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KingofBeasts Productions Present:

K-Online!: A Sword Art Online/K-On! Crossover

Chapter 10: The Quarter Mile

Allon, 25th Floor. February 13, 2023.

"Did you remember to update your gear, Yui?"

"Yes, Asu-chan~!" Said brunette beamed with pride as she showed off her status screen, her equipment indeed optimized for the latest boss fight "I got all my best stuff on, like you said I should!"

"Good." Asuna nodded while patting the head of her energetic friend "Since you fight with a one-handed sword like Kirito-kun, you don't really need heavy armor. That stuff's for Taiga."

"She's right!" The aforementioned mace wielder tapped her chest with a grin "You can count on me to take all those hits like a boss!"

"That I don't doubt. That hard head of yours is probably an [Immortal Object] by now."

"Hey!" Taiga pouted much to the laughter of Asuna and Yui. It had been a month since they did the 'Swamp Jewel' quest, and they've been doing pretty well since then. They've contributed to the Clearing Group's success in getting past the 23rd and 24th floor in anyway they could, and as a result, gotten recognition.

It was then that Taiga noticed that Mio hadn't spoken the entire time. Instead, the black-haired bassist was immersed in her own thoughts, holding up the [Dragon's Sapphire] while thinking about her conversation with Klein after they had finished that quest a month before...

"A guild?"

Mio blinked in surprise as she heard Klein suggest that she form a guild.

"Yes, a guild." The scruffy leader of Fuurinkazan nodded with a grin "I think you'd make a great leader."

"H-h-hold on!" Mio waved off his idea vehemently with blushing cheeks "How am I a good leader? You saw me freak out there! I don't think good leaders should lose their cool under pressure! Besides..." she mumbled as an afterthought "Taiga would make be a better choice..."

"Hey, being the boss isn't always easy." Klein answered back with a grin "But the plan you came up with? We were able to beat him thanks to you!"

"Y-You..." Every misgiving Mio wished to air out was silenced immediately, disarmed by his reassuring words "You really think so?"

"Yeah, I do." He chuckled as he placed a hand on the shorter girl's head "Just think about it, alright?"

"Mio? Earth to Mio?"

"H-huh?" The blackette snapped out of it when she noticed that both Yui and Taiga were poking her cheeks relentlessly with childish expression on their faces "Will you guys stop that?!"

"There she is!"

"Calm down, you two." Asuna shook her head with disapproval while pinching both their cheeks, their whines of pain evident in the background. Satisfied with bringing the rambunctious ones to heel, she had turned to Mio "You alright? You seem pretty out of it today."

"I-I'm fine." The raven-haired bassist nodded slowly "It's just that I'm thinking about something Klein-kun said last month-"

"Did he ask you to marry him?!"

"Isn't that going too fast, Ricchan?!"

Neither were able to complete that thought as their heads were dealt concussive pain from the blackette's fist.

"Oww..."

"You can only blame yourselves." The strawberry blonde rapier-wielder shook her head before turning her attention to Mio "So, what did he say?"

"Uhm..." Though she didn't want to talk much about it, she could see that even Yui and Taiga were listening intently. At that, she smiled; despite their goofballish antics, those two were true friends who would still be willing to listen to whatever she had to say.

"So..." Mio took a deep breath before letting her thoughts out "What do you guys think about forming a guild?"

The Horse on the Prairie, same time.

"Knights of the Blood?"

Argo nodded at the query Brunhilde had asked. Recently, the blonde lancer had been seeing men clad in suits of white and red armor whose Guild banner was all red with a white sword on the foreground, the initials "K.O.B" illustrated underneath for all to see. One private message later, the matronly girl had decided to meet "The Rat" in this posh little pub to get some information.

"I don't have much information on those guys at the moment." The notorious info broker crossed her arms as she spoke "All I can tell you for now is that their [Leader] is recruiting. He's looking for some of the best clearers out there, so don't be surprised if you get an invitation, Valkyrie-san."

