chapter 42

After taking down the boss of the 99th floor, all the players sat down on the stone floor of the dark hallway to take some rest and cool down a bit.

"How many did we lose this time?" from the distance away, Diavel asked the leaders of the others guilds that joined them in the boss raid about their casualty for today.

"My guild lost half it member today...I don't think we can keep it up much further…while the rest of the players that joined us are too low in that of levels to do much of anything." he told Diavel in frustration.

"Don't worry, we only have one more floor to go- after he beat that one, it will all be over, we can return to the real world right after." another man came over and comfort the guild leader who had half it high level players killed during the initial phase of the boss and during the fight itself.

"You are right...we cannot let their death be in vain...we must push forward and liberate everyone from this death game." Diavel pat the man on the shoulder, comforting him.

"yes...I-... no, we cannot let their death be in vain! I say we push upward to floor one hundred today while we still had our momentum." another man joined into the conversation.

"But...do we even have enough health potions and crystal to make that push as we currently are?" a player from the back asked nervously.

"Yeah we do, most of the player that dies in this fight only took a single hit, they didn't even have the time to use anything that they bought, all of it is still in our party sharing inventory." another man hopped in and informed him.

"The only one that used the most so far is the leader of the guild Moonlit Black Cats and the tanking party from the Knight of the Blood Oath." he then added and everyone soon focuses their attention at Leonard who was sitting and chatting happily with Sachi on the side, without a single care in the world.

"I envy those two…" an old "uncle" let out a long sigh as he saw the two having fun flirting with one another, even after they're gone through hell fighting The Fatal Scythe.

"I could say that too old man…" Klein then added in with a tone filled with depression.

"Hey! Who're you calling old! I'm only twenty this year!" the old "uncle" shouted at Klein in a fit of rage.

"What! How! You're only five years older than me?! With that face?!" Klein yelled out in horror as he looked at the old "uncle" again.

"You're asking to die!!!" the man ready his massive ax to chop Klein up into tiny pieces but his teammate ran over and held him back.

"Let me go!! I'm going to kill him!" he shouts desperately.

Klein just looked at the enrage old "uncle" while feeling quite a relief deep down, knowing that at least he still had a chance in life after seeing the twenty-eight years old uncle.

"...I still had a chance after all…" Klein said repeatedly in his inner monologue

Of course, Leonard and Sachi were totally oblivious to the conversation that included them from the side, they were more interested in one another than that of the other "unimportant" people.

Actually, that was somewhat inaccurate, Leonard does know what they were talking about, be he chose to not pay them any attention.

******

After the players spend roughly an hour or so to rest and healed up, they had once again gathered at the door that would lead them to the next and final floor of the death game that was known as Sword Art Online.

While standing at the door, most of the players dropped down and broke out in tears as they remembered how much sweat and blood they all had poured to get to where they are now.

"This door will likely lead us to the final boss of the whole of Aincrad...so be careful everyone…"

Diavel told them in a loud and clear voice that vibrates throughout the dark hallway.

With that said he quickly turned around and faced the door- before slowly pushed it open to reveal what had in store for them on the other side.

When Diavel pushed the door open, the shining light from the other side of the door nearly blinded all of the players who were previously trapped inside a dark hallway fighting death itself.

"Ahh the light….it ...burn!!!" Leonard exaggeratedly used his hand to cover both of his eyes in an attempt to block the shining light and acted dramatically like a vampire having the greatest sunbathe ever during the summer month.

"...really?..." that word was the only thing that was inside all the players head at that moment.

Finally, the light died down, revealing the other side of the stone door.

The player was very surprised by the sight that was before them, a long hallway decorated with what seems to be only fit for a royal palace in a fairy tale- where only royalty and nobility are allowed to walk through.

Now the path laid before them, the players.

Too many of the players that had survived up till this point, walking through the majestic and brightly lit hallway feel like walking through a hall of fame that reserved only for champions and heroes.

"...a hall of fame at the end huh...is this you so call gift….Akihiko...Kayaba?..." Leonard thoughted as he and the group of brave heroes and champions walked proudly through the hallway.

"What do you think is going to happen now?" Diavel walked closer to Leonard and asked him in a low tone of voice.

"I do not know...perhaps we will face the god that reigned over this world at the end of this majesty hallway...or perhaps at the end, it will just record down our name and promptly deleted itself and freed all the players," Leonard replied while having a serious look on his face.

"..." Sachi just walked closer to Leonard without saying anything.

"I honestly prefer if it were to be the latter...because I hate fighting another giant ass monster with more than nine bar of health…" Diavel told him.

"Who doesn't want that? Just prepare for the worst that could happen." Leonard replied.

"Fight the floor one hundred bosses...will it be you Kayaba...or that thing…?" Leonard inner monologue has gone off once more and questioned excitedly, as this was the final "thing" or person that he has to kill in order to earn that 10,000 achievement point.

The hallway took all the players more than fifteen minutes to completely passed through.

In the end, they all arrived at a large circular opening, resembled that of a colosseum.

"...so this is it huh?...a gladiatorial style type of combat...you seem to have quite a bit of fun making us suffering through these kinds of torment...Heathcliff….or should I say...Akihiko...Kayaba!" Leonard shouted loudly at the V.I.P box where a dark shadow of a man stood.

"Welcome players...I am glad that you had successfully passed the boss monster that I placed on the last floor, did you all had fun fighting against it?" Akihiko Kayaba walked out into the light and revealed himself while starting his speech.

"SHUT IT! WHERE IS MY SO CALL REWARD?!" Leonard shouted as he held up his middle finger at the geek in a red bathrobe.