Wow.

Uh, I'm ACTUALLY speechless.

Good job author!

I liked your story.

Bro this is so good and detailed. I bet u took your time on this fanfic. I’m rating this a 9.5/10.

I need to destroy a few things right now...then I'll read the next chapter

I still find it rather aggravating that Argo was cut from the anime, in a world where Kirito is otherwise free to run rampant as the lordly wish fulfillment device that can only ever be knocked down by a hacker, admin, or someone littered with death flags.

Out of curiosity what is the message that was cut in the ending?

This was honestly the most incredible alternate ending I've ever seen for SAO. Of course, I'm glad the series continued...I've read some of the novels, and Alicization is absolutely gonna blow the rest of SAO straight outta the water. But the way you wrote this...it was nothing short of magnificent. Every moment felt so impactful, and I love how every single one of Kirito's friends contributed something important towards ending the game. Then Kirito's personal feelings towards the game, the despair of living in this reality and then coming to accept it...I think it makes for a great 'coming of age' story. Plus, through the despair there's also some hope left over.

Now, I know you probably imagined the story ending with Kirito discarding the World Seed. But since you've left the ending open, I'd like to imagine that Kirito was finally able to use this gift to help, rather than harm humanity. After all, there's a reason people turn to escapism; it truly is important, and in the world of SAO there are many people who've benefitted from it. Sinon is one example that comes to mind. Plus, there are the numerous benefits it can bring to almost every single field imaginable, like medicine, engineering...even giving people like Zekken and Agil the ability to enjoy a fuller life. Simply put, it's perhaps the next step in our evolution as a species. I believe Kirito is too much of a hero to let it go, but perhaps not naive enough to give it away for free. In a way, he will step up and become a hero in the truest sense; the hero that Kayaba could never be. That's how I see it, and perhaps the way Kayaba saw it as well.

As for Asuna, I personally feel like the character we knew from SAO might've died with the game. She never got to keep her growth from all those life-changing experiences, and maybe she just wants to forget the whole thing as if it was a nightmare. I believe this makes her one of the most tragic characters here. Unlike the others, she didn't gain anything from her experience; all she did was run away and hide. She lost two years of her life and so much more, suffering against everything...only to get nothing out of it. I would say the way you handled her during the end is the weakest point of your story, but maybe that conveys just another aspect of the way people handle life; some people just weren't cut out for greatness. In the end, she lost her strength, her convictions and the love of a truly special person. While this was Kirito's coming-of-age story, it was also Asuna's tragedy.

In the end, I'd just like to say this was a great story. While I think some of the choices you made were questionable towards the end (and I personally think Asuna's about-face is a character regression of the highest order), I still think everything that happened had some sort of purpose to it. Good work.

Absolutely incredible story. Loved every second of it!

Amazing.. I wonder what would he do to the world seed..

That's cool! you're only 8 when you started?! I was like, 12 when I got into writing and I'm 14 now and still hasnt finished any story! lol. I cringe every time I read my countless attempts 2 yrs ago.

I really do relate to that statement so much "Feeling more alive in a game world than in the real one" I guess that's why I indulged myself to games, video games, fantasy stories and fan fictions because I felt that way. I always loved that feeling of being there and not at all, its like I was there looking at the current scene in front of me but at the same time, arent there. I always got lost into playing/reading and my imagination would always reach new heights.

And maybe that's why I hope SAO would be real, for I long to feel how it would be like to be one of the players in a virtual world. Even now, I'm still trying to imagine our world with a virtual world, with me putting on something like a NerveGear as I then found myself in a world that exceeds reality. Fantasy had always been my weakness, and I wish in the near future before I die, that maybe... Just maybe! that a virtual world will float into our world. I dream of that day too much...

Well anyways, I really love this fanfic! Very well written too

This was a train-wreck of emotions, right here.
It hurts D:

This was very nice, im a little sad we never found out what happened with the relationship (like Sugou being engaged to Asuna, does Kirito and Asuna end up together or do they drift apart and stuff) an amazing story, you should feel proud

Also if he reaaaaaally killed someone their name disappears from the board in town 1 hence proving or disproving Kirito's claim.

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Wow, just amazing. The world building, character development, and storyline was amazing–truly what the series should have been.

The ending was amazing. Even though it’s open ended, you get the impression that the ending is just the beginning of a “new game” as Kayaba put it.

Speaking of him, Kayaba’s motives here were borderline psychopathic but at the very least sociopathic. But it really explains his character. It was so much better than that “I can’t even remember” bull in canon.

That ending though and the parallels between Kirito and Kayaba.

Is it strange that I have envisioned Kirito becoming just like Kayaba post Fairy Arc?

He claimed he didn’t want to be like him in canon, but throughout the fight he fights just like Kayaba (cold and calculated). Kirito also had an equally pragmatic personality in SAO and has Kayaba’s genius at games. He also feels more comfortable in the virtual world.

This story only emphasized their parallels further.

And the Asuna’s real world pressures were handled marvelously along with her own goal to return to the real world.

Klein’s genuinely glass half full, determinator personality was handled brilliantly. Canon gives you the impression he’s as interesting a character if not more than Kirito considering he goes from noob to guild leader that gets his entire team through the game.

Anyways, great job!