I thank whitworth5274 for helping me.

March 6th, 2024, Floor 31

After Silica got Pina back, she shared her Beast-Taming tricks with Haruza.

That led Haruza back to the thirty-first floor, just outside a place called the Village of Graceful Blossoms. She searched all over the place to tame a beast. Once she found one, Silica said she'd have to give lots of the beast's favorite food to tame it.

She actually had a target picked already, a five-tailed fox she spotted once before on the floor when they were progressing through. She picked enough blossomed peaches, the fox's favorite fruit, and picked enough to feed the one in her sights currently. After some time, it became drawn to the peaches she was handing out, then started to eat more and more, building its affection stat with Haruza until the gauge was filled to the max.

Petting her new friend, she said, "I'll think of a name for you later. I've got to get to a meeting."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Floor 56

Arriving at the meeting, Haruza joined Taicho, Cyrus, Ada and around forty other players in a small, cramped space in a cavern out in the wilds of the fifty-sixth floor. And maybe it hasn't been long since the last strategy meeting, but this one was hotter than the last. After all, they're not dealing with a stubborn labyrinth boss, but a major field boss that doesn't know any better than to give up and shove off.

It explained the tension between a certain girl in white and a boy in black. The girl was Asuna, the vice-commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath and the strongest woman in the game. Haruza's pride might hurt admitting it, but it was the truth. Of course, the boy is Kirito.

Slamming her hand on the map on the table, Asuna declared, "Lure it to the village, that's how we get the boss!"

Kirito, walking to the table from the back of the crowd, interjected, "Wait! You can't be serious! If we do, the boss will go after the villagers!"

"Yes, that's the idea. And while the boss is busy killing NPCs, we can attack it and kill it."

Haruza stepped forward. "No way! We can't do that!"

"But they're not just objects! NPCs are different from rocks and trees. Look, they're-"

Asuna narrowed her eyes. "You think they're alive? Really?"

Taicho nodded his head. "Yeah. They're living beings just like you."

"I'm sure there are alternatives to getting the boss other than using NPC villagers as bait," Cyrus postulated.

"Cyrus is right, Asuna! There has to be another way."

Asuna glared at Taicho, Cyrus and Ada, her eyes especially heated at the slightly younger girl that was her sister. "Are you in charge here?"

Cyrus nervously responded, "N…No…"

Ada matched her sister's fury, growling, "You're only in charge because you're the vice commander of KoB."

Asuna then turned her attention to the braver boys who opposed her, Kirito and Taicho. "In this game, they are just objects. And unlike us, if they're killed, they can always respawn."

Kirito shook his head in denial. "Sorry, but I'm not cool with that plan."

"Me neither," Haruza stated, "It doesn't matter if they respawn. No one should suffer from that."

"I'm running this operation, ok? And in case you forgot, I'm still second in command of the Knights of the Blood Oath. You'll obey my orders, like it or not."

"Well if you're the one in charge of this, then count me out. Do what you want, but I won't let you murder innocent NPCs."

Ada agreed, "Sorry sis, but the plan doesn't sit well with me. Love ya, but luring the boss into town endangers the NPCs and any players that wander in that aren't part of the assault team."

Asuna sighed, annoyed with the opposition. "If you think you value the life of non-existing beings in a virtual world, then so be it. We. Are. Sticking with this plan!"

From his side of the table, Klein raised his hand. "Now just a darn minute here! It may be uncouth of me to say this, but seeing as you're going on there, allow me to verify something first. Seeing as you're being so high-handed, you must certainly be higher-leveled than us dawdlers, ain't that right?!"

"I do believe I am? I just reached 70 the previous day, after all."

"Why, excuse me! I'm still 67."

"Klein, what are you…"

"However! It pains me to say this, but I'm a whole 4 levels behind this guy right here!" Klein slung his arm around Kirito's shoulder, causing the boy to jump.

"H-Hey!"

"Wha…."

Kirito retreated away from Klein. "Oh, no, no. I have no intention of forcing my opinion down your throat due to the difference in our levels or anything like that. It's just that… Is being as fast as possible all there is to being a "progresser"? Casting away your companions that can't keep up with you on their leveling, killing off NPCs, don't you think undue measures like that will lead to losing a more important parameter of yours… your 'heart'?"

If Haruza had ever seen a vein pop, Asuna's had blown to smithereens. "Fine then… I'll have you back them up! Those words of yours with your own sword!" No one could see what Asuna was doing, but they all understood what's going down as her fingers moved expeditiously, followed by Kirito's surprised jump.

A duel between Asuna and Kirito.

