Sword Art Online>25. The World Seed

Kazuto:
Hah...Asuna...

Sugou:
You're late, Kirito.

Kazuto:
Who's there?!

Sugou:
I've been out here so long.
Am I catch cold?
Heh heh...

Kazuto:
Sugou...!

Sugou:
You did very bad thing, Kirito...
You know I can still feel the pain...

Kazuto:
It's over, Sugou...
You better turn yourself in.
You're finished.

Sugou:
Finished? Hardly...
There are lots of companies they've killed to have my research.
And, once it's complete, there won't be anything or anyone's standing in my way.
Then, I'll be the god of this world.

Kazuto:
...

Sugou:
Oh, but first...first I'm going to kill you.
Kirito!

Kazuto:
Ugh!

Sugou:
Come on. Get up.
...I said, get up!

Kazuto:
Arg...

Sugou:
You think a piece of trash like you can get in my way?
Did you think I'll let you slow me d..own?
Wanna know what the punishment is...?
Death.
I won't accept...anything less!
...Damn, my right eye's a foggy...But I won't miss again. Promise.
...You...bastard!
You're little boy...!
You're a piece of scum!
You don't have any real power!

Kazuto:
...And, neither do you...Sugou?

Sugou:
DIE! DAMN YOOOU!

Kazuto:
Whooooaah!

Sugou:
Ugh...!

Kazuto:
Such a weak weapon...Too light, no reach.
And its all I'm gonna need to kill you once and for all!
...Wrraaarrr!

Sugou:
Wwaaaah!
Er...? ah...



Unknown:
Hurry up! She's waiting for you!

Kazuto:
...Ah...
...Asuna.

Asuna:
Kirito.
...Oh?

Kazuto:
It's okay now...It's over.
I fought the final boss just now.
And last battle's over.
It's all over...

Asuna:
I'm sorry...But I can't hear too well right now.
I think I know what you said though...what you meant.
But it's really over...
And, finally...Finally...I get to meet you!
...So, anyway...I'm Asuna.
Asuna Yuuki.
And, I'm finally back!

Kazuto:
I'm Kazuto Kirigaya...
Welcome home, Asuna...



Teacher:
Loot at this sentence.
Could anyone tell me how...oh.
Looks like that's all for today.
Keep an eye on homework files 25-26, then make sure upload your answers by next week.

...

Kazuto:
Thanks for waiting for me.
I'm tired...tired and hungry.

Asuna:
You're starting sound like an old man, Kirito...

Kazuto:
Yeah, well...I feel like I've got about five years old in last month...
And by the way...It's not Kirito. It's Kazuto.
This is real life. You shouldn't call someone by their avatar's name here.

Asuna:
Oh, sorry! I forgot...
Oh, no, now what I'm getting to...everyone will know it's me...

Kazuto:
That's what you get if you're using real name for your avatar.
Er...I guess it doesn't really matter, because everyone in our school stacked in SAO, same as us.
My cover's probably won't too.

Asuna:
Fu fu...

Kazuto:
Asuna, are you getting around okay?
I mean, is the rehab you're doing helping...?

Asuna:
Nn-huh, I finally got the OK to walk around without my clutches.
Although...the doctor said I shouldn't run just yet.

Kazuto:
You will.

Asuna:
By the way, Kirito...

Kazuto:
What?

Asuna:
Do you know...that everyone in the cafeteria can see us...?

Kazuto:
Urg...!

Asuna:
Seriously...that little oversight is gonna cost you lunch!

Kazuto:
Sorry, I didn't know...

Asuna:
...Tada~!

...

Kazuto:
I was wondering about you're dad.
Is he OK?

Asuna:
Nn-huh, he is.
But he's still not over this whole thing.
He quit an CEO, and took an early retirement.
And now, daddy's gotta this free time, doesn't know what to do with it...
Hopefully, dad can find a hobby, maybe that will cheer him up.

