Ye You corrected her, unscrewing the milk bottle cap and pushing it over again, "What, has the famous fencer also fallen to the point of having no one to party up with?"
Asuna didn't reply, just staring at the bottle of milk for two seconds, then quickly reached out and took it, tilting her head back to take a swig.
Her movements were bold, with absolutely no awareness of being a lady.
Seems she really was choking.
"I just don't want to party with those weaklings."
After finishing the milk, Asuna seemed to regain a bit of confidence, saying coldly, "They'll only drag me down."
"What a coincidence, me too."
Ye You shrugged, "Those guys who only know how to shout 'Big shot, carry me' are too noisy, I'm afraid I won't be able to help myself from slashing my teammates before fighting the BOSS."
This half-joking complaint seemed to hit one of Asuna's funny bones.
The corner of her mouth twitched slightly; though she quickly hid it, the icy aura around her clearly dissipated quite a bit.
"So..."
Ye You turned his head, looking at her profile, and extended an invitation, "Since neither of us thinks much of others, why not make do with each other?"
"Make do?"
Asuna raised an eyebrow, "Just the two of us?"
"The two of us are worth a whole team of them."
Ye You's tone was arrogant, but his eyes were unusually calm, "Or are you scared? Scared that partying with a busybody like me will steal your thunder?"
A goading tactic.
Though it's a cliché, it always works against tsunderes.
Sure enough, Asuna gave a cold snort and swiped her finger through the air, bringing up the system menu.
[Ding!]
[Player Asuna has sent you a party invitation.]
Ye You clicked accept without hesitation.
In the upper-left corner of his vision, a long, thin health bar appeared.
Name: Asuna.
Level: LV9.
Good grief, after just a few days of not seeing her, this woman's level actually caught up. It seems that after eating that cream bread that day, she really turned her grief and indignation into motivation and grinded levels like crazy in the Labyrinth Area.
"Don't get the wrong idea."
The moment the party formation was successful, Asuna immediately added, albeit awkwardly, "This is only temporary. We disband after the BOSS is defeated."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say."
Ye You nodded perfunctorily; he had heard this kind of 'temporary worker' declaration plenty of times in his past life. In the end, which of them didn't turn into a long-term meal ticket?
Just then, a boy wearing a black trench coat with a one-handed sword on his back walked over.
Kirito.
This original protagonist appeared a bit awkward at this moment.
He had originally taken a fancy to the quietness of this corner, wanting to come over for some peace and quiet, and maybe see if he could pick up a party spot. As a result, just as he approached, he discovered a man and a woman were already sitting here, and the atmosphere... it was clearly impossible to wedge himself in.
"Uh... well..."
Kirito scratched his head.
Ye You looked up, staring at this future Black Swordsman.
The current Kirito was still just a socially anxious internet-addicted teen, completely lacking that dual-wielding, 'unrivaled' dominance he'd have later.
"Yo, isn't this that solo player who's really fast at snatching mobs?"
Ye You took the initiative to say hello, his tone familiar, "What, nobody wants you either?"
Kirito was taken aback, clearly not expecting to be recognized.
He had indeed crossed paths with Ye You in the leveling area; the two had even shared a tacit understanding while competing for a few mobs, making them acquaintances through conflict.
"Cough... I guess so."
Kirito rubbed his nose a bit sheepishly, "Everyone's already in full parties."
"That works out perfectly then."
Ye You pointed at the empty seat beside him, then pointed at Asuna, "We just happen to be short a meat shield... cough, short a frontliner. Join us?"
Asuna looked up and glanced at Kirito.
LV9.
Good gear, and his gaze was quite steady.
"Whatever." She spat out the two words coldly, signaling her agreement.
Kirito, as if granted a great pardon, hurried to sit down.
And just like that, the 'fated duo' that should have been Kirito and Asuna was forcefully intruded upon by Ye You, turning into a strange trio.
"My name is Ye You."
"Kirito."
"Asuna."
