Chapter 12
December 5th, 2023
"Tsk," Argo sighed as she stared at the incoming messages. That Mystiltainn guy she and Kirito had looked into, for that sting operation... She knew something hadn't felt right, and she felt strangely vindicated as well as supremely irritated that her hunch had been correct. The Mystiltainn they'd met in town was just someone using the name, and he'd long since vanished. The real Mystiltainn had been found locked in a small room on the first Floor, and had been for some time according to his testimony once they'd found him. The question she really needed to answer, then, was 'Who the heck did we talk to?', and that was what she'd been looking into recently.
After her little network of Mice had... made 'polite inquiries' into the matter (of course they bribed people and then interrogated the Rafflesia members in prison, she'd trained them), they'd found out that none of the members of Rafflesia knew who the fake Mystiltainn had been. They'd just been approached by a cloaked player who said he could help set up a nice little racket; he hadn't even wanted any of the money they'd made. He was, apparently, helping out the yellow guild out of the... Would 'goodness of his heart' be the right phrase in this case? Argo wondered idly, kicking her legs in the air. They'd never seen the face of the hooded player, since he'd disappeared as quietly as he'd appeared. In other words, Argo grumbled, clicked her tongue again, they were back at square one.
Until they knew who they'd talked to, there was no way she was going to be able to figure out how exactly the man had known all of the high-level players. She suspected some sort of leak, but it was like trying to figure out who'd killed Mr. Boddy when she didn't even know the names of all the suspects, let alone if it had been with the revolver, the candlestick, or the knife.
Well, in other news, at least the other girls were behaving themselves, Argo thought. Leaks aside, the Knights of the Blood were growing in strength, solidifying their status as the second-ranked guild in the game. The Army was spreading throughout the lower Floors, making a name for themselves helping out the weaker players level up. The Royal Blades had a small presence - anyone could join the junior squad, run by the Moonlit Black Cats - but the Army was the undisputed power behind the Town of Beginnings. Kibaou and the leader of the Army, Thinker, were doing good work in keeping the peace. And, Argo snickered, the Divine Dragon Alliance had decided that thanks to being the Dragon Tamer, Silica was now their idol. The guild had turned over a new leaf. Her occasional meetings with Lind aside, it was good to see that they were calming down and being less... secretive, information-hoarding jerks, was probably the way Asuna would want her to phrase it.
Argo stretched, trying to work the kinks out of her shoulder and back despite knowing full well that they didn't exist in real life. It still felt satisfying when her spine popped abruptly. "Nyahh..." she sighed, sinking back on the couch. Her high AGI stat may have meant that she was very flexible, but that didn't mean much in the Safe Zone when she woke up in the mornings.
Do you know what you need, Argo? she asked herself. A nice day out with the girls, so we can all go pamper ourselves without worrying about PKers or weird cloaked people with weird motives. Supposedly Lisbeth and Silica were out trying to complete a series of quests that would unlock a hot spring for their use. That'd be nice... She kicked her legs idly before hopping off of the couch in search of Asuna. Her favorite girl was standing out on the balcony of their house, looking out over the forest. "Hey, A-chan," Argo said. "Whatcha thinkin' about?"
Asuna turned and smiled as Argo joined her, the info broker leaning with her back against the railing. It was a little chilly out, but then, that's why she'd started wearing long sleeves and pants. Asuna, Argo noted, had made a concession to the weather and was wearing a cute yellow sweater with sleeves that went over her wrists and a brown skirt that fell to her knees. "Oh, Argo," she said, smiling at her. The info broker grinned back. "I was just thinking... I like this house, and it's wonderful living with everyone, but we never intended to stay here as long as we have."
Argo shrugged. "Well, 's comfy, I guess? Haven't really thought about it. Why, feelin' like movin'?"
The long-haired girl laughed helplessly, brushing her hair out of her face as the wind tousled it. Argo felt the wind play through her own hair, but it wasn't long enough to really get in her way. Still, Asuna really looked beautiful with long hair, Argo couldn't help but think. "Maybe a little," she said. "Floor 8 is wonderful, but... It's starting to feel a little far from the front lines. Not that I want a house up on Floor 50 or anything, but... maybe in the 20s or 30s would be nice."
"Ah, don't worry 'bout a thing, A-chan," Argo said, patting her shoulder. "I'll look around, see if there's anythin' good we missed." Inwardly, she winced a little bit, not letting it show on her face. It was going to be expensive, and take some time...
"Thank you, Argo. I'm glad I asked you, I know you'll find something." Asuna smiled at her, and suddenly everything was worth it. That girl is really just too good at getting people to do what she wants, Argo thought idly. Could she really blame it on the all-girls school, or was it just her natural talent at leading...? A gust of wind, colder this time, blew by them, and both girls shivered. "...Let's go inside, and I'll fix us some tea," she said.
"Sounds good, A-chan." Argo grinned at the thought of Kirito walking in to see her enjoying tea with Asuna without him. He always got the funniest expression on his face. Though maybe it was because she kept smirking at him smugly? Or maybe it was because the few times she'd shared a sleeping bag with Asuna out in the dungeon, she'd always made sure to rub it in his face by grinning once Asuna had fallen asleep, wrapping her arms around Argo's waist, and giving him two V for Victory signs. She could always get him to stomp his foot in agitation.
Heh. Messing with their Kirito was fun, Argo snickered.
She took a seat on the plush couch, crossing her legs - it was okay, she was wearing pants unlike Asuna - and waited for Asuna to bring the tea out. It didn't take too long for the chef of the Royal Blades to deliver on her promise, placing a teapot with a fragrant smell on the table in front of them before pouring a cup of tea for each of them. Personally, Argo preferred the iced tea that Asuna made during the last summer, but it was too cold to have that these days. She accepted the warm cup and cradled it in her hands, sighing happily after taking a little sip.
The two girls sipped at their tea and chatted idly, not really worrying about much. This morning was an easy morning, if they wanted to take it; the 50th Boss fight was scheduled for that afternoon, and they definitely wanted to be ready. Silica and Lisbeth had gone off to finish that one quest they'd never found the time to get back to; Leafa was out practicing her kendo, while Kirito was napping in his room. This little routine of having tea and gossiping was Argo and Asuna's way of centering themselves. Eventually Leafa came in and joined them, shivering a little from practicing out in the cold, and sat down next to Asuna after getting her own cup.
"Uwah..." Leafa sighed after taking a sip. "My shoulders are stiff..."
Asuna reached over and gently started rubbing the short-haired girl's back. "There, there," she said. "Maybe you shouldn't be practicing out in the cold?"
"I have to keep it up," Leafa told her before leaning against Asuna. "You're warm, Asuna. Hug," she declared, throwing her arms around the long-haired girl and burying her face in her side.
Asuna giggled and let Leafa cuddle against her. Argo grinned into her teacup; those two were so close they practically were sisters, she thought to herself. It was kinda cute. She didn't have anyone like that...
