Aomori and the others easily reached the next town. The few monsters they encountered along the way often died in under two seconds; there were simply too many players, and not enough Monsters to go around.
Aomori only took action once during the journey, but the Sword Ki that left his blade immediately stunned all the players. Their enthusiasm and support for Aomori rose even higher.
Next, in the town, Aomori selected 946 technically skilled players who were willing to enter the Labyrinth Area, based on their desires. The remaining 2,156 players would form the logistics team, preparing food, potions, equipment, and other supplies for the conquest group.
In SAO, a party could hold a maximum of six people, and eight parties could combine to form a forty-eight-person raid group.
Aomori allowed the 946 players to form groups freely, resulting in 162 regular parties and 22 raid groups. He himself formed a single-person army and did not join anyone else's party—not because he wanted to monopolize the experience, but because it truly was unnecessary.
After dividing the groups, and before dismissing them, Aomori pointed to a towering shadow outside that pierced the clouds. "That is the Labyrinth Area of the first floor. We will be conquering it tomorrow. Everyone, eat well, sleep well tonight, and prepare thoroughly."
"Yes, sir!"
…
The next day, the 946 players were fully prepared, led by Aomori as they rushed to the Labyrinth Area.
As they were all elites, their marching speed was significantly faster than the night before. It only took them two hours to reach the entrance of the Labyrinth Area.
"Although many of you participated in the beta test and possess more experience than others, I still must emphasize caution and prudence in all matters, as this is the official launch, and version differences may cause some discrepancies," Aomori stressed.
Kirito, standing at the front of the line, nodded in agreement. As a veteran player, he naturally knew this, and since Kayaba Akihiko had completely taken over the death game, it was possible he had added new traps.
"Alright, let's begin." Several players pushed open the great doors of the Labyrinth Area. They revealed an archaic, dilapidated passage, and deep within the tunnel, a pair of crimson eyes.
"It's a Kobold!" a player shouted.
Kirito took a deep breath and took the lead, rushing into the labyrinth. He rapidly closed in on a filthy Kobold wielding a wooden club, and the sword in his hand began to glow blue.
Kirito was about to use a Sword Skill to take out the Kobold when a purple lightning bolt flashed past him, moving faster than he could react. When he focused his eyes, the Kobold in front of him was already decapitated, its body shattering into polygons and disappearing.
The few distant Kobolds could not avoid the same fate.
Two monster partners named Absol and Pidgeotto zipped past the stunned Kirito one after the other.
"Is this his true power? A speed my naked eye can't even perceive. He's genuinely strong," Kirito sighed. Only when Klein caught up did he move forward with him.
The corridors of the labyrinth were intricate and complex, divided into many small sub-levels.
Using Mind's Eye and his superhuman speed, Aomori was the first to locate the boss room deep inside the 20th floor.
Because most of the Monsters along the way had been killed by Aomori, many managed to rush forward before the Monsters could respawn, gathering in front of the boss room without any major incident.
Conquering the boss did not require this many people. Aomori selected the 47 people who arrived at the boss room the earliest to form a 48-person raid group. He then opened the double doors of the room first and walked in.
The boss was a giant, two-meter-tall Kobold wielding a scimitar, named "Illfang the Kobold Lord." He was accompanied by three Ruin Kobold Sentinels wearing metal armor and carrying polearms.
'The scene so far is the same as I remember. If I recall correctly, this boss has four HP bars. Every time one is reduced, three more Ruin Kobold Sentinels will respawn. He has a total of twelve small mobs to be defeated.'
Kirito thought, pinching his chin. Just as he was about to share this information, he saw Aomori walk toward the boss alone and say, "You all stay here and don't move. Watch closely. I will defeat him quickly."
"That's too reckless, going alone!" Kirito couldn't help but call out.
Aomori didn't answer; he chose to respond with action.
'Thunder Breathing First Form: Activate!'
Fine purple lightning crackled on his skin. Aomori instantly vanished from his spot, reappearing behind the Kobold boss. Tons of blood spurted from its neck, and its first HP bar immediately dropped by more than half.
"So fast! So powerful!" The onlookers were stunned.
"Hrrrrooooo!" The Kobold boss seemed furious, signaling its three minions to attack Aomori.
Aomori responded with a 360-degree spinning slash. The three minions' HP bars immediately dropped to zero, and they shattered into fragments. The Kobold boss also lost its first HP bar. It roared and re-summoned three more minions.
But the watching Kirito and the others already knew the battle was over.
As expected, the Kobold boss couldn't even damage Aomori with its unexpected wide-range attack, Vortex, which it used during its red-HP state. It could only collapse to the ground, howling.
"It's over?" Everyone felt a sense of unreality. Did we just clear the first floor? From entering the labyrinth to completing the conquest, it had only taken less than three hours.
"Leader Aomori is too incredible!"
"Hooray! We're definitely getting out of here!"
Amidst the cheers, Aomori stood up from the Kobold boss's corpse. The Tattered Tracksuit he was wearing suddenly transformed into a black leather greatcoat.
"Huh, why did Leader Aomori's clothes change?"
"Uh, it must be the boss drop item."
The few players exchanged glances. They didn't feel dissatisfied that Aomori monopolized the spoils, as he had defeated the boss entirely by himself.
In contrast, Kirito next to them looked like he had suffered a deep bereavement.
"Hey, Kirito, why the long face? You should be happy right now!" Klein walked over and clapped Kirito's back.
"I don't know, I just feel like I lost something really important," Kirito said, clutching his slightly aching chest.
"?"
Aomori hadn't expected to be able to equip the Coat of Midnight. He had only tried it as an experiment, and now he couldn't take it off; it had bound itself to Aomori upon equipping.
'It's just a coat. Kirito shouldn't mind, right?'
With the boss defeated, the restriction on the room was lifted. The players who hadn't waited long outside were all smiles upon hearing the news of the successful conquest, and they accompanied Aomori to the second floor.
Soon, the news that Aomori had led the players to clear the first floor Labyrinth Area without a single casualty spread to the Town of Beginnings, circulating throughout the entire player community.
Many players were suddenly awakened to reality and rushed to the second floor to cling to Aomori's coattails. Others stood their ground, silently leveling up by slaying Monsters, relying on themselves to reach the higher floors.
And among them, a player named Heathcliff successfully infiltrated Aomori's team.