E18 - Forest House

Source: Crunchyroll
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(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
[00:00] E
    I'm back.
SIGN    January 6, 2026
    — New Aincrad, Floor 22 —
[00:08] Su
    "His fast-acting mind is..."
[00:17] A
    Hey, if you nap, you won't
    be able to sleep tonight.
[00:23] A
    There are only three days of winter break left.
[00:25] A
    You need to finish your homework.
[00:27] A
    Before she went home,
    Shinonon said she finished all hers.
[00:31] Si
    I'm tired.
[00:34] A
    Maybe the room's too warm.
[00:37] A
    Should I lower the temperature?
[00:40] Su
    No.
[00:41] Su
    I think it's because of that.
[00:44] A
    That?
[00:47] A
    Oh, I see.
[00:56] A
    Ever since he came back from GGO,
    it seems he's been working really hard.
[00:59] L
    You know?
[01:00] L
    That thing we saw in Agil's shop that
    he's been working on for Yui-chan?
[01:03] S
    Something-onics!
[01:04] Both
    Mechatronics.
[01:08] S
    But she really looks comfortable.
[01:11] S
    It makes me sleepy, too.
SIGN    Forest House
SIGN    December 20, 2025
[03:04] Gu
    Here you go.
[03:07] Gu
    You know, you don't have to come
[03:09] ---
    to a dingy place like this
     for a date every time.
[03:12] Gu
    You could go somewhere
    more fashionable, right?
[03:15] K
    Compared to your place in Algade,
    this place is fashionable.
[03:20] A
    I liked that place.
[03:23] K
    Why? It was a rip-off.
[03:26] A
    You were living there for free, Kirito-kun!
[03:29] K
    But it doesn't change anything.
[03:33] K
    What are you grinning at?
[03:35] Gu
    Nothing... I was just thinking
[03:38] Gu
    when you're this way, you really don't look
    like the lead group's two best players.
[03:41] K
    I could say the same to you.
[03:44] A
    Have you been an MMORPG player
    for a long time, Agil-san?
[03:49] Gu
    Yeah.
[03:50] Gu
    I met my wife in a game.
[03:53] Gu
    She lived in America then,
[03:56] Gu
    but a year later, she and I started a café.
[04:00] Gu
    You never know what will happen in life.
[04:04] K
    If he heard that, who knows
    what Klein would say?
[04:08] K
    And so, we were going to buy two NerveGears.
[04:13] K
    But we could only reserve one.
[04:16] K
    The two of us played a game to see who'd go first.
[04:20] K
    I'm still glad I won, and she didn't.
[04:24] K
    Yeah.
[04:26] E
    I joined the lead group because I had this place.
[04:30] E
    I can't let my wife run it forever.
[04:35] K
    Yeah, my desire to return
    to my family saved me.
[04:41] E
    I'm sure all the lead group felt that way...
[04:43] E
    No, maybe all the players in Aincrad.
[04:49] E
    You had some kind of motivation
    like that, right, Asuna?
[04:53] A
    I...
[04:54] A
    I didn't really like my family.
[04:57] A
    So, in Aincrad, there were times when
    I nearly forgot why I was fighting.
[05:04] A
    I felt like there wasn't a place for me
[05:06] ---
    in the real world or the virtual one.
[05:10] A
    But Kirito-kun gave me a home.
[05:15] A
    A place that felt more like home
    than the house I lived in.
[05:21] A
    I knew that if we cleared SAO,
    our home on floor 22 would disappear.
[05:27] A
    So believing the day would come
    when Kirito-kun, Yui-chan, and I
[05:32] ---
    could live there again gave me power.
[05:37] A
    That's what I think.
[05:45] E
    About that...
[05:47] E
    The contents of the next update were just revealed.
[05:51] E
    There are new weapons and Sword Skills.
SIGN    Announcing the details of New Aincrad's third update!
[05:55] E
    And floors 21 to 30 of New Aincrad
    have been unlocked
[06:02] K
    Does that mean...
[06:04] A
    If we can beat floor 22's boss,
[06:07] ---
    can we buy that log cabin again?
[06:09] K
    Yeah.
[06:11] K
    But New Aincrad's details have been altered a lot,
[06:15] K
    so we don't know for sure if the
    same player homes exist.
[06:19] A
    Yeah.
[06:20] A
    But I have faith.
[06:23] A
    That house is waiting for us.
[06:29] E
    But the update's Christmas Eve...
SIGN    December 24, 2025
    — ALfheim, Gnome Airspace —
[06:54] A
    Seir Shal Vind Ashuna.
[06:57] A
    Bat Eilie Ougsu Sverg!
[07:43] A
    Take care of the rest!
[08:07] S
    Asuna!
[08:09] S
    Just a little more!
[08:10] S
    You can do it!
[08:11] K
    Asuna, let's go!
[08:13] Y
    Daddy!
[08:14] Y
    Its punch attack is incoming!
[08:18] K
    Switch!
[08:40] Si
    I'm first!
[08:47] Kl
    Okay! We made it to floor 22!
[09:01] L
    Asuna!
[09:02] L
    We'll activate the teleportation gate,
[09:05] L
    so get going.
