The Dark Elf recovered quickly from her brief confusion.
Her eyes sharpened as she studied Shindo’s group one by one, lingering a little longer on Mito, whose appearance bore a striking resemblance to her own.
Shindo and the others were doing much the same.
Beneath the yellow cursor floating over the Dark Elf appeared her name and title: Kizmel — Dark Elven Royal Guard Under their collective gaze, Kizmel walked over to the place where the Forest Elf had vanished and picked up the item he had left behind.
Once she had secured the fallen elf’s possession, she returned to Shindo’s group and stopped a few steps away.
“Thanks to your assistance, the Forest Elves failed to seize the first key to the Sanctum.
If you are willing, please accompany me back to our camp within the Forest of Wavering Mists.
I believe our commander will reward your assistance generously.” “Then we’d be happy to accept.” Shindo and the others agreed without hesitation and followed Kizmel deeper into the forest.
At the same time, Kizmel’s information appeared in the upper-left corner of their vision, confirming that she had temporarily joined their party.
Her status as an allied NPC would continue into the next floor, while the Elf War Campaign itself was a massive questline stretching from the Third Floor all the way through the Ninth.
Perhaps because this was the first time Asuna and the others who had never participated in the beta had encountered an NPC this vivid—or perhaps it would be more accurate to call Kizmel an event-specific humanoid MOB—they could not stop stealing curious glances at her.
Even Shindo and Kirito, however, remembered the NPC interactions from the Closed Beta as being nowhere near this lifelike.
Fortunately, Kizmel was aloof enough that she seemed completely unconcerned by their attention.
She walked at the head of the group with precise, almost military discipline, and whenever a monster blocked their path, she eliminated it with the cleanest and most efficient attack available, never wasting a single movement.
For the moment, Kizmel could technically be considered their teammate, but that did not mean they could exploit her overwhelming strength to farm every troublesome rare field boss they encountered.
Trying to force her into unrelated battles would likely have the opposite effect; despite her words of gratitude, Kizmel’s initial Affinity toward humans had barely risen at all, and abusing her assistance was an excellent way to make it fall instead.
As they continued deeper into the Forest of Wavering Mists, the dense fog obscuring their vision gradually began to thin.
After another ten or fifteen minutes of following Kizmel through what seemed like an impossible maze of trees, a black banner finally emerged through the haze.
Flames burned atop several wooden frames beyond it, illuminating parts of an elven encampment hidden among the forest.
“Unless absolutely necessary, I ask that none of you leave the camp on your own,” Kizmel warned.
“A Forest Concealment Charm protects this place.
Without an elf to guide you, finding your way back would be extremely difficult.” “A Forest Concealment Charm…?” Asuna looked genuinely puzzled.
“You mean magic?
But I thought magic doesn’t exist in this world.” The question made Mito and the others tense slightly.
Asuna had asked it without the slightest fear, but they were understandably wary of accidentally offending the extraordinarily powerful Dark Elf standing in front of them.
Kizmel merely sighed.
“I would hardly call this magic.
It is no more than a lingering echo of the great magic that existed in ancient times—a faint remnant left behind in Lyusula.” A trace of melancholy entered her voice.
“Ever since our lands were separated from the earth, the people of Lyusula have lost all true magic.” At its core, Aincrad had supposedly come into existence in the distant past when a prolonged war caused vast portions of the original world to be torn from the earth, lifted into the sky, and stacked one above another until they formed the floating castle.
If its people had lost their magical heritage after being severed from the original land, perhaps that explained why SAO possessed virtually no conventional magic despite its otherwise unmistakably fantasy setting.
“Sorry for asking, Kizmel-san.” Now that they understood, Shindo and the others nodded apologetically.
When they reached the entrance to the camp, Kizmel stepped forward and spoke briefly with the heavily armored Dark Elf guards stationed there.
Only after hearing her explanation did the guards finally move their suspicious gazes away from the humans.
“Pay them no mind.
Come with me.” Kizmel turned and motioned for the group to follow.
Once inside, Shindo and Kirito immediately noticed how different the camp was from the version they remembered from the beta.
The most obvious change was its scale: the entire base was larger, more elaborate, and considerably more complicated than before.
The two exchanged a brief glance but said nothing.
Kizmel led them all the way to the deepest section of the camp, where the largest tent stood apart from the others.
It almost felt as though the structure had been generated specifically because a player party had reached this stage of the Campaign.
After announcing their arrival and receiving permission to enter, Kizmel brought everyone inside.
The commander of the Dark Elf camp first praised Kizmel after hearing that the first Sanctum Key had been secured, then turned his attention toward the unfamiliar humans standing behind her.
