Author's note:
I screwed up the skills in th last chapter... oops. I corrected it.
PS. Bell will play a part in the next chapter, never fear.
Chapter 57: A slow descent
Kikuoka:
"…And there goes the final one." Kikuoka said to himself as the nurse took the newborn away.
"Honestly I'm shocked you got as many as you did," Higa replied from his computer desk nearby.
Higa was almost of an age with Kikuoka, but the scientist with spiky orange hair and slumped posture gave off the impression of being far younger.
"Ahh," Kikuoka replied affirmatively, but did not truly feel the sentiment. Of all the women that had been trapped in DOO, eight had turned out to be pregnant at the time. He had missed the first one and one of the others had died, the child unsavable.
Left with six, Kikuoka had finally gotten the last of them. "Does this one match the pattern of the other five?"
"Ah, yeah… I never would have believed this. A common soul pattern that all people are born with… It is incredible."
"But?" Kikuoka pressed.
"Well, call me crazy but this is the most ambitious project I've ever been a part of." Higa mused pointlessly. "I mean, this building that we are sitting in is still not even finished. This is a government project; it should be molasses and yet…"
"Do you have a point, Higa?" Kikuoka spoke sharply.
"Nah, not a one. It is just that… I sometimes get the feeling that you already know how the experiments will go. What the results will be and have the next step planned out."
"That's ridic—" Do I? Kikuoka held his head with one hand. It was another migraine. They were becoming less and less frequent. It had been other a week since his last one.
My name is Seijirou Kikuoka.
I am performing crucial duties in the government to figure out exactly what happened to the trapped victims and to rescue them.
This research will also benefit Japan's long-term security.
"Kikuoka…?"
"I am fine," he waved off Higa's concern. "Get ready, we will soon be able to take this plan to the next stage."
"Next stage, how?" Higa asked doubtfully. "No one has the ability to design a machine that can transmit information through a person's fluctlight. It has been hard enough to read and copy them. To actually influence them we would need a genius beyond me! We would need—"
"Kayaba Akihiko," Kikuoka finished, flashing Higa a sly smile. "Or well… someone who can replace him."
At just that moment, as if prescribed by fate, the thick metal door slid open with a hiss and a woman entered the room. "Welcome Dr. Koujiro Rinko, to project Alicization."
With massive bags under her eyes it was not even clear if she had heard. After the pause extended to an awkward degree, she eventually nodded. "Ah, thank you for this chance…"
"R-Rinko!" Higa exclaimed, "what are you doing here!"
"I arrived with Kayaba's body…" she spoke slowly, as if not fully present. Kikuoka had a good idea of the trauma that she had endured. He had a feeling, an inkling, or maybe some would call it a premonition that she would get over it. The challenge of taking Kayaba's work and improving it would be too much for her to resist.
And even if she cannot… I can make as many Kayaba clones as I want!
"Good luck, you two," Kikuoka smiled at them both. "You both know the problem, use as many resources as you wish. I have some buzzing bees that I need to smack into line."
Smiling broadly, Kikuoka left the room, his perfectly tailored suit gleaming in the low light.
Alise:
"How could you honestly expect us to fight against the monsters on this floor and suffer no casualties!? Why did none of you think about that before running off!?"
"B-But we found a monster that laid eggs!" Alise interjected, desperate to finish the lecture. She hadn't been lectured this badly in over a decade. Since the early days with Astraea when Alise made a ton of mistakes.
"…Monster eggs?" Lili asked suspiciously, the rant suspended.
"Yeah!" Alise whirled around. "They're super cool, and the Tyrant had them incubating in magic stones! They are right… Umm, who has them?"
Only silence responded to Alise as she looked desperately from person to person. Kaguya shook her head; Lyra raised her hands in defeat. The Loki girls shrugged. Only Lyu had the grace to look somewhat abashed. Kirito's head was still on the floor, but Alise knew he didn't have the eggs.
"…So not only did you forget to bring this supposed impossibility with you, but you also left causing us to spill all of our water and lose a large amount of our food!"
Alise winced again, rising to her feet. "T-That's alright, we can collect water from…" Wilting under the prum's gaze, Alise knew what she had to do. "Lyu, you're coming with me to the twenty-seventh for fresh water. Lyra, go grab the eggs, bring someone if you need. Kaguya, you lead the column and begin the march lower. We still plan on hitting the thirty-third today."
"Fine," Lyu sighed, pouting.
"Ah, whatever," Lyra growled, "you Loki girls are with me."
With that, the four of them darted back into the forest. Alise went over to the two empty barrels and began to build an artificial carrying strap for them. Lyu quickly came over and helped.
"Well, come on then," Kaguya said coolly. "If everyone is still in walking condition then let us get moving."
"My arm is slightly injured…" Ouka muttered, "I do not believe I can keep up with the expedition while carrying the cart."
"Good thing Kirito is here to help with that!" Slapping the boy on the back, Alise threw the empty barrel on her back. "Have fun everyone! Let's see if you can reach the thirty-third floor before we get back!"
Giving them one more wave, Alise headed out back towards the twenty-ninth floor before the scary prum could start yelling at her. Alise had yet to pass the back of the group when she found Lyu was at her side. A moment later, Alise stopped as she gaped at the monster.
"Fleshripper!? Why didn't I sense it?" Drawing her blade again, Alise prepared to cut down the dangerous level four monster. The long, curved claw on each foot shaped like a half-moon sickle could cut through armour and flesh with ease. Many a cocky adventurer had found themselves missing a limb or worse after running into one.
"Leave Kin alone!" The shy Hestia familia girl rushed in front the monster. Alise hesitated but did not sheathe her sword.
"Kin?"
"This girl is a monster tamer, Alise," Lyu spoke softly coming to a halt beside her. "Perhaps she has…"
"Exactly!" The pig-tailed girl huffed. "He is a bit touchy so I'm keeping him near the back."
