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

We are currently fighting an invisible enemy. It’s a battle against an existence that is virtually omnipotent in this world.

As a mere player, I’m pushed to the brink, and if luck doesn’t follow my efforts, I’ll fall.

Not just me, but all of us.

If sacrificing myself could save my comrades, I would gladly do so.

But I know that’s not the issue here.

If what I’m trying to do now succeeds, everyone will survive, but if it doesn’t, everyone will suffer someday.

I had to make a decision, taking this opportunity.

Just before heading into the next Champion Challenge, he whispered to me as I saw him off.

“…Is this something I have to take responsibility for? If so, I’ll do my best for Rudel.”

Such heart-wrenching words, the last I would hear from him-

“It’s really okay if I die. But you must, Rudel must, survive.”

He smiled brightly, as always.

As he turned, his back didn’t look frail or weak like usual.

* * *

He didn’t last longer than Gio.

The five phoenixes that Akata summoned with his own body as a sacrifice emitted tremendous energy.

The phoenixes fiercely resisted Taggiros’ dark world.

The five circled around, attacking in a way that built their own world within.

The champion with the black mask, Taggiros, let his gloved hand hover in the air. His feet didn’t move for a while.

‘Why is he just standing there?’

Is he hesitant in front of a frail boy?

If his face wasn’t covered by the mask, perhaps we could have glimpsed the vile champion’s true feelings.

But soon, Taggiros took a step.

He walked into the flames created by the phoenixes, as if they posed no threat.

Darkness began to pour out behind him.

“……!”

The phoenix roared. Akata, grabbed by the collar by Taggiros, struggled.

A moment of silence.

If there were eyes behind Taggiros’ mask, at this moment he would be staring directly into Akata’s eyes.

But the brief reprieve soon ended.

Crack-!

With a brutal graphic explosion, the heart of the last remaining phoenix was pierced black.

Exhausted of all his energy, Akata collapsed forward like a wooden stick. His chest hit the ground.

…It’s over.

‘You really worked hard. Akata. I’m sorry.’

I gathered our guild members, who were stiff from our second defeat, around me to prepare for the next plan.

Blink, blink.

But… the screen kept broadcasting.

More precisely, the Champion Challenge was not yet over.

Though Akata had fallen, the phoenixes did not disappear. Instead, they flickered incessantly, trying to shake off the black ink-like darkness.

Screeeech-!

The wailing sound grew louder.

Clink-!

The area near the phoenix’s heart shattered like a piece of glass.

Soon, a blinding white light burst from the broken heart.

“…How is this possible?”

Kanel’s dazed voice came from beside me.

Thump, thump.

My heart began to pound loudly.

As if the scene beyond the screen unfolded right before my eyes, every visual element of the fallen boy imprinted itself in my mind.

Akata’s red hair began to flow down his back and spread in all directions. His shoulders broadened, and his back arched.

His limbs lengthened, and veins bulged on his wrists and the backs of his hands.

As Taggiros turned to observe the enemy’s transformation, the white phoenix surged, shaking his dark world.

Soon, Akata, who had been lying face down, regained consciousness and lifted his head. At the same time, his now mature face was revealed.

Thinking about the characters watching the game and the tens of thousands of spectators, I felt a peculiar mix of shock and exhilaration.

Even Akata seemed astonished by his transformed body. He looked around in bewilderment but found no mirror to see his reflection.

Realizing the situation, he quickly stood up with his now vigorous body.

From Taggiros’ perspective, it must have felt like a second phase of the battle had begun despite having already defeated the opponent.

The second round had begun.

With Akata’s true awakening, the challenge screen remained on, continuing to broadcast.

“Rudel, did you perhaps know about this beforehand?”

Kanel, still confused, grabbed my arm tightly. Lilith’s surprised green eyes followed suit.

“…Yes, I knew.”

I confirmed quietly, unable to look Unahar in the eye.

Kanel’s mouth opened and closed several times. His eyes darted between Akata on the screen and me.

Even as a fellow man, it seemed he couldn’t help but be in awe of Akata’s transformed appearance.

