Unlimited Anime Works Chapter 127: The Black Swordsman's invite
In the afternoon, Feng Yu Chen & co went to Agil's shop to get their weapons repaired. Then, a bunch of clearers approached them.
"What's the matter?"
Feng Yu Chen asked them.
"Captain Feng, did you and the Wings of Freedom take down the floor boss on your own?"
"We received news that somebody cleared the floor boss. Now, we can go to the 36th floor, that means someone killed the floor boss of the 35th floor."
"Captain Feng, could it be that you think we are slowing you down or unjustly taking your loots? Why did you guys clear the floor on your own?"
"..."
The clearers sounded frustrated and they cast their doubts in Feng Yu Chen & co's way.
Before this point, Feng Yu Chen led the clearers as they killed the bosses floor by floor. They made sure to give each other a notification whenever they mobilized. It looked like Feng Yu Chen ditched them because he outgrew them or maybe because Feng Yu Chen looked like he didn't want to share the loot with them.
"No way, we didn't kill the 35th floor boss, we were eating lunch on the first floor during noon, then, we were here all afternoon to repair our equipment. You can check our alibis, how can we be at two places at the same time?"
Zi Yue Ling explained with furrowed brows.
"More like, wasn't it you guys? You guys wanted the last hit-loot that badly?"
Zi Yue Ling mused out loud.
"Yeah? Where were you guys at this morning?"
A clearer questioned them. His name's Kibaou and Feng Yu Chen knew all about this guy. This is the prick that always tried to stir up trouble.
Feng Yu Chen snorted.
"I don't want to tell you. We already told you the truth, we didn't conquer the 35th floor on our own. In case you didn't hear me, no, we didn't kill the 35th floor boss on our own."
Kibaou grinned.
"A bunch of players tipped me off that you guys were in the 35th floor's dungeon in the morning. Sure, you weren't there during noon or afternoon so you guys must have killed the boss in the morning, right?..."
Asuna frowned.
"I was gathering food material with the guild master, we didn't go anywhere near the boss room. Also, we were by ourselves, why would we dive into the boss room with only the two of us? You guys are just paranoid, why would we lie? If we did do it, we would have informed you guys, but we didn't kill the boss. I find your suspicion highly inappropriate, like, why would we need to hide that information?"
Agil budged in.
"Yeah, to me, this sounds like a huge misunderstanding. We have been together since the first floor, sure, their entry requirement is high but the Wings of Freedom never lied and always did things properly. Without fail, they informed us whenever they mobilized. Furthermore, even if they really took the boss down on their own, what's the sin in that? Everyone's working hard to clear this game as soon as possible. I don't see any point in escalating this argument. Let's just stop this here..."
"I believe Captain Feng, he would never do something like that..."
Kirito vouched for him.
"We trust the Wings too..."
Klein said as he approached the group with his Fuurinkazan members.
"If my guild master say so, then he must be telling the truth..."
"What were we thinking? Of course, Captain Feng wouldn't do something like that..."
"..."
The clearers slowly agreed with Feng Yu Chen. With his abilities, he didn't even need to lie over something trivial like this. So what if he did kill the boss on his own? He did so with everyone's interest in mind.
"If it wasn't the Wings, then who? Are all the beaters here? Come on, who did it, confess. It's not something to be ashamed of. It would be great if that was the case, that means we have someone who can beat a floor without relying on the Wings."
Kibaou said with a smug look. Someone other than the Wings of Freedom killed a floor boss. This means even mortal players like them can do it.
"..."
The clearers looked at each other as they all shook their heads. They didn't want to own that credit because they knew their own capabilities.
Nobody stood out so Kibaou frowned. He wanted to spread this news, he wanted the world to know that the Wings of Freedom isn't the strongest guild, somebody beat them to the floor boss.
"If we are done here, I think it's time we dismiss this joint consultation..."
Feng Yu Chen waved his hands. He's still curious about the identity of the floor boss killer, he or she is clearly doing this to create conflict between the Wings and the clearers. If this went on, the relationship between the Wings of Freedom and the clearers will be unraveled.
The other players were busy grinding and fighting too. They can't rely on the Wings of Freedom forever. After hearing from the horse's mouth that it wasn't the Wings, they had no other business here.
Kirito stayed behind and he approached Feng Yu Chen.
"Captain Feng, something's wrong here. I am confident I can solo a floor boss at the current stage of the game. However, it would be risky and troublesome if I am completely honest. Without a good understanding of the boss' quirk, it's hard to beat the boss on the first try. I don't know anyone in the clearer's group that can do something like this. I can't rule out that it's done by a strong anonymous individual, there are probably strong players who are hiding their true power. However, things could get sticky if it's done by someone with bad intentions in mind..."
Kirito is a pretty sharp player. He analyzed what little information he had and came up with that notion. Plus, he's strong in combat too, making him a famous player even among the clearers. He isn't that far in terms of capabilities when compared to the Wings of Freedom members.
"I think so too. I am just worried that some player out there is going to bite off more than he can chew and get hurt, that would be troubling. The whole point of cooperating with each other is so we can minimize casualties. At this point, I think someone's out to get the Wings."
Feng Yu Chen nodded.
"Let me go investigate, maybe something will turn up. I have contacts in the intel broker market, they might have more accurate details on this..."
Kirito said, he felt the need to investigate this matter further.
Feng Yu Chen wrapped his arm around Kirito's shoulder.
"Say, would you like to join the Wings of Freedom? We don't have a lot of members and once you're in there's no string tying you down. You get a title and that's about it, we operate in independent squads. You are capable so you should join us as we take down floors in this world, freeing everyone in the end. How does that sound?"