I'm a Sword Master in Sword Art Online

Mochizuki Kaede's blade seized the opportunity to slice into the monster's vulnerable spot, lightning piercing through the wound Mito had left. The rhythm of their advance and retreat resembled a meticulously choreographed dance of death, each clash of weapons imbued with a heart-pounding tacit understanding. As Mito used the momentum to spin again, Mochizuki Kaede reached out and supported her lower back to help her regain her balance, the warmth of his palm penetrating through her thin armor.

"Focus." Mitt's ears turned slightly red as he struggled free, but the scythe, following the trajectory of the lightning blade, slashed down again. In the snowy night, two figures wove a deadly net around the monster, the crisp sound of clashing weapons mingling with the rapid breathing.

Just as Mito and Mochizuki Kaede's offensive eased slightly, a flash of light suddenly cut into the battlefield. Asuna's [Elf Sword] shone with an emerald light, piercing straight at Nicholas's body. The sword tip drew a straight line through the air, accurately striking the vital spot exposed by the monster as it parried the scythe.

"Switch!"

With Asuna's clear command, the three of them instantly completed a precise rotation:

Mito's scythe retreated, his purple hair flying as he withdrew to the flank. Mochizuki Kaede's lightning blade slashed horizontally, creating space for Asuna to advance. Asuna then used the two as cover to unleash her sword technique.

Silica's crescent moon constantly disrupted the rhythm of the monster's counterattacks.

The four weapons shone brightly amidst Yuna's stirring piano music, each attack landing precisely on Nicholas's twisted body.

Asuna's rapier, Mito's scythe, Silica's crescent moon, and Mochizuki Kaede's lightning blade were all coated with a dazzling aura of skill light. The four weapon trajectories intertwined around the monster, forming a net, and each collision erupted with blinding sparks of energy.

Wang Yuefeng let out a low shout, and the dark blue lightning patterns on the black blade suddenly lit up.

His figure flashed forward like lightning, his blade slicing through three intersecting streaks of lightning before striking Nikolas's knees hard. The monster howled and fell to his knees, his heavy body crashing into the snow, kicking up a cloud of snow mist.

"The final blow!" The voices of Mochizuki Kaede, Asuna, and Mito overlapped in the snowstorm—

The light from the lightning blade, rapier, and scythe intertwined, piercing through Nikolas's head simultaneously. With a sonic boom, the hideous head was flung high into the air, countless shimmering data fragments gushing from the severed neck.

"boom--!"

The monster's massive body stiffened for a moment, then disintegrated into countless blue data fragments.

In the end, only that large bag remained on the snow.

Mochizuki Kaede slowly sheathed the [Thunder Abyss Judgment], the hilt striking the scabbard with a crisp "click." At the same time, the remaining large bag dissolved into particles of light—all the spoils had been automatically added to his inventory.

Mochizuki Kaede exhaled a deep breath of white air and lightly swiped to bring up the system window. Among the dazzling array of items, the name of one particular item stood out:

【Holy Crystal of Resurrection】.

When Mochizuki Kaede materialized it, a gem the size of an egg appeared out of thin air. It shimmered with a dreamlike, seven-colored halo, its interior seemingly containing a dazzling galaxy like a nebula. The gem's surface was smooth and cool, yet it radiated a comforting warmth, as if one were holding life itself in one's grasp.

Wangyue Feng lightly touches the gem to bring up the description interface:

【How to use: 1. Select to use via the auto-select menu. 2. Hold the item and shout "Resurrect: [Player Name]".】

[Effect: If used within 10 seconds of the target player's death, it will revive them.]

"It really is a resurrection item..." Asuna leaned closer to examine it, her amber eyes reflecting the brilliance of the gemstone.

The others also gathered around, their faces filled with disbelief. Argo, who had been watching from the edge of the battlefield, skipped forward, proudly raising his little face: "Don't underestimate my intelligence network!"

The mustache painted under her hood fluttered slightly with her changing expressions, giving her a playful look.

Mochizuki Kaede gazed at the petite intelligence strategist, once again impressed by her abilities.

Chapter 143: Merry Christmas

The fire crackled in the fireplace, casting warm dappled light on the oak barrels. As Mochizuki Kaede pushed open the oak door of the "Reindeer and Mistletoe" tavern, the chilly wind, mingled with snowflakes, was immediately replaced by the sweet aroma of mead. A Christmas bell hanging above the door jingled crisply, and the NPC owner, wiping glasses, looked up, flashing a formulaic smile.

