Jaymes

The main town on the fifth floor is named Karluin. Just like its surroundings, it's a city in ruins...or actually the other way around is more accurate. Ruins that house a city are more like it. Unlike Rovia, which went from a dusty canyon town to a watery river town, Karluin is the same old dusty, dry stone town with a leather and canvas tent here and there. There isn't a visible boundary between the town and the wild, so if it weren't for the notice on the player's HUD, they wouldn't know where the safe zone began and ended. If it weren't for the NPCs who keep the town relatively clean, it would be absolutely horrible living in this darkened land.

That's how Jaymes sees it, at least.

In the beta, people tried marking the boundary with boxes, but discarded objects were treated as abandoned items. When Asuna questioned it, Kirito said that the eroding blocks lying everywhere could suffice. Given they look just like the walls, it might not draw one's attention. It barely drew Jaymes'.

After walking through the town, the five split into three; Asuna and Kirito went one way, Mito went her way, and Koharu trailed Jaymes. Jaymes originally was going to head with Kirito and Asuna to eat, but Koharu isn't hungry. So Plan B will be enacted while they're alone. Koharu trails a step behind him, her curiosity getting the better of her as they pass shops, players, and NPCs. She's enjoying herself despite the suspicious surroundings.

He wonders if she has a shred of self-preservation in her mind. He previously learned she hasn't been around a boy unrelated to her before, so she's never had a boyfriend or a close male friend. Naturally, a girl should be on edge with a guy in this environment. If Asuna was with him, she'd probably hold the hilt of her rapier against his back, and there's no telling if she's doing that now to Kirito. No, she trusts Kirito just as Koharu trusts him.

As they get closer to their destination, Koharu picks up the pace. "So where are we going exactly?"

Jaymes points to a looming structure in the distance, "Well, I think my beta knowledge of Karluin is still useful, so we're going to one of the ruined temples here."

"Huh? But...without Kirito and the others? Why?"

Jaymes swipes his hand in the air to bring up his menu. "What, you think we need them with us? Relax, we're not doing anything especially dangerous. I bet Kirito and Asuna will do the same in a bit, and Mito did so last night. We're simply going on a treasure hunt."

That piques Koharu's interest. "Treasure hunt? So we have to look around the ruins for hidden treasure, right?"

"Mhm. There's an actual quest for this, but I rather do this freely. Here." Jaymes holds in his hand two slices of blueberry tart. A crispy brown crust is topped with a thick layer of custard, and on top of that are the bluest blue berries he's ever seen. Hence the name "blue-blueberry tart," a limited-supply dessert Jaymes picked up before their adventures in the morning. Only thirty are made in a day, and with little information about them, he was quick to snag the first order.

"A blueberry tart? I told you I wasn't hungry. I actually meant it."

"Eat it." Egging her on, Koharu sighs and consumes the tart in a couple of bites. Jaymes eats it alongside her, then waits until what he's looking for appears. "How is it?"

Koharu's attitude is higher than it previously was. "It's both sweet and sour. It's good. My tongue would probably be blue now if this were real life." She sticks her tongue out playfully. Hers is blue as a blueberry. Jaymes pokes his out too. "Wow, this is cool. We'd probably look odd if other people were around."

"Yeah. But back to the matter at hand, there's a reason I had you eat one. Look at your status bar." Koharu moves her eyes up and left to the position of the bar. Her green orbs widen as she notices a new symbol on the spot. It's a square icon with an open eye inside. It's a boost to sight, but not for increased field of view or night vision (though the latter would be nice here). Jaymes grabs her attention again and points to the sides of the crumbling road. "Now look around."

"Umm..." Koharu searches around, then gasps as she takes two steps forward to a flickering light on the ground. "Oh, look, Jaymes. There's something shiny on the floor." Curious, she kneels down to pick up the sparking object. She inspects the object, then rises and holds it out for Jaymes to see. "An old coin... Is it copper? Are all of these lights the same thing?"

Jaymes takes the coin. On one side is the symbol of two trees adjacent to each other; on the other side, an unfamiliar crest. Unlike real-world currency or Aincrad col, no numeric value is indicated. "These are known as Karlul coins. The copper coins have the cheapest value of ten col."

"Are there more coins other than copper?"

"Silver and gold coins can be found too, but there's even more around. You can even find jewels, magic necklaces, magic rings..."

Koharu's eyes brighten and it almost lights their surroundings more than the lanterns. "Jewels? Necklaces? Rings?" She smiles like a child preparing for an easter egg hunt. Honestly, it's impossible not to see how cute she's being. He just hit the jackpot if diamonds truly are a way to a girl's heart.

