On Today's Episode: Laughing Coffin has been committing more brazen acts of murder in the past few weeks, and the Clearers have finally had enough. Now, alongside the Knights of the Blood Oath, the Clearers launch an assault on Laughing Coffin headquarters, hoping to bring in as many as possible. But when it comes to Laughing Coffin, there's bound to be a body count. Can the Clearers put an end to the murder guild with as few casualties as possible, and can the Sleeping Knights settle the score with Johnny Black once and for all?
Episode 10: The Curse of Johnny Black
August 9th, 2024
4:13 A.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 35, Mishe
The Forest of Wandering
"Oh, man, why did I decide to come here this late at night?" a random player asked his partner as they continued to make their way through the Forest of Wandering.
Oh, that's right. They were after that orange player who had taken a satchel of their crystals while they were sleeping.
"Seriously, dude, why the hell are we in this forest this late at night?" the first player growled. "I have more than enough col to buy some more crystals, you know..."
"I'm not getting swindled by these brazen thieves!" the second player responded instantly. "You can go and buy some more if you want, but I'm going to reclaim what was taken from us."
"But of all places, why did it have to be here?!" the first player shot back as both of them turned back to return to the entrance of the forest and plan another route. "...okay, you have the map, right?"
"Got it right here," the second player replied. "Okay, so, we should probably go left this time, and..."
An odd choking sound caught the first player's attention, but before he could investigate, he found his own body unable to move and he fell face-first to the ground. From what he could see, his partner had a small gash on his left side that was turning a sickly green.
"One strike is really all it takes. How fitting, wouldn't you agree?"
The first player only got one small glimpse of the crazed smile of Johnny Black and PoH, the co-leaders of Laughing Coffin, before immense pain spread through his entire being, no doubt courtesy of the razor-sharp knife that had been jammed through his throat.
Unable to speak, all the player could do was reach for his partner before they both exploded into a cloud of glowing polygons.
"Nice work, boss," Johnny laughed. "That didn't even take a minute."
"Know your enemy, Johnny," PoH proclaimed. "Now, let us plan our next conquest."
"Ooh, yeah, I'm all for that," Johnny cackled.
August 12th, 2024
5:00 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 55, Grandzam
Knights of the Blood Oath Headquarters
Yuuki was, to be perfectly honest, slightly concerned when she, Nick, and Aiko walked into the headquarters of the KoB, having been summoned by Asuna, and found everyone nearby talking in slightly hushed tones, clearly exuding fear and doubt.
Eventually, they found Asuna talking with Heathcliff in a lobby room on the third floor, and they, too, looked much more serious than they normally did. (Well, Heathcliff was always serious. Would it kill the guy to relax a little?)
"Okay, I'll bite," Yuuki quipped. "What's happening, Asuna?"
Though she seemed reluctant to answer initially, Asuna steeled her nerves so she could explain what was going on.
"Three more players have been murdered by Laughing Coffin," Asuna proclaimed.
"WHAT?!" Yuuki and Aiko shouted.
"Wait, weren't they the messengers you guys sent to try and negotiate with them?" Yuuki asked. "The hoods just up and killed them without even bothering to listen?!"
"That makes ten murders in the past two days..." Aiko stated. "They're starting to get really brazen..."
"It's almost like they don't believe that death in the game actually means dead," Nick growled. "And coming from a group of murderers who can actually back up their boasts now, that's terrifying."
"Over one hundred people have been murdered in the past month alone," Heathcliff responded. "As you can tell, it is quite unsettling how far they're willing to go. Which brings me to why we have called you here today, Sleeping Knights."
"The KoB has been in talks with the Clearers, and we all came to a unanimous agreement that Laughing Coffin needs to be stopped by any means necessary," Asuna explained. "We just recently received information from some of our scouts that they've discovered the location of Laughing Coffin's hideout. So, in short, in three days, we're going to storm their hideout and put an end to them, one way or another."
"Diving right into the belly of the beast, huh?" Yuuki proclaimed. "Sounds like a plan. There's someone in there that I have a score to settle with, anyways."
