The streets of the city of Ascord is bustling with merchanters, traders & lastly scammers as per usual. Athel was at the most infamous area of the city- The Graveyard, placing offerings beside a tombstone carved with the names of her fallen classmates. This floor, the 20F, is the place where the last remnants of her old guild died. Of course, being a game, there aren't actual bodies or skeletons, but instead its buried with the previous equipment they worn, being more of a gesture of respect than anything. That's a habit of her, before heading out for any parties against the PKer's guild <<Laughing Coffin>> . "Cya ~" She uttered, leaving the city.

She arrived at the southern fields that her party have agreed on, and as always, she was the earliest. A raid for a grindspot of the <<Laughing Coffin>> guild, hopefully this one wouldn't be a failure like before. But, being in this field for umpteen times, she had a rough idea of how that crazy guild work already. Her first guild was a guild with her real life schoolmates, and that was the only people that she personally knew, her last line of attachment, that died in front of her. Athel had nothing to lose now, and she swore to at least have them rest in peace.

Leaning against the pillar of a watchtower, she checked for the last time that her potions are well-stocked & ready-to-use, and she was equipping her best weapon in her inventory: the Silent Axe. Beyond that Watchtower, Teleport Crystals won't work properly, and further South is the Southern Coast, a <<Laughing Coffin>> territory. Gazing at the morning sky, Athel waited for her team to gather. She wondered for a moment how many would survive this, but that wasn't much of her concern now, she's just a wandering mercenary, and useless concern to others is meaningless to her.

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The girl strolled casually towards the watchtower, wondering to herself if any of the others for the planned group had already arrived at the arranged meeting point. As she approached the Watchtower, Akemi immediately noticed the other girl standing there, seemingly waiting. She moved a hand and put it on her weapon's handle, just to be sure. "You're Athel, I trust?" Akemi said in a pleasant tone, yet still, she stood ready to fight should this be a <<Laughing Coffin>> member. While Akemi usually ran alongside her Guild, today she gave them a much-deserved break, but couldn't rest herself. This time around, the girl would be running alongside a group she matched up with recently. Better to ensure that this group could come out alive than it would be to sit around and do nothing special all day. Besides, this meant she'd be living up to the moniker of 'Guardian Angel' that she had received.

As she drew close enough to clearly see the other person, she was able to see that this was in fact, Athel. One of the group members that would be going about the raid with them, and one she did not yet recognize. Relieved that she wouldn't need to worry about fighting off <<Laughing Coffin>> just yet, she placed the weapon handle back in its holster on her belt. Studying the other for a few long moments, she would wait to ensure they had time to respond to her previous question before she speak once more. "So, Athel, you know of the dangers in our raiding ground today, I assume? Do you have any sort of experience fighting against the <<Laughing Coffin>> Guild?" she asked, wanting to know how much she would need to be carrying the group so far today.

Shortly after her question was asked, Akemi heard the sounds of another approaching from behind. She spun on a heel to look towards the newcomer, once again on edge because of who exactly had claim on these areas in particular. Tilting her head at the newcomer approaching, she raised an eyebrow slightly before speaking. "Little Brother? You're joining the group today, since when?" she asked, a bit confused as she never exactly saw his name on the roster for joining up with the group. Even when she checked it one last time before heading out.

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The boy sighed as he finished off the monster before him, and wondered why he was so unlucky on this particular day. He was heading out to do some solo grinding, and yet seemed to be coming across enemies every step of the way. At least, that was probably better off than coming across any <<Laughing Coffin>> members in this hell of a game. As the EXP screen popped up before his eyes, Isamu scanned to see if anything in particular stuck out to him, but couldn't find much of anything among the loot from the slayed enemy. With a small shrug, he swiped the screen away and began making his way towards the edge of a known <<Laughing Coffin>> grinding area. No bigger insult to the Guild than getting stronger off of their lands.

As he approached the edges, the boy noticed two figures standing near a Watchtower. Normally, he would just ignore the other players or give a casual greeting, but one of them looked oddly familiar. As such, Isamu decided to approach the two ladies standing near the Watchtower. As he got closer, it became the one he recgonized was none other than Aincrad's very own Guardian Angel. That is, it was his older sister Sayu-, no, Akemi in this world. Curiosity ate at him, and he decided to quench that desire to figure out why Akemi was out here without her clan. Normally she was always surrounded by the members of her Guardians of Hope, preparing for a raid or peace mission to help others trapped in this help with all of them.

As he grew closer, Akemi turned and addressed him directly. Evidently he wasn't being as quiet as he should be, something the boy made a note of so he could work on leveling up his stealth stats later. "Little Brother? You're joining the group today, since when?" came her words, to which the boy shook his head with a small laugh. "No, I was heading out to do some level grinding. More curious as to why you're out here with..." He said, gesturing towards the other girl standing at the Watchtower. His gaze lingered for a bit on her, she seemed to be about his age and was decently cute. For a moment he debated saying something, but then shrugged it off and went back to addressing Akemi. "Usually expect to see you surrounded by your Guild. Guess you gave them a day off? You big softie." He teased, and noticed the stern look his older sister was giving him. Immdiately, a window popped up before him notifying him that Akemi wished him to join her party. Attached was a small user-inserted message. "<<Laughing Coffin>> Operates out there. You will not be going alone." it read. To which the boy gave a nervous laugh as he hit the check mark. There was no use ignoring sister's wishes when she got like this, else it wouldn't end very well for him. With that done, he looked towards the other girl and gave a small wave accompanied by a half-smile. "Uhhh, guess I will be joining you today. Seems my sister here doesn't want me going alone. The name's Isamu, nice to meet you." He said in a pleasant tone.