"Well… I guess we're off!" Having nothing more to say, Alise hitched up the barrel on her back, gave the monster and her tamer one more dubious glance, and then continued past them.
"A level three…" Lyu mused once she was out of earshot. "Do you think she got help to tame it?"
"How should I know?" Alise fired back to Lyu's question.
Moving with the speed of first-tier adventurers, Alise was completely away from the party and the path to the twenty-ninth was in view. There was no fear that the two of them would run into trouble. Still, it was inconvenient to have to return to the twenty-seventh.
"Mr. Kirigaya is impressive, isn't he?" Lyu said suddenly.
Giving her a sly grin, Alise did what she does best, she teased Lyu. "Oh? Thinking of scooping up both of Hestia's boys?"
As she hoped, Lyu's ears went bright red, and she stumbled on the uneven ground. "Alise! I am in no way pursuing them in a romantic manner! Please leave the deluded fantasies to Kaguya and Neze…"
Neze… Alice's lips tightened at the name of one of their dead compatriots. They had gone nearly a decade without losing a single member. Alise had watched them all grow form young girls into fine young women. Now, so many of her family were dead…
"Ah, sorry…"
"No, don't be," Alise forced a smile. They broke out into the canopied light of the twenty-ninth. Another hour or so and they should be back on the twenty-eighth. "We need to learn to talk about them again. To silence them in the alcoves of our memory is the worst thing we can do."
"Ah… Do you see them, Alise?" Lyu whispered. Her voice was hoarse, on the verge of breaking. "Every night, in my dreams, their accusatory eyes stare at me. They blame me for being too weak to save them."
Alise averted her gaze from Gale's piercing eyes. Her normal answer of brushing it off or saying something brazen would not work in this case. "Yeah. Almost every night I remember our time together. The good, the bad."
"We used to joke about it…" Lyu's voice embodied the distant wind, "who would be the first one to die. After all, we are—"
"Adventurers," Alise finished the parable. The harsh truth of knowing that your life is limited. Even this trip into the dungeon did not come without risk. Any one of them could die, they all could.
Chuckling at her stupidity, Alise turned to Lyu, slowing their pace. "Do you think… that perhaps we're insane?"
"You are only realizing that now?" Lyu replied with an exasperated sigh.
"I'm only… Hold on! That's rude!"
"Oh, Alise…"
Before she could prepare herself, Alise found herself wrapped up in a tight hug that she could not escape from. Lyu's powerful arms would have crushed a person below level five.
"W-What's this…" But Alise stuttered as she tried to get the words out. A heat was building behind her eyes.
"They all died," Lyu's words were delivered in a frantic whisper, her words cut by building sobs. "Celty and Noin's scream haunt me as they burned to death. Neze, Iska, Maryuu, Asta, Ryana…"
"Lyu…"
"They all died in front of my eyes… and I never even considered quitting. I never for one moment thought that I would end up doing something else."
"Lyu!" Alise yelled, shaking the girl.
"Why… Why can't we save them all?" Lyu's quiet words were a punch in the gut. Alise had never seen a sight so beautiful and so cruel as the tears like diamonds in the corners of Lyu's azure eyes. "We are supposed to deliver justice, so why did we fail?"
"…Because the person who could have saved them all is a hero." Alise answered, heart breaking as matching tears began to smear her cheeks.
"And where are the heroes!?" Lyu demanded. "Why didn't they save them!?"
"…Because they all died in dragon fire. There are no heroes anymore. Only us."
As Lyu collapsed to the dungeon floor weeping, Alise grabbed her tight and joined in. Here, alone with the naïve elf, Alise could let her mask slip. It had taken weeks, but she finally wept for her dead familia members.
Shakti:
"You swear your report is genuine?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
Shakti rested her chin upon her folded hands, covered with first-tier gauntlets. It felt wrong to be taking charge here as she was no longer captain of the familia, but this went beyond familia roles.
To either side of Shakti, her sisters shifted, their matching blue hair symbolizing their shared parentage. Despite that, Ardee to her left was acting nothing like herself and her sister.
"She is a friend to Kirito and Hestia familia," Shakmi spoke up. "I believe that Argo can be trusted in this."
"You trust them so much?" Shakti asked. Her eyes flitted past the one that had given the report to the girl leaning against the doorframe, half asleep. She had curly blue hair the colour of the noonday sky. This woman with a beautiful face framed by glasses was one of the most recognizable people in Orario, Perseus. The commander of Hermes familia.
"I do. If not for them, there would be no Orario for you to return to."
Shakti did not let it show on her face, but she as well was convinced. The healer's report from Amid was authentic and was completely explained by Argo's story.
"How rare are these… guns? Should we consider them to be similar to first or second grade weapons? Perhaps magic swords would be the best comparison?"
"None of the above," Argo sighed. "Well, I guess I can't say that for sure, but they are making these from cheap metal imports from the mountains. They don't need rare dungeon metals or anything like that.
"In our world, guns were easy to mass produce and, in some places, widely available. It depends how much the person knows about their creation and how easy the process is to streamline."
"…It sounds like a fantasy story," Shakti could not restrain the shiver. Pieces of metal slung faster than sound itself by anyone at all. All from weapons that could be easily concealed and created.
"Not fantasy, a nightmare," Shakmi corrected her. Directing her next words to the Hermes familia envoy, she spoke bitingly, fear tinging each word. "How do people survive in your world? Any small grudge or innocuous act could become deadly. All violence could escalate to incredible levels."
"Yeah, well that can happen… but our country doesn't have guns for the most part." Argo explained.
"Ne, so what do we do about this?" Ardee asked, voiced conflicted. "It will be hard to contain this information and potential power. When it gets to the public every single adventurer and guard will want one!"
"…That may be our inevitable future," Shakti said, leaning back in her chair. "There may be a day not all too distant in our future when adventurers basically don't exist because all monsters can be killed by anyone."
