Reality was often strange, and virtual reality was no exception.

The people that lived in it? Equally so, it seemed.

There were a number of oddities that existed in SAO that had somehow survived past the initial panic of Launch Day. Some made this virtual reality all the stranger, whereas others were a reminder of what awaited just past the 100th floor. The kind of people that lived in Aincrad almost two months later ran the gamut.

A man on the 2nd floor was said to have somehow wrangled and ridden one of the ((Trembling Ox)) monsters and ran it straight into town, lasting 5 minutes on the rampaging bull's back before being bucked off, after which the bull ran back into the field. No one was in any immediate danger since Urbus was a safe zone, but it was apparently quite the spectacle.

A girl on the 1st floor had taken it upon herself to use her innate musical talents to cheer up and boost the morale of travelers near the teleport gate. Already making a name for herself amongst the player base as "The Bard," this girl and a few others like her were already proving themselves invaluable to the continued mental health of Aincrad.

A woman on the 2nd floor was said to be so terrified of dying, yet so determined to go out and help clear the game that in her desperation to live, she had spent every available level up stat point into vitality and had accidentally become the tankiest player of her level. She'd even equipped a tower shield and had somehow used that as a weapon.

Another woman on the 1st floor had set up a kind of school and orphanage in one of the church buildings in the Town of Beginnings, in order to house younger players who were too inexperienced or unwilling to explore on their own. These were players who had somehow gained access to SAO despite the recommended age warning advising against younger people playing.

It was that last person, the schoolteacher, that Argo was going to visit today.

When she first heard of Sasha the schoolteacher a month ago, Argo made it a point to immediately make contact with her. Here was a woman who was not only giving a service to the community free of charge, but who also understood the value of knowledge. The two were kindred spirits in that sense, both doing their best to look out for those whose inexperience would only get them killed in the harsh virtual world of SAO. Despite their very different personalities, they'd hit it off rather quickly. After spending an hour getting to know Sasha, Argo added her to her friends list and made it a point to visit the schoolteacher at least once a week. She was a friend, to be sure, and Argo enjoyed her company.

Argo looked up and saw the steeple of the converted church Sasha was using right now. It was a relatively modest building, weathered and worn from years of neglect and misuse. Not actually, though, since this building, like all buildings in SAO, was no older than a month and a half. A clever use of textures and graphics to give the appearance of age and history, but it did the trick nonetheless. Jogging up the few steps to the large wooden doors, Argo rapped her knuckles across its gnarled surface.

"Sas-chan! Are you busy?" Argo called out. Hopefully she hadn't caught her during the middle of a lesson.

A few moments passed in silence as Argo awkwardly waited at the church doors. Maybe they aren't home? Does Sasha take the kids on field trips?

The left side of the double doors swung open, nearly slamming into Argo if she hadn't been quick enough to side-step it. A child, perhaps no older than eleven, answered the door with a beaming smile.

"Argo!" The boy exclaimed before turning his head and shouting into the church. "Miss Sasha! Everyone! Argo's here!"

Argo reached over to ruffle the boy's black hair. "Hey there, Avi-bou. You're not givin' Sasha too much trouble, are ya?"

"Nah." The boy fixed his hair before trying to act cool. "Not since Cami and I got lost that one time. Do you have any new stories for us, Argo?"

The Rat smiled. "Only if you have any stories to tell me, Avi-bou."

Children were strange creatures, something Argo learned very soon after first meeting Sasha. While most adults write children off as loud, troublesome, attention-seeking nuisances, Argo knew better. Children also had the ability to remain unnoticed or unseen when they put their minds to it, and many adults are just a little more loose-tongued when it's a child nearby instead of another adult. As Argo once saw on an old television drama, these "little birds" were an untapped resource for an information broker. All she had to do on her part was supply them with in return was stories and tales from the front.

"Good morning, Argo." A friendly feminine voice called out from further inside. "What brings you to our little schoolhouse today?"

"Can't I just visit my favorite schoolteacher and her students?" Argo asked innocently.

"I'm the only schoolteacher in Aincrad, Argo." Sasha replied with a dubious look before her expression brightened again. "But we appreciate your visit nonetheless. How can we help you?"

