Welcome back to another chapter of The Black Swordsman and the Gray Huntsman. Last time, the twins just witnessed the deaths of the Moonlit Black Cats and it was a very emotional point in their lives since being trapped in SAO. Their deaths was a major blow to them emotionally, but Sachi's final message to them managed to get them out of their funk and get them back on track. Now they are more determined than ever to clearing the game. Before going on, just a heads up I am still going through with Yuga going through with forming a guild. Let me know what you all think of it. So, thank you all for waiting and here is the next chapter.
Chapter 3
The Black Swordsman and The Gray Huntsman
February 23, 2024 * 35th Floor – Forest of Wandering
In the forest dungeon on the 35th floor, a party had just completed a hunting quest, but not everyone was happy upon it's completion. Currently, a tall woman with red hair was arguing with a short girl with brown hair done in pigtails held with red ribbons with a blue feathered dragon that looked to be the size of a house cat lying on her head were having an argument while their three other guild mates watched.
"What are you talking about? Why should we have to share these healing crystals with you? Your pet lizard has healing powers you know." The woman with red hair, Rosalia, argued with the girl.
The girl in question glared angrily at the woman while her pet dragon growled in offense at the womans comment. She had red eyes and donned a yellow jacket with a silver breastplate covering her chest with pauldrons on her shoulders, brown shorts, black gloves, and armed with a dagger behind her back. "But you never fight on the front lines so who are you to talk?" The girl retorted angrily. "You don't need any crystals."
"Of course I do." Rosalia replied back while twirling her hair like she didn't have a care in the world. "You're the popular one around here Silica. I can't expect the boys to help me when I need it." She said arrogantly, causing both the girl, now known as Silica, and her dragon to growl at her response.
"Ah come on, it isn't like that." One of the male guild members said trying to diffuse the situation, but with no success.
"Fine, I don't care." Silica said as she closed her menu. "You want my items, take them. But I'm never going to team up with you again. I know there's a ton of other parties out there who would love to have me on their side." Silica proclaimed angrily as she stormed off into the forest.
"Wait, don't go!" Another male guild member tried to stop Silica from going, but she ignored his protest and continued into the forest. Unknown to them, a pair of familiar twins were eavesdropping on the guild and saw everything play out. They both eyed the red haired woman before they looked at each other. They nodded their heads as they knew what each other was thinking and headed off into the forest in the direction Silica was heading.
Later
Night had fallen in the forest and right now Silica and her dragon were fighting, and struggling, against gargantuan ape like creatures armed with clubs. As Silica tried to make her way to the town on her own, she and her dragon encountered the apes. Right now, Silica had her back against a tree as three of the ape creatures cornered her. Her health was currently at yellow. One of the apes roared at her as it swung at her, but Silica jumped out of the way. Another tried to take a swing at her, but she dodged the attack as well. Her dragon flew to her and breathed a healing spell on Silica, restoring some of her HP. The apes converged on her again. Silica then reached into her pouch to use a healing crystal, but realized she was out of them.
'Oh no! I'm out of healing crystals!' She thought, not paying attention to what was in front other as one of the apes swung at her and made contact with her, sending her flying hard into a tree, disarming her and taking her HP to red. The creatures approached her again as she frantically searched for her weapon. One of the apes swung at her again, only this time, Silica's dragon flew in and took the brunt of the attack and saving it's master, but sending it to the ground.
"PINA!" Silica yelled in worry as she rushed to her wounded familiar to check on it. The force of the attack was enough to kill Pina in one hit as it's HP soon dwindled to zero. As Pina started to glow, Silica picked her up and held her close and shouted her name several more times before Pina exploded into polygons, leaving behind a single blue feather.
Silica then turned around slowly to see the apes converging on her again, but due to being disarmed and the shock of losing her friend, she could only watch as one of the apes raised it's club to finish her off. Suddenly, the apes exploded into polygons. Behind them, two players stood with their weapons out, one with a sword and the other with a single bladed axe. It was Kirito and Yuga, both wearing new versions of their battle attire. Kirito was now equipped with a black overcoat with blue shoulders, black pants, gold plated chest armor over a black shirt, and black boots with matching fingerless gloves.
Yuga now wore a longer gray hooded shroud that extended to his back over his shoulders with a silver chestplate over a white shirt, black leather gloves on each hand, dark gray pants, and finally black boots. On the back of the shroud was an emblem of a wolf. The brothers both had blank expressions on their faces.
Silica faced her saviors with tears in her eyes. "Pina." She said as she turned and held the blue feather close to her chest. "Don't leave me all alone here. Pina!" She exclaimed as she cried.
