If blood pressure could be checked in the virtual world, Asuna's sure hers would have skyrocketed in the midst of the infighting between ALS and DKB.

Agil had sent them a message during breakfast before the quintet had changed plans from furthering the Stachion quest to investigating the Fallen Elf weapons, that the frontier players were planning to advance into the second slice of the sixth floor, counterclockwise from the slice that Suribus and Stachion occupy. The way forward is a dungeon cavern in the bordering mountain ranges, in which Kirito and Mito describe as being filled with puzzles and a mid-boss at the end. This is the same setup for the other three intersecting dungeons.

Jaymes grumbled that if they were able to bring the boats made on the fourth floor, they could traverse the star-shaped lake in the floor's center and bypass the mountains altogether. It would make getting to the Celestial Tower to the seventh floor easier - it's on the southeastern side of the Stachion slice, and there's no way to get there except by going counterclockwise through the others.

Once Asuna's team caught up to Agil's Bro Squad and the big two, Asuna was partially unhappy they hadn't cleared the dungeon; instead, they were on break outside of it. They joined the Bro Squad, huddled around a small fire, then enjoyed a snack of the Icththyoid Potato - the sweet potato that Kirito got as drops from the fish creatures and first served on the fifth floor.

Right before that, Asuna posed Kirito and Mito a question, "How does a player with an orange cursor get it back to green again?" They both looked astounded by the question at the time, but they quickly understood why Asuna posed the question. Morte and Joe are members of the big guilds, or at least Joe still is a member of ALS. The previous night, both players attacked NPCs, and their cursors turned orange as a result. Asuna is aware of the consequences of receiving the cursor, and the others might've mentioned the way to alleviate that problem, but never in detail.

They explained that they would need to complete an "Alignment Recovery" quest, a kind of trial given by random NPCs traveling the wild. Whether it could be completed in a night, neither Mito nor Kirito knew, but they explained that the difficulty of the quest fit the crime, and if one clears the quest before, the repeated offense of the crime also raises the difficulty. PKing five people at once counts as a single offense, but it is nearly impossible to regain green status.

Morte killed Cylon, but Joe attacked the big man, so their quests were of varying difficulty. Even if Joe did succeed, it doesn't look like he's here now - and the same is for half of ALS's members. Both the big guilds are eighteen members strong right now. Add in Agil's four and Asuna's five, and they're forty-five in number.

After Kibaou rounded everyone up, he and ALS took charge of the raid. Things were well for a while in the first chamber - all they did was fight ten Living Statues -but things took a turn for the worse afterward. The exit out of the first chamber is a sliding puzzle with blocks of varying sizes and orientations. To solve the puzzle, the lone large block had to be taken from the top of the puzzle to the exit at the bottom. In the beta, the puzzle consisted of one large block, four vertical blocks, a horizontal block, and four small blocks, which Kirito claimed was easy in comparison. The puzzle now looks similar to the one in the past but has an additional row of small blocks.

Kibaou initially attempted to solve the puzzle, but after five minutes and a couple of hundred moves, he had no success. Lind offered to try, Kibaou told him to butt out...and the usual glaring contest between the blues and greens went on.

Currently, Kibaou is trying again. Asuna, her party, and the Bro Squad sit back, not eager to get between the rival guilds. Annoyed, she sighs and glances at Kirito. "Well...this certainly looks familiar. Say, isn't there a simple and reliable way to solve that, like with the fifteen puzzle?"

"Unfortunately, there isn't... I remember that the shortest solution to the original version was eighty-one moves, but this one has four extra blocks on it. I don't think I'd be able to step in and do it smoothly."

"Neither can I," Mito admits with crossed arms, then turns to the frowning Jaymes. She grins and points at him teasingly. "What says you, Jaymes?"

He shakes his head. "Nah. I don't care. Let them figure it out."

"Translation: I have no clue, but I'm too prideful to admit it."

"Hmph."

"By the way, Kirito," Agil interrupts and joins the conversation, "the puzzles in Stachion were some curse from the lord of the town, right? We didn't do that quest, so I don't know the fine details,"

"Someone died at the lord's manor, and now the place is cursed."

