"Kyaaaaa!"

With one last agonizing shriek, the falcon that had accompanied the << Fallen Falconer >> through all his life, perished. However, other than showing a flicker of rage, the mob did not react to his pet's death at all. From that, it could be seen that, sadistic as he was, the falconer was different from Kizmel. He was still just a monster following a script.

"Useless trash! It seems I will have to deal with them myself."

At this moment, the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> who had been sitting the whole time suddenly barked those few words. Getting up, the fallen elf brought out an enormous double-bladed axe.

"Second phase incoming! Nautilus, Drifter, delay him with me! Everyone else, focus on the falconer, eliminate him first!"

"Roger that!"

"Got it!"

Even though the fallen elf commander had been sitting quietly before, just watching the battle unfold, the party had never stopped paying attention to him. They all knew he was the main boss of this chapter of the << Elf War >> campaign. As such, they had noticed him even before he shouted.

Drifter ran towards the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >>, his body tilting forward at a 45-degree angle with the ground. He was holding his spear in front of his body, both hands near the end of the shaft, keeping the weapon parallel to the ground.

"Hah!"

With a grunt, Drifter shot forward in a << Rage Spike >>, his speartip accurately finding the gap between two of the iron plates that composed the belly portion of the fallen elf's armor. Then, he twisted his weapon, and violently pulled to the left, tearing through the torso of the mob.

Something worth mentioning was that Drifter and the others had been wrong about one thing. Focusing solely on completing the << Elf War >> campaign had not been detrimental to them in any way. Much the contrary, the experience they gained from completing the quests and slaying hard enemies such as the fallen elves was much more than what they would have earned if they were simply farming normal mobs. As such, they were a few levels higher than the average frontliner.

Drifter's attacks emptied the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander's >> health gauge by at least 5%. While that might not look like much, this was, after all, only Drifter. But the spearman wasn't by any means alone.

When the huge axe of the fallen elf was raised and then chopped down at him, Drifter didn't even move. That was not because he had been scared stiff, but because he knew it was unnecessary.

A round shield suddenly appeared in-between Drifter and the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >>. Moreover, the shield had been positioned at an angle, so that, instead of catching the axe head, which would surely cleave right through it, it clashed against the weapon's shaft, deviating it to the right, where it sunk harmlessly into the ground.

From the side, Kirito tried to cut off the mob's left hand with his sword. In SAO, as a general rule, humanoid monsters were stronger than other kinds of mobs at the same level. At the same time, however, they were also more susceptible to status effects - if chopping off a limb could even be called a 'status effect'.

Of course, cutting off a hand or a leg wasn't so easy. Otherwise, players could just aim to chop off all four limbs of any humanoid mob, crippling them and leaving them defenseless, thus breaking the game. Kayaba would never leave such an obvious loophole.

Before you could cut off a mob's - or player's - limb, a certain threshold of damage needed to be surpassed. Even so, a heavy sword blow to the wrist had a chance to inflict 'weakness' on enemies, which was exactly what Kirito was aiming for with his slash.

"Ugh!"

The young swordsman got what he wanted. With a groan, the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander's >> left hand let go of his axe's handle, and dangled powerlessly by his side.

However, even that wasn't enough to stop the boss. Even though his axe was almost as tall as him, and appeared to be heavy as a mountain, the fallen elf raised it with a single hand, and swung it horizontally, from the right to the left, knocking both Nautilus and Drifter back. Even with his attack power halved by his 'weakness' debuff, the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> still managed to take away about 20% of their HP.

Switching his hold to grab his spear with his left hand, Drifter put his other hand on Nautilus' back, lest the two of them fell. Then, he immediately lashed out with his weapon, leaving a long gash on the fallen elf's arm.

"Nautilus?"

Drifter had been about to launch another attack, an overhead swing, when he discovered that his ash-haired friend wasn't moving. Due to that, he was forced to suddenly change his motion, or he might hit the other player. Confused, he called out to Nautilus, but received no answer. It was only then that he noticed that the blade-user's body was trembling. With a start, Drifter's expression morphed into one of horror.

'Shit! Not now!'

Nautilus' FNC was acting up again, and at one of the worst possible times. Since the shield-bearer had << Taunted >> the boss beforehand, the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> was single-mindedly focusing on him. As such, he even ignored Kirito's attacks, and raised his giant axe once more. Only, now Nautilus didn't have the ability to block or dodge anymore.

