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

Of course.

No matter how activated the flame ability is, the basic poor stamina remains the same. There’s no way this kid would turn from a glass boy to an iron boy overnight.

It hasn’t been long since the third round ended, and it would be strange if there were no aftereffects.

Akata was so dizzy that he could barely walk on his own. I just washed his face and laid him on the bed.

Though sweat was pouring down, he was conscious and had feeling in his limbs.

When I placed a white wet cloth on his forehead, Akata averted his eyes and muttered with pale lips, looking embarrassed.

“I wanted to show you my strong side now…”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at how ridiculous and cute that sounded.

“Just get up quickly.”

I tapped Akata’s forehead with my finger.

I stayed by his side until his fever subsided, but as soon as night fell, the fever came back.

I had no choice but to bring another stamina potion and feed it to him.

“I can’t rest easy at all.”

I’m starting to get sleepy too. Who should I ask to take over?

As I was lingering by the door, Akata’s voice held me back.

“Can’t you stay?”

Even in his half-asleep state, he was reaching out to me in the air. His slightly hoarse voice sounded unusually high and sweet.

Akata usually doesn’t make requests that would put me in a difficult position. Now he’s even showing this kind of stubbornness; he’s changed.

“Because it’s you, I will.”

Akata smiled. I sat down again by his bedside.

After a little while, I too began to yawn. It would be perfect to lie down and sleep right now.

But looking down at the pitiful face of the boy who was begging me to stay, I found it hard to leave.

With that fragile body, he fell into that deep ravine and shattered his bones…

The wretched sight of Akata that I witnessed when I was his clone came to mind, and I felt a lump in my throat.

At the same time, thinking about how Akata did that for my sake made my heart flutter a bit.

What is this feeling?

Ultimately, I just felt that I wanted to stay with this kid a bit longer.

Akata isn’t a man but a child, and he asked me to stay.

Luckily, the bed had just enough space for two people…

I lay down on top of the blanket covering Akata.

With no pillow, I used my arm to support my head, lying on my side facing Akata so he could hold my hand as he slept.

After a while, I vaguely woke up from what seemed like a dream.

As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw a small bird the size of my palm fluttering above my head.

Not a bird, but a phoenix. Akata’s unique ability.

But… why is Akata’s phoenix white? It’s supposed to be red.

It felt strange, but I couldn’t examine it further as the phoenix’s shape soon disappeared.

* * *

I awoke suddenly feeling hot and suffocated. My eyelids lifted involuntarily.

“……?”

A red cascade seemed to be flowing down my body. For a moment, I was dumbfounded.

Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t a waterfall but hair.

What’s going on? Whose hair is this?

I found myself lying on the arm of a man I didn’t recognize.

The blanket I had crumpled and squashed was long gone, replaced by a strong, muscular arm wrapped around me.

A broad chest and wide shoulders encased me, drawing my gaze to a prominent Adam’s apple. The defined neck line led to a sharp jawline.

My stiffened gaze slowly traveled upward until I finally saw the face.

…This is inside a game. So, anything unrealistic can happen here.

I tried to steady my startled heart with that thought.

Even if the boy I had fallen asleep with had transformed into a fully grown man holding me tightly.

As a result, the once spacious bed now felt incredibly cramped.

“What’s going on, wait a minute….”

Akata was deeply asleep. The strong arms around my waist exerted considerable pressure.

I’m not a doll…!

Groaning, I struggled out of his embrace and tried to sit up, but Akata’s arms, which had seemed to loosen, pulled me back tightly.

My body fell onto him with a thud.

“…….”

The arm supporting me on the bed trembled.

I couldn’t breathe, conscious of Akata’s nose touching the tip of mine, trying to resist the pull of gravity.

We almost kissed, dammit.

I almost kissed a kid who’s much younger than me—no, now he’s not a kid but an adult man…

“Mm.”

Even the sound resonating from his throat had turned masculine.

Just then, Akata woke up. Was it because of my struggle to get up?

He raised his drowsy eyes and noticed me right in front of him. His brown eyes were so close that I felt I could drown in them.

Swish…

As soon as focus returned to his eyes, the man’s solid build transformed back into the delicate curves of the boy I knew.