The twins put their weapons away and approached the crying girl. "What's that feather?" Kirito inquired.
"It's Pina. Silica answered. "My best...friend."
The twins were taken aback by her answer. "You're one of those beast tamers aren't you?" Yuga asked as he took his hood off. "I'm sorry, if my brother and I were quicker, we could have saved both you and your friend." He said genuinely apologetic.
Silica shook her head. "No, it's all my fault. I was stupid to think I could make through the forest on my own." She replied as she faced her rescuers. "Thank you both for saving me. You did what you could."
Kirito knelt by the girl as his brother stood nearby. "That feather, check and see if it has a name." Silica did so and when the item information came up, it was called 'Pina's Soul', causing the beast tamer to cry harder. "Hey, hey, hey, don't cry. It means Pina's heart is still here, so that means there's a chance you can revive it." Kirito said, causing Silica to look at the older Kirigaya twin with hopeful awe.
"No way! Really?!" She asked, causing both twins to nod their heads with smiles.
"On the south side of Floor 47, there's a field dungeon called the Hill of Memories. We heard tale that the flower growing at the top can revive familiars." Yuga explained, causing Silica to smile, but it soon disappeared when she overlooked where the flower was located.
"Floor 47, huh?" She said sadly, causing the twins to nod again.
"My brother and I would offer to go get it for you, all you had to do is pay for the trip." Kirito said as he scratched the back of his head. "Problem is the flower won't bloom unless the familiar's master is there."
Silica once again faced the brothers. "Thank you so much for telling me about it. If I work hard to raise my level then someday-" She tried to say.
"We have no doubt you can raise your level to get the flower, but there's another problem." Yuga interrupted, causing Silica to stop talking. "The time limit to revive a familiar...is three days." He finished with a disheartened tone, shocking Silica.
Silica looked at the feather sadly. "No way." She said in remorse. "It's all my fault. I'm so sorry Pina."
"It's alright, you have three days." Kirito said as he stood back up and opened his items menu. HE selected a few items and transferred them to Siliaca. "Take this equipment, it should boost you five or six levels. And if we tag along, I'm sure everything will work out."
Silica got back on her own feet and eyed the twins curiously. While she was grateful to them for saving her life and being given better equipment, she couldn't help but wonder why two total strangers were doing this for her. "Why would you two do all this for me?" She asked.
Kirito and Yuga both looked at the dragon tamer. Kirito then brought his hand to his face in an awkward manner while Yuga scratched the back of his head. "If we tell you, do you promise not to laugh?" Kirito asked.
"I promise I won't." Silica replied.
"Alright." Replied Yuga. "It's because...you remind us of our little sister."
After a few brief moments, Silica burst out in laughter. The twins just looked at the young tamer with annoyed expressions because she promised she wouldn't but she did anyway. "I'm sorry." She apologized before she brought up her trade menu. "I know this isn't enough Col to pay you back, but-"
"Keep your money." Yuga interrupted. "Our reasons for being out here aren't entirely for money."
"Yeah, it works with why we're here. We'll be helping each other out." Kirito added.
"Okay then. My name is Silica." Silica introduced herself as she let out her and to shake theirs.
"My name's Kirito and this is my younger twin brother Yuga." Kirito introduced himself and his brother as he shook Silica's hand.
"Nice to meet you, Silica. We look forward to working with you." Yuga said as he shook Silica's hand.
Now that Silica got a better look at the brothers, she couldn't help but be baffled by their appearance. Despite the different colors, equipment, and the fact that Yuga's hair was slightly longer, the two were near mirror images of one another "Wow, I thought it was some kind of glitch but, you two really are twins, aren't you?" Silica asked.
The twins just smiled at her. "Don't worry we get that a lot." Kirito said.
"You're not the first to say that and you certainly won't be the last." Added Yuga.
"Sorry for asking such a dumb question, but if you two are twins, does that mean you also think alike?"
""No, don't be ridiculous."" Both said in unison, further baffling Silica. The twins then burst out laughing at seeing her face. "We're sorry Silica. We do that to every new person we meet." Kirito said.
"Yeah. We're sorry, we just couldn't resist." Yuga added.
Silica just looked at the brothers for a few moments before she too started laughing, with twins joining in as well. After they had their little laugh, they all headed for the town of Mishe.
35th floor – Mishe
Silica was now walking through the town of Mishe with twins. As they were walking, Silica heard her name being called. "Hey look, it's Silica!" Silica stopped and turned to see two male players, one tall and skinny and another short and large running towards her.
"It took you a long time to get back. We were getting worried." The short one said.
