Definitely not in Urbus anymore.
Lisbeth couldn't help but gape in awe at the three enormous trees that made up the town of Zumfut on the 3rd floor of Aincrad. It was such a drastic change of scenery compared to Urbus and the 2nd floor's savannah-like environment. Each of the three trees that surrounded the teleport plaza looked to be hollowed out, and each had bridges criss-crossing to the others at various points along its height. Surrounding the three trees and the teleport plaza was a wide ring of logs that made up a simple wall, with an iron gate interposed directly ahead of Lisbeth some distance away, presumably to allow foot traffic in and out of the arboreal town. Just outside of the front gate, Lisbeth could see a bridge spanning a river or stream of sorts; it was difficult to say how expansive this body of water was from where she was standing.
She figured she would find out soon enough, though. Before, Lisbeth would have been content to stay within the town's walls and offer her services to other players, secure within the confines of the safe zone. Up until recently, that was all she aspired to do.
That all changed a few hours ago.
Having watched the clearing group's battle against the 2nd floor boss, ((Asterius the Taurus King)), she saw that one player's weapon shatter when he tried to parry the boss's attacks. She wanted to do more to support the clearing group. Her role as a blacksmith in town just didn't feel good enough. She could do more, even if it was something as simple as providing fast weapon repairs in between group rotations during boss fights. She'd have to do more fighting, she realized, but that was fine. She'd had to kill monsters before for materials, so it wouldn't be that drastic of a change.
First things first, though. She's have to build some rapport with the clearers and see if she could convince any to let her in their party. Regrettably, her interactions with clearers had been somewhat soured at first when she'd first started smithing, but in the week since, she'd made great strides and could now reliably enhance and repair weapons.
Spotting a NPC villager, she walked up to them, carefully forming the right question in her mind. NPCs, she'd learned, could answer simple questions if phrased properly. Anything too complex or too situational would be met with confusion.
"Excuse me." Lisbeth began, tapping the older man on the shoulder. "Can you tell me where the market is?"
The man, who looked to be in his late 50's or early 60's, put down the crate he was carrying and pointed to the nearest tree. "Of course! Right inside this tree here is the market, which extends up three floors within."
"Thank you!" Lisbeth replied, which earned her a gentle smile from the NPC. With that, she went inside the giant tree.
Just like the man said, this area appeared to be the common marketplace. There were a number of stalls already set up, most of them NPC but a few of them were player stalls. Quickly securing a spot near the entrance, Lisbeth set up shop, bringing out her mobile forge and her smithing tools. It didn't take long for her stall to start seeing traffic. It was mostly novice players, and no one she really recognized as having participated in the two boss raids that preceded this floor.
Maybe I got here too late. The clearers are probably out mapping the floor already, and probably already repaired their gear when they reached this floor. I took too long. That's got to be it. At least I've got a good spot here. One's bound to come by at some point. What should I advertise my skills to be? Apart from being a portable repair smithy, what would I do in combat? I've always used a warhammer and shield, so maybe a tank? I haven't put too many points into vitality, so that could be a problem.
"Fancy seein' you here, Lis-chan." A familiar voice called out, interrupting her thoughts.
Looking over, Lisbeth saw that the voice belonged to none other than Argo the Rat. For some reason the information broker had taken special interest in Lisbeth. The Rat tried to explain that her interest stemmed from the fact that Lisbeth was the only notable female blacksmith around, but she figured there might have been more to it. Maybe she saw a kindred spirit in her, or maybe even she just wanted to make another female friend in the male-centric world they lived in.
"Hi Argo. Something I can help you with, or are you here to scare off my customers?" Lisbeth replied with a smirk on her lips. She'd very quickly learned that Argo loved to verbally spar with others, and Lisbeth was no slouch when it came to wordplay.
"Hah!" The information broker laughed. "Cheeky as always, Lis-chan. Can't a friend check up on a friend every now and then?"
"Fair enough." Lisbeth conceded. She would have kept up the verbal joust a little longer, but since the Rat was here, Lisbeth figured she'd make the most of it. "Actually, it's a good thing you dropped by. I need information."
If Argo'd had her hood down, Lisbeth could swear her ears would have perked up. A grin crossed the broker's lips before she answered. "That's unusual for you. What kind of information, Lis-chan?"
"I want to join up with the clearers. After watching the sorry state their weapons were in during and after the battle with Asterius, I figure that's where I'm needed most." Lisbeth explained. "So here's my question. Know of any parties or groups that could use a blacksmith?"
