Date posted: 29th March 2021
Thanks to TC for transporting and betaing this chapter!
Chapter 4: Ill Met in Mankhlar
"Can't have shit in Detroit."
- Ancient Detroitian proverb
Working for another player was a curious experience to say the least.
Sinon didn't really have any real life work experience to speak of (she was only seventeen) but it was probably something akin to this.
Getting to Mankhlar took a day of travel thanks to how the teleportation portals worked. Not so bad, she'd travel longer in the woods.
But Kirito's caravan stopped all the time. Instead of a straight line, he hopped village to village, buying commodities at one spot and selling them at another. Usually villagers would go to a local market but a lot of the time this wasn't available with the whole bandit, orc, and orc bandit problem happening all the time.
Her contract said "bodyguard" but for the most part, that wasn't her actual role. She hunted and fished for food, scouted ahead in case of bandits and if there was a particular dangerous and rare mob in the area, she was sent to dispatch it, usually with help from Asuna.
"What's he like?" Sinon asked one day.
"Kirito? He's …. Fine." She said the last word begrudgingly. "Eccentric, chases money way too enthusiastically. And he also buys a lot of clothes. At least he never cheats people."
"The other day he asked me to hunt chamois. I thought it was some sort of monster but no, it's a type of goat. He wanted the material for making gloves."
"He does love his gloves, does he?"
Sinon saw his wardrobe chest once. The upper part of the lid had a compartment entirely for gloves.
"Have you seen his perfume bottles? Guy uses a lot of soap and perfume. He smells like a flower," said Sinon. She could smell her employer a fair distance away.
Kirito must have heard because he yelled, "Well at least I don't smell like dirt and blood like you two!"
Asuna shot back, "You know, Kirito, I could always teach you how to use a sword."
"Ew, no. Why would I do that?"
Asuna sighed. Sinon decided she liked Asuna.
During dinner one time, she asked him, "So Kirito, who's this Argo you've mentioned before? Why the hostility?"
At that point, he looked out into the darkness and said dramatically, "She is the bane of my existence. With hope, we would never meet! But I know it's not a matter of if, but when."
"I heard she's an info broker," said Asuna. "I don't see why you don't work together."
Kirito put his food down and gave them the most serious of looks. "I'll give you two this advice free of charge: Whatever you do, do not trust the Rat."
Mankhlar, the city of commerce!
Mankhlar of the triple towers!
Mankhlar, the city of smog!
Mankhlar, the city of adventure!
Mankhlar, the greatest floor-city of Aincrad! *(citation needed)
Just don't bring that up in the three other great floor-cities in Aincrad, else you might get mugged, stabbed and run out, and not even in that order.
When last we left our heroes, they were on their way to the 15th Floor on the great divine highway. Busy and well kept, it was one of the few safe roads in the entirety of SAO. The sheer amount of traffic meant no bandit was willing to menace it. Three companies of the Aincrad Liberation Force were traveling as well as other smaller guilds, banners fluttering in the wind. It was a common sight for Kirito who tended to trail after Clearers when a new floor was unlocked.
One chilly night at camp, Kirito spoke to an NPC who was the caravan master for a coal shipment. "What do you know of the great city of Mankhlar?"
The caravan master answered, "It is a floor of steel and heat, a quarter of the weapons in Aincrad come from here. It is ruled by a council of diplomatic representatives, but do not have faith in such naive institutions. For the city itself is ruled by a great tyrant. He overthrew the old mayor and replaced the watch with foreign mercenaries; lawful men and criminals alike fear him. The latter war with the tyrant's men. Do not walk the city at night lest you fancy losing your coin. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum of villainy."
He poured hot tea into Kirito's cup. "Pray tell, youngster, what do you hope to achieve in this city? What wares do you sell?"
Kirito told him of his fine suits of armour. "Aye, that'll do you good. A little light on guards, don't ye' think?"
"My girls will do just fine, sir."
