The Pale Wraith and the Black Swordsman

by Storm Wolf77415

Cowritten with Centurious the Azure. Yuuki Asuna could hardly call her life exciting. Until she met a charming young man who helped her find a strength inside her no one expected her to find. Asuna x OC.

5. Treasure Hunt and Intrigue at the Smithy

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Pale Wraith and Black Swordsman

By Centurious the Azure and Storm Wolf77415

Treasure Hunts and Smithy

(Aincrad, Second Floor Field, December 7th, 2022 AD)

It had been less than seventy-two hours since Illfang's defeat, not to mention the very hostile confrontation between Kibaou and Kirito, when the latter willing took on the heat and the label that would become infamous, "Beater", but like he expected, the hostility against the beta testers died out fairly quickly. At that moment, the swordsman in question and his female companion were venturing through the savannas of Floor Two of Aincrad.

To Sinon, it was all kind of boring, nothing but endless rolling plains, punctuated by the random boulder. Ox and buffalo type monsters milled about here and there, but the duo paid little mind to the mobs, they just wanted to get to the main settlement, Urbus, as fast as possible so they could get some rest. There would be plenty of time to hunt later. Her eyes would occasionally flicker to Kirito, still wearing the Coat of Midnight, it would flap every so often when caught by the light breeze.

Sinon picked up the pace so she was side by side with Kirito. "Hey, you all right?" He had been silent since parting with Weiss at the entrance to the second floor, and it was starting to get on her nerves. "Look, I get that you did it to try and keep the peace, but if you're going to wallow in your self-pity for the rest of our time here, don't!"

"That's not it at all." Kirito finally spoke. "I was just thinking about what that one guy, Weiss, said to us earlier. That he wanted me to lead the Clearing Party."

Sinon just folded her arms. "Forgive me if I'm not convinced. There's something about those guys that just seemed off to me. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that Diabel was just a front man and those other guys were the ones really pulling the strings behind this whole operation, and I'm not the type to be used as a puppet!"

"I don't fancy the idea myself, but if someone needs to step forward and rally the people, who else would be wiling to do it?" Kirito offered. Sinon had no words for that. She had always been the solitary type, and kept to herself in the real world. However, if they wanted to beat the floor bosses, it would mean working together with the other guilds and parties.

"I admire your willingness to consider stepping up, Kirito." Her eyes narrowed slightly, but Kirito couldn't help find it kind of cute. "But let's be realistic here, do you really think Kibaou would accept you in a position of power? Let's face it, he blamed you for Diabel's death, who's to stay he won't try and take revenge for him? Although I think a basic slime is smarter than he ever could be. All he'd need is for you to be weakened after fighting a boss, your HP would be low and then…" She trailed off, not wanting to even think about it.

Kirito just gave his partner a reassuring smile. "I'm not worried. Because I know you'd take him out before he'd even get a chance to lift a blade against me." Sinon wasn't sure how to take that, but she could feel her lips twisting upwards into a rare smile. Although before she could say anything more, there was movement out of the corner of her eye, a hand going to her dagger. "Looks like we have company."

A hand went to his Anneal Blade, and Kirito directed his gaze, and saw a couple of players coming down the opposite path. As they grew closer, the young swordsman appraised them. The first was a young man their age, messy, dark brown hair that reminded both Kirito and Sinon of a bird's nest covering his head, the rough bangs framed steel gray eyes that held a hard edge to them, despite his otherwise rather soft-looking features.

A basic looking one-handed longsword was strapped to his back in a black leather sheath, the baldric stretched tight against the breast plate made of light steel he wore over a bright green army jacket, trimmed in a dark gray that matched his eyes. The outfit was complete by matching gray pants and dark brown hiking boots with visible steel toes, catching the light of the midday sun.

The other was a young woman also their age with lustrous yellow blonde hair cut short just above her shoulders, reminding the both of them of a dandelion, accentuating her brilliant blue eyes. She wore an armored breast plate colored light blue over a tube top a couple shades darker, topped off by a short, dark blue hooded cloak. A dark red choker around her neck complimented all the blue she wore.

There was a light blue vambrace on her right arm with a brown leather fingerless glove protecting her hand underneath it. On the left arm was a detached sleeve colored dark blue paired with a matching leather fingerless glove. Her flat stomach was bare, because of the black hotpants she wore, a pair of black and white stockings, and brown ankle high boots covered her legs, a brown equipment pouch was strapped to her left leg. A blue, and white bandanna was tied to the belt around her waist to the side along with a carrying pouch fastened behind her. To her side hanging off her belt was a simple short sword in a blue leather sheath, banging and clanking as she walked.

The two couples locked eyes with each other, and they all could see the subtle signs already, the way the skin around their eyes tighetned, how their expressions suddenly became very somber. The blue clad girl's hand came down to her hip, resting on the handle of her blade, while the boy in green and gray's chest tightened up a little, his fingers curled and snapped out, almost as if waiting to go for the sword at a moment's notice.

As the two got closer, Kirito caught sight of the player's names, "Minas" for the boy and "Philia" for the girl. Finally the two couples met at a crossroads. No words were spoken, as a powerful gust of wind blew through, throwing up Kirito's coat, Sinon's scarf, Mina's hood, and Philia's cloak.

"Wow, is there a tumbleweed anywhere? I only ask because it would complete the setting." Minas finally spoke, and all the tension just evaporated as Philia began laughing, spreading to Sinon, and finally to Kirito. The four young adventurers had a good laugh at how ridiculous their situation was.

Sinon was the first to regain her composure. "So…I guess we should introduce ourselves, huh? I'm Sinon, and this is my partner-"

"Kirito." Minas finished. "Oh, I know exactly who you are. I'm Minas, a humble ranger, and this lovely creature right here is Philia, a treasure hunter. We just started exploring the second floor, although word's already gotten around of a kid in a long, midnight black coat that seems to have made a fine art out of trolling everyone in a truly spectacular way." The green clad young man smirked a little.

