The Rogue Reaper (Sword Art Online)

Part 20: The Deceiver's Game

Wordlessly, Noct ran ahead of Akari and Zephyr. His eyes focused on his destination just ahead: the tower that was like a giant pillar of fire. That was where Hitoshi was now, and where they would settle things, once and for all.

Another blast came from the third storey. Flame burst out of the window and a man- too far away and falling too fast to see his allegiance- was thrown out of the tower, screaming as he fell until he hit the ground in front of the tower in a spray of fragments.

"Damn," Noct heard Zephyr mutter behind him. Noct continued on without stopping.

He kicked open the doors to a large, empty main floor. They raced up the stairs to the second floor where they heard yelling and footsteps coming from above them.

"Fall back and regroup! Get out of the tower- Ah, shit, Army mercs."

A group of hooded Orange and Red players came running down the next set of stairs, stopping abruptly when they saw Noct's party blocking the way. One of them glanced behind them while the other three cursed under their breaths. Their guild emblem, a coffin with a grinning face on it, was visibly etched on the backs of their gloves.

"Laughing Coffin!" Noct raised his sword. Zephyr and Akari readied their weapons as well.

The leader of the four Laughing Coffin members held up a hand. "Hold. I propose a deal."

"It's a trap," Zephyr said in a low voice. "They're stalling for reinforcements to come sandwich us."

"This is no trap," the Red player said. "To put things shortly, we have a common enemy, who has a terrain, height, and numbers advantage over us. Help us break through and kill them, then we can fight, if you still wish."

"Help you kill them? You're both Red guilds," Noct said, narrowing his eyes.

"We're both Red but that doesn't make us on the same side, Reaper. Now are you joining us or will we have to cut you down to get out?"

Akari shouted, "Watch out! Get down!"

The Marauders threw a firebomb at them from the top of the stairs, aiming for the centre of the groups. The bomb descended in an arc as everyone in the room dove out of the way.

A white blur shot past Noct. Leaping into the air to meet the firebomb, Ryuu swung his guan dao and hit the bomb with the weapon's shaft, sending it right back at the Marauders.

It was the Marauders' turn to dive for cover as the explosive detonated upon impact with the back wall. The explosion sent a shockwave through their bodies and instantly filled it with dust and opaque black smoke. Kathrall appeared behind Noct and threw a «Javelin» into the smoke, then used a blind «Crescent Sweep» once his spear reappeared in his hand.

Noct got to his feet and rushed in. His «Detection» skill activated automatically, revealing the Laughing Coffin members in the smoke with red and orange outlines around their bodies. The leader saw him coming through the smoke and raised his guard. Noct dodged around him and took out another LC member who was trying to defend against Kathrall's attack with a quick slashing combo. The other two struck out at him, now that he was close enough for their «Detection» skills to detect him. Noct deflected their blades and stabbed one through the chest while Kathrall's spear pierced through the other's.

Ryuu slashed rapidly at the smoke, blowing some of it away with the force of his swings but wasn't close enough to land any hits. The Laughing Coffin group leader ran through the fog to his flank and sliced into Ryuu's side with his shotel. Zephyr dashed to Ryuu's aid and thrust with his spear, forcing the Red to block and back off. Ryuu ignored his wound and attacked furiously. The Red retreated towards the stairs to the first floor.