Author's Note: Those of you that read Chapter 2 when it first came out, some revisions have been made, so you may want to re-read it. Enjoy!

Castle Carnation

~Chapter 3~

Crack.

Kirito jolted to attention at the unexpected sound. Gunfire?

No monsters on the first floor wielded firearms; in fact, the first floor had very few monsters with ranged attacks of any kind, except rare «Kobold Archer» units that sometimes spawned in the dungeon. And archers didn't make gunshot noises. Kirito concluded that other players must be nearby. Not feeling any need for human contact, Kirito decided to end his break, picking himself up off the gray brick floor and beginning to walk away from the noise. However, something about the gunfire made him stop.

There wasn't enough of it. A normal «squad», comparable to a «party» from other MMOs, consisted of six members. Each member would have a firearm of some sort, so, if they were engaging an enemy, there would be quite a blitz of gunshots.

The solid cracks that Kirito heard came only once every few seconds. Strange. A soloer?

Solo players, by this point, had become very rare. Fighting alone could be profitable, but was very hazardous: a single stunning hit from an enemy could mean death. It was simply far more practical to move with a «squad». Combined fire could cut down enemies rapidly. Kirito wasn't quite sure why he hadn't found someone to «squad» with yet. Perhaps he had some sort of stubborn pride, stemming from his beta test days...

Crack.

The gunshots really were too slow. Kirito's primary weapon—a submachine gun, the «MP18», slung over his back with a leather strap—could fire at a rate of five hundred rounds per minute. He expected that any other solo player would have a weapon at a comparable tier.

Rate of fire wasn't everything, of course. Shotguns blasted out massive damage up close, and, contrary to popular belief, could actually be reasonably effective at medium ranges. The sharp cracks that Kirito heard, though, were not the sounds of shotgun fire.

At any rate, another solo player this deep in the dungeon was an anomaly. Kirito decided he would investigate, to at least check that they were doing alright.

He turned a corner, and a tense situation revealed itself.

Under the shadow of a pair of wall-mounted torches, there more to explain away the ambient light than for anything else, a thinly built player in a hooded red cape faced a level 6 humanoid monster, a «Ruin Kobold Trooper». The Kobold wielded a gnarled, dirty hand axe. The player held a lever-action «Winchester Model 1873»: a beautiful weapon, whose stock and body of dark wood framed an action and trigger system of golden brass.

Kirito quickly assessed the player's chances. Whoever it was, they should not have allowed a melee type creature to get so close to them. The primary appeal of «rifles» at this point of the game was their relatively long range. They lacked the fire rate to be particularly effective up close. Kirito saw the Kobold pull back its arm, preparing to swing.

"Get back!" Kirito warned, pulling up his «MP18». He looked down the sights, but the green reticule was too big—he didn't want to risk hitting the player. He considered trying «Focus Fire», but if he missed with that and hit the player by accident, the effect would be even worse. So, Kirito swung his SMG back behind his back and ran forward, drawing his «Glock 19».

As the Kobold's axe swung forwards, the player hopped away with a speed Kirito didn't think was possible, leaning back just enough so that the axe passed in front of them with only an inch to spare. Then the player lifted the rifle to their shoulder, taking aim at the creature directly in front of it. Kirito saw the weapon begin to faintly glow.

"Hey!" Kirito shouted. "Even with a «Focus Fire», you don't have enough DPS! Back off first, or he'll get a hit on you!"

The rifle user didn't hear him. The entire «Winchester 1873» flashed with the bright yellow of «Focus Fire». The bullet punched into the center of the Kobold's chest, making it stagger back. But the Kobold's curved HP bar remained in the green, and it pulled back its arm to swing again.

"Careful!" Kirito shouted again. He fired his pistol towards the wall next to the Kobold, hoping to get its attention, but it was futile. The Kobold continued its attack.

The player smoothly swung the brass action lever of their Winchester forwards and then back, chambering a new round. To Kirito's surprise, their rifle began to glow yellow again.

Another «Focus Fire»?

The player shifted their aim to the Kobold's arm and fired. The gun flashed brilliantly, and the bullet tore into the limb. The axe dropped from the Kobold's hand, outward evidence of a «body part disabled» status effect.

With a ca-click, the player loaded a third round. The glow around the gun hadn't yet faded. Sure enough, when the player fired, another bright yellow flash was emitted from the gun. This bullet was aimed straight for the Kobold's head, and dropped the monster's HP drastically. The HP bar now retained only a small red sliver.

