Ruby was a strange person—one who had appeared out of nowhere in my life, clinging to me as if her life depended on it. I had never understood why, nor had I ever tried to understand.
However, something about her had become quite clear ever since this whole Universal World ordeal happened.
She knew things—more than any of us—almost as if she had been here once in the past.
"Why are you so sure of it?" I asked, wondering why she was so confident in her reply.
She bit her lower lip as she glanced around, knowing that the time we had to speak to one another was fairly limited.
"Because…" She paused, taking a deep breath. "I-It's complicated. Couldn't you just trust me? After all, you can always join this guild after leaving this place if you ever so desire. It's not like they would dare to refuse you."
"What are you two lovebirds talking about?" the smooth-talking elf from earlier said as he stepped between us. "Plotting against us?"
The guild erupted in laughter.
"Milady, could you give me your hand?" the elf asked as he bowed slightly.
'Is he trying to flirt his way into every girl's pants here or what?' I thought to myself.
Nevertheless, I was actually interested in what the elf would have to say. He had noticed that I had a Mana Core. He had found out that Serena had been blessed by a Watcher. If there was anyone who could tell me more about this mysterious "friend" of mine, it was definitely him.
He grabbed her hand and closed his eyes, focusing intently before opening them a moment later, looking back toward the crowd.
"Seems like the girlfriend doesn't have the same talent, unfortunately…"
I frowned.
"Are you sure? There's nothing? She doesn't have anything special?" I asked him.
He burst out laughing. "Don't worry, you can take her with you to our guild. It's no problem, really."
I didn't even roll my eyes at the comment, staying completely neutral to his words.
'I thought she would have had a connection with a Watcher, at least… but then, how does she know so much?'
I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind as the rest of my class woke up from their slumber, most looking panicked and lost.
The elf "tested" the rest of us and deemed none of them suitable for joining their guild.
There were only two people who had received interest.
Serena and me.
Jake had been discarded like trash, just like all the others. He had tried to throw a fit, but to no avail.
The chief, who had been watching from a distance, seemed strangely satisfied with the results. He had a hidden grin as he kept staring in my direction, clearly more interested in me than in Serena.
"So, what do you two say? Are you interested in joining my guild?"
I let Serena speak first, interested in what would happen depending on her response. After all, there was a good chance that they might kill us if we were to refuse their offer. That's why I was still hesitating between both options.
"I'm not interested," Serena said flat-out, without an ounce of consideration.
Then, silence took over the entirety of the arena we were in. Not a single member of the guild laughed or tried to make a joke; all of them frowned without exception, clearly angry beyond words.
"You dare refuse our offer?" the chief quietly said as the pressure within the arena began rising, making many of us kneel by force under the insane pressure.
'Is that what a Silver-Ranked Player can do?' I thought to myself, realizing just how weak I was.
"Are you sure you can handle the consequences?" he then asked, locking his gaze onto Serena, who didn't seem affected.
"I'm sure." She scoffed. "The Watcher who blessed me already warned me to refuse any guild offers as it prefers to work alone."
"The Watcher who blessed you sent you a personal message?"
Murmurs began filling the arena at once.
'Is that something rare?' I thought to myself, guessing that it was based on the reactions. 'If only they knew just how many apostle offers I received. They would have lost their damn minds.'
"Mhm. Then we accept your refusal," the chief said promptly. "If a Watcher asked this of you, then we can only understand your difficult position."
Then, his gaze turned in my direction.
"What about you, boy? You're accepting our proposition, right?"
I had a feeling that I wouldn't be let go as easily as Serena, especially since I didn't have that great of an excuse in the first place.
"I might accept," I started. "However, I have some conditions, and if you can't fulfill them, then I won't join."
The chief nodded. "Speak your mind, human."
"Actually, I really have only one condition. I want to check out your competition before agreeing to your offer."
"Check out the competition?!" he repeated, irritated. "Are you talking about other guilds?"
I nodded. "Yes. I want to see what they can offer me, and only then will I make my choice."
The chief's expression, which had been more than confident a moment ago, was now turning quite ugly.
"I'm sorry, but that's not possible."
"Why?" I smirked. "Can't I just walk out of this arena and meet with them?"
The chief snapped his fingers, and five men from the stands appeared before the exit, all of them armed to the teeth.
"You can try walking out if you want, but you won't make it out alive."
I looked at the five individuals, unsure if I could take them on. I tried to gauge their strength, but it was impossible. If they were anywhere close to their chief's strength, then it was already a lost cause.
But then, just as I was about to turn around and talk to the chief again, Ruby whispered something in my ear.
"As soon as you leave the arena, they won't be able to hurt you anymore."
That's when I noticed a message shining in the middle of the arena.
[PVP is only activated within the walls of the arena.]
That meant I didn't have to defeat them; I could just run past them.
"So, what do you say now?" the chief asked, grinning, knowing that I was backed into a corner.