"News really does travel fast, it's only been three days since the boss raid." Kirito's gray eyes became a little downcast, still remembering the harsh words Kibaou threw out. "I can't help but wonder if things had been different, then maybe we wouldn't have lost so many people."

Philia frowned, fingers tugging on her cloak. "We may have had a hand in that…you see, we were acting as advance scouts for the clearing party. It was our job to navigate the labyrinth so we could find the boss room. If we had known that Illfang had been equipped with a nodachi instead of a talwar…"

Minas clenched his fist in silent anger. "If we were only faster in getting that information to the raid party…Diabel could have survived. We knew each other from the beta, not very close, mind you, but since they asked us to help clear the game, I figured that was reason enough. I told that idiot to wait for us."

Philia just put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We both know that wasn't going to fly. Weiss and Ronan were getting impatient, and they wanted results. It was either go for it now, or not do it at all. The best thing we can do is move forward." She flashed a smile at Kirito, he couldn't help but find it kind of cute. "I'll say, that Coat of Midnight does suit you pretty well."

"Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they started calling you the Black Swordsman because of it." Minas said. "That blade you're carrying is top notch as well. I should know first hand." He reached for the sword on his back, revealing it was an Anneal Blade as well. "Considering I finished the exact same quest myself."

Kirito whistled in appreciation. "And the rest of your gear isn't exactly second rate either. They're all rare loot drops. That's a Ranger's Coat you've got on; I heard the quest line for that is supposed to be brutal. Although the payoff is well worth it, given that it increases your sneaking skill, and when you backstab someone the chance of a critical hit goes up considerably. And that breastplate you're wearing is a Flame Cuirass, highly resistant to fire damage, and heals for any flame damage you take."

"You're very observant." Minas replied, sheathing his blade, as his expression turned serious, but it was also colored with what Kirito and Sinon thought was…gratitude. "Listen man, I know what you did hurt a lot, taking all that heat because Kibaou is an idiot. You see, I'm a beta tester myself. I had been outed a few days before the raid. I was getting hounded for it. But no one's even brought it up since. I owe you a big debt of gratitude for taking one for the team like that." He held his hand out.

Kirito wasted little time in accepting the offered handshake, glad to know his actions had helped someone. "It's all good. We won't get anywhere clearing the game if we're fighting amongst ourselves."

"I only wish we could have been there to see Kibaou get trolled." Philia remarked. "The stupid cactus-head actually made a pass at me. I was almost ready to kick the guy in the balls and tell him to get lost."

"Good, that way we can keep the gene pool clean a little bit longer. If he persists, we may have to stomp him on a few extra times just to be sure." Sinon said. Kirito and Minas both winced at the image, instinctively crossing the legs and taking a step away from their female companions.

Minas cleared his throat. "Tell you what, Philia and I had a lead on a possible treasure in a dungeon not too far from here. We'll be willing to deal you in on a share of all the loot we find. I kind of feel like I need to pay you back for the shit you're going through right now. If not, you can just settle for a lootbox. I hear Kibaou is snapping up cowpies and selling them for $29.99 a pop."

Once again, all four of them began laughing. "We'll pass on the lootbox, but we're both game for a treasure hunt." Kirito said, looking to Sinon, who just gave a slight nod. "But maybe we can hold off on that until tomorrow? Sinon and I were trying to make it to Urbus first so we could get some rest and stock up on supplies. We're still depleted from the boss raid."

"Sure, we were on our way back to town ourselves anyway. A good night's rest will do all of us some good before we head out to find our treasure." Minas said. The quartet continued on the road together, the dark cloud of the last few days dissipated by the promise of a new adventure and new loot.

(Aincrad, Urbus, December 8th, 2022 AD)

Weiss strolled down the streets of Urbus, taking in the sights of the town, the smells of the food cooking, but most of all, the delicate touch of the palm of Asuna's hand against his. They had arrived in the central settlement of Aincrad's Second Floor just a couple of hours ago. Kouichirou and Ayami had decided to get some dinner, while Ronan went off to do his own thing. So Weiss and Asuna decided to take in the sights.

"It's a nice little town, isn't it?" Asuna remarked as they passed by a stall. "I have to say I'm glad for the peace and quiet." Weiss couldn't deny that, especially after the mess that had come of the aftermath of the First Floor Raid. Even though Kirito had willingly taken a metaphorical bullet by taking on the title of "Beater", there was still a lot of tension between the various guilds and sub-groups that had made up the raid party over who was in charge now that Diabel was dead.

(Aincrad, Second Floor, Plains near Floor Entrance, December 6th, 2022 AD)

At first glance, it would seem that clearing the first floor would be a milestone. the first major victory in the war that entailed beating Sword Art Online. The Clearers had set up a temporary camp on the wide plains of the second floor, as proof they meant business to any passersby. On the surface, everything seemed cordial and pleasant, but in the large tent set up in the middle of the camp, what would become known as "The War Room" in the later stages of the game, a nasty argument had cropped up.

"It's obvious that I'm the only one who can lead us now!" Kibaou snapped. "Don't forget I'm the one who outed the Beater. He's the reason Diabel is dead, if he had just told us about the fact that Illfang's weapon had been changed then he'd still be with us! Since I was part of Diabel's squad, it means I'm entitled to a piece of the action."

Another player, who bore a striking resemblance to the deceased front man stepped forward, a contemptuous sneer on his face. "Don't think just because you exposed a single player and that you were part of Diabel's squad means we're going to automatically bow down and kiss your feet!" He sneered, running a hand through his silver hair. "I admired Diabel more than you ever could, and it's obvious I should be leader."

"Dream on, Lind! You couldn't lead your way out of your own pajamas." Ronan snorted. "But I have to admit, I'll give your stylist credit, the minute Diabel kicked the bucket, you're cosplaying like him. If I didn't know any better, you were just waiting for him to die so you could take his place. Although I have to admit I'm not sure how much better that would be, at least he had a degree of charisma."

