Chapter 6
September 19th, 2023
(4 months later)
"Giant frog, on your right!" Soron urgently called out. "Get the hell out of there, Mormen!"
The 23-year-old warrior jumped up at the two metre tall blue frog right after his shouting, but slipped due to its slimy skin. Thankfully, he rolled out of the way before it could attack again.
"I'm surrounded by Bullywugs, dammit!" Mormen snapped, clearly annoyed at the thought of having to fight more enemies.
He backed away from the hip tall, bipedal frog creatures, using his shield to block the many wooden spears being thrust at him like toothpicks.
"Enzu! Tidal wave!" I ordered my companion hawk.
A radiant blue light gathered inside of its beak as she charged up her attack. Once it was at full power, she released a beam of water from it, which quickly morphed into a large wave of water which knocked the Bullywugs around Mormen onto their backs. He ran around with his sword, shoving it into the chests of the frog men, killing them, all while Soron had managed to climb onto the back of the giant frog and repeatedly bash its skull with his mace. The creature leaped into the air and knocked Soron off of it in a final attempt to flee, but as soon as Soron had recovered, he quickly reached down to his hip and grabbed his throwing knifes. In one move, he flung all three of them at the same time, and expertly hit the fleeing frog with each of them, leading to its death.
"Nice job, everyone," Soron commended as the battle came to a close.
As the battle completion window unfolded before me, I let out a sigh of relief that the hard-fought battle was won. Glancing over at my companions' rising XP bars, I couldn't help but notice the meagre increase in my own. Due to a rule in the guild, the XP distribution was always in favour of the adults. The decision was rooted in the belief that they'd be the ones to lead the charge to clearing the game. They explained to me that by having higher level players around me, I was meant to feel safer, while logically, a bit more XP of my own would have contributed far more to my feeling of security.
"You did great, Osaka," Soron smiled.
"Especially for a girl," Mormen added. "I didn't actually think you'd fight."
"What else would I have done?" I questioned.
"Well, you're a girl. Girls usually run away screaming when monsters show up and leave the fighting to us men. Especially when it comes to the big slimy ones." Mormen expressed, revealing his belief in a biased stereotype that clashed with my own reality.
"No they don't," I countered, citing the resilience of other female players I'd fought with like Luisa and Astrid.
"Well, let's pack it up and head back to the guild HQ," Soron suggested, steering the conversation away from a potential argument.
"You guys go on ahead," I replied. "I'll catch up later."
"Are you going to be alright on your?" asked Mormen. "The monsters out here can be pretty strong. And pretty slimy," he chuckled.
I bit my lip, starting to get annoyed at his stereotyping, but kept my cool, giving him a smile and declining. "Oh, no, I'll be fine. I'm a lot stronger than I look. And I'm only going to Mistvail, so I shouldn't need to fight, and even if I do, I've got Enzu with me."
"Suit yourself. We'll meet you back on floor 6."
Mormen and Soron navigated their inventories, pulling out teleport crystals. With a flash of blue light, they shouted the location they wanted to go and teleported back to the guild, leaving me alone in the forest. Well, almost alone.
"Just you and me, Enzu," I remarked with a smile on my face. "Ready to go, girl?"
The small blue hawk perched itself on my shoulder, acknowledging my words with a chirp.
"Good girl."
I set off on my journey out of the quiet forest, humming the tune of 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star', which Enzu chirped along to. Finally at peace, I was given a moment to reflect on my journey to where I am. It had been ten months since we were trapped in this virtual realm. The passage of time had normalized the once agonizing months and players began to adapt to and accept their newfound reality. However, monotony was quickly taking over the lives of many people, and a lot were losing hope due to the reality that every day, new names were being crossed off the Monument of Life. There was no written indicator of how many players had been lost, but thankfully one player had dedicated himself to counting every month. Unfortunately, what had once appeared to be a good idea quickly turned into the major cause of depression in Aincrad. Now we knew the numbers, we knew that in ten months, a quarter of all the names on the monument were crossed out. 25% of the population of Aincrad, gone, and we were only 20 floors in.
