Sword Art Online Volume 17 – Alicization Awakening Chapter 20 - Each of their Battles 16 But Lisbeth placed her left hand on her chest, and continued to shout: “But I know! And I believe! This is reality!!” Her arms motioned towards her surroundings — towards the whole of Alfheim. “This world, and the many other virtual worlds connected to it, are obviously not imaginary places that we escape to! To me, there are real lives here, real friends, real laughter, tears, encounters, and farewells… This is ‘reality’!! I’m not alone, am I?! It’s because we believe this world is another reality that we try as hard as we do, right?! Yet, if we see this as only a game, as only a virtual world, and abandon it, then where is our ‘reality’…?!!” Unable to hold them back any longer, Lisbeth felt tears rolling down her face. But she did not wipe them away, and squeezed out her last words: “… The numerous worlds that everyone raised; they came together like this World Tree, and the tree has grown. Now that the blossom called Underworld has finally bloomed, I want to protect it! Please, I beg of you… lend your strength to us…!!” Lisbeth reached out towards the roof of the dome. In her vision trembling with tears, phosphorescence sparkled, falling from thousands of fairy wings. *** A brilliant silver light drew a long, bright arc in the dawn. A second later, with a dry snap, a thick rope was severed, and danced in the air like a black serpent. The tens of enemy soldiers hanging from the rope were plunged into the bottomless valley, howling. The «Twin Edged Wings», the Divine Instrument that had cut the rope, turned in a sharp curve and returned to the hands of Integrity Knight Renri Synthesis Twenty-Seven.