"Lovely. I quite fancied the idea of a routine slaughter this morning." - Klein

Two – The Makings of a Team

Several hours after deciding to form a party from the off, Kirito found himself in the nearest fishing village to the Town of Beginnings, with several others in tow. Unfortunately, it had proved nearly impossible to locate a select group of people in a crowd of ten thousand, which meant that players they would have liked to join the guild were still out there, on their own. Thankfully, either he or Asuna knew where to find them in the coming months, so that would have to do. Besides, recruitment was likely to be an ongoing process as it was.

They couldn't form a proper guild, of course. Not until the required quest on the third floor was completed. But for now, partying up and sticking together would work just as well, and Kirito had a plan to utilise each member's individual talents. For the moment, they all sat at the town's rather small inn, grabbing a little something to eat and drink, while Asuna chose to mentally write the names of all would-be guild members they hadn't managed to find.

Agil, Lisbeth, Thinker, every member of the Moonlit Black Cats... it continued for some time.

At the very least, we know they can survive alone for at least half a year, she thought, sighing in resignation. Neither of them wanted to leave anybody behind, but that seemed necessary at the moment. Every single one of them was likely busy with fighting to earn quest points and level up in ToB currently. No other player had made it through the path to the next village just yet.

"Alright, listen up," Kirito said, calling for attention as Klein's friends bustled about. Hmm... he really needed to memorise their names. Issin was the rather thin one with a pinched face and maroon hair. Harry One never removed his helm, due to fear of suddenly being attacked, even if the area happened to be a safe zone.

"I need to protect my head," he said stubbornly. "You can grow back limbs in this place, but you only have one life where your noggin is concerned. Well, I won't lose mine, I can tell ya."

Dale was the rather plump member with curly locks of black hair, not that Kirito would ever call him 'plump' to his face. He was notoriously sensitive about his weight. Dynamm wore a bandana rather like Klein's, and sported the most ridiculous three-pointed goatee Kirito had ever seen. His name might be a handful, but his facial appearance would be distinctive enough to remember couldn't remember the final member's name, but wouldn't forget as soon as it was mentioned. Blue hair tended to be something of a noticeable feature in-game, especially if it was his real hair colour.

"Kunimittz," Klein said, to get his attention. His friend had been staring moodily at a glass of in-game ale for the past five minutes.

Kirito repeated the name several times in his head, mentally associating the face to go with it. Confident he had it remembered, he looked up to find the others sitting at attention. Klein seemed willing to follow his lead, probably because he knew the best ways to level up and had helped him. It may have been like this Before, had Kirito decided to stick with the group after Kayaba's fated announcement. He couldn't be sure, but that hardly mattered now.

"We need to complete a floor three quest to form a guild, so for now we can just call this a regular party," Kirito said. "I'm sure all of you have particular skills you enjoy in any RPG, so we'll try to put those to good effect."

He swallowed and shared a look with Asuna, who nodded. This would be the tricky part. He couldn't give away too much about what they already knew.

"We... already have a smith in mind," Kirito said, "one of Asuna's friends, who we couldn't find, unfortunately. We will soon enough. For now we can buy lesser weapons from NPCs when needed, although all of our starting weapons should be effective enough to survive at least ten floors as it is."

Issin raised a hand without looking up. "Why do we need to break up according to skills? Shouldn't we all be working to clear the game out front?"

Kirito rubbed his brow. He wanted to be firm, but not rude.

"I betaed this game," he began. "It's not easy. If we want to survive we have to act accordingly, and that means keeping a regular supply line open across the board. Inefficiency is going to be what kills most of the people in this game, probably almost as much as enemies themselves. Now, I'm not going to force anyone to act against their own will. We're all friends here, right?"

They nodded, deathly silent at his warning. He took note of their determined glances, realising they would probably be looking to him for leadership. As someone who had soloed the front lines for such a long period of time, he wasn't sure how to feel about that. Surprised, maybe. Apprehensive? Certainly.

