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

‘I’m not as socially adept as Nahean…’  

I struggled to respond to the characters who had gathered around to congratulate me on the results of the second and third rounds.  

“Here, this is the stat report for our subordinate group!”  

The report, which should have been given to Kanel, the one in charge of the subordinates, was handed to me because I had visited personally this time.  

“Good. Everyone’s stats are on an upward trend. No one’s burnt out, right?”  

“Of course! Everyone is doing great.”  

“Nahean, you’ve worked hard.”  

I smiled softly at Nahean.  

“Not at all, everyone has been helping this inadequate me!”  

“What’s with the modesty? Thanks to our adorable leader, even a lazy person like me feels motivated to work hard.”  

A female character behind us, on an exercise machine, joked. Nahean scratched his head and laughed sheepishly.  

‘I’m really fortunate. Truly.’  

I gave Nahean a high-five and waved as I headed back to the guild fortress.

* * *

Ever since I noticed Unahar’s expression seemed shadowed, he appeared to be training even more desperately, which worried me greatly.  

As if he felt he had to be useful to me, he trained with all his might, as if his life depended on it.  

Boom!  

A massive weight fell in the training yard.  

The already chaotic training ground debris shattered completely under the wolf’s weight, sending up a cloud of dust.  

Through the dust, the wolf’s red eyes appeared unusually calm.  

Could it be?  

I squinted, uncertain but hopeful.  

Others might not notice the difference and still think the wolf’s eyes were wildly feral.  

But I could tell.  

The growling had stopped, his teeth were hidden, and he wasn’t drooling.  

The large legs that looked ready to pounce were still.  

Most importantly, it seemed like he blinked in response to my blinking.  

To test, I blinked twice deliberately.  

Blink, blink.  

The wolf blinked back, just as I did.  

As the dust settled completely, the wolf’s full form became visible.  

He was crouched with his legs tucked neatly under him, his tail wrapped around his body.  

His posture showed complete submission, with no intent of rebellion.  

I had finally succeeded in taming the wolf!  

“You understand me, right? Get up!”  

The wolf immediately stood up and looked down at me with clear red eyes.

“Sit!”

The wolf immediately sat down.

Although he had transformed and lost his rational mind, the wolf, being Unahar’s true form, could still understand human speech.

I pointed to the other side of the training ground and gave a command.

“Go break that!”

Could he suppress his madness even when ordered to do something violent?

The wolf immediately turned and ran.

With just a powerful push of his hind legs, the training ground’s floor cracked loudly. A gust of wind whooshed behind him.

In the next moment, the training dummy, as tall as a person, was torn to pieces by the wolf’s teeth.

The massive wolf, with its eyes glowing red, turned and ran back toward me. I shrank back in fear.

But as soon as the wolf reached me, it flattened itself on the ground.

“Success!”

I clenched my fists and jumped up and down.

“Unahar! We did it!”

I could now field Unahar in the next round!

No more worries. With four participants, we could easily handle the next round.

This final round of the first-generation guild war would be the debut stage for Kanel and Unahar as a pair.

“Transform back! Can’t you follow this command as a wolf? Transform back!”

Somehow understanding my words, the wolf was immediately enveloped in mist. In my excitement, I approached the mist before it even cleared.

Golden, half-closed, languid eyes met mine. I paused for a moment.

Wait, something’s off. Is he smiling—?

Suddenly, my waist was grabbed by two hands.

“What’s wrong?”

He rubbed against me.

Goosebumps erupted all over my body.

“…”

Unahar, with his head lowered, began to nuzzle against me as if marking me with his scent, without saying a word.

Wait, this is just like a dog rubbing against its owner…

“Stop it! Get a grip! You’re not a wolf right now! Hey!”

I had barely succeeded in taming the wolf, and now a bigger problem had arisen.

Even after transforming back, Unahar’s human form was still behaving like the wolf.

What if he can’t break out of this state?

Unahar’s eyes were open but unfocused, his pupils completely dilated. He was totally out of it.

Even as I shouted and hit him, he wouldn’t stop nuzzling my neck.

