VII: Bounties, means you should not be tampered with
The front lines have reached the 58th floor, it has been well over a year since 10000 players got trapped in this death game- not Presto. He still lives his life as normal.
Since the Hollow Area incident, Philia has settled down in Presto's house in Level 22, the place where once you step outside the door, you are greeted by the sunshine and a beautiful lake. Honestly, Presto actually didn't really like the placement of the house, as it takes well over 20 minutes to get to the teleport gate. He bought it when Level 22 was unlocked just because he could and didn't want to live in inns, as he fear people would know his secret. The fact that he is immortal in this game makes his life very boring in normal situations.
A lot more has happened: Info brokers have rumors about a red guild specifically for murderers to kill other players, the Nicholas the Renegade event, rise of players called the "Black Swordsman" and "Lighting Flash". Out of everything, the one thing he wanted to know about, is PoH. Since the Hollow Area, after meeting PoH, and killed his Hollow, he realized that the player called PoH has a dangerous mind. The other thing he cared even more, is "Laughing Coffin", when PoH asked Philia to join it. No such info is known about the term, but it sounded like a guild, and if his assumptions are true, PoH has successfully gathered a group of murderers and formed the red guild "Laughing Coffin".
He got up from his bed and peeked at Philia's room. Seeing that her sleeping pose was bad as ever, and her bedhead is just the same, his mind relaxed for a little, but this just makes him more worried when Laughing Coffin will show up, especially PoH.
Following the routine, he cooked up the breakfast, wrote notes down woke up Philia, and after that went out for questing and item gathering.
"Right! Level 50 it is. Let's see what we can get from there."
Kotose, are you sure that our target will go to Floor 50? This just makes our mission way harder."
Two figures sat in a dark room, only sunlight shining through the windows.
One of the figures leaned in and pointed at the map on the table. "Don't worry, he will definitely go outside of the safe zone. From there, you know the drill, Kotome."
Floor 50, Algade
Knowing that he has a bounty on his head by the Divine Dragon Alliance, Presto changed into the grey armour set he had in the past. As no one knows what he looks like, he can freely reveal his face without a mask or a hood. As he walked down the run-down, filthy streets of the second largest town in Aincrad, he came to a wooden door, and with a slight push, the door creates a huge cracking noise, as if longing for repairing.
"Welcome." a huge well-built, tanned man with a bald head appeared from the back of the store.
"Agil, anything worth selling today?" Presto asked as he closed the squeaky door behind him, and looked around at his wares.
"Not really without any trading, especially this early in the day." Agil yawned a little, "unless you for something for me."
"Well then, I'll see if I can find something to sell you after I go out for item gathering." Presto opened the door again, making the huge squeak again, "See ya." he left the shop and closed the door.
After a short while, a man in black overalls strode in the shop.
"Agil," Kirito asked, "anything worth selling today?"
"Oh, not you too." The shopkeeper sighed and rested his head on his hand.
"Argh, there is nothing good today for the quests." Presto said as he walked down the small winding path leading to a forest just outside of the town. "Item gathering it is."
He tapped a few buttons on his inventory and switched back to his white clothes. "Better."
"Hello, sir." A young voice suddenly appeared from the right.
As Presto looked to his right, finding a figure wearing a huge cloak and hood, covering the whole body, and other voice came from the left, "We want to ask you for a 1 on 2 duel." The figure on the left wore the exact same outfit.
"Sure, fine with me." Presto unsheathed his greatsword and stuck it in the ground, "I've got all the time today."
"One hit mode." the figure on the right proposed.
The duel invite was sent and Presto immediately got the message, the opponents call themselves Starry and Harp.
A huge clock appeared above the player's heads, and Presto took up his sword with one hand and posed an aggressive stance towards the left figure while looking at the right one two. Both figures didn't move at all, just stood there waiting.
As the timer goes down to 0, it evolves into a large text "Duel Start!". Presto ran the left figure, only for it to suddenly throw numerous of throwing knifes at once. Presto halted his offence. Slammed the sword into the ground, the flat side towards the figure, and hid behind the blade, deflecting the shower of throwing knives. Just as he looked towards to the right figure, it was already on his side, and within a second, she put on a pair of handcuffs on Presto's left hand, while locking the other side of the cuffs to her right.
"Now! Kotome!"
The figure who threw knives at Presto ran at the locked pair, held the other figure's left hand, and with a right hand holding a teleportation crystal, she immediately used it. Presto sheathed his sword just in time for the teleportation, and the three in a blink of an eye was teleported in front of a white and greyish building with an accent of marble and gold coated around the edges. The shape of the building, to Presto's surprise, bears a striking resemblance to the Vatican Catholic Headquarters, except for the palette.
"Halt! Who goes there!" The two guards just outside of the main gates rushed towards the three and pointed their polearms at them. "This is no place for you maggots to be around."
