D-Rank Guild Master of the Number One Guild – Episode 4
* * *
After wandering around with Ririt, I discovered a small cave in a secluded, remote area.
Checking the inside, fortunately, there were no traces of other people.
“The sun has already set. It’s dangerous, so let’s stop moving and rest here.”
Overjoyed that she could finally rest, Ririt immediately went inside.
The status window displayed the time. The sun had already set, and there were about 20 minutes left until the midnight settlement.
We took out bread from another supply crate we’d found before sunset and split it in half to eat. We also split the water.
I watched Ririt’s red lips chewing for a moment, then opened my mouth.
“When Day 2 begins tomorrow, keep hiding in this cave. I’ll go out alone and come back. I promise I’ll come back.”
I promised Ririt. In case she couldn’t believe me, I even hooked my pinky with hers.
Perhaps worried by this, Ririt looked at me with anxious eyes.
“What if you die?”
“I won’t die. I’ll survive somehow.”
I deliberately chose a line that would sound cool.
With little time left until the Day 1 tally, I was acting with the viewers’ popularity vote in mind, trying to squeeze out every last scene.
As time passed, the exhausted Ririt leaned against the cave wall and began to doze off, nodding.
Even then, I was staring at the timer counting down to the settlement: 3, 2, 1.
[Stop all actions!]
[All combat is to be halted. From now on, during the allotted 5 minutes, check the settlement results and move to a safe place where you can rest.]
If anyone was still fighting or wandering lost in the forest, they were basically being told to crawl somewhere and get ready. Ririt and I were already prepared.
[Day 1 has ended.]
[From now on, we will individually disclose the Day 1 ranking settlement results. Survivors, please confirm the results and rewards, then rest in preparation for Day 2.
Please note that any participant who engages in combat before Day 2 begins will be immediately disqualified.]
Ririt woke with a start and rubbed her eyes. She focused on her status window, where text was scrolling down.
(Of course, since no one could see anyone else’s window, on the outside both Ririt and I probably looked like we were staring into empty air.)
[Day 1 Settlement.]
[Out of 600 participants, the total number of survivors is 381.]
They killed a staggering number of people.
Ririt counted the dead and trembled.
It was still too soon for me to perceive characters as fully living beings, so I just vaguely imagined how many of those kill points had gone to whom.
[Individual ranking settlement data has just been sent to all participants.]
[Press ‘View’ below to confirm.]
[Name] Rudel
Congratulations! You have survived Day 1!
[Daily Settlement]
Kill Points: +0
Collection Points: +1140
Play Points: +162678
I was idly scrolling down when I saw the number for ‘Play Points’ and my eyes nearly popped out of my head.
Wait, I’d found three crates for 1,140 points, so what was with that six-digit number? It was a score you’d get from finding a hundred crates!
“Rudel, can I ask you something?”
While I was in shock, Ririt poked my shoulder with a slender finger.
“Do you know what these Play Points are?”
It suddenly occurred to me that if I looked at Ririt’s results too, I might be able to figure it out.
“Ririt, can I see yours?”
“Yeah! Here.”
Ririt immediately shared her results window with me.
She really didn’t know how to doubt people. Such a kind soul.
It wasn’t that she particularly trusted me; Ririt probably showed her information readily to just about anyone.
Innocent and kind Ririt. I absolutely had to protect her.
I placed the two results side by side and looked at them.
[Name] Ririt
[Daily Settlement]
Kill Points: +0
Collection Points: +359
Play Points: +192422
All Ririt had done all day was get dragged around by Iseupan, talk back to him once at the end, and get rescued by me.
It was impressive, but she hadn’t accomplished anything that would build up her own Play Points.
Yet she had 30,000 more points than me.
Now I finally understood.
These Play Points were the numerical indicator of the ‘Viewer Popularity Vote.’
The game company couldn’t let us game characters know about the concept of ‘viewers,’ so they’d replaced it all with the term ‘Play Points.’
It was a pretty plausible disguise.
If you did something heroic or impressive, your popularity vote score would rise.
Calling it ‘Play Points’ was something the characters might naturally accept.
As expected, my choice had been the right one. Rescuing Ririt had turned out to be profitable.
[Levels and rankings will change according to the settlement results…….]
*Ding-a-ling.*
The sound effect of a level rising one by one as experience went up played.
*Twing, twing…* Huh, why did it seem like my level was rising quite a bit?
[Your level has increased by 11!]
[Average level increase among participants: 7.6]
Once again, I was filled with emotion at the miracle brought about by Ririt’s popularity vote.
A character with dirt-spoon stats like me, someone who didn’t even have the strength to kill a person, at level 12? I’d easily surpassed the average of the participants?
“Ririt, how much did your level go up?”
“I went up 12.”
Even Ririt had gone up by 12 levels. So this was the power of the popularity vote.
