Chapter 13.2

This is part three to Chapter 13. Please enjoy and leave Power Stones.

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Floor 9. The final floor they explored during the beta test. He was finally back.

They were close to finding the boss room, but they didn't have enough time. Not like it mattered now that things had been swapped around after the game's official release.

"The weather is still the same," Kirito let out a cloudy breath, tugging the collar of his black trench coat. Cold, just as he remembered. It was even more chilly than the event leading up to Christmas.

The floor was a vast tundra that could get incredibly misty depending on where you explored. In those deep mist areas were dangerous monsters the player had to be wary of, or risk dying an early freezing death. Some locations around the floor were perpetually misty, while other smaller clouds could spawn randomly around the field. They were easy enough for anyone to avoid. The permanent spots were discernable to the eye and if the wind picked up and grew colder, you knew it was time to flee.

Traversing the floor was the most annoying part about it. The snow could get thick and players would sometimes have to substitute their main gear for something warmer, sacrificing stats for comfort. Anyone unlucky enough to have thin gear would have to change, or bare through freezing temperatures. If they did decide to brunt the weather, they'd need to use a potion to avoid the «Freezing» status effect.

With their lives on the line, the boy expected he'd be seeing a lot more people suffering from the cold.

Luckily, he didn't have that issue. Dusting the light layer of powder off his shoulders, Kirito proceeded to slide down the slippery hill with his boots. Leaving a trail through the snow, he reached the bottom in only a few seconds. A small grin made its way to his face.

Always fun doing that.

He never had a big problem getting around this floor. Like any of the other floors, it would always be more enjoyable if you made the most of it. Each one was unique, so it was better to appreciate the differences, rather than get annoyed about them. If you didn't think the cold or snow was an issue, then all of a sudden the floor was a breeze.

"I've experienced much colder already. This ain't that bad in comparison," He said satirically. Falling into that lake was a lowlight he wouldn't be forgetting. Weathering through that intense blizzard had also been hell, but at least he'd gotten something for it. At the very least, he could consider it training for the temperature on this floor.

Though, he never had taken any issue with cold weather, so that was a self-comforting lie.

A little ways away, a loud yell stole Kirito's attention as some ass-clown tumbled down the same hill. Other voices caught his focus and he turned to see the man's friends laughing down and making jokes at him from the top.

Ignoring the fools messing with each other, Kirito frowned and continued trekking through the snow. Unfortunately, he was far from the first person to arrive here. By choice, he didn't attend the raid party that defeated the 8th floor boss. As much as he wanted to join, he didn't want to attract attention as a solo player.

Having heard from them beforehand, he knew Asuna or Sinon weren't apart of it either. The ones leading the charge were the newly formed army: The «Aincrad Liberation Force». Scouting them out in the last town, they didn't appear all too impressive. Had they fought on their own, then it was likely they would have suffered several casualties. However, only half of the assault team contained their forces, while the rest were filled with parties from other smaller guilds ran by their own leaders.

It worked out for everyone this time, but unless they shaped up quick with better management, they were all in for a bad raid.

Because of the frontlines being so tightly knit, it wasn't worth joining in. Forming a party with his two friends would only meet half capacity and they would be denied unless others joined them. Before the army, joining the raid without maxing out the amount of players in your party had been acceptable. Now that Hero had been mysteriously killed, they were being obnoxiously strict.

Arguing about it wasn't worth the effort and he didn't want the attention. Unless he got there and tried soloing the Floor Boss first, he just couldn't go as of now. Painful as it was to acknowledge, this was probably a good thing. Fun as it were to challenge bosses alone, all the new surprise mechanics being unleashed during the final phase made it unsafe. One crucial mistake is all it would cost to meet an early demise.

With his skill and level, he wasn't nervous about the challenge. Knowing how big his head could get, it was haplessly better this way.

Far out in front of him were more players making their way into the floor. He was just one of many. After the system called out the 8th floor had been cleared, it had given everyone else not participating in the raid indirect permission to proceed.

Thinking he was more clever than others, Kirito had waited nearby outside of the boss room so that he could be one of the first to enter the 9th floor. It had been more than a little awkward standing there alone while others had gathered with their friends. At least he was still among the first to enter afterwards.

