The Path Unknown

17. Reminiscence (Part II)

"Yea, I work solo."

"Stealthy, hmm? Very well."

  Kage moved into the room cautiously. The green light grew brighter  now, illuminating only the room the quest giver was in. It came from a  fire in the palm of his hand - the only "magic" in Aincrad. It was  unsettling to know that he wielded such a tool, but he was only an AI.  They weren't able to move out of their programmed positions even if,  somehow, they wanted to.

  "His guards are located on the 22nd and 23rd floors, he is located  on the 24th. Kill them to acquire clues to find his location, then kill  him to fulfill your promise to aid me. My bounty I give shall not  disappoint you." His speech drew to a close as he waved Kage off.

  Kill two close men, then head for him. Simple enough, but some  people might already be doing it. He teleported to the 22nd floor and  ran towards the main gate of the city. Glances from players who were now  worried followed him as he left the city. He would get in and out as  quickly, and cleanly, as virtually possible and get this sword before  someone else does. He darted left and right to avoid the people on the  lane, who were equally stunned at his sudden appearance.

Here it is...  He made a sharp left moving towards the Dead Tree Forest. The man he  needed to kill was to be walking through here at a South-Southeast line  towards an edge. He would have to die before he reached the edge  otherwise the quest was gone without a named winner. Scanning the trees,  he moved to an open spot where the line the target walked was likely to  pass through. Sure enough, a man started walking towards him. Dressed  in a black cloak, he moved slowly through the dry, leafless trees. He  stopped when he spotted Kage, then ran quickly on the same line.

Oh no you don't... Come back here you bastard! Kage  strafed left and started the chase. He drew his sword, ready to kill  him as soon as he got to the target. He moved up into the trees, gaining  a view of the surrounding area. They were moving towards the exit of  the forest quickly. Kage jumped in front of him, swinging his sword to  strike the spy. His sword clashed with another, the target was armed.

"Working for the old man, huh? Well I'll show you why that was a wrong move!!!" He yelled.

  Kage stepped back drawing another attack to defeat this almost  insane person. A skill charged up but there was no time for it, the  target lunged at him with all his might. Kage blocked the attempted  attack - draining the skill's energy. Lunging forward, he had the first  hit. The man staggered, regained his composure, then came back to attack  Kage once more. Kage sidestepped to the left, bringing his sword up and  across the man's abdomen. He fell on his knees, defeated as his Health  Point gauge went down to zero.

"May the... shadow of my body... haunt your soul..." He stuttered.

  He shattered, he was dead. This wasn't a player, so Kage's cursor  didn't turn orange like one should. A screen popped up, showing that he  had the last attack bonus on a mini-boss. 25,000 Col and a sword skill, not a bad drop. Now I wanna get that second guy.  He looked at his menu to check the skill he earned. It was  appropriately named "The Shadow of Death." It was able to give the  wielder's blade a dark tone that would slowly drain the opponent's  stamina and health, if hit. It wasn't one to brag about, but more than  likely useful for the next target he had to kill.

  Teleporting to the 23rd floor, he felt even closer to the reward at  hand. His goal of not being hit by a mob seemed pretty achievable now.  He wasn't hit by the informant, or whatever he was, once during the  encounter. He was quick to see, think, and act, but he would have to be  quicker to surpass his goal. The next challenge would hopefully be as  equally difficult. He checked the quest guide once more, skipping to the  23rd floor's target. This man was to be found at the nearing town,  making trouble to players and AIs alike. Somewhat of a bully, he would  take people's Col, items, and even had the potential to kill them. He  would have to move fast, especially if he'd have the last hit bonus  again. Reaching the next town, he went atop the buildings, trying to  find any sight of him. He could hear some commotion going on below him.