Money Can Buy Everything

035: Battle of Life and Death

Argo had already closed her eyes.

Was she going to die like this?

Tears streamed down her cheeks. Even Argo, who had always pretended to be cheerful, couldn't muster a smile at this moment.

She thought she had gained the upper hand in the game, bringing in a capable player as backup to complete the quest early and set her intelligence-gathering work on the right track. But the result wasn't just that she harmed herself; she had also harmed others, hadn't she?

Regret filled Argo's heart. She wished she could have another chance to choose. If she did, she would definitely level up to ten before attempting this quest. Then, even if she faced two LV3 elites, she could have won.

She knew this was a death game, so why did she take such a risk?

But now, it was too late for regrets.

"Momo... I'm sorry..."

"Buzz—"

Despair consumed Argo. She felt as if she could already smell the foul breath of the rat in front of her. But suddenly, she heard a sound, a sound of blades slicing through the air.

The sound of a sword cutting through space.

"Squeak, squeak—"

The rat that was about to bite Argo let out a pitiful cry. Its body stiffened, and a figure, surrounded by the radiance of a sword skill, swept past it, dealing a small amount of damage.

Argo's eyes shot open. She followed the figure and realized it wasn't just Momo, there was someone else as well?

However, what Argo was most concerned about was the team information displayed in the upper left corner. Momo, who had been at full health, had suddenly dropped to half health. But then, Argo noticed the bite marks on Momo's body and immediately understood.

Momo had given up on fighting his own rat and had let it bite him, just to attack Argo's rat.

"You fool, run! Run now! You can't handle one, let alone two! Take your rat and get out of this rat's aggro range. You can still survive! Survive, don't worry about me!"

Argo shouted desperately. Even though Momo was incredibly strong, he had no chance against two rats. Besides, Argo had dealt over half the damage to her own rat; Momo's single attack couldn't possibly draw its aggro.

In Sword Art Online, aggro management was a complex mechanic. Momo's attack, without a doubt, couldn't draw the rat's aggro away. Instead, it would only add Momo to the rat's aggro list.

As a result, once Argo was killed, that half-health rat would definitely attack Momo.

In Argo's eyes, Momo was seeking death!

If only she died, that would be enough. Why did Momo have to be dragged into this as well?

Even heroes saving damsels in distress should consider the timing!

"Run, hurry! Do it now, or the monsters will react..."

"Squeak, squeak—"

The rat that had been frozen by Momo's attack was released from its stiff state. It glared hatefully at Momo, then once again lunged at Argo. Argo was pinned to the ground by the rat's front paws, unable to release her sword skills. She could only desperately chip away at the rat's health with her dagger, bit by bit.

The most basic sword technique, even exceeding the damage of a regular attack by ten times or more. Yet, even with a fine and unique weapon like Argo' in hand, it held no significance here in Sword Art Online. This is the world of sword techniques.

However, Argo was destined for disappointment.

The rat paid no attention to Momo, but Momo's attacks struck again.

Thrust, Sweep, Double Strike!

In an instant, Momo used up all of his single-handed sword techniques, causing all of them to enter cooldown. The rat before them still had about one-third of its health left.

"Fool... you're going to meet your end too..."

Argo' tear-filled eyes were misty. She had already accepted that she was going to die, and Momo would accompany her to the grave.

"For the sake of saving me... it's not worth it... it was me who brought you here in the first place..."

The rat with only one-third of its health left still harbored its hatred for Argo. Nothing had changed.

However, at this moment, Momo's expression remained serious, without a hint of fear or despair.

He once again assumed a stance, but this time, it wasn't a single-handed sword technique.

His single-handed sword techniques were in cooldown. Even if he used a regular attack against the rat before them, it wouldn't yield any results.

However, Argo understood. This move... was a Throwing Sword Technique!

Momo was actually going to throw his sword!

"...Idiot..."

Argo opened her mouth, but only managed to utter the word "idiot." She felt that Momo was willing to give his all to save her, even though he knew it wasn't practical.

It was an expression of foolishness and madness, yet this display made Argo feel that she hadn't met Momo in vain.

If she could survive, if he wasn't just a philanderer...

A flicker of thought emerged in Argo' heart...

"Whoosh!"

Momo made his move, his LV3 Rat Tail Dagger flew out, soaring in the midst of Argo' despairing gaze... and it flew on!

Missed?

How could that be!