"Oh, you know…" Argo started, nonchalantly slipping past the boy at the front door and strolling into the schoolhouse. "... I did want to visit my favorite schoolhouse in Aincrad. Maybe swap some stories with you and the kids…"

The children who had accompanied Sasha to the front door gasped with anticipation.

Sasha looked at the children now surrounding Argo. "Chores first. This schoolhouse isn't going to pay for itself, you know."

The children assembled all groaned. Argo couldn't help but smirk. The schoolteacher had a point. She hadn't the money to outright purchase the converted orphanage-slash-schoolhouse, so they had to pay monthly rent. Fortunately enough, there were quests contained within the Town of Beginnings that players could complete on a daily basis for easy Cor. They often consisted of delivery quests from one side of town to the other, and most non-combatants completed them for a steady source of income.

"Go on, now. The sooner you finish your delivery quests, the sooner you can talk with Argo." Sasha said, looking each child in the eye.

The mood suddenly shifted from annoyance to determination as the children all but ran out of the schoolhouse towards the center of town.

Argo chuckled as she closed the door behind her. "You know just how to motivate them, don't ya Sas-chan?"

Sasha put her hands on her hips, her expression relaxing now that the children were gone. "You know just as well as I do that the kids can't resist hearing your stories. And don't think I don't know about you using them to gather information."

Placing her hand over her virtual heart, Argo feigned a shocked expression. "You wound me, Sas-chan! You're right, of course, but they're going to be eavesdropping on people anyway. Why not make use of that?"

Sasha sighed and shook her head. "That doesn't mean I have to like it, though. Now come on, can I get you some tea?"

"Thanks, Sas-chan!" Argo said, following Sasha as she walked towards an area that had been repurposed as a lounge area. The Rat took a seat at one of the tables while Sasha went off to the kitchen area to prepare some tea. Looking around, Argo could see that Sasha and the kids were steadily making improvements to the place. What used to be an otherwise unimpressive room with only cushions and benches was now filled with tables, long picnic-style benches, and large cushions to allow the kids a place to relax and socialize outside of school hours. The fireplace on the far side of the room had been cleaned up and now a modest fire was blazing within. Now mid-December, Aincrad was experiencing colder weather to reflect the holiday season and what those in real life were undoubtedly experiencing, so cleaning up the fireplace in time for winter was prudent on Sasha's part. Looked like the windows had been cleaned as well, letting in a decent amount of sunlight without sacrificing the privacy of the students.

"Here we are." Sasha said as she approached the table, steaming tea cups in hand. "So how are you, Argo? Anything I should know?"

Argo picked up the teacup, giving it a small sip before leaning back in her chair. "I'm doin' just dandy, thanks for askin'. Couldn't help but notice one missin' from your little group here. She alright?"

Sasha gave a heavy sigh. "She's fine, so far as I know. Silica decided to start adventuring sometime after watching Illfang's defeat. She wants to join the clearers someday."

"Really, now?" Argo said, looking slightly impressed before her expression turned to one of mild concern. "She's not goin' solo, is she? That's dangerous, even on the first floor."

"Thankfully, no." Sasha replied, a smile crossing her face. "A boy named Geeou is partying with her and he seems the overly cautious type. He's purposefully overleveling them so that the mobs they fight have little chance of killing them."

"That's pretty smart, I've gotta admit. It'll mean slower leveling, for sure, but it's definitely safer. Geeou?" Argo asked, pulling up her notepad. "How do you spell that?"

Sasha pulled up her friends list and scrolled down before finding the name in question. "G - E - E - O - U."

Argo's face twisted in confusion. "Seriously? That's a lot of vowels in a row. Where'd he get that from?"

Sasha shrugged. "I never bothered to ask. Seemed like it might be personal."

"That's fair." Argo nodded before taking another sip of her tea. She more than most understood the need for privacy in this game. While she prided herself on being the game's best information broker, she would never sell another person's personal information if she had access to it.

"On another note…" Sasha continued, setting her teacup down. "I wanted to talk to you about something I had in mind for the kids that I wanted your advice on. I'll pay if necessary."

