Episode 17: Captive Queen

Lyfa thanks Kirito for saving her and teaches him how to fly properly. They then travel to the Sylph Territory (Sylvein) where they meet one of Lyfa's party members, Recon. Lyfa and Kirito go to an inn and have a conversation about how Kirito can get to the top of the World Tree. Seeing Kirito's determination to reach the top of the tree, Lyfa decides to help him and asks him to meet her at the inn the next day. When Lyfa logs out, it is shown that she is actually Suguha. Meanwhile, Asuna is seen in a gigantic bird cage at the World Tree, held by the game master, Oberon the Fairy King. She recognizes Oberon as Sugou, who insists on calling her "Titania". He reveals to Asuna how he captured the minds of 300 players before they were logged out from SAO including her own, as part of his research on memory control. He threatens to alter Asuna's memories if she does not cooperate with him and then departs, leaving Asuna in despair and quietly begging for Kirito to save her.