Demon Swordsman: Remastered (Sword Art Online X Male Reader)

Chapter 14 - Murderous Encounter

Isolation is one of the worst kind of torture.

A debate on the best method was not on U/n's mind as he strolled through a dungeon. It was the repercussion of said method in his mind: Isolation. It never bothered him before, being alone and having no one beside him to turn to since he rarely reached out. It was one of his weaker points of communication, as he realized long ago, but wanting something to change and actively changing it are two different things, which led, as his thoughts were, to the depressing topic of isolation, specifically his own isolation.

After breaking things with Kirito and removing him from his Friends List, U/n was alone in the world of swords known as Sword Art Online within a floating castle named Aincrad.

His isolation didn't start with that event but kept going farther back, far back when they first disbanded their party after the Twenty-Fifth-floor massacre. It stemmed from wanting to perfect his Unique Skill, the Mark of Darkness, and now, a little less than a year since the event, he had more control than ever over the Unique Skill. However, his plans had changed since then and now, shifting from wanting to return to the Frontlines to help clear the game to now wanting to purge the scum beneath the surface of the Death Game for their role in the suffering of many.

It had been a little over a month since he officially went "rogue" and became the Demon Swordsman. He did not care for the title. Players could call him whatever they wanted as long as nobody got in the way of his goal. The simple goal is to hunt down and purge the murderers of Aincrad, the Red Players and Green Red Players, who hid their affinity by luring Players. Those Players were far more trickier to hunt down than the ones who wore their status proudly.

The downside to being known was the attention brought, the unwanted attention U/n neither desired nor wanted but now had to deal with because of the simple fact of his hair. It was distinguishable within a crowd, and Players could spot him from a mile away, making following Players who may be being lured away from a hidden Red Player harder to do because everybody turned away at the sight of him, rushing away to a different floor or staying within the Safe Haven of town. The only solution he tried to prevent this was wearing a cloak, which only brought more attention to the suspicious figure roaming around town.

The black cursor did not help either.

After attacking Kirito, U/n did not notice his cursor turned black until long after the event. Of course, he questioned it since no other cursor was black, only green or orange. Never had he seen a player with a black cursor, which led him to wonder if he could enter the town and, much to his surprise, U/n could like he was branded as a Green Player. The guards did not pay him any mind and let him pass, but the same could not be said for the Players who saw his cursor.

More rumours were spread about him.

The Demon Swordsman, on top of the already descriptive details of his appearance, was said to have a cursor as dark as the inner parts of his soul. The rumours never got to U/n since he didn't care about them, but the newly added bit caused a reaction when he first heard it. He didn't deny it, trying to say his soul wasn't as dark as they said, but rather, U/n took a completely different route to the information and reflected on himself and his soul.

His crimes against the Red Players—Murdering them—were inexcusable.

U/n was a murderer.

He had admitted as much to Kirito, but to the extent of the differences between himself and the Red Players were vague. Was he different because he slaughtered for the greater good? Why was he doing this? Was it because he wanted to right the wrongs that never should have happened? Was it to receive praise for his actions? To right the wrongs that had been done against him when he was defenceless, like many of the Green Player victims?