A/N: Really shooting myself in the foot with all the characters to write, gah! Moving on, Review Time.
To Isshion: I feel the same, while I've accepted Yuuki dies canon wise I'm not opposed to people making her live, expect for those that 'magically' make a cure for AIDS in like... weeks. But we'll see how things go for the Absolute Sword...
[Yuuki]: Yeah... why the heck is that? Believe me, I'd love if that were possible!
[Artorias]: Because some just want a happy ending, no matter how illogical is may be. Eh, each to their own, I guess...
Enjoy.
|March. 26th, 12:25|
|Sword Art Online, Floor 24, Shattered Isle Great Tree|
With Yuuki's declaration, she ultimately called her street fights for the day early to formally recruit her two newest party members, and possibly a third later on that she'll need to fight to test their strength. Some were disappointed, while others quickly made themselves scarce with the Col they won.
Clapping her hands, she spun around to her new friends, "Now then, my sis is better at this than me but I think I can do it, ahem..." Standing a little straighter, Yuuki bowed her head to the pair. "Thank you for taking the time out of clearing the floor to help me and my guild, I really really appreciate it."
"Did you seriously check your notes to recite that line?" Artorias pointed out, causing Yuuki to stand tall again with a flustered smile.
"W-well, I'm kinda not the leader... sorta?" They stared at her blankly. "Like, my sister and a friend of ours, myself included, created the guild before SAO, but now... well, it's just me and my sister, so..." Yuuki tapped her foot off the ground as the awkward air settled in.
"Sorry," Nagi replied but the girl shook her head, smiling again.
"She'd want us to keep the Sleeping Knights goin', and that's what we plan to do!" Her determination knew no bounds, with that, she sent them an invite. "You don't need to accept it yet, I wanna see this other friend of yours first,"
"More like a migraine..." Artorias muttered off to the side.
"He's very strong and energetic, you'd like him," Nagi spoke up, earning a fist bump from Yuuki.
"Sweet! See, I'm good at this recruitment thing," She patted her hips until a new message drew her frown back. "Huh?" Popping the message only she could see, Artorias and Nagi glanced at one another, then back to Zekken. "Wait... what!?" Her eyes bulged from their sockets, and her milky skin turned a shade lighter. "Back to town, now!" Without another word, all that was left of Yuuki was a dust cloud.
"Never a dull moment," Artorias blinked.
"Come on, let's hurry!" Nagi waved, slipping past people on the walkway with Artorias close behind.
It took only half the time to return to Panareze than it was to find the giant tree where Yuuki held her street fights. Multiple footsteps echoed into the teleport plaza, some players sprinkled around the coliseum's interior. Yuuki skidded to a halt just before the marble gate, Artorias and Nagi crashing into the back of her as the trio leaned forward at the sight before them.
The eldest woman in the group wore glasses and had shoulder-length, straight black hair. Her equipment is akin to a cleric with a white and navy-blue robe, a hat that poofs out like a cake, and she carries a thin silver rapier on her left hip.
There was a short boy with hazel eyes and orange hair tied in a braid at the back of his head. He wears a copper-red full plate armor that does not match his small stature and wields a two-handed sword, almost as tall as him, on his back.
The tallest of the group was a guy with beaming eyes and wavy, sand-colored hair. He wore thick plate armour and carried a tower shield, as well as a heavy mace with a disc guard.
Next was a skinny-looking youth with small eyes, tidy, brass-colored hair, and round, iron-rimmed glasses that give him the impression of a student. His equipment consisted of copper-yellow light armour and wields a terrifyingly long lance.
The girl leaning against the towering man had darker skin, spiky black hair, and wine-colored eyes. However, she had a large physique despite her stature. For her gear, it was a comfortable, non-metallic armour with a black choker and a long steel quarterstaff.
The last of the group was leaning on her knees. Her long hair was blackish-brown, tied with a white ribbon by her nape, bangs parted to reveal her onyx eyes. She wore a dark grey and white miko outfit with a broadsword strapped to her left hip in a white scabbard.
Standing just to the left of the group was a familiar wolf-headed teen with his fists against his hips. Artorias was the first to comment with a gawk. "Oh dear God, what did you do this time?" She accused, causing red ticks to appear above his head.
