02x12 - b*llet of a Phantom

[bunniefuu]

There's nobody around here, huh?

"Yamikaze"

Even if you include Sinon and Death g*n,

who aren't showing up, there's only six left.

Did they just take each other out?

That makes four.

There were thirty contestants. Two survivors.

Twenty-four who were defeated.

Including Sinon and Death g*n,

that's twenty-eight.

Even with Pale Rider,

that's only twenty-nine.

We're short one player?

Has Death g*n k*lled

one more since then?

No, his co-conspirator should be

standing by near Sinon's home right now.

Could I be missing

something else really huge?

Without a second thought, right now

Take aim at this paradox-ridden world

And fire with your own two hands

Thanks to the warmth of your falling tears

I thought that I'd realized what kindness was

So why do we keep hurting each other

And create even more hatred?

If this pain that grates on me

The strength that I've discovered

Will someday gently envelop the future

Without a second thought, right now

Take aim at this paradox-ridden world

And fire with your own two hands

Take this sorrow

Drenched with red tears

And embrace it tenderly

So that these blasts ringing out

Will be transformed into the sounds

of a new beginning

"Phantom b*llet"

How'd it go?

There are probably five of us left.

You, me, Yamikaze,

Death g*n, who's not onscreen,

and maybe one other player...

Who might be hiding

in a cave like us.

Only five of us left?

Well, but it's been an hour

and forty-five minutes already.

Considering that the previous BoB ended

in a little over two hours, it's about the same pace.

I'm surprised that nobody came

to toss a grenade in here.

Yeah. Could be that Death g*n

was lurking around trying to find us,

and mowed them all down

with that r*fle.

If that's the case, then he's a shoo-in

for the Max Kills Award.

Never mind that,

the problem is Yamikaze.

Since you're the only survivor

who showed up on his terminal,

he'll be sure to come after you.

Is he powerful?

He was the runner-up last time!

He's a full-on AGI type, and they call him

the Run-g*n Demon, or something.

R-Run-g*n?

Run-and-g*n!

Someone who runs, sh**t,

and then runs again.

His w*apon is the ultra-light

submachine g*n, Calico MA.

Last time, he lost a close battle against XeXeed's

rare g*n and rare armor and came in second,

but some people say Yamikaze

had the better player skills.

Y-You mean that he might be the most

powerful player on the GGO Japan server?

Hey, listen.

If your deductions are right,

that means that I'm the only one

that Death g*n can k*ll right now, right?

I mean, since his co-conspirator

has to be staking out my apartment.

In other words, Yamikaze's in no danger

of really being k*lled by Death g*n.

So... even though it wouldn't be fair to him,

we could always use him as a decoy, couldn't we?

If Death g*n sh**t at Yamikaze,

we'll know where he is.

Besides, depending on how you look at it,

it's not like I'm doing anything that different from him.

You really are strong, Sinon.

Not really. I'm just trying

not to think about it.

I've always been good at turning

a blind eye to anything scary.

Anyway, what do you think

of that strategy?

Right, I basically agree with you...

But there's just one thing

that bothers me.

Just now, when I counted all the survivors

and the eliminated, there were only twenty-eight.

Even if we count Pale Rider,

we're still short one player.

No way! Do you mean that Death g*n's k*lled

somebody else since he tried for me?

That's just not possible!

Because his co-conspirator's

targeting me, right?

Right. You're absolutely right, but...

But when you think about it,

it's a little odd.

After Death g*n sh*t Pale Rider,

and then went to sh**t you,

only thirty minutes had gone by.

In other words, Pale Rider's home in the real world

is no more than thirty minutes away from yours.

Don't you think that's

a little too convenient?

But there's no other explanation!

Death g*n might not have

only one co-conspirator.

If there are multiple accomplices,

then it's possible that another player could get k*lled

while one of them is standing by to take you out.

Meaning that we can't ignore the possibility that

Yamikaze could be another one of Death g*n's targets.

N-No way...

Are you saying that there are more than

three people involved in this terrible crime?

There are at least ten or more

ex-Laughing Coffin survivors.

No way are they all involved in this,

but there's no reason to be sure

that there's only one accomplice.

But why... Why would he go that far

to stay a player-k*ller?

After he finally got released from

that death game... Why would he?

Probably for the same reason that I'm trying

to stay a swordsman, and you're trying to stay a sn*per.

I just used the word "player-k*ller,"

but I take it back.

There are tons of people who PK in this game,

and I used to belong to a PK squadron myself,

but PKs do have a certain level

of self-respect and resolve.

Just k*lling unconscious people with poison

while they're full-diving...

That's no PK.

It's just a cowardly crime... It's m*rder!

If that's the case,

I can't lose to people like that!

Yeah, I agree.

We can't let them

have their way any longer.

We're going to bring down

Death g*n on this b*ttlefield,

and along with his accomplices in the real world--

make them atone for their crimes!

That's right. That's the first duty

I've got to fulfill.

I've got to start all over

again from there.

For k*lling those two in a frenzy that night,

then k*lling yet another later on...

My own atonement.

Protect Sinon, take out Yamikaze,

then take out Death g*n as well.

It won't be easy,

but I've got to do it or else.

I'll be the one to take on Yamikaze.

I won't let Death g*n k*ll him.

He's powerful.

Not even you can k*ll him instantly.

Death g*n will target you

while you're in battle.

Th-That might be true, but...

You said it yourself, remember?

I'm a sn*per.

If you can be my spotter, and just

help me pinpoint the enemy's position,

I'll finish off both

Yamikaze and Death g*n.

I see.

Then I'll leave the sniping to you.

Both of them should be

pretty close by now.

I'm going to bust out

on this buggy,

so you exit this cave after I'm gone,

and get into sn*per position.

