Sword Art Online Episode 24

Gilded Hero (鍍金の勇者 Mekki no Yūsha ? ) is the twenty-fourth episode of the Sword Art Online anime adaptation. It aired on December 15, 2012.

Plot
Yui teleports Kirito somewhere inside the World Tree, where she detects Asuna. She guides him through the corridors and exits to the branches of the World Tree, where Kirito finds out that there's no such City in the sky and that The Grand Quest was a lie. They continue running until they see the cage in where Asuna is held prisoner.

Yui opens the cage and runs to hug Asuna. Moments later, Kirito joins and they're happy to meet again, but suddenly Kirito draws his sword because he senses someone coming and the space in the cage distorts into a black space. Yui tells them to be careful because someone evil was approaching and disappears. Kirito and Asuna are forced into the floor, where they can't move and then Sugou as Fairy King Oberon appears saying that it's the new "Gravity Magic" that will be implemented into the game in the next update.

Sugou summons a pair of chains and grabs Asuna with them, the chains lift her and he starts enjoying Asuna's scent and talking about how hard it was to replicate it from the real world. Kirito tells him to stop while trying to stand and Sugou hits him and stabs him with his sword and reduces the Pain Absorption level from 10 to 8 to make Kirito feel the pain from being stabbed and that he will gradually decrease the level and in level 3 or lower it will affect his physical body.

Sugou returns to Asuna and strips her while Kirito is mourning if this was his punishment, for thinking he was the strongest game player and he was able to overcome the system. In that moment Kayaba Akihiko appears and tells him that if he thinks like that, their battle was a lie. He also tells him not to give into reality and that he learned human will is more important. He then tells him to stand up.

Kirito comes back and manages to stand up, he activates Kayaba's system ID, Heathcliff, and revokes Sugou's administrative privileges. Sugou tries to spawn an Excaliber, but the system doesn't respond to him. Instead Kirito spawns an Excaliber and reduces the Pain Absorption level to zero before challenging Sugou to a duel and giving him Excalibur, while Kirito uses his own sword. Sugou desperately attacks, but Kirito parries all attacks before cutting Sugou on the cheek. Sugou starts trembling from the pain. Kirito cuts Sugou's right hand, then his legs, and finally throws his remaining body to the air and stabs him into his sword making him disappear.

Kirito turns back to Asuna, breaks the chains and hugs her and tells her that he'll truly become strong, before logging her out. He calls Kayaba who gives him "The Seed" and tells him to decide what to do with it. Then Kirito returns to the cage where he calls for Yui who was now stored in Kirito's NerveGear's memory. He tells her that Asuna has returned to the real world, hugs her and logs out.

When he opens his eyes he finds Suguha, who is worried about him. She hugs him and he tells her that he rescued Asuna, so Suguha prompts him to go to the hospital because Asuna must be waiting for him. Outside where it starts snowing, Kazuto takes his bike and starts riding his way to the hospital.

Adaptation Notes

 * Adapted from Sword Art Online Light Novel Volume 4