The church's courtyard wasn't too big, but it was carefully looked after by Sasha and the kids. Most of the space was open ground so the children could run around and play, but there were also some other additions that hadn't been there when Sasha first took kver the church.
On one side was a small vegetable garden, and even three fruit trees. It wasn't much, and it was far different than looking after plants in real life, but it did give the kids something to do.
On another part of the courtyard was a set of playground toys. A seesaw, a set of swings, things like that. And to top it all off, a clearly demarcated square with sand and two practice dummies, because this was still SAO.
Where Drifter, Yuna, Nautilus, and Ran were walking towards, however, was the part of the courtyard closest to the main building of the church. A trio of granite tables and benches rested under the shade of a gazebo.
Sasha and two other adult players had been sitting there, watching the kids play, but were now standing up to greet them.
The teacher and caretaker hugged first Yuna, then Drifter, and also a hesitant Nautilus and Ran. Her smile was blinding.
"It's so good to see you! And thank you so much for doing this!"
"Think nothing of it. It's our pleasure."
It really was. Drifter smiled at Sasha before turning to the other two adults, who were standing behind her with gentle smiles.
"Thinker and Yulier, I assume?"
"That's right. It's a pleasure to meet you, Broken Spear."
"And all of you as well, Songstress, Indomitable Knight, Precise Blade. Your work on the frontlines is inspiring."
The couple shook the hands of the frontliners one at a time. Right off the bat, Drifter could see that both Yulier and Thinker had very similar temperaments. And their looks weren't half bad either.
Both were tall and thin, and they were wearing equipment that wouldn't look out of place in low-tier clearers. The way they portrayed themselves also wasn't that of someone who never stepped out of a safe zone.
Clearly, the couple had fighting experience. If Drifter had to guess, he would either say that they were clearers who stepped back, or players striving to become clearers.
The first was more likely. They didn't have that fire in their eyes that the second type of people usually had. They were placid, and very calm.
Although, maybe that could be attributed to their age. Yulier seemed to be in her early-thirties, although with women it was sometimes hard to tell. Her white hair was clearly dyed, but it suited her.
Thinker, meanwhile, kept his original hair color, brown, styled in an old-fashioned look. He was quite obviously closer to his late-thirties, and made no effort to hide it.
"Call us by our names, please. The titles can go from funny to uncomfortable very quickly."
Normally Drifter wouldn't be so brusque with someone he just met, but Sasha vouched for them, and that was good enough for him.
Thinker and Yulier, after a moment of surprise and another second to recollect themselves, smiled again. It was more genuine this time.
"Great."
"Now, should we get going? We can talk more once we are on the 22nd. The kids look like they are gonna burst if we stall anymore."
Sasha looked kver her shoulder at her charges, who were practically vibrating on the spot. She laughed.
"I see that. Yes, let's go."
"Party up first."
For a moment, Sasha blinked in confusion. Then her eyes widened when she saw that the party invite Drifter had sent her included not just her, but also Yuka and three other kids.
She stared at the spearmaster, who winked at her, some less-than-light undercurrents hiding beneath his gaze.
It took her a while, but she understood when she saw Yuna, Nautilus, and Ran swiping their fingers through the air, no doubt inviting the others to parties of their own.
They were doing it so they could keep an eye on the kids. Party members could see each other's locations and status at all times. That was why Drifter had insisted they waited for the Reavers to fetch them instead of just going directly to the 22nd floor, and why 4 of them had come instead of just Drifter and Yuna. All of it was in consideration for the kids.
"T-Thank you..."
Sasha stuttered, the words catching on her throat. But Drifter just patted her shoulder. He was doing it just as much for his peace of mind as it was for the children's safety.
Thinker and Yulier also seemed to catch on, and their gazes onto the Reavers twinkled a little more. Nautilus raised an eyebrow to his friends, but none of them said anything as they started making their way through the city and back to the teleporter, this time in a much larger group.
Herding 13 kids through the Town of Beginnings was no easy task. And certainly not a subtle one, either. Everyone stopped ehst they were doing to watch the pack of children running ahead of the 7 older players.
"Seems like we have a few shadows, Drif."
While keeping her eye on Lala, who was skipping ahead hand-in-hand with a younger girl, Ran brushed close to Drifter and whispered so only he could hear.
"I noticed. Akari's a big softie, even if she won't admit it."
The spearmaster smirked, and Ran laughed. Neither of them had been nervous when they noticed the players following them. There was no way Fuumaningum wouldn't have caught wind of their little field-trip, when it had been on the works for weeks, and the Reavers hadn't been exactly trying to hide it either.
"Make sure to thank her later, dummy. She'll go all tsundere if you do it now."
Apparently they hadn't been as quiet as they thought, because Yuna turned her head from chatting with Sasha, and grinned. Or maybe she just knew Akari well.
"I'll pay to see you call her that to her face, Yun'."
"No thanks. I don't have a death wish."
"She wouldn't kill you. She would just stand there. Menacingly."
The songstress rolled her eyes at her best friend, and Nautilus chuckled. Sasha, Thinker and Yulier listened in on their banter confusedly.
"Who?"
"A friend. Don't worry."
The teacher shrugged. If it was important, Yuna would tell her.
"Here we are. Now- Calm down, you lot. Here's what's gonna happen. To make sure nobody gets lost, you are going to hold hands with the people in the same party as you, okay? Just like that, yeah. Now, the destination is Coral Village, 22nd floor. Everybody got that? Repeat it to me."