Klein, the instigator of the entire matter, gasped harder than anyone. "W-who woulda thought it'd lead to this?! Though, you've got no reason to take her on, man! Picking a fight with the KoB sure leads to some scary stuff afterwards."

"A bit late for that now, pal… Oh fine."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kirito ended up winning the duel, but it was a close match from beginning to end. Due to that, the plan was to search for an alternative method, if there was one. Ironically, it would be Asuna who'd find that method. She encountered an NPC in the nearby town who played a lullaby. As Nautilus was a member of KoB, he summoned Yuna to come learn the song, then they took it to battle.

The Geocrawler, the troublesome mid-boss of the fifty-sixth floor, was put to sleep by Yuna's song, then laid to eternal rest.

After the battle, Haruza found herself with Taicho and Kirito, straying away from the discussions both the leaders of the HDA and KoB are having. Walking over to them was Agil, who patted Kirito on the shoulder: "Hey, what's with you guys?"

"Huh?"

"You and the second-in command," he said, gesturing in the direction of Asuna. "You're always getting into it, and not in the good way."

Kirito shrugged. "I guess we just don't click, Agil."

Skeptical, Haruza teased, "Yeah, you say that now."

"What does that mean?"

"You don't see it?" Taicho joined.

"I'd rather not give the details. You'll just have to figure it out for yourself."

Kirito, depressed, shaked off his friends' jokes. "Well, she took my advice, but who knew she'd be in the top guild and be a floor-clearing badass?"

"You did, apparently."

"I guess… Anyway, Haruza, what are you doing with that fox?"

"Oh, yeah. I just tamed him. I haven't given him a name yet because I had to get to the meeting."

Kirito scratched his head and stared at the five-tailed fox. "Well…don't ask me for names. I'm bad with them. I would suggest Foxy or something."

Taicho crossed his arms. "…Tails? No, that's taken. Fives? Inari, if you wish to name it after the goddess."

Haruza sighed and stroked her pet's ear. "I'll decide on something soon."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

April 11th 2024, Floor 59

On the sunny plains of the fifty-ninth floor about a month later, Kirito, Haruza, her fox, now named Comet, and Taicho were laying on a hill underneath a tree's shadow. During the time, no one in the trio said a word. It was peaceful, serene, and lazy.

Until footsteps marched through the grass and covered their sight of the leaves with the beautifully harsh face of Asuna. "What are you doing?"

Kirito sighed. "Oh, hey. What's up?"

Haruza waved quarter-heartedly. "Another problem?"

"Everyone in the Assault Team's working their butts off to clear the dungeon. And where do I find the three of you? Out here, taking naps. Even if you're solo players, you should take this more ser-"

"Bet you didn't know this is Aincrad's nicest season. Today's weather is at its optimal setting."

"So we're enjoying it to the max."

"You should join us, Asuna." Taicho invited.

"Huh?"

"It'd be a waste to have to go to work on a day like this." Kirito continued.

Irritated, Asuna retorted, "Whatever. I can't believe you. Do you even understand what's going on? Every day here is another one lost in the real world."

"Yeah, but right now, we're not in the real world, are we? We're alive in Aincrad."

"The farther I'm away from my overbearing mom, the better." Haruza shut her eyes.

"See? Doesn't that breeze feel good? And the sun."

"It hits the spot just right." Added Taicho.

"Oh, come on! The weather's always the same here." Asuna complained.

Kirito stretched his arms and closed his eyes. "If you lay down on the grass for a little bit, you'd understand."

Haruza and Taicho mimicked him. "Come on, Asuna. Don't be such a stick-in-the-mud."

"Loosen up." However Asuna acted, Haruza wouldn't know as sleep quickly claimed her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Ho ho, damn! Would ya look at that. Taking a nap in the middle of the day."

"Some people sure got it easy."

"Couple of lazy losers, man."

If she was half-asleep at any moment, that last part stirred her fully awake: "Did I hear the word losers?" Leaning up quickly, she noticed Kirito already up, seated cross-legged in the shade. Passing by is a group of players. Members of HDA, by the blue in the gear. To her left, Taicho is slowly roused from sleep too. As for Asuna…she was to Kirito's right, supine and sound asleep.

Noticing Haruza's gawking gaze, Kirito groaned, "I can't believe she fell asleep."

"Well, we're the ones who suggested it."

Taicho yawned while remaining on his back. "Luckily this is a safe zone."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sunset eventually came, and the trio were awake and sat on a ruined brick wall talking among themselves until a loud sneeze interrupted them. Turning around, they all see a half-awoke Asuna looking back at them with grass on her face and drooling.

