Chapter 142 - Lights and Shadows

[ Argo: Ahoy, Dri-bou! Y'all frontliners thinkin' of openin' the 23rd floor anytime soon? ]

The spearmaster read Argo's message and grinned. Clearly he wasn't the only one who had noticed the changes in their quest menu.

[ Drifter: This floor is interesting, little rat. And the safe zone is quite far from the exit of the tower. But we'll get there soon. ]

[ Drifter: In the meantime, why don't you ask what you really wanna ask? ]

There were a few moments of pause, likely during which Argo was composing her answer, and Drifter turned his attention back to the floor.

The Ashara Puppet and Amihenta Decoy had been easily dispatched. After all, they were going against the entire Assault Team. Even if they were tired after the boss raid, there was no way 2 lone mobs could cause them any trouble.

Once the monsters perished, the players had chatted a little about drops and attack patterns before setting out again towards the safe zone.

The closer they got, the clearer the layout of the town became. The houses were made of some sort of rough white dirt, and very square. The streets were paved with the same kind of material, and were all windy and curved. There was a side alley in-between basically every house, making the town a very confusing maze.

That was how it was for the desert half, at least. When the frontliners looked up, however, they could only see the water wall because of how close they were, so there was no way of knowing how the other half of the safe zone looked.

"No, in the first place, how do we even get up there?"

"Are we even supposed to?"

"No question 'bout it. No way only half the floor is accessible."

Having done this countless times now, the frontliners were in no hurry to activate the teleporter. Once they did so, there would be a flood of players rushing in, and everything would become a mess.

"What if we are looking at this wrongly?"

"Whatever do ya mean, girl?"

Silica probably hadn't meant to say it out-loud, and she flinched when Kibaou snapped at her in his usual brisk tone. Drifter and the other Reavers scowled at him, and even the famed Challenger had the decency to look ashamed.

"Sorry, Tamer."

The ALS leader mumbled his apology, and Silica waved it off. She was too kind for this world. It wasn't for nothing that she turned on the brotherly and sisterly protective instincts of every Reaver older than her - all of them. Drifter patted her head.

"Go on, Silica."

"Hm. Because the two halfs of the town are so close and, well, halfs, we are taking it for granted that they are just one thing. But every floor has at least two safe zones, right? Like the Town of Beginnings and Tolbana on the 1st floor. What if this is the same?"

Realization dawned on Drifter, and he smiled and ruffled Silica's head. She was a smart girl.

Looking around, he saw that many still didn't understand. Nodding to Silica, he took over the explanation.

"What Silica means is that while the two towns might be close physically, if we can't get to the one on the top of the ocean portion, then they might as well be on opposite sides of the floor. Great deduction, Silica."

The Dragon Tamer grinned happily at the compliment and hugged him briefly.

"Right. This whole floor is trippy."

"Even if you are right, Broken Spear, Dragon Tamer, we still don't know how to get up there."

A player from another guild spoke up and Drifter shrugged.

"Explore, clear quests. The usual. I'm sure it will reveal itself at some moment."

It wasn't the answer they wanted, but it was the only one Drifter had for them, and Drifter ignored the grumbles in favor of opening his messages again. Argo had been steadily loosing her patience while the Assault Team discussed.

[ Argo: Ya are no fun, Dri-bou. But alright, I saw the quest updated. 'Pluck the Starlight'. Any clues as to what that means? ]

[ Argo: Somethin' been goin' on with Akari and her shadows recently that she won't talk 'bout, so we are on our own to investigate this. ]

[ Argo: But ya don't need to worry, Dri-bou! The greatest info-broker in the world is by yer side! ]

[ Argo: Are ya in a battle or somethin'? If ya are ignorin' me just because, it'll hurt my feelings. ]

[ Argo: Dri-bou... Dri-bou! Dri-bou! ]

[ Argo: Bad Dri-bou. Didn't you say I'm like a little sister to ya? How can ya ignore me? ]

[ Argo: C'mon, I can see in the friends list that all of ya are well and healthy. Is anythin' interestin' goin' on over there? ]

[ Argo: Hmph! Annoyin' Drifter! I won't talk to ya anymore! ]

After reading all the messages, Drifter shook his head in amusement. Argo normally wasn't this childish, which meant she wasn't that annoyed really. She was just bored, and was spamming his message box to pass the time.

