October 3rd, 2023

September had been a slow month for the clearing group. The frontline had been on the Thirty-Fifth Floor at the beginning; now, just at the start of October, they'd only gained two floors since.

Kirito couldn't bring himself to begrudge the slow progress, though. The slow going—due for once to the maze-like nature of the floors in question, rather than mob strength—had given him some much-needed time to pull himself back together after the fiasco that had opened September. The mobs and Floor Bosses had been relatively easy, posing little threat to the strong players who formed the core of the clearers.

The Thirty-Seventh Floor, from the look of it, wasn't going to be so confusing. Kirito wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing; it looked peaceful—after the defeat of the previous floor's boss, he'd emerged onto this one in a quiet forest—but looks, especially in SAO, could be deceiving.

Especially when Argo the Rat requested a personal meeting, in a very out of the way place, before even the first edition of her next floor guide could possibly be ready.

Following her instructions, Kirito and Kizmel had made their way to the forest village Ilden, a hamlet near the southern edge of the floor. There was no proper road there, only what looked like a game trail; from what Kirito could tell, no other players had yet discovered the place. Possibly, he thought ruefully, even other clearers had decided a game trail should wait until they'd gained a few levels on the new floor.

Considering the strength of the predators haunting the trail, he didn't blame them. He and Kizmel were strong enough to fight off the Sabertooth Jaguars lurking in the trees, but only because of the intensive training they'd done since the tragedy on the Twenty-Eighth Floor. He was pretty sure even he would've been killed in short order, if he'd been solo.

"Argo is certainly in a mysterious mood," Kizmel commented, when they finally emerged into Ilden proper. "Why would she want to meet in a place like this? And how did she get here, alone?"

"If there's one thing she's good at, it's hiding," Kirito reminded her. Still, he was uneasy, too. "Still risky for her, I'll admit… Think that's the place she was talking about?" he added, pointing toward a small, cozy-looking inn not far into the village.

"Likely enough. I suppose we need not speculate any longer, then."

As expected, the Rat herself was sitting at a table in the farthest corner of the inn's dining room, sipping distractedly at a large mug of something while checking her menu. When she saw the duo enter, she flipped back her hood, grinned, and waved them over.

"You know," Kirito said by way of greeting, sliding into a chair across from her, "isn't the back corner kind of overkill, Argo? I don't think there's any other players within a kilometer of the village, let alone in the building." Inside a building no one's cursor would appear, but to his experienced eye the other inn patrons were all NPCs, going through the motions of life without quite feeling "genuine".

Kizmel, he noticed absently, was also looking over the NPCs as she sat, an oddly thoughtful look on her face. If anything was bothering her, though, she made no comment about it then.

"That any way to say hello, Kii-bou?" Argo asked him, shaking her head. "Ah, never mind. Let's say I wanna be really careful… especially these days. Ever since… Well, you know."

"Yeah." So far, no one else had tried to pawn off false information on Argo, but Joe had successfully evaded pursuit and had not been seen since most of the Moonlit Black Cats had been murdered. Worse, Kirito had heard of other monster PKs since, suggesting that Joe—or whoever put him up to it; he still suspected Morte of continued involvement—hadn't given up.

"Have you had any word from Fuurinkazan?" Kizmel asked, before the silence could get too gloomy. "Kirito and I have been busy lately, so we've not had a chance to check in on them in weeks."

Kirito winced. That was true enough, but there was more to it than that. They'd never discussed it since that night, but both of them still felt guilty over what had happened; he suspected his partner was just as uncomfortable around Sachi now as he was.

"They're doin' fine, at least as of yesterday," Argo assured them, waving her mug. "Klein's careful—and he and his guys are stronger than the Black Cats ever were. Last I heard Sacchin was getting back to being a forward—that sword she got for an LA Bonus is really helping her out."

Goblin-Cleaver, that was. Sachi had acquired the sword from striking the final blow on The Commandant, and from what Kirito had heard since its potential stats when fully-upgraded would've made him green with envy if it had been acquired under better circumstances.

"I'm glad she's still able to fight," Kizmel said quietly, eyes shadowed. "I know what she said after the battle, but I was still worried…"

"That makes three of us. But it looks like she really does have some real steel in that spine." Argo took a gulp from her mug, set it aside, and leaned her elbows on the table. "Anyway. That was part of what I was gonna talk to you about, but there's more. Business is business, after all. You guys want the first edition of the new guide?"

Kirito blinked. "Already? Even for you, that's fast, Argo." It was one thing below the Tenth Floor, when what she'd been doing was updating information she already had from the beta; her guides had tended to come out much more slowly since.

"Been working overtime on this one, Kii-bou," she told him, looking unusually serious. "Stumbled on something early on that got my whiskers twitching, so I hustled. Usual price, though, despite the rush job."

Shaking his head, Kirito dutifully exchanged a small pouch of coins—three thousand Cor, just for the first edition; her prices had gone up along with the value of treasure of the higher floors—for the small hardbound book Argo favored for her guides.

He immediately tucked it into his storage without reading it, though, and fixed the older girl with a hard look. "Okay, Argo," he said. "Not that I'm not glad to have some advance info… but that's not really why you called us out here, is it? Most other players couldn't get here yet even if they knew about it. What's with the skulking around?"

Argo's mouth twitched in a smile. "You see right through me, don't ya, Kii-bou? You're right, though." The smile faded. "Truth is, there's another quest I found that ain't in that guide."

Kirito sighed. I should've known. "How much, Argo, and what kind of quest? It must be big if you're selling it separately."

She shook her head. "No charge for this one, Kii-bou. Honestly, I'm not sure you should even try it. Not 'cause it's hard—I dunno yet what kind of difficulty we're talking about—but 'cause it might make things harder for you with the other players. Again." She hesitated. "Truth is, yesterday I stumbled on a Dark Elf fort a ways north of Mydo."

Startled, Kirito exchanged a glance with Kizmel. Mydo was the hub town of the floor, so it made sense to search its surroundings for quests. But a Dark Elf fort…

"I didn't even know any of my people were this high up the castle," Kizmel said slowly, giving voice to Kirito's thoughts. "As far as I was aware, we've never had any interest much above the capital."

"Surprised me, too. Can't tell ya what they're doing here, though, Kii-chan, 'cause they didn't let me in." Argo somehow seemed to pull off staring at both of them simultaneously, expression very, very intent. "They did tell me this: they're waiting for just the right people to show. To be exact, they're looking for a human… partnered with a Dark Elf. Supposed to be something that needs one of each to pull off."

Kirito stiffened. In any other game, that might not be so strange—but in SAO, the only player race was human. Dark Elves were NPC only—and there was only one player who had ever worked with Dark Elves outside the Elf War quest, let alone partnered with one.

Kizmel had been scripted to die in the battle in which he'd met her. In the beta, every time he'd gone through the quest exactly that had happened. Every time someone had run the quest after he met her, it had been a different Dark Elf, who had indeed died as in the beta.

There should be no quest that required such a partnership. It essentially meant that Kirito and Kizmel were the only people in all of Aincrad who could undertake it, and the idea of a quest that only a single player could ever take on was completely unheard of in MMOs.

Let alone a quest that would be flat-out impossible if Asuna and I hadn't somehow broken the script. Unless… I know Cardinal is supposed to be able to generate new quests autonomously, but has it really noticed us? If it had, I'd have expected it to… "correct" Kizmel, not this…

"It's real info, Kii-bou," Argo said quietly, obviously following his train of thought. "Far as I know, nobody else has even found that camp yet. But… like I said, you might want to leave this one alone. Been awhile since that whole 'Beater' nonsense got thrown around much, but if the rewards for this quest are as big as I think they might be…"

She had a point, Kirito knew. A lot of the flack about "unfair advantages" had died down once the frontline advanced beyond the highest point the beta testers had ever reached; even more of it had faded with Kibaou's retreat. Even so, there were some who still remembered Kirito's past claims, and even those that didn't would be understandably resentful about "unique" quest rewards.

Argo's right about that… but that's not all there is to this, now. It's about more than just staying alive, or clearing the game. At least, it is for me.

Kirito had been edging in that direction ever since he met Kizmel, and began to realize there might be some in Aincrad besides players who had hopes and dreams. To this day she remained the only such he'd ever found, but—some things still bothered him. Bits of lore that didn't quite add up, strange events he couldn't completely account for; like the way The Commandant had recognized him, and held him personally responsible for the defeat of the Fallen Elves.