"Ah! Cold!" Argo looked over to see Lisbeth and Silica entering the room. Pina had wrapped around Silica's neck like a furry scarf, puffing up her feathers to shield against the December temperatures, but Lisbeth had to make do with a coat and mittens. As a result, she was still cold.
"We're home," Silica said, gladly taking off her winter outfit before taking a seat next to Asuna.
"Welcome back," Asuna replied, her eyes never leaving Pina. She slowly reached out a hand, fingers twitching; for a second, it seemed like she might be able to finally pet Pina, until the Feathered Little Dragon opened her eyes and yawned, showing off her sharp teeth. With a cute chirp, the familiar hopped off Silica's shoulders and curled up on the pillow on the other side of Silica, away from where Asuna could pet her. "...I just want to touch you," Asuna mumbled quietly.
Lisbeth sank down on the seat next to Argo and gratefully accepted the cup of steaming tea. "That's better," she sighed after sipping at it. "But I'm still cold..."
She flopped over and her head landed in Argo's lap. "Ack! Liz, hey!" Argo protested. "Watch out, ya nearly made me spill the tea!"
"Don't care, you're warm."
Argo's lips twisted in resigned amusement. "Alright, alright," she sighed. Seriously, the girl was taller than she was, why was she acting as the pillow here? Still, she started playing with the ends of Lisbeth's pink hair idly. It was cute with the color, she thought.
Once everyone had warmed up and was sitting properly again, Lisbeth leaned forward conspiratorially. "So, guess what," the blacksmith said, eyes sparkling.
"What, Liz?" Leafa asked. She was clearly playing along, but leaning forward in interest nonetheless. Argo herself found her info broker's nose twitching, curious about any new information the girls might have stumbled on while clearing the quests. It was from a few Floors down, so probably nothing life-changing, but it was still info she could sell~.
Lisbeth grinned. "Well, you know how Silica and I went out to finish that bathhouse quest chain, right? The final quest had us head out to some mountains to collect rock salt where we fought a Tengu. Silica was really helpful, keeping the boss's attention so I could hit it from behind."
"Eheheh..." Silica giggled, blushing from the praise and rubbing the back of her head.
"Anyway, we grabbed the rock salt and headed back to deliver it to the NPC, and she told us about a hot spring out in the wilderness!" At Lisbeth's excited news, Argo could practically see Asuna's eyes sparkle and shine. "Silica and I went to take a look, and it was right where she said it would be. And the best part is, apparently if we soak in it for an hour, we'll get temporary boosts to our stats!"
"What kind?" Leafa asked, eyes also sparkling. Argo was pretty sure it was because of the thought of getting stat buffs; she really was her brother's sister.
Silica sighed. "We're not sure," she said. "Liz said we should all go together."
Lisbeth grinned. "Hey, a hot spring is best shared with other people! It'd be weird if it were just the two of us. Besides, all of us girls enjoy a long soak now and then, right?"
"Right, right!" Asuna nodded quickly, betraying her eagerness. Argo's lips twitched up in a grin as the long-haired girl clenched her fists in front of her, visibly pumping herself up for the trip. "So we're going to the hot springs, right?"
"Yeah!" the girls chorused. Argo joined in the cheer too, grinning excitedly. A hot spring trip meant skinship! And her cute guildmates in nothing but towels! Heck yeah!
Lisbeth hesitated, and lowered her fist from where she'd raised it in the air. "Uh... There's just one problem. The hot spring... It's kinda not in a Safe Zone."
Asuna's face fell. "Whaaaat?!" she exclaimed, pouting.
"Eheheh..." Silica laughed sheepishly. "Yeah. One of us would need to stand guard while the others bathe, since we'd be without our weapons or armor."
"Argo, don't you have the Marital Arts - bleh," Leafa said, sticking out her tongue at the fumble. "I mean, Argo, don't you have the Martial Arts Skill?"
Argo shrugged, doing her best to not think about the Freudian slip and what it would mean for her and Kirito - nope, not thinking about it, she told herself. "Eh?" she said, wiggling a hand back and forth. "I've got it, but my build's not designed fer soloin' mobs. Plus the Martial Arts Skills aren't all that high damage, so if somethin' attack the best I could do would be hold it off for a few secs while ya grab all yer gear."
"And something tells me that's not relaxing," Lisbeth sighed.
The other girls sighed as well. They needed a guard, but it couldn't be one of them... "Oh!" Leafa said, at the same time Asuna brightened up and said, "I know who to ask!" If there was any indication the two of them were on the same wavelength, that was it, Argo thought with a grin.
"Huh? What are you all doing here?" Kirito asked as he entered the living room, covering his mouth as he yawned. Pina chirped and flew over to land on his shoulder, nuzzling against his cheek. "Hi, Pina."
Argo was pretty sure that Lisbeth and Asuna's eyes gleamed with little yellow glimmers of bright starlight before they ran up to their guild leader and the sole male of the household. "Ka-zu-to," Asuna said sweetly. "Are you busy?"
"Uh, no?"
"Great!" In a instant, Lisbeth moved like a blur, wrapping herself around Kirito's right arm. He blinked in surprise as she grinned. "Then would you mind doing us all a teeny favor?"
...
Kirito yawned again as he stood guard outside the entrance to the bathhouse. From what he could see, it was a traditional open-air hot spring, with a high wooden fence around it. The walls seemed to be Immortal Objects, fortunately, so the only place he really needed to keep watch over was the entrance at his back; what that meant, basically, was that all he had to do was stand in place and make sure no mobs attacked. Little curls of steam would waft overhead every now and then, thanks to the place not having a roof. Kirito glanced upwards, and then sighed. Sure, standing guard was easy, but it came with its own problems...
"Ahhh~..."
A whistle. "Yeah A-chan, you work that towel!"
"I-It's just a towel, Argo! We're all wearing one!"
"What the heck do you eat, Leafa?!"
"A-ah! Liz, d-don't touch there! It's sensiti~ive!"
"Kyui!"
"Pina, don't struggle, I need to make sure you're clean!"
"Argo, get over here and feel this, it's nuts!"
"Ooh, perfect height!"
A squealed moan. Or maybe a moaned squeal? "A-A-A-Argo! Asuna, help me!"
"I'm fine soaking, Sugu."
"Oh~?" A splash. "'S been a while since back on th' first Floor. Lemme see if ya changed at all!"
"He-hey, Argo, stop!"
"Pina, when will I grow?"
"Kyuru..."
"That's it, I'm making everyone swimsuits!"
"Aw, c'mon, A-chan! I'm already barin' what little assets I got, how can ya be ashamed when ya got so much better?!"
As the sounds of the girls having all kinds of fun floated out with the steam, Kirito shook his head and smacked his cheeks. Focus, he told himself. If anything, he was glad it was colder than usual out; it kept him from getting too distracted by their voices. Plus, it meant he couldn't drift off into his imagination of picturing what was making them all sound like that...
