One month since the start of the fun-turned-deadly game, 2,000 players have already died, and the first floor has yet to be cleared. Kirito attends a meeting organized by fellow beta-tester Diabel, who announces to the attendants that his party, a group of characters adventuring together in a role-playing game, has found Illfang the Kobold Lord, the boss of the first floor. Parties are formed, and Kirito teams up with a young girl named Asuna. The next day, Diabel's raid group arrives at the boss' room and battles Illfang and his minions. When Illfang's health becomes low, Diabel goes for the finishing attack. Kirito attempts to warn him, but Illfang attacks down first and mortally wounds Diabel. As he dies, Diabel begs Kirito to defeat the boss and save the players. Though they destroy the boss, Kirito is accused of being a 'beater'andmdash;a combination of a 'beta-tester' and 'cheater'andmdash;for Diabel's passing.
s01e01 - The World of Swords
s01e02 - Beater
s01e03 - The Red-Nosed Reindeer
s01e04 - The Black Swordsman
s01e05 - Murder in the Safe Zone
s01e06 - Illusionary Avenger
s01e07 - The Temperature of the Heart
s01e08 - The Sword Dance of Black and White
s01e09 - The Blue-Eyed Demon
s01e10 - Crimson Killing Intent
s01e11 - The Girl of Morning Dew
s01e12 - Yui's Heart
s01e13 - Edge of Hell's Abyss
s01e14 - The End of the World
s01e15 - Return
s01e16 - Land of the Fairies
s01e17 - Captive Queen
s01e18 - To the World Tree
s01e19 - The Lugru Corridor
s01e20 - General of the Blazing Flame
s01e21 - The Truth About Alfheim
s01e22 - The Grand Quest
s01e23 - Bonds
s01e24 - Gilded Hero
s01e25 - The World Seed
In the near future, a Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (VRMMORPG) called Sword Art Online has been released where players control their avatars with their bodies using a piece of technology called Nerve Gear. One day, players discover they cannot log out, as the game creator is holding them captive unless they reach the 100th floor of the game's tower and defeat the final boss. However, if they die in the game, they die in real life. Their struggle for survival starts now...