Without much time to think, Drifter did the only thing he could, and pushed his friend out of the way. However, who would have expected the boss to mimic Drifter's earlier move, switch his grip on his weapon's handle, and reverse the direction of his swing? Now, not only had Drifter not saved Nautilus, he had instead pushed the blade-user right in the path of the axe.

With a sickening 'crunch', the axe head struck Nautilus square in the chest. His chest plate, one of Liz's masterpieces, crumbled immediately, and the ash-haired player was sent flying. An enormous red line cut across his torso, giving the impression that he would split into two halves at any moment.

"Nautilus!"

Several people shouted together when they saw the sorry state the blade-user was in. However, everyone was locked in their own fight, and were unable to rush out to help Nautilus. Even Drifter, who felt responsible, was the same. He took a step towards the fallen player, but then stopped. Kirito alone couldn't possibly stop the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> from running amok.

"Drifter, go help him! I can stall the boss!"

Just as he was being indecisive, the boy who was much younger than him smashed into the boss with his shoulder, sending the fallen elf stumbling back, and then immediately delivered a flurry of blows at him.

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"Kirito..."

"Just be quick!"

Seeing the slight smile Kirito gave him, even in this situation where his face was filled with tension, Drifter couldn't help but tremble. All along he thought of himself as the brains of the party, the one who could keep calm when everyone else was panicking. And yet, wasn't the exact opposite happening right now?

Shaking his head, Drifter nodded to Kirito, and ran towards Nautilus. If it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have been so worried. After all, as long as they were still alive, they could just drink a health potion and recover. But Nautilus' FNC caused him to be unable to do even that.

Sure enough, even though the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> had already turned his sights to Kirito, Nautilus was still frozen, even in his precarious situation. While feeding him a health potion and watching his HP go back to yellow from deep red, Drifter noticed the unwillingness in his eyes.

"Why... Why now? Why me?! Why?!!"

Seeing his friend like that, Drifter sighed. It was truly unfair. Nautilus was one of the best players in SAO. He was a frontliner. Every day he risked limb and neck fighting against the worst Aincrad had to offer, all for the sake of the thousands of people trapped with them. He fought floor bosses and came close to death more than once. There was no one who put as much effort as him in becoming stronger. It was... Truly unfair.

"You are recovering, right? Come back quickly, we need you."

In the end, Drifter didn't choose to say any comforting words or to answer Nautilus' rough questions. Instead, seeing that the ash-haired player was already regaining control of his body, he got up and went back to help Kirito.

Drifter's last sentence touched Nautilus profoundly. Right now wasn't the time nor place to talk about Nautilus' FNC or about how unfair life was. Now was time to fight, and they needed him. They needed their friend. Their shield.

"Ahh... Agh!"

Grunting, Nautilus forced his shaky limbs to obey him. Using his blade as leverage, he climbed up. But even though he was now standing, he still couldn't take a step forward.

'Damnit!'

While Nautilus struggled, not far away Yuna, Asuna, Sinon, and Kizmel were locked in combat with the << Fallen Falconer >>. Compared to the three men, who were barely managing to resist the mighty << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> - and that was before Nautilus was wounded - the girls were having a much easier time.

Now, the once smug and arrogant falconer presented a sorry sight. His entire body was full of cuts and gashes, and there was more than one arrow stuck in his body. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes carried a trace of madness. However, said madness was covered by unwillingness. This was different from Nautilus, who was unwilling to accept his weakness. The falconer was unwilling to accept defeat, accept the fact he was being suppressed by those he looked down upon.

"You..."

The << Fallen Falconer >> started to speak, maybe to threaten them, maybe to throw insults, maybe to beg for his life. No one would ever know, because the moment he opened his mouth, Kizmel swung her sword, the blade flashing forward and cleanly cutting off the mob's head. For but a single moment, the falconer's expression showed surprise, before he shattered into countless polygons.

To outsiders, that might seem like an anticlimactic end. However, Kizmel had learned her lesson. Every time she allowed the cursed falconer to speak, he somehow managed to escape. Not this time. Besides, scum like him didn't deserve any last words.

"Pah! Sister... Brother-in-law... I've avenged you."

