Anime: Passive Inheritance System

Midnight, Aincrad's 35th Floor.

The area around the teleport plaza was lined with white-walled, red-roofed houses. A thick layer of snow covered the rooftops and streets, creating a rustic and pastoral charm.

Kai's footsteps crunched softly on the snow as he walked alone through the deserted streets, one hand resting on his sword.

Since SAO's internal time was completely synchronized with the real world, it was also midnight outside the game. The squad leader and others were probably gathered around the fireplace in their shared room, wine and snacks prepared, waiting for Christmas to arrive.

That must feel really nice. No need to work hard on some mission like he was. Lucky them...

As he absentmindedly imagined what was happening in the real world, Kai quietly left the main street. The streetlights behind him faded away, and he was soon swallowed by darkness. The cold wind that blew through the air seemed even sharper here.

The "Lost Forest."

Located in the northern region of the 35th Floor, it was a vast area filled with towering, dense trees. The entire forest was divided into a chessboard-like grid of hundreds of zones. The system was programmed so that after entering a single zone, the four adjacent ones would shuffle positions randomly within a minute. Without a specific map item, it was almost impossible to navigate.

Kai took out a map he had bought from an info broker at a steep price. After memorizing the paths, he dove straight into the pitch-black forest.

Although his real-world agility couldn't carry over into SAO, his in-game level was already 68, and he had focused his stat distribution on speed and stamina. His agility stat had long surpassed the human limit. Sprinting at full speed, he dashed like a feather over the snow-covered ground, the scenery flying past him in a blur.

"Shhhhhh…"

As he crossed between two forest zones, several enormous figures emerged from the bushes with a pale blue system glow, blocking his path.

These monsters had beetle-like mandibles, muscular upper bodies, and reverse-jointed legs.

Above their heads, next to their health bars, was their level: Lv.44.

For most players who had just reached Floor 35, even a single Lv.44 monster would be terrifying. A group like this would be suicide. But to a Lv.68 player like Kai, they were nothing.

In other words… just trash mobs.

"Zzz—"

With a metallic scraping sound, a bluish sword light slashed through the air. Kai didn't even turn to check the result. He broke through the gap between the monsters, and after he had rushed more than ten meters ahead, the sound of monster deaths echoed behind him. At the same time, a system popup appeared with experience points gained.

Then came a horn-like sound.

Kai glanced at the top-left of his HUD. His level had just gone from 68 to 69.

He showed no reaction to the level-up. Without slowing down, his black silhouette continued zipping through the forest like a shadow.

To most SAO players, level meant everything. But to Kai, even reaching level 100 in-game wouldn't change a thing in real life. So he never cared much about player levels. The only reason he grinded was to improve his sword skills and collect attribute points, which would help him protect his mission targets.

At level 69, there were hardly any players in the game—even among the raid group—who could match him.

No, actually, there was only one person in the entire game who could compare to him…

As his black coat fluttered in the wind, snow swirling at his feet, Kai dashed into another zone. Suddenly, the sound of clashing metal and scattered shouts rang out ahead.

He slowed down and raised his sword cautiously. Emerging from the trees, he found himself at the edge of a wide, snowy plain where dozens of players were fighting.

As Kai stepped into view, the chaotic battle halted as everyone noticed him.

"...Huh? You're not gonna keep fighting?"

Scratching his head with a confused look, Kai stepped casually toward a teleport point behind the group and smiled innocently. "Don't mind me, I'm just passing through. Carry on."

Dozens of players looked at each other in confusion. After a brief pause, a man wearing a samurai-style light armor and a headscarf smirked at the middle-aged man he had just been fighting.

"Looks like you guys got followed too, Klein."

"...Seems that way. But if it's just a solo player, he must be pretty confident in his level…"

"Should we call a truce?"

The two stared at each other for a second before the older man nodded. "Let's put the fight on hold for now."

With that agreement, the tense air around the crowd relaxed a bit. But then, they all raised their weapons again—this time pointing them straight at the black-clad swordsman who was trying to casually walk past them.

"Hey now, I really am just passing through…"

Kai sighed as dozens of weapons aimed at him. He half-heartedly protested, but his hand was already on his sword. The blue blade shimmered coldly in the moonlight.

Kai recognized both of the player factions in front of him. One was the newly rising samurai guild, Fuurinkazan. The other was the long-established major guild, Divine Dragons Alliance.

He also knew exactly why they were fighting here in the dead of night.

It was all for a rare item that would drop from a special Christmas-event boss—"Nicholas the Renegade"—who would spawn soon under that fir tree by the teleport point. The rumor was that defeating Nicholas the Renegade would drop the one and only resurrection item in the game.

Resurrection...

For SAO players who could die at any time, no other item could be more desirable. Even the strongest gear, best stats, or rarest classes meant nothing compared to resurrection.

A second chance at life. A miracle.

That was the bait powerful enough to draw two top-tier guilds into a deadly conflict.

Kai had come not because he wanted that item, but because he knew someone else would be here tonight.

His goal was to meet that person.

And to achieve that, if these two guilds wouldn't get out of his way peacefully…

Then they'd have to go down.

"...This is why I hate people who won't listen."

Gripping his sword tighter, Kai leaned forward into a battle stance. The next moment, his entire body blurred into a shadow, vanishing from sight. In midair, a blue sword flash cut through the night.

"What…?!"

The closesfirst squad, Level 62. But when Kai launched his attack, all the man saw was a flicker of a black coat whipping through the air. Then, his entire field of vision was flooded with ghostly blue sword light.

"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz…!"

Blades slashed the air repeatedly, each strike piercing through a player's chest and swiftly withdrawing. Their health bars dropped visibly fast, all the way down into the red zone. And every single one of them was afflicted with a powerful paralysis effect.

[Rose Wolf's Kiss]—a high-quality paralysis-type toxin. According to the shady vendor who sold it to Kai, even a top-level player at Level 60 would be paralyzed for twenty to thirty minutes if struck with it.

Kai weaved through the panicked players like a ghost. Every time he passed one, he gently stabbed their chest, pulling the blade out just before the health bar emptied, leaving behind a long-lasting paralysis. By the time he sheathed his sword and stood upright, the members of both guilds were lying motionless on the ground, glaring at him with eyes full of murderous fury, like they'd suffered an unforgivable humiliation.

Two full guilds—both part of the clearing group—defeated in just a few minutes by a lone, unknown solo player. Calling it a disgrace was an understatement.

"I told you, didn't I? I was just passing through. You insisted on fighting me. And now you're mad because you lost and want to glare at me?"

Kai sighed with exaggerated frustration and turned to leave toward the teleport point. But a voice called out from behind him.

"W-wait…"

Klein, the bandana-wearing leader of the Fuurinkazan guild, forced himself to speak through the numbness weighing down his body. He raised his head with difficulty, eyes locked on the black-coated swordsman's back.

"If you came here for the resurrection item… then I'd advise you to give up. Someone's already inside… and he's really strong. You can't win against him."

"Resurrection item?"

Kai turned back slightly, eyebrows raised as he looked at Klein, who lay prone in the snow. "When did I say I came here for a resurrection item?"

"Then… why are you…?"

"I just want to see the guy you mentioned."

Kai turned back and walked toward the teleport point, his palm trembling slightly from excitement as it rested on his sword hilt.

"To see just how strong he really is."