Ca-click. A fourth and final flash of «Focus Fire» lit the room. The shot, like the first, tore into the Kobold's chest, easily depleting the remaining health points. With that, the Kobold let out a dying roar and then burst into sparkling shards of blue.

Four «Focus Fire» shots in a row? Kirito was amazed. He normally needed a break of at least ten seconds before he could reliably activate a second «Focus Fire» shot. There was no actual cool-down timer, but gathering the concentration for just one shot in «Focus Fire» was difficult, and mentally exhausting. Kirito couldn't even fathom the willpower needed to maintain a weapon in «Focus Fire» state over a prolonged time period.

The player staggered, resting their back against the dungeon wall, and then slid down the wall to a sitting position, taking deep breaths. Their rifle hung loosely from their hand, its tip touching the ground. Clearly, unleashing the barrage had taken a toll on them.

The player was out of immediate danger. Kirito should have left, then. He was devoted to his position as a solo player, and had no business interfering with anyone else. There was something intriguing about this player, though. Kirito decided against his better judgment and approached.

"That was extreme overkill, you know."

His statement was met with silence. The player slowly pulled their rifle closer to them, working the brass lever. The «Winchester» was the basic «rifle» type weapon, available for purchase in «City Alpha». In real life, it had historic value, being one of the first guns that could fire repeatedly before needing a lengthy reload. Here, on the first floor of «CC», it was quite popular, as the «rifle» skill could evolve into several others later on, including the «assault rifle» skill, widely regarded among former beta testers as one of the most powerful in the game.

Eventually, when their breath had settled, the player raised their head, acknowledging Kirito's existence.

He tried again. "Hello? That was pretty good, but you shouldn't be «overkilling» like that."

To Kirito's immense surprise, the voice that replied was quiet and high. "Overkill... what do you mean, overkill?"

A female player.

Kirito really should have left then.

«Castle Carnation» was supremely multi-faceted, but its primary appeal, its primary marketing hook, was the «mythos of the gun»: the way a gun could come to life in the hands of any dedicated player. Its target audience, therefore, was, by and large, male. Kirito tried not to carry stereotypes with him, but this was just an absolute truth: girls had less interest in a game about guns.

That wasn't to say they had no interest at all. At launch, the ratio of male to female players was about three to one.

In the field, this ratio didn't seem to hold as true. In one month, Kirito had seen just four female players actively participating in quests, all members of large squads. Perhaps something about the female mentality made them more inclined to remain in «City Alpha», safe from danger. It really was the logical thing to do. The gung-ho 'charge in and beat this thing' mindset had gotten more than a few players killed in the first week.

Female players trying to clear the game were few and far between. However, those that did exist were, from Kirito's experience, relatively skilled, especially in terms of spatial awareness and «Focus Fire» affinity. Perhaps this was another product of the subtle biological distinction between the genders. The display Kirito had witnessed just served to reinforce this idea.

Whoever this mysterious solo rifleman was, she probably didn't need his help. He should have left.

His decision not to would come to haunt him years later.

"You did way more damage than was necessary. After the third shot, the Kobold was basically dead. A normal shot would have been enough... you didn't have to spend the energy to do a «Focus Fire». Look at how exhausted you are. You have to think about the return path."

"...Return path?"

At first, Kirito thought she was being coy with him. But the innocence, fatigue, and genuine curiosity in her voice made him think otherwise.

"You know. It's about an hour of off-and-on fighting to get from here to the dungeon exit, and almost thirty more minutes to get from there to «Tolbana» to the south. It's the nearest place to repair items, get more ammo, and restock on pots... or «bandages» or «medifoam» or whatever they're called. You're all the way in here as a solo-er; you must have done this at least once..."

The player lifted her head up slightly. The bottom of her eyes just barely shone out from under her hood. "I don't need healing when I don't take damage. I brought three of this same rifle, and they are degrading faster than I am using ammunition."

Kirito gave her an odd look. "Wha... how long have you been in here?"

He was stunned.

"You haven't gone back in four days?"

"Yes... is that all? The area's monsters will respawn soon. I'll be going."

She pushed herself off the wall with a leather-gloved hand, using her rifle as a crutch to regain her feet.

"You're sure you want to do that? Four days straight in the dungeon... you look like you're about to pass out or something..."