"I only hope that you don't start shooting each other," Argo mumbled. Turning to the door, she waved, "Warn your people is all I'm saying, later."
"…I will talk to Ganesha," Shakti decided after a moment of thought. "Shakmi, you give the address. Decide how to best present it. Tell them that their own lives are more important than recovering one of the weapons."
"And me?" Ardee asked.
"Astraea familia is on their way to the deep floors. It is a rough journey but…"
"I'll go," Ardee smiled broadly. "It will be nice to talk with Lyu again."
Lyra:
"Oi, Blondie! Why did you forget the eggs?"
"Blond…ie?" Ais replied with that stupid expression of hers.
"Yes, you!" Lyra growled. Changing her path through the trees, Lyra ended up running right next the gorgeous human.
"Please do not blame Ais for that," Anikitty said severely, "we all forgot."
"Oh, is that right?" Lyra glared back at the two-level fours struggling to keep up. "And is that what you thought when you realized you lost two years of life because of this girl?"
"T-That's…"
"I am sorry… Aki…"
That voice like wind… Lyra hated how much sorrow was in it, how familiar it sounded. Growling, Lyra pushed away all the memories of her past and how much it reminded her of a certain naïve elf.
"Tsk, that's all we get from you, isn't it?" Lyra ranted pointlessly. "Sorry, sorry, sorry, but can you explain your actions!? Can you tell me why you disobeyed orders, broke formation, and got two-thirds of my familia burned to a crisp!? How you needed the Empress to bail you out and got her killed!?"
"…Sorry."
That word again… Lyra bit her lip until she tasted her own salty blood. "Damn our goddess, how can she still live in her deluded fantasy world!?"
"Umm, Ms. Lyra, I know you are rightly upset about losing your familia members, but I must admit I am confused. Ais is only a level five, how much trouble could she really have caused?"
"A level five," Lyra scoffed at Astrid's naïve question. "Do you want to answer that, Blondie?"
"Err… Sorry?"
Mouth twitching, Lyra kept her face forward so that no one would see her expression. "This level five of yours turned into a demon. Black wind tore into us and drove the monsters in a fury. The other dragons that had been circling charged at once. The King had been observant and wary up until then. When the black wind scored its matching scales, it unleashed every ounce of power at its disposal."
"But maybe without Ais you would not have gotten a chance to kill it!" Astrid continued to argue.
"The plan was a siege," Lyra sighed. "We had not only a bathtub worth of elixirs but the strongest mages in the world. We were willing to spend months wearing down its strength, killing it one day at a time."
"You weren't there, sis," Anikitty whispered, "The supporters and back-ups died by the hundreds. "We had gotten into position, the strategy was working, and then…"
"Sorry," Ais interjected again.
"Ahh, jeez!" Lyra complained, "you realize that I've heard you talk before, right!? We know that you can speak more words than that!"
"Enemies."
"Whoa, she actually-!" Cutting off the scathing criticism of her monosyllabic companion, Lyra's senses told her what Ais had already sensed. Drawing her knife, Lyra broke out of the foliage into where the nest had been.
The dead-end clearing now had a milling mix of mid-sized monsters, swarming and clawing at each other.
"W-What is happening?" Astrid asked, voice aghast.
"Magic stones… Eggs… The monsters are… Fighting for them?"
"Hey look, almost a coherent sentence," Lyra grunted. "Go in, Ais. Grab an egg and get out, I'll blow the rest of it sky high to prevent another enhanced species."
"Got it. You two, protect Lyra. Awaken tempest! Ariel!"
Faster than Lyra could dream of moving, Ais shot off into the mix. Even with her incredible power, she could not hope to cut down all of these monsters in any reasonable time period.
Ais clearly knew this and launched herself into the air, jumping off the shell of a Deathtail. Meanwhile, Lyra snapped her fingers, grabbing the cats' attention.
"You two, take these and toss them around the nest. Don't worry about them exploding."
""Got it!""
The nearly identical voices were kind of eerie, but Lyra could do nothing about that. Taking out more of her explosives, Lyra closed her eyes and allowed her skill to activate. They began to buzz in her hands, coming alive with energy.
Darting forward, Lyra did not wait for Ais to emerge. Starting the long fuse, Lyra tossed the spherical magic item into where the very center of the nest lay.
"Take this, creeps."
Smirking at them, Lyra turned her back on the nest and began strolling away from it, whistling. Hands on the back of her head, Lyra was confident that she would make a cutting figure against the explosion.
Sensing someone landing beside her, Lyra glanced over without turning her head. "Ah, you got one, Ais?"
The golden-haired warrior had landed with barely a sound, presenting the massive egg. "Yes. The last one that had not been bitten too. Are you planning on—"
BOOM!
With an earth-shattering explosion, the very air seemed to distort under the concussive blast of force and fire. Pieces of rock, magic stone, and monster shot past the two of them, the makeshift storm parted by Ais' magic.
"That good enough?"
"W-What…"
It was worth seeing the girl's stunned reaction to have cheated a bit. Then Lyra remembered the two catgirls. "Oh shoot, I didn't blow them up, did I?"
"You mean us?" An angry voice growled from the smoke.
Lyra took one look at the soot-covered girls, laughed, and began to run.
"LYRA!"
Kirito:
"And up…" Lifting the cart, Kirito consigned himself to his new role. Hefting the cart so it could move, Kirito expected it to be heavier. Instead, it was exceptionally well balanced so that the person only had to focus on dragging, not lifting. It did explain how Ouka was able to bring it down to the thirtieth floor by himself.
As Kaguya got them moving again, Kirito followed dutifully along. Almost immediately, Kirito felt the gazes on him. Oh yeah, my clothes are still ruined…
With both arms occupied with dragging the cart, Kirito could not stop them from folding back and revealing his front. Strea was walking only a few paces ahead of him, backwards, just so she could stare and nod.
