A journey to another world starting from a sword

“What about… the fallen elves on the road?” he asked.

"After some effort, it's all resolved." Standing by the roadside, Mitt crossed his arms and said, "Well, it was originally at the level of a level 7 elite monster."

That makes sense; the Fallen Elves couldn't possibly have temporarily transferred troops from above. They must be soldiers stationed on this level.

Upon hearing Mitt's words, the bound Kaissara lowered her eyes, as if mourning her fallen comrade.

After noticing this, Mitt nodded at her. "Don't blame us, you guys were the ones who attacked first, after all."

“I know.” Kaisara nodded, then closed her eyes. “I never expected such an accident to happen.”

The unexpected thing she was referring to was not being able to defeat Dante immediately. This was her mistake and misjudgment, so this sacrifice was her responsibility.

"Speaking of which, where is Argo?" Dante looked around. Most of the guild members were there, except for one person.

“I heard that Argo and I parted ways temporarily when she arrived in Reccio. She said she would be there soon when I messaged her just now,” Asuna explained.

Just then, they suddenly heard the sound of horses neighing in the distance.

This was a sound that shouldn't have come on this road. At first, I thought it was someone riding a horse, but then I heard the sound of wheels rolling over the road, which completely dispelled my mistaken guess.

A luxurious carriage in a modern style sped towards Asuna from the direction she had come from. One of the two people sitting in the front seat was indeed Argo.

The other person... appears to be a maid wearing a long black dress and a white apron?!

Just as I was thinking this, as I got closer, I realized that the other person was actually equipped with a black breastplate on their chest, and their skirt was reinforced with arrow-shaped metal plates sewn into lines. Their gloves and boots were also armored, and they wore a rapier on their left waist. However, unlike Asuna's, the other person's was a thrusting rapier without a blade, a type of armor-piercing rapier.

The overall style of her outfit is similar to that of a battle maid, which is as fresh and eye-catching as the battle nuns in some anime or games.

"Oh, looks like you're alright," Argo shouted as he stood up from the carriage.

"Thanks to you," Dante shouted back.

"Meow hahaha..." Argo's distinctive laughter could be heard from a great distance.

As the carriage approached, it slowed down and finally came to a stop in front of them. Argo jumped down first.

Then the maid also got off the carriage, looking very proper and composed. She must serve a noble family.

Then she walked straight toward Dante. For some reason, even though there were other people around, she immediately fixed her gaze on him, stopped two meters away, bowed, and said, "My master would like to talk to you about the attack on the road."

"Qiou," that's the name on the yellow cursor.

Then her master must be the "Lord of the Night".

Chapter 152: One Must Not Be Rude

"Who is your master?" Kizmel stepped in front of Dante and asked the maid named Kio.

"The head of the Kutui family, Miss Nirunier, is also one of the two major families that control the Worubda Casino, and she is a descendant of the hero Faruhari," Kio introduced with a proud and excited expression.

Upon hearing the name "Farulhari," Kizmel's eyes widened slightly, as if he had heard some incredible news. He then asked without changing his expression, "So, who sent the Fallen Elves to attack Dante and the others?"

Just as Kizmel was questioning Kio, Asuna whispered in Dante's ear, "Who is Farulhari? That name sounds familiar."

With a slight glance, Dante tilted his head slightly and whispered in Asuna's small earlobe, "The original wielder of the Sword of Vorbuda was also a dragon slayer."

"Ah!" Asuna exclaimed softly, her ears turning slightly red. She remembered that the background information for "The Sword of Worubda" mentioned that Faruhal used this sword to slay a dragon.

At the same time, Kio also respectfully answered Kizmel's question: "He is a fallen elf hired by Badan, the current head of the Korroy family."

“I see.” Kizmel nodded knowingly, then looked at Dante and Asuna. “Dante, Asuna, if it’s the Kurtuy family, there shouldn’t be any problem.”

“Then let’s go see them briefly,” Dante nodded in agreement.

