The ground that the sounds of wolves had once ruled over was now silent. The only sound came from a heavily panting Inferno. That last wave was brutal, it had taken the use of two potions to survive, but the quest had been cleared. Ten waves of enemies had been eradicated. And Inferno stood victorious. A message suddenly blasted into view.

'Congratulations', The message said. 'You are now level seven'. Inferno smirked as the pop-up vanished into thin air. He loosened his sword, sheathing it with delight.

"Still not enough," Inferno muttered to himself. All of a sudden, his body crashed into the ground. It became unable to move as day soon turned into evening. During this time, Inferno reflected on his time in SAO.

It had been a month since the first floor had been cleared. In that time, a further fifty-three people had died. Two more floors had been cleared. Both of which Inferno helped out. And yet nobody seemed to give him the respect he deserved. Not even his brother. So Inferno decided to take a break from the party and level up on his own.

So far, it had been a rewarding experience. His exp had increased by a lot, and that wasn't all. Inferno had acquired a new skill. His inventory wasn't loaded with high-ranking items and equipment at this point; still, it was adequate for his current level.

The swordsman found himself in a hills section, with giant boulders scattered throughout the land. It was quiet, save for a noise coming from behind one boulder. It was only the faintest of sounds but enough for Inferno to take notice.

"Come on out, now!" He ordered, pointing his sword towards the boulder. He had upgraded to a new long sword, although it was still on the low-end.

"Okay, just don't hurt me." A feminine voice called out before revealing herself. She was a bard with medium-sized light brown hair. She wore a light purple top with a long sapphire skirt and a white hat reminiscent of Peter pan. She looked about a year younger than Inferno himself. "I'm not exactly in a position to threaten you."

"Alright, so what do you want?"

"I need your help." Her eyes became ginormous; she used every trick in the book to get him to help her. Still, Inferno wouldn't be tricked so easily.

"Not interested." Inferno tried to walk away, but the girl grabbed onto his sleeve.

"Please, I wouldn't ask you if I had any other choice. But my friends are in danger, and if I don't help them, they will die." There was desperation in her eyes. Inferno could sense she wasn't lying. But he wasn't going to risk his neck with no reward in exchange.

"Sorry, but that's not my problem." The teen turned his back and walked away. While he did feel sorry for the girl, he didn't regret his decision one bit. It wasn't possible for him to fix everyone's problems.

"Please!" Inferno didn't even make it five feet before he heard her begging. He looked over his shoulder to see her on the floor, bowing to him. "I don't have enough money to hire mercenaries, and all the strong players are either on the front lines or taking part in that special event on floor three. You are my only hope." Her eyes suddenly watered, and her bottom lip started to pout. Inferno rapidly backed off.

"Oh no, don't you dare. I'm not falling for the helpless girl act." He looked away before quickly glancing back to the girl, who was still at it. "I'm not going to do it. I'm not going to do it." He had one last peek at the girl before cursing in his mind. 'Yu and your goddamn chivalry.' Inferno thought to himself. "Alright, I'll do it." The girl's face lit up as he told her.

"You mean it?"

"Yeah, I'll help you find your companions on two conditions. First, I get a rare item for your inventory and any rare items we find on our journey. Then we go our separate ways. Is that clear?"

"Of course." The girl looked slightly off-put by Inferno's bluntness but was happy he agreed. "We were on our way to several rare chests anyway. Thank you."

"Sure, you got a name?" The girl's eyes suddenly widened, embarrassed that she had made such a simple mistake.

"I'm Yuna." Her tone was a lot more cheerful now.

"Very well then, Yuna, lead the way."

.

The two players headed into the nearest town to resupply. Yuna didn't have much on her, and Inferno used his up to complete the last quest. Yuna explained that some cloaked men ambushed her party. The others fought back to buy her some time to escape. She choked a little when mentioning her friends. The swordsman couldn't imagine what she was going through right now. Being unaware of whether your friends were dead or alive must have been excruciating.

"So, do you have any idea who they are?" inferno questioned the bard as they entered the market. Yuna carefully scanned the area, looking in every corner.

"No Idea; they were all wearing black cloaks." She answered. Something about this didn't sit right with him. Why would a group of people attack Yuna and her friends? It wasn't like they had any costly items on them. It wasn't at all beneficial to rob them. These questions swirled throughout Inferno's head. He was so lost within his thoughts that Yuna managed to sneak up on him.

"I found someone who says he knows something." She explained. The swordsman nodded as the two headed into a nearby restaurant. The decor was very medieval, with Stone walls and wooden tables with benches. Multiple fires lit up the room with no windows; it all had an eerie vibe. The two walked up to a booth in the corner, where they were greeted by a man covered in shadows.

"Well, I certainly didn't expect you, of all people, to show up!" The man exclaimed. Inferno looked confused until a nearby light shined upon a familiar face.