The older man nodded. "Are you going to sell that to the tyrant himself? It's said he lives in a palace of gold, sleeps on a hoard of coins like a dragon and shits in a golden toilet."
The younger merchant merely smiled. "Not exactly."
They arrived at the southern side of the patomapolis the next morning. The great smog clung to their clothes and many of the merchants covered their faces with bandanas. It had no great walls, for the ring of Aincrad itself was its wall. It was no wonder that food and coal were the major imports the city needed for there is little greenery in the stone jungle.
In the distance, the three towers scrapped the heavens, the chimneys of the great factory in the middle of the city. Asuna and Sinon looked upon the grey beast of a city with disgust.
The traffic took hours. Just an endless line of wagons, carriages and horses. This was a bit too realistic for the players but Kayaba did say he wanted to make a new reality so he had that going on for him. The checkpoint resembled highway toll booths.
They finally arrived at the checkpoint and the symbol of the Tyrant's Mace was painted lovingly on a large sign above. The guard greeted them, "Cargo inspection, sir. Please wait."
Two minutes later the same guard came back with a smug grin on his face. "Well, what do we have here?" The guard had a pouch in hand, "Is this what I think it is?"
He poured the contents out, glowing pink dust in palm. "Fairy Dust. High grade narcotics. That's ten years in the slammer, buddy. And that's if you're lucky."
Kirito furrowed his brow. Sinon reached for her slingshot, Asuna grabbed her by the wrist.
Then Kirito was all smiles. "I think we can work something out," he said, pulling a coin pouch from his sleeve.
Ten minutes later, they were on the main road of the city. The girls had the look of absolute murder on their faces.
"I can't believe you did that," said Asuna.
"Did what? Oh, you mean we had a nice chat with the officer of the law. We got in and are ready to do our business, I see no issue here."
"You're way too relaxed for this sort of thing, Kirito," said Sinon.
"What would the two of you have done? Take on the entire local guard? Gotta read the situation, adapt to your surroundings."
After a quick check at the merchant's guild warehouse, they purchased space for their cargo and stables for their donkeys and off they were on the streets of Mankhlar.
Though it was only five in the evening, the sky was already dark due to the smog. Mankhlar, though medieval, had proper streetlamps and old brick roads - the few surviving remnants of the civilisation before it.
There were ruffians and hooligans in every corner of the street, suspicious cloaked men in alleys and for every fifty citizens was a homeless person. Men, women and children wore rags on their faces, and those who didn't were either other NPCs from other floors or players themselves. It was easy to tell who was a player - they were the ones with all the weapons on them.
Noticeably were the goblins running around. They cleaned the streets, carried messages and were always up to something. Sinon saw one deftly climb a street lamp and light it with flint and steel. The citizens treated them as if they were invisible just like they did with the homeless. Asuna had never seen streets so clean but with such dirty citizens. Then again, they were in the nicer parts of town.
Two thugs sneered at them from an outdoor bar and stroked the hilt of their knives. Asuna lifted her cloak and flashed her rapier. They frowned and returned to their drinks.
"I see you're hiding your fancy robes, Kirito," said Sinon. "Afraid the smog will get to your silks?"
"I pay you to look for danger, slayer, not to diss my fashion." The merchant was now clad in a well-worn cloak and hood. Had Kirito been in a crowd, Asuna would have a hard time identifying him.
They arrived at the Trash Panda Inn. Despite the name, it was a respectable business with clean tables and a homely feeling. The innkeeper was a man with graying hair, a scar across his nose, and an eyepatch. He had a gaggle of children as his troopers. He was waging the eternal war with a duster in hand when they rang the counter.
They settled in their rooms and came down for dinner. There was a man waiting at the table. He stood up and extended a hand.
"Kirito, I see you're still relying on minimal security. Not bad for a newbie merchant."
Kirito clasped his hand. "Says the guy who puts himself into the fight."
"Listen, I gotta inspire my own men after all. Can't do that by hiding in the wagon."