I'm counting on you, partner.

Since Yamikaze's approaching

from the west,

if Death g*n takes a sh*t,

it'll probably be from the east.

If he takes a b*llet to the head or heart,

he'll be k*lled instantly.

Not only that, but that cloak will make

Death g*n invisible when he fires.

But you of all people...

The one who was able to slash even my b*ll*ts...

You'll be sure to dodge it,

won't you, Kirito?

My job is to swiftly

eliminate Yamikaze.

If I miss, Kirito will get sh*t,

and after that, Death g*n will k*ll me.

My real life depends

on this single b*llet.

Just like it did that day...

Hécate II... Please!

Lend this weak girl your strength.

The strength to stand up again here,

and take a step forward...

Southwest... That's Yamikaze.

Sinon will stop Yamikaze for me.

So fast!

What should I do? Either anticipate

his moves and fire accordingly...

Or deliberately miss towards his feet with my first sh*t,

and finish him off when he panics?

No, Yamikaze's sure to come to a stop

when he's got Kirito in his range.

He'll wait till the very last minute.

I'm going to hold myself back, too...

So Kirito, you hang in there, too!

Believe in me!

You've got to focus.

Feel it... His murderous intent.

Just like that other time...

That's right.

The reason I noticed him that day

was because I felt his murderous intent.

That first guy who assaulted me...

I wonder what his name was?

Kirito...

I'm going to k*ll you properly later.

I'm going to k*ll you properly later.

Yamikaze...

Kirito!

There he is!

I'm leaving the rest to you... Kirito.

You did it, Sinon!

I'll take care of the rest!

Kirito!

It'll be all right, Mommy.

No matter how strong the enemy is,

Daddy won't ever lose.

Because Daddy is Daddy!

Yes, that's right.

Turn left, and then

it's eight meters away.

Kirigaya?

Kirito!

You're Ms. Yuki, right?

I heard that you'd be coming.

Ki... Is something wrong

with Kazuto?

Don't worry. It's not as if

he's physically in danger.

But his heart rate suddenly spiked...

Heart rate...

What in the world is going on?

Mommy, please look at

the panel PC on the wall.

I'm going to connect it to the live footage

from the MMO stream.

Is that... Kirito?

You mean that's Kirigaya's

avatar up there?

That's right. He's in combat now.

I think that's why his heart rate sh*t up.

An Estoc?

There was one! A Laughing Coffin leader

who was an estoc master.

His name... His name was...

St... Steven?

Is that "Steven" misspelled?

--No, it's not, Mommy.

--It's not.

That's a German word.

It's also a medical term.

It's pronounced "Sterben."

Ster... ben?

It means death.

At the hospital... we use this word

when a patient has passed away.

Kirito...

That's an unusual w*apon.

Or should I say...

Nobody told me that

metal swords existed in GGO.

That's surprisingly remiss of you,

Black Swordsman.

You can create one with

your g*n/Sword Creation Skill.

Although in terms of length and weight,

this is as good as it gets.

Then unfortunately, I don't think

I could make one to my liking.

So as usual, you're into swords

with high STR requirements?

In that case, you must be dissatisfied

with that toy you're wielding.

It's not really that bad.

I did want to try out

something like this once.

Besides... A sword is a sword.

If I can slash you, and blow your HP gauge away,

that'll be enough for me.

Nice bravado.

But can you do it?

You've inhaled too much

of the corrupted air of the real world.

That sluggish Vorpal Strike just now...

If the old you saw it, he'd be very disappointed.

Maybe. But it's the same for you.

Or do you think you're the only one

who's still a member of Laughing Coffin?

Ah... so you were able

to remember that much?

Then you must already understand.

The difference between you and me.

I'm a genuine Red Player, but you're not.

You only k*lled because you were overwhelmed by fear,

and only because you wanted to survive.

Without even thinking about what that meant,

you tried to forget everything... You're a coward.

That might be true.

But you're not a m*rder*r anymore!

I've already figured out

how you k*lled XeXeed and the others.

It wasn't the power of that black handgun...

Let alone your own abilities.

Then what was it? Tell me.

You used that Metamaterial

Optical Camouflage cloak

to look up the addresses of the BoB contestants

on the terminals in the Governor's Office.

You had a co-conspirator break

into their rooms beforehand,

where they injected some drug

the moment you fired,

and made it look like they'd d*ed

of heart failure. That's what's happening.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has the data to match

every SAO player's character name with his real name.

Once they find out your old name,

your current name, address, and the methods you used

to commit your crimes will all become known.

Put an end to this now.

Log out, and turn yourself in!

I see, you have quite an imagination.

But too bad.

You can't stop me.

Why? Because you'll never be able

to remember my former name.

What did you say?

How can you be so sure?

You can't even remember the reason

why you forgot it in the first place.

Listen up. After that battle ended,

I tried to tell you my name.

But you...

I don't even want to know your name,

and there'd be no point anyway.

Because I'm never going

to see you again.

You don't know my name.

That's why you'll never remember it.

Aside from being defeated by me here,

writhing pathetically,

and only being able to watch

as I m*rder that woman...

You can't do a thing!

This thing is made of the highest quality steel

that you can obtain in this game.

I hear it's the armor plate

from a space battleship.

I wished so hard to become stronger than ever

Overcoming my grief

I've turned my back so many times

On the past that will never change

While hiding the scars

I can never show anyone

I will embrace all this pain

that has started flooding through me

I don't need warmth at all

If it will vanish one day

I wished so hard to become stronger than ever

Like a lonely star racing across the darkness

Sunk so deep inside my heart,

I'm so weak and fragile

I can't put it into words, or even speak out

I'm just waiting for the light

Trying not to be found by anyone

Next time: "Phantom b*llet."