"Permanent orange name, huh."
Lillian leaned against the trunk of a massive tree, looking at his status. He didn't regret it. Not being able to enter towns just meant he couldn't set up a stall to do forging work anymore—and that was fine. More and more blacksmiths had appeared recently anyway, and his business had already slowed down.
Besides, his original goal had always been to craft equipment for himself, and that could be done out in the field as well. If one insisted on talking about "cost-effectiveness," then trading a permanent orange name for Kibaou's life was indeed a bit of a loss. But under those circumstances, he had no other choice.
Given the situation back then, everyone would have swarmed him sooner or later. If he had tried to kill Kibaou after that, he would have had to cut down who knew how many players standing in his way. He could have ignored everything and fled immediately—but that would have gone against his nature. It simply wasn't something he would do.
Now, the players hunting him had already scattered. None of them could catch him. The field was enormous—even if there were over a thousand searchers, once spread out they amounted to nothing. And they wouldn't dare scatter anyway. If Lillian were their opponent, they would probably need at least two full parties moving together.
In short, until they could definitively capture or kill him, every moment they spent outside a town would be filled with fear—fear that Lillian might suddenly appear and attack them, leaving them to die helplessly in front of their companions just like Kibaou. That sense of despair was something no one would ever want to experience twice.
As for Lillian, he knew very well that all of this stemmed from someone impersonating him and attacking other players. That person was the true starting point of everything. He didn't know who it was. Based on reports, the impersonator and two companions had wiped out Kibaou's six guild executives—meaning their strength was unquestionably top-tier. That alone drastically narrowed the list of suspects.
In the later stages of the original story, there were only a few powerful guilds: the strongest being the Knights of the Blood Oath, followed by groups like the Divine Dragon Alliance, the Army, and Fuurinkazan. As for "red-name guilds," there were Laughing Coffin, Titan's Hand, and the like.
Could it be…
Lillian frowned deeply as he suddenly recalled the young man who had followed him after that battle on the plains—the tattoo on his face. A tattoo? Wait. Didn't PoH, the leader of Laughing Coffin, also have facial tattoos?
Could it be him…?
Once the thought surfaced, it spread uncontrollably. The more Lillian considered it, the more plausible it seemed. On one hand, ordinary people wouldn't be that bored or deranged. On the other, killing Kibaou's subordinates so easily wasn't something most players could manage—but PoH was different. Like Asuna, he was a genius full-dive gamer. Even without prior experience, he could adapt at several times the normal pace and quickly become powerful.
If it were him, such twisted motives would make sense.
Still, Lillian couldn't be certain. He had no proof.
Just as everyone else had hunted him down without evidence, if he were to pin everything on PoH without proof, how would he be any different from Kibaou and his group?
So until he could be sure, he wouldn't jump to conclusions. And even if he did have evidence, finding that man would be another matter entirely. Who knew what corner of the world he was hiding in? Lillian didn't have the time to scour the entire game.
As for what to do next…
He organized his thoughts. Originally, he had planned to leave the dungeon and head straight to the Dark Elf base, then ask Kizmel if she could help him defeat the floor boss. But all this chaos with the players had delayed him. While fleeing earlier, he had also received a message from Argo, warning him not to kill anyone and get an orange name… but what was done was done.
As for messages like "Are you okay?"—those were unnecessary. If something had happened, his name on the friends list would have turned gray.
After some thought, Lillian replied:
{Already orange-named.}
Then followed up with: {Permanent. I'll have to rely on you for potion supplies from now on. I'll pay properly.}
An orange-named player couldn't enter towns, and Argo was the only player he trusted. Buying potions could only be entrusted to her.
About half a minute later, her reply arrived.
{…}
Just an ellipsis.
Lillian couldn't tell whether that meant agreement or refusal, and he didn't dwell on it. Because he had already spotted the two people who had intercepted him earlier—now chasing him again.
Kirito. Asuna.
All the other players had given up, yet these two had still managed to track him here. Sitting on a tree branch and looking down at them, Lillian figured one of them must have a very high Search skill proficiency—high enough to reconstruct his trail and follow it.
But what was the point of chasing him?
It wasn't like the two of them could defeat him with some "Lovers Sword Technique."
With a sigh, Lillian leapt down from the branch. Both reacted instantly—stepping back, drawing their swords, and watching him warily.
"I know you two have a strong sense of justice," Lillian said calmly. "So let me say this first: aside from Kibaou, I didn't kill those others. I know you won't believe me—this is just me saying it. Either way, a fight is unavoidable."
As he spoke, he drew his greatsword.
"So let me show you the gap between us. That way, whether you believe me or not, you won't come looking for trouble again."
"Hmph!"