“There was never any problem to begin with…” Argo muttered to himself, putting his hands behind his head.

“Just in case, I’ll come along too.” Kizil put one hand on his hip and smiled as he looked at them.

"And what about this elf?" Asuna pointed to the prisoner guarded by dark elf soldiers next to her.

Because they look very strong—no, really strong—and their identity seems unusual, if we don't send them back properly, something might happen on the way.

“Yes.” Kizmel also noticed the problem.

“Why don’t we take Kaisara to your place first, and then go see Miss Nyrunel together?” Dante suggested, glancing at Kismer and Kio.

He was also worried that without Kizmel's guard, if a fallen elf came to kidnap people, these ordinary soldiers would probably have a hard time resisting, and would needlessly add a powerful enemy to his ranks.

So why don't they go together, and after they're delivered, then head to Worubuda?

“No problem. There will be carriages waiting outside Worubuda for the next three hours. Please take one of those carriages to enter the city,” Qiao said, bowing slightly.

“Alright.” Kizmel nodded with a smile, then looked at Dante, his smile wide and cheerful. “Then I’ll leave it to you.”

Then Kismer's HP bar, along with his name, reappeared in Dante and Asuna's party.

The guild members had no objections and were quite interested in being able to visit the Dark Elf city on this level a little earlier.

During these five days of free time, everyone else had already progressed the Spirit quest to the sixth level. However, Dante and Asuna, as the support characters, clearly felt that their quests were somewhat different from their own. It was probably because the results of certain branch choices led to completely different outcomes.

In reality, Kizmel had no doubt that players were still repeatedly searching for the keys on the lower levels. According to her previous explanation, to cover up the Knights' true activities of collecting the keys, the Dark Elves continuously sent out small teams to retrieve the keys on each level, and then the priests would place fake ones on top. As for whether Dante and his group actually obtained the real ones...

All I can say is that what each player received was both fake and real.

They are now in the middle of the Path of Favorability, and the distance from here to the "Harin Tree Palace" is roughly the same as the distance to "Recusio" and "Worubuda".

Aside from crossing a river that flows from the northernmost mountainous region, passes through the grassland on the eastern side of the middle of the seventh level, and finally flows into the sea facing "Wolubuda" at the southernmost point.

Because the bridge was on the main road, they chose to take a shortcut through the grassland. So, to solve the problem of how to cross the river, Kizmel took out the special item "Veluri's Drop" that they had used on the sixth floor.

This is a wonderful item that allows players to walk on water. Of course, it only allows you to walk; you can't run or fight on the river, or you'll sink.

They didn't encounter any fools trying to rescue the prisoners along the way, and the monsters that spawned were easily killed by Kizil, who was clearing the way ahead.

Harlin Tree Palace is a city or castle built from a magnificent ancient tree that was hollowed out. However, they did not go inside. After the astonished guards asked their superiors inside for permission, a team of fully armed dark elf knights came out. Their ostentatious display even made Kizmel give Dante and Asuna a small sneer.

"I never thought you'd end up like this," the leading knight said coldly to Kaissara.

“There’s no point in saying more.” Kaisara lowered her eyes, not intending to say anything more, or perhaps there was nothing to say.

But before the knights led her away, she suddenly turned back to look at Dante, "Human swordsman..."

She paused here, her slender eyebrows twitching slightly.

"You are very strong. But stop interfering in the conflicts among the elves. This is my advice to you."

“If I have the chance, I’ll visit you in prison.” Completely disregarding this advice, Dante raised his hand and shook it.

According to Kizil, Kaisara, who was captured alive, will not be executed, but will likely be imprisoned in the Harim Tree Palace underground prison for an indefinite period.

When they meet again in the future, Dante will probably be able to defeat his opponent very easily.

Feeling much better, Kizmel traveled with Dante and the others, heading south towards Worubda. As for why there was a road connecting the dark elf city to the human city, it was likely due to some trade between the two.