"Then why are there puzzles in this dungeon that's miles away from the town? There wasn't a single one in Suribus."

"...That's a good point."

Kirito, Jaymes, and Mito never said anything about the curse connection beyond Stachion, other than the house in Suribus. She hadn't thought about it before, but now that Agil says it, it is weird that there are puzzles beyond Stachion when the curse skipped over Suribus. If there are puzzles here, they are certainly all over the floor.

"Hey, you just reset it to the beginning!" Lind's shout draws their attention. As said, Kibaou reset the puzzle by placing the large block at the top of the puzzle. Kibaou, however, is not giving up as he starts again with the vertical blocks.

"When you get stuck, you start over! It's common sense!"

"You just admitted you got stuck! So let someone else have a go!"

"I didn't say that!"

"Yes, you did!"

Asuna sighs again in exasperation and remarks, "Sometimes I get the feeling that they're actually best friends."

Koharu nods, then glances at Kirito and Mito with a giggling smile. "They remind you of another pair of 'best friends,' don't they?"

Mito nods, then quickly scans Asuna and Jaymes. "Most definitely."

Jaymes (as well as Asuna) catches on and click his tongue in cheek. "How about less side commentary and go solve the puzzle. You two were here before. Figure it out."

"L...listen, there's a whole extra row added to what was there before. I can't beat it with the moves I remem..." Kirito pauses there, then turns back to the puzzle. According to him and Mito, there's only an additional row of small blocks. Asuna can see the gears rolling in Kirito's head, and then he glances at Mito. "You remember how to solve the puzzle in the beta?"

"Yeah... So..."

"Then... Well, I guess we'll give it a try."

After Kirito and Mito solved the puzzle together and returned to the party, Asuna allowed ALS and DKB to move forward. When her group was out of earshot, she turned to Kirito and Mito, curious about their short conversation after solving the puzzle. "What were you talking with Okotan about?"

"I was asking if any of their members backed out from this at the last minute."

"And?"

"Sadly, he said there weren't any."

"… Oh… I guess it wasn't going to be that easy to catch him by the tail."

"Yeah. At this rate, we should keep our wits about us all throughout the day."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember that we only suspect Joe is Morte's partner," Jaymes whispers. "But even if Joe supposedly was that guy, we have no evidence of it. If we posed the hypothesis and say we were right that Joe had an orange cursor, his excuse could be due to an accidental area attack on one and got Morte and the other two to help on his Alignment quest last night."

"The reason he didn't is probably because he considered the possibility that the attack last night wouldn't work. He could trick his guildmates, but if you or I or any of us survived and learned that someone in the ALS turned up orange, we could confirm that he was our PKer…And if they're savvy enough to plan that carefully, they could have decided that we'd let our guard down, thinking they won't attack again the next day, making us easier targets this time."

When you put it that way, it seems likely. So assuming that we'll be watching our backs more carefully from now on." Asuna then leans into Kirito with an angry glare, her finger circulating and pointing at each person in the party. "I'd like a correction to your quote just now about 'if you or I or any of us survived.'"

"Wha?"

"Why would you think that if one of us were killed, the other four would run away? Say it again, but correctly: 'If we survive.'"

"O-okay..." Asuna didn't believe Kirito would abandon the others and run away. She knew Jaymes wouldn't abandon Koharu at the least, and he proved he'd protect the others last night. Mito had abandoned Asuna once, but the reason was understandable - Mito would have died trying to save Asuna or Asuna wouldn't have survived even if Mito climbed up that cliff. And before the fourth floor, Koharu, Jaymes, Kirito, and Asuna promised to have each other's backs for as long as they're a party, if not beyond.

As Kirito prepares himself to correct himself, a shout from behind interrupts them. "Things are getting steamy over here!"

"They're melting the North Pole!"

That was Lowbacca and Naijan of the Bro Squad, teasing Asuna and Kirito as they're touching shoulder to shoulder and leaning their heads in. Asuna separates from her partner, putting a healthy distance between them...and is joined by Koharu, two steps behind her. Apparently, Jaymes receded from the conversation after his input and engaged with his partner in close proximity.

Mito walks between the two columns of her party, chuckling to herself.

