The Salamander leader and their allied guilds had long been keeping an eye on Yuuki—or more precisely, on the Sleeping Knights.
This was inevitable.
Even before Yuuki, in her guise as Zekken, had challenged any player in the server with her 11-hit OSS on the sightseeing island of Floor 24, the Sleeping Knights had already encountered and fought the Floor Bosses of Floors 25 and 26.
Although they ultimately failed, their impressive attempts to take on the bosses had not gone unnoticed by the Salamander leader and their alliance, a guild renowned for its aggressive tactics in the labyrinth zones of Aincrad since Floor 23.
"They may have been defeated by the absurdly challenging Floor 25 Boss, but for Floor 26? The Sleeping Knights only lost because they ran out of healing items. Otherwise, they might have actually won," remarked the Salamander leader.
"This guild may be small in number, but each member possesses exceptional skill. If they can push the Boss to the brink of defeat like before, that'll save us a lot of trouble."
Why? The reason was simple.
"To properly defeat a Floor Boss, you need to gather all the information about it—its attack patterns, weaknesses, and strategies to avoid a total wipeout."
Just like during the SAO era, Boss clearing required scouting parties to collect detailed information before the main group could safely take down the Boss with minimal losses.
While New ALO wasn't a death game, dying still meant losing experience points, and resources like potions and consumables cost real money. If players expended these without successfully defeating the Boss and earning a reward, it would be a waste of both time and resources.
Thus, since Floor 23, the Salamander leader's guild alliance had been dispatching scouts to monitor other players who dared to challenge Floor Bosses. These players were treated as guinea pigs, with Dark Vision spells cast upon them via familiars to steal their view and gather intelligence on the Bosses discreetly.
By using such underhanded methods, the alliance avoided the risk of losing experience points and saved on consumables—a win-win situation.
The Sleeping Knights' stellar performance inevitably caught their attention, turning them into the alliance's unwilling test subjects.
The Floor 26 Boss was defeated only after the Sleeping Knights were wiped out, providing the alliance with the critical data they needed via Dark Vision. As soon as the Sleeping Knights fell, the alliance moved in to secure the kill.
This time, with Yuuki making such a commotion on the Floor 24 island and even inviting Asuna to join her guild, it was impossible for them to remain unaware.
Thus...
"When I heard that Zekken's guild was buying high-priced maps of the Floor 27 labyrinth zone, and that she had invited the Berserk Healer to temporarily join them, I knew they were aiming to defeat the Floor 27 Boss and avoid repeating their past failures. Moreover, our scouts spotted the Magus frequently entering and exiting various areas of the labyrinth yesterday. There's no doubt they're targeting the Boss this time."
The Salamander leader sneered.
"Though I have no idea what the Magus is scheming, letting the Berserk Healer join another guild while he runs wild in the labyrinth, that has nothing to do with us. We just need to secure the Floor Boss."
The Salamander leader was confident Yuuki's group had already located the Boss room.
He firmly believed that Rozen's actions last night—his relentless exploration of the labyrinth—were to identify the Boss room and map out the labyrinth for the Sleeping Knights. However, he couldn't fathom Rozen giving up the rewards and prestige of defeating a Floor Boss to hand over the opportunity to another guild.
As a guild leader accustomed to scheming and exploiting others, the Salamander leader couldn't imagine someone like Rozen acting so selflessly.
Instead, he assumed Rozen was trying to avoid the Salamander alliance's interference by secretly cooperating with the Sleeping Knights.
From Floor 23 onward, the Salamander leader's guild alliance had clashed with the Crimson Wing over Boss clearing rights numerous times. Though the two sides weren't in outright conflict, they were far from friendly.
The Salamanders had frequently sabotaged the Crimson Wing, vying for Boss raid control.
Of course, they had more losses than victories. While the alliance swiftly claimed the Floor 23 Boss upon forming, they were humiliated when Rozen singlehandedly defeated the Floor 24 Boss without their knowledge. The Floor 25 Boss wiped out both the Salamander alliance and the Crimson Wing, but Rozen's team ultimately secured the victory.
It was only thanks to the Sleeping Knights that the alliance managed to take down the Floor 26 Boss.
Now, the Salamander leader assumed Rozen was wary of their interference on Floor 27, prompting him to secretly collaborate with the Sleeping Knights.
This also explained why Rozen was willing to temporarily send Asuna, one of his key members, to another guild.
"To think I've already seen through all your plans. What a pity," the Salamander leader said smugly.
The players in the united force chuckled to themselves.
"They say the Magus is not only strong but also smart. Seems like he's not that clever after all."
"Did he really think this plan would work?"
"He's overestimating himself."
"Let's just follow the Sleeping Knights to the Boss room, take them out, and claim the kill ourselves."
"Then let's see if the Crimson Wing can still call themselves the strongest guild in ALO."
With these arrogant declarations, they prepared to enter the labyrinth.
However, their smugness was short-lived.
"Great, confident warriors who claim to have seen through everything, would you care to explain what exactly makes you so confident?"
A mocking voice echoed, freezing the Salamander leader and his group in their tracks.
Moments later, a figure emerged from the labyrinth entrance, walking toward them slowly.