"Wha!? I saved these weaklings that's what!" Daora jabbed his finger at the raven-brunette. "This one here nearly got herself killed first so I chose that as my moment to step in and handle the threat all by myself!"
"Ran!" Yuuki practically warped to the leader's, Ran, side, wrapping the remarkably similar girl into a tight hug that nearly knocked her over. "Are you okay? Ooooh, man, your health's still in the red, what happe-" Two fingers pressed to Yuuki's lips to calm her down.
"It's okay, what he said it true though, if not for him we'd be goners," She admitted, the rest of the party nodding in agreement.
"What happened exactly?" Nagi asked, handing the group health potions that they graciously took.
In the depths of a dungeon on floor 21, a sunken keep buried in sand, wedged into a canyon wall. The sandstone room that was unlocked in the middle of the chamber had been a ruse, for when the Sleeping Knights entered, the floor gave way to a secret level no player had realized was there. Down in the tomb, topaz torches spurted to life, illuminating the trap the group had fallen right into.
"Nori! Talken! Switch out!" Ran commanded quickly, the two DPS players rushed back through the octagon-shaped chamber before the glaring red blade could sever their heads from their bodies, sweeping by their hair with a hot wind.
Standing roughly six meters tall, a knight strapped in heavily worn, charred armor tinted red rose to meet the players. Faint, red embers flickering off its shoulders as it grasped a large greatsword from the scabbard attached to his left hip, dark red embers etched across its blade as it stood with a slight, intimidating hunch.
/NM Last Knight - Lv. 45\
"Tecchi, Jun, draw aggro!" Ran ordered as she wrapped around the pillars to meet with Siune who was passing out two health pots for Nori and Talken. "You guys heal then prepare to switch in with me, then rinse and repeat,"
"There's gotta be a way out, right?" Talken scanned the ominous chamber, the sandstone walls bearing no such marking of an exit. "Or... were players not meant to survive this after all?"
"We'll survive, it'll be a case of attrition," Ran reassured, taking off with her red-handled sword brandished to her right hip. It was obvious everyone felt like this was meant to be a trap only high-level players could escape, Siune was hiding her own panic well but for how long? Not to mention... "Its name is dark red... five levels above us..."
The Knight slammed its sword down with Avalanche, smashing through the Ward as Jun flew back from the force, Tecchi tanking a direct hit to his chest when his shield was struck with another sword bash with the Knight's blade, leaving him wide open. His health took a swan dive into the yellow, raising his shield to push back against another vertical slash.
In a flash of red, Ran dove toward the Knight's back, drawing her saber through its armor and over the left shoulder, slashing two slants before carving her sword down from over her shoulder, leaving a wide red crescent through the amber atmosphere, a red square shattering around the boss' arms.
It stood back, swinging another sword skill from both legs, sweeping the air in front of it as Ran grunted, countering with Horizontal Arc, "Switch!" She heaved in time to disrupt the skill, stunning the boss with two glowing spearheads to puncture the waist and back legs twice, flashes of wine-purple and pale green, the crossing edges carving through the second to last health bar.
The Last Knight stumbled, placing its sword into the grooves between the stone slabs, the dark red flames covering its whole body, turning the sword crimson. Ran's whole body trembled as Jun and Tecchi took a defensive stance ahead of her. "Wait, that skill-!"
"We've got it, then you guys bait and switch like always!" Jun smirked. "Let's knock 'em down!"
"Mm!" Tecchi nodded firmly, greatsword and shield rising to the glowing boss as two red pupils flashed beneath the helmet.
"-It's a perilous attack!" Her scream of panic fell too late, and the boss stomped once threshing its right arm wide with the greatsword clutched tightly. In a single, massive cleave, it swept the area around it with a crimson Cyclone, tearing a massive gash through Tecchi and his tower shield, bringing his health skyrocketing down to red, while Jun's sword nearly snapped in two, himself falling to a critical state.
Both were now paralyzed from the strike, the Knight raising its blade while their friends on the opposite side of the arena rushed to their air, weapons drawn. Jun flinched, staring up in shock alongside Tecchi as a smaller sword buckled against the weight of the boss' mighty sword. "Aiko!/Your sword's gonna snap!" The boys yelled.
