I am Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes.

Kirito's expression turned somewhat strange. "You don't know?"

Jill paused for a moment, "Know what?"

"There's always been someone selling information, and that person is one of the original beta testers..." Kirito said. "Although we don't have information on why the first floor's boss vanished into thin air, we can buy information on most other aspects..."

Jill touched his chin. Although this action didn't seem like something a child his age would do, it somehow felt perfectly natural on him.

“Then, would you like to introduce him to me? I’d also like to buy some information,” Jill said.

Indeed, although Jill isn't afraid of monsters at all, a lot of information is necessary, such as quests with special skills and information about NPC restaurants with delicious food.

“By the way, what kind of person is this person you’re talking about?” Jill asked.

Asuna seemed to remember something she hadn't done, so she greeted them and left the party.

Kirito thought for a moment, "That's... well, like that guy over there running around like crazy."

Gil turned his head, and Kirito was pointing in the direction of a portal.

A female player who emerged from the portal didn't stop at all but rushed straight towards the main road on the west side.

Two male players then appeared. They briefly glanced around, and after spotting the first player, they also chased after him in the same direction. It was clearly a case of "the man chasing and the woman being chased."

Even if that's the case, this area is within the effective range of crime prevention codes, so it's generally fine to ignore it. However, if the person being chased is someone you know, then that's a different story.

“It’s Argo, let’s follow him.” After saying this, Kirito immediately stepped forward and followed.

As Gil followed Kirito, he asked, "Who's that?"

"The intelligence dealer, that person has never sold information for free. When she judges the information to be 'valuable,' she will definitely pay the other party a corresponding intelligence fee and require the other party to keep it a secret as much as possible before selling the information as a commodity," Kirito replied to Gil's words.

“However, if the intelligence is wrong, then it’s all over. One wrong piece of intelligence can ruin a business she’s built up over a long period of time,” Jill said.

Indeed, that's how the intelligence business works. If it were the previous SAO, a single wrong piece of information wouldn't have mattered much. At most, they would just ask for Cor back and complain a bit.

Although the business may suffer losses, it won't be a major problem.

However, in the current "death game" SAO, this job is much more difficult than farming materials from wild monsters and selling them.

Because here, once a character dies, they are truly dead.

One false intelligence could cost several lives.

Therefore, this job as an intelligence broker carries a different kind of risk than collecting materials from the maze area and selling them to NPCs. It is also a very time-consuming and energy-intensive task.

“Yes, that’s true.” Kirito nodded. “Argo has a nickname, ‘Rat’.”

"An informant rat?"

"Although Argo's main profession is intelligence broker, he also runs a side business as a 'messenger' in order to make good use of the mobility brought by his extremely agile ability."

The two ran and talked, without slowing down much.

"It seems you've been in contact recently?" Jill asked.

"Ah, yes." Kirito's expression was a little complicated as he touched the longsword slung across his back.

[Anneal Blade +6]

"Someone who wants to buy your sword?" Jill glanced at the sword. "How many times has that sword been enhanced?"

"Six times, that's almost the limit."

"Attributes?"

"3S3D, it can't compare to yours."

What's the offer?

"Twenty-nine thousand eight hundred kol."

The weapon enhancement system in SAO is relatively simple compared to modern MMORPGs. Enhancement parameters include five types: sharpness, quickness, accuracy, weight, and durability. Players can freely perform enhancements by entrusting NPCs or blacksmiths with the task.

At that time, special enhancement materials will be needed to improve the parameters, and like other games, there is a certain risk of failure.

Regardless of which parameter is enhanced, the item name on the equipment model will be marked with a number such as +1 or +2. The meaning of those numbers cannot be known without directly clicking on the weapon to view its attributes.

It would be cumbersome to specify "accuracy +1, weight +2..." when players buy and sell weapons. Therefore, abbreviations were created. For example, if +4 means accuracy 1, weight 2, and durability 1, it would be abbreviated as "1A2H1D".

Kirito's 3S3D means three durability and three sharpness, an enhanced offensive weapon.

Furthermore, weapons in SAO have an upgrade limit.

For example, Jill's fangs have a maximum of twelve enhancements.

It's already been fully upgraded.

Jill's fangs are enhanced with 4Q4A2S2D, which means four speed, four accuracy, two sharpness, and two durability, making them a weapon primarily designed for fast attacks.

If this fang were sold, many people would probably offer a high price. After all, this slightly unsatisfactory katana by Gil is already something many people would envy, even in the beginner stage.

Chapter Fourteen: How dare you call someone a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) patient!

As Kirito moved, he also shook his right finger to bring up the main window, the "Target Search" option in the Electric Shock skill bar, and then selected [Tracking] in the sub-window that appeared.

Kirito typed "Argo" into the dialog box that appeared, and then a light green, shiny footprint appeared on the road to the lower right of his field of vision.

"Let's follow her. I'll use tracking to keep track of her," Kirito said.

“That’s so convenient, it’s a shame Argo and I aren’t exactly friends,” Gil sighed.