Asuna glanced at Yuuki, knowing that the Absolute Sword still bore a nasty grudge against Laughing Coffin's co-leader, Johnny Black, for murdering the entirety of the Moonlit Black Cats aside from Sachi.
"Make whatever preparations you see fit, and we will contact you in three days," Heathcliff proclaimed. "You three are shaping up to be some of the strongest players in the game. I know we can expect great things from you."
"Appreciate the pep talk, boss man," Aiko replied. "Well, shall we head off to find a suitable training spot, you two?"
"Music to my ears," Yuuki stated. "I'm seriously looking forward to putting those murderers in their place."
"Same here, Yuuki," Nick responded.
As Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko rushed to Grandzam's Teleport Gate, they just missed a hooded figure watching them from afar.
August 12th, 2024
7:21 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 55
The Western Mountain
"Suck on this!" Aiko exclaimed, stabbing her rapier forward, then slashing it across the Frozen Bone's chest, the monster falling apart and disintegrating. This allowed her to see that Nick and Yuuki were teaming up against a much larger Frozen Bone that had just spawned.
"Ooh, he's a big one," Yuuki giggled.
"But you know what they say, right?" Nick quipped.
"Oh, yeah! Let's enforce the stereotype!" Yuuki laughed as she and Nick charged the large Frozen Bone together, their weapons glowing brightly.
The Frozen Bone roared and attempted to swing its icy club to separate them, only to be stumbled courtesy of Aiko poking it in the back with her rapier.
"Switch Combination: Extreme Stars!" Nick and Yuuki shouted together. That wasn't actually its name, but it was a combo they liked to use, so they decided to name it.
Nick was the first to attack, slashing diagonally upwards and left, then diagonally downwards and right, then switching with Yuuki, who slashed straight horizontally, then diagonally down left and diagonally down right, their slashes forming the shape of a star. Finally, they both thrust their swords straight through the center of the star they'd created with their attacks, shattering the star and causing the large Frozen Bone to collapse to its knees before exploding into glowing polygons.
An information window appeared in front of all three players, indicating that defeating that larger Frozen Bone had given them enough experience to level up once again.
"Sweet, I'm level 94 now!" Yuuki laughed.
"Same here," Aiko answered. "What about you, Nick? Still behind?"
Nick simply grinned triumphantly and showed Yuuki and Aiko his own window, revealing that he was now level 94 as well.
"I finally caught up to you two," Nick proclaimed.
"On that note, should we call it a day or not?" Yuuki wondered, twirling Elucidator in her hand. "We've been training for at least two hours straight, and considering how cold this place gets..."
"Honestly, I'd like to see if we can get one or two more levels," Nick answered. "We've got more than enough crystals to keep us afloat, and besides, I'd like to have every edge possible when it's time to square dance with the hooded wackos."
"Yeah, let's shoot for level 95 tonight," Aiko stated. "That way, we can level more comfortably the next two days."
"I'm all for that," Nick responded.
"Oh, Nick?" Yuuki asked. "What should we do about the other Sleeping Knights?"
"No matter what, we need to keep them out of this," Nick replied immediately. "I know they're strong, but they're only in their low 70s, and I have no clue what kind of dirty tricks they're going to pull. I have no doubts that Johnny would go for Sachi if she were there."
"Ooh, just let me at 'em if he even tries..." Yuuki growled.
"All the more reason to keep them out of the raid," Aiko proclaimed. "Since we're the strongest fighters in the Sleeping Knights right now, we'd have the best chance against those nutballs."
"Then let's get to level 95 before it gets too late!" Yuuki exclaimed.
As the Sleeping Knights continued to train on the Western Mountain, Nick couldn't help but ponder about how many members of Laughing Coffin they'd be fighting when it was time. And, as always, he couldn't help but be concerned about Yuuki.
Despite the fact that he knew for sure that Yuuki was undoubtedly a more skilled player than he would probably ever be, he still worried about her, as he also knew that Laughing Coffin didn't believe in the concept of fighting fair.
Nick made a personal note to watch Yuuki and Aiko's backs at all times during the raid.
