Chapter 148 - Battles Over the Ocean

The ocean half of the 23rd floor was a sight to behold. And much more dangerous than its desert counterpart too.

The way to advance on this portion of the floor wasn't through boats or ships, but a spider web of raised reefs.

Dozens, maybe hundreds of natural platforms were scattered over the water, some the size of a trampoline, others as big as a small island. Each of them was connected to several others by paths of reef and coral, only wide enough for two people to walk side by side.

Reaver's Requiem stood at the edge of the safe zone, besides a couple of NPC guards with tridents, who ignored them. The players were making long faces.

"I don't like it. It's too easy to get surrounded or separated. And even if it doesn't happen, we will only ever have 4 people able to help each other, likely less. There is no room to maneuver or switch."

Drifter spoke with a deep frown. Out of the three with leadership roles in Reaver's Requiem, he was by far the most cautious. And he wasn't getting good vibes from the rest of the 23rd floor.

While walking on the bridges between platforms, it was obvious that mobs would jump out of the water at them.

If it was just one at a time, like with the Ashara Puppets, then that was still okay. But if they came in packs, it would spell trouble.

Imagine the following situation: the Reavers were walking through the paths two at a time when suddenly 3 Amihenta Decoys burst out of the water right behind the last pair. The two players would be forced to fight while outnumbered, and without the others being able to help. They would be completely isolated and on their own.

Worse still, in the narrow reefs there was little space to maneuver. They could only go backward or forward. With their lateral movement blocked, the players wouldn't be able to fight to their full potential.

"What a nasty floor design. Is Kayaba trying to cut our numbers down?"

"This looks more Cardinal than Kayaba."

"It doesn't matter which of them came up with it, it's still pretty fucked up."

"Language!"

Yuna and Asuna glared at Drifter for his language, the former slapping the spearmaster's arm. He apologized, but his heart wasn't into it. He stood by what he said.

"Your quest's still pointing in this direction, Drif?"

He nodded to Kirito's question, and the Black Swordsman scanned the ocean with his gaze.

"It will be another field-boss. That means a large arena..."

"There. The biggest platform slash island."

Sinon pointed directly west of them. At this distance and angle, it was little more than a large shadow in the water, but it was definitely the biggest one in sight. The spearmaster sighed.

"That's it."

"You want to go now?"

"No, we already fought one field-boss today and are tired. And Liz needs to repair our equipment. We'll go tomorrow."

"Roger that. But it's still early. We should explore a little. See what we are dealing with."

Shigio raised a valid point, and Drifter nodded in agreement. But he had his own two cents to add.

"Okay. But we need some insurance to explore this mess, I think. Kirito, I think it might be time to invest some of our funds."

The guild leader looked to him.

"On what?"

"Teleport Crystals. One for each of us. It will be pricey, but I believe it's worth it. That way if we get separated or can't make our way back before it's dark, it will be safer. And if we don't use them on this floor - as I hope we don't - there's sure to be use for them in the future."

There was no answer, from Kirito or anyone else, for a while. Crystals of any kind were expensive, but Teleport Crystals especially so, even after being available for 10-odd floors.

There was a good reason why they held on to the reward from Aater, Lord of the Fallen for so long. To outfit all 21 members of Reaver's Requiem with Teleport Crystals would put a sizable dent on the guild's finances.

They all turned to Kirito, and waited for his response. While Reaver's Requiem was largely democratic in nature, he was still their leader, and in charge of the guild funds.

Kirito frowned, deep in thought, but didn't immediately reject the suggestion. To be honest, it was something they had already considered doing, but until 2 or 3 floors ago, that, together with their everyday expenses, would have put Reaver's Requiem in the red.

In hindsight, they should have probably bought the crystals even if that was the case. No amount of cor could compare to a life. They were lucky they hadn't fallen in a situation where they needed to make a quick escape yet.

Eventually, the young swordsman nodded. While it would be a painful blow to their wallets, it would be important. Even if the thought chilled him, he knew there would be a time when the Teleport Crystals would become necessary.

"Asuna, can you go buy it? Meanwhile, I'll discuss with Drifter what our formation should be."

"It won't be the usual one, that's for sure. I'll be right back, dear."

The fencer smiled, pleased, and pecked her boyfriend's lips. Then she ran back into the town to buy the crystals.

Only the guild leader - Kirito - or his vice-leaders - Asuna and Drifter - could access the guild funds, hence why she had to go personally.

It was similar to the joint storage of a married couple. Drifter and Yuna, for example, could access their shared inventory and take out any item they wished, as long as the other didn't have it equipped on their person.

"How do you think we should position, Drifter?"

"We will need to change everything. There will be more information once we actually go and find out how many mobs attack at once, but for now, I think we should act as if we are going to be separated into groups of 2 and 4."

"Prepare for the worst, hum?"

Kirito muttered with a frown, and Drifter shrugged. Better to prepare unnecessarily than to be caught off-guard.

"Alright. Vallerk and... Griselda, first pair. Liz and myself, second. Keita and Ducker, third. Kizmel and Sachi, fourth. Silica, you stick to them. Tetsuo and Sasamaru, fifth. Then..."

"Sinon should be in the middle of the pack, that way she can support both the front and the rear, and wherever the mobs appear."

"Good point. Sinon, you are the sixth pair. Yuuki, you are with her. Yuna and Drifter, you are right behind them as the seventh pair. Between you and Yuuki, Drifter, you should be able to handle anything unexpected that happens."