"Good. That means we can work together. We have to cooperate, or we won't last a month. It's simple, really. I know Asuna is an excellent cook, but she's also an amazing fighter. The best I've ever seen," he added, smiling at her. She returned the gesture. "That means her specialist skill can be preparing food, if she wants that position."

"I do, but we can rotate overtime," Asuna said, nodding. "We're both beta testers, so we'll do our best to help you whenever possible. In fact, you're all in luck. The two of us are probably more knowledgeable than any other player alive."

Kirito raised his eyebrows in surprise. He was happy that Asuna was choosing to share his burden, but he hadn't expected her to call herself a beta player. Technically, he supposed she was. She grinned at him, knowing what he was thinking. Despite himself, he blushed.

"How far did the two of you get?" Klein asked with interest. That one didn't seem to stop bouncing around in his chair, even after forgetting about his damned pizza.

Kirito shifted uncomfortably, but Asuna came to his rescue.

"The game was betaed for about a month," she informed him, thinking of a way to avoid answering directly. "In that time a player can reach around floor ten, but that was without... well, really worrying about your life. We're going to have to train hard, and stick together. We both died playing the game Before," she said, not that they understood the significance of the word 'Before'.

"So we need to take care," Klein said, nodding. Suddenly, he started shouting in good nature: "you hear that, lads?! These two are going to save your worthless lives, so you'd better pay attention when they tell you what to do!"

Kirito laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head with his face scrunched up. "Really, Klein, that isn't necessary. This is a team, not a dictatorship. Everybody here has an important role to play, and we don't want anyone to die."

"But people will die," Kunimittz said rather suddenly. The mood seemed to melt away, replaced by an ill feeling of foreboding nervousness. "I guarantee no more than half of these players will be alive by the time the game is cleared, if it ever is. Each floor is harder than the one before, so if it takes us several months to reach the tenth... how long will it be before we reach the hundredth? Decades, if what I'm thinking is correct."

"Ah, you depressing git," Klein grumbled. "I forgot to tell you two he's always like that."

Kirito waved his apology away. "Don't worry about it. He's right. That's something we all need to come to terms with. The chances are we'll be in here for a very long time, with our real-world bodies barely being kept alive by IV drips and the NerveGear hooked up to a renewable power source. We need to accept that as soon as possible, and then put it to one side."

"Ehh, what about me?" Klein asked, suddenly nervous. "I live alone, remember."

"No problem," Kirito said with a small smile. "They'll have tracked down the buyers through electronic sales receipts. I'm sure paramedics will be transporting a lot of players to hospital tonight, even if they do happen to live by themselves."

Harry One tapped his helm. "You're a smart man, Kirito-kun. I'm glad to have you at my side."

Kirito couldn't help blushing again. After that, the mood lightened somewhat. He and Asuna sat side-by-side near their new party, eating their fill and exchanging a kiss or three. To their vast relief, no one decided to joke around about their relationship. It would have helped ease some more tensions, but at least the former Fuurinkazan were mature adults, for the most part.

Asuna couldn't help but cringe at the rather bawdy joke Klein was telling, but she laughed at the punch-line all the same. For the sake of his dignity, Kirito wouldn't repeat the joke in any other company. But it was good that Klein was helping everyone to relax, and he couldn't help but wonder if things had been this easy for Fuurinkazan Before; probably not, considering they had been on their own then, struggling to uncover the finer aspects of surviving SAO.

Once more, Kirito felt a pang of regret at leaving his friend behind the last time, but he pushed it away with relative ease now. It was in the past – if that made sense – and wasn't worth thinking about any longer. Now, all that mattered was the present, and the future they would aspire to achieve together, as a unit, a group of close friends. And their numbers would swell with time. He vowed to himself that the Moonlit Black Cats would be among the first to enlist, if they wanted the opportunity. He wouldn't leave them to die.