...he also wondered if he was going to have to kill anyone during the raid.
Yes, Nick knew that they were going up against unrepentant murderers and psychopaths that the world would probably be better off without, but despite the Clearers' efforts to capture as many members as they could non-lethally, he was extremely confident that there were going to be casualties before the day was done.
Thankfully, Nick was distracted from that train of thought when Yuuki walked up and kissed him. No doubt she could tell what he was thinking.
Deciding to put those worries away until the actual day of the raid, Nick kissed Yuuki back before they both charged down another giant Frozen Bone.
August 15th, 2024
12:00 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 55, Grandzam
Knights of the Blood Oath Headquarters
"Listen well, everyone," Heathcliff proclaimed as he addressed the fifty players that made up the Crusaders, the team that would soon be venturing out to put an end to Laughing Coffin. "What you do today, you do for the good of everyone who is still trapped in the game, and for the players we have already lost to these madmen. Today, we avenge the fallen that were taken from us by Laughing Coffin!"
Loud cheers erupted from the crowd of players in response. Somewhere near the back, Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko were talking with the rest of the Sleeping Knights, which now included Lisbeth.
"You guys be careful out there, got it?" Lisbeth stated matter-of-factly. "These Laughing Coffin guys probably aren't gonna pull any punches once the blades start flying. That means you, too, Asuna!"
"That's not going to be a problem, Lis," Asuna replied.
"I really wish we could help you out," Silica admitted.
"I know it's hard, but we wouldn't want anything to happen to you, Silica," Nick responded as Silica walked up and hugged him. "Let your unofficial big brother handle this problem, 'kay?"
"Promise me you'll come back alive?" Silica asked.
"You know me and promises, Silica," Nick chuckled.
Silica stood on her tiptoes so she could kiss Nick on the cheek. "That's for good luck," Silica giggled. "Now go and teach those jerks a lesson!"
"That was always the plan," Aiko responded.
Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko were all currently level 97, having trained extra-hard the past couple days to prepare for this moment. Asuna wasn't too far behind them, currently at level 95.
No more words were needed as the Crusaders began their march towards the Teleport Gate, but as they did so, Nick couldn't help but think back on something.
When Silica had kissed him on the cheek for good luck, it had reminded him that Melissa always did that as well.
I hope she's doing all right, honestly, Nick thought.
August 14th, 2024
8:09 P.M. Alfheim Time
Somewhere in Sylph Territory
Leafa continued her aerial reconnaissance, still on the search for any rogue Salamanders, or possibly even the traitor in the Sylphs that the Sylph lord had discovered recently.
That would make sense, then, why Salamanders keep popping up in Sylph territory so much, Leafa thought. But my question is, who's the traitor?
Sure that she'd figure that secret out soon enough, Leafa touched down and hid behind a nearby tree when she heard gruff voices nearby, no doubt a few of the rogue Salamanders that Recon had tracked down for her.
Making sure to stay out of sight until she got something from them, Leafa listened in to their conversation.
"Heh, that was way too easy."
"Tell me about it! Those suckers didn't even know what hit 'em!"
"Oh, Sigurd will be very pleased with the swag we yoinked from those losers."
That name caught Leafa's interest. Wait, Sigurd? Lord Sakuya's assistant? No way, HE'S the traitor?! Leafa thought.
Noting that this could be her best chance to get more information from the players, Leafa made her presence known, unsheathing her katana and drawing the Salamanders' attention.
"H-Hey, who's that?" the first player gasped.
"Wait, isn't that the Sylph girl that beat Sigurd in that tournament?" the second player proclaimed.
"You shouldn't have been eavesdropping on us, little girl," the third player cackled. "You don't want to know what we're gonna have to do to you now for snooping."
"I can take care of myself just fine, thank you very much," Leafa shot back, ready for a fight. "Now, unless you want me to send you back to Gattan looking like swiss cheese, tell me why Sigurd's betraying the Sylphs!"