Argo arched an eyebrow. "Oh? What kind of info?"

Sasha glanced back and forth around the room, probably to see if there were any unwelcome eavesdroppers. "The kids want to meet some clearers, so I was entertaining the idea of bringing them on a field trip to the 3rd floor town. While arranging a meet-and-greet with the clearers isn't feasible, at least I imagine it's not, I'd like some information about what to expect up there."

Argo leaned back in her chair. "They wanna meet the clearers, huh?"

"Oh come now, Argo." Sasha gave the Rat another dubious look. "Between the floor boss broadcasts and the stories you tell them, the clearers are the closest thing to role models these kids have. It's only natural that they want to meet their heroes."

Argo grinned. "Well, you and the kids have provided me with plenty of info in the past, and I'm bound to get some more juicy stories today, so consider us even here. Here's what you'll need to know…"

Over the next half hour, Argo began to detail out what the schoolteacher and her class should expect in the 3rd floor city Zumfut. She started with the basic information, such as what the town looked like, where to find the various vendors and shops, and how to easily traverse the unfamiliar arboreal city. Then she moved on to the kinds of players they might encounter up there, namely the different clearing groups that could be seen passing through to resupply or settle in for the night. She also told her about the five major groups that were the primary clearing force. Four of the five groups had officially organized into guilds, having completed the guild creation quest.

The Dragon Knights Brigade, by far the largest group, was led by a man named Lind. The DKB was organized and competitive, seeking to make themselves the strongest clearing guild in the game. Some of its members would resort to cheap tactics to achieve this goal, but for the time being Lind was keeping a lid on the antics of the more impatient junior members.

The Aincrad Liberation Squad was the next largest group, and was led by a man named Kibaou. The ALS was more or less organized like a standing military, and took great pride in their place as a clearing guild. Unfortunately, their gargantuan sense of pride and ego often led them to butting heads with the other guilds, namely the DKB, and they openly loathed and forbade beta testers from joining their ranks.

The Legend Braves were a relatively small guild and were led by a man named Orlando. Each member of TLB had apparently named their avatar after mythological heroes of old, but were otherwise a modest and capable group of six. Their group was unique in the sense that one of their members, Nezha, was a formerly disgraced blacksmith and the only notable user of the chakram, a special ranged weapon that had proved instrumental to the clearers' win against the 2nd floor boss.

Fuurinkazan, the newest group on the block, was another group of six headed by a man named Klein. There was nothing particularly special about this group other than the fact that they were very well organized and fought with the kind of cohesion and teamwork that came from years of working together. They were just too new to the front line to have established any sort of reputation for themselves yet. Even Argo hadn't met any of their members yet, they were so new.

The last group, and the only group not to have an official name or belong to a guild, was the group led by Kirito. Despite their leader's tarnished reputation as a "Beater" - Argo made abundantly clear that there was no truth to this continued farce - this group was by far the strongest and most capable group on the front lines. Each member had already made a name for themselves among the clearing groups as the strongest user of their respective weapons. Kirito, their leader, had an unparalleled understanding of how the game worked and was arguably the strongest player in the game right now, despite only using a single longsword. Asuna, the fencer, was so fast with her rapier that the game engine had difficulty rendering her strikes. Leonn, the only maul wielder on the front lines, was so skilled with his weapon of choice that he was considered a tank even without the use of a shield. Sinon was the only archer on the front lines - or anywhere really, at this point - and was so accurate with her shots that no one had ever seen her miss. The newest addition, Lisbeth, was arguably one the most skilled blacksmiths in the game and still somehow found the time to join the clearers as an off-tank.

As Argo finished explaining the 3rd floor and its players to Sasha, the two heard a knock on the door.

Sasha pulled up her menu and frowned. "That's odd. They shouldn't be back for at least another 15 minutes." She stood up from her seat and went to answer the door. Argo, ever the curious info broker, followed behind her but made it a point to stay out of sight.

Sasha opened the door slowly with clear hesitation. That hesitation didn't last long, however, as she quickly opened the door the rest of the way to greet her unexpected visitors.

"Silica! Geeou!" The schoolteacher exclaimed. "We were just talking about you! Please, come on in."