"I... can hold... it...!" She huffed, falling to one knee, the strain was chipping away at her health bar. "Heal... hurry...!" Wheezing, Ran gasped as her pupils dilated, feeling the hot steel beginning to cut through her miko around her shoulder. "Grit and bear it! You have to buy them time!"
Every second mattered, between watching her team's health steadily rise, the sight of her own HP dropping toward the yellow, and the fact her own stats couldn't hold a candle to her tanks. Her sword's durability wouldn't withstand this amount of strain for much longer. This boss was meant to be found at a higher level, they, unfortunately, fell right into it.
"Get out of there!" Nori waved her arm, charging up her spear close to the ground.
"Ran!" Siune's eyes were trembling, trying to hold her rapier straight.
The raven-brunette squeezed her eyes shut, applying every ounce of force possible, her passive skills for attack damage, defense, anything that would buy her a precious second to evade. But with the crushing force of the six-foot-tall Knight bearing down on her, she barely had the strength to move.
So then, how were her arms moving the greatsword back? Blinking, she gasped as she stumbled forward onto her hands and knees, the sword was pulled from her shoulder by a single, rough hand. "What the hell is this?" The gruff voice demanded, pushing back against the boss' sword like it was nothing but air. The man's bare torso showed off his taut muscles that held the blade at bay. "Fourty-Five, huh? Hahahaha, that's more like it!"
Daora, with his armor's unique set skill, tossed the towering knight over his shoulder and through one of the sandstone columns like it weighed as much as a paperclip, exhaling a sharp breath through his nose. Turning, enjoying the slack-jawed players before him, he sauntered by with his ax grinding down against the floor, bathing the chamber in bright silver.
"Watch as I slay this walking husk alone!" It had one health bar left, perfect. The Knight lunged for another Avalanche, so Daora stomped, twisting his body right with his ax drawn to the left. "It's only fair that by the end you all praise me, and worship me as your savor!"
He swung into a spin once, blade ringing across the greatsword that continued its descent. Daora spun again, repeating this action a third time, shattering the boss' gauntlets, interrupting the skill by embedding the sword into the ground with his ax's twin horns. The contrails of Crimson Blood shattered around them.
Doubling on his efforts, Daora swung himself with his ax over the boss' grab, tearing out red pixels of blood with a single upswing. The ax rose above his head, caked in silver before crashing down so hard it shattered against the Knight's helmet, leaving a massive crack straight through its skull, tearing out the neck toward the shoulder.
"Crap, his weapon's gone!" Nori tisked but rose up as the wolf-headed boy's right elbow emanated the same silvery-grey pigment.
"Mantis Strike!" His elbow bent the plate metal along the torso, forcing the husk of armor to recoil with a follow-up heel strike, then another elbow jab that shattered the rusty-red texture. A black void lay within the armor, and with Embracer, Daora shoved his fist through the cracks, tearing a large hole through the chest, clutching something red and flickering between his fingers. "I'll be taking this... you need it to stay alive, right!?" No one could see his massive smile, tearing metal and blue shards out with his shredded forearm.
Landing perfectly, Daora clutched the red flame in his palm and the last chunk of the Last Knight's health disappeared, exploding into blue fragments before their very eyes.
"That would be the Martial Arts extra skill," Nagi answered Ran's retelling of events, the boy smiling as he waved a hand to prideful sparkle around Daora. "It's on floor two, a lot of clearers picked it up early on, but not many have the patience to level the skill now."
"Except for us, because we're dumb like that," Artorias rested her elbow on Nagi's shoulder. "Also... what the hell was that?"
"Huh?" Daora cocked his head at the redhead's prodding finger.
"Just... you, in general, boggle my mind," She threw her hand up in a huff. "Because comparing your fanfiction to so-and-so leader's backstory here was like dropping a toaster in the bath with me in it."
"'So-and-so leader'?" Ran echoed, frowning at the wording.
"From what I gathered, if you need rescuing by this catastrophe, your coordination skills need work," Artorias admitted, shrugging with her hands in her pockets. Her rose-colored eyes portrayed no humor, a dead-serious stare inflicted on Ran. "Your own team's tanks acted of their own accord, one of you was too scared to act in a crisis, and, well, the DPS duo held up their part fine."