"We are here to turn in a bounty." one of the hooded figures removed her cloak and cape.
"The S Class criminal your guild put out." the other figure whose right hand is still chained up with Presto's left continued, and removed her cloak as well, then gave a paper to one of the guards.
As Presto stood up and looked at their faces, he found the faces of the two extremely familiar.
"Two Philias?" he asked himself. The two strikes an excellent resemblance to Philia. The one who used throwing knifes have slightly longer dandelion hair with her bangs down to her shoulders and has emerald green eyes, wearing a large green scarf, leather armor on the chest above a white tank and a pair of white short pants with green stripes on them. The other also have short blonde hair, but only to the neck, and curls outwards at the end. Her maroon red eyes matches the red decals on her white long sleeved shirt, and has metal armor on the shoulders and elbows, and her red dress goes down to her knees with a hint of yellow. The former is a tad taller the the one who was locked up with Presto.
The guards looked at the bounty notice and whispered at each other, then one of the guards ran back into the building, soon came back out signalled the other guard.
"Right, follow us." the guard put up his polearm and led the way, with the two bounty hunters trailing behind, dragging Presto with them into the building. As Presto opened up his map, he found out that they were not in the safe area, meaning anything can happen. Knowing that he is at a disadvantage, he started to think up of an escape plan.
Walking through hallways after hallways, the guard led them into a huge room with a large oak table. Around the table sits a number of men all wearing identical greyish blue armour.
"Welcome, I assume the man locked up is the bounty?" a rather thin man who sat at the end of the table asked.
"Yes," the one with the green scarf replied, "the bounty you put on his head for 30000 cols. Now where is the reward?"
With a hand signal from the man, guards on the side immediately grabbed Presto, as the one with red eyes unlocked the handcuffs. Presto was brought to a chair and forced to sit on it, facing the man directly. "Take the bounty hunters to… 'there'." The man issued the order. At once the remaining guards held the girls and dragged them away.
"Wait, our bounty? Where are you-" the voice was cut off as the door closed and only muffling could be heard.
"Erhm, sorry for all the fuss," the man turned back to Presto, "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Lind, the leader of Divine Dragons Alliance."
"And you put a bounty on my head just so you can keep me here to join your guild." Presto met his eyes with an unconcerned look. "I'll make it clear, I don't want to join in any guilds. They hold me back."
"It isn't a matter of do you want to or not." Lind replied, "You have the power to clear a boss single handedly, then you can help us clear this death game. It's your calling."
"My calling today is to find something valuable, get them to my trader, and go home, cook up the dinner. That's all."
Just as Presto tried to get up, the guards behind him pressed on his shoulders and forced him to sit again.
"You know, it would be a shame if you don't join the front lines and help out. It makes you nothing other than trash." Lind commented, "We have no use for trash, so might as well dump it." he looked at the guard on his right, "Do it."
The guard bears an orange cursor and holds a two-handed axe, fully armoured and his face cannot be seen. He nodded silently and started walking towards to the other side of the table. His armour clanking with the floor making him much more terrifying than it should.
His hands suddenly darted forward, grabbing Presto by his neck, trying to choke him. "So, any regrets?" Lind leans back in the chair.
"Yes, you will have regrets." Presto's leg gleamed blue, and with an upward kick to the soldier's head, his grasp released and Presto backflipped away with that kick, draws out his greatsword with one hand, and the sword scratches along the marble floor, making a screeching noise. "You think this is a street fight? I'll show you what's fighting if you dare send men after me."
As Presto exited the room, the guards all backed away forming a passage, after seeing the brute soldier knocked out cold. "That sword is abnormal even for a greatsword." a soldier whispered. "I know, it's even bigger than a man!" "And holding it with one hand, using it with one hand, you have got to be kidding me."
After the door automatically closes, Lind snapped out of his terror. "Gather all able high-level soldiers! We will chase after him now!"
Presto may be strong and all, but he is definitely directionally challenged as he went all the way down to the basement.
"For God's s sake, where am I now?" an agitated Presto murmured as he walked along the hollow corridors, hugging the left wall, trying to find his bearings.
"Psst." a small voice echoed through the hallway. "Are you the bounty we caught before?"
"Huh? Who are you?" he answered into the emptiness.
"Take a left turn when you encounter a T-split." the voice guided.
As Presto took the turn, he was met by the two girls who captured him. "Huh, I guess the DDA didn't want to pay you?" "Yes, and we are now locked here, listen to me, can you…" the girl in green started to talk, only for her to be cut off by the other.
"Wait, what happened to your cursor? It's orange," she questioned.
"I declined to join them so I fought. It will go away sooner or later. What do you want me to do again?"
