Chapter 10: The Blue Gleam of Death

October 4th, 2024

Aincrad Floor 35: Mishe

Word spread quickly that the Assault Team had defeated the 73rd floor boss. To celebrate, Silica invited a few of her friends, including Kirito and Ken, to a party that she was hosting for their victory. The party was held in the Weathercock Pavillion in the town, Mishe, on the 35th floor. It was the same inn that Kirito went to when he first met Silica as they were planning their strategy to revive her pet dragon, Pina. Silica's friends slowly trickled into the inn and greeted her warmly.

"Hey guys! It's nice to see you all again!" Silica exclaimed with a big smile.

"Long time no see," Altinator said as he placed his hand on her head. "I'm sure you remember my little brother, Ken, right?"

Ken stood in front of Silica as his face turned bright red. "Uh… hi Silica," Ken mumbled nervously. "It's uh nice to see you again."

Silica laughed cheerfully as she gave him a warm hug. "I was hoping you would come, my knight in shining armor!"

She then saw Kirito standing there and blushed a little. "Hello, brother Kirito. Thank you for coming!"

Oh no, thank you for inviting us, Silica," Kirito replied, placing his hand on her head just as Altinator had done earlier.

Ivy was the last to enter. With a big smile, she walked inside and gave Silica a hug. "You look so cute today!" Ivy said cheerfully.

"Aww stop it, you're making me blush!" Silica teased as she closed the door. "Thank you all for coming and congratulations for your 73rd victory!"

Everyone raised their glasses for a toast and started socializing among themselves. Silica approached Kirito to offer him and the others her favorite nut tart. As Kirito was about to enjoy his tart, Pina perched on top of him eager to have a taste of his tart. Kirito smiled as he offered his tart to Pina. Silica decided that it was enough and tried to retrieve her pet dragon, but Pina dodges and flies around for a bit before landing on Kirito's head, curling into a ball for a nice nap. Altinator and Kirito started laughing as Silica turned red in the face.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Kirito," Silica mumbled timidly, embarrassed for her dragon's behavior.

"It's all good," Kirito said, shrugging it off.

I really do love you…" Silica said without thinking as her voice trailed off. She then realized that she was speaking out loud. "Oh… I-I mean, as a big brother… uh you know…"

Silica knew that she messed up big time. Everyone was looking at her empathetically, everyone except Ken. Ken pouted slightly as that comment came as a slap to his face. Silica frowned as she noticed that she hurt Ken a bit.

"Aww I'm sorry," Silica said as she blushed. "I really do like you too."

"It's ok… I understand," Ken said, trying to force a smile. "I think I'll just excuse myself."

Silica's face fell as she watched Ken walk off. She looked over at Kirito and then at Altinator to see what she should do. Both of them nodded empathetically, giving her the green light to go after him. Silica followed after Ken and found him outside staring off into the night sky.

"Ken?" Silica asked, hoping that he would allow her to come closer to him.

"I'm so sorry Silica," Ken's voice trailed off. "I totally looked like an idiot, didn't I?"

"Oh, not at all," Silica answered as she approached him. "In fact, I found it pretty cute."

"You don't have to flatter me…" Ken stated coldly. "I understand if you don't feel the same way."

"Ken, I do admire Kirito a lot," Silica started to explain. "But my heart will always stay with you. You saved me from those stalkers and I'm always gonna appreciate you for that."

"That was all my big brother… not me," Ken said, looking down.

"No… YOU were there by my side while Altinator fended off those stalkers, right?" Silica reminded him.

Ken smiled as he looked at Silica straight into her eyes. He nodded as she fell into his arms. Tears were slowly streaming down his eyes as Silica continued. "Kirito will always be a big brother to me, but I will always care for you no matter what. I've always thought about you and how you were doing while you were away fighting these boss monsters."

"Every floor boss I fought, I was always thinking about you, Silica," Ken confessed. "You always gave me the strength to continue and keep fighting. I really can't wait to see you in the real world."

"Me too," Silica said softly.

Ken and Silica stayed outside for a while longer cuddling with each other. Altinator and Kirito smiled as they watched over them. A while later, the two came back and Kirito gave Silica a present. Kirito revealed to her that he solved the riddle she gave him a month ago and wished her happy birthday to which Silica blushed. Ken overheard Kirito's conversation and took it as a hint to make a formal move on her. He did so by inviting her to a date the next day.

October 18th, 2024

Aincrad Floor 74 Labyrinth

Altinator and his siblings had entered the 74th Floor Labyrinth to do some grinding for both experience and resources. The Knights of the Round Table had planned to meet with the Knights of the Blood Oath for a strategy meeting later that week to tackle the floor boss after Altinator and his crew went to scout the labyrinth and the floor boss. The three of them had reached a considerable distance when they heard loud screams coming from up ahead. Fearing for the worst, Altinator and his siblings sped deeper into the labyrinth hoping to find the boss door when they saw two familiar faces.

