Chapter 81 - Meeting Morte Again

The morning sun shone brightly over the largest city in Sword Art Online, the Town of Beginnings. Players left their inns and hotels, most just loitering around in the gardens and plazas, or walking towards the teleporter to go to other floors. The Town of Beginnings wasn't only bigger, but also cheaper than most other cities, so even many of the clearers and frontliners spent the night here.

A small portion of the players left the town through the gates, and went to the grasslands just outside to fight  << Frenzy Boars >>  and  << Dire Wolves >>. They weren't there to level - by now, even the lowest-leveled players were far above the 1st floor, much less the starting area. That is, of course, if you didn't count the ones who were too scared to even step outside of the safe zones. But people barely saw those players anyway. They only left their rooms to complete the daily quests and then locked themselves into despair alone again.

No, the reason some players farmed the mobs outside the Town of Beginnings even though there was no experience gain was something else: money. Despite how little cor they dropped, the boars and wolves posed virtually no danger, so some of the low-level players still chose to kill them day after day. It was dull, but allowed them to live a little better - even if just slightly - than the shut-ins.

But today, there were more players than usual standing on the grassy plains. And their levels weren't low. The opposite, actually. You would be hard-pressed to find anyone with higher levels than them, even if you searched amongst the frontliners. Which was what they were, of course.

Drifter, Yuna, Nautilus, Silica, Vallerk, and Liz were all there. An excessive amount of high-level frontliners for the 1st floor, where the mobs were powerless against them. Literally. Even Yuna, the one with the lowest HP and more lightly armored of them, could stand there and let a pack of  << Dire Wolves >>  and go wild, and her health regeneration would exceed the damage they could deal.

Of course, there was a reason half of Reaver's Requiem was visiting the 1st floor, much to the astonishment of the players in the area. Three reasons, in fact. Their names were Shun, Lala, and Yuka, and they were three of the children Sasha housed in the church and cared for.

They were the oldest three of the children. Shun and Lala were ten, while Yuka was eleven years old. And the reason they were outside the Town of Beginnings now was for Drifter to make good on his promise to teach them a few moves.

While he was able to one-shot any of the 1st floor mobs, Drifter still felt that it was safer to have some backup when he, after a lot of begging, was convinced to bring the kids on this field trip. He would never forgive himself if something happened to the children because of him. And he felt that it was better to over-compensate than be lacking in this case, so he dragged half of the Reavers with him.

"Everyone remember what we taught you?"

The three kids were holding short swords with nervous but excited expressions. They nodded shakily, their gazes fixed somewhere else as they watched with rapid attention Nautilus kitting around a  << Frenzy Boar >>.  Drifter smiled when he saw that.

He had chosen to teach Shun and the others how to use not spears, which required a long time of practice before you could get used to it, but swords, which were much easier to pick up. That's not to say that swords were inferior, far from it. But the way of the sword was easy to learn, albeit difficult to master. Compared to spears, it was the better choice for children who would barely use them. Sasha and Drifter had made it very clear that the kids could never leave the safe zone without at least one of them - and preferably a bunch more people - accompanying them.

"Let's go over it one more time, and then you are all set to go. Look. Stab, slice, and parry. Only block as a last resort, since swords aren't made for it."

Drifter was holding a sword in his right hand, and he swung it as he spoke. As mentioned before, there weren't many secrets to learning how to swing a sword, although mastering it was an entirely different story. Even the spearman had picked up the basics from Kirito and Nautilus.

"The most important thing you have to remember in battle is to be dynamic. You can't just stay still, as that makes you an easy target. By the time you start to dodge, your enemy will have already hit you."

As he spoke, Drifter moved his other hand to the hilt of his sword. Shun, Lala, and Yuka had to use a two-handed grip, otherwise the weapons were too big and cumbersome for them to handle. Since he was teaching them, he obviously had to use the same stance.

Under their watchful stares, Drifter performed a two-handed stab, thrusting his sword at an imaginary enemy and taking a step forward at the same time. He then pulled back the weapon and stepped to the left, slashing at the empty air in front of him.

The children mimicked him, their movements surprisingly smooth, even if a little awkward due to the size of the swords. SAO was created with the idea that the youngest players would be fourteen at least, and that was reflected in the weapons and equipment.