And all that combined with one simple fact: it would be important to Kizmel. Whatever was really going on in Aincrad, that alone deeply affected his decision.

He wasn't sure how much of that Kizmel followed, when he noticed she was looking at him. Probably most of it, as perceptive as she was; either way, though, she did have her own reasons for everything, including this. "It may be dangerous to us, Argo—especially to Kirito," she said. "But if my people are asking for help, I cannot simply ignore it."

"She's right," Kirito agreed. "This could be pretty important for them. And, well—it wouldn't be the first time something like this proved important to dealing with a Floor Boss, right? Like knowing about the poison attack the Third Floor boss had, or Viscount Yofilis helping to take out the Fourth."

Argo sighed, but didn't argue; she'd seen the latter event firsthand, after all. And if anyone knows me as well as Asuna or Kizmel these days, it's her. The thought wasn't an entirely pleasant one for Kirito, since that familiarity included a lot of blackmail material, but he knew it was true.

"Yep, I figured you'd probably say something like that, Kii-bou," she said, shaking her head. "Okay, then. Here's what I know: the Dark Elves have a stone fort about a kilometer north of Mydo. They're looking for a human and a Dark Elf, 'cause of something to do with 'needing the strength of both races' or some such. You'll prolly need that signet ring you got from the Queen; pretty sure that's what the gate guard was talking about when he said I needed 'proof of fellowship with the Dark Elves' to get in. You still got it, right?"

"Of course." Even if it hadn't given him a nice boost to his stats—which was of course a welcome bonus—Kirito would've kept it just for the connection with Kizmel, during the months they'd been apart. Asuna, he knew, had kept hers for much the same reason.

Argo nodded, then stood. "Well, that's about all I got for ya on this one, Kii-bou. Anything else you'll have to find out yourself—and what you do learn, I'll buy for the usual rate."

"And sell it to whom?" Kizmel asked, lifting one lilac brow. "From what you've said, no other Swordmaster could use the information at all."

The Rat grinned again. "'Cause someday, Kii-bou's story is going to make me a killing as a tell-all book, o'course! I'll keep the really juicy stuff to myself, don't worry—well, and Aa-chan, naturally—but I'm telling you, bestseller here!"

The frightening part, Kirito reflected, was that she might actually be telling the truth. He couldn't imagine why anyone would want to read a book about him, but if there was a way to monetize it, Argo would find it. There was nothing he could possibly do about it, either, except…

"I'd better get a signed first edition, free," he told her, trying for a severe look. "You'll owe me, Argo."

"Of course, of course!" Argo started for the door—then stopped, very suddenly, and was so quiet Kirito thought she was muting the whole room.

"Argo…?"

"…One other thing you should know, Kii-bou," she said, voice barely audible now. "You remember Naga, one of Lind's guys, right? …He's dead."

Kirito felt a sudden chill. Since the Twenty-Fifth Floor nearly wiped out the Army's best, the clearing group had only very rarely lost anyone, and never outside of a boss fight. "I hadn't heard the DDA had gotten in any trouble lately. What happened?"

"Didn't have anything to do with the rest of the DDA. And it wasn't a monster, Kii-bou." Argo took a deep breath, meaningless in any sense but psychologically in this world. "Wasn't even an MPK. The DDA are keeping it quiet, but that tells ya a lot by itself; if it were a monster, even an MPK, they'd say so."

He swallowed, chill deepening. Nearly a year since the penalty for character death became real, and not once had anyone been murdered directly. A handful of MPKs, at least two "duels" under suspicious circumstances… but never cold-blooded, personally-executed murder.

After a moment of silence, Argo lifted her hood over her head. "I know you're good, Kii-bou, and you've got Kii-chan to watch your back. But—be careful, 'kay? I don't wanna see your name struck through on the Monument. Ever."

The two of them were, indeed, extremely cautious when they left Ilden's inn. Kizmel insisted on a light meal, despite their mutual lack of appetite, to avoid the distraction of hunger, and when they set off for the trail back to Mydo it was slow and careful. Kirito's eyes were glowing under the influence of the Search charm he had so prudently trained all this time, and Kizmel strained every sense she had to watch her own side.

For all the Swordmasters as brave and selfless as Kirito, there are still those who have completely lost their senses, she thought, keeping her shield positioned to guard her partner's right flank as much as her own left. To kill their own—that hinders their own efforts to conquer this castle, and escape. It makes no sense…

But Kirito had told her, some time before, of the laughing killer Morte, and now Kizmel could believe it all too easily. Now that she knew the Swordmasters were not trained warriors but ordinary people who had been tricked by what they believed to be a game into risking their lives, she could well believe that some of them had been broken by the realization.

The cruel trap had driven Kirito to become a warrior she gladly pledged her assistance to, and had produced steady, strong leaders like Asuna and Klein. By the same token, she could easily see it producing twisted, desperate bandits.

She only hoped she would never have to cross swords with any of them herself. If nothing else, Kizmel had no idea how the other Swordmasters might take it if a Dark Elf were forced to strike down one of their own.

Probably not well. Their perspective on this world is so different…

Kizmel shook off those thoughts. There was no time, now, to ponder the implications of the sincere belief of the Swordmasters that her world was nothing but a very dangerous dream. She'd spent quite enough time thinking about it at night lately, when she really needed to be resting; doing so now, under threat from Sabertooth Jaguars—and very possibly worse—would be foolish indeed.

About halfway back to Mydo, Kirito spoke up. "So, what do you think Dark Elves are doing way up here, anyway?" he asked, sounding very thoughtful.

She noticed he was avoiding the subject of Naga's murder, and decided it was probably just as well. "I have no idea," she said honestly. "Admittedly, I was never privy to all of Her Majesty's secrets—I never knew of the Fallen Elf fortress we assailed months ago before it became necessary—but I'm somewhat surprised myself to hear that we have a genuine stronghold this far up the castle."

"That's what I thought. A camp would be one thing, I could see something unexpected coming up, but it sounds like you've had some people living up here for quite awhile." Kirito frowned, obviously very troubled by the whole thing—as, she'd noticed, he had been since Argo first brought it up. "Unless there's something they're guarding, like the Keys we gathered back—whoops!"

His exclamation was the only warning she had, before a Jaguar dropped out of nearby tree and tried to rip her partner's throat out.

For far from the first time, Kizmel found herself wishing she had Kirito's ability to estimate a foe's strength at a mere glance. What her own senses told her more vaguely was that the enormous feline was not the kind of monster one would've wanted to stumble upon right upon arriving on the new floor. Kirito managed to get his left arm up in time to keep the beast from his throat, but as always he wore no armor there but the leather of his coat; from his grunt and wince, she knew he'd taken no small injury.

That spurred her into bashing the Jaguar with her shield, knocking loose its grip on Kirito's arm. As it fell to the ground, she pulled her sword back, let the charm read her intent, and drove the blade forward in a Piercing Thrust.

Kizmel sometimes thought the Swordmasters' immunity to pain did them more harm than good, leading them to be more reckless than they might otherwise, but it served Kirito well now. As soon as the Jaguar was off him, he had his own sword held over his shoulder; when it recoiled from Kizmel's strike, he let the Sonic Leap carry him forward, swinging the blade down just below the Jaguar's jaw.

Where it had failed, he succeeded: the flashing blow cut cleanly through its throat, severing its head completely.

"Guess I got a little careless there," he said, while the beast fragmented into blue shards. "Uh… maybe we should save the talking until we're someplace safer?"

Looking up at the sets of glowing eyes becoming visible in the trees around them—another half-dozen Sabertooth Jaguars, she estimated—Kizmel nodded in agreement. "Agreed. I fear we'll be too busy for any further discussion for a little while."

Kirito grinned, the look of a warrior reveling in a good fight; no trace at all, now, of the lost young student who showed through in his more vulnerable moments. "What the heck. We could probably use the EXP, anyway."

She shook her head, but couldn't help smiling anyway. "Asuna is right—you do enjoy this too much, sometimes. But… I think I could use a chance to vent." She lifted her saber to point directly at the nearest Jaguar. "Come, then, beasts—if you dare to challenge two Knights, we will oblige!"

It leapt, joined swiftly by its fellows. Their swords were waiting.

By the time they actually reached Mydo again, Kirito was feeling refreshed. Argo's news had been disturbing in more ways than one; fighting through a veritable pack of bloodthirsty cats—something he could tangibly fight against—had been a welcome distraction. Even if Aincrad were somehow "real", he at least had no particular compunction about forcing hungry beasts to respawn.

