And in the end Alice was left by herself. The only person that had ever tried to reassure her when things went this sour was Yuna herself – but she was now nowhere to be found, in utter danger and the rest were making their own efforts to find her. Perhaps it was time to stop using her sword to fight – but her voice instead. The only thing she’d ever done right was make people believe that they were doing the right thing – raise their spirits. Slowly getting back to her feet, she sheathed her sword and curled either arm around the other meekly before making her way back to the festival to think on what it is she could do to help them in their endeavour. 

Jacob on the other hand seemed unnaturally calm – though the unnatural nature of that feeling was merely due to his maturity. He understood that there was no way to safely rescue Yuna without proper information beforehand. This meant that he needed to mobilize his guild in such a manner as to get as much information as possible in the smallest amount of time. Hopefully, with some luck, he’d be able to find their hideout and perform a rescue mission before long. 

It did not take Nero too long to find his way to Nikolai’s and Rose’s location, as they were currently clearing the majority of the areas in the newly opened up danger zones on the current level. They did this every time a new floor opened, checking to see which monster would give them the most efficient exp gain of them all. As soon as Nero had entered the area, the two stopped what they were doing and faced him – their awareness skill levels apparently growing very high indeed. Rose sheathed her weapon and crossed her arms with a silent sigh, waiting for the silver-haired boy to approach.

“Can we help you, Nero?” Nikolai asked from a few paces behind Rose, his arms hidden behind his long, flappy sleeves. Even his equipment seemed to be changing for the better – although nobody had ever seen him grind monsters before. In fact, not many knew of his weapon of choice either; the single dagger that remained hidden beyond his sleeve.

Nero looked to the pair emotionlessly; despite appearing so strong-willed, he felt as though he was falling apart inside. "I believe you can, yes. You fancy yourselves a pair of bounty hunters, I imagine? Or Rose does..." He took a slow breath to steady his own words, keeping himself mentally under control as he continued, "Anyway, I have little doubt you've heard about the new red guild which has been causing quite a problem recently?" He asked, looking to Nikolai - the clear businessman of the pair.

“Bounty hunters kill for money.” Rose retorted, her expression showing off the fact that she didn’t enjoy his interruption of their work. Nikolai shook his head gently, before nodding towards Nero – hoping he’d ignore the red-head.

“I’ve heard of them in name only. I am not aware of their deeds. Nobody has seen fit to describe them to us just yet.” He answered honestly, slowly lifting one arm to rub gently at the very base of his mask. His next word was the most powerful – people’s understatement of his very aura now coming into focus.

“Why?” the tone of his voice alone would give anyone pause – as though they were dealing with a higher being and pleading for a favour.

Nero looked to Rose flatly and nearly rebutted but stopped himself, remembering that the man in the mask was in charge more so. He held his blade pointed downward beside him - it was curious that they had not yet heard much of the guild, but the basic idea was quite simple.

"They've been taking players and ransoming them in exchange for not killing them. A few have been killed, some have been paid for... You two are perhaps the most efficient and well-versed in Aincrad. I was hoping that by bringing this to your attention, you might be able to aid us in finding them."

The three were surrounded in a silence not befitting that of a group’s interaction – Nikolai having looked away and begun gently stroking the underside of his mask. Rose, having known Nikolai for long enough now to notice his habits, knew he was intrigued by the news. And when something caught his attention, it would almost always be resolved within the next day. There were very few who had the same abilities in problem solving as he did – his gears churning out answers in seconds. It was all a matter of finding the best solution. 

After what would have felt like an eternity, Nikolai hummed to himself gently, before turning to face Nero again.

“I’ll find them.” He assured the boy, before gesturing for Rose to follow him. The two brushed by without another word – as though the favour he’d just gotten from this otherworldly being was not a favour at all, but an event that would come to pass no matter what interference came about. Nero would never be able to shake the feeling that he’d made a mistake – putting his trust in such a mysterious and cold individual.