Kirito then suddenly spotted a figure running away.
"Watch Schmitt!" he shouted as he jumped out of the window.
"Kirito!" Asuna and Yuuki called out.
Kirito didn't stop. He ran and ran and ran, but the figure was faster than he thought. He had to stop him. He threw a few spikes, then suddenly, the figure took out a teleport crystal and with a flash of light, they vanished. Kirito ran back and picked up the dagger that killed Yolko, it looked like Guilty Thorn, but if it was a dagger. He went back into the building and was greeted by a sword in front of his face.
"Nice to see you too." he said calmly.
"Idiot." breathed Asuna, removing her weapon, she turned to see Yuuki's upset face, she turned back to Kirito, "So, what'd you get?"
But before Kirito could reply, Schmitt was freaking out.
"Th-that was...Griselda's robe!" he stammered, "What the heck is going on here?!"
"Someone is taking advantage of whatever kind of glitch is happening here." said Kirito, he walked to the lancer, "Schmitt, if the killer's after you next, then I-"
"No...I appreciate it, but no, my guild HQ will be safer."
"Then at least let us escort you." said Asuna.
"Again, I appreciate it, but I'm going there DIRECTLY."
Asuna finally agreed and at least friended Schmitt, who now left.
Later at Night...
Kirito, Yuuki, and Asuna sat next to each other on a bench, next to a fountain.
"Could it really be Griselda's spirit?" said Asuna, "After everything that happened, it's really-"
"No, I don't think so." said Kirito.
"What makes you so sure?"
"Recap, Rule 1, you die in game, you die IRL. Plus, if every person who was killed came back to kill players that slaughtered them..."
Kirito's voice wavered off.
"Something wrong?" Yuuki asked.
"No, nothing." said Kirito.
Asuna then took out a wrapped item and handed it to Kirito.
"Food." Asuna said.
"Ah...um..." said Kirito, blushing slightly, "...thank you?"
"Eat, quick, durability almost down to 0."
"Wait," said Yuuki, "what about me?"
"Oh, sorry, guess I forgot that you existed."
Kirito bit into the sandwich as the two began to argue, it was like a cheeseburger to him.
"When did you get this?" he asked.
"I made it this morning."
Kirito looked at Asuna, seemingly dumbfounded.
"What?" asked Asuna.
"Great job fighting stereotypes, Lord Vice Commander." said Kirito.
The commander got up abruptly, making Kirito drop his food, shattering it. Asuna looked at his defeated figure.
"Are you crying?" asked Yuuki.
"Shh!" hushed Kirito, "That's it! I knew it!"
"What's 'it'?" asked Asuna.
"Of course! Yuuki, Asuna, I knew that the game doesn't allow kills in a safezone! It wasn't the players dying, it was their items being destroyed!"
"How do you know?"
"The sandwich's destruction animation matches a player's death animation!"
"So, what you mean was that-?"
"Yes! It wasn't Caynz and Yolko themselves, it was their armor, cloaks, anything! And when they 'died', really, they just teleported away!"
Asuna went on her friend list, she found Yolko on Floor 19, on a small hill, and Schmitt seemed to be with her. And it was mostly likely that they wouldn't kill him, Asuna considered their job done.
"I still owe you dinner." said Asuna, "The restaurant's nearby, wanna come?"
"As long as you don't destroy THAT dinner as well." Yuuki laughed, Asuna took out her sword.
"Whoa, whoa!" said Kirito, once again, distancing the two, "It was just a joke, Vice Commander!"
At the Restaurant...
"I still wonder why." Kirito thought out loud, "Why get us involved in this?"
"Maybe she needed someone to contact Schmitt?" Asuna guessed.
"Multiple reasons that's not it," said Yuuki, "buuuut I guess that it's not much of a big deal anymore."
"I guess. What would you do?"
"Eh?" said Kirito when he noticed that Asuna was talking to him than Yuuki.
"What would you do if you were in their place?"
"I don't think it would EVER happen to me. Perks of being a solo-player, and I'm a solo-player. Well, whenever Yuuki's not around."
"In my guild, whoever the item drops for, gets to keep it. Most of our members report it for inventory sakes, but there's no other REAL reason for it. An aspect that makes the marriage setting more romantic in a sense."
Their food finally arrived. Kirito then looked at Asuna.
"So how many times have YOU been married?" he asked.
"Excuse me?" said Asuto, putting down her drink before drinking it.
Kirito looked annoyed when he saw the fire in her eyes for the millionth time. Yuuki giggled.
"I mean I've heard rumors..." said Kirito, "...that every boy constantly proposed to you. I've heard that some boys married you."
"Constant proposing, true." said Asuna, drinking her drink, "Successful marriages, false. So, I've never been married."
"So, what...what's a part that makes it 'romantic' as you say?"
"What?"
"Just a question, my gosh!"
"It's simply pragmatic."
"Huh?"
"In other words, once you're married, everything's out and now, you share items with your spouse, so, no hidden stuff."
"Sounds kind of risky."
"How so?"
"Because...if your spouse finds out that you have a really, really powerful item, you could be putting your life at risk with them." said Yuuki, "I mean, look at Griselda, and Grimlock, who's to say that he didn't kill her?"
"Are you always this pessimistic? They loved each other. It's called mutual trust, Yuuki."
"Except you've never..."
Kirito's eyes widened in realization, and fear.
"Kirito?" Asuna asked, "What's wrong?"
"If...i-if Griselda's dead..." said Kirito, slowly.
"Then the...item should be with Grimlock!" said Asuna as realization took its turn with him.
