(L) Sword Art Online - Light Novel Discussion

[csuree]

well after 16 volumes the illustrator ought to get better, by the sheer number only...

Just drawing regularly an amateur can improve significantly. imagine a pro... then.

[l.kostas]

http://blog.livedoor.jp/geek/archives/51502723.html

Images

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[IceHism]

Are there no spoilers for vol 16?

[Javiersansano]

Originally Posted by IceHism

Are there no spoilers for vol 16?

There is the Web Novel Summary (plus translation of some parts) available in God knows which page of this thread

[Rageth]

Someone on /a/ started posting summaries for Volume 16.

Chapter 18, The Great Underworld War

Spoiler:

Spoiler for Chapter 18, Part 1:

1) Both sides open fire on each other
2) Dusolbart ponders about his past life after seeing the sunset. He prepares to fight
3) Fanatio encounters the vanguard of the goblin army
4) More battle scenes from enemy's perspective trying to make them relatable to the reader
5) Ronie and Tize report about Kirito to Ren-Li and ask him for help. He allows them to stay in the camps.
6) Soul of the dead dark commander through sheer willpower manages to mess with Fanatio's light cube, freezing her in place. She breaks free after her underling dies in front of her. She berserks.
7) Dusolbart captures a goblin commander. Turns out to be an ambush. He holds his own and unleashes a giant phoenix on the goblin army. He causes them to flee at the cost of his life.
8) Eldorie reaffirms his loyalty to Alice

Spoiler for Chapter 18, Part 2:

1) Fizel and Rinel reflect on the drawn battle plans and their fight with Kirito and Eugeo
2) Ronie, Tize, and Ren-Li run into goblins. They try to fend them off and soon are rescured by Fizel and Rinel. Ren-Li gets inspired by Ronie and Tize's bravery. He reveals his status to distract the goblins from the girls. He faces off against the other goblin commander and wins. After checking on their safety, he rushes off to battle

Spoiler for Chapter 18, Part 3:

1) The upper ranks of the Dark Kingdom prepare for war. Commander D.I.L berates the lower goblin generals. Where the fuck does he get these names?
2) Berkeley reaches the Great Eastern Gate. He reaffirms the positions of his troops, including Shasta's death.
3) D.I.L confirms the positions of her troops
4) Alice is having a personal crisis about Kirito and the war. She hears ogres at the bottom of the mountain and fends them off with a massive explosion.
5) She meets up with Fanatio and Eldorie. They come upon the ogre captain and he mentions Vector. They prepare to fight, and kill him

Spoiler for Chapter 18, Part 4:

1) D.I.L and Vector confront each other. He blames her for all the mistakes and affirms his desire for blood and life.
2) Alice and her entourage talk about the 'Priestess of Light' and her key role against Vector and how he wants to obtain her. Alice also ponders about the 'World End Alternative'.
3) Exposition on names and the Orc captain. He apologizes to his girlfriend as he heads out to battle. He is horrified by the slaughter of the orcs and vows revenge on humans
4) Berkeley tasks Alice with finding the 'Priestess of Light' and everyone is caught up with the events to this point. They head out
5) D.I.L fires a beam of black bugs
6) The party notices the beam coming this way, and notice that their men could not catch up with them. Eldorie steps in the way and takes the blow. He dies in Alice's arms. They continue into the dark territory
7) D.I.L has a mental breakdown at her failure
8) Alice is still in shock.She screams her name towards the Dark capital and everyone there hears it, and marvels a little.

Chapter 19, Priestess of Light

Spoiler:

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 1:

1) Berkeley and crew enter the Dark Territory. Alice is still shell shocked about Eldorie
2) An excited enemy screams into air. They notice. Berkeley implicitly tries to get his party to strip and fails. Sheta calls out her sword and holds position.
3) Enemy encounters and tries to rile her up. They fail. Pissed off, they engage her in battle.
4) Alice and co comment on the battle in hiding
5) Gabriel and his 'bro' have a discussion (he actually uses the word 'bro')
6) Sheta and her opponent exchange battlefield words. They somehow manage to defuse the fighting a little. Both parties now find that they have to retreat. They exchange names before leaving the battle

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 2:

1) 'Bro' Vasago encounters a girl holding a sword on the way to battle. He leaves her as reports of the enemy show up
2) Ren-Li encounters the enemy behind him. Alice and Berkeley report on status
3) Vasago encounters the girl and her friend, actually Ronie and Tize. Cue Stacia materializing in front of them. Vasago recognizes the 'KoB' flash.
4) Berkeley assesses the threat around him to be about 10000 enemies

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 3:

1) Asuna has entered the Underworld using the super account 'Stacia'. She reiterates her goal of finding Kirito. Upon materializing, she tries to reassure a stunned Ronie and Tize saying she's not a god.
2) Ronie and Tize take her to Veggie Kirito. He grunts a little and tears flow from his eyes. She hugs him and cries. She thanks the two girls and introduces herself properly

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 4:

1) Gabriel talks game mechanics
2) Ronie and Tize are confused about what is happening. Alice shows up and picks a fight. The other knights stop her. Asuna has a much harder time explaining to the knights. Both girls realize they have the same romance target and become very touchy.
(This part ends on Alice saying that Kirito is her duty. Asuna fires back saying Kirito is hers when Alice turns her back, but she manages to overhear.)

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 5:

1) Asuna reflects on how real everything is in the Underworld, and she introduces herself. Everyone seems surprised about her except Berkeley, who calls her the 'Priestess of Light'.
2) Asuna tries to get them to flee the Underworld due to the system failing and Alice refuses. Everyone also agrees with Alice. Asuna also has trouble grasping the Underworld system
3) Jumps back to real world. Asuna is strapped in and fully experiencing the underworld.
4) Asuna and the knights try to explain their situations to each other. But when pressed for more info about the real world, Asuna requests them to stop asking, which is respected.The knights try and get Asuna to fight with them.
5) More reflections on the Underworld. Alice and Asuna start up an argument about Kirito again. Alice says they've been acquainted for half a month year (she uses 付き合い, which has more than one meaning), and Asuna wonders about her relationship with Kirito. Soltilina shows up and defuses the situation. But she asks Asuna about 'Dual wielding' Kirito

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 6:

1) Berkeley has a premonition of death and ponders over it
2) Dark troops begin to stir
3) The girls visit Kirito. Asuna notes he hasn't changed at all. Berkeley rounds the knights and prepares them for battle
4) The troops led by Sheta's adversary Iskan attempts to lead a charge on the knights. He stops at the last minute.
5) VRMMO exposition

Spoiler for Chapter 19, Part 7:

1) Gabriel Mira explores the web
2) Yui gets Sinon and Leafa to leave their houses in the real world in the middle of the night. They apparently had no idea about what Asuna was doing after they last met.
3) Ocean Turtle reports that two high school girls, identities only known as 'Sinon' and 'Leafa', have breached security
4) Yui rallies the rest of the gang in ALO into action

Spoiler for Afterwords:

1) He thanks people for waiting a year and hypes them up for this new arc
2) It seems Alicization was supposed to be only Beginning and Turning but it gradually became longer
3) He begs for forgiveness about adding many new characters in the 'Great Underworld War' (Ch. 18) segment
4) He wants a SAO open world MMORPG PS4 game

Edit: All parts added.
Edit3: Added Afterwords summary.

[EdRed]

Hello together,
i've been lurking around this thread for quite some time and read a big part of it.

I know that the question has been asked before, but i haven't found it answered detailed enough to sate my curiosity ( Well, or i got lost while reading the thread and forgot it already).

So how exactly does the whole Situation between Kirito, Asuna and Alice look like in the end?
I recall there being a hostility between the later two, but is Kirito described as even seriously considering Alice in a romantic fashion after being reunited with Asuna?

The latter would seem a bit weird after the whole KiritoxAsuna buildup in the previous Arcs (Well and the Author including Asuna in Progressive since he "felt it was wrong" to have another female protagonist at Kiritos side if i'm recalling this right from his Afterword in Progression 1).
I always got the vibe that he pretty much made up his mind for Kirito and Asuna to be a thing, but that might just be a shippers wishful thinking.

So could anyone elaborate ?

[Kazu-kun]

Originally Posted by EdRed

So how exactly does the whole Situation between Kirito, Asuna and Alice look like in the end?