As discreetly as possible, Kirito edged himself away from the other groups of players towards a separate direction. The area that everyone was heading towards is the «Blue Flame Village» that could be seen far in the distance. Unlike most other floors they explored, the access point to enter floor 9 was set at the north. To get deeper into the floor, players had to travel south.

The «Blue Flame Village» is the main settlement on the floor and where most people would spent their time. There was some fun lore about it that players could learn from the npcs, such as the fact that floor 9 was supposedly summer-themed before the «Ice Knave» froze it over. Fun stuff to learn and playing through it was rewarding like all big quests were.

He just had more lucrative opportunities here. That's why he was heading towards «Corma» to the east, which was left from his perspective.

After pushing through six more floors, Kirito could finally cash in the ticket that would allow him to claim to «Queen's Knightsword». His «Anneal Blade +10» had long overstayed its welcome and it was time for an upgrade. The sword would always have a special place in his heart as his first true companion, but it was time to say goodbye. Like all of his treasured items, he would continue holding onto it as a keepsake.

In the back of his inventory.

Sketching out his own little version of the floor map into his map screen, Kirito followed along the path he'd memorized for this very journey. Before SAO officially released, he beat as much information about the game into his head as possible. Not everything held up because of some changes, but the effort had been worth it. Floor 9 seemed to have the same design as the beta. The only big difference among the beta test floors had been Floor 4, which had its entire theme overhauled. Only minor map changes had happened with the others.

His journey to the freezing elven kingdom was a tranquil one. There weren't any mist clouds forming around to ambush him with enemies and not much spawned on his path. He did desire to farm some more special materials here, but nothing that spawned out in the open snow would be of any use to him.

First things first was getting a new weapon. That was the piece of equipment he owned that desperately needed upgraded before anything else. His «Coat of Midnight» was second on that list; defense always coming after offense for his build. The Defiance set he wore was still pulling its own weight and there wasn't any rush searching for a new accessory, as most only held minor boosts or effects. His «Ring of Charos» was fine enough, so it wasn't worth stressing over.

With only mild encounters slowing him down, it still took him close to an hour and a half simply because of the inconvenient snow. Not that this bothered him any. If the journey took a player like him with a clear path that long, it would take others much longer. Most people wouldn't come to «Corma» early, anyway.

"Well, I can think of one person," He chuckled, knowing his plan likely fell in line with Sinon's. She was the only other person who held a ticket for a special sword, after all. Now that she had the «One-Handed Sword» skill, she might even decide to keep it for herself. "Hope that trident doesn't get forgotten about..."

She was quite the fortunate girl. Most players struggled to get a single rare weapon, but now she would have two for both of her attack styles. Two top of the line weapons and it was all thanks to him. His face fell into a grin as he drowned in his own hubris.

Stepping onto the sleek white road with only a sheet of snow covering it, Kirito looked up at the large walls of ice in front of him. It had been awhile, but it was the same as he remembered. The kingdom of «Corma» was surrounded by ice bricks carved into one another in the same traditional pattern of castle walls. The difference here was that the thick ice was a light blue and glistened from the light reflecting off it.

Far back behind the walls, the boy could make out the large dark castle of the «Dark Elf Queen». If he hadn't allied himself with them back on floor 3, then that castle would actually be a dungeon zone hostile to any players that stepped inside. At least, that was what the npcs in the beta had said to them. Rather than going through that route, it was better to ally and turn the area into a safe zone. That way, he could now claim his awesome sword.

Entering the town, Kirito ignored the elven guards that gave him a stereotypical line acknowledging his presence. It had been awhile since he had been inside a city without any players around. Despite «Corma» being a kingdom, there were hardly any npcs outside due to the cold. The whole settlement felt very empty and quaint.

Just the way he liked it.

Upping his pace to a brisk jog, it didn't take him long to reach the nearly black castle deeply contrasted by the white snow. Within minutes, he was inside and handing over his ticket to claim his sword. After some dialogue and a brief meeting with the queen, an elven knight captain wearing a fur cape kneeled down and offered him the blade.

Reward:

«Queen's Knightsword»