"Aw, what the heck," the first player laughed. "Not like you'll be able to do anything with it, either way. Obviously, you know the Salamanders are the only ones who are going to make it to the top of the World Tree and becomes ALFs, and Sigurd didn't want to look up at us from his lowly position on the ground. So, he made a deal to betray the Sylphs so that he could become a Salamander himself when the next big patch rolls out."
"The Rebirth System?" Leafa gasped. "He's nuts! When Lord Sakuya hears of this, she'll have his head, and probably yours, too!"
"Trust me, Sakuya won't be a problem," the second player proclaimed. "And neither will you once we're finished with you."
"Yeah, why don't you go run off and cry like you were the other day?" the third player taunted.
"...excuse me?" Leafa shot back, wondering what he was getting at.
"Some of us have been spying on you, especially considering that Sigurd wants anyone who knows of his plan taken care of, and I saw you crying like a little baby the other day," the third player stated. "Who was it, exactly, that you were crying over? Oh, that's right, that brother of yours. Kinda makes sense that he's in a coma in the hospital."
The third Salamander was so wrapped up in his gloating that he didn't notice Leafa's free hand beginning to twitch.
"Such a weakling if he can't even be in here to support his sister. What did you do to make him hate you enough to get himself trapped in Sword Art Online? It must have been pretty bad for you to..."
The third Salamander suddenly found himself unable to speak, and that was most likely attributed to the fact that he was now missing a large chunk of the left half of his body, courtesy of a teary-eyed Leafa slashing at his side with her katana in a fit of rage.
"DON'T TALK ABOUT MY BROTHER LIKE THAT, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Leafa screamed as she swung her katana downwards hard enough to slice the third Salamander in half, his body exploding into a cloud of glowing polygons and leaving behind a small red flame, an ALO player's Remain Light.
"Oh, shit, dude, I think we underestimated her," the second Salamander gasped. "She looks pissed..."
"You're damn right I'm pissed off!" Leafa snarled as she rushed the second Salamander, outstripping him with her superior speed and shanking him straight through the chest with her katana. "Don't you dare talk shit about my brother like you think you know him better than his own freakin' sister!"
Leafa spun around, delivering a fatal strike to the second Salamander and watching him explode into just his Remain Light before turning to face the first Salamander, pure, unyielding rage in her eyes.
"Either run, or I cut you in half, too," Leafa growled. "And tell your boss that he's not gonna get away with his crazy schemes."
"Like I'd be scared of a girly girl like you!" the first Salamander shouted, unsheathing his great sword and rushing down Leafa.
"Your mistake," Leafa proclaimed as she easily dodged the swing and sliced outwards to sever the Salamander's hand before landing three clean slashes on his body, causing him to gasp in shock before exploding into glowing polygons.
When the area was finally calm, and the Salamander's Remain Lights dissipated (they would respawn back in Gattan, the Salamander capital), Leafa finally allowed a few tears to fall.
I'm not giving up hope, Leafa thought. I know Nick will be home soon. He never breaks a promise, after all.
For now, Leafa took to the sky again and flew back towards Swilvane, typing out a message to both Recon to let him know what had just happened, and to Lord Sakuya, to inform her of who the traitor in the Sylphs was.
August 15th, 2024
12:23 P.M. Aincrad Time
Floor 24, Panareze
Secret Hideout of Laughing Coffin
"Wait, this is where they're hiding?" Yuuki quipped as the Crusaders approached what they'd been told was Laughing Coffin's hideout, deep within a dungeon on floor 24. "It looks kinda rickety..."
"The fact that it's here in a dungeon is probably the main reason no one's found them out yet," Aiko replied. "You know, considering most players kind want to stay far away from the dungeons if possible, even after they've been cleared?"
"You know, I never actually thought of that before," Nick stated.
Asuna motioned to one of the Crusaders, who stepped forward to be the advance party and scout out the area in order to make sure they weren't walking into any trouble.
Nick instinctively moved to grasp the handle of Star Cluster. He just had a bad feeling about whatever was about to erupt.
And he was right to be cautious, because as soon as the advance scout pushed open the door to the hideout, a razor-sharp dagger flashed through the darkness and stabbed the scout in the chest, immediately dropping him to the floor.