The <<Army>> had established a base of operations in Ascord, aiming to bring a measure of order and security to the frontier. "Yeah right," Varen scoffed as he passed by their main hall. It was an impossible task, undertaken when actually attempting to clear the floors is no longer an option. And to think I actually considered joining those losers, he thought to himself. He remembered that Harrod, a friend of his, had said he wanted to join them. That was a few days ago, and he hasn't heard from him since. The spearman chuckled. At the very least, it'll mean Harrod won't be seeing combat any time soon.

On a secluded street near the market, he opened a window to his inventory, hand tracing through his equipment, resolving that it should be enough to last him a few hours of grinding at least. As he walked towards the southern exit, Veran took time to admire the city's aesthetics, concluding that this wouldn't be a terrible place to live... if it wasn't for it being a dingy war zone and all. He diverged from the dirt pathways leading out from the city. Staying on the road most traveled is just asking for unwanted attention.

---

Of the four monsters that made up the group he had faced in this lone, slightly above average grindspot, it was just the last one that carried the pure red cursor above it. This was definitely an improvement compared to the very first time he arrived in this area; it was a struggle just to kill what he could before the red monsters started to close in on him. Still, this wasn't a time to allow for complacency. The monster's enlarged claw plummeted down to the dirt, pushing up brown dust as Veran narrowly rolled out of the way. He rose quickly enough to position himself and stab his spear where the claws met the hands, the creature shrieking as its HP bar shrank a fair amount and settling at 30% of its maximum. "One more good one ought to do it," Veran said under his breath. Equipping a throwing knife, he waited for an attack on the monster's part to leave it open. Back stepping away, Veran threw the knife which lodged itself in its exposed underbelly. The monster crouched forward in a fit of pain, to which the red haired player lunged at it, ramming the spear's head into the its face, causing the whole of the body to freeze, breaking apart into crystalline shards the second after.

The post battle screen was of little interest to him, although he was nearing his next level, a reminder that he would need to focus on better locations already. His spear at his back, there was no time like the present for getting his feet wet. The depressing soil under his feet gave way to the unique, gloomy grass of the southern fields. This was a popular area to be sure, but the lack of any large, recognizable, mobilizing guild force in Ascord gave him the impression that spots like this should be less crowded. Looking out to the Watchtower, he noticed a small party of three forming. It would be odd for <<Laughing Coffin>> members to loiter outside their main area of influence, but a trap is always possible, even by non affiliated player killers. All the same, Veran was feeling pretty silly for not upgrading his detection skill to longer ranges, not that that would be foolproof either, given the hostile guild may also have green players. Guess I just can't win... he mused, approaching cautiously a few feet. If they looked in his direction, he would neutrally hold his hands up, signifying that he wasn't hostile. He did have a Teleport Crystal, affording him an insurance for this side of the Watchtower.

The short sword landed just an inch short of his head. It was expected when your opponent is wildly slashing side to side. While effective to the average player, Enyo was a pedigree above that. With a quick rise of his right arm, his polearm swung up, leaving a red crystalline trail in it's wake. The PKer fell on his ass, starring his executor with a face of shock and fear. He closed his eyes, waiting for his imminent doom. After a few seconds he opened his eyes again. The apparition was gone.

Enyo took a seat on the ground with a sigh. He pulled the green crystal out of the air and crushed it in his hand. The poison had almost did the work of his would be assassin, but luckily he had an extra antidote crystal. It seems like stats effects had been a trend for the <<Laughing Coffin>>. He would need to buy some soon enough. It was getting expensive though and with the PKers taking all the good grind spots it was hard to get any money. Even when he would defeat a few of them, the position would be reinforced by the next day.

He popped another crystal to heal himself and set off back to a new field. Hopefully he wouldn't run into them again, if the clearers didn't move past the floor soon, they would eventually send search parties for him, if they hadn't already... Enyo collected himself and set off again. He needed to grind just a little for today. He just needed enough to fund himself. He wasn't a Clearer and wouldn't dare to be the sheep that most players acted like. He found it disgusting to just hide in the local city and live life like if they weren't trapped. This new world was a dog eat dog world, even the Army proved that conscripting the weak just lead people to their death, or maybe their freedom. He didn't know what happened, but wasn't risking the chance of his death.

He was used to heading out on his own, but he found something quite interesting, a small party forming at a watchtower. If it was a group heading out for some grinding, then it was exactly what he was hoping to find. They look to be a healthy levels, and well armed. Although it might not mean anything, since the average PKers had no issue taking out a small group of inexperienced grinders. Although him being with them might change the odds.

Enyo stood about 20 feet from the group. He wore a dark blue hooded poncho and made sure he wasn't wielding a weapon. He approached them with hand's raised. He didn't want to scare them with his normal set, it has caused others to run before. He took down his hood to show his short combed back hair and smiled their way. Hopefully his green cursor would help his appeal.

Hey, are you guys going out to grind? I was looking for a group but everyone today seems to be cowering in the safety bubble.

"Yeah, I'm Athel," Athel replied as she notices a girl called Akemi that looks wayy shorter than she had imagined. "I'd heard a bit about your guild from the lower floors, so your '<<Guardians>>' guild is now establishing a foothold here, I presume." For a leader of such a guild, she's smaller than I thought...
"Not as much as those from Taernsby, I've never seen their leader before," Athel stated with a slight smirk, "Clashed with them a couple of times still, so as long as we can take down the head of a chief, that grindspot will be ours~" She said in a straightforward tone where it sounds really easy. For some reason, she felt some sort of ease as compared to others at her conversation with Akemi, perhaps due to her apparently 'young' & childlike face.

Little brother...? It felt rather awkward for Athel to see a party of blood-related siblings here, let alone someone calling a taller guy a 'younger brother'. So, it comes to her that she is not a young kid & she's just a midget who is older than she looks. It seems like this time it will be a more interesting party than usual. "Alone huh? Sounds interesting, it will be fun to play hide & seek with those <<Laughing Coffin>> guys, anyways, nice to meet you Isamu, welcome to the 20th Floor~" She was amused by the siblings, its reminds her a bit of her life in her first guild, and before the game.

