To be honest, ever since Kayaba Akihiko revealed himself, Kirito had been worried about being trapped in the game—but he'd never fallen into true panic.
During the beta test, they had cleared up to the eighth floor of Aincrad's Sky Tower in just a month.
Kirito originally thought that, with hundreds of times more players in the official launch, the game would surely be cleared even faster.
But to his shock, in just one month nearly a thousand players had died, and no progress had been made in the main quest.
Compared to the beta, the labyrinth's layout had changed, and the location of the floor boss room was different. It was only today that Diabel finally discovered it.
That might explain why progress was so slow, but Kirito believed the real problem lay in the players' mentality.
If Diabel could lead them to victory against the first floor boss, morale would soar. But if they failed…
Then the players, already fearful of the labyrinth, would likely lose the courage to even attempt another raid.
In the worst case, they could remain stuck on the first floor for months… or even longer.
"It's hard to say. Sure, the newbie guide does have some intel about the first-floor kobold boss.
But compared to the beta, the location of the boss room has changed. Who knows if its skills and mechanics have changed too?
And then there's today—you saw that idiot Kibaou. Before the fight even began, he was already stirring up trouble between players. With that kind of disunity, how can we fight as one?
As for Diabel, I don't think he's just a nice guy.
Rallying everyone for a boss raid doesn't just boost morale—it's also his chance to build a name for himself.
If we manage to defeat the very first floor boss, we'll be the pioneers. And as the leader, he'll gain a reputation that will make recruiting followers much easier."
Seiya's blunt analysis left both Kirito and Asuna agreeing with much of it, but still uneasy.
Why did this guy, who looked their age, always seem to think like a scheming adult?
Kirito: (▽｀) "We literally grew up wearing the same pants, and now you're putting on airs in front of me?"
Asuna: (￣￣) "Judging from his introduction earlier, he's actually a year younger than me, isn't he?"
And yet here she was, a high schooler, being lectured like a kid by two middle schoolers. She was furious!
"In any case, if things go south, the three of us can just go it alone!
It's just one floor boss. The three of us should be able to handle it.
If it weren't for the fact we couldn't find the boss room, we'd have soloed that kobold long ago."
Seiya's arrogant tone left Asuna utterly speechless.
Sure, she was a newbie, but with her quick learning and adaptability, she had already grasped the basics of the game in a short time.
Even so, she often struggled against ordinary monsters of her level. So how could Seiya talk about soloing a boss so casually?
Was he just arrogant—or did he really have the strength to back it up?
It didn't take long for her to find out.
The raid meeting was set for two days later, so all teams could train and build coordination.
Since Asuna was a new teammate, Seiya suggested they hunt monsters together to improve their synergy.
And in those two days, Asuna came to realize something shocking.
Seiya's words about soloing the boss? They weren't bragging at all.
Her two teammates were absolute monsters!
She had seen solo combat before—since she often fought alone herself.
But Seiya and Kirito's solo battles completely shattered her understanding.
Instead of light training, they took her straight into areas swarming with the strongest monsters on the floor.
Not only did they take on higher-level enemies, they fought multiple monsters at once—dancing through deadly strikes as though it were second nature.
It was like watching people literally dance on the edge of a blade.
The craziest part? On the second day, after warming her up the first day, they dragged her into a fight with a field boss—an enemy stronger than them in both level and stats!
And instead of backing down, they used it as a lesson—teaching her the mechanics of switching aggro mid-fight.
A field boss wasn't as powerful or unique as a floor boss, but it was still nothing ordinary players could handle—let alone as a level disadvantage.
Yet, under Seiya and Kirito's guidance, the "unbeatable" boss was worn down and slain by the three of them.
And Asuna, as the one who landed the final blow, gained a huge amount of experience, leveling up and receiving a special rapier named Fei Xing ("Flying Star").
From that moment on, she understood: these two weren't ordinary players at all—they were top-tier.
Especially Seiya. His reflexes and skill were beyond human.
Whenever she slipped up while still learning the switching mechanic, it was always Seiya who covered for her.
The so-called "Saint"? He wasn't just rich—his strength was godlike.
Two days flew by, and Seiya's team met up with the other raid groups at the labyrinth entrance as planned.
Compared to the cloaked figure from two days ago, Asuna now stood with long chestnut hair flowing down to her waist, clad in tight leather armor, with the rapier Flying Star at her side—radiating the presence of a true swordswoman.
She had hidden beneath a cloak before because she didn't want trouble, and because she didn't trust others.
After all, in this game world, there were no police. It was truly lawless.
(End of Chapter)
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