"Oh, crapbaskets!" Yuuki shouted.
"Those bastards knew we were coming!" Nick exclaimed as he used a Healing Crystal on the scout to bring him back to full health. He had made sure to stock up on Healing Crystals, as had Yuuki and Aiko.
"Oh, but of course we did," the unmistakable voice of Johnny Black resounded as he stepped out from the shadows alongside his partner, Red-Eyed XaXa, as well as about thirty other players, no doubt the entirety of Laughing Coffin itself. "We had someone on the inside feeding info to us so that we'd be ready for you."
"Well, you're not gonna get away with your nonsense any longer," Aiko proclaimed, flourishing her rapier in an intimidating fashion. "In the name of every single player you've killed, your sick little murder cult is finished!"
"You and I have a score to settle, too, Johnny," Nick growled, aiming Star Cluster for Johnny's hooded face. "Today's the day we avenge the Moonlit Black Cats."
"All right, everyone, no more hesitation! Let's end this!" Asuna shouted, and the Crusaders all charged into battle with Laughing Coffin, and the blades quickly began flying every which way.
Nick danced around a multitude of dagger strikes, slashing at every hooded maniac within reach to keep them away while Yuuki weaved through at least four more, her supreme reflexes enabling her to stay at least two steps ahead of Laughing Coffin.
"Yeah, try and catch me now, punks!" Yuuki proclaimed as she kicked one guy away from her before leaping over one that was attempting to shank her from behind.
Two hoods approached Yuuki from both sides, attempting to flank her, but she simply spun Elucidator around her like a whirling dervish, deflecting their strikes handily.
Asuna darted to and fro through the area, showing off the speed that earned her the nickname "Lightning Flash" as she knocked down hood after hood without stopping.
However, one of the Crusaders had just taken a greatsword to the chest, rapidly dropping his health before anyone could make a move to heal him, and he fell to the ground before exploding into glowing polygons.
While this was happening, another Laughing Coffin player slashed at a Crusader's legs, knocking him down so that three more red players could all stab him with their daggers at once, killing that player as well.
In retaliation, Nick charged forward and scattered the three red players with a Drop Dash before turning around and slashing one of them across the chest.
"You monsters!" Nick growled.
"Oh, we're the monsters?" a red player cackled as he bum-rushed Nick, taking advantage of the motion delay to send him backwards with a strike across the chest, though it didn't do too much damage.
What did do damage was the razor-edged sword that a second red player jammed into Nick's chest while he was stumbling.
"Who's the monster now, boy?" the red player cackled.
"...I'd... I'd say it's you," Nick grunted, thrusting Star Cluster through the red player's chest. The red player gasped in disbelief before his body exploded into glowing polygons, leaving Nick to slowly remove the sword that was currently embedded in his body.
Yuuki wasted no time in rushing over to Nick's side and using a Healing Crystal on him, thankfully closing the wound and healing him to full health.
"Are you all right, Nick?!" Yuuki gasped.
"I've been worse, honestly," Nick admitted. "Thanks for saving my keester, Yuuki."
Their moment was sadly cut short as no less than six red players advanced on Nick and Yuuki, hoping to take advantage of their prone state.
"...Nick?" Yuuki stated. "I'm gonna 'do it'."
"Are you sure, Yuuki?" Nick asked. "You wanted to keep it a secret, remember?"
"To be fair, it was gonna get out eventually, as all secrets usually do," Yuuki responded. "Besides, I think it might actually help us out here."
"Well, far be it from me to keep you from having fun," Nick quipped. "So go nuts."
Yuuki nodded as the six red players jumped them all at once.
Both Asuna and Aiko screamed Yuuki's name when the red players dogpiled, already fearing the worst.
All of a sudden, the six red players were thrown off and away, bright red damage lines marking their bodies as they all crashed into nearby walls.
Yuuki had summoned Dark Repulser to her free hand and used both it and Elucidator to clear away the players surrounding her. Nick had ducked to make sure he didn't get caught in the attack since he was right next to Yuuki.