"You want to step outside, pal?" Lind's nostril's flared, his hand going down to the scimitar hanging at his waist. "I'll show you just how much Diabel I really am!" Ronan sneered, looking eager for a fight himself, only for Agil to interject.

"Oh would you all just get over yourselves! You sound like a couple of ungrateful children!" Agil snapped at both Kibaou and Lind. "We're supposed to be on the same side here. This is too much responsibility for one man to handle. We all have an equal say in how this clearing party is going to be run."

Kouichirou just gave them both a dismissive sneer. "I understand you both admired Diabel, but I'd hardly cite that as reason for you take any kind of position of leadership in our group."

"I couldn't have put it better myself, Agil, Kou. Don't anyone forget who was the one who called this little get together in the first place, who was it? Oh wait, it was me!" Weiss said, rolling his eyes in annoyance, wondering how this guy managed to get into a leadership role in the first place. "Tell me, Kibaou, do you know how to run a big raid group like this? Until just now, you were just some unknown loser who jumped onto the stage because Diabel wanted you to. Not to mention your big mouth has caused plenty of trouble for the time being."

"I'm with you, Weiss." Asuna cut in, putting on a haughty air that she had seen too many times from her classmates at school, and especially her mother, parading around like they were more important than they really were. "A true leader is someone who doesn't demand his followers kneel at their feet…they stand by his side, something a no good oaf like you could never grasp."

Kibaou snorted derisively, Kouichirou thought it made him look even more like a brute, not to mention his beady eyes didn't have a lot intelligence. "Why don't you go back to the kitchen where you belong? This is a man's world. I don't need the opinion of some girl." If there was every proof of Kibaou's stupidity, it could be seen in the angry gleam in Asuna's brown eyes. Kouichirou just snorted, wondering how stupid Kibaou really was if he was going to resort to such a tactless approach

Asuna put her hands on her hips; shooting Kibaou a glare of icy disproval her mother would have been proud of, sometimes it paid to be the daughter of an ice-cold bitch. "The fact you spout such sexist drivel makes me conclude you've never had a girl in your life ever, which says to me you're a virgin." Kibaou paled, and Asuna moved in for the kill. "Of course, I'm certain that applies to most of the people in the room, except for our leader…and me." She blushed slightly as she whispered that last part.

"Look, we can't fight amongst ourselves. I think it would be a good idea to have a memorial service, not just for Diabel, but also for all those who died in the attack. Both of you will be there, and you will pay your respects with dignity and humility." Weiss's cold expression made it clear that the subject would be closed and no further arguments allowed.

"That being said, if we're going to make this work. We're going to need better organize how this operation is run. If both of you can find it in yourselves to behave, I'll consider making you captains of your own divisions, and just to keep you honest, Kouichirou will be your direct supervisor, but I'll have the supreme authority, and my executive officer, will be…you, Asuna." She gasped in surprise, while both Lind and Kibaou just glowered. Weiss put a hand on her shoulder. "I can't imagine anyone I would want fighting at my side but you."

Asuna's blush returned. "Uh, thank you. I'll be sure to carry out my duties to the best of my abilities." There was a part of her that wasn't certain if she could handle such responsibilities. Kouichirou smirked, giving a slight nod of approval, showing he had faith in his little sister.

Returning to the present, Weiss held onto Asuna's hand a little tighter. "I tell you, I'm not sure what's worse, dealing with Diabel's top fanboy, or Kibaou and his misogynistic mouth." His lips curled upwards. "Then again, I did rather enjoy that verbal smackdown you gave him. Hopefully, your brother can keep them both in line, otherwise this whole outfit could just implode."

Asuna rested her head against his arm. "Let's not worry about that right now. The whole point of this outing is to relax." She said. They walked through the marketplace together. They stopped in front of a stall that sold jewelry. A pair of drop-style earrings with white-gold fittings and a brilliant blue stone entranced Asuna, her eyes lighting up. "Oh, those are so beautiful!"

Weiss leaned into take a closer look. "Hmm, are those sapphires? No, I think that's Lapis Lazuli. You really like them?" Asuna nodded. He regarded them for a few seconds. "Okay…if you want them. I'll get them for you." Asuna's hand came up to her mouth as Weiss laid down a few gold Col coins for them.

He held the delicate jewelry up, inspecting it. "I have to admit, you have good taste, and I like the color. A little blue to mix up your usual color palette." Asuna looked down at her outfit, a white tunic with a dark red vest and matching skirt with white leggings and knee high dark red boots. It was all rather drab.

"I guess all the white and red does get to be a bit much after a while." Asuna said, taking the earrings, she looked at them with loving eyes. "Oh, thank you so much! I'll treasure them!" She quickly put them on, her cheeks turning pink. "Well, how do they look?"

"Lovely, that little hint of blue adds just the right pop to you, Asuna." Weiss said, taking in the sight of his girlfriend.

"You have got to be kidding me!" A voice protested, drawing the couple's attention. They followed the angry voice to a blacksmith's shop, where they saw a player in full plate armor with a three-horned helmet on his head. "You mean to tell me you failed to upgrade my weapon entirely?"

The blacksmith, a short, squat young man with a round face, shrank back slightly. "I'm sorry sir. I guess it's just not my day. If it helps, I'll gladly buy your used weapon. I can pay you about 8000 Col for it. I know it's small reparation for losing your weapon, but hey, better than nothing right?" the armor wearing player just grumbled, taking the money and stomping out.

The hapless blacksmith hung his head, before catching sight of Weiss and Asuna standing outside. He straightened himself up, putting out at least some dignity. "I suppose you wouldn't be willing to have your weapon upgraded now, would you? Help a guy out after a bad stretch? I could use the confidence boost right now."

Asuna hoisted up her Wind Fleuret. "I suppose it wouldn't be a bad idea to upgrade it. I hope you'll take care of it though." The blacksmith's round face lightened up. He gingerly took the sword, and ever so delicately removed it from the sheath, laying it on the anvil.

