Chapter Seventy-Eight: Taking Over

After being hunted all night, Lance finally found a quiet moment with the others to explain what had just happened. Even though almost no one believed him, at least under his solemn oaths they reluctantly accepted his story.

“Damn, talk about shooting yourself in the foot,” Lance muttered after being interrogated and then returning to his so-called “office.” It occurred to him that he seemed to know that girl from somewhere. But he quickly tossed aside the thought—if he really did know her, she’d show up again, and if it was just a mistake, it didn’t matter.

With that, Lance drifted off to sleep.

The next morning—

Bang! With a thunderous crash, his door was kicked open.

“Who is it?” Lance knew there weren’t many people who could open his door like that, so he didn’t pay much attention. Some might try to take advantage of his sleep, but Lance ignored such tactics. Even if he died in the game, did ordinary people really think they could take him down? Unless they had a nuke—after all, he’d once reached the rank of Heroic Spirit. He felt no fear of Kayaba Akihiko’s threats.

“Lance!”

An angry voice rang in his ears.

“Oh, Kirito, what brings you here?” Lance was still half-asleep and didn’t notice anything odd about Kirito. But when Kirito slammed a newspaper down in front of him, Lance finally woke up.

“Black Swordsman, already taken!” blared the front page, showing a photo of Kirito holding Sachi’s hand and smiling. “Not bad, the angle of the shot is almost on par with mine,” Lance remarked, unconcerned. In his mind, Kirito and Sachi had been together for a long time, only neither had pierced the thin veil of embarrassment that separated them.

“What do you mean ‘almost on par’? You did this, didn’t you?” Kirito exclaimed, and seeing Lance’s puzzled look, reminded him, “Didn’t you hand a recording crystal to those guys?”

“Big-busted Moe!” At that moment, Lance remembered a certain someone with a sunny smile who had promised not to leak the footage.

“Agil!”

———Time Skip———

After clearing the latest boss, Lance returned to the teleport point with the others. He noticed that Kirito, who had been chatting with Klein and smiling, suddenly frowned.

“What’s wrong?” Lance asked, still wearing his signature coat. Everyone was in high spirits after another boss was beaten with no casualties, and the team members standing near Kirito didn’t find Lance’s sudden approach odd. Their organization was too strange for that—whether it was their outfits or the so-called Blood Oath, there was always something bizarre about them. Most raid group members only spoke with Lance after getting to know him. This time, the people near Kirito were temporary members; not everyone was as fearless as Lance, joining every raid. Even within the group, participation rotated, and few attended constantly.

“It’s nothing, but something seems off over there.” Kirito went over to investigate. A man was anxiously pleading with every passing raid member, his emotions clearly unstable.

“What’s going on?” Kirito asked. The current Kirito was no longer the withdrawn loner he once was. With that pie-like face—often mocked by Lance—and his protagonist aura, he had a calming effect. The man explained: his guild had been deceived by a group of yellow-named players, and, except for him, all his comrades had logged out forever.

“So, it’s come to this?” It had been more than a year since Lance arrived in this world, and with this event, he realized his journey was approaching its end. He knew that Kayaba Akihiko was about to make his move.

“Alright, I’ll take your request.” While Lance was lost in thought, Kirito accepted the man’s quest. “Thank you...” The man, though he hated those who killed his friends, didn’t ask Kirito to kill them—he only hoped they’d be sent to jail.

“Such mercy.” Lance shook his head. He didn’t think the man was too kind, nor was he bloodthirsty by nature. But, in Lance’s eyes, once someone decided to steal from another, they should be prepared to be robbed in turn. When facing such opponents, Lance would never hesitate. So long as he had a reason, his sword would not falter—the title of Blood Knight was not for show.

“I’ll come along. Aside from a few in the raid group, hardly anyone knows my true identity. And now, your fame is only just below that of the Blood Oath members,” Lance proposed to Kirito. He suddenly recalled that whenever he left a world, Lianhua would always give him something. He didn’t know what the criteria were for those rewards, but he intended to try for one more. And the only way to intervene seemed to be through the so-called storyline, so Lance volunteered to join the mission.

Kirito looked at Lance in disbelief. To him, Lance wasn’t the type to ignore someone in need, but he was lazy—like a cat, amusing himself when not grinding, basking in the sun, napping, and often turning his back on people. For Lance to offer help was truly odd.

“What are you staring at?” Lance asked, feeling awkward under Kirito’s gaze. He checked his outfit—nothing amiss.

“Extermination—The existence of yellow-named guilds seriously disrupts the game. Stop them. Reward: A mysterious pet~” As Kirito’s strange look faded and he nodded, Lance received a quest—apparently tied to this arrest. Since there was no requirement to kill the enemies, Lance decided to see how they behaved before making a final decision.

After Kirito introduced himself, the man was shocked to learn he was speaking to the famous Black Swordsman. Among solo players on these floors, Kirito’s fame was unmatched—especially after his recent appearance in the newspaper. When Lance was introduced, the man was even more astonished. He had assumed Lance was just a regular member of the Judgement Squad, never expecting he was the mysterious Arbiter. With the help of two renowned raid players, the man was so moved he nearly wept.

“Let’s go. Tell us the main features of your enemies at the inn,” Lance said, taking the lead. Kirito shook his head helplessly and followed.

Well then, let’s wrap up a few minutes early today to give myself a little break. Hope you all check in on the 22nd for the next update!