Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-37185619-20181020220225/@comment-35248429-20200408210717

The actual literall definition of a harem is the part of the household reserved for wives and concubines.

Yes, but there aren't harems where the canon ending happens before the harem part. They hang around together because they're all friends independant of Kirito, especially Asuna and Lizbeth, and Asuna and Sinon, the former being friends before Lizbeth even meets Kirito.

I don't know why people are so resistant to the fact that this series just isn't a harem.