It was a bright and sunny day on Aincrad's 16th floor. Drifter was laying on the deck of Reaver's Requiem ship - a much bigger one than their first, with three masts and giant square sails.

He was enjoying a short snooze, feeling the warmth of the sun on his skin. Feredir was serving as his pillow, though the wolf seemed more than happy with the role. Silica was also fast asleep on the furry pillow, and neither she nor Drifter knew, but the image was already making the rounds around the world. Yuna and the rest of the Reavers certainly seemed to find it cute.

Their ship was anchored on Maclanta's port, which was why Drifter let his guard down enough to take a nap. As for the reason why they were still here instead of out in the wilderness - or ocean, in this case - was because they had a meeting, and also because Kirito, Asuna, Ran, and Nautilus were in the process of procuring a map. Not a floor map, but the kind that had a big 'X' that said where the treasure was.

From what Argo had found out in the short time she had, the major gimmick of this floor was treasure hunting. Apparently, other than material rewards, that was also how they had to acquire information about the floor boss. The little rat had already promised to sell them the intel with her 'kinda family' discount.

"Waa..."

Drifter felt something poking into his side in his sleep, and opened his eyes while yawning and stretching. Sitting up, he saw Yuna mischievously grinning.

"Why did you wake me up, songbird? I was having a pleasant dream."

Yuna smiled wider at the nickname, and crouched to hug him. Drifter's arm naturally wrapped around her waist, dragging her down next to him, and he pecked her cheek.

"You did look like you were comfortable, Drif, but it's almost time for the meeting with the Black Cats. Kirito messaged saying we should meet them back at the inn."

"Right, there was that. Afternoon naps make me feel like it's already tomorrow."

Blinking away the last of his drowsiness, Drifter got up, pulling Yuna with him. He looked around, cracking his neck. The others were scattered around the ship, most looking like they had followed his example. He didn't blame them, the sun was very sleep-inducing.

"Mmmm... What time is it?"

Feredir had woken up when Drifter did, and the wolf in turn woke up Silica by rubbing his muzzle against her face and licking her cheek. The girl was even more sleepy than Drifter, and her hair was sticking out wildly, making them all laugh.

"Close to two, Silica. Come on, sit up. Your hair is a mess."

Kizmel scratched Feredir behind the ears before procuring a comb and combing Silica's hair. The young girl purred much like the animals she liked so much, closing her eyes to enjoy the pampering.

"At times like this, SAO ain't too bad."

Sinon and Yuuki walked over. The couple - and they were one officially since of a few days ago - had been sitting intimately near the bow of the ship, just behind the figurehead - a harpy of some kind.

Vallerk, Liz, Merida, Agil, Shigio, and Wolv also came from wherever they were napping or waiting. The Merchant Warrior waved his hands.

"I don't think this was what any of us were expecting when we bought the game, but it does make everything else more bearable."

It took ten minutes for Kizmel to tame Silica's hair and for everyone to get ready, mainly because they weren't in a hurry. Otherwise, it would have taken a whole two seconds for them to jump into action, wild hair notwithstanding.

Drifter rolled his eyes when Yuuki, Merida, and Agil jumped off the side of the ship onto the dock instead of walking down the plane like normal people.

Scrolling through his HUD, the spearman saw a message from Kirito. It was the same Yuna had already relayed, so he simply sent an 'okay' as acknowledgment.

"You think the Black Cats will merge with us?"

"That's what today's meeting is about, isn't it? But yes. At least Keita seemed open to the idea, and I don't see him taking that step without first discussing it with the others."

"I think it's a good thing. We need more people to gather mats and complete quests we can't waste time on. The Black Cats wouldn't necessarily be my first choice, but they should be good enough for a clearer group."

"They will basically continue to act independently, no? Of course, some of us will go with them every now and again, but mostly it will still be just them. Like a subdivision of Reaver's Requiem."

"Pretty much. Keita will have to reign in Ducker and Tetsuo, but he already has to do that, so it's not really that big of a difference."

"You guys are getting ahead of yourselves. First of all, we have to see if they really want to be absorbed into Reaver's Requiem. So far, all Keita said was that they were interested."

"Ehh, that's basically the same as saying they agree. Let's be honest, there are very few disadvantages and a lotta benefits for them."

Drifter shrugged at that, and the topic slowly veered away from the upcoming meeting. By the time they reached the inn, there was a heated debate going on about what would be the best mobs to have as pets if you could tame them. Yuuki was a fervent defender of the << Rock Crabs >> - for gods knows what reason - while Yuna was making very good points about the << Fluttering Butterflies >> of the 3rd floor. Silica ended the discussion by telling Feredir to lick anyone who didn't agree he was the best pet.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"You guys seem to be having fun."

"Shivata, Liten! You know how we are, chaos all around. But what about you two? Is it a date or is it a date?"

The DKB vice-leader rolled his eyes and clapped Drifter's back with his free hand. His other hand was holding Liten's, who, despite having stopped hiding her gender and started openly dating Shivata, was still very shy.

But they were all old friends, and quite quickly Merida, Yuna, and some others had pulled her into some girl talk Drifter and Shivata wisely wanted to stay far away from.

"Yes, sir Broken Spear Drifter sir, we are on a date. What about you lot?"

"About to interview some potential guild members."

That got Shivata's interest. Reaver's Requiem was famous for being very selective of its members.

"Frontliners?"

Drifter shook his head.

"Clearers. We basically need someone to split responsibilities."

"Sensible. Reaver's Requiem has always been a little odd, with the entirety of your guild being frontliners. Lind won't ever say it, but he's actually really envious of that. I think he wanted the Brigade to take over the Assault Team, but he has enough common sense to know it won't happen."