"Strea…"
"…" The girl said nothing, only humming to herself.
"Watch for monsters, Strea."
"Fine!" Pouting, she turned around and began to observe their surroundings.
Ah, peace…
Kirito was not quite sure why he was intent on cursing himself. He really should have known better at this point. As soon as he observed something and was glad for something, it ended. Which meant that at any moment…
"Onii-chan…"
"O-Oh, Leafa. What's up?"
"My leg was hurt in the battle… Isn't that unfortunate?"
Looking down, Kirito easily found the bloody shin and recently closed wound. It wasn't horrible, but it had easily torn through her flesh and could have been far worse. "Oh, sorry about that."
"At least you seem to acknowledge that it is your fault."
No, that's not what I… Cutting of the train of thought, Kirito held in a heavy sigh. "Of course. What can I do to make it up to you?"
"A ride, of course!
Before Kirito could even wonder what she was going to do, Leafa jumped up and landed on the right handle. Gritting his teeth against the sudden increase in weight, Kirito turned a baleful stare at his sister who smiled angelically.
"Well, if this is what it takes…" Kirito continued his journey as pack mule without complaint. At that moment, a ripple went through the expedition group. Like a drop of blood in a pool full of sharks, the very air became frenzied with energy.
"Urgh…" Silica pouted at them, but as she was already riding her new monster, Kin, she had no grounds to ask for a ride. She also had to pay extreme attention to the monster as it was prone to snap at people that walked too close. Its mannerisms were very different from Pina.
"Hey… Papa…"
"Yui?" Kirito asked, lowering his gaze to his short daughter. She was walking just off the left side of the cart, hands on her heart staring up at Kirito with large, pouting eyes.
"Can I ride on your shoulders?"
"My shoulders? What about Kin? I'm sure Silica will give you a ride on her new dinosaur pal!"
"Kin is scary…"
"Urgh…" Kirito was helpless before those large eyes. Resistance crumbling like wet paper, he nodded his head. "Yeah, sure…"
"Uh hmm, before that!" Liz spoke confidently. Kirito felt the cart shake as a force landed on it. Dropping it and turning around, Kirito gave the blacksmith an exasperated sigh.
"Liz, the cart is for the goods…"
"And for your tailor," Liz flicked Kirito on the nose as she talked. She flashed the metal in her left hand, brandishing it with a flourish. Give me your shirt and jacket, I'll patch the tear while we walk."
Kirito glanced around at the people who were awkwardly slowing down but not wanting to stop as Kaguya walked on confidently.
"Ah, whatever!" Not wanting to get into more trouble, Kirito ripped off the garments, and shoved them at Lisbeth. Knowing he wouldn't be given anything to wear, he went down to one knee for Yui to get on.
"Yipee!"
Grunting from the impact of Yui landing on him, Kirito stood up once his daughter was settled on his shoulders. Assuming his position once again, Kirito hefted the now obviously heavier cart and hurried to catch up to Kaguya.
"Ohh, yes, we have to get one of these for the familia!" Lisbeth laughed. "We can get Kirito to cart us around the city when we go shopping!"
"Oh, yes," Leafa agreed, "Onii-chan makes a wonderful porter."
"Urgh…" Leafa stroked his arm while Liz poked him in the back. Putting up with the treatment, Kirito was not sure if he should feel honored that they liked him enough to poke fun at him or curl up with embarrassment from everyone that was staring at them.
Desperate for a way to distract them, Kirito flexed his left hip where he had hung Liz's sword. "It worked well. Took a heavy hit without breaking."
"What?" Leafa asked, looking at him in confusion.
Lisbeth snapped her fingers behind him as if in realization. "Oh, my sword! That's wonderful!"
"Yes!" Kirito jumped on the thread. "How did you know that my magic would interact in that manner with it?"
"Hehehe, I didn't."
"Ehh?" Kirito would have frozen if the inertia of the cart hadn't kept him stumbling forward. "W-What do you mean!? I trusted my life to that!"
"You should have tested it in safer situations then!" Liz's scathing criticism came.
If Kirito had not known her, he would have winced from the uncaring words. However, underneath her bravado, he could tell that she felt horrible. Kirito was unable to reach back and comfort her, but Liz's hand was suddenly pressed against his back.
The contact lasted for a wondaful, warm five seconds. Within it the apology and forgiveness was contained.
Guard down in the peaceful seconds following, Kirito was not prepared for the sudden stroking sensation of Leafa's finger down his arm.
"O-Oh, do that again, Leafa! When you stroked his arm, his back muscles twitched. It was awesome."
"Okay!"
Desperate to stop the game before it could go too far, Kirito spoke up. "Shouldn't we be quiet? We don't want to attract monsters!"
It worked. In so far that the talking turned to looks among themselves and giggles.
Closing his eyes, Kirito sensed someone approaching the cart. He thought nothing of it though until the cart shook from a force landing on the left handle.
"What the…" Gaping, Kirito stared at Philia who smiled up to him.
"I got hurt fighting the monsters."
"…I am sorry to hear that." Kirito replied with a sigh. His arms and shoulders were now strained from lifting the entire weight of Philia and Leafa, carrying Yui on his shoulders and dragging a cart with Lisbeth on it.
Subjected to the gazes and laughter of the rest of the expedition, Kirito waited nervously for Lyra's return and her inevitable laughter at his fate.
Sachi:
"Grr…"
"Just go over there," Mikoto sighed.
"How can I?" Sachi replied, pouting. "All of the obvious spots are taken already."
"I feel kind of bad for you…"
"Oh, not you too, Haruhime!" Sachi whined. "At least the boy I like sees me as a woman!"
"Ahh, like? I-I would not use that word. I just want to serve Bell in the best way that I can…"
Maybe it was the difference in the world they were raised in, but Sachi simply could not understand Haruhime and her insistence. She initially assumed it was a cover for her shyness. Now, Sachi was convinced that Haruhime actually believed that she was sullied from her time in the brothels and unable to be Bell's companion.
