Chapter 364 - Unarmed Combat Style
Tuesday
In the end, I logged out last night without seeing Bell-buchou or Miki, and couldn't ask Miki what happened. In the morning, when I asked Natto about the meeting, he replied,
"We left it all to Seth-chan, so we'll just hear what happened once it's decided, you know?"
Is that really okay?
So, it came to me that Iincho would know, so at lunchtime,
"So, why did they recommend someone from Game Dolls as a representative?"
Mion next to me looked just as curious. Iincho, when asked, replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"It's a simple matter, really. We were planning to return to the Kingdom's main base once the Necropolis World Quest was over, you see."
"Oh, is that so? Natto and the others too?"
"Yeah. For now, there's no talk of looking for anything there, and we have a reason to go back to our main base."
"A reason?"
Natto's guild's main base was in the southwest of the Kingdom, right?
It's a pleasant place to live, where you can gather pepper berries and Camlus, and there's a river that connects to the sea. A little further out, there's a forest and ancient ruins, a place for relaxed gameplay, but…
"There's talk that the Azure Cloud Ring we got from clearing the Necropolis might open a door that we couldn't open before."
The `Azure Cloud Ring` that Natto and his friends got from the undead was apparently described as 'worn by a general administrator of ancient magic facilities~', and it seemed to open doors with specific authority. "There's also a door in the 'Dwarf Dungeon' in Amiera Territory, northwest of our land, that says 'Insufficient Authority' when we try to open it, but perhaps that can be opened now."
"Ah…"
That's the one I thought my Azure Moon Ring might open, back when I heard about it. It's that Dwarf Dungeon Iincho mentioned, and also the Mage's Tower, right?
It sounds like once the Necropolis World Quest is over, we'll be able to go even deeper. As for players who don't have an administrator's ring at this stage… ah, right, there was an Instance Dungeon. I feel like they could get one if they delved into that.
"I understand that, but I still don't know why it ended up being Game Dolls. What about Ice Princess Anshia, wouldn't that be more reasonable?"
"Anshia-san already has her own territory, and she can't abandon that, so she recommended Leona-san or Bell-san."
"I see…"
Does she want to draw one of them closer to her territory, to involve them more? Or does she dislike that the two often act together? Something like that?
"In response, Seth-chan recommended someone from Game Dolls. She cited their achievements, having been active in the Necropolis World Quest since its early stages."
"Ah, come to think of it, they really worked hard. Even when we went to the Necropolis, their fans did a good job of covering for them."
"Is that so?"
The other hegemon guild had collapsed, but Game Dolls' fans apparently took turns handling supplies and maintaining the front lines.
"And there's one more reason."
"Hm?"
"Seth-chan said, 'Winning without fighting is the Unarmed Combat Style. Leaving Ice Princess Anshia alone is best.'"
""Whoa…""
The Game Dolls person who was recommended gladly accepted, it seems. And the majority of the other guild masters from participating player guilds agreed, and that was that.
"So it ended so easily. I thought there would be more 'Me, me!' and arguments."
"Nah, that kind of thing is just a hassle. We're a bit interested in the underground labyrinth that formed in the central part, but our own ancient ruins come first."
Guilds with administrator rings prioritize their home ground ancient ruins. They wouldn't want to be surpassed by players from elsewhere.
"That's also because Seth-chan spread the word about that matter beforehand."
"Seriously…"
Knowing Miki, she probably foresaw what would happen after this World Quest. It feels like things are going too smoothly, but because of that, I'm worried if Anshia is glaring at us…
………
……
…
Club time. Waiting for Bell-buchou to confirm what we talked about at lunch.
『Shou-kun. About the image character matter…』
"Ah, about that, would it be possible for Tsubaki-san to join us tonight?"
『Yes. That should be fine.』
Since Tsubaki-san is currently handling the negotiations, I'd like to discuss it with her and Kumano-sensei present.
"Hello."
"'Sup."
『Hello.』
Bell-buchou appeared, and as usual, took an energy drink from the fridge before sitting down. I immediately asked her about the Necropolis.
"I heard about yesterday's meeting."
"Oh, that! Leona-san and I are returning to the Kingdom tonight!" she replied, sounding cheerful.
『It means we're refusing Anshia-san's proposal, but was that really okay?』
"Don't worry, there's a proper reason for it. Well, it also helped that Seth-chan was working behind the scenes. She saved us."
"I heard Seth's reason for recommending someone from Game Dolls, but when you say 'working behind the scenes,' do you mean about the administrator rings?"
"That too, of course, but she also did follow-up for the collapsed hegemon guild, and some groups have even formed new guilds."
""Eh?""
I knew the large hegemon guild had fallen apart, but I thought Natto was handling the follow-up. But forming new guilds…
『I thought creating a guild required money…』
"And connections with nobles were probably necessary too. Did Silver Manor provide all of that?"
"Not just us. Remember that person who recovered the Nameless Goddess Statue before? That person gathered funds through investment and also arranged the connections."
"Amazing…"
Even if the money was to be repaid later, the connections part was a huge gamble. And according to Bell-buchou, there were multiple groups in the Republic and Principality.
『Um…, wasn't that Shou-kun's fan?』
"Huh?"
"Shou-kun, you don't know? There's that person who always throws huge amounts of money at your live streams for every little thing, right?"
"You mean the person who throws like 5,000 yen when I serve food or something?"
『Yes. That's a person named Daytron, and it's the same in Bell-buchou's streams.』
Seriously? I mean, who exactly is this person who watches streams, plays games, and is rich all at the same time…?