Drifter chuckled. Only Shivata would talk so freely about Reaver's Requiem's oddness in front of them, and about his guild leader behind his back. Still, the spearman felt compelled to defend his guild, even if they were just joking around.

"We aren't that strange. Fuurinkazan is also all frontliners, and the Legend Braves too, apart from Nezha."

"Yeah, that just proves my point, Drifter. You know as well as I do that neither the Braves nor Fuurinkazan are what we would call sane, right?"

"You could say the same about the entire Assault Team. I'm fairly sure everyone thinks all frontliners are crazy. Not that they are wrong."

There was a short pause after Drifter finished speaking, before both men burst out laughing. The spearman patted Shivata's arm when they stopped.

"We should probably get going. It isn't good manners to leave our prospective members waiting. Enjoy your date."

"Thanks. Drinks Saturday are still up, right?"

"Yup. I'll bring all the usual crazies. See ya. Bye, Liten."

"See you, Drifter, everyone. Good luck."

Waving goodbye to the couple, the Reavers filled into the inn. Obviously, Kirito, Asuna, Ran, and Nautilus were already there - and Drifter noted with interest that the latter two were standing very close. Maybe Nautilus was finally making his move? Or it was just as possible that Ran would be the one to take the first step.

The Moonlit Black Cats turned out to not have arrived yet, but they blustered through the door even before Drifter could greet his guild leader. They all seemed to be very excited, although the spearman could detect the undercurrent of nervousness in Sachi's expression.

Greetings were made and everyone took a seat or found a spot to stand on. Drifter could tell the Black Cats were clearly intimidated by having the entire Reaver's Requiem guild in the same room as them, but they would have to become used to it if they were to join Reaver's Requiem.

"Relax, Keita. We don't bite. Well, Feredir does, but only if you anger him."

There were nervous chuckles and Asuna punched Drifter in the shoulder for making a bad joke as they sat to either side of Kirito, like the good vice-leaders they were. The spearman was unabashed, and Kirito rolled his eyes, then looked at Keita.

"Drifter is being dumb, but he is right. Depending on how this goes we'll either be in the same guild or not, but we'll still be friends either way, so don't get too nervous."

It was so odd to hear that from Kirito of all people that the Reavers stared at their leader for a moment. Drifter grinned. They had all grown, Kirito more than most. The shy, introverted boy was now outspoken and carried an air of confidence. Of course, there were still times when he needed some support, but that was what Drifter was here for.

"Instead of beating around the bush, let's be upfront since everyone knows why we are here. Keita, we are interested in having the Black Cats join Reaver's Requiem, first as a clearer group, which is kinda what you already do on your own. If any of you are interested in advancing to frontliners, we can see about it later, as accepting new members is a decision that must be taken by the Assault Team as a whole."

Keita nodded, and Kirito launched into an explanation, with Asuna's assistance, of what would his and his friends' roles be if they entered Reaver's Requiem. And also what would be the benefits, apart from simply belonging to the guild with the largest number of titled players in SAO.

Meanwhile, Drifter was watching the Black Cats. As a result of a discussion that happened a long time ago, Drifter held the right to veto anyone he didn't think would be a good fit for their guild - as long as he gave his reasons, of course. But he didn't think that would be necessary here. Argo had already done a thorough background search on the Moonlit Black Cats - and that had been a costly but necessary job - and nothing bad had turned up.

Not that he had expected it to happen. Anyone who spent more than 5 minutes with the Black Cats knew exactly what kind of people they were. Good friends in the real world, who only got closer in SAO. Drifter truly hoped they would become part of his growing family.

Family. What a strange thing to have found in a game of death. But it was more true than anything, and the anchor that kept Drifter centered with everything that happened. Kirito, Asuna, Nautilus, Sinon, Kizmel, Argo, Silica, Vallerk, Ran, Yuuki, Merida, Liz, Agil, Wolv, Shigio. Drifter wasn't sure what they were to him. Brothers and sisters and cousins and whatnot. Or something not nearly as specified. They were family, and that's what mattered.

And there was Yuna, of course, who was family too but in a different way.

"If we merge with Reaver's Requiem, would we be able to enlist Lisbeth's services, Drifter? I... I believe me and my friends have what it takes to be clearers. Good clearers. One of the things holding us back is the difficulty of acquiring high-level equipment."

Drifter's mind snapped back to the conversation. That was the first thing Keita had said that he didn't like hearing. He frowned at the younger man, and spoke when he saw Kirito's troubled expression.

"Liz has always been responsible for our equipment, and I'm sure she will be more than happy to forge for you too, Keita. After all, you will be Reavers just like us. Isn't that right, Liz?"

"Yup!"

He glanced at the blacksmith, and she bobbed her head. Then the spearman turned back to Keita, who had an uneasy smile because he could feel the 'but'.

"Of course, Liz can't forge air, so you'll have to source the materials. Liz's << Blacksmithing >> proficiency is the highest in Aincrad, but it doesn't mean she can just churn out top-tier weapons and armor. It always takes a lot of mats for her to forge a true masterpiece, as you would expect."

He stared at Keita, and the man took the mild rebuke for what it was, lowering his eyes. Liz didn't ask guild members to pay for what she forged, but they had to at least provide the materials.

Asuna and Kirito took back over, and by then Drifter knew it was already a done deal. Despite the slight hiccup, not even 10 minutes later Keita was shaking Kirito's hand and then, after a few steadying breaths, dissolving the Moonlit Black Cats.

Five quick notifications popped up on Drifter's menu saying that Keita, Ducker, Sachi, Sasamaru, and Tetsuo had joined Reaver's Requiem.

Drifter welcomed them all with a big smile.