I wonder if Argo could help me find the others, he thought. Of course, finding her in the first place would be an issue. The information broker was notoriously difficult to track down, and tended to find clients before they found her. That was how she did business. Maybe-

"You're thinking too much," Asuna said, drawing him from his present state of mind.

Kirito blinked, brought back to the 'real' world. "Huh?" he asked, confused.

Asuna grinned. "Exactly. You need to take a break. We've done enough for one day. Things are only going to get tougher, so you shouldn't worry so much."

"They'll get easier," Kirito said, "if we let them. If we struggle like... Before... they'll be just as difficult. More so, since Heathcliff isn't around to lead. In fact, I think we should forget about trying to recruit Thinker. He did a good job with the ALF last time, and without Heathcliff in the way he'll rise to the top of the frontline guilds. He'd be a good ally."

Asuna thought for a moment. She knew he was right, but was loathe to let one of their friends go so easily. Then again, Thinker had survived the first time, but not without help from the two of them and Yui. Maybe that was holding her back. She wanted to see her daughter, and didn't want Thinker to be in that situation again. Last time, it had caused the administrative software to delete Yui from the game, and Kirito had barely managed to rescue her heart.

No, she thought stubbornly. This time, we'll be stronger. I won't lose Yui again. We can warn Thinker to be careful, and make sure he doesn't fall into that trap, or any others.

"Okay, I agree," she finally said. Kirito had been watching her, gauging her reaction and wondering if she had formed a similar puzzle to his own. At least they'd both made the pieces fit in the right order. Yui would find them, possibly even sooner, since they already loved one another.

"Asuna... I'm really glad you're here," Kirito admitted. "I..." he looked around, finding Klein and the others engaged in a loud retelling of real-life stories. He still dropped his voice to a whisper, just in case. "I used to solo more than anything, but you have a lot of experience with guilds. You know how to lead, and I don't."

Asuna scoffed. "Hardly. I didn't even realise who was leading that guild until the end."

"You can't blame yourself for that," Kirito said, frowning. "He fooled everyone, until I noticed something was wrong. I was lucky, and nothing else. You were unlucky. That's all there is to it."

His in-game wife shrugged at that, and chose not to press the issue, but gave the smallest signs of a smile anyway. With a jolt, Kirito remembered something.

"Asuna, would you... would you marry me?" he asked, rather loudly. After realising just how loud it was, he had to physically bite his tongue to prevent the word 'again' from slipping out.

Klein hushed up then, watching with wide eyes and a grin. "Oi, Kirito! That's no romantic way to propose to a girl! It's like this, watch!" And so, he got down on one knee to general laughter, took Asuna's hand in his own and loudly proclaimed: "Oh, sweet maiden of SAO, I would be honoured-"

Asuna interrupted him with a playful punch, which sent him reeling. "Not interested."

"Ow!"

Kirito couldn't help it, he laughed. He realised immediately after that it was his first real laugh since coming back, and it felt great to let off some steam. He felt properly happy for the first time in a long time, and that doubled in scope when Asuna murmured a "yes" in his ear, and kissed him on the cheek. The table burst into exaggerated applause, which drew some bizarre looks from the NPCs nearby, who hadn't spoken to the group all evening.

A little while later, when Kirito fell asleep in her arms, with his wide smile illuminating their decision, he felt truly happy again and held genuine hope for the future. So long as they were together, he could overcome anything.

Nearby, the Town of Beginnings burned.

This had happened before, but Kirito had not been there to see it happen, and nor had Asuna. But it's inevitable that when you take ten thousand people, many children, and force them together to fight for their very lives, hell is going to be unleashed. And it wouldn't be like slowly unscrewing the lid of a bottle, either. No, it was a tidal wave; a vast, whooshing current of inexorable death and pain that swamped all before it, swathing and twisting with the streets of ToB and setting all alight. Yes, the wave itself was setting things alight, for no one knew what to make of such petty crime and infighting – was it up, or was it down?

