After successfully untangling themselves from a dangerous encounter with the Black Poncho Man and clearing the fifth floor of Aincrad, Kirito and Asuna head to the next challenge, an area filled with...puzzles? What's more, because of the precarious balance of power between two large guilds aiming for the same item, "The Flag of Valor", there's also a murderous PK group to be wary of. As the problems seem to pile up, Kirito and Asuna face the sixth floor of Aincrad completely unaware of the malicious trap awaiting them!!

Yuuki Asuna was a top student who spent her days studying at cram school and preparing for her high school entrance exams--but that was before she borrowed her brother's virtual reality game system and wound up trapped in Sword Art Online with ten thousand other frightened players. As time passes, Asuna fears what will become of her life outside the fantasy realm--the failure she might be seen as in the eyes of her peers and parents. Unwilling to wait on the sidelines for more experienced gamers to beat the game, Asuna employs her study habits to learn the mechanics of the game--and swordplay. Her swiftness impresses Kirito, a professional gamer who invites Asuna to join the best players on the front line. Is Asuna ready to swap class rankings for player rankings and join Kirito?

"There's no way to beat this game. The only difference is when and where you die..." One month has passed since Akihiko Kayaba's deadly game began, and the body count continues to rise. Two thousand players are already dead. Kirito and Asuna are two very different people, but they both desire to fight alone. Nonetheless, they find themselves drawn together to face challenges from both within and without. Given that the entire virtual world they now live in has been created as a deathtrap, the surviving players of Sword Art Online are starting to get desperate, and desperation makes them dangerous to loners like Kirito and Asuna. As it becomes clear that solitude equals suicide, will the two be able to overcome their differences to find the strength to believe in each other, and in so doing survive? Sword Art Online: Progressive is a new version of the Sword Art Online tale that starts at the beginning of Kirito and Asuna's epic adventure--on the very first level of the deadly world of Aincrad!

The party is shaken when their leader, Diavel, is struck down by the boss of the very first floor. Asuna and her teammates are confronted for the first time with the cruel reality of their situation: Sword Art Online is no mere game--death here is final. Their commander lost, the remaining fighters begin to lose heart and plan their retreat. But the fight must go on if they are to escape this game world, and in his dying moments, Diavel managed to convey his appointment for the next commander--Kirito!

After successfully untangling themselves from a dangerous encounter with the Black Poncho Man and clearing the fifth floor of Aincrad, Kirito and Asuna head to the next challenge, an area filled with...puzzles? What's more, because of the precarious balance of power between two large guilds aiming for the same item, "The Flag of Valor", there's also a murderous PK group to be wary of. As the problems seem to pile up, Kirito and Asuna face the sixth floor of Aincrad completely unaware of the malicious trap awaiting them!!

"There's no way to beat this game. The only difference is when and where you die..." One month has passed since Akihiko Kayaba's deadly game began, and the body count continues to rise. Two thousand players are already dead. Kirito and Asuna are two very different people, but they both desire to fight alone. Nonetheless, they find themselves drawn together to face challenges from both within and without. Given that the entire virtual world they now live in has been created as a deathtrap, the surviving players of Sword Art Online are starting to get desperate, and desperation makes them dangerous to loners like Kirito and Asuna. As it becomes clear that solitude equals suicide, will the two be able to overcome their differences to find the strength to believe in each other, and in so doing survive? Sword Art Online: Progressive is a new version of the Sword Art Online tale that starts at the beginning of Kirito and Asuna's epic adventure--on the very first level of the deadly world of Aincrad!

It's time for the "real" SAO--the third floor! Kirito and Asuna are hardly out the door when they stumble upon the start of the Elf War quest. When they decide to side with the elite dark elf Kizmel, they're set on a path that will push them harder than ever before. But together, nothing can stop them...right?