The very first beginner quest turned out to be nothing more than letting players wander around the town or its surroundings for thirty minutes.
Satoru walked slowly through the bustling streets, glancing at the floating text hanging in the upper-right corner of his vision, where a countdown ticked steadily downward.
Still, this was an experience completely unlike anything before. Aside from players with closed beta experience, most people were probably still at a loss about what to do next—even basic controls weren't second nature yet.
This time was clearly meant for players to get used to things. In any case, once the timer ran out, the quest would complete automatically and reward them regardless.
The town everyone was currently in was called the Town of Beginnings. Rather than the ten thousand players bringing vitality to it, it was more accurate to say the town itself already possessed a unique charm.
The figures behind the shop counters—NPCs acting as intermediaries between players and the system—didn't feel stiff or lifeless. They had distinct expressions, gestures, even voice lines.
Of course, no matter how much you talked to them, you could still sense that underlying "mechanical" nature. But whether it was the weapon shop owner swinging his hammer with bold vigor, or the timid young girl at the tailor shop speaking softly with players, they vividly conveyed the flavor of this other world.
This is incredible.
Satoru had already lost count of how many times he'd thought that.
"This weapon looks amazing, old man. Since we're clearly meant to be, why not just give it to me?"
With a joking tone, a handsome man wearing a red headscarf bent over the counter at a beginner weapon shop, pressing his face close to the glass as he stared at the gleaming weapons inside.
"If you're not buying, move along."
The bare-chested NPC shopkeeper replied bluntly.
It wasn't some dynamic AI response—if a player lingered too long in the purchase screen without doing anything, the shopkeeper would always prompt them like this.
If it were a young female NPC, she might say something like, "Um… is there something you're not satisfied with?"
In any case, this guy was clearly just messing with the NPC.
"Hahaha, fair enough." The red-headscarf player straightened up and laughed foolishly. "I don't even have any money. Man, I thought maybe I could trigger a hidden quest. You know, like this blacksmith used to forge some insanely powerful weapon in his youth, but couldn't find someone worthy to wield it…"
"That's not happening in a starting town…" Satoru muttered, a bit exasperated.
The red-headscarf man glanced at him.
"Who says? Even this blacksmith's name screams 'I have a backstory,' don't you think?"
What kind of logic is that?
Satoru leaned in to look. Above the blacksmith's head floated a string of text.
"Linus?"
…Okay, that does sound like someone with a story. Feels like I've seen that name in some game before.
"See?"
The red-headscarf man gave a thumbs-up, flashing an easygoing grin.
"Bro, you should try asking him too. Maybe you'll trigger something."
"I'm just here to check what he's selling." Satoru couldn't quite keep up with his enthusiasm and simply opened the interface. Pages of weapons unfolded before him; he skimmed them briefly before moving on.
"What are you looking at that for?"
The red-headscarf player, wearing simple leather armor and clearly the same level as him, leaned in curiously.
"I've been online for over ten minutes now, but I haven't found any class system. I thought maybe there'd be some kind of class advancement later, but… it looks like your role is determined by the weapon you use. And there are a lot of weapon types. If you factor in dual wielding, the number of possible builds is kind of overwhelming."
Satoru frowned.
"The degree of freedom is really high. The developers are pretty bold, aren't they?"
The red-headscarf player stared at him, impressed.
"You… sound really professional."
"In a game like this, even being one step ahead can give you an advantage."
"If that's the case, then aren't closed beta players already a whole month ahead of us?"
"You weren't in the closed beta?"
"Of course not! Why would you think that?"
The red-headscarf man shook his head.
"I was just fooled by how calm you seem… You're way too relaxed."
"What are you talking about? Games are meant to be played at a leisurely pace. Real life is already exhausting enough." The red-headscarf man sighed deeply, as if recalling something unpleasant.
…True enough.
Satoru let out a self-mocking chuckle.
"Hmm, being part of the front-line is pretty exciting. Alright! Let's go find a closed beta pro to carry us!"
After a brief moment of hesitation, the red-headscarf man thumped his chest, looking refreshed.
"You can't read minds—how would you even tell who's a beta player? And going up to someone out of nowhere is way too reckless." Satoru waved his hands quickly. Before he knew it, he'd been dragged into this guy's pace. He had a bad feeling this would lead to trouble. Better find an excuse and get out.
For someone who escaped reality by hiding in his room playing games, this level of face-to-face interaction was a bit much.
"Oh~ look over there! That guy's got a light step. No hesitation in his eyes, and he's clearly moving with a plan. Definitely a solid carry. Let's go, partner!"
"Your execution speed is way too high—hey, wait, don't pull me!"
Satoru stumbled as the red-headscarf man grabbed his arm and dragged him forward.
Even now, Satoru was still trying to piece together what everyday interaction in SAO was supposed to feel like.
"Hey! You over there!"
Dragged into a narrow alley, Satoru watched as the energetic shout finally made the young man ahead stop and turn around, confused.
That was a genuinely handsome face—if only it weren't the default model.
"Me?"
The young man looked around and pointed at himself.
