The D-Rank Guild Master of the No. 1 Guild

Akata seemed to dislike me leaving his side, even for a moment. So, I decided to stay with him until he fell asleep. Meanwhile, I handled some minor guild leader tasks.

Before the start of the second round, please name your guild.

Naming is the hardest thing in the world. I hadn’t found a name that felt just right, so I had left it blank until now. Aleon had named his guild “Ice Fortress” after the memories of the first round. It was a simple name but had a clear identity and fit the ice fortress shape of his guild stronghold.

What about our guild name… “Pension”?

No way.

I marveled at my own cursed naming sense and racked my brain for something that sounded decent and impressive among the words I knew.

“Hmm…”

At that moment, Akata mumbled in his sleep. Startled, I turned my head.

His sleeping face had turned to face me. A strand of his red hair had fallen across his alabaster forehead, giving him a somehow sacred and holy aura.

As I quietly watched Akata, a word came to my lips.

“Agasa.”

Thus, our guild’s name became Agasa.

* * *

The once desolate subordinate dormitory quickly became bustling.

Gio… no, Unahar put in a lot of effort.

Despite most other guilds having swept up the majority of participants, leaving few left, Unahar successfully gathered 32 lower characters.

Excluding Nahean, that made 31.

The average stats of our subordinates, as seen in the guild member management window, were:

Average Stats: D

– Stamina: C

– Strength: D

– Agility: D

Wow.

Nothing but pure, unadulterated trash.

The roughly 30 people standing before me were mostly dispirited after desperately seeking affiliation in the 1.5 round. They neither talked to each other nor looked properly at the guild leader. They just kept their eyes down.

To them, I was now akin to their master. Even my subordinates were seen as their superiors.

Accompanying me was Unahar, who had been their headhunter.

I looked around at the subordinates and jokingly said to Unahar, “There are more women than men. Did you recruit them based on their looks, Unahar?”

“No, I didn’t!” 

The man, who usually maintained a composed expression, was suddenly flustered, his face turning red.

Actually, it wasn’t so rare. I had often seen Unahar’s expressions slip or him becoming uneasy.

“Just joking.”

“I know, but…”

Seeing his rather distressed face, I patted his shoulder lightly. His expression immediately relaxed.

I then turned my attention to the subordinates who were lined up.

Clearing my throat, I indicated it was time for a speech.

“Commander.”

I called forward the cat-eyed boy who was the only one among the 32 subordinates making eye contact with me.

His stats weren’t exceptionally high, but he was the best among them with B~C grades. Despite being young and small, making him easy to underestimate, I had already decided to make him the leader without any consultation. I expected some resistance, but the atmosphere remained calm.

‘They really seem to have no will of their own.’

If I sent them into battle like this, it would be a disaster.

To lighten the mood, I waved slightly to Nahean, the boy I had designated as the commander.

Given how comfortably he spoke to me yesterday, he should naturally reinforce his role as the ‘character close to the guild leader,’ and thus, the command leader.

But contrary to my expectations, Nahean approached me slowly and then bowed low.

“I will fulfill my duties, Guild Master.”

Nahean’s firm voice resonated clearly in front of the 31 subordinates. Wondering what his intention was, I narrowed my eyes at him. Nahean gave me a small, subtle wink only I could see.

Ah, so he did it on purpose?

Even though I had given him permission to use my name, he suddenly became formal, which made me curious.

‘So, he’s stepping up to instill discipline?’

At least one person, the command leader, seemed determined for the upcoming guild battles. I felt satisfied with this small change.

Time to start the speech properly. This was my forte.

I looked at the 30 or so people and began calmly.

“Every person has the same potential. The only difference is where they start from.”

Here in the game, there is no such thing as ‘I can’t do it no matter what,’ unlike the harsh realities of life. With effort, although the speed may vary, everyone can rise above the average stats.

“What I want from you is for all 32 of you, even though you’re weak individually, to move as one body. Together, you can create greater strength. You need to unite and stick together, like a school of small fish facing bigger predators.”

The viewers would be deeply moved when these seemingly insignificant individuals display unexpected potential. Defeating those with superior stats would be even more impressive.

The atmosphere among the subordinates quickly turned serious. They glanced at their comrades, weighing the possibility of what I said.

As long as they weren’t wallowing in defeat like before, I had achieved something. With their motivation slightly raised, my guild members could take it from here.

I sensed someone approaching from behind.

As he stood beside me, I introduced him to the subordinates.

“And this is my guild member. As mentioned earlier, he will be your instructor.”

A speech should never be too long. I gave Kanel a brief, “Do your best,” and turned away.

Kanel, like me before, was dressed in all-black workout clothes, with a cap pulled low over his face. His stern voice came from beneath the cap.

“This instructor can be either a devil or an angel, depending on how you perform.”

He’s doing well.

I smiled with satisfaction and moved down the hallway.

Bringing Akata into our guild made me realize that no matter how meticulously I acted, I couldn’t manage the entire guild alone without a vice guild leader. Whenever there was a hint of a ‘bug’ or anomaly in the game, I had to investigate it immediately to uncover hidden information. For that, I needed to reduce my workload.

My first decision was to delegate the management of the subordinates’ basic stats to Kanel. It would be tough and labor-intensive, but Kanel, who enjoys bossing others around, would handle it willingly.

The second step involved summoning Unahar.

“I want you to manage the basic stats of our guild members. Track how their stats increase daily, calculate when their grades will change, and report your predictions to me in a formal report. Can you do that?”

A silent emotion flickered in Unahar’s golden eyes as he looked at me.

“Yes, it’s an honor to be chosen to share your responsibilities.”

Unahar tended to take even my most businesslike requests to heart in an emotional way.

As expected, Unahar is the top male character in terms of looks. No wonder viewers keep making fan content like ‘Rudel x Unahar.’

“But… I should exclude your stats, right?” Unahar’s question was quite hesitant.

It took me three seconds to catch his meaning, and instead of answering directly, I just smiled, stretching the corners of my mouth.

“Why, do you want to see mine too?”

Coincidentally, at the same time, the sound of Unahar swallowing echoed in the quiet meeting room.

If I delegated the management of the guild members’ basic stats to Unahar, would that mean my stats would be managed by him too? Initially, I planned to handle my stats myself. But Unahar seemed eager to see them as well. Perhaps he genuinely wanted to lessen the guild leader’s burden, as he claimed?

If it would motivate the guild members… hmm, why not entrust it to him?

“Alright. Then please take good care of mine too.”

Compared to Kanel, Unahar had fewer members to manage. The subordinates numbered 32, while our guild members were only six. However, Kanel could record the growth stats of the entire subordinate group with the help of the command leader, Nahean, whereas Unahar’s task required more in-depth calculations.

So, I felt I had fairly distributed the workload between the two smart men. Managing the guild and leading guild battles had kept me extremely busy, but now my workload was significantly reduced.

“And I’m planning to manage the guild members’ unique abilities. So you’ll be responsible for the basic stats, and I’ll take care of the unique abilities.”

Then I brought up the main reason I had sought out Unahar.

“Speaking of which… come to the training room tonight. Just you.”

It was time to address his uncontrollable abilities.

As I turned to leave, I noticed Unahar’s cheeks had turned red. Does he still get embarrassed instinctively whenever the topic of wolves comes up?

Clicking my tongue inwardly, I went off to find my adorable friend Lilith.