"Hey, Kirito, about that just now—"
"Yeah, let's go, Asuna."
The two of them rushed over, only to stumble upon the sight of a player vanishing right there in the safe zone.
They glanced around, but there was no duel result screen in sight.
The pair decided to start investigating the incident after speaking with a woman named Yoruko, an acquaintance of the deceased man (apparently named Kains).
First, they tried to verify if it was even possible to kill someone in a safe zone, but the process proved incredibly challenging.
They even consulted Heathcliff, who was knowledgeable about all sorts of things, but he offered no useful information.
However, as they parted ways, Heathcliff left them with one piece of advice-like words:
"Trust only what you've seen with your own eyes."
Incidentally, Hachiman still seemed to be asleep, showing no reaction at all.
During their investigation, they were questioned extensively by Schmidt, the tank squad leader of the Divine Dragon Alliance, so they wondered if he might be involved and asked him directly.
But Schmidt only evaded their questions, revealing nothing of importance.
With no other choice, the two decided to speak with Yoruko again.
"Schmidt, you say?"
"Yes. Does the name ring a bell?"
"He's an old comrade."
From Yoruko, they learned about the guild she'd once belonged to, the Golden Apple, and decided to call Schmidt in for a four-way discussion.
Meanwhile, Hachiman stirred, thinking he might have overslept a bit, and sat up in bed.
A flickering light caught the corner of his eye—apparently, several messages had arrived.
"Murder in a safe zone, huh?"
Hachiman scratched his head, grabbing a drink to jolt his brain awake and chugging it down in one go.
Once settled, he began reading the messages from Asuna.
(It all might have started with a rare ring drop in the Golden Apple guild. On the way to sell it, the leader Griselda died, the ring went missing, and the guild disbanded…)
Hachiman organized the characters in his mind as he continued reading.
(Kains died in the safe zone from continuous piercing damage? The weapon used was a spear made by Griselda's husband, Grimlock. So they suspect him.
And Schmidt…? He joined the Divine Dragon Alliance midway through. Their standards are strict, so for someone from a mid-tier guild like Schmidt to get in right away…)
"Schmidt's definitely involved in Griselda's death in some way," Hachiman muttered aloud, diving back into thought.
(Death in a safe zone, huh. They checked the Monument of Life, but I'll hold off on that. Heathcliff said to trust only what you've seen…)
The Monument of Life was a comprehensive list of all players in the game, located in the Town of Beginnings, which also recorded the dates and causes of death for those who had perished in-game.
Just then, a new message came in from Asuna.
Apparently, Yoruko had just been killed right in front of them.
The culprit had used a teleport crystal and escaped.
(Teleport crystal, safe zone murder—ah…)
Hachiman messaged Asuna that he'd just woken up and summoned the two to his house.
"Yo, sorry about that—I overslept a little."
"Hachiman! Yoruko, she… Yoruko…"
"Calm down, you two. You're fundamentally misunderstanding a bunch of things here."
"Misunderstanding? What do you mean, Hachiman?"
"You saw it happen right in front of you, so maybe that's why you got locked into that mindset.
Listen up, both of you. Murder like that isn't possible in a safe zone."
"But it happened right before our eyes…"
"That's right, Hachiman! We saw two people vanish right in front of us!"
"Exactly—that's the point. Because you actually witnessed it, you unconsciously ruled out other possibilities from the start."
Hachiman continued his explanation.
"Heathcliff told you, right? Trust only what you've seen with your own eyes."
"Yeah."
"I didn't really get it, though."
"If you'd just heard about it like I did, or if it hadn't been so direct, you might have figured it out right away.
First off, when does that effect trigger?"
"Um, when you defeat a monster, when a person dies, and also…"
"And also?"
"Ah… no way…"
Kirito seemed to realize something.
"When an item's durability runs out?"
"Exactly. You two might not be as familiar with it, but I've seen it plenty of times.
