CHAPTER 25.1 - Ruins

Asuna was shocked when Kirito suddenly block her attack by taijutsu skill "Impossible, he was able to see it coming?" She whispers after blocking her attack Kirito charges her with a sonic leap however Asuna manages to avoid it using a back flip. Kirito dash toward her and was about to charge her again the good thing was that she managed to block it "I didn't expect that player to a player duel was this difficult" She push him and charge him with linear but Kirito block it she was in a deep breath when he looks at Kirito, he was coming again.

Asuna feel scared for the first time just by looking at him "The side of him that I've never seen" She didn't expect that this kind of duel could be scary, because when she had a duel with Kouki she didn't feel this kind of feeling, only on Kirito. She block his attack and started trembling and her eyes were started watering "N-No.. I-I don't l-like this.."

"Eh?" Kirito's started to panic when he saw Asuna was crying "Wah? A-Asuna-San?"

"I-I didn't expect that you will be this scary.." Asuna sniff

"I-I'm s-sorry Asuna.. I thought you already have experience with this" Asuna didn't answer and she keep crying, while Kirito sigh and his serious face changed and become softened "I'm sorry, I won't hurt you Asuna, shhh.." He approached her and hugged her.

It's already night and Asuna was completely calm down, Kirito and Asuna was sitting next to each other while the whole place is illuminated coming from the bonfire

"Have you calmed down?" Kirito ask her and handed her a cup of hot tea

"Thanks.." Asuna take a sip of her tea "Ehm, sorry about earlier, even though I was the one who requested the duel"

"Ah, I don't mind it but.." Kirito take a sip and he looks away at the building of the ruins that surrounded them "That's unusual coming from you, to stop while we were in the middle of the duel"

"Hmm, somehow it wasn't how I imagine it'd be.." Asuna didn't expect that the duel on the player to player was very different on having a duel on AI "I thought the winner would be decided by the first hit, and it was scary" Asuna put down her cup of tea and hug herself "I don't want to fight to the death with you.." After hearing that Kirito smiled, he knows that if Asuna can saw him as an enemy she wouldn't hold herself and that could lead to defeating him

"I understand I'm sorry too, for making us kill each other" He pats her head "However, I want you to get used to it" Kirito become serious "To duel, I mean player versus player"

"Is there really a possibility that Player killing through duel will appear on this 5th floor?" Asuna said

"About the duel, I had with a player on the 3rd floor.." Kirito started opening this kind of topic on her so she can avoid it

"The Morte named right?" Asuna said and they looked at each other "I have a friend who was become a victim of portal player-killing"

"I see, but now that you are already aware of Morte he has tactics in terms of dueling. He started the duel mode; victory by losing half" Kirito already know that Asuna saw their duel "Morte took advantage of the fact that my Hit point was almost halved. Then suddenly took out his hidden main skills and tried to finish me off in a single hit" Kirito look at her "If he succeeded I would've lost all my hit points and died" Asuna was shocked and covered her mouth "Plus, his status won't turn orange on this method, because it's a duel and it doesn't break any rules"

"I think that Morte player is kind of clever. That's a great idea he came up with" Asuna said

"Stop talking like you're admiring him" Kirito scratched his head "But I was thinking why did he do that? From what I can gather from the situation, he didn't seem to enjoy being a killer.." Kirito was on the deep thinking "He challenge me to a duel when it was about to end because he wanted to sabotage the elves forest quest for me"

"I see-" Asuna suddenly remembered when she first encounter Morte "Actually, that Morte player approached me when I was chasing the Forest Elf spy, he told me something that.." Kirito look at her

"He came to you? Why didn't you tell that to me?" Kirito look at her and turned his gaze again to the bonfire "What did he tell you?" Asuna was hesitant

"Not that important, but I can say that he wants to be to die fighting the Forest Elves alone" Now she understood why he wants to watch the battle between Kirito and Morte. Morte triggered Asuna to do the quest alone so she can die.

"But I was thinking this.. Morte is not actually a player" Kirito said

"Eh?! What do you mean?" Asuna ask, she was thinking that maybe Morte was an AI too like Kouki

"If his plan to kill you, meaning he was watching us and know that the two of us was the excellent front-liner player. We might think he's a spy sent by the administration" Kirito

"Spy, you mean? Kayaba Akihiko companion?!"

"Yeah, but that doesn't end up in any case, the normal would be when we are about to complete the game, or that he started his conspiracies halfway to the 100th floor" Kirito still looking at the bonfire without blinking "However, we were on the third floor that time, isn't that a bit too soon?"

"Yeah, you're right, if Kayaba Akihiko will send him as a spy why too early? If he wants us to rich the 100th floor?" Asuna said

"No! I see.." Kirito stood up

"Did you come to a conclusion?" Asuna asks full of curiosity

"Here!" Kirito grabbed his sword and shot it at Asuna, there is a sweet potato smoked nailed on his sword

"Kirito? The reason you've been staring so intently on the bonfire is because you were monitoring the.." Dark aura started coming out to Asuna and every word she said was emphasized "Sweet potato?"

"That's right" Kirito makes an approved sign to her "Come and it while still hot"

"Baka!!!" Asuna equipped her dagger and throw it to Kirito

"Wahhhh!" He started running away still holding the sweet potato

Asuna stopped when she received a message coming from Kouki after Asuna read his message she didn't respond to it, she started to think what his Kouki's motive for helping her "Are you into something Kouki-Kun?" She whispered and the wind blow

"Hey, Asuna.." Asuna throws a death glare at him "O-Okay.. You want sweet potato?" Kirito offer the sweet potato to her and she accepts it

"Kirito-Kun, did you already hear the news about the incident that happen on the first floor safe zone?" Asuna ask him and take a bit on her sweet potato "There is one player who died on the safe zone"

"What?! I didn't hear that.." Kirito said

"Maybe the reason why you didn't hear that is that we are busy doing a quest" Kirito nods "It was an asleep player-killing incident, the killer send a duel on the sleeping player and navigate it and accepted the duel and killed him"

"I see I guess meaning there is no safe place here in SAO anymore" Kirito was on the deep think again "But how did you know that news? I'm sure Argo didn't know about that"

"From my friends.. I will introduce you to them" Asuna smiled, same as Kirito