Sword Art Online - Alternative Reality

The 50th Floor CHP. 1

Dodging the last great hammer strike from the 'Clockwork Knight' in front of me, it was left wide open as I used 'Vorpal Strike', sending my sword straight into the slit of its helmet, eliminating the last of its pixels and causing it to shatter into polygons.

And that's 9, plus the mini-boss which might as well make it 15, not that it mattered.

Smiling at the free drink I had just won myself, I took a look at my surroundings. The Braves towards my right were engaged with 3 variants of the clockwork mob I had just taken out, but they would finish them up in a few more minutes. To my left, I saw the group had split up into two, one taking on one of the larger 'Clockwork Golem', while the other focused on finishing off its supporting 'Clockwork Wolves.' With their bandit of a leader yelling out orders and confirming that all of their HP was still in the green, I figured I had earned myself a bit of R/R as I began to down a potion.

Currently, we had just blown through a ruined stone outpost that had been the base of around 20 of these 'clockwork' mobs, including one very angry 'Clockwork Giant' that got really pissed off that we had interrupted its...break, I guess? Fortunately, we were able to clear out the place without any issue and now we were just cleaning up the stragglers before calling in for the garrison force to secure the outpost. The terrain in this section was relatively flat, with brown soil and the occasional patch of dead grass and ruined stone pillar. What caught my attention the most though was the looming labyrinth that was finally within walking distance, if you ignored the major obstacle that was still blocking us from entering it though.

January 13, 2024. We had reached the 50th floor on December 31st, making this the 14th day we've been stuck on this floor, and we hadn't even started clearing through the labyrinth yet. However, considering the theme of this floor, it was probably, definitely, a miracle that we were able to come this far. One brought about a certain fencer that was probably gonna tear into me for staying out the entire day again.

Well, not like she'll cut my dinner off...I hope.

With my mind wandering to the potential meal I may or may not be getting in an hour or so, the bandit called out.

"Oi, Kiritard, we finished up here! Finish off that last one so we can see just how much I beat ya by!"

Seeing one of the mobs from the Braves aggro onto me due to my defenseless posture, I decided to give Klein one last chance to catch up instead. As it charged at me, I timed my dodge as it thrust its lance towards me, managing to get behind it and sending a 'proCresent Moon' kick to its side, sending it over to Klein.

"Batter up Klein!"

Not missing a beat, Klein charged towards the mid-air knight as it flayed around before sending a 3-part katana skill across its body, causing it to explode before it hit the ground.

"Nice throw, but that puts me up to 8 ya know Kiritard? Looks like drinks are on you tonight!"

"Oh, I thought that was your 6th one. Well, I'm still at 9, not including that mini-boss, so it's still on ya Klein."

"Wh-what!? Argh, that['s right you got the LA on that thing to... dammit! There any more of those suckers running around?!"

"Fraid that was the last of 'em, right Orlando?"

Walking over to us as his group finished off the last remaining mobs, the leader of the Legendary Braves took off his helmet as he resumed his larger-than-life persona.

"But of course Sir Kirito! Those mechanic monstrosities didn't stand a chance against our combined might! Although we do owe you an apology Sir Kirito, we let one slip through and it conducted the dishonorable act of attempting to strike you from behind! No honor these self-proclaimed 'knights' if I do say so myself."