"At least neither of your men see you as a daughter…" Mikoto added gruffly.
Shooting the Shinobi a commissary smile, Sachi squeezed her arm. "I know you can't force it but—"
"No!" Mikoto replied automatically.
"Fine fine…"
"W-What is this?" Haruhime inquired.
Sachi checked that they were out of hearing range before answering. "I want Mikoto to join the harem with me."
"Eh, why?"
"My point exactly," Mikoto grumbled.
"Because I don't want to lose her," Sachi explained. "If she gives up on her immortal god and falls for Kirito then she'll stay in the familia with us!"
"Ah, that's right… You will rejoin Take's familia when the year is up."
"He is my goal, my saviour… I can't give up on that." Mikoto's eyes flicked to the rear where Lili and Bell were walking. "And besides, if I had to choose one, it would be Bell."
"EHHH!?" Haruhime's shriek drew enough gazes that Mikoto flushed bright red. Evading the curious glances, they walked in silence for a moment.
Put under pressure from Sachi's and Haruhime's insistent eyes, Mikoto explained herself. "I mean, he is from this world. You all want to return from where you are from. I can't go to that world with you…"
"Oh, right…" Sachi was momentarily shocked. Not by Mikoto's words, but that she had forgotten that. Forgotten what awaited them in the bottom of the dungeon. A path back to the old world.
A world of school, skyscrapers, and an eternal pursuit of money. The world of her fears… In less than a year, Sachi had fallen in love, learned how to fight, killed. She was completely different from the girl that had naively put that NerveGear on.
"Do you guys have to go back?"
Haruhime's question was either incredibly naïve or rhetorical. "Yes." Sachi answered. "We need to return."
A world of monogamy… A world where her relationship would never be accepted. For some reason, it took until now for Sachi to understand exactly how precious every second of her time here was. The other girls had all clearly figured that out.
"Sorry, I'm going to talk with Kirito and the others for awhile…" Before walking away, Sachi gave her two friends a hard look. "And I would recommend that the two of you stop wasting time."
Kaguya:
"This is where we are stopping." Still leading the expedition, Kaguya struggled to suppress her reactions of disappointment as she watched the group begin to set up camp. It was already the fourth night and they still struggled. She had to admit that Alise's estimation of how far they could travel in a day was spot-on.
Most of them looked ready to collapse as they struggled in the dark jungle to clear the land and break the stony wall to prevent monster spawns from interrupting their night.
"I thought you'd be happier, you got to lead the group for an entire day."
Glaring at her prum fmailia member, Kaguya sniffed dismissively. "That's the kind of drivel I would have expected from our naïve elf, not you. More importantly… Why is blondie following you?"
"Huh? Why wouldn't she be? I mean, that was the idea, wasn't it?"
"Don't give me that," Kaguya replied harshly. "You know exactly what our goddess is planning. Unless… You're on board with it!?"
Lyra at least had the decency to look embarrassed. "It is the fourth night. When Lyu and Alise get back, I think we should all talk."
Gnashing her teeth, Kaguya had no reply for the prum. There would be time for angry words later.
"Umm, do you want help, setting up your tent?"
"Yeah, sure. I'll guide you through it." Lyra answered.
Kaguya had to forcefully hold herself back from reacting to the girls acting like friends. They had all made mistakes in the past. Every single one of them ended up in Astraea's familia after a hard life growing up. Kaguya's own life had been a miserable existence under she stumbled in Astraea's arms.
"But she doesn't deserve forgiveness…" Kaguya mumbled. Growing restless, Kaguya decided to make a wall. This night would be very different from the previous ones. Monsters would attack through the night most likely, and the Bloodsuckers were want to keep most of the lower-level adventurers awake.
With two harsh slashes from her katana, two nearby trees collapsed sideways, almost on top of each other. Moving on, Kaguya downed another half dozen trees. With the massive canopy and the number of vines that came crashing down with them, even that small number created a nearly chest-high barrier across a decent portion. Kaguya left a hole where the cart could still pass and sheathed her blade.
It was far from being enough to relieve the discontent in her chest. "And where is Alise!?"
"Here we are!" Jumping over the barrier she spread her arms. "Tada! Two barrels of water refilled!"
"Alise…" Kaguya said the name almost reverently. "You were slow getting back. Did many monsters attack you?"
"Monsters…? Not per se… I see the camp is getting set-up, that's good!"
"Obviously."
"Oh, and Ais is helping Lyra, good. We should talk to her."
Kaguya's eyes briefly widened in surprise, whirling to find Lyu. "You as well!?"
She looked embarrassed but nodded.
Having lost her last pillar of support, Kaguya turned away from her familia members. "I need to remind everyone that even with the water, there is to be no showering."
Moving on to do that, Kaguya got everyone's attention with a sharp strike of her two short swords against each other.
"Remember, every drop of water is precious. No baths, no rinsing dishes, no washing hands. Got it?"
A tentative hand went up. It was the water fairy from Loki familia. One of Kirito's hangers-on. "Yes?"
"I-I kind of forgot before, but I can create water with my magic… So do you think it is okay if we use some to do those things?"
Kaguya did not react outwardly to the words. Reaching down, she picked up one of the fruits that they had picked and put in a pile on a blanket. The plan was to slice them up, cook them a bit and mix them with the dried rations.
Bouncing one in her hand, Kaguya suddenly threw the soft fruit into Asuna's face. It landed with a satisfying splatter. "Mention that earlier you fool girl!"
"S-Sorry!"
Growling, Kaguya stalked away from them back to where their separate tent had just finished being erected. As soon as she got there however, Kaguya remembered her previous anger at her own familia's betrayal.
"You are still here, blondie?"
"Sorry?"
