Am I the only one streaming Sword Art Online on the entire internet?

(Note 1: Anti-X protection is a very complex superpower. To put it simply, it means that you cannot be harmed by X in any way. The most common type is anti-color protection.)

(Note 2: DNT refers to two things that no one can escape in their lifetime—death and taxes)

"Ah... are you talking about me?" Dahlken was stunned for a long time before looking at Sorin. His face turned red again, the kind of red that could be seen through the goblin's crimson skin. "Mr. Sorin... I'm an alchemist, the alchemist pre-class on the official website, and I'm also a support type... that's all."

"So it really is a four-protect-one lineup. So, the only one who can deal damage is Miss Yuki?" Sorin sighed, but then he thought about it and realized that using such a four-protect-one lineup in such a well-coordinated team was quite scientific. Therefore, he stopped complaining about this obviously strange team formation. "I understand. So, Miss Yuki must be your battle commander."

"It's me... We seem to have arrived. Prepare for battle, guys."

304. Mr. Solin (Solin-chan?)

As Yuki spoke, her right hand pointed straight ahead at the road sign that read "Precinct One," while her left hand rested on her sword. Her face still wore an innocent smile, but Sorin could tell she had suddenly become very serious, radiating a sharp and assertive aura.

Just like the strongest swordsman with the title "Peerless Sword" that he had just faced.

"You've suddenly become serious, little Yuuki." Yuna noticed the change as well, and looked at Yuuki with interest, remarking.

She had been quite curious about Yuuki from the very beginning. The reason for her curiosity was actually quite simple: in her previous impression, Sorin was almost invincible, truly without rivals in his area of ​​expertise. That's why she was particularly curious about Yuuki, the girl who had defeated Sorin.

"Are you serious? I don't really feel it. Maybe it's just that I subconsciously felt like I was about to fight, and that's why I suddenly got nervous," Yuuki calmly replied, listening to Yuna's exclamation.

"I do have a question. The First District should be a very large area. I think we should have found those unaffiliated individuals around noon. Do we really need to go into combat mode so early?"

Sorin looked at Yuki with a puzzled expression, as if he didn't understand why she had started being on guard so early and reminded the rest of the team to get into combat mode. However, Yuki had anticipated his question. She shared her map page with Sorin and then explained.

“Oh… I forgot to mention, Mr. Sorin. Actually, when we first started doing missions, we did spend quite a while searching, but after I raised my reputation with the leader of Ozoli—the Great Arbitrator Dowinban—to the [Trust] level, we gained the ability to deploy patrol drones.”

She pointed to the white and blue flapping-wing aircraft that could be seen everywhere in the air. One of them stopped at her command and hovered in the air, gently flapping its wings at Solin and the others, as if to express its respect.

“In that case, we only need to use the drone network for reconnaissance, and this work can be done on the road. In other words, I already knew the enemy's hiding place before I even arrived here. I will mark it on the map for you later.”

She tapped her finger in mid-air, marking the location of the group of unaffiliated individuals who were hiding on the map. Sorin flipped open the map and saw that the previously grayed-out First District had lit up with their arrival, and a more conspicuous red marker was flashing—that location was the lower half of the First District, a place similar to a black market where alchemists from the Ije Alliance often sold their illegal research products.

“What a convenient feature! No wonder you guys chose to grind your reputation with the Senate; that way, your reputation progress will be much higher than everyone else’s.” Sorin praised the incredibly convenient feature, but then frowned and solemnly reminded her, “But here’s my advice. Trust me, stay away from that guy, Dorwinban. As for the specific reasons… I could have told you, Miss Yuuki. But if you don’t want spoilers, then never mind.”

“I’ve got it, but if that great arbitrator really has any problems, I’ll definitely find out. I’m very clever, you know~” Yuuki nodded seriously, then smiled mischievously at Sorin and replied, “Speaking of which, we’re more like the adventure groups described in those Western fantasy stories. Especially with your arrival, you’ve filled in the last part: a skilled bard and an all-knowing prophet. Don’t you think so?”

"In that case, you might be the brave one who dares to court death, Miss Yuuki..."

