Silica/Synopsis

## Biography

### Background

Silica grew up in a very abusive and neglectful environment. Her mother was an alcoholic, to the point that she drank during her pregnancy with Silica. When she was four years old, Silica would spend her time eating her crayons long enough to determine which color was her favorite.

### Aincrad Arc

#### Pre-Episode 4

On November 6, 2022, Silica got her hands on a NerveGear and a copy of Sword Art Online, a VRMMO set in a multifloored castle in the sky called Aincrad. She logged into SAO and was trapped in the game along with 10,000 other players.

At some point during the next two years, she encountered a Feathered Little Dragon and tamed it, naming it Pina.

#### Episode 4

On February 23, 2024, Silica formed a Party with a woman named Rosalia and three boys and they raided the Lost Forest on Floor 35. At some point during the raid, Silica got into an argument with Rosalia, as she demanded Silica to give up Pina so she can turn them into a pair of leather pants. Silica adamantly refuses, despite the other Party members' eagerness to see Rosalia wearing them, to which Rosalia offers to make Silica a pair too. Horrified by Rosalia's compromise, Silica decides to leave the Party, stating that she'll form her own, which will just consist of Pina and herself.

Later that same day, Silica and Pina get ambushed by group of Drunk Apes. Silica tries to reassure herself, as she has Pina with her, but when she orders Pina to heal her, she recovers a minuscule amount of health. Silica is then thrown into a tree and her health bar turns orange. Silica asks Pina to heal her again, but Pina alerts her that their healing spell isn't ready yet. Silica tells Pina that they're doing their best, but orders them to hold the Drunk Apes off while she recovers from her injury. Pina proceeds to do so, only to get knocked down in a single hit. Pina then starts to glow. Silica initially thinks is a sign that Pina is evolving, encouraging them to do so, only to become horrified when Pina dies, leaving a single feather behind. The Drunk Apes then surround Silica, who is paralyzed out of shock. Luckily for her, just as the Drunk Apes are about to kill her, she is saved by a player named Kirito, who destroys the monsters. At first, Silica hears Kirito in a sexy voice, asking if she's okay, but when Silica asks him to repeat himself, Kirito is actually telling Silica to stop staring at him, as he finds it creepy.

Coming to her senses, Silica bursts into tears over the death of her pet, holding the feather that was left behind. Kirito stares awkwardly at Silica before stating he better get going. Silica asks Kirito if he's going to console her, but Kirito refuses, stating that he's "not pulling the pin on that grenade". Realizing he's right, Silica apologizes to Kirito, stating that, "This isn't your fault." Luckily for Silica, these words seem to trigger something inside Kirito, causing him to ask Silica what's wrong. Silica then goes on a long anecdote about her entire life, which lasts approximately seven hours, much to Kirito's dismay.

During her exposition dump, Kirito takes the rambling Silica to a tavern in Mishe, where he bangs his head on the table. When Silica finally reaches the end of her tale, Kirito expresses his disdain for the massive dump of useless knowledge he just experienced, stating that the brain cells that could've been used to beat the game have been used to remember which crayons Silica used to eat when she was four. Annoyed, Kirito offers to tell Silica how to revive her pet if she agrees to leave him alone, only for Silica to correct him when he calls Pina a hamster. Kirito then proceeds to rant about how much he doesn't care, but Silica cuts him off, asking if he's going to help or not.

With his fury extinguished, Kirito tells Silica that there's a Dungeon on Floor 47, called the Hill of Memories, that rewards players with a special item called the Pneuma Flower, which has the ability to revive pets. Silica is overjoyed to learn that Pina can be revived, but Kirito informs her that the item won't work three days after the pet's death. Shocked by how little time they have left, she tells Kirito that they better get going, only to find out that Kirito won't be joining her on the quest.

