“By the way, it really isn’t happening.”
Since I matched for rank today, I’ve talked with Serrek, Leo, and even Pharaoh, but nothing has been set up.
Even after Pharaoh left, Lasty, who was freed, had a cup of tea and then also left, still nothing.
At this point, it feels like it’s a known fact that the masters and challengers see my login and just don’t queue for ranks.
“If I meet Lady Lily, I’ll obviously lose. Hehe.”
“…Haa. What’s Lord Leo’s score again?”
“I have… 1501 points! You mentioned you had 1212 points now, right?”
“Yes.”
Lord Leo, who is ranked 2nd in the rank battle, has 1501 points.
In contrast, I, ranked 15th, only have 1212 points.
We’re both challengers with not a huge rank difference, but the score is a whopping 300 points apart.
Comparing by rank points, it’s more than one tier difference.
Considering that even winning against a challenger only nets you 1-2 points, Leo is in fact about 200 wins ahead of me without any losses.
200 wins, huh.
I don’t think I’ve even played 200 rank matches yet.
Leo shook his head.
“Eh, I’m just special, you know? Most rankers in the top 10 are around 1300 points. The 3rd rank, Michael, might be in the late 1300s?”
“What about the Sword Saint?”
“Umm… That person is way up there… Once known as the Rank Slayer, you know?”
The Sword Saint, who held the number 1 rank for an incredible 4 years.
The ranker who had definitively risen to be the best suddenly vanished one day, made a flashy return, but ended up disappearing again thanks to me.
Despite not having played rank battles for over 1-2 years, he’s still holding the number 1 spot.
“Considering he keeps maintaining that top spot, his score must be way higher than mine. There must be some penalty for dormant accounts too.”
“At least a few hundred points ahead?”
“Don’t you think so?”
“……”
While I can do everything else, I just can’t touch the rank battles.
Rank battles are directly operated by Deoen and represent the measure of strength.
Unfortunately, I have no choice but to wait.
“If I had my way, I’d do it for you… but Deoen strictly regulates a few things, and abuse is one of them…”
“There’s nothing we can do.”
“Still, if we wait, someday it’ll happen! No matter how much they say they won’t log on, it’s not like they’ll never…”
Suddenly!
“Oh, that’s right?!”
“?”
Leo sprang up from his seat, as if a light bulb went off over his head, presenting a groundbreaking idea.
It’s not exactly an idea but rather one of Deoen’s various systems and an item.
“Is it the Secret System?”
“Is that so?”
“Yes! You become a private ranker. All information and details about rank battles will be kept confidential.”
But in Deoen, there are not just rankers who are strong.
Among them are reclusive masters who, despite having stronger power than the average ranker, play the game quietly, and they are classified as private rankers.
Beriard, who attended my class, is one such example.
When you become a private ranker, the exposure of information naturally decreases, and when things like PK occur, your weaknesses will be much less exposed.
Rankers within the top 100 will inevitably be popular, and whether they have fans or anti-fans, a lot of information will be sold.
Just looking at Leo right in front of me, there’s probably a mountain of information floating around on the internet.
“But I’m going to participate in rank battles, isn’t that pointless?”
However, all these assumptions are based on the premise that I become a private ranker.
If a private ranker participates in a rank battle, the secret system will be unleashed, so I who aim to participate in these battles cannot use this system.
A situation arises where I can’t participate in a rank battle to enjoy the rank battle.
Leo chuckles with a mischievous expression.
“That’s right, it can’t be that way.”
“But why…”
“What if it’s temporary? If you could turn it on just for matching and turn it off when you get matched?”
“…Is that possible?”
“There’s exactly one way. No, maybe it’s not just one?”
Those who can arbitrarily hide and disclose information.
Banded.
■
Banded, Raider, Red Player, Dark Gamer, and so on…
They have various epithets, but their common trait is that they ‘kill and plunder users.’
Commonly referred to as PK.
During my first broadcast, I encountered three bandeds who targeted me, but I ended up taking their weapon through a counterattack.
Although there have been few raids since then, the bandeds haven’t come after me but have caused quite a number of incidents.
Thus, in Deoen, as PVP and PK are actively encouraged, there are quite a significant number of user raiders active.