The team took Artorias' words with a pinch of salt, sensing the tension, Yuuki stood up. "Maybe we should do this privately, right?" Her eyes met with Nagi, and briefly, he appeared completely at odds with himself. But he managed a smile.
"You guys are okay, which is what matters, come on, I know a place in town we can talk," He ushered them on with a wave. Daora and Artorias falling into step with him without question, though the pair did start bickering with one another.
"That chick's got some nerve..." Nori grunted, arms crossed. "Don't listen to her, you're the best leader we could've asked for."
"That's true, today we got very lucky," Talken sighed, adjusting his glasses as Siune helped Ran stand again.
"I'm sorry, but I feel she is right about me, I did hesitate," She bowed her head apologetically but Ran tapped her chest with the back of her hand, frown present but her eyes clear and straight ahead.
"Let's... see where this goes," Ran's eyes met her sister's. "So, they're who you chose?"
"Oh, yep!" Yuuki beamed. "You'll not believe the kinda fight I just had, I almost lost badly!"
"What, seriously!?" Jun gaped, slapping his forehead. "This world's really coming to an end if you nearly lost...!"
"Hey, you make it sound like I was losing!" Yuuki pouted.
"You nearly did, cupcake!" A few feet away, the group saw the sly grin plastered on Artorias' face. "Oh, wow, your face matches your eyes!"
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Yuuki roared, swinging her arms wildly as the red warrior cackled as she walked backward.
"'Cupcake'?" Ran's lips curled into a tiny smile, her younger sister's face reddening in embarrassment.
"...I still kicked his butt..." She protested, and her friends broke out in a fit of laughter.
|March. 26th, 12:35|
|Floor 24, Gold Wave Inn|
Once the group arrived at the beachside inn for the afternoon, the earlier awkwardness and worry steadily dissolved around a large, oval table. Since players were still out leveling, questing, and general other things a gamer would accomplish in an RPG, it left them with the inn's dining room all to themselves.
Cream-colored walls with the lower half planked beech wood that transitioned to the darker laminated flooring. A white-stained chandelier hanging above the table. Drinks were set out as Ran raised her cup.
"As thanks to Daora for saving us from that trap, and our two newest recruits, cheers!" She smiled brightly, her eyes closed as their cups met in the middle of the table.
"CHEERS!"
"I believe introductions are in order next," The black-haired woman, Siune elected to speak first, hand to her chest. "I'm Siune, the eldest of everyone among the guild, a pleasure to meet you three." She dipped her head shortly.
"The name's Jun, heavy-hitter for the team!" The energetic Jun flashed a grin.
"I'm Tecchi, a tank as well, - again, thank you for helping us, Daora," The humble pale blue greeted with a wave.
"M-my name is Talken i-in this world anyway," The timid boy who looked like a student smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Daora, Nagi, A-Artorias." He was particularly shy speaking to the redhead, though the answer was fairly obvious he wasn't confident in speaking with girls.
"Nori, spear-user," The dark-skinned girl smirked, taking a sip of her drink.
"And I'm Ran, and you already know my younger sister, Yuuki," The eldest sibling greeted.
"Nice to meetcha!" Yuuki waved, one arm around Ran as she held up a peace sign. "Myself and Ran are the guild leaders of the Sleeping Knights!"
"I'm happy to meet you all too," Nagi gestured generously. "I'm the party leader, Nagi, a Frontrunner alongside Artorias, and Daora too." The pair gave a greeting, one was a nod, the other a hum with their chest puffed out. "Speaking of the request, what exactly did you want from us, Yuuki?"
The two sisters looked at each other, then at their friends who all gave a supportive nod. Ran stood up straight, exhaling with a 'right' before proceeding. "We're looking to beat a floor boss, just our team so that our names are immortalized on the Monument of Swordsmen."
The Monument of Swordsmen was the secondary use of the Blackiron Palace on floor one. It tracked not just the name of every player who had been in SAO but served as the respawn when you died, though that function was no longer the case. As for the other purpose? If a raid on a boss was successful, the names of the party leaders would be engraved on the central board for all to see. And if a single party beat the boss? All the party members would be on display.
"Well... I'd say that utterly stupid, and that you are all crazy, but..." Artorias trailed off with a shrug.