"Another one huh, " Accepting Akemi's party request, the corner of Athel's eyes caught sight of a red haired man. Nonchalantly waving her hand in response, she offered Varen the party request with a typical message of "L>LCoffin raid @@", assuming him to be another person joining in.

And the last person, Enyo gave Athel a different vibe. But who cares, the more the merrier, as long as they're green~ She shook off any second thoughts about Enyo, and gave the same party invitation that she sent to Varen, "Yes, we're planning to grind at the Hogs' Beach around the coast, and take the grindspot as our own if we can ~ Athel"

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"See any PKers, just go with the meta, STR at front, AGL at side, as you all know~~" The Hog's Beach was a coastal beach, full of hogs frolicking around the sand, which give good EXP and money. Slashing on one of the Hogs, Athel began grinding on them in the meantime. This game would be fun if it weren't for the deaths and stuffs... She thought as she beheaded a ribbon hog, which is a bit more durable but gives a bit more XP.

"Looks like we have a warm welcome~" Athel smiled at a team of 5 hooded players with Orange cursors approaching them from afar. She positioned herself right beside the sea boundary, ensuring her to be safe from one flank. "Brace yourselves~"

The party of PKer, with the typical group of 3 STR & 2 AGLs, clashed with the party of clearers by the beach.

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Turning towards both the new arrivals, Akemi looked over each with a critical eye to ensure they remained seemingly friendly. The red haired one didn't give her a hostile vibe in slightest, which allowed Akemi to relax slightly. Though the other one she had seen made it quite obvious to her that there was something off. She couldn't really see any hostile intent in the man with a blue robe, but the way he carried himself made it seem quite like he thought himself above others. Great. she thought to herself. While she was normally all for helping others, she knew that those who thought themselves superior or carried themselves with such an attitude could be quite the hindrance to deal with. Whatever, she'd cross that bridge when it came to it. Although the way Athel seemed to invite the strangers to the party without much of a hesitation made the girl raise an eyebrow. What was done was done, so whenever Athel began leading the way down the Hog's Beach, Akemi followed after her with the hilt in hand. "In case any of you haven't faced <<Laughing Coffin>> before," Akemi suddenly spoke up, looking at the others. "They are all very skilled in cunning, even the most basic grunt can and has likely killed. They favor running STR builds, but watch out for their AGL units. The STR players usually charge straight in and are heavily armored as well as armed. Their job is to cause chaos and distract you, then the AGLs come from the sides, hitting with light attacks and the occsional heavy charge. Do not get boxed in or they will destroy you. Remember, their tactics constantly evovle. So be prepared, the intel I have may already be out of date." she explained as they arrived at their destination.

The girl gave a reassuring nod to everybody as Athel gave her advice should they run into any PK'ers. Taking the time before anything arrived, she decided to get some grinding out of the way. With a shake of her wrist, the hilt in her hand suddenly lept to life. From it, an elegant longsword made entirely from red light appeared. The weapon shimmered as glyphs of some sword seemed to hang in the air along the 'blade'. Looking away from her weapon, Akemi noticed a hog charging towards her. Clearly it was the game's attack animation for a headbutt from the beast. A small grin could be seen on the girl's lips as she brought her sword back and light seemed to gather further around her arm. Allowing the systems in game to do their work, Akemi immdiately launched into an elegant dance of death. The sword came in low, running with its tip just barely touching the ground as she turned to the side for further reach. The weapon came upwards in a seamless arc, leaving a trail of red light behind it as it made contact. The hog charging bore a new red slash across its face and its health fell quickly as it flew up into the air. Continuing her spin, Akemi came around quickly went onto the toes of one foot to gain extra height. Her sword came from behind in a massive overhead arc, accelerating into a blur as it slammed into the hog and brought both careening into the ground. Upon impact the hog let out a death wail and disappated into holographic pieces. Turning around from her foe, Akemi felt rather pleased with herself for unleashing the combo she had just learned. Yet that feeling was not to last...

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More people? How large was Akemi's party supposed to be today? Isamu knew that his sister had gained quite the reputation, even among the clearers, but he had honestly doubted many would want to accompany her to some place as dangerous as land owned by <<Laughing Coffin>>. Casting a look towards his sister, and seeing her reaction to the two showing up, it became evident that these two weren't planned additions to the party. Although, Isamu knew that happened quite a bit to Akemi as well. People were always asking to join up with her, a side effect of her skills, reputation, and being found attractive by many, Isamu assumed. As Athel accepted the others into the party, Isamu wondered what the girl had in mind for all them. He watched her carefully, and found himself staring a bit longer than he had planned whenever Akemi popped him upside the head to get his attention. It seemed they were all moving out to hit the grinding area, a good option if one were to ask Isamu. As they were walking, Isamu stayed towards the rear of the group so he didn't have to be bothered by anybody and ensured he had all his best gear on. Afterall, this was very much so still dangerous territory, and Isamu wasn't about to be the guy who caused a party wipe. Once they arrived, Isamu looked around to see if he could find a ribbon hog, wanting the extra XP and money that the little shits usually would provide.