At least they settled down after a while, talking in voices just loud enough that he could hear the tone but not the actual words. Kirito yawned, leaning against the doorway. There was a thin layer of snow out, and it was nice to be able to hide under the overhang of the bathhouse where the snow couldn't reach. Closing his eyes, he settled down and waited as patiently as he could.
A crunch made his eyes snap open and his hand reach up for his sword, but he stopped himself once he realized what had made the sound. It had been a few weeks, but he recognized the equipment of the player standing in front of him, wide-eyed; the forest-colored camo leather armor had been swapped out for a more wintery mix, but the bright blue scarf was enough of a key that he knew he was looking at the girl he'd run into back in November.
"Ah... you," she said numbly, staring at him. They were close enough that he was able to see her black eyes, a pair of glasses perched on her nose.
Kirito smiled. "Oh, hey there, Miss Archer," he said kindly. "Fancy seeing you here. I thought we were the only ones to know about this."
"I... I'm the only one who knew... Um, 'we'?" she asked, clearly off-balance. As if in response, the girls' conversation got a little louder, and the archer's eyes darted back and forth wildly.
For some reason, Kirito imagined she was like a wild cat, about to spook, so he said, "It's just my party in there right now. They're all girls, so I don't think they'll mind. You wanted to use the hot spring, right?"
Numbly, the girl nodded without a word. Kirito nodded and knocked on the door, cracking it open just a bit. "Kazuto? Is that you?" Asuna's voice called out after a second.
"Yeah," he called back. "There's another girl out here, wanting to use the hot spring. Is there room for one more?"
"Of course. Tell her to come on in, I can make a swimsuit for her if she'd like!"
Kirito nodded and smiled before turning back to the archer. "There you go, Miss Archer. Don't worry, I'm keeping guard out here, so go ahead and relax." He wasn't sure exactly why he was being so kind to her; if anything, it was that weird sense of familiarity that he'd felt the first time he met her. "...Do I know you?"
The girl shook her head silently, but took a few hesitant steps into the bathhouse. The door closed behind her, and it didn't take long for the girls' conversation to start up again, this time asking questions of the new girl. Kirito didn't listen to her answers; listening to his girls' conversations was one thing, but this was eavesdropping on a stranger. That was just plain rude, and Asuna had made her position on rudeness pretty clear in the four years he'd known her.
The door opened again surprisingly quickly, and the hooded girl scurried out again. "Miss Archer," he called out, and she flinched before turning to look at him. "Did you enjoy it? The hot spring, I mean. You were out pretty quickly, that's all."
"...I'm used to being quick," she said.
"Oh, that'd make sense," he said. "If you're a solo player, then there's nobody to keep watch, I guess. But you could have taken your time, you didn't have to hurry."
The black-haired girl ducked her head. "...It was nice," she said. "And your friends are nice. It was..."
"...Nice?" he guessed, grinning playfully.
The girl shook her head. "Warm," she said finally before tugging her scarf up to cover her face. "It was warm."
He blinked as she walked away, quickly fading into the woods. Well, of course it was warm, he thought in confusion. It was a hot spring, after all. Still, it looked like she was smiling a little bit at the end, there.
Finally, after what seemed like a torturous eternity that he did his best to fill by organizing his inventory, their squeals and splashes faded away. Kirito glanced over at the doorway and prepared for the girls to come out, but when none of them walked through the door he frowned. "Everything okay in there?" he asked, knocking on the door lightly.
"Actually, Kii-boy, could ya come in?" Argo asked. "We need ta ask ya somethin'."
Immediately, Kirito opened the door and stepped through. "Is something wrong? Are you all okay? Do you need..." He trailed off, slowly going red as he took in the wondrous sight in front of him.
Each girl was standing in the 'changing room', so to speak. They must have really enjoyed the hot spring; their skin was glistening and smooth. What was making Kirito pause, though, was the swimsuits each girl was wearing. From left to right, Lisbeth was wearing a white bikini top with brown stripes as well as a fur-lined bottom piece that seemed more like a pair of short shorts than a swimsuit. Her face was bright red, making her freckles stand out. Silica, standing next to her and hugging Pina to her chest, was wearing a more innocent swimsuit, almost entirely white frills except for the pink straps lining the edges; she was watching Kirito eagerly, waiting for him to comment on how she looked. Her hair was out of her usual twintails, falling straight down her back, and a few water droplets beaded on the locks to give it a distracting glimmer in the light.
Asuna stood in the center of the group, blushing a little bit but smiling in her white bikini top with red lining, a ribbon meeting in the center. Unlike the others, the bottom half of her swimsuit was like a white skirt with a large red ribbon drawing Kirito's eyes to the expanse of thigh revealed. Argo was leaning against Asuna's side, grinning smugly at Kirito as he gaped at her. Her swimsuit was almost like regular clothes - a yellow tankini with brown shorts, a small frill lining the hips. Finally, watching Kirito expectantly with a smile, his little sister was wearing a simple, plain green bikini that somehow really flattered her in every way that mattered, to the point that Kirito could barely keep his eyes away. It was like she had her own gravitational pull!
In other words, he'd just been ambushed. "Well?" Argo asked, barely-concealed hilarity in her voice as she teased him. "What do ya think, Kii-boy? How do our fancy swimsuits look? A-chan made 'em for us, th' least ya can do is give us yer thoughts."
Oh man, Kirito thought as he swallowed. The girls all leaned forward, clearly waiting for him to start. "Uh... You all look great? The swimsuits look really cute," he said. "...But you really should wear something more concealing, Leafa."
"What?!" Leafa yelped, while the other girls started giggling. "Hey, Kazuto, you jerk! Why single me out!"
"Because you're my sister," he said with implacable logic.
Asuna giggled before she rested a hand on Leafa's shoulder. "He just doesn't want anybody else to stare, that's all, Sugu," she said. Kirito coughed and looked away, scratching his cheek sheepishly. There definitely didn't exist a boy good enough for his beloved little sister. Leafa hummed in thought, like she didn't really believe what Asuna was saying, before folding her arms across her chest. "Anyway, we'll leave the bath to you, Kazuto," Asuna told him. "Enjoy!"
The long-haired girl took Leafa by the arm and started dragging her off, but before she left Kirito watched his sister turn around and pull down on her lower eyelid, sticking out her tongue with a cute 'bleh' sound.
"I'll make sure Argo doesn't try to peek," Lisbeth said.
Immediately Argo whirled on the pink-haired girl. "Wha- Liz! No fair! I was gonna take pics an' share with th' class..."
Kirito smiled at Lisbeth. "Thanks, Liz. I'll leave our troublemaker in your capable hands."
"Hey! Kii-boy!"
After the girls got changed - Kirito politely turned his back, though he could feel his ears burning - Argo was more or less dragged out by Lisbeth and Silica, though the lithe info broker didn't seem to be trying too hard to stay in the changing room. Asuna and Leafa waved as they headed out to guard the door against mobs and Argo alike, and Kirito was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. They were out there, he was in here...
