Sword Art Online - Ordinal Scale Volume 01 (manga)

Sword Art Online - Ordinal Scale Volume 01 (劇場版 ソードアート・オンライン -オーディナル・スケール- 1) is the first volume of the Ordinal Scale manga adaptation. The volume covers the events of the Ordinal Scale movie up to the end of Eiji's assault on the Fuurinkazan guild and the defeat of The Storm Griffin, the boss of the 11th Floor in Sword Art Online.

Summary
In the year 2026, a highly-advanced augmented reality console known as the Augma entered the market as an alternative to the most widely used virtual reality console, the AmuSphere. With the introduction of Ordinal Scale (OS), the first Augmented Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (ARMMORPG) for the Augma, the new console quickly became popular.

On April 24, 2026, having learnt about rumors of Sword Art Online (SAO) monsters appearing in OS from his friends, Kirigaya Kazuto (Kirito) decided to participate in a boss fight alongside Yuuki Asuna and Tsuboi Ryoutarou (Klein). As the players participating in the battle struggled with the boss, the second-ranked player in the game, Eiji, suddenly joined the fight, helping change the tide of battle.

The following day, members of the Fuurinkazan guild were ambushed by an SAO Field Boss while waiting for one of their own to arrive for an official Ordinal Scale boss fight. Although the guild was faring well against the monster, they were abruptly assaulted by Eiji mid-battle, who physically injured the players, before allowing the boss to defeat them in-game.

Prologue
One night in Sword Art Online, Asuna and Kirito were enjoying the night sky of Aincrad. As Asuna complained about having never seen shooting stars because her neighbourhood was too bright, Kirito remarked that there were several good places to see them in his area, and thus they made a promise to see meteor showers some day in the real world. Kirito additionally promised to have a gift for Asuna that day.

Chapter 1
More than a year after clearing the Sword Art Online game, some day in April 2026, Eiji was watching a group of players participating in an Ordinal Scale battle against, much to their surprise, Illfang the Kobold Lord, the boss of the 1st Floor of Aincrad in Sword Art Online. Once the skirmish was over, an AI idol YUNA complained to Eiji of not being able to sing enough; however, the boy assured her she would soon have more chances, since it was only the beginning of their revenge. Meanwhile, while in his laboratory, Shigemura Tetsuhiro was reminiscencing the events of SAO and its creator, Kayaba Akihiko.

On April 24, Asuna, Ayano Keiko (Silica), and Shinozaki Rika (Lisbeth) played an AR Pac-Man 256-like game in co-op mode in a restaurant, while Kazuto observed their game with disinterest. Having cleared the game, which earned the girls some free cakes, the group mused about a new Augmented Reality (AR) device named Augma and Ordinal Scale, an AR game that quickly became popular among the masses. The game's idol YUNA had also gained a lot of popularity, resulting in her first live concert being planned at the New National Stadium in Tokyo later that month.

Having exited the restaurant, the group were strolling at a mall outside, when Rika and Asuna had a conversation using an Augma chat. Asked by her friend how much money she had managed to gather for her goal so far, Asuna replied that she lacked about a half of the needed amount. A moment later, Keiko mentioned the upcoming YUNA's concert, which students of the SAO Survivor School were granted a free ticket for, as well as given their own Augma. Hearing that, Rika created a virtual stage for Keiko, compelling her to sing one of YUNA's songs in the middle of the mall.

Upon finishing an excerpt from the song and rushed back to the group in embarrassment, the girl recalled a rumour about the appearance of Sword Art Online bosses in Ordinal Scale. As the location of the boss battles was only revealed nearly at the last minute, Rika mused over a method of transportation to reach one in time. However, while glaring at her boyfriend with a smile, Asuna replied that it should not be a problem.

On the same day, in the evening, Kazuto and Asuna drove on the boy's motorbike to the location of an upcoming battle, where they met with Tsuboi Ryoutarou and his guild members, the Fuurinkazan. A moment later, as the skirmish was about to begin, the couple activated their Augma devices.