"You wanna team up with us? We'll take you wherever you wanna go." The tall one offered.
"Umm, that's really nice of you to offer, but..." Silica said politely before she went and grabbed Kirito's and Yuga's arms. "I sorta agreed to be in a party with them, so..." She said turning them down, causing the two to glare angrily at the twins. "Okay, later by!" Silica said as she started dragging the twins away.
Once the trio were a good distance away, Silica looked at the twins with a apologetic expression. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to put the two of you on the spot like that."
"I didn't realized you had fans Silica." Yuga said. "You must be very popular."
"No." Kirito and Yuga were taken aback at her reply. "They don't take me seriously, they want me to be their mascot." She explained. "Maybe they're right. They call me Dragon Tamer and I guess...it went to my head." She said as she looked like she was about to burst into tears again until she felt a hand on her head.
"Don't worry about it." Kirito said as he put his hand on her head to comfort her. "We'll make it in time. Promise." Kirito affirmed as Yuga nodded his head in agreement.
Silica soon smiled with joy as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Okay." With that, the trio continued their trek to the inn to get a place to stay. "So do you two live around here?" Silica asked the twins.
"We got our own places on Floor 50." Responded Kirito.
"Yeah, but it will be a pain to trek all the way there so we just thought about getting a room tonight." Added Yuga.
"Oh, well if you both stay, I'll treat the two of you to some cheesecake. It's really good here." Silica offered with a smile.
"Alright, I think we'll take you up on that." Yuga replied.
"Well, if it isn't Silica." The trio turned to see a familiar red head along with the rest of her former party, making Silica look away. "Wow, you made it out of the forest alive. Good for you, girl." She said mockingly.
Yuga noticed that Silica was starting to look uneasy. "Hey, you alright?" He asked concerned.
"Oh no. It's nothing." Silica replied. She may have said that, but Yuga knew she was lying, but let it go.
"Hang on." Rosalia said as she approached the trio. "What happened to your little friend, the lizard? Did it run away?"
"Pina died saving me." Silica replied to the red head. "But, I'm gonna get Pina back."
"Really?" Rosalia replied arrogantly. "I guess you'll be heading for the Hill of Memories then. I wonder if you'll be able to clear it at your level." She said, dealing a blow to Silica's self esteem.
Yuga looked at her with disgust. Just as he was about to say something, his brother jumped in. "Of course she will. It's not that difficult to level." Kirito replied as he stepped in front of the girl.
Rosalia observed the twins for a moment. "Oh god, this girl seduced two more players." She said mockingly. "No it's not difficult, but you two don't look that strong." She said arrogantly, making Yuga to narrow his eyes at the red head. One thing he hated most was arrogant people. He wanted nothing more than to knock her down a peg or two, but knew he didn't want to cause trouble for his brother or Silica.
"Silica, Yuga, let's go." Kirito said as they started walking away.
Yuga stopped beside Rosalia and sent her a death glare, making her flinch a bit. "Let me give you a nickles worth of advice; never underestimate your opponent, no matter how they appear. It will ultimately come back to bite you in the ass." He advised in a cold tone as he ran to join his brother and the dragon tamer. As they walked, Rosalia eyed the younger twin and just scoffed at his words.
The trio managed to get to the inn and managed to book rooms for the night. Right now the three were in the dining hall waiting for the cheesecake they ordered. Silica sat on one side of the table while the twins sat next to each other on the opposite side.
"Why does she have to be so mean?" Silica asked referring to Rosalia.
"Well...is Sword Art Online your first MMO?" Kirito asked, to which Silica nodded. "Well, a lot of people's personalities change when they play games online, and some actually like playing as the bad guy." Kirito explained.
"It's basically the whole point of a role playing game Silica, to be someone else. And RPGs give players a chance to explore their inner selves. It gives them an opportunity to be who they can't be in the real world." Yuga explained further.
"See how our cursors are green?" Kirito asked. Silica looked up to see green colored prisms above the brother's heads. "When you commit a crime against another player, your cursor is gonna turn orange, then they become what's called a red player."
"Those guys are the worst of the worst. They're also called player killers. These guys are all about murder." Yuga added, causing Silica to gasp in horror.
"They kill other players?" She asked shocked, to which the twins nodded their heads.
"In a normal game, you role play as the bad guy, have some laughs and it's cool. But...Sword Art Online isn't normal." Kirito said.
"That's the truth. This is definitely not a game." Yuga said as he tightened the grip of his cup in anger with Kirito doing the same.
"Kirito. Yuga." Silica said worried. The twins snapped out of their trance and looked back to her.