"Holy crapbaskets, is the Absolute Sword dual-wielding weapons?!" a random Crusader exclaimed.
"Wait, no one told me you could dual-wield!" Johnny exclaimed.
"Yeah, well, a girl's gotta have her secrets to keep, right?" Yuuki shot back. "I figured I needed to reveal this one now, and let me just say one thing, Johnny Black. You're in deep trouble for hurting my boyfriend."
Yuuki charged right back into the fray, swinging both of her swords and cutting down any red player who dared to stand in her way. Graceful and absolute in motion, Yuuki easily dodged the attempts of any red player who got close to her.
"Stop her, you fools!" Johnny exclaimed. More red players all attempted to flank Yuuki, but she simply sent them to the floor with her swords without missing a beat.
"You're next, Johnny!" Yuuki shouted as she barreled through another red player that was trying to flank her. "This is for the Moonlit Black Cats!"
Johnny quickly raised his poison dagger in defense, only for Yuuki to swing Dark Repulser and knock the dagger away.
"Yeah, try and face me without your dumb butter-knife!" Yuuki exclaimed.
"Oh, don't think I'm done yet," Johnny laughed, drawing an actual sword and moving to attack Yuuki, who retaliated with multiple graceful swings, easily repelling whatever tactic Johnny tried to trip her up with.
"Let me have a piece of him, sis," Aiko proclaimed as she rushed in to strike. Most of the remaining red players had been floored by Yuuki's rampage, allowing the surviving Crusaders to apprehend them, leaving only Johnny, XaXa, and two still-standing red players, along with, of all things, a green-cursor player cowering in the corner.
"What do you think you can do to me, little rapier wench?" Johnny laughed, preparing to draw one of his many hidden blades.
Aiko answered by performing a sliding dash to drive her rapier into Johnny's chest, stunning him just long enough to wrench the rapier back out and begin a rapid spiraling dash around Johnny, jabbing him in multiple spots while circling him, and eventually finishing with a downward thrust into Johnny's front, sending an array of visible light lines out from the impact point.
"That's what, jerkhole," Aiko taunted, flourishing her rapier proudly. Aiko had just performed her Original Sword Skill, Fortune Cross, having wanted to debut it against a worthy opponent.
Johnny stumbled backwards due to the damage he'd taken and saw that his health was down to about a fourth of its max value. He looked up just in time to see Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko all advancing threateningly on him.
"You seem to forget one fatal mistake here, kiddies," Johnny cackled. "If you kill me, you'll be no better than us."
"Don't even give me that crock, Johnny," Nick shot back. "You're the murderers here. You kill people just you believe it's your god-given right, despite the fact that death in this game actually means death in real life. You just think it's okay to do it because it's what you believe. And when it comes to me, who's never taken a life before today, I had a few days to accept that there were going to be casualties today, and that I'd possibly be responsible for at least one of those casualties."
"Yeah, well, you're still a murderer now," Johnny cackled, expecting Nick to start wallowing in despair over being painted as a murderer.
However, when only steely determination stared back at him, Johnny backed up slightly.
"Yeah, well... at least it's an unrepentant, murderous scumbag like you, so I'm not too broken up over it."
Having had enough talking, Nick moved in for the killing blow, ready to finish the job with his own Original Sword Skill, Ars Arcanum.
"Y-you... you wouldn't!" Johnny gasped.
"This is for the Moonlit Black Cats, you bastard!" Nick shouted as he raised Star Cluster, its blade glowing a bright orange as he unleashed a savage flurry of sword strikes.
A left-horizontal spiral slash, a right-horizontal flourish, a vertical uppercut, a downward spike, four left-to-right-to-left slashes, a diagonal uppercut, and a downward chop, Star Cluster's blade leaving orange light trails with each movement Nick made.
An outward stab, a right-hand slice, two diagonal slashes in an X formation, a quick slap with the flat of the blade, and finally, Nick gripped his weapon tightly, leaping into the air and slicing downward with all the force of a crashing airliner, the blade tearing a large gash in Johnny's chest and dropping his health to zero.