Argo watched as Silica walked in, ever the innocent-looking girl. She smirked as she saw that the dagger-wielder still sported twin pigtails and still carried herself with an air of confidence and enthusiasm. The boy who came in afterwards was different, however. Clearly older than his companion, the blonde looked to be about the same age as Kirito and carried a longsword strapped to his waist. Respectful, Argo concluded, as she saw him bow towards Sasha in greeting.

Quite the upstanding swordsman here, Argo mused.

"We wanted to stop by and say hi!" Silica said as she came through the doorway. As she and Geeou stopped inside the doorway, Silica scanned the room. "Where is everyone? Are they out doing their - GAH!"

Argo had snuck up behind the unsuspecting girl and ruffled her hair. "Heya Sil-chan! What's this I'm hearin' about you wantin' to be a clearer?"

"Argo!" Silica spun around and looked irritated for a moment, but that soon gave way to a smile. "Yep! We're gonna be clearers before you know it!"

Argo pivoted on her feet, facing the swordsman who accompanied Silica. "That must make you Geeou. Pleasure to meet ya. Name's Argo."

Geeou's eyes went wide and his mouth hung open. "Argo? As in the Rat? The author of the guidebook?"

Argo gave a toothy grin. "The one and only!"

Geeou turned to Silica. "You never told me you knew Argo the Rat!"

"If I'd told you, you would have begged me to introduce you." Silica gave a half-hearted pout. "That's time we could have spent leveling up."

Sasha took this moment to interject before an argument could start. "Speaking of, how is your grinding going?"

Geeou seemed to snap out of being star-struck long enough to answer. "We just started working on the 2nd floor, but the mobs there are a bit tougher than we thought…"

"Geeou thought we should look for more party members, but everyone we see on the 2nd floor has a full party already." Silica explained, looking rather disappointed.

"I see…" Sasha said thoughtfully. "None of the other children have expressed an interest in leveling up, but I don't know of any others around your level that could join you."

"Maybe we could find someone here on the 1st floor?" Geeou offered.

"Maybe…" Silica murmured.

Sasha turned towards Argo. "I don't suppose you know of any leveling groups?"

What am I, a Looking For Group bulletin board? First Liz-chan, now these two? Argo thought to herself. It had been several days since she introduced the blacksmith to Kirito's group, but this was a little soon for her liking. I'd hate for Sil-chan to get in over her head though. She's a little impulsive, and I don't think Geo-bou's gonna be able to rein that in enough on his own.

"Alright, what level are the two of ya?" Argo asked before raising her hands up in front of her. "And before you say anythin', don't you worry your pretty little faces. I don't sell personal info like that. What ya say right now stays in this room."

Silica and Geeou shared a look of uncertainty before Silica gave Geeou a nod.

"We're both level 10. We could probably get by with just the two of us for now, but if what we're hearing is true, we need to find more party members sooner rather than later, especially if we're going to catch up and join the clearers." Geeou explained.

"I know a few smaller groups like yourselves that might work. I'll have to contact 'em myself and see if they're on the market for a party merge, though." Argo thought aloud. She turned towards the duo and gave another grin. "Of course, information ain't free. It'll cost ya."

Sasha shot a pointed look over at Argo but stopped when she heard Geeou and Silica reply at the same time.

"How much?" The duo asked simultaneously.

"Hmm, somethin' like this'd probably run you about 5,000 Cor." Argo estimated.

Geeou pulled up his menu and was about to initiate a trade request with Argo when the Rat stopped him with a raised hand.

"Just 2,500 Cor for now." Argo said. "You can pay the other half if and when I find some people for you."

"Thank you so much!" Silica exclaimed, giving Argo a bow.

"Good! Now that that's dealt with, would you two like to join us for tea?" Sasha asked, gesturing towards the lounge room that she and Argo had been in previously.

"That would be great, Miss Sasha." Geeou said with a smile.

"Please, Geeou, just 'Sasha' is fine. I'm not your teacher." Sasha said.

The four walked into the lounge room and took their seats at the table Argo and Sasha had been talking at earlier. Sasha made a slight detour before joining them at the table, two more teacups in hand, which she promptly handed out to the adventuring duo.

