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

Chapter 15 - Desperate Gamble

Following rumours are for the prepared.

Particularly nasty rumours are best avoided and never sought out to find out whether they are true or not. There were several rumours spread across Aincrad since the start of the game over a year ago, but most were of varying topics, such as rumoured spots for farming, a particularly good Quest with amazing rewards, or the location of Laughing Coffin's base and other Red Players. Most are tales, far-fetched and ignored by the majority that hear them, but one specific one was the attention of some controversy.

The infamous Demon Swordsman was spotted within the town on the thirty-seventh floor.

Nobody in their right mind hadn't heard of the Demon Swordsman and his rumoured actions since the day he appeared. His first appearance happened a year ago when he fought and defeated the Twenty-Fifth Boss during a raid that went wrong, becoming the topic of conversation because of the stories told by the survivors, who were quite talkative, mostly exaggerated, though. He was praised and talked about as some possible Player who could single-handedly free every trapped Player within Sword Art Online, but that praise turned into fear when another rumour was spread.

Happening in the year 2024, the Demon Swordsman reappeared at the center of attention when stories spread of his deeds across Aincrad, the killing of Red and Green Players alike. There were no grounds to the stories and only hearsay for a little while before Players began to see sights and hear screams echoing from within Dungeons, along with the appearance of strange deaths on the first floor's Black Iron Palace. With the details coming together, it was only a matter of time before they were connected to the Demon Swordsman, spreading his alleged appearance and dark powers.

Players avoided floors the Demon was sighted on like the plague, doing whatever they could not to become the next victim. The Demon came and went as he pleased—the only detail confirmed was his gender—and did whatever he pleased with nobody brave enough to stop him. Some tried to praise him near the beginning when he was killing Red Players, saying they needed to be stopped, but when Green Players were involved in the stories, those Players went quiet real quick. The only agreed-upon thing was that the name Demon Swordsman struck uneasiness in Players.

The discussion of stopping him popped up here and there, but nothing was done because nobody wanted to try and stop the Demon Swordsman. He was a former Clearer, which made him one of the high-level Players within Aincrad. The only ones who would have the strength to stop him would be the Clearers, most likely the Knights of the Blood or the Holy Divine Alliance. Yet they were focused on clearing the game, and nothing came from them about the situation with the Demon Swordsman, ignoring it as such, but that was what the rest of the population presumed since not many would hang around on the top floor long enough to hear their opinions, especially since they were mostly out on the field and those who went to the top floors did not do that and remained within the safety of town.

The disconnection between the Clearers and the rest of the population was apparent.

However, as she arrived on the floor, there was a serious look in her eyes as the light around her faded. It faltered momentarily because the previous floor and the thirty-seventh floor washed over her, causing her to shiver and grab her arms. It felt cold, yet it wasn't a snowy climate floor. It was spring, like what it was on the other side, but the way it looked and felt was different.

Looking from her right to left, she noticed a great lack of Players wandering about, but those on the floor looked uneasy and kept glancing in a specific direction. A couple passed by her when she stepped off the Teleport Platform, muttering the floor of a different floor and vanished in a brilliance of light. Her gaze lingered on the center of the platform, unable to catch most of their words, but what was caught was eerie.