As his vision began to de-fragment, Johnny could only stare in shock at Nick, who was giving him a rather threatening look.
"Y-You... you cannot escape... our shadow..." Johnny gasped, his avatar beginning to break apart. "Laughing Coffin... will haunt you... forever..."
With those choice words, Johnny Black had spoken his last, collapsing to his knees and exploding into a shower of glowing polygons that quickly dissolved.
For the two remaining red players (all the others had been apprehended and rounded up by the remaining Crusaders), seeing Nick finish off Johnny Black was enough to convince them to surrender, laying down their weapons and allowing two more Crusaders to take them away.
"Nick? You okay?" Yuuki asked now that the showdown was finally over.
"As okay as I could probably be, I guess," Nick responded, sheathing Star Cluster for the moment. "I mean, I had a feeling I'd have to take a life or two today if we were gonna make it out alive, but... it's still strange that I actually did it, you know?"
Aiko would have said something to comfort Nick if a loud, pained scream hadn't drawn their attention. In the corner, that green-cursored player had been driven into the wall courtesy of a dagger slash from XaXa, the only red player still in this place.
"Hands off the girl, XaXa!" Aiko exclaimed, re-drawing her rapier and aiming it for XaXa. In response... he just laughed maniacally like the crazy person he most likely was.
"You foolish kids just don't get it yet, do you?" XaXa laughed. "You think you've won, but the war has only just begun."
XaXa gripped his dagger tightly, and Aiko was about to dash over and shank him, but then...
...he stabbed himself in the chest with his own dagger, his health dropping rapidly until it hit zero.
"And... in every war... there must be sacrifice," were the last words of Red-Eyed XaXa as he, too, exploded into glowing polygons, that sinister smile never leaving his face.
Naturally, Aiko was concerned, wondering both why he would commit suicide like that and what he meant by his final words.
Shaking off his own concerns for the moment, Nick walked up to the girl that XaXa had been trying to attack. She looked to be about his age, with long, bright silver hair, golden eyes, and a slightly nervous expression.
"Are you okay?" Nick asked. "We're not going to hurt you."
"B-But... I'm part of Laughing Coffin..." the girl responded, glancing at the Laughing Coffin tattoo on her upper left thigh. "I thought you came here to..."
"Hey, you definitely don't look like you're part of them by choice," Yuuki replied, extending a hand to the girl. "So, what's your name?"
It took a few seconds of hesitation to respond, but she eventually did, looking up at the Sleeping Knights and hoping that she could trust them.
"...Lux."
"Okay, so, Lux, what exactly were you doing with Laughing Coffin?" Aiko wondered. "What did they make you do?"
Lux steadied her nerves before telling her story. "Well... around the time the players reached floor fifty, I had formed a party with some other players to tackle a tough dungeon on floor 32," Lux explained. "There had been a rumor of an extremely rare treasure somewhere in that dungeon, but... I got separated from my party thanks to the traps in there, and when I tried to find everyone, I tripped a teleporter trap and was sent into an Anti-Crystal Zone."
Yuuki shuffled over to put her hands on Lux's shoulders to calm her down, as she was visibly shaking, no doubt due to bad memories of that day. When she felt like she'd calmed down enough, Lux continued her story.
"I was surrounded and disarmed by a whole pack of monsters," Lux explained. "I was paralyzed with fear, unable to fight back because I knew I was going to die. But, then... I was saved by PoH and a few other members of Laughing Coffin. One of them tried to attack me, but PoH gave me an ultimatum: either join them as part of their infiltration team, or be left to die alone in the dungeon..."
"Those dirty, rotten scumbags..." Aiko growled.
"They made me a town infiltration specialist," Lux continued. "My job was to buy supplies in towns, find efficient hunting grounds, and report on the activities of rival guilds like the Knights of the Blood Oath, just generally stuff that only a green player could do..."
To the Sleeping Knights' surprise, Lux then began to cry. "I was so, so scared..." Lux sobbed. "I didn't want to slip up, or I'm sure they'd just toss me out like yesterday's trash when I stopped being useful to them..."