“Welcome, friendly humans.
For the selfless assistance you have offered the Dark Elven people, I extend to you our sincere friendship on behalf of my kin—and an appropriately generous reward.” The commander had not exaggerated.
Everyone received a substantial amount of col, a considerable increase in EXP, and, naturally, several pieces of high-quality equipment and useful items.
After the two sides exchanged a few more polite words, the commander dismissed them from his tent and left the remaining arrangements to Kizmel.
“There are very few unused tents remaining in the camp, and unfortunately only this one is available.
It will be crowded with so many of you inside, so I hope you can forgive the inconvenience.” “That’s perfectly fine, Kizmel-san.
We brought camping equipment with us anyway, so spending one night like this won’t be a problem.” Shindo’s group had expected something along these lines and showed no dissatisfaction whatsoever.
Kizmel studied the humans who not only accepted the inconvenience without complaint but were practically reassuring her that the elves had done nothing wrong.
For the first time, a genuinely warm smile appeared on her face.
“Thank you.” Then, with the same careful consideration she seemed to bring to everything, she added, “There is a dining area and a bathing area behind the tents.
Please make free use of both if you wish.” Kizmel had already lifted the tent flap when she suddenly stopped and turned around.
“I have just realized…
I still do not know your names.” “Ah…
I’m Shindo.” “Shin…
do…” Kizmel repeated it carefully.
“Human names can be difficult to pronounce.
Shindo—is that correct?” “Perfect, Kizmel-san.” Kizmel smiled before looking toward the others, and Asuna, Kirito, Mito, and everyone else introduced themselves in turn.
“Then I will retire for a while.
If you need anything, you may come find me.” With that, Kizmel lifted the flap and disappeared inside the tent.
The thick, dark fabric blocked any view of the interior, but it did very little to block sound.
Almost immediately, the faint clinks and rustles of Kizmel removing her light armor became audible from the other side, and imagination alone was unfortunately more than sufficient to make the situation dangerous.
“Shindo-kun.
Kirito-kun.” Aiko’s distinctly unfriendly voice arrived from behind them.
“How long exactly are you two planning to stand there listening?” “Ah…
right.
We should probably check out the dining area.” “Definitely.” Shindo and Kirito turned around in perfect synchronization, wearing expressions of exaggerated innocence as they pointed toward the dining tents.
“Boys…
honestly.” Asuna and the other girls walked toward the dining area with smiles they could not quite hide, occasionally glancing back at the two extremely suspicious swordsmen.
“Shindo-kun, Kirito-kun, you’re making it painfully obvious.” “Nautilus, don’t act innocent.
You were listening too.
The only reason nobody noticed is because Yuna-san gave you cover.” Shindo promptly hooked one arm around Nautilus and the other around Kirito and dragged both of them toward the dining area.
…
By the time their rather hurried meal was nearly finished, the girls had apparently reached some kind of private agreement.
After a brief round of whispering, every one of them turned toward the three boys.
“Shindo-kun, could we ask the three of you for a favor?” Mito had evidently been selected as their representative.
As if to confirm they were all hearing the same request, Shindo, Kirito, and Nautilus exchanged glances before nodding.
“We’d like to use the bathing area behind the camp, but it’s fairly close to the forest.
There might be other players passing nearby, so if possible, we’d like you boys to stand watch.” “You probably don’t need to worry much about other players,” Shindo explained.
“The Elf War Campaign works a little like the First Floor hidden quest «Secret Medicine of the Forest».
Each party effectively progresses through its own independent quest instance, so even if another group starts the same Campaign, they won’t intersect directly with our current version of it.” Mito looked at him evenly.
“The Dark Elf camp doesn’t contain only our party, Shindo-kun.” Shindo considered that for a second.
“…Fair point.” He nodded solemnly.
“So this is our opportunity to demonstrate proper gentlemanly behavior.” “I’m very glad Shindo-kun sees it that way.” Mito turned toward the other two.
“Kirito-kun?
Nautilus-kun?” “Sure.
I don’t mind.” “Same here.” Neither objected.
“I had my doubts before, but as of this moment, gentlemen, you officially qualify.” Mito gave them a small wave and returned to the other girls.
A short while later, the entire female half of the group disappeared through the entrance to the bathing area.
Once they were gone, Shindo reached toward the table beside him only to discover that the Jar of Cream had reached zero Durability and vanished.
Apparently they had finished it.
The wooden bowl that had contained vegetable soup was empty as well, leaving him with nothing but a miserable piece of dry black bread.
He stuffed it into his mouth and swallowed it almost whole.