And when Dante asked everyone if they wanted to go visit the Nakutui family...

"We definitely have to go check it out, there's probably no chance like this again," Lisbeth casually remarked, echoing everyone's thoughts.

If it weren't for the easy passage of the southward winds, they might not have returned to the city of Worubuda even after reaching the upper levels.

Conversely, the northward headwind route passes through mountainous areas. Agil, who had temporarily returned to Reccio two days ago to visit Liz's weapon shop, said that it took them two whole days to reach Tolibra Village at the end of the northern section. Currently, they are actively leveling up in the labyrinth area.

We should be able to meet each other at tomorrow's strategy meeting, as well as the new guild Linde has established. That guy Ya Wang is unlikely to be there, but I wonder if we'll see any new faces. It would be even better if new people joined; fresh blood is something to be happy about.

Before even entering, you can see two luxurious carriages parked in the suburbs, with white horses grazing on the lush green grass.

Kio, dressed as a battle maid, stood respectfully in front of the carriage, waiting for them.

"I have already reported your situation to my mistress, Miss Nirunier. Now I will take you directly to see her."

There were two carriages, one of which could fit about six people. Dante, Asuna, Argo, Kizmel, and Kio then boarded the first carriage.

As the carriage slowly moved along the clean, smooth road, the soft sound of the wheels seemed to massage the ears, and the midday sun shining through the glass made one drowsy.

Argo and Kio sat on one side, and seeing that Asuna was very interested, Dante considerately sat in the middle, letting her and Kizmel sit by the windows on either side so they could see the scenery from this novel angle.

"I've taken a carriage ride in Venice before," Asuna said, her gaze shifting from the window to the inside. She gently tugged at Dante's clothes, happily sharing her experience.

“Venice? Is that the city where Dante and Asuna were born?” Kizmel asked curiously from the far right.

“Hometown… I don’t think that counts.” Asuna was taken aback by Kismer’s question.

“It’s a city in another country,” Dante explained with a smile. “It’s roughly the same style as Robia, but much larger. However…”

“I never expected to be able to ride in a carriage,” he said to Asuna in surprise.

"Actually, many old cities have horse-drawn carriage tours, including Tokyo, although they're not horse-drawn carriages," Argo said with a grin.

As if a memory had been stirred, Asuna covered her mouth and chuckled softly, "Ah—it was the rickshaw in front of Senso-ji Temple, wasn't it?"

When I was in elementary school, I went to Senso-ji Temple to worship. My mother and I rode together to the Tokyo Skytree next door, while my father and brother rode in another vehicle. It seemed that many of the people pulling the vehicles were college students working part-time. My mother asked me about it casually at the time, and she only remembered that the hydrangeas by the roadside were very beautiful.

"Asakusa Temple... I'll visit it sometime in the future," Dante said.

"What? Dante, you haven't been there yet?" Argo retorted, then grinned mischievously. "I'll take you there sometime."

"I wish we could all worship together during the New Year," Asuna said, her eyes filled with longing, as she clasped her hands together.

However, his face immediately fell, wondering how many years it would take to realize this idea.

This year, because of what happened just a few days before Christmas, no one was in the mood to celebrate. We had a big meal together that night, and then wished each other a Happy New Year the next day, and that was it.

She didn't eat soba noodles or festive dishes. Besides, there doesn't seem to be anywhere to eat these things in Aincrad. Asuna decided that she would prepare these things herself for the next New Year.

"Going to Senso-ji Temple for the New Year?!" Argo suddenly seemed startled, shaking his head rapidly, his tone somewhat exaggerated, "Argo, are you serious?"

"There are too many people." Dante nodded understandingly. He knew after a little thought that it was a very famous temple, especially during the New Year. People from all over the country and even abroad must have come specifically for it.

However... Mito's family runs a shrine, right? I might as well go to her house to pray during the New Year. He thought to himself as he listened to Asuna and Argo's argument.