Some of the kids made faces at the way Drifter was speaking to them, but the spearmaster wasn't cowed. And the kids were too eager for the trip to complain loudly, so they just ended up doing what he told them.
"Yuna, Ran, you can go first. Then Thinker and Yulier, I think. Nautilus and I will go last in case we have to wrangle any stragglers..."
Drifter gestured with his hands, and the kids were already in the teleporter before he could finish speaking.
"Coral Village!"
"...Or not. I guess we are all going last."
Exasperated, Drifter shook his head and quickly stepped into the teleporter, calling out his destination. Just before he was flashed away to the 22nd floor, he waved to one of Fuumaningum's shadows.
Thanks. We will take it from here.
...
The spearmaster almost ran straight into Yuka, who was slowly turning in front of the teleporter, mouth open as she took in Coral Village.
Drifter didn't blame her. It was quite the sight. The safe zone, through to its name, had buildings made of a spongy but solid material. Each house and shop was a different eye-catching color.
"Y'know, the whole point of us being in a party was so we could go together. Not for you lot to rush ahead."
There was no real bite behind his reprimand, and the children were too amazed by everything around them - it was so different from the Town of Beginnings! - to pay attention. He was fairly certain they hadn't heard a word he said.
"The kids give you the slip, Drifter?"
Waiting for them on the 22nd floor were a very amused Agil, Shigio, and Wolv. Yuna, Nautilus, Ran, Sasha, Thinker, and Yulier emerged from the teleporter to the merchants laughing loudly.
"Not on purpose, but they definitely tried. Still got all 13 though, so all is well that ends well."
"Oh, trust me, it's far from ending. It's gonna be hilarious watching you go all mama-hen after them all day."
Drifter raised an eyebrow. He couldn't deny that's what would probably happen.
"At least I'll have help. Yours included, I hope."
Agil placed a finger under his chin as if considering it. Then he grinned mischievously.
"Nah, I think you got this. I'll just enjoy fishing."
The spearmaster rolled his eyes. Behind him, Sasha and the others were making sure the kids didn't run off.
Eventually breaking into a grin of hisnown, Drifter walked over to the trio of Reavers, and bumped fists with each of them.
"Glad to see y'all are in a good mood. What about the others?"
"I haven't seen Yuuki stop moving yet, but I think you already knew that. They are all at the lakes already. Asuna said they saved a big enough spot for everyone."
"Good. Any news from Ceba?"
The painter was the reason this all started, after all. It just snowballed out of proportion once word spread to Sasha.
"Already painting. She was the first to get there."
"Hm. Any trouble?"
"None. The 22nd is peaceful enough as long as you keep to the trails and out of the forests. There're a couple of fishermen near where we will be staying, but they seem friendly."
The spearmaster nodded, satisfied. Then he nodded again, this time to Sasha. The woman clapped her hands, and all the children turned to her. Drifter was impressed.
"We will now be going to one of this floor's lakes, where we will be staying for the rest of the day. Yuna and Drifter and the rest of their guild were very kind in arranging this outing for us, so I expect all of you to be on your best behavior from here on out. No more running ahead, okay? We'll be leaving the safe zone, so even though this floor is relatively secure, there will still be mobs about. Stay together, and never go anywhere without first asking myself, Thinker, Yulier, or one of the Reavers. Understood?"
"Yes Miss Sasha!"
The way they all answered together, voices echoing one another, was unbelievably cute. Yuna cooed, and the others smiled.
The group now larger, they walled put through the north gate of the village, and onto one of the wooden paths that crisscrossed the floor. As long as they stuck to it, it would be mostly safe. Unless someone purposefully lured them out, the mobs stayed inside the patches of forest and groves.
Drifter took his place in front of the merry band, Agil with him. Nautilus and Ran were bringing up the rear, while Yuna, Shigio, and Wolv mingled with the kids, making jokes and pointing out interesting sights.
Shun, Lala, Yuka and the other children didn't notice how the Reavers had inconspicuously surrounded them, but Sasha and the other two adults definitely did.
"Do you always do that?"
Yulier approached Drifter, twirling a strand of her white hair. The spearmaster looked back at her before sweeping the surroundings with his gaze again.
"It actually isn't much different from escort-type quests. We chose the 22nd floor for multiple reasons, one being that it is mostly a leisure floor. Still, it always pays to be careful. Especially since we have non-combatants with us."
"You put a lot of thought into this, didn't you?"
Drifter bit the inside of his cheek. To his side, Agil rubbed his bald head.
"It's not a matter of putting a lot of thought on it. It's just how it is. Frontliners have the most important job in SAO. I don't think anyone's gonna dispute that. But the way I see it, that all of us at Reaver's Requiem see it, what Sasha is doing is just as relevant. If not more. If we were to ignore and let children suffer and even die... Do we really deserve to clear SAO?"
It wasn't a realistic question. And not one to be answered now, or ever. So when Yulier slowed down, lost in thought, Drifter just continued walking.
He could see the lake in the distance now, as the shapeless forms of several players standing on the shore. They grew ever clearer as they came close, Kizmel, Silica, Feredir, and Pina posing for a painting, Ceba behind her canvas, Yuuki splashing water on Sinon, Liz, and Vallerk...
Yes. Hopefully they would never have to give an answer to that question.