"Oh, sorry Silica." Kirito said before he lowered his head.
After a few moments of silence, Silica decided to break the silence. "Well, I think you and your brother are good people. I mean, you saved me after all." She said as she sat up and grasped a each of the twin's hands to comfort the both of them.
Kirito and Yuga were surprised by Silica's outburst, but returned her gesture with warm smiles. "Looks like you cheered us up instead." Kirito said.
"Yeah, thank you Silica." Yuga finished.
Silica's face soon lit up bright red in embarrassment. "Hey, are you okay?" Yuga asked concerned. Silica then let go of their hands and sat back down quickly. "WAAAAH! Oh wow, where the heck is our cheesecake already?!" She exclaimed in embarrassment as she tried to fan her face. "Excuse me, our dessert hasn't shown up yet!" She said to a waiter NPC. The brothers couldn't help but chuckle to themselves.
Later that night
Silica was now in her sleeping wear, consisting of a white bra and panties, as she laid on her bed exhausted. "I wonder if they'd laugh if I told them I wanted to talk some more." Silica said to herself before she heard a knock at her door.
"Hey Silica, are you still up?"
"Kirito? Yuga?" Silica said as she recognized the voice.
"Yeah, its us." Yuga confirmed. "Kirito and I wanted to go over some things about Floor 47 with you, but if you're not up to it we can discuss it in the morning."
Silica got up from her bed and went to her door. "No, now's fine. Actually, I was just thinking I should you two about-" She stopped before she touched the know as soon as she realized the state of dress she was in. After she put on a simple green nightgown, she let the brothers into her room and sat on the bed with a flustered look and a huge blush on her face. 'That was so close.' She thought to herself.
Kirito and Yuga were moving a table to the center of her room. Kirito then pulled out an item from his coat and placed it on the table. He and Yuga looked at Silica and noticed she looked like her mind was elsewhere. "What's up? Is something wrong?" The older Kirigaya twin asked.
"N-no! Nothing!" Silica responded as she snapped out of it. She then looked at the item curiously. "What does that thing do, Kirito?" She asked.
"It's called a mirage sphere." Kirito answered as the brothers both took a seat at the table. Kirito pressed the button on top of the device, activating it. The room darkened as it opened up to show a 3D map.
"Wow, it's pretty." Silica said in awe.
Soon, they brought up a map of Floor 47. "Alright here's the breakdown." Yuga began as he pointed to a part of the map. "This here is the town area of Floor 47." He then adjusted the map. "And this here is the Hill of Memories."
"Yuga and I thought that if we took this road here," Kirito jumped in as he pointed to a road on the map. "We can get to-" He stopped when he sensed someone outside the door and gained a serious expression. Yuga looked at the door with the same expression.
"What's wrong?" Silica asked before Kirito silenced her.
"Yuga-"
"I sense it too." The twins then ran to the door and hastily opened it.
""Who's there?!"" The twins exclaimed. They looked only to see a glimpse of someone jumped over the railing and ran down the stairs.
Silica nervously approached the twins. "Umm, who was it?" She asked.
"We had ourselves an eavesdropper." Answered Yuga.
"But they can't. I mean you can't hear through a door unless you knock first." Silica said as the trio went back into the room.
"True, but if your listening skill is high enough, you can." Kirito added as he shut the door. "It takes practice and not that many players have it."
Silica looked at the twins nervously. "Why would they want to listen to us?" She didn't get an answer as the twins both stared at the door, knowing now that whoever was eavesdropping on them, no doubt will tell their buddies the briefs of their plan. The twins then looked at each other and nodded to each other.
February 24th, 2024 * 47th Floor – Floria
The next day, Kirito and Yuga woke up Silica and soon warped to the town area of Floor 47. Silica was now garbed in the gear Kirito had given her, which consisted of a red jacket with the shoulders exposed, a short black skirt, fingerless red gloves, and black shoes along with a new dagger strapped behind her waist. As they arrived in Floria, Silica couldn't help but admire in awe the beauty of the Floor. The whole place looked like one big flower garden. "Wow!" She exclaimed in awe. "This place is like a dream."
"Indeed." Yuga replied. "This entire floor is covered in flowers. It's why many call it 'The Flower Garden.'" Silica giggled as she jogged to a patch of blue flowers and knelt down to smell them. She then looked all around and noticed they're were quite a few couples around the area, all laughing and having a good time with each other. 'Couples.' She thought to herself as her face soon turned red again as she watched themselves
"Silica, you alright?" Kirito asked as he and his brother joined her.
"Wha-nothing!" Silica said snapping out her funk as she faced the brothers. "Sorry to keep you two waiting.