Too bad the peace won't last long, he thought ruefully. One way or another, things are about to get complicated again, I'm sure of it. The throngs of players they weaved through on their way to the other side of Mydo gave neither of them more than a passing glance now, used to both the "Beater" and his NPC companion; whether they'd still be so uncaring after the next quest ended, he didn't know.

They passed out of Mydo's north gate a bit after noon, and Kirito forced himself to relax. With no information of any kind, it was far too early to start worrying about witch hunts again. Besides, on balance quests with the Dark Elves have actually been pretty fun, at least when no one's stirring up trouble on purpose. He actually found himself smiling at that. Hey, that is one good thing about this: if we're the only ones who can do it at all, there's no chance of guilds coming to blows over it.

The trip through along the northern forest path was much quieter than the return from Ilden. The mobs being much more appropriate for players just arriving on the floor—let alone those as over-leveled as he and Kizmel were—they even managed to snack between encounters, their appetites having returned some.

Kirito had settled for a basic sandwich; Kizmel, he was amused to note, was once again experimenting, this time with a crepe she'd asked him to buy from a street vendor in Mydo. "You humans have a surprisingly wide variety of foods," she said, when she noticed him looking. "Not that my people are lacking in the culinary arts, but the sheer imagination of yours is remarkable."

He shrugged. "Nine Kingdoms before the Great Separation here," he pointed out between bites of his sandwich, "plus whatever stuff got imported from my world. We've got a lot of different cultures to draw from, that's all."

"There is that," she admitted. She took a small bite of her crepe, chewed, swallowed; gave a satisfied nod, took a larger bite. "The sheer variety of your clothing alone is bewildering. You seem to have something special for every possible use. Even bathing, which I would think would defeat the purpose…"

Kirito choked on his sandwich, and was suddenly grateful he didn't actually need to breathe. He coughed, tried—probably in vain—to fight down a blush, and mumbled, "Technically, those weren't actually for bathing… Swimsuits are meant for, well, swimming, not…"

Kizmel smiled at him; the look, he thought, of someone who'd gotten exactly the reaction they were looking for. "Ah, so that's where they came from! I thought Asuna wasn't being completely honest; after all, neither of you bothered with such things when you stayed in our camp on the Third Floor."

He found himself wishing for a mob attack, preferably strong ones. Anything to change the subject. "You didn't have separate baths at Yofel Castle, and humans… we don't really go in for mixed bathing. Hey… didn't I tell you that before?"

"You did," she acknowledged, still with that teasing note in her voice. "I still think it's a waste, though… Ah, I believe we have arrived."

Kirito had never been so grateful to see a grim edifice of stone in his life. The Dark Elf fort Argo had pointed them toward was much smaller than Yofel Castle, and had none of that island fortress' majesty, yet just then it was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

He wasn't even bothered by the pair of heavily-armored guards standing before the main entrance, or the way they pointed spears at them as they approached. "This is territory held by the Kingdom of Lyusula. Even those of our people may only enter with proof of their business—and humans only with proof of Royal favor."

Kizmel came to a halt just before them, saluted, and then lifted her right hand. "I am Kizmel, a Pagoda Knight in service to Her Majesty," she proclaimed, showing the ring that, among other things, allowed her to cure herself of poisons. "I am ascending the castle as Swordmaster Kirito's companion, repaying the aid he gave to our Kingdom."

Awkwardly, Kirito followed her lead, both in salute and presenting the ring he'd been given by the Queen of the Dark Elves herself, after the defeat of the Fallen Elves. "My name is Kirito, human Swordmaster, friend of elves and Kizmel's companion." He hoped that was about right, as pretentious as it sounded. "We had word that the Dark Elves here needed help…"

The guards cautiously stepped close enough to examine both rings, then returned to their positions, shouldered their spears, and saluted. "Lady Kizmel, Swordmaster Kirito—we had heard you might be coming. You may enter: Countess Ryella awaits inside."

Kirito exchanged a surprised look with Kizmel. They were expecting us, specifically? …Well, I guess if Cardinal created this quest because of us, it makes some sense…

"We shall see her at once, then," Kizmel said, relieving him of the need to figure out what to say. "Where do we go? I'm afraid I've never been here before."

The guards looked blank, and after a pause on of them said, "I am sorry, you will have to be more specific."

She frowned. "Where are we to meet the Countess?" she prompted.

"The tower above the central keep, Lady Kizmel," the same guard answered, as if the pause had never occurred. "Countess Ryella prefers to be able to view the surrounding forest as she works."

"Thank you." She gave the guards a strange look, then shrugged and motioned for Kirito to follow her inside.

He did, and spared a thoughtful glance at the guards himself. That's never happened before. It's like… like Kizmel found a question that wasn't specific enough for their algorithms to answer…

There was, as the guards had indicated, a tower reaching high above the rest of the fortress from the central courtyard. Another pair of guards protected its entrance, but allowed the clearer duo to pass completely unchallenged; somehow, they'd apparently already received word.

Another elven charm? Kirito wondered as they climbed the stairs inside. I'm sure nobody went in ahead of us… Well, of course the system wouldn't have any problems letting one set of NPCs know what another saw, but there's always been some kind of in-universe rationalization before…

He shelved the thought for another time when they reached the top floor of the tower, and came to a heavy wooden door at the end of the hall. Deferring to his partner, he let Kizmel precede him to knock. "Enter," came the soft reply from inside.

Following Kizmel inside, Kirito's first thought on entering the office was that it was about the direct opposite of the first such chamber he'd entered, the office of Viscount Yofilis. Because of Yofilis' health condition making light dangerous for him—or rather, as Kirito had found by the end of that quest, shame over his scarred face—the Viscount's chambers had been concealed by darkness, making it impossible to see any detail.

By contrast, this room was lit by wide windows on three walls, giving both plenty of natural light and a commanding view of the surrounding forest. A few tapestries and weapons adorned the walls, including a particularly fine set of the latter behind the large desk; sitting in a chair at said desk was plainly visible a Dark Elf woman. She was dressed much as Kizmel was when out of armor, though to Kirito's—admittedly inexperienced—eye, this elf's clothes were of a higher quality, befitting nobility.

Before he or his partner could speak, the woman stood. Slightly taller than Kizmel, Kirito thought, with much the same skin tone; darker hair, though, and maybe a bit plainer features. "Lady Kizmel," she said, "Swordmaster Kirito. Welcome to Fort Renya; I am Countess Ryella. I have been expecting you."

Kirito twitched. That was the first time he'd ever heard an NPC use his name without hearing it spoken directly; even Kizmel had needed a couple of tries to get the pronunciation right. The surprise of it, on top of everything else already odd about the situation, drove whatever greeting he'd originally planned right out of his mind, and for a second he just stood there dumbly.

Fortunately, Kizmel didn't have any such hangups, and responded smoothly. "Thank you, Milady. Although I admit, I wasn't aware of any reason you should have been expecting us; nor, to be honest, that this fortress even existed."

Ryella gestured for them to sit in the pair of chairs on the other side of the desk, and when they'd all sat, she said, "Your reputations precede you, Lady Kizmel, Swordmaster. Word reached us several months ago of the end of the war with the Forest Elves and the defeat of the Fallen—and more recently of your alliance in wresting control of the Pillars from the evil that holds them now. It was only a matter of time before you reached this place.

"As to Fort Renya itself, our role is not well-known even among the Dark Elves. Here on this floor, known to those of us who live in this place, lie relics dating back to the time before the Great Separation. Relics of great power, which my family has guarded for many generations."

Kirito leaned forward, suddenly interested. This was exactly the kind of lore he'd been chasing down ever since Kizmel first hinted to him the greater story behind Aincrad's in-universe existence. "Relics, Milady?" he asked, awkwardly copying Kizmel's form of address.

Ryella nodded. "Indeed. By now, you doubtless know that the Kingdom of Lyusula and the Nine Kingdoms of Man have never been particularly close, even before the Great Separation—yet there have been times of mutual need, and certain items remain of these ancient alliances. My family has been charged with guarding a repository of them on this very floor, to prevent their misuse." She paused. "Recently, I received word from Her Majesty to prepare for the end of that duty."

Well, at least something's going normal, Kirito thought, relaxing a little. So far, other than the oddly specific requirements for the quest, it was sounding normal enough; he could guess easily enough what the task Ryella had for them was, now.