"We did accomplish something close on floor five with Kirito..." Nagi agreed.
"Wait, that was you guys?" Jun gasped, then jokingly punched Yuuki's shoulder. "Man, what a catch, leader, and here you had us worried you'd pick up some run-of-the-mill players!"
"Not like you'd do a better job," Nori snorted. "Don't act like you wouldn't have picked Arty here cause she's a cute girl."
"H-hey... I have no rebuttal for that," His finger lowered as Artorias chuckled, leaning over the large table with a shit-eating grin.
"Not like you'd get far, less yer into guys," That made the natural redhead's face drop before he recoiled with a defensive stance.
"Woah, you're a-a-a dude!? With that body!?" Jun freaked out.
"You said that was a secret," Yuuki protested.
"I said it could be underwhelming, didn't I?" Artorias saw her clamp her mouth shut, leaning back with a grunt. "Yeeep, my avatar's been glitched since this crap began, trust me, not an experience I want to live with any longer."
"That's horrible," Siune commented, hand near her mouth but the tomboyish red warrior rolled her eyes.
"Aside from the slight back pain, thanks Nervegear, and the fact I'm hit on more times than I care to admit, gotta say, I'm pretty hot," Artorias waved her hands down her curves hidden by her leather gear before deadpanning with a soulless stare. "But this subtracts little from the endless torment that is this infernal form."
The reveal seemed to ease the nerves of the boys of the Sleeping Knights, Ran shaking her head at the startling development. Picking up where they left off, Nagi asked. "We said we'd help, but a party can only have a maximum of seven people, and you're already a guild of seven?"
"We're gonna split the plan!" Yuuki declared. "Myself, Jun, and Nori are one team, and the second my sis, Talken, Siune, and Tecchi with the other slots filled by you guys,"
"I call dibs on team one," Artorias raised her hand immediately. "In exchange, I want something the boss drops, a Devourer Fang, keep the L.A if it's not it."
"Okay, deal!" Yuuki immediately shook on it, her friends giving various expressions of bewilderment. "What?"
"You need to stop being so quick to accept other people's terms," Ran lectured her younger sister, waving a finger at her nose. "Need I remind you we nearly went broke when you went out to buy supplies from that one merchant on floor fifteen."
"But he was so nice and fair with his deals!" Yuuki protested.
"Bald man," Daora murmured under his breath. The 'bald man' means Agil. The trio had the same thought, this poor girl was robbed blind.
"-a-anyway, with all our names on the Monument we'll leave our mark on this world wh - if we die someday," Yuuki corrected herself, but two of the three didn't miss that hiccup but chose to ignore it for now.
"Will you help us?" Siune spoke up, adjusting her glasses with a slight frown. "I know it seems selfish, but we would all appreciate it tremendously if you aided us."
"I'm in as I said, what about you, boss, numbnuts?" Artorias nudged the former with her shoulder.
That small slip-up of Yuuki's implied they were going to die, not that they could die, Nagi thought, his brow knitted tightly. There was more to this guild than what they were willing to show, it wasn't malicious, all their words were sincere, and yet, that sinking feeling in his chest turned into a lead ball in his stomach. Maybe he should consult Argo on the matter?
With a kind smile regardless, the raven-brunette nodded. "Since only Yuuki heard our reply, we'll help you to the best of our abilities."
"Getting to solo a boss, that's the kinda challenge I've been looking for, so count me in!" Daora brandished his still broken trick weapon.
"Maybe think about getting a new weapon first," Nori chuckled, patting her friends on the back. "Three tough players, it's actually happening, you guys!" Her face was full of life when she spoke.
"Then let's discuss how we accomplish this," Ran pipped up, her face portraying a serious aura but a child-like smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Firstly, Daora needs a new ax-"
"Hahaha, I already have a blacksmith in mind, I'll be ready," He stated with a snort.
"-Okay, right, do you think he or she can manage upgrades for all of us?" Ran pressed further, and the wolf-headed lad paused in thought, tapping his chin.
"Hrm..." He swiped his menu, pressed a few buttons, and sent a message. There was a great pause for thirty seconds before the bell 'dinged'. "She said it's fine, no guild's asked her before, and as a great leader, it would be bad if I let my underlings battle without the best of the best to back 'em up, so it's the least I can do," He pointed at them proudly.