"What's wrong? Your face is red again." Yuga pointed out.
Silica just fixed her hair in a nervous haste. "Nothing! Nothing at all!" She replied.
The twins simply shrugged it off as they headed for the Hill of Memories. "Alright then let's go." Kirito said, with Silica close behind. Before they went any further, they stopped at a bridge where Kirito pulled out a warp crystal and presented it to Silica. "Before we go, take this Silica."
"What's that for?" The dragon tamer asked.
"If anything bad happens while we're in here, we're gonna tell you warp out. When we do, use this crystal. You can jump to any town with it." Kirito answered.
Silica looked at the twins with concern. "But-"
"No buts Silica." Yuga interrupted. "We mean it. If things get bad, you get out of here. Got it?" He said with authority in his voice.
"I understand." She responded reluctantly before taking and pocketing the crystal.
"Alright, let's get going. If we take this path, it will take us right to the Hill of Memories." Kirito said as they began their trek.
"As they say, 'Time nor tide wait for no one.'" Added Yuga.
During their trek, Silica could take her eyes off the twins. She remembered when they saved, Yuga told her that she reminded them of their sister. She couldn't help but wonder what they meant by that. So wanting to fill in some of the blanks, she decided to ask them. "Umm, Kirito, Yuga-" Suddenly, vine like tentacles grabbed her by her ankles and held her upside down. She was surprised at the sneak attack as she tried held her skirt to keep it from falling. Below her, a giant plant monster opened it's mouth with the intention to devour her, causing her become more frightened. She used her free hand to draw her dagger and started swinging wildly at it while screaming.
"Silica, calm down! That thing is not that strong." Kirito called out.
"Help! Kirito! Yuga! Save me! But don't look! Please save me!" She said in a panic as she continued to swing her dagger wildly all the while trying to keep her skirt from falling.
The twins sported blushes as they tried to shield their eyes with their hands, but keeping one eye open to see what was going on. "Yeah...that's gonna..." Kirito began.
"Prove to be a bit difficult." Finished Yuga.
Silica finally had enough of the monster and decided to fight back. "Darn you! Put me down now!" She shouted in anger as she grabbed one of the vines and cut it. She then cut the other vine, freeing her. Silica then dove head first for the creatures head. Activating her sword skill, she drove her dagger into the creature's head, killing it instantly. She landed safely on the ground and nervously faced the twins with a mild blush. "Did either of you see anything?" She asked flustered.
""Not really."" Both twins replied as they brought their fingers down to cover both their eyes. After getting over their initial embarrassment, the trio continued their quest. Along the way, they encountered all manner of creatures that inhabited the field dungeon. Silica was scared at first, but with the twins aiding her, they posed no problem. Silica even went up a level with the monsters she killed. While she was happy at her progress, she was still wondering about the younger twin's reason for helping her. So she decided to pick up where she left off before sh was interupted.
"I hope you two don't mind me asking but, what's your sister like?" She asked the twins.
"Why do you want to know?" Kirito asked.
"Well, you said I remind you of her." The dragon tamer replied. "I know it's not polite to ask about your real life, but what's she like?"
The twin both sighed. "Well, we call her our little sister, but in actuality, she's really our cousin." Yuga responded, surprising Silica. "We were raised like siblings since we were babies, so I doubt she even knows. But we do. Our parents died in a car accident so her mom took us in and raised us like we her own."
"When we found out, I ended up avoiding her." Kirito added. "You see, our grandfather was really strict. When Yuga and I were eight, he made us take classes at the local kendo dojo. But after a couple years, we stopped going. Our grandfather beat the hell out of us for that."
"That's awful." Silica said wide eyed.
"Yeah it was." Replied Yuga. "Anyway, our sister stood up for us and told him to stop. She even said she would train hard for all of us. And she did, she trained her butt off. She even made it Nationals."
Silica looked at the twins in awe. "She did? How awesome." She said before she noticed a look in their eyes.
"Yeah. Yuga and I always felt guilty for putting her through all that." Kirito said downtrodden.
"Indeed. We wouldn't blame her if she hated us now. Lord knows she could be doing something else with her life." Yuga said equally downtrodden.
"And that's why we wanted to help you. In a weird way, it makes feel like we're paying her back." Kirito finished as both twins faced the tamer with smiles.
"Well, if you don't mind me saying, you're both wrong." They were again taken aback by the dragon tamer's words as she stepped in front of the boys. "I don't think she hates either of you. Not at all. She wouldn't work that hard for you if she didn't like either of you. Promise. Plus I bet she really likes kendo." She finished with a smile.
