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

So the final, fifth match will automatically be Junias vs. Kanel.

The last match doesn’t matter much. We plan to settle the outcome in the fourth match.

When it comes to one-on-one battles, I trust Unahar much more than Akata.

A crazy, rabid wolf that bites everything in sight? That’s not a problem when there’s only one enemy.

No matter who the opponent is, they’ll have a hard time.

The only concern is that I’ve never seen Garam use his unique ability, so I don’t know what it is…

Before Unahar was called from the commentary box, I turned to give him a few words of encouragement. However, he was already holding onto my sleeve.

He must have already received encouragement from the other guild members, so I separated from the group to escort him down to the arena.

Just before stepping into the arena, he kept his gaze lowered and whispered to me so softly that the other guild members couldn’t hear.

“I actually hate it. Transforming into that wolf in front of all those spectators.”

As I made a slight move, Unahar flinched. It made me realize how intently he was focused on my every action.

“I understand. I know it’s a heavy burden for you.”

I’ve never been in Unahar’s shoes. I can’t truly understand the despair he feels when transforming into the rabid wolf because I haven’t experienced it myself.

I can only vaguely imagine how mentally damaging it must be.

“But if neither I nor your comrades are afraid of you, why care about what other people think?”

Although I didn’t actually ask every guild member and get their consensus… at least I’m not afraid of him.

He bit his lip as if choosing his words carefully.

“Can you promise me one thing? After the duel, spend the whole day with me. Be with me all day.”

He spoke with his eyes tightly shut.

He was no longer the charming man who used to whisper seductively.

He didn’t want to say it; he wished he hadn’t had to ask.

He felt betrayed by himself for finally saying it aloud, looking utterly dejected.

[Emotional State: Embarrassment]

He probably hated showing weakness and relying on me.

Especially since even the delicate Akata had gone down to the arena with confidence, while he was scared and leaning on me for support.

It sounded like a request for a date, but because my feelings weren’t the same, I couldn’t outright refuse…

“Okay.”

Unahar gave a faint smile at my response. In the next moment, he disappeared below.

“What did Unahar say to you just now?”

As soon as I returned to my seat, Lilith was curious, but I just smiled and brushed it off. Then I focused on the match that was about to start.

[Ah, the handsome contestant on the field right now is the top-ranked first-generation Switch user. For those who didn’t know, make sure to remember!]

Even the commentators mentioned his appearance, emphasizing his top spot in the handsome character polls. The blonde handsome man had a poignant look rather than one of determination or resolve, which drew even more attention. I could feel the crowd fall silent.

Without any sign of intimidation, Garam, having secured his half-mask more tightly, watched calmly as his opponent disappeared into a large fog. Soon, with a growl and madness gleaming in bloodshot eyes, the wolf leaped into view.

This was Garam’s unique ability that I had researched in advance.

[Unique Ability] Consciousness Manipulation

It seems to be a kind of sedative ability that makes the opponent drowsy or slightly disturbs their judgment by bringing them close to a subconscious state. The name sounds grand and cool, but ultimately, it has no direct lethality and relies solely on his physical combat skills, making it more of a supporter-type ability.

Given his A-rank basic stats, he’s still a pretty good fighter.

Even now, he is calmly analyzing openings while almost perfectly evading the giant wolf’s teeth.

He’s even mindful of making sure his half-mask doesn’t come off.

Garam jumped into the air with a few leaps.

Woooong-.

With a peculiar noise, a white mask-like shape appeared and then vanished from Garam’s uplifted hand.

That seemed to be the graphical effect when Garam’s unique ability manifested. It suited his masked-man character.

“…!”

Immediately, a chill ran down my spine.

I had trained that wolf. Thus, I could notice even the slightest change in it.

The wolf’s red eyes began to blur, affected by Garam’s soul-type unique ability.

I hadn’t realized it before. Garam’s ability was actually a fatal counter to Switch users.

By disturbing the consciousness of both the animal and human forms, it breaks the boundary between the two.

How could we be so unlucky?

