Sword Art Online: Forgotten Edition

Fragment 24 - Danger Approaches

The frontliners split into two groups before fighting the boss. One group would fight the monsters in the labyrinth leading up to the boss room. The second group would rush through and head straight for the boss to prevent their forces from diminishing through useless skirmishes.

"Good luck, Haru. We'll get rid of the monsters back here but we'll catch up soon enough," Kirito gave Haru a fist bump before they parted ways.

"You guys better hurry! Or you'll be missing out!" the young boy yelled as he ran with his party.

"Focus on what you need to do! Musashi! Hero! Watch each other's backs!" Asuna pitched in.

They nodded in response.

"Alright, next on our activity list... kill the boss!" Haru sprinted with a smirk on his face.

Floor 25 – Labyrinth: Boss Room

The visions of the players stained red as they walked into the room, weapons ready. 27 players were present in the boss room as they faced the Two-Headed Giant. Many were fazed by the boss' humongous size and large weapon. Over 20 meters tall the brown monster held a giant shield in one hand and a katana in the other. 5 HP bars and a red cursor over its heads. It roared angrily then charged through, swinging its katana aimlessly, but it was nothing more than a greeting. The fight had only just begun.

Loud crashes resounded in the crimson-hued room, boulders flying through the air every time the boss smashed the ground impairing the vision of many who sought to attack.

"Damn it! There's no way to get close!"

"It just keeps swinging that thing like we're flies!"

Many players complained about the boss' fighting style but there was no helping it. Thirty minutes into the fight and more than half of the players reached the yellow zone of their HP bar. On the other hand, the Giant still had three and a half remaining.

"GrrrrrrRRAAGGHHH!!" The beast bellowed.

"It's coming! Watch out!" Shouted Musashi from behind the monster.

Slashing downward, the boss created a rift in the ground making pillars of rocks appear and hitting nearby players. The debris blinded Haru as he successfully dodged the attack but couldn't see the next strike that was coming.

"Crap, HARU! To your left!" Hero tried to warn him but it was too late.

Before Haru could make another move, the debris disappeared as the boss charged in a straight line behind its shield. The rumbling coming from its footsteps as it ran toward its enemies. The young boy's eyes widened as it got closer as he had no chance of escaping.

The Giant trucked down several players with its shield, including Haru, dealing a severe amount of damage. Some health bars were too low to withstand the strong impact. Once their HPs hit zero, their bodies shined a bright blue and erupted into tiny fragments. Unable to do anything, Haru helplessly watched his comrades disappear one by one.

"W-Wait! Ugh--" he couldn't move from the previous attack. Why can't I...he focused on his HP bar that had a lightning bolt symbol next to it. I'm paralyzed? Haru struggled to move but it was useless, his body obeyed the rules of the game.

A dark shadow hovered over him and the players that were in the same situation. "N-No...Hold on..." The Giant raised its weapon and with no hesitation slashed down. Haru shut his eyes.

"OH NO YOU DON'T! RAAHHH!" In that instant Hero came to their rescue, successfully parrying the attack with his shield, "SWITCH!" Musashi appeared and slashed at the monster continuously, her strikes too fast for the monster to block.

"Hero! Take care of them while I have it distracted!" She yelled.

"You got it!" Hero went to the downed players and gave them paralyze potions to cure their current status ailment.

"Thank you!" Gratefully said the players.

"I owe you one Hero!" Grinned Haru as his friend helped him up.

"Yeah, you're paying for my dinner once we're done with this!" He wasn't joking.

Hero went back to assist Musashi as her HP was slowly depleting shown under Haru's HP bar.

I gotta help them--

"You're still going?" Asked one player, his HP was already in the red zone.

"Well...Yeah, Derek. I've got to--"

"That boss is too strong for us kid. We're not ready to fight it," joined in a player with green armor, "Let's go back to the town and try again later."

"Tyson's right. We just lost the seventh guy in that attack. If we keep going then we're all going to...Die. Just leave those two and come back with us, they'll be our scapegoat. If they don't make it back...well..."

Haru didn't believe the words they were saying, it was just nonsense. After all, he came to fight the boss with the intention to beat it, so why leave now? He gripped his lance and looked at the cowards each in the eye.

"I'm not going."

"You're joking, right? Haru, there's just no way--"

"I'm going to...No, WE'RE going to fight it. We're going to fight for our future and everyone else that's counting on us. It's up to you if you want to leave, but I'm staying here and I'm going to fight with them. We're going to come back alive, you'll see," like that Haru left them speechless as he joined Hero and Musashi to defeat the boss.

The remaining players watched the trio, amazed at their tenacity. After Haru's little runoff, several players were touched and impacted by his words.

Musashi, Hero, and Haru fought valiantly for the sake of others. They came to understand the attack pattern of the boss and avoided every strike once they got the hang of it. Slowly but surely they managed to reach the last bar but their worst fears came true.