Kazuto:
I hope so...
That night in the parking lot, the police came and arrested Sugou.
Later, when they interrogated him, he denied everything and tried to pin the blame on Akihiko Kayaba.
But, after the police questioned one of his employees, Sugou confessed everything.
As for those three hundred SAO players, when they came too, they couldn't remember anything about the experiments.
The good thing is that they didn't suffer any neurological psychiatric after effects, so everyone can go back to their lives.
But the fate of virtual MMOs are different story.
This latest incident, practically destroyed the industry altogether.
In the end, RCT Progress was dismantled, it's parent company also suffer the big hit.
ALO was shut down.
No surprise there.
And, as for five or six other VRMMOs, with all the negative price in public outcry.
Their days were No.2[?].

Asuna:
You know what I was thinking about?
The commander, what happened to him?

Kazuto:
Hmm? Ah...
Yeah...Kayaba's dead.
They said, it was suicide.

Asuna:
No way...

Kazuto:
Yeah, when the world of SAO collapsed.
He did high output scan on his brain on the fly while it wasn't over.

Asuna:
So, wait, was he trying to copy his consciousness to the net or something?

Kazuto:
Well, it's one in the thousand shot for to work, but I know he pull it off.
That day...Kayaba spoke to me...Or, his consciousness did, anyway.
...What's this?

Kayaba's echo:
The beginning of the new world.
I called it the Seed.
Once it's sprout, you'll know what it is.
What you do with it is up to you.
You can even delete it, if you want.
However, if you still have a tiny bit of fondness left of virtual world, you'll take care of it.

Asuna:
Kirito...Kirito~?
Don't forget we are meeting the others later.

Kazuto:
Huh? ...Oh, yeah, right.
Sorry, I was spacing out.

Asuna:
As always...
It doesn't matter whether you're in the game, or IRL, when you relaxed, you spaced out like a chump.
Fu fu fu...



Keiko:
Seriously, Riz---Rika, You're driving me crazy with all that slurping!

Rika:
Leave alone...He's all over her, it's dreaming or not[?].
Hectic like that, it's school...so tacky! (slurp)

Keiko:
Spying on them is kind a tacky too, you know.

Rika:
Eww...I don't know them what's gonna be a like this.
I wonder let you talking into a mop on truth.

Keiko:
I didn't talk you into. It was your idea!
You said we should let them have a little romance for a month, remember?
I need, god, talk about naive...

Rika:
Geh...
It's gonna be cool meet everyone today, isn't it?

Keiko:
...Yeah, I can't wait!



Kazuto:
Sugu.
I forgot to ask before, did you ever meet Agil?

Suguha:
Yeah. We went hunting together a couple of times in ALO.
His avatar's ginormous!

Kazuto:
Yeah, we're get ready.
He's that big in real life, too.
Prepared to have your mind brown.

...

Kazuto:
Umm...Hold on a sec, were we supposed to get here earlier...?

Rika:
Hmm fu fu, we gave you late a time to make sure everyone else got here first.
It wouldn't be right for guest of honor to show up before, I guess?
Don't you stand there. Come on in!

Kazuto:
Er...Hey!

Rika:
Okay! Let's get this party started!
You all know what to do?!
Ready...and?!

Everyone:
Congratulations on beating SAO, Kirito!

Kazuto:
Er...?

Rika:
Cheers!

Everyone:
Cheers!

...

Kazuto:
Hah...bartender?
Bourbon on the rocks.

Andrew:
Hmph.

Kazuto:
Wow, dude, this is oolong tea!

Ryoutarou:
Hey, Agil, slide me a big boy drink.

Kazuto:
Klein, seriously? Aren't you supposed to go back to work?

Ryoutarou:
Ng...Alcohol makes the overtime go by faster!
Uh-oh, chick around...

(Thinker):
Long time no see!

Kazuto:
Hi, Thinker!
How you've been?
I heard that you and Yulier are married now.
I know it's late, but, congrats!

(Thinker):
Thank you.
But ever since we got back, it's been taking everything we've got to adjust a life here...
The good thing is, I'm settling it's work board again.

Ryoutarou:
Congratulations, I'm get that far!
Hey, I've been reading the new MMO Today, nice job!

