SWNOVELXO Chapter 59
I called Kanel and Gio over. It was to move to a location where other guild members couldn’t hear us.
“Rudel, I’m sorry.”
Kanel immediately bowed his head to me.
“Why are you apologizing?”
“We almost succeeded, but in the end, I made a noise and got caught by the two guild leaders.”
Kanel tried to raise one corner of his mouth. However, he couldn’t do it as smoothly as I could, and it ended up looking like a funny checkmark (√).
“Was that a smile just now?”
“I tried my best.”
Although Kanel’s bizarre expression momentarily distracted me, the main point is this:
The rule violation wasn’t Kanel’s arbitrary action; it was actually an order given by me, the guild leader.
I said that I had ordered it and admitted that it was my petty decision.
‘Aleon only believes what he wants to believe.’
If I ever face Aleon, I should consider revealing my sinister intentions to strike a blow to Aleon’s mentality.
Anyway, to explain why Kanel ended up climbing to that dizzyingly high stadium ceiling…
We need to go back to yesterday’s events.
As usual, our guild members were deeply engrossed in personal training and enhancing their unique abilities, except for Lilith and Akata, who had their own reasons.
In the midst of this, I decided to train Kanel, who had the ability of ‘Bullet Acceleration,’ as a sniper and conveyed this ambition to him.
“When the shop opens, I’ll buy you a gun.”
“What kind of gun?”
“A sniper rifle.”
The qualities I envision for a sniper are as follows:
Accurate aim, an unwavering mind that isn’t easily shaken by any variables, and finally, the ability to hide one’s presence.
A sniper must not reveal their position to the enemy. No matter how fast the bullet is, a keen-eyed enemy can pinpoint the location with just one shot.
Therefore, they must be able to move quietly and stealthily.
Based on this logic, I decided to train Kanel’s stealth ability.
So, during the evening break, I gathered all the guild members, except for Akata, who was still weak.
“Can you help with Kanel’s training? The more, the better. I need your strength.”
Kanel’s training ground wasn’t the underground training hall, but the entire guild fortress.
Before starting the training, Kanel drank a stealth (invisibility) potion and hid his appearance.
“Anyone who finds Kanel gets a wish! Kanel, if you get caught, your punishment is a flick on the forehead from Gio!”
Thus began the extreme game of hide-and-seek.
Whether my motivation had a great effect, the guild members cooperated wonderfully with Kanel’s stealth training.
The guild members searched desperately, and Kanel evaded them as if his life depended on it, quickly honing his ability to hide his presence.
However, because they were fellow members, the tension quickly dissipated.
“Can’t we practice in a different way?”
“I have a risky idea. Can you do it?”
“If it’s an order from Rudel, I’ll do anything.”
And so, Kanel climbed up to the grandstand of the PK arena just because I suggested it. Although he got caught in the end, I think he did quite well.
“I’ve decided on the handling of your guild member-.”
At that moment, it seemed the guild leaders’ discussion had concluded. Shemarin’s voice brought me back to reality.
Now I had to pay the price for using this PK match in Kanel’s training.
“Your guild member’s goal was, of course, to observe the battle below and gather information on us-?”
Although they were off the mark, both Kanel and I remained silent.
Shemarin glanced at Aleon, then raised her husky voice so everyone could hear.
“So we decided that the Agasa guild doesn’t deserve to remain just as spectators. Although the match ended in five sets, let’s have one more final round.”
The cost was quite high.
“A guild leader match.”
This place is a PK arena being broadcasted live to real-world users.
But the word that came out of Shemarin’s mouth…
“Don’t be too tense-. Just put on a decent show. We still need to save our strength for the next round. We can’t reveal everything here in a non-official match, can we-?”
Her nonchalant expression at this moment was infuriating.
After mentioning that word and raising everyone’s expectations, what’s the point of saying “You can take it easy” now?
We can’t back out now!
To clarify, our status screens are all private to the viewers.
If our stats were revealed, the betting would lose its thrill for the viewers.
For this reason, the game company didn’t disclose detailed growth stats to viewers after the first round of betting when the game was initially opened.
To cut to the chase, this means that no character or viewer had discovered my D-rank stats, in other words, my mediocrity.
But now a major crisis had arrived.
[A guild leader match between Ice Castle, Red Monarch, and Agasa guilds has been confirmed.]
We’re going to get obliterated.
“…….”
I saw Ice Castle’s guild members murmuring as they ascended to the spectator seats. Their faces were a mix of tension and excitement, like they were watching the finals.
Of course, they hoped their guild leader would win, but aside from that, they seemed to look forward to the spectacular clash between ice and fire.
