I, Asuna, don't want to travel around the world

When Maple heard Asuna's question, she scratched her head a little embarrassedly.

Then, she tilted her head, her hair fluttering in the wind, and said with a very cute smile: "Because all my ability points are in defense~"

"……Eh?!"

"Because I was afraid of pain, I put all the points I got after leveling up into defense."

"No...it can't be..."

"Yeah, it's true. Since I did this, I'm not afraid of pain when playing games~!"

"Then your other attributes..."

"Well, hehe, it's really bad~"

Maple blinked and stuck out her pink tongue, looking like she didn't care at all about her attributes other than her defense.

"This is really..."

Asuna's mouth twitched, and she didn't know what to say.

You know, even those tank players in SAO who mainly specialize in tanks don't put all their attributes on defense.

But... this child seems to be having a lot of fun. Never mind, as long as she is happy.

Asuna reached out and pressed the ahoge on Maple's head, rubbing it hard.

"Want to team up together?"

"Eh? Is that okay?!"

"Well, of course. I might check out your game in the future. I'll trouble you, Maple~"

"Well! Leave it to me without any worries!

However, because all my attributes are focused on defense... my speed will be very slow... so...

Could you please take me with you, Asuna?"

"Okay."

Then, Asuna tied the rope around Maple's waist again.

"Eh?!"

This... is different from what I imagined?!

Chapter 9 No...wait...never mind...

"Asuna, slow down a bit."

The girl behind Asuna was dragged into a shape by the rope like a fluid, and she let out a long-drawn cry.

However, that voice was too cute and Asuna was too fast.

Because of the dragging of her body and Asuna's rapid movement, Maple's screams were drowned out by the whistling wind before they could even reach Asuna's ears.

Maple was dragged in the air, and her slender waist was clearly pulled by the huge force transmitted by the rope, but she did not feel the slightest pain.

Instead, it was the twists and turns that were like a roller coaster that put Maple into a state of forced dizziness.

Those cute big eyes lost their life force and turned into circles, and unconscious moans came out of their mouth.

As a tank-type player with all point defense attributes, it was Maple's first time to experience such fast movement in SAO.

Although the experience was a little hard to accept, it also allowed Maple to learn a lesson. Why run when the problem can be solved with the transfer crystal?

Oh, no, it should be "Why do you want Asuna to take you running?!"

Soon, Asuna pulled Maple along and rushed through the stairs, and instantly reached the middle and lower floors.

"Okay, let me buy you some decent equipment first."

Asuna "brought" Maple into the town and slowly slowed down.

"Sand, sand, sand, "

Before I turned around, I heard a strange friction sound on the ground.

Moreover, the "newbie" players around her looked at her with the same eyes, which made Asuna feel awkward.

Is it because it's too weird that I'm using a rope to tie Maple up?

Asuna looked at the warehouse and found that the last «Transfer Crystal» had been used up before, which was why she had to run to the middle and lower floors.

"But... I remember buying quite a few 'Transfer Crystals' and 'Corridor Crystals' not long ago?

Why is there only one left?

Is there a bug? "

You know, in SAO activities, the rewards for guild activities are very generous.

Items like "Transfer Crystal" and "Detoxification Crystal" are basically the most basic rewards.

And the guild that Asuna belongs to has never lacked these things because of Kayaba Shizuka's "special care".

This also formed Asuna's bad habit of "transferring crystals" whenever she had the chance.

However, she never expected that the "Transfer Crystal" and "Corridor Crystal" would disappear. Was there really a bug? !

Asuna thought so, listening to the friction sound behind her, while putting the rope in her hand back into the warehouse.

This rope is also the reward for the first place in the guild event. Although it does not have any special skills, its durability and strength can be said to be surprisingly high.

It is very useful to tie up a three-headed useless dragon.

Of course, if it is a floor boss, he can be tied up, but there is also a time limit.

It can only be imprisoned for ten seconds. Once the time is up, it will automatically return to the player's warehouse.

Moreover, it is not allowed to be used a second time. Even if other players have similar restrictive items, they cannot use them again.