Then he remembered something and turned toward Nautilus.
“Nautilus, how’s the Anneal Blade treating you?” “It’s still fine for now, but I don’t think it’ll keep up much longer once we reach higher floors.” Nautilus set down his cup.
“It’s hard to explain.
I think the weapon’s stats are approaching their limit.
During fights, I’m starting to feel like it can’t quite do what I need anymore.” Kirito brushed a few crumbs from his hands and joined the conversation.
“Did you first notice it while fighting that Forest Elf?” “That might’ve been part of it.
He was obviously far beyond anything we’re supposed to defeat at our current level, but either way…
I want to become stronger.” Having Shindo and Kirito as teammates placed an obvious amount of pressure on Nautilus.
They were the only three boys in the current group, and Nautilus had long since developed the desire to compete with the other two rather than simply trail behind them.
Naturally, that made him desperate to increase his own strength.
“Then melt the Anneal Blade +6 back down into an ingot and have it reforged by the high-level blacksmith NPC here in the Dark Elf camp,” Kirito suggested.
“There’s a pretty good chance you’ll end up with something considerably stronger.” He placed a hand on Nautilus’s shoulder.
“Once the girls are done, I’ll go with you.
My Anneal Blade is reaching the point where I should replace it too, and I roughly remember where that blacksmith is located.” Kirito’s gaze then shifted toward the long hilt protruding above Shindo’s shoulder.
“I’m kind of jealous of you, Shindo.
Getting a rare weapon that suits you this early is ridiculously lucky.” “Yeah.
Splitter should be more than enough for the MOBs and Floor Bosses we’ll encounter over the next several floors.
I don’t expect to run into anything I can’t penetrate or anything that suddenly makes its damage obsolete.” Shindo removed the nodachi from his back and weighed it casually in one hand, wearing a thoroughly confident smile.
Nautilus’s expression tightened.
“So Shindo-kun has already claimed the LA from four Floor Bosses, and you’re still not satisfied?” His frustration was becoming increasingly obvious.
“Nautilus.” Shindo rose from his seat and returned Splitter to his back.
“There’s a saying I happen to agree with: all the disadvantages in this world stem from a person’s lack of ability.” He gave Nautilus a calm look.
“So from that perspective, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with preparing as much as possible—even if that preparation turns out to be excessive.” The three boys then headed toward the perimeter surrounding the open-air baths.
Near the edge of the forest, each chose a tree stump and settled down, keeping watch while taking the opportunity to rest.
After a while, Yuna’s singing began drifting through the thin curtains behind them.
Her clear voice flowed through the silent Forest of Wavering Mists like the murmuring of ancient trees, soft and pure enough to make the entire woodland seem to listen.
Reflections from the bathwater shimmered across the overlapping curtains.
Whenever the girls laughed, splashed one another, or disturbed the water, vague silhouettes moved against the fabric like shadow puppets dancing behind lamplight.
At some point, the three boys had somehow migrated closer together.
They remained silent for quite a while.
“Shindo-kun,” Nautilus eventually said, his tone extremely solemn, “I’m beginning to think agreeing to this was a strategically poor decision.” “I agree,” Kirito replied immediately.
“Yeah.” Shindo nodded.
“I’ve reached the same conclusion.” All three deeply regretted their supposed demonstration of gentlemanly virtue.
Then, in the very next moment, Yuna began singing “Smile for You.” The innocent melody drifted through the night, sweeping away every inappropriate thought with almost supernatural efficiency.
By the time the chorus reached them, the three boys felt as though their souls had been thoroughly purified.
…
Night settled more deeply over the camp.
A pleasant fragrance drifted through the cool air, carrying a mixture of several different floral scents.
Shindo was still watching the dark forest when a pair of warm hands suddenly covered his eyes from behind.
“Shindo-kun, guess who?” “Hmm…” Shindo considered it with exaggerated seriousness.
“You smell like morning sunlight filtering through a forest and turning into little patches of pudding-like jelly on the ground.” He nodded.
“Mito-chan.” “Shindo-kun, you’re doing that on purpose, aren’t you?!” The girl behind him sounded distinctly annoyed.
“Yes.” Shindo answered without hesitation.
“Because Asuna-san is unexpectedly cute when she’s angry.” The only response was the rustle of grass being pressed down behind him.
Apparently the girl had genuinely walked away this time.
Shindo had no idea where she had gone.
He did not turn around to look, nor did he deliberately search for her.
He had never been the type to actively chase after someone.
Still, somehow, he suspected he would always find her eventually.
Or perhaps…
he was the one who would be found.