He found one rather quickly and drew his weapon. An elegant blade, deep blue with silver outlines decorated both the blade and hilt of the weapon. Ornate designs curved along the blade and a deep blue jewel sat center on the hilt. Overall, the weapon was worth quite a bit of money, but Isamu jealously kept it to himself ever since he had earned it during a once in a lifetime quest early in the game. Looking at his target, Isamu decided to stick to his usual tactics against Hogs in this game. Once the beast began to charge, the boy lunged to side, but thrust back towards where he was with the weapon. As usual, the beast couldn't turn quick enough and firmly ate the stab to its side. As the beast was recovering, Isamu continued forward with his momentum before planting his foot in the ground. Using that to turn around quickly, he dashed back towards the recovering hog and slammed a shoulder into the animal. The attack did little damage, as it wasn't a formally recognized attack in the system, but still cause the animal to reel back. As it stumbled, the boy engaged in a flurry of blows that were so quick he appeared as a blur until the animal exploded into shards and he was rewarded with an XP screen. Nodding towards the deceased animal, Isamu walked over towards the other girl in the party, Athel. "How long you think we got before the assholes show up?" he asked her, trying to make some conversation as he got ready to attack another enemy. Great conversation starter, Isamu. You woo all the women like that? he grumbled to himself. Although before she could reply, Isamu received his answer.

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So there they were, the next prey to fall into the coffin. A group of five little whelps, just begging to be put out of their existence seemed to be gathered in their coast. Foolishly attacking the hogs, when the real threat lurked nearby. Watching the group and letting them have their fun for a few minutes, the man began preparations. "Come, come my disciples!" he called to the group of five that sat waiting nearby. All of his band were the lowest level grunts, one of them a fresh initiate into the Guild. The Sergeant smiled manically to himself as he thought about the joy, pleasure that the initiate was about to experience. "It seems we have an infestation in our coast! Don't you think it would be quite rude to leave our... guests out there without a proper welcoming party into our abode?!" the man said, followed by a fit of maniacal laughter as the others seemed to agree approach him. "Then come, it is time to give them a surprise. They'll be dying with laughter." he said, chuckling as he grabbed the massive greatsword laying at his feet. In seconds it was slung on his back, the small party was assembled around him. The orange icons and formation they moved in hid his red icon, and evidence of there being a sixth person in the party at they grew closer.

Orders were given as they moved in, and soon everyone of the team knew what they were to do. The initiate, a heavily armed STR player, was to engage the one trying to be edgy (Enyo). The girl to his right, she was to take on the red haried man and seemed to be readying her twin daggers to engage the man (Varen). The boy to his left, another AGL build, was to ensure that everybody stayed within the killing radius. The other two STR builds were to engage the remaining trio, and thanks to their heavy armor along with their deadly weaponry; they were likely more than capable of dealing with these runts (Athel, Akemi, and Isamu). The man in the center would move in once the trap was complete, and then these pesky little clearers will be wiped out quickly. A twisted smile grew on his lips as they grew ever so closer, nobody breaking formation or giving any hint of their attack plans yet. Not until he decided that it was time, and by then... it would be too late for those little clearers. Oh, today would be a wonderful party, and he could already taste the reward that the boss would give him!

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Seeing the group approaching, Akemi immediately knew what it meant. The <<Laughing Coffin>> had finally found them. Akemi moved to the front of the group, where she would be of the most use, then cast a look to either side of herself. Searching for the other STR builds to move up front with her. "Everybody brace yourselves, <<Laughing Coffin>> inbound! Isamu, get ready to harass and ensure we can't be encircled! If any of you are also an AGL build, then get on the side. Your only goal needs to be keeping them off of us! Other STR builds, on me!" she commanded, the confidence in her voice showing that she had faced threats like this before and lived to tell the tail. "If all else fails, we can hold them off and slowly retreat back to where Teleport Crystals work." she added, then flicked her wrist as the sword in her hand suddenly changed into massive lance of light. Akemi glared down the incoming enemies, ready to fight them off when they came for her.

Isamu glared at the <<Laughing Coffin>>, then cast a look towards his sister as she barked out orders and prepared for a fight. So it seemed like they would be fighting off the enemy again. Looking towards Athel, he shrugged briefly despite their lack of a conversation. "Good luck." he said simply, to her and then to his sister. The boy then moved towards the outside and rear of the group. He took the time to check his loadout, and when confident began watching for any sign of movement from the enemy. If he had to guess, they were likely going to stay in formation for a while, then suddenly break into a full charge. Any AGL units would likely be on top of them in seconds. This thought in mind, the brought some throwing tacks out of his inventory and moved more to the side. Ready to stumble anybody trying to make a charge as they moved in.

Even though he didn't mind joining people he had never met before on an incursion into <<Laughing Coffin>> territory, there wasn't a doubt in his mind that they weren't loitering around the tower for him - the shady looking guy that arrived after him sure, but not him. But rather than point it out, he thought it would be a hoot to play along. Even if they should turn on him, it should make for a funny anecdote to tell people later. Whereas most would recognize Akemi as the elegant leader of the <<Guardians of Hope>>, Varen hadn't a clue, not being one to bother following in-game politics and events not directly affecting him. As long as they stayed out of his way, he was good. Yet he could tell she was at least used to being an authority figure with the way she carried herself. Nothing of seemingly lasting importance stuck out to his besides that, it wasn't exceptionally likely he'd see any of these people again in any case.

"See any PKers, just go with the meta, STR at front, AGL at side, as you all know~~"

"Yeah, yeah, of course I know all this stuff. I mean, who do you think you're talking to?" Varen said in a purposely unconvincing manner, more to pass the time than anything. "I've totally killed some of these guys before, like a lot of guys. All in self defense, of course. Am I right, buddy?" he joked as he turned to Enyo, winking profusely.