Kirito then leaves the tavern, with Silica chasing after him. Silica tries to change Kirito's mind, stating that she'll die on her own, but Kirito reminds her that he doesn't care. As Silica continues to follow him, they run into Rosalia, who Silica isn't pleased to see again. Noticing that she doesn't have her pet anymore, Rosalia asks Silica what happened to Pina, to which Silica informs her that they died. Rosalia then asks if Silica was able to make some pants out of Pina's remains, which Silica adamantly denies. Rosalia is disappointed that Silica wasted the opportunity, something Kirito agrees with, as Dragon leather is surprisingly comfortable.

Unamused by Kirito's comment, Silica proclaims that she'll revive Pina no matter what. Rosalia's attention then focusses on Kirito, commenting how nice it is that Silica found someone on her level, a statement that enrages Kirito. Rosalia then comments on Kirito's "tough guy" persona, calling it "cute" and sarcastically commenting on how convincing it is, all with an overly sweet tone. Rosalia then deduces that Kirito and Silica were heading to the Hill of Memories, stating that the two will have no problem clearing it together. Silica tries to explain that Kirito isn't joining her, but Kirito cuts her off, stating that "[they]'ve got a hamster to save". Silica is overjoyed that Kirito changed his mind, proclaiming that "Operation: Save Pina is go". The two then checked into a hotel where Silica heard Kirito crying over someone named Sachi in his room.

The next day, after buying some new equipment for Silica, Kirito and Silica arrive in the Floor 47 town of Floria. Once they arrive, Kirito asks Silica if she heard anything last night. Embarrassed, Silica denies it, claiming that she was a heavy sleeper. Kirito is relieved that Silica didn't hear him and leads her into the Dungeon. However, Silica's curiosity gets the better of her and she who Sachi was, which infuriates Kirito.

Before Silica can get an answer, however, she is attacked by a Garish Gerbera, which hangs her upside down over its mouth. In this state, Silica worries that Kirito will be able to look up her skirt, making Kirito question her priorities. Silica panics, asking Kirito what to do, to which Kirito tells her to calm down, as she has everything she needs to defeat the monster. Silica initially thinks Kirito means she has the power to believe in herself, but Kirito clarifies that he was referring to her knife and tells her to stab it. Following Kirito's commands, Silica frees herself and kills the monster. Kirito then advises Silica to stick behind him, as her level is so low it's attracting all the monsters in the Dungeon. Silica reassures Kirito that she can take care of herself. However, this is immediately disproven when Silica is attacked by another monster within seconds, much to Kirito's annoyance.

After traversing through the Dungeon, the two eventually come across a flower on a podium. Believing that they have completed their quest, Silica picks up the flower with delight. However, Kirito tells her that it's not the real flower, and they need to collect at least fifty more, which will then be traded for a gem that they need to give to an NPC, who will let them into another Dungeon, where they'll fight a series of Bosses, after which they'll be rewarded with the real flower. Silica is shocked by how complicated the quest is, which makes Kirito realize that Silica doesn't play many RPGs.

After the excruciating process, they finally acquire the item and start heading back. However, just as they exit the Dungeon, Kirito Silica from going any further. He starts monologuing that a nearby tree must be the "fabled Word Tree of Gamagorath", but he soon gets bored and asks the person behind it to come out. The player emerges and is revealed to be Rosalia, who comments that Kirito's Detection Skill must be quite high to have sensed her presence. Greeting her, Kirito tries to mock Rosalia by mimicking her overly cheery persona, but gets annoyed with it rather quickly, asking how Rosalia can keep it up all day. Rosalia is impressed that Kirito managed to see through her act, revealing that she is the leader of the bandit Guild, Titan's Hand. However, Kirito says he's never heard of her Guild, stating that he thought she was a member of Laughing Coffin. Rosalia tries to save face by declaring that they are one of the most feared Guilds the lower Floors, but Kirito states that means they're only intimidating to players that think Slimes are terrifying, which includes Silica.

Rosalia is unaffected by Kirito's sharp tongue, stating that it's just a distraction to hide the fact that he is a sad, lonely boy with no one who loves him. Rosalia proves this by claiming that Kirito knew about her plans, and only helped Silica to use her as bait to lure Rosalia and her Guild out. Silica denies this allegation, stating that Kirito would never do that, only for Kirito to confirm that's exactly what he did, much to Silica's shock. Rosalia then belittles Kirito, pointing out how he's hiding behind the persona of the "invincible warrior" he can never be in reality, stating that getting trapped in SAO must've been the best thing that's ever happened to him. She finally concludes that it doesn't matter how tough he pretends to be, as it will never hide the one thing he can't escape: He sounds like a girl.

