The 17th and 18th floors of Aincrad were quite dull compared to the emotional roller-coaster that was the 16th floor. They were hill and forest-themed floors respectively, the main twist on both being the tunnels players could explore, and which dwarves used to get around the two floors without having to go through the tower.

Incidentally, the 18th floor also marked the end of the dwarf questline campaign. The boss had been a humongous rock slime, which was much more terrifying than it sounded.

Still, the frontliners had managed to get through both floors without losses. In fact, the player deaths were at an all-time low. Which only left the Assault Team even more nervous about the coming 20th floor. It felt like the prelude to a huge battle. The calm before the storm, as they said.

But before they could confirm whether their premonitions were right or wrong, the players had to beat the 19th floor. And Drifter had to say, what he saw when they first stepped into the floor didn't bode well.

"That's a bad omen if I ever saw one."

"Shut up, whoever said that."

It was a sign of how on edge the frontliners were that Kibaou barked at a DKB player and Lind didn't immediately fight him. The Dragon Knight was too preoccupied scanning the dead trees and black soil.

"Kirito, I don't like the look of that mist."

"Me neither. Kibaou, Lind, Klein, Orlando, I vote for moving as one group to the settlement."

Aincrad Liberation Squad, Dragon Knight Brigade, Fuurinkazan, Legend Braves, and Reaver's Requiem were the five most important guilds in the Assault Team - even if not all by size, considering Fuurinkazan and the Legend Braves only had a party's worth of members each, but by the strength of their members. Whatever they decided, usually the other frontliners followed.

This was where Kibaou and Lind would usually argue and say they didn't need anyone's help, and set off on their own, leaving the other three of the big five to go together. But this floor was very unsettling.

"Aight. We'll take point. Lind?"

"The rear is ours. Kirito?"

Kirito nodded to Lind and Kibaou, glad they were on the same page for once. Truth was, after the 10th floor both of the guild leaders had mellowed out a lot. If they still fought, well, that was just their personality.

"Orlando, Klein, you got some fast guys, take one side each, eyes open. Reaver's Requiem will be spread out, help wherever it's needed. Drifter, if you would do the honors."

The spearmaster flipped a jaunty salute to his guild leader, diminishing some of the tension. Then he turned to the rest of the Assault Team, who were watching the higher-ups discuss, and shouted as the chosen spokesperson of the leadership group.

"Everyone, this floor looks nasty, so we are all gonna move together! Keep your eyes peeled, stay on your toes, and all that! There's not much that can threaten us in a group this big, but we are low on supplies, and if this isn't prime assassin-type mobs' territory, then I don't know what is. We don't want anyone getting picked off 'cause they got complacent! Remember the 10th floor. This is SAO. Don't take it lightly."

There were tight nods and curt grunts of agreement to the announcement. Doubtlessly, each frontliner was very willful and at least a little - sometimes a lot - arrogant. This was inevitable. They were Aincrad's elites, and they risked their lives every day. They were allowed a little entitlement. But by the same logic, they knew better than anyone just how dangerous SAO was. Being able and willing to put aside their personal feelings and work together was a requirement for survival.

The dry black soil crunched under the boots of 130 players, a low and unending rumbling sound that only added to the eerie atmosphere. Mist swirled around the trunks and through the branches of dead trees.

Other than the sounds the players made, there was no other noise. No insects chirping, no birds singing, no animals running. Not the sound of wind rustling through leaves or the gurgling of running streams.

"Stop."

One of the ALS players at the front held up their hand, and the Assault Team stopped dead in their tracks. The silence was deafening.

Drifter instinctively used << Searching >> in the direction he was looking. At first he didn't see anything. Then his gaze caught just the barest hints of red denoting a monster.

"It's fast. Floating."

"A wraith?"

"As likely as anything else. Aero Huntress, can you hit it?"

"Don't call me that, Kibaou the Challenger. I have a name. And yes, I can, so get outta the way."

Kibaou scowled, but he deserved it. He knew Sinon didn't like anyone other than the Reavers calling her by the title, and somehow it always sounded like he was mocking her when he said it.

Sinon knocked an arrow on her bow, and paused for a second and a half with it at full-draw. Then she loosened her fingers, and the glowing yellow arrow flew through the trees, avoiding every single branch along the way.

The frontliners followed the glow through the mist with their gaze, and their eyes widened when they saw it curve around a tree to hit the mob.

Whatever it was, it didn't make a sound even after getting struck. Sinon definitely hit it though, because Reaver's Requiem's status suddenly changed to 'in combat'. That, and the monster lunged at Sinon.

