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

‘Let things take their course…’ No, it was more like, ‘Somehow, it’ll work out!’ With this baseless confidence, I charged in.

However, the current situation seemed too much for that to cover.

Facing the gigantic ice monster about to engulf me, I hastily shot a small but fierce David-like flame.

But in the very next moment…

Bang!-!

A strange booming sound, like a light bulb shattering, echoed throughout the dome.

Pop, pop, pop.

Moments later, all the lights in the arena went out.

“…?”

Aleon’s ice and my charge both halted in this sudden turn of events.

In the pitch-black darkness of the arena, the only source of light was my flame.

To be precise, the flame I had conjured in my hand.

Somehow, I had become the sole spotlight in this vast arena, and I blinked in confusion.

Then, I made eye contact with Aleon and Shemarin in turn. Their faces were glowing red from my fire.

“What’s with this power outage?”

Even in the game, something like this happens? How inconveniently realistic.

This strange variable ruined the critical moment—won’t the viewers be up in arms about this?

‘Well, it’s a good thing for me. Maybe it’s a stroke of luck, maybe I’m just destined to succeed no matter what…’

Soon, a few of the main lights flickered back on. It seemed they had managed to bring in temporary power, as only some lights were restored while the rest remained dark.

In the dim light, I saw the characters in the audience looking bewildered.

Curious about the cause, I immediately turned to the NPC managing the guild friendly match. Shemarin did the same.

But there, at the entrance, I saw someone I hadn’t noticed before standing off against the manager.

‘Who is that?’

At that moment, Aleon, who had been quietly standing by, muttered something unintelligible.

“That person must be the one who recently joined Rudel’s guild—?”

In a flash, Aleon hit the match pause button and dashed off the ring towards the stadium entrance.

I sensed something ominous too.

‘That familiar color, could it be—?’

I hurriedly ran after Aleon. Finally recognizing the person standing there, my eyes widened.

Before I could fully grasp the situation, a shout burst from my lips.

“Akata!”

The familiar red-haired boy stood there, blocked by the administrator, blood trickling from his pale arm.

He had been fine when we left this morning, so the wound must have been recent.

Aleon reached him before I did, catching the staggering boy as he collapsed.

“Let me see your arm! How did you get hurt?”

By the time I arrived, I grabbed the gatekeeper by the collar instead of checking on Akata like Aleon did.

“What’s the meaning of this? Did you do this? An administrator touching a player?”

Despite being an emotionless NPC, it seemed taken aback. A swift response followed.

[No, the Akata player injured himself.]

“Why?”

[When he was prevented from entering the arena, he struck the power supply on the wall.]

Aleon and I simultaneously turned to look at the wall.

It was true. So the blackout was caused by Akata breaking the switch with his arm.

There was blood smeared on the wall as evidence.

This situation felt familiar.

When we first met, Akata had reacted similarly, causing a scene when he saw me being attacked.

“Did you think I was in danger…? So you forced the match to stop? Worried I’d get hurt by the ice?”

Aleon looked at Akata and then at me, realization dawning in his widened eyes.

“It’s a misunderstanding! I wasn’t trying to harm Rudel! It was just a practice match! I’m sorry for scaring you. Are you alright?”

He knelt on one knee in front of Akata, repeatedly apologizing. Akata, however, ignored him, his gaze fixed solely on me.

Despite his desperate attempt to stop Aleon, Akata’s face showed no sign of being delicate. 

He just clenched his teeth. Even as Aleon supported him, Akata kept his eyes on me, his stare intense.

‘…What a mess this is.’

Once again, our boy caused quite a scene in the arena.

The blackout I had mistaken for a stroke of luck was actually caused by our guild member Akata.

He must have decided to act on the words ‘If you want to see me, come out yourself’ at this precise moment.

How he found out about this arena and made his way here remains a mystery.

Seeing me facing off against Aleon and Shemarin must have driven Akata into a frenzy…

When the gatekeeper blocked his entry, he probably broke his own arm to fiercely strike the power supply.

The result is what we see now.

In a way, Akata’s actions helped me once again. Honestly, I wasn’t confident I could stand up to Aleon’s overwhelming ice power.

‘It’s strange how I keep getting saved by this weak child…’

Akata’s gaze shifted to Aleon. When he looked at others, his eyes seemed unfocused, as if they were wandering.

A silence fell over the arena. The voices from the audience carried clearly to us.

“That kid… the hidden player from round 1.5.”

“They said he was hiding in the Agasa guild.”

“Interfering with the match, how presumptuous…”

The murmuring, though not friendly, lasted only a moment.

“It’s my first time seeing him in person…”

With that, it went silent again.

Everyone’s eyes were on Akata. Even Shemarin had approached and was silently staring at him.

I extended my hand to Akata.

“Akata, come here.”

In the next moment, Akata shook off Aleon’s grip and walked into my arms.

The audience murmured again.

…I hadn’t expected him to embrace me like that.

Trying not to react awkwardly, I began to staunch the bleeding from Akata’s wounded arm.

Even while doing this, my mind was racing.

Should I use this incident to call off the guild match entirely?

I didn’t feel great about continuing to exploit this child… but I’ve always believed in using whatever I can.

Before I could decide, Shemarin spoke up first.

“The boy is badly hurt.”

For once, she spoke seriously without her usual playful tone. Despite pretending otherwise, she was clearly shocked by Akata’s appearance and actions.

“The mood’s ruined. And with the arena in this state, how can we continue the game-?”

She glanced up at the now much darker ceiling, venting her frustration. Recognizing the opportunity, I quickly spoke up.

“About that, I’m sorry, but I need to take him for treatment first. If anyone’s unhappy with my decision, I’ll compensate with points. So, can you give us a break? The kid is really shaken…”

I normally don’t call Akata a “kid,” but I chose the word deliberately to evoke sympathy from the listeners.

I was confident that Akata looked the youngest and weakest among all the characters present.

Soon, Shemarin sighed, resignedly.

“Fine, let’s disband. But since the fault lies entirely with Agasa, mere points won’t settle this-.”

“Of course.”

I preferred wasting some points over exposing our guild’s strength in this situation.

“Shemarin, do you agree to end the guild leader match here?”

Shemarin turned to Aleon.

The Blue Saint was still fidgeting, thinking he had frightened the boy.

Realizing he wasn’t in a state to answer, Shemarin turned her gaze towards the Ice Castle side.

“Ifrea?”

The vice guild leader of Ice Castle, who was approaching, nodded and said,

“As allies, we’ll overlook the child’s mistake this once.”

Though things were going well, I felt puzzled at how easily everyone was backing down.

Then Shemarin muttered, looking at Akata,

“A hidden player with a unique ability… He does have a peculiar presence in person.”

At her words, I realized the reason.

Although no one had mentioned it explicitly, they had been conscious of Akata’s overwhelming firepower since he vanished.

Now, the boy had emerged from the guild fortress on his own.

‘So they found watching him as interesting as they found me, the guild leader.’

Hearing her remark, I felt an unexpected urge to hide Akata from everyone. I instinctively shielded him with my body.

I felt him fidgeting behind me.

After that, the arena emptied quickly.

Shemarin, after leaving a brief goodbye, took her men and left first. Meanwhile, I called Kanel and Gio from the spectator seats.

As we were about to leave the arena, Aleon grabbed me from behind and said,

“Rudel, please let the boy know I meant no harm.”

“I understand, don’t worry. We’ll be going now.”

Meanwhile, Akata, the cause of this incident, followed me with his head down, holding my hand tightly.