“So, Rudel, you believed that the fully grown Akata had a chance of winning, which is why you put him up for the Champion Challenge? I see.”

Ah, that’s not quite it-.

I hadn’t expected Akata to undergo a complete awakening during the challenge…

But for now, it wasn’t bad that my guild members thought that way. It would reduce the GMs’ suspicion of my decision.

The white phoenix seemed to possess a pure light quality. It easily overcame Taggiros’ darkness, more so than the previous flaming phoenix.

Akata, moving his unfamiliar body a few times, soon realized that he had become significantly physically superior.

He swiftly closed the distance between himself and the Champion.

Bam!

For the first time, he landed a blow on Taggiros, engaging in close combat.

Their legs clashed, and the two competitors exchanged a series of spectacular martial arts moves.

Akata’s previously unfruitful Taekwondo training had finally come to fruition.

Akata, having a fiery side, seemed internally annoyed that Taggiros never showed his face.

Despite the distance, he reached out, trying to grab the mask.

However, the Champion skillfully evaded. He adjusted his slightly askew mask, revealing not even a fraction of his lower face.

Initially, I had planned to proceed with the next steps assuming Akata’s defeat.

‘…But what if he wins?’

The boy, no, the man who had once been a boy, instilled such hopes in me, planting new seeds of possibility.

“Ah-.”

Nonetheless, despite Akata’s mesmerizing and impressive fight, Taggiros was relentlessly strong. Bit by bit, Akata was pushed back and suffered his second defeat.

[Akata player has been defeated.]

Static-!

The entire status screen vibrated harshly, the noise loud enough to send shivers down my spine.

Soon, this message appeared above the four of us.

[Agasa Guild lacks members.]

…As expected, it has come to this.

The GMs probably expected me to vanish, thinking, “They tricked me, promising to keep the guild!”

Since the viewers wouldn’t see anything, I decided to quietly feign shock.

In their eyes, it would just seem like I had disappeared quietly, betrayed and bewildered.

I gathered my guild members closer and we held hands.

I could see the fear enveloping everyone except me.

In truth, I was also slightly…

Is this what it feels like for a character to be deleted?

From the edges of my body, I could no longer feel my peripheral nerves. Like fading, my body and soul were separating.

Soon, it would be officially announced to the characters in the game and the viewers.

‘The Agasa Guild has been disqualified due to lack of members, and all have been deleted.’

But from here, only the preparations I had made would unfold.

This was the result of secret research conducted through Akata’s bird.

Thanks to a particular memory shown by the bird, I became certain of one thing.

Akata had moved from ‘reality’ to the ‘game’ through Aria’s scheme. His entire physical body.

Then, the reverse must also be possible.

However, no matter how skilled a programmer I am, it is impossible to develop a command to materialize us, mere data, into the real world in a short time.

Fortunately, among the many commands left by the white bird, there was one particularly enigmatic one.

I surmised that it might be related to the secret of how Akata entered this world.

I decided to reverse-engineer it.

‘How should I materialize that command code?’

The key to coding is clearly defining the target.

In other words, I needed to figure out how this game identifies each player to extract just the four of us.

I found the “computer language” representing Akata in the program code that Akata’s white bird had, and applied it directly.

The next part was relatively simple. I just had to swap the coordinates in the mysterious command code shown by the white bird.

Swap the words representing ‘reality’ and ‘game’.

‘And next, where should I input this command code…?’

I quickly found the answer to this question as well.

By secretly observing the administrators.

The administrators used shortcuts in their personal windows to make guild supplies appear and disappear while managing the fortress.

I observed that the structure of the administrators’ personal windows was identical to the window the guild leader used to manage the guild fortress.

I just needed to enter the command code in that window, like the administrators did.

‘Lastly, when is the single moment I can enter this command code without being caught?’

Right now.

To put it another way, the moment our characters are moved to the trash folder for deletion is the only timing where we can enter the real world without the GMs noticing.

Before my consciousness faded, I filled my status window with the command code.

I pray for success.

‘Wait for me, I will definitely return.’

If Gio and Akata are different or even slightly damaged, I will annihilate this game.

I pressed the ‘enter’ button.

Click.