Argo looked thoughtful for a moment and pulled up her menu. While Lisbeth couldn't actually see her menu, based on her hand movements she guessed the Rat might have pulled up her friends list.
"That information'll cost ya, of course. What kind of party are you looking for?" Argo expertly manipulated her menu interface with such speed and dexterity that Lisbeth lost track of what possible windows she might have pulled up already.
"Well, I use a warhammer and a shield, so maybe a group that needs a tank? I'm probably not going to be the best tank, but that's a role I'm already somewhat built for." Lisbeth explained, pausing for a moment to think of any other criteria she might have. "Oh, and please, a party that isn't just a bunch of guys looking for a girlfriend. I already have to fend off thirsty men when I'm repairing or enhancing their weapons. The amount of 'weapon servicing' jokes I get on a daily basis…"
She shuddered. Men could be absolute creeps sometimes.
A smile crossed Argo's face. She tapped somewhere on her menu and started typing out what Lisbeth assumed was a message to someone on her vast and expansive friends list.
"I might have a group for you…" The Rat teased.
Lisbeth brightened at the prospect of a decent group, but then she realized that she was speaking with the infamous Argo the Rat. Information was power and money to the Rat, and it never came free.
"How much, Argo?" Lisbeth said with a monotone.
"3,000 Cor."
All things considered, that wasn't a bad deal. Lisbeth could make more than that amount in a single day from her transactions with other players on a good day.
"Why so cheap, Argo? Are you trying to cheat me here? Who are you putting me with?" Lisbeth asked warily.
"Consider it a discount. I'm real interested to see how this works out." Argo explained.
"A discount? Really?" Lisbeth asked, doubting that was all there was to this.
Argo's smile dropped for a moment.
"It's more of a personal interest, really. Let's see if they're still in town..."
"Why hasn't it dropped yet?!"
Silica took out her frustrations on the ((Little Nepenthes)) before her. She and Geeou had been at this for well over two hours, trying to get some stupid flower to drop from some rare monster for some quest he'd read up on in the guidebook. Sometimes she hated the guidebook, since it took away some of the excitement that came from learning things for the first time, but deep down she knew that Geeou liked to be cautious when questing. She couldn't fault him for that, really. That had been part of the reason why they were only just now attempting this quest. At level 7, these plant monsters were significantly weaker and easier to kill, even with how many there were around them. According to Geeou, many players had died attempting this quest even at the recommended level of 3. That said, apparently the quest reward was worth the grind, for a sword called the ((Anneal Blade)).
At least they were getting some experience out of this.
"It's supposed to have a low drop rate!" Geeou shouted as he killed a plant monster that had just spawned behind him. "It might take a while for the rare monster to spawn. In the meantime, all we can do is whittle these regular ones away."
Silica pouted. She didn't mind grinding, but even she got tired of it when it involved the same monster for hours on end. "What if we popped the fruit on that one there? You said that would attract more, right?" Silica asked, pointing at a Nepenthes with a fruit on its head.
"Doing that will draw the attention of every Nepenthes nearby. We could probably take them on, but I don't want us to get overwhelmed by accident." Geeou thought aloud.
"What if I just popped it and ran away? While they're focused on me, you could kill them easily." Silica suggested.
"You are pretty fast…" Geeou murmured. "You should be able to outspeed them. Do you have that teleport crystal still?"
Silica pulled up her inventory menu and materialized a small blue crystal in her hand. "This, right?"
"That's it. If you get in too much trouble, remember to use that to teleport back to safety." Geeou advised.
Silica remembered Geeou spending a very sizable amount of their savings to purchase two of these teleport crystals. It had been a justified purchase, he argued, as it let them teleport to safety in the blink of an eye, if things went south. They were virtually impossible to find on the 1st and 2nd floors, and only a select few merchants were peddling them from the 3rd floor.
"So can I, then?" Silica asked, impatiently.
"Yes, fine. Go ahead, but be careful!" Geeou shouted as Silica ran straight towards the fruit-bearing Nepenthes. He readied his blade and started after her, sword positioned to lash out at the first hostile Nepenthes to aggro on his friend.