After killing the << Fallen Falconer >>, Kizmel's first action was to spit on the spot where he died, something very uncharacteristic of her. However, that was the only way she could air all the grievances in her heart. Finally, finally she had gotten her revenge. Tilnel and Locke's spirits could rest easy on the Spirit Tree.

But now wasn't the time to reminisce about the past or drown in the many different emotions she was feeling. Holding her sword, Kizmel charged at the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >>. In the end, the falconer had been just a puppet. The real culprit was the fallen elf in front of her.

"Bah! That trash couldn't even beat a bunch of girls! Whatever, I will do it myself!"

The boss roared in annoyance. By now, Drifter had already returned to Kirito's side, and both players were struggling against the mob. Thankfully, while the commander had absurdly high damage, his speed wasn't anywhere near as overwhelming.

"Hum?"

Suddenly, Kirito let out a surprised gasp. That was because someone had appeared in front of him and blocked an attack from the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >>. Only, that person wasn't Kizmel or Drifter, but Nautilus.

"Are you okay now, Nautilus?"

"Y-Yeah. More or less."

It could be seen that the ash-haired boy was still affected by the outbreak of his FNC. Nevertheless, Nautilus had returned to the battle relying on his unyielding willpower. He, like all the others in the party and, indeed, like all frontliners, refused to step back, to be cowed by fear. Refuses to be defeated by SAO.

"Let's finish off this bastard then."

Pointing his << Caldea Fana >> at the boss, Drifter smiled savagely. Before, he, Kirito, and Nautilus were simply able to stall the monster, and Nautilus was even seriously injured in the process. But now they had Asuna, Sinon, Yuna, Kizmel, and even Feredir, with them. It was time for payback.

What followed next was a heated, but at the same time pitiful battle. Heated because the << Fallen Elf Expedition Commander >> was a very powerful boss. Pitiful because he was not strong enough.

When he died, not only did the fallen elf drop experience in abundance, but there were also several pieces of equipment. After examining everything, Yuna, Kirito, and Sinon would all gain an upgrade in defensive capabilities.

More importantly, when Asuna picked up the << Secret Key >> that was laying on the table, the party received a notification saying that their quest had been completed. Furthermore, the follow-up quest of the << Elf War >> campaign could only be started once they reached the 4th floor.

"Here, Kizmel. This belongs with you."

Even though the quest didn't mention anything about giving the << Secret Key >> to Kizmel, Asuna still did so. It was only natural, after all the dark elf went through to retrieve it. Besides, the key belonged to the elven kind anyway.

"Thank you, Asuna. And thank you too, my friends."

"If you really consider us friends, then don't be so courteous, Kizmel."

Yuna grinned widely at the dark elf. The others also had huge smiles on their faces. Getting to know Kizmel was truly one of the best things to have happened to them in SAO.

"That being so, I'm afraid I will have to leave you for the moment. I must deliver the << Secret Key >> back to Lyusula with all haste. I fear I won't be able to accompany you in your battle against the floor guardian."

Though Kizmel showed a slightly dismayed expression when she said that, the players weren't surprised. Just the fact they could have the dark elf as a seventh member in their party throughout the entire duration of the << Elf War >> campaign was already a game-breaking mechanic. They expected that she would have to separate from them at some moment. If the Cardinal System was anything, that was fair.

"Don't worry, Kizmel. Everything you've told us about Nerius is already a huge help. I'm not kidding when I say it will save many lives amongst our fellow players."

"That's so? I'm glad to hear it. I will see you again soon, my friends. For now, farewell. Come on, Feredir."

First Kizmel showed a thumbs-up to everyone, and then waved them goodbye. Taking Locke's wolf with her, she rushed out of the cave. From her haste, it could be seen that she was in a hurry to offload the hot potato that was the << Secret Key >>.

"I'll miss her..."

"Don't worry, Asuna. It will be only for a few days. I'm sure once we reach the 4th floor, I'm sure she will join us again."

"Hm. Kizmel already surpassed any AI in SAO - no, in the world. As long as she wants to meet up with us - and I believe she does - even the system will have to accommodate her."

It took a moment for the rest to digest what Kirito had said. They didn't continue on the topic, however, as there were more important things. Things such as returning to Zumfut to repair their equipment and replenish their consumables.

The 3rd floor labyrinth had been almost entirely mapped. The boss raid was coming.