After taking a few steps down from the top of Cescale's head, Akimi walked over to Asuna's side.
"Are you alright?"
"I guess you could say it was a close call but no real danger." Akimi shrugged.
"Good thing it was me who went up there. In that situation just now, neither you, Kirito, nor Argo would have been able to handle it."
"Why didn't you use a teleport crystal earlier?"
"It's not that I didn't want to—it's that I couldn't."
"A crystal nullification zone?"
"No. This boss can only be challenged once. If I had used a teleport crystal to leave the fight just now, then we'd be stuck in SAO for the rest of our lives."
"Then… what if you had died? Wouldn't that mean I'd have to… stay in SAO alone for the rest of my life?"
Asuna's voice carried a trace of reproach—her reason told her it wasn't Akimi's fault, but her natural emotions as a woman still affected her.
"Uh…"
Faced with Asuna's accusation, Akimi scratched his head helplessly.
Just then, Klein, completely lacking in tact, walked over and patted Akimi on the back, asking with mild astonishment, "That was one hell of a beast, this guy was the boss of the 39th floor?"
Still, Klein's interruption helped Akimi out of his awkward spot.
"Ah… yeah. Its attack patterns are actually pretty simple—it's just that its stats are ridiculously high, especially its HP."
"That so?" Argo had appeared out of nowhere, grinning.
"I've always said, good people die young, bad ones live a thousand years. With all the tricks you've got up your sleeve, you're bound to last for millennia. Seeing you bouncing around like that, I'd say that fight just now was nothing more than a warm-up, huh?"
Akimi shot her a glare and said irritably, "If you're that good at saying auspicious things, then say more of them."
As for Kirito… he only gave Akimi a slight nod.
Since both the good and bad comments had already been covered by Argo and the others, there was no need for him to repeat anything.
Akimi immediately understood what Kirito meant and responded with a knowing nod of his own.
While they were talking, members of DDA and the Knights of the Blood Oath once again drew near, and Cescale slowly began to rise from the ground.
Akimi instinctively glanced toward the direction of the Knights of the Blood Oath.
Amidst the group clad in white armor trimmed with red, Heathcliff's blood-red armor stood out especially vividly.
At that moment, Heathcliff drew the longsword strapped behind his shield while fixing Akimi with a meaningful glance.
That all-controlling look in Heathcliff's eyes made Akimi feel uncomfortable—like a hamster that had finally struggled out of its cage, only to be caught and shoved back inside again.
But Heathcliff didn't say a word to him.
Instead, he calmly began issuing orders to his guild members about the next phase of the raid.
As for Xilocart—he locked eyes with Akimi, gaze full of provocation, the corners of his mouth slightly raised in a look of smug confidence.
The reason was obvious: among all the groups present, DDA had the largest numbers.
Xilocart cast a quick glance at both sides' headcounts, thinking: I've got four full parties here—24 people.
That guy's group only has 10… 24 versus 10.
The advantage is mine.
Akimi chose to completely ignore Xilocart's attitude.
"If I really start talking to him, he'll probably just yap like a dog again."
Akimi lowered his voice slightly and tilted his head toward Asuna.
Asuna glanced at Xilocart, her brows furrowing.
"Back when we made that bet with Xilocart, I already felt something was off… Given his personality, he shouldn't be acting so calculating."
"True," Akimi said, rubbing his chin.
"At the previous boss raid meetings, he was always loud and flamboyant… When he suddenly proposed that bet, I was honestly shocked. It was like he'd become a different person."
The stench of conspiracy was back again… but they had no time to dwell on it now.
Heathcliff and Xilocart had already more or less agreed on how to divide up responsibilities for the fight.
"Akimi-kun," Heathcliff called out casually in their direction, "from here on, your group and DDA will take the main offensive. Leave defense to us."
"Thirty-four people for the main offense?! All at once? Are you kidding me?"
Klein's voice rang out in disbelief.
It wasn't that Klein was overreacting—this kind of arrangement was downright idiotic.
The fact he didn't outright curse was already showing remarkable restraint.
In all the boss raid battles before this one, there were always at least two main assault and defense teams, taking turns to attack.
Although Cescale's body was massive, and the battlefield now was spacious enough for everyone present to surround it, that alone wasn't a reasonable excuse for the poor raid arrangement.
But faced with Klein's questioning, Heathcliff offered no explanation and remained silent.
Before Klein could press further, Cescale had already risen and turned its gaze toward them.
"Then let the raid begin."
Heathcliff said expressionlessly.
Klein clenched his teeth and tightened his fists, the katana in his hand trembling slightly.
"Don't worry, Klein, they won't be able to take advantage of us."
"That's right—the boss's attack power isn't too high, about the same as the one on the thirty-eighth floor."
Akimi and Kirito each patted Klein on the shoulder from one side, spoke in unison, then exchanged a smile before raising their weapons and charging straight toward Cescale.
Asuna and Argo followed right after.
Klein wiped his nose and called out to the companions behind him:
"We can't let Kirito and Akimi show us up—let's go!"
"Yeah—!"
Meanwhile, on the other side, the DDA members, under Xilocart's lead, also charged forward with excitement written all over their faces.
---------------
Exclusive access : Complete novel on paetron
Join now : patreon*com/DeCakraWnloverz