"Perfect," Ran smiled, bringing up a public notepad to write down various items needed. "We have until the early hours of tomorrow, so let's not waste today."
"Got it!" The guild proclaimed, Yuuki sifting through her own items to check her supplies.
"Yuuki, you handle-"
"-the item costs and you-"
"-weapon enhancements, repairs, and armor repairs." The eldest replied immediately after, surprising the newcomers.
"Ah, the twin vibe, you'll get used to it," Jun chuckled, sipping his drink. "Pretty sure they also sneeze at the same time too."
"We don't/We do," Ran shook her head while Yuuki chirped. The team broke out laughing again at their leaders' constant telepathy. And quickly, they all got to work.
Later that day, the sun bathed the world in orange and gold, reflecting off the coast down by the inn. Standing on her own, Ran was bathing in the sunlight while standing, eyes closed in a moment of complete serenity, the gentle wind catching her hair as the sea's waves sloshed in her ears, and the faint whiff of salt tickled her nose.
"You seem absorbed in thought?" Ran blinked with a slight jump as two rosy eyes stared back at her with that constant scowl.
"A-artorias, ah, sorry, I was just mulling over everything today," She huffed to collect herself. "We've got a lot of work ahead of us if we're to beat the Frontrunners that is."
The redhead said nothing, staring off toward the many islands with her, basking in the pleasant air. This guild was run by kids her age, aside from Siune who appeared to be near her twenties. Not once had Artorias heard of the Sleeping Knights, and yet, they housed without question the most skilled swordswoman she's ever met.
"Your sister is amazing," It wasn't often she complimented someone else, but it was just the two of them. "Her skill was unparalleled, though her sense of trust needs some fine-tuning," She see-sawed her hand as Ran giggled.
"Yes, Yuuki is... well, my little sister, so I do my best to look out for her but she was so adamant about her street fights that I left her to her own devices," Ran smirked at Artorias, admiring the results of Yuuki's hard work. "Looks like it worked out in the end."
"Always looking on the positives, that's good for a leader," When she said this, Ran's onyx eyes fell to the shoreline. Now it was Artorias' turn to look bashful, scratching her nape. "Listen... about... all that at the teleport gate-"
"You were right," Ran interrupted, forcing a smile to the sand as she tugged at her plain white shirt, having dawned her casual wear in the inn. "I made several mistakes and that nearly cost us our lives, if Daora hadn't shown up we wouldn't be speaking right now," She didn't want to think about how Yuuki would feel, knowing her friends were wiped out and she wasn't there. It was a haunting thought.
Two fingers flicked her forehead, making her cry out with a small whimper. Artorias exhaled slowly. "...I'm not good at this 'talking about feelings', bear with me; you are a fine leader, and you recognize where you messed up, but that shouldn't reflect onto them," Artorias didn't see her head raise to meet her face as it stared out to sea. "You can't just rush in like some wannabe hero every time something goes wrong, your combat style isn't suited to overpower others,"
"In a battle of strength versus strength, you need to instead turn the enemy's motions against them, as for observation skills, recognize attacks and changing patterns before anyone else, every second is precious time to evade or rework your formation and strategy," Artorias listed off like taking a breath. "Lastly, balance encouraging optimism with a realistic mindset, take everything with a pinch of salt so as to not be taken off guard when something doesn't go the way you intended it."
Ran digested every word from the girl's, who was actually a boy, mouth. Her friends were amazing, and she loved all of them for supporting her and Yuuki in being guild leaders, but this was new. A person outside of their guild had come in and basically said she's stumbling around in the dark, it was almost hilarious if it wasn't also very true.
Artorias turned with a curt wave, hands in her shorts pockets. "Welp, Wine-Eyes and your merry band of misfits gave me some hurtful looks today, scathing really, so I'll assume no one's ever outright cut you down with words, but hey, my opinion, do what you will with it," Her piece said, Artorias elected to find a bar and drink some non-alcoholic rum because Kayaba's no fun.
"Thank you for that," Pausing to look over her should at Rin, the sun displayed gratitude in her smile, her eyes no less serious. "No one's ever given me an outside critique on my leadership skills, so it's a breath of fresh air, all of your friends are, so again, thank you."