The twins stared at Silica wide eyed in surprise, which soon turned into warm smiles. "There you go again making us feel better." Kirito said.
"Maybe you're right. Honestly, I sure hope so." Yuga added.
Silica blushed at the twin's praise. She shrugged it off and continued walking. "Okay then, I'm gonna do my best too." She proclaimed. Suddenly, the ground beneath her began to glow and she was wrapped in tentacles and lifted high in the air, causing her to scream in fear. "GAAAH! KIRITO! YUGA! HELP!" She pleaded as one of the tentacles licked her, grossing her out. The twins were already on it as the readied their weapons and slashed the creature holding Silica, leaving an x-shaped slash across it's body. It soon exploded into polygons and Silica fell to the ground on her butt with a thud. Kirito and Yuga looked back at Silica with confident smirks and their weapons resting on their shoulders. Silica smiled at her saviors before she realized the position she was in and became flustered. She fixed herself to keep herself from giving the two an upskirt shot. The twins just chuckled at the girl's embarrassment as she got back up and the trio continued their journey.
After some more walking, the trio reached the end of the dungeon, where a small pedestal surrounded by four similar sculptures lied ahead. "Is that reviving flower around here?" Silica inquired as she loked around.
"Yeah, over there." Kirito answered as he pointed to the pedestal. Silica immediately took off into a sprint towards the pedestal, with the twins following behind her slowly.
Once Silica reached the pedestal, the top of it began to glow and a flower began to bloom in front of her. The result was a yellow and white flower, causing Silica to smile greatly. The object they had come to retrieve was within her grasp.
"Well what are you waiting for, Silica?" Yuga said lightly to the dragon tamer. "Go on. Claim your prize." Silica did so and reached for the flower, which was identified as 'The Pneuma Flower' as she held it close to her.
"You sure this will bring Pina back to life?" She asked with a hopeful tone.
"Positive it will." Replied Kirito, making Silica cry tears of happiness as she continued to hold the flower close to her. "There's a bunch of strong monsters lurking around here, so let's revive it when we get back to town. I'm sure Pina would have wanted it that way." He suggested.
"Okay." Silica said with a wide smile on her face. The trio then made their way back to the town area of Floria. As soon as the reached the end of the bridge where they started, Kirito stopped Silica by putting his hand on her shoulder to stop her. Silica looked at the older twin with curiosity. "What's wrong?"
"Whoever is hiding out there, come out. Now!" Kirito demanded. Right on queue, a familiar red headed lancer came out from behind one of the trees, an arrogant smile ever present on her face.
"Wh-Rosalia?!" Silica said surprised.
"If you saw through my hiding skill so easy, your detection skill must be really high swordsman." She said calmly as the twins glared angrily at her. She then eyed Silica. "Ooooh, it looks like you were successful in getting your hands on the Pneuma Flower. Congratulations, now hand it over before you get hurt." She demanded.
"What are you talking about?" Silica asked, both shock and confused as Rosalia slowly approached the trio.
"Nobody's handing anything over, especially not you Rosalia." Yuga retorted as he and his brother stepped in front of Silica. "And especially not to your band of merry men you call a guild. The orange guild known as Titan's Hand. You're their leader, right?"
Yuga's deduction stopped her in her tracks as she narrowed her eyes the twins. "Brilliant deduction, Sherlock." She said sarcastically.
"But, Rosalia's cursor is green." Silica said.
"It's an easy trick." Kirito explained. "The green members find their victims, then they lure them straight to the orange players for the ambush."
"So Rosalia, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that was one of your flunkies eavesdropping on us last night." Yuga deduced as he crossed his arms.
"So then the reason reason you were in that party with me and the others was to..." Silica started to say until she was interrupted by Rosalia.
"How perceptive." Rosalia calmly said as she narrowed her eyes at the trio, not losing her arrogant smile. "I was observing their strength and watching earn all that beautiful money." She explained as she licked her lips, frightening Silica. "You're who I was excited about and it was so sad when you left the party. And then you told me you were getting a rare item. What I want to know if of you two knew about us, why did you bring her here? Are you two just dumb or does she have the both of you wrapped around her finger?" Rosalia asked, causing Silica to shoot her a dirty look, the twins however both shook their heads.
"Nope, you're wrong both times." Kirito answered. "You see, my brother and I have been looking all over for you, Rosalia."
"What are you talking about?" Rosalia asked.
"Ten days ago, you and your cronies attacked a guild called The Silver Flags. It consisted of five members. All but the leader were killed." Yuga said.
"Oh, you mean the losers with no money." Rosalia said callously as she twirled her hair.