'I don't need healing when I don't take damage,' she had said. Now that he was up close, he could see that wasn't a complete truth: in some sections her red cape was severely torn, and Kirito suspected her armor under that was at least scratched. She was fast, Kirito admitted to himself, but it was clearly impossible to avoid being hit forever.

"I am fine."

The words were out of his mouth before he'd thought them through fully. "You'll die if you keep going like this."

The hooded player leaned her shoulder back against the wall. "Everyone will die in the end anyways."

The simple sentence seemed to lower the temperature of the room several degrees.

"It's been one month. More than a thousand players are dead, and not even the first floor is cleared. Clearing this game is not possible. The only thing that distinguishes players, now, is where and how we die... how early or how late... But the best thing we can do is fight. Those that do not might as well already be dead... stagnant... useless..."

She picked herself back up the wall and started off again.

"Wait, rifleman-san."

At first, she ignored him, but, as he continued, she halted to listen.

"I think I might understand. You're not here just to get yourself killed. You're here... here because you're fighting the system. You're basically trying to clear the game, right? Why don't you come to the «Meeting»?"

She didn't turn or respond, but Kirito guessed she wanted him to elaborate. "This afternoon, in «Tolbana», the town closest to the dungeon, the «First Floor Boss Strategy Conference» will supposedly be held. In the town center, at 4 pm."

"I suppose I will come," she said back, quietly. "But what was that you called me just now?"

Huh?

"Uh... 'rifleman-san?' Your main weapon is a rifle, and I don't know your name..."

"...of course," the mysterious girl said, and then brushed past him with her mini-map opened.

Kirito didn't look up as the newcomer plopped onto the wall beside him.

The voice was quick, sharp, and slightly nasal. "I could tell you a thing or two about her. Real cheap! 500 col."

Five hundred col was a pittance, really: just a few minutes worth of farming low-risk mobs. Nevertheless, Kirito held up his hands. "Uh, no thanks. I'm not paying for a girl's information."

The small figure chuckled. "Fufu. You've got a good heart, Ki-bou."

She was diminutive, more than a head shorter than him. Her worn equipment, like Kirito's, was all basic cloth and leather. Yet, whenever Kirito was in her presence, she made his setup feel slightly inadequate.

The leather armor over Kirito's shirt had just a pair of leather loops on the front, capable of holding the oddly-shaped magazines his «MP18» took. The «MP18» was an unusual weapon, German-made from the era of the World Wars, requiring P-shaped magazines inserted from the side. Its damage-per-bullet and accuracy were fairly low, but it was one of the first automatic weapons available in the game, and, in Kirito's opinion, one of the best weapons available on the first floor. As a full-size submachine gun, it certainly looked impressive, considering that many players still relied on pistols as their primary weapons.

In fact, she was probably one of them. Her vest was far more tactical than Kirito's plain, specialized protective sheet, featuring a set of four multi-purpose pouches for holding ammunition and who-knew-what-else.

Around it, she wore a cloak. It was similar to the one worn by the mystery rifleman, but was less torn, in a duller brown color, and probably had its insides lined with even more pockets. Her hair was curly, of a similar tan shade. It came down around her head to rest just beneath her chin, almost like another cloak under the first. But she pulled off the actual hood now, revealing her mischievous face, complete with false whiskers drawn unto both cheeks.

Her name was «Argo», and she was known as «the Rat», Aincrad's first information dealer.

He pointed at a curved hilt, protruding from one of her vest pouches.

"Is that a knife?"

Melee weapons such as knives certainly existed in «CC», but few possessed them, and no one actually used them. They weren't the one-hit-kill devices that some shooters portrayed them as. «Focus Fire» couldn't be applied to any non-firearm. The damage and range of bullets outclassed knives in every way, except for perhaps the aspect of ammunition. Even once a player's guns had ran out of ammunition, retreat was recommended over engaging in a melee battle. Taking a knife up against any creature would be suicide. Enemies with ranged attacks could cut a player down before they even got close, and melee enemies were armed with longer-reach weapons like swords and axes that a knife had no chance of parrying.

Argo pulled out the knife. Its blade was a thin strip of metal not much longer than her middle finger. She tossed it up, let it rotate a few times, and then caught it deftly between her thumb and forefinger.

"Throwing knife, actually."

Kirito sighed. "Argo, do you even know how to use that thing?"

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Maaaaybe," she drawled.

"...Is there even a skill for that?"

"I dunno...but -"

"Let me guess, you can find out for ten thousand col?"

"Probably."