"I was just telling Argo about a field trip I'm planning to take the students on." Sasha explained. "I think tomorrow I'll take everyone to the 3rd floor to explore the town of Zumfut."

Silica's eyes practically sparkled with excitement. "Really?!"

Sasha chuckled. "You may no longer be a student of mine, but you and Geeou are welcome to join us if you'd like. I thought it would be a nice change of pace for the children from their studies."

"We would like that very much, Mi - , I mean Sasha." Geeou replied, catching himself mid-sentence to correct himself.

During the rest of Silica and Geeou's visit, Argo kept mostly quiet, mulling over who among the hundreds upon hundreds of players she'd met would work well with these two. Absent-mindedly, she scrolled through her friends' list, making mental notes of playstyles and what little she knew of this duo's weapons. She stopped and grinned as two names in particular came into view.

That could work. Sure would make for an interesting party...

"This. Is. So. Cool!"

Geeou looked on as his younger companion gawked at the three enormous trees that made up the 3rd floor city of Zumfut. The day after meeting with Sasha and Argo, the duo had decided to tag along with the schoolteacher's field trip. They would lose out on time to grind and earn experience points on the 2nd floor, but the practical experience and insight they would gain from this trip was something Geeou just couldn't pass up. This was the front lines, and the possibility of encountering actual clearers and learning from them was something Geeou hoped would happen during their visit.

"... and this appears to be the main player market, children." Sasha's voice, while normally soft and gentle, had risen to a commanding - yet not harsh - volume to capture the attention of the overenthused children. "Here, some of the best blacksmiths, shopkeepers, and alchemists peddle their wares to the strongest players in the game."

"Miss Sasha?" A girl Geeou knew to be Lila asked. "What does 'peddle' mean?"

Sasha turned to face the girl. "To peddle something is to sell something, like what a merchant does."

Several onlookers smiled and chuckled at the touring school trip making its way through the town. Geeou couldn't help but smile a little too. Like many of the players in this game, this was a reminder of simpler times. Many of the clearing groups, Geeou had come to learn, were around his same age, if not a little older. It was natural, he supposed, that the best players were teenagers or people in their 20's, as those were the generations who were more knowledgeable and equipped to deal with a game like this. Anyone older or younger had probably logged into this game if only just to relax, and now spent the majority of their days just living day to day in the Town of Beginnings. The sight of a school field trip probably reminded these clearers of their own school days.

He looked around at the players who were assembled here in the market. Many looked fairly well-armored and armed, clearly outclassing both he and Silica. Were it not for the school group they were chaperoning, both of them would have looked very out of place here.

We probably still do look out of place. Geeou thought to himself, letting a chuckle escape.

Silica looked up at Geeou. "What is it, Geeou?"

"Nothing, just wondering how ridiculous we look here." Geeou replied. "We're very underleveled for this floor and we're escorting a group of students who are even lower."

"I guess so." Silica admitted. "It's still pretty cool here, and I don't think they mind us here, do they?"

"I don't think so." Geeou said, looking about the room. "They seem amused, but I don't think we're causing them any trouble."

Silica suddenly grasped at Geeou's sleeve. "Hey, while we're here, should we get some potions? They probably have some really good ones up here!"

"We probably can, but I don't we should get too many. They're probably expensive." Geeou responded. He raised his hand to get Sasha's attention. "Sasha, Silica and I are going to buy a couple of potions while we're here. We'll catch up."

"Actually, I think we'll join you." Sasha replied, bringing the group to a halt. "I think it'll be a great learning experience for everyone to see how goods are bought and sold."

Some of the students looked less than pleased at the detour, but a handful looked excited for the change in plans. Geeou and Silica led the school group over to a stall that looked to sell potions and general goods. It was a modest stand, consisting of a normal-sized wooden table and a suspended tarp acting as a makeshift awning over the booth. A large dark-skinned man stood behind the counter and seemed to be negotiating with a group of six well-equipped players. The leader of the group, a red-haired man with a curved sword strapped to his waist, seemed to be doing the talking on behalf of his group.

"Come on, man!" The red-haired man exclaimed. "You're telling me these ((Treant Branches)) are only worth 50 Cor a piece?!"