But even so, Shun and Yuka performed the moves Drifter showed almost perfectly. Lala was a little off, but that was due to nervousness more than anything else. They were children, but they were children in SAO, after all. Even if they had never left the safe zones, they had certainly tried swinging a sword in the church's backyard - and away from Sasha's eyes.

In fact, the caretaker was watching them right now by Yuna's side. Even if six of Reaver's Requiem's members were here, she was still wrenching her hands worriedly. Her gaze kept straying to the << Frenzy Boar >>  Nautilus was bullying, and it was apparent that she was ready to jump in front of it to protect the three kids, even if her actual level was lower than theirs.

"Shun, you are up first. You are level 4, so even if the pig hits you, you will lose 20% of your HP at most, so don't worry. And we are all here to help if we think you need it. Ready?"

"Y-Yes!"

The boy swallowed hard, then nodded determinedly. Drifter called Nautilus while quietly swapping the sword for his trusty spear. When all was said and done, he wasn't going to take any risks.

"Send it over, Naut!"

The shield-bearer did exactly so, bashing the mob on the side with his shield, and redirecting it towards Shun. The poor kid froze when he saw the boar, which was as tall as he was, charging straight at him, with its ivory tusks aimed at his chest.

"Dodge and slash, Shun. Always keep moving."

Drifter calmly instructed the young boy, not at all worried. The  << Frenzy Boar >>  couldn't one-shot Shun even if it scored a critical hit, so, in his view, this was a win-win situation, regardless of the outcome. If Shun managed to overcome his fear and follow his orders, then that was that. Otherwise, if he couldn't retaliate and got a scare, he wouldn't ever feel like leaving the safe zone again, which was all Drifter wished for a child as young as Shun.

At the last moment, just before the  << Frenzy Boar >>  hit him, Shun moved, hopping to the left and slicing the back of the mob with his sword.

"Great job!"

It was a shallow cut, delivered without much strength or technique due to his fear, but Drifter and the others clapped their hands encouragingly and praised the boy.

"Try a skill now, Shun.  << Linear >>. Remember the stance Nautilus showed you?"

He did, and, having gotten over his nervousness after striking a blow against the  << Frenzy Boar >>, Shun was able to deliver the skill perfectly. Drifter clapped his hands once again.

"Great! It's your turn now, Lala, Yuka. Who's up first?"

...

Afterward, the group returned to the Town of Beginnings, each of the children having fought and killed a couple of mobs, and gained at least one level. Shun, Lala, and Yuka were tired, but ecstatic.

Drifter, Yuna, Nautilus, Sasha, and the children returned to the church. Silica, Vallerk, and Liz teleported to the 8th floor, to meet the rest of their guild, who were currently completing some random quests.

Sitting on a bench in the church's backyard, Drifter allowed himself this moment of relaxation. They would have to return to the frontlines soon, but while they were here, he was going to enjoy the warmth of the sunlight on his skin and the soft breeze blowing through the trees.

"Thank you for what you did today, Drifter, Yuna, Nautilus."

"Don't mention it, Sasha. I was just fulfilling my promise."

"Maybe, but you still put a lot of effort into it. Don't think I don't know how valuable the time of you frontliners is. And you didn't need to have brought so many people with you, but you did. So thank you. The children won't ever forget it."

The spearman didn't wave off Sasha's grateful thanks a second time, instead just smiling. He allowed another five minutes of blissful rest before touching Yuna's head and bumping Nautilus on the shoulder. Both had dozed off, so he was almost sad to have to wake them up, but duty called.

"Let's go, sleepyheads. Kirito says they are almost at the hostage quest."

Yuna rolled her eyes at Drifter, yawned, and stretched her body. Grabbing his arm, she pulled herself up and went to say goodbye to the kids. Nautilus stood up on his own, blinking a few times to send his sleepiness away. He looked at Yuna laughing with Lala, Yuka, and some other little girls, and smiled.

"She always was good with children."

Drifter smiled back.

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."

The duo stood there, silently watching the girl who tied both of them together. It would have been awkward and nowhere near as clean if they weren't in SAO. But they were, and the constant threat of death had a way of making you face your feelings.

"Hey, Drifter..."

Suddenly, Nautilus closed in on Drifter, grabbing his shoulder to pull the spearman down so their heads were at the same height. He whispered something to Drifter, whose eyes widened in confusion, then surprise and trepidation. 

"Got it."

The spearman nodded to Nautilus, who sighed once, a deep, heavy sigh, before a refreshed smile took over his face. He felt much lighter now. While Drifter appeared to be deep in thought over what he had just been told, the ash-haired boy waved and called his best friend.