"We need to find Yolko and the rest," said Yuuki as realization struck her next, "they could be endangered!"
Kirito, Yuuki, and Asuto ran outside of the restaurant.
"You think that Grimlock could be after them?" asked Asuna.
"I can't say for sure, but we must reach them before HE does!" said Kirito.
Floor 19: Eltteas
Kirito sprinted out of the Teleportation Hub, followed by Yuuki and Asuna.
"Your search skill is high enough to find Grimlock?" asked Yuuki.
"Yeah," said Asuna, "but what about the others?"
Once they reached the end of the town, Kirito blew his beast whistle, and almost instantly, a horse appeared right behind them. Kirito grabbed it by the reins and threw himself on top of his ride. He took Yuuki's hand and the duo dashed away.
"Don't get too reckless!" they called out.
"Hey!" Asuna called back, "That's MY line!"
Floor 19: Cross Hill
Figures appeared on the horizon, Kirito pulled on his horse's reins, making their ride stop, the duo lost their balance and fell off, but they stuck the landing and everything. The two saw the figures a bit closer now. The Laughing Coffins. thought Kirito. The murder guilt. thought Yuuki.
"Made it just in time." Kirito said, they walked to the assassins threatening the remaining Golden Apple guild members, "I've got Dusk to back me up."
The duo pulled out their swords, and pointed them at the leader.
"So, we can settle this right here, right now." they said together.
The leader signaled his guildmates to sheath their weapons, they left, but Kirito kept his sword in his hand until they were beyond his searching kill's limits. He took a deep breath, and sheathed his sword back in its scabbard. He turned to the others, giving them a serious face.
"Good to see you again, Yolko." Yuuki said, crossing her arms, "But you also got some explaining to do."
"I'm sorry." said Yolko, "We were going to tell you when everything was finished."
"Thank you, you two." said Schmitt, "How'd you know that we were in danger?"
"Didn't." replied Kirito, "Was just a possibility being proved. You asked Grimlock to make the weapons, didn't you?"
"We did, but he didn't like the plan and wanted Griselda to rest in peace."
"We asked him many times," said Caynz, "until the point where we got on our knees and begged him."
"Sorry, but Griselda had nothing to do with his refusal." said Yuuki, "He had other reasons."
"What?" replied Yolko and Caynz in confusion.
"He didn't want to take the risk of people asking questions when a player would be killed in a safezone," said Kirito, "because it would ultimately lead straight back to him. Plus, he was the reason that Griselda's dead, he set her up to be killed."
"No, he couldn't have! He loved her! And why would he want to help us if he didn't want any attention?!"
"You're witnesses, you see, when you told him the plan, you were giving him a chance to bury the evidence. He probably sent those trained killers after you to finish the job, no doubt that they could most likely to be the same ones that murdered Griselda."
Kirito then heard two sets of footsteps behind him, he turned to see Asuna, holding her rapier at a man, much taller than her.
"Found him nearby." she said.
"Long time no see." said Grimlock.
"G-grimlock?!" said Caynz, "I can't believe it...how could you...wh would you kill your own wife?!"
"Because she was my wife IRL."
Everyone's eyes widened in shock at the news.
"She was the perfect wife. So pretty." continued Grimlock, "We never had a single fight since our marriage. But then, this world came. She changed. She felt that she was even more alive in this world than the real world."
"That's why?!" said Kirito and Yuuki, showing faces of disgust.
"It was reason enough to kill someone who had replaced my wife. I killed the phony who had replaced my dear wife."
"No, sir, you're wrong." said Asuna, stepping in between the three, "What you're talking about, isn't your love for her...it was your love for her beauty, that's not love, that's possession!"
"One day, you'll understand. Once you find love...and are about to lose it-"
Kirito lost his temper and punched Grimlock into a tree, knocking him out.
"Good riddance." he said to himself.
"Leave him with us," said Caynz, "we'll take it from here."
"Sure." said Yuuki and Asuna.
Kirito, Yuuki, and Asuna then left. Yuuki stopped in her tracks. Kirito turned to see her, thinking.
"Whatcha thinking about?" he asked.
"Thinking about..." said Yuuki, she then scratched the back of her head, "...Kirito, if you married someone and discovered a side of them you don't know, how would you feel?"
"I would...feel lucky, I guess. Since I'm supposed to like the person I'm married to."
Asuna smiled at Kirito.
"We've been off the front lines for two days." said Asuna, still walking ahead, "We'll head back tomorrow."
"Yeah," said Kirito, "me and Yuuki were hoping to clear the floor by the end of the week."
"You normally do that?"
"Of course!" said Yuuki, smiling, "Who else do you think supplies everyone and you guys with the map data?"
"Wait...you're the ones doing ALL that?!"
"Of course."
"By YOURSELVES?!"
Kirito nodded, cutely smiling.
"Just how reckless are you two?!" Asuna shouted.
Yuuki giggled at her response.
"Friend me." said Asuna suddenly.
"What?" asked Kirito.
"We're both in the lead group, and tracking you down is close to impossible, and I can message you about future meetings.."
"I'm a solo-player, well...along with Yuuki, but we're just a party, so that doesn't count as a guild...but you get what I mean."
"All the more reason. Plus, you need to make more friends."
"I have a friend who can just forward your messages and-"
Asuna slaps Kirito in the arm, and walks ahead, she looks back at him and smiles. Yuuki began to have that familiar feeling again.
"At least think about it." Asuna said.
Kirito smiled back.
"If you make a good meal like you promised us earlier, we might." he laughed.
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Thanks for Reading!
Never love someone because of what they look like, love someone who has a good mind, good soul, and a good heart.