Unlike last time, however, Klein was not there to stop one otherwise insignificant player from throwing a particular punch, and that was when the butterfly effect combined with Murphy's Law and really went to town. The punch landed this time, and the assailant was soon attacked by his target's rather large group of friends. That resulted in a makeshift gang war, where no one could die, yet that didn't come from lack of trying.

It was momentous. Everywhere in sight, players were being marked as thieves, but no actual killing could be done within the safe spot, so no 'reds' were to be seen... yet. A lot of seasoned gamers, however, knew that survival in any RPG meant collecting the best possible gear in as little time as they were able, so all along the marketplaces swords and knives were being taken without mercy. Armour was almost impossible to find, and players were challenging each other to duels on nothing but a whimsical fantasy, a desire to loot their inventories.

'Screw rules' was the mindset of at least one quarter of the populace for now, since they were so preoccupied with trying to survive. They simply didn't matter.

Among the chaos, as Kayaba Akihiko had predicted, several players attempted to escape, undeterred by the violence and theft. Some began to steal from the thieves, whilst others rescued victims and were rewarded with items as payment.

One such unsung hero was known as Agil. The tall, bald player with a gentle heart had already saved several younger players from falling into thieving traps, and was slowly but steadily building a collection of moderately expensive gear. Agil was a very smart man. He knew a hierarchy of sorts would be created, and hundreds of players would fight to escape, while thousands of others, fearful of dying, would sit back and not partake in clearing. He knew some were cowards, but didn't begrudge them that fact. He had already seen children as young as twelve, after all.

"Kids shouldn't have to worry about death," he grumbled to himself, punching a would-be thief in the stomach. He followed this up with a roundhouse kick to the side of the head, which sent the pretentious little shit sprawling to the ground. He lay there, dazed and in obvious pain.

"I had him covered, you know," the victim said stubbornly.

Agil scoffed as he took her in. She was young, maybe fifteen at most, with her hair shrouded by a pale brown cloak, although it appeared to be something close to fair-coloured. She was a lot shorter than he was – although, that could admittedly be said about many people – and wore an annoyed frown. The feature that struck him most, however, was the trio of painted whiskers she bore on each cheek. Appearances could certainly be deceiving, but she didn't look all that physically imposing.

"What's your name, girl?" he asked gently.

"Names are going to be things of great power around here," she replied mysteriously. "I won't give out mine without good reason."

"Okay, easy," Agil said, trying to appease her by holding his hands up. She returned his previous scoff, aiming it at the placating gesture.

"I'm looking for people to do business with," she told him bluntly. "You're... intimidating, so I'm being defensive. Don't blame me."

Agil raised his eyebrows in surprise, and then started to laugh. He couldn't believe how unusual this young player was. She certainly knew the best way to the handle the situation, and that was to be wary of everyone around you.

"Hey! Don't laugh!" she scolded.

Agil shook his head, still chuckling. "Ah, I'm sorry. But at least you know what you're doing. Most people here just give me their items and run after I help them. I try to say that they'll need everything they can get their hands on, but either they don't hear me, or think I'll rob the rest, given half a chance."

"Would you?"

"Of course not! I'm no thief. I'm helping people because it's who I am. As a matter of fact, I'm going to start my own business. If people want to get rid of their items they'll need a good middleman, and I'm used to serving the public, so why not me?" he asked rhetorically, alluding to his knowledgeable past as a barman.

"Hmm... interesting..." she muttered, taking him in. "I'm planning something similar, but with information, not items. I wrote most of the free guide book by myself."

That shocked him. "You were a beta player?"

She nodded. "Yes, but don't tell anyone."

"Why would I tell someone?" Agil asked, slightly confused.

She studied him for a moment, and then nodded, apparently satisfied with something. He had no idea what it was, until she directly said so.

"I was trying to gauge your reactions. A lot of people hate beta players now, since most of them have ran off. At least you're not pulling your sword out. That's a start."