The cavern was completed after four more large rooms and a plant-type, pea-tossing boss. Neither Kirito nor Jaymes got the last attack bonus this round, but it didn't seem that exciting. Agil reports that it was peas that Kirito believed could be sweetened if boiled. After the exit from the cave, Asuna's party separated from the frontliners for the dark elf castle at the northwest corner of the second slice fo the sixth floor.

"This part of the floor... It was like this in the beta, correct?" Koharu moans after a few minutes of walking off the beaten path.

"Yes," Mito answers.

"…I don't think there's much use in complaining about the map design of Aincrad at this point," Asuna says, "but when there's only a single line of mountains between us and the first area, it really shouldn't be this different."

"No arguments from me," Kirito replies.

"Of all the places elves could call home...why a desert?"

The northeast area of Aincrad's sixth floor is a sprawling, scorching-hot desert, the very area Jaymes, Mito, and Kirito were expecting on the fourth floor. The bountiful flora of the first area is absent; eroded rock and odd-shaped cacti dot the sandy surface. And when the slightest breeze passes, it kicks up enough sand to block one's sight. For two and a half miles, they have to trek this forsaken land that luckily won't kill them due to dehydration or hunger.

And all the while, there are monsters along the way. Giant scorpions, giant centipedes, giant spiders... Asuna was unfazed by them, but Koharu was equally repulsed and frightened. Mito was somewhat alright, while Kirito and Jaymes fought without any emotion besides a single moment of elation out of the blue.

"Yes!"

"Yahoo!" The boys raise their right hand, leap in the air, and high-five each other. Asuna understood they leveled up because the synonymous light surrounded them as it did Koharu and Asuna not too long ago, but it disturbed their respective partners.

"A-are you two okay?"

"S-since when did you start acting like that?"

"I also did this when I reached level six and twelve," Kirito insists.

Asuna and Koharu glance at each other, then the light turns on in their heads. "Oh, so you got another skill slot…In that case, some congratulations are indeed in order."

"Congratulations, Jaymes and Kirito."

"Yahoo!"

Jaymes nods and turns to Mito. "Aren't you close to twenty yourself?"

Mito chuckles. "Hehe, I did so while we were in the dungeon. Glad you boys caught up." Jaymes hits her with a cold stare, in which Mito smiles and glances at the celebrating Kirito. "I added chain to scythe, Sprint, Jewelry, and Appraisal. So what's gonna be your fifth skill?"

"Hmm... One-handed longswords, Search, Hiding, and shields. What did I go with in the beta?"

"Currently, I've got one-handed longswords, martial arts, Search, and Hiding…so I think I'll either go with Throwing Knives or Sprint."

"I recommend Sprint," Asuna says. "It cuts down on movement time, and it just feels good to run."

"Yeah, I like that skill, but… Say, Asuna…you've got rapiers and Light Metal Armor and Tailoring and Sprint, and what's the other one?"

Surprised by Kirito's question, Asuna blinks silently, then tightens her lips and glance away. "Um…it's a secret. I don't want any of you to get mad at me."

"H-huh?! Get mad? …Me? Hang on, I'm not going to get mad…Though, I mean, whatever skills you choose are your own business…"

"The teachers who say that are the ones who get the angriest."

"T-teachers…"

Jaymes crosses his arms and chuckles. "You probably picked something useful like Coo-Ow, ow, argh!" Koharu (current skills are Daggers, Acrobatics, Light Armor, and Light-Footed) squeezes the life out of Jaymes' arm. He might not have real pain from the hold, but the sensation of her touch is.

"You heard her: It's a secret. Besides, this is about you boys right now."

Jaymes pouts as Koharu releases him, rubbing his right arm. "Whatever... I picked Parry back then, which is helpful as a shielder as it increases the chances of perfect parrying while decreasing the loss of durability when parrying. But there's Howl, too...and as the party's tank, it would be useful as a strong taunt, and I can use another shield skill instead of the taunt skill I've been using. I'll decide when we get to the castle."

Kirito nods and clasps his chin. "Well, I think it'll either be Throwing Knives or Sprint, but I'll hold off for now."

With that, Asuna turns to the north. "I see. Well, let's get moving."