"Their leader went back and forth from the warp point to the front lines, morning, noon, and night." Kirito said, anger present in his voice. "And with tears in his eyes, he begged everyone he met to avenge his dead friends. But he didn't want you killed. No, he wanted you to go to prison. Do you have any idea how he felt?" Kirito finished as both twins gave Rosalia a death glare.
"Can't say I do." Rosalia answered immediately. "Only idiots take this seriously. So what if we kill someone here. There's no proof dying here means you're dead IRL."
"Complete lack of empathy along with no regard whatsoever for human life, you disgust me!" Yuga said with venom in his voice.
Rosalia just shrugged off the younger twins comment. "Pfft, like I or anyone else give a crap about what you think." She said. "In any event, it's time you started worrying about yourselves." She then snapped her fingers and seven men started appearing from the surrounding trees and converged around Rosalia. All of them but one had orange cursors above their heads and all were armed.
Silica stepped back in fear at the guild of PKers that stood before them. "Kirito. Yuga. There's too many of them." She said hesitantly. "We should get out of here."
Kirito put a hand on her head to calm her down. "No, it's okay. You'll be safe if you stay here." He told the dragon tamer with a reassuring smile. "Keep the crystal handy until Yuga and I say so."
"Trust us Silica. My brother and I know what we're doing. Just sit back and watch us work." Yuga added as he put his hood up.
"Okay." Silica reluctantly said as she took out the crystal. She then saw the twins walk towards the orange guild and readied their weapons. "Kirito! Yuga!"
Hearing their names shocked the members of Titan's Hand. "Kirito. Yuga." One of them said in shock.
"One dressed in black. One handed, no shield. And the other dressed in a gray hooded shroud and wielding an axe. Holy crap, it's them! It's The Black Swordsman and The Gray Huntsman!" Another exclaimed in fear. "Rosalia, those guys, they're the beaters who solo together on the front lines! They're with the Assault Team."
"No way! They are?!" Silica said as she stared at the twins in awe as she too had heard of their rumors of these legendary players.
Rosalia just shrugged off what she heard. "Why would people from the Assault Team, especially ones like them, be doing all the way down here?" She asked arrogantly. "Doesn't matter anyway. Kill them both now and take everything they own!" She ordered her guild mates.
They all activated their weapons skills and charged towards the twins. "DIE!" One of them shouted. In no time, the twins were surrounded and were being slashed upon by the PKers as the two just stood there taking the damage. Rosalia looked on pleased at her guild mates as they attacked the twins.
Silica however hesitantly gripped her dagger with the intention of jumping in and helping the two, even if it meant she be killed too. "I've got to save them. They won't last." Before she could jump in, she noticed that Kirito and Yuga's health bars barely dwindled down from all the damage the y received and soon their health bars went back to full health, surprising her greatly. "Wh-what's going on?!" She wondered in surprise.
Soon, the PKers stopped their assault and were all now breathing heavily while the twins just stood like there wasn't a care in the world. Yuga even picked his fingernails in boredom. Rosalia was not pleased. "What the hell, you idiots?! Kill them already!" She commanded.
"What do you think, Kirito?" Yuga asked his brother, a cold look present on his face.
"I say about 400 in ten seconds, give or take. That's the total amount of damage you seven can inflict on us." Kirito answered, the same expression graced his face as well.
"Hmm, funny. I was thinking the same thing." Yuga replied.
Rosalia gritted her teeth in anger at the twins who managed to make a fool of her and her guild.
"I'm level 78. I got 14,500 HP and battle healing auto-regenerates 600 points every ten seconds." Kirito explained.
"My stats are the same as well. Suffice it to say, we could stand here all day and you morons wouldn't be able to put a real ding in us." Yuga added.
"That's not possible." One member of Titan's hand said in disbelief.
"You wanna bet?!" Yuga said as he faced the member angrily, making him flinch.
"If you're numbers are high enough, you're invincible. MMOs that use leveling systems are unfair like that." Kirito explained, making Rosalia glare angrily at the twins. Kirito then took out a larger warp crystal from his sack and presented it to the PKers. "Our client spent his entire fortune on this warp crystal and we'll make sure he gets his moneys worth." Kirito added.
"It's been set to the coordinates of the prison on Floor One, and all of you murdering bastards are going there to rot until this game is over!" Yuga declared.
Rosalia just readied her lance and pointed it at the twins, not wanting to go down without a fight. "Well I'm green and if either of you hurt me you;ll go orange and-" Without skipping a beat, Kirito dashed towards the guild leader and held his sword to her neck. Silica was surprised and shocked at the older twin's speed as she stared into his eyes, which held showed no hint of mercy.