"This one's gonna be tough," Asuna said, almost out of breath.

"Yeah, for sure," Kirito agreed.

"Hey Kirito! Asuna!" Altinator called out as they ran over to meet them.

"Oh, it's you guys," Kirito breathed as he nearly drew his sword. "Don't scare us like that, man! We thought you were enemies."

"My bad," Altinator said as he sat down next to the two along with Ken and Ivy. "I take it those screams we heard were from you two?"

"Yeah…" Kirito answered with a scowl. "We just saw the boss room and that boss is gonna be big trouble. It only had one giant sword as its weapon, but I'm pretty sure there will also be special attacks."

"We'll have to gather all the tanks for the front row for defense and keep switching from offense and defense," Asuna thought out loud.

"Works for me," Ken commented as he patted his giant shield.

"So, how many of us do we need for the defense line?" Ivy asked.

"I would say around 10 shield users should be enough," Kirito stated.

"I'm sure we have plenty of shields standing by, right Ken?" Ivy commented.

"You bet!" Ken answered with a big grin.

"10 shields, eh?" Asuna muttered as she looked over at Kirito suspiciously. "You must be hiding something, aren't you?"

"What do you mean?" Kirito asked innocently while eyeing at Altinator for support.

"Well, isn't the biggest advantage of using a one-handed sword being able to wield a shield with it?" Asuna questioned. "I've never seen you use a shield before. I know I don't use one because it would drop the speed of me using my rapier and other rapier users don't use them out of style. But what's really suspicious is how you never used the sword Liz made for you."

Kirito looked away, hoping that Altinator would back him up. Altinator was also cringing in the background which Ken and Ivy noticed.

"Big bro, what's Asuna talking about?" Ivy asked, glaring at him suspiciously.

"Um… that's something that Kirito should talk about when he's ready," Altinator answered as he desperately tried to dodge the question.

"Nah, no biggie," Asuna said with a smile. "Asking about a player's skills is impolite anyway. Well, it's getting kinda late, but how about we have some lunch."

"Good idea," Altinator stated. "Ivy, you have our lunch, right?"

"How could I forget?" Ivy teased with a smirk on her face. "You always ask me to make us some good homemade cooking. My cooking skill is near completion at this point."

Ivy took out the three's lunch as Asuna did the same with her lunch with Kirito. Kirito was wide-eyed when he saw the deliciousness that Asuna had right before his eyes.

"Hold on, is that homemade?!" Kirito asked without thinking.

"Yep," Asuna answered with a smile. "Now be sure to take your gloves off before eating."

"Same goes for the both of you!" Ivy chimed in cheerfully.

"Yeah, yeah," Altinator muttered as he obeyed.

The five of them dug in with big smiles on their faces. The food was delicious, and Asuna had shared with Ivy her secret ingredients to make mayonnaise and soy sauce which they haven't had in years. After a while of chattering, a group of players also entered the labyrinth looking very exhausted. It was Klein and his band of friends from his guild, Furinkazan. The five of them, paranoid that more enemy entities were closing in, stood up ready to draw their swords, but relaxed when they saw the approaching group.

"Hey Kirito!" Klein called out. "It's been a long while man! How's it goin?"

"Nice to see you still alive, Klein," Kirito commented as Klein approached him.

"Well, whaddya know, a downer as usual," Klein teased with a grin. He then noticed the others. "Hey, it's not like you to travel in groups, let alone with girls."

Klein saw Asuna and froze for a bit. Kirito stepped in and introduced her to Klein and the rest of his guild.

"Um... Hello, I'm Klein! I'm 24 years old, single and ready to-" Klein blurted out before getting a gut punch from Kirito which sent him flying.

"LEADER!" the other guild members called out. They rushed over to Kirito glaring at him before shifting their focus to Asuna. "Wow! It's Miss Asuna!"

The rest of Furinkazan crowded Asuna like a celebrity while Altinator walked over to help Klein up. As Kirito tried to hold the crowd back, Klein stepped on Kirito's foot as payback for the punch which Altinator and his siblings laughed at. Just then, another group of players with matching armor that resembled the Army's trudged over in their direction.

"Hey, isn't that The Army?" Kirito asked out loud.

"Yeah... weren't they that giant guild that got washed up after their humiliating loss in the 25th floor boss fight?" Klein followed up.

"Yeah, that's the one," Asuna answered. "Now instead of clearing levels, they're more focused on strengthening their guild and their authority on the 1st floor."

"AT EASE!" a soldier that resembled a commander yelled as the rest of the squad collapsed. The leader marched over to Altinator and the rest of the group. "I am Lieutenant Colonel Kobatz of the Aincrad Liberation Force."

