Breathing Techniques in SAO

The two slowed their pace and reached the specified coordinates in about two minutes.

It was a small room, roughly five meters wide and long.

In the center stood a stone stalactite, from which water dripped down and gathered into a small pool.

Akimi and Asuna hid around the corner and waited quietly for the appointed time.

Around 21:59, the sound of footsteps echoed from the other end of the hallway — the noise of shoes tapping against stone — and a small figure appeared in the room.

Due to the dim lighting, they could only make out that the person was completely wrapped in a cloak.

No weapons were visibly sticking out, so they were likely carrying small weapons like a dagger — or perhaps none at all.

Not long after, a second person entered the room, also wearing a cloak.

Judging by their silhouette, they appeared to be equipped with a one-handed sword.

The first person immediately raised their guard upon seeing the newcomer, then extended their left hand and made a gesture resembling Fleming's left-hand rule.

The second person responded with the same gesture.

The smaller individual then lowered the hand that had been reaching toward their lower back, relaxing their stance.

The second person greeted them:

"Hey. You're really early today. Been waiting long?"

They sounded familiar with each other.

The smaller one replied:

"Not too bad. Didn't wait long. But coming all the way here is such a pain."

He paused, then added,

"Speaking of pain — using handwritten notes to pass messages is a huge hassle. I can't even write properly with SAO's pen. Couldn't we just send a friend message?"

"That won't work," the second person replied.

"Friend messages in SAO can't be deleted — they stay in the system. I've made sure I have no affiliation with any guilds right now, just to let the heat die down. If someone finds a friend message from you, all my effort goes to waste."

The smaller one grumbled impatiently,

"Fine, fine, I get it."

"Yeah, better to be cautious," the other person said in a lowered voice.

"You made sure no one followed you, right?"

The smaller figure waved a hand dismissively.

"That's exactly why I chose this place. Stealth skills don't work on ghost-type monsters — if anyone had been tailing me, I'd have noticed for sure."

"Fair point. Alright, let's get to the main topic… That matter from before — what's the status?"

"Going smoothly," the small one said with a hint of excitement.

"Our main force won't participate in the countdown event the day after tomorrow. We're planning to push through the labyrinth zone in one go."

Hearing that, Asuna tilted her head in confusion. "Countdown?"

Akimi thought for a moment and said, "The day after tomorrow is December 31st — New Year's Eve. A countdown event makes sense."

But the real issue was what the small one had said afterward — pushing through the labyrinth zone.

In other words, they were planning to defeat the floor boss.

Currently, the only two groups in all of SAO capable of that were Lind's Dragon Knights Brigade (DKB) and Kibaou's Aincrad Liberation Squad (ALS).

Which meant this small person had to be a member of one of those two guilds… while the other person clearly wasn't.

It was now clear that a member of one of the major guilds was leaking confidential internal information to someone outside the guild.

But who would go to such lengths to obtain inside information from the two biggest guilds?

While Akimi and Asuna were still pondering that question, the later arrival said:

"Hmm—not bad. Kibaou and Lind both hesitated at the end of Floor 4. If they don't go head-to-head here on this floor, it'd be such a waste."

The smaller one replied in annoyance, "Don't make it sound so easy. Subtly steering the discussion during a guild meeting is a huge pain."

"I know, I know— But to make that possible, didn't the boss train us in suuuuper slick talking skills?"

"Well, yeah. I can kind of tell lately what kind of phrasing won't immediately annoy people."

"Ha ha… I've already given up on that part."

"You're being annoying right now."

After joking around for a bit, the smaller one suddenly turned serious and said,

"But still, I can't figure out what the boss is really thinking. I mean, I know what he wants to do, but it all feels so slow and roundabout… He could've gone about it in a much more direct way."

"Haha… Well, we're still in the sowing phase," the other person replied with a laugh.

"If we rush things, the fun ends quickly."

"So… you're saying we should enjoy the process?"

"Exactly, exactly."

After hearing all this, Akimi took a deep breath and frowned.

"It might be just as Kirito feared — there could already be a PK guild with more than three members active in the game. And the 'boss' they keep mentioning… sounds like it could be that raincoat guy who taught the so-called 'Legendary Heroes' how to scam better."

"But… what would they gain from doing all this…?" Asuna asked, unsure.

Akimi couldn't answer that either.

Just then, footsteps echoed again from the tunnel the small one had come through.

A few seconds later, a dark figure appeared at the far end of the corridor.

"Hm?"

The two cloaked figures immediately took up combat stances, turning cautiously toward the approaching person dressed in black.

"Well, well…" the newly arrived figure said casually, though his voice was ice-cold.

"Of all places, I run into you here…"

The smaller one's face darkened.

"When did you get here?"

The black-clad figure, carrying a one-handed sword on his back, replied slowly,

"Just now. I heard you talking."

That voice — unmistakable.

It was Kirito!

Kirito said coldly, "Morte, what the hell are you doing here?"

The one addressed as Morte slowly pulled back his cloak's hood, revealing a chainmail helmet underneath.

He shot back at Kirito,

"And what is the infamous 'Beater' Kirito doing here?"

Morte— this was the same guy who, back on the third floor, had challenged Kirito to a "half-loss duel mode" one-on-one match.

When Kirito's HP had dropped close to half, Morte suddenly unleashed a high-altitude sword skill in an attempt to kill him — a thinly veiled PK attempt.

As the tension in the air grew heavier and the situation became increasingly volatile, Akimi and Asuna stepped out from their hiding spot.

Akimi raised an eyebrow and said in a laid-back tone,

"Ha— if it's a fight you're looking for, a 2-on-1 seems a little unfair, doesn't it? How about a 3-on-2?"

The smaller guy snapped,

"You bastards! When did you show up?!"

Then, after taking a few deep breaths, he grumbled with clear irritation,

"I'm really ticked off now. Looks like we've got no choice but to take some… action."

Morte clicked his tongue and muttered with exasperation to the smaller one,

"Hey, hey! Don't tell me you're seriously thinking of taking on the Beater Kirito, the Exploiter Akimi, and his little sidekick all at once?"

"Don't underestimate me!" the small guy shouted furiously.

"There's no way I'll lose to some arrogant brat who only knows how to talk big, and a PVP noob girl!"

Asuna clenched her fist in frustration and snapped,

"I am not just some sidekick!"

Kirito, now wielding his newly acquired Sword of Eventide, stepped forward to stand beside Akimi and Asuna, his eyes locked warily on Morte and the small figure.

After the five of them stood in tense confrontation inside the small room for a while, Akimi and Kirito suddenly sensed something.

The two exchanged a glance—and both instantly understood what was happening.

Without hesitation, Akimi grabbed Asuna and, along with Kirito, ran back toward the passage they had come from.

At a recessed corner around a bend, Akimi pulled Asuna into his arms, and together with Kirito, activated their Hiding Skills.

It was clear they weren't hiding from Morte and his companion—no, the real reason was the overwhelming sound of footsteps coming from the tunnel Kirito had entered through.

A large horde of monsters was approaching.

"Cowards!" the small guy yelled in fury.

"Using MPK tactics—luring mobs and dumping them on someone else!"

Morte also dropped his earlier nonchalance, and said grimly to the smaller man,

"This many mobs… this isn't good. Let's get out of here."

Then the two of them turned and ran toward the exit—behind them, a swarm of monsters gave chase.

As the thunder of footsteps slowly faded into the distance, Akimi, Kirito, and Asuna finally let out a collective sigh of relief.

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