And these ten seconds are crucial when players are attacking the boss.

However, this was the first time Asuna had used this rope to tie someone up.

"Eh? Where's Maple?!"

Looking back, the girl in the novice suit had disappeared behind her.

Asuna couldn't help but exclaim.

"……I……

I’m here…”

A small hand covered in dust trembled and emerged from under Asuna.

At the same time, Maple's energetic voice had long since disappeared, leaving behind only a sense of weakness and those circles in her eyes that were like mosquito coils.

"Ah! Maple! Are you okay?!"

“No…it’s okay…

It’s just… I feel a little dizzy…”

"Ah? If I had known, I would have gone slower and carried you on my back."

"That's right... When we encountered rocks along the way... I couldn't see the direction clearly because of the dense crowds of Miss..."

"Um...I'm so sorry!"

Asuna helped Maple, who had lost her sense of direction and was leaning to the side from time to time, and led her to a cold drink shop.

The front half of Maple can even "fly" in the air like a kite.

But after entering the woods...

Thick trees, lush branches and leaves, rugged rocks, broken stumps and other strange things.

They all became obstacles in her progress.

She even ran over and killed several high-level monsters on the road because Asuna ran too fast, and gained some experience points.

It can be considered as something gained.

The only drawback is that you cannot control your body during the whole process, you cannot see any scenery in front of you, and if you get hit, a big Miss will appear.

The health bar did not decrease at all and was still at full health.

You know, Maple doesn't have the equipment she's in now, but even so, with her own super high defense...

What a terrible child!

Asuna apologized while sighing.

This child must be an indispensable member of the team in her game.

With her amazing defensive power and the equipment she has, her friends will surely feel at ease entrusting their safety to her.

In order to protect his friends, he stood at the front line of the battle. This child must have suffered a lot of injuries in order to protect his friends, right?

All her attributes are focused on defense and she has no offensive power, but she is also working hard in her own way!

"Maple, leave your safety to me during this time."

"Eh? Thank you, Asuna~!"

“It’s okay, after all, it’s a rare cross-game experience, so when you reach a higher level, learn more offensive skills.

It must be hard to always be in the front row to help your friends block attacks in that game.

Would you like to experience being a swordsman for a bit here?"

"that……"

"Don't be embarrassed. Although it may be a little late to work hard now and you can only learn some low-level sword skills, you can still have fun if you are in the middle and lower levels."

"No...I actually..."

"Well, I'll call my friends to introduce them to you then."

"Ah... no need to be like that..."

"Don't be shy, Maple. Just have fun in SAO. Asuna-sama, my level is very high, so you don't need to stand up to protect me!"

"No... Never mind... Thank you, Asuna-nee-san..."

In the end, for some reason, Maple accepted Asuna's kindness with a strange look on her face.

Asuna narrowed her eyes happily, placed her hand on Maple's head, and stroked it gently.

However, looking at the ahoge on Maple's head, Asuna was distracted for some reason.

This stupid hair...I really want to pull it out...

Chapter 10 Will you become the strongest player? (Please vote~)

"..."

Maple's petite body trembled subconsciously, and a hint of suspicion flashed in her cute big eyes!

It seems that someone wants to murder me... No! Me!

After Asuna waited for Maple to recover, she took her into the leveling area on this floor.

After adding friends and entering the team state, Asuna deliberately left a monster aside for Maple to compete with it, while she herself, without hesitation, raised her beloved sword and rushed towards the group of monsters not far away.

The bonus of team buff.

High-level monsters have overflowing experience points.

Asuna, a high-level player who can kill monsters as easily as cutting vegetables, leads the team.

Mei, whose own defense is off the charts and who has already started gnawing on the monster's head... Pru?

Huh? Did I see something wrong just now?

Why do I seem to see Maple biting the monster's head?

It must be an illusion, right? The kid has such a high defense, he must be thinking of strangling the monster by attacking its neck, right?

No matter how you look at it, she is a girl who is not even fifteen years old. How could she do such a weird thing as "holding a monster and eating it?"