…It’s a festive mood. Except for me.
Shemarin, making sure I had no excuse, took out loose pants from her inventory and handed them to me.
In the end, I too became a participant stepping into the ring.
“I’ll just consider myself a bystander-?”
Shemarin, are you really doing this?
Equally cunning, she had also hidden the use of her unique abilities in the first round.
So it seems she’s naturally trying to stage this 3-way guild leader match into a 2-way match between me and Aleon…
It’s not helpful at all, it’s just embarrassing.
“Kanel, Gio. Don’t worry about me and just go to the spectator seats.”
I am confident that my smile just now was perfect. I must have looked like a confident top-ranker from every angle.
It seems I’ve discovered my true talent—perhaps something like ‘bluffing with inadequate abilities’…
While I was lost in my foolish thoughts, I saw Shemarin give a quick wink to her guild members before stepping into the ring. Three out of five of them blushed at that wink, confirming that they had indeed voluntarily chosen to become her subordinates.
Next, Aleon stepped into the ring.
Waaaaaah-!
Whoever instigated it, the guild members in the audience cheered loudly. Aleon seemed to enjoy it, smiling broadly.
He waved at them as if providing fan service.
Was this turning into a cheering contest? How childish. Too bad for them, I had no intention of playing along.
I went up after Aleon.
With a solemn and serious face, hoping to make those cheerleaders feel embarrassed themselves.
It was at that moment.
“Waaaaaah!”
The thunderous roar made me stumble.
I turned to see Gio sprawled out in the spectator seats with a ‘What are you looking at?’ expression. When I looked at Kanel next to him, he avoided my gaze.
Could it have been you, Kanel? Did you amplify your voice to sound like ten people so I wouldn’t lose in cheering?
Now I felt even more embarrassed. That the usually soft-spoken Kanel would do something like this…
Unable to decide whether to praise or scold him, I just kept my mouth shut.
Enough, focus.
Aleon to the left, Shemarin to the right. Right now, I need to think faster than anyone if I want to survive.
[Name] Aleon
* * *
[Average of Health, Strength, Agility] A
* * *
[Ability Type] Pure Nature
[Unique Ability] Ice
[Overall Grade] S
[Name] Shemarin
* * *
[Average of Health, Strength, Agility] A+
* * *
[Ability Type] Soul
[Unique Ability] Poison Vine
[Overall Grade] A+
Their beautiful stats and…
[Name] Rudel
* * *
[Average of Health, Strength, Agility] C+
* * *
[Ability Type] Pure Nature
[Unique Ability] Fire
[Overall Grade] B
Here I am, a pitiful and cute stat set mistakenly believed to be a ranker on par with them…
If you look at the detailed stats of that overall grade, there’s even a D in the mix.
But I believe in my spirit. Even faced with this insignificant status screen, I can stand in the ring with a chic and composed face.
Viewers and spectators believe only what they see. The important thing is expression, expression, and a relaxed demeanor!
‘It’s just a friendly match where we can’t kill each other. They won’t use their full power, right?’
I’ll just have to dodge Aleon’s ice and Shemarin’s vines cunningly.
With this odd confidence, I found myself able to truly wear a relaxed expression without acting.
And there’s one more thing I trust.
Aleon treats me with utmost respect, so maybe he’ll go easy on me… then my fire might seem more or less equal.
The referee NPC started counting down from 10, 9, 8…
I tried not to be as nervous as the spectators watching anxiously.
I’ll rely on my well-honed expression to convey everything.
At that moment, Aleon, who had caught my eye, raised his voice towards me.
“Rudel, I’m glad to face you in battle like this.”
“Uh… uh.”
Aleon saying such things isn’t new, but I felt an ominous foreboding.
Ding-.
The bell rang, and immediately, a column of water rose from Aleon’s hand.
“It would be disrespectful not to give my all to someone as beautiful and strong as you.”
What?
No, no! It’s absolutely not disrespectful to hold back a little!
The saint’s eyes glowed a deep, vivid blue. In the next moment, five columns of water erupted around Aleon.
The whirlpool, which seemed about to engulf everything within the barrier, suddenly tilted in one direction and froze white.
The sight of the five water columns freezing was a spectacle in itself, and soon the tips of the newly formed ice pillars were razor-sharp.
They looked like they’d draw blood with just a prick.
The ice saint smiled.
After displaying a power that could shrink the hearts of onlookers, he smiled innocently like a child playing with toys.
He didn’t even glance at Shemarin and focused solely on me.
“Let’s begin. You go first.”
Ah… I’m doomed.