Although she couldn't understand some of what was being said, Kizmel kept smiling and watching Asuna. Kio, sitting next to Argo, kept her eyes closed, seemingly not intending to participate, but her ears twitched slightly; she was probably quite interested too.

When the carriage arrived at the Grand Casino of Worubda, Asuna stopped chatting with Argo and looked outside. "Are we really sure it's alright to go in from here?"

“Don’t worry, we’ll go in through the side door. There are people already there, it’s very discreet,” Qiao said, opening her eyes. “Let’s head to the restaurant on the third floor first. Miss Nirunier is waiting for you there. The others can have a meal while they’re there.”

The others she was referring to were probably people who didn't intend to participate in the mission. The premise of sharing a mission is that it takes place in a small team, and a full team consists of six people. In the end, some people will not be able to accept the mission.

However, the mission can be shared by joining a party along the way. Argo had planned to do so a few days ago. So Dante and Asuna discussed it and decided to let the others go to eat first. It was a rare opportunity to enjoy fine cuisine at a high-class restaurant. Although they didn't ask, they didn't think the other party would charge them. This was a rare chance to get something for free.

After getting off the carriage, Dante and his companions followed Chio down an unfamiliar path, making countless turns, but the stairs were indeed three stories high, and the ground was covered with a brightly colored red carpet.

Argo walked in front, his footsteps pattering as he passed through the long corridor. The string music playing on the second floor was now completely inaudible. After walking for a long time in the dark corridor, which was so quiet that they could hear their own breathing, they finally stopped in front of a door.

"Please hand over the items at your waist for safekeeping." After nodding to the servant at the door, Qiao turned and bowed to Dante and the others.

Should we hand over our weapons?

Since Dante's weapon was already damaged, he had no weapon to give up, so he put the katana he had obtained back into his backpack.

Players can take out a new weapon from their inventory at any time, so he didn't know whether the other party's request was just a formality or serious.

“Okay.” Asuna nodded in agreement, then took her beloved sword from her waist and handed it over.

The maid quickly took the sword, then pulled it halfway out to examine the blade, muttering under her breath, "Ordinary steel?"

It wouldn't be wrong to say that the sword forged from the melted ingots of the Windflower Sword was made of ordinary steel.

She hung Asuna's rapier on a nearby hook, took a step back, and said, "You must not be rude to Miss Nerunel."

After giving these instructions, Qiao stood in front of the door and gently pushed it open.

A pleasant fragrance wafted over, probably from an air freshener or something similar. It was a refreshing, slightly sweet fruity scent, mixed with a hint of red wine.

Chapter 153: Nyrunier

Stepping into the room is like stepping from day into night.

The windows were completely covered by luxurious and heavy velvet curtains, and the only source of light was a dim oil lamp, although a little light from the corridor refracted in after the door was opened.

The rooms inside were even more luxurious than the platinum suite at the "Amber Moon Inn" where they were currently staying, with furniture and decorations of styles they had never seen before.

A sofa large enough for five people to sit comfortably was placed in front of the curtains, and the person they were going to meet was sitting on the sofa.

Due to the lighting, only the outline can be seen, but it is clearly quite petite.

As you get a little closer, the light streaming in from the doorway reveals that she's wearing a black summer dress made of layers of sheer fabric, whether it's tulle or glass gauze, with her exposed calves dangling in the air like white porcelain immersed in an icy spring.

Beneath her pale, gossamer-thin skin, pale blue veins were clearly visible to Dante's extraordinary vision. Her toenails, painted with nail polish resembling congealed bloodstains, cast afterimages against the backdrop of the deep red carpet as she moved.

Upon getting closer, I noticed that her arms were also exposed. Her exposed hands and feet were so white, and her wavy blonde hair was so luxurious, that she looked like a porcelain doll for a moment.

At this moment, the other party was sitting casually on a cushion stacked several times. She looked like a girl of about twelve years old, but she had an amazing beauty that combined innocence and allure.