[09:11] A
    Thanks, everyone!
[09:42] A
    Kirito-kun!
[10:13] A
    Kirito-kun... Yui-chan.
[11:09] A
    I'm home.
[11:18] Su
    Hey, Asuna-san!
[11:19] Su
    You fell asleep yourself!
[11:22] Su
    You, too, Liz?
[11:27] L
    I wonder why looking at that
    makes me so sleepy.
[11:33] A
    Shall I make some tea to wake us up?
[11:38] Y
    The snow stopped!
[11:43] L
    Come to think of it,
[11:45] ---
    have you heard about Zekken?
[11:49] A
    Zekken?
[11:52] A
    Zekken?
[11:54] A
    A new rare item or something?
[11:57] L
    No, no...
[11:58] L
    It's someone's name.
[12:00] L
    More like a nickname, I guess...
[12:03] L
    They're so strong, someone started calling them
[12:06] ---
    "Zekken," the absolute blade.
[12:09] L
    An invincible blade.
[12:11] L
    A blade that's better than any other.
[12:13] L
    That's what I think it means, anyway.
[12:14] A
    Strong...
[12:19] A
    So? What are they like?
[12:22] L
    Around New Year's, I started
    hearing the rumors...
[12:27] L
    A week ago, maybe?
[12:29] L
    I see.
[12:30] L
    So that's why you don't know.
[12:32] L
    You've been back home in Kyoto since then.
[12:37] A
    Don't make me remember that when I'm here.
[12:41] L
    It's tough being a rich girl.
[12:44] A
    It really was.
[12:46] A
    I had to wear a kimono and kneel
    the whole day, greeting people.
[12:50] A
    At night, I wanted to dive
    when no one was around,
[12:53] A
    but the separate house I was staying
    in didn't even have wireless LAN.
[12:57] A
    I brought my Amusphere, and it was a waste.
[13:01] A
    And...
[13:35] L
    Asuna?
[13:37] L
    Hey, Asuna?
[13:38] L
    Are you listening?
[13:40] A
    S-Sorry, I was remembering something
    that wasn't too great.
[13:43] L
    What?
[13:45] L
    Did they make you do an arranged
    marriage meeting in Kyoto?
[13:47] A
    No, no, it's nothing like that!
[13:50] L
    That was a joke.
[13:53] A
    Then if they're strong, does that
    make them a player-killer?
[13:56] L
    No, they just duel.
[13:59] A
    Were they in a tournament?
[14:00] L
    No, they're completely new.
[14:04] L
    But their skill points are high,
[14:07] L
    so they might be a convert from another game.
[14:11] L
    You know that little island
[14:14] ---
    north of floor 24's main town, with the big tree?
[14:17] E
    Every day, at 3:00, they stand
    there, and fight anyone
[14:22] ---
    who challenges them, one at a time.
[14:28] E
    At first, there was a post on
    MMO Tomorrow's message board,
SIGN    Seeking the strongest challengers.
[14:31] ---
    that they were seeking challengers.
[14:34] E
    People wanted to teach this bratty
    newcomer to ALO a lesson,
[14:39] E
    so the first day, about thirty
    or so showed up, but...
[14:43] A
    They beat them all?
[14:45] L
    Every single one.
[14:47] L
    Their HP didn't fall below seventy
     percent in any of the duels.
[14:52] L
    Must be pretty strong...
[14:54] Si
    It's kind of unbelievable.
[14:57] Si
    The way they flew, despite being a newcomer.
[15:01] Si
    It took me six months before I was
    able to really fight in the air.
[15:07] Si
    P-Pina!
[15:11] A
    Did you fight them, Silica-chan?
[15:13] Si
    No way.
[15:15] Si
    Just by watching, I could tell I had no way to win.
[15:19] Si
    Well, Liz-san and Leafa-san challenged
    them yesterday, though.
[15:24] Si
    They're really brave.
[15:26] L
    Shut up.
[15:27] Su
    Everything is a learning experience.
[15:32] A
    Snow?
[15:34] Si
    It's snowing again.
[15:38] A
    About that Zekken...
[15:41] A
    If they kept showing off their strength,
[15:44] A
    doesn't that mean no one will
    want to fight them anymore?
[15:47] Si
    Not so much.
[15:49] Si
    What they're betting is amazing.
[15:52] A
    Is it some really rare item?
[15:55] Si
    It isn't an item.
[15:57] Si
    They're betting an Original Sword Skill.
[16:00] Si
    And a super strong special-move class!
[16:04] A
    An Original Sword Skill?
[16:08] A
    For what weapon? How many hits?
[16:10] Si
    Um...
[16:12] Si
    It looked like a general skill
    for a one-handed sword.
[16:15] Si
    And it's an eleven-hit combo!
[16:18] A
    Eleven?
[16:20] L
    Right now, how many hits does the
    strongest Original Sword Skill do?
[16:25] Su
    It's General Eugene's "Volcanic Blazer."
[16:29] Su
    It's eight hits, I think.
[16:31] Su
    But it seems the general isn't
    teaching it to anyone else.
