Chapter 663: The flower garden and the baited ones
Aincrad, 47th Floor, Floria.
As the name suggests, it’s a beautiful floor filled with myriads of flowers.
The full visible light spectrum can be witnessed here, there is a flower for every color and they are also planted in such a manner that they formed a sea of flowers that integrated into a garden of flowers that looked out of this world. The smell of flora is also in the air and it lifted the spirits of any player who came here.
With fluttering petals dancing in the air, this world of flowers looked very vibrant with life. There are also invulnerable critters with no hostility roaming around that completed this scenery. This artificial life made the garden looked very realistic.
It is not an exaggeration to call this floor a world of flowers. You just can’t find a place without flowers on the 47th Floor of SAO.
This unbelievably amazing floor can be compared to the 22nd floor where Wu Yan lived.
Wu Yan had a hard time choosing between the 22nd floor and the 47th floor. Buying a home in a wonderful place like this can really do wonders for one’s mental health.
Alas, because of the flowers here, it’s a prime spot for dating among the players. After the 47th floor was cleared, a lot of couples in SAO made this place a regular site to visit on their dates. In the end, Wu Yan chose the more peaceful 22nd floor.
Silica was dazzled by the scenery the moment she arrived here. She kept looking around with a very excited look. She knelt down in front of a patch of flowers to bask herself in their pleasant smells. She looked like a flower fairy prancing around in her home, her cute face is a perfect fit for this place. Wu Yan couldn’t help but smile as well.
Wu Yan closed his eyes and he got a good sniff of this place. The smell calmed his mind down. He came here multiple times in the past, although he ditched his plans to buy a home here, Wu Yan never hated it. On the contrary, when he got bored, he would often wonder what it would be like to live here.
Wu Yan built up resistance by coming here multiple times. Meanwhile, Silica who had no resistance at all is beaming brilliantly. She wanted to pluck a flower but she wasn’t sure if she should spoil the scenery at the expense of everyone else. It’s not hard to tell that she’s completely immersed in this exquisite world.
When the couples around Silica entered her eyes. She finally woke up from her stupor. She saw the intimate couples around her and she finally noticed what kind of place they are currently in.
Silica stole a peek at Wu Yan and she frantically turned her face the other way with a cute blush on her face. It seems like her maiden feelings were awakened as well.
Wu Yan amused himself with her cute reactions. He intentionally approached her with a cheeky grin.
“Oh, dear, your face is very flushed. Is Silica thinking about going on a date with me like the other couples here?...”
“E-eh!!!”
Silica yelped in surprise. Her pink face became redder as she felt dizzy from being put on the spot. She replied while stuttering.
“N-no, I mean I...”
“Come now, there’s no need to be embarrassed, any girl would think about the same thing when they are in a place like this...”
Wu Yan grinned.
“I just didn’t think Silica would already be aware of the matters of the heart at such a young age...”
“I-I’m not a kid!”
She protested with a mix of anger and bashfulness.
“Oh, really?”
Wu Yan shifted his gaze towards a certain barren field on Silica and he sighed.
“Wh-where are you looking at?!”
Silica crossed her arms in a huff.
“Wu Yan-san is a bad meanie!”
“Okay okay, calm down...”
Wu Yan waved his hands. He didn’t want her to get so embarrassed she blows her top off. HIs rich experience told him that even gentle girls will do unpredictable things when driven into a corner with rage. It would be wise to back off while he still can.
“Well then...”
Wu Yan’s face mellowed out and he extended an arm to Silica.
“Shall we go on a short date?”
Silica flinched in shock and her started racing when she saw his warm look and his open palm. She subconsciously raised a hand to her chest with a feverish look. She looked like a girl who is experiencing her first love. She’s not sure how to proceed as she tittered between anxiety and panic.
Silica finally mustered enough courage to grab Wu Yan’s hand.
Wu Yan asked her when he noticed her red-hot face.
“Silica, is this the first time you held hands with a guy?”
Silica lowered her head without saying anything. Even her neck is already red, Wu Yan didn’t need to probe any further for the answer. It felt like he is committing a grave sin when he interacted with this girl.
The 47th floor is suffused with a myriad of flowering plants. But, there are still paths one could walk on. For instance, there are buildings in the towns here. The roads leading into and out of the city also had bricks. In the end, though, one couldn’t escape being surrounded by flowers.
Walking on a peaceful and beautiful path like this, it’s easy for players to let down their guards out there in the fields. There are monsters here, that’s something Wu Yan and Silica forgot.
Wu Yan had situational awareness to keep an eye for sudden surprises. As for Silica, she’s completely occupied with her first experience of hand-holding. The colorful flowers around her didn’t help to reduce the fairy-tale-like feelings she’s getting right now. Her virtual body is here but her thoughts are probably somewhere else. In the end, she got grabbed by a tentacle monster and Wu Yan got a good look at the fabric guarding her secret garden.
fortunately for Wu Yan, the monsters here are basically just slime-like monsters with nary a threat. Silica, enhanced by the equipment Wu Yan gave her, is a player that can wreak havoc in the fields of any floor below the 51st floor, barring a solo fight against bosses or monsters in the dungeon, of course.
Finally, they arrived at the top of the Hill of memories.
Silica approached the stone platform placed near the apex. A white flower bloomed with a warm light in the center of that stone platform. Revealing its beauty to the world.
Silica grabbed the flower and she hugged it like a priceless treasure.
“With this, Pina can be revived...”
Silica mumbled with the white flower in her hands.
Wu Yan nodded with a smile. Then, his smile turned cold.
“Ah, the fishes bit the bait...”
Silica flinched and Wu Yan turned around first.
“Come out...”