From the look on her face, Kizmel had come to much the same conclusions, but without his understanding of gaming conventions, she was obviously confused as to the reason. "Milady, are you suggesting that Kirito and I are to take these relics?" Ryella nodded. "Why?"

"Her Majesty's letter was sparse, but she said she believes the time has come that our people must aid humans once more," the Countess said softly. "The scope of what may occur when the Swordmasters finally reach the Ruby Palace cannot be ignored, for good or ill. Unfortunately, in the wake of our long war with the Forest Elves and the Fallen, we have few warriors to spare. Her Majesty's decision, thus, is to prepare you, Lady Kizmel, as well as may be, and offer what aid we can to Swordmaster Kirito."

"I… see. Well, I can't argue with that." For a moment, Kizmel actually looked sheepish. "Honestly, Milady, I originally chose to accompany Kirito for personal reasons; but yes, from what I've heard from the Swordmasters their campaign will certainly have ramifications for our people, as well."

That's an understatement, Kirito thought with a twinge. …Well, I knew that from the start. There's still time to figure out a solution, anyway; we're barely a third of the way up.

Shaking off gloomy thoughts of a distant future, he said aloud, "What kind of relics are these, exactly, Milady? Are they weapons, or…?"

"The exact nature of the relics is best discussed when you are closer to obtaining them, I believe," Ryella told him. "There are three trials that must be overcome before you can open the Reliquary, and there is little sense in revealing secrets until it is clear you will be able to grasp them."

Three trials… somehow, I knew this wasn't going to be so easy. I just hope this turns out to be worth it; the most we got out of the Third Floor's quest line was an extra warning about poison from the boss. There had been other things about that quest that made it all worth it, of course, but from the perspective of clearing the game, it had been more questionable.

"Three trials," Kizmel repeated thoughtfully. "Can we complete them alone, Milady? Or should we be enlisting the aid of other Swordmasters?"

"These trials are only for those who have made a direct alliance between our two races," Ryella answered, shaking her head. "They will require the knowledge of humans, and the skill and charms of the Dark Elves, the two in harmony. These trials were made by an alliance ages past, and must be cleared that way, as well."

Kirito nodded. He'd expected that, just from the unique conditions for beginning the quest. "We can handle it," he said confidently. "Where do we go first, Milady?"

"The Trial of the Brave lies some distance to the east," she said, pointing out one of the windows. "Conquer its challenge, and you will be ready for the Trial of the Wise, to the west, and then finally the Trial of the Strong, beyond Ilden in the south. Return to me when you have proven yourselves, and I will tell you where to find the Reliquary, and what lies within."

Trials of the Brave, Wise, and Strong, Kirito repeated to himself. East, west, and south. His quest log had automatically updated itself, but he knew it wouldn't hurt to memorize the information; sometimes the seconds it took just to consult the log counted. Brave, Wise, Strong… Why does that sound familiar? Waaiitt a minute…

His facepalm drew matching looks of surprise and confusion from both Dark Elves.

With everything else she had on her mind after the visit to Fort Renya, such as the oddly lack-witted behavior of the gate guards, it wasn't until they were nearly at the Trial of the Brave that Kizmel thought to question her partner's earlier reaction. As the trees thinned, giving them a glimpse of weathered stone walls, she shot him a questioning look. "I meant to ask, Kirito," she began. "Was there something strange about Countess Ryella's explanation? Besides the obvious, of course."

"Eh?" Obviously lost in thought himself, Kirito shook himself. "Oh… Well, it's just… the three trials reminded me of… another human legend. A powerful relic that could only be reached after getting proof of courage, power, and wisdom. A relic of an elf-like people, actually."

That piqued Kizmel's interest. They'd already encountered more than one quest related to ancient history that both their peoples recalled, if only in myth and legend; the ongoing effort to restore the ancient Order came at once to mind. Then there had been matters such as the sword Sachi had taken from The Commandant, remembered in stories of the Swordmasters, but not the Dark Elves.

This was the first time she could recall that they'd been drawn into something related to her people that her partner seemed to recognize, yet she did not. Of course, it was just as likely that it was merely a Swordmaster myth that bore a coincidental resemblance to reality, but if there truly was a connection…

"Do you remember enough of the legend to help guide us through these trials?"

Kirito grimaced. "Probably not. There's at least a dozen versions of the story floating around; I know several of them pretty well, but the odds of any of them being that close to the truth—if it's really about this Reliquary? I don't really think…" He trailed off; they were coming into the clearing now, giving them a fuller view of their destination.

In its prime, Kizmel thought it had likely been a truly grand stronghold, fitting for an edifice built to guard the way to an artifact as powerful as Countess Ryella implied. Now, eons after the Great Separation, the fortress that contained the Trial of the Brave was clearly succumbing to the ravages of time. Its ramparts were crumbling, its walls cracked—yet despite all that, there was torchlight visible from its narrow windows, and the front gate stood solidly in their path.

"Nope," Kirito said, after several moments' inspection. "Can't say that this looks familiar. Um… any idea how we get in? That gate looks pretty secure. Countess Ryella didn't give us any keys, or tell us where to look…"

"I would suggest we start by examining it," Kizmel said, starting for the weathered stairs leading up to the gate. "There seem to be no monsters outside, so we can probably take our time." As she climbed, she added thoughtfully, "By the way, the legends you know… what does lie at the end of our journey here?"

He quickly followed her, and despite her own observations he kept a wary eye on their surroundings, clearly ready for trouble. Probably a good idea, she thought; even if this place was safe, it was a good habit to maintain. He also didn't answer her question right away, focusing instead on examining the barred, securely-locked gate.

At length, peering through the narrow gaps in the bars, Kirito said, "According to most versions of the story? A very powerful weapon. It wasn't always the same, though, and I don't think that's all there is to it, here; I think there's a reason for it to be two people going through the trials. One human, one elf… If it's about an ancient alliance, it won't just be for one or the other of us."

Kizmel nodded. "I agree. Likely the full truth hasn't survived in any legend; I would not be surprised if not even Countess Ryella knows it all, if this was a legacy shared between our people… Ah! I believe I've found something."

He quickly joined her by the left side of the gate, where she was running armored fingertips over an inscription in the stone. "Is that… some kind of message? I can't read the language, whatever it is."

"A Dark Elf script," she told him, squinting at it; old as it was, it had faded as much as the rest of the structure. "Very old; I don't think even my people have used it for much since the Great Separation; we largely adopted one of yours long ago. It is used in enough formal writing that I can read it, however. Mostly, anyway… Ah, I believe I understand:

"Only with Determination does any journey begin. Only when Courage is proven are doors opened; to the timid, every gate is closed.

"Some journeys cannot be made alone. Those who wish to test their Bravery, Human craft is needed within; yet to enter, you must have the Elven power to elude the rays of the sun. Those who possess the first Keys, step forward, and prove your Courage within."

Kirito nodded in comprehension. "…Okay. I think I actually understood that." He was frowning, though. "Can we do it right now, though? If that's talking about what I think it is, I thought I remember you saying it works best around morning and evening."

Kizmel smiled, oddly pleased he'd come to the same conclusion she had, and so easily. "I think it's worth trying. It may be at its best at those hours, but the Mistmoon Cloak can make us like spirits to the eye even in this light."

"Good thing Asuna's not around to hear you talk about spirits," he muttered. "Okay, then, let's give it a shot."

The way Kirito blushed when he drew close enough for her to throw her cloak over both of them made her smile wider. It wasn't that she liked making him uncomfortable, really, but there was something endearing about his awkwardness around women, even after this long traveling with her, to say nothing of the fact that her armor was a solid barrier between their bodies.

Someday, I should perhaps ask him what kind of life he actually led, in his homeland, she mused, draping an arm across his shoulders to better draw the cloak closed. Most of the time, he comes across as mature as any Swordmaster, yet any time matters like this come up, that maturity and confidence vanishes.

It was an idle thought only, for now; whatever her friend's true birth, he was easily her equal in all respects besides social skills. Right now his skill in whatever trial awaited them beyond the gate was the important thing, and she was confident he wouldn't let her down.

Nor did she intend to fail him. So when she was sure the cloak's charm was as complete as it could be this time of day, rendering the two of them but a thin shade in the mid-afternoon light, Kizmel guided her partner straight for the gate, heedless of its imposing bars.

Obscured from light by the charm of the cloak, they slipped through the bars as if truly nothing but specters.