[16:35] A
    That explains why so many
    people want to fight.
[16:39] A
    Did you actually see them use it?
[16:42] L
    No.
[16:44] L
    I guess they demonstrated it the first day...
[16:51] L
    But since then, they haven't used it in a fight.
[16:55] L
    No one's gotten them down enough
    to where they've needed to use it.
[17:03] A
    Does that mean even you weren't
    able to do it, Leafa-chan?
[17:07] Su
    I was doing well until both our HP
    bars went under sixty percent.
[17:12] Su
    But...
[17:15] Su
    In the end, I was overpowered
    with only the default skills.
[17:22] A
    I forgot to ask the most important thing.
[17:24] A
    What's the race and weapon?
[17:27] Su
    An imp.
[17:28] Su
    The weapon is a one-handed straight sword.
[17:30] Su
    But it's about as slim as your rapier.
[17:34] Su
    They're really fast.
[17:37] Su
    My eyes couldn't even follow the movements.
[17:39] Su
    I've never seen anything like it.
[17:41] Su
    It was a real shock.
[17:43] A
    A speed type, huh?
[17:45] A
    If you can't see them move, I don't
    know if I have a chance.
[17:50] A
    Speaking of movement speed,
[17:52] ---
    someone with incredible speed is right over there.
[17:55] A
    What about Kirito-kun?
[17:57] A
    He'd be interested in that...
[18:01] A
    Wh-What's wrong?
[18:04] Su
    My brother already fought.
[18:07] Su
    And when he lost, he looked very cool.
[18:12] A
    Was he serious?
[18:16] L
    It sounds silly to say it,
[18:18] L
    but in a fight like that,
[18:20] ---
    I don't think I'm capable of saying
    whether he was serious or not.
[18:25] L
    Well, he wasn't using two swords.
[18:28] L
    In that sense, he wasn't going at it for real, but...
[18:32] L
    And you know,
[18:34] ---
    I don't think Kirito's ever going to fight for real
[18:39] ---
    in a normal game again.
[18:44] L
    The only time he'll be serious is if
    the game isn't a game anymore.
[18:49] L
    When the virtual world becomes the real world.
[18:53] L
    So it's better that he doesn't have
    to fight for real anymore.
[18:59] L
    He already gets involved in plenty
    of trouble on his own.
[19:04] A
    Yeah, you're right.
[19:08] Su
    But as near as I could tell,
[19:12] ---
    he wasn't messing around.
[19:15] Su
    I don't think he was slacking off.
[19:19] Su
    But something bothered me a little...
[19:23] Su
    Just before the fight ended, the two locked swords,
[19:27] Su
    and they didn't move.
[19:30] Su
    And it seemed like my brother was
    saying something to Zekken-san.
[19:37] Su
    After that, the two of them broke apart,
[19:40] Su
    and Brother couldn't completely
    dodge Zekken-san's charge.
[19:47] A
    What were they talking about?
[19:49] Su
    Well, he won't tell me.
[19:52] Su
    It felt like there must be something.
[19:56] A
    I see...
[19:58] A
    Then I'll have to ask Zekken-san myself.
[20:03] L
    Then you'll fight them?
[20:06] A
    I don't think I can win.
[20:08] A
    But they kind of interest me.
[20:12] A
    It feels like they came to ALO for some
    reason other than fighting duels.
[20:17] L
    Yeah, I felt the same way.
[20:19] L
    But if you want to know what it is,
[20:22] ---
    you'll have to fight as well as Kirito did.
[20:26] A
    I know.
[20:28] A
    Will you all watch me?
[20:30] Si
    Of course.
[20:31] Si
    I couldn't miss a fight like that!
[20:34] L
    Which character will you use?
[20:36] L
    You have that sylph account, right?
[20:40] A
    I'll go with this one. I'm used to it.
[20:44] A
    If they're a speed type, I'd rather
     be able to keep up than focus on DPS.
[20:48] A
    Then that's it.
[20:50] ---
    Um, the small island on floor 24, at 3:00, right?
[20:53] ---
    Yeah.
[20:54] ---
    So we can meet here at 2:30, right?
[20:57] ---
    Oh, no! It's already 6:00?
[20:59] ---
    I'll be late for dinner!
[21:01] Su
    Then let's call it a day.
[21:03] L
    It's tough being a rich girl.
[21:09] Si
    He still isn't awake?
[21:11] Su
    He isn't awake after all we've done to him?
     Brother's amazing.
[21:12] A
    Hey, Liz...
[21:13] L
    What?
[21:15] A
    You said Zekken was a converted player, right?
[21:20] A
    But if they're that strong, do you think
    they might be a former SAO player?
[21:31] L
    Yeah, that was the first thing I thought.
[21:35] L
    So when Kirito fought Zekken,
     I asked him what he thought, but...
[21:37] Su
    Come on, Brother! Get up! We're leaving!
[21:42] A
    What did he say?
[21:45] L
    "There's no way Zekken was an SAO player.
[21:49] L
    Because...
[21:51] ---
    Because if they were in that world,
[21:55] L
    the two-sword skill would've
    gone to them, not me."
SIGN    Next Time Zekken