Of course, while he was soaking in the bath, he could still hear the girls. "Kazuto," Leafa called out innocently, "do you want me to come wash your back?"
"Sugu, we talked about this," Asuna sighed.
"What?" she asked innocently. "We're siblings, we take baths together all the time!" Kirito lowered his head in the water until he was mostly submerged, bubbles emerging from his mouth.
"Wow..." Silica breathed.
Meanwhile, he could hear a scuffle. "Argo, you can't go in there!"
"But I wanna!"
Honestly... these girls were such a handful, Kirito sighed before leaning back against the rock at his back, staring at the blue sky. Still, they made things fun. He loved having them around, honestly. Being alone... He couldn't imagine playing this game without Asuna or Leafa, or any of the members of his guild. They were just all special to -
Ding!
"Oh, I got a buff," he said out loud, glancing at his HP bar. He'd noticed it appearing by the girls' HP bars, but hadn't been able to examine it himself. Now, he could; he opened his menu and tapped on the buff icon, which was just a set of sparkles. "Your skin is so smooth, it looks like you're sparkling if the light shines just right. +5 to Charm and Aura!" he read out loud.
Kirito tilted his head. ...What even were those stats? Either way, it looked like it was just fluff text, since the actual stat buffs were right beneath it. Even though it was just a one-point boost to each stat, it was good enough for a free hour-long buff locked behind what Lisbeth and Silica said was a pretty easy quest chain. This might be the last time they got to relax like this, with the hot spring all to themselves.
Then again, the stat boost wasn't that big. Come to think of it, Argo did owe him that favor, and keeping this little secret just for the Royal Blades wasn't a bad way to use it...
"Is it just me," Klein said to Kirito in a voice that probably wasn't supposed to be audible, "or are your girls sparkling more than usual?" Silica giggled as Kirito stomped on Klein's foot with a bored expression on his face. The other members of the Royal Blades smiled awkwardly as the samurai grimaced.
"I'm sure you're imagining it," Kirito told him.
They were all gathered in front of the 50th Floor's Boss door. Silica looked up at the imposing door and swallowed a little nervously. Pina chirped soothingly and licked her cheek, and Silica nuzzled against her head briefly before her attention was captured by the door again. It had a relief of a large humanoid figure with six arms, each holding a different weapon. They were all weapons different players could use, and Silica worried about what they were going to fight. Like the 25th Floor, the enemies and dungeons had been fierce, and there was a single, obvious image on the door...
"Don't worry," Asuna said, gently patting Silica's head. "We'll all go in there and be fine, right?"
Silica smiled up at her. Asuna really was amazing! She didn't look concerned at all, even though they were about to fight a really hard boss. She put on a brave face and clenched her fists in front of her - though for some reason, she thought she heard Lisbeth mutter, 'So cute...' nearby. "Yeah, we will," she said. "It's time to start, right?"
"You're right," Asuna said, and drew her hand back from Silica's head. After that, she walked over and snagged Kirito's arm, dragging him along with her as she made her way to the boss door, ignoring his protests. Silica giggled as she stopped and gave Kirito a critical glance, fussing over him before brushing a lock of his hair back behind his ear and straightening his black coat. He was just there as the guild master - Asuna would be the one speaking, but it was important for them to show strength, so of course Kirito would be up there, Silica thought. Asuna nodded once and turned to the whole raid group before raising her voice. "Okay everyone, let's get this meeting under way!"
Silica stood up just a little bit straighter as Asuna started speaking. Her new armor was light and streamlined, but she could still feel the weight pulling at her from time to time. Her shield on her arm felt light as well, but she knew it was as sturdy as Lisbeth could make it, pretty much only a step away from being an Immortal Object. She definitely liked the little ornate designs on the edge of the shield face, though. They were neat. Plus, her armor covered her whole body now, but it was still slim enough to be cute!
"This is the halfway mark of the game. Once we've defeated this boss, we'll have sent a powerful message to Akihiko Kayaba - your game isn't unbeatable! We've already cleared half of it!" Asuna smiled and extended her hands in front of her. "I know this is a milestone boss, and it'll be dangerous, but we're expecting it this time. Thanks to the hard work of our Argo the Rat, and all info brokers in the game, we've managed to collect as much information as possible on the boss. With it, I'm certain we will win!"
Silica was pretty sure she was the only person to hear Argo snort and mutter, "Yeah, after we got rid 'a all that false info someone was spreadin'... Ah well, at least A-chan's praisin' me~."
If she heard, Asuna didn't react. "The purpose of speaking here is to make sure we're all on the same page when it comes to our tactics and how we're going to divide things up. Before, we've usually made sure the parties were split evenly, with tanks and DPS split among the raid parties. Because this boss will only ever attack one group at a time, all of the tanks will be put together in two parties; Heathcliff of the Knights of the Blood will lead the first, and Silica from our Royal Blades will lead the second. You should have already been assigned, but if you haven't and think you should come see me after the brief is finished.
"If you're a DPS, you'll be working under me or one of the other Royal Blades, and if you're going to be a member of the support group, listen to your individual party leader. Party leaders, you're in a group chat with every other party leader, so don't hesitate to request help if you need it for whatever reason. Once again, the parties should have been assigned before we left town, but if you joined late or were missed, please let us know.
"The boss is a three-headed, six-armed Buddha statue, carrying a different weapon in each hand," Asuna read out from the strategy guide Argo had passed out to all the clearers. "In its initial phase, it moves incredibly slowly, but has high defense. DPS, focus on attacking and don't worry about its attacks, the tanks will have plenty of time to get in the way. We can't be sure, but every other boss has had changes as its health bars empty, so be prepared for things to change. And, as always, if more than half of the raid parties have to recover, then we'll retreat.
"Okay," Asuna said with a smile, clapping her hands. "We'll be opening the door in five minutes, so everyone, please get ready."
Once the groups split up, Kirito approached Silica, a serious look on his face. "Hi, Kirito," Silica said brightly. "Is something wrong?"
"Silica," he said, "I know that we're asking a lot of you, tanking against a milestone boss. I just wanted to let you know, you don't have to do this." He scratched the back of his head. "I mean, I'm not trying to say you can't do it, all of us know you're more than good enough. It's just... You're important to us, you know? Everyone in the guild."
Silica took a few deep breaths. She was in charge of one of the parties of tanks, so that meant she had a lot of responsibility. But she was okay! She wasn't going to let Kirito down. They were counting on her, so she wasn't going to fail. "It's okay, Kirito," she said, smiling up at him. Pina flared her wings on her shoulder. "I want to do this!"
Kirito watched, and then smiled before resting a hand on her head, patting her gently. Silica giggled. "Alright then," he said, before drawing his hand away and turning to join Asuna. "I know you won't let us down, Silica," he said with a wave.
Silica blinked before running up to him and throwing her arms around his back. Kirito tumbled for a second before getting his feet under him and turning around to return the hug. "Hey, no fair, I want a hug too," Leafa grumbled. Lisbeth, standing next to her with folded arms, nodded emphatically with a 'mm-hmm!' hum.