"Wha- uh-"

"Good morning." Kirito greeted. "You slept like a rock." Asuna gasped and, with a scary face, reached for her rapier. All three drop down behind it, fearing the girl's rage, but she restrained herself.

Believing her sex as a girl might spare her life, Haruza poked her head over the wall first. "Geez! No one came to kill you in your sleep!"

Asuna stood in place, and through gritted teeth, said, "You all get one meal."

Kirito and Taicho's head popped up at that point. "Huh?"

"One meal! All you can eat, my treat. Then we'll be even."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Floor 57

The four of them sit quietly in the restaurant, not wanting to provoke Asuna by engaging in conversation. It made things awkward for Haruza, at the very least. It allowed her to hear the other visitors of the restaurant and their comments on "the shady-looking guy dressed in all black" whilst others recognized Asuna, Taicho, and herself. That made Haruza snicker to herself, but besides that and watching Comet enjoy his meal, it was…uneventful.

Asuna broke through silence first as she finished her food. "Well, anyway, thank you… for today."

"Why?" Kirito asked.

"For keeping an eye on me."

"Oh, sure."

"The towns are supposed to be safe zones, and unless you've agreed to a duel, a player can't attack or kill you. But when you're asleep, you're vulnerable."

"Yeah. Now we've got player killers who can cheat the duel system."

"How so?" Haruza asked. "Far as I know, you can't cheat that system. One party sends the duel and all its details, the other party has to agree to it." Duels in SAO were based on one three set of rules, determined by the sender of the duel request and accepted by the recipient: First-hit, in which the first player to suffer damage loses; first to half-health, and first to lose all health. No one in their right mind dare duel with the latter rule.

"Duels are normally supposed to be tests of strength, not fight to the death. But even if you duel in a safe zone, your HP is still going to go down based on the damage you take." Kirito explained.

Asuna nodded. "All a sleep PKer has to do is manipulate a sleeping player's finger to click the OK button. The duel begins like normal, but the sleep PKer is doing all the attacking. God knows how many times it's happened. So anyway, thank you."

"Uh, sure. Anytime. Well, you'd do the same for me, well, us." The awkward silence resumed for a while until a sudden scream came from outside. It didn't sound like a shout of joy or surprise, but of fear and fright. Immediately the four teenagers leapt out their chairs and joined the gathering crowd outside. They were all facing a church with a strange decoration: a man hanging off the tower of the building and a spear plunged into his chest.

And worse, Haruza noticed that the man had a green cursor over his head. "That's no NPC!"

"Hurry! Pull it out!" Kirito shouted. The man looked at Kirito, and started to try to pull the spear out his chest.

"It's too deep…" Taicho murmured.

"I'll cut him down! You catch him!" Asuna ran into the church to ascend the tower while Kirito tried to reassure the man that help was on the way. Frozen in place, Haruza couldn't take her eyes off the man as he hopelessly continued to try to free himself…then vanished in a sea of blue crystals.

The noose that held him up wobbled loosely in the air. The spear clattered against the ground. The crowd was either frozen like she was or shrieking in terror. All Haruza herself can hear was her pounding heartbeat until the swordsman in black turned to her and the crowd. "Everyone! Look for the player with the winner icon!"

Asuna's head popped out from the balcony. "There's no one here! The room's empty!"

Shaking her fright off, Haruza scanned the surrounding area, but there's no sign of a winner or someone coming to recover their spear. "No winner icon anywhere!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Not spotting a winner from the street, Haruza and the boys joined Asuna upstairs. Seated in a corner of the room, Haruza watched as Comet sniffed the room for anything that might be a clue. Asuna, Taicho, and Kirito gathered by the window, the other woman gazing out of it.

"So any idea how this could've happened?"

"Well, there's always the obvious. There was a duel and the other guy impaled the victim with that spear. Then he put a noose around his neck and pushed him out the window. Wouldn't you say that's about right?"

"Yeah, but I couldn't see the winner icon on anyone."

"Neither did I or Haruza."

"It had to be a duel," Asuna insisted. "It's a safe zone and a player died. A duel's the only thing it could've been… Or maybe not. Either way, we can't ignore this."

"I know." Kirito frowned.

"As it is a player takes huge risks going outside a safe zone, but if someone's found a way to PK inside, no one's going to be safe in the towns either."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Yeah. If there's a way to kill in town, we need to put a stop to it now before anyone else gets hurt."