"Of course not. If I really wanted to kill you that wouldn't work around here. The best I could do is that," he said, sticking a thumb over his shoulder and indicating the thief who still lay on the ground.

Despite herself, Argo laughed at that. She sobered up almost immediately, however. She both wanted – and needed – associates. Playing in the beta had been much the same, only the players back then had all trusted each other. Now, they were out for blood, and that blood was deadly real. Speaking of which...

"Players shouldn't be able to fight unarmed without an extra skill," Argo noted, frowning. "And that skill is only found on the second floor. I don't know how people are brawling in the streets."

Agil shrugged. "Maybe it was changed. Who knows? Or maybe Kayaba Akihito disabled the necessity just for today, to sow discord."

"Probably the latter," Argo muttered. After a terse silence, she looked up again. "Okay. I don't trust you yet, but I think we might be able to do business together. At the very least, add me as a friend. Then we can send each other messages."

Agil nodded. He brought up the interactive menu and selected the option. She accepted the request, and he saw that her name was 'Argo'.

"Agil... very well. Nice to meet you," she said, hesitantly proffering a hand. Agil accepted with a grin, the motion reminding him he had forgotten to trim his beard that day. Shaking his head at the random, unimportant thought, he nodded.

"Do you have a plan, Argo?" he asked, keen to show he would remember her name.

Argo nodded. "Try to start that business, if you can. I'm going to level up my combat skills and look for the boss' dungeon. It's probably moved location to make it more difficult, so it'll take a while. I'll be in touch."

"Hey, wait!" Agil exclaimed, as she turned to leave. She paused to listen. "Are you sure sticking together isn't a better idea? I can help protect you!"

Argo looked back, a wry grin making her eyes look mischievous. "I've played this game for longer than you, my friend. I daresay I would be the one protecting you."

And she left, leaving a slightly puzzled but relieved Agil in her wake.

The next morning, Kirito awoke feeling pleasantly refreshed. It may only have been mental, but it was important to eat, sleep and relax when required in SAO. The third was something many people forgot about quite often, unfortunately.

Hearing Asuna breathing softly from behind, Kirito twisted sideways and stared down at her. Even with frazzled bed-hair and wearing a simple nightgown, she looked beautiful. He lay down, looking directly at her, knowing he would fight to see her face every day for the rest of his life, if necessary. It was the best way for him to wake up. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her, not disturbing her sleep, and rested his ear against her chest. The air around him seemed to melt away, replaced by the soft rhythm of her heartbeat. He shut his eyes and lay there peacefully for a while longer, just listening to the slow beats and feeling more relaxed than he ever had in his entire life.

"Kirito," she whispered, mouth next to his forehead. Her hot breath sent shivers down his spine.

He gently opened his eyes again, smiled when he saw her. He leaned up and kissed her gently. Suddenly, she took him in her arms and buried her own head in his chest.

"Too cosy to move," she muttered, smiling happily.

Kirito laughed. "I think we'll have to. In-game clock says it's nine in the morning. We'll need an early start and a late finish to get all the good quests on this floor."

"Some quests are there for everyone," Asuna said, half-heartedly trying to stay awake.

"Some are," Kirito nodded, "but most aren't. Most are one-time only, and we have the luxury of knowing that. So, let's go."

He sat up straight and started to playfully poke Asuna in the face. She swatted his hands away at first, but then relented and opened her eyes, knowing they couldn't stay and play forever.

She wished otherwise.

Together, the two of them got dressed – a simple matter of pushing a few buttons, of course – and groomed each other a little, Kirito laughing at Asuna's scruffy hair for the most part, before heading downstairs. They stayed in the same inn last night, along with Klein and his friends, all of whom had a single room apiece. Kirito warned them to stay alert, because this village wasn't a safe zone, although it would still be pretty quiet, they hoped.