This comment sends Kirito over the edge, bursting into maniacal laughter. With Kirito reduced to such an unstable state, Rosalia confidently states that her Guild will be taking the Pneuma Flower now. Kirito doubts that Rosalia can take the item from them, which prompts Rosalia to summon her thugs out from their hiding places. Silica is surprised by how many enemies there are but states she'll back Kirito up in the fight. However, Kirito simply pats Silica on the head, telling her it's adorable that she thinks the bandits are a threat. He then tells her that the show is about to start, warning her that "the first three rows are a splash zone", before walking towards the Guild alone, laughing as he goes.

Seeing this, one of the thugs points out that Kirito thought he was going up against Laughing Coffin, yet he just brought himself and a small child, asking Rosalia if they should mess with him. Rosalia reassures her thugs, stating Kirito is all talk, and now that she's broken him, he's just a gibbering mess grasping at straws. Kirito is amused by this "theory" and allows the Guild to take the first shot. Slightly concerned, one of Rosalia's thugs tells her that he thinks this is a trap. Rosalia ignores him, stating that they're all Level 45 and outnumber Kirito, and orders them to kill him. The thugs then attack Kirito, who just stands there taking the blows. Silica worries that Rosalia really did break Kirito's will to fight back, but just as she's about to jump in and save him, Kirito's health suddenly regenerates, much to her confusion.

Eventually, the thugs run out of breath and stop attacking him. Rosalia orders them to finish the job, but one of the thugs exclaims that they threw everything they had at him, yet Kirito is still standing. Kirito then explains that, while Rosalia may think she had him all figured out, there's one thing she didn't account for: He's Level 78. This means that his level is so high that his health regenerates faster than they can damaged him, meaning that their attempts to kill him are futile. Kirito then proclaims that the thugs don't have to wonder where their god is anymore, because he's right in front of them, "and he's fresh outta mercy". This causes one thug to burst into tears. Backed into a corner, Rosalia states that this only proves her point, and that Kirito's strength in the game is an illusion to cover his real weaknesses. However, Kirito attacks her midsentence, slitting her throat and fatally wounding her, telling her that he's "gettin' *real* tired of [her] first-year psych student bullshit". Unfortunately for Kirito, Rosalia gets the last laugh, telling him that this is the deepest he'll ever be in a woman, before she finally dies, much to Kirito's dismay. This whole scene leaves Silica fairly terrified.

Later, back in Silica's hotel room, Silica asks Kirito why he isn't feeling anything after killing Rosalia, to which Kirito explains he no longer has feelings due to going "cold turkey". Shocked, Silica asks him what's the point of living if he can't experience things like happiness, wonder or love. This causes Kirito to change his mind, realizing that, if doesn't have emotions anymore, he can't fully enjoy his revenge, which Silica takes as a pyrrhic victory. Kirito then states that Silica is a good friend and that they should go on more adventures together. However, Silica declines the offer, stating that, while she's grateful for Kirito's help, he is the worst person she's ever met. Although hurt by this, Kirito respects Silica's method of "cutting him down a peg", to which Silica states that this way of thinking is "kinda the problem".

Regardless, Silica states that everything they've gone through together will all be worth it to have Pina back. They then prepare to revive Pina, by using the flower on a feather Pina left behind. However, the game announces that the time limit to revive Pina has expired, and the feather explodes. Kirito apologizes to the devastated Silica for her loss, only for Silica to let out a bloodcurdling scream, before going on a rampage, causing mass destruction in her wake.

#### Post-Episode 4

It is unknown what happened to Silica, but it can be assumed she was freed from SAO, along with all of the other players, after Kirito defeated Kayaba.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Episode 4
2. ↑ Episode 1
3. ↑ Episode 11