"I see..." Brunhilde nodded as she opened her inventory and opened up a trade window with Argo, offering her 1500 Col for her efforts "Thank you for the information, Argo-san."

"Anything for my best-paying customer~!" The Rat giggled as she took in her fee, which had bloated from the original 1000 Col price "I'll keep an ear out for those guys anyhow, since you're not the only one in town willing to pay for that kind of scoop!"

"Yes, I can imagine that." The blue-eyed pianist giggled as she made her out of the bar. Clad in a white top and a blue skirt, she walked along the town. It was then she began counting the blessings her masked persona gave her.

"Only Kirito-san has seen the Valkyrie without the mask, so to most people I'm just a face in the crowd." she noted as she stop in mid-walk to see a bakery window. Within were shelves adorned with all kinds of cakes, breads and sweets galore she knew that a certain group of girls would drool over.

"Everyone..." she thought sadly as she gazed longingly at the treats "I'm sorry. I thought I would have worked the courage by now. It looks like I'm still not ready to face you guys yet."

Deciding linger on those thoughts no longer, she turned her heel and continued walking, hoping to avoid any chance encounters with her bandmates and best friends.

Imagine her surprise when she bumped into a spiky haired boy around her age, causing him to stumble and land on his rear.

"Oh my!" she said as those huge blue eyes of hers widened even further as she hastily offered him a hand "I'm so sorry! Are you alright?!"

"It's not a problem." He chuckled as he accepted her offer and got to his feet with her help "'Sides, it's not everyday that I get knocked down by a cute girl!"

"My, you're quite the charmer, aren't you?" Brunhilde giggled as watched the young man beam at her with a wide grin.

"A lot of people have told me that." The guy nodded enthusiastically before hearing the tell-tale ping that signified that he got a private message. "Hmm..."

"What is it?"

"Looks like we gotta cut this little meeting short. I gotta meet with some of my party mates." He sighed deeply "Sorry I gotta leave a cute girl like you like this."

"It's no problem." Brunhilde giggled "We can meet again, right?"

"Sure." The guy nodded before turning about face and running the other way "By the way, I answer to Bandit in case you decide to look for me!"

As Bandit made his run, little did he realize that if he had turned back, he would see that Brunhilde had a really warm smile on her face.

"So, he's doing well for himself now...I'm glad."

"That's a great idea!"

"You really think so?" Mio blinked in surprise as Taiga and Yui nodded enthusiastically at the idea.

"Of course I think so!" Taiga affirmed rather forcefully shook her friend until she was dizzy "Imagine what we could achieve if we were a guild! We could do a whole lot more than what we're doing now!"

"Especially if Mio-chan's the leader!" Yui added with a huge grin.

"But...but..." The blackette attempted to voice her concerns "But are you okay with ME being the leader? You've always been the President of the Light Music Club, Ritsu..."

"Nah, I prefer being in the front and bashing things." Taiga waved off her concerns with a smile and a reassuring pat on the shoulder "'Sides, we could use an opposing voice to Kibaou's douchebaggery, and you and Asuna have always been vocal about your disapproval of him."

"That's quite true." The aforementioned girl nodded in agreement.

"Besides, we believe in you, Mio." Taiga and Yui gave her a big smile "So believe in us, who believes in you."

As Mio gazed at those loving smiles, she immediately was reminded of how grateful she is that, even in this hell, her loyal friends believed in her. It was with this mindset that she made up her mind.

"...Alright, I'll do it." She sighed, a signal that she gave in "Just let me draw up the paperwork, all right?"

"YATTA!" Taiga whooped excitedly "We're gonna be a guild!"

"And Mio-chan's gonna be the leader!"

"Okay, calm down guys! DON'T SHAKE ME SO MUCH!"

As Asuna watched the three celebrate, a smile that indicated the warmth she felt in her heart was evident. If one had looked closely, there was a tinge of sadness in that smile.

The Next Day, February 14, 2023.

"All right, time to kick the Boss's ass!"

