A Renegade of Reality

Chapter 1: Under The Weather

Hey guys, this will be my very first SAO fanfic. Hope you guys will be able to enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the SAO original characters, they're borrowed from Reki Kawahara.

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March 27th, 2027

Kazuto's POV

"Have you ever truly experienced the feeling of losing your sense of reality?" A disembodied voice echoed eerily through the darkest depths of my mind. Just who was that, I asked myself as I gradually awaken from my deep slumber. My eyes squinted as the bright light entered my sight. After adjusting to the bright white room, I looked around only to realize that I was lying on one of the STLs located in Rath's Roppongi branch. It took a moment for me to recollect my thoughts before remembering that I was logging in to the Underworld along with Alice to make sure everything is going smoothly. Normally, Asuna would have joined us on these visits but she already had an appointment with her family today and couldn't make it.

These trips were also the opportunity for Alice to reunite with her precious little sister, Selka. Even after more than 200 years had passed in the Underworld, Selka still remained. She had decided to keep herself in a deep freeze state until Alice returns. During Alice's visits, Selka would spend quality time with her beloved sister and returned to her stasis state when Alice leaves for the time being.

The people of Underworld were living peacefully and had already started developing new Sacred Arts on their own to make their lives much easier. Although, I didn't have any recollection of my contribution in its advancement during my 200 years being stuck in Underworld along with Asuna, but seeing Underworld safe from destruction was more than enough. However, a part of me actually wished the people I once knew in the Underworld, could have lived until this day to witness this scene. Every time I thought about them, I would feel a sharp pain in my chest, especially when I think about a certain flaxen-haired boy. That boy who sacrificed himself for me, for the people he loved and for this world. Yes, my best friend, Eugeo, whom I've shared 2 years of my life in Underworld with.

Shaking off the depressing mood, I sat up from the STL and was getting ready to leave the building. Alice had decided to extend her stay in Underworld for a few more days with Selka before returning to the Real World, so I left Underworld alone. As my feet touched the cold floor, I felt a small wave of light-headedness which almost made me lose my balance. I assumed that it might have been due to the hectic schedule I had these few days and thought that I should get home and rest up early. As I stepped out of the building, immediately my phone rang with the caller name, "Yuuki Asuna", listed on the screen. Seeing the name of my lover made me smile, as I happily answered her call while walking towards my motorcycle.

"Hey, Asu-"

"Kirito-kun, are you okay?!" A loud frantic voice came from my phone, surprising me as I pulled the phone away from my ear.

"W-what's wrong, Asuna? What do you mean? I-I'm fine. I was just about to head back from Rath." I answered nervously.

"Are you sure you're okay? I was watching the biosensor app when I saw that your heart rate spiked for a moment and I thought something might have happ-" Hearing Asuna's distressed voice, I quickly intercepted her.

"A-Asuna, I'm fine. Really. Don't worry, okay? A-anyway, are you back from your trip to Kyoto already? You're going to the meetup tomorrow, right?" I chuckled nervously and changed the subject.

"Geez, don't scare me like that, Kirito-kun. I just reached home a while ago and, of course, I'm going tomorrow. Wouldn't miss it for the world. Besides, I missed seeing your face." Asuna's tone immediately softens at the last sentence.