Progressive Factor

Lind's Offer

Asuna

"Where have you been? The meeting has already started."

Jaymes rolls his eyes as he takes a seat on the other side of Koharu. "Doesn't seem I missed anything important."

"No, all Kibaou and Lind have done is officially announce the creation of the DKB and ALS. Took them only a day each, it seems." Asuna glances over at the boy in black to her right, but he adds nothing to the discussion. Letting the subject drop, the four listen as the two guild leaders make a casting call for new members of their guilds. However, only eight people of the forty-four present (down six from the final tally of the last raiding party, since the Legend Braves are absent) are not part of either guilds; Agil, his three friends, and Asuna's party. Asuna has no interest in joining either guild, Kirito and Jaymes said the same, and she believes Koharu wouldn't go anywhere from Jaymes' side, including leaving him for a guild. Maybe one day she'd take Kirito's advice to join a guild one day if she likes it, but for now, she can live without the green and blue of the ALS and DKB.

So when no one raised their hands, Asuna thought the subject matter was done. Then Lind said something she couldn't have predicted: "I would like the doors to my guild to be as wide open as they can be. Our only requirement at this time is that the player be at least level ten."

"Level nine for us," Kibaou stands and says abruptly, annoying Lind, but Diavel's successor says nothing of it and continues his speech.

"Everyone participating in this meeting who hasn't joined either guild should meet the requirements. So if you simply raise a hand, you will be gladly welcomed. However, there is one condition which applies only to certain people. This was decided after discussion between me and Kibaou." While Asuna wonders who could require special conditions, Lind's eyes lock down on a target, seated to Asuna's right. "Kirito..."

"Yeah, I get it."

"...and Asuna, Koharu, and Jaymes." Asuna twitches her shoulders, and she can hear the boy in red and black groan but holds himself back. Lind says nothing for a moment, watching the four for some sort of reaction or something, then clears his throat and continues. "Before you are approved to enter our guild, there is one more condition on top of the level requirement. Two of you must enter the DKB, and two must enter the ALS."

"...One each?" Kirito repeats.

"As was made clear during yesterday's boss battle, Kirito, Koharu, Jaymes, and Asuna are head and shoulders above anyone else in our general group. The four of you made off with the Last Attack bonuses of all three bosses in that fight, after all. I do not bring this up to criticize you, of course. But it does not benefit any of us to have all of you join either guild. Our combined strengths are roughly equal for now, and you would cause a severe imbalance by joining either side."

Asuna sees a vein pop on Kibaou's forehead at the suggestion his guild is equal (for the moment) to Lind's.

"We are well aware that our request is unreasonable. But I need you to understand this. Now that the top players in the game have been split into two camps, it is imperative that our two guilds eternally remain on good terms, working together in the pursuit of defeating the game."

"Ironic," Jaymes says under his breath, low enough that only Koharu, Asuna, and maybe Kirito can hear them. "There's no way Kibaou would allow Kirito in his guild, yet they also know Ko and I won't split up."

"Umm," Kirito says back to Lind, "I hate to say this after you said we were head and shoulders above the rest, but I have no plans for the future to join either guild. In fact, I figured that both of you would have expected this answer."