The newcomer introduced himself as Agil, and like Kirito, wasn't shy of accompanying the Clearers into the dungeon. He was a tall black man whose expensive clothes did little to hide a warrior's physique and he spoke impeccable Japanese. Sinon reckoned he was in his late twenties or early thirties.
Dinner was simple but filling and the two merchants spoke of their plans.
"The frontline is bad, man. It ain't about going into dungeons and killing monsters anymore."
Agil went into great depth. The three had heard of the tyrant, but everything else was news to them. He pulled out a pipe and Sinon lit a match for him.
"On one side, you have the Tyrant of Mankhlar. He came out of nowhere one day with an army of mercenaries, killed the last mayor and pointed spears at the council. Now he rules with an iron fist, is barely running the place and he's got a whole palace to himself. Rumours says he's got a wizard on his side.
"On the other side is the Thieves' Guild. They're basically Yakuza and they act like it. Some say it's bankrolled by families that the Tyrant screwed over. Either way, they're becoming bolder by the day, and have no qualms scuffing with the guardsmen. What they lack in might, they make it up with stealth.
"And now comes the third side of it all."
"The Clearers," said Kirito. "We saw the Aincrad Liberation Force moving their companies on the way here."
Agil puffed smoke. "Yep. Clearers want to go up a floor. The Thieves' Guild and the Tyrant want to destroy the other and both are persuading the other. Both sides promised access to the next floor. You can see the issue here.
The Tyrant's own army isn't enough, he needs more men. Currently, the ALF are 'working' for the Tyrant. It's why they're allowed in the first place. It's not just that, there's a bunch of smaller guilds working for one side or the other. Some are even playing both sides and in my humble opinion, you don't play with fire.
"The Clearer guilds aren't unified. So until they figure it out …"
Kirito slammed his fist on the table. "We can make a profit."
"Exactly!"
Asuna and Sinon looked at each other. The former said, "It's good to know both of you honest businessmen are exploiting this war to further enrich yourselves at the cost of civilian lives."
Kirito shrugged. "Listen, I'm not siding with anyone. Whoever wants my stuff they can pay for it. I'm as neutral as the Swiss."
"The Swiss profited from Nazi gold."
"Okay, maybe that's not a good example but you know what I mean!"
Agil sipped his wine. "By the way, Kirito. Where's Argo?"
Kirito almost dropped his.
"You mean his archnemesis?" said Sinon.
The older merchant had a look of his confusion on him. "What are you talking about?"
Kirito tried to divert the topic. "Listen, let's talk about business first and how we can transport the prod-"
And failed miserably. Asuna said, "He called her a gangster and a tyrant. Said she was the worst player in all of SAO. And mind you, there are literal player killers in the game."
Agil processed this information for exactly five seconds before bursting with laughter so loud it threatened to bring down the inn.
When he was done, Agil wiped tears from his eyes. "O-kay, buddy. If that's how you wanna go about it, sure."
"What? What's up with Argo and Kirito?" asked Asuna.
Kirito said nothing but merely tried to kill Agil with non-existent laser eyes. Agil seemed to take the hint and amused him.
"You know what, it was nice having dinner with you, ladies. Kirito. See you tomorrow."
One would think transporting A to X would be easy, but in a city where every beggar could be working for the state, the thieves' guild, or the Clearers, it was harder than you'd think.
The biggest challenge was transporting the cargo incognito. Seven suits of plate armour was no easy thing to transport and if Agil's info was true, they couldn't rely on goblins to do the job either. The Tyrant decided to stop paying the goblins to do the city's dirty work and are basically doing their jobs under the threat of violence. The Thieves' Guild see the goblins as government lackeys and have no love for them. Now the goblins work for the highest pay and that meant they were easily buyable.
Mankhlar, being the factory city of Aincrad, was in no short supply in armour. There was so much mail being made you could have every hovel furnished with mail curtains. There were so many spears you could make a ship out of them.
But it was all basic grade stuff. What they lack in artisanship, Mankhlar made it in pure bulk. The crafting guilds stopped making high grade stuff and focused entirely on mass production and they weren't happy about it.