"But it's not like I'm some kind of sicko who enjoys killing. No, I have dreams that go way beyond fighting player killers and clearing floors. Me and my old lady are going to retire to the countryside and raise ourselves a farm," he would have gotten bored with his shtick if it wasn't for their arrival onto the grinding spot, hostile hogs appearing and livening things up. He readied his spear, the middle of the shaft resting under his right arm. "Oh yeah, we're gonna have cows, some tasty chickens and especially... pigs!" he continued as he sidestepped one of the creature's opening charge, his spear head slashing upward against its abdomen through a trail of red. His body moving in a counterclockwise motion, he repositioned to fiercely arc his spear upward again in a savage blow that ultimately saw the entity soaring a several feet into the air, its fragments dissipating into oblivion. Varen didn't waste any time in engaging another hog, running atop a seven foot long stone jutting out of the sand and intercepting his victim with a devastating strike, planting the weapon down through the monster's neck clear to the other side, despawn then following. "(Laughing) Anyone else getting hungry? I know I am," the spearman japed with the shaft resting squarely behind his neck, enjoying himself.

It was then that he witnessed the <<Laughing Coffin>> team incoming, to which he took a few determined steps forward, unequipped his spear and held his hands up in a similar fashion as he had before. "I surrender. Please spare me. I want to live," he declared loudly, trying to sound serious, but eventually failing, as the edges of mouth curved more and more until he gave up, erupting in a fit of less than appropriate laughter. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding, hehehe... Let's go murder some fools," he exclaimed rather flatly, despite him grinning widely as he rebrandished his weapon.

Searching for the other STR builds to move up front with her. "Everybody brace yourselves, <<Laughing Coffin>> inbound! Isamu, get ready to harass and ensure we can't be encircled! If any of you are also an AGL build, then get on the side. Your only goal needs to be keeping them off of us! Other STR builds, on me!" she commanded, the confidence in her voice showing that she had faced threats like this before and lived to tell the tail.

"Whatever you say, 'fearless leader'," Varen responded with a sense of mirth more than any hint of detectable sarcasm. He stood to her side and two steps back, spinning his tool about in a pointless flourish before gripping it with both hands, ready for a fight.

The journey to the territory was quite quiet for him. Even when Varen made a joke to him, Enyo ignored him and continued to look down and zone out. He was hoping this will be easy, quick, and quiet. Honestly the fact they didn't see anyone made him nervous. Maybe someone was watching...

Enyo was taking out the hogs with ease. At this point they were several level under him and took almost no effort to be brought down. Of course they barley gave him any EXP to matter. At least the players still have not advanced any further than this floor, so their drops were still relevant. As another one came for a charge, Enyo just stepped to the side and the hog ran right into his blade. He shook his head in annoyment, finding grinding as a chore than anything else. While he hated doing it, what happened next was less preferable.

Something was moving to them in the distance, and it was moving fast. In just a few more seconds of concentrating Enyo noticed it was multiple things. He has never seen a Red NPC travel from zone to zone, so it could can mean only one thing. Before he could say anything it was apparent they fell into a trap. He expected as much, but it took them so long that he thought they had got lucky. He should've known...he has no luck.

He prepared himself, hearing orders barked by one of the members in the group. It's been a long while since he's been in a group, but he was aware that no matter how good they were individually they were most likely to get in each others way than help each other due to their lack of previously working together. Enyo ignored the orders and stood his ground behind the group.

In the standstill he tried to see if any of them had a familiar face. He really couldn't tell unless one got more up close and personal. Enyo held held his weapon high up on its wooden staff, ready to quickly block any thrown weapons. He knew the game they played.

@Jasonhero
As the Laughing Coffin party charged, Athel engaged battle with one of the STR build. In a stable footing, an undisrupted 1v1 battle between tanks would be longer, and the outcome really depends on who can last longer. And as the person who is the furthest away from the sidelines, that's her current situation. The outcome lies in the AGL side. She was rather amused when one person with an AGL build would charge at her from the front. The sea border is right beside her, and like in most games, Players can't swim. Using her Apprehend skill to that laughing coffin boy, she pulled him in, giving a few slashes at that person who is dealt with an AGL debuff. Unfortunately, the restriction of movement in her side of the battle applies to them too, so she dealt that AGL player enough damage for him to fall back to the back lines and recover, but didn't manage to kill him. Try working with the terrain for once, kid~ She let out a smirk, as she signaled Isamu to assist Enyo & Varen. An opening was made, all they had to do is to exploit it, but for some reason, she had a feeling that that wouldn't be so easy. With tactics of that level, They're definitely newcomers to this guild...
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@Mangrale
The girl with the twin daggers charged at Varen, with her pair of daggers glowing red, lunging her daggers towards him as she attempts to use the Double Stab skill that would deal quite an amount of damage. She intended to fall back immediately after the attack, as the attack is just to weaken that semitank and send a signal for that initiate behind her to engage. She was rather worried that the newbie would screw up this fight, but if he really did, she will finish him off for sure.
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@Thecrash20
The Lieutenant was watching the battle from the distance, playing it safe and making sure that the battle is going their way. His men have just recently joined the guild, and he wasn't that surprised to see one of them screwing up. Its time for him to even out the situation, he charged towards the coast, to the scene of the battle from the side. He was a bit surprised to see Enyo still on a secure position in the reserve/back lines , most of them would have taken advantage of the situation by then. It is clear to him that the battle wouldn't be ending that easily. Oh that reminds me...

"So you're that traitor Ares have been talking about huh? That Enma, so I'd heard?" The Lieutenant surged at Enyo, taking out a Machete, using a Sarrage Blow skill that deals bursting damage in a swift sequence of a 6 consecutive slashes. He is a man in his late teens, with a scar below his left eye that is clearly not gained from this game. He has an unkempt brown hairstyle, and a sharp & piercing look, the type that has seen countless battles. Still, he isn't a person that Enyo would recognize.