"They're remains from different times. The fifth floor's famous relics. There are tons of small relics lying on the floor around here. The early bird gets the worm here. So every player tends to look for relics on the fifth floor. Back in the beta, the relics would reappear after server maintainence, but I doubt that's the case here, so we'll need to pick up as much as we can."

Koharu absorbs the information given quietly. "So that's the treasure hunt. But we didn't see anything before. So why are they lighting up now... Oh, this buff?"

"The coins aren't lighting up. The blue blueberry tart that we ate earlier gave us a buff to see relics. However, it only lasts one hour."

"I see... It might be the blueberries because it's said they improve your eyes."

Jaymes nods as the pair makes it to the ruined temple he leads them to. It's not to speak of, just a crumbling stone temple long past its heyday. "There were plenty of relics here in these ruins in the beta. Luck determines whether you got treasure or junk. Some players gave up leveling to stay here and focused on collecting them. Few can resist the allure of easy money."

"You weren't one of those people?"

Jaymes turns to her, shrugging. "Well, I was born into wealth, so it's not like money's been a concern for me." He knows he gave her another detail of his real life, but she already knows some personal details of his life as he knows hers. It doesn't bother him to share that he's rich.

She nods along and faces the temple, taking the first step up the wrecked stairs. "I can sort of understand people who will keep trying to get a jackpot when the value is randomized."

"There are ways to stabilize that. The closer you get to dangerous locations, the chance of getting a valuable item increases. High risk, high reward. So we'll steadily make our way to somewhat dangerous territory, but the monsters in this area are a piece of cake for players of our level."

"I already ate the cake. Guess there's no way to get around that."

Someone's pumped up. "You're on fire... Ah, you just want the jewels, don't you?"

She smiles as she glances at me over her shoulder. "Yes, but it's fin to look at shiny things, don't you agree? Let's do this!"

"Let's go treasure hunting!"

xxxxxxxxxx

Fifty-five minutes later, Jaymes and Koharu's collection contains twenty-seven copper coins worth ten Col each, sixteen silver coins worth a hundred Col apiece, one giant gold coin worth a thousand Col each, four high-quality gems, a necklace, bracelet, and ring.

His accumulated Col comes out to 2,870, a pretty okay haul. Now that they're done, the partners walk back in good spirits. Koharu's spirits are astronomically high, especially since the last thing she hauled in was a large, shiny jewel. All their loot is in his inventory within a sachel, and they agreed to split the total Col. As for the gems and accessories, they'll get appraised by an NPC merchant. One day, items of the sort can be appraised by a player, much like how Lisbeth is taking the role of a blacksmith.

Hopefully, the appraiser isn't as shady as Nezha but as honest (and good-looking) as Lisbeth.

"Question," Koharu says as she turns around to walk backward, hands behind her back, eyes on the distancing temple. "If the relics are gone once claimed, that means there won't be any to claim one day?"

Jaymes crosses his arms. "Well, in theory, yes. Eight thousand people could clear the town of Karluin of its relic, but there's the limitation of the tart. Only thirty are made per day. Though, in the beta, the buff only worked if it was eaten in the Blink and Brink inn and restaurant... Hmm. With that in thought, maybe it is possible for Karluin on the surface to be made empty, but that in itself is a great task. The loot we gained is like scooping up a gallon in the Pacific Ocean."

"I see... Weird that ALS and DKB aren't around, though, scouring around for treasure."

Kirito noted earlier that ALS and DKB don't have much of a presence in the town, but that led to a different conversation. Kirito was hoping to run into DKB's lieutenants Shivata or Hafner, some of the more reasonable players in the guild. Jaymes spoke to Shivata back on the second floor, where he learned Nezha had also taken his weapon. It was Shivata who called out Nezha after the floor boss battle. But he seems to be a reasonable guy for someone who doesn't seem to be much older or younger than Jaymes.

"Well, if I had to guess, what I said about 'Karluin on the surface' is quite literal. Underneath the city is an expansive catacomb system. I bet they're down there. What we got up here is nothing compared to the dangers below."

"Oh. It makes sense if the real money's down there. I'm sure they'll be down there constantly."

"But not even then can they clean the catacombs. So no worries about gathering relics. With that said, no, we're not going to become hoarders, partner."

"Hehe, it wouldn't be that bad if we did. But it would be a safer way of life."

