Archer (Klein x Reader)

Chapter 2 - Trapped

It was now the official opening day for the game. You were glad that the game let you keep your avatar, but it erased all of your statistics and skill scores. That was okay though, you didn't make it past floor 7 anyways.

You logged back into the game right at 1:15, as you didn't want to get stuck by the server that would most likely be bogged down by the sheer number of players trying to log in all at once at 1:00.

Like your first day in beta, you spawned in the "Town of Beginnings." Deciding to skip the marketplace, you made your way out to the surrounding fields to rebuild your archery and stealth skills as well as get money.

Climbing the same singular tree you were in when you met Kirito, you began taking aim at the surrounding warthogs. You were gaining experience points and money rather quickly, and your accuracy was improving.

Then, you heard a couple of people talking. Turning, you saw Kirito- but he was walking with another man. Not knowing the other man, you remained concealed in the tree. You figured your still slightly low stealth skill would allow for you to not be detected.

They stopped a few feet ahead and began talking. You slightly listened in on their conversation. It seemed as though Kirito was training the man in how to use his sword.

The man was about the same height as Kirito, and had shoulder-length purple hair, which was kept out of his face by a red headband. He also, to your amusement, seemed to be a very animated person.

You watched as he killed his first warthog and started jumping in joy. This caused you to want to laugh, but you made sure not to in fear of being noticed. They turned and kept moving down the path through the field.

You shot one of the newly spawned warthogs.

~~Timeskip~~

With the Cor you just earned, you figured that you had enough to buy a lightweight sword. You headed back to the Town of Beginnings, and found a blacksmith shop that was being run by a NPC.

Walking in and smiling at the blacksmith, you approached their desk to place your request. You were then suddenly forcefully teleported to the town center.

Shocked, you looked around to see other players doing the same thing. You looked across the town square to see Kirito and his friend. Trying to make your way to the only person you knew, a warning sign started flashing in the air and the entire sky was filled with the warning sign.

You stopped to see what was going on, and was horrified to see a red liquid leaking through the warning signs to come together and materialize a large hooded figure.

Many whispers around you say that it's the game master. He delivers a grim message that essentially dying in the game means dying in the real world, and that there's no other way out. A lot of people around you start yelling, and you quickly start glancing around for a way to get out of the town square, which apparently was an idea that a lot of other people had as well. You see one player hit a force field keeping them in the square, and face your attention back to the game master to see his form dissipate and the warning signs disappear.

Looking in your item storage, you take out the mirror that was previously placed to see the appearance of other players around you changing. As the ground beneath your feet quickly glows blue and then stop, you carefully and cautiously remove your hood.

How you look in the real world is now what you look like in Sword Art Online.

Looking over to Kirito, you see that he has become slightly shorter and younger. His hair is shorter as well.

His friend's purple hair had been replaced by dark red spiky hair, and he had the beginnings of a beard. You might actually consider him to be attractive if you weren't trapped.

Watching the two of them take off running to an alley, you followed behind them, trying to catch up to the two of them. If you were stuck here, maybe having friends would be a good idea, and you could make two off of them.

You saw Kirito and the man part, and the man turned around and ran into you as he came around the corner of the building. You backed away from him, forgetting your hood was off.

"I'm sorry," you said. "I wanted to talk to you and Kirito."

He smiled.

"You wanted to talk to me?" he grabbed your hand. "I'm Klein, I'm 22, and single!"

You quickly snatched your hand away, then allowed yourself to laugh a little at his actions.

"I'm (Y/N)," you said, still slightly smiling. "I figured the three of us could be friends. I met Kirito in the beta and I saw him teaching you earlier, so you must be his friend too."

"Yeah, Kirito's a great guy. He's not one for parties though," he said, placing a hand on the back of his neck. "Wait a second- how the heck did you see us training?! There was no one else around!"

"I saw the two of you when I was out hunting."

"Well, I was going to start a guild with all of my real-world friends- do you want to maybe join? You'd be a lot of help, being a beta tester and all."

"Look, I don't do parties or guilds," you sternly said to him, looking him in the eye. He looked down at the ground as you said this. "I don't mind accompanying you guys as a friend though."

"Cool!" he said, instantly perking up at your next words. "Come on, let's go find my buddies!"