“You just killed my squad.”
Kirito turned to her slowly, saber dripping with phantom light. “Because the real fight hasn’t started yet. And I need you alive.”
The GGO arena was a ghost of its former self—a shattered coliseum of rust and dust under a dying red sun. For most, it was a death trap. For Sinon, it was home.
“You’re lying,” she whispered.
“They were already dead.” He stepped closer, unafraid of her rifle. “That sniper in the clock tower? He’s not a player. He’s a Death Gun proxy. If he’d fired, you’d be dead in real life. Not logged out. Dead. ”
Breathe.
Kirito’s hood fell back. His face was young, tired, and terrifyingly sincere. “Together?” Sword Art Online II Episode 7
He wore a long black coat over dark armor. A curved saber hung at his hip, but his hands were empty. His face was hidden behind a hood, but she recognized the stance. The economy of movement. The way the world seemed to hold its breath around him.
“You’re not on my team,” Sinon said, her Hecate’s barrel now fixed on his chest.
She didn’t take the shot. Something was wrong. The enemy sniper wasn’t aiming at her teammates. He was aiming at her blind spot. “You just killed my squad
The word hung in the dry air. Sinon’s scope wavered. For a fraction of a second, she saw not Kirito’s hooded assassin, but a boy in a hospital bed. A boy with empty eyes and a sword made of regret.
A chill ran down her spine. Not from the game.
“No.” His voice was quiet. Barely a whisper. “I’m not.” For most, it was a death trap
“If you’re right,” she said, chambering a round, “then that tower is ours.”
The machine-gunner opened fire. A wild, panicked spray. Kirito didn’t dodge. He flowed —a blur of black and silver. The saber wasn’t drawn; it was simply there , deflecting rounds in a singing arc of sparks. In two heartbeats, he was behind the gunner. One silent slash. The man burst into polygons.