[Alfheim Online, New Aincrad, Floor 27]

They, of course, overwhelmed me with their praise at my easy-going response, Yuuki was... very excited about the idea. She shot up from her stool to grab my hands tightly, coming quite close to my face that I felt a little heat rising from how close she was. "Thank you, Mr Malzeno!"

"Cute..." I gulped, smiling hesitantly. "H-Hey now, I said to drop the 'Mr' thing, b-but it's all good," She smells like lavender. Is that weird? Not my fault she's this close anyhow...

"Alright then! You can just call me Yuuki!" Then she glowered softly at me. "Not 'Cupcake', got it?"

"Sure..." Slowly, I pulled my hands away. "W-well, while you guys gather another round of drinks for my employment, I just need some air, gotta make a report to my informant about today's fight as promised."

"You work with a broker?" Jun asked suspiciously.

"Hey, be nice," Nori pinched his cheek as he winced from her pull.

"Ow-ow-ow-ow! Okay, I yield~!" He whined as the others laughed in response.

"More of a Rat, but yeah, they're alright," I shrugged, hand to the door as I smirked. "Don't miss me too much, Cupcake."

I immediately left as I heard something heavy crash into the door behind me, my laughter clear through the small window of the lodge. "What a strange guild..." But there were many blanks to their story but for the most part they're sincere about their cause so nothing to report there to Argo. Guess this is a bit of an extension on my deal with her but all's well that ends well.

Strolling across to a bench facing the street, I leaned up to look at the blue crystals far above, it's been forever since I've seen this floor. I liked the dark underground vibe, the luminous glow of the crystals for light, and the eternal nightlife the town gave off. It was peaceful.

I stared at my message for a bit longer.

|To Argo|

|Subject: Job|

|Nothing suspicious. Zekken is as skilled or better than Blackie. Currently partying with them for a personal goal, if anything comes up I'll pass it along. Should be tied down for a bit|

I sent it, and sighed. It was pretty mundane, well, aside from basically agreeing to fight a floor boss with only seven people. Yeah, that'll go smoothly like a cliff-edge...

"Hey," Once more, a pair of red eyes flickered into view as I gave a curt flick of my hand in greeting. Yuuki took a seat beside me, leaning her head back to watch the underside of the floor with me. "Sorry, today must be alot to handle at once,"

"Nah, when you have friends like mine, not to mention hitmen after you, it becomes unnaturally normal," I chuckled slightly, hearing her giggle too. I then brought my head around to look at her easy-going smile. "I'm still very irked, why of all players did you take the guy with a bow over Blackie - erm, Kirito?"

This time, however, her eyes gave me this odd emotion, it was withdrawn at first, then she made an annoyed hum as she pursed her lips. It was funny watching her cycle through emotions. "Yeah, he was pretty powerful," Yuuki admitted.

"I'm sensing a 'but' in there..." I trailed off as she snorted at my wording.

Then she gave me that same smile with her eyes closed for a moment, "He just wasn't the right person," Huh? That's it, really? I mean, one less girl trying to encircle him on the daily I guess but still, Kirito wasn't a slouch.

"Why's that?" I pressed as she looked down at her lap.

"Because he found out my secret," Her voice was soft and tender as I made a face of understanding, me, Argo, and Kirito were nosy people, one by nature given her job. Still, must've hit a sore spot for Yuuki to refuse to recruit him.

"Noted, I'll be sure to hit him for you," I winked.

"Ah, it's alright, we've got you now so there's no issue!" She waved, kicking her feet. "I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting you to put up much of a fight."

"You wound me, long entry about that tonight," I drawled, earning a shove from her.

"Then you whipped out these insane reaction times, keeping me on my toes, not to mention that explosive coating you put on your arrows," Yuuki paused in her praise, then looked shocked and insulted. "Hey, you said no items!"

"I did, and I lied, whoops," I wrapped a knuckle off my temple with a silly smile. "Rule one when dealing with a mercenary, you can always trust a mercenary to lie," Was that a bad sales pitch? Probably. "Hey, you still won in the end, so there you go, silver lining,"

"...it was cool so I'll let it slide..." Her finger then swung around to boop my nose. "But! Next time, no exploding gel, got it, mister!?"

I raised my hand, "I vow to not used the boom-boom gel against Cupcake, Leader of the Sleeping Knights," My solemn oath made her shove me again with a whine at the nickname, her face pink again as I laughed. "Aw, you look cute when your pouty."

"I am not cute - well I am but - grah, stop getting inside my head!" She started to poke my sides, causing my body to jerk sharply as my laughter grew. "Treat your new leader with some respect!"

"H-hard w-when you m-m-make a face l-like that!" I wheezed, wiping a tear from my eye. "Ah, you're a riot, Cup - ah, Yuuki."

While our banter ensued, I felt a cold chill run up my spine, prompting me to scan the street until I gave a certain doorway a flat stare. "What, what is it?" Yuuki cocked her head until it rested on my shoulder, I grabbed her chin, tilting her head in the very direction as a gasp was heard.

"That, Milady, would be your trustworthy team," The second the words rolled from my tongue, the Sleeping Knights fell out from the doorway atop one another, say for Siune who shook her head at their antics but I saw her gaze watching us intently too. "Yo,"

"Guys, seriously?" All they did was laugh awkwardly, Yuuki's whole body shifting away from my side, that pinkness to her cheeks turning red as I rubbed under my nose again.

"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, we were curious about what you wanted to say to him," Tecchi replied honestly.

"Guess he's not too shady," Jun crossed his arms, harsh glare relaxing as he combed his 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 me.

"Oh, come on, that was adorable to watch if he didn't spot us so soon," Nori grinned, wiggling her brow in Yuuki's direction.

"Please, stop..." Yuuki whined, rubbed her face.

"Well, I feel embarrassed," I stated, standing up with my menu open, reading the time as 18:45. "I've gotta dip for a while to eat, probably be back online later, I'm a late-night gamer at heart,"

"Let's say we meet together again around lunch tomorrow then if we're offline?" Siune suggested.

"Hm, sounds good," I agreed.

"OKAY!" Yuuki, Jun, and Nori pumped a fist high.

"Roger!" Talken and Tecchi exclaimed with a nod.

These guys were something else entirely, but their optimism would help if we get our asses handed to us later. I gave Yuuki one last look as I scrolled down to the 'Log Out' button but her hand then tugged my sleeve. "Say, Zeno?" Huh, not often people use that nickname for me?

The purple swordswoman then gave me a gentle smile as it quickly warped into a toothy grin, the sight locking me in place longer than I expected. "Thanks for agreeing to help us, this means alot, more than you know!"

I relaxed, giving a two-fingered salute. "Anytime, Cee," With that, I hit the icon and the world was quickly pulled away from view.

[IRL]

I sat upright once freed from the other world, the desk lamp was on beside me, and a note left for me to pick up. 'Dinner's wrapped up in the microwave ~ Love, Mom'. I smiled, removing the device from my head to stand and stretch, my joints popping. But my mind quickly recalled Yuuki, her purple hair flowing down her back, the deep red of her eyes into my teal, even how she smiled so brightly.

Her smile.

It was nice.

I rubbed my eyes, "Where have I seen that smile before?" Fogginess was all I received as I shook off the feeling at my grumbling stomach. "Guess I'll find out later,"

[To Be Continued...]

[Author's Notes]

A moment between Malzeno and Yuuki, there will be many more as we dig into this arc of SAO but with my added flair. I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support, seeya in the next chapter, Readers!