*POP!*
In an instant, all of the Nepenthes in the immediate area began lumbering forward towards Silica, who had since started running towards Geeou. Geeou lashed out with a ((Horizontal)), swiping the two nearest Nepenthes to allow Silica to run past him unimpeded. She zoomed past, using her superior agility stat to literally run circles around the plant monsters. As she weaved between her aggressors, Geeou strode forth, carefully and methodically clearing away Nepenthes with calculated efficiency.
"This is going pretty well, actually." Geeou said. "How are you doing?"
Silica beamed with excitement. "This makes grinding so much more fun! I could do this all - YIPE!" She screamed before she was hoisted up into the air by the vine of a larger-than-usual Nepenthes. Glancing over at the creature, sure enough it was a plant monster called ((Large Nepenthes)).
"Silica!" Geeou shouted, running straight towards her, cutting down any Nepenthes in his way.
"GET ME DOWN!" Silica shouted as she was hoisted upside down. She suddenly became self-aware of the compromising position she was in, and promptly used her free hand to pin her skirt down. She began to swing wildly with her dagger, but her short blade found no purchase nearby.
"Grab the vine it's holding you with and cut it!" Geeou shouted, fending off two more Nepenthes. "Or use your crystal!"
"But I don't want you to see - " Silica began.
"Just do it!" Geeou exclaimed. "I promise I won't look!"
Noticing that he had, in fact, turned away to kill more approaching Nepenthes, Silica let go of her skirt and took hold of the vine currently grabbing her by the ankle. Pulling it closer, she lashed out with a charged sword skill and severed the vine holding her. She quickly plummeted to the ground, but was able to twist mid-air so as to land on her feet. Upon landing, she quickly shifted her crouched stance and launched forward, dagger held forth as she killed the offending plant monster with a single, well-aimed blow.
As the Nepenthes shattered and she fell to the ground, she saw a Nepenthes off to the side with a flower on its head. "There, Geeou!"
His head whipped around to her before following her gaze and outstretched finger. "Got it!"
Both overleveled players then proceeded to carve their way through the horde of Nepenthes, all the while taking a few hits on the way to their destination. Once they found the flower-wielding monster, they both pounced, killing it in a matter of seconds. A single flower began drifting towards the ground as its holder shattered.
"Can we leave now?" Silica asked.
"Agreed. I've had enough of these creepy plants for one day." Geeou quipped as the pair ran off back to the town of Horunka. "We need to be more careful though. If we were at the same level as those things, we probably would have died just then."
"Sorry, Geeou." Silica apologized. "I guess I got a little excited."
"It's alright, the only thing that matters is we're alive. We just need to keep that in mind in the future, especially if and when we join the clearers." Geeou said.
As they ran through the forest, Silica couldn't help but feel just a tiny twinge of guilt and shame. Not only had she been ambushed by a low-level monster, but she was caught in an embarrassing situation because of it, and she flushed at the thought that Geeou might have seen something.
He said he didn't see anything, and I trust him.
She shook off the embarrassment and holstered her dagger.
I just won't get caught like that again. Now let's get you your sword.
"You!"
"Me?"
"Yes, you!"
Sinon, Kirito, and Argo looked back and forth between Leonn and this new brown-haired girl who seemed to be confronting him. Leonn looked like he'd been caught off guard, but he nevertheless seemed to recognize her. Oddly enough, Asuna seemed to be unfazed by the whole interaction, simply smiling at the two.
"I'm sorry, do you two know each other?" Sinon interjected.
Leonn glanced in Sinon's direction. "This is the blacksmith Asuna and I went to see back in Urbus to repair our weapons. She even enhanced my maul at the time."
"The maul you broke!" The aforementioned smith exclaimed. "You should have come seen me before you left for the boss fight so I could repair it. I didn't even know you were a clearer!"
"I didn't know your name and I couldn't find you!" Leonn replied, raising his hands to defend himself from the verbal barrage. "I'm sorry!"
Argo cleared her throat, demanding everyone's attention. "Like I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted…" She threw a pointed look towards the blacksmith. "...this is Lisbeth. She's a blacksmith friend of mine who wants to start working with clearers. Lis-chan, these are the clearers I was telling you about. That's Kirito, Asuna, Sinon..."
She blinked, seeming to have just realized something. "Where's Agil?"
"After we got to town and opened the teleporter, he split from the party to meet up with his buddies." Kirito explained. "He wants to work with us more in the future, but he didn't want to abandon his other friends."
"Fair enough." Argo admitted before continuing. "... and the hammerhead there is Leonn."
"Argo, how many times do I have to tell you?" Leonn asked, exasperation laced in his tone. "It's a maul, not a hammer."