To Kirito's knowledge, there wasn't even a «knife» skill, and this was a game with «fishing» and «cooking» skills in it. Kirito wasn't sure why, given how useless they were, knives had included in the first place. Maybe these throwing weapons were the answer, but without an explicit «skill» associated with them, they'd be as effective as any old rock, and much harder to use.

"What are you planning to do, tickle the first floor boss to death?"

"Nah. I think I'll leave the tickling to you clearers. Strategy meeting's today, no?" She balanced the tip of the curved knife on her finger.

"You already know that," Kirito contended, watching her handle the sharp weapon with mild interest. "So, I assume you came here for more than just to embarrass me about my ignorance."

The brick wall they leaned on stood next to a minor street in Tolbana, not far off from the central square where the «Boss Strategy Conference» was slated to be held. The roads were asphalt, but the buildings resembled old brick and mortar, like a remote European village. The whole first floor was a bit of a puzzle to Kirito. «City Alpha»'s architecture was sparkly and modern. The primary dungeon enemies were «Kobolds», typical bipedal fantasy creatures. The towns in-between couldn't decide between a rustic or modern style. It was a strange dichotomy of themes. There aren't any cars. What are the asphalt roads supposed to be for?

"Well, hmm," Argo said as an affirmative, slipping the knife back into its pouch. "Got a bit of info for you. Not much, but it's real tasty."

Kirito nodded. Argo knew what she was doing. To Kirito, she wasn't just a source. She was the only person currently on his «friends» list. That didn't mean she wouldn't try to get just compensation from him, though.

"I'll bite," Kirito said. "What's your price?"

Argo drew a breath. "This isn't something I should be charging a price for."

Kirito met her eyes. He hadn't known her to give away information for free, ever, even to him. "Why?"

"...Almost a week ago. You asked me to find out how many beta testers have died. I gave you an estimate."

Kirito nodded. "Right. You said around three hundred. Three hundred of the eleven hundred dead were in the beta. A forty percent mortality rate for testers so far, versus just one in ten overall."

"Right," Argo said. "Then I did some more digging, and that isn't the whole story. Ever seen the «Monument of Life» back in «City Alpha»?"

He'd seen it. It was a massive granite wall, wrapped around the interior of what had been in beta the «Room of Resurrection». Inscribed on it were rows upon rows of names. Those that died had their names grayed out and struck through with thick horizontal lines.

"«Monument of death», more like. Yeah... more than anything, it's just depressing to look at. What about it?"

"How many copies of «Castle Carnation» were sold for this release?"

"Uh... ten thousand, I think?"

"Okay, Ki-bou. Get this. It's a grid, right? I counted out its dimensions. Fifty columns and one hundred rows. That's five thousand names in total."

"No way... Just five thousand? What about the others? They're not displayed?"

"I've talked to lots of people," Argo said, "who've talked to lots of other people themselves. Everyone's seen their name on there."

"Five thousand names," Kirito muttered, "for ten thousand people. Any way you could find out how many on the wall were crossed out?"

"Don't worry, I counted. Took a while, mind you. As of two days ago, one thousand seventy four."

"So the estimated death count is accurate? You're sure this is right?"

Argo flipped her hood back on. "Remember who you're talking to. That's all I got for now. I'll be around for the meeting."

"Hey, Argo..." Kirito said uncertainly. "You're heading back to «City Alpha» after, right? Could you look at the wall for me? I want you to check for a name. Klein. K-L-E-I-N."

"K-L-E-I-N," she repeated to herself. "Can do... for the low price of just three hundred col."

"Naturally," Kirito said, rolling his eyes and opening his menu.

Once the transfer was complete. Argo pushed herself off the wall. "See you around, Ki-bou," she said with a light wave.

"Yup," he called back. "Still waiting on an explanation for the whiskers..."

She didn't acknowledge him, but, minutes later, on his way to the strategy meeting, an orange chat notification appeared on the left of his view.

"100,000 col or you'll have to keep on waiting."

Some say that history is written not by grand movements, not by massive societal shifts, but by the actions of a very few specific individuals. Napoleon. Caesar. Churchill. Gandhi. Mao. What might young men and women throughout history, killed in freak accidents, have grown up to become? What effect might another brilliant mind have had on the world? Another visionary? Another Edison, another Martin Luther King? What if we hadn't had these people in our world? What would our world be now, without Washington? Without the ambition of Khan, or Alexander the Great?

How much difference does one man, or the lack of one man, make?

"Alright, everyone! Get settled in, we're starting!"