Why did our guild’s only Switch user, Unahar, have to be matched against Garam?

“Ugh-!”

Unahar’s switch was forcibly deactivated. He collapsed to the ground.

But then…

Grrrr!

Despite reverting to his human form, the man on his knees, almost moving on all fours, lifted his head and roared. He bared his gums, howling like a beast.

Garam, who was poised to continue the melee, came to an abrupt halt. The absurd sight before him made his visible eye tremble wildly.

I stood up abruptly from the spectator stands.

“Wait a minute…!”

Beeeeeep.

The emergency stop buzzer echoed loudly through the coliseum.

The screen quickly switched to my face.

Even when Akata had been torn apart, I had refrained from pressing this buzzer.

Using the emergency buzzer, which I could activate with my guild leader authority, I spoke in a low voice.

“…I forfeit.”

Thankfully, the forfeit request was immediately accepted, and Unahar, in his current state, was quickly transported in front of me.

“Aaaaargh!”

Even back in the spectator stands, Unahar’s symptoms did not subside.

I barely managed to hold onto the thrashing man. His flailing arms struck my body repeatedly, but I didn’t care.

“Gio!”

At my call, Gio tore out one of the spectator seats. He flipped it upside down and pressed it firmly against Unahar’s chest.

With Gio at the center, Kanel and I restrained his limbs, gradually subduing Unahar.

I kept a sidelong watch on the other guild members craning their necks to see us from the surrounding spectator stands.

Bang!!

“Eek!”

Someone screamed.

Gio threw the seat he had pulled out, creating a tremendous noise. It was a silent “What are you looking at!” directed at the onlookers.

Finally, I administered a tranquilizer into Unahar’s mouth, and his frantic struggle ceased.

Bothered by the murmuring crowd, I requested to speak, temporarily taking over the commentary booth’s microphone function.

“There was a disturbance just now. So, spectators should keep quiet, and only the commentators should speak. Proceed with the next match.”

My desperate voice, aiming to protect my guild member, resonated clearly through the coliseum.

Were even the NPCs scared of the character?

The commentators gasped audibly through the speakers, and shortly after, they announced to the audience that Agasa Guild had forfeited.

Thanks to my implicit threat, any mention of Unahar was completely omitted.

I laid the unconscious man down in the spectator stands and covered him with a blanket. Kanel, beside me, asked, “Is it okay to have a tranquilizer?”

“As long as we don’t use it in the arena, we can carry it.”

I waved away the two worried kids, Lilith and Akata, who were peeking anxiously. Let’s keep Unahar asleep while the dueling matches are ongoing.

When he wakes up, he should be on a bed in a pension, making the events of the duel seem like a dream.

‘What just happened is too much for him to recover from with just my consolation…’

What should I do? When Unahar wakes up, he’ll remember everything. He’ll recall how he lost his human dignity to the wolf again.

At the very least, he shouldn’t see his own broken self from a third-person perspective. I’ll delete those scenes from the guild’s recording. It’s still possible now.

But, wait?

After settling Unahar, I noticed the match progress for the first time. The scoreboard on the big screen seemed off. It didn’t match my expectations…

Match 1: Agasa win

Match 2: Agasa win

Match 3: Pure Nature win

Match 4: Pure Nature win

Match 5: ?

We had two wins initially, so how did we end up having to play the fifth match?

And, of all things, our last contestant is Kanel, the sniper who’s weakest in one-on-one combat?

A chilling feeling of impending failure ran through my mind.

At this moment, Kanel placed his large hands on both of my shoulders from behind.

“Don’t worry.”

I wasn’t exactly worried, just feeling a bit stuck.

Nevertheless, Kanel’s voice carried no tremor despite bearing the guild’s fate. It was even more confident than usual.

“I’ve always wanted to flatten that little brat.”

Ah, now I see, Kanel and Junias know each other. They had a brief encounter at the shop when we went to hear the duel announcements.

Seeing the girl below in the arena, burning with competitive spirit, suddenly gave me a certain conviction.

‘These two are genuinely just out for a brawl.’