Growling at the girl, Kaguya had no choice but to give up. Slumping she collapsed into the tent. "Whatever. We will talk I guess."
Strea:
"Hiyah!" Flexing her muscles, Strea brought her massive blade down upon the injured monster. It was little more than a skeleton that could move of its own accord. A Spartoi, the first-tier girls called them.
Having successfully cut off the head, Strea pouted and looked at her blade. It had not well at all. The bone had felt more like metal. Her hands stung from the shock of striking it.
From the main fight, the first-tiers were shouting at each other.
"Hey, I want the kill!"
"Then fight like you mean it!"
Strea looked on in awe at the fight. She wanted desperately to be there. Kirito had been invited to join. Asuna was there. Strea, however was walking along the wall, killing off injured monsters that the elven magic did not deal the final blow to.
In the middle of the massive chamber loomed a massive skeletal monster. It roared and swung with its boney hands at the adventurers that jumped around it. The terrifying part was not its raw strength or size but the monster's ability. From beneath the ground, it created massive person-sized spikes the width of her fist.
In a thirty-meter radius around the monster rex was already filled with those spikes and other Spartoi. Running out of things to do, Strea crossed her arms and watched.
Blurs shifted and moved. Strea's senses were unable to keep up with the precise movements as they fought. Shouted words were drowned out by clashes of weapons against the bleach-white bone substance.
"We're ready!" The elf Lefiya called out.
"You got it! Fall back!" Alise ordered the main group of five. When they disengaged, three voices rang out in tandem.
"Gigas Cedar!"
"Vannforlenglse!"
"Fusillade Fallarica!"!"
The two wide range spells from the elves destroyed the field of spears and most of the Spartoi that had spawned from the floor. Neither did much to the floor boss Udaeus who covered his body with an arm.
All that did though was blind the floor boss to Kirito's spear of darkness. It crossed the intervening distance like an arrow. With a sharp crack it slammed into Udaeus' spine where it connected to the ground.
Letting out a confused and angry yell, the floor boss began to topple forward. With no way to hold itself upright, Udaeus threw down its right arm to stop it from falling prone while its spine healed.
In an instant, the adventurers were on it. The sword princess stabbed at its right wrist, bringing Udaeus unto its elbow. Following on her footsteps, Kaguya spiced perfectly through the elbow magic stone. Ever since that night on the thirty-third floor where they had holed up for hours, the five seemed much closer than before.
Udaeus had no time to lower its left arm and fell practically on its face. It was a position that left the boss exposed from attacks from all directions.
Unwilling to simply die, Udaeus slammed its left hand into the ground. The rock in a massive circle cracked and broke as a forest of spikes rose from the ground, trying to push the adventurers back.
"Oh, no you don't!"
"Luminous Wind!"
With a deafening explosion, Lyu's magic and Lyra's explosives crashed into both sides of Udaeus. The spikes disintegrated as they rose, the special move no protection from the onslaught.
Before the tremors even died down, Alise was in the air. Her jump propelled to incredible heights by the fire enchantment coating her legs and sword.
"Die!" The cry contained more joy than anger or determination. That did not reduce from the incredible technique that she showed as Alise descended towards Udaeus' head, burning sword shining brightly in the dim light of the White Palace.
Whoosh!
With a massive rush of flame, Alise's blade cut straight through the floor boss' head, severing it in two. Udaeus flailed momentarily, trying to recover. Not even it though could survive with no head. Eventually, its motions slowed, and the bone began to crumble to ash, leaving only its central massive magic stone as a drop.
"They're so good, aren't they, sister?"
"Yes, they are nee-chan." Strea nodded to Yui's words. "I honestly don't know how to feel about this whole expedition…"
"Because you can't contribute to the fights and stability of the group in the way you thought you could?"
"Huh? I don't know what you are trying to say," Strea pouted at her older sister's complicated speech pattern. "I get no time to seduce Kirito! I also have nothing to do!"
"Oh sister," Yui laughed helplessly. "Isn't it enough to just see these wonderful vistas? The dungeon floors are untapped paradises of death and beauty. Already we have been to depths that only very few people have seen."
"…Maybe it should be," Strea whispered feeling oddly serious. Looking at Kirito getting congratulated and teased by the one's that had been in the fight, Strea could not contain her words. "But I want to be in that group. I want to be able to protect Kirito with my power."
"You will be," Yui assured her, resting a hand on the small of Strea's back. "Let's meet up with the others and move on."
Doing just that, Strea made sure that her ever-present smile was back in place before the others could see her. Nonetheless, she could not force herself into the conversation.
There were numerous celebrations and outpourings of emotions. Even the stoic Ouka and loner Nautilus broke in with exclamations about the fight. The power, the majesty, the strategy. Every little thing had gone pretty much according to plan.
In mere minutes, the large magic stone was strapped to the cart, and they were moving toward the back of the massive chamber where the entrance to the thirty-eighth floor lay.
The Treasury they called it. It was a floor with low monster density and was essentially an addition to the thirty-seventh. Apparently, it was a place that often contained high-quality ores and other valuable items. It was often seen as a reward following the long march through the thirty-seventh. Well, a reward mixed with the occasional trap.
Already, the day was wearing on and they had started the day on the thirty-sixth floor just outside the staircase down. Navigating the five walls had taken close to twelve hours. They still had another two or so before they would reach the safety point on the Thirty-ninth.
And that's as far as I go…
That was likely another reason that Strea was feeling restless. After today, she would be stranded on the Thirty-ninth while Kirito and the others descended to the forty-ninth.
These problems circled through her mind as they approached the thirty-eighth floor. It was very similar to the White Palace but shorter. It felt like the basement of a massive building with its straight corridors and artificial feel.
With Udaeus as king of his palace, calling it a treasury did make a lot of sense. Unfortunately, the layout did not make sense from a human design point of view. The whole floor was a confusing mixture of turns and dead ends. Thankfully, their escort of first-tier adventurers either had a map or the path memorized.