"Same difference, Leo-bou." Argo retorted. "It's heavy, and it breaks things and people."
"Actually, they're not quite the same." Lisbeth said, raising a finger. "Warhammers are one-handed weapons and mauls are two-handed weapons. Warhammers are lighter, faster, and can be used with a shield. Mauls are much slower but deal much more damage."
"Thank you!" Leonn exclaimed, gesturing towards Lisbeth. "Finally, someone who gets it!"
Argo rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, you're gonna fit in just well with these guys. Anyway, back on topic. She's willing to be your personal blacksmith if you bring her along with you."
Kirito looked pensive for a moment, rubbing his chin with his index finger, clearly in deep thought. "Having a blacksmith with us would be a huge advantage. She could provide support during boss fights by performing quick repairs."
"That was my thought exactly." Lisbeth said, looking rather impressed that the black-haired boy had come to the same conclusion.
"What's your build?" Kirito asked.
"Primarily strength and luck, since I'm a blacksmith, but I have a handful of points in vitality." Lisbeth explained. "I use a warhammer and a shield."
"That's a tank build, right?" Asuna guessed, earning her a nod from Kirito. After being validated, Asuna beamed and Sinon could swear she saw her cheeks turn just a shade redder.
"More or less. Most tanks put more points into vitality, but she's got a shield." Kirito said. "We could use a tank, actually."
"Hey now…" Leonn started.
Kirito held a hand up. "You're bulky and you're good at crowd control, but you don't have a shield to block with. She does. Your weapon takes a bit of durability loss when you try to block with it."
"Fair enough, I guess." Leonn shrugged. "I'm all for it if you guys are. The more, the merrier."
"I think it's a great idea." Asuna chimed in with a smile on her face. She looked over to Sinon, who was also nodding in approval.
Kirito looked towards Lisbeth. "We're all in agreement then. Welcome aboard, Lisbeth." He opened his menu and sent her a party invitation.
As she accepted the invite, all four players looked up to their HUD and saw a fifth name added to their party list. Now they only had one spot vacant before they hit their limit of six members in a party. Not that they had anyone in mind, really. Agil had his own group, and Argo wouldn't get herself involved in clearing efforts like that. Her job as an info broker was arguably just as important. An informed player base was a player base less prone to dying.
"Please, call me Liz." She corrected him. "So what are we doing first?"
"We were going to start the Elf War campaign quest that starts on this floor, unless anyone needs anything here in town first?" Kirito asked, looking around his party.
Leonn reached behind his back and brought out his new maul. "Actually, I was going to see if I could track down Liz anyway to get this puppy enhanced. Now I don't have to worry about combing through town looking for her."
Liz's eyes went wide at the sight of the new weapon. "What is that?! I don't work with many mauls since not many people use them, but that is something else."
Leonn handed her the maul, gently dropping it in her outstretched hands. The maul seemed to be heavier than she expected, but she recovered soon enough and tapped on it to examine its stats and properties.
"I got it as the last attack bonus from the 2nd floor boss, ((Asterius the Taurus King))." Leonn informed her.
"Now this is a maul!" Liz exclaimed before turning to Leonn. "I'd be happy to enhance this for you. Do you have the mats for it?"
"Yeah, enough for two enhances at least." Leonn replied.
"Good!" Liz said before handing the maul back to Leonn. She turned to the rest of her party. "Did anyone want their weapon repaired or enhanced before we go?"
Three hands raised up, eager to take advantage of their new party member's services.
After having Liz repair and enhance their weapons, they left the safe zone of Zumfut behind to travel to the area Kirito mentioned they could start the Elf War campaign quest. Unlike every other quest they'd taken on previous floors, campaign quests encompassed entire storylines and spanned several floors. Kirito explained that this would be a reliable way to gain experience and possibly equipment.
According to Kirito, the quest would start when a player or party encountered a fight between a Forest Elf and a Dark Elf in the middle of the Forest of Wavering Mists. Then, the player(s) had a choice to make; they could either side with the Forest Elf or the Dark Elf, fighting and killing the other elf in the process. He also mentioned that these were elite creatures, a term that confused Asuna at first until he explained that elite monsters were significantly stronger and harder to defeat. Sinon then asked if the quest was safe, given the difficulty of the elves involved.
