. Kirito had previously explained to Asuna that after this, they likely would have to leave Kizmel behind. He didn't think the game would allow for such a powerful companion to be usable throughout the entirety.

The queen herself looked somewhat surprised, but not as much as one might expect. "May I ask why?" The queen asked with no ice in her tone, simply curiosity.

Kizmel responded, this time with more confidence. "I feel as though I have formed a strong bond with these two, one that I wish to hold onto as they try to return to their world." She paused for a moment before adding "Additionally, Kirito appears to be a Night Touched and I wish to do what I can to help him on his way."

Kirito tensed as he always does when he hears the name of his 'condition' within the game. Asuna, however, does not show any sign of change as she was the only one besides Kizmel who knew of Kirito's situation.

… Well, neither really knew of his situation, but they at least knew the aspect within the game.

The queen nodded her head knowingly at this revelation. "Very well." She places her hand atop the Elven Knight's head. "I hereby release you of your obligation to this land. Until the divine tree guides you back to us, you are free to go as you wish."

Kizmel bowed her head once again. "Thank you, my queen."

As the group of three exited the castle, the sun having set allowing Kirito to walk without equipping a cloak, Asuna was the first to break the silence happily.

"I'm so glad you are going to continue journeying with us, Kizmel. I was honestly worried about what we were going to do without you."

Kirito smiled and looked to his left where Kizmel stood. "Yeah, I'm glad your coming with us. We would've missed you a lot."

Kizmel smiled happily as well. "Of course, I am also glad my queen allowed it. It was true what I said, I feel we have bonded in a way I haven't with other elves before. And besides, I have to help Kirito find other Night Touched so they too can know the truth of their situation."

Kirito stopped walking making him fall a few meters behind the girls as his brow furrowed. He finally spoke up and asked "What do you mean other Night Touched?"

Alternate Title: The Hero Complex

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter of "The Bloody Swordsman"!

As you can probably tell, in this chapter we went through the Intermission in Progressive volume one and about two chapters in Progressive volume two. And then… I did a time skip so I wouldn't have to go through any more of progressive's timeline.

Don't get me wrong, Progressive is great. What I've read so far has been super enjoyable, but… I just don't really have time. I'm trying to balance reading Alicization, writing this, working and doing other things that I enjoy. I want to read all of progressive at some point, but I just can't right now and thus do not feel as though I can write a story around it. I even tried (and probably failed) to make a joke about it by Kirito and Asuna going on about how epic and crazy the quest was and how they'll never see anything like it again.

I really felt like I wanted to bring Kizmel along on the journey, and there was also a plot I was trying to figure out how to explore but couldn't quite think of a not-super-convoluted way to get to it. Combine that with the criticisms of how the vampirism hasn't really effected anything, and voila, I thought of the Night Touched. I'm going to explore it more in the next chapter, but as you can already tell it has altered Kirito's character to have at least some vampiric characteristics.

I wanted to explore Kirito's Hero-Complex in this chapter as it's very obvious that this version has one. He's always trying to sacrifice his relationship to other people and throw himself under the bus because he wants to protect them. This tends to make him into, as Argo said, "a self-righteous prick". But, you know, a lovable one. He's really gonna have to work on that and hopefully he'll be able to with the help of his lovely lady friends.

Also, I have to say that I'm really proud of Argo's line about Kirito looking like "an edgy teen's sith lord OC", I thought that was really funny. I will say that Kirito may or may not be getting a new standard outfit in this fic.

By the way, you can probably tell that my Cardinal section was somewhat inspired by the way the system logs are in "Chains of Fate". Yeah, even though I'm not done with Alicization, I went ahead and read the prologue. I don't think I was really spoiled for anything since I'm currently on volume 14, so that's good!

I hope my ideas and general conventions were better this time around and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Be sure to tell me what you think! See you all in the next chapter!