Asuna nodded to Taicho's assortment and walked past the boys. "I guess we won't be going back to the front lines anytime soon." She then extended her arm out to Kirito and eyes both Taicho and Haruza at the same time. "Listen, you three are going to work with me until we solve this thing. Until we do, there won't be any time for napping, ok?"

"Okay," Kirito said. "But you're the one who was napping." Asuna flinched at that comment and squeezed down hard on Kirito's hand. "Ow!"

"You shouldn't have said that, you idiot." Pushing herself off the crate she sat on, Haruza strutted over to Asuna and extended her hand. "I'll assist, even if you didn't force this on me."

"Good to know. And you, Taicho?"

His gaze is through the window, and with sunrise happening outside, his countenance is much darker, as if something resided in his head. "Yeah, sure… I have no choice but to find all of this out."

As they came down out from the church, Haruza clapped her hands to get the crowd's attention. "Everyone, quiet down!"

"Listen up!" Kirito shouted. "Did anyone see what happened before that player died? If someone did, please speak up!" The crowd murmured amongst themselves with seemingly no movement. That is until a purple-haired girl who looked to be seventeen or eighteen years old waded through the crowd and came forward meekly.

Sensing her nervousness, Asuna spoke in a soft tone. "Sorry. I can imagine how frightened you are. Could you tell us your name?"

"Sure. My name is Yolko."

"Was that you? I mean were you the one who screamed?" Kirito asked, in reference to the scream that got them to run outside.

"Uh-huh. I… I knew him. His name was Caynz and the two of us used to belong to the same guild. Anyway, we came here together today. We were going to have dinner somewhere in town. But we got separated in the plaza. I looked around for him, then I saw him hanging from that balcony and…"

With tears running down her face and Comet the fox rubbing against her leg, Asuna continued the questioning. "Was there anyone else up there?"

"For a second there. I'm not sure, but I think I did see someone standing behind Caynz."

"And this person, had you seen them before?" Yolko shook her head in denial.

Taicho, tensed from the confession of another figure being seen by Yolko, glared at the window and murmured, "I thought it impossible that Asuna didn't see anyone on her way out, or that no one came out the church. Then that means the person didn't come down…or had to come down."

Since Kirito and Asuna were a couple of feet in front of her, Haruza was standing with Taicho alone. She barely heard what he said. "Taicho?"

Taicho didn't answer her, so the next voice she heard was Kirito's. "Um, I know this is hard for you, but think back and try to remember. Could it be someone, anyone with the reason to kill him?" Yolko gasped then shook her head again.

The girl was in too much distress. Haruza stepped forward and suggested, "We should stop for now." Asuna looked to be in agreement, and offered to walk Yolko back to her inn. The place, the Ya Mahya Inn, wasn't far. After walking up to the door, Yolko faced them once more.

"Thank you for walking me back. Sorry if it's out of your way."

Asuna nodded. "No worries, but we'd like to talk to you again tomorrow. If you're feeling up to it."

"Ok." Yolko bowed to the four, then closed the door.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Floor 59

After splitting from Asuna and Kirito, Haruza followed Taicho up to the main town of the fifty-ninth floor, the Teleport Gate just outside the town's square. She sat down on the bench, staring at the flower garden in the center, a reminder of the enormous Fertile Garden. The boy beside her remained quiet, focused in his gloved hands.

The memory of the Fertile Garden reminded her of the time she waited there on Kirito and Silica...especially the part where her jealousy of the surrounding couples made her think of the guy three feet to her right. And for the first time in a year, maybe a little more, she's alone with him.

"...So...what do you make of this?"

"...I don't know."

"I have no clue either. But I do wonder how someone could have been there yet not be there."

"That's an easy explanation. Whoever did this used a Teleport Crystal."

"That...makes perfect sense." Teleport Crystals allowed someone to travel to any location they're registered for, no matter where they are. Teleport Crystal restricted zones are the sole exception, but they're few in numbers and are usually boss rooms. With that in mind, it's plausible that the culprit vanished before Asuna even ventured up the stairs. Probably before they joined the crowd.

"What does bother me is that the owner of the spear left it behind. As time passes, ownership of the spear will be transferred to Kirito an hour after he picked it up — provided the culprit didn't equip another spear and lose ownership immediately. So the only clue we can have about the spear is its origin: if it is player-created, we have a lead. If it's looted, NPC-made, or a reward, that's a dead end."

"That's true, I believe." Haruza leaned back on the bench, then turned to her companion. "You know a lot. Actually, Taicho, you've always known a lot about the game. Like I know you're a beta tester too, but at times it's like you know more than that."

"..."