"I'll treat with the same care I'd give my own child." He said, taking up his hammer. "Lady Luck be with me on this go around." He began hitting the blade with his hammer. On the tenth blow, it began glowing…before shattering into a million pieces. Asuna turned ashen-faced, about ready to scream. Weiss gave the blacksmith a funny look, who just gave them an apologetic look.

"Uh, I guess that's a bust then? I could give you a Iron Rapier in return." He offered weakly, but his offer fell on deaf ears. Asuna looked ready to throttle the poor man on the spot, only for Weiss to grab her by the collar, flashing him an angry glare before dragging her out of the blacksmith shop.

"I can't believe it! I can't believe that my sword is really gone!" Asuna's hands wrenched. The Wind Fleuret had been her companion since she got it as a monster drop, and seen her through many battles, even helping deliver one of the final blows during the fight with Illfang. "How? How could this have happened?"

"Indeed. How could it have happened twice in a row?" The thoughtfulness in his voice snapped Asuna out of her rage. Weiss's brilliant red eyes held a calculating gleam to him. Already she could tell the gears were turning in his head as he broke down the problem, all the while tapping on the handle of his sword. "Losing two weapons is bad luck, but happening two times in a row…that's the proverbial lightning striking the same place twice. It's just not supposed to happen."

It then dawned on Asuna. "Of course…you helped develop the game. You would know all the mechanics of how it worked."

"Correct, there is always a small chance of losing your weapon when trying to improve it. The key term in this situation being 'small', it should only happen about five percent of the time. There are set parameters in place to make sure something like that doesn't happen very often. It's a game of chance to be sure, but it was also designed to be fair as well. Something, Kayaba was very keen on."

"So, where do we go from here then?" Asuna asked, feeling a little better that Weiss was already onto something, but still feeling the pain of losing her treasured weapon.

"We go back to the inn. I need to speak to Ronan about this." The couple quickly made their way to the inn. Asuna excused herself, going up to her room to rest for a bit. Weiss didn't have to look far to find his partner in crime. Ronan was in the company of several female NPCs, clearly having the time of his life, and looking more than a little drunk. He rolled his eyes in annoyance, walking up to the table.

"Hey buddy! Wazzup?" Ronan slurred, even if the booze was simulated, the way it dribbled down the side of his mouth was enough to make Weiss's stomach turn. "Pull up a chair, we're having a blast! I would offer you some of my bitches, but I know you're already spoken for; I wouldn't want to make Asuna mad."

"Actually, I need to talk to you about something concerning Asuna. We have a minor situation here." Weiss said. Ronan shook his head, managing to achieve a level of sobriety, reluctantly shooing the women away. Satisfied, Weiss sat down and filled him in. "Asuna and I were out in town when we saw something very strange. There was a blacksmith who failed a weapon enhancement. He seemed down, so Asuna offered to let him improve her Wind Fleuret as a way to boost his confidence. It failed again, this time shattering completely."

Ronan straightened up a little bit. "What? Two failed enhancements in a row? That can't be right at all. No one is so pathetic at smithing to cause everything they touch to break like glass. I should know since I wrote the patch for that. The likelihood of weapons breaking with such frequency during smithing is supposed to be negligible at best."

Weiss nodded. "That is exactly my thought. I thought something felt off, but I couldn't determine what it was." He looked to the staircase where Asuna had gone up. "She's pretty upset about losing her weapon."

Ronan snorted. "Hard to believe a girl like her who could call some of the baddest dudes in the game a bunch of virgins would be so attached to a string of ones and zeroes." He patted Weiss on the shoulder. "As her boyfriend, it's your job to go and cheer her up, so hop to it!"

Spurred by his friend's words, Weiss went over the counter, "Hey, can I get a meat bun?" He asked, remembering how much Asuna had enjoyed it on one of their first dates after meeting. The NPC running the counter nodded, pulling it straight from the oven. Weiss noted with a little smirk of how much detail had gone into the game, even down to the steam wafting up from the delectable treat.

Taking the plate in hand, he walked up the steps to Asuna's room, giving a light rap on the door. "Hey Asuna, open up, pet. I've got a little something for you." He could hear the sounds of her delicate feet padding across the floorboards, the door cracked open, revealing her gorgeous face. He held up the plate, and its warm contents "Here, I know it doesn't make up for the sword, but it's a starting point."

"That's sweet of you." She let Weiss into the room. Despite the smile, there was a melancholy in Asuna's eyes that Weiss could see. He gently stroked her cheek, causing her to start blushing. "Stop that, it tickles." She said.

"Come on, Asuna, tell me what's wrong. It can't just be about the sword. I can get you a new sword no problem. It may not be as good the Wind Fleuret, but I'm certain it will do you well enough until you can find something even better. I just don't get why you're making such a big deal over it."

"It's not the sword itself, Weiss. It's what it represented." She fiddled nervously with her hands, before twirling a lock of her hair, a tic she had developed since getting trapped in the game, Weiss found it entirely too cute. "It was something I had earned through hard work and dedication. You were the one who introduced me to this world, and showed me how to survive. It was physical proof that I had improved. That I was…a winner."

Weiss took hold of her hand, gently rubbing it. "Why do I get the impression this ties into your relationship with your mother?" The way she bowed her head was just the proof he was looking for. "Why would you be so starved for her attention given how she treats you?"

"It goes back to when I was a little girl, I think I was maybe seven or eight. I did well on a test and mom got me a teddy bear as a gift. It was one of my most treasured possessions. Until I dropped it in the road and it got run over by a car." Asuna's face drooped. "My mother said it was my own fault for losing it. So I swore to myself that if I ever earned something special like that again, I would never lose it."

Tears began forming in her eyes. "Maybe you should have made my brother your XO. I'm not sure if I'm the right person to be your number two."

He just sighed, running his fingers along her arm. "Asuna, you don't need a sword or some stuffed animal to prove yourself to me. Unlike your mother, I love you unconditionally." He pointed at her chest, giving her his warmest smile. "All you have is right here. That's all you need. So don't worry about the sword. We can move on together." He was rewarded with that lovely smile he knew so well. "Now that we've have our bonding time, how about you eat that meat bun? It will get cold."

