NOVEL NEXT We won!
Well, we probably showed a bit of an immature side by being just a tiny bit serious at the end, but overall, it was still within the confinement as an examiner. I think.
I mean, it couldn't be helped, truly, you know. They proved them to be formidable opponents. According to what I heard later, they were apparently the frequent audience of our guild battles to learn from it. Hmm, no wonder I felt the tactic to be a familiar one.
But if I have to comment on one thing—horses were really so handy! The might and speed of Aegis-senpai while straddling Dandy-kun was truly an impressive sight. from I so wanted to try a two-man group - horse riders ver.! Ah, right. A horse. There's the world's fastest horse in the top-grade dungeon. What else could be better than that, right? No, wait. But then it would be hard for any potential rival to chase after our footsteps. Oh gosh, what a dilemma you have put me in, oh my goddess! Hmm, would other guilds speed up their pace if I request them to?
"Hey, Zephyr. This isn't the time to space out. Geez, get a grip on yourself."
"Huh? A-Ahh, right."
My mind had just traversed to a world of its own when Sierra suddenly pulled me out of it. The members of ?Eden? and ?Arc-Arcadia?, who should have been in the audience seat, had walked down to where we were while I was lost in my mental journey.
Both teams bowed to each other, exchanged 'good job' out there before turning to Ladvena-sensei and Mukai-sensei for the result announcement.
"Kids of ?Arc-Arcadia?. You have certainly fought a battle fair and square, even gained an upper hand over the superior guild ?Eden? in this battle. Your strength in truest sense has surpassed that of F-rank, and as such, you're certified to be befitting of E-rank promotion. Congratulations."
Members present erupted in cheers as soon as Ladvena-sensei’s announcement ended.
I mean, they have safely passed the promotion exam. And dungeons and parties go hand in hand in our policy.
Ladvena-sensei watched them cheering with a smile and once everyone had calmed down a bit, she continued.
"Alright, now the representative shall step forward. I have something to confer."
"Y-Yes Ma'am! I, Aegis from ?Combat Department Year 2 Class 31? shall accept as the representative of ?Arc-Arcadia?!"
"Fufu, commendable. Take this to ?Guild Reception? and you will be an E-rank guild then." freewebnσvel.cѳm
"I—we gratefully accept it!"
Nervously, Aegis-senpai received the rolled up document from Ladvena-sensei.
By submitting that at the ?Guild Reception?, they would receive the proof of E-rank.
"As for ?Eden?. Well, I think you went a bit hard as examiner, but then again, you did show your prowess by cutting off your opponent's winning streak in a passable way, which is commendable. The way you turn the table without using ?Tri-Tree? as well was indeed a great display of skills. You should be selected as examiner D-rank when there's a chance I believe."
"Woah! Thank you very much!"
" " " "Thank you very much!" " " "
"Fufu, keep up the great work."
After saying that, Ladvena-sense and Mukai-sensei headed for the arena's building. It should be about time for closing since it's near the night time.
We also hurriedly pack up our things and leave the arena, and then head to the ?Guild Reception? with ?Arc-Arcadia? where they officially become E-rank guild.
Well then, a promotion happens but not a party, is it even possible!? It was time for the customary celebration!
We, the ?Eden?, immediately went to our guild room and started preparation for the party.
?Arc-Arcadia? had to shift their stuff, so they first moved their stuff to their new guild room and then gathered at our guild room.
The party format was another buffet style celebration. The cooking was done by our good ol' cooking guild ?In search for the balance between food and buff? of course. In fact, it's already become a custom in our guild to order the dishes before heading out for guild battle as if we're going to have a success party for sure. Truly, real words did play out amazingly differently, didn't it?
"Woahoo. It's really a spectacular feast each time, isn't it!?"
"Everything looks so delicious. I don't think I can resist their allure. Ohhh, I ate it last time too, and that's mouth-wateringly delicious."
"I didn't try it last time, so this will be my choice for today."
The harmonic trio eyes glittered seeing the rows of amazing dishes and waited no more to start on their favourite dishes. Rest of the members follow after the.
We had prepared two types of dishes this time. Half of them were those that were well-received last time, and the remaining were new ones. I mean, it's easy to lose the spark for food when facing the same dishes again and again. But if the whole menu was to be refreshed, then others wouldn't be able to eat their favourite dishes. How could I let it happen and after a proper discussion with others, we reached this list of dishes.
Once everyone had grabbed their favourite dishes and drinks and a seat. I took the lead to officially kick off our celebration.
"You all were amazing today, everyone. And ?Arc-Arcadia?, congratulations once again! You played out really well. Even I was close to breaking out in sweat despite having the level and guild battle advantage. This party is offered to ?Arc-Arcadia? valour and promotion, cheers!"
