Day and night in the Guild were unique.
True to a realm where players had no need to sleep, day and night coexisted, each occupying half the time.
In the center of that sky, the sun hung like a flag.
Centered around the sun, night and day swapped positions, shifting to the left and right.
Thanks to this, the Guild could maintain a sense of time.
Thanks to this peculiar sky, the guild buildings beneath it were even more unique.
While one side featured the beautiful, colorful scenery of daytime, the other half was painted by a nightscape where beautiful golden and black hues coexisted.
Newbie and the Fairy, reunited after several days, were watching the scenery from a tall spire.
"It's prettier than I expected. Now I see why everyone recommends this place."
"Is that all you have to say after coming to see me for the first time in days? Just look at me!"
"Whoa! It's so pretty. It's like a flying Christmas tree."
"Geez! You're something else! Sigh... The first member of my kind I meet has such a weird hobby..."
The fairy had also had a pretty busy few days.
The guy, who looked like he was about to storm the Stagnant Waters Guild at any moment, had no choice but to back down after Arien's persuasion.
Above all, the temptation she whispered to him was just too sweet.
'Our guild has a separate village where the tutorial fairies live. You'd definitely be interested, wouldn't you?'
For a fairy who hadn't seen a single one of her own kind in a hundred years, there was no greater temptation than this.
After pretending to ponder the offer for about five minutes, the fairy flew off to the place she had been told about.
It was the most out-of-place spot in the entire guild.
How should I put it? A land of Lilliputians? Or perhaps a land of toys?
The village, already small to begin with, felt just like a toy town when combined with the fairies' whimsical tastes.
At first, the fairy found it hard to adjust to the facilities tailored to her size.
"T-this… this chair is way too small. I can't even lie down."
"Why would you lie down on a chair?"
"Oh, r-right, I guess so?"
"What a strange new friend! Anyway, welcomeeee!"
On top of that, they made the fairy wear clothes adorned with all sorts of sparkling crystal decorations as a sign of welcome.
They kept the fairy detained for days, subjecting her to a cheerful interrogation.
"Hey, hey, what's it like out there these days?"
"Are you hanging out with a human partner? I'm so jealous!"
It was a barrage of questions that didn't let up for even a single second.
Thanks to that, the fairy had grown sick and tired of her fellow fairies, whom she hadn't seen in a hundred years.
She had escaped after promising to return tomorrow.
"Well, it wasn't all bad. I even got a name."
"Oh, really? What is it?"
"A grumpy, complaining, nitpicky grouch who picks fights over every little thing."
"...Is that really a name?"
"They said they name themselves after their personalities. I think the village chief's name was something like 'Uselessly Cheerful and Positive Optimistic Idiot'?"
"Should I just give him a new name?"
Seriously, I've never seen such a complete lack of naming sense before.
At the newbie's suggestion, the grumpy… no, the fairy nodded.
"Of course! How am I supposed to use such a long name in the first place?"
"It's not just that it's long… but anyway, um… how about 'Excel'?"
"Excel?"
"You're always so impulsive sometimes. It's just like stepping on a car's accelerator."
"A car?"
"Oh, yeah, that's a thing. Anyway, what do you think?"
"Hmm, not bad. It feels fast and powerful. Okay! Excel is my name now! I've gotta brag to the guys!"
Just as the fairy did a somersault in the air out of joy... time stopped.
The sun, which had been spinning, came to a halt.
Everything turned into a black-and-white landscape.
At the same time, everything froze.
Excel, too, froze mid-air.
"Excel? Hey, what's wrong?"
"Don't worry. I just paused time for a moment."
"Isn't that… pretty amazing?"
"I guess you've forgotten that this is a game world, rookie. Stopping time is a basic ability."
As he spoke, someone approached from behind.
"Um… you said your name was Grand Master, right? Should I call you Grand Master?"
"Call me Drusus. Everyone in the guild is equal. We just have different roles."
Huh, is that how it is? Everyone's equal, but some are more equal than others?
Honestly, the newbie didn't believe a word of it.
After all, even in real-world democracy, hierarchies inevitably form.
"Um, did I do something wrong?"
"No. I just came as an elder of the guild to ask about your future."
An elder, huh. No wonder everyone calls him an old fogey.
"My future? It's a bit sudden to ask something so grand… Well, I do plan to take the Pilgrim's Exam, at least."
"Are you planning to set out on a pilgrimage?"
"I can't stay here forever. Not that I dislike it here, mind you. In fact, I like it quite a bit."
Dursus's expression brightened slightly.
But then, he immediately frowned.
"What do you plan to do if you fail?"
"Well, if I fail, I'll just train more, won't I? It's not like the exam only happens once."
Even if I can't level up, isn't there such a thing as control?
Dursus snorted at Newbie's reply.
"I suppose you could stay stuck here for a hundred or ten thousand years, training. Just like that bald guy. But the world won't leave us alone."
He threw something.
What Newbie caught in his hand was a strange item.
"What's this?"
"It was in the inventories of the players who were rescued along with you."
"It looks just like—"
A sphere that crackled incessantly, spewing out all sorts of strange code.
To Newbie, it was a presence he was already all too familiar with.
It tried to seep into Newbie's body in an instant, but—
Crackle, crackle, crackle... Boom!
Like a balloon popping, the mass of bugs burst and vanished.
Dursus watched the scene intently.
"There was a whole bunch of these."
"What were they planning to do with this?"
"Those guys have been trying to wipe us out for a long time. If they could eliminate us, they'd use any means necessary. But this is the first time they've tried to use bugs. If it weren't for Arien and you, we would have been helplessly turned into their bug testing ground."