"Please open this gate for us, bounty-"
With a quick slice, Presto's greatsword cut through the rusty iron bars with little effort, even before the girl finished her sentence. "Done, also, I have a name, and it's called Presto, not bounty."
"Call me Starry then," the girl in green introduced, "and this is Harp."
"Hi." Harp lazily waved her hand as she walked over the fallen bars.
"Don't mind her, she isn't interested in most things and people, you included." Starry giggled a little, following Harp out of the cell.
"That hurts my heart," Presto turned around, "Now can you lead the way? I'm lost."
Alright, just further ahead and we should be clear to use out teleportation crystals." Starry pointed forwards, leading the group up the rocky terrain.
"Wait." Presto immediately drew his sword and turned around, put his hood and mask on, while throwing a teleportation crystal at the two girls. "Use these to teleport to my home, someone should take care of you, tell her Presto sent you."
"Huh, what are you-"
"They have been tracking us! I'll hold them off!" Presto ordered. "Go!"
Just as Starry tried to ask more, she found out that the guild was following the three, armed to the teeth.
"Kotome, let's go," Starry said to the shorter girl, grasping the crystal in one hand, while holding the Harp's hand in another, running up the mountain.
"Lind! It's just me, I don't mind you put all the firepower towards me, just don't go after those two." Presto shouted down the slope as twisted the sword by the grip, sending the blade spinning horizontally.
"As you wish!" Lind shouted back, "Charge!"
The silver armoured army rushed up the slope with a deafening cry, weapons drawn and shield forward. Presto pointed the weapon's head in the front, as the metal triangle tip appeared from the slit between the white rectangle pieces.
"Kariryu! (1)" Presto whispered the sword skill's name, at once the metal blade tip grew a luminescent green, and the grip lengthened, pushing the blade forwards like a spear.
"What in the… Formation shields up!" one of the frontline soldiers yelled out, but it was too late, as the spear sped into the army, mowing down any soldiers in front of the blade, even with a shield. As the weapon retracted, what's left as a line of unconscious soldiers lying on the floor, with their health in the red zone.
"Kyoko. (2)" Presto's next order turned the weapon into a greatsword, as usual, the trapezoidal blades came out of the slits on the side.
"Keep- keep going, we have the number advantage!" the remaining soldiers charged once more.
"They don't learn do they?" Presto sighed. "Sensai. (3)" he grabbed the sword with one hand, and raised the weapon overhead, while the blades glow blue, and rushed in head to head with the advancing soldiers. One of the swords swooped in from the side, but the greatsword quickened and hit the soldier before he could hit him. Presto spun around and hit the one on his left, then suddenly changed the direction, hitting the same man horizontally, only with the other edge, and spun once again, slashing the man on his right laterally. He kept the movement and kept spinning while cutting those who came near him. Not long, the front lines were vanquished and left only a slight red health bar.
"He was not going all out when he was facing us." Harp looked back, "That's 1 on about 100 high-level frontline fighters, the elites."
"It's scary to think if he really went all out. Let's just escape." Starry activated the crystal, and the girls were enveloped in a blue light, then teleported out of the area.
"It's just me and you now, Lind." Presto pointed the sword at him. "Let's wrap this up."
"Pointing the sword at me again? That's got to be another spear strikes, I just need to move out of the way." Lind thought, "Easy enough."
"Here I come." Presto started running at him, and when Lind realized he was not going for the spear, Presto already was on his face.
With the left foot in front and the other behind, his torso faced the right, "Rinki. (4)" his whisper was loud enough to reach Lind, and seeing the blade glowing blue again, Lind held up his defence. Then Presto turned his torso all the way to the left, and his left hand left flailing, and the sword still in place. Surprised that the skill was slow, Lind let down a bit of his guard, then suddenly, his health went down in a flash, and the blade followed up, he looked at the sword, only to find it crossed his chest and went to the right, Presto lowered his body, and slashed the unbalanced guild leader from the bottom left to upper right with another side of the weapon, carving an X on his torso, and send him flying downwards the hill.
"No way…" Lind looked at the health bar, and just a shy red triangle rested on the left side. Presto then sheathed his sword and walked towards the top of the mountain.
"I will and never join a guild because I don't trust them, not because you are weak." Presto then activated his teleportation crystal.
Those who were still conscious watched as the swordsman walked to the top of the mountain. His face was masked, and their vision blurry made them forgot and cannot see what he was wearing. But they saw and clearly remembered the slashes he made were fast and deadly, he was using a sword skill with one hand, using a two-handed sword. His name was never known.
Footnotes
1. Kariryu: 狩龍, means "Hunting Dragon"
2. Kyoko: 狂虎, means "Wild Tiger"
3. Sensai: 千迴, means "Thousand Times (Spin)"
4. Rinki: 零斬, means "Zero Cuts"