Jaymes stops suddenly, his eyes watching her take a couple of steps ahead. He occasionally considered whether it was better if he and Koharu never left the Town of Beginnings, but he's innately a gamer. Someone like him doesn't get much satisfaction staying behind in one place. He has to keep exploring, keep leveling, and keep questing. He doesn't have to be the top player, he just needs to keep moving. But he forced that on Koharu, someone without that gamer drive, and she hasn't said a word until now.

Not that he thinks she's complaining, she once said that if it weren't for him, she'd be down in the first town like so many others, but could that change now? Or any time soon? Racking up treasure and money is an acceptable way to play the game, just as questing and leveling or crafting and raising skills. Some people prefer to seek other avenues of enjoying SAO as best they can without risking their lives as frontier players.

"I never asked you what you wanted to do in this game," Jaymes says, halting Koharu up ahead. "I mean... I never asked what you wished to do before this was a death game. If it is still possible, maybe you can still do it." Koharu's head points upward to the dark sky. Her feet twist around each other as she remains silent for a moment to the point that Jaymes regrets asking her. "Sorry, I-"

"I never really thought about it. I was just messing around foolishly in the beta until I met you. So, the only thing I wanted to do or be in SAO was playing with the friend I made, you. To this day, that's all I want to do, whether we're stuck in the safe zone or fighting for freedom." She turns around, flashing him a smile that'd make any boy his age's heart grow three times bigger. "That's all I want, so don't worry. I don't think I could like a place like this every day, even if the jewels are pretty."

Feeling a strange weight off his chest, Jaymes moves his feet to catch up with her. "I understand."

"But maybe it wouldn't be horrible to have a place to call home. Players can buy properties, but they're expensive, right?"

"Yeah. It will be a while before we can afford a place like that."

"...Oh... You... Me... Together... Home..." She mutters more words to herself, but she seems to be thinking hard about something. Jaymes believes her mind must've cogged up somewhere in the conversation. He would ask...but something tells him to avoid it.

xxxxxxxxx

Once Koharu's head clears and they're back in town, they head straight to the appraisal merchant. Most of the jewels identified are not anything to boast about, a D-level stone worth five hundred col, two in the C-level worth a thousand col, and the color-changing jewel in the A-level worth a whopping eight thousand. The accessories weren't much to speak about either, though Koharu kept one of the rings she found as it added a point to agility.

Jaymes tried offering Koharu the jewel, but she declined it in favor of the Col. They sold the rest to a shop nearby, then the collected coins to a trader next door. They split the amassed 13,070 Col between them. Done with the treasure hunt, they made tracks for the inn they rested in the previous night.

Shortly after nine-thirty, Jaymes feels the lull of sleep draw him. However, he resists it while sitting at a corner table at the tavern within the inn. Koharu had taken a bath and joined up with Kirito and Asuna to return to Yofel Castle, so he had nothing to do except think. His mind hones in on his night with Koharu. She felt very embarrassed since he tried gifting her the jewel, and there was that other thing earlier. Something about that girl... All he did was offer her a diamond and talk about player housing...

...

...

...

"Joshua, what have you done!" The gravity of those moments pulls down Jaymes' body as he realizes what he's done. He spoke of them owning a house together! He gave her an expensive diamond! In the real world, he practically asked her to marry him. He can hear this story being told to Asuna and Mito, with Asuna looking at him in disgust and Mito teasing him about it. Oh no, Argo is going to make bank off that information!

"Extra, extra, hear all about it! Starting at one thousand Col for hot, juicy information about one of SAO's top players, Jaymes! Nyeh-ha-ha-ha!"

"Someone's alone and demoralized," comes a voice from above. Jaymes raises his head to Mito, the purple-haired girl sitting across from him. She wears only her tunic; her scythe and cloak packed in her inventory. "Let's see, no Koharu, you're sitting here like you've been rejected... Ah."

"She's with Kirito and Asuna, and no, I haven't been rejected. I just put together some things I said and her reactions." He sighs and glances at the bottle of ficklewine he ordered. The server brought two glasses as he asked, assuming Koharu may join him after she freshens up, but he'll take Mito's company instead. "Ficklewine?"

"Sure." Jaymes pours a bubbly pink wine into Mito's glass, contrasting the sweet red in his glass. Mito doesn't question the mysterious change of wine, given she should already know the mean behind the name. When poured, the wine randomly switches between white, pink, and red colors, and sweet, dry, or sparkling flavors. Mito takes the glass with a smile, clinks it with Jaymes', and takes a sip. "Mmm. Yep, that's great."

"Professional wine drinker at our age?"