After a brief introduction, the three fell into silence.
In the center of the square, Diabel had already finished the final mobilization and announced loudly: "Alright! Then, dismissed! We set off at ten tomorrow morning!"
The crowd began to disperse.
The setting sun had completely sunk below the horizon, dyeing the sky an inky blue.
Ye You looked at the two main protagonists to his left and right.
Tomorrow's BOSS fight will be interesting.
"Oh, by the way."
Ye You suddenly turned to look at Asuna and pointed at the empty milk bottle in her hand, "That bottle needs to be returned to the NPC; the deposit is five Col."
Asuna: "..."
Kirito: "..."
The 20th floor of the Labyrinth Area, at its deepest point.
Two bronze giant doors, a full five meters high, stood at the end of the darkness, with hideous beast heads carved on the gates, their fangs interlocking.
The air was heavy.
Forty-four players stood before the door; no one spoke.
Fear is contagious.
Especially when you clearly know that as long as the guy behind that door swings his axe just once, your brain will turn into mush in the real world.
"Scared?"
Ye You stood on the right wing of the party, casually twirling his Steel Longsword into flourishes, glancing at Kirito beside him.
This future Black Swordsman was currently gripping his hilt tightly, a thin layer of cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
"N-No."
Kirito took a deep breath, trying to make his voice sound steadier, "I'm just thinking... about that BOSS's attack patterns."
"Don't overthink it."
Ye You pulled a healing crystal out of his inventory and tossed it in his hand, "Anyway, as long as you don't get hit, it's fine. The only strategy for this game is 'don't die'."
This bit of redundant nonsense obviously didn't do much to ease the tension.
On the other side, Asuna was surprisingly quiet.
She wrapped herself in that crimson cloak, her rapier hanging low. But Ye You could feel the aura around this woman was changing.
"Alright, everyone!"
At the very front, Diabel turned around and drew the knight sword from his waist.
His face wore a confident smile as his gaze swept across everyone's faces, "We've prepared long enough for this day. That guy inside is nothing but a pile of data! Hack it to pieces and head for Floor 2!"
"Ooooooooh—!"
Amidst a round of slightly forced roars, Diabel and several other heavy warriors worked together to push open the heavy bronze doors.
Rumble—
The doors slowly opened.
A rotten, fishy stench wafted over.
The interior of the hall was extremely spacious, with blue torches lining the walls; as the doors opened, these torches lit up one after another.
At the end of the hall, on a giant throne made of bone, sat a massive figure.
Standing over two meters tall with bulging muscles, its skin was a sickly bluish-grey. It had a massive wolf head, blood-red eyes, wore crude metal armor, and held a bone greataxe about half the size of an adult in its hand.
First Floor Floor Boss—Illfang the Kobold Lord （Illfang the Kobold Lord）.
Beside it crouched three fully armed Ruin Kobold Sentinels.
"Roar—!!!"
Seeing the intruders, Illfang leapt from his throne and let out a deafening roar. The sound waves visibly spread out, making the eardrums of many front-row players ache, and even their HP bars flickered twice.
The battle began.
"Squad A, Squad B! Get up there and tank the boss's aggro!"
Diabel's voice was still clear amidst the noise, "Team C is responsible for flank damage! Team D and Team E, clear the guards! Don't let them interfere with the main battlefield!"
The orders were given accurately.
The players who were originally a bit panicked quickly spread out according to their previous drills.
Several heavy warriors holding tower shields charged forward with a roar, taking Illfang's first heavy cleave head-on with their shields.
Clang—!
Sparks flew everywhere.
The massive impact force caused the feet of those warriors to plow two deep furrows into the ground, but the defensive line held.
"Now's the time! Attack!"
Countless sword skill light effects exploded in the dim hall.
Multi-colored lights wove together, blasting hard against the BOSS's body. Although each individual damage number wasn't high, they made up for it with sheer density.
However, this wasn't Ye You and his group's battlefield.
Their group's task was to clear out those annoying Kobold guards.