Why did Hikigaya save the anime girls in Sword Story?

"Understood. We need to switch guard with Captain Yue^Yi and Shou$Fa@?"

"Um"

"Don't try to be tough"

"I can't let you be a widow for a week"

"If that's the case...I'll go with you."

"You absolutely can't die now, Heathcliff, switch defense! You can't hold out for long, take over immediately after you recover!"

After switching formations, Hachiman faced the single-scythe attack with the same ease as a humanoid monster. While the attack was too heavy to perfectly parry, he was always able to precisely defeat the attack before it could gather power, focusing on the base of the sickle. Schmidt parried all the sneak attacks from the other sickle.

"Thanks, Schmidt."

"I owe you a favor... This time... I must keep it..."

The two of them chatted intermittently while defending. Hachiman's role as tank had an unexpected effect—as he continued to disrupt the attack rhythm, Bakaha's critical hits happened to stun the boss.

"All-out attack! Cut off the legs! Tanks, maintain formation and prepare for resurrection! Remove stun and follow my command!"

"Kirito unleashes his ultimate! Agil and Klein, be stunned and retreat!"

Just as Heathcliff returned to full health, Hachiman shifted to the right wing. Heathcliff immediately slashed the right scythe-armed leg away, while Hachiman and Kirito also severed several legs, leaving the rest of the team struggling. While Asuna possessed impressive offensive power, her rapier wasn't particularly adept at slashing.

When the dizziness mark on the boss's head disappears, the command starts again:

"Restore the original formation!"

The prepared group instantly returned to their positions. With fewer limbs, the boss's attack frequency increased, steadily decreasing. Kirito's short, hard straight combos and Asuna's exquisite, rapid straight thrusts were particularly eye-catching.

On the verge of rage, new orders were issued:

"Left wing tanks, switch defense! Schmidt, stay and guard my left wing! The rest of you, deploy the right wing! Lind, command!"

"learn!"

"Heathcliff and Bakaha will strengthen the counter! I will simultaneously cause stiffness."

"Speaking lightly again"

"Can you do it?"

"Do your best"

"Sorry I can't reply, I'll treat this as the final round."

"clear"

Hachiman shouted to everyone:

"Listen! Stun the fast attack before it goes berserk! The moment the stun mark lights up, the tank team will go all out!"

"Oh!!"

"Bakaha, go!"

"Yes!"

As Bakaha lunged with all his might, Heathcliff's shield strike unleashed simultaneously. Hachiman simultaneously repelled his scythe attack, then added another combo with his "Wrathful Demonic Sword." With his arms raised, the boss was defenseless, allowing Bakaha's final blow to perfectly trigger a stun.

"Kill ah ah ah ah ah!!"

"Oh oh oh oh oh oh!!"

Colorful sword skills flooded the battlefield, and the boss's HP quickly dropped to zero.

Before they could even wake up, the words "CONGRATULATIONS!" had already lit up. On the third challenge, the team finally defeated the quarter-level boss with zero casualties.

SAO: Chapter 80 Heathcliff's Confession

"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh!"

"It worked! We succeeded!"

"It's our victory!"

"As expected of the Four Heavenly Kings!"

"Woooooaaaaa! We've super evolved!"

Klein suddenly raised his arms and let out a strange, meaningless cry, instantly diluting the originally solemn atmosphere and bursts of suppressed laughter could be heard from the crowd.

"Idiot!" Agil elbowed him in the side. "You should be saying 'Finally, we've succeeded in the attack!'"

"It hurts! You, dark-skinned uncle, are too ruthless!"

Deafening cheers rang out all around, but the most praise today still went to Hachiman.

Hachiman, who was the focus of everyone's attention, was frantically trying to catch Asuna who was flying towards him and hugging her. Seeing this scene, most people showed surprised expressions.

"husband--!"

Asuna hung on Hachiman's neck like a koala, wrapped her white legs around his waist, and kissed his Adam's apple in full view of everyone.

Hachiman then realized that so many people didn't know about their relationship.

"It's started again..." Silica complained softly while hugging Bina, but she saw that the familiar was covering its eyes with its wings, with only the tip of its tail swaying happily from side to side.

Hachiman frantically held his wife's hips, his ears red as if blood was dripping: "Get down quickly..."

"Ah, sorry I didn't tell you before that Asuna and I got married a few days ago."

Among the crowd who heard this, about 30% showed expressions of sudden enlightenment, while the rest had a mixture of heartbreak and jealousy on their faces.