She sat down on the bed, taking in the scent of the meat bun. "Mmm, that smells so good." She raised the treat to her lips, and took a bite, only for a blast of thin, white juice to squirt out, spraying her in the face, eliciting a surprised cry. "Gah! That's hot!"

"Oh, geez, let me get you something to clean that up with!" Yukimasa said, looking for something to wipe the juice off her face, silently cursing when he found nothing. "Okay…I'm going to have do something a little gross, honey. Just please don't get too angry when I do it." He then began gently licking the juice off her face, doing his best to ignore the burning pain as the tip of his tongue was scalded. "I've almost got all of it, honey. It won't be much longer now."

Asuna let out a little whine. "At least this couldn't get any worse!"

She really shouldn't have said that, because the door flew open, admitting Kouichirou, Ayami, and Ronan. The former two having returned from their date, and the latter had informed them of what happened earlier with the loss of the Wind Fleuret. Kou had thought of taking to his sister when he heard her shriek, brotherly instincts kicking to life and forcing open the door.

They found Asuna, with a white, viscous fluid covering her face, and Weiss, tongue out and inches from her face.

Ronan was first to break the awkward silence in the only way he knew how. "Wow…did we walk in on something hot, or what? I only wish I had been here sooner, I'd totally watch something like this from a dark corner!" His grin turned to a grimace of pure terror as he realized that he had said this in full view of the brother and sister in law of his partner's girlfriend, and neither of them looked pleased at the sight before them.

Ayami turned a brilliant shade of red, before summoning up her halberd, bringing the shaft down on Ronan's head, his eyes rolled up into his skull and he crashed to the ground, she barged in, pointing the tip at Weiss. "Explain, now or I will unman you!"

"Please take note of the fact that your sister in law holding a meat bun, and my pants are firmly zipped up." Weiss said evenly, eyes not deviating from the tip of Ayami's very long and sharp weapon. "I know how this looks, but I can assure you I would never do anything improper to Asuna."

"Then why does it look you're licking her face?" Ayami's was so icy cold it would have put the northern wastes to shame. "Choose your next words very carefully Weiss Blutschnee, because they may very well be your last!" Kou said nothing, but the stern glare was all he needed.

Weiss closed his eyes. "Because I didn't have a napkin or anything else. It was the only thing I could think of, Ayami." He looked to Kouichirou. "Kou, believe me when I say I would never take advantage of your sister in any such way. All that happened is she got squirted by the meat bun's juice."

"He's right, brother. That's all that happened." Asuna finally spoke, satisfied, Kou dropped the death glare, putting a hand on his wife's shoulder, which was enough to finally get the halberd out of Weiss's face.

"How about we give you the whole story?" Weiss offered. "It's actually something of importance that we wanted to speak to you guys about anyway." He launched into the story of meeting the strange blacksmith and his subsequent failures in a row, resulting in the destruction of Asuna's Wind Fleuret. "Ronan, I have to imagine you find this as strange as I do. Smithing just wasn't designed to work that way, and we both know it."

"Yeah, it shouldn't." Ronan said, cracking his neck. "But I think I have an idea of what is really going on here." He grinned, beginning to wiggle his fingers. "I'm going to perform a little magic trick, and I'm going to need your assistance for this Asuna. It's going to be a grand trick almost like turning water into wine. I'm going to make your Wind Fleuret appear out of thin air!"

This got everyone's attention. "Uh, how are you going to do that when it was destroyed? It's kind of impossible when it's gone." Ayami asked. The smug grin on Ronan's face just made her temper flare even more, but Weiss and the Yuuki siblings just watched intently.

"I've been known to make the impossible, possible. It clears the day for real challenges." Ronan was confident, but not arrogant as he said this. "It's actually quite simple. Asuna, bring up your menu." A simple swipe of the air and the familiar sight of the ghostly white window faded into existence. "You should see an option to drop all your items…press that button right now!"

Asuna looked to Weiss, and then to Kou, and finally to Ayami. They all just looked at her expectedly. Figuring she had nothing to lose she hit the button, in a flash, dozens of bras and panties began falling from the ceiling, causing her to shriek once more. Ronan looked like his birthday, and Christmas had come early. He did his best Jesus Christ pose, as if he did a miracle for the masses as panties landed softly in both of his hands. He savored the feeling of the lace. "Hello, Asuna's underwear. I bet I could get a couple million for these at the market!"

"Don't even think about it!" Asuna screamed, delivering a beautiful, snap front kick to the face, sending Ronan back to the floor in a daze. "So what's the point of all this? All I'm seeing is my underwear." Ronan groaned, pointing to a corner of the room, there was gleam out of the corner of Asuna's eye, and to her surprise, her precious blade was laying there, intact and whole.

"Ha, and don't forget who made it possible!" Ronan rasped from his place on the floor, only for Ayami to step on his face once more.

"Shut up, you're ruining the moment!" She snapped, giving a half smile, glad to see her sister in law so happy.

"While I'm glad to see my sister got her weapon back. How did you know it would there?" Kouichirou asked Ronan as he staggered to his feet, breathing heavily, feeling the place on his jaw where he had been kicked, flashing an annoyed glare to her, but quelled when seeing Ayami, just holding her weapon.

Ronan cleared his throat. "It's quite simple really. The Wind Fleuret is still in Asuna's name. By summoning all her items at once, it would have brought it back to her inventory." He grunted a little, wincing at the pain. "But if someone is exploiting the smithing system to rob people of their weapons, it would lead to big problems down the line. This is a potential scam just waiting to happen."

"We'll need to watch this closely. It may not be a bad idea to get a player trained to be a blacksmith on our side. Someone with a good, discerning eye and more importantly, we can trust with our weapons." Weiss said. "Do you have anyone in particular that can fit the bill? I know a few people have already begun working on leveling their blacksmith skill."

