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With both Initial D and Sword Art Online hitting their most critical narrative junctures at the same time, the activity level of Haruto's fanbase across Japan reached heights never seen before.
Takumi had been betrayed by Natsuki, and Sword Art Online was seemingly barreling toward its final boss. The speculation was rampant: would the novel end the moment Akihiko Kayaba was defeated? Fans spent the entire week agonizing over every possible theory.
Finally, the long week came to an end.
Early that morning, the lines outside bookstores across Japan were visibly longer than usual. Everyone was desperate to get their hands on the latest issue of Kiyozawa.
Kiyora stood in line, his heart hammering against his ribs as he looked at the cover of the new issue.
Against the backdrop of the massive floating castle, Aincrad, stood the Black Swordsman, Kirito, and the girl in white, Asuna. They were back-to-back, their expressions heavy with sorrow.
This issue of Kiyozawa had given its entire cover to a single work: Sword Art Online. This exquisite art made Kiyora's heart skip a beat. He knew the industry rules: when a major magazine gives a series a solo cover like this, it means the chapter inside is a game-changer.
Connecting this to last week's cliffhanger, he felt a knot of anxiety tighten in his stomach. He found a quiet spot in a nearby park, sat down on a bench, and ignored the pleasant spring breeze as he tore off the plastic wrap and flipped to the first page. For the last two months, Sword Art Online had held the coveted first-page position, a testament to its status as the magazine's king.
The story picked up exactly where it had left off. Kirito had unmasked the Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath, Heathcliff, as the creator of SAO, Akihiko Kayaba.
How did he figure it out? The logic was sound. Kirito was officially the fastest player in the game; in two years, he had never met anyone whose reaction speed surpassed his own. Yet, in their previous duel, Heathcliff's speed had been supernatural. Humans have limits, and Kirito, as a top-tier expert, knew exactly where those limits were. Heathcliff had moved beyond them.
Furthermore, during the brutal fight against the Skull Reaper, while everyone else was at death's door, Heathcliff's health bar had remained green.
Kirito's sudden betrayal attack on his commander was a desperate test, one that proved Heathcliff was utilizing a permanent System Immortality status.
Exposed, Kayaba dropped the act. He admitted he was playing the game to experience it from the inside, leading the players toward the final floor. He revealed that he was intended to be the final boss waiting for them on the 100th floor.
'What a twisted bastard,' Kiyora thought. The hero of the clearing group, the man everyone looked up to, was the jailer who planned to slaughter them at the finish line.
Facing his paralyzed subordinates, incapacitated by a system-level paralysis skill, Kayaba offered Kirito a deal as a reward for his intuition.
"Kirito, as a prize for unmasking me, I'll give you a chance. A one-on-one duel, right here and now. I'll disable my immortality. If you win, the game is cleared. Every player will be logged out immediately." Kayaba wore an elegant, hauntingly calm smile.
Kiyora's heart nearly stopped.
'Is he serious? Is it actually going this way? Haruto Sensei, are you really ending Sword Art Online right now?'
Kiyora knew that if SAO was cleared, the premise of the novel was over. But he was not ready to say goodbye! The series had not been running that long. How could it end already?
"Don't do it, Kirito! Don't kill him yet! I need more chapters!" Kiyora found himself actually hoping the hero would lose. But if he lost to a man like Kayaba, there would be no mercy. It would mean death.
As he agonized over the stakes, the duel began.
"I don't think I'll lose that easily," Kirito said. "But if I do die... I want a guarantee that Asuna will be prevented from committing suicide."
Kayaba agreed.
The page turned to a breathtaking full-page illustration. It showed the hollowed-out lair of the Skull Reaper, the paralyzed players scattered on the floor, and the two swordsmen facing off.
Kirito realized immediately that his specialized Sword Skills were useless.
They were pre-programmed patterns created by Kayaba himself; using them against the creator was like a student trying to trick his master with his own lessons. Kirito had to rely on pure fundamentals: raw strength, unmitigated speed, and instinct.
The narrative described the clash in grueling detail. Kiyora's knuckles turned white as he gripped the magazine. But the crushing reality of the situation soon set in. No matter how skilled Kirito was, he could not match the man who defined the physics of the world.
Every offensive move was blocked.
Strike. Deflect. Counter.
Kirito felt his stamina and his hope fading. He could not break through Heathcliff's legendary shield. Finally, Kirito's sword shattered against the immovable defense. Heathcliff's eyes turned sharp, and his blade lunged forward from behind the shield.
'Is Kirito going to die?'
Kiyora knew the Protagonist Rules, the hero is not supposed to die in the middle of his own book. But the dread was palpable. Then, a flash of red and white blurred across the panel, throwing itself in front of Kirito.
"No..." Kiyora gasped.
That red and white silhouette... that was Asuna.
He remembered the Warrior of Love rumors that had been circulating for the last week, the fear that Haruto was planning a massacre. His hand trembled as he took a deep breath. He was terrified to turn the page.
This was Asuna. In all his years as an ACG fan, he had never loved a character quite like her. To see her fall at the hands of a sadistic author was more than he could bear.
'It is not necessary, Takahashi-sensei!' he screamed internally.
'The readers want happiness! We want sweet romance, not this! Why are you doing this? Will it help sales? Will it get better reviews?'
No. It would only lead to a riot.
He braced himself and kept reading.
"I'm sorry... goodbye." Asuna wore a gentle, peaceful smile.
Her health bar hit zero instantly. She shattered into a rain of digital shards, vanishing from Kirito's arms forever.
"I must say, I'm impressed," Kayaba said with composure. "By all accounts, it should have been impossible for her to break the paralysis on her own."
Incarnation. The power of will.
Asuna had literally willed her avatar to move through a system lockout to save the man she loved. But looking at the empty space where she had been, Kiyora felt his soul go cold.
Then came the final blow. In a blind, grief-stricken rage, Kirito lunged at Kayaba, but his movements were sloppy. Kayaba dodged effortlessly and drove his sword through Kirito's chest.
Kirito's HP hit zero. A message box appeared in the center of the screen.
[YOU ARE DEAD]