On the ground floor, Klein and the rest of their group sat at the same table as before, this time eating bowls of what looked like porridge. From experience, Kirito and Asuna knew the food in low-level inns was pretty terrible, and grimaced in tandem. They chuckled at that dual reaction.

"Oh, ho! Someone's in a good mood," Klein said, upon seeing them. He had a knowing look in his eye, which caused the pair to blush together.

Nothing had happened. Nothing had ever happened, in fact. The couple had always been content to lie together, enjoying one another's warmth, but had left acts of love until they could be together for real. Since that hadn't happened before Kayaba's little trick, they never actually slept together. It would have been a first for both, but that could still happen. Just another motivation to clear the game as soon as possible.

"Alright!" Kirito said, raising his voice. They hushed instantly, a little taken aback.

"Too much," Asuna said, whispering in his ear.

Kirito shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Okay, we're forgetting about the people we left behind for the time being. They'll be impossible to locate now. The first floor is eighty square kilometres in size, so for ten thousand people that means everyone will be fighting over pockets of space, especially where quests are concerned. We're heading out to scope the area as a party, so whenever one of us completes a quest, we all gain the experience points."

"But not the combat levels?" Issin asked.

"That's what the experience goes toward, but it won't be as effective if you don't fight for yourself," Asuna said, adding a little to the speech. "We can take it in turns, or we can split up into smaller groups. We prefer the first option, so then we're guaranteed equal rewards. No one wants to be left behind."

"Yeah, we all pitch in," Kirito said. "If you get left behind because of laziness, you can stay there."

Klein gulped. "Man, Kirito, that sounded a little foreboding. Don't you ever lighten up at all? I've only seen you crack a smile once or twice!"

Kirito shrugged. "What is there to be happy about? The situation? No chance. The scenery? Well, we know Aincrad, SAO, is the dominion of Kayaba Akihiko. It is full of wonder and dread, death and pain. But at least there's no blood. Its rivers still run clean. The beauty remains. That's something to be grateful for, I guess. I can be happy on that note."

Six faces stared at him in absolute shock. Asuna had to stifle a laugh.

"That was a joke," Kirito said nervously.

"Uh huh. Good one."

The party, which would soon become an as-yet unnamed guild, spent the rest of the afternoon hunting for quests. Kirito found that, like Klein, the rest of Fuurinkazan needed a fair amount of practice before they grasped the basic controls in combat. So, he spent time helping them become accustomed to their starting weapons, while Asuna and Klein scouted the nearby area for any potential quests that were rich in reward. They reported back after half an hour of searching, by which time every one of the five others could fight at a reasonable level for 'newbies'.

The guest they found was one Kirito could remember from Before, and he could mercifully recall the best way to complete it in as little time as possible. The NPC, an unnamed merchant of jewellery, asked for assistance in retaking his stolen ring from a local band of thieves. The bandits, ten strong, were each at around level three, although since they were NPCs they couldn't match the raw intelligence and coordination of a group of players. Even the most sophisticated game was still that: a game, with NPCs based on levels with average stats. They were remarkably similar, being part of one quest, and since it was for beginners, the party had no trouble cutting them down to size in a grassy field.

Kirito only had to dispatch two, one with a thrust through the chest, and the other with a backhand slice to the neck, severing the muscle and tissue. In real life, he would have nicked the Carotid Artery and would now be drenched in blood, but in-game the enemy vanished after shattering into a multitude of glittering pieces, scattered into the wind.

Asuna, meanwhile, was busy navigating between Harry One and Kunimittz, who were equally as relentless as the other in battle, but tended to leave their defences wide open. They weren't in any immediate danger, but she found herself correcting their defensive poises with unacceptable regularity.

"Look," Asuna demanded, and they turned to her. She had one enemy left to kill, the last of the bunch, and was decidedly toying with the man to show the two how it was done. He charged her, and she stepped back with a flourish, bring the thin edge of her rapier up to block the attack. The strength in her wrist flick knocked the attacker off-balance, allowing her to follow up with a simple lunge to the abdomen. The NPC convulsed, before shattering on the end of her sword.