This skill, called [Tracking], is an advanced skill that can be learned by increasing the proficiency of the [Target Acquisition] skill. It is generally used to improve monster-killing efficiency, but it can also be used to track players if their names are known.

However, Jill doesn't have the habit of using this skill.

How about an all-knowing and all-powerful star, an all-encompassing strategy guide? Just focus on the monsters that give the most experience, isn't that the obvious thing to do?

"Speaking of which, Argo, whose Agility Gain (AGI) is at its peak, couldn't shake off his opponents. It seems the two players chasing him are no pushovers either," Kirito said.

Jill thought for a moment and said, "I heard that you formed a BOSS Strategist Alliance. The alliance is full of top-level players. Although those two are not members of the BOSS Strategist Alliance, their levels are probably top-notch as well."

In terms of rank, he's probably only a little bit lower than Jill, right?

For some reason, the footprints ran straight west along the bustling street, passing through the city gate that opened up the outer ring of the Pingdingshan mountain range and arriving outside the circle.

The western plains of Urbas are a dangerous region inhabited by large bison monsters.

The situation is becoming increasingly tense.

Jill narrowed her eyes. "If necessary, I will take action."

His tone was somewhat cold.

“…Ah, we’ll see.” Kirito paused for a moment before saying.

After all, killing is something he finds very difficult to accept.

In the current SAO, simply depleting a player's HP will kill them—it's no different from murder.

For Kirito, this is murder.

“…” Gil glanced at Kirito, after all, he was just a fifteen-year-old boy.

Wait a minute, I'm only a teenager myself, so why do I think Kirito is too young?

Jill felt mentally exhausted.

After crossing this grassland, the wilderness area that follows is still very dangerous. If Jill were to enter alone, it would be difficult for her to remain unharmed when facing multiple monsters.

Fortunately, Kirito noticed a significant increase in the number of new footprints left in the grass (meaning Argo's running speed had slowed down), and a recognizable sound came from the depths of the valley between two small rocky hills.

"...Didn't I say? This is all the information I have, and I won't sell it no matter how much you offer!"

The delicate, nasal tone at the end of her sentence was clearly the voice of Argo that Kirito had mentioned, but she sounded quite nervous.

Immediately following was a barbed male voice.

"Since you don't want to keep this information to yourself, but also don't intend to disclose it, we can only assume that you want to raise the price!"

Is that so?

Gil clicked his tongue, wondering what was with this linguistic quirk that sounded like something out of a samurai ronin's...

The two frowned, Kirito and Gil exchanged glances, Gil slowly walked forward, while Kirito began to climb the rock wall beside him.

In SAO, even terrain that appears inaccessible can be climbed. Kirito climbed the mountain that was out of Argo and the others' sights, and after climbing about five meters, he found a narrow, balcony-like platform. Kirito climbed onto the platform and began crawling forward on all fours. The source of the argument was almost directly below this.

Kirito could see Gil hiding behind a rock. His rather thin body was hidden behind the rock, so much so that he probably wouldn't be able to see him from the front.

"It's not about the price! I mean, I don't want to be resented by the buyer after selling the information!"

In response to these words, the second male player said, "Why should we two hate you?! We've already said we'd pay the price and thank you politely! Just sell us the quest information for obtaining [ExtraSkill]!"

Jill's pupils narrowed slightly as she eavesdropped.

ExtraSkills are skills that can only appear in the skill tree if specific conditions are met; in other words, they are [hidden skills].

Kirito was also surprised by the news.

Kirito's memory of ExtraSkill, during the closed beta, was only one: the [Meditation] skill, which used mental concentration (a similar posture) to increase HP recovery speed and the probability of dispelling negative status effects. Due to its subtle performance and extremely inferior posture, almost no one learned it.

Jill doesn't know much about this skill, but a skill that's been given the "Extra" designation can't be too simple, right?

"Today is today, and we will never give up so easily!"

"This ExtraSkill absolutely needs to be completed by the two of us!"

"What a bunch of unreasonable guys! No matter how many times you tell me, I won't sell you this information... Ah, no, I absolutely won't sell it to you!!"

Suddenly, the tension in the air surged even higher—

Gil, gripping the fangs at his waist, charged forward, while Kirito leaped off the platform.

"Who are you?!" The two immediately turned around and looked at the two people in front of them.

“…Where did you ninjas come from?” Gil asked sarcastically.

Both of them were dressed entirely in dark gray cloth armor. Their upper bodies were covered in light chainmail.

The weapon is a scimitar carried on the back. There's also the matching large bandana and pirate mask on the head. Overall, it has to be said that this design faithfully recreates the attire of a ninja.

“Um, this…you guys seem to be, Feng, Feng…Feng Duo, ah no, Feng Jia, no, that’s not right either…” Kirito said, seeing that the two were dressed as men.

"It is the Wind Demon!" the two opposite suddenly said.

"We are Kotaro and Isamu from the [Fuma Ninja Army] guild!"