"Yun', we've gotta go! We can come back tomorrow or the day after if you want."

"Coming! Bye, Sasha! Bye, Shun, Lala, Yuka, and everyone! I'll see you soon!"

The songstress bounced over to her companions, and they started making their way towards the teleporter. Yuna was happily chatting away with Nautilus when she noticed that Drifter wasn't participating in the conversation. Looking over her shoulder, she saw him quietly following them, his eyes on the paved road, and his mind clearly elsewhere. She nudged Nautilus.

"Did something happen? He wasn't so serious a few minutes ago."

The blade-user didn't even look at Drifter. He just nodded.

"Nothing bad, I think. Just... Personal."

It could be considered that, right? Nautilus scratched his chin and then decided that yes, it was. He just didn't say for whom.

Yuna eyed him suspiciously before looking at Drifter. He was still zoning out on his own world, so she turned back to Nautilus.

"Okay?"

...

By the time they teleported to the 8th floor and then walked all the way over to the dark elf camp, Drifter had already digested what Nautilus told him, and was back to normal.

The dark elf base was chaotic, to say the least. Elves were running around, preparing for war, and several patrols could be seen coming and going at any given moment. There was a constant stream of officers entering and leaving the biggest tent in the middle, which the commander inhabited.

The Reavers watched it all from the sidelines, discussing random topics while they waited. They didn't need to worry about hurting the feelings of any NPCs, and the only dark elf who might even realize they weren't worried about Quore's well-being was Kizmel, who also didn't hold much love for the arrogant prick.

Needless to say, however, she still couldn't let the kidnapping of any dark elf, especially a member of the royal bloodline, which she had vowed to protect, go unpunished.

"What's the plan, Kirito, Argo?"

Merida asked the two beta-testers amongst them, to which the info-broker shook her head.

"Don't look at me, Mer-chan. I can tell ya how the quest's supposed to go, but the actual fightin' is up to edgy boy over here."

She poked Kirito on the side, and it was unclear if Kirito grimaced because of her clawed finger or the nickname. Either way, he chose to ignore it, which was probably the smart play.

"Nothing too complicated, Merida. We have to fight through a bunch of mobs until we reach the place where Quore's being held. During the beta there was an elite mob guarding him, but considering everything, I think it's safe to say we are looking at a mini-boss now."

"Yep. This is the climax of the  << Elf War >>  campaign' on this floor, so it'll be hard. Don't get cocky, Kii-bou."

"Never, Argo."

"How's the progress on floor clearing, Argo-chan? I've heard Laurels of Old found the labyrinth entrance?"

Laurels of Old was one of the many clearer guilds. Despite how imposing their name was, there weren't any frontliners amongst their ranks. But they were good at their job, which was mapping and exploring new floors.

"The way this floor's laid out made it easier. There were only so many wrong turns we could take before findin' the right path. Besides, I've had the ninjas scoutin' the out-of-the-way... Oh, Kiz-chan. We finally gonna start movin'?"

Argo changed the subject easily when their dark elf approached them. Not because she didn't want Kizmel to hear, but because what the dark elf had for them was a lot more interesting.

"Yes, Argo. Our patrols found the hidden base of the scummy fallen elves. Giving in to their demands is impossible, but if we mobilize a large number of troops, it's likely they will just kill the hostage and run away. As such the commander ordered me to infiltrate their camp and rescue Quore. Would you help me?"

She asked that already knowing the answer, and wasn't disappointed. Less than ten minutes later, they were on their way to the fallen elf base. After ninety minutes, they met the first group of enemies and eliminated them. Two more hours and night began to fall.

It took seven hours total for them to rescue Quore. Of those, six were spent fighting their way through a dozen variations of  << Fallen Elves >>. The last hour had them locked into a dragged-out battle against what was, indeed, a mini-boss.

Deep into the night, Reaver's Requiem finally exited the fallen elf camp, letting out sighs of relief. That was when a figure blocked their path.

"Well, well, well, you came out at last! I was starting to worry those stupid NPCs had gotten you. Do you have any idea how boring it was waiting for you? There weren't even other players around to entertain me."

The familiar, dreaded voice and its sing-song tone sent chills down the spines of all the players. Drifter's knuckles turned white around the shaft of his spear. He spat a name.

"Morte."