"Just call me Yuuki, it sounds too formal, doesn't it?" Yuuki frowned slightly, feigning displeasure. "See, I haven't been calling you Mr. Sorin all the time, have I? We're teammates now~ If we're always so formal, I can't trust my teammates with my back!"

"Actually, I thought you felt it was a bit weird to refer to such an adorable Sorin-chan as 'Mr. Sorin'," Yuna suddenly interjected, a smile she couldn't suppress on her face. "Speaking of which, judging from how skilled you guys are, you must have played other RPGs before, right? Why did you suddenly switch to this game?"

"Well... it's actually because of the game's reward system. You probably realized it yourself, Yuna-neechan, that we didn't meet in this world. We met, got to know each other, and fought side by side in other worlds, and it's been two years now."

Yuuki pondered for a long time, seemingly considering where to begin her explanation. After a long pause, she finally began, “They are the best partners. We’ve traveled through many worlds together and experienced countless adventures. But our team is disbanding this spring because everyone has real-world matters to attend to. So we decided to work together in the most dazzling world to accomplish something big and make headlines. Ultimately, we chose the Hyperdimensional Fantasy World.”

Her voice suddenly turned melancholy, but quickly returned to its original cheerful tone.

"Did you know, Yuna-neechan, every expansion of Hyperdimensional Fantasy World has a major event like this? The major event of the last expansion, [The Azure Star that Guides the Way Forward], was the [Ancient Dragon Species Completion Project]. The names of the team that performed best in that major event and all its members will be forever recorded on the official website's promotional page and on a monument that will be in all public areas."

“So what you want is…” Yuna said thoughtfully.

"That's right. Our goal is to make the name recorded on the official website as 'Sleeping Knights' when the event in the 'Spark War' expansion, whose specific name is still unknown, ends. But this task is obviously very difficult, right? The maximum number of people in a team is seven, so I was thinking about whether I could find two relatively strong players to join our team, which is why I recruited teammates."

"Is that so... Believe me, you... no, it's us. Our goal will definitely be achieved. Because in a sense, you've already found the strongest candidate."

Yuna smiled slightly and looked at Sorin, who was walking on the other side, giving them space. Her tone was quite confident.

305. Doubts

"Is that so? That's wonderful, Yuna-neechan... and Solin-chan too."

Hearing Yuna say that, Yuki smiled happily and then hugged Yuna tightly.

"Actually, that's true. The problem is, Yuki... can we use a different way of addressing her? It just feels a bit strange."

"No! It sounds so cute, and you don't look that much older than me, Solin-chan~" Yuki shook her head childishly, "Besides, it was Yuna-neechan who told me to call you that."

“I must point out that I’m almost thirty, while you seem to be under fifteen. It’s not inappropriate for me to call you my niece, Yuki.”

Solin shrugged, seemingly indifferent, or perhaps he was used to such absurd situations. Of course, he spoke with considerable righteous indignation.

On the way, he was still subconsciously switching his weapons using rapid-switching effects, while pondering a question.

It's early 2025 now, which can be roughly equated to 2024. The full-dive technology was actually revealed to the public in August 2022, which was right when Sword Art Online had just launched its open beta.

In other words, even for SAO survivors like him and Yuna, the actual time they spent living in the virtual world couldn't possibly be two years, and that's assuming the year and a half in SAO was spent in continuous gameplay. In fact, even now, Sorin's total playtime across all fully immersive games is only about 1000 hours. And that's the crux of the problem.

Sorin felt that Yuuki wouldn't exaggerate her claims in such a place, and the fluidity of her movements in the game suggested that she might have spent two years or even longer in the virtual world. However, he had never known that such a character existed in the original SAO.

"This can't be an SAO survivor. If she were in SAO back then, I probably wouldn't be in this situation. And it's impossible for an SAO survivor of this strength not to recognize me."

Solin pondered this to himself, but he didn't address it here. After all, the current atmosphere wasn't suitable for a direct statement, and besides…

He had a premonition that if he brought this up, he would never see Yuki again. In every sense of the word.

He refocused his attention on his surroundings. The surroundings were dilapidated streets and buildings that looked patched up everywhere. Sewage flowed down the side of the street, eventually pooling in a low-lying area, emitting a disgusting stench. White worms could be seen wriggling around the sewage.