"What brings you here, Colonel?" Altinator questioned.

"Oh, General Altinator!" Kobatz exclaimed. "I didn't realize you were already there, sir. May I assume that you and your party have acquired the mapping data for this labyrinth?"

"Yes, we have," Altinator answered grimly. "However, you did not answer my question."

"Yes, of course," Kobatz said quickly. "I am under orders to lead this group to to defeat the boss of this floor and I respectfully request the mapping data that you have obtained."

"Who has issued you that order, Colonel?" Altinator asked firmly.

That is classified information, I'm afraid," Kobatz answered. "I can only say that they came from upstairs."

"Very well, I will verify with Commander-in-Chief Thinker following my inspection of the boss room," Altinator stated. "I will also give you the mapping data as you've requested, but I must insist that you return to headquarters and join the strategy meeting that the Knights of the Round Table and the Knights of the Blood Oath will host."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that, sir," Kobatz protested. "My orders were absolute. Otherwise, I would be court-martialed for insubordination."

"I understand your concern, Colonel, but I will handle your situation," Altinator reassured him. "Return to headquarters and report to Commander-in-Chief Thinker with the mapping data."

"Yes sir," Kobatz said with a salute. Altinator saluted back as he watched Kobatz and his men walk away from their direction.

"Do you think they'll listen to you?" Klein asked.

"If they don't, I will personally order the court-martial of whoever ordered him as and punish Colonel Kobatz as a General of the Army," Altinator stated coldly.

"Should we at least go check on them?" Kirito asked, sympathetic of the soldiers under Kobatz.

"I think that would be wise considering how the other soldiers were physically," Ken commented.

"I agree," Ivy chimed in. "Besides, I still have extra food and healing supplies in case they need it."

"You're much nicer than I can ever be," Altinator said with a smile. "Let's go to the boss room and see if they followed my orders. Besides, I would like to see the boss for myself to see how powerful it is."

"Sounds good," Kirito said as he started towards the boss's door. As the group closed in on the path to the door, a blood-curdling scream echoed across the labyrinth. The group made it to the boss's door only to see Kobatz and his men being annihilated by the floor boss. The soldiers were deathly exhausted and out of breath while the boss roared in their direction, carrying its giant sword.

"Hey! You guys alright?" Kirito shouted. The soldiers could not respond. "What are you doing? Hurry up and use the teleport crystal!"

"It's no good!" one of the soldiers called out. "The crystals don't work!"

"There hasn't been a boss room with a no crystal trap like this!" Asuna commented fearfully.

"The Aincrad Liberation Force never retreats from battle!" Kobatz declared. "Attack, you dogs! Attack!"

"KOBATZ, YOU IMBECILE!"Altinator roared. "THAT WAS A DIRECT ORDER YOU'VE DISOBEYED!"

"I apologize, sir!" Kobatz stated in fear. "I did not want to risk getting grilled by my superiors in case you failed! I take full responsibility for my actions!"

"DAMN RIGHT YOU WILL!" Altinator screamed again.

After a moment, Klein and Furinkazan arrived at the door. "What's going on here?"

"They can't use their teleport crystals here!" Kirito filled Klein in. "If we go in there, we could probably get them out, but…"

"Can't we do anything for them?" Klein interjected, but before anyone could answer, Kobatz made a fatal decision.

"Everyone, CHARGE!" Kobatz ordered as his men made one final, desperate attempt to overwhelm the boss monster. Unfortunately, the boss sprayed them with a magic beam which overwhelmed the Army instead and slashed Kobatz which sent him flying towards the door. Kobatz fell right in front of the group in shock as his helmet broke apart and disappeared.

"Impossible…" Kobatz said as he disintegrated into millions of pieces.

The group stared at the pixels in shock which was cut short by another terrifying scream by one of the soldiers as the boss raised its sword for the final blow. Asuna placed her hand over her rapier, shaking as she muttered her denials. Kirito caught notice of that and gasped. Too late! The boss was ready to swing at the helpless soldiers.

"NOOOO!" Asuna screamed as she drew her rapier and charged directly at the boss's back.

"Asuna!" Kirito shouted, as he went in after her.

"Oh, what the hell!" Klein complained as he also followed suit.

Asuna leaped in the air and delivered some lightning-fast jabs with her rapier on the boss's back. The boss quickly turned around after the damage, countered her rapier, and gave her a bone-crackling punch, sending her sailing back near the door.

"Let's go!" Altinator shouted to his siblings as they followed in to save them. The boss was about to strike at Asuna when Kirito intercepted the attack, just barely missing a direct hit to Asuna.

"GET BACK!" Kirito ordered as Asuna slipped back to the entrance.