Kirito wasn't much of a history buff, but he knew a good leader when he saw one. His stature was impressive. He was ridiculously, absurdly, unfairly handsome, like the sort of avatar one would create through character customization. His hair was dyed a vibrant blue, a rarity on the first floor. Dyes could be obtained, but no shops sold them. And his voice carried through the air with authority yet lyrical appeal. Forty-five players, seated in semicircles on the steps leading into the plaza, gave him their full attention.

"I'll introduce myself. My name is Diabel."

He lifted his arm to point at the tower of the dungeon. "Today... at the twentieth level of that tower, my party found a large set of wooden doors. Without a doubt, they lead to the boss room!"

Excited discussion burst out between several of the gathered players. They quieted quickly when Diabel resumed.

"It's taken us one month to come this far. The fifty or so of us here, we are the best there is right now. We must set an example. We must kill the boss and reach the second floor. We must show everyone that it is possible: that this game can be cleared! All of us gathered here, we are obligated! We have this responsibility!"

There were genuine cheers for him now. Kirito took a good look around. On the opposite side of the plaza, he spotted Argo in her drab cloak, watching and listening as she always did. Did she feel that responsibility?

And what of the anomalous rifle-wielding girl, who didn't believe the game could be beaten, but fought anyways —fought because death was more desirable than inaction? Kirito saw her sitting on a concrete terrace, just a few meters from him, silent. She'd already resigned herself to death. Did she feel obligated to be there?

And what about me? Kirito wondered. I'm solo. I tell myself it's because I want to become strong, as strong as I can be, to clear the game, to free everyone. But the best way to do that, really, is to join a squad. I have to admit to myself: I'm selfish, or stubborn. Probably both.

"But before I continue, there is something that needs to be addressed. There are undoubtedly a few among us here who were participants in the beta test."

Uh-oh. Kirito twiddled his thumbs and steadfastly stared at his toes.

Diabel cast his eyes around. "Some say that beta testers claimed all the best resources, cleared the best hunting grounds, got stronger without a care for everyone else. Some blame beta testers for the one thousand deaths."

"I suggest we see beta testers in another light."

This made Kirito look up. Diabel and Kirito's eyes met, and Kirito thought he saw a flash of recognition in the other's eyes before he looked away.

"Why should we hate them? What have they done that we, in their places, wouldn't have? Why do we even use the terms 'us' and 'them?' Beta testers are just players. We are all the same. Beta testers simply have experience, and experience is exactly what we need. RPGs are unfair. We must accept that. But us in «Castle Carnation», we are all in this together. We should not look at former testers and mark them as selfish or greedy. Rather, they are our vanguard. They are our knights, our paladins, our spearhead against this world. We need their aid. So, any testers out there, do not be shy. Come forth so that we may recognize you, and we may learn from you."

Out of all the things Kirito thought Diabel would say, he'd expected that the least.

Several players stood and descended to join Diabel in the amphitheatre center. Kirito noticed that Argo was not one of them. Kirito almost went... but no. He wasn't solo because he'd been a beta tester. He was solo because... because...

"Hey, Kirito, after this I'm meeting up with some friends of mine from another game. I could introduce you to them... How 'bout it?"

'Solo' was just how he wanted to play.

"So, as I understand it," Diabel continued, "a strategy guide of some sort is being distributed in item shops, containing information learned in the beta test."

"I've got it," a deep, baritone voice said. The man stood, and he was massive. He towered, close to six feet high. His skin was dark, and his muscles were sculpted. His appearance meant nothing of his stats, but on his back was a «Madsen Light Machine Gun», which, in spite of the 'light' in its name, was nothing of the sort. Kirito knew it took significant devotion to the «STR» attribute to be able to equip it this early in the game.

"Name's Agil," he said, tossing a thin sheepskin-bound volume to Diabel. "Picked this up for free, right here in Tolbana."

On its front was a unique emblem, a pair of abstract, stylized round ears and accompanying whiskers: A «rat mark», identifying the book's creator as Argo herself. Kirito recognized the book. When did she start giving it away for free?

"Thank you, Agil. Let's see what we've got. According to this latest edition, the boss's name is «Illfang the Kobold Lord». It stands twenty feet tall, and is armed with an axe and a bulletproof round shield, and then a «talwar» for its second phase. It has four health bars and summons «Ruin Kobold Sentinel» minions to assist after each bar is depleted. His attack pattern consists of charging with its shield held in front of it at whatever is giving it the most damage, and swinging at anything close enough to be hit. A suggested strategy is to have squads positioned on all sides, so when he charges at one his back is exposed to the others. Its stats apparently aren't all that high, so this really is very doable."