"We should be fine. Once a player's health reaches yellow, the allied elf sacrifices themselves to kill themselves and the hostile elf. We can't die from this quest." Kirito assured everyone. "We should just give it our all."
"So who are we siding with?" Liz asked.
"I always sided with the Dark Elf during the beta." Kirito explained. "Since we know more about what's involved with the Dark Elf campaign, that's the safer option in the long run."
Leonn chuckled. "Right, because that's the only reason you want to choose the Dark Elf. Definitely not because she's a girl and wears dark clothing like a certain swordsman we know."
Kirito's face flushed at being called out like that, and his flush only deepened when he looked over to see Asuna glaring daggers at him. Liz, still being new to the group, let out an awkward chuckle, whereas Sinon outwardly laughed. In a desperate bid to change the subject, Kirito continued.
"Since there's five of us, the Forest Elf is probably going to summon another elf or two to assist him." Kirito went on. "The game likes to balance staged combat encounters like that, so we should decide on how to split up."
"Liz and I are pretty tanky, so we can hold off the main elf long enough for the three of you to finish off the add." Leonn suggested. "Then once you're done with the add, we all gang up on the main elf."
"Sounds like a good plan to me." Asuna added before turning to Kirito. "You're sure there's no chance of us dying here?"
"We shouldn't get reckless, but that's how it was in the beta. She'll sacrifice herself before any of us get anywhere close to dying." Kirito said as he came to a clearing in the forest. He held a hand up to signal the group to stop. He pointed ahead, where the five could see two elves fighting in an endless duel.
The Forest Elf had fair complexion and long blonde hair. He was tall, lithe, and armored in silver armor and green clothing. At the present moment, his greatsword was locked with his opponent's blade. His opponent, the Dark Elf mentioned earlier, was a dark-skinned elf with complexion similar to Leonn's. Unlike the Forest Elf, her pointed ears were adorned with two ruby earrings. She had lilac colored hair that came down to her shoulders. Her armor, unlike her foe's, was dark shades of grey, and her clothing underneath was black and purple. She also wore a black cloak across her shoulders and back, which was clasped together with a metal piece that resembled a leaf and berries. Like her counterpart, she too had a shield in her off-hand, which similarly had an insignia of some sort engraved into it.
"Everybody ready?" Kirito asked, scanning over his companions. They all gave him a silent nod before they all entered the clearing, much to the surprise of the NPC elves dueling in the center.
"What the - ? Stay your hand, humans! This does not concern you!" The Forest Elf shouted, taking a moment to glance at the party of five that had just made themselves known.
"Stay back! If you value your lives, do not get involved!" The Dark Elf exclaimed, eyes never leaving her foe.
Kirito immediately launched forward, landing a ((Vertical)) strike on the Forest Elf, causing him to recoil and leap backwards, breaking the stalemate between him and the Dark Elf. The Dark Elf, on the other hand, seemed surprised at this sequence of events, and readied herself to fight alongside these strangers who'd come to her aid.
"I knew you Dark Elven scum were cowardly and weak, but to make allies of the humans? Despicable!" The Forest Elf spat. "I shall enjoy cutting you all down. Quor'she!"
A second Forest Elf leapt forward from the treeline, brandishing a sword of its own and leveling it at Kirito and his party. As they'd agreed, the five players slowly began to separate into their predetermined teams to deal with each elf. Kirito, Asuna, and Sinon shifted their attention to the new elf that had joined the fray, where Liz, Leonn, and the Dark Elf squared off against the main Forest Elf.
The second Forest Elf was quick on the draw, raising its sword back to swing down at Kirito, but was stopped when an arrow flew past and slammed into his sword arm. Kirito took advantage of the opening and began with a ((Meteor Fall)), performing a quick punch to the staggered elf as he threw his sword into the air. Immediately jumping afterwards to catch his sword, he came down with a gravity-assisted strike and slashed a sizable gash across the elf's torso. Kirito immediately leapt backwards.
"Asuna, switch!" Kirito shouted.
She was already passing by his side before the words left this mouth, immediately dashing in with a series of unassisted thrusts with her rapier. While fierce in their own right, her normal attacks were not strong enough to interrupt the elf's advances. She'd actually planned on that and immediately executed a ((Stellar Slip)), grabbing hold of the elf's sword arm and pivoting her body around to his backside. As the elf staggered forward from the loss of balance, she lashed out with a horizontal swipe, finishing the skill.