It made maybe about 30 meters from her before getting cut down by no less than eight ALS players, two others of Sinon's arrows, and a << Serpentcoil Impale >> by Drifter.

The spearmaster recalled his weapon and glanced at Sinon.

"Someone leveled up their mastery."

"<< Homing Arrow >>. I got it on the 17th floor but didn't really have a reason to use it. I was hoping to awe you all. Did it work?"

The archer gave one of her rare smiles, and Yuuki took the chance to steal a kiss.

"It did, love. But conceit doesn't look good on you."

The dumbfounded look on Sinon's face was worth any punishment Yuuki would get later, Drifter thought. It left the Reavers in stitches and any other player who heard the exchange holding their stomach in laughter.

"If y'all are done, we got the name of the mob."

"We did too, Kibaou. That's a creepy one."

"Wanna share it with the rest of the class? You killed it so quickly we couldn't even get a good look at it."

Klein shouted, and Kibaou waved his hand before sharing the information of the mob with the rest of the Assault Team.

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"<< Hero's Ghost >>. It has an apostrophe in the name. That's usually reserved for bosses. But it didn't seem that strong."

"I don't think any mob is meant to have a dozen players attacking it at the same time."

"You don't this one is like the << Myconid Queen of Embers >>, do you? Did it drop stuff?"

"Let the next one go through so we can get a better look, ALS!"

Deifter winced at the jumbled voices. One of the disadvantages of clearing maps in such a large group was communication. It was very hard to understand anything when a hundred-plus people all talked at once.

"Alright, quiet everyone! Shut it! No, it's not like the Myconid Queen, it gave EXP and dropped some mats and junk. Whoever said to let one in, you got it. Kibaou, we'll surround the next one and analyze patterns."

"Don't see why we have to waste more time here. We should just get to the city."

The spiky-haired ALS guild leader grumbled, and Drifter rolled his eyes.

"Not you too, Kibaou. We are all gonna have to gather intel later, or buy it from Argo. Might as well get it out of the way while we are all together. That was clearly an ambush-type mob. This is safer."

Not even Kibaou could argue with that. While dispatching the << Hero's Ghost >> might have seemed easy, that was only because of how many people were attacking it at the same time, and the fact that both Sinon and Drifter were well matched against it since they had ranged attacks. If one managed to sneak up on an unsuspecting party, the result would be very different.

This portion of the floor seemed to be sparsely populated by mobs, as it took more than 5 minutes before they ran into another one. And the << Hero's Ghost >> gave the frontliners quite a scare, as that one was only discovered when they got much closer. It thoroughly drove home the point that Drifter had been trying to make.

It still was killed before being able to attack even once - no way around it with over a hundred players gathered - but it would have caused trouble to a single party.

At least this time around they were able to properly see the mob. And it was no wonder the << Hero's Ghosts >> were so hard to spot. They were almost transparent, and very similar in appearance to << Vengeful Wraiths >> and similar mobs from floors below. If Drifter had to point out a difference, it would be that the << Hero's Ghosts >> carried a variety of weapons - all ghostly-like - and were quite adept with all of them.

Now over nine months into SAO, Drifter had experience fighting enemies with all kinds of weapons. Swords, shields, spears, maces, axes, hammers, daggers, gauntlets, and many more, so the collection of armaments the << Hero's Ghost >> used didn't daunt him. The main problem was still their ambushing habit.

It was a weary group that reached the 19th floor's main city, Ralberg. They had already fought one floor boss today, and then had to deal with constant assassination attempts on their way to the settlement. All the Assault Team members wanted was to sit down inside the safe zone and rest. Even take a nap, or maybe a trip down to the hotsprings. That would be nice.

Instead, they split up, and Reaver's Requiem made their way towards the main plaza every city had. They were to activate the teleporter, and Drifter and Yuna had volunteered to stay there while the others replenished their supplies and explored Ralberg, to warn clearers and other players of the dangers of the floor.

"I'm already tired just from thinking how much work this floor is gonna be."

"We'll just have to plow through like we always do, Yun'. I just hope the field-boss isn't like the << Hero's Ghosts >>."

The songstress shuddered and clenched Drifter's hand as they made their way towards the teleporter.

"Uck... Now that's a terrifying thought. Here we are. Teleporter... Activate."

Putting her hand on the structure - this one looked like two semi-circles overlapped at odd angles - Yuna activated Ralberg's teleporter.

Almost immediately, people started to come through. The couple recognized many of them as clearers. Argo was also one of the first to step out of the device.