"Hey, I'm a good girl. I might've tasted what my parents allow, nothing more. You? You're looking pretty smooth drinking that red."

He shrugs. "Let's just say that my walk of life had me getting used to taking sips of these."

Mito's red eyes flash, intrigued by the subject. "Never would've pegged you for drinking wine. What about beer?"

"Disgusting."

"Agreed. So, I take it you and the good lady went treasure hunting? Kirito and Asuna did the same not too long ago. How'd it go?"

"Over 13k in Col. Koharu found an A-level diamond."

"W-Wow! That's... That's amazing! A-level is very rare!" Mito's shocked expression turns to a teasing smirk again as she picks up her glass again and swirls the contents. "Maybe your luck stat is raised to the max while your other stats are piss poor. Especially charisma. Are you a shut-in NEET?"

"I understand that reference, and I'm not going to entertain it... Anyway, Kirito, Koharu, and Asuna claimed their prizes from the viscount."

Mito nods. "Yeah, I know. Surprised you're here, to be honest."

"No reason to visit the castle again. We claimed our prizes. Ko and I already know Kizmel is or will be here, with the Jade and Lapis Keys. Oh, we haven't told you guys yet. Well, they'll find out. I don't plan to see them tonight, so we can finish this bottle and hit the hay.

"Sounds good." Mito nods and pours a second glass, a white wine from appearance. "Tomorrow, I guess we'll whittle down more of the quests we picked up and whatnot. Eventually, we'll hit the Elf Quest and the boss raid, which I bet won't be the same. Sounds so simple, but this floor is far from it." She sighs and looks to the other patrons of the tavern. "We haven't encountered PKers at least."

"Yeah."

"...Would you kill someone, Jaymes? Knowing the consequences, could you do it?"

He frowns, glancing at the blood-red liquid in his glass. Ever since they came up on this floor, he wondered the same. Talking to Koharu about her protecting herself from other players, then about how treasure hunting may be safer than their current playstyle, he can't say the subject hasn't breached his mind.

Monsters are readable, and he can judge their pattern within a minute of seeing how they attack. Players are not that simple. Sure, one can get basic read by their choice of armor and weapons, but attack patterns can be hard to judge. Even though Jaymes and Kirito wield the same weapon class, how they fight with swords differs. Koharu, a dagger user, sometimes trips up her more experienced partner, and she's getting better against him. Their previous duel lasted longer than usual, even if he did dominate her in the end.

As a gamer, he has no qualms about killing another player. But SAO is not just a game, but a matter of real life and death. Could it bother him to take another life?

"I...don't think so. Not like what we think of Morte and his possible associates. But... I wouldn't rule out that if faced against them, and if it means protecting myself of Koharu or any of you...it..."

"Oh! Long time no see, Jaymes!" My answer is interrupted by a man dressed in a red tunic with a black chest plate. His fluffy stack of red hair is tied with a red bandana. Something about him is oddly familiar. He looks away from me to Mito, then back at me, then at Mito. "Oh, that's how Koharu looks in real life? Wait, no, I was there when... Jaymes, have you found a different girl already? What happened to sweet little Koharu?"

His identity snaps in Jaymes' head. "Klein? Long time no see! And no, this is not what it seems like. This is Mito, one of my party members. Koharu is with the others in our merry band of misfits. Kirito's one of them."

Jaymes met Klein on the first day of SAO, before Kayaba's grand speech. He was with a different version of Kirito, a much older, cooler looking avatar (granted, so was his) and they helped Klein and Koharu get used to the combat system. The last time he saw him was after the mirrors we received from Kayaba changed the avatars' appearances. No, wait, it was when Jaymes bought bread for Koharu and himself while she came to terms with the ssituation. Klein told him Kirito left the first town alone and offered Jaymes and Koharu a place with his friends. Jaymes declined, having not decided what he was going to do and what to do with Koharu. But they did trade contact information in case one or the other needed help.

"Is that so?" he responds with a raised eyebrow, then nods his head. He looks like he wants to ask a different question, but doesn't speak it. "How're ya doin'? But I don't really need to ask. The lower floors are filled with tales of your heroics. It's said Kirito joined your group along with another girl."

Jaymes is not surprised stories are spreading about the four of them. On the second floor, the Legend Braves, Nezha's party, knew of them and gave Jaymes, Kirito, and Koharu the nicknames "Crimson Warrior," "Black Swordsman," and "Kindred Assassin". The girl Jaymes met on the third floor, Nijika, knew who he was and said she was a fan. Mito herself heard of Asuna's achievements. So he's aware of the stories...and so far, they seem to be leaning to the good side.