@Noodles
"Well well, what have we here?" Varen raised an eyebrow and smirked as he stepped back into position, bracing for the encounter with the female attacker. His fighting style was better suited for handling armored opponents. However, when necessary (like now for instance), he would opt for a simple strategy: trying to maintain a clear distance and attacking whenever possible. His weapon afforded him more reach and he attempted a reaching thrust at her followed by an immediate diagonal sweep towards her upper torso. She was indeed swift and he realized, just a split second into it, that the second attack was already putting him in great risk. He needed to break off and implement the strategy, so the motion for the sweep transitioned abruptly to a dodge roll to the side, ultimately reducing the sweep's accuracy by about 30% compared to the initial thrust. Her glowing daggers made clear her intention to use a skill on him. Had he been caught by surprise or otherwise less mobile, he would have surely been caught by it. "Hehe, you're pretty cute," he bantered, grinning widely. "What's a girl like you doing with a guild like <<Laughing Coffin>>?"

Enyo chuckled to himself slightly. He thought the whole situation was pretty Ironic. Of course they would be attacked, and at least one of them might know him. A wide smile painted his face as the lieutenant spoke. It quickly changed when he was charged by the man. He saw his scar, what a edgy teenager... Egging him on, Enyo taunted his opponent. "Are you the leader here? Honestly im not sure."

He tossed of his poncho towards his enemy, with just quick swipe of his hand his avatar was surrounded by blue and green crystalline shards revealing his true form to the Pkers and the team. The Apparition had appeared.

Enyo stood his ground, letting the opponent get cocky before he was fed to his Axe. Hoping the toss would throw him off, but even then with his available hand he dropped a few picks in front of him, just as a fail safe. He was prepared to allow his opponent to get the hits he wanted, but would take a hard slow down effect for his arrogance. Holding his weapon down, preparing a Low Swoop. A single higher damage attack that would come up vertically and surprise the enemy from his feet, using the natural blind spot of every human.

He could assume the rashness of his prey probably meant he was almost completely unaware of such tactics, honestly it was the most basic of his last Guilds defense. When explained it almost seems like common sense, but in the heat of battle instincts usually take over. Plus common sense doesn't seem all that common in this world.
@Noodles

Athel was exchanging blows, while taking note of what was happening on the far side. Most of the dramas happened on that spot, she was glad that someone secured the battle lines and prevented an ambush. The tank that she was engaging was just someone that has a Slow effect, nothing fanciful really. The key thing about him is that, he's strudy as hell, Athel could barely see his HP depleting, while she had about one-tenth of the damage done over already.
---
Damn it! The Laughing Coffin girl did not expect Varen's killing zone to be that wide. Its not often to see a person with a balanced build that can react that quickly, considering those people are pretty much dead due to their tendencey of soloing their territories. Her technique wasn't completed until she got struck by Varen's spear. "None of your business" Having been dealt quite an amount of damage to herself, she fell back as the initiate who was wearing a red hood & a broadsword charged at Varen, sending a Slash Of Silence skill at Varen, a skill that silences <<Active Skills>> for a few seconds if hit. The girl positioned herself at the initiate's back, relying on him for cover and ready for the opportunity that he will be making. "Dark Sight." That girl murmured as she drawn out a glove from her inventory menu, apparently casted a skill, though its hard to discern what had happened as she's currently at the back lines.
@Mangrale
---
The lieutenant let loose a smile at that oncoming poncho, which made him loose a bit accuracy and deal half of the usual damage to Enyo. His reduced field of vision let the axe hit his leg, and reducing his overall HP by one sixth, which would further reduce to one fifth due to poison & bleed. "Better than what the rumours say, Enyo~" The lieutenant commented at the end of the first exchange of attacks. "Seems like this will be a fun one ~" he opened his left hand wide, which wasn't equipping anything, as he sent himself towards Enyo for another attack. "Steal" The Lieutenant used a skill that targets Enyo's throwing picks while he was at the halfway point which is apparently the maximum range of that Steal Skill. The steal is a very high success rate, due to it being a minor item & the lieutenant's mastery.

He threw a few of his recently gained picks at Enyo, casting a Haste skill that enhances his movement speed, quickly manuevering & charging at Enyo from the side, revealing a glowing dagger as he attempts a Double Stab on Enyo, an inferior skill as compared than his Sarrage Blow that he had used earlier, still this is a simpler technique that is harder to disrupt. He attempts a pincer attack with throwing pick from one side and daggers from the other side.
@Thecrash20

@Noodles
Up until now, even though Varen had a considerable reaction speed, the "gap" between him and the dagger user's attacks was already thinning by the time she switched with the initiate, his longer broadsword scoring an half inch deep hit on the redhead's armor covering the abdomen. Noticing the now active, nullifying penalty, the spearwielder jumped backward, continuing to do so as the PKer in the red hood advanced on him. "Hey buddy, take it easy. I didn't take you for the jealous type," he teased, his teeth clenching into a threatening smile throughout his counterattacks. "How about we both just talk things out, get to know each other..." he said, blocking a downward slice by abruptly rushing forward to meet the blade near the hilt with the shaft of his spear near the end, swinging said end over to deflect the sword and strike the swordsman in the side of the face. Varen then utilized the opportunity to attempt to force the bladed end of the spear across the boy's back while he's trying to regain his bearings. "But if that doesn't work, we could just pretend to like each other only when she's around - just like what girls do," he ended in an obnoxiously loud whisper, his hand at the side of his mouth. Varen made sure to try and keep track of the girl; she's keeping her distance for now, but she was definitely up to something

Isamu had just arrived at the scene of Enyo's battle, and with the skill of Dash, Isamu charged at the lieutenant to even the playing odds. Have to reach there, quickly! He had seen a sight like this before, its the scene of the moment before someone dies right in front of his eyes.

Enyo jumped, avoiding the two attacks that was sent at him. And, to have the opportunity use his strongest skill: Guillotine. He sent his axe down the Lieutenant boy, with a huge, crushing damage.

