After the Great Feast, the players' enthusiasm was even higher, and Aomori's Boss Raid Team continued to steadily clear the floors.
Finally, on February 14, 2023, Valentine's Day, Aomori and the five others stood before the doors of the Hundredth Floor Boss Room.
"At last, we've arrived."
The five youngsters couldn't hide their excitement.
"Are you ready? For the final boss raid?"
"Ready!"
The six people placed their hands on the large door and pushed in unison.
With a deep creak, the final door slowly opened.
Outside the dungeon, nearly 9,000 players silently offered their prayers.
"Please, you must succeed!"
…
"This place is..."
Aomori and the others entered the boss room and found themselves in an open-air arena.
Surrounding them were eight colossal, towering statues. They were male and female, some holding swords, others shields, some bows, and some halberds, but they shared one common feature: a pair of wings behind their backs.
"Welcome to the Pantheon Arena. This is the final stage." A familiar figure appeared at another entrance across the arena.
"Heathcliff-san, why are you here?"
"Idiot, he's not just Heathcliff, he's Kayaba Akihiko!"
"I should have known earlier." Kirito transformed into a detective, delivering his deduction: "Since the beginning of this world, I've had one question: where were you observing us and adjusting the game, Kayaba Akihiko-san? But at that time, I overlooked a very simple truth, which is that no one can stand by and watch others play an RPG without giving in to the urge to play themselves."
"Therefore, you must be somewhere in this world, wearing a disguise, both playing cosplay and watching us desperately struggle. That mutated boss on the Fifth Floor was also your doing, wasn't it?"
Clap, clap, clap!
Heathcliff—no, Kayaba Akihiko, applauded and praised, "Originally, I didn't need to rush to make adjustments then, but unfortunately..."
"Unfortunately, Leader Aomori was present. I initially thought Leader Aomori was you, but that changed my mind on the Fifth Floor," Kirito interrupted.
"Because no one would go to the trouble of testing themselves."
"Exactly."
"But I was not without reward." Kayaba smiled. "It was then that I confirmed the person I had been searching for all along. I've waited a long time for you, Aomori."
Aomori slowly walked to the center of the arena, hooked his finger at Kayaba Akihiko, and said bluntly, "Come and fight. If you lose, I'll tell you everything. If I win, I'll take everything you have!"
"Very fair." Kayaba nodded, taking a step toward Aomori.
"Wait, I'm coming to help too!" Kirito shouted.
"Kirito, regrettably, your opponent is not me."
"What?"
"Kirito, watch out!"
Kirito suddenly spun around, only to see a pained expression on Asuna's face and her HP rapidly dropping. His heart lurched, and he rushed to hold her. "Asuna!"
"PoH! What are you doing!" Agil and Nautilus surrounded him.
"Hahahaha! Didn't see that coming, did you? I'm a killer, a killer in real life! I originally wanted to kill Leader Aomori, but I couldn't do it; Leader Aomori is too strong, and the hope of assassinating him was too slim. So, I had to put my sights on Kirito."
PoH laughed wildly, his expression becoming manic. "Killing Asuna is a decent substitute. Look at your faces of grief—it's superb. Killing a boss really isn't as satisfying as killing people."
"PoH!" Kirito used all his recovery potions on Asuna, but it was no use. He glared at PoH and shouted, "Hand over the antidote now!"
"Apologies, there is no antidote. My dagger was laced with a deadly poison that kills upon drawing blood. Just lick... I'm kidding, how could I lick it? Hahahaha..." PoH shamelessly teased Kirito.
"Damn you! You bastard!" Agil was furious, raising his giant mace and smashing it toward PoH. Nautilus simultaneously launched an attack.
"Asuna..."
"Kirito, I don't regret it." Asuna raised a hand to stroke Kirito's face. "I don't regret secretly using my brother's NerveGear. I don't regret entering SAO. And I don't regret meeting you..."
"No!"
Asuna dissipated in his arms, and Kirito fell into a deathly silence.
"Not going to help them? You truly are a cold person too, aren't you?" Kayaba said, looking at the expressionless Aomori.
"Kirito will handle it. My only opponent is you." Aomori drew his two swords. Lightning and holy light surfaced on his body, and he immediately activated the Thunder Breathing Second Form!
PoH, fighting two-on-one, was actually suppressing Agil and Nautilus. "Didn't see this coming either, did you? I was the first one to figure out Kayaba Akihiko's identity, because those all-knowing eyes of his were too obvious. I made a deal with him. Now, I'm a max-level account too!"
"What?!"
Just as Asuna vanished, Agil and Nautilus were struck back toward Kirito, losing their fighting power.
"I'm sorry, Kirito. He's simply too strong."
"It's alright. Let me finish him!" Kirito pulled out a blue crystal wrapped in a metal casing and clicked to use it. The deceased Asuna actually resurrected, standing vibrantly before them.
"How is that possible!" PoH was utterly shocked by the sight.
"Kirito, wasn't I dead?" Asuna was also confused.
"It's a revival potion. I saved you with a revival potion." Kirito pulled Asuna into a hug and said, "Asuna, you stay here and watch how I defeat him!"
"Okay!"
"You want to defeat me? I'm a max-level man." PoH remained fully confident. The feeling of possessing power and being able to arbitrarily control the lives of others was simply too fantastic.
Kirito, wielding Elucidator in one hand and Dark Repulser in the other, charged directly at PoH and unleashed the 16-hit Dual Blades high-level Sword Skill—
"Starburst Stream!"
The max-level attributes of PoH certainly gave him a huge advantage. He blocked every one of Kirito's strikes.
"Too bad. You're still not fast enough. If you had Leader Aomori's speed, I would have died long ago."
"Not fast enough? Then I'll go faster!" Kirito was not discouraged. He attacked with one slash after another, each one faster than the last. PoH's expression changed.
"Haaa! Not enough! I have to be even faster!"
Kirito's inner potential burst forth, pushing past his limit, and he unleashed the 27-hit Dual Blades ultimate high-level Sword Skill—Eclipse!
The fully realized visual effect of the sword light momentarily blurred PoH's eyes. Kirito seized the opportunity, landing over twenty consecutive strikes on his body, sending him flying backward to be embedded in one of the statues of the gods.
"N... no... this can't… be…" The wicked PoH dissipated in regret.
"Whew!" Kirito, exhausted, went limp and was caught by Asuna.
"I killed him." Taking a life was a significant psychological burden for the 15-year-old Kirito.
"Kirito..." Asuna held him tightly, shaking her head vigorously. "You did it for me. It's not your fault. Besides, in that situation, you couldn't have held back."
"Don't worry, Asuna. I'm not that fragile." Kirito took a deep breath, gently patting Asuna's back, and said, "Let's get up. Leader Aomori might still need our help."
"Yes!"
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You can read the ahead chapter on Patr if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]