The calm yet arrogant tone infuriated Asuna. Earlier, she had only landed a single strike, which Lillian had blocked—she was already unhappy about that. Now, hearing this, her rapier flared with brilliant light.
Rapier Skill: [Horizontal Square].
Slash! Slash!
The sharp sound of cutting air rang out—but it was exactly what Asuna didn't want to hear. It meant she hadn't hit her target.
Lillian retreated smoothly as she lunged, maintaining a constant "safe distance"—safe, at least, for him.
How high is his Agility?!
Even with the speed bonus of a charge-type sword skill, she still couldn't reach him. For a moment, she was stunned. Even if all stat points from leveling were poured into Agility, this shouldn't be possible…
Unless he had equipment that massively boosted Agility?
Her gaze subconsciously shifted to his fingers and feet, searching for rings or special boots. In that instant of distraction, Lillian's greatsword came crashing down.
Longer reach meant greater advantage.
The distance that was safe for Lillian placed Asuna squarely within the attack range of a one-and-a-half-meter greatsword.
"What are you staring at?"
Clang!
At the critical moment, Kirito intervened. He had hesitated earlier, feeling awkward about a two-on-one fight—but Asuna had fallen into a severe disadvantage almost immediately. He had no choice.
He blocked the greatsword with his one-handed sword. The overwhelming force transmitted through the blade made his body sink, his knees bending slightly.
"Kirito!"
Asuna knew she had lost focus for just a moment—but now was the chance!
While Lillian pressed down on Kirito's blade, she gripped her rapier with both hands and lunged forward.
"Ha—!"
Just as the rapier was about to pierce Lillian's chest, his body suddenly twisted. He flipped backward in a clean backflip, his toe snapping out mid-motion and striking Asuna's wrist with perfect precision.
There was no pain, but the impact made her fingers loosen instinctively. The rapier flew from her hand.
"Ah!"
She let out a sharp cry, completely unprepared for such a move. At the same time, Kirito shouted and poured all his strength into knocking Lillian's greatsword away.
Then, from the side, he swung in a wide arc—aiming straight for Lillian's right leg.
"Too slow."
Lillian stepped back to evade the attack, then said flatly, with clear disinterest, "I'm done playing."
Whoosh—!
The greatsword swung violently.
Both its power and speed far exceeded Kirito and Asuna's expectations. Before either of them could react, the flat of the blade slammed into them from the side, sending both flying backward at the same time.
"Hummm…"
The sound of HP being consumed rang out.
Lying on the ground, the two glanced at their status bars—only about one-eighth had been depleted.
They struggled back to their feet and stared at Lillian in shock.
Was he… still holding back?
If he had used the edge of the blade instead of the flat, their HP would have dropped drastically. Why? And how could his strength and agility be this absurd? Just what level was he?
"Now you understand," Lillian said calmly, sliding the sword back onto his back, "the gap between you and me."
"So stop trying to play heroes. I'll make this clear: as long as people don't keep provoking me again and again, I won't harm them. Help me pass this message to those guilds—if they see me in the field, it's best to ignore me. But if they insist on coming to 'have a talk' with me…"
He paused slightly.
"I won't hold back."
"…"
The two exchanged looks, at a loss for words. They had felt it—an overwhelming, almost despair-inducing difference. Kirito even found himself wondering whether he was really the beta tester… or if Lillian was the one who truly fit that title.
"…I'll remember that!" Asuna stood up, lifting her chin stubbornly. "Don't get cocky. One day, I will defeat you!"
She took a few steps forward to retrieve her rapier, then paused.
"You said earlier that I was using a weapon you enhanced to fight you—but you forgot what you said back then. You said, 'I charge money.' So I don't owe you any favors!"
Lillian blinked once.
"…Fair enough."
"Hmph."
She snorted lightly, turned around with a sharp motion, and walked away. Kirito glanced at Lillian, clearly wanting to say something, but in the end said nothing and followed her.
Watching the two leave, Lillian finally let out a breath.
At least that's two fewer problems.
He couldn't afford to waste any more time—he needed to go find Kizmel.
He turned and took a few steps, then suddenly stopped.
Turning his head, he saw a small girl sleeping against the trunk of the giant tree where he had been standing earlier.
"…Yui?"
The moment he saw the long-haired little girl, Lillian's heart skipped.
There was no doubt—this child was an AI.
An AI that had simulated human emotions so thoroughly that it had developed genuine human feelings. In a sense, she could already be considered a sentient being.
At the same time, she still possessed the inherent traits of an AI—such as the ability to move freely through parts of the virtual world.
As Lillian looked at her, a strange thought surfaced in his mind.
If she could store a portion of this world's fundamental scientific knowledge… and then, in some way, carry it into the AOT… what would happen?