The spearmaster and swordswoman nodded. Yuna and Sinon were by far the most fragile players in Reaver's Requiem in terms of defensive power and health points. Usually that didn't matter much because they were always surrounded by the others, who would protect them, but in this case that wasn't possible.

"Wolv and... Asuna, eighth pair. Remind her of the order when she gets back, please. Nautilus and Ran, ninth. And finally, Agil and Shigio as the tenth pair, bringing up the rear."

Kirito looked around to see if anyone had any complaints or suggestions. When they didn't come, he clapped his hands once.

"Alright, I think that's as good as we are gonna get without actually trying it. We will change up as we see fit when we get on one of the larger platforms."

Not much later Asuna returned, and the guild set off. Other players had yet to find out that they had opened the other half of the floor, but with how many people saw them do it, it was just a matter of time before they figured it out.

Kirito randomly chose one of the many reef bridges that spread out from the safe zone. Very cautiously, the players crossed it, always staring at the water on both sides, waiting for the first enemy to appear. Even just a few seconds of warning could make a big difference.

"On me!"

They were barely half-way through to the first platform when Drifter saw a dark shadow swiftly swimming towards them. He only had time to yell a warning and turn around before an Amihenta Decoy jumped out of the water and onto the bridge, right behind him.

The dark siren was alone, which was a blessing. The spot it chose to appear was between Asuna and Wolv, and Drifter and Yuna.

The Amihenta Decoy screeched, purple goo splashing everywhere, and Drifter took one step forward to put Yuna behind him.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Reavers that weren't the 4 near the mob, or Sinon, made disgruntled faces. Not being able to help in battle was one of the worst things there was for a frontliner.

Drifter snapped a Sting, hoping to catch the mob off-guard, but his eyes widened when the Amihenta Decoy lunged at him, ten claw-like fingers reaching for his face, and his spear glanced off the slimy skin, leaving barely a paper cut behind.

Relying on his vast experience, Drifter immediately chose to abandon the offensive and leaned back.

"Ugh!"

The Amihenta Decoy's left hand was avoided, but the five fingers on its right hand raked across Drifter's face and neck, leaving five ugly red lines.

In this first exchange, the spearmaster had clearly come out on the losing end. While the Amihenta Decoy barely lost a few percents of its HP, Drifter's health fell by almost 30%.

If Drifter had been on his own, this would have instantly become a desperate situation.

Luckily, he wasn't alone. And if there was one thing players were good at, it was in throwing honor away and ganging up on mobs.

"Die!"

Since the Amihenta Decoy had so generously turned its back to them, Asuna and Wolv took full advantage of it to attack the mob.

Line Cut, Parallel Sting, Bone Breaker... Rapier and mace skills fell like rain on the mob's exposed back, quickly cutting it down to half health.

From behind Drifter, Aero Huntress Sinon once again proved to be deserving of her title by using a skill to curve an arrow around Yuna and the spearmaster. It disappeared almost to the stabilizing feathers in the Amihenta Decoy's open mouth.

Of course, the couple wasn't going to be outdone by their friends. Recovering from the surprise, Drifter blocked another set of claw-fingers with the shaft of his weapon, then spun it, making the mob lose its footing - tail-ing? - and stumble.

The shrill notes of Dark Melody rang out as Songstress Yuna used her music to lower the mob's defense.

Broken Spear Drifter snarled a savage smile, and his weapon glowed a vivid blue when he swung it again. A cut and two holes appeared on the torso of the Amihenta Decoy, the 3-hit combo of Cobalt Slice putting an end to its life.

The battle ended in a flash, lasting less than 20 seconds. And yet, it left the players, especially Drifter, feeling cold sweat trickle down their backs.

The power of the Amihenta Decoy was formidable. And the sudden ambush, plus its relentless attack, was enough to kill an unprepared player in a matter of seconds.

"That was-"

Yuna opened her mouth to comment, but before she could finish the first sentence, another Amihenta Decoy appeared, this time near the front of the group, between the pairs of Liz and Kirito, and Keita and Ducker.

Another few tens of seconds of fierce battle unleashed, and another Amihenta Decoy dropped dead, leaving behind a lightly injured Ducker and Lisbeth.

While the injured players, including Drifter, chugged down potions, the spearmaster exchanged glances with his guild leader. A silent conversation took place, and Kirito nodded.

"Double-time it to the platform! We'll talk there!"

They suffered three more attacks before they could cross the remaining 100 meters or so to the small platform. Each time, it was a single Amihenta Decoy, at different positions on their line.

When they finally stepped foot on the cramped platform, all the Reavers put their hands on their knees and took some deep breaths.

Unfortunately, SAO wasn't willing to offer them even a brief moment of respite. No sooner than the players squeezed into the platform, several shadows jumped out of the water, and they suddenly found themselves facing 4 Amihenta Decoys.

It was at this moment that Drifter realized they had made a mistake. So obsessed with the idea of strength in numbers, they had neglected to think that it might actually become a hindrance.

In their defense, it was the first time in SAO that they were confined to such small battlefields. Unfortunately, SAO wasn't such a forgiving game that it would give them a second chance.

Broken Spear Drifter grimaced at the Amihenta Decoy directly in front of him, his back pressed against Yuna, Nautilus and Kizmel squeezing on his sides.

"Well, that's just not nice."