By the third turn Strea knew that she would never memorize the floor regardless of how many years she spent traversing it.
"Treasure…"
"Hmm?" Turning around, Strea found Philia drooling and walking slowly towards a small juncture that they had passed. Strea had seen something like it only a few days ago when a siren had surprised them on the twenty-seventh floor.
Nautilus and Yuna had failed to cover their ears in time. That led to the Miach members to enter what Liz had referred to as 'Zombie mode'.
Going to shake Philia out of it, Strea was halfway to her when Philia sent a sudden glare at Strea. "No, it is my treasure!"
"Huh?"
Strea paused and Philia took off down the junction.
"Philia!" Yelling out the girl's name finally got the attention of the rest of the expedition. They were too tired to have noticed.
Darting after the girl, Strea finally saw what had gotten the girl's attention. At the end of the hallway was a chrysalis of dark crystal. It had the colour of obsidian but was not fully opaque.
These were the last treat that the dungeon provided. A so-called 'Treasure chest'. Rather than relying solely on monster drops, this floor of the dungeon had these flowers made of expensive crystal and often contained a 'core' that was sometimes ore, sometimes spheres filled with a liquid with magical properties of some kind.
The first-class adventurers had told them that they would never see one. Only as she chased after Philia did Strea realize that the first-class adventurers were operating on outdated information.
They were from a world where this floor was traversed every day. Adventurers picked the main paths clean just by passing through. That was no longer true. They were the first people to step unto this floor in almost two years.
"Treasure…" Philia repeated, stumbling toward it.
"Idiots!" Lyra's harsh voice rang out, echoing loudly throw the narrow hall. "It's trapped!"
"Philia!" Gasping, Strea dove for the entranced woman. Unfortunately, she was too slow, only catching up to Phila when she had already stroked the chrysalis.
"Get off me! I want my treasure!"
"Calm down!" Strea shouted trying to leverage her greater strength to heave Philia away. The smaller girl was practically rabid, struggling and straining against Strea. The tussle lasted barely a second as the crystal began to glow with a magenta light.
Freezing in fear, Strea was only half-surprised when the floor opened beneath them.
Air rushed around them for one second, two, and most of a third before they crashed hard into the floor beneath them.
"Ow."
"Ohhh!"
Strea frowned angrily at Philia. That wasn't the correct sound. "It is ow! From the pain you caused us at sending us tumbling down into this chamber."
"Oh, shush," Philia shut her down without even a glance. "Look at this… Treasure!"
Only when Philia held it up did Strea realize that she had missed the sound of the crystal crashing around them. From the wreckage Philia held up the core. It was a smooth black sphere but as Philia shifted it, the interior seem to move.
"So it really is filled with liquid…" Philia wondered aloud.
"Yeah, but what does it do?" Strea quizzed her.
"How should I know? But it is treasure! This is way better than getting drop items or ore from walls! When I get strong enough I will spend all my time here! I will-!"
A rattling sound cut off Philia's words. From the darkness, a man-sized shape emerged.
"Spartoi…" Strea breathed the word with awe. Even as she brought her blade to bear, she knew that it was a futile gesture. Neither she nor Philia were strong enough to take on these monsters.
"Block it once and I'll break its sword!"
"Okay!" Accepting Philia's request to sacrifice herself, Strea rushed forward and swung. As she had expected, the level four monster easily countered her attack. She could not even achieve a lock with the monster. It merely pushed her off balance and swiped with its sword.
Feeling the cold bone of the sword cut through her torso, Strea fell to the ground. Was it enough?
"Hiyah!" Philia used all of her speed to attack the Spartoi. The monster reacted as one would expect, it blocked the attack. Unlike Strea's futile attack, there was a grinding noise. Then, with a loud crack like bone breaking, the sword was destroyed.
Philia rushed through the gap created and swiped backwards, trying to behead the boney monster. Her blade found only air as the monster dodged backwards. It fought like an adventurer. Maybe even better, it did not seem to mourn its broken weapon at all.
With a swift backhand, it sent Philia flying. Strea could no longer see her, but the sharp crack of bone on rock did nothing to assuage Strea's fears.
"No way am I dying without pulling Kirito into a bed…" Mumbling a somewhat questionable line, Strea put her hand on the ground, seeking to push herself up. With her skill beginning to activate, she at least had chances to defeat the weaponless monster.
"Huh?" Her fingers closed on the sphere that Philia had found. Strea froze in that moment, unable to make a decision. That moment cost her as the Spartoi noted her movement and lunged at her with its fist.
Caught in the face by the blow, Strea's vision went black for a moment as her body shot backwards. "Gargh!" Crashing hard into the wall, Strea belatedly realized that she no longer had her weapon. She had abandoned it when picking up the sphere.
No longer having a choice, Strea held it above her mouth and crushed the glassy surface in her grip.
Mouth open, she lapped up the liquid as it dribbled unto her tongue. It had a disgusting, rotting taste to it. The viscous liquid stuck to her tongue and teeth, clotting her senses. Mouth recoiling in disgust, it took every bit of mental effort Strea possessed to swallow and not spit.
"AHHH!" Screaming from the sudden pain in her stomach, Strea lurched to the side, retching. The Spartoi was completely forgotten as she wished for death as an escape from the torture.
Her whole body started to become consumed by a fiery pain, every nerve spasming as her body convulsed. From a distant place, she could hear the collision of metal on bone, but Strea could not focus on it, could not escape from the body-wrenching pain.
As the tears and sobs began to be ripped from her body, it ended. The heat was not gone, but the pain was. Eyes snapping open, Strea suddenly saw deeper through the prevalent darkness. She could see Philia getting pushed back by the weaponless monster.
Silently, Strea kicked off the ground. Neither combatant saw her. Before the Spartoi could strike the cornered Philia, Strea's hand darted forward, faster than ever before. Seizing the magic stone in the center of its body, Strea ripped it free.