In an instant, he reverted to the young boy I was familiar with.

Everything happened before Akata even fully regained his senses.

He flinched and quickly withdrew his thin arms from me.

“What, why, what was that?”

That’s what I should be asking, Akata.

Akata seemed completely unaware. Naturally, he wouldn’t know what happened while he was asleep.

“What do you mean, ‘what was that’? You hugged me,” I muttered, unable to hide my embarrassment.

“Me?”

“Yes, you.”

“You’re saying I pulled you close in my sleep and we ended up that close?”

“You might find it unfair, but that’s what happened.”

“Then why didn’t you push me away?”

I gave a crooked smile and lightly flicked Akata’s forehead in a mock gesture. Akata flinched in surprise.

“You’re blaming me? You pulled me so hard, what could I do?”

“…You’re saying I’m strong?”

Akata’s added question left me speechless.

As expected, he’s sharp. Even half-awake, he caught the flaw in my explanation.

Right, normally, I wouldn’t lose to Akata in terms of strength…?

But I wasn’t dealing with a frail boy, I was dealing with a grown man.

I turned my head and finally came up with an excuse.

“You were lying down, and I was awkwardly sprawled over, so maybe it was a matter of position. Besides, my stamina level is still only at C+….”

As I spoke, I quickly pondered.

What was that just now? What happened to Akata?

‘You were an adult just a moment ago. But when I opened my eyes, your body shrank again, and your hair became short again.’

But would Akata believe that?

Of course, he’d believe it if I said it.

It would be easier to explain if I had recorded it on CCTV or something, but since I didn’t know the cause, I hesitated to tell Akata.

In the end, I decided to keep quiet for the time being.

Meanwhile, Akata, observing my expression, seemed to accept that he had made a mistake.

“I must have been talking in my sleep. I’m sorry.”

Well, he couldn’t deny it. He must have seen his arm draped over my waist just before.

Looking down at the boy’s embarrassed face, I felt a sudden urge to tease him.

“By the way, why did you pull me so close? Did you want to kiss me?”

“N-No.”

Akata frantically waved his hands in denial.

“Oh? You really don’t want to kiss me that much?”

I said, narrowing my eyes playfully, exaggerating my tone, but Akata reacted very seriously.

“That’s not it either!”

Instead of just blushing in embarrassment, he held my hand tightly and desperately made eye contact, as if to ensure I didn’t misunderstand him.

Is he really worried that I might think he dislikes me?

…I couldn’t even tease him. At this rate, I was the one who would end up blushing.

“Alright, so you’re saying you don’t hate it?”

I immediately wanted to punch myself for babbling.

But I couldn’t take back what I already said.

“Go back to sleep. I’ll stay right here.”

I chose to end the situation. If I could get Akata back to sleep quickly, this awkward atmosphere would disappear.

Akata kept glancing at me… but soon, the sleepiness overtook the boy-like Akata.

After a while, I found myself staring intently at the sleeping Akata, forgetting even to blink.

“…….”

As expected, Akata soon transformed into a handsome man with long red hair cascading down.

In the darkness, a small white bird appeared.

It was the phoenix I had seen earlier.

The phoenix, radiating a chilling crystalline light, circled around the man’s head before settling on his sturdy shoulder.

Soon, it burrowed into Akata’s neck and disappeared.

I observed Akata for a while, trying to piece together the clues and infer the situation.

When Akata falls asleep at night, instead of the usual red phoenix, a white phoenix appears and hovers around him, almost as if to watch over him.

When the white phoenix appears, the sleeping Akata transforms into an adult. Conversely, when he wakes up or morning comes, he reverts to his child form.

I still don’t understand the principle behind Akata’s body expanding and contracting… but I have a gut feeling that the white bird is a crucial factor.

What could the white color signify?

As I pondered, it suddenly occurred to me that the color of flames changes with temperature.

‘So, if Akata’s phoenix is deep red, does that mean its temperature is relatively low? And if the white phoenix appears, does it mean it’s at a higher state?’

If my guess is correct, it seems that Akata has another awakening stage.

As evidence, Akata’s stats in the guild member status window were noticeably higher.