Anime Crossover: Master is Not Here Today

"."

At this point, Kirito fully understood Diabel's purpose.

Although the other person's words carried an almost undisguised accusation against him, after understanding the whole story, he couldn't bring himself to respond with hostility.

The question now is, how can he defend himself?

But just then, a familiar, smiling voice suddenly came from the side—

"I never expected Kirito to have such a past. It's quite surprising."

"Ritsuka, Asuna?!" ×2

Fujimaru Ritsuka appeared from around the corner, accompanied by Asuna. Kirito looked at them in shock and said:

"Why are you here?!"

Upon hearing this, Asuna angrily rebuked him:

"It's all because we sent you messages and you didn't reply at all. We thought something had happened to you!"

"Um, um...sorry?"

Under Asuna's powerful pressure, Kirito timidly apologized, while Diabel was taken aback.

The moment he saw the two girls, he immediately felt uneasy, fearing that they might overhear his and Kirito's identities as closed beta testers.

But looking at Kirito's interaction with the two of them, he was a little confused about what was going on.

Fujimaru Ritsuka smiled somewhat shyly at Diabel:

"We're really sorry, we didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation, but I can offer a little explanation for Kirito."

"Actually, during the exploration of the dungeon area, Kirito joined Asuna and me and acted with us, so he also contributed to finding the BOSS room."

"Therefore, it is reasonable for Kirito to want the LA reward, and I believe that he participated in the BOSS strategy meeting because he was genuinely trying to beat the game."

"Huh?"

The astonishing amount of information Fujimaru Ritsuka threw out made Diabel pause for a moment, then look at Kirito with some disbelief.

Feeling awkward under such a direct gaze, Kirito looked away and scratched his head, saying:

Well, that's how it is.

After a short while, having finally grasped the situation, Diabel couldn't help but smile wryly and said helplessly to Kirito:

"Kirito-kun, if that's the case, why didn't you explain it sooner? Now I feel like I'm some kind of aggressive villain."

"How could that be? I understand your meaning and concerns. After all, I wasn't very popular during the closed beta."

Kirito used some gentle words to describe his actions.

Then, he glanced at Fujimaru Ritsuka and Asuna, and like Diabel, gave a wry smile:

"But it's not easy to explain my current situation to people."

Hearing him say that, Diabel also turned her gaze to the two graceful and beautiful girls in front of her, and quickly realized that Kirito's concerns were understandable.

".Too."

At the same time, he sighed to himself:

Kirito-kun, you're truly enviable.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 163 Walkthrough Begins

163.

2023-12-08

After clearing up the misunderstanding between Diabel and Kirito, Diabel also agreed to keep Kirito's relationship with Fujimaru Ritsuka and Asuna a secret, and then they went their separate ways.

Two hours later, [Torbana] headed to the exit of the maze area. The players, who had finished resting and preparing, gradually arrived, and no one was absent.

Although everyone was gathered together in a somewhat scattered manner, from a distance they looked like a mob.

But without a doubt, this is the strongest group in SAO today.

After looking around at everyone, Fujimaru Ritsuka smiled and said:

"Logically speaking, the first floor's BOSS only requires players to reach an average level of five to defeat it, but everyone standing here now is at level ten, and their skills and equipment are already very advanced."

"If we are careful, we will definitely be able to pass the first level smoothly."

"Then, let's go!"

"Oh oh oh oh—!!!" ×n

A huge cheer erupted, representing the unwavering determination of all the players.

On the way from Bartona to the labyrinth area, a large group of people inexplicably thought of the school trip that their school had held at the beginning of the year, which was to Queensland, Australia.

Although the current situation has nothing in common with a school trip, everyone talked non-stop and bursts of laughter frequently, making it seem like a picnic.

The only difference is the monsters that occasionally rush out of the forest. However, in front of this group of top-tier players, the monsters are instantly defeated and become tools to show off their strength to their companions.

Seeing this, she couldn't help but whisper to Fujimaru Ritsuka beside her:

"Hey Ritsuka, is it really okay for you to be so carefree? We're about to take on the boss."

Fujimaru Ritsuka smiled upon hearing this:

"I think this is actually quite good. If everyone looks so serious, it would actually give a worse impression, wouldn't it?"

"Moreover, I think everyone is just using this method to relieve their stress."

After hearing Fujimaru Ritsuka's answer, she glanced at the noisy group of players again and nodded thoughtfully.

Then, she looked at Fujimaru Ritsuka beside her.

In this large group of people, most players were laughing, joking, and playing around with their companions, but there were also a few players who, like her, seemed somewhat worried.