After everyone finished getting ready - and Kirito gave out hugs to all of the Royal Blades girls - Asuna stood in front of the door again. "Alright, is everyone ready? Then let's do this!" She turned around briskly, and pushed at the massive stone doors. They creaked open, ominous mists swirling at the players' feet as the air currents were disturbed.
They were greeted by a huge statue with a bald face carved into the thick rock acting as its head. Like Asuna had said, it had six arms waving in the air, each holding a weapon; it matched the carving on the boss door in every fashion, in other words. There was an ominous aura in the air even as the statue just stood there, motionless while the torches around the edge of the room lit up from right to left.
"Let's win this!" Asuna shouted, drawing her rapier. "And come back alive!"
"Yeah!" the raid party shouted back.
...
The fight, so far, was going really well; they were already cracking through the fourth of the boss's five health bars, and Silica was doing her best!
At first, it had been slow, chipping away at Gautama The Enlightened's health through its thick stone skin. The statue had little to no speed, so the attackers could fight constantly while the tanks intercepted the rare attacks. They had all the time in the world, but the boss's defenses were super high, so the attacks didn't do much damage. Eventually, though, the first health bar emptied out, and things changed.
The stone had cracked, little by little until the cracks spread across the entire body. With a loud shattering sound, the boss had broken free from the cracked stone, revealing a smaller version of itself hidden inside. There were a few notable differences; instead of just one face, Gautama had two faces on its head, which was the first thing Silica noticed. After that, she realized that the boss itself was smaller, and was moving more quickly. And, when the attackers finished recovering their HP and moved in again, she realized that it was taking more damage.
The faster movement was pretty tough to adjust to, at first. A few tanks from Silica's group got hurt a little bit and had to retreat to heal, meaning the rest had to work harder to block the attacks of its weapons, but they were able to figure out the patterns fast enough thanks to some advice from one of the DDA tanks... Schmitt, Silica glanced at his name. Eventually, they fell into a good rotation pattern of half the group keeping the boss's attention while the other half healed up.
It was a little harder thanks to how much damage the DPS did, now that the outermost layer of stone had broken. Silica had to spam a few of her Hate Skills to keep its attention once when Fuurinkazan hit it with a huge amount of Sword Skills all at once, wiping out a good twenty percent of its third HP bar in a single blow. Other than that, they didn't have a huge amount of trouble, in the end.
That was to say, they didn't have a huge amount of trouble until the end, when they cleared the fourth HP bar. The cracks that had been spreading over the boss's body during the second phase had already clued everyone in to a third form, and when the boss stopped moving they all stepped back. "Get ready!" Asuna shouted, still looking incredible despite her shoulders heaving from exhaustion. Silica wasn't sure how she did it... "It'll probably get faster again, but take more damage!"
Silica held up a healing crystal and crushed it in her hands, letting it heal her back to full. She just didn't have time, since Heathcliff's party had requested a brief break to heal.
As Gautama The Enlightened's outer shell cracked again, she raised her shield and prepared to activate her Hate Skills. The aggro would reset after the phase switch, and Silica didn't want to risk one of the more fragile DPS like Asuna or Argo getting caught by accident. That sort of accident... She would definitely prevent it!
"Here it comes," Leafa shouted as the cracks spread over the boss's entire body and then shattered. "It's... huh?"
Silica couldn't blame her for being confused. The last time, the boss had just gotten a little smaller and added a face. This time, there were three heads - and the boss had turned a bright red. The faces were all scowling angrily, nothing like the peaceful neutrality of the first two phases. "...An Asura," Heathcliff breathed. "The spirits that fight against the gods..."
Argo immediately blanched. "Aren't they usually real angry?" she asked the older man. "Y'know, like warrior spirits or somethin'?"
"Yes," he said.
"Aw crap." That was all the chance she had to complain before Gautama The Enlightened howled and launched itself forward. "Berserk mode!" Argo screamed as it drove its spear forward, nearly skewering a player in red and white. "Jus' kill it kill it kill it!"
Silica jumped forward, intercepting the boss's next attack as it tried to follow through with a heavy axe swing. It crashed against her shield and the power nearly knocked her off her feet. It was so much more powerful than the second phase! It knocked her shield out of alignment, and Silica slid back from the strength. She flailed a little bit to keep her balance, but fortunately didn't fall over. "Rrrr," she growled, before sparkles enveloped her and the small chunk of HP she'd lost recovered. "Aw, thanks Pina," she smiled.
The tanks tried their hardest, but it was just too fast and too powerful. The red-faced boss was taking a lot of damage - each of the DPS group's Sword Skills carved about five to ten percent off of its last HP bar - but because it moved so fast, the post-Sword Skill delay could be fatal. Only the most foolhardy and the most brave players chanced it. Silica's heart leapt into her throat every time she saw Kirito's black cloak flapping next to the boss's feet, his two swords carving through its red stone skin.
Despite everyone's best efforts, the tide was gradually turning against them. Silica noticed it as she was forced to step back and heal after messing up the block timing against the boss's curved sword. There were only two tanks keeping it busy, despite having a full group of fourteen tanks in the raid. They weren't going to last! Like she'd worried, Gautama turned away from the two tanks trying to keep its attention and struck at Klein with its dagger! Silica gasped in shock, but he managed to scramble out of the way just in time, yelping as the dagger stabbed into the ground beside him.
"Klein!" Kirito shouted, grabbing his friend by the arm and pulling him out of the way of the boss's follow-up attack. "You okay?"
"Yeah, man, thanks!" Klein said, wiping sweat from his brow. "That was a close one."
Silica gritted her teeth. If things kept going this way, they were going to retreat, and that would waste all those crystals and potions they'd used! And also that really nice buff from the hot spring! With a fierce cry, she ran forward, shield at the ready. She even sheathed her sword to brace for the blows.
"Silica!" Lisbeth shouted. "What are you doing?!"
"I don't want to give up!" she cried. "Not when we're so close!" The boss was on its last HP bar. They were so close to winning she could almost taste it. With a determined look, she planted her feet and activated her Hate Skills, forcing the boss's attention away from Kirito and onto her. She ignored more of Lisbeth and Leafa's shouts, staring up at the huge angry monster. Yeah, she could do this!
Gautama The Enlightened howled something deep and grinding from the rock throat and started attacking. Silica did her absolute best to block as much as she could, shifting her shield to block every attack. No matter how much she tried, though, her health was still slowly draining with every blow. Thanks to Lisbeth's hard work, her shield was the toughest on the front lines, and her armor was equally good - but it wasn't enough. Silica didn't let her slowly lowering health distract her, though. She could see the occasional flash of a Sword Skill behind the boss, and knew that her friends weren't letting her fight like this.