I opened my status window to check the stat increases from my level.
How much would stats rise after gaining 10 levels?
[Name] Rudel / [Level] 12
* * *
[Stamina] 189 / ▲104 / D
[Strength] 186 / ▲106 / D
[Agility] 272 / ▲166 / ▲C
I’d gotten a grade that wasn’t D in just one day……. Though it was just a drop in the bucket, this was huge!
All I could see was hope. I clenched both fists and let out an inward cheer. Ririt looked at me as if I were cute.
“Ririt, did your stats go up a lot?”
“Wait a sec…… my three stats went up by 80, 80, and 70.”
She’d gone up one more level than me, yet that was all?
Stat increases probably varied by character. It seemed the increase ratio was calculated differently depending on your initial aptitude.
Then how much did bastards like Iseupan go up? Damn golden-spoon bastards.
I wanted to get a look at that guy’s status window too. I’d have to hide and secretly check it tomorrow.
“But Rudel, I don’t understand what the things on the last page mean.”
Right. I’d been so focused on my level that I’d forgotten the last page of the settlement results.
Following Ririt, I flipped to that part as well.
Huh?
Daily Settlement Comments
Comments? No way…….
‘Fuck, I bet a million that this guy would die.’
I spaced out for a moment at the familiar-feeling text I’d thought I’d never see again.
On the last page of the settlement results were a few comments that the viewers had been making about me.
‘The underdog wins, the underdog wins, the underdog wins’
‘You dumbasses, who goes all-in from day one? There’s gotta be a twist character like him. The way I see it, Rudel didn’t survive by coincidence—he’s sly as hell’
‘That’s why you gotta bet on brains, not stats’
Aha. So there were plenty of people who’d tried to score big betting on ‘he’ll die’ and lost everything from day one.
Come to think of it, I think the game homepage manual had mentioned that a few chat messages from the community would be selected by lottery and sent into the game.
So this was it. Making the characters see something like internet letters directly.
‘Walking around holding hands with Ririt is so cute?(*???)’
‘You survived well, make sure you survive tomorrow too’
‘I was nervous when you threw the stealth potion too;;; so brave’
‘Thanks for saving Ririt!’
Although it was supposed to be a lottery, the ratio of these comments probably represented the overall evaluation of me.
Most were bewildered or angry about losing their game money because I’d survived, but some liked Ririt and my chemistry and were cheering for my survival.
This alone was a huge achievement.
When the game started, a nobody like me was just the type of character people thought, ‘Die, because if you don’t die, I’ll lose the money I bet on you dying.’
But by wisely running away from Nahean and risking my life to rescue Ririt from Iseupan, my stock had risen a bit.
With this, I’d gained a few viewers who ‘wished I wouldn’t die.’
“Ririt, can I see yours too?”
“Yeah!”
‘Our Ririt is so kind…’
‘Why so pretty’
‘Not sure what’s going on but I love you anyway’
Yes, as expected. Most of it was praise for her beauty and fawning.
“What is this? Did someone write me a letter?”
Ririt looked puzzled. Not just Ririt—every character would probably wonder what this was.
I didn’t know how to explain ‘viewers,’ ‘real-world users,’ to Ririt.
If I explained the real world outside the game to her exactly as it was, the GMs would be startled and erase me.
“Because you’re pretty, kind, and brave, maybe the heavens wrote these comments about you.”
“The heavens?”
For a moment I considered calling the viewers ‘gods,’ but it left a bad taste in my mouth, so I changed my mind.
So I used the abstract word ‘heavens.’ Since they look down on us from above, it’s basically the heavens, right?
“Don’t think about it too much. It’s just for fun.”
“Okay!”
Ririt nodded innocently, believing my words.
Then another announcement was heard.
[Rewards according to level will now be distributed.]
At the same time, two boxes fell from above in front of each of us.
My eyes went wide when I opened the box.
Inside were various potions, a mini bowgun that could be hidden on the wrist, and a comfortable blouse and slacks labeled ‘bulletproof clothing.’
And even steak salad and fried rice in sealed containers with no expiration date.
Yes…… this was it. This was what a reward should be.
It was a shame there was no stealth potion or gun, but this was the least they could do.
When I was smiling in satisfaction, another announcement rang out.
[Additionally, starting from Day 2, the ‘Inventory’ function and ‘Unique Ability’ will be unlocked.]
This was also information I’d already grasped beforehand via the homepage.
I was nodding calmly at the predictable flow of events when I saw Ririt yawning and crawling into a corner of the cave.
“Going to sleep?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, must have been tough—sleep tight.”
Ririt lay down, flashed a bright smile at me, and soon closed her eyes comfortably.
Seeing that, fatigue seemed to wash over me too. It seemed best to turn in now for tomorrow.
I quickly scanned the results one last time, then quietly lay down on the opposite side of the floor.