"Heya, Dri-bou, Yu-chan! How are ya?"

"We're doing fine, Argo. Hold on a sec please. Everyone, a minute of your attention!"

Yuna hugged the info-broker, and Drifter shouted before players started to drift away. Heads turned in his direction, and he heard whispers of 'Broken Spear Drifter'. Rolling his eyes, he started speaking.

"Before you set out to explore the floor, the Assault Team wanted to give everyone a warning. The floor is full of assassin-type mobs, and the terrain is tailor-made for them. The entire Assault Team came here together, and they still managed to sneak up on us, even with Aero Huntress Sinon on the lookout. Be careful."

That was all he had to say, and several players nodded their thanks before walking away. Drifter was exaggerating a little, but it was better to have the clearers be too careful than not cautious enough.

The spearmaster repeated the warning a few more times, with almost the same exact words, until the flow of players coming from the teleporter slowed down to a trickle.

Stepping back, he saw Yuna and Argo sitting on a bench. The Songstress was diddling on her harp while the Rat was furiously typing away. Drifter could only assume she was already gathering information from her contacts in the Assault Team, and working on her guide.

"Thanks for the help, songbird. I really don't know what I would have done if you weren't there by my side."

Yuna merely stuck out her tongue in response to Drifter's sarcastic remark.

"You had it well in hands, Drif, and Argo is cuter. You know Sinon's gonna get you for using her title, right?"

"Only if one of you tells her. And she does have the highest mastery of << Searching >> in SAO, so it's a little bit her fault I have to use her as an example."

"I'll believe it when you tell her that to her face."

Yuna raised an eyebrow and snorted, but Drifter didn't bite the bait. He wedged himself between the songstress and the info-broker, kissing Yuna's cheek to show he was joking, and throwing an arm over Argo's shoulder because he knew that annoyed her.

"What are you working on, little rat?"

"Nunya yer business, Dri-bou! You stink, go away!"

"Oi!"

Argo shoved him into Yuna, and Drifter grabbed her in a headlock while the songstress yelped. She raised her fist and started smacking him when someone giggled, giving them pause.

"Griselda, hi! And the rest of your guild too. Golden Apple, right?"

"Hello, you three. And yes, Yuna. We thought we would come explore the new floor. Hahaha... I never thought I would see this side of Songstress Yuna, Broken Spear Drifter, and Argo the Rat."

Drifter looked up and saw Griselda with a smile on her face. The rest of her guild was behind here, appearing much more uncomfortable. Her husband Grimlock especially. His eyes were hidden under his hat, but Drifter could feel his piercing gaze. Cainz and Schmitt and - Drifter honestly didn't remember the others' names. But they were all jittery.

All of the guild members seemed incredibly tense. The gazes they kept exchanging, and how they looked away immediately when certain pairs of eyes met. Drifter was familiar with the sight. Golden Apple was breaking.

He shrugged. It was none of his business.

"Hey, Griselda, Grimlock, everyone. And we are just human, Griselda. By the way, I'll give you the same warning I gave the others. Careful on this floor. The mobs are all ambushers. Always have someone with << Searching >> on, or you might walk into them before realizing they are there."

Griselda sobered up fast, and thanked Drifter. He waved it off. A large portion of why Drifter fought was still because he wanted to escape. But he also wanted to free everyone else. Any information that helped to avoid deaths, he would share freely, much less a simple warning.

"We'll get going then. It's always good to see you two. Goodbye to you as well, info-broker Argo."

"Bah, drop the formalities Gris-chan. Yu-chan and this idiot over here seem to like ya, so yer alright on my book."

Golden Apple wandered away, just another coincidental meeting. So why was it Drifter couldn't stop his frown? His two female companions seemed to be having the same reaction.

"So that's Golden Apple, hum? Don't like it."

"Me neither. They were never a cheerful bunch - other than Griselda - but today I could practically see unhappiness radiating from them."

"Grimlock was glaring at us."

Drifter just said that, his gaze still locked on the direction Golden Apple had left. Yuna shifted to lean a little more into him.

"I don't know what Griselda sees in him. He creeps me out. Naut, Liz, and the others too, I know."

Drifter pulled his girlfriend closer.

"They are married in real life, songbird. Plus, SAO changed everyone. Griselda is pushing forward. Grimlock and the others aren't."

"Yup. They're gonna disband, no doubt 'bout that. Give it a few more weeks at most. Wanna make a bet, Dri-bou?"

"Nope, I already owe you enough cor as it is. There are Keita and the others. Let's grab them and get going."