It was a lot of information. Kirito only vaguely remembered the boss from beta. He remembered for sure that the first floor boss had been quite easy. A melee enemy had been no match for a full raid group, each man spitting out deadly lead...

"Alright," Diabel said. "Now, if we haven't already, let's form up into squads. Try for full squads of six, and we'll shift people around as necessary."

Squadmates... Kirito rapidly scanned his immediate area. Argo, true to her earlier word, was nowhere to be seen. All those near him had already grouped into sixes... all but one, the female rifleman in red.

He sighed and shuffled his way over to her.

"Back in the dungeon, you shouted something at me when I was fighting? Something about «DPS»?"

"Oh... well, I guess I was wrong. The way you attacked that monster was still too reckless, though."

"Can you explain «DPS»?"

"It's a simple concept. Your main weapon is a «rifle», designed for long range accurate support shooting. Compared to less accurate guns, it has a good DPS at long range. You may have beat that Kobold, but you were exhausted afterward. It's too risky to use a rifle like that. Other guns with higher close-range DPS would do better. Even pistols, because they can shoot faster."

"...I understand that. What I meant to ask... what does the word itself mean? «DPS»?"

Kirito blinked. She moved and aimed like a veteran, but her knowledge seemed extremely lacking. "...Is this your first MMO?"

"...Yes."

Oh dear. "I guess I'll start with the basics. «DPS» stands for 'damage per second'..."

Her name, as the tag next to her health bar indicated, was Asuna. Asuna, it turned out, hadn't touched a game before in her life. Consequently, as the raid group made its way through the intermediate forest towards the dungeon, Kirito found himself assaulted by questions from his sole party member.

"Hey... before this, have you played other, ah, 'MMO' games? That's what this is called, right?"

"Yeah... I've played a lot of them. Why?"

"In other games... are there times where you get this... this feeling? This sense that you're... like you're on a field trip or something?"

Kirito looked sideways at her. The trees made it relatively shady, and she still had her red hood on, so he couldn't tell what expression she was wearing.

"Field trip? I wish... but... well, no. This is the only real game made with «FullDive» tech. Most other games still just use VR headsets or mouse and keyboard... I think I know what you're talking about. There isn't the same immersion. We wouldn't be having a conversation like this, I don't think, in other games."

"Hmm. It's all so strange to me. In these places... the realm of guns, monsters, magic... is this kind of thing normal? Venturing out to vanquish a fantastical lord..."

"Down a road leading to either glory or death, huh... I guess this is pretty common in games like these. As common as, say... going out for dinner, in the real world. But in this game especially, it means more than that, doesn't it. There's real risk... but we have to keep going. It's taken us four weeks to get to here. If we beat the boss today, that's one down, ninety-nine to go... We could be in here for years. An event like this could become a daily occurrence."

"Years... honestly, being trapped in here for years? That's scary. Maybe... even dying here, today, would be a better fate than that."

"Ey, I'm not having any of that. I wouldn't want any party members dying on me. Try to stay alive, at least today, would you?"

She chuckled lightly. "Haha. Un."

Her laugh was like an angel's. She'll go far here, Kirito thought. Everyone here has their own inner «strength» that will take them far. Diabel, his ability to lead, to motivate. Argo, her drive to always know, to seek the truth. This rifleman, Asuna, her desire above all else to defy this world, to continue to live, though her definition of 'live' and mine aren't exactly the same.

What is my strength? What is my absolute truth? What do I have that will take me through to the end?

Kirito couldn't find an answer to those questions.

The long, rectangular room rung with the clatter of weapons fire. "One bar left! Aggro switch to B! Squads E and F, hold off those «Sentinels»!" Diabel stood with his squad, designated 'C', taking potshots at the Kobold Lord with his main weapon, a «Colt M1911» handgun.

"On it!" Kirito shouted. Three of the halberd-bearing creatures sprinted towards them. "Okay, I'll take the two on the left, you take the-"

Her «Winchester» pulsed yellow and the rightmost «Sentinel» fell to its knees, crippled by a «Focus Fire».

Kirito nodded. "Yeah, that one!" He set his «MP18» against his shoulder and held down the trigger, dragging the green aim circle over both his targets. His thirty-two round drum magazine was drained. The repeated impacts staggered the Kobolds and cut away at their health bars, leaving them in the red.