Kouichirou and Ayami looked to each other. "I think we've got that covered." She said. "When we first arrived here in Urbus. The two of us looked around town and we ran into a young woman who was handing out flyers for her new blacksmithing shop. We decided to humor her, and she offered to give both of us a free enhancement to our weapons for being her first two customers. She got right to work, upgraded my husband's spear, and then my halberd with no trouble or drama at all."

The elder Yuuki sibling nodded. "Yes indeed, and while she was working on our polearms, I took the chance to inspect some of the weapons she had already forged, and they were very high quality. She admitted she's still rough around the edges, but if what I saw is what she can do at her current level. I can only imagine what this girl is capable of once she's leveled her smithing skill up a bit." He produced a slip of paper from his inventory. "Here's the flyer she gave us. It would be worth paying her a visit."

Weiss inspected it closely, giving a slight nod of approval at the name printed on the paper. "Very well. I'll have to meet this Lisbeth girl for myself. I'm certain it will be the start of a wonderful partnership."

(December 10th. 2022 AD)

With their supplies restocked, Kirito and his party set out for the dungeon with Minas in the lead. Philia was practically skipping as they headed into the rocky area where the entrance was located. She was bouncing on her heels as they walked along the path. "You seem rather excited for this." Sinon remarked, wondering where she got so much energy.

"But of course. Half the fun of treasure hunting is the anticipation! When a chest is in front of you, and that last breath you take before opening it up and seeing what's inside!" Her blue eyes had a cheerful gleam. Even in the throes of the death game, Philia was remembering the game part of it. "Even if the actual treasure's not all that great, just getting there is fun."

"It's the journey, not the destination that matters." Minas said, the good humor in his voice faded as he held up a clenched fist, causing Philia to come to a dead stop, followed by Kirito and Sinon. "Everyone, get down, now! We've got some company!" He hissed, pressing himself up against the rocks. Slowly creeping along the rock faces, they found what put Minas on guard, a large group of squat, bow-legged, humanoid creatures with pale, yellowish skin that looked like they hadn't bathed in eternity. Their pointed ears and slanted, blood red eyes held a dim intelligence.

The armor and weapons they carried were crudely made, as if they only had the most basic tools available to them. All four of them knew what these mobs were, but Minas said it anyway. "Orcs…figures we'd run into those things eventually. I'll give Kayaba credit, he's not afraid to draw upon every aspect of fantasy he can. I imagine we'll be seeing quite a few of them, here and deeper inside the caverns."

"Those are ugly looking things." Sinon's eyebrows knotted together in disgust. "They smell bad too. Did they really have to go for full accuracy?" Kirito was about to open his mouth, only to get Sinon's hand in his face. "Do not answer that!" The Black Swordsman shivered, deciding not to press his luck, surveying the Orcs as they milled about the field in front of the cave.

"It's hard to tell how many enemies there are down there, because they keep moving about. But if I had to venture a guess, I'd say somewhere between sixteen to twenty monsters. You think we have a chance?" Kirito asked Minas, hand already gripping his sword.

"It might not be a bad idea to lead a few of them away. That way we won't be overwhelmed by all of them ganging up on us." Minas said, hefting his Anneal Blade. "Let's circle around, that way we'll have the terrain advantage. We can lure a few Orcs our way to thin out the herd, once we're done with them, we can attack the main group."

Minas took charge, organizing the party's battle plan. "All right, Kirito and I will use our throwing picks to lure a few Orcs here into the pass. You girls will be waiting on the rocks on either side. Once we have the mobs where we want them, you'll jump down, boxing them in, and then we strike fast and hard."

"Depending on how large the first group is. We may want to draw a second group our way." Sinon said. Her eyes narrowed as she drew her daggers. "I wish I had some kind of ranged weapon besides just the throwing picks. I could plant myself on the rocks and provide sniper support. It would make a huge difference."

Kirito felt a certain apprehension about just marching out there to face the mobs, but Minas exuded an aura of confidence that he found rubbing off on him. He pulled out a pair of throwing picks, seeing that his partner had done the same, already glowing blue. "Let's raise some hell, what do you say?" Minas asked. Kirito just smirked. The picks flew, managing to a couple of the Orcs. While they did a negligible amount of damage, it was enough to draw the monsters towards the source.

"Kill the filthy humans!" One Orc roared, brandishing his blade. The monster broke out, running toward the two humans, about a half a dozen of them on his heels, wielding crudely made swords and spears. Kirito and Minas said nothing, just pulling out their own blades, looking up to Philia and Sinon, their own weapons ready. The Orcs raced into the pass.

"Now!" Minas barked, the girls leaped down, weapons at the ready. Sinon readied a double Fad Edge with her daggers, Philia's Sword Breaker came to life, as she performed the same skill, the girls managed to hit two of the Orcs, who were taken in by the sneak attack, Kirito and Minas both primed their own skills, a Slant and Horizontal respectively, claiming their first two kills.

Kirito and Sinon finally got to see their teammates fight. Philia moved with the lithe grace of a dancer, incorporating a lot of acrobatics into her fighting as she swung her blade, leaping over one Orc, going into a wide swing, managing to decapitate it sending it away in a shower of green-blue sparks, landing gracefully on her feet, spinning on her heel, her blade meeting another Orc's.

Minas had a more simplistic fighting style, but he moved with a smooth precision in and out amongst the mobs, generously employing Slants and Horizontals. He dodged an Orc's swing, coming back for a backhanded swing, hacking off its arm, causing it to scream in pain. "Is your arm okay?" He quipped, finishing with a Rage Spike, jumping up, before embedding his blade straight in the monster's forehead.

Sinon's double knives flashed in the sun, catching an pair of Orcs across the midsection, slashing straight upwards claiming another. Kirito ended the final one by going for a Vertical Arc, slashing downwards in a diagonal slant, and coming up in the opposite direction, creating a red-shaded V in the air, the Orc let out a final scream of pain before being destroyed.

Everyone's blood was up, and their confidence was high. Minas's lips twisted into a feral sneer. "Okay, let's hit the main group before the mobs we kill respawn. Nothing is going to keep us from that treasure!" With that, the four of them rushed into the field, making sure to only engage a few Orcs at a time, but soon the entire field was clear and the entrance to the dungeon awaited them.