The Lieutenant smirked at Enyo's response, now his enemy is in mid-air, which is the perfect moment for an undisrupted Sarrage Blow. He sent himself right ahead to his opponent, sending Enyo the full sequence of the six slashes of his dagger. At the same time, he felt the axe crushing onto him. I guess this is it, what a nice fight~ In the midst of the decisive clash, the corner of the Lieutenant's eyes caught sight of Isamu who is heading for him, then he felt a stab on his side, and his HP bar depleting to zero.

----------------------------

@Mangrale
The newbie was slammed to the side by Varen's counterattack. Not a surprise... The Laughing Coffin girl, Willow emerged from right behind that initiate, charging straight towards Varen from the front. Willow was slower than usual, and she appeared semi-transparent, with a slight tint of grey. The technique of Dark Sight gives her intangibility from Normal, skill-less attacks, but the technique slows her down, and she can't attack in that form. At least this noob know how to use Silence, but his Silence doesn't last as long as Ares.

"Its a bad thing that he can't Silence your mouth~" Willow uttered sarcastically as she entered into the reach of Varen's spear, closing in for her daggeer's reach.

Just at the moment, an Iron-plated Hog charged down the coast, slamming onto the initiate who was about to get up, cutting the battlefield into two. What the hell? Some f**king noob didn't clear that iron pest? At a time like this??? Willow was speechless to see the <<MISS>> indicators that the initiate was making on the Iron Hog. The Iron Hog is the strongest pig around and has a very high Avoidability, thus a STR-focused full tank would be missing that Swine till the cows come home. Still, the Iron Hog at the Hog Beach only spawns three times a day, and its a no-brainer to eliminate that Iron Hog regularly. And they didn't...

The tides of this PvP had turned completely against her favour from that Iron pig. Now she's isolated from the rest of her party, her original strategy was to have that Noob to Silence Varen again and again for her to safely grind his HP down. But now the teamwork has fallen down the drain. Her Dark Sight wore off as Varen was in her dagger's reach, and at the same time, Varen's Silence debuff wore off, clearly marking the signal to draw swords. Well, might as well make my last stand~ Willow flashed out her glowing red dagger, using her Double Stab skill at Varen.

-----------------------------

Someone died, but who? Athel wondered as she saw scattering polygons at the area where Enyo, that Laughing Coffin boy and Isamu clashed. She was still engaging with that full Tank beside the coast. Neither side took serious damage, as she pondered whether taking this position is ever a good idea.

@Noodles
"What's important is we're talking... (Angered Grunt)" Varen bantered before the implications of Willow's Dark Sight dawned on him, his potentially harmful spear thrusts not hitting their mark, providing no resistance to the advancing assailant, who would have definitely scored a fair hit on him if it wasn't for the timely arrival of an Iron Hog, which wasted no time in ramming down the PKer in training. After making sure to take the opportunity to give himself some distance between him and the his dagger-wielding attacker, he stole a second to "appreciate" the the new turn of events. "Whoa, that had to hurt..." He noted how the considerable distance between him and the rest of his party, easily attributed to him falling back throughout the fight, coupled with the arrival of the this new foe, meant that his current options were limited to say the least. Varen underestimated Willow's commitment to killing him, and before he knew it, she had already closed the gap, delivering a pair of good stabs to his upper body courtesy of her Double Stab skill. "(Guttural Growl) Still up for a fight, huh? Well... You got it! Varen staggered backward for a split second before aggressively lunging towards her to use his Spear Sweep skill, intending to catch her in its low swing and stun her temporarily.

Isamu held his breath against the scattering polygons of death. Its the first time he actually killed a person, despite the lack of any sign of hesitations, he felt unease when both the killer and the slain gets eye contact with each other. I'll be seeing you off in hell, together with that traitor... He was very sure that the Lieutenant didn't say anything, it is more of like his subconsciousness & instincts have read the Lieutentant's intentions at the moment of death.

Those words that ran in Isamu's head rang through at the sight of another person who fell with an empty HP bar: Enyo. The full force of that attack from the Lieutenant have taken Enyo's life as well. He was a step too late, as his eyes widened at the sight of someone who is clearly the strongest amongst his party meeting his end at a place like this. "Ha..." Isamu let out a sigh, his hands were tense at the sight of two scattering polygons. He found those glimmering green polygons beautiful for that instant, if it weren't for the association of deaths on them. Even the strongest can fall here... The harsh reality of this floor started sinking into Isamu...

Isamu emerged from the dying polygons, heading for the side lines to bring an end to this battle. Although he didn't know Enyo for too long, but he's not letting Enyo's death to be in vain.


@Mangrale
Willow's eyes could see the spear coming at her like broad daylight. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out that a skill is used on that attack. Definitely a skill to slow down her movements. However, she couldn't do anything. The reach of the spear is about five times more than the reach of a dagger, and it is impossible for her to escape Varen's attack from a point blank range, unless she's significantly faster than him which isn't the case. With the death of her Lieutenant, the results of this battle is very clear to her. So at the last moment before the spear reached onto her, Willow dropped her dagger.

"Right, I surrender. I would rather die in the gallows than dying over a stupid pig~ " Willow, stunned, with a clearly frustrated tone of voice, and her eyes narrowed & darkened, with the look as if she had accepted her imminent fate of death. Though she is stunned, <<Status Effects>> wouldn't affect any in-game speech just like any MMORPGs. That calm & nonchalant gaze was unusual for a 14 year old girl like Willow, but she doesn't seem to be lying in any ways.


Both Athel and her enemy are now at half HP point. She was rather surprised at the sudden appearance of the iron hog. The other AGL player have fully restored at the back lines, and is now getting to the Laughing Coffin noob to kill it. Clearly on how that player engaged Athel earlier, he's another noob here. She remained unfazed at the confirmed sight of two death polygons, considering how she had been seeing that over and over again. "Such a cute pig ~" Athel taunted sarcastically at her opponent, who was tense at the death of his Lieutenant.