After moving forward through a monster-filled, maze-like canyon, Asuna and her companions come out on the other side. The evening is setting in, so in the darkness comes the first sign of civilization since they left Suribus that earlier. Stone pillars and a blocky bridge lead towards a large metal gate, topped with several dark banners with scimitars and horns designed on them.

"Wow, that is huge." Tired as Asuna was from the traveling and fighting, she felt energized at the sight of the looming fortress ahead of them.

"Castle Galey up there is the largest of the dark elf fortresses. The building itself isn't as posh as Yofel Castle, but they've got a dining hall and a bath."

"Wait, you mentioned a bath?" That temporarily saps all of Asuna's weariness as she makes a brisk dash across the stone bridge.

"Don't be too excited, Asuna," Mito warns, increasing her stride to catch up to her friend. "If I remember correctly, the forest elves had their respective camps and castles that worked the same as the dark elf ones. So if that's true... The third, fourth, and fifth camps were instanced, correct? The sixth for the forest elves was open to the public. Same to this castle, right?"

"Y-yeah."

Asuna draws a blank in her head. "Public?" She knows what public means, but in the case of Sword Art Online...what does that mean? She continues to repeat the word as she ponders its meaning, then throws out her thoughts to the others. "Is this like the antonym of instanced? So it's not a space that's just for us? Other players can come in?"

"That's right. Out of all the dark elf spots, only the queen's castle on the ninth floor and Castle Galey up there are public… I'm guessing they found it difficult to have a whole bunch of these fortresses and castles all existing in the same space at the same time."

"You did the forest elf side of things," Jaymes inquires to Mito. "So the castles work the same on this floor and the ninth?"

"Yes, the camps and castles were similar in how they worked. Story and quests aside, there's not much difference between the factions."

"Well, Yofel Castle was plenty big, too. But I guess I can't complain…So your point is that other players might enter the dining hall and bath and stuff."

"In theory, yes, but the only people who can pass through that gate are ones doing the 'Elf War' questline with the dark elf faction, who are at least as far along as we are. I don't think there's a single other player who qualifies at this point, so go ahead and bathe to your heart's content… Jaymes and I could even stand guard outside as we did on the third floor."

"So the castle is open to the public, correct?" Koharu repeats as she pauses. She glances at the gate, a worried expression on her face. "This means anyone could get inside, as long as they're on the dark elf side of the storyline? Does this mean that...they could get inside?"

They...as in the PK group that Morte and his friends are apart of. Asuna was considering that possibility, but Koharu beat her to the words. Kirito and Jaymes look taken aback by Koharu's hypothesis, then the swordsman in black nods to the girls.

"Yeah…I believe so. It's theoretically possible for Morte's gang to get inside and attack us somehow. But like I said, they'll need to be involved with the dark elf faction to do that. I don't think they had that much time to work with…and at the very least, it would be impossible for J—for the dagger user infiltrating the ALS."

Asuna twitches her eye at the half-mentioning of Joe's name, as if Kirito is backtracking on suspecting the ALS's loudmouth as the same man as Morte's partner. True, he's innocent until proven guilty (and Joe made no indication he was present during the fifth floor's catacomb encounter when ALS entered the last floor's boss chamber), but he's not cleared. She pushes that aside and continues with her other thought. "Do you think…Viscount Yofilis would tell us if we asked? Could he say if Morte or his friends were working for the dark elves?"

"No," Jaymes answers. "Remember that, for most of our encounters with dark elves, we were within instanced maps. Kizmel and Yofilis wouldn't know about Morte because our version of the storyline differs slightly from theirs in terms of interaction and people. Our version of Yofilis won't recall anyone except the five of us. Also... If I remember correctly, ALS was with the forest elves, so that wouldn't matter. DKB is with the dark elves, but we did stop them and ALS from advancing the quest between the forest and dark elf factions. And we have the sigil Yofilis gave us to pass through. But that assumes that Morte was with them at the time to begin with, and he - or Annihilator and Devesta - might have advanced the quest."

"You didn't sound sure we'll be fine here at the end," Asuna shrugs and turns to the metal gate. "We'd better be on guard in the castle, then. C'mon, let's go."