The dark-skinned man crossed his arms. "Sorry Klein, they're just not in demand right now. They're mainly useful for crafting and enhancing staves, spears, and bows. Staves and spears aren't very popular on the front line and you know just as well as I do that Sinon's the only archer clearer right now."

The red-haired man, who Geeou now knew was called Klein, grumbled before opening up a trade window with the merchant. "Alright Agil, then what exactly is in demand right now?"

Agil gave a grin as he finished the trade request with Klein before responding. "((Wolf Teeth)) and ((Spider Fangs)), actually. Both are used for enhancing swords. Daggers, too, but not many use daggers unless they're running AGI builds."

Geeou heard Sasha behind him whisper to the students. "Take notes, children. Knowing supply and demand is very useful if you want to become a successful businessperson one day."

"Damn." Klein said before turning back to his group. "Guess we're hunting wolves and spiders tomorrow."

After one of his friends nudged him and gestured backwards, Klein seemed to notice the rather large group queued up behind him. "Oh! Sorry everyone, we'll get out of your way." With that, he pulled his group off to the side.

"That's quite alright, sir." Sasha replied. "We're just here to learn. Did I hear that gentleman call you 'Klein'?"

Klein looked back and forth at his group members, who only smirked or sent light nudges his way. With some hesitation, he responded. "Yeah, that's me. Why?"

Sasha smiled. "So then you are Klein, leader of the guild Fuurinkazan?" The children behind her suddenly became very excited and practically swarmed the six red-clad clearers, bombarding them with a plethora of questions. Meanwhile, Silica and Geeou stepped up to the booth.

"Sorry for the wait." Agil said before giving the duo a careful scan, his expression taking on a more dubious look. "No offense, but aren't you two a little low level for this floor?"

Silica looked embarrassed at being confronted like that, so Geeou was the one to respond. "We are, but we tagged along with Sasha's class to learn more about the 3rd floor and while we were here we figured we might try to buy some better potions. We're leveling on the 2nd floor right now and better potions might be helpful down there if we find ourselves in trouble."

Agil leaned back slightly, lightly stroking his beard. "That's some practical thinking, kid. What's your name?"

"I'm Geeou and this is Silica." Geeou replied. "It's nice to meet you."

Agil chuckled. "Nice to meet you too. Name's Agil. Tell you what. I'll sell you two potions that are better quality than what you'll find on the 2nd floor for 500 Cor. I've gotta save the rest for the clearers, you understand."

Silica gave a smile. "We'll take them!"

Agil brought up a trade window for Silica to interact with. "Here you go. If and when you two join the clearers, you come see me for your business, alright? I'll keep you well-supplied."

"Thanks Agil!" Silica exclaimed with a wide smile on her face as she and Geeou walked away to meet back up with Sasha and her class. Sasha seemed to have reined in her students so as not to overwhelm Fuurinkazan. The schoolteacher turned towards Geeou and Silica as they approached.

"Great news, you two!" Sasha said with just a hint of excitement in her own voice. "Klein and his guild have agreed to give us a live demonstration of how clearers fight and they've agreed to let you two join in for some easy experience."

"Isn't that sort of dangerous?" Silica asked, looking over at the students.

Kleins stepped forward to address the duo. "Normally yes, but there's a spot outside of town where Sasha and the students can stay within the safe zone and still watch us fight some nearby trash mobs. They're a low enough level where you two should be able to help kill it, and we'll be there to back you up anyway. What do you say?"

Geeou looked at Silica, who had a fierce look of determination in her eyes. Determination was contagious, Geeou soon realized as he turned to Klein.

"Sounds good. Let's do this!"

"Watch for those arm swings! They hurt!"

Klein looked onward at the group in front of him who were fighting a ((Treant Sapling)), a monster that looked like a small tree with humanoid features and limbs. After meeting Sasha and her students, Klein and the rest of Fuurinkazan had led them to a spot just outside Zumfut's gates where a handful of monsters spawned close enough to the city for their purposes. Klein, Dale, and Sasha's class were stationed on one side of the river, secure in Zumfut's safe zone, meanwhile just across the river the rest of his guild were supporting Geeou and Silica as they tried to kill one of the treant mobs.