They discussed the plan in Agil's inn, who was wealthy enough to have the entire floor to himself and his own bodyguards. They had the map of the city on a wall.
"So what are you exactly getting out of this?" asked Asuna.
"It's for the mystery client! They need high quality armour, but good armour takes a long time to make so they decide in exchange in paying me, I can get a ton of their bulk shipment in trade. Basically, the deal they offered is better than what individual Clearer guilds can pay me."
"And the mystery client is … ?"
"I have no idea. It could be some guard captain who wants armour for themselves and is working behind their boss. It may be the Thieves' Guild who need extra protection. Maybe it's some random guild. I don't care as long as I get paid."
"Maybe it's Argo," suggested Agil.
"Mention her name again or I'll have Asuna stab you."
"Don't worry, Agil-san, Kirito doesn't pay me enough to be his personal assassin."
"And why can't you just sell the armour outside the city?" asked Sinon.
"Because they need them for an operation and you can't just smuggle all that plate through the checkpoint. The city literally taxes you for wearing armour and bringing weapons, I had to actually pay for permits for both of you. Listen, dear slayer, I'm not a sneaky guy, I just sell stuff to people."
Agil pointed at the map. The destination was an abandoned temple in the western side of town. The problem was it was also the current warzone between the Thieves' Guild and the Tyrant's guardsmen. You could skirt the place and find yourself between a brawl between the gangsters and guardsmen and it was hard to tell which was which in a fight.
Agil and his men had been planning this ever since the Mankhlar was open to the playerbase, and he was promised a portion of the bulk that Kirito would get.
The brawls were usually non-lethal, fought with clubs and batons. But at other times both sides brought out shivs and swords while sling stones and crossbow bolts exchanged shots. You could never tell when it was going to turn for the worse.
Kirito, however, had a solution. A solution neither girls had faith in but had no better alternatives.
"So let me get this straight," began Sinon.
"Sure."
"You want Asuna and I to go to the sewers …"
"It's not a sewer! It's an underground river!"
"Right, so you want us to go to the underground river …"
"Yes, the city's main water supply."
"Fight off the slimes, goblins and ratmen down there …"
"The ratmen are a myth, don't be silly, dear slayer."
"For the sole purpose of getting fish, so you can pose as a fishmonger, and discreetly transport the cargo to that temple."
"You got it."
"Can't you just buy the fish in the first place?"
"Do you know how expensive salmon is nowadays? Do I look like I'm made of money to you?"
"As long as I don't have to fight ratmen then fine."
"Watch out for the supergators. I'll lend you some spears."
Sinon turned to Agil, "Can't you get us the fish?"
"No, but I could get a new quiver if you like. Special discount."
It took an entire week to transport several crates of plate armour over a distance of five kilometres. It involved a cart of fish, sold every day by Fumio the Fishmonger (Kirito with a fake beard), while individual pieces of the armour had to be transported discreetly via Agil's men.
Customers would come to buy fish and the basket of fish would hide parts of gambesons, helmets, gauntlets, and sabatons. No one was going to give a second glance at a family buying dinner for themselves or Agil's couriers who looked no different from the city dwellers.
It was complicated, laborious, and no one would suspect it. Asuna understood the logic of it, but she didn't like it.
"You know, I could have been working on my college application right now. Meet new friends, get an education, maybe meet a cute boy. And instead of doing something worthwhile, I have to be stuck in a stupid video game, and spend the day washing the smell of fish off armour, in a dilapidated temple in a freaking warzone!"
"Well, Kirito's kinda cute."
Asuna turned to Sinon. The slayer shrugged. "What? He is."
"Y-yeah, if you like girly boys!"
Sinon grinned. "I've seen you staring when he has his hair all down to his shoulders after he takes a shower. And when he's done putting on his clothes, I can hear you sniffing it." Sinon whiffed dramatically. "Just like that. Oh look, you're blushing."
Asuna threw a fish at her face.
It was the night of the meet.