"here!"

At the long table in the corner, Lisbeth was waving her arms vigorously. She had deliberately chosen a spot near the fireplace, where the flickering firelight made her red and green Christmas sweater shine even brighter. Gone was her usual blacksmith's apron; in its place was a fluffy turtleneck sweater, and the snowflake hair clip in her short pink hair shimmered with her movements. Her freckles looked particularly playful in the warm light, making her look like an elf who had jumped out of a Christmas card.

Silica cheered and ran over, plopping down on the soft cushions: "Finally, I can warm up!"

Yuna removed her large white hat and greeted Lisbeth. She gathered her skirt and sat down, her dark brown braid slipping from her shoulder. The fireplace bathed her classical profile in a warm light, making her look like a girl in a Renaissance painting.

Asuna and Mito sat down side by side. Asuna looked at Lisbeth and asked, "Have you been waiting long, Lisbeth?"

"It's alright!" Lisbeth stirred the creamy foam on top of her soufflé, then suddenly lowered her voice, "By the way...did you really find the legendary [Traitor Nicolas]?"

Asuna nodded gently.

Lisbeth leaned closer, placing her hands on the wooden table, and asked in a very low voice, "So what are the spoils? Rare forging materials? Or top-tier equipment?"

Asuna smiled and tapped the rim of her glass with her fingertip: "Liz, this information must not be leaked."

She leaned forward, her chestnut hair falling onto the table, and whispered, "It's a resurrection item."

"Resurrected—!?" Lisbeth nearly spilled her eggnog, hastily covering her mouth. Her pupils contracted sharply, her blacksmithing instincts racing through her mind as she calculated the item's value—in this death game, it was more precious than any divine artifact.

"Tsk tsk tsk~" Asuna suddenly changed the subject, her amber eyes curving into crescents, "Liz is quite different today~"

Her gaze lingered meaningfully on the other person.

"Huh?" Lisbeth followed her gaze and looked down, noticing the adorable reindeer pattern on her sweater. Her ears instantly turned as red as the sweater. "It's just...it's Christmas...I just changed clothes casually..."

On the other side, Argo stood at the door, a hint of hesitation in his expression beneath his hood: "I... I won't go in. The intelligence fee has already been collected, you can celebrate yourselves."

Mochizuki Kaede's hand grabbed her wrist first, and the warm touch made Argo subconsciously want to pull her hand away, but he held it firmly.

“Argo, it’s Christmas today, let’s celebrate together.” Mochizuki Kaede’s smile was especially bright in the warm light of the porch. “Besides, without your intelligence, we couldn’t even find a trace of the [Traitor Nicholas].

Argo's lips twitched slightly, and her ears, hidden under her hood, turned a little red. She clicked her tongue in feigned disgust, but couldn't shake off the hand: "Maple, when did you become so mushy..."

Finally, she sighed dramatically, letting Mochizuki Kaede pull her towards the lively dining table: "Let's make this clear, I won't be staying long." As seven glasses of mead gathered on the oak table, the fireplace suddenly burst into a string of golden-red sparks. The flying sparks traced fleeting trajectories in the air, like miniature fireworks igniting the gathering.

Mochizuki Kaede sat in the center of the long table, with Lisbeth, Silica, and Yuna on her left, and Asuna, Mito, and Argo, who had just reluctantly taken his seat, on her right.

"To celebrate today's victory," Mochizuki Kaede raised her glass, "and to every effort we put into clearing the game."

His gaze slowly swept over each face gently outlined by the firelight.

Lisbeth held a wine glass in both hands, the snowflake hair clip in her short pink hair swaying gently with her nod. Beside her, Silica had already eagerly taken a sip of mead, her twin ponytails swaying gently with a satisfied sigh.

Yuna smiled quietly, and when her eyes met Mochizuki Kaede's, she blinked gently, her eyelashes casting butterfly-like shadows beneath her eyes.

Asuna, on the right, held a wine glass, her long chestnut hair cascading down like silk. Noticing Mochizuki Kaede's gaze, she slightly raised the corners of her lips, a gentle light shimmering in her amber eyes.

Mitsu maintained her aloof expression, her high purple ponytail neatly tied back at the nape of her neck, making her appear as pure and cold as a winter plum blossom. But when she raised her wine glass, Mochizuki Kaede keenly noticed a barely perceptible warmth flash in her purplish-red pupils.