"Agil, it's good to see you." Inferno's demeanour soon improved. While he wouldn't exactly call them friends, Agil had defended the Japanese players, including his brother. He at least deserved the benefit of the doubt.

"Likewise, I'm surprised you're not with Klien's group. Is your brother with you?" Inferno shifted awkwardly; that was currently a touchy subject. Thankfully, Agil caught on. "Hey, if you don't want to talk about it, that's cool. We'll get straight to business."

"Never took you for an information broker."

"I'm not. Information is more her thing." The young girl looked confused as to who 'her' referred to. "I have something better; someone has a message for you." Yuna's eyes shot up as she heard this.

"Who?" She impatiently asked him.

"Follow me." Agil requested, leading the two of them to a nearby inn. It was small, cramped and dark. The wood looked to have many splinters running throughout the walls. As the three waddled up some stairs, a growing discomfort crept over Inferno. Who was Agil with? And why couldn't he inform them?

They had arrived at their destination. The door was open, with a single shadow draping the floor. Inferno clenched his sword with all his might. The three turned the corner, and inside the small cramped bedroom was a teenager sitting on a bed. He was of Japanese descent and looked roughly the same age as Inferno. He had short, pale brown hair with blue eyes. He wore standard brown garments and carried a sword with him. Inferno looked on with scepticism. Yuna, however, was almost in tears as she rushed toward him.

"Nautilus!" She leapt on the boy, weeping into his shoulder. "I was so worried."

"I'm okay, but they captured the others." He responded. The teen put his hands on his head; it was clear he was distressed. "After you left, they cornered us. They took TGOW and Golden Wukong and left me alive to tell everyone about them."

"Who are they?" Inferno interjected into the conversation. Obtaining a stare from Nautilus.

"Who's this?"

"This is Inferno, and he's here to help." The two friends' eyes locked on one another. Yuna nodded, causing her partner to sigh. He turned towards Inferno and Agil.

"They're a group of player killers, call themselves Laughing Coffin. No doubt they will become a dark guild on floor ten. You should have seen their top players. We stood no chance." Nautilus explained.

"You know who's running the operation or where they might be?" Inferno asked but only received a shake of the head.

"Laughing Coffin let me go so that people would start to fear them. But obviously, they didn't want me to discover where they were hiding."

"So we have zero clues." Yuna gloomy muttered. "If we don't find them soon, they'll..." The bard couldn't finish as her emotions started to surface. Everyone looked dejected; Nautilus hugged his friend while Inferno and Agil gave each other a look. They began to believe it was hopeless.

"No doubt they're like rats, scampering throughout Aincrad," Agil noted. Suddenly Inferno had an idea pop into his head.

"Rats." He muttered under his breath. It was a long shot, but if anyone knew where Laughing Coffin was hiding, it would be her. "I might know someone who can help."

.

Inferno led Yuna and Nautilus down a familiar path. The same one where he had met Heathcliff just over a month ago. Agil decided to remain on the fourth floor, citing that he had to meet with someone. It was probably for the best. Agil was putting most of his effort into becoming a merchant. He hadn't taken on a floor boss since the first raid, and his stats verified it. Both Nautilus and Inferno urged Yuna to stay behind too. However, the bard insisted on coming with them.

"So Agil mentioned you have a brother?" Yuna bought up, attempting to start a conversation.

"I do." Inferno half-heartedly responded.

"And where is he now?"

"Don't know. Most likely taking part in the event on floor three." Yuna looked over to Nautilus, politely imploring him to help out. They both could tell that he wasn't speaking particularly fondly of his brother. Nautilus initially shrugged his shoulders. However, he shortly relented as he noticed his partner pouting towards him. An abhorrent underhanded tactic... that worked every single time.

"It's good to have someone you know IRL. Yuna and I are a testament to that." Nautilus rambled.

"You all know each other outside SAO?" Inferno inquired.

"Since we were young. TGOW and Wukong know each other IRL too. They grew up with one another. Yuna and I met them on day two, and we've been a party ever since." Inferno looked over to see a beaming bard tuning her instrument.

"As I said, it's good to have people you know," Yuna spoke. The swordsman thought about his brother, and for the breakfast of seconds, he wanted to apologise until he remembered his brother's words about how he called him weak and humiliated him. There would be no apology on Inferno's end.

"We're almost there." He vigorously declared. The swordsman increased his pace to a brisk walk, leaving the other two behind. They both sighed as the trio made it towards the cliff. The waterfall was as stunning as it had been since the beginning. The only difference in the view was a petite figure sitting over the edge.

The figure turned around to reveal a teenage Japanese girl; she wore a dark cloak over a short black skirt. Her skin was tanned with red face paint shaped like cat whiskers draped over a pair of cheeks. The female's hair was short, curly, and blonde.