If Kirito had had any doubts left as to the inspiration for the current quest, they were squashed after three block puzzles and twice as many doors with one-time-use keys. By now, he was wondering if Kayaba might be subject to a copyright infringement claim on top of his grander crimes, or if a certain company had paid Argus to get early exposure in the VR market.

Or maybe just Cardinal not caring, come to think of it, he mused, cautiously approaching yet another locked door, in a corridor lit by flickering torchlight. Wouldn't be the first quest it's invented that got a little too close to that line… I guess Kayaba didn't include legal contracts in the programming.

Kirito snorted to himself at that thought. Kayaba had already killed over two thousand people for the sake of his "game"; why should he care about copyright law? It wasn't like he'd care about a fine on top of the life sentence he'd be serving anyway.

"I'm not sure what about this situation is so amusing, Kirito," Kizmel remarked. She was keeping a wary eye on a side corridor as they passed; they'd already been attacked by large spiders more than once with little warning, and while the mobs here weren't as dangerous as those on the path to Ilden, they were definitely appropriate to their levels. "At least, I didn't think you were enjoying this much."

She had certainly had some fun, if her smile was any indication. They'd needed to use her cloak to pass through two more doors since entering the Trial, and Kirito was beginning to worry Argo was rubbing off on her. At least, that was the most likely reason he could think of for Kizmel to be so cheerful at their enforced proximity.

"Just thinking about how close this really is to human legends," he told her, shaking his head. "Just close enough for me to have a general idea of what's going on, not close enough for me to know what kind of traps or puzzles we might be dealing with here. Like this door." He gestured at the completely featureless, heavy metal door they'd arrived at. "I don't suppose you see a keyhole here?"

"No," she admitted after a brief examination. "It does not seem to resemble the doors we passed through via the cloak's charm, either." Kizmel frowned. "Hm… I have heard of doors that can only be opened when the life force of their guards is completely extinguished. Perhaps there are foes nearby that we've missed?"

Kirito sighed. "That would fit with the stories I've heard… or there could be a stone in the walls here that's actually a hidden switch. I guess we'll have to backtrack and look around." Irritated, he gave the door a solid rap with his fist, knowing that all it would produce was an [Immortal Object] message.

He jumped back in surprise when, instead, a menu popped into existence a few centimeters from the door.

"Interesting," Kizmel said, leaning close. "That's Mystic Scribing, isn't it? I recognize the language… although I cannot read this particular message."

Right, she probably only knows the bits of English used in regular system messages… if that. Kirito wasn't completely fluent in the language himself, but he was at least proficient enough to understand the message that the door had brought up. "It says, [Open], with yes or no options," he said, shaking his head yet again. "Now I understand what the inscription outside meant about 'human craft'… Who'd have thought we'd find a door where all we had to do was knock?"

It really should've occurred to him, he realized a moment after casually pressing [Yes], that an abnormal door that was so easy to open might just lead to something abnormal and not easy. As it was, the first clue he had of his mistake came within a second of the heavy door rumbling aside.

A clue in the form of a chained flail speeding out, wrapping around his arm, and yanking him into the next room.

"Kirito!"

Kirito heard Kizmel's yell, but was a little too distracted to reply; he was more concerned with the enormous suit of armor that had pulled him in close, released the chain, and slammed a metal gauntlet into his gut. The blow knocked the unnecessary wind out of him and propelled him bodily toward one of the hard stone walls.

He hadn't survived as long as he had without being quick-witted and learning a thing or two about midair recovery, though; halfway through his flight, he had his sword out and jabbing at the floor, and in the extra time the friction bought him he twisted around to get his feet on the ground. In a shower of sparks from sword and bootheels alike, Kirito managed to bleed off his momentum a good half-meter from the wall.

Glancing up at his HP bar, though, his stomach clenched anyway. Just the initial punch from the armor had taken off a good ten percent of his health; turning his attention to the mob that had done it, he suddenly wasn't surprised. Just very, very concerned.

A dark crimson cursor, next to the name Black Knight.Beneath that information, a heavily-armored warrior with an equally heavy shield in one hand, and a huge sword that it was just now drawing from its back to replace the flail it had dropped. At its waist, a scabbard holding a slimmer blade, for now ignored.

There were also two of them. Given that Kirito had a fairly good idea of what, exactly, these Black Knights were based on, the fact that he and Kizmel both used relatively light blades suddenly didn't seem like such a good idea.

Okay, he thought, as Kizmel rushed into the room, just barely avoiding the second Knight's bastard sword, these things are really tough, and can kill me with just a few good hits. On the other hand—if these are what I think they are, I know how to fight them.

Fighting two of the enemies they were based on at once had always been a nerve-wracking task, but in those other games he'd never had backup. With his elven partner, they could do this.

"Kirito—" Kizmel began, drawing close enough to put her shield between him and the Knights.

"I know," Kirito interrupted, speaking quickly. "I think I know these things, so—They hit hard, but they're slow. Dodge their swords, and try to get around behind them; they'll block pretty much everything from the front with those shields. Hit them in the back enough, and we should be able to cut the fasteners of their armor."

She nodded. "Then let us begin—now!"

The Black Knight that had thrown Kirito around chose that moment to break the stillness, swinging its huge blade down while the other circled around; the two clearers threw themselves to either side, each trying to flank one of the Knights. It might've been more efficient to try and double-team one opponent, Kirito knew, but this way they wouldn't end up potentially sandwiched.

If fighting one of these things was bad, he knew, being in a position to be hit from front and back together was worse. The only "good" thing about this whole situation was that there wasn't yet a third; three Black Knights, if their inspiration was any clue, would've been nigh-unstoppable.

Kirito just had time to see Kizmel duck a brutal Horizontal from her foe before he was forced to dodge sideways himself, the Black Knight that seemed to have it in for him having brought its blade up from the floor in an Uppercut that came frighteningly close to splitting him in half. While inertia carried the enormous sword up over the Knight's head, he knew that put it in a perfect position to drop it back down on him if he gave it half a chance.

He had no intention of giving it that chance. As soon as the blade was above him, Kirito launched himself into a backflip—not to evade, but to smash his boot heel into the Black Knight's helmet in a Crescent Moon. The blow staggered the Knight, while Kirito landed on his free hand, threw himself upright again, and flung himself forward again. Forward, and to the Knight's right, hoping to get around behind.

There was time for one quick Horizontal, aimed with as much precision as he could manage in the moments he had, and Kirito's sword cut across one of the fasteners holding the Black Knight's waist armor in place. If he was right about how closely these mobs copied the source material, then—

He'd done more damage than he'd thought. The entirety of the Knight's waist armor fell away, leaving the area protected only by the layer of light chainmail beneath. An instant later, though, Kirito realized he'd miscalculated slightly: free of some of its own armor, the Knight turned a fraction faster than before, swinging its sword too fast for him to dodge.

He barely managed to get his sword back up in time to parry, and he winced at both the scream of metal sliding along metal and the way his HP was ground away even without a direct hit. It is so not fair that a sword that big is considered One-Handed!

Kirito had managed to avoid the worst of it, though, and when the bastard sword was past he ducked under its shield to deliver the swift back-and-forth cuts of a Horizontal Arc to the Knight's legs, severing its greaves. The loss of the armor caused it to stumble, giving him a chance to check on Kizmel's progress.

He looked over just in time to see her actually jumping on top of her foe's shield, using it to launch herself higher into the air in a forward somersault over its head. Her saber spun with her in a flicker of blue light, an aerial Sword Skill Kirito recognized as a Helmsplitter; powerful by its nature of attacking the enemy's head, but difficult to even attempt. The mere sight of it reminded him of Diavel's death, during which the self-proclaimed knight had tried and failed to initiate a midair skill himself.

Kizmel performed it flawlessly, and when she landed on the stone floor in a crouch behind the Black Knight, she promptly spun around to stab it repeatedly, rising with each of the first three blows, and at full height adding another three horizontally. Several of the fasteners for its heavy torso armor fell away from the Crucifixion, leaving it noticeably loose.

In the lag from her own skill, Kizmel glanced over at Kirito in turn, and her eyes widened. "Kirito, look out!"

Her shout and a bright yellow flash in the corner of his eye was all the warning he had. He'd only begun to turn when something impacted solidly on his flank, catapulting him toward the same wall he'd only narrowly avoided at the start of the fight.

"Gah!" Once again, Kirito managed to turn before he hit, but he only succeeded in taking the impact on his back instead of his head. He was left with a Tumble effect as a result, unable to move for a precious few seconds; he was suddenly grateful that the hit had knocked him flying so far.