His whole countenance changed: his brow dropped, head partially turned away from her, lips twisted inward and partially bitten by his teeth. He seemed grumpy about something, and it stemmed from the murder of Caynz. "Taicho? Are you okay?"

"Here yer two are." Coming toward them is a short girl probably around their age with a gray hood over her head. She lowered her hood and her whisker-painted cheeks entered into a smile.

"Argo? You wanted to see her?"

Taicho didn't acknowledge Haruza as he stood up and walked over to her. "You heard what happened about an hour ago?"

"I have. Whole frontier is in a frenzy. Let me guess, ya two witnessed it?"

"Yes. Kirito and Asuna are going to get it appraised, but I wanted to ask you some questions about it. No matter the price."

Argo's smile vanished. She looked to be frightened by Taicho's dark tone, which was unusual for Argo in general. She looked to Haruza for something, but Haruza didn't know what to say. Taicho's demeanor was strange to her, too.

"Well...since this is an important safety matter, I'll do this for free." Argo walked past Taicho, joined Haruza on the bench and crossed her arms. "What do you wish to know?"

"Is there any way to kill someone other than a duel in the safe zone?"

"If you don't include sleep PKs…then I don't know. Earlier I would have said that's impossible, but… Huh? What's… What with this amount of Col?"

"For this." If Haruza blinked, she would have missed that Taicho reached for the ground, spun, and threw a rock at Argo's face. A blotchy red spot from where the rock hit her glowed bright in the lamp-lit plaza.

"Wahhh!"

"T-Taicho?! What the hell?"

Taicho shrugged and focused on Argo. "Is your health gone, Argo?"

"N-no, it isn't. But what was that for? You could've gone orange!"

"Just to make sure the rules hadn't changed. And no, it takes considerable damage for a player to hit another player and go orange. That's a fact that SAO doesn't tell you because you wouldn't attack another person unless you meant to hurt them."

"Is that so?" Argo looked to her right, where the notification she received money from Taicho is, and nodded. "Oh, I see where this is going… Alright then, I will accept this payment to keep that tidbit quiet. Doesn't mean this proves that a murder cannot happen outside a duel in the safe zone."

"You're right. This proves the rules are in place and are being exploited. It's worse than I thought." Taicho sighed, mumbled something to himself, and started to leave the square completely.

"Something's wrong with him, Haruza." Argo returned to her feet with Haruza. "I mean, I can guess why, but I got paid a large sum of money to not speculate. Still…there was Kirito's dark time, but for some reason, Taicho's feels worse."

"How so?"

"Like I said, I got paid well not to speak on why I think that…but not enough to let ya help him out. So what I'm about to say is vague, but free." Argo cleared her throat and faced Haruza. "Not to make light of the man's death, but aside from being a witness to the murder and the mystery of how it happened, do you feel anything else for the victim? Course ya wouldn't. And think of how many times ya two have witnessed death as Assault Team members. I get being uncomfortable witnessing death, but going to these lengths… Has he been like this before? And if so, why would he take the deaths of people he don't even know so personally?"

A riddle from Argo? It seemed she knew something about Taicho that Haruza didn't, but her code of honor kept her lips sealed. There's a good chance the money Taicho paid is a price Haruza isn't willing to match. "I… I don't know… But thank you for coming out, Argo. I'll catch up with him." Haruza departed from Argo's side and jogged to rejoin Taicho.

Once she got there, she grabbed Taicho by the shoulder to hold him in place. "Hey! Taicho, what is wrong with you?" His silence permeated the coolness of the late-spring air, which pissed Haruza off. "Hey! Don't you dare start getting moody on me! I dealt with one boy, I don't want to deal with ano…"

"Lay off, Haruza." When Taicho's eyes moved to meet hers, her breath hitched. Instead of the gloom and regret that Kirito had in her eyes the year before, Taicho's are full of rage. On reflex she released him, he turned around to her.

"Tachio…"

"I'm fine, Haruza. This doesn't concern you…and I mean it." That sharp tone took Haruza ever further aback. He seemed to notice her expression and turned away. "I'm… I'm sorry to snap at you. It's a personal matter, okay? And I don't feel like sharing it."

"…Okay." Following behind him, Haruza couldn't find the means to interfere. Unlike Kirito, who she knew personally from the real world, Taicho didn't know Haruza like that. If she tried meddling like she did with Kirito a year ago, it might have an adverse effect.

Yet Argo wouldn't have put her on this path if she didn't believe Taicho wouldn't talk to Haruza about it. Maybe all she needed was time, so time is what Haruza will give Taicho before he confided in her. But first, they must solve this mystery.