Indeed, the strongest assassin in the Aionne Kingdom was level 269, just over two hundred levels below Mathias. Still, it was surprising how the person behind the most feared stealth killer in the game was a girl. Especially when Alex_The_Great had a whole fan base consisting of young girls admiring his... or her enigmatic charisma.
Rome didn't notice that he had been staring for a bit too long. He, too, was a big fan of hers. He used to watch her gameplay highlights all the time. His class, Reaper, was also under the Assassin category, so he set her plays as an example.
He couldn't help but be awestruck at that moment.
"Shocking, right?" Alex said with a slightly smug expression. "Also, my eyes are up here."
At first, Rome was trying to look her in the eyes, but struggled to lift his gaze. It was then that he realized he had been staring at her chest this whole time.
'It's not like that, I swear!'
Since he couldn't look anyone in the eye for more than three seconds, it had become a habit of his to look at their chests instead.
Nonetheless, he summoned every ounce of willpower he had to look at her eyes.
Then, he uttered:
"I'm... I'm a big fan."
Alex nodded at him.
"Thanks, buddy," she said.
The girl walked past him and gestured for him to follow her.
"You're the shy type, aren't you? Come on, I'll talk to Mathias for you."
Rome hesitated at first, doubting if they would even let someone like him in. But since the co-founder of the guild herself invited him, he saw no reason to refuse. As a Reaper, he would need all the support he could get to become stronger. That was how this class was supposed to be played in the first place.
Alex led him through the crowd and, getting the special treatment, cut the line and brought him straight to Mathias.
The gladiator looked at the two with a deceptive smile and said:
"Oh? Not even an hour in this Isekai and you're already breaking the rules, Alex. Can't you see that everyone has to fall in line?"
The shinobi laughed at his remark.
"No one gets hurt so it's fine, isn't it?" she retorted.
She pushed Rome forward to let the guild master see him clearly.
"This guy has some difficulty socializing, so I figured that I'd help him. Can you let the guy in real quick?"
Mathias let out a sigh, an obvious disapproval of his colleague, but nonetheless, he called Rome in.
"Alright, let's see..."
As Rome got closer, Mathias squinted and carefully looked at the HP bar and his level on top of his head. The indicator had always been small and really hard to see unless you lean in close enough, and it seemed that this didn't change even when they got isekai'd.
After seeing his level, Mathias furrowed his eyebrows and asked:
"Level 50? Did you just start to play the game last week?"
A single drop of sweat rolled down Romes cheek. He almost hesitated to respond out of shame.
"I've been... playing since release."
In that moment, Rome felt as though everyone was staring at him, and it made his ridiculous statement all the more embarrassing.
Mathias and Alex glanced at each other, a puzzled expression on their faces.
"Okay..." the guild master said. "What's your class anyway?"
Rome answered.
"I'm a Reaper."
As soon as he said that, it was as if their confusion had been cleared all of a sudden.
"That makes sense now," Mathias mumbled.
The Reaper Class was the weakest class of all, at least in the early stages. To fully utilize its potential, the player would need a team of supports who can help them farm for EXP and equipments.
That was what the developers had fully intended for this class. However, when the game was released, it didn't go quite as planned.
In Rome's case, not only did he not have friends or guildmates to help him level up, but playing solo only allowed him to fight weaker monsters, slowing his progress down. It was a perpetual cycle of hardship.
Of course, at first, many people tried the Reaper Class out. They thought that they were the type to work in silence and be pushed around in the beginning only to bounce back and surprise everyone with their true strength... like some sort of a main character.
Some even dedicated a whole guild to help one Reaper level up. But years passed and all of their efforts were utterly useless.
Imagine spending years grinding for EXP and equipment, and being proud of your hard work. Then, some Mage player just one-shots you with the most basic spell without breaking a sweat.
Many people were frustrated at how useless this class is, and asked the developers for a buff many times, only for their pleas to fall onto deaf ears...
Eventually, people started switching to stronger classes. Until the Reaper had become a frowned-upon class that no one ever picked. Many memes on the internet were created just to ridicule the people who played as the Reaper for long enough and wasting their time.
Mathias let out a sigh.
"I'm sorry, but I can't let you into the guild."
Rome wasn't surprised by this. He had already expected to be alone ever since he chose this class. For the same reason why no one accepted him in their guild in the game, Mathias wouldn't let him in this time as well.
"Hey Mat, aren't you being a bit too harsh?" Alex said in Rome's behalf.
Mathias looked at her and spoke.
"It would be unfair for the others. In a guild, the members will share EXP and enjoy other privileges equally. He is level 50 right now while the others are above 200. Obviously, he wouldn't be contributing much to the guild while enjoying the same rewards as the others that provided valuable help."
"Moreover, we move as a team. If one of us isn't able to keep up with the rest, it might put the whole guild in jeopardy."
Alex wasn't able to argue after all that...
In an attempt to make her feel better, Rome spoke.
"Don't worry uh... Miss A—Alex. I can handle myself."
The girl was visibly disheartened with how things turned out.
Mathias spoke once again.
"To avoid endangering yourself, you can just stay in the city and do something else to support yourself. But maaan... why did you even stick to this class anyway? Now, it's too late to change it! You should have just changed your class when you had the chance."
Rome scratched the back of his head and forced a smile.
"W—Well... the game would be too easy if I did."
Hearing this, Mathias couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Excuse me?" the guild master intoned.
A bit embarrassed, Rome responded.
"The only way for me to enjoy this game is by choosing the weakest class. Because I'm tired of dominating everyone in everything that I do."