The Blacksmith and the Warrior

Remembering the Crimson Warrior

August 1st, 2025, ALO, Lisbeth

"So Asuna, you've known both Jaymes and my brother the longest out of us… Who was the better swordsman in SAO?"

Leafa's question takes the other six girls by surprise. Philia, Asuna, Yui, Lisbeth, Leafa, Strea, and Silica enjoy a girl's-only picnic on the first floor of New Aincrad. Kirito and Agil, as far as they know, haven't logged on; Klein is spending time with his guild; Jaymes is elsewhere in the world, though he hasn't said where he was going or what he's doing. It was he who suggested the girls do something together, rarely are they all together without either he or Kirito around. And until now, Lisbeth has not thought about her boyfriend or her best friend's boyfriend until Leafa posed the question of questions.

Asuna, with all eyes on her, blushes as she ponders the question. "I… Well, that's a complicated question, to be honest."

"How so?"

"For one, they fight differently. Whenever I thought of who would win in a fight, I was sure Kirito would, but that takes no account of Jaymes' defensive ability. Then whenever I lean Jaymes' way, Kirito obtains a second sword. Take into account their best skills, Starburst Stream versus Dragon's Fury, Trojan Walls and Horse… I think, if SAO continued, Jaymes would win with that counter ability."

Silica places her head on her kneecaps. "Trojan Horse invalidates all defense, right? Is that how he struck Heathcliff, right?"

"But at the cost of being attacked himself," Philia adds. "In other words, he has to take damage to activate the skill. Even then, all we heard was that it dropped Heathcliff's health from green to yellow. No indication of how close it was to the red zone."

"But the skill requires him to be alive to use it, so technically if he counters, Kirito is toast!" Strea claps excitedly at her conclusion, then suddenly changes into a thoughtful gaze. "But he used it as a knife skill, and there's no way he would use a knife in a fight against Kirito. So… Maybe Kirito does win."

"Yeah, and knowing them both, it'll be Kirito's two blades versus Joshua's sword and shield." Asuna sighs as she bites her sandwich. "Well, to be honest, they did fight each other once."

"WHAT?"

"But I wouldn't count it! It was very early in the game, after we beat the 10th Floor. Kirito wanted to see just how much stronger Jaymes had gotten since the beta, when it was clear who was superior, and Jaymes wanted to see if Kirito was still better."

Lisbeth folds her arms. That sounds so much like Kirito and Jaymes, always challenging each other. But the only time she has seen them combat each other was when Jaymes prepared him for the Heathcliff duel. But an actual fight between the boys… "And? What happened?"

"Kirito won, eventually. It was a first strike duel, and it lasted for minutes. It was also the only time Jaymes fought without his shield, just to level the field. So, I guess if we put them sword against sword, Kirito wins, but let them fight as they were when SAO ended, it is hard to decide."

"What about ALO?" Leafa asks. "So many other factors included, right?"

"That is so," Yui says. "Sword skills are part of the game, but neither player has the ultimate sword arts as before. Then there's the ability to fly, magic… But what is more important is Daddy's speed versus Uncle's defense. Those are the only two stats that vary significantly between them." Uncle? Lisbeth wonders when that started happening. She knows Jaymes loves Yui (though he prefers the younger "sister", Strea, since she's his own) but she hopes Yui doesn't expand her vocabulary into calling Lisbeth "Auntie".