It was getting harder to make it anywhere in this world alone, so I'd been hopping from guild to guild for a time. The next guild I joined was home to a group of Australian's going by the guild name the Kookaburras. They took me in only a week after I'd lost the Wolves of Night, but unfortunately, they didn't make it. I found another guild soon after, but I was treated poorly, and their methods of making money made me sick. I only stayed with them for two weeks, but left without even saying goodbye. A few days later, I found this group. The Round Table. It consisted of seven total members who treated me as more of a mascot to the guild rather than an equal player, but despite my shortcomings, it provided safety. Even if that safety was tainted with the bitter taste of being showcased like a trophy as the first player in SAO to acquire the hidden beast tamer skill. I was too low of a level to complain though. If someone was willing to keep me safe, I'd be a fool to not do everything they asked of me, and if all that was asked of me was to 'look cute and smile', then it was a small price to pay.
The sun bathed the surrounding area in its warm glow and the light breeze rustled the leaves above as I made my way out of the forest and into the town of Mistvail. My eyes nervously darted around town as I looked for any sign of danger before immediately entered the local blacksmith. The bell above the door chimed to indicate my presence.
"Osaka! Long time no see!" Kikina's cheerful voice greeted me.
"Kikina!" I exclaimed, rushing over to embrace the girl.
Her short purple hair brushed against my face as she leaned down to hug me. Youthful in appearance, Kikina was the next youngest player I'd seen, having logged in at only fourteen. Rather than focusing on combat skills, Kikina delved into blacksmithing, refining her skills in metalworking, leatherworking, woodworking and more. I hadn't had much experience with NPC blacksmiths in the past, so I couldn't speak for how much better her skills were compared to them, but I'd been coming to Kikina for my smithing needs long before she even opened her smithy. She was the one who crafted me my new dagger.
"Is that a new outfit? It looks cute," I complimented.
Kikina turned away and blushed. "D-Don't call me cute."
Normally, she'd wear clunky plate armour, similar to the armour the ALF wore, but even thicker. If anybody else were to have worn it, it certainly would have struck fear into the heart of any who saw the silhouette approaching, but the armour wasn't suited to her frame. The clunky armour did undoubtedly provide an unmatched level of protection, but it also hindered her movements, not just in battle, but day to day life. Today, however, was different. She seemed to have taken a step away from the heavier armour and embraced a new style. Her current outfit resembled maid's attire. The dress flowed gracefully and was adorned with an engraved metal breastplate that she had undoubtedly crafted herself. An unexpected departure to say the least, but the style itself wasn't a bad one. A wonderful fusion of both practicality and functionality, while not excluding a layer of protection and continuing to stick with the fantasy theme of Aincrad. The only part that confused me was that this wasn't 'her' style. She may have come up with it, but this wasn't anything close to what she'd typically wear, which led me to believe that an additional party had something to do with it.
"Anyway, how have you been?" I asked.
"I'm doing well. Business was booming up until awhile ago when the Knights of the Bloodoath set up a perimeter around town. Say, did they stop you at the gate?"
"No. There wasn't anybody at the gate." I replied.
"Strange. I saw a boy and girl there not too long ago, but they must have left. You'd think having thirty members, they'd always have someone on guard. Especially with the current state of Aincrad."
The Knights of the Bloodoath: Often abbreviated to the KoB were a group of players who had far transcended the dynamics of a normal guild. They had become an army, not only dedicated to clearing Aincrad, but defending it from evil. As of right now, they were the second largest guild, trailing only behind the Aincrad Liberation Force, but unlike the ALF, they're all high levelled players. One of the requirements to join the KoB was that players needed to be level 30 or above. A criteria I aspired to achieve on day.
"I guess that means that the rumours were true," Kikina sighed.
"What rumours?" I inquired.
"A player came into town and said that they'd ran into a group of orange players who threatened to kill them. I don't know if it was Laughing Coffin though."
The dread-inducing name echoed in my ears like a frightening sound in the night, sending chills down my spine. Laughing Coffin. A secret guild who thrive off of the suffering of others with one purpose. To mercilessly snuff out the lives of fellow players. The horrifying tale of a vicious murder guild had circulated for months, but had always been dismissed as a mere ghost story. It seemed absurd that there could be an entire group of people who would dedicate themselves to actively complicating our escape. And yet the chilling truth unfolded.
Come early July, the rumours had become suspicions. An unsettling wave of murders befell Aincrad. Hunting parties completely vanishing, as well as adventuring parties getting attacked. Survivors often returned, recounted the same details. Attackers clad in black ponchos, wearing black masks with red eyes. Though, only a few players had seen these ghostly attackers, so many people were still skeptical. Then came floor 20, and we had our confirmation.
