It has been a year since the conclusion of the Sword Art Online incident and ten months following that of ALfheim Online. Despite some semblance of normalcy for a while, strange occurrences have emerged in another VRMMORPG called Gun Gale Online (GGO). Two players were shot by an unknown assailant wearing a mantle who goes by the name "Death Gun" and subsequently disconnected from the game. Their real-life bodies were discovered dead several days later. Following this second incident, Kirigaya Kazuto is approached by Kikuoka Seijirou of the VR Crimes Division to investigate rumors that Death Gun's in-game actions are linked to the deaths of players in reality.
After learning about Death Gun's target preference - top players only - Kazuto decides to use The Seeds character conversion feature to transfer his ALfheim Online avatar into GGO and participate in the renowned Bullet of Bullets tournament to lure Death Gun out of hiding.
Sword Art Online: Phantom Bullet has been published in English by Yen Press since January 26, 2016.