Although, one of the many messages she sent caught his attention. The second one, specifically.

The spearmaster frowned and paused in responding to Argo. Akari wasn't someone who would feel the need to report her actions to Drifter, but from what he gleamed from the info-broker's message, the role-player seemed to have landed on a spot of trouble. It bothered him a little that he was only now finding that out, and from a secondary source on top of that.

[ Drifter: Sorry, little rat. This floor is quite mesmerizing, and we were discussing something. Kibaou already sent people to unlock the teleporters. ]

[ Drifter: About Akari and Fuumaningum... ]

It was a few seconds later that Argo replied, despite what she said earlier about not talking to him anymore. Drifter could feel her solemn mood even through the written words.

[ Argo: I don't know. When I asked, she just brushed me off. But she was angry. And sad. I think they lost someone. ]

Anger and sadness wasn't an unusual combination for SAO players. Every frontliner had experienced it multiple times. The rage and pain of losing someone, that is.

How Fuumaningum lost one of its members was what worried Drifter the most.

If the other guild did indeed lose a player, it could have been for a myriad of reasons. If it was to a monster, then that was just bad luck or human error, and they had to move on. But there was one other task Fuumaningum undertook that could lead to death.

Shadowing the red players.

His friendship with Argo and Akari meant Drifter was privy to some of the actions of the ninjas. They were one of the groups who were the most in danger every day, even more so than clearers, and just behind the frontliners.

Akari had her ninjas infiltrate lawless zones and tail red players to identify them and monitor their actions. And, if needed, to take more proactive actions. The spearmaster knew of at least one occasion when they managed to covertly warn a solo player in time for them to avoid an ambush by a duo of red players.

The day Laughing Coffin found out about their actions - and it was inevitable that it would happen - Fuumaningum would become the biggest torn on their side, which the red players probably couldn't wait to remove. Drifter seriously hoped that day hadn't come already.

[ Drifter: Can we put our quest aside for a moment, Argo? ]

[ Argo: Don't do anything stupid. Akari ain't someone you can bully into telling her secrets. ]

Despite the worrying thoughts running through his head, Drifter smiled. The concern the info-broker felt for both him and Akari was evident through her messages.

[ Drifter: I'm the only person other than you she might talk to. I just need to clear up what this is about. If it is something internal to Fuumaningum, then I won't pry. But if by chance it's related to Laughing Coffin... ]

He left the sentence unfinished. Argo could surely understand what he meant.

[ Argo: Hm. Make sure she isn't doing something stupid too. And keep me updated. ]

[ Drifter: You got it. Stay safe, little rat. ]

[ Argo: I should be sayin' that to ya. ]

Argo went back to typing like she was some sort of underground, black market informant, which meant she was relieved.

After what happened with Morte, Argo had made Drifter promise to never do something similar and go after a murderer alone without telling anyone - Akari didn't count since, according to the little rat, she was as reckless as Drifter. The spearmaster wouldn't betray her trust.

Taking a deep breath, Drifter started composing a message to Akari, only to forego it in favor of a much simpler and to-the-point inquiry. He sighed. This wasn't likely to be a pleasant talk.

-----------------------

[ Drifter: Are you going after Laughing Coffin? ]

Akari re-read the short message for the nth time, complicated emotions swirling in her eyes.

She had expected it to come, only not so soon. Akari was the leader of her guild and needed not answer to anyone but herself and those who trusted her to lead them. But if there was anyone who deserved to know what she was doing, it was Broken Spear Drifter.

Closing her menu, the ninja rested her back on the wall of the building behind her. She was on the newly opened 23rd floor, for convenience's sake.

The soft sounds of footfalls didn't go unnoticed by her trained ears. Akari only turned her head when Drifter was right in front of her.

"Akari."

"Broken Spear."

"Drifter. My friends don't call me by that title."