She could do this. She was going to do this! She was -
Her shield shifted, and her eyes widened as she stumbled. Her weight had been off-balance, or maybe the game had finally triggered and activated the Weakened debuff because she was putting so much pressure on her legs to stay in place despite the boss hammering on her shield. Whatever the reason, she tilted and started to fall, just as the longsword in its bottom-right hand glowed green and swept up towards her face. It was like time slowed, and she watched as the sword left a trail of light as it passed -
Before a man in red was there, putting himself between the sword and Silica. All of a sudden everything sped up in a rush. The sword crashed against Heathcliff's tower shield, the impact making his cloak flutter behind him. Silica hit the ground and rolled, tumbling across the stone floor. She pushed herself up, armor clanking, as all of the Royal Blades ran over to her. "Silica, are you okay?" Asuna asked, immediately kneeling down and fussing over her. "You're not too hurt, are you? Here, drink this potion, it should bring you back up to safe health."
"I'm fine," she said, even as she suffered through Asuna's big sister-esque worry. "K-Kirito, how long was I blocking?"
He rested his hand on her head, rubbing it gently. "You held off the boss for at least six minutes, Silica," he told her. "Thank you. We were able to make a lot of progress, thanks to you."
"But... I don't know if we can win," she said quietly.
Kirito shook his head. "Just... if only we had five minutes, we could get everyone healed up and ready to attack the boss. With a huge rush, we might be able to win." Silica looked at the HP bars and realized he was right. Because its defense was so low, the little time she'd been able to buy had been enough for the fighters to bring it to red health.
"Only five," Lisbeth snorted. "And there's no way we're letting Silica back out there." Silica tried to protest and say she could still fight, but Lisbeth's flat stare put a stop to the words.
"All the other tanks are still recoverin'," Argo said, "an' our cute lil' Silica was the best of 'em. Who's gonna tank?"
"...I have an idea," Kirito said slowly, before he stood up. "Heathcliff," he called out. "Five minutes! That's how long we need for everyone to get back to full health. Can you hold out that long?"
Heathcliff glanced back at Kirito over his shoulder. His face was solemn, and even despite how powerful the attack had been he seemed calm and composed. "I will do my best," he said before a small, wry smile tugged at his lips. Without explaining what was so funny, he turned back and brought his shield forward to meet the boss's falling mace.
It was pretty incredible, Silica realized as she let her health recover. He was barely moving his shield at all, but Heathcliff barely rocked back and forth whenever one of the massive, oversized weapons crashed against the red tower shield. His health was creeping down slowly, too, but the rest of the raids' health was recovering faster. "Everyone, listen up!" Kirito shouted, his voice projecting even across the clash of metal against metal. "One last assault! If this doesn't work, we'll retreat for the day. Heathcliff is keeping the boss busy, so once everyone's healed up we're going to strike at the same time!"
Silica tried to stand up, but Leafa pushed at her chest. "Nope, sorry, Silica," she said without remorse. "You're staying right here."
"But -"
"You've done more than enough," Leafa said with a smile. "So take a well-earned rest, okay?"
"Kyui!" A weight landed on her head, settling down.
Leafa giggled. "See, Pina agrees with me." Silica tilted her head back and peered into the expressive eyes of her pet, feeling almost a little relieved that they were all ganging up on her. "Okay, we'll be back soon, Silica!"
Silica sighed, but smiled as Leafa gave her an excited wave before running off to join the party she was leading. "We did good today, Pina," she said to the Feathered Little Dragon. Pina scrambled off of her head and landed on her lap, curling up like a warm pillow. "That can't be comfortable, silly," she giggled. Pina was sleeping on her armor without a care in the world!
A shout rose up, and she looked up to see that all of the players were ringing the boss, far enough away to not trigger any AOE attacks even by accident. Heathcliff still stood in front of the boss, blocking all of the attacks, and Silica let out a gasp of shock. His health was still green, hanging on just above half. That was amazing... Silica almost felt upset for a second, before Pina craned her head up and licked her cheek.
Asuna raised her rapier high in the air, signaling the others, and then brought it down before dashing forward. With a loud cheer, every member of the raid party charged, their weapons glowing. Naturally, their Lightning Flash, the Princess of the Royal Blades, crashed against Gautama first, her rapier digging into the side of the boss. After that, Silica couldn't see much over the colorful flashes of the Sword Skills assaulting the boss. Even as it kept trying to wail away on Heathcliff, never breaking his guard, its health was plummeting.
Finally, there was only one Sword Skill left - one of Kirito's powerful Dual Blades Skills, chewing through the boss's HP as his blades flashed and spun. Silica let out a victorious cheer when the last pixel of red health disappeared from the boss's HP bar. The massive, red statue froze in place, dropping its six massive weapons. They crashed to the ground, embedding themselves in the stone, and the whole raid stepped back as Gautama The Enlightened started to crack. It fell apart in huge chunks, but before any of them could hit the ground the entire boss shattered into the blue polygons that made up even the easiest mob.
They floated away, and as the normal Congratulations banner appeared with a fanfare, the whole raid let out a massive cheer that filled the entire chamber. They'd done it! They'd beaten the boss of Floor 50 in a single try, with no casualties!
...
Silica was in trouble. "K-K-K-Kirito I c-can w-w-walk on my own!"
"Don't squirm, Silica," Kirito scolded her. "You might fall, and I don't want you to get hurt."
"Eheheheh..." Silica shook her head and smacked her cheeks. This was no time to giggle! Even if the words had made her heart fill with joy that he was worried about her! "I-I'm fine! Pina already healed me!"
She was in trouble because, when she'd tried to stand up from where she was sitting, her knees had buckled and she'd toppled right into Kirito's arms. Even as the boy had supported her and helped her to her feet properly, the rest of the Royal Blades had insisted that there was no way they were going to let Silica walk back home, when she couldn't even stand. So, as a result, Kirito had simply knelt down and let Silica climb on his back.
Silica couldn't deny loving every second of the piggyback ride home, but at the same time... She blushed and buried her face in his strong back. Ahhh, this was so embarrassing! Her face felt hot with every smirk Lisbeth and Argo sent her way. It didn't help that Asuna kept mumbling about how adorable it was, or the way Leafa kept muttering about how her big brother never gave her piggyback rides anymore. This kept up until they were standing in front of their home, and the poor Dragon Tamer blushed like the schoolgirl she was the whole way.
Everyone stumbled into their house with a variety of sighs of relief and groans of exhaustion. It had been a long boss fight and a longer day, and Silica was totally wiped. Asuna took Lisbeth into the kitchen to help with dinner, ignoring the pink-haired girl's usual complaints that she didn't even have the Cooking Skill, while the others more or less collapsed into the living room. Kirito walked over to the couch and crouched to let Silica down. She scrambled off of his back and hopped onto the sofa, and she let out a little whine as she relaxed, going limp into the cushions.
Leafa and Argo both curled up on the other couch, while Kirito looked around a little blankly. "Hey, Silica?" he said.
Silica perked up and scrambled around to a sitting position. "What is it, Kirito?" she asked. No, she wasn't eager at all, and Leafa and Argo's grins were for no reason at all!
