Marten

Marten (マーテン) is the main settlement of the 57th Floor of Aincrad. Marten was a base camp city while the front line was still at the 59th Floor and is a popular place for its restaurants and as a tourist attraction.

Description
Marten is a large urban city that, based on its architecture, is likely based on the old town of a city in southern Europe, possibly Florence. The city has a large number of buildings built compactly within the city, and with narrow alleyways between the buildings. All buildings within the city have red terracotta tile roofs and most of them have 2 to 3 floors, with the first floor having columns, most of which form arches. The city has stone floors and also has a round and spacious central plaza, with a park taking the most space within it. A rather large Gothic church or cathedral is located in the north side of the plaza, while the rest of the plaza is lined with NPC and player-owned stores.

The outside area of Marten is a grassland filled with some craggy old trees.

Notable Locations

 * Unnamed NPC restaurant.
 * Cathedral
 * Marten's plaza
 * yaMahaya Lodge

A Murder Case in the Area
Asuna and Kirito come to the city, as Asuna promised to treat Kirito to dinner at a restaurant of his choosing. However, their meal is interrupted when they hear a scream coming outside. When they reach Marten's plaza, they notice a person dangling from the 2nd floor of a cathedral at the front end loop of a rope. After the person dies and a “Duel Winner” notification is not seen anywhere in the vicinity, Kirito and Asuna begin investigating the mysterious Murder in the AREA case. After not being able to find the culprit anywhere, they ask the crowd at the cathedral for any eyewitnesses. After hearing the story of an eyewitness named Yolko, they escort her to the yaMahaya Lodge, as she was reluctant to return to the lower floors by herself. The two then travel to Algade to have Agil inspect the murder weapon.

The next morning, at 9 AM, Asuna and Kirito gather at the plaza of Marten and head to a nearby cafe for breakfast. While eating and discussing, Kirito suggests testing a theory about the DoT damage and they head out of town. After proving that the Pierce DoT is nullified within the AREA, they return to Yolko's inn by 10 AM and then go to a restaurant to talk about the case in private. After learning about the fate of the Golden Apple guild, they lead Yolko back to the inn with several days worth of food. After discussing their remaining options on what to do next, they decide to contact Heathcliff for advice, so they travel to Algade again to meet up with him.

After Schmitt requests to meet with Yolko before he tells them the location of the shop that Grimlock frequents, Kirito and Asuna bring Schmitt to Yolko's room in the yaMahaya Lodge in Marten. After Yolko is seemingly killed within the inn room by a hooded player, Kirito jumps out through the window to reach the roof of the building opposite the inn and begins chasing the hooded player. However, before Kirito is able to reach him, the player activates a Teleport Crystal under the cover of the 5 o'clock bell chime, preventing Kirito from hearing the destination. After he returns to the inn, he asks Schmitt for the location of the shop and to write down the names of the Golden Apple members, after which, they escort him back to his guild headquarters on the 56th Floor.

Trivia

 * Marten's plaza was said to be round in the novel, while the anime portrays it as a rectangle.
 * The anime does not portray a Teleport Gate within Marten's central plaza.