The abandoned temple resembled a church minus all the related imagery. Aincrad had its own gods but whatever god this abode belonged no longer called it theirs. It had a curiously barren altar and there wasn't a single religious relic in sight. Even the pews looked like it would crumble at a sneeze.
Kirito laid out the crates in a neat row in front of the pew and laid out one set of armour on the altar. The moon was full that night and its light barely penetrated the smog.
A dark temple for dark intentions.
"I can't see anything," said Asuna.
"What are you guys talking about, I can see fine."
"Well not everyone has low-light vision, dear slayer. Let's break out the candles."
Seventy candles later, there was a knock at the door. Sinon stood guard at the altar with bow in hand. Kirito signalled Asuna to open the door.
Three figures in cloaks and hoods entered. Even from this distance, Sinon could see the sheathed weapons under their covers and one had a bow over a shoulder. She heard no clinking of mail which meant they were wearing gambesons at best. She couldn't tell if they were players or NPCs.
The clients stopped a few feet away from the altar and one of them spoke, "Hail, merchant. Do you have the product?"
A foreign accent, but she couldn't place her finger on it.
Kirito spread his arms as he often liked to do when giving a pitch. "Of course, why don't you have a look!"
The three men spread out. The lead figure appraised the products on the table while the other two checked the crates. He wore a rag over his mouth but from what Sinon could see, he was an older gentleman with piercing blue eyes. He picked up the left gauntlet.
"Go ahead, put it on," said Kirito.
"My God, this is beautiful." He flexed his hand and admired the articulation of the gauntlet. "The Fist of the Blackguard? I don't recognise this."
"It's from a super-secret quest, privy only to me."
The client picked up the helmet and caressed it. He let out a low whistle. "This is quality indeed. And it has such a high Armor rating too. You say you have six sets of these?"
"Seven, one on the altar and the rest in the crates." Kirito smiled and the familiar Yen signs threatened to reveal themselves. "Is it all in order?"
The client turned to his men and both gave a thumbs up. "It seems so, merchant. I'll be sure to send some of my boys here to pick up the merchandise. Pleasure doing business wi -"
Sinon heard the footsteps before Asuna did. The swordswoman peeked out of the door and closed it shut. "It's the guardsmen!"
Instantly the clients took out their weapons. The older man whipped out a sharp jian. "Did you set us up?"
Kirito looked offended. "What? Of course not, my woman at the door wouldn't have warned either of us!"
A booming voice came from outside the temple: "Criminals and ne'er-do-wells, this is the Guard of Mankhlar! Throw your swords down and you shall be treated mercifully, we swear this under the Tyrant's Peace!"
"Scheisse!" He paced around, and looked all over. "Do you have an escape route?"
"I do but …"
"To hell to the product, kid. We need to get the hell out of here!"
Sinon, Asuna and the client's men were piling up the pews up towards the entrance. Axe heads sprouted from the ancient double doors and even all the pews, it would not hold.
"It could be worse," said Kirito. "At least Agil is fine and far away from this mess."
"We have the criminal known as Agil apprehended! Come out now and we shall show mercy to your friend! Stand down or you'll be swinging from the gallows!"
"Nevermind."
"Kid, escape route now, please."
Kirito ran a hand through his hair. His eyes were all over the place and he looked more angry than anxious.
Then just as suddenly as it arrived, the anger was gone. He straightened his robe. "Right, right. Insurance will cover this."
"Insurance exists in SAO?" asked the client.
"Help me push the altar."
As broken down as the temple was, the marble altar was still in remarkable condition. Little by little, all of them pushed the altar away revealing a hatch and ladder.
The temple doors blew open and in came the Guard; the Tyrant's Mace on their blue surcoats over gleaming mail. They had batons out and crossbows brandished. The guard captain was a man in thick plate and held a polemace in both hands, a champion of state authority.
The guard captain ordered a volley and the bolts flew. The players jumped down behind any cover they could get to. Sinon retaliated and landed an arrow into the captain's breast, knocking him down. Bow outpaced crossbows and she was loosing her arrows at an amazing speed, forcing the guards into cover and the other bowman joined in as well.