He wasn't so happy to realize what the hit had been. In the split second before he struck the wall, he'd caught sight of a fading glow from the Black Knight's shield, not its sword. He'd never before encountered a Sword Skill from a shield, of all things. Certainly players occasionally bashed mobs that way to gain a little breathing space, but this was the first truly offensive use he'd ever encountered.

Powerful, too, he realized with a chill, glancing at his HP bar. Another hit like that, and I'm in the red.

That realization would've been enough on its own to get Kirito moving the instant the Tumble subsided. The cry of pain he heard a moment later from Kizmel, followed by her rolling into his line of sight, spurred him on more urgently.

The elf had been knocked away from her foe's sword, nearly cutting her in half with that one blow. Now even the Knight Kirito had been fighting turned its attention to her, as the closer target, and he quickly decided that was not going to be allowed.

With a wordless yell, he pushed off from the floor, swung his sword behind his right shoulder, and launched himself in a Sonic Leap at Kizmel's former target. He managed to come down behind it, his blade biting down on another of the clasps of its armor; a couple of frantic dodges later, escaping its wrath by a hair, Kirito took a chance on a normal swing of his sword and took off another.

For a second he was afraid he'd miscalculated again, and that the Black Knight was going to rip him in half in retaliation. Then, as it took a step forward, the last remaining fastener of its armor snapped under the strain, and the whole breastplate dropped to the floor in a loud clatter.

The Black Knight's response to that was more or less instant, but Kirito had anticipated its move. From the moment he realized what they were, he knew what was going to happen when its armor was reduced to just its helmet, so when it flung its shield to one side and hurled its huge sword at his face, he was already jumping sideways.

A similar series of crashing noises came from the direction of his original opponent, even as his current foe drew the lighter blade from its waist. Kizmel had regained her feet, and if she was wincing in pain to match the depletion of her HP bar in Kirito's vision, she wasn't letting it stop her; she'd managed to take out the other Black Knight's armor, and dodged the thrown blade as well as he had.

"Come, then!" she called to her target. "Let's end this!"

It might've been coincidence, or these mobs might've been keyed to respond to taunts. Either way, they both attacked at that moment, and Kirito was forced to dodge once again from a brutally-fast Slant.

They were faster without the armor, but Kirito was still feeling better about his and his partner's prospects now. With armor and shield gone, speed was the only advantage the Knights had left to them, and that was one stat he was fully prepared to bet his life on.

Stepping to one side of the Slant, he slapped the Knight's sword aside, then initiated a Sword Skill of his own: three slices from one side to the other and back, the Sharp Nail finally taking a noticeable bite out of the Knight's HP. In the race to recover from the movement penalty of their respective skills, the Knight was slightly faster, leaving Kirito no time to get out of the way; he did manage another parry, though, and while his own HP was chipped away by scratch damage, it wasn't nearly as bad as blocking the heavier blade.

As their blades screeched against each other, he caught a quick glimpse past, enough to see Kizmel bodily forcing aside her Knight's latest attack with her kite shield; her revenge was a lightning-quick Reaver to its throat, just beneath its helmet.

Recovering from the parry enough to launch a Horizontal Square at his own enemy, Kirito briefly found himself envious. A shield would've slowed him down, given his own fighting style, but he had to admit there was something to be said for having something useful in the off-hand.

And you wouldn't have been able to do that backflip right earlier, he reminded himself, as his sword finished tracing a blue rhombus in the air. Like I know what to do with a shield anyway!

There wasn't time for another Sword Skill for several moments after that. The Black Knight was no longer bothering with them, so he couldn't afford the movement penalty either, instead having to sneak in improvised thrusts and slashes where he could. Gradually, though, he was whittling down its HP, and though his own was getting far lower than he was comfortable with, the Black Knight was coming off the worse.

Kirito did consider it completely unfair that it barely flinched when he did manage to get in a Snake Bite, cutting its left arm clean off just below the shoulder. It only glanced down at the stump, shrugged, and redoubled its attack with its remaining arm.

"Kirito, Switch!"

He didn't question the sudden command. Immediately he pulled back his blade just before he could initiate his next Sword Skill, ducked past the Knight's sword, and leapt toward Kizmel's opponent, at the same moment she came at his from behind.

Unable to adjust to the sudden swapping of targets for a couple of seconds, the Knights were frozen by conflicting algorithms just long enough for Kizmel's spinning Treble Scythe to tear up the back of one and through its neck, while Kirito's Savage Fulcrum did the same to the other.

Silence filled the room for a split second. Then, with a low, rumbling groan, both Black Knights shattered into azure polygons and faded away.

Panting with exertion, despite his tireless virtual avatar, Kirito slowly drew himself upright again, performed his usual flourish, and sheathed his sword. "Well," he said to Kizmel. "I didn't expect that. I should've, though."

"You knew enough to know how to fight them," she pointed out, slipping her own saber back into its scabbard. "We should be more cautious in the future, however." She winced, pressing a hand to her side. "I fear I took more injury than I expected in that battle."

He grimaced; she acted so human most of the time that he still managed to forget, all too often, that unlike players she was fully capable of feeling pain. Damn you for that, Kayaba. Bad enough what you did to us… He dug into a belt pouch quickly, and tossed the potion he withdrew over to her. "Sorry about that, Kizmel," he said sincerely, as he dug out another for himself.

"I was careless, myself," she said, gratefully downing the healing item. "Ah… much better, thank you. Well, shall we see what they were guarding?"

"Right." In the heat of the battle, Kirito hadn't even noticed, but there was an ornate chest sitting against one wall, not too far from an equally-ornate door. From the slowly-fading glow, he suspected it had been designed to unlock only once the Black Knights were both dead.

Crossing to it, he carefully pried it open—keeping his face well back, in case it proved to be yet another trap of some kind. This time caution proved unnecessary; as he'd somewhat suspected, there was only one thing inside the chest, and not at all dangerous.

"I think this would be a 'Big Key'," he said, pulling it out with a rueful smile.

Kizmel shot him a narrow-eyed glance. "It is certainly large… but I suspect that's not exactly what you meant."

"In-joke about the legends this is obviously related to; I'll tell you later." Kirito looked over the door. "I don't think it's a stretch to say this goes to that door."

"Most likely," she agreed, eyeing the door warily. "What do you suppose it beyond it? Just the 'proof' we're supposed to obtain here?"

"Probably won't be that easy." He glanced up at the HP bars again, noting that both had recovered nicely. "If this is anything like the legends… there's probably something nasty on the other side. Those Black Knights won't be the last challenge here."

Kizmel nodded slowly. "You're probably right. We'd best be careful—but I see no reason to delay. Our mission will not be complete until we pass whatever trial lies ahead."

"Yeah." Kirito checked the HP figures on more time, then walked to the door and slid the key into the ominously-prominent lock. "Okay, here goes nothing," he said, and turned the key.

"Nothing" was almost exactly what they found in the next room. They went in preparing for a fight, and on the other side of the door was only another pair of doors. Kizmel actually found herself suppressing a laugh at the way Kirito hesitated, stared warily at the doors, and then lowered his sword with a sigh.

"Okay," he said after a moment. "I guess I should've expected things wouldn't be that predictable. …Think those are the same kind of doors as earlier?"

"Probably." The door on the right was built of the same bars as the Trial's front gate, while the one on the left was as featureless as the door that had led into the chamber with the Black Knights. "What do you think we're meant to do here, Kirito?"

Kizmel could think of three possibilities, herself. It might be that they were supposed to clear one room, then the other; or, it was very possible that the intention was for them to choose just one, with the wrong choice presumably leading to a trap of some kind. Or…

"Those doors are too narrow for more than one person," Kirito said slowly. "The Swordmaster door is one thing, but the Dark Elf doors don't 'open' at all; we have to go through those together. So…"

"We're likely intended to each go through one of them," she finished. "It is a Trial of Bravery, so I suppose it makes some sense. Both our peoples' strengths are needed to reach this place, and then from here, we prove our courage in our own ways."

"That's what I was thinking, too." He grimaced. "I don't like it."

Privately, neither did Kizmel. Even so, she shook her head. "That's very possibly the point, my friend. Like it or not, this is the only way forward; if we turn back, we fail the Trial."

"…Yeah. You're right." Taking a deep breath, Kirito nodded to her. "Be careful, Kizmel."

"The same to you, Kirito."