Silica had just dodged one of the treant's arm thrusts and had pivoted around the monster's backside, riddling its thick bark full of dagger-sized holes. Geeou was flanked by Dynamm and Harry One, who were providing support to the less agile but still capable swordsman. The treant spun in place, attempting to hit Silica with its outstretched arm, but she was too nimble and was able to dodge the attack. Geeou capitalized on the opening and charged forward, giving the monster two crossing slashes with his longsword.

These two are actually pretty good. They've already got a good rhythm to their attacks, they work well together, and they're fast enough to avoid the treant's slow attacks. Klein thought to himself. If they keep like this, they'll reach the front lines in no time.

The treant turned its attention to Geeou, who attempted to dodge the attack now sent his way, but was caught in the cooldown from for the sword skill he'd just used. Just before the treant's arm made contact, Harry One had intercepted it with an attack of his own, causing both the treant and the tank to recoil from the impact.

"Dynamm, switch!" Harry One shouted behind him.

As Dynamm charged in to take advantage of the treant's opening, Klein shouted across the river. "Be careful using your sword skills, Geeou! Try to use unassisted attacks if the cooldown from a sword skill will leave you vulnerable afterwards!"

"Got it!" The blonde-haired swordsman shouted in reply.

"Mister Klein," Sasha started, grabbing his attention. "Could you explain what a 'switch' is to the students? It's something we've heard you all shout multiple times and we're curious what it is."

"Yeah, of course." Klein responded, slightly caught off guard by being referred to so formally by the schoolteacher. "A 'switch' isn't an actual skill. A switch is when one player switches positions with another one after the first one parries or blocks the monster's attack. During that small window of time where the mob is staggered, the second player rushes in to attack."

"Does that help kill it faster?" A young girl with black hair asked.

"It does, sort of." Klein explained. "When the second player rushes in to attack, the monster AI has to take a moment to figure out who's the bigger threat. The first player who parried its attack should be the bigger problem, but the second player who has just swapped places is now closer to the monster and actively attacking. In that small window of time where the AI is figuring out who the bigger threat is, we attack and take advantage of the delay."

"That's so cool!" The girl shouted. "Clearers are so smart!"

Klein awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, again caught off guard by the sudden praise. "It's just a strategy we use, that's all. But it does come in handy when we're fighting bosses."

That had been proven true just that afternoon, Klein remembered. Before they went into town and met Sasha and her class, Fuurinkazan had just assisted with the defeat of the 3rd floor field boss, a large tree monster called ((The Indolent Treant)). Unlike the treant they were fighting now, the field boss had numerous limbs that it would use to batter the tanks and keep the damage dealers at bay with. They and the rest of the clearers had to take advantage of the switching strategy to win the fight. Fortunately, between his own guild, the ALS, the DKB, the Braves, and Kirito's group - Klein silently wished his friends could figure out a name already - they were able to overwhelm the field boss with sheer numbers alone, but the flurry of attacks that boss unleashed had almost claimed at least one life.

It was a grim reminder of how dangerous this world was.

Almost as if to punctuate that sobering thought, the sound of glass shattering filled the air, and Klein's heart dropped for a moment before he realized that it was the ((Treant Sapling)) who'd perished, not any of the players he was responsible for. Silica, Geeou, and the rest of Fuurinkazan had finished the fight and were now crossing the bridge to rejoin the rest of the class.

"That was hard!" Silica said, almost out of breath. "But fun!"

"We even gained a level there." Geeou reported, having pulled up his menu to allocate his new stat points.

Klein smiled. "Well, congrats man! I had a feeling these higher level mobs would give you two a little boost. That should make things a little easier on the 2nd floor."

"Thanks, Klein." Geeou said, looking up at the scruffy-looking clearer.

"No prob', man! Lemme add you both to my friends list. If you guys ever need a hand, you let me know, ok?" Klein said as he pulled up his menu to add Geeou and Silica to his friends list.

"Cool!" Silica shouted, raising a fist in the air.

