Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Confrontation

-Heathcliff-

'What?'

He thought.

If it weren't for the System's timely assistance, he wouldn't have noticed.

But from where?

How?

And besides that, more importantly—did this kid just say his name?

Heathcliff turned his back to face Sharia, whose fist was still stopped in midair by his own hand holding his fist.

The moment Heathcliff did, he saw the immense aftereffects. 

Some players had been blown away, followed by a gust of wind which hadn't fully dissipated.

'All the way from over there?'

Heathcliff thought as the Cardinal System allowed him to trace back how Sharia attacked him.

'Wait, this kid… Isn't he the—? I see now… Was he sent by her? Is she assisting him?'

His thoughts swirled in confusion, only to be brought back by Sharia's voice.

"As expected. I wasn't mistaken."

It wasn't until after Sharia said that that Heathcliff regained his composure. 

He tightened his grip on Sharia's fist before throwing him away.

All of this happened in just a few seconds.

However, Sharia broke his fall by crashing into the lined up stairs of the meeting coliseum.

Although it took down his health significantly, this wasn't a problem for the so-called: Little Monster.

And it was then—

"What just happened?"

"Sh–Sharia-sama?"

The boy in question simply swiped his hand across his face before motioning for the others not to come closer.

"You… know me?"

Extremely curious about how Sharia knew, Heathcliff asked. 

He wondered if Sharia could have called out his real name.

But it seemed like the kid didn't.

This only solidified his suspicion that Sharia was sent by her—but why? Or so he had thought.

'System Command. Generate player information. Player ID: Sharia.'

Heathcliff gave the order. 

Whatever he found, he'd have to make do with it.

After all, Sharia's real name, address, and every other necessary piece of information should now be on his palm if Sharia did register to play SAO.

"What are you talking about? Of course, I do." 

Sharia said, causing Heathcliff's heart to spike slightly.

"However, I do not know of you. Why did you attack me out of nowhere?"

Heathcliff said this, making Sharia put his hand on his chin, looking up, then turning his head all around.

After doing so, Sharia brought his hand down, glaring at him.

"Stop speaking as if you're innocent. It disgusts me."

Sharia's words only further reinforced Heathcliff's thoughts.

Heathcliff couldn't open his system panel out here. 

It may expose him, and besides Sharia was too fast to give him the chance.

And yes, for him… if it weren't for the System's assistance, he wouldn't have reacted in time.

That meant… He's either a bug in the system, planted by her, or… no, it has to be that, huh?

'I don't see why she would do such a thing. At the same time, I believe she would.'

Coming out of his thoughts, Heathcliff looked at Sharia.

"And? Why haven't you said it?"

Heathcliff found it strange. 

If Sharia truly knew, why didn't he say it? Isn't it in his interest to help clear the game and free the trapped players?

Not that exposing Heathcliff would instantly clear the game.

And as Heathcliff said that, Sharia's response was—

"Really, it'd be nothing more than a pain in the ass. It doesn't change the objectives."

Even if Sharia exposed him here and now, what Heathcliff would have done is simple really, and that was to leave and wait it out on the hundredth floor.

In the end, that wouldn't change the objective of SAO. 

Additionally, Sharia would be questioned about how he knew about Heathcliff.

Surely, that'd spoil the fun.

In the end, nothing much would change. 

So why not keep it hidden for a little while—and torment him in the process?

Furthermore, Sharia deduced another thing: if his attack didn't work, it meant Heathcliff's System Assist was passively on.

He'd gotten a brief idea of how Heathcliff's System Assist worked. 

Along with the information he'd known before—if he continues piecing information like this then….

Defeating Heathcliff even with System Assist might not be a pipe dream.

"Is that so? I see you aren't inherently stupid. I had thought you were all brawn and no brain."

At Heathcliff's words, Sharia's fighting spirit ignited once more.

"Oh? For an exposed person, you sure love to run your mouth. Unfortunately for you, I'm not as stupid as you think I am."

"Well then, what is it you want?"

"To make your life a living hell."

"How do you plan to do that?"

"Everything you build from now on—watch as I bring it all crumbling down."

Sharia pointed to the ground as he said this. 

The statement alone foreshadowed chaos in the future.

That perfect paradise Heathcliff wanted? 

Sharia's main goal was to destroy it.

Ah, of course, this didn't and wouldn't come at the cost of the innocent players' lives.

It was him alone. Kayaba's mentality.

"Heh. Hahahahaha. Interesting. Then I will wait. I'll look forward to that."

Heathcliff said this while walking away from the venue, side-eyeing Sharia until he was out of sight.

By the time Heathcliff left the venue, when nobody was looking, in a safe place, he teleported away.

Reappearing, he stood in a dark space illuminated by the glow of humongous screens arranged in a circular shape.

The man sat down, opening the system menu.

"So this is it… huh?"

[Player ID: Sharia]

[Name: Unknown]

[Age: 16]

[Data Corrupted]

Apart from his age and Player ID, everything else was corrupted. 

Why was this?

"System. Fetch me Player ID: Sharia additional data."

He commanded the system, typing furiously on a holographic keyboard to resolve the corrupted data.

It didn't take long. 

After using several antivirus detections, force encryptions, and other measures—

Still, while the data changed, it made no sense to him.

[Player ID: Sharia]

[Name: Sh—]

[Age: 16]

[E-mail: —]

[Password: —]

[Home address: —]

[Mobile address: —]

Everything was gibberish.

After rechecking, the system confirmed that this was indeed the player's data.

But this baffled Heathcliff.

This was beyond GM control.

"It can't be… you're helping him, aren't you? Rinko."

Kayaba thought as the screen changed, displaying what was now happening in the Colosseum after he left.