Nodding once, Artorias took her leave with an approved smile. Perhaps this guild isn't so hopeless after all. And yet, her thoughts ran back to her fight earlier that day with Yuuki, there was a rush in her heart the whole way to the bar. "God, I need to fight her again."
Not once did Artorias even bat an eye when Nori, Talken, Tecchi, Siune, Jun, and Yuuki all fell out from behind a random wall place before the sand's border, all atop one another as the red warrior passed by. Ran heard the noises and complaints, startled and embarrassed by her friends' noisiness.
"Guys, seriously?" All they did was laugh awkwardly, say for Siune who hid her scarlet face alongside Talken.
"I did try to stop them, but..." Siune tapped her hands together sweetly, attempting and failing to appear indifferent. "I was a little curious myself."
"Sorry, Ran, we saw him leave thinking he wanted to speak with you," Tecchi replied honestly, dusting the sand out of his matching colored hair.
"Guess he's not got a stick up his ass after all," Nori crossed her arms, harsh glare relaxing as she combed her spiky hair. "Great, now I feel like a jerk."
"W-we were all a little judgemental toward him in particular," Talken admitted too, ashamed at even his own thoughts on the Frontrunner.
"I mean, being stuck as a girl would make anyone moody," Jun shrugged, earning several looks from the girls as his face comforted into a nervous smile, putting his hands up. "N-not that I think being a girl is torture, just, y'know, he's a guy!"
"Digging yourself deeper, buddy," Tecchi shook his head.
Yuuki stared at Artorias' back, a soft grin plastered on her lips. "He's really nice under all that brooding of his."
|March. 26th, 22:39|
|Floor 24, Gold Wave Inn|
"So yer sayin' they plan on tacklin' the boss room bright an' earlY?" Argo had to run the intel by Nagi a few times, she still cleared the wax from her ears as she sat beside him on the single bed in their room, scanning over their menus as Nagi sat back with his hands behind his head.
"At first I was worried, but they're already over-leveled for the mobs on this floor, and with myself, Artorias, and Daora we can easily fall back if needed," Nagi wasn't taking chances either, it put him under his savings again, but he improved the quality of his armor to its fullest. It was the same Evernight Armor Argo had gotten crafted for him on floor five, soon, like his katana, it would have to be swapped out. "No risks, promise."
"Yer pushin' the line between risk an' reward, HerO," Argo's eyes were thin before she relaxed, leaning against his shoulder as she jotted down her notes after a long day of work. "But somethin's' been buggin' me about their grouP."
"Why did Yuuki say they wanted to do this before they died?" Nagi guessed accurately, the morbid topic dampening the mood. If Argo was worried, she didn't show it directly, but she did lean in closer. Nagi had been playing the conversations on a loop in his head, over and over he fell away from SAO to his normal life again. "...Tomo?"
"YeaH?" She perked up upon seeing the worried look in his eyes reflected off her menu.
"Send a message to Kirito, ask him what he meant by Yuuki 'truly living in this world', everything, even just theories," He'd pay Argo later, sitting upright to stare at his reflection. Raven-brown hair, smooth onyx eyes.
"Done, any reason whY? Be rude to leave yer girl hangin' as you brood about other womeN," She teased lightly but frowned before sitting up straighter herself, resting on her knees next to him. "Kaito, do you know 'eM?"
It was a good thing Argo was here, she often did everything with a laugh and smirk, saving any and all information that could be sold, even to those closest to her. But this time, seeing that concern fill her brass eyes made his heart tick a few beats faster. Everything about her made his worries easier to bear somehow. The words poured out like silk.
"I..." The words that left his throat silenced whatever Argo had planned to say, her eyes shot wide open, and her hand found itself gripped to Nagi's as he repeated what he said to her, again, it was a lot for her fully grasp.
To Be Continued...
The Sleeping Knights have gathered and Ran, or Aiko, is still alive in this one, their goals haven't changed, however, planning to tackle the floor boss solo. But there's more to them than meets the eye. I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; seeya in the next chapter, Players!
035 - Guardian of the Lakebed
Dawn had yet to break as the Sleeping Knights gather their first team to defeat the Floor Boss and mark half their names on the Monument of Swordsmen...