Together, they stepped to their respective doors. Kirito tapped the surface of his to conjure up the Mystic Scribing that governed it, as Kizmel drew her Mistmoon Cloak around herself, disappearing completely in the Trial's torchlight. When the Swordmaster door slide aside for her partner, she stepped through the ethereal surface of the Dark Elf gateway.

This time, even she found the result decidedly anticlimactic. The very first thing she noticed in the next room was that Kirito was not two meters from her, his door having led him to the very same place as hers. He jumped in surprise when she swept her cloak back again, then sighed.

"Yes," Kizmel agreed, before he could say anything. "This is… not what I was expecting, either."

The chamber was, admittedly, more impressive than the antechamber they'd just come through. Not quite as large as the rooms the Pillar Guardians laired in, but still quite broad, with ancient murals on the walls depicting winged figures, lit by brighter torches than the rest of the ruin had used. At the far end, a large chest sat in an alcove, protected by iron-framed glass doors; on one side Kizmel could see dark cloth folded neatly, while on the other there seemed to be a hollow for an object to be placed.

There was no sign whatsoever of any foe, not even any darkened spaces like the place The Commandant and his Knights had used as a trap.

"The doors you stepped through were but the final proof of your alliance, not the Trial itself. That lies within this chamber, Kirito, Lady Kizmel."

Kirito nearly hit the ceiling when the voice spoke from nowhere, and when Kizmel glanced at him she was startled to see his face had taken on a pale, frightened look. "Wh-what the hell…?!" His eyes darted about the room, then fixed on something, and his complexion turned paler still.

When she turned to follow his gaze, she discovered they were no longer alone in that chamber. Halfway between them and the alcove at the far end, a young man in light armor had appeared; he bore a shield on his back, a sword much like Kirito's slung at his left hip, and his hair was a startling shade of blue.

"Impossible," Kirito whispered. "Diavel…?"

Kizmel inhaled sharply. She'd never met Diavel, but her partner had spoken of him from time to time. A strong, charismatic Swordmaster who, while apparently not as pure and selfless as he presented himself, had nonetheless genuinely led the Swordmasters through most of their first great battle in Aincrad.

His death, she recalled, had nearly destroyed that effort, and while the Swordmasters had won through and persevered, it was only with the rise of the Knights of Blood and Heathcliff that a comparable leader had appeared to take Diavel's place.

"I am not Diavel," the swordsman said, and as he spoke Kizmel noticed he was slightly translucent, like a spirit. "Not as he was in life. But in this place, for this Trial—for the two of you—the memory of me is fitting, I think. For one of you, anyway."

Kirito swallowed hard. "I… I don't understand…"

"You seek more than you know, Kirito. As such, you will be tested in ways you may not even realize, and I am part of your Trial." Diavel inclined his head toward Kizmel. "You, Lady Kizmel, will have your chance to be tested so, but that is not part of your Trial of Bravery."

"I will… take your word for it, Swordmaster Diavel," she said warily. "Then… what is the Trial that stands before us now?"

"What you seek to claim is of great significance—yet it will come at a price, to both of you. There are virtues you must embody, to have any hope of attaining the rewards of such a quest. The first of these is Bravery: you must prove that you have what it takes to press on against adversity and loss; without determination, you will never reach the challenges that require Wisdom or Strength of arms.

"The Trial of the Brave knows its challengers. The test before you is simple—but don't mistake that for being easy."

So far, Kizmel was only confused and uncertain. Kirito, she thought, had the look of someone who was expecting to be struck down by a vengeful ghost at any moment. "What… is this test, Diavel? Some kind of boss monster?"

"Your bravery in the face of monsters is well-proven, Kirito," Diavel replied, shaking his head. "From the day you rescued a raid from my death… although that raid isn't actually unrelated." He fixed Kirito with a hard, sober stare. "Kirito. You led that raid to victory, despite the panic my death caused. Then, afterward, you took it upon yourself to stop a witch hunt, even though it made you, personally, a bigger target.

"Yet I wonder—how long could you have kept going, had the memory of that battle not faded? If more of the thousands of frightened players had known of the gambit you took, more than just the handful who were there, and saw how your subsequent actions belied your claims of villainy?"

Kirito shivered. "I… I don't…"

"In the end, memories of the hate of beta testers faded, especially as the growing skill and knowledge of the player population as a whole made the distinction harder to make out." Diavel's shade was not harsh, but his words were firm, inexorable. "How well would you have borne it, had there been a mark that kept that knowledge fresh in the minds of those frightened people?

"After all, as we both know, you're no knight, and no hero. In the world we came from, you hardly even left your room, barely even speaking to your own family. You survived by isolation, unknown to others, protected by anonymity. You proved against Illfang that for brief moments of dire need, you can stand tall, and carry the weight of a few dozens' hatred.

"Could such a boy carry on, if those around him despised him?"

Had Kirito not possessed the tremendous physical fortitude of a Swordmaster, Kizmel would've been very afraid he was going to collapse on the spot. Diavel's words had clearly struck him in ways she couldn't even imagine; his cool deconstruction relied on the realities of the world the Swordmasters came from, which Kizmel could only dimly grasp.

There was some small softening of the shade's expression now, though. Almost… pity, she thought. "Whether this quest, or another in the future, Kirito, that is a question you must answer. You simply aren't capable of remaining in the shadows, not if you keep going as you have."

"…I'm… not some kind of hero…" Kirito got out, voice barely a whisper. "I'm not the kind of guy to… take the spotlight…"

"Are you certain? You certainly captured everyone's attention well enough when I died. If you stay on your course, Kirito, you will be either a hero or a villain in the eyes of the Swordmasters. You need to face that now, or you'll never be able to move forward." Then, abruptly, Diavel turned to Kizmel. "Now you, My Lady… you face a different quandary."

She took a deep breath, and faced the shade squarely. "And that is, Swordmaster Diavel?"

"You are a Dark Elf, fighting for the cause of humans," he told her. "Indeed, you've pledged to aid not merely humans, but Swordmasters, who aren't even of your world; their—our—goal is at least as much to simply go home as it is to conquer the evil that grips the Steel Castle. While I can't complain about your choice to aid the one who made my sacrifice mean something, the path it's set you on has its own price."

There were several ways that could be taken; the one that came most readily to Kizmel's mind was that the closer she and Kirito became, the more painful it would be when he inevitably returned to his own world. It was a thought she'd tried increasingly hard to keep buried, in recent months. "I'm… aware of the potential cost, Swordmaster Diavel," she said quietly.

"Are you? Perhaps not, Lady Kizmel." Diavel turned and began to pace, hands clasped behind his back. "There are things about Kirito, and his nature, that you still don't understand. Things you can't, until you begin to see the truth for yourself. Some of it, perhaps, you'll see on this very quest—but even reaching that level of understanding may cost you dearly. Come, let me show you."

He led an uneasy Kizmel, and a pale, anxious Kirito, over to the alcove closed off by glass. Now, closer in, Kizmel could see that the folded cloth was a heavy black coat, with a stylized "b" embroidered on its back and both shoulders. On the other side, the hollow basin seemed just large enough to hold a piece of jewelry—and was sloped so that whatever was placed in it would fall away in the wall.

"You're a Pagoda Knight, Lady Kizmel, in service to the Queen of the Dark Elves," Diavel said. "Though she's given you leave to aid Kirito indefinitely, I wonder how well you can? To truly understand Kirito, and the Swordmasters, you'll need to see the world through their eyes, and as a Pagoda Knight there are certain ways you'll always be shackled.

"The symbol of courage, the Bravery Pendant, lies beyond the glass, Kirito, Lady Kizmel. Only acts of Bravery will open it: acknowledgment of a willingness to become a symbol, be it of hope or hate—and the willingness to sacrifice much of what you are, in order to see what may be."

Kizmel could see, now, what Diavel meant, without any further explanation. He was telling her that to see the world through a Swordmaster's eyes, she might have to exchange it for the ties to her own people. As the Swordmasters had been deprived of so much to come to her world, if she wanted to understand theirs, she could well be called on to make an equivalent sacrifice.

Which meant that the hollow leading into the stone wall was meant to accept one, particular token.

"The choice is yours," Diavel said, his voice gentler now. "Both of you could leave this place now, and continue the fight to clear Aincrad in the way you have been. This isn't something you need to face right now, in this place."

Kizmel shared a long look with Kirito. She was relieved to see his complexion had darkened a few shades closer to healthy, but she could see in his eyes the same recognition of what was being asked of them as she had. Just as she could see that he'd thought of the same thing she had.