As for those precious, sewage-free areas, they are scattered piles of scrap metal, still vaguely recognizable as parts before birth. Next to them often sits a ghost or some other race's down-on-his-luck alchemist, wearing a dirty white lab coat and glasses, who looks like a mad scientist, peddling his so-called new inventions that can "bring about a great change to Ravnica".

Incidentally, at least a thousand such new inventions emerge every day, and among them, let alone changing the Ravnica, very few can even run stably for five minutes without malfunctioning.

Of course, there are still some people selling things that look relatively normal; after all, this is a black market, not a junkyard. These stalls tend to have more people in front of them because everyone knows this is a black market, not a junkyard.

Yuuki and her companions, who frequently conducted missions within Ravnica, were naturally accustomed to such chaotic scenes. The three girls in the team simply frowned and gently covered their noses with one hand, saying nothing more. Sorin himself, however, was already familiar with the situation in Ravnica, so the only one in the team who felt extremely uncomfortable with the current scene was Yuna.

If Suolin hadn't been supporting her, she probably would have collapsed to the ground, her legs giving way, unable to withstand the intense disgust and discomfort. And her current condition wasn't exactly good either.

"As you can see, this is actually a buffer zone at the border between the Gagari Settlement and the Ije Alliance's sphere of influence, so many people mingle here. Most of them are guys who couldn't make it in the Ije Alliance or the Gagari Settlement or for other reasons. Of course, there are also some unaffiliated people who use this place as their protective umbrella."

Sorin patiently explained to Yuna, hoping to distract her and ease her discomfort. At this moment, Yuki finally drew both swords again, placing them at her sides, each angled outwards. The others were also ready: Darken's fingertips flickered with crimson electricity, and the spellbook at his waist glowed faintly; Miss Junie gently waved her tightly gripped staff, which resembled a tree branch, its tip radiating a green light symbolizing life.

Xiao Ji didn't make any obvious moves, but suddenly a shield with intricate runes appeared around her. This shield was instantly shared among everyone in the team. Even Yuna, who wouldn't normally rush into battle, was given a full-defense buff. As for the Vidoken artifact maker, Tich, he began fiddling with piece by piece, quickly assembling a steel soldier about the same size as Agil and looking exceptionally sturdy.

"I thought only Yuki was prepared, but it seems you two are really in sync."

Sorin praised with satisfaction, but the next moment he looked at Yuna with a worried gaze, "Are you alright? Why don't you go to the furthest place right now and buff us? Although this won't completely block out the smell, if you fight with this suffocating smell all the time, something bad will definitely happen."

“You’re always like this, Sorin. What you think will have a big impact actually won’t have much of an impact. I’ve been fighting for so long, how can I abandon you all now because of something so trivial?”

Yuna spoke righteously, but after she finished speaking, her feet slipped and she almost fell again.

"If it doesn't work, just go back. It's just a reputation quest, it shouldn't take long and it's not too difficult."

However, no sooner had he finished speaking than a system notification ruthlessly disrupted Solin's plans.

[Mission Objective 1 has been updated]

[Mission Objective 2: Clear out the Black Market Street]

306. Encounter Battle

There's a saying that plans never keep up with changes. In fact, trouble had already struck when Sorin wanted Yuna to retreat temporarily. A cloud of green smoke suddenly filled the surrounding air, obstructing everyone's vision and causing their health points to drop rapidly.

"Everyone on alert! Yuna, Koki, and... damn it, does this team only have three front-line members?" Sorin instinctively ordered. "Never mind, does anyone have a Light Dance spell or a Wind Blow spell to blow the poison away?"

"Sorin, even though I'm a support, I'm still a front-line tank." Yuna reminded Sorin, then decisively stepped in front of Xiaoji and Junie, drawing her rapier from her waist. "I'm getting a buff, Junie, help me raise my health."

She took out her flute and put it to her lips, but she was interrupted by Yuki's words after she had only played two notes.

"Yuuna-neechan, don't make a sound. I need to confirm the other party's location by sound." After saying this, Yuki stopped and then typed a line in the team chat channel, "Tichi, listen to my command and get ready to stomp him out."

"I see."

Tich also typed a message back, then stood in the center of the team's defensive line with Dalk. Although he was the team's main tank, the nature of his class meant that he could only stay in the back row, and he was the kind of back row character with almost no self-defense capabilities.

