Their gazes darted back and forth between Chen Mo and the petite figure in the hood, whose face was only visible from the chin down.
A teammate?
The legendary "Argo the Rat"?
The information broker who valued information more than her life and was only after profit?
Asuna's hazel eyes narrowed slightly, her gaze piercing as she scrutinized Argo.
The look was so intense, as if she were evaluating the stats of a piece of equipment, making Argo's cheeks flush under her hood, feeling completely uncomfortable.
"I understand."
Kirito was the first to break the silence. He nodded at Chen Mo, his eyes showing no doubt, only a knowing understanding.
A strong person naturally has the choices of a strong person.
"Then, I'll see you on the battlefield tomorrow."
"See you on the battlefield."
Chen Mo's response was calm and unperturbed.
Watching the three-person team's backs as they left, Argo finally relaxed from her tense state.
She slapped away the hand still resting on her shoulder, lowering her voice, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, huffily complaining.
"Hey! What are you doing! Don't touch me casually, my hood is almost crooked because of you!"
"Helping you raise your worth, no need to thank me."
Chen Mo withdrew his hand, putting it back in his pocket, his tone as flat as if stating a fact unrelated to himself.
"You…"
Argo was choked by his words, only able to stomp her foot in annoyance.
Chen Mo no longer paid attention to her grumbling and turned to walk out of the theater.
"Let's go, time for the battle meeting."
"Where to?"
"Moonlight Tavern."
...On the second floor of Moonlight Tavern, it was still that corner overlooking the noisy downstairs.
A mug of ale, a glass of brightly colored juice.
Chen Mo placed a pair of brand-new leather boots on the table and pushed them towards Argo.
[Boots of Swift Wind]
[Excellent]
[Equipment Requirement: Level 12]
[Agility +8, Movement Speed Slightly Increased]
This loot had excellent attributes, perfectly suited to Argo's agile combat style.
"This month's payment."
Chen Mo added.
"Plus hush money."
Argo's eyes instantly lit up.
She unceremoniously put away the boots, the previous unpleasantness immediately vanishing, her face once again adopting the professional demeanor of a merchant.
"At least you have some conscience."
She happily tucked the boots into her backpack, leaned forward, and entered work mode.
"Alright, tell me, what's your plan for the BOSS battle?"
"The plan is simple."
Chen Mo took a sip of ale, the cold liquid sliding down his throat.
"Diabel is in charge of commanding, and we'll blend into the main force to clear out the Kobold Sentinels summoned by the BOSS."
"That simple?"
Argo didn't believe a single word.
"I don't think you'd be content just slacking off."
"Of course not just that."
Chen Mo put down his glass, leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear.
"Diabel's goal is the BOSS's Last Attack reward. For this, he even hid his Closed Beta Tester identity from everyone."
Argo's expression instantly turned serious.
The LA (Last Attack) reward was a special gift given to the BOSS's terminator, usually a unique piece of equipment or an ITEM.
Players could resort to any means for this.
"He will deliberately conceal a crucial piece of information."
Chen Mo's voice carried a chilling insight into human nature.
"When the BOSS is at low health, he will break away from the main force and rush in to claim this sole reward himself."
"And what we need to do is to get ahead of him when he makes his move."
Argo gasped.
"Steal the LA? Are you crazy! That's a raiding team of dozens of people, how could just the two of us..."
"Who said I was going to steal the LA?"
Chen Mo interrupted her, his eyes showing no hint of a joke.
"The information Diabel is hiding is that when the BOSS's health enters the red zone, his weapon will switch from a katana to an odachi, and his attack pattern will completely change."
"He will use this information gap to charge alone when everyone is panicking due to the BOSS's berserk state."
Chen Mo's knuckles tapped lightly on the cold wooden table, once, then again, as if tapping on someone's fate.
"And what we need to do..."
He paused, then looked up at Argo.
"Is to save his life when he charges in to his death."
Argo was completely stunned.
Save him?
Why? The moment this thought popped into her mind, she saw Chen Mo's lips curve into a smile devoid of any warmth.
"Then, take the guardian sword from him."
If Diabel died, that single-handed sword, currently the most suitable for knight-type players, would shatter under the BOSS's attack.
Rather than letting the BOSS benefit, it would be better to... find the most suitable reason to make him hand over his weapon.
Argo looked at Chen Mo's calm face, and a chill ran up her spine.
This guy... from Yabashi's provocation, to Diabel's speech, and then to tomorrow's BOSS battle, everything was just a part of his script.
He wasn't passively accepting; he was actively guiding, even creating the outcome he wanted.
Just then, a male player in ordinary leather armor, holding a wine glass, stumbled towards their table.
The tavern was crowded and chaotic; such drunkards were not uncommon.
Neither Chen Mo nor Argo paid them any mind.
However, the moment the player passed their table, he staggered, as if about to fall.
The wine glass in his hand tilted, and the ale seemed about to spill onto the table.
Argo leaned back, already prepared to dodge.
But the player, with a precision completely inconsistent with his drunken state, subtly slid a tightly rolled piece of parchment to Chen Mo's hand.
The entire process was as swift as lightning.
"Sorry, sorry!"
The man mumbled his apologies and walked towards the staircase without looking back, quickly disappearing from view.
Argo sat up straight, looking at the small parchment scroll on the table, her brows tightly furrowed.
"New information?"
Chen Mo didn't speak.
His gaze lingered for a moment on the disappearing figure of the man, and a face from the theater not long ago surfaced in his mind.
It was one of Yabashi's group, who had been standing in the crowd at the time, his eyes flickering.
He picked up the scroll and slowly unrolled it.
There was no signature on the paper, only a line of trembling handwriting, born of fear and urgency.
[Yabashi wants to steal the BOSS. He has instructed his team members to prepare paralysis potions.]
Chen Mo's fingertips caressed the rough edge of the parchment, his eyes deep.
The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Interesting.
This hunt seemed to have gained another overconfident hunter.