Sword art online / Kawahara, Reki

Kazuto Kirigaya, aka Kirito, dives back into the virtual reality game "ALfheim Online" to save Asuna, who has not regained consciousness, and he meets a girl named Leafa, who decides to help him in his quest. Unknown to both of them, however, is the fact that Leafa is Kirito's real life sister and, even in the game, she instinctively needs to help and protect him.

"Kirito plunges into a suspicious new VRMMORPG called ALfheim Online resuce Asuna, who never returned from Sword Art Online. ALO offers many features to entertain players in the wake of SAO: ultra-high-end graphics, action-heavy gameplay, a choice of fairy races, and a next-generation flight engine. Playing as a spriggan, Kirito heads for the location of Asuna's prison--the top of the World Tree, the final destination of every player in the game! Along the way, Kirito nearly falls to a plot hatched by enemy salamanders, just barely surviving the ordeal with the help of a sylph named Leafa and his Navigation Pixie, Yui. But just as Kirito and Leafa make it to the foot of the World Tree, the end of their quest in sight, each realizes the other has a very big secret"--Back cover.

Kirito and Leafa finally manage to fight their way to the town of Alne, at the foot of the World Tree, but before they can begin their ascent, server maintenance forces them to log out. In the real world, Kazuto and Suguha Kirigaya both visit Asuna Yuuki in the hospital, and although they are still unaware of each other's in-game identities, Suguha realizes just how much her brother cares for the unconscious girl. Meanwhile, in the game, Asuna puts an escape plan in motion.

Kazuto Kirigaya, aka Kirito, beat "Sword Art Online" and revived from his game-induced coma but the same cannot be said for many others, including Asuna Yuuki, the girl Kirito fell in love with while in the virtual reality massively multiplayer online role playing game. When he discovers that Asuna is still alive, Kirito re-enters the game to try to save her.