Asuna replaced her weapon, whilst Harry One and Kunimittz stared, open-eyed.

CONGRATULATIONS popped up for all to see.

"It's that easy," she said. "You just need to practice."

"The two of you are fantastic!" Dynamm suddenly said, showing his great energy by practically dancing on the spot with glee. "With you at our side we'll be unstoppable!"

"Boy, being betas really did pay off, huh?" Dale asked, rather grumpily.

"Ah, knock it off!" Klein exclaimed happily, slapping him hard on the back. The plump man staggered, but was caught by Dynamm.

While Dale started to shout at Klein, who grinned all the while, Kirito accepted the combat points from the quest and allowed them to spread throughout the party. Thankfully, they weren't divided, or it would take ages for the lot of them advance as quickly as he hoped. The points took the form of a blue light, shimmering with the magnitude of the Sun temporarily. The light enveloped every party member simultaneously, and suddenly the eight all found themselves on level two.

"Now all that's left are the rewards," he said to Asuna, who nodded happily. The rest of Fuurinkazan was busy separating Gale from Klein. An outsider might think they would come to blows, but it was all in good nature. Probably.

"What is the reward for this one?" Asuna asked.

Kirito thought for a moment. "I think it's the ability to enchant swords," he said, suddenly remembering. "I hope so. That would be good to get out of the way quickly. We'll need it."

"Last time I went for speed enchantments," Asuna murmured, so they wouldn't be overheard. "Do you think I should get the same ones?"

"Of course," Kirito said. "You were amazing! I could never keep up with you. I could never use more than a handful at a time because of the weapons I used, but I normally opted for extra damage or defensive fortification."

Asuna smiled at his praise. "Thanks, Kirito. Have you thought of any more names yet?"

Kirito looked at the ground, trying to remember. "One or two, yes. Lisbeth, Agil and Argo are still there, of course. Thinker is out because we need him with the ALF. A few others I want to bring in are Silica, the MBC and Godfree, if you want him."

"Godfree?" Asuna asked, surprised. "Why him?"

"The Knights of the Blood don't exist here. If he doesn't join another efficient guild he'd be good for us. He was a fantastic leader, and that axe of his is lethal," Kirito explained, remembering the commander of KoB's vanguard.

Asuna nodded. "Okay, I guess. And there are others I could mention from my time with the guild, but we should talk about this later. It won't matter anyway."

"Asuna... I've been thinking... Kayaba doesn't want to make this easy for us. In fact, he killed Sugō so our attention wouldn't waver. That tells me he's made it more difficult, or at least different. What if he's changed the dungeon locations or added other obstacles?"

Kirito had been worried about this all afternoon, and it felt good to voice his concerns. He needed to share them with the only other person who would understand, but he was doubly lucky that person was as intelligent as Asuna was. She would help him. Maybe there wouldn't be an awe-inspiring conclusion, but he could always rely on her, just as she could on him.

"Then we'll try harder," she stated firmly. "If you ever lack faith in yourself, believe in me, because I won't let you down."

Kirito hugged her. He had no words great enough to display his affection.

The scenery of the first floor was truly invigorating. As per usual, the day was perfect, with a shining artificial Sun overhead. Everywhere they travelled, hills were blossoming and life was plentiful, as well as gentle for the most part. The roads themselves were very quiet, with the majority of players still stuck near the start, and walking in the same direction. That second one meant they were never going to encounter another non-NPC, since they were heading away from the Town of Beginnings and no one had come as far just yet.

And, if Kirito's deductions were correct...

"The Secret Medicine of the Forest should be about a kilometre in that direction," he said, recognising the village of Horunka. They were taking a break from walking, each member save Kirito and Klein stretched out on the grass nearby, in the shade of a large oak tree. Instead of joining them, the two stood on top of a large mound of earth, which gave an unprecedented view of the valley nearby.