Just like that it was over. The unkillable monster was dissolving into ash at her feet.
"S-Strea!?" Philia gasped. "How? Your guts were ripped open! You should have been knocked unconscious!"
"Ahaha, I think that—" The power fled. Pain and numbness crashing back in on her, Strea collapsed to the ground, eyelids fluttering.
"Strea! Strea! No, you can't die… This is all my fault! I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"
Boom!
Shards of rock and dust fell on them from above. Laying on her back, Strea got a view of the figure dressed in black crashing down from above. Then he was there.
"Kirito…"
"Strea! Are you alright!? Here, have a potion."
"Thanks…" She did enjoy getting Kirito to feed her. It was a pleasant experience, although the pain was detracting from the experience. She also would have liked a bed rather than hard stone.
"She saved me… Strea somehow killed a Spartoi… We should be dead."
Strea hated seeing the fear and sorrow that crossed Kirito's face. Reaching up, Strea stroked his face. "Don't worry, I won't die until I get to fully enjoy you."
Kirito, to his credit, did not blush, only let out a low chuckle. "You know that only gives me more motivation to deny you, right?"
Gaping, Strea realized her mistake. Opening her mouth, she howled again. Not from pain, but from opportunities lost.
Philia:
"We made it…" Emerging out unto the third safety point in the dungeon, Philia felt a weight lift from her shoulders. They had all made it despite her mistakes. Strea had gotten a free ride the rest of the way in Kirito's arms.
Philia, meanwhile, had gotten a deadpanned stare from Rain and a lecture from Astraea familia about wandering into obvious traps.
Yet the true object of Philia's mind was that inky black sphere. After hearing the account from Strea, Philia had no doubt that whatever property it contained had saved the two of them. On the other hand, Philia wished that they still had it. There had been something mysterious, something powerful about it…
"So how is our famed, treasure hunter, doing?"
Philia flinched and smiled weakly at Kaguya's biting words. The far eastern girl was clearly the one that Alise had chosen as the adjudicator of punishment.
"Hurting," Philia said honestly. Her injuries had not warranted either healing magic or potions according to Kaguya.
"And what have we learnt?"
Philia bit her lip and looked away. "If Strea hadn't grabbed me I could have gotten out."
"She saved your life."
"I know and I feel horrible about it…" Mustering her courage, Philia looked up at the taller woman. "Be careful down there. The dungeon is not the one you remember."
Kaguya paused but eventually gave a grudging nod. "I am surprised you noticed. The deep floors always had a wild, unexplored feel to them. That feeling is amplified to levels I have never felt before…"
"Isn't this deep enough?" Philia pled, feeling desperate for some reason. "Can't we end it here?"
Kaguya paused for only the briefest instant. "No. We need to scout it out with our mobile group before a fifty-man Loki group pushes for the crucible."
"Crucible?"
"It isn't important. Help set up camp and then find Lyu, she's been dying to heal you this whole time."
Philia could not even thank Kaguya before she was gone. Philia was going to join the others when another visitor approached her.
Getting grabbed from behind in a hug, Philia leaned back into Kirito's touch. "I almost got Strea killed, I'm sorry."
The whispered words felt insufficient. Kirito loved Strea and Philia's mistake was essentially unforgivable.
"I love you too."
"S-Stop reading my mind," Philia protested blushing.
"Hmm, well I don't blame you, okay? Go heal and relax. We all make mistakes."
Mistakes. The problem was, Philia still did not fully believe it was a mistake. That treasure had been special. She wished she could have used Astral eyes on it.
When Kirito tried to walk away, Philia grabbed at his wrist, turning to face him. "When are you going to do something about your relationships?"
"Huh? Where is this coming from?"
"What Strea said, my own feelings…" Philia felt small sparks of anger swirling. Things had been stalled between them all for months now. If anything, things had skidded backwards when Kirito had struck down Ishtar.
"We are taking it one day at a time," Kirito said patiently, the practiced answer rolling easily from his tongue. "I just want to enjoy the time—"
"So do I!" Philia insisted, cutting him off. "You have so many people who want your attention, your love… I don't resent that, I just want to truly be able to be with you when it is my turn!"
"Philia…"
"You could die down there," she pressed. "Today made that abundantly clear to me. You will face monsters beyond your strength that you will have to hide from.
"Please, in this brutal, unforgiving world… don't take any more time from me… from any of us…"
Those black orbs of eyes that Kirito has swam with emotion. The sometimes hard reflective shell had been shattered by her words. In his eyes, she saw his understanding, his mutual desire. Restraining it however were the shackles of fear. Maybe self-disgust.
Philia understood in that moment. "You still don't fully believe in it, do you? You still can't believe that what we have in genuine."
Her whispered words hit Kirito hard. His face morphed into one of pain. "I thought I did… I honestly thought that it was right…"
"This is Ishtar's fault," Philia guessed.
"Partly," Kirito agreed. "But when I saw Freya the other week, I could no longer repress the doubt."
Philia waited patiently for the explanation. This was not the time or place for this conversation. Despite that, there was no going back now.
"She has an otherworldly beauty that captures the soul… Those emotions I get when I look at you guys threatened to fill me. And yet… she stared so lifelessly at her followers. She has her own harem, but they are toys to her. Followers who are around to entertain her.
"Is that… Is that what I will turn into? A womanizer who only uses the people who care for him?"
"You," Philia smiled up at him, "are not a goddess of beauty. Besides, we have you so tightly wrapped around our fingers you'll never escape."
"Thanks Philia."
Her reward was a short kiss. Then, Kirito's eyes hardened again. "Do take better care of yourself and my other girlfriends. I'll be extremely upset if I return, and something has happened."
"You got it, Captain." Stealing another kiss, Philia moved off to begin setting up the camp for a long stay on the thirty-ninth.