"Let's be on our guard, I'm certain there's going to be even stronger enemies in the dungeon." Minas said. The four slowly entered the cave, weapons at the ready. Philia's anticipation was becoming unbearable. Minas patted her on the shoulder. "Easy there, girl. Don't get so excited yet. We haven't even gotten inside yet." Eliciting a giggle from her.

As the band of treasure hunters went deeper into the cave, it wasn't long before they found more Orcs, idly wandering about. But there was another kind of mob present, it was taller and stood more upright than the regular Orcs, with darker skin, and the label 'Uruk-Hai' over their head. "Wow, someone's clearly dug into the Tolkien bag for this. First Orcs, now Uruks? Are we going to find the One Ring here?" Minas drawled.

"I hope not, that would be terrifying." Philia said, nervously eyeing the monsters. "Think we can avoid them for right now? I enjoy a good fight as much as the next person, but if I'm right, we'll have to fight a boss monster and I want to save my strength."

"I'm with her. There's a time to fight and a time when it pays to take a sneakier. I think we should lean toward the latter on this one." Sinon added.

"Let's just find the treasure then. We can fight our way out later." Kirito said. With a consensus reached. The quartet dashed around the various mobs, sticking close to the walls in order to avoid grabbing any aggro. Although a few times it couldn't be avoided. Philia ducked under the battle axe of an Uruk, just avoiding getting the top of her skull hacked off.

Luckily Sinon was there to back her partner up, slashing into the monster's arm, even throwing in a kick for added measure, sending the Uruk flying back. Kirito and Minas delivered double Slants sending the monster to oblivion. "Let's pick up the pace!" Kirito said, breaking into a run. They headed down the corridor, seeing it branch off in two directions. "Should we spilt up?" He asked.

"Let's each take a direction, we'll meet back here in ten minutes." Minas said.

Kirito and Sinon took the left corridor, but it ended with a metal gate, inside were a pair of trolls, surrounded by a force of four Uruks. "I think we just found the boss room." Sinon remarked, eyes narrowing slightly at what was inside. "Those trolls are hideous!" Kirito said nothing; he flashed a quick message to their comrades of their discovery.

Minas groaned as he read the message he just received. "Okay, we really are going for the One Ring it seems. Those monsters Kirito described are Ologs, another Tolkien creation…did Kayaba just get lazy?" He grunted, only for Philia to pat him on the shoulder. "Let's find the switch, I'm certain there has to be something like that in order to open that gate."

After blasting through a few more Orcs and an Uruk or two. The corridor ended in a dead end, with a switch and much to Phiila's delight, a treasure chest. "Yay! Treasure! Treasure!" She happily uttered in a sing-song voice, her cape bouncing about. She knelt down to inspect the chest, giving it the full inspection. "Hmm, doesn't seem to be rigged or anything. I'm going to open it now." Trembling hands reached for the latch, and thus the lid came flying open. Philia's happy smile faded a little.

"Something wrong, Phi? You seem disappointed." Minas asked.

"Oh, the treasure chest just held some Col, about ten thousand." Philia ran a hand through her dandelion shaped locks. "Don't get me wrong, straight cash is never a bad thing, but I want something special. This is just kind of disappointing." Minas just pulled the lever, helping her up.

"I'm certain whatever treasure is in the boss room will more than make up for it. Let's go hook up with Kirito and Sinon." It didn't take them long to reach the others. Neither Kirito nor Sinon wanted to take on the Ologs without at least some back up. They sized up the situation one more time.

"The Ologs are big, nasty beasts. I don't think they're very fast, but I wouldn't be surprised if they can soak up a lot of punishment." Minas determined. "The Uruks are a bit hardier than the standard Orc, but we should be able to handle them with no problems. It would be a wise choice to go after them first, and save the Ologs for last." The Ranger hefted his blade, "Let's get this done, people, that treasure is ours!"

Shouting out war cries, they dashed in, Kirito got in the first blow, hitting an Uruk with a Sonic Leap, stunning it. "Sinon, switch!" He barked. Letting Sinon leap in, her daggers gleaming orange-red to hit the monster with a one-two combo. Sinon barely had time to duck out of the way as one of the Ologs swung the giant club, wrapped with a dark metal around the end.

Minas dashed around back, charging up a Rage Spike, slashing down the troll monster's back, leaving a long, red wire-frame gash. Philia followed, going for a barrage of fast slashes, before leaping down to engage one of the Uruks, catching the blade in the serrated edge of her own weapon, a little pressure caused the Uruk's scimatar to snap in two, Philia gave a smug grin, slashing across the Uruk's neck, killing it.

Kirito engaged the first Olog, going for another Sonic Leap, managing to take a good chunk out of its HP bar, but it didn't stun it. Sinon and Philia teamed up, their daggers managing to fell another of the Uruks. "Deal with big, tall and ugly. We'll finish off the last two Orcs!" Sinon cried out to the boys.

"How about we spilt them up?" Minas called out to Kirito. "I"ll take the one with the oversized baseball bat, you get the one with the giant metal stick with the spiked ball on the end!"

"Wow, you're so kind!" Kirito rolled his eyes, just barely avoiding being made a pincushion after his opponent swung the giant mace he was armed with. The Olog roared in challenge, but Kirito held his ground, flanking around him to avoid the next swing, managing to get a couple of good slashes in, followed by a Horizontal Arc, and then a Sharp Nail, dodging to the left, but managing to get clipped by the monster's weapon, sending him tumbling, losing a good chunk of his HP. Kirito regained his senses, watching as the other two Uruks fell under Philia and Sinon's weapons.

He noted with satisfaction as the girls moved to join the respective partners. Sinon pulled out a healing crystal, restoring Kirito's HP. "Sorry I'm late." She said, helping him up to his feet.