Like when I leave my favorite drink out after a bath, planning to sip it later, but I doze off and watch it vanish right before my eyes—over and over."
"I see, that was our blind spot! So that's what Heathcliff was hinting at with his advice."
"What do you mean?"
"It means this: Yoruko and Kains deliberately let their equipment's durability hit zero and teleport away with a crystal at that exact moment. They're still alive."
"But Kains really did die today from continuous piercing damage."
"About that Kains—there's one thing that comes to mind.
The name you checked on the Monument of Life—was it really spelled the same as his? Did the spelling match?"
"Oh, come to think of it, earlier when we were checking all the former members' names on the Monument, Schmidt wrote them down for us."
The two pulled out the list and verified.
"No way… the name we checked is different from this."
"Just as I thought. Kirito, you'd know this, but in games like this, it's common.
Lots of people use famous protagonists' names from other games, with all sorts of spellings."
"Yeah, that happens a lot in MMOs."
"That's it. In this case, it's no coincidence, so the death date for that 'Kains' is probably from a year ago today."
Hearing that, Kirito seemed to have a realization.
"…Hey, Hachiman. You don't mean…"
"Yeah, exactly that. This was probably a plan hatched by Yoruko and Kains when they stumbled upon that name by chance. And given the weapon used, Grimlock's in on it too."
"Why go through with a plan like this? What's the point?"
"For starters, tell me what was said when the four of you talked."
Asuna and Kirito began recounting the conversation just before Yoruko's "death."
Yoruko's series of statements, about Griselda's death, how she suspected Schmidt.
How Grimlock had the right to take revenge on anyone who might have killed Griselda.
That perhaps Griselda's ghost was seeking vengeance on the culprit.
After hearing all that, Hachiman's first response was a question that seemed off-topic at first glance.
"By the way, what happened to Schmidt?"
"He muttered something about apologizing to Griselda and wandered off."
"Well, Schmidt's pretty much guilty as sin, so that reaction makes sense."
"Schmidt is?"
Hachiman shared what he'd pieced together earlier with Asuna and Kirito.
"Yeah, without suddenly coming into a huge amount of Cor, it'd be tough for him to join the Divine Dragon Alliance right away."
"No way…"
"Whether he actually did the deed himself is unclear, but he's definitely connected."
"Yeah, there's no evidence to deny it."
"One last question: What kind of leader was Griselda?"
"She was incredibly strong and dependable, apparently. That's why they even made a grave for her."
Hachiman pondered for a moment.
"If she was that strong, even if caught off guard, it's hard to believe Golden Apple members could kill her easily.
The most likely scenario is involvement from an outside group experienced in murder."
"You mean the culprit hired them?"
"Pretty much."
"But I don't think Schmidt's the type to hire killers."
"He probably wasn't directly involved. But he's clearly suspicious.
That's why Yoruko and Kains orchestrated this plan to maneuver Schmidt toward Griselda's grave, where they'd force a confession or something."
"Yeah, that's the only logical flow here."
"But something feels off—like we're missing a piece. The real killer behind Griselda… involvement of a murder guild…
Wait, there was that talk about a big shot connected to Laughing Coffin… Damn!"
Hachiman suddenly stood up.
"You said you could contact Yoruko right away—did one of you add her as a friend?"
"Yeah, I did! Oh, right, that would confirm she's alive immediately."
"You should be able to check her location from the friend list. Where is she?"
"Looks like the 19th floor."
"I'll explain later. Kirito, head there right now.
Take as many poison resistance potions and healing crystals as you can.
If it turns into a fight, focus on defense and just hold out."
The word "fight" made the two tense up.
"This is an emergency, huh, Hachiman?"
"Yeah. Asuna, rally the Knights of the Blood Oath and head to the site immediately."
"Got it."
"I'll contact the Divine Dragon Alliance and follow right after Kirito.
Our enemies this time are probably… the executives of Laughing Coffin."
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