"They're low!" he reported as he pulled another magazine from his vest. "I'm reloading; finish 'em off!"

"Roger!" his companion called. Ca-click. Bang. Ca-click. Bang. Ca-click. Bang. In seconds, with three well-aimed normal shots, all the «Sentinels» were dispatched, and their blue remains fluttered away.

No «Overkill» whatsoever. Kirito marveled at the speed and accuracy of the shots. From what he'd just observed, he'd never have pegged Asuna for a first time MMO player. With their task complete, he looked back over to where the other squads were.

"He's almost done!" Diabel reported. Kirito saw he was right. «Illfang»'s final health bar was less than a third full, colored red. "No more aggro switching. Squads A, B, and D, back off! E and F, get in firing position! Squad C, with me!"

Diabel had explained this strategy, outlined in Argo's guide, to them in-depth just earlier. Mass «Focus Fire» on the boss wasn't effective at causing damage, as the physical properties of its skin were extremely bullet resistant, except at a few hard-to-hit places. And even experienced players like Kirito couldn't execute «Focus Fire» with 100% reliability under pressure.

Instead, their strategy revolved around «kiting» and manipulation of the boss's «aggro». «Focus Fire», while not likely to cause damage, was a simple way to make the boss AI prioritize certain players over others. Four squads would take up positions around the boss. One would «aggravate» it, causing it to charge at them with its shield held in front of it. When this happened, the other three squads would have clear shots at the boss's sides and back. The squad being pursued would «kite» the boss, running away staying just out of melee range, and taking shots when possible to keep it chasing after them, like a dog after a kite.

When the distraction group inevitably took damage, another of the groups would draw the boss's attention with «Focus Fire», allowing the first to recover. Former beta testers were ostensibly the best at «Focus Fire» and had been distributed through the four main squads accordingly.

So far, the strategy had worked perfectly. There had yet to be a player to drop into the red.

But the strategy guide had warned against this final stage. When «Illfang» was on its last legs, it would cast aside its axe and buckler and pull from its back a curved sword. It would attack recklessly and ruthlessly. Once it entered this final phase, all squads were to focus on «Illfang» and remove the rest of his health as fast as possible. The hope was that forty-four players' worth of standard shooting would kill it fast enough to prevent casualties.

«Illfang» stopped attacking and threw its head back to let out a roar. The axe and shield clattered to the ground, and the sword behind its back was brought out. Kirito sighed in relief. Their information had been right: it was indeed a scaled-up «talwar».

But then the crystals set in the supposedly decorative bracers on «Illfang»'s wrists glowed white, and a thin, near-transparent layer of pink manifested just over the Kobold's red skin.

It certainly wasn't just an aesthetic change. Kirito had seen this ability before. It had been rare, dreaded amongst the high-level beta testers, only found on certain enemies in the eighth floor dungeon. They had nicknamed it «pink eye», though it wasn't always pink, and had little to do with one's vision.

"Stop!" Kirito shouted. "Wait! Everyone hold fire! It's different from beta!"

It was a «repulsive kinetic barrier». Any bullets that impacted the thin pink layer would be sent back, in exactly the direction they had come from.

"You heard him!" Diabel recognized. "Hold fire, everyone! He's got a reflect shield on... We can't risk everyone shooting. Squads A and D, in front! Beta testers and marksmen, stand by!"

Kirito blinked. Diabel was more knowledgeable than he'd thought. Had he been...

The players reformed into ranks, hesitantly keeping their guns silent as «Illfang» stomped closer.

"Why?" asked Agil, leader of squad B. "We gotta kill him, quickly, before he can use that talwar!"

The only way to disable the barrier with guns was to destroy the «barrier generators», the devices that emitted the barrier. Kirito guessed that «Illfang»'s generators were the glowing crystals on his wrist bracers. Both bracers would probably have to be hit before the barrier was disabled.

Tiny, rapidly moving targets. Hitting three inches to either side could mean your bullet bouncing back and killing you.

"Inaccurate fire will get us killed. All we can do while that repulsion shield is active is try and stay alive while our best shooters risk hitting the generators..." Diabel turned towards «Illfang» with his gun up. "Squad C, hold here. I'm going for it!"

"Diabel, wait!" Kirito protested. It was no use. The blue-haired leader dashed forwards, his «M1911» held firm in both hands. The Kobold Lord bore down on him at an alarming pace. He planted his legs, taking careful aim, and Kirito saw the gun faintly glow.

