Fight to the Edge!

11: The night, before the Boss

"Good. We leave tomorrow, around 10 in the morning..." he spoke with a wave of his right arm signalling the meeting was over.

"Meeting adjourned people!" spoke Diabel

***

As the meeting was over and players were beginning to leave the amphitheatre or they chose to mingle throughout the amphitheatre. Rozari looked directly in the direction of the group gathering in the front. She noticed that Arisa got up to leave, and Rozari reached out to grab her wrist.

"wait Arisa, I just want to tell you-" she paused trying to find the right words.

Arisa looked back at Rozari, waiting for her to reply. Rozari closed her eyes for a second, before opening her eyes once more. "If you have anything troubling you, you can tell me" she spoke calmly and ended up in a bright grin shortly after "we're friends right?"

Arisa opened her mouth shockingly, forcefully moving her wrist away, Rozari's grip loosened "I- I-" she started to talk.

Suddenly, Rozari heard Kiyoko's conversation with Reiri "I'm going to go up to Diavel to tell him I love his speech" she grinned.

Rozari didn't bother correcting Kiyoko on his system's name, as who knows she might end up in a pointless argument. I give my condolences to Diabel...

"Kiyoko, please you don't know if he is your boyfriend," stated Reiri with a dull expression.

"Reiri, oh trust me, if that is the case-" paused Kiyoko being interrupted by Rozari.

"Well, when I first met Diabel, he did tell me a description that matches your appearance, Kiyoko," responded Rozari and a name, but I don't wish to reveal... and the fact Arisa launched me into him... I still want to tell Diabel in private not to tell Kiyoko. I don't want to imagine the consequences.

"really??" spoke Reiri with a roll of her eyes and a facepalm.

Kiyoko got wired up and flustered in excitement. "maybe it's really him" she squeed Hitoshi Kamiya is it really you?

Rozari looked on over to where Diabel was mingling with players. He then lifted his head and looked to where Rozari was, noticing Kirito leave. She followed his gaze, "Kirito wait!" she raced over to him, reaching out her hand.

Kirito stopped and looked back at her. "where are you going?" she asked him

"I'm just heading after Asuna, I would like to get to know her more?" he told her directly.

Rozari nodded, letting her twin brother go after the mysterious girl with the cape. she had declined to go with him and decided to hang back. she soon heard Kiyoko yell toward Diabel.

"Diabel, can we please talk?!" she screeched like a crazy person against Reiri's sensible judgement.

Rozari turned on to the blonde girl, as she waved her arms wildly. Arisa went over to Rozari covering her ears. Reiri tried to call Kiyoko to stop in reasonable ways.

Diabel heard the screech, from down below and he looked right up toward Kiyoko and the three other girls, curious. "Um..." he thought quickly, telling the group around him that he was needed elsewhere.

The group near him nodded and went their separate ways. Diabel turned onto Kiyoko, Rozari, Arisa and Reiri who were still trying to tell Kiyoko, to be quiet. Diabel went to the edge of the amphitheatre and walked up to where they all stood.

"Yes, what is it?" he spoke toward Kiyoko, stopping on the step below the four of them. Kiyoko blinked. Frozen in place, trying to think of something to say. Reiri narrowed her eyes looking right at her friend.

Diabel was about to talk, breaking the silence, until Rozari placed a hand on his arm and whispered in his ear in a low voice. "Whatever you do, please don't tell her about what happened yesterday... Kiyoko will freak out and end up killing me, with her blade of hers" she whispered kind of nervously.

Diabel nodded at Rozari, agreeing that shall not be said, as she stepped away from him so it won't look suspicious. "I don't have all night you know?" he said irritably, crossing his arms at Kiyoko.

"Well-" she spoke before stepping forward, lips planted on Diabel's lips.

Diabel's cheeks became red. Yuri...sa, he thought.

Arisa covered her eyes, turning away screaming the word ew. Rozari looked at Arisa, curious about how old her partner is. Reiri facepalmed stepping forward to try to grab the collar of her friend's armour, when that failed she just reached to grab Kiyoko's waist to pull her off. mumbling under her breath.