"Does it give a good reward?" Klein asked, yawning and placing his hands behind his head. "The guys might be getting a touch bored with all the walking, is all I'm saying."

"Ever heard of an Anneal Blade?"

"Oh?" Klein wondered, looking back. "Can't say that I have, but it sounds fancy."

"It can hold up to eight enchantments," Kirito told him. Their current weapons could now be enchanted as he predicted, but had a limit of one apiece until improved at a blacksmith's shop.

Klein spluttered and began to cough. "Eight?! That's amazing! But, eh, there's only one, right?"

"Yes," Kirito nodded, "but we can either have a contest to see who gets to keep it, or we can sell it and split the profits. It would fetch at least sixteen thousand Col."

"Sixteen thousand? Incredible. We'd have almost enough for a house. We'd be the richest party in the land!"

"Temporarily," Kirito corrected. "All RPGs have experience hogs and lucky loot drops. Someone will eventually strike big and dominate the in-game market, regardless of what happens. Skillers will have a massive advantage when they really get going."

"Skillers?"

"People who aim to max all, or certain skills, for profit. The higher level a skill is, the more use you'll have from it, for obvious reasons. High level fishing will let you catch very valuable fish, for example. High level smithing will let you make the best weapons and armour, both of which make you more formidable or earn you heaps of Col. It's all part of the game."

"And that's why you want us to divide up," Klein said, nodding in realisation.

"Exactly," Kirito said. "Five hundred Col to start with is fairly decent, but you won't live on that for a week. Sixteen thousand will run out too, but it'll be a good starting point in buying low-level equipment for different skills. If we do that we can have enough for a house, and then to live on continuously, after a couple of weeks. As boring as it might sound, we need a sustainable income."

"Don't worry, I know," Klein said.

"Hmm?" Kirito asked, surprised.

"Of course we do. This is real, Kirito-kun. We need to eat, and we aren't going to steal, I hope."

"No, we're not."

"Good... but that means we need money. And since weapons aren't permanently durable, we'll need to repair, replace and renew them whenever possible. Money is the key to any RPG, and that makes it doubly as important here."

Kirito was shocked at the depth of Klein's insight into the situation. He had completely forgotten his friend was something of a hardcore gamer; it meant he knew how to work the system, which would be a valuable asset. But more importantly, he was a great fighter, and that mattered more than anything. It would take time for him to come into his own, but with Kirito and Asuna helping them every step of the way, Fuurinkazan would truly be a formidable guild this time around, or whatever name they decided to pick. That hadn't been decided on yet.

"What time is it?" Klein asked.

Kirito checked. "One in the afternoon. We can keep at it for a few hours, then find something to eat after finishing the next quest. This one will be worth it. Come on."

He slapped Klein on the back, which caused the older man to laugh.

"Ah, praises be to me! He's learning! Maybe we'll make a true jokester out of you yet, Kiri-bō!"

"Don't call me that," Kirito muttered, thinking of Argo and the meaning it implied. "If anything, you're the baby, newbie."

He smirked at Klein's look of reproach and left to rouse the others. With some luck, the eight of them could raise their levels at least another two or three times before calling it quits for the day, and maybe, just maybe, Kirito would find the entrance to the boss' dungeon for future reference.

What are the odds?

:Author's Notes:

For those of you wondering, the quotations in italics before the chapter titles are random pieces of dialogue I've lifted from future chapters, just to spice things up a bit. I don't have those chapters written, of course, but I can always think of a line or two on the spot.

Yes, there will be some scenes of fluff in this story. Romance is a massive part of SAO and I happen to love it, so it's happening. There won't be anything gratuitous, mind. This will still be violent, with more to come as the group grows stronger and starts clearing dungeons. With regards to romance, the earlier segment regarding Asuna's heartbeat is a good example of how I might approach the area at times.

A pretty penny to the clever reader who can guess the guild name I've selected. It may or may not be one which already exists.