Asuna, however, showed off to everyone with a matter-of-fact look on her face:

"Look everyone, my husband is so awesome!"

Upon hearing this, some people held their foreheads and sighed, "Here we go again," while more people were stunned.

"Hey, Asuna, it's really embarrassing to say that in this situation."

“But it’s true.”

"Okay, okay, got it."

Hachiman stroked Asuna's hair with a gentle expression, but Asuna still held him tightly.

This intimate scene woke everyone up from their dream and immediately exploded:

"Damn it! Showing affection in public!"

"Ms. Asuna, why is this happening..."

“But I’ve always felt they were a good match.”

"Me too!"

"Why don't we all give our collective blessing to the newlyweds!"

"That's right!"

"thank you all!"

"Um...thank you very much."

Hachiman thanked him and looked around the room. He glanced at Heathcliff, confirming his HP had been reduced to half. He immediately whispered to Asuna:

"I'm going to Bakaha. After you lead everyone back to their positions, find a way to stop Heathcliff from drinking the potion."

"...Is the showdown finally coming? Got it."

Then Hachiman deliberately raised his voice so that Heathcliff could hear:

"I'll go and comfort Bakaha first. He hasn't had any rest."

"Good~"

Hachiman, who had come to Bakaha's side, pretended to offer his condolences, patting his shoulder and shaking his hand while secretly slipping him a paralysis recovery potion. While blocking Heathcliff's view, he quickly explained:

"Keep a neutral expression and listen carefully: there will be an unexpected event next. You must find the right moment to use this item to attack. I won't have time to explain the details, but you will understand soon. Sorry."

"Yes, I understand."

Bakaha nodded without question. The trust built over the years was evident in this moment.

"I'm so sorry. Take a break first, and remember to hold on to this tool."

"Yes"

Hachiman returned and switched guard with Asuna, standing in front of Heathcliff.

"I'm sorry I couldn't give you a break in the second half."

"It doesn't matter, the result is perfect enough"

Hachiman nodded in greeting and suddenly shouted, "Hey~ Godfree!"

The strong man who came running was told: "Go and comfort the leader."

"Oh yes! Thank you for your hard work, Captain!"

After confirming that Godfrey had entangled Heathcliff, Hachiman dodged behind Agil and Klein and winked at Kirito. The black-clad swordsman immediately charged with all his might!

"Well!"

Godfrey was the first to notice something was amiss. Heathcliff turned at the sound, hastily drawing his sword but a moment too late. Amidst the clash of metal, everyone was startled to see Kirito's sword tip pressed against the captain's chest, while the words "IMMORTAL OBJECT" loomed above his head.

"What are you doing to the leader?"

"Wait, that sign..."

"Undead attribute... Captain?"

Heathcliff uttered a long sigh.

"call......"

Under everyone's gaze, he calmly asked, "How did you notice it, Kirito-kun? I thought Hachiman-kun would be the first to notice it."

"You guessed right. It was Hachiman who first saw through it. Heathcliff... No, Kayaba Akihiko!"

The name caused an uproar.

"The leader is Kayaba?!"

"But it did show the immortal attribute just now."

"Could it be that..."

"Captain! Please tell us this isn't true!"

Facing Godfrey's final question, Heathcliff said calmly: "Although it was revealed earlier than expected...Yes, I am Kayaba Akihiko."

Before he finished speaking, everyone suddenly fell into paralysis.

"Gu...what's going on?"

"Captain..."

"Now that we can talk quietly, when did Hachiman-kun discover this?"

"The last time you used the system assistance in front of me, although I had my suspicions, I was convinced only then."

"...As expected, seeing Kirito's attack was too fierce, I used the system assistance in a hurry. I thought I had hidden it from you."

"What a shame about your acting skills"

"As expected of you, I originally wanted to reveal my identity on the 95th floor and fight you all as the 100th floor BOSS."

"I expected you to do this."

"Have you even calculated this? What a shame! Looks like I'll have to wait for you all on the 100th floor in advance, but..."

He suddenly changed the subject: "Leaving like this would be boring. Let me give you one last gift - choose a representative to duel with me. If you win, you will pass the level."

"...we accept"

Kirito, Klein, and Agil watched in shock as events unfolded exactly as Hachiman had planned. Although Asuna appeared calm, no one delved into the matter.

"Hachiman-kun will fight this time?"

"My fighting style has no chance of winning"

"Then let's fight Kirito-kun again."