Alice In Swordland

The Beginning

It has been two days after the death of Arya, and Alice is taking it hard. Her childhood friend, gone. You are out doing quests and defeating low-level monsters to level up faster, that is until you came across Kirito who is sitting on some stairs, watching a guy who was recently out in charge of a boss raid.

"I am Diavel, and the job I enroll myself is, as Knight!" He begun, casually smiling at the crowd.

"There is no job system in this game!" A man yelled from the crowd, evoking laughs and jeers at Diavel.

"Do you guys want to hear this or not?" He asked with a shy chuckle.

Everyone went silent before he continued. You went to sit down by Kirito, who seems bored.

"Hey, Kirito." You said casually, sitting down next to him.

"Hey man, I ran into a girl yesterday, her name's Alice. She said you saved her from a murder guild two days back, yet her friend didn't make it. How's she doing?" Kirito asked cautiously.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking." Alice said sternly from behind you.

"Alice! Are you sure you're ready to get back on the field?" You asked out of concern.

"Arya's death won't avenge itself. Besides, nothing I can do will bring her back." She replied seriously.

"Well, if you're ready then I won't stop you." You said reluctantly, feeling like she needs more time.

"I'm fine, really." She said sternly.

"Now, we should all split up into groups of four or more, this will give us the best chance to beat the boss!" Diavel said confidently.

Just then, somebody interrupted everything and started blaming the beta testers for the deaths of all the players so far.

"I'm Kibaou! I believe some of you have apologies to make!" He yelled aggressively.

"What? You mean the ex-beta testers?" Diavel asked curiously.

"Yes! They know where all the good hunting spots are, as well as where all the good loot items are! I believe they should apologize right now!" He shouted, getting the attention of everyone, including players who are passing by.

Kirito stiffened up, he started sweating and you could tell something's up with him. Even Alice could tell. Then someone stepped up.

"So, you believe the beta testers are to blame for all the deaths of the players so far, as well as for not sharing information on the good items and hunting spots. Did I leave anything else?" A man approached him.

"No." He replied with snark.

"I believe the beta testers are handing these out at item stores. Do you know what this is?" The man asked casually.

"It's a guide book." Kibaou replied seriously.

"Exactly. It's a guide book that gives access to information on all the bosses, as well as where good items are. Everybody has equal access to this information, whether they take it or not is on them. So you still think they are to blame for all this?" He replied sternly.

Kibaou just bit his tongue and walked away, taking a seat with the rest of the players.

"I'm sorry about that delay, everybody. So, who's ready to take on the boss?" He asked confidently.

Everyone cheered and set off to the boss room on floor one.

Timeskip to the boss room.

As everyone entered the boss room, they found what seems to be a giant, two-meter tall creature, wielding a bone axe and a shield.