A large group of players matching the description materialized out the front of Mistvail and surrounded the town. They loomed just outside the safe zone for hours, but didn't make the first move. Several attempts were made to dispatch them, but all ended in the deaths of innocent players, and all we could do was stand within the safety of the invisible barrier and watch as the ghoulish figures slaughtered our best fighters.
Classified as PKers, or Player Killers, their motives have remained shrouded in mystery, though there were countless theories, each more outlandish than the next. Some theories suggested that they didn't believe in the real world consequences. After all, when a player died, their name was crossed out on the monument and suddenly they weren't in the game anymore. We had no real evidence that when a player died in the game that they actually died in real life other than what Kayaba said during orientation. For most of us, that was all we needed for confirmation. Other theories suggested that despair had consumed them and turned them mad. After all, the one year mark in Aincrad was approaching, and we were all still trying to live with the fact that we'd only cleared 20 floors. One of the more ridiculous theories suggested that they weren't players at all, and rather agents of the Grim Reaper who had transcendent reality to claim our souls. Nobody knew exactly what to believe.
"Hey, relax," Kikina reassured. "Even if it was them, we're in a safe zone."
Suddenly, frantic bashing on the store window interrupted our conversation. Immediately recognized the panicked 27 year old redhead from the guild Greyfall.
"Please!" she cried. "You have to help me!"
"Rosalia?!" exclaimed Kikina. "How did she find us?!"
"You stay here and keep working! Enzu, follow me!" I ordered, urgently rushing out of the store.
"It's this way!" Rosalia called out in an urgent tone.
"What's this way?!" I questioned, but she ignored me.
We travelled deeper into the forest. The wind grew still and the light grew dimmer as the forest thickened, preventing both wind and sunlight from penetrating its thick roof. When we had reached what I presumed was the centre of the forest, Rosalia came to an abrupt halt.
"Why are we here? What do you need help with?" I asked, scanning the surroundings for any sign of danger. My detection skill wasn't very high, but I could other players in the surrounding area close by, other than Rosalia. How many more remained unclear.
"Oh your poor, sweet child," she chuckled, her demeaner shifting to one of overconfidence. "You always were so gullible." She turned back to me with a sinister smile.
Everything immediately clicked. I'd been tricked. I should have known to expect nothing less from the leader of Greyfall.
"What do you want, Rosalia?" I snarled, trying to sound tougher than I am.
"Aw, sweety. You wound me. After everything I did for you, is that any way to talk to your former guild leader." She grinned. "
"Everything you did for me?" I questioned. "You forced me to help you rob people! That's why I ran away!"
My body boiled with frustration as I realized just how foolish I had been. Avoiding main cities, spending most of my time at the Round Table HQ and only battling in areas with few people. Months of staying in hiding, all gone in an instant.
"Ah, yes. I do remember that. You and Kikina were very rude about your departure. You ran off without so much as a goodbye. Kikina is a growing girl, so I understand her want for independence. That's why we didn't bother to go back for her, but you're only a child. We were all worried sick," Rosalia mocked, her tone indicating insincerity. "Though, I am a little impressed. I'd have expected an eleven year old girl with a pet hawk to be easy to find in Aincrad, but somehow, you managed to keep a low profile. It's rather commendable. You know what that word means, don't you?"
"I'll ask again. What do you want?"
"The guild misses you," she smiled. "Come back to us."
"Are you kidding me?! None of you 'miss' me! You all hated me! The only reason you had me in your guild was because I was a good distraction!" I asserted, memories of their exploitive methods resurfacing.
When Kikina and I first met them, we thought they were saints. They fed us expensive foods and bought us both a lot of expensive things, but it wasn't long before we realized where the money came from, or rather, before we were helping them make it. At the time, we were desperate. Kikina had only recently lost her guild and I lost mine. We were both kids and needed somebody else to take care of us, so we tried to make it work as long as we could stomach it. As young girls, we made the perfect distraction for the guild. Nobody would suspect us of doing anything devious. Our task was a simple one. Find wealthy looking players and lead them out of safe zone. We'd usually do it by begging them to help us on tough quests, and who'd say no to children? They'd usually agree to follow us, which was when we were instructed to take them to a different location, far out of town. Forests, caves, swamps, abandoned castles. Anywhere away from prying eyes. That was when Greyfall would step in. Rosalia and the rest of the guild would rob any players we brought back, either through the pickpocketing skill or by forcing them to hand over their valuables through threats of force. Sometimes their threats would work. Other times, the guild would beat them into submission. Kikina and I would usually leave before it got that far. What we didn't know until it was too late was that things didn't always end smoothly.
