A gender-neutral Y/N is an introverted solo player who spends almost every moment they can grinding in the Fields of Aincrad.
Y/N find themselves distancing further from the people they say they're fighting to free; but what happens when those peopl...
Well... I did it. I beat the Second Floor Boss solo and I didn't die doing it!
With the way this game works, once you are a high enough level you can really do anything if your skill and strategies are just as developed. In a normal game where PvP is encouraged this wouldn't be as great a thing for people, but in a life and death situation I definitely appreciate the benefits my hard work has reaped.
The pathway to the Third Floor had opened itself up now that the defending boss was dead, like the First Floor's Boss Room it was a spiral staircase that lead upwards. After a short walk I emerged onto the Third Floor alone- I was greeted by an expansive forest that seemed unending; the maze of trees would surely hide many secrets and dangers to be wary of, but for now I should just follow the path laid in front of me, surely it will lead to the main town of this floor where I can find the Teleport Gate.
*SHORT TIMESKIP WITH A MAP OF THE THIRD FLOOR FOR REFERENCE*
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I was now in Zumfut, the main settlement of the Third Floor, it seems to be located in the northeast of what I now know is called the Forest of Wavering Mists. Consisting of three gargantuan Baobab trees of which were all hollowed out to make way for an on-theme settlement that didn't lack any important amenities.
I was making my way towards the Teleport Gate to activate it and allow for other players to make their way to this floor when I remembered I still had my in-game notifications set to stay hidden... which makes the boss loot menus that appeared whilst I was still in combat make even less sense... but back to my original thought, I should check to see if I got a message back from Asuna or Rain... I probably don't want to read them but I definitely should for my sake-
. . .
Ah. There's a fair few messages here, but they're not just from Asuna and Rain; I got a fair few from Philia as well as a message each from Lisbeth and Agil. They all seemed to vary in their levels of reprimanding:
Agil's was the most tame, mentioning that him and his guild are more than ready to join me if I ever thought about soloing any difficult encounters in the future as his guild were focusing on their defensive stats and could provide me with tanky teammates to take hits for me. He also wished that I would beat the boss and see them all on the other side soon.
... see them all soon?
Lisbeth's was in all caps, oddly on brand considering she has quite the naturally loud voice, mainly her message called me an idiot for trying to solo an unknown boss alone but that she knew I could do it because she was with me when I dealt with the First Boss alone for her.
Philia's messages were fragmented, each sentence being its own message as if she was sending her thoughts as she was thinking them. It seemed to be mostly worry whilst also proclaiming that she knew I'd make it out as she still has to return the weapon I lent her and she never breaks a promise.
On the other end, Asuna and Rain's message seemed to lack the worry that the other's had but rather were severely disappointed in the way that I messaged them whilst I was entering the Boss Room and not giving them the chance to offer to help. Asuna's message in particular also was somehow able to convey her scarily protective aura through text and seemed to be as furious as she was disappointed.
. . .
It looks like they all grouped up and were conversing amongst themselves, so they'll know when I sent a message to one of them right? It would take a while to write replies to all of them, could I just send a single message to one of them to read to the group? But who do I send it to, I'm no good at these types of interactions... would it be an issue? I don't know!
I guess if I had to pick, either Asuna or Rain would probably be the fairest ones to choose from considering they were the more invested in the situation...
*DING*
Ah, another message: this one's from Argo:
"
Hey U/N, it's about time you respond to our messages wouldn't you think?
I've been tracking you via my friends list (don't you dare even think about removing me!) and I can see that you're out of the Boss Room now and I assume within the main settlement.
We're all waiting by the Second Floor Teleport Gate if you want to come to us, but we're more than happy to come to you once you open that Teleport Gate you're standing next to.
You may be considering not turning on the Gate and hiding out there until the Raid Group is ready to charge into an empty room and realise their thunder was stolen but unfortunately for you the Teleport Gate will automatically open after two hours of a Floor being unlocked if a Raid Team hasn't yet activated it... probably in your best interests to activate it yourself sooner rather than later don't you think?
Looking forward to seeing you soon, and I'll say it now because I doubt the mood'll be agreeable to it... but congrats on beating those Bosses, you did good and I'm glad you're still with us. :)
NOW GO ON AND ACTIVATE THAT TELEPORT GATE AND QUIT STALLING... FOR YOUR SAKE!
"
. . .
Well... guess I don't need to reply to any of those messages now then...