He smiled at her. "I just wanted to say, good work out there today." He rested a hand on her head, and Silica felt her cheeks get hot. Somehow, his praise... It was really making her feel so embarrassed! "We couldn't have done it without you."
"Eheheh..." Silica giggled as he patted her head, her twintails bouncing.
"But... I know I'm not really the one who should be saying this, but you don't have to do things on your own like that. Putting yourself in danger, just to try to beat the boss..." Kirito shook his head. "You don't have to handle things on your own. All you have to do is be yourself, Silica. That's what I like best about you."
Her entire face lit up like a candle, and she let out a quiet squeak. "Nya hah hah," Argo laughed from the other couch. "Kii-boy's done it again."
"N-no he hasn't," Silica lied.
Kirito blinked and looked over at the info broker. "I've done what?"
"Oh, nothin'," the Rat said innocently. "Ya don' gotta worry 'bout it."
Kirito seemed a little confused, but dropped it and sat down in his regular chair. Silica was a little glad that Argo had stopped teasing her about her crush on Kirito. Looking around, she was a little confused at where Pina had gotten to, until she spotted the little blue dragon flying around and hovering, waiting patiently for Kirito to get comfortable. As soon as he stopped moving, the dragon landed neatly on his lap, curled up against his stomach, and went promptly to sleep.
Silica wondered why her pet was always so sleepy, sometimes. He slept with her, in her bed. For some reason, every now and then she would wake up and Pina would be missing a little health, her feathers damp and ruffled a bit. Silica had wondered if she was sneaking out and getting into trouble, but she always closed her door to sleep, and she was pretty sure Pina couldn't open it on her own...
It was probably nothing.
December 8th, 2023
Asuna sat and brushed her hair, humming to herself. It was starting to get late, so she was getting herself ready for bed. Dinner, check; bath, check; hair, almost check. It was a good routine, one that she'd developed once she started letting her hair grow out around 10 or 11 years old. Even in SAO, where brushing her hair was entirely pointless, she liked keeping to it. Brushing her hair was a soothing ritual and relaxed her, making it easier to fall asleep.
Knock knock
Asuna turned around in her seat. She knew Leafa didn't knock, so it wasn't... "Argo," she smiled. The Rat was leaning against the door, arms folded across her chest. For an instant, Asuna felt bad about feeling a smug sense of superiority, but then again she was best friends with Sugu. A little envy or smugness was nothing new.
"Hey, A-chan," the info broker said. "Mind if I..." She trailed off, nodding at the room.
"Oh, sure," Asuna said. "Come on in. I was just starting to get ready for bed."
Argo strolled in and plucked the hairbrush from Asuna's hands, giving it a glance. "Heh, this's th' one Kii-boy gave ya, right?" Asuna nodded. "'S nice. Wouldn't mind havin' one fer myself," she said, before she started brushing Asuna's hair in long, steady strokes.
This wasn't the first time Argo had given Asuna a hand with her nightly ritual, so the long-haired girl just smiled and settled in to enjoy the pampering. "Did you just come by to help?" she asked after a few seconds of enjoying the companionable silence.
"Not entirely," Argo admitted. "I wanted ta let ya know that I found a pret~ty nice place. It's a little outta th' way, so it'll be harder ta get ta the front lines, but other than that it's got almost everythin' we're lookin' for."
"Really?" Asuna asked excitedly. "Tell me about it, please!"
"Sure thing," Argo said with a smile Asuna could hear even if it wasn't visible with the girl standing behind her. "First off, it's a log cabin on Floor 22. Out in th' woods, wit' a nice lake nearby. Outta th' Safe Zone, but, well, 's Floor 22, there're no mobs there anyway. Lessee, what else... Oh, it's only got one floor, but th' place is big an' sprawlin', so plenty 'a room fer all of us. 'S got a nice kitchen for ya ta play in too."
"It sounds nice."
Argo snickered. "Nya hah hah, I know what yer thinkin' about. An' yeah, I made sure it had a big bathroom. Plenty 'a room fer two people in th' tub, if yer friendly enough."
Of course, their own bathroom was nice - the nicest available when they'd purchased the house - but that had been before more Floors opened up. Their bathtub was nice, but not the most comfortable thing in the world. If there was room for her to stretch out, and really relax... Oh, that'd just be bliss. Asuna sighed happily, imagining the idea.
Argo laughed at the sound. "I thought ya'd like that." She fell silent to focus on Asuna's hair, the brush gently tugging on her hair from time to time. It was neat how accurately the game was able to recreate long hair, Asuna thought, though there were clearly some differences. It didn't feel perfect; she'd asked Kirito about it once, and he'd said that it was probably something to due with how the game processed everything. To render the world quickly enough to feel mostly real, it had to cut corners here and there, like with water and apparently hair. In the end, Asuna didn't think about it too much.
Kirito might have been super interested about it, but if she were honest her eyes started to glaze over a bit when he started spouting tech words. Argo seemed to be able to keep up with him, though. "How much will it cost us?" she asked.
The info broker hummed a little bit noncommittally. "Well, we can afford th' house easily enough, if we raid th' guild coffers," she said. "Heck, our own funds are more'n enough ta buy the place. Problem is, it's unfurnished. We'd need ta buy all th' furniture ourselves, which'll cost us a pretty penny."
Asuna sighed. "We can't use the guild funds as our piggy bank," she lightly scolded Argo. The info broker snickered shamelessly. "Besides, we need to use that col for buying an official guild headquarters. Now that we're on the second half of the game, it's time we had something professional."
"You got it, Miss Lightnin' Flash," Argo teased her right back. Asuna huffed. After a second, Argo placed the hairbrush back on the desk in front of Asuna and ran her fingers through the long hair. "There we go, all nice and silky. Gonna thank yer Big Sis Argo?"
Asuna just sighed fondly and turned around to face Argo and talk with her properly. "You could try brushing your own hair, Argo," she said idly. "It's always so tangled."
"Eh, 's just part 'a my charm."
Oh, whatever. She'd tried to get the older girl to pay more attention to her hair before, and it had always failed, so Asuna just placed the matter on the backburner once more. "Back to the furniture, how will we afford everything?"
Argo kissed her teeth lightly before clicking her tongue. "Well, we could always ask some of our friends fer the cash. But th' Black Cats jus' bought their own house, so they're runnin' low on funds. I can go talk ta Klein an' his boys, an' Agil might have some cash lyin' around."
"Go ahead and do that," Asuna said. "I'll take the others and look for some good quests that won't take too long and see how much we can make."
"Lemme know when ya find somethin'," Argo said. "Anyway, I'll get ta chattin' with th' others in the guild, see how much money I can get outta them."
"Willing donations only," Asuna called as Argo headed out of the room.
"Aw, A-chan, why do ya gotta make things difficult?" Argo whined playfully, waving a hand as she darted away. Asuna could only shake her head in resignation at her friend's antics.
...