How would anyone know if the LN hasn't ended yet. People could tell you what happened in the Web Novel version, but the WN isn't exactly the same thing as the LN. Some things have changed, and the ending might change somewhat too.

I think you should just wait till the LN ends. Only then you'll have an actual answer to your question.

[EdRed]

Originally Posted by Kazu-kun

How would anyone know if the LN hasn't ended yet. People could tell you what happened in the Web Novel version, but the WN isn't exactly the same thing as the LN. Some things have changed, and the ending might change somewhat too.

I think you should just wait till the LN ends. Only then you'll have an actual answer to your question.

Well, i guess thats my fault for being not clear - my question was about the web novel version.

Is there a something like a overview about the LN / WN differences?
I can recall there being a difference about Kirito killing Kuradeel instead of Asuna.

Are the changes really that grave, that you would expect a significant deviation in the end?
Its gonna be quite some time until i can read the LN in english though.

[Rageth]

Alicization hasn't really deviated too greatly, from my memory. There are noticeable differences, but the story seems to be leading up to the same ending, at this rate.

[Kazu-kun]

Originally Posted by EdRed

Are the changes really that grave, that you would expect a significant deviation in the end?

Some changes are important, not so much for the plot which is basically the same, but for characterization. For example, in the Web Novel Asuna killed Kuradeel herself. In the LN she couldn't bring herself to do it, so Kirito did it. This affects the characterization somewhat. You could say LN Asuna is more innocent than her WN version, for example.

Anyway, the plot isn't going to change, but you weren't asking for the plot. You were asking about Kirito and Asuna's relationship. At the end of the WN things are kinda left in the air. They're clearly still going out but Kirito is also really close to Alice, and things are never clarified. I think the LN might be more clearcut about the romance status at the end though.

Or not. You'll have to wait and see. lol

[EdRed]

Originally Posted by Kazu-kun

Anyway, the plot isn't going to change, but you weren't asking for the plot. You were asking about Kirito and Asuna's relationship. At the end of the WN things are kinda left in the air. They're clearly still going out but Kirito is also really close to Alice, and things are never clarified. I think the LN might be more clear about the romance status at the end.

Or not. You'll have to wait and see. lol

Well that vagueness is kinda unsatisfying - would've prefered some closure after all that went into their relationship. Leaves me with hoping that he'll indeed be more clear in the LN.
Whenever they'll get around to translating it.

I got another question:
Would someone around here happen to know when the "Popularity Contest Q&A" is supposed to be timeline wise?

[Drygonia]

About Kirito and Asuna's relationship

Someone at Japan Expo (Paris) asked to the Author if Alice could replace Asuna in Kirito's heart.

Spoiler for Author's answer:

The Author answered that Alice is the most serious candidate amoung the girls to compete with Asuna but the relationship between Kirito and Alice is quite impossible IRL because she's a robot.

So, at his answer, I can say he's still prefer to keep Kirito X Asuna (but I hope, he's not trolling us or he will not change his mind at the end of the LN)

[Kazu-kun]

Originally Posted by Drygonia

About Kirito and Asuna's relationship

Someone at Japan Expo (Paris) asked to the Author if Alice could replace Asuna in Kirito's heart.

Spoiler for Author's answer:

The Author answered that Alice is the most serious candidate amoung the girls to compete with Asuna but the relationship between Kirito and Alice is quite impossible IRL because she's a robot.

So, at his answer, I can say he's still prefer to keep Kirito X Asuna (but I hope, he's not trolling us or he will not change his mind at the end of the LN)

Spoiler:

Well, he only said that it's impossible IRL. But Kirito spends a lot of time on-line and considers the virtual world a reality, so a relationship with Alice is still possible. And like Kawahara said, Alice is serious competition for Asuna.

I guess that's why the status on Kirito's love life is so unclear at the end of the Web Novel. Kirito and Asuna don't even kiss at the end, and he's pretty close to Alice. I think Kirito could end up with either of them.

[EdRed]

Originally Posted by Drygonia

About Kirito and Asuna's relationship

Someone at Japan Expo (Paris) asked to the Author if Alice could replace Asuna in Kirito's heart.