"My brother and I are solo players and mercenaries, got it. Do we look like either of us give a damn if we have to play as orange for a couple of days?" Kirito asked coldly. Rosalia whimpered in fear as she dropped her lance and surrendered. Her guild mates were just as shocked at what just happened. They just witnessed their fearless leader just surrender without a struggle.
"Alrigth, all of you." Yuga addressed the others. "Drop you weapons and get on your knees." HE demanded.
The closest player on his right just scoffed at his demand. "Yeah right! You may have everyone else scared, but you don't scare m-" He tried to say when suddenly
BAM
Yuga delivered an uppercut with the side of his axe to the player's chin, sending him into the air and taking half his health.
"GAAAAAAAAAAH!" The guild member screamed as he flew into the air and crashed into the water below, causing a big splash. The other members were more shellshocked at what they just witnessed. Yuga spun his axe in his hand and brought the pole part down to the ground, further intimidating them.
"Anyone else wanna give their input?" He offered, itching to teach some other moron a lesson. No one dared to say anything as they dropped their weapons and put their hands up in surrender. Yuga just smirked at them. "Thought not." He said. Silica just stared in awe at the feats Kirito and Yuga just pulled off on their own.
After everything, Kirito and Yuga rounded up all the members of Titan's Hand, including fishing the one Yuga sent into the water, bound them and activated the warp crystal to send them to the prison. Before sending Rosalia, Yuga went up to her as he had one last thing to say. "I warned you, Rosalia. Underestimate your opponent, and it's gonna come back and bite you in the ass." Rosalia just glared at the younger twin hatefully as he shoved her into the portal. Their job complete, the trio headed back to Mishe to revive Pina.
Later
Kirito, Yuga, and Silica arrived at the inn in Mishe later that evening and were now in a bedroom. Kirito sat with Silica on the bed while Yuga took a seat at the table.
"We're both really sorry Silica." Kirito apologized. "This whole time, Yuga and I were using you as bait to catch them. We thought you'd be scared if we told you the truth about us."
"If you wish to hate us, we wouldn't blame you." Yuga added.
Silica however just shook her head. "I could never be scared of you two, let alone ever hate you. Because you're both good people." She said with a smile.
The twins both smiled at her honesty. "Well at least someone thinks so." Kirito smiled softly, with Yuga nodding his head in agreement.
"So, do you both really have to go?" Silica asked.
"Yeah, we do." Yuga answered. "Kirito and I have been away from the front lines for five days now. We really should be getting back."
"Well...I think it's cool that not only are you two the fabled Black Swordsman and Gray Huntsman, but also with the Assault Team." Silica praised them as she stretched her arms. "I could try for a hundred years and never make it." She had something else to say but Kirito interrupted her.
"You know, levels are just numbers." Kirito said. "And a person's strength in this world is just an illusion. Sure it's cool and all but there are more important things than that."
Yuga got up from his chair and faced the dragon tamer with a smile on his face. "You know what, I think we should meet up in the real world." Said the huntsman. "I think that would be awesome. And I think I speak for both my brother and I when I say we like having you as a friend." Kirito nodded his head in agreement.
Silica was silent for a moment before her face broke into a smile. "Okay, we will. Promise."
Kirito then got up on his feet and faced Silica. "Well, ready to revive Pina?"
"Yeah!" Silica said as she quickly rose to her feet. The trio gathered at the table where Silica opened her menu and brought out Pina's Soul and placed it on the table. She went back into her menu and brought forth the Pneuma Flower. 'Pina, when you get back, I'll have lots of stuff to tell you about.' She thought to herself as she shot glances at the twins who stood at each of her side as they both nodded for her to proceed. 'About the amazing adventure I had.' She then poured a drop of nectar from the flower onto the feather and it began to glow a bright golden light, making her smile brightly. 'And about this one day when I got to have two of my very own big brothers.'
And done with the next chapter. Sorry it took so long but you know life tends to get in the way of writing, and I know that's an old excuse but that's the reason. Anyway, next chapter was going to an original chapter where Yuga starts his own guild and they have their first assignment. I said I was gonna do this and I really hope you all like the idea. I'm just having trouble choosing a name for them. I was thinking of either The Aincrad Hellfighters or the Fallen Angels. Let me know what you all think in the comments or pm me if you have ideas of your own. So read and review, let me know what you think and let me know what needs changing. Next time on The Black Swordsman and The Gray Huntsman Chapter 4: The Mercenary Guild. Til then, this is TravyMcNavy184 telling you all who are reading, following and liking this and all my other stories to stay awesome.