The clients went down first. Asuna was the next. "Kirito, quick! Let's go!"
"I mean, that hole does look dirty. And these are new robes." A bolt whizzed past his head.
"Oh for God's sake … come here now!"
"Fine, fine," he grumbled and climbed down.
Sinon loosed one last show before the next volley showered the altar and locked the hatch behind her.
It was cramp and dark under the temple. The cave walls were tight and they had to shimmy their way to safety in single file. If any of them had claustrophobia, now's a good time to not have it.
For minutes they moved in the darkness with the sound of heavy breathing and their weapons scraping the wall as their only indicator of progress. After who knows how long, the now branded criminals of Mankhlar found an iron door and exit to the familiar sound of rushing water.
They looked around. They were underground and from their position, they could hear the river. The walls of the civilisation before Mankhlar was a familiar sight to the girls. The mystery client surveyed it. "I don't recognise this place. We'll need to go back to HQ."
"Now hold on a sec, what about our deal?" asked Kirito.
He pointed a finger at Kirito, still wearing the Blackguard's fist. "Deal's off, kid. We gotta cover our butts first. I recommend getting out of town for a while."
"But … but my shipment!"
"And Agil-san," said Asuna.
"Yeah, him too. We're not done here, mister!"
The client lowered the bandana, revealing an old European man. "Well kid, if we can survive this encounter, feel free to bring it up with our captain."
One of the other men raised his hand. "Colonel, I hear men coming."
Sinon perked hear ears. "About half a dozen men."
"Great. Lieutenant, bar that door. We are leaving now."
As the lieutenant closed the door with a nearby plank of wood. A gaggle of guardsmen rounded the corner barring batons and shield. The guard captain with the longmace was there too. "STOP RIGHT THERE, CRIMINAL SCUM!"
Sinon and the other archer replied with arrows. The players made like a banana and split.
The river of Mankhlar was long with multiple tributaries like a human vein. They were running as fast as possible and the guards were in hot pursuit.
Kirito, who had not invested a single point into any related skill, was lagging behind. "Huff, huff, wait up. Just need to catch my breath."
His bodyguards slowed down but the clients didn't. Kirito tripped and almost fell into the waterway. "Go, girls! Leave me behind, save yourselves!"
A bolt missed him by an inch and with surprising speed he got up and ran past everyone. Asuna rolled her eyes so hard it almost fell out of her head.
The underground river was a city in itself but unlike Mankhlar was mostly inhabited by monsters. Gators, slimes, rats (no, no ratmen) and the poor goblins made their residence here. It was a city away from the city and being a fisherman had an occupational hazard akin to a miner.
They came at a junction, a particularly large water crossing with a rickety bridge connecting it. They were on the left side of the canal. "If we split up, it'll be harder to catch us," said Sinon.
The clients agreed to that. "Good luck, merchant. Hope we never meet again." They split left, Kirito's party split right.
Kirito stopped. "Hey wait a minute, you didn't pay for that gauntlet!"
Asuna grabbed him by collar and dragged him away.
Footfalls behind them, the guards didn't split and were coming after them instead. Sinon cursed under her breath. "Of all the rotten luck …"
The three crossed a rickety rope bridge and slowly crossed it with no accident. Asuna stopped and told the two to wait. "I've got a plan."
She pressed her body just beyond the corner of the wall. She peeked out, she saw the guard captain crossing first, the bridge miraculously holding him in his plate armour. She shot out the corner, sword in hand. The guards at back must have read her mind and retreated.
He was at the halfway point and did not stop.
Asuna's rapier flicked twice, cutting rope. The bridge collapsed and with it the captain into the rushing river.
The three continued, Sinon leading. "You know where we're going, right?" asked Asuna.
"Absolutely not."
After a while of running, Sinon said, "Hey, I think I recognise this place. This is where we fished! Nearby is the entrance back to the city!"