"Don't get too cocky, Ritsu." Mio chided her friend as she and her future guildmates. They were walking down the street towards the town square, clad in their gear, where they would gather and discuss the boss strategy with the other clearers "Just because we're okay with our levels now doesn't mean it'll be an easy fight."

"Lighten up, Mio." Taiga chuckled in response "I know you're rearing to tear into Kibaou again, but no need to take it out on us!"

"Yeah! Don't be so mean!"

Both Mio and Asuna just sighed as they got closer to their destination. Once they got there, they were greeted by a rather odd sight: The many clearers that gathered among them had expressions that ranged from worry, anxiety, anger and many others.

"Uhm...what's going on here guys?"

"If I had known, I would have answered you by now." Mio replied to Taiga's question as she took an earnest look around.

"Wonder what everyone's so bothered about?" Asked Yui in honest confusion, her expression turning troubled as well.

"I'm sure we'll find out eventually." Asuna spoke next as her eyes scanned the sea of people gathered. Sure enough, she caught sight of a recognizable raven-haired boy in a jet-black coat.

"Ooooi! Kuroi-senpaaaai!"

"Not so loud, Yui!" The rapier wielder chided her compatriot before turning to Kirito, who looked rather grim "Anyway, what's going on here? What's with everyone?"

"...We have a problem."

"HE DID WHAT?!"

Kirito felt himself trying to clear his ears due to the rather loud exclamation of surprise Taiga had uttered. Fortunately, it was a sentiment shared by everyone else after hearing what he had learned; based on what might be a false lead, Kibaou had taken forty members of the Aincrad Liberation Corps and stormed the boss room with just those numbers.

The general consensus was that Kibaou's plan was incredibly idiotic and that it would lead to the death of many players involved.

"That bastard! How stupid of him to risk lives like that!" Taiga growled in anger as she clenched her fist "Mark my words: if the boss doesn't kill him, THEN I WILL!"

"Wow...Ricchan's scary when she's angry." Yui commented offhandedly.

"Trust me, the line's building up as we speak." Kirito placed a hand on the mace wielder's shoulder to calm her down "But right now, we need to do something. Even as we speak, the ALF is probably engaging the boss right now. We'll have to assume that lives have been lost by now."

"Then it's pretty obvious what we should do." Mio said with a voice that made everyone listen, something Taiga found herself smiling at "We'll have to head for the boss room and take the boss out NOW."

"It's a good plan." Kirito nodded his agreement, as did Asuna and the rest "What do you think we should do then?"

"Everyone, I want you to gather as many of the frontliners as you possibly can." Mio nodded as she gazed at each and every one "We don't have much time to waste, so we'll have to discuss strategy on the way. Now get to it, people! Lives are being lost as we speak!"

"Yes, ma'am!" All the girls as well as Kirito nodded as they spread out into the meeting.

"There's no time to spare." Mio thought grimly as she felt the determination she felt early wane ever so slightly "If we wanna go home, we're going to have to give it all we have."

End Chapter 10

A/N: Congratulations! We have reached the tenth chapter, a milestone in my entire life as a writer!

Mordred: A milestone that will be overcome soon in MY fanfiction!

Shaddap, Mordred! It's not all about you! Ahem...anyways, this chapter is set just as the Clearers tackle the 25th floor. Will they make in time to save Kibaou's ass, let alone clear the 25th floor?

Also, to clarify, Bandit's the guy Brunhilde saved back at Chapter 8. How will he play in later chapters? That's something you're going to have to find out!

Asuna: Something I hope we reach, given this guy's tendency to get sidetracked.

Mordred: Indeed. Perhaps we should teach him a lesson in how to work not just harder, but faster?

*Both Asuna and Mordred turn to me with evil intentions*

Oh dear, this isn't going to end well. Anyways, please leave a review while I run for my life. These two ladies would really appreciate it! Anyways, Next Time on K-Online: Bloody Valentine! BYE!

*Runs for dear life while Mordred and Asuna chase me with Clarent and Lambient Light on hand respectively.

Both girls: GET BACK HERE!