"Inferno, always a pleasure to see you." She enthusiastically said, all the while jumping to her feet in record time. Her feet almost reached the edge, yet a smile never left her face.

"You too," Inferno replied half-heartedly. "Yuna, Nautilus, meet Argo 'The Rat'. Number one information broker in all of Aincrad.

"Oh, you're making me blush." The two lifelong friends seemed to have an excellent first impression of Argo, though, for Inferno, the info broker left a lot to be desired. "I know a good restaurant if you wanna have something tasty."

"Sorry, Argo, but I'm not here for pleasantries." The so-called 'Rat' chuckled to herself.

"Straight to business then. Very well, what can I do for you?"

"I need everything you have on Laughing Coffin." Suddenly, the smile shining on Argo's face had vanished. Her eyes locked in as if they were shooting daggers.

"There are only two reasons you would seek them out. Either you wish to join them, or you intend to stop them." Her voice became a lot less playful and much more monotone.

"The latter."

"Then you're heading towards your death. I won't be a part of it." Argo began to walk away; she quickly strolled past the group, only for Yuna to grab her left hand.

"We all understand the risks, but this isn't about us; this is about our friends. And if we don't go and help them, they're going to die!" Yuna pleaded with the info broker. Argo yanked her hand away, taking two steps forward before stopping. The trio looked on as 'The Rat' sighed, turning around to speak to them.

"I recently got a large sum of money from the supposed leader of Laughing Coffin." The group looked on in shock. "Goes by the name 'POH'. He wanted me to spread their name throughout the world."

"So what are they after? Money? Items? Equipment?" inferno eagerly surveyed her.

"That's the thing. They aren't interested in loot, or Col. Laughing Coffin kills because they find pleasure in it."

"Scumbags! How can someone take joy in something like that?" Nautilus condemned the group. The hilt of his sword felt the rage leaking from his body.

"So far, they have nine members; expect that number to rise," Argo explained. "There's a camp hidden in a cave to the east on floor four. Want my advice? Walk away; these guys mean serious business. The three of you don't stand a chance."

"Our friends are in danger; we have to help!" The broker ignored that comment and looked over towards the red-dressed swordsman.

"I get why these guys throw their lives away, but what about you? Since when do you go out of your way to help strangers?"

"I'm being rewarded." Inferno's monotone comeback made the cat-like girl chuckle.

"Of course; why else would you be helping out? Very well, I have some info you might want to hear. Something that I wasn't told to notify you of. I would be willing to share it for the right price." Argo proposed. Inferno sighed as he opened his inventory. Since he had spent a fair bit on items for the journey, his bank balance wasn't outstanding.

"How much Cor are we talking." The Rat chuckled at the question.

"I don't want your money." The trio looked baffled by her answer. "Don't get me wrong; I'm not giving this away for free. After all, everything has a price; and there's one thing that only you can give me." Argo's voice abruptly became sinister. Yuna backed off, Nautilus stressed out, fearing the worst; simultaneously, Inferno could only feel bitterness as he found himself pushed into a corner. Unexpectedly Argo's voice became a lot more cheerful. "I want to go on a date with your brother."

The trio's jaws simultaneously flung open as they all wondered if they heard the info broker correctly. Argo, meanwhile, looked to the sky, her hands clenched together. She was utterly lost in her fantasy. Her mind fixated on Blaze.

"Ever since the day we met. His eyes... His voice... His convictions. I've never met anyone like him."

"You do realise that my brother doesn't date..." Inferno's mouth was soon swiftly covered by Nautilus's hands.

"Deal. Now tell us." The brown-haired teen wasn't letting anything stop him from his goal. Argo soon came back to reality,

"So eager to rescue your friends." Argo giggled to herself before her expression turned cold. "You don't even realise that trust is wholly misplaced." While Yuna looked on in confusion, Nautilus looked irritated. He despised people who only ever spoke in riddles.

"What are you talking about?"

"Your group was attacked because somebody betrayed you all. They leaked your location to Laughing Coffin." The trio all stood in silence for what felt like several minutes. Yuna was the first to react, shaking her head vigorously.

"No... No, your lying." She accused the broker. "Neither of them would ever do that. Right Nautilus?" She turned to her friend, whose demeanour turned from shock to acceptance.

"Remember when we woke up?" Nautilus inquired. "TGOW told us he found several rare chests to the east. He led us down that path where we got ambushed. He... He betrayed us." Tears started to form in Yuna's eyes.

"So all those quests we took part in. All those memories we shared. Were they all lies?" Nautilus managed to open his mouth, yet not a single syllable was spoken. The partnership hugged one another as they struggled to come to terms with their supposed friend's treachery.

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Reviews

Zeon Paralysis Crystal: Unfortunatley I can't answer either without spoilers. All I will say is that the cold war stays a big theme right up until the end.