"You're wrong, sweety. We do care, but you're also right. We don't want our prized show pony to get hurt. Isn't that right, boys?" Rosalia called out.
Two older gentlemen stepped out from behind trees, standing on either side of me. Two other members of Greyfall. Jonny2time and Harwin. Both of their cursors were orange, indicating that they are criminals.
The cursor was a helpful tool for all players that indicated what something was. Ordinary monsters had a light red cursor above their heads, while boss monsters had a dark red one. Then there were creatures with a pink cursor. The only one I'd seen with that colour was Enzu, so I assumed that it related to pets. After, there were yellow cursors, which hovered over the heads of NPCs. Finally, there were player cursors. Green was the default colour for a player, which indicated that they weren't wanted for any crimes. If a player committed a crime, such as attacking a green player while not in a duel or using the thief skill to rob somebody, their cursor would turn a light orange colour. It would disappear on its own after a week, but by voluntarily imprisonment in the Black Iron Palace, it would be gone in three days.
"You're murderers!" I accused. The memories of a botched robbery still etched into my brain.
Rosalia let out a sigh before clicking her fingers. Jonny2time and Harwin drew their weapons.
"W-What?" I stammered, fear coursing through me.
"Listen here, you little bitch. We're robbing you, so listen close kid, cause I'm only gonna say this once. Now, give me all of your fucking cor, before I stabbing you in your stupid little fucking head."
Money wasn't too hard to come by, but I rarely had enough to spare. I had enough to stay at an inn for one, maybe two nights, and enough for three small meals, but it wasn't worth arguing. With a heavy heart, I opened my inventory and dropped a small leather sack on the ground. She picked up the sack with distain before turning back to me.
"This is 300 cor? Are you fucking kidding me?! You used to help us steal this in an hour!" Rosalia exclaimed in frustration. "Damnit! Whatever. Phase two. Give us everything else you own, starting with your armour."
I took a step back, holding my arms across my body in a defensive position.
"That way, you'll be defenceless in a forest full of monsters. Sure, you can try and make your way back to Mistvail on your own, but with no weapons and no armour… Well, I don't like your chances. Or, you could come with us. Join Greyfall again. We'll make you rich. Actually, give me that dagger first. Can't have you attacking us now, can we?"
My thoughts were a chaotic whirlwind, preventing rational thought. In a moment of devoid of careful consideration, I drew my weapon and charged headfirst towards Jonny2time, but Rosalia stepping in front of me, causing me my brain once again to run a blank as I tried to figure out how to react. An ear piercing screech drew my attention toward Harwin, who had just slammed Enzu to the ground with his hammer.
"DON'T HURT HER! I plead.
I desperately navigated my inventory in an attempt to save my friend, trying to transfer ownership of my dagger to her, but another sound drew my attention. I once again turned toward the noise and watched as Enzu let out a pained cry, right before disappearing into a million crystals, leaving only a feather behind. My heart ceased beating for a moment as I fell to my knees.
"You overdid it, you idiot!" Rosalia barked. "You weren't meant to kill the bird!"
I slowly crawled towards the feather on the ground, grasping it in my hands. A smooth, blue feather with a simple, yet heartbreaking item name. Enzu's heart.
I black blur moves across my vision, directly in front of me. As I looked up, I spotted a player, draped in a black cloak with a hood on, concealing their identity. It was the same figure I'd seen all that time ago on floor 4, battling the orc.
"I'd advise you to leave her alone now," He spoke with determination.
From the angle he was standing, I couldn't see his face behind the hood, but I knew he had a determined look on it, just by the sound of his voice. As I looked back over at Greyfall, Harwin was shaking like a leaf.
"T-The Hooded Swordsman?!" Harwin stammered.
"What are you doing, moron?!" Jonny2time interjected. "We aren't afraid of you, asshole!"
With a deep inhale, the hooded figure replied, "You're starting to try my patience. Don't make me ask you a second time." He reached behind his back, gripping the hilt of his sword and slightly removing it from its sheath, bearing his blade like a wolf bears its teeth.