Rozari frowned looking away slightly pretending that she did not see that at all. "Well, I think I should get going?" she laughed taking Arisa with her.
"It's getting too awkward here?"

After Rozari said those sentences, she quickly grabbed Arisa's hand and made their great escape, leaving Diabel there shocked, as he turned on Rozari leaving with Arisa. well I guess, I'll tell her later...

***
The night began to settle upon Aincrad, Rozari and Arisa sat in a cafe. Rozari was wondering how Aincrad can have cycles of the day and night, like the real world. It seems impossible, and she didn't end up asking Diabel if he could share the guidebook... With her... this guidebook, seems skeptical to her, if the ex- beta testers have given this out, maybe it would be... "before the...'' her eyes widened as she stood up holding the dry bread in her hands. "I've got it, Arisa?" she asked turning to her partner who was trying to chew the dry bread.

"Mhm," she looked up at Rozari curious.

"You know that guidebook, that Diabel, mentioned?" she asked

Arisa swallowed. "Well yes, but why?" she paused as Rozari slapped the table, which she jumped at the sound.

"Well, if you look at what happened already, Kayaba Akihiko's announcement, and now we can't log out..." Rozari listed off things leading to her point.

Arisa made a slight sound as Rozari spoke her brother's name. If she discovers I was the sister of the man who made this death game... would Rozari still be friends with me, then?

"I have a hunch that the bosses on each floor are slightly changed... to make it harder to follow this guidebook?" Her eyes widened more so "OH NO! I must warn Diabel?!" she yelled as she suddenly dropped the bread on the table, as she left Arisa in the cafe.

Arisa took a bite from the dry bread with a sad expression, as her friend left her sitting gnawing at the bread.

***

As Rozari raced through the alleyway, trying to find where Diabel was. "I should have seen this coming earlier?" she thought, as she bumped into a fellow player. Rozari quickly swooped her hand out catching the player.

"Rozari, watch where you are going?"

That voice... Rozari thought before she looked at who she bumped into. Kirito... "I'm sorry Kirito, but I need to find Diabel," her voice sounded urgent.

Kirito was able to pick up the urgency tone in her tongue. "What's so important?" he asked her.
"Well, when I was eating dinner with Arisa, in the cafe? I realized that the boss might end up having different moves, than what Diabel read on that guidebook of his, at the raid meeting"

"What?" he said "that would mean, Akihiko Kayaba has changed even the floor bosses so they aren't like the beta"

"I'm concerned, if that were to be true, we might lose players during the boss battles" she spoke low.

"Thanks for the info. Rozari" he said lightly resting his hand on her shoulder, with a nod. "Before it's too late, I will let you head to warn Diabel, as I plan to join Asuna," he said in the direction where he was heading in.

Rozari nodded, gently and raced away leaving Kirito in his thoughts, even now thinking up strategies of how the boss is different as he continued heading to where Asuna was sitting.

Rozari was also hoping Kiyoko wasn't with Diabel, this late, but maybe in her room trying to rest up to her energy along with Reiri.

Once, Rozari reached the center of the plaza. She didn't imagine what she just expected, and it was the most ridiculous thing ever. Rozari was trying so hard not to cringe.

"I- I-" she told herself, seeing most of the male players, acting like they are drunk. Diabel was even there, as she spotted him, hanging around a couple of other players. Players this desperate that this is like real life, are beginning to think that you can get drunk in a Virtual Reality game...

Rozari realized that what she wanted to tell him, can wait and she just began to back away, pretending like she saw nothing. 

"This is impossible at best..." she told herself as she retraced her steps back to where she left Arisa at the cafe. 

Rozari's soul cringed at that sight. Hoping to just pack in for the night and rest a couple of hours before she has to fight the boss.

Author's Note:

I'm just going to let readers know, that Rozari's partner Arisa is 12 years old so I'm trying to make her have a younger personality. I will put this bluntly, Arisa is the youngest player in sao. She won't have any shippings with any characters featured in this book...

 I hope you all enjoy this book thus far. :D