Chapter 122

Chapter 122. The Wristband Conscription Order. (2)

—

“I go by the nickname ‘Arcadia,’ rank 4th, and I lead the clan ‘Justice.’”

The female ranker, with her typical silver-haired model-like appearance, didn’t even flinch at Betelgeuse’s piercing gaze as she revealed her clan. She glanced around, and as soon as she saw me, her eyes locked onto me. She even waved at me with a friendly gesture. Honestly, I was puzzled by her reaction.

—

“Nickname ‘Menaldu,’ rank 10th.”

The male ranker with a fluffy appearance, who had been acting tough earlier, didn’t seem to have much to say. He didn’t belong to any clan either, so after stating his rank, he just stayed silent.

—

“I go by the nickname ‘Shaolin Monk,’ barely scraping into 8th place.”

The bald guy, who had once caused a stir in the gallery with his bizarre score of 1,000,001 points, looked exactly like his nickname suggested. Most rankers, including me, nodded in acknowledgment.

—

“…Laura, 5th place.”

This one had an appearance that made it impossible to tell if they were male or female. Even Indypatible and the other rankers tilted their heads in confusion when they saw Laura.

—

“I’m Betelgeuse, rank 6th and the leader of the Loki Clan!”

No need to elaborate on Betelgeuse. She seemed to think this situation was some kind of intel-gathering opportunity. Despite her energetic bouncing around, she paid close attention to what the other rankers were saying. Of course, whenever she looked at me, her face would turn red with anger.

—

“I’m Arto, leader of the ‘Dragon’ clan, rank 9th.”

The 9th-ranked guy spoke in a very calm tone, but somehow, he felt oddly… invisible. By this point, I realized it was my turn to introduce myself, so I straightened up and spoke.

—

“Nickname Icarus, rank 3rd… no clan.”

Of course, my introduction didn’t get much of a reaction. Everyone had just been listening without responding earlier. The only difference was… *crack*. While Betelgeuse glared at me, grinding her teeth, Arcadia, the silver-haired beauty, smiled brightly at my introduction. I felt something… something微妙 (微妙 =微妙,微妙,微妙).

As soon as my introduction ended, the next person stood up to introduce themselves, but…

—

“2nd place, huh?”

“Are you the 2nd ranker?”

“It’s obvious at a glance.”

“Definitely 2nd place.”

“How can someone look like that?”

“Please don’t come near me, 2nd place Raksha.”

“Seriously, why would anyone choose that appearance?”

“…”

As soon as they stood up, all the rankers except me and one other person reacted—though not in a good way. The face of the 2nd-ranked Raksha was truly bizarre. To put it simply, it looked like someone had taken a lump of potato dough, smashed it on the ground five times, and called it a face. It was so grotesque that even the rankers, who had been silent until now, couldn’t help but comment.

—

“Well, veterans use skins like this. Why would I do something weird for no reason?”

“…Hmm.”

“Even so, that face is a bit much.”

“Let’s admit what needs to be admitted.”

“…”

Raksha’s words made all the rankers nod in agreement, though reluctantly. Of course, the 2nd-ranked Raksha, who had just been bombarded with insults from strangers, must have been feeling pretty复杂 (复杂 =复杂,复杂,复杂).

He made a strange expression.

But that was only for a moment.

“From the beginning, I didn’t choose this appearance because I wanted to.”

“Ah.”

“The appearance I originally customized isn’t like this.”

In fact, when he revealed that it wasn’t his original choice but rather a ‘glitch’ that caused him to look like this.

The faces of all the rankers who had been teasing him stiffened.

In a situation that could only be described as calling for a “Talulah,” all the rankers who had mocked or reacted to the 2nd place were now filled with embarrassment.

Seeing their reactions, Raksha, the 2nd place, waved his hand and spoke up again.

“I don’t know what bad deeds I did in my past life to have my customization ruined like this, but isn’t this just bad luck?”

“Hmm…”

“But the fate of the game isn’t determined by appearance alone, so I won’t give up just because of how I look.”

“…!”

“My goal is to prove my skills to those appearance-obsessed Elves and make them ashamed!”

The sight of him venting his frustration was truly something to behold, as the rankers who had brought up the topic now looked like they were in a “Talulah” situation.

Thanks to that, I felt glad I kept my mouth shut and stayed silent.

Anyway, after the 2nd place finished his introduction, the last remaining man stood up and began his introduction.

“Nice to meet you all. Since we’re meeting for the first time here, I should properly introduce myself.”

“Huh?”

“My nickname is Antares, the current rank 1 and the Clan Leader of the clan ‘Humanity.'”

“Oh…”

“Ah, so you’re the new rank 1 who just rose to the top.”

The man’s appearance was striking, with golden long hair that reached past his waist, reminiscent of characters from romance fantasy novels.

Overall, he was handsome, but… how should I put it?

Despite his friendly, smiling demeanor and the fact that he naturally started chatting with other rankers right after his introduction, giving off a very ‘popular’ vibe.

There was a strong feeling that he might cause some major trouble later, like a hidden villain.

‘He looks really unsettling.’

Of course, for now, that was just my personal feeling, so I didn’t say it out loud.

==========

Anyway, after we finished our introductions, just as we were about to ask, “So, what do we do now?”

<<"Is everyone done talking? Rankers.">>

“Oh.”

“What’s this…?”

A voice that felt similar to Oxianor’s telepathy echoed, and from the center of the space we were in.

A dazzling light appeared, and something humanoid revealed itself.

Though calling it humanoid was just my guess.

The part that I assumed was its head was shining so brightly that I couldn’t make out its appearance at all.

And it seemed others felt the same way.

Looking around, everyone was either shielding their eyes or closing them, showing signs of irritation.

<<"Ah, I didn't adjust the brightness properly.">>

The somewhat fortunate thing was, despite the being’s confident declaration of being ‘transcendent’ and its appearance.

When it saw us suffering from the excessive light, it kindly reduced the intensity of the light emanating from its head.

Of course, even so…

<<"This should make it easier to talk now.">>

“…”

Despite the glowing head.

Its body and limbs boasted colors reminiscent of the cosmos or something from the void, making it hard to identify.

Even though we knew it was the ‘administrator,’ our gazes were filled with nothing but confusion.

But that was only for a moment.

<<"The reason I called you all here, as you probably already know, is to appoint you as community managers, as per the initial announcement.">>

As the administrator(?) spoke, everyone’s eyes filled with a strange seriousness.