"Ha!" Jonny scoffed. "Try me, fu-"
Before he even had time to finish his sentence, the hooded man had drawn his weapon. Moving at inhuman speeds, his sword sliced right across Jonny2time's cheek, taking a small slither away from Jonny's HP gauge. The attack was enough to give Rosalia pause, but the other two became enraged, rushing to attack him, but he began not only dodging both of their attacks at the same time, but attacking them, moving at speeds so fast that there were times where all I could see of him was the flapping of his coat. He jumped away from the two after their HPs had reached 20%. Close to facing their impending doom, the two fled, dropping all their cor and leaving Rosalia alone with me and the hooded player.
"This isn't over, twerp! I'll be back!" Rosalia turned and fled with the others.
With a sense of finality, the hooded figure remarked, "I doubt it."
Sheathing his sword, the hooded figured turned to me, still on my knees, gingerly cradling the small feather in my arms. In a moment of unexpected gentleness, the player crouched beside me and spoke in a soft, calm voice.
"Are you ok? Did they hurt you?"
"En…zu," I whispered, my voice gripped by sorrow.
The hooded player, puzzled, surveyed the area before his eyes settled on the feather in my hand.
"Oh, the bird. So you're that beast tamer I've heard about. I'm sorry. Believe me, I ran as fast as I could when I detected them. I just…wasn't fast enough to react," He sighed, looking away for a moment as if remembering something. It lasted only a few seconds before he looked back at me and asked with genuine concern, "Are you hurt though?"
I was unable to think clearly enough to formulate a coherent answer, so I shook my head.
"That's one good thing at least. Come on. We should get you back to a town or something. It's not safe out here. Mistvail is close by. I'll take you."
He extended his hand to me. I cautiously took it and he helped me up. Accepting his help, he guided me through the forest and towards town. His grip was surprisingly gentle, as if he feared causing me pain. We passed through the town gates and I entered the blacksmith once again. As soon as I spotted Kikina, I released the players hand and rushed to embrace her.
"Osaka!" She exclaimed, her concern evident. "Are you ok?! What did Rosalia want?! Where's Enzu?!"
I violently shook my head, not wanting to recount any of what had just occurred. The hooded player raised his hands attempting to defuse the situation.
"Hey! Slow it down, ok? She's been through a lot today. Just give her a minute," he urged.
"And who the hell do you think you are, Robin Hood?!" She demanded.
With a hint of irritation, he sighed, "Look here…purple…haired…girl…"
"Wow," she said, unimpressed. "Really digging deep for that insult, aren't you?"
"Whatever. I was trying to help her, but clearly-"
"He saved my life!" I interjected.
"You were in danger?!" Kikina once again shifted her attention to me.
"Can you just calm down?! My god, you're so loud. Yes, she was in danger. A woman lead her into a forest and ambushed her. She was a member of a criminal guild called Greyfall."
"We know all about Greyfall. We were unfortunate enough to run with them for awhile."
"Well, a few of the members tried robbing her. She was…surprisingly brave. Ran right at them, but she wasn't strong enough, so they punished her. Killed her hawk. I was in the area, trying to level up, which was when I detected them. That's all there is to it," He clarified.
"I… Thank you. For saving my friend," Kikina said, though her tone indicated she wanted to protest.
"Too many players have died for nothing already. I promised myself that I'd save those who need saving. I guess…this was my way of reminding myself of that promise," he concluded, turning away.
"Wait! What's your-" I began, but he had already departed. "…name." I finished.
"Damnit! Why wasn't your guild with you?!" Kikina exclaimed, a mix of frustration and concern in her voice.
"I asked them to leave me alone for a bit," I admitted.
"I knew I should have joined that guild when you asked me too," she said, with a slight hint of regret.
Kikina and I met back when I was still with the Wolves of Night. She was with another guild. A week before the Kookaburras perished, her own guild was wiped out. She joined me with the Australians until their demise. Afterwards, we found Greyfall. She decided after we fled that she was done with guilds, whereas I went on and found the Round Table.
"It's fine," I said dismissively. "I should get back to them."
"Will you be ok?"
"My pet who was always with me at every moment just died, I'm with a group who don't see me as a player, and I'm under-levelled in a game where taking too much damage means death. No. I won't be ok, but if I stick with my guild, I might survive till the one year anniversary.