Her partner tried to speak, coughed to clear his throat, and tried again. "If we don't face it here, we'll have to face it somewhere down the line, won't we, Diavel?"

"I can hardly predict the future, Kirito," Diavel replied, smiling wryly. "After all, I did die, didn't I? …But yes, I'd think so. As long as you're the kind of person who would step forward to turn a rout into a victory, all by yourself."

"It wasn't exactly by myself," Kirito pointed out. "I had Asuna with me."

"Just as you have me, now." Coming to a decision, Kizmel abruptly reached up and tapped at the clasp of her cloak, banishing it and her armor in a flash of light, leaving only her tights and tunic—and her hands bare. "Her Majesty has other Knights to call on, if the Kingdom is in danger. I will not abandon my friend." Before she could second-guess herself, she pulled off the ring that her Queen had granted her when she was knighted, placed it in the hollow basin, and let it fall out of sight into the wall.

No small sacrifice, that. Seeing the look on Kirito's face, though, reminded her of exactly why she was so determined to hold to her course, and learn more of the Swordmasters who fought for the freedom of Aincrad, and from it—especially the two who had worked so hard for her own people, and her specifically.

"Well, then," he said, meeting her eyes, "I guess I can't just turn away now, can I?" He swept his hand through the air to bring up his Mystic "menu", turning to Diavel in the process. "Honestly, Diavel, I can't say for sure how long I can keep going, if the other players hate me. Like you said, I'm just a 'boy'… but as long as I can hold up, I have to. I've got promises to keep, to you, to Asuna… and to Kizmel." A few touches on immaterial writing, and his coat flared and vanished.

When it was gone, Kirito picked up the branded coat; with another flash, it went from his hand to settling on his shoulders, billowing briefly in a sourceless wind.

As the glass doors silently swung open, Diavel smiled at them. "Few things are braver than stepping forward without knowing if you can remain standing," he said. "Or being willing to cast aside the certainty of the past for an uncertain future. Take your reward, Kirito, Lady Kizmel, with pride."

Coming to silent agreement with a glance, the two of them moved forward together, and pushed open the chest's lid as one. Inside, resting in red velvet, lay the prize they'd come so far to obtain.

Kirito, though, tilted his head in apparent consternation, turning to look back at Diavel. "…I thought there was supposed to be one pendant, Diavel."

The knight's shade laughed. "You're not the Hero of Time, Kirito. Two partners, two pendants. Surely you should've expected another change, at the very end? Go on, put them on."

Shaking his head, Kirito returned his attention to the chest. Together with Kizmel, he lifted one of the emerald pendants and hung it around his neck; as soon as both were firmly in place, they flared brightly, briefly blinding them.

When the glow faded, Kizmel was startled to see Kirito's previous coat was in place, with no trace of the "b" to be seen. Likewise, she found herself back in her full armor and cloak again—and the ring that was proof of her Knighthood was back on her finger.

Diavel smiled at their expressions. "The important thing, my friends, was the act of Bravery; this Trial was to prove you could make such sacrifices, not to demand them of you now. Kirito's, in particular, was as much symbolic as anything else. After all, what's the point of wearing such a ridiculous coat?" He sobered. "Which is not to say that this quest will not demand such of you by the end. What you receive in the Reliquary will be powerful—but power always comes at a cost. Remember this, when the time comes."

"We will," Kizmel said softly, looking down at the ring once again adorning her hand.

"Yeah…" Kirito's inspection was of the pendant he wore; perhaps realizing, she thought, that it alone was bound to provoke questions when next they met with other Swordmasters. Then he looked back up at the shade, shadows in his eyes. "Diavel? …What are you?"

Diavel shrugged. "A remnant, Kirito. Fragments of memories, caught by a crimson bird… If you really want to understand it all, I'd give you the same advice I will your partner: keep searching. If you want the best of both worlds, you'll need to find certain answers, before the curtain falls on the Steel Castle's stage." He stepped back, beginning to fade from translucent to completely transparent. "Those are questions for another day. For now, seek out the Trial of the Wise, and prove you can find those answers…"

By the time they stepped back out of the Trial of the Brave, evening was closing in. Normally, by this time, Kirito would hardly be tired at all; he'd run quests well past midnight sometimes, both with Asuna and with Kizmel. Tonight, though, he felt almost as drained as he had the last day with the Black Cats.

"I'd advise retiring for the night, Kirito," Kizmel said, moving a little bit away from him once they were past the charmed gate. "The battle with the Black Knights was quite tiring as it was. The actual Trial…"

"Yeah. I can't say I was expecting that." The ghost of Diavel—which he thought was some subroutine of Cardinal using Diavel's avatar and records of the battle with Illfang—wasn't something he'd been remotely prepared for, even after it became plain Kayaba had taken liberties with the usual progression.

"For now, I'd suggest we ask shelter at Fort Renya; it's closer than Mydo, and I believe Countess Ryella would raise no objection." She started down the steps leading to the forest path, then stopped when he failed to follow. "Kirito?"

He shook himself. "Sorry, Kizmel." Kirito hurried to catch up, suddenly eager to put the ruins behind him. "It's just… Seeing Diavel again was kinda startling."

"I would be surprised if it wasn't." When their strides had matched, Kizmel glanced at him sidelong. "If I know you, though, that wasn't the only thing that bothered you about it. Nor just the Trial itself."

"…No." Not that the Trial had been fun; Kirito considered the gag with the "b" coat to be a particularly cruel joke, on top of forcing him to face the possibility of a repeat of Illfang's aftermath. It was something he'd faced before, though, and whatever happened, he was confident he wouldn't have to face it completely alone. Just as back then, there was Asuna, Argo, and Agil; even Klein, if he could put aside his own guilt… and Sachi.

Not to forget Kizmel, either. Not even a little.

The real fright, in a lot of ways, had been part of "Diavel's" reasoning.

"…He knew about my life back home," Kirito said, realizing he'd been silent long enough for them to have gotten well into the forest again. "I mean, it could just be a good guess—people like me probably make up a lot of the Swordmasters, really—but… put it together with how this whole thing seems to be about the two of us, specifically? …It makes me nervous."

Kizmel lifted one eyebrow, a small smile gracing her lips. "You don't suppose it could simply be our destiny?"

He snorted. "Do you?"

"…Perhaps not," she admitted. "Honestly, there are… certain things bothering me, as well." She came to an abrupt halt, turning to face him directly. "But that's exactly why I'm going to keep going, Kirito. If we stop now, we will never see the truth behind any of this. I want—no, I need to see where this path takes us. Even if I do have to make sacrifices, even if the truth proves to be frightening, I have to know."

The declaration struck a nerve for Kirito, knowing as he did just what one of those truths was, and how shattering it had the potential to be for his friend. Even so, he couldn't disagree; for all he knew, the questions he had would have answers just as frightening for him. Especially "Diavel's" comment about the "best of both worlds".

Ever since he'd met Kizmel, he'd known there were things about SAO that weren't quite as expected. Mysteries that probably had mundane explanations—but which might not.

"The answers are there, Kirito. And we can find them, together." Smiling, Kizmel raising one hand, beginning a gesture he and Asuna had taught her almost the first day of their acquaintance. "We passed this Trial, didn't we? Then let us pass the next, as well, and those that come after. Who knows? Perhaps the answers will be happier than we can imagine now."

You know… maybe she's right. It's not like everything I've learned, everything I've experienced, in this world has been bad, right? Finding himself smiling in return, Kirito gave his partner's hand a hearty slap. "Okay, then. Let's go find them."

Author's Note:

October was not fun. The end.

This chapter was, as a whole, pretty easy to write (credit to Destria Cosplay for giving me some much-needed inspiration for the part that wasn't); in fact, over half of it was written in the last week. I've got the basic idea of this whole arc planned out from here, too, so if the universe is kind enough not to send any curve balls my way for a little while, I should be able to make some real progress on it.

Yes, blatant Legend of Zelda pastiche here. It was originally just random filler, in the earliest planning stages; as you might see from the finished chapter, it's become rather more important than that. Critically so, actually, since it'll be dealing with one of the essential milestones of the whole story.

Hopefully I've switched things up enough from the standard Zelda formula for it to at least be tolerable. After all, the quest items aren't just random MacGuffins here… well, okay, I guess the items are, but getting them is sure more significant than just fetch quests, yeah?

Ahem. Anyway. Hopefully it was good enough to make up for the long delay; good, bad, die in a fire, let me know. -Solid