"Klein and Ivy, try to save the soldiers!" Altinator ordered as well. "Ken and I will cover you!"

"Got it!" Klein obeyed. He and his guild along with Ivy rushed to the helpless soldiers as Altinator and Ken drew the boss's fire away from the group. Kirito slashed at the boss's back which got its attention. The boss turns to fight him only to overwhelm Kirito. Altinator and Ken safely guided the group to the entrance. However, once they got there, Altinator watched as Kirito was nearly getting destroyed by the boss's relentless attacks. The others quickly drew their weapons hoping to back Kirito up, but before they could do anything, Kirito desperately blocked another attack from the boss.

"Asuna, Klein, Altinator!" Kirito called out. "I need you guys to hold it off me for at least 10 seconds!"

"Roger that!" Altinator replied as he charged into the boss.

Kirito went into his status menus and switched into his dual wielding mode before calling them back.

"SWITCH!" Kirito called out. The others pulled away as Kirito drew his second sword: the same sword that Lizbeth had made him all those months ago. Asuna and the others, with the exception of Altinator, stared in shock as Kirito took on the boss by himself using two swords at once. You go Kirito! Altinator thought. Kick its ass! Altinator recognized the sword skill: Starburst Stream, as he fought against it during his duel with Kirito and he also created that sword skill during his days as a developer.

"What the hell is that skill?" Klein asked out loud.

Kirito continued his sword skill faster and faster until the boss grabbed hold of his main sword. Altinator and the group stared at Kirito in shock as Kirito delivered the final blow to the boss, disintegrating it into millions of pieces.

"It's over… right?" Kirito mumbled as the congratulations banner appeared in front of them. Kirito, with barely any HP left, collapsed on the floor and blacked out to which Asuna held him close, calling out his name. A few seconds later, Kirito regained consciousness and woke up to a crying Asuna who hugged him tight.

"If you squeeze me too much, you'll take the rest of my HP," Kirito warned.

The soldiers reported the casualties to Altinator and Klein. It turned out that along with Kobatz, two more soldiers died.

"The last time we had casualties on a boss floor was on the 67th floor…" Kirito commented in despair.

"You call this a victory?!" Klein grumbled furiously. "That dumbass Kobatz! What's the point if you end up dying too?"

"Lieutenant Colonel Kobatz paid the price of insubordination with his life," Altinator stated. "I will return these soldiers to the 1st floor and report this incident to Thinker."

"Anyhow, what the hell was that Kirito?" Klein changed the subject.

"Do I have to say it?" Kirito asked reluctantly.

"Hell, yeah you do!" Klein answered. "I've never even seen that before!"

"It's an extra skill called Dual Wielding," Kirito confessed.

Everyone else aside from Altinator gasped in shock while Klein continued. "What are the prereqs?"

"If I knew, I would've shared it already," Kirito admitted.

"Well, it's not on the info broker's list of skills, so that must mean that it's a unique skill!" Klein concluded. "It's just like you to hold out on us like that."

"You see, about 6 months ago, the skill just suddenly appeared in my status menu," Kirito explained. "Imagine what would happen if I revealed I had something like that?"

"I don't blame you," Klein said sympathetically. "Most hardcore gamers are the jealous type after all. I'm too good to care about that stuff so it wouldn't bother me too much.

"Yeah sure," Ken teased as he elbowed Klein playfully. "I bet deep down, you're jealous too!"

"Shut up Ken," Klein fired back with the same playfulness. "So, I'm gonna activate the warp gate for the new floor. Wanna join us?"

"Nah, I'll pass," Kirito answered in a tired voice. "I'm so exhausted right now."

"Sounds good," Klein commented empathetically. "Take care on your way back and by the way, the way you ran to rescue those soldiers… Let's just say I'm glad you did. Seeya around!"

Klein and his guild walked out of the boss room over to the 75th floor to activate the warp gate while Altinator made his way to the remaining soldiers of the Army. Meanwhile, Kirito and Asuna had their intimate moments together and Ivy and Ken returned to guild headquarters to report on what happened.

"How are you holding up, Sergeant?" Altinator asked one of the soldiers.

"Better, now that the boss is gone for good, sir." the sergeant answered.

"That's good," Altinator commented. "Are the rest of the soldiers rested enough to move out?"

"Yes sir, "the sergeant replied. "We should be well enough to make it back."

"Glad to hear it, Sergeant," Altinator said with a smile. "Let us take our leave. I will be reporting to Commander-in-Chief Thinker about this incident. I hope to have you all as witnesses to an upcoming court-martial."

"With pleasure, General!" the sergeant said with a sharp salute.

Altinator saluted back and marched the remaining Army soldiers back to the 1st floor. Little did he know that there was growing trouble within the Aincrad Liberation Force.