The ninja paused. Well, that was something at least. Then she pushed off from the wall and sighed.

"I suppose we should talk."

"We should."

Akari stared hard at Drifter, but his expression was unreadable. She wasn't sure how or where this conversation was going to go.

She wanted to say she didn't care about the results, but that would be a lie. Although Fuumaningum's war on Laughing Coffin would persist regardless, Drifter was one of the very few she considered a friend, and his opinion mattered more to her than she would care to admit.

They walked silently, Akari guiding Drifter to a remote corner of the town, where they wouldn't be disturbed, and the spearmaster following without a word.

They were both used to silence, but this one was especially awkward. Eventually, Akari broke it.

"I thought Argo the Rat would be with you. I imagine it was she who brought this to your attention."

She had her back turned to Drifter, but she could almost see his frown. He deliberated his words before responding.

"It was, and she knows I'm here. So do Yuna, Naut, and Kirito. I promised not to keep secrets from them, especially if it's related to those monsters. But I reserve the right to decide how much I'll say. They accepted that."

That was Drifter's roundabout way of saying she could trust him to keep her secrets. But also that he would have to tell the 4 he mentioned something.

"What do you want to know?"

Stopping at some deserted alleyway very near the edge of the safe zone, Akari turned around to face the spearmaster. Drifter just stared at her for a long minute before shaking his head and exhaling.

"Let's not do this, Akari. This is not a game, so don't treat it like one. I'm not."

The ninja deflated, and eventually nodded. Drifter ran a hand through his hair.

"You are going after Laughing Coffin. Not just keeping an eye on them anymore, but actively seeking conflict. Don't deny it. You responding to my message only with a time and location to meet was an answer on its own. What I want to know first is: why?"

This time, Akari didn't waste time in answering. Most likely, she had already accepted that Drifter wouldn't go back without learning what he wanted. And she wouldn't have agreed to meet him if she wanted willing to talk anyway.

"They killed one of ours. Ermao."

Hearing this, Drifter sighed. It was as he had expected. There was no reason for Fuumaningum to change from simply observing to proactively hunting the red players otherwise.

It was always a sad affair when a person died, but especially so if they were killed by another player.

"Any others? And how many red players have you killed?"

Drifter's tone was even and impartial. No hint of judging or discrimination. Of emotion. But his eyes gave it away. In them, Akari saw a mixture of empathy and anger. But only the former was directed at her.

Of course he wouldn't be disappointed or disgusted. He had experienced those reactions already when he told the Assault Team he had killed Morte. He wouldn't push the same to her.

"One other of my subordinates fell. But we have already killed 3 red players. Two of them were from Laughing Coffin. I took care of them myself."

There was still a small amount of emotion when she started speaking, but by the time she was finished, Akari's tone was as flat as Drifter's had been.

"Good."

"What?"

The ninjas eyes widened in surprise at Drifter's response to her confession. She didn't know what she was expecting, but it certainly wasn't for him to praise her. But the spearmaster simply shook his head at her confusion.

"I'm not a saint, Akari. I killed Morte because I was worried he would come after me and the others. It wasn't justice, or even revenge. It was preemptive. Because I was afraid. I don't have the right to judge you. Nor do I want to."

"Then what do you want?"

Her glare was challenging. Drifter's gaze was full of steel.

"For you to stay safe. For Fuumaningum to not lose another member. For those Laughing Coffin bastards to never be able to harm anyone else."

The ninja started. This was not what she was expecting. Her features softened under her mask.

"What are you proposing?"

"Laughing Coffin is a threat to every player in SAO. Not just because they are murderers, but because with each life they take, they set back our efforts to clear the game."

It was Broken Spear who stood before her then, not just Drifter, and Akari shivered against her will.

"Find Laughing Coffin. How many there are, who they are, where they are hiding. Then tell us. This burden isn't yours to carry alone, nor should it fall only on Fuumaningum's shoulders."

His gaze was steely, but there was a fire burning within.

"Laughing Coffin are monsters barring us from escaping. It has always been the frontliners' job to cut down such obstacles."