Two more arrows found their mark as the two wooden shafts planted themselves in the elf's torso. Sinon charged up one of her own skills, ((Gale Shot)), a powerful attack that dealt more damage than her normal shots. She let the arrow loose and watched as it was engulfed in blue light before colliding with the unsuspecting elf, who was still fending off the flurry of black and white before it. The synergy between the three players had already resulted in the loss of half of the elf's health, which was a welcome surprise to what they'd been expecting.
Not too far away, the main Forest Elf was locked in a contest of strength with Leonn, who had blocked the elf's greatsword with the handle of his maul. Sparks flew as the two pushed against one another, trying to overpower or throw the other off balance. The Forest Elf cried out in pain as Liz's warhammer struck him at the knee, causing it to buckle. He held firm, though, but now Leonn was above the elf and using his own body weight to push downward . The Dark Elf pounced, bringing her own longsword across the Forest Elf's back, eliciting another cry of pain as he glanced back at the two women who'd exploited his exposed flanks. The Forest Elf then suddenly shifted his weight, twisting his body and sweeping his leg out, subsequently tripping Leonn, who lost his balance and fell into the forest floor face-first.
Using that same twisting momentum, the Forest Elf swung out to catch the Dark Elf across the waist, but only met the steel of her shield instead. Having missed his first intended target, the Forest Elf charged up a sword skill and struck downward at Leonn, who was still trying to get back on his feet.
*CLANG!*
The Forest Elf's greatsword hadn't met flesh like he'd hoped, but instead it had crashed against the steel of Liz's shield. Angling her shield to the side, the elf's greatsword slipped past harmlessly into the ground as she swung with the warhammer equivalent of the ((Horizontal)) skill, catching the elf squarely in the jaw. He recovered quicker than she expected, swinging his greatsword horizontally to catch her at her midsection.
"Liz, switch!"
Quickly stepping back, Liz felt a rush of air come from behind her as she saw Leonn's maul swing upward, deflecting the elf's greatsword. He immediately transitioned into a ((Blockade)), slamming his shoulder into the elf's flank. The Dark Elf came in afterward, swinging her longsword twice and rending two pixelated gashes across the elf's other side with a two-hit combo. The elf leapt backward to create distance between himself and his three assailants.
"Your human allies are strong, indeed. I see this is a battle I cannot win, but I will not go down so easily!" The elf leveled his greatsword and took a stance, preparing to charge forward again. He would have, too, were it not for the arrow coming in from the side and catching the side of his knee, breaking his charge mid-stride.
Looking over to the side, the Forest Elf saw that his comrade had perished in a cloud of pixels. A whirlwind of black and white effectively collided with him as a series of slashes and thrusts whittled his health down even more.
Seized by a desperate second wind, the Forest Elf began to lash out wildly at Kirito and Asuna, who were forced to retreat or else take damage from the greatsword. Liz and the Dark Elf advanced, holding their shields at the ready to block and deflect the elf's manic strikes. Leonn came up from behind and brought his maul down just as the elf dodged to the side. Skidding to a halt, the elf bounded forth again in an attempt to run the now-exposed Leonn through. Before he could reach him, though, a black blur swiped past him with its sword, bringing its health to zero and shattering him.
There was silence as all six figured dusted themselves off from their bout with the Forest Elves. Asuna and Leonn both pulled out a health potion to top off what little health they'd lost during the fight. Liz looked visibly winded but no worse for wear, and Sinon was holstering her bow across her back. Kirito looked relieved, but that relief gave way to stunned confusion as a thought came to him.
"I thank you, brave heroes. I owe you my life." The Dark Elf said with a salute and a bow. "Had you not arrived when you did, I most certainly would have perished and the Jade Key would have been lost to the Forest Elves."
Asuna walked up and bowed in kind. "There is no need to thank us. We were happy to be of assistance." She looked over to Kirito and was startled to see the expression on his face. It was one of absolute confusion.
The Dark Elf walked over to where the Forest Elf had been defeated and retrieved a bag lying on the ground. "I know not what brought you to my aid, but I would like to thank you properly. Please accompany me to our base and I will ensure you are adequately rewarded for your efforts here. My commander would almost certainly enjoy meeting the humans who saved the Jade Key."
"This wasn't in the beta…" Kirito murmured, drawing curious glances from the rest of his party.
"But where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself." The Dark Elf began as she gave a deep bow to her saviours.
"My name is Kizmel, Pagoda Knight of the Dark Elves and Royal Guard of Lyusula."