Then, to Lux's surprise, Yuuki jumped over and hugged Lux tightly. Aiko joined in the group hug as well, with Nick doing the same rather quickly.
"You don't have to worry about them any longer, Lux," Yuuki proclaimed. "Laughing Coffin is finished. You don't have to be scared of them anymore."
"And if you want to join an actual guild and be with people you can trust... why not us?" Aiko asked. "Yuuki?"
An information window popped up in front of Lux, and she almost started crying again when she noticed that it was a guild invitation. Even though the window also said that she was (technically) already in a guild, she was still given the option to leave the old guild and join the new one.
And she happily accepted without hesitation, hitting the Accept button and looking down to see the coffin with a skull face be replaced by a curved heart with wings.
"You're free now, Lux," Yuuki proclaimed. "Welcome to the Sleeping Knights!"
And Lux was so overjoyed that she was the one to hug Yuuki this time.
With everything finally calming down, Nick, Yuuki and Aiko escorted Lux out of the hideout and back into the city of Panareze, where the Crusaders were all recovering from the harrowing battle they'd just went through.
"Since I feel I need to ask... how many casualties?" Nick wondered as Asuna ran up to them.
"Ten Laughing Coffin members were killed in the crossfire," Asuna answered. "Sadly, we also lost about ten of our own as well..."
"Yikes, that's disheartening..." Aiko quipped.
"But hey, those monsters can't trouble us anymore, and we've avenged every single person they've killed, right?" Yuuki replied. "I think that would be enough for our fallen."
"Yeah, you're right, Yuuki," Asuna stated before glancing at Lux. "Oh, who's this?"
"Our newest Sleeping Knight!" Yuuki giggled. "We basically rescued Lux from Laughing Coffin, since they forced her to be their informant."
"H-Hi, miss Asuna..." Lux stammered. "It's... it's really nice to meet you..."
As Asuna and Lux made small talk while the Crusaders returned to the Panareze Teleport Gate, a hooded figure watched the scene unfold from far away, a wicked smile on his face. All in all, PoH was quite proud of himself, having fed information to the Knights of the Blood Oath so they would come and wipe out everyone in the hideout.
"Guess they were too weak to make the 'cut', shall we say," PoH cackled. "Oh, well, this is only a minor setback. Make no mistake, you wretches, this is not the end of me. I'll be back, and when I return... you'll be begging me for death."
PoH turned and, with a swish of his cloak, walked away.
August 16th, 2024
2:46 A.M. U.S. Central Time
The Kelly Household, Melissa's Room
With a panicked scream, Melissa shot out of bed, still unsure if she was trapped in that particular nightmare.
When she saw the familiar sights of her room, she was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. Those freakin' murderers... Melissa thought. Why are they haunting my dreams now?!
At the recent SAO Task Force meeting, Melissa had learned that Nick, along with those girls from his new guild, has been part of a crusade to bring down Laughing Coffin, a group of actual murderers that had been terrorizing the players of Sword Art Online for well over a year.
Despite the fact that she knew Nick and his friends were alive and well, she still worried.
And the whole reason she'd had that nightmare?
What seemed to have slipped the Clearers' intelligence was one very massive problem.
The actual leader of Laughing Coffin, PoH, was still at large.
To be continued...
On the next episode...
Aiko: Holy crapbaskets, we're on floor 75 now! We're so close to taking this deathtrap of a game down!
Yuuki: Yeah, but I'm sure this is also where the game's really gonna stop pulling its punches, too.
Nick: Add that to this other problem. Who's this guy who looks like Voldemort if he got caught in a grease fire?
Asuna: That's just my bodyguard, honestly.
Kuradeel: Could you maybe sound a little less offended? I'm right here.
Lisbeth: Hey, maybe focus on the boss?! ...whoever it is.
Nick: Oh, no.
Yuuki: You said that before the floor 50 boss.
Nick: Astute observation, Yuuki, because we might be in some deep trouble next time on Sword Art Online: Twin Memory, "The Demon of Darkness"!
Nick, Yuuki, and Aiko: This may be a game, but it's not something you play!