@Noodles
Varen was about to deliver a devastating blow to her, the blade of his spear reaching about an inch from her head from the left side, the force of the simulated air rustling the fringes of her red hood as well as her hair underneath. "(Annoyed sigh) You're lucky talking's a free action," he said less than amused, steadily lifting his weapon away from her and letting it rest over his shoulder. He had heard her surrender but was debating killing her up to that moment. In the end, there would be very little point. "You know: you could have saved me a lot of trouble by surrendering at the start instead of letting me get my hopes up," he scolded her, watching between her, following his gut by deciding to believe her, and the battlefield, finding their lieutenant downed and a good potion of their forces were diverted to deal with the Iron Hog. Sure he could join his team in their assault, but it seemed like their victory was a foregone conclusion. Besides, there was still the matter of what to do with his opponent. "So... how should this work again? Sorry, but I don't usually see many crazy psychos surrender like this," he admitted in a rather dopey manner, his free hand scratching the back of his head, unsure whether she'd like to be taken prisoner and transported to an Army holding facility where she'll stay imprisoned or if she'd much rather be "mercy killed" on the spot by him, or whatever really.

@Mangrale
"Just send me to Ascord after you're done with your business, surely there are dozens of people who want my head ~" Willow walked off as she went sitting on the side, watching the scene of the coast. "Nom~, feel free to kill the rest, they're the ones who f**ked up anyways ~" She crunched on her potato chips, seemingly enjoying the view from the backseat.

---

"You didn't slay that pig earlier, nice job, I thought I'm the noob here..." The initiate commented to the boy with the blue dagger, who had just slain the iron hog on behalf of that initiate, "Shut up."

The boy of the curved dagger and the initiate rushed to Varen's side of the battle, but now its clear that they're a bit disorganized as the initiate went charging at Varen with another Slash of Silence


Isamu was about to kill off Willow, until he noticed the initiate and the curved dagger guy returning to the field of battle. That girl doesn't have any weapon and seemed chill...? Its a higher priority to assist Varen for now. Just what happened here... strange...? He thought, as he used another skill of Dash as Isamu threw quick slashes at that dagger boy, crippling down that guy's HP bar. "Lieutenant's down, lets end this! But what's with that Laughing Coffin girl?" Isamu made sure that he never let his guard down to the girl Willow as he asked.

@Noodles
"You're the prisoner," Varen agreed through an enthused grin, giving her a big, energetic nod prior to her departing to the distance to spectate. He watched as she did so. It really appeared to him that she was indeed calling it quits and he internally enjoyed his gut being right for a change. "Ah ah ah," he patronizingly yet playfully wagged his finger at her. "You had me at 'kill the rest'."

Ready to head back into the fray, Varen paused to realize that the party was coming his way. Isamu had quickly intercepted the dagger user, leaving the familiar initiate charging the spear wielder, Varen recognizing his glowing dagger as readying a skill, likely another Slash of Silence. So... Not pig chow after all, huh? Lucky him, he mused, thrusting a preemptive heavy thrust his way, towards his shoulder successfully landing a good hit, but not stopping the orange player who's sword scored a slice on the left side of his waist. His armor had served him well thus far, but aside from his skills being "silenced", he was within around 35% of his original HP, and a critical or particularly strong attack could kill him.

Varen managed to meet the initiate's sword with his spear, his hands holding the pole at either side of the sword, the two players engaged in a gritty match of strength. "Who, her...?!" he asked Isamu in as lightly as his strained voice could muster, his attention to his opponent but already knowing which girl he's referring to. "Well, funny story actually...! You see: We got to talking...! and it turns out we have a lot in common...! Eventually, she just couldn't bare to kill me...! (Low Grunt) and surrendered!" Pulling back his spear, Varen strenuously shoved it and the initiate's sword back and upward. "What can I say?!" In a single, vicious motion, he pivoted as he lunged forward, his spear gaining in force till it was eventually rammed into the swordsman's chest. "I'm irresistible..."

@Mangrale
The Laughing Coffin initiate was dealt with the full brunt of the attack. He was already weakened by the previous attack made by Varen earlier before, and had no time to recover due to some 'unexpected circumstances'. His HP is already low just like most of the people on this beach, and with that spear thrust, his HP reached 0, as he scattered into green polygons.


"Sounds like a likely story, but..."

Isamu took pursuit of that guy who was about to flee, and slashed his throat in cold blood. That dagger guy started to fade into polygons from his depleted HP. He spat at the corpse, not exactly because he disrespects his opponents, but its just to ease himself in the unforgiving warzone. He returned to the sidelines without much delay, to put a swift end with the unfinished business.

"Make sure none of them escape from here alive, Enyo died, so we mustn't put his sacrfice in vain." Isamu stated to Varen in a clear & concise manner, now heading to the tanky opponent that her sister, Akemi is still clashing with. The tank is now very open to Varen too, the results of the battle is pretty clear now, as the tank is now vulnerable on three sides.


Athel, with 1/5 of her HP, was rather amused at the sight of her opponent starting to rout away. "Not too easy," Athel had saved her skill Apprehend for this very moment, with her ax extending and pulling her opponent back in front her, "Send my regards to my grandpa~"

She beheaded the Laughing Coffin guy without hesitation, naturally letting out a slight smile at the sight of those scattering polygons , from her relief of her avenging her highschool friends.

Athel sprang forward to assist Akemi, now that her role of the battlefield is pretty much over.


"Those green petals, a fascinating sight as always ~" Willow took another bite off her potato chip, enjoying the scenery of the polygons fading away throughout the beach. This time it was their side bleeding into those petals. She could tell that her last party member have the word 'death' written all over him. Being attacked from four sides, that's nothing more than a one-sided execution for that tank now. Just one more attack on that Laughing Coffin Tank, and he will turn green in a way. May you rest in peace ...