Once a sword technique was executed, it could only be blocked or evaded; it wouldn't miss. After all, sword techniques were assisted by the system. Once activated, it meant the sword technique was originally aimed.

In the corner of Argo' eye, the short sword flew with Momo's final struggle. It hit the second rat that was rushing toward them from a distance.

And that rat... was at half health!

Although the power of the thrown sword technique was weak, it was augmented by the LV3 Rat Tail Dagger's attack bonus. It was enough to cut down about one-thirtieth of the rat's health, and it was sufficient to reduce the health of the rat that was about to be at half health to below that threshold.

"Squeak!"

The health dropped to half, and a red light instantly burst from the eyes of the rat chasing after Momo. The Half-Health Skill was immediately activated!

Fierce Collision!

Originally meant to outsmart players, the moment its health dropped to half, it would instantly release its skill, a fierce collision without any pre-casting animation. Just like that, the second rat used it, paying no attention to anything in its path, charging straight towards Momo.

Seeing this, Momo smiled.

It worked.

Sword Art Online is a game, but it's not just a game. It has a fantastical sword skill system, yet it strictly adheres to physics in many aspects.

For example, physical collision!

Momo, Rat Number One, Rat Number Two, three points in a line. Momo made Rat Number Two release the skill "Fierce Collision," a linear skill that charged straight towards Momo. But unexpectedly, the first to be sent flying was Rat Number One!

Amidst cries of agony, Rat Number One was sent flying, its health didn't decrease, but it couldn't hold back Argo anymore!

"Get up... ugh!"

With a loud roar, Momo reflexively rolled to a safe spot as Argo struggled to get up. Her own health had turned dangerously yellow, but she was entirely focused on Momo, whose health had turned red!

Red, representing death.

To save herself, Momo used all of her skills, even throwing away her weapon. Faced with the attacks of the rats, the attacks of both rats, it was a situation of certain death.

No exceptions, no possibility of exceptions.

"I'm coming to save you!"

With tears in her eyes, Argo rushed over, knowing full well she didn't have Momo's strength and couldn't possibly save her. But Momo had saved her, and she wouldn't escape alone.

At the very least, they would die together!

"Attack the second rat!"

And at that moment, a calm order came from Momo, a voice filled with pain yet unwavering.

Stimulated by the resolute voice, Argo gained a slight composure. She saw a faint confident smile on Momo's lips.

A short sword, traded by Momo, was now in her hand, as the weapon switch skill went on cooldown.

Level 2, Fang Dagger. The short sword that had just been obtained was put to use sooner than expected.

"Ding!"

Momo inserted the short sword between the front teeth of Rat Number One, blocking its attack.

"Squeak!"

The second rat also pounced, bypassing Argo and charging at Momo.

"Die for me!"

However, behind it was Argo, shouting in tears and rage!

Basic Sword Skill - Thrust, double speed and damage, combined with the attributes of the Rat's Tail Dagger, the piercing sword light instantly struck Rat Number One's vulnerable rear, a critical hit!

"Squeak!"

Rat Number One screamed, its health visibly plummeting, quickly reaching the last 10%, its body becoming rigid.

At this point, Argo couldn't care about anything else. She released her last remaining sword skills all at once. She didn't care about the consequences if she couldn't kill the rat.

Even if she died, she would perish together with this rat. She couldn't let it attack Momo!

This was Argo's final thought.

"Squeak—"

The rat's health rapidly decreased, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. When only a sliver of health remained, it stopped.

Not killed.

With only a sliver of health left, the rat turned again and charged at Argo.

It's over...

A bitter smile formed on Argo's lips. Having fought so hard, it turned out that she still hadn't killed it. Without any armor, she couldn't withstand the rat's attacks any longer.

In her despair, she fiercely stabbed her dagger into the rat's head, an ordinary attack taking away a tiny bit of its health. But the rat was still alive.

It's really over...

However, if the health had been whittled down to this point, couldn't Momo finish it off with just a single regular attack? If that were the case, with only one rat left, Momo would probably be able to survive.

That would be enough!

Argo bit her lip. She didn't want to die, truly didn't want to die. She had pretended to be cheerful and optimistic these past few days to speed up the strategy, gather information, and help the powerful combat players conquer the game.

She didn't want to die, she still wanted to return to the real world.

Really, didn't want to die...

"Swish!"

A glint of light flew in from a distance. It was the LV2 Fang Dagger, radiating the glow of a thrown sword skill, striking the rat in front of Argo.

The rat's front teeth were less than three centimeters away from Argo's face.