"Yeah, yeah." The red-headscarf man hurried over, even panting theatrically. Satoru had no choice but to follow.
"You're a closed beta player, right?"
"Uh… yeah, I guess." The man looked them over. "What's up?"
"To be honest, it's our first time playing. Bro, teach us the ropes."
He said it as casually as if he were inviting someone to grab a meal, even reaching out to pat the guy's shoulder—but the other man quickly stepped back to avoid it.
"Please!"
"…Uh…" The man sidestepped him and looked at Satoru, who simply sighed. He scratched his head.
"I guess that's fine."
"Thanks! Name's Klein—nice to meet you. And this is… uh, what's your name again?"
The red-headscarf—Klein—dragged over the expressionless Satoru mid-sentence, only to get stuck.
"You two don't even know each other…?" The beta player looked speechless.
"We do now. Just call me Yurnero."
"I'm Kirito."
"Kirito, huh? Nice name. Yurnero's a bit of a mouthful, so I'll just call you Yuyu." Klein stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Though it suddenly sounds kind of childish."
"You're really something…" Kirito gave a wry smile.
"It's fine. It's just a game nickname." Satoru didn't mind.
...
"Whoa—huh?! Whoa, whoa!"
Klein's exaggerated cries sounded like a comedian putting on a full performance. His beginner sword flashed in the sunlight as he swung at high speed—but all he hit was air. The wild boar in front of him was far more agile than its bulky body suggested.
With a fierce charge, it slammed into Klein and sent him flying. He hit the ground and rolled twice—an almost applause-worthy display.
What a dramatic fight.
"Pfft."
Kirito couldn't help but laugh.
"Damn it… this thing…" Klein scrambled up and complained, "It's way too nimble. I can't hit it at all."
"It's not a training dummy. Of course it moves." Satoru walked over and pulled him up.
"The difficulty's way too high," Klein grumbled.
"Well, this isn't a keyboard-and-mouse fight. You can deal damage with normal attacks, sure, but for beginners, skills are more reliable. What matters most is the starting motion."
Kirito glanced around, picked up a stone, and raised his shoulder into position.
With a faint sound, the plain stone emitted a slight green glow.
A bright green streak cut through the air and struck the boar's forehead. As if its aggro had been pulled, the boar snorted and charged toward Kirito.
Even a thrown stone could pull aggro… had Klein even managed to hit it before?
Satoru mentally kicked him.
"As long as you get the motion right, the rest is handled by the system. It's actually pretty simple." Kirito drew his sword and blocked the boar. "Want to try? Yurnero, your turn?"
The level 1 mob—Frenzy Boar—was being toyed with by the three of them, but Klein had already lost nearly half his HP. Sure, he could respawn in the Town of Beginnings, but walking all the way back would be a hassle.
"Partner… I'll leave the rest to you."
Klein said solemnly, like a hero entrusting his mission.
"You're just dumping it on me… it still has plenty of HP left." Satoru glanced at the nearly full green health bar.
After a brief pause, he drew out the same beginner curved sword.
This was his first time actually holding a weapon. The weight in his palm felt oddly reassuring, even if his grip was clumsy—he'd never even held a kitchen knife before.
"Focus on the starting motion," Kirito reminded him.
Right. That was key.
Still… fighting like this, fully immersed, was nerve-wracking. He could understand why Klein had been so flustered.
Satoru steadied himself, calmed his breathing, and fixed his gaze on the boar.
He lowered his center of gravity, raised the blade to his shoulder, mimicking a draw. The crude curved sword aligned just as described in the skill description. With Kirito holding aggro, he had time.
It's about the feel…
A flash of orange-red light burst forth.
With a sharp push off the ground, Satoru shot forward like an arrow. His movement was smooth—far too smooth for someone who had never held a weapon before. The curved blade carved a fiery red arc through the air.
One-handed curved sword basic skill: Reaver.
A perfect hit.
The boar let out a furious roar—so realistic it was unsettling—and turned to glare at him. Its HP dropped by nearly half.
A charge-type skill…?
Even as he thought, Satoru was already in position.
No obvious recovery delay—he could follow up.
He swung again. The motion was clumsy, nowhere near as clean as the skill, but even a grazing hit dealt damage. He managed to land it.
Kirito looked slightly surprised at how quickly he adapted and stepped back, giving him space.
However—
Satoru was promptly knocked back onto the grass.
He scrambled up and ended up clumsily trading blows with the boar. After waiting out his cooldown, he finally finished it off.
The Frenzy Boar let out a defiant cry before its body shattered like glass, dissolving into fragments. An EXP notification appeared.
"That was… tougher than I thought…" Satoru wiped his forehead—though of course, there was no sweat.
"No, that was pretty good. Especially compared to someone here." Kirito glanced at Klein.
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?! That thing was tough!"
"No… it's basically the equivalent of a slime."
"Ugh…"
Klein slumped down, then pulled out a red potion and drank it.
"No way—I'm not losing like this."
Recovered, he grabbed his sword and charged another boar.
And was promptly sent flying again.