Chapter 040- XaXa died?

As the guild members were picking up the loot, they heard the sound of the gate opening. They turned to see a large group of players dressed in dark clothing entering the room.

The new players looked menacing and their intentions were not immediately clear. Rifat and his guild members tensed up, preparing for the worst.

It was clear that these players had not come to congratulate them on their victory.

As the players wearing the dark clothes entered the boss room, Rifat quickly signaled to his guild members to be on guard.

He instantly knew that Heathcliff had set them up and was waiting for this moment to strike. The smile on Heathcliff's face confirmed Rifat's suspicion that he was behind this ambush.

But Rifat couldn't understand how Heathcliff managed to gather so many players without anyone noticing it.

After all, he had put Argo in charge of monitoring Knights of the Blood Oath 24/7.

If hundreds of players from Heathcliff's guild had gathered, Argo would have informed Rifat immediately. But Rifat had received no such information from Argo.

'There must be something fishy going on here. He must have received some outside help. But from whom?' Rifat fell into deep thought.

Thankfully, Rifat already had a nagging feeling that something was off this time. He had a hunch that Heathcliff might try something sneaky.

So, he had already made some backup plans and arranged for some guild members to wait in a hidden place little far away the boss room, just in case something went wrong.

This proved to be a wise decision as soon as he saw the players in dark clothes entering the boss room.

Rifat quickly contacted his backup through his communication device and informed them about the situation.

He instructed them to come as soon as possible since most of his guild members were already in a very low stamina state after the intense battle with the boss.

He knew that they would not be able to hold on for more than a couple of minutes against the attackers who outnumbered them.

But it would at least take five minutes for the reinforcement to come.

Rifat knew that if they were attacked immediately, the losses would be terrible. He needed to delay the enemy's attack until their backup arrived, giving them the chance to recover and prepare for battle.

Rifat decided to use his words to buy time, hoping that Heathcliff and his guild would fall for his bluff and wait for reinforcements to arrive.

"Think about it, Heathcliff," Rifat continued, "if you wipe out Dawn, who will be left to lead the charge to the 100th floor? You may think you have the best players, but without Dawn, the chances of anyone making it to the top floor will be severely diminished."

Heathcliff simply sneered in response. "Don't act like you're important, Rifat. Your guild is nothing but a nuisance to me. I've waited too long for this moment, and I won't let anyone get in my way."

"Moreover, there is no need for us to clear the 100th floor anyway"

"What do you mean?" Rifat was first puzzled by Heathcliff's words but soon furrowed his brows thinking of something.

Even Heathcliff's own guild members were baffled by the statement.

'Does he want to reveal his identity now?'

Rifat suspects that Heathcliff may be considering revealing his true identity as the final boss of the game, which would mean that his role was to defend the floor against other players rather than to clear it himself.

"You will know soon. But for now, let's see how long can you last?" Heathcliff ignored Rifat's question and directly commanded his guildmates and red players to attack.

Heathcliff knew Rifat's plan of stalling for time but he wasn't going to let him succeed.

As the attackers charged towards them, Rifat quickly gave orders to his guild members to form a defensive line and told the exhausted ones to drink whatever potions they had left to regain their strength.

He knew they only had to hold back the attackers for five minutes until the reinforcements arrived. Rifat tried to reassure his team, "Reinforcements are coming soon, just hold on a little longer!"

By the time Rifat finished giving his instructions, XaXa was already in front of Rifat striking with his sword.

He sneered, "You really think you can hold on until the reinforcement arrives? Dream on!"

Rifat quickly blocked the incoming strike and took a careful look at the black hooded person. He quickly noticed that the name bar of this player seemed to be red, indicating that they were a player killer.

Realizing this, Rifat became quite upset with himself, 'Damn! I was careless. I never thought that the remaining red players would join hands with Heathcliff.'

Rifat realized that Heathcliff really plans to reveal his identity after the fight, otherwise, he wouldn't have collaborated with the red players so openly.

Heathcliff was still respected in SAO, but once his collaboration with the red players became known, his reputation would be destroyed, and he would become a public enemy.

Despite these thoughts, Rifat knew he needed to focus on the fight with XaXa, who was attacking fiercely. He shook off his distractions and concentrated on the fight.

...

The clash of steel echoed throughout the chamber as Rifat and XaXa engaged in their fierce battle. Rifat held his sword firmly, the sharp edge glinting in the dim light. XaXa wielded his one-handed sword with fluid movements, striking with deadly precision.

Their swords clashed again and again, each blow met with a fierce counterattack.

Despite them being equally matched in terms of level and swordsmanship, Rifat's hidden occupation as a Samurai gave him an advantage.

His first hit always had a 100% chance of landing a critical hit, and his indomitable will ensured that his focus never deteriorated no matter how much damage he took.

As the fight continued, XaXa became more and more frustrated with Rifat's effortless dodges and swift attacks. Rifat's movements were like water flowing smoothly over the rocks, his swordsmanship a perfect balance between offense and defense.

Despite XaXa's fierce attacks, Rifat managed to hold his ground and even launched more and more counter-attacks that left XaXa panting for breath.

Rifat's sword skills were unmatched, and XaXa found himself slowly losing ground.

With a final blow, Rifat landed a critical hit on XaXa, causing him to fall to the ground, his sword clattering out of his hand. As Rifat stood over him, XaXa looked up at him with a mix of fear and admiration in his eyes.

"Amazing," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "You truly are the most powerful player in SAO."

And with those words, he disappeared, leaving Rifat standing alone on the battlefield, victorious once again.