"There's no avoiding rumors of a top player who's making short work of floor bosses when you belong to the clearing group," he continues. "As someone who's sworn to become one of the elite players, it's encouraging to hear tales about teh achievements of an old friend."

"Are you going to join in on the boss fight, Klein?"

"Yup! I've officially become a guild leader. I've been grinding my butt off. I'm not going to lose to you guys!" He chuckles, then scratches his head. "Or so I'd like to say, but... I've heard 'something' appears on this floor."

The fifth floor has only been open for more than 36 hours. The two big guilds have been "absent" since Koharu, Mito, and Jaymes came through the town gate, so if anyone found 'something', it must be them. "What do you mean?"

"Well, y'know... You scouted this area. You know how peculiar the monsters are here, right?"

"Ghosts and zombies?" Mito replies. "Considering the stage, it's not weird for those types."

"Scared of ghosts, Klein?"

"Monsters are nothing!" he comebacks with bravado. "You can defeat them as long as you can land an attack."

Jaymes didn't mind the monsters. He faced these guys before in the beta, so they don't frighten him now. His partner, however, performed madnificiently in their encounter of Halloween's greatest hits. "Agreed. I was surprised at first, but Koharu looked she was fine, so..."

"Yeah. They're not that scary once you know that you can defeat them."

"But now that you mention it, they were ghosts, weren't they?"

"The only thing that you think about when trying to complete the game is EXP," Klein lectures to the knowledgeable. "But when you start thinking that, you realize you're begun getting used to this world, huh?"

Mito nods, staring solemnly at her third cup of wine. "I can...understand. Even though I know I'll die if I run out of HP, I tend to firget it when I'm out like this. Just like Kayaba said, you really begin to think of this world as our only reality."

Klein smiles. "Don't worry about that. I've learned the secret to success here. But it's hard to give a clear explanation. That's a different conversation. What I wanted to talk about is that there's rumor of the real thing appearing on this floor.

Jaymes raises an eyebrow, skeptical of what Klein's implying. "A real ghost?"

"I think it's ridiculous as well. But there's a giy who actually saw it and I'd bet my boots his fear wasn't faked."

"Didn't he mistake a monster for it?"

"He's a leader of a Furinkazan rival-ish guild. He never was afraid of the undead. He said that a gloomy guy looked at him and then disappeared. I got scared myself watching his shake as he talked. All I can tell you is that when he tried to talk to an unknown solo player, he disappeared. And that several of his friends saw it too. And there were no places around you could hide in."

"Hmm." Jaymes crosses his arms and think of possible explanations. The only one that's feasible is an invisbility cloak, having bore witness to Kizmel use hers, but he hasn't heard of one being used by a player in the beta or up until now. And if it was, it'll be the perfect PK weapon. "Maybe our 'ghost' is not really one, but someone-or something-that can 'disappear' with some sort of magic cloak or something."

"There were convenient items like that?" Klein slumps in his seat, though he looks relieved. "Darn, I got worked up for nothing."

"Maybe it is a ghost. As far as I know, those cloaks are only for NPCs. If we're dealing with that, it might be an important character in the progression of the floor, or a minor quest. If it is a player... It doesn't seem that they're hostile. I didn't hear of such an item in the beta or the lower floors."

"Same here," Mito adds on. "We could ask Argo about it, but if she knows nothing, then no one has gotten one...at least up until today. If this ghost got an item that grants invisibility through some means, then it could be the key to clearing this floor. It's worth looking into, don't you think, Jaymes?"

Jaymes nods. He can't say he's not interested in where this can go. "Mhm. I think I'd like to investigate this personally.. Klein, what about you?"

He brings a fist to his chest. "I could help out as well. I'd stop being a man if I just pretended I didn't hear that!"

"Okay. Mito, you in?"

She shakes her head. "As interesting as this sounds, I'll pass. But you and Koharu should investigate this. Just in case-hypothetically, of course-the ghost is real."

Jaymes leans forward, teasing the shrinking Mito with a smile. "Afraid?"

"N-no! Just thinking about Asuna, that's all!" So Asuna's afraid of ghosts? He'll pin that information for later.

"Hahah! That's what you're worried about? Well, if it's real...then we'll just run away! I've been scared of them ever since I went to an amusement's park's haunted mansion. It's not rational."

Jaymes and Mito stares at the older man in red with frowns and dropped jaws. Somewhere in this conversation, Klein boldly stated he wasn't afraid of ghosts. "How pathetic..."

"So pathetic."