"Oh, you guys are back."
The others pretended as if nothing had happened as Joanna and I returned to the group.
"Yes, nothing wrong. I was just talking with my old squad."
"Oh, that’s nice!"
Mia’s eyes lit up, looking very interested in the topic. She suddenly started to move around, Joanna, like a sort of octopus, constantly questioning her. "So? What did you talk about? How is your old team? They all looked quite pretty. Are they better than us? They can’t be..."
At first, Joanna looked patient. But the more Mia talked, the more her face twitched.
"Hehe. They looked prettier than you. Were you the ugly duckling? Is that why you left?"
Eventually—
TONK!
"Nnnn!?"
She hit Mia on top of her head, prompting her to squeal as tears formed in the corner of her eyes.
"What was that for?!"
Mia protested immediately, holding onto her head while looking at Joanna. Not far from her, Nora laughed, looking extremely amused.
"You got what you deserved."
"What are you butting in for?"
"What?"
"Hiick!"
Mia hid behind me, holding onto my hips while looking up at me.
"Squad Leader... Save me."
I closed my eyes and pretended not to see anything. I could feel the numerous stares directed in my direction. Plus... looking at my squad, I sighed.
Nora and Mia were bickering. Joanna was mumbling to herself, while Niel, Min, Sarah, and Ariel were lost in their own thoughts.
’I’m the only normal person in this squad.’
I sighed once again while keeping my eyes closed.
’Mysterious. Mysterious. Mysterious.’
"Hm, Squad Leader."
I opened my eyes, feeling a tug on the corner of my sleeves. As I did, I couldn’t help but notice the multiple stares directed my way. Why was everyone looking at me?
"Are you okay?"
"...Yes, why?"
"Ehm... that..." Mia pressed the tips of her index fingers together as she hesitated. Then she finally muttered, "...I don’t know why, but ever since the event started, you’ve been making a face like you’re constipated. Are you constipated?"
"...."
"Hieeeeck!"
Mia suddenly jumped behind Joanna, who instinctively stepped forward, extending an arm as if to shield her, her face tense.
She wasn’t the only one. Everyone around me looked tense.
What sort of...
"Squad Leader. You need to calm down."
Joanna’s voice echoed a moment later, her expression turning even tenser.
"I know that Mia can be a little bit too much, but she doesn’t come from a place of harm. So..."
Joanna took a deep breath, trying her best to keep herself calm.
"...Stop smiling. Please."
I blinked.
Then, bringing my hand to my lips, I was shocked to see that she was right. Indeed, I was smiling.
But why...
"Goosebumps. I’m getting goosebumps."
Nora suddenly muttered, holding onto both of her arms as she took a step back. The others followed her example. What are they doing? I suddenly started regretting the previous words that I had told Joanna. Carry? They could go by themselves!
It was a good thing that the Vice-Director’s Voice echoed a moment later, otherwise...
"It looks like everyone has finally reunited with their group. That’s good. That’s very good. Since that’s the case, we can proceed with the announcement of the Guild Rankings based on the accumulated points from the First Trial."
The atmosphere suddenly changed.
Suddenly, all attention shifted to the large screens at the end of the arena. The noise that had once filled the space gradually died down, and a heavy tension settled over the crowd.
"As most of you are aware, the World Congress rankings will be determined by the accumulated points of each Guild’s representatives. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the current world rankings, shall we?"
The screens flashed, and a long table appeared.
All noise ceased, every single eye falling on the leaderboard.
—— [Guild Ranking] ——
⌈1⌉ — Helios Vanguard [Points: 75]
⌈2⌉ — Obsidian Bastion [Points: 73]
⌈3⌉ — Eclipse Sovereign [Points: 71]
⌈4⌉ — Crimson Oath [Points: 68]
⌈5⌉ — Argent Vangard [Points: 62]
⌈6⌉ — Melson Sanders [Points: 62]
⌈7⌉ — Arithmus [Points: 61]
⌈8⌉ — Evening Sun [Points: 60]
⌈9⌉ — Severed Stars [Points: 60]
.
.
—— [Guild Ranking] ——
The silence merely lasted a couple of seconds. But the moment everyone processed the information, the entire arena erupted.
BOOOOM—!
"Helios! Helios! Helios!"
"Leon!"
"Liora! Liora!"
The crowd’s frenzy was greater than ever before as members of several Guilds smiled, while others frowned. Above all, I could feel the weight of everyone’s attention, both from the audience and those around me, pressing down harder than ever before.
I knew why.
Of course, I knew.
For the first time in a very long while, a Guild outside the Big Five, and outside Oak Circle, which represented the top twenty Guilds, had broken into the top ten rankings.
This was the kind of news I could already imagine dominating the headlines.
"What incredible surprise."
Even the Vice-Leader appeared to think the same, his voice echoing across the surroundings as the noise once again began to die down.
"This score is honestly beyond my expectations. I didn’t expect a dark horse like this to appear out of nowhere. But I’m curious whether they can maintain this momentum until the end. This is only the beginning of the trial, an appetizer, some might say."
With a grin on his face, he clapped his hands.
"The Congress is far from over. There’s still so much that can happen. In the meantime, may the teams rest. The real Congress will begin soon."
Pausing, the Vice-Director’s gaze swept every contender.
"...And trust me when I say you’ll need rest. From the moment you enter the mist, you’ll wish to get even an hour of sleep."
His words were enough to bring back the tension to the event. Even the crowd felt the weight of his words as they started to murmur with each other.
"Well, let’s not dwell on the situation for too long. Everyone should get some good rest and prepare themselves for the mist. All your Squad Leaders should have been made aware of the things that you need to bring. In case anyone wants to back out now, you are free to do so. Nobody is forcing you to stay. I wish all of you the best of luck!"
Without further ado, all teams retreated back inside the arena. From what I understood, we had one day of rest before the next part began.
I planned on taking advantage of the rest as much as possible.
But most importantly, I needed to prepare myself.
[New Quest Activated!]
• Difficulty: N/A
• Reward: 10 Essence Shards [Attribute of choice] | 300,000 SP
• Objective: Enter the Mist and find out its secrets.
• Location: N/A
• Failure: Death
Description: The mist carries unspeakable secrets and horrors. It is the reason humanity chose to tear chunks from the earth and build floating islands above it. What is behind the mist? What could’ve caused it to develop?
Time Limit: 2 weeks.
[Will you accept the quest?]
▶ [Yes] ▷ [No]
Looking at the new notification that had popped up, I took a deep breath. There was no need to think too much. I already knew what I needed to choose.
My goal was simple.
Find a definitive cure for the Cognitive Shard in my mind. Not something to manage, but a cure. In order to do so, I needed to get a deeper understanding of the secrets of this world.
Therefore—
[Yes]
I accepted the quest.