Chapter 118: Accelerated Footsteps

After a joyous banquet, Lancer returned to his home once again. Instead of lying on his bed in a daze as he usually did, he began to ponder the recent events. In the Type-Moon world, he had spent two years without any issues, yet here, after only a year or so, so many things had happened. The cause was likely not as simple as Renhua’s arrival, as she had suggested; the only other possibility was himself.

He could not fathom, however, why he would be the catalyst for all of this. For now, the most important thing was to bring everything here to an end. Even though he quite enjoyed this game world—or rather, a world like this was the very dream of every shut-in—it had to conclude.

The next day, when Lancer awoke, he found a notice in his inbox regarding the assembly for the current raid.

"The 74th floor?" Lancer remembered that this was where Kirito’s dual-wielding skill was revealed to the world. But that was how it happened originally; as things stood now, although not everyone knew about Kirito’s dual blades, many who were close to him were already aware.

The "Black Swordsman" was no longer judged for his status as a beta tester. He had become the spearhead of the clearing group’s assault team, adored by countless low-level players.

"Yo, everyone is still alive!" The massive conference room door was shoved open forcefully. A group of unidentified individuals burst in and dispersed among the crowd.

"We couldn't bear to leave before attending your fire-purification ceremony," a player from the clearing group who was on good terms with Lancer teased him.

"Tch." Because of two previous attempts to capture him, everyone had become accustomed to the strange blessings of the FFF Inquisition. This, however, was Lancer’s greatest blunder. He retorted stubbornly, "If you want to participate so badly, I’ll personally preside over your blessing ceremony."

And so, everyone bantered while waiting for Asuna. Although she was the vice-commander, everyone was used to the repeated absences of their mostly hands-off leader. To everyone’s surprise, however, Heathcliff, the commander, had actually shown up this time.

His stated reason was perfectly reasonable: to hold a drill in preparation for the boss raid on the 75th floor.

"Alright, everyone!" Seeing that the clearing group players were mostly assembled, Heathcliff walked to the center and addressed the chattering crowd.

Everyone gave him the courtesy of falling silent.

"I won't waste words here. You all know the importance of this raid. Given the death trials of the previous two, I suspect you have all guessed that the 75th floor likely holds an equally unique boss. We need a training session; everyone must familiarize themselves with one another. Perhaps your individual skills were enough for previous raids, but this enemy will certainly be even more formidable. We need coordination. Furthermore, there is one more matter: Kirito-kun—" He paused. Kirito, standing in the crowd, was stunned. He hadn't expected this to involve him, especially since he was already a player who coordinated well with others in previous raids.

"Kirito-kun, I don't think you need to hide it any longer. Everyone present here basically knows about the rare skill you’ve acquired." While this news would cause a sensation outside—after all, only one player was known to possess a rare skill, the man dubbed the strongest in the game, Heathcliff—those present already knew, and the rest had guessed. Kirito hadn't been hiding it intentionally, so the others looked at him with playful, teasing eyes.

"That's right." Kirito’s status was different now; he didn't care about the exposure. In fact, his previous secrecy had simply been a result of his low-key nature.

"Good." Heathcliff nodded and continued, "Collect supplies at twice the standard raid amount. Without further delay, let’s prepare for the vanguard battle." With that, he stepped down. The others began notifying their friends, though no one was overly concerned; after all, there hadn't been a single casualty in the clearing group since the last major battle. They simply treated it like a routine leveling session.

"Ahem—" At that moment, Lancer suddenly stepped up to the podium.

"Everyone!" Lancer spoke up, and the room fell silent. Although he was the leader of the second-largest guild in the clearing group, his goofy personality and strange guild motto meant people treated him as a friend rather than with the reverence they held for Heathcliff. However, Lancer wore a rare, serious expression, and everyone quieted down instinctively.

"I think you have all forgotten the gravity of this death game in your hearts!" Lancer slammed the table hard and demanded loudly, "Have you forgotten the 2,000 players who have left us forever?" Lancer’s stern gaze left everyone stunned.

One by one, they lowered their heads in reflection. Under the halo of the clearing group's success, everyone had lost sight of their own arrogance. When they looked up again, Lancer knew they had finally realized the severity of the situation. He knew that once they cleared the 75th floor, this game would end, but he could not forget the casualties that occurred when they did. He had no words for Kayaba Akihiko’s choices. Kayaba was undoubtedly a genius, but hadn't it been said that the line between genius and madness is thin? Kayaba had sacrificed his entire life for his dream, even turning himself into a digital ghost after his physical body collapsed. Lancer couldn't bring himself to condemn his inhumanity, for the man had already sacrificed his own soul. He didn't even know how he should condemn him.

Still, he hoped that with this reminder, the group would not suffer the near-annihilation they had originally faced. After all, thanks to Lancer’s influence, everyone’s equipment had been improved, and their levels were higher than they would have been otherwise; facing that boss, they shouldn't be wiped out in an instant.

"Alright! Dismissed. That’s all I wanted to say. Once you’ve finished your preparations, wait for Heathcliff’s assembly signal." Lancer let out a sigh of relief. This time would likely be Kirito’s solo performance, and he needed to prepare for the final boss battle himself.

The final act of this world—