I was only a C+ in basic stats, while he was a B. I couldn’t overpower him.

“Get a grip!”

As I was pushed back, I ended up lying on the floor, with Unahar—the wolf in Unahar’s form—on top of me.

Lick.

Was that hot, wet sensation on my cheek just now…?

The moment I realized that the wolf, in his dazed state, had licked my cheek, my mind went blank, and any remaining sense of humanity flew out the window.

“Are you insane?!”

I couldn’t stay like this for another second. I kneed him in the groin, making Unahar double over in pain, then shoved him away as hard as I could.

Shaking with adrenaline, I clenched my fists, trying to steady myself, and suddenly remembered the tranquilizer in my inventory.

How could I remember it only now? I must be more rattled than when the berserk wolf nearly bit my arm off.

“…Rudel?”

A clear human voice came from the golden-haired man who lifted his head.

What, does he not remember—?

Our eyes met.

No, he remembers.

Unahar’s face turned a bright shade of red, almost as if it would explode.

“…”

He caused the incident, so why was I feeling embarrassed too?

This was the most awkward moment of my life. Neither of us knew where to look.

I hesitated, feeling uneasy, and finally wiped my cheek.

[Name] Unahar  

[Emotional State] Looking for a hole to crawl into

Even in this situation, the status window’s description was strangely accurate, almost as if it was reflecting my own disbelief.

Unahar, struggling to contain his embarrassment, finally gave in.

With his head hung low, he approached and started rubbing my cheek with his sleeve.

He also straightened my rumpled clothes and smoothed my hair with his hand.

“I didn’t ask you to clean me up,” I snapped, lightly pushing Unahar’s hand away.

Though my voice wasn’t particularly loud, Unahar recoiled as if struck, moving stiffly away.

His emotional state kept changing every few seconds.

[Emotional State] Shame  

[Emotional State] Apology  

[Emotional State] Self-loathing  

So he felt shame and self-loathing? I had barely managed to tame the berserk wolf, and now he was on the verge of developing a new trauma.

Panicked, I quickly changed my approach.

“Hey, uh… sorry for being harsh. I didn’t mean it; I was just startled. …Forget this ever happened.”

It’s no big deal. It happens. We’re comrades who have faced life and death together; something like this won’t break our bond.

Honestly, compared to the wolf trying to kill me, this was mild. I’m just happy I succeeded in taming you.

I’m really fine. Of course, you’re not, but…

I babbled, trying to soothe him.

Unahar slowly lifted his head.

“…I won’t do that again, will I?”

His face was contorted, on the verge of tears. The gentle lines of his eyes were all messed up.

I needed to be completely positive right now.

“Next time will be fine, right? This was the first time the wolf had calmed down, so you weren’t used to it. Even if it happens again, I’ll use the tranquilizer from the second time on. I promise.”

I had already forgotten about it. I hoped Unahar could forget it soon too.

I looked at Unahar with a bit of insistence, but he just turned his head further away.

Click.

Without another word, Unahar opened the training room door and left, not even saying a goodbye.

Sigh, taking care of guild members is tough.

I checked the clock; it was already late at night.

Unahar would probably feel better after a good night’s sleep.

Since talking wouldn’t help right now, I decided to let him handle it on his own.

* * *

However, Unahar was in the same dazed state the next day.

We usually ate together to maintain a tight-knit atmosphere unless there was a special reason not to, but it was obvious something was wrong with Unahar.

Clink, clank.

Amid the clatter of cutlery, everyone’s gaze kept shifting back and forth to one spot.

Unahar sat turned away from everyone, holding his utensils as he ate.

We could only see the back of his golden head and shoulders, which was very conspicuous.

Even Akata, who had a notoriously narrow field of vision, noticed this unusual behavior.

Kanel, unable to bear it, leaned back to say something.

“Did you develop some kind of directional disorder? You’re the only one sitting backwards—”

Kanel peeked at Unahar’s face and immediately fell silent.

What kind of expression did Unahar have to make Kanel stop talking like that?