He briefly rubbed his furrowed brow.
"No, we might already be a bug testing ground. This is likely just a part of it. They'll bring the bugs back here again."
"So that means..."
"The guild will become even more isolated from now on. If I see any signs that they're starting to use the bugs in earnest, I'll cut off the guild from the outside world without hesitation."
"C-cut off? What does that mean?"
"It's our guild's last line of defense. Literally, we'll permanently separate the guild's territory from Seeker World."
"Then what happens?"
"Since we've never used this method before, I can't say for sure. But one thing is certain: it means you'll no longer have the chance to leave the guild."
He had many questions, but that answer was enough.
In short, either stay in the guild forever, or leave as soon as possible.
Those were the only two choices left for the newbie.
"So is there absolutely no solution? Like escaping this game world or something..."
"The Seven Apostles."
He offered a very simple solution.
"The Seven Apostles?"
"They're the monsters that have devoured the most powerful admin privileges in this game world. They're also the rulers of the kingdom. With their authority, we might be able to leave this world."
"So... you mean we have to take down the guys who act like this game's admins?"
"Yeah. Well, even if we could do it, it's already way too late."
Now I finally understood.
No matter how much chaos the veterans caused, was it even possible to defeat the admins?
It was like how no matter how much a person builds muscle, they can't wrestle an elephant.
"So there's no hope for me either?"
"I believed that too. If you hadn't known how to handle bugs..."
"Bugs?"
"Yeah, bugs."
"Wait, hold on! That..."
"Don't ask me how I knew. And you'd better learn how to hide your expressions."
"Ah! That's..."
"That's all I have to say."
Druus turned around and began to walk away.
He turned his head back briefly to offer some advice.
"I'm sorry, but this world doesn't have much time left to wait for you. So I hope you make a wise choice."
With those words, he walked away slowly.
At the same time, the world, which had been in black and white, began to regain its color.
As time moved forward, Axel, who had been mid-somersault, began spinning again.
"What's wrong? Did you see a ghost or something?"
"No. It's nothing."
Newbie took in the scenery once more.
At the same time, he fell deep in thought.
*
"I didn't expect you to show us that, too. Wasn't that supposed to be a secret from all the guild members?"
"..."
The secretary master, who had been waiting, asked.
"But can he really handle the bug?"
"I don't know if he can handle it, but it's certain he isn't affected by it. He was openly holding that bug without any safety measures."
"You… you just handed it to him with your bare hands? Did you really stop time in that area for a moment because of the bug?!"
"That's right."
The Secretary Master was horrified.
"What if something had gone wrong with him?"
"It was a risk worth taking. He's already out of our hands."
"It's not too late, Lord Drusus. We should send a message to the Bald Gang and have our Masters' Council forcibly secure Newbie's custody."
At those words, Drusus flew into a rage.
"Are you suggesting we start a civil war against the Stagnant Waters Association?"
"Isn't it... worth it?"
"No! Even if it were, we must treat it as if it weren't. You know as well as I do. Internal strife is a sure path to ruin."
If there was one thing that truly infuriated Drusus, it was internal strife.
He would never forgive that.
Decades ago, when countless factional conflicts raged within the guild, he was unwavering.
He expelled every faction from the guild without exception.
Even his own brother was among them.
That was how determined he was—he had not the slightest intention of allowing even the tiniest crack of discord to form.
"If those shameless scoundrels have already claimed him, we cannot raise the child as we wish. "In that case, we must at least instill a sense of vigilance in the child. That is the duty of an adult."
Druusus knew this well.
If you put things off for a day under the pretext of growth, a day becomes a week, a week becomes a month, a year, a hundred years.
He had seen far too many people who, despite having a mission, eventually let go.
Then the Secretary Master asked.
"What if we fail? Isn't the situation too disadvantageous from the start?"
"If we fail, that's just how it goes. Did we ever form the guild by weighing the circumstances? How one overcomes their situation—that's what matters. Even if we point out the injustices, this world won't patch things up for us anymore."
It was a cold but accurate assessment.
"If there's no patch, then we have to create a mod ourselves. We must protect those living here and now, not cling to uncertain hope. That is the Master's duty."
"I will keep that in mind, Grandmaster."
He decided to let go of that last shred of hope.
To him, safety in the present was more important than the uncertain hope of the future.
Because that is the role of the Guild's administrator, the Master.
*
The reunion with Arien was the worst possible scenario.
"Draw your weapon."
"Huh?"
"I said, draw your weapon."
The newbie reluctantly drew his sword at Arien's sudden insistence on a sparring match...
and got beaten like a dog.
The difference was overwhelming. There was no opening to begin with.
"Ugh... Why are you doing this all of a sudden?"
"Look."
Arien said it as if she had expected this.
"Unarmor."
She took off her helmet.
Beneath it was a vicious expression, the complete opposite of her previous warm smile.
"You couldn't do a thing, could you? And you're planning to go out there like that?"
"But in Lord Vald's test—"
"Do you really think running a mere 10 meters to wound a single person is impressive?"
"No, that's not what I meant..."
"Why are you trying to go out in the first place? You just escaped that hell with me, didn't you?"
Is that it?
Newbie began to understand Arien's feelings.
From a firefighter's perspective, was it like watching someone get pulled out of a fire only to go back in?
"What on earth are you going out there for?"
"I heard it from that person, Grama. About the Seven Apostles."
"...What did you say?"
A rage unlike anything Newbie had ever seen before blazed across her face.