"Oh, please, let this end. I need to do so much paperwork," said Kirito.
As they rounded the corner, a phalanx of guardsmen greeted them and on the stairs were two rows of crossbowmen.
"Oh shi-"
Before the guards could shoot, smoke exploded in the underground. A cacophony of coughs echoed in the vast hall as the trio tried to make their way. Orders were shouted and no one was obeying.
A voice yelled, but the girls couldn't hear the words exactly. Small hands grabbed theirs as they were led away from the chaos.
A click and a wall slid open and the players had to crouch down to enter it. It closed and plunged them into darkness. None of the three said a word as the mystery men dragged them to safety. When they emerged into the light, they finally had a chance to see their rescuers.
"Gobbo gob?" said the one holding Asuna's hand.
"Huh?" the girls said in unison.
Kirito was far more positive. "Oh thank you, small mercies, literally! Gobbo gobby gob gob!"
The goblins in question looked not that different from the goblins above save for the fact they all wore matching green bandanas. The goblins nodded and signalled them to follow them. "Gobb gobber."
"Where are they taking us?" asked Sinon.
"They're taking us to meet their leader. Probably have to pay them for rescuing us."
"You don't seem too upset by that."
Kirito shrugged. "We might even strike up a meaningful relationship. Gotta spend money to make money, dear slayer. Maybe we can use them to help get our stuff back."
"And save Agil-san too," said Asuna.
"I said I'd do it, didn't I?"
They entered what could be described a shantytown of sorts in a large cavern. Homes made of scrap metal and fires burning in barrels for heat and cooking, chaotic but manageable. At certain parts were goblins holding spears the size of longswords, looking as menacing as goblins could be.
They finally reached a particular shack at the back, this one was much bigger, obviously designed for humans. The goblin bade them to enter.
Kirito entered first and saw a neat little office. A spacious desk, a chair, and the person sitting in it: a petite blonde girl with yellow-green eyes geared in fighting leathers. Her hands were covered in wraps and her toned arms were that of a brawler's.
"Hello, Kii-bou~"
His mouth dropped open. "You!"
The figure in the chair jumped over the table and grabbed him by the collar. Sinon and Asuna reached for their weapons. Asuna warned, "Hey, back off -"
The girl planted her lips on his. The bodyguards froze, unsure of what to do.
When they parted, both of them were panting. The blonde girl had the cheekiest grin on her face while Kirito's face was bright red. She righted herself and perched on the edge of the table. "It's been a long time, babe. I've missed you." She looked down at him. "And why are you dressed like a dandy?"
Kirito ignored her question. "If I knew it was you, I'd rather get arrested."
She cupped his face with both hands. "Aww, is Kii-bou still angry, is this why you picked up a couple of new girls, trying to make lil' ol me jealous? Well, aren't you going to introduce them?"
Kirito pushed her hands away and took a breath. "Argo, this is Asuna, and that's Sinon. They're my bodyguards. Girls, this is Argo the Rat. She's my … ex-girlfriend."
The Rat wrapped one muscular arm over his shoulders and pressed her cheek to his, "That's current girlfriend, actually, and don't you forget it!"
Argo: Three chapters and thirty reviews. Not bad, Kii-bou.
Kirito: I'll have you know that the Kirito Corporation is Aincrad's leading company in customer service and quality products! We pride ourselves in giving bonuses to loyal customers.
Argo: I can think of other ways for you to service me. ;)
Asuna: So is your girlfriend always this horny on main? Do you want me to bonk her?
Argo: Hah, as if you could even hit me, sword girl!
Kirito: That's ex-girlfriend. And please girls, no fighting.
Argo: Tell you what, loyal customers; if this trend of reviews is consistent, I'm gonna show Kii-bou here my own bonus reward if you catch my drift.
Sinon, loading crossbow: That's it, I'm taking the shot. Stay clear.
Argo: Join the Kirito Corporation at discord . gg /z9Pz3Jzc7y (remove spaces) today! *narrowly avoids bolt*