Argo, standing at the very edge, was idly tracing the water droplets on the rim of her glass with her fingertips when she noticed Mochizuki Kaede's gaze and suddenly looked up. Her mustache trembled slightly with a playful wink, and a sly smile curved her lips. This information broker, who always lurked in the shadows, now had a warm glow reflected in her eyes, like the light of a fireplace.

Seven glasses clinked gently in the firelight, their crystal-clear resonance ringing out. The sweet aroma of mead mingled with the scent of burning pine, while snowflakes silently blanketed every corner of Aincrad outside the window. On this Christmas night twisted by the game of death, at least for this moment, warmth was real.

The flames in the fireplace suddenly leaped higher, casting the shadows of the seven men onto the stone wall behind them, weaving together a warm silhouette. Mochizuki Kaede's Adam's apple bobbed; an emotion richer than mead fermented in his chest. He wanted to say so much—about the days and nights they had fought side-by-side over the past year, about the life-or-death moments they had shared in the labyrinthine area, about the courage and hope each of them had given him.

But in the end, all the words were reduced to a simple sentence: "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas!"

Six voices rang out simultaneously.

Asuna's gentleness, Lisbeth's energy, Silica's exuberance, Yuna's softness, Mito's aloofness, and Argo's awkward yet sincere blessing are like chords played by six instruments.

Suddenly, the Christmas tree in the corner of the tavern lit up with colorful lights, and an NPC waiter pushed a three-tiered cake over, the top tier of which was decorated with the words "Merry Xmas" in icing. Silica cheered and rushed towards the cake, but accidentally knocked over the salt shaker. Argo instinctively reached out to catch it, but bumped into Mitt, who was leaning forward at the same time.

"Idiot! Don't move suddenly!"

"You are the one who is...!"

Watching the chaotic scene, Mochizuki Kaede's lips unconsciously curled into a smile. He wished these peaceful days could continue forever, until they truly saw the dawn of freedom.

With a soft "clink," Asuna's glass gently touched his. The chestnut-haired girl leaned slightly forward, the firelight dancing in her amber eyes: "Kaze, do your best."

Mochizuki Kaede nodded and downed the mead in her glass in one gulp. The sweet liquid slid down her throat, leaving a slightly burning sensation. The snow outside was falling even harder, but the warmth inside the tavern was enough to melt away the entire winter chill of Aincrad.

Chapter 144: Christmas Gifts

As the celebration progressed into its second half, the most surprising sight was Argo, who had originally planned to leave early, now slumped on the long table, her cheeks flushed. Her hood had slipped down, revealing messy, short blond hair, and the beard paint on her cheeks was smudged with mead, making her look like a drunken little kitten.

"Another one... hiccup..." She groggily reached for the bottle, her fingertips tracing comical arcs in the air. Mitt disdainfully pressed down on her wobbling head, but Argo grabbed her arm: "Maple...when did you...become three..."

Wang Yuefeng smiled and shook his head. Just as he was about to get up and order another cup of hot mead, he suddenly received a text message notification.

[From: Fortunately].

Merry Christmas, Mr. Mochizuki. I have prepared a Christmas present for you. Would you like to meet me?

Mochizuki Kaede paused slightly. Since rescuing Sachi in the twenty-seventh level of the labyrinth, the two had occasionally kept in touch, mostly for Sachi to ask him questions about combat experience. He thought for a moment and replied:

I'm celebrating at the "Reindeer and Mistletoe" tavern on the 35th floor, wanna join me?

Coordinate sharing was also included.

Not long after, the tavern's wooden door was gently pushed open. A cold wind swirled in snowflakes, and the bells on the lintel jingled crisply. A slender figure stood in the doorway, unmelted snowflakes clinging to her short black hair, and the beauty mark at the corner of her left eye was faintly visible in the lamplight.

"Happiness?" Mochizuki Kaede stood up and went to greet him.

“Merry Christmas…” Sachi looked up, a hint of surprise flashing in her dark eyes, which quickly turned slightly awkward due to the lively atmosphere in the tavern. Her voice was soft, the ties of her dark blue cloak twirling between her fingers: “I’m sorry, did I disturb you…”

"On the contrary, come and meet my companions." Mochizuki Kaede shook her head and reached out to brush the snowflakes off her shoulder. This gesture made Sachi's eyelashes tremble violently, and the beauty mark at the corner of her eye seemed to melt in the warmth of the fireplace.