He's going to risk «Focus Fire» with a pistol? If he misses, the shot will come back and...

"NO!" Kirito shouted. But Diabel's gun pulsed a yellow brighter than a muzzle flash.

A few bytes worth of processing and memory on some server somewhere represented the deadly metal-jacketed projectile, sets of numbers being incremented as it moved, closer and closer to its target. Then its position was five inches left of its intended target, crossing a line marked by another few bytes as critical. With the switching of a few bits of data, its velocity was reversed. In fractions of milliseconds, the numbers were incremented again and again, sending the projectile back in the opposite direction...

Before the echoes of Kirito's shout had even faded, Diabel staggered from the impact of his own round hitting his shoulder. And then «Illfang» reached him. The talwar slashed viciously across his chest and sent him flying sideways before he hit and slid across the ground.

«Illfang the Kobold Lord», with less than a twelfth of its health left, was still far from defeated.

Klea

Kleon

Klemens

Klement

"Well, not there," Argo muttered to herself, double-checking the granite wall to make sure she hadn't missed anything. Easiest col ever. But if he expected to see it, this just gives more questions than answers...

I wonder how the boss fight is going. Stay safe, Ki-bou.

"Into the jaws of Death, into the mouth of hell, rode the... five thousand..."

"Agh, screw that freaking poem." She quietly cursed her good memory, and continued to curse it as more of the poem's lines came to her out of the blue.

Then they rode back, but all five thousand... O, the wild charge... Honor the charge they made...

"Fuck you, memory!"

~One month earlier. Launch day, at the ARGUS network monitoring center.~

"Oh no... something new is happening. «Cardinal»'s going mad. Generic warning messages everywhere. I can't tell what's actually going on without access to the high-level console we're locked out of."

"We've got bandwidth shifts... Mishima server is dropping like a stone, Sorachi too."

"Are they logging out?"

"No... Niigata's bandwidth just shot up... «Cardinal» transferred them? Why?"

"Woah, you're not kidding. That's... four thousand eight hundred in Niigata alone now. Almost half the players."

"What the hell... and it's «Cardinal» doing this?"

"Almost definitely. I thought we were being hacked, but that's just not possible with how secure our system is. «Cardinal» itself is going bonkers."

"Something like this can't be a fluke. You don't accidentally cause people's brains to be fried. «Cardinal» is smart, maybe even goddamn self-aware at this point. It's software, if we just shut down every server simultaneously..."

"No, that's not possible. Think about it. «Cardinal» isn't even technically an AI, it's just a bunch of dumb algorithms. I wasn't directly involved with the design, but I know that much. «Top-down» AIs aren't capable of any kind of self-awareness. That's like suspecting bomb of having ill intentions because it fell on your head. We can't try to blame the bomb. We have to find the bomber."

"And we tried the server shutdown thing with Tokai. You want to try shutting down more servers, be my guest. I'm not gonna be the one responsible for thousands more deaths."

"...So our best bet right now is to do what exactly?"

"We wait. We watch and wait and figure out exactly what the heck is going on. Then, we'll find the guy who's dropping the bombs."

"I... I didn't say anything earlier, because I didn't know for sure. But... someone I know is stuck in there right now. A niece. I know it's the right move, not trying anything hasty, but... it's killing me, Marc."

"Jesus, Ohkawa. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, yeah... let's just... let's just keep an eye out."

Klein stared, open-mouthed, at the figure oozing out of the sky.

After a few seconds, or perhaps it had been minutes, in the oppressive black, Klein was now standing amidst a crowd of other players, packed into a square of some sort. It wasn't in the «Starting City», Klein was sure of that. The floor was composed of faintly copper-colored metal tiles rather than the concrete. The architecture of the surrounding buildings was not the clean glass and chrome he was familiar with, but utilitarian gray stone. It was almost medieval in style, excepting the bright electric lights in the windows of the buildings.

Above him, a faceless GM hovered, undoubtedly prepared to give some kind of profound announcement.

"Greetings, players. Welcome to my world."

...

"This ends the official tutorial for the Rho division of «Castle Carnation». Players, I wish you luck."

Profound was one way of putting it.

Author's Note: Be aware that this work is living; that is, most chapters, even after being posted, will need to undergo extensive editing before I consider them 'complete.' Please point out any errors to me if you find them! Thanks for continuing to read!