"Slash—"
A streak of cyan sword light sliced through the mist.
A [Forest Bat] trying to ambush from the canopy was cut cleanly in half, turning into blue data fragments and dissipating.
"Still too slow."
Ye You glanced at his experience bar; although he was already far ahead of the entire server.
Just then.
"Kyaa—!"
A youthful scream filled with terror sounded exceptionally ear-piercing in the silent forest.
Following that was a mess of footsteps and the roars of wild beasts.
"Someone's there?"
Ye You's brows furrowed slightly.
Hearing a loli voice like this in this godforsaken place is even rarer than dropping a god-tier artifact.
In the past, he might not have bothered with this kind of meddling. But the moment he heard the voice, although the [Crisis Sense] in his mind didn't alert him, that system suddenly popped up.
[Ding!]
[Special target character detected!]
[Position: Southeast, distance 150 meters.]
[Suggestion: Host, this is a nurturing-type... key plot character delivered right to your door. If you don't go, you'll regret it.]
Ye You didn't waste any words; he tapped his toe on a tree trunk and rushed into the depths of the mist.
...
In the clearing.
Silica （Silica） was falling into despair.
This girl, wearing red short skirt light armor and sporting chestnut twin tails, was currently sitting slumped in the mud in a sorry state. The dagger in her hand had long since flown off to who-knows-where, and that originally cute little face was covered in mud and tear stains.
In front of her, three massive [Drunkard Ape （Drunkard Ape）] were waving the thick wooden clubs in their hands and letting out weird shrieks.
This kind of monster isn't just powerful; its attack hitbox is incredibly weird, and it specializes in swarming players who are on their own.
"Pina! Come back! Don't go!"
Silica cried out, her voice thick with tears.
Above her head, a small light-blue dragon was desperately spitting out a weak breath, trying to draw the monster's aggro.
That was her familiar, the Feathered Dragon Pina.
It was also the only spiritual pillar supporting her survival in this cold death game until now.
"Chirp—!"
Pina let out a sharp cry and charged at the ape in the middle without looking back, wanting to buy time for her master to escape.
However, the gap in strength was despairing.
The Drunkard Ape's red-furred arm swung violently, and the thick wooden club smashed into Pina's fragile body.
Bang!
A dull thud.
Pina didn't even have time to scream before her small body was sent flying, crashing heavily into a tree trunk.
Her HP bar emptied instantly.
"No—!!"
Silica's pupils shrank suddenly.
Under her gaze, Pina's body stiffened for a moment before shattering into countless blue fragments.
Only a single pale blue feather slowly drifted down, falling into the mud.
Pina was dead.
Because of her selfishness, because she insisted on leaving the party and entering this forest alone, Pina had died to protect her.
Immense grief instantly overwhelmed her sanity.
Silica stared blankly at that feather, forgetting even to dodge the wooden club raised high by the Drunkard Ape in front of her.
Fine, let me die.
Anyway, Pina's gone, so what's the point of living in this world alone?
She closed her eyes.
Whoosh—
The wind suddenly picked up.
The expected pain did not arrive.
"So damn noisy, a bunch of uncivilized beasts."
Shink!
A pitch-black figure abruptly appeared in front of Silica.
With just a casual swing, the man sliced the thick wooden club into two.
The Drunkard Ape was stunned.
Its simple AI logic obviously couldn't comprehend why its sturdy weapon had suddenly broken.
But Ye You didn't give it time to think.
"Scram."
With a flick of his wrist, the Mithril Alloy Sword turned into an afterimage.
[Horizontal Square].
The sword light flashed clean and bright.
Puchi!
That Drunkard Ape didn't even see what happened before its head flew high into the air, its massive body bursting into a sky full of shards.
The remaining two apes were terrified by this horrific damage, letting out panicked squeaks as they turned to flee.
Ye You's gaze was cold.
Since the system issued a mission, and since these beasts destroyed a little girl's most important thing, they have to pay the price.
[Sonic Leap].
His figure turned into a blue streak of light.
In just three short seconds.
The remaining two Drunkard Apes followed suit, turning into experience points and Cor.
The battle ended.
Ye You sheathed his sword. He turned around to look at the girl still slumped on the ground.
[Ding!]
[Desperate Rescue complete!]
[Target: Silica （Dragon Tamer）.]
[Current Status: Heart like dead ashes, fallen into extreme self-reproach and despair due to the death of her familiar.]
[Desperation Level: Rank A （Mental level）.]
[System Prompt: Host, now is the best time to take advantage of her vulnerability.]
Ye You ignored the system's trash talk and walked up to Silica.
The girl was still staring blankly at the feather in the mud.
"Hey."
Ye You spoke, "How long do you plan on crying? Waiting for the next wave of monsters to spawn and send you back to the respawn point?"
Silica's whole body trembled as she slowly raised her head.
Those large eyes were brimming with tears, swollen and red.
"Pina... Pina, it..."
She reached out with trembling hands, carefully picking up that feather and cradling it in her palms, large tears falling one after another. "It's all my fault... If only I didn't insist on coming here... If only I were a bit stronger..."
"It certainly is your fault."
Ye You showed no pity at all, coldly interrupting her confession. "Being weak is a sin. In this game, running around without strength won't just get you killed; it'll kill the things important to you as well."
She lowered her head and cried even harder, her shoulders shaking violently.
"But."
Ye You changed his tone, squatting down to eye level with her. "Who told you it's completely dead?"
The crying stopped abruptly.
Silica snapped her head up and stared fixedly at Ye You, even forgetting to breathe. "What... did you say?"
"When a familiar dies, it leaves behind an item called Pina's Heart—the feather in your hand."
Ye You pointed at the thing in her palm. "If you get a resurrection item within three days, you can bring it back to life."
"Re... Resurrection?!"
Silica's eyes lit up instantly. "Really? Can it really be revived? But... I heard that when a familiar dies..."
"That's just others' ignorance."
Ye You stood up. "In Aincrad, as long as you have enough information and strength, many seemingly hopeless situations have a turning point. On the 47th Floor, the Hill of Memories, there grows a plant called the Pneuma Flower （Pneuma Flower）. That is the key to reviving a familiar."
47th Floor.
Hearing that number, the light in Silica's eyes faded again.
"47th Floor..."
She muttered to herself, a bitter smile appearing on the corner of her lips. "The Clearers have only reached the 20s... Even if someone could go up, with my current level, it's simply impossible..."
Three days.
Only three days.
This is simply an impossible task.
"True, a noob like you would get eaten by monsters halfway there."
Ye You shoved his hands into his trench coat pockets and said nonchalantly, "But, as it happens, I have some business on the 47th Floor too. Although bringing a burden along is a pain, considering that little dragon was pretty loyal just now, I can give you a lift on my way."
"Eh?"
Silica was stunned.
She looked at the man in front of her in disbelief.
This man, who had just saved her life and then chewed her out, was now saying he'd take her to that unreachable 47th Floor?
"W-Why?"
Silica asked subconsciously, "We... clearly don't know each other. And it's so dangerous there..."
"Because you look like someone I know."
Ye You wasn't lying.
Looking at the girl with twin-tails in front of him, crying her eyes out, the image of that idiot sister in the real world who held a bamboo sword and was always following him around uncontrollably popped into his head.
Suguha.
Though they didn't look exactly the same, that look in her eyes—fragility mixed with a bit of stubbornness, and instinctively relying on others when in danger—was exactly the same.
"Like someone?" Silica blinked.
"My sister."