December 15th, 2023
Asuna stood in front of the large, sprawling log cabin, and she knew she was in love. It was everything she'd never known she wanted; a sprawling lawn, with a winding cobblestone road leading from the peaceful forest path they'd followed to get here. And the house itself was gorgeous. A small set of stairs led to a little patio, where a few simple chairs sat around a white table. From there, her eyes were naturally drawn to the cabin itself; it was large and sprawling, like Argo had told her, and the forest nearby seemed to help make it seem like a part of the environment. Large windows on the side of the house let in light, and smaller windows on the front had little trails of ivy clinging to the sill. It was a simple house, but Asuna already knew it was where she wanted to live.
The inside was just more reason to buy. A few comfortable couches and a rocking chair surrounded a table in the living room, sitting in front of the two tall windows to take full advantage of the light. Lisbeth had already sprawled out comfortably across one of them, lounging, and Asuna planted her hands on her hips with a resigned sigh and smile. "What?" Lisbeth protested. "I'm testing the couches, to see how they fit!"
"What if Kazuto saw up your skirt?" she asked.
Immediately Lisbeth blushed and sat up properly. "...He's not even in the room," she muttered, still red-faced. Asuna could only smile.
Naturally, she drifted into the kitchen after a while. She was in her rightful domain, and looked around with a smile. It had a counter for food preparation, as well as an oven, a stove, and an ice box just in case she needed to keep something cold for a while. "It's wonderful," she breathed, running a hand across the counter. They'd already filled in the place with pots and pans, hanging from a hook on the wall. "Oh, I can't wait to break this in," she said. Maybe some cookies? And a nice fancy dinner to celebrate.
As she wandered through the house, she noticed Leafa looking around at the furniture; there was a plate set sitting in the curio cabinet, as well as a few paintings hanging on the wall. The girls and Kirito had gone on a shopping spree to collect everything they wanted for the house, so the furniture and decorations were eclectic but homey, reflecting each of the players that lived there. The Royal Blades had managed to collect enough col thanks to their own funds and what little Fuurinkazan had been able to spare. On top of that, Agil had paid them a little bit to drum up business for his store for a bit; they'd gotten to wear cute maid outfits while attracting customers. Plus, Kirito had looked so cute in his! Asuna was glad she'd convinced Ashley to make enough outfits for everyone.
The bedrooms were also amazing. When she poked her head into the master bedroom - only named that because it had one king-sized bed, instead of two queen-sized - she blinked, and then sighed. "Of course you're napping already, sleepyhead," she said. Kirito had already taken his rightful place on the center of the bed; it was big enough for two people to sleep comfortably, three if they were friendly, one was Silica-sized, or both.
"I have to test the bed," he said shamelessly. Kirito did look peaceful lying there, so it wasn't like she could complain. Plus, Pina had curled up on the pillow next to him. Asuna reached out a hesitant hand, and Pina cracked an eye open. Asuna froze, silently pleading with her eyes for the dragon to let her pet her. The little dragon stared at her, motionless, before ruffling her feathers and closing her eyes. Asuna, later, would deny squealing as she lightly stroked the dragon.
"So fluffy," she would also deny mumbling in awe.
Eventually, all of the girls and Kirito gathered in the living room, enjoying one of Asuna's culinary masterpieces. The benefits of having her Cooking Skill totally maxed out - even with medium-quality ingredients, it was definitely delicious. "This place has a lot of extra room," Silica said.
"One master bedroom and three smaller bedrooms," Lisbeth said with a nod. "Same rooms as usual?"
"That works for me," Kirito said as he scooped a spoonful of soup. Asuna had made sure to give him the extra-spicy bowl, but he seemed to be unaffected. It was almost irritating, a little bit. "Unless you girls want something different?"
"I'm fine with how we've been sleeping now," Asuna said. Leafa giggled and grinned at the long-haired girl. A year of sleepovers had prepared her for this, and so far sleeping in the same room with the younger Kirigaya hadn't been an issue.
"Same here." "Don't have a problem with it, Kii-boy~." "I'm okay with it." Lisbeth, Argo, and Silica all chimed in with their thoughts.
It took a little bit for everyone to get comfortable, and by the end of the night Asuna found herself standing on the balcony in her room, resting on the railing. It was cold out, now that the sun had gone down, and the cool breeze from the lake rustled the curtains behind her. It just... felt like a home. Warm, comforting. Someplace she'd love to come back to, at the end of a long day.
Footsteps behind her made her turn, and she smiled to see Kirito approaching her in his usual casual outfit, a simple black shirt. She'd made it for him back on Floor 2, and she was glad to see he was still wearing it even though she'd had to repair its durability a few times. "Hi, Kazuto," she said.
"Hey, Asuna." He stood next to her, leaning on the railing in easy silence. The two friends had moved past needing to fill the gap with words a long time ago. Eventually, he turned to her. "...We're home."
Asuna smiled, and hugged him, resting her face against his chest. So warm, she thought. "Welcome home," she said.
Log cabin~ It's the log cabin~ Hooray. You can't have a harem fic without all of them living in the log cabin, after all.
Let's see… Kirito and Argo didn't have much time in the spotlight last chapter, so I gave them a little bit more at the beginning. Plus, the obligatory hot springs episode. I'm pretty sure most of you saw it coming eventually, after mentioning it in Chapter 9. Still, hopefully it was sufficient fanservice for you all. Also, the return of Mystery Archer Girl. Whose identity is definitely a total mystery, and not obvious at all.
Then the Floor 50 boss, and Heathcliff with the five minute-long blockstring. Silica doing her best! Remember, Heathcliff blocked for five minutes, and had the system to protect him; Silica didn't, and blocked for over six. She's really strong, when she's not wailing about how unfair her life is and how she's definitely going to grow soon. And also officially converting her crush into full-on love for Kirito. I think that's all the girls except Asuna, now. Things are starting to wrap up a little bit, and we're heading for the end-game scenario.
And at the end, a little bit of harem fluff. Asuna finally got to pet Pina~. And yes, the log cabin is bigger than in canon. Needs to be, to properly fit everyone it needs to. That's all, though.
Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.
He smiled wryly to himself as he flipped through the pages of the Weekly Argo, Special Edition. They'd defeated the 50th boss, it seemed. And naturally, the heroes of the fight were the Royal Blades, once again. The images this time were of the little Dragon Tamer, Silica, and the guild leader Kirito.
The man chuckled. "Even after all this time, you haven't faltered. I knew I chose correctly." His lips spread in a smirk, making the tattoo on his right cheek stretch. "You're quite the protagonist, Black Prince. But now…"
"Hey, boss!" A man called out. He wore a black sack over his head, two holes cut out for his eyes. He looked absolutely ridiculous, but then again, he did have a strange, sadistic sense of humor. He loved playing 'games' with his victims. "Time to go, right?"
The man in the black poncho set the newspaper down on the piece of rock he used as a table in the Safe Zone. Yes, that's right. «It's showtime,» he said, eyes gleaming under his hood.