As Klein led Sasha's class and his own guild back into Zumfut, he couldn't help but smile. He needed a reminder of what they were fighting for, and it was simultaneously saddening and inspiring to see someone as young as Silica pushing forward. In his limited interactions with the young dagger user, he could already tell she was a determined individual. Even Geeou, who wasn't that much older than his companion, was still too young to have to worry about something like this, but he still strove forward. He reminded Klein of Kirito, in some ways. He certainly had the potential to be a top player someday, and he had the humility and responsibility of someone like Kirito, who didn't think twice about sacrificing for others. That bullshit about him being a 'Beater' was a boldfaced lie, and Klein knew it.

He shook his head, trying to dispel the negative thoughts that inadvertently came with the controversy of his former mentor's reputation, and looked back towards Geeou and Silica.

Those two are going to go far.

"How much farther, Geeou?"

Silica let out an exasperated sigh. It was sunset in the town of Urbus, and it had been an hour or two since she and Geeou had left the 3rd floor after a particularly exciting adventure with Sasha's class and Fuurinkazan. Since returning to Urbus, she and Geeou spent about an hour grinding outside town, using the strategies and tactics that Klein and Fuurinkazan had taught them. With the extra level under their belt, they had a much easier time with the ((Trembling Ox)) monsters now. There was one thing Silica just couldn't get out of her mind, though.

We actually fought alongside clearers!

Silica's excitement gave way to disappointment as reality caught up with them. They were no longer in the fields of Urbus leveling up, but had now been summoned by Argo back into town. The Rat had been frustratingly vague about why they were needed, though. For someone who dealt in the exchange of information, Argo was being remarkably tight lipped about this, whatever this was.

"She said she wanted to meet us in a tavern at the edge of town, and we're almost there." Geeou informed her.

Silica pouted, giving out a dissatisfied *hmph*. "She didn't say anything about what she wanted to talk about?"

Geeou shook his head. "Nope, not a word."

The two walked in silence, each seemingly deep in thought as different scenarios played out in their head. What could Argo possibly want with them? They hadn't done anything notable in the two days since they talked with her in Sasha's orphanage. Well, that was a lie, technically. They had gone on Sasha's field trip and met Fuurinkazan, but surely that wasn't enough to warrant a clandestine meeting, right?

The duo walked into the tavern Argo mentioned, a shady-looking pub called "The Shaggy Lamb." Being so far from the center of town, there were hardly any players in here whatsoever. There was an NPC bartender and a few NPC servers, but for the most part the tavern itself was uninhabited. In fact, there were only three players in the room seated at the far end of the lobby. One was a girl with milk-tea colored hair and wearing a white cloak and a dagger at her waist. She seemed to be in deep conversation with the other two figures at the table, one of which was a thin boy about the same age with hair the color of dried leaves. He wore a sword at his side much like Geeou did, and had a rather young-looking face. The last person at the table was easy enough to identify. With her signature hood, toothy grin, and trademark painted whiskers on her face, it was hard not to identify her as Argo the Rat.

Geeou and Silica walked up to the table, the former giving a nod to the people at the table while the latter gave an enthusiastic wave to Argo.

"Hi Argo." Geeou started. "Did you want us to wait until you were done here?"

"Hiya Geo-bou, Sil-chan." Argo replied. "Nah, take a seat. This concerns you too."

The duo took a seat and looked at Argo. "If you don't mind my asking, Argo, why the secrecy?" Geeou asked as he settled in his seat.

"Because, Geo-bou, I don't want people getting the wrong idea about what I do." Argo explained with a bit of sass in her voice. She seemed to notice the mild look of confusion etched in his face. "Yeah, I deal in information, but this ain't quite what I had in mind."

"What do you mean, Argo?" Silica asked.

Argo donned her signature toothy grin and gestured towards the two people seated next to her and across from Geeou and Silica. "I found you some party members. They're about the same level as you and with similar skill sets. Just like you, they're looking to eventually join the clearers. Between the four of you, you shouldn't have any issue with anything on this floor outside of the field boss."

Seemingly on cue, the white-clad girl stood up and gave a friendly bow. The boy next to her gave a smile and nodded in greeting.

"My name is Yuna and this is Nautilus. We look forward to working with you!"