When Mochizuki Kaede returned to the long table with Sachi, six pairs of eyes turned to look at them simultaneously. Silica had forgotten to wipe the cream from her lips, Lisbeth's wine glass was hanging in mid-air, and even the tipsy Argo struggled to sit up.

"This is Xing, a friend of mine," Mochizuki Kaede introduced.

Xing bowed slightly, her black hair falling over her shoulders: "Hello..."

Asuna was the first to react, and said with a smile, "Welcome, my name is Asuna."

Her gaze lingered subtly between Xing and Wangyue Feng for a moment before casually shifting away.

"My name is Lisbeth, and I'm a blacksmith." Lisbeth sized up the somewhat frail-looking girl before her.

Silica swallowed the cake in her mouth: "Hello, I'm Silica!"

Yuna nodded slightly in greeting, looking at Sachi with an amused expression: "I'm Yuna, welcome to our Christmas party."

Mitt crossed her arms, her purple ponytail swaying slightly under her scrutinizing gaze: "Mitt." After a brief self-introduction, she gave Mochizuki Kaede a meaningful look.

Argo then took another sip: "I am... hiccup... the most powerful intelligence broker, Argo."

I was fortunate enough to greet them and memorize their names and characteristics.

"Um, that..." As she sat awkwardly next to Yuna, she suddenly seemed to remember something and hurriedly opened her inventory. A silver-gray scarf appeared in her hand, with a few small snowflake patterns adorning the delicate stitches.

When Sachi handed the scarf to Mochizuki Kaede, Yuna winked mischievously, "Wow~ the student council president is quite popular~"

As Mochizuki Kaede took the scarf, her fingertips inadvertently brushed against Sachi's hand. The girl recoiled as if electrocuted, staring down at her knees. The beauty mark at the corner of her eye stood out sharply against her flushed cheeks, like a grain of cinnabar in the snow.

"Thank you, Sachi." Mochizuki Kaede's voice remained steady.

Xing's eyelashes trembled violently a few times: "You... I'm glad you like it..."

The atmosphere at the dining table instantly became subtle.

“Actually—” Lisbeth suddenly slammed her hand on the table and stood up, “I also prepared a gift!”

She drew a delicate short sword, its hilt adorned with red and green Christmas ribbons that gleamed in the firelight: "Clang! The Winter Veil Messenger, crafted from Christmas tree resin!"

Mochizuki Kaede accepted the gift with both hands. Although the decorative short sword did nothing to improve his combat power, he still carefully examined every detail: "Thank you, Lisbeth."

He looked up at Lisbeth's red and green Christmas sweater and suddenly said, "Lisbeth, you look great in this today."

"Huh?" Lisbeth froze abruptly, her cheeks flushing red at a visible speed. "W-why are you bringing this up all of a sudden..."

She turned her face away in a panic, her fingers unconsciously twirling the ends of her hair.

Silica couldn't sit still any longer: "I also have a gift for Brother Feng!"

She pulled out a beautifully packaged little box, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment: "Wait...wait until we get back to the room to open it..."

The box was tied with a crooked bow, clearly a gift carefully prepared by a little girl. Mochizuki Kaede gently patted her head, eliciting a small gasp from Silica.

Yuna handed him a recording crystal and said casually, "Here, President, this is a gift for you. It contains a few of my songs, so please don't be too critical if I don't sing them well."

Although her tone was casual, her eyes secretly followed Mochizuki Kaede's reactions.

Mochizuki Kaede smiled and nodded: "Thank you, I will cherish it."

These words made Yuna's lips curl into a slight smile.

“Originally…” Asuna coughed lightly, her chestnut hair falling as she lowered her head, “I wanted to cook you a meal.”

She took a pair of silver-gray furry gloves from her inventory: "But I still prepared this gift for you."

Although his tone was calm, the gesture of handing over the gloves was exceptionally solemn.

Mochizuki Kaede put on the gloves and tried them on. The perfect fit at her finger joints allowed for ample flexibility: "They fit perfectly, thank you Asuna."

Asuna smiled and said, "It's good that it can be of use."

Mitt sat to the side with her arms crossed, her purple ponytail swaying gently as she tilted her head: "I didn't prepare anything."

Mochizuki Kaede waved her hand: "It's okay, being able to celebrate the festival with everyone is the best gift."