" " " "Cheers!" " " "
Oh-ho, that's the spirit guys!
Now, enjoy the dishes to your heart content, guys. We might not have much but dishes are plenty!
Well, my work was mostly done. So it was my time to offer this special steak to ?Sachineko-sama? and ?Koneko-sama?. Here I co—wahhh! ?Sachineko-sama? isn't in their shrine!? Just whose work is this!? I had many questions and immediately found my target.
"You there!!"
"W-What? Can you not give me sudden jumpscares? Jeez."
"Who is trying to jumpscare you! No, that's not it. You are hijacking ?Sachineko-sama? once again!?
"What an outrageous remark against a princess! You don't know but ?Sachineko-sama? prefers to sit on my lap.
Needless to say, the thief was Lana. And look at it, she was even spouting some nonsense. There's no ?Sachineko-sama? would say——. Huh, strange. ?Sachineko-sama? was having an awfully pleasant expression. Right, maybe I am still in excitement level turbo. There's no way ?Sachineko-sama? would prefer to stay on her lap than the shrine, right!?
Sure enough, It was just my imagination indeed!
But then again, it's almost impossible to free ?Sachineko-sama? once Lana had them on her lap. Kuh, it's a loss I must beat it seems like. I put my offering to ?Koneko-sama?, who was all alone in the shrine. Just the absence of ?Sachineko-sama? makes it so deserted, truly. Honestly, it felt as if the shrine had lost something very valuable. Yeah, it should be my imagination. I mean, ?Koneko-sama? was no less cute.
I made a round to everyone in the same order as last time, exchanged some ideas and analysed the guild battle earlier. I was honestly able to have an in-depth conversation about guild battle to a good length since Aegis-senpai truly boasted a wealth of information and experience as a senior.
"Haa, the move at the end—leaving the Big Castle HP at the edge, but not completely taking them down—was truly an eye opener. What's the possible way to make a comeback from there, Zephyr-san? I can tell that was truly a huge disadvantage considering PvP were off-limits."
"Hmm, good question. If I were in your shoes, I would have left behind a bit and then come back. Since I already had an advantage over small castles, I would have to just take down ?Eastern Big Castle? only and it would have been my victory."
"It-it's truly enlightening! So we would have been better by imitating your style and left just a bit of ?Eastern Big Castle? HP huh. An aggressive approach rather than just defence, an eye for an eye, is it? It was indeed a blind spot."
"Well, I would have dispatched Rika as reinforcement at an earlier timing, have Sierra and Misato centre around the east side as well to curb that from happening though."
"Doesn't that mean we never had the chance then!?"
"Hmm, but you're eight members, remember? Rika might not have been able to stand her ground if you all coordinated your attack. You already shaved off 30% of ?Eastern Big Castle? after all while we were running around, didn't you? You should have pushed for an attack while Reglam and the team were engaging with Rika."
"A-Ah, you indeed have a point. Ugh, it's just me that lacks foresight."
Aegis-senpai cradled her head. How should I say, it was truly a striking appeared to see the usually matueish Aegis-senpai to show such appearance once ina while. The gap was honestly adorable.
“U, umm, Zephyr-san. If I may not be intruding much, do you mind giving me lectures about the guid battle? I-I think my current self is truly lacking in such aspects.”
She finished her word in slurried manner and looked at me with slightly upturned eyes. Or course, my answer was long decided.
“Sure so. In fact, I already had my plan to teach sub-members about it. I also have arranged just the perfect place as well.”
“...... But that's not what I meant.”
“Did you say something, Senpai?”
“No. It's nothing.”
Mysteriously, the fervour of Aegis-senpai apparently died a bit as she simply drinks on her juice with small sips. What's with the sudden turn of events?
The party was now past its zenith, and everyone looked more collected now. Alright, this seemed fine time to reveal the result of internal promotion.
I moved in front of the shrine that pulled in the attention of <Arc-Arcadia> at once. What was supposed to be the lively room now suddenly open its path to the deafening silence automatically.
I looked around to see everyone's attention was dead set on me. What in the tarnation was this? I think I could feel an incredible presume all over my body. Was this the weight of responsibility I wonder.
Everyone already were looking at me with intense gaze
It sounds like everyone already knows what I was going to talk about, and thus, waiting in trepidation—to know who's going to be the newest addition to <Eden> among others. Their tension was visible on their faces.
The pressure of their expectation was all over me.
Kuh, note yet. This was the moment for me to show the dignity of a guildmaster! Do your best, me!
“Ahem. It seems like everyone already has inkling what I want to talk about.---With no further ado, I shall now announce the names of members joining us!”
I spoke in a louder tone than before to hide the shaking in my voice.