"Not a problem at all. You're right on time." Kirito said. He had come to rely on Sinon, and it was evident from how they worked together, Minas and Philia were the same way. The pair of treasure hunters moved in concert with each other against their Olog, Philia once again showing off her dance based combat style, flipping all around, creating openings for Minas to strike, switching in turn.

The Olog swung its giant club, only for Philia to somersault underneath, slashing at its ankle, causing it to stagger. She then slashed upwards, sending its HP into the yellow. "Minas, finish it off!" Her partner just smirked, his Anneal Blade gleamed in the light delivered the killing blow to the beast, plunging the blade into the monster's chest, burying it to the hilt. The monster roared in agony, causing it to shatter.

Minas smirked as he rested his blade on his shoulder. "You just going to stand there or are we going to finish this?" He asked of Kirito and Sinon. The four joined forces against the final mob. The monster let out one last roar, but the others were nonplussed. "Let's get him!" The ranger said, and the battle was joined.

Philia and Sinon ran about, getting in their hits where they could, chipping away at the Olog's HP, Kirito hit him with a devastating Slant attack, kicking him toward Minas, who finished it with a Horizontal that sliced the monster's head off, sending the Olog to join its brethren in digital oblivion. The girls let out a collective cheer

as Kirito and Minas scored a high five.

"Ha! Boss fight cleared!" Kirito said. "Makes me wonder where the treasure is?" The entire cavern shook, Philia grabbed onto Kirito's arm, as a section of the cave slid open, revealing a hidden room.

"I think we have your answer." Sinon said, glowering slightly. She cleared her throat, and it was then Philia realized she was still holding onto Kirito's arm. She gasped, leaping back a few steps, her pale cheeks glowing. Letting out a nervous chuckle, Philia led the way into the antechamber, where several treasure chests sat.

Minas smirked, holding an arm out. "Here you go, Philia. Perhaps there's something here that will satisfy you." Philia went to the first chest, rubbing her hands together in anticipation. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the latch back, pushing open the lid. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh…Wow!" She breathed. Philia produced a sheathed bastard sword from the chest. It was a true work of art, elegant in its simplicity. The opening and tip of the black leather sheath was plated with silver. Reverently, she inspected the blade. "Now this is what I'm talking about when it comes to treasure! This blade is incredible."

Kirito whistled in appreciation. "Yeah, that is definitely befitting the title. Can I see it?" He took it from Philia, pulling the blade out of the sheath partially, noting the runes carved in the center of the blade. "Let's see what kind of stats this thing has." He brought up the description screen. "According to this, the blade is called Twilight Sword Narsil."

Minas blinked a few times. He then promptly began laughing. "Oh that is hilarious! We must have stumbled onto some kind of Tolkien sub quest or something!" The girls rolled their eyes, content to let him work it out of his system. He wiped the tears away. "I'm sorry about that…open up the next chest, Phi. Let's see what else we've got."

From the next chest, Philia pulled out an ornate ring made of solid silver, the likeness of two serpents intertwined with eyes made of brilliant green jewels, most likely emeralds, the snakes met beneath a crown of golden flowers, that one upheld and the other devoured. The emeralds burned with an ethereal green fire that carried a hypnotic quality to it.

"The Ring of Barahir, let's see what it can do." Minas whistled as he got a look at its effects. "Wow, it boosts all yours stats! ATK+25, DEF+25 STR+19, VIT+19, AGI+20, DEX+250, HP gets boosted by 1100, plus it gives small HP regen." He regarded it for a few minutes, taking note how the gleam of the stones brought out the color of Phila's eyes.

Inside the next chest was a fifty thousand Col, and another twenty thousand in the fourth chest, leaving the last one in the center of the room. "Whatever is in there must be really important. This is the moment of truth!" Philia said, the entire party watched with bated breath as she opened the chest. Her face was a myriad of emotions, from disbelief, surprise, to finally confusion. "It's a scroll."

A large, rolled up sheet of parchment clenched in her hand. "It must have some significance." Philia opened it up, quirking an eyebrow. She laid it down on the floor so everyone could see it. The writing was undecipherable to them, and there were strange pictures with a description underneath. One had a pair of crossed swords, a second had a sword and a shield. The next was a shuriken; another was a katana partially out of its sheath. Yet another was a spear.

"Does anyone have an idea of what this means?" Sinon asked. To everyone's surprise, she pulled out a pair of eyeglasses, putting them on to inspect the scroll closer. "I can't make out the writing at all. It must be some kind of ancient language."

"I don't know." Kirito said. "But if I had to judge from the pictures. They appear to be talking about skills of some kind." He pointed to the crossed swords. "If I had to take a guess, this could be a dual wielding skill. And the one with the katana coming out of the sheath could be for Iaijutsu, the art of the quick draw." Everyone looked at him confusedly. "I used to take kendo as a kid, and part of it was learning iaido."

Convinced they weren't going to learn anything further, Philia rolled the paper back up. "It's a key item, so the best bet is to hold onto it for right now. Now we need to determine who keeps the rest of the loot."

Minas took up Narsil. "I call the sword. I won't be able to use it until I hit level twenty. But I just feel like I need to have it." He looked to Philia, holding out the Ring of Barahir. "You can have it, Phi. I think you would be able to get the most use out of it." She blushed, holding her hand out, letting him slide it onto her finger. He turned to the other members of their party.

"When we opened the gate, we found another chest with ten thousand Col inside, add in the seventy from here, that gives us a grand total of ninety thousand Col, of that, we'll give you twenty-five apiece for helping us on this little endeavor. We owe you a lot." The exchange was made and Kirito and Sinon were now fifty thousand Col richer.

"I have to admit, this was a lot of fun." Sinon said, hands behind her head. "Next time you're on the trail of probable treasure, definitely look me up."

"Perhaps we can travel together a little bit longer?" Philia asked, stretching out a little bit. "It's nice having some extra friends around."

"I wouldn't mind that at all." Sinon said. "I'm certain there's plenty of quests we can do together." The four departed for Urbus tired, but proud of what they had accomplished that day with new friendships formed.