The bustling black market fell silent in an instant, as if the vendors hawking their rags had been nothing but a fleeting illusion. Yuuki and Sorin listened intently to every sound that might come from their surroundings, while Yuna, unable to use her skills to buff herself, could only remain vigilant, wary of the enemy whose origins and appearance were still unknown, from attacking Junie and Yuuki behind her.

"This is the third wave of hunters... Prag, what should we do?" A clear yet delicate girl's voice rang out from the mist, sounding extremely tense. "And this wave of hunters looks really strong. Can we still leave like before?"

“Don’t be afraid, Xiao Huan. We’ll definitely get out of here, believe me.” Another voice, lower and seemingly tinged with helplessness, said, “Damn it… where is this place? Why are we treated as intruders the moment we appear?”

The poisonous fog thickened instantly. Before, it was so dark that some light could still penetrate, making it appear green. Now, however, it was completely black, and almost nothing could be seen.

"Three o'clock, Tich!" Yuki decisively commanded in the team channel, "Take one step and step right there, they're about to pass!"

"Roger that." Tich waved the orb, controlling his golem to take a step to the right, then slammed it heavily onto the ground. "Empty."

"What?" Yuuki exclaimed in surprise. "I couldn't have misheard, it's that spot!"

“I think there’s probably something wrong. At the very least, they’re quite powerful. It’s probably one illusionist and one who can fart. If we don’t have a light magic or something else to dispel the poisonous fog, we’re helpless against them,” Sorin said seriously. He knew that with an illusionist on the other side, it was no longer possible to pinpoint their location by sound. “Yuna, activate your buffs. No need to mute anymore.”

As he spoke, he slowly moved toward Yuna, switching his weapon to his long staff. His plan was somewhat risky, because Yuna couldn't fight while playing buff music, and since the enemy could see everyone in the fog, they would definitely use Yuna as a weak point.

“I understand… By the way, Sorin, those two people might…” Yuna hesitated for a moment, then continued, “They shouldn’t be bad people.”

"Don't worry about that. Let's catch them first, and we'll deal with the rest later," Sorin replied calmly. "At least for now, the fact that they wanted to attack you is unforgivable."

As he spoke, he casually swung his battle staff, delivering a low slash that knocked Prag, who had appeared before him and Yuna, to the ground. The [Tree King - not a giant - not named Yhorm] he had encountered in the beginner quest had a displayed health bar after being hit, so he wanted to expose the opponent's health bar in the same way. This way, even with the assistance of an illusionist, they wouldn't be able to hide their health bar under the system's will.

However, the plan clearly failed. Although Sorin didn't know why, the guy he had just slashed hadn't revealed his health bar. Furthermore, the feel of his hand told him that he hadn't missed.

"Wait...did you really not miss?" Sorin suddenly became suspicious at this moment. If the feeling of hitting was also simulated by the opponent's illusionist, then it means that the person who used the poison did not choose to attack Yuna at this time.

He might be attacking others, or they might have already taken the opportunity to escape, but in any case, the situation is extremely unfavorable for them. As long as the illusionist is present, they will be passive no matter how they fight, and may even be completely unable to fight back.

"Yuki, do you have any other ideas now?"

He typed this line in the team chat with a sense of helplessness. He didn't want to speak anymore, because he couldn't even believe if the sounds around him were still the sounds he could actually hear.

"I can only say that there's one last resort. Once this skill is unleashed, we'll lose three and a half combatants at once, and we can't guarantee that we can defeat them," Yuki replied quickly.

"But we can't beat them now. As long as that illusionist is there, we have no chance of winning."

"Alright then, Sister Zhu Nie, give everyone a full heal, and then Xiao Ji, activate full stun."

Yuuki saw Sorin's reply, thought about it carefully and found it made sense, then typed out this line. Standing in the middle of the crowd, Yuuki nodded silently, then waved her arms to transfer the runes around her to one place, and then those runes exploded in a series of explosions.

A tremendous roar echoed throughout the street, and in the next moment, all the sounds seemed to vanish, except for Xiao Ji's childish voice, which still resonated here.

"Total silence!"

307. Mission accomplished? No, not at all.