(Thinker):
Yeah, I wish it were better.
It could've use a pure more content.
Oh, well, what the way MMOs are now?
Who needs a work through the news?
Those things are gonna be a irrelevant soon, anyway.

Kazuto:
You know what they say about how the universe is born? forces of chaos.[?]
By the way, Agil, has the Seed been doing okay?

Andrew:
It's doing amazing.
We gotta fifty mirrors already set up.
It's downloaded hundred thousand times.
And, check this out.
It's got three hundred big-ass servers actually running it.

Kazuto:
After I visited Asuna at the hospital, I took the thing Kayaba called the Seed over Agil.
And, asked him to check it out.
Turned out it was a full-dive MMO that Kayaba developed.
It came in a program package called the World Seed.
A stripped down version of the Cardinal System that can run on small servers.
Kayaba had modified the program, so that anyone with access to an ordinary server could easily downloaded.
And, use it to create their very own online world.
After Agil said it was safe to use, I had him upload it to the servers across the globe.
So, everyone could access it for free.
It turned out, that was exactly what virtual MMOs need it.
It keep the genre on going.
As for ALfheim Online, all the data was transferred to a new company that decided keep it online and running.
But the new Alfheim wasn't the only world born out of the Seed.
Everyone from individual gamers, to a few hundred small companies, were suddenly creating brand new world on the very own virtual game servers.
The best part is they are all connected each other.
It's almost to the point that you can create own character in one world, then transfer it to another with all its skills intact.
...Hey, is anything change for tonight's after party?

Andrew:
No, we're still on for eleven.
We'll meet up in Yggdrasil city.



Kirito:
You know, I had a feeling you are gonna fly too high up.
It's almost eleven, so I came to get you.

Leafa:
Oh. Okay, thanks.

Kirito:
Er...

Leafa:
Hey, Kazu...eh, Kirito?
You know how ALO's got a new company running it now, and...how you can use your old SAO avatar, if you want?
Everyone else's using their old avatar, so, how come you're not?

Kirito:
Hmm...
I guess, 'cause in that world, that Kirito's mission is over now.

Leafa:
Eh...I guess so...
Then, I was the first to meet the Spriggan version of Kirito.
And, show him the way to the World Tree...That's pretty cool.
...Hey, Kirito!
Dance with me!

Kirito:
Huh?

Leafa:
Dance! It's advanced technique I just mastered.
You just hover, then slowly spin your x-axis.

Kirito:
Er...

Leafa:
That's it! Yeah, you're doing great.

Kirito:
...Hmph.

Leafa:
Aha!

Kirito:
...Leafa?

Leafa:
...Anyway, I think I'm gonna go home now.

Kirito:
But...why?

Leafa:
Because...It's too far away.
Like, everything and everyone else, even you...
I couldn't go that far.
Even if I tried.

Kirito:
Sugu...
That's so not true.
You can go anywhere.
Anywhere that you want.

Leafa:
Ah...?
Waaah!

Kirito:
It's coming.

Leafa:
Huh?

Kirito:
Nn.

Leafa:
Okay...what's up with moon...?
...huh?
...ah...?
...No way.
No way. Is that...?

Kirito:
Isn't it awesome?
That's Aincrad. The Floating Castle.

Leafa:
H---How? I mean...what's it doing here?!

Kirito:
I'm gonna beat it.
I'm gonna floor by floor, all hundred of them.
And, this time, I'm gonna conquer it.
Leafa, I wanna head on reset on my stats, so I'm starting from scratch again.
Do you wanna help me beat it?

Leafa:
Ha...Nn-huh, I will.
I'll go anywhere...with you.

Klein:
Hey, Kirito! You're late, man!
We're gonna leave you behind!

Agil:
See you there!

Lizbeth:
Come on!

Silica:
Hurry!

Asuna:
Come on, Kirito, Leafa.
Let's go!

Leafa:
Nn...

Asuna:
Fu fu...

Yui:
Hurry, daddy!
Everyone's waiting!

Kirito:
.........
Okay. Let's go!