Spoiler for Author's answer:

The Author answered that Alice is the most serious candidate amoung the girls to compete with Asuna but the relationship between Kirito and Alice is quite impossible IRL because she's a robot.

So, at his answer, I can say he's still prefer to keep Kirito X Asuna (but I hope, he's not trolling us or he will not change his mind at the end of the LN)

Originally Posted by Kazu-kun

Spoiler:

Well, he only said that it's impossible IRL. But Kirito spends a lot of time on-line and considers the virtual world a reality, so a relationship with Alice is still possible. And like Kawahara said, Alice is serious competition for Asuna.

I guess that's why the status on Kirito's love life is so unclear at the end of the Web Novel. Kirito and Asuna don't even kiss at the end, and he's pretty close to Alice. I think Kirito could end up with either of them.

Spoiler:

Well, i tend to agree with Drygonia. If you consider what Kawahara said in the Afterword of progressive 1 about "not wanting another Girl at Kirito's side because it would feel wrong" - i guess it would be somewhat weird to put that much effort into building their relationship even earlier if he wanted to let it crumble in the end.

Of course that is not unbiased interpretation since i'm rooting for KiritoxAsuna.

[Rageth]

Looks like Kawahara started writing the next Progressive chapter up on his site
http://wordgear.x0.com/novel/novelcg....cgi?mode=list

Scherzo of a Murky Dusk, about the 5th floor of course.
He'll probably take it down shortly before the December release of the book, so yeah. Just giving a heads up.

[Mark00]

Originally Posted by Drygonia

About Kirito and Asuna's relationship

Someone at Japan Expo (Paris) asked to the Author if Alice could replace Asuna in Kirito's heart.

Spoiler for Author's answer:

The Author answered that Alice is the most serious candidate amoung the girls to compete with Asuna but the relationship between Kirito and Alice is quite impossible IRL because she's a robot.

So, at his answer, I can say he's still prefer to keep Kirito X Asuna (but I hope, he's not trolling us or he will not change his mind at the end of the LN)

Are there more questions answered in this Japan Expo (Paris)? What i would really like to know is if Alicization will be the last arc or not. Most adventure novels have around 25 volumes and Alicization will probably be finished in about 2 or 3(?), so i'm curious if he will end it there or will make another arc. If Asuna and Kirito don't marry in the real world before this LN end like they promised each other in the first arc I will be pissed.

This abec illustration could be a tease for the next arc (probably not, but still...) http://ww4.sinaimg.cn/large/87c7e3b3...22md18g4qq.jpg

[Rageth]

Originally Posted by Mark00

This abec illustration could be a tease for the next arc (probably not, but still...) http://ww4.sinaimg.cn/large/87c7e3b3...22md18g4qq.jpg

Nah, most of the poster sets just have a fun theme to run by. The set before that one was just the characters in casual clothes, surrounded by random cats.
The next arc in an old japan style game? Well... Maybe.
Would like to see Argo show up in the main story though.

[DragonKing0117]

Originally Posted by Mark00

Are there more questions answered in this Japan Expo (Paris)? What i would really like to know is if Alicization will be the last arc or not. Most adventure novels have around 25 volumes and Alicization will probably be finished in about 2 or 3(?), so i'm curious if he will end it there or will make another arc. If Asuna and Kirito don't marry in the real world before this LN end like they promised each other in the first arc I will be pissed.

This abec illustration could be a tease for the next arc (probably not, but still...) http://ww4.sinaimg.cn/large/87c7e3b3...22md18g4qq.jpg

Ha! Klein finally achieved his true dream of being a samurai of ancient Japan. Now if only his luck with girls would improve.

[wavehawk]

Originally Posted by DragonKing0117

Ha! Klein finally achieved his true dream of being a samurai of ancient Japan. Now if only his luck with girls would improve.

- Only if he becomes a main character in his own spinoff LN.

...yeah. Doubtful.

[l.kostas]

Crunchyroll: Japanese Fans Rank Anime's Ladies with the Scariest Tempers when angered.
Male voters:
5. Haruhi Suzumiya - 184 votes
4. SAO's Sinon - 195 votes
3. Attack on Titan's Mikasa - 196 votes
2. Oreimo's Aragaki Ayase - 269 votes
1. SAO's Asuna - 271 votes