-1648- [ Valley of Butterflies ]

For the Sylph race, though Leafa didn't feel a strong sense of belonging or kinship, even if she left the territory as a defector, it wouldn't bother her much. However, that didn't mean she was entirely indifferent to Sylph matters.

After all, the Sylph territory was home to many people she knew, and it was her race. The leader, Sakuya, was someone she deeply respected. To let her be killed and watch the Sylphs decline was something Leafa would never allow.

Not to mention, if this situation really unfolded, it would create a rift between the Sylphs and the Cait Sith, which was also something Leafa didn't want to see.

So, no matter what, Leafa had to stop it.

Right now, she could only hope to reach the meeting site and notify the two leaders before the Salamander army arrived.

Unfortunately, due to her usual free-spirited nature, Leafa hadn't added Sakuya as a friend. She hadn't added any officials from the Sylph administration either, so her friend list essentially only contained Rekon, let alone any Cait Sith members. As a result, even if she wanted to send a message, she couldn't do it.

And in the real world, she didn't have any contact information for the leaders either.

Thus, she had no choice but to rush to the meeting site personally.

The problem was…

"Where exactly is the meeting site?"

Rozen asked as he ran.

"Valley of Butterflies," Leafa replied immediately.

Rozen quickly opened the map to check.

ALfheim's regions are divided among the eight territories of the nine races, but the central area is encircled by the ring-shaped mountains that Rozen and Leafa are now crossing. It's like a basin, separated from the outer regions and forming a neutral independent zone.

To enter this neutral area from outside, one must either cross the tunnels through the mountains, enduring the harsh conditions, as Rozen and Leafa were doing, or enter through one of the mountain's three main gaps.

The ring-shaped mountain range has three large gaps that allow direct entry.

The first faces the Salamander territory — the "Valley of Dragons."

The second faces the Undine territory — the "Valley of Rainbows."

The third faces the Cait Sith territory — the "Valley of Butterflies."

The Sylph and Cait Sith meeting was taking place on the inside edge of the Valley of Butterflies.

This location choice was made to prevent either party from having a hostage situation, as neither side was entering the other's territory. Otherwise, according to the system's settings, if people of one race enter another's territory, they can't attack the other race's players, but the defending players can freely attack. This restriction discouraged both sides from entering the other's territory, so they could only hold their talks in the neutral area. Otherwise, the Salamanders wouldn't have had this opportunity.

Because of this, Leafa was now headed to the Valley of Butterflies.

"Once we cross through this tunnel and enter the central neutral zone, we just need to fly in the direction of the Cait Sith territory," Leafa said as she ran quickly alongside Rozen, biting her lip.

"I hope we make it to the meeting site before the Salamander forces arrive."

If they couldn't, then Leafa would have to join the Sylph and Cait Sith in fighting the Salamander army.

Their chances of victory would be extremely slim.

For security and confidentiality, both sides had agreed to limit their presence to a small number of player escorts during the meeting, with a combined total estimated at only fourteen.

By contrast, the Salamander side, if deploying a large force, would certainly exceed fifty members, even if it was just an elite force without low-level players.

Facing such a force, even with Leafa's help, victory seemed impossible.

Unless Rozen intervened.

Recalling Rozen's fearless charges against hordes of monsters and how he easily defeated the twenty-man Salamander team, Leafa thought he might be able to turn the tide.

Besides, Leafa knew very well what kind of person her brother was.

In SAO, her brother was one of the strongest players, holding an unmatched status as the leader of the clearing group, having led hundreds in the clearing group, establishing order in the SAO world, and protecting lower-level players. He even cleared the death game that everyone feared.

In ALO, his abilities could rival, or even surpass, those of any player or leader.

Without exaggeration, for someone like Rozen, who had brought SAO to completion, saved thousands, and never failed in the death game's two-year span, this game was merely a game.

With Rozen involved, Leafa believed that this major crisis could be resolved smoothly.

Her brother could do anything.

Leafa, or rather Suguha, believed this deeply.

Then...

"In that case, let's speed up; there's no time to waste," Rozen said, stretching out his hand and pulling Leafa close.

"Ahhh!"

Leafa let out a surprised cry, or rather a lament, and when she realized she was in Rozen's arms, her face turned bright red.

"You… you…!"

Leafa stammered, blushing furiously.

"Hold on tight."

Rozen simply gave this single instruction.

In the next moment...

"Boom!"

With a burst of explosive sound, Rozen shot forward like a rocket.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Leafa's screams turned into a long, piercing shriek, echoing through the cave.

The two of them passed through the cave at an astonishing speed.

Before long, a light appeared ahead.

...

ALfheim, Valley of Butterflies.

It was a beautiful valley surrounded by mountains and streams, with forests scattered across the land and meadows all around.

At the edge of a cliff, waterfalls cascaded down, with rainbows arcing across the sky, giving it a dreamy scene.

In this valley, on a round platform, a white conference table had somehow been placed there.

There were seven chairs on each side of the table.

Seated in the central chairs on either side were two of the most beautiful women in all of ALO, the leaders of the Sylph and Cait Sith factions, in what appeared to be an intense discussion.

These were the top decision-makers of the Sylph and Cait Sith, in the midst of a heated debate.

What they didn't realize was that in the sky some distance away, a group of Salamanders, clad in red metal armor, were rapidly approaching.

The tension was palpable, permeating the air.