A journey to another world starting from a sword

But there was nothing that could be done about it. Leafa had almost never participated in any public boss battles because of her level. She was only known for her elven appearance. There were even rumors that the hidden reward for large-scale quests was that the King of the Forest Elves would grant her the magic to become an elf. This led to a significant increase in the number of players from lower levels joining the Forest Elves' faction.

On the other hand, Koharu didn't have any special achievements. At most, she just gave people the impression of being a "cute girl." Compared to Silica, whose short sword skills were not as good as Koharu's, she won the more resounding title of "Dragon Tamer" with her winged dragon.

The area around level 40 is mostly cold wilderness, with protruding rock walls dividing the terrain into a maze-like shape, making it impossible to see what lies ahead.

Running side by side with Yuna across the wilderness, Koharu gazed at the back of the rapier leading the way.

"What's wrong?" Leafa asked curiously.

"I'm thinking," Xiaochun said in a low voice, "What's the other person's name?"

"Huh?" Yuna tilted her head to the other side.

"Look, the enemy is fighting in the maze on the front lines, so they must be part of the raiding team, but I don't think I've ever seen them before..." Xiaochun pointed ahead.

“But there are over a hundred people in the strategy team... It’s impossible for them to know them all.” Leafa didn’t think so, after all, their guild’s schedule was adjusted according to Dante, so it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it was both in-depth and easy to understand.

"..." But soon, the two exchanged a glance and fell silent. Yuna tilted her head, seemingly puzzled.

Argo often shares interesting stories and news about players during meals, including some rather dark events.

"We're almost there! Everyone, hurry up!" Nochiras, the team leader, shouted, and the entire team sped up their running pace.

Yuna and the other two hurriedly followed, while Nochiras subtly glanced behind him to confirm the figure of his childhood friend.

When he was forming a team, he was surprised to find that Yuna was already level 40. Apparently, she occasionally joined random teams in lower levels, or she would solo or play with friends.

However, this cannot be achieved through half-hearted efforts.

Yuna seems to be serious about wanting to join the raid group. He plans to have a serious talk with her afterward and maybe he can persuade her to join the "Knights of the Blood Oath" with him.

The wilderness labyrinth that trapped the swordsman's companions is also the ruins of a prison.

However, instead of prisoners, the creatures inside are monsters that roam freely.

Perhaps the monsters along the road had already been cleared out, because the group only encountered two attacks along the way, both of which were from goblin-type monsters.

The rescue team easily defeated these small monsters and reached the central area of ​​the maze. Only a few minutes had passed since they set off from the west gate, which was incredibly fast.

The spacious passage ahead was blocked by sturdy iron railings, from which came shouts from players and roars from monsters, mixed with the familiar clanging of metal—the sounds of battle.

"Still alive!" The swordsman excitedly ran towards the cage.

The cage was a large space, resembling a blood-soaked, steel-themed arena. Six players were fighting against a roughly equal number of demi-humanoid monsters on the open ground—a type of prison-type monster unique to this level.

At the farthest point of the cage, against the wall, a huge black shadow two meters high can be seen. It should be a mini-boss monster, which is why this player team has been unable to escape for so long.

Just dealing with the constantly spawning Boss guards is already a struggle, and the mechanism to open the cage door is right behind the Boss.

Fortunately, the boss inside hasn't made a move yet, otherwise the delicate balance would have been immediately broken. However, in the current situation, it's only a matter of time before the scales of victory completely tip to the other side, perhaps due to running out of supplies, or perhaps due to a mistake caused by mental fatigue at some point.

"Where is the trap...?" Nochiras didn't see any monsters that could cast "Silence." Torturers were common monsters.

Upon hearing this, a giant from the Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain faction behind him, wearing a red headscarf, whispered, "They've probably been defeated. By the way, the prerequisite for us to go in and rescue them is that they get close to the Boss and then we find an opportunity to pull the lever."

“If the other side can’t do it, we can’t get involved at all.” Another gaunt member of Fenglinhuoshan nodded in agreement.

“Then let’s defeat the Boss,” Nochiras said. These fences have a time limit for opening, and there is still a risk in escaping completely while being chased by the Boss and his minions. It’s better to eliminate that risk here.

"Really?" "I've never fought a Boss before."

The players behind him who weren't part of the strategy group were in an uproar.

Nochiras turned around and desperately explained, "It's okay, we have the advantage in numbers. The opponent is just a small maze boss, not that difficult to deal with. I and the two from Fenglin Huoshan will hold off the boss's attacks from the front, and the others can take the opportunity to attack the boss's side."

"Hey—we're here to rescue you!" the rapier shouted into the cage.

This situation left no room for hesitation, and they quickly agreed to Nochiras's proposal.

“We can fight too,” Leafa and Koharu stepped forward and said.

“I know, but… Yuna’s chanting skills are also very important. Could you please protect her?” Noziras said against his will. He deliberately ignored the two people in the “Eternal Garden” because he had his own ulterior motives.

No matter what, this is just a mini-boss, and it might drop rare items. The team he commands has a high probability of controlling the timing of the attack. But if these two join, he will probably be out of the picture. You know, "Eternal Garden" often holds command and takes LA.

Even if they use the LA prize money to roll the dice, who knows if they're hiding anything from each other?

Leafa paused for a moment, looked at Koharu and Yuna, and finally nodded in agreement with Nochiras's arrangement. Koharu placed her hand on her short sword and looked around.

Then, the six trapped people fought the monster while slowly moving along the wall.

It took several tens of seconds to move the battlefield to the iron fence, a distance of only a dozen meters, which shows how difficult the battle was.

Suddenly, a soft voice rang out; it was Yuna. Yuna picked up her exquisite lyre, and accompanied by soaring notes, a high-pitched song began to play.

The others didn't know what the "chanting" skill was, but everyone felt courage and hope from the song, as if a warm current was surging from the deepest part of their bodies.

-----------------

"Boss, when are we going to make our appearance?" A player wearing a tattered black raincoat called out jokingly from the shadows.

"Let's wait a bit longer, until the prey walks into the trap itself." The player known as "Head" had a twisted smile on his face. "I didn't expect Shasa to bring such a big prey."

"Haha, I can't wait to rush up to their faces and yell 'Surprise!'"

"Keep your voice down, Johnny."

“Yes~” Johnny Black, a player who had once infiltrated the Aincrad Alliance, shrugged, suppressing his excitement, and glanced back at the thirty or so people resting against the wall.

All of them wear tattered raincoats to conceal their identities; these are the members of the most powerful criminal guild, "Smiling Coffin."

The man standing at the very front of everyone was PoH, the extremely wicked person marked as a dangerous figure by all the guilds in the strategy group, and also an old acquaintance of Dante.

The others were less skilled at "stealth" than Johnny, so PoH kept them in the dark.

“That’s… a wind sprite.” Seeing the blonde girl in the crowd, PoH seemed to have aroused some interest. “Remember to use the recording crystal to film the scene of her tragic death. I want to give it to my old friend.”

When he said "friend," his tone was unusually deep, and one could faintly detect a hint of pleasure.

“That’s a great idea,” Johnny chuckled. “But just killing them is a bit too boring. How about we use their lives to blackmail them into stripping naked and kneeling down, boss?”

"Hmph, whatever." PoH didn't object. He liked chaos, which was why he allowed his subordinates to have fun.

Besides, it was just a trivial matter. Even if he looked down on such tasteless behavior, the fact that it could anger that man made him feel sweet.

PoH's fingers gently traced the wall, his knuckles bending, leaving a clear fingerprint.

He then said something that greatly boosted the morale of almost everyone behind him.

"Get ready, it's Show Time."