But Fujimaru Ritsuka's performance was the most unique.

Unlike most players who chatted eagerly with their companions, or those who looked worried, she remained calm and composed, just as she had on her way back to the dormitory after leaving the restaurant.

He remained silent when there was nothing to say along the way, but when he talked to her, he would show a familiar smile, as if he had become accustomed to everything in front of him.

Asuna suddenly thought that perhaps when they get used to this kind of life and take on bosses as part of their daily routine, their performance on the road will be just like that of Fujimaru Ritsuka in front of her.

But what happened to Fujimaru Ritsuka that turned her into this?

The longer Asuna spends with Fujimaru Ritsuka, the more mysterious she becomes about her, but she doesn't know when she will be able to uncover all of it.

Half an hour after departing from [Bartona], you will arrive at the maze area, and two hours later, you will reach the top of the stairs.

Since this is the first time that forty-eight players have teamed up for a battle, it will undoubtedly involve unexpected dangers due to it being the "first time".

They did encounter two or three unexpected incidents along the way, such as the seventh and eighth support squads, which were composed entirely of players with long weapons, being suddenly approached by monsters, and the situation where players' weapons were interfering with each other during the melee.

Fortunately, Fujimaru Ritsuka did not disappoint everyone's trust. Faced with these unexpected minor crises, she still demonstrated accurate command skills and brought the crises to an abrupt end.

However, through these unexpected situations, the players in the Allied Forces finally gave Fujimaru Ritsuka complete trust, and the entire Allied Forces also achieved a considerable degree of cohesion.

At this moment, a double giant door, representing the BOSS room, finally appeared before the players.

Fujimaru Ritsuka stood at the front, reorganized all the teams, and after confirming their formation, she raised her spear to signal to the players. The other forty-seven players also drew their weapons and nodded in response.

"It's about to begin—"

After saying a few words, she turned around and pushed the door open forcefully.

The BOSS room is a rectangular space, about 20 meters wide on both sides, and about 100 meters long from the door to the wall at the back, which is a rather treacherous length.

In SAO, the boss's room door will not close even during battle, so if you find yourself in a losing situation, you can escape directly without waiting for everyone to be wiped out.

However, in that situation, a distance of one hundred meters can feel as long as the two ends of the world.

After the combined forces advanced to a distance of about fifty meters, the torches on the left and right walls of the room suddenly started burning continuously, completely illuminating the previously dim BOSS room.

In the deepest part of the room, the floor boss, [Kobold Lord Ilfangu], who had been sleeping on the throne, slowly opened his eyes and suddenly turned his gaze to the allied forces, sending chills down everyone's spine.

Covered in bluish-gray fur, it possessed a powerful body exceeding three meters in length, and its eyes glowed crimson. In its right hand, it held an axe carved from bone, while in its left hand it carried a small, round shield made of leather. A scimitar-like spare weapon was tucked behind its waist.

The moment they saw each other, all the players knew clearly that information about the BOSS during the closed beta should not be trusted.

Because the other party was emanating a trace of black gas that had not been mentioned in the information from the closed beta test, resembling a state similar to "corruption" or "degeneration" in some games, which was full of ominous meaning.

Although no one knew what the black gas represented, they were certain that something was different from what had happened during the closed beta testing.

"Everyone, prepare to fight!"

As Fujimaru Ritsuka gave the order, all the players assumed a fighting stance.

As planned, the players from the three tank squads lined up in a horizontal row, with Diabel's squad at the head, advancing forward in a triangular formation.

Three main attack squads followed side by side behind the tank squads, while two support squads positioned to the flanks and rear of the attack squads, ready to rush forward and provide support at any time.

When the boss was only twenty meters away from the throne, it suddenly leaped up from the throne and landed on the ground with a loud thud, opening its blood-red maw and roaring with all its might:

"Gurgle gurgle ahh ...

Its roar sounded like a command, causing three heavily armed follower monsters to leap down from the walls on either side, echoing its own sharp cries.

The follower monster is called the "Ruins Kobold Guardian". According to information from the closed beta, it will spawn in three waves, for a total of twelve monsters.

Fujimaru Ritsuka assigned an attack squad and half a support squad to fight against them.

At this point, the monsters were also fully prepared.

Seeing the scene before her, Fujimaru Ritsuka, standing between the tank squad and the main assault squad, quickly pointed her spear at the BOSS and shouted the order:

"The battle begins!!"

"Oh oh oh oh oh—!!!"

Almost simultaneously, the players roared with a sound no less powerful than the BOSS's, and resolutely charged towards the opponent!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 164. A Shocking Turn of Events! A Desperate Situation?