The might of their gathered Banded guild is said to be quite notorious.
The ‘Grim Reaper’ who took Drak’s masterpiece, the Yellow Raider, was also the guild master of the first Banded guild.
Though the Grim Reaper was a private ranker, due to his extensive activity as a Banded, his fame was higher than that of the average ranker.
“When you become a raider, you can obtain various items that regular users cannot use, one of which is the ‘Veil of Blockage’.”
“Is that so?”
“The Veil of Blockage?”
“Simply put, it blocks information. Like how much your level is or whether you’re online.”
“Oh?”
The Veil of Blockage is a device that helps Raiders operate in the darkness.
As the information about the Raiders becomes more exposed, their activities will become more challenging.
Besides that, there are various systems and items that assist Raiders, but they also have their downsides.
“However, once you become a Raider, NPCs will harbor negative feelings towards you, making it tough to get quests. You’d have to work really hard to make up for it.”
“It would be problematic if you were publicly marked by a guild.”
“Exactly.”
The moment you become a Raider, a bounty naturally gets placed on your head, and you will clash with the large guilds that despise Raiders.
Even the Grim Reaper I met just before had an outrageous bounty on his neck.
Since he hadn’t received a specific request or quest, he didn’t get the bounty, but he would have probably received a hefty sum if he had gone to the bounty board.
“Especially nowadays, Raiders are on the rise. They prey on newbies or weaklings whenever they get the chance; they’re truly despicable people.”
“So you want me to do it?”
“Yes!”
“…….”
Me?
“…That sounds tough.”
I’m not someone who just robs others.
What I took was merely the result of their actions.
I haven’t fallen so far as to just rob anyone I see.
“I was a Saintess, after all.”
“You were quite good at stealing, though.”
“That was due to a price. I’m not someone who just takes from anyone.”
What exactly do they see me as?
When I glared at Leo, she laughed mischievously.
“I knew you would say that.”
“Is there another way? Can I find a way to get it without becoming a Banded…?”
“No, the Veil can only be obtained by the Banded. Trading it isn’t systemically possible. So Lady Lily has to become a Banded.”
“…Then I need to approach it differently.”
I have no intention of robbing regular users.
If I must steal, it should be from other Raiders or those who owe me a price.
There are quite a few dark forces allied with the Banded in Deoen, so I should focus on them…
While I was brainstorming my methods, another problem came to mind.
“…But isn’t there a fundamental issue?”
“An issue? Oh, right.”
Leo tilted her head and nodded.
I am the king of the Elbrite principality, a well-known figure in the continent.
My fame soared as I defended against the empire, piercing through the skies, but if I become a Raider, it would surely plummet just as fast as it rose.
It was bound to get stuck.
Because the world hates Raiders that much.
I don’t plan to get rid of the countless quests and fame that I need to tackle just to rank up in the battles.
Leo handed over the black business card as if he had been waiting for this moment.
Inside the card, two figures were drawn in gold, and the name field was blank.
[Sub Account ◎ Jun Legend]
Type ⊙ Ticket
Limit ⊙ –
Stats ⊙ –
Magic ⊙ Sub | Creation | Secret
Special Notes ⊙ You can create a fake account and swap it. There is no change in abilities.
“This…”
“Yeah~ I got it from a quest to deal with the Banded group that kidnapped a Nymph. I don’t have any use for it. Not really interested in living a double life.”
“Are you saying I should become a Raider with this?”
“Yep. If you use that, you won’t have a problem even if you get the Raider penalty.”
It would definitely be treated as a completely different account, so there should be no issues.
Leo surely had a reason for making this suggestion while fully aware of my situation.
“But as the name suggests, since you’re swapping accounts, you can’t use titles, honors, or unique traits.”
“But the explanation says there’s no change in abilities?”
“That’s because those are the abilities of the account. However, your job, level, and equipment will all remain intact.”
“Ah, I see.”
Things like honor or titles aren’t built upon the body but are registered as a ‘System’.
In contrast, levels and jobs are directly linked to me, so they should stay the same.
“So I can’t get a different job with the Sub Account.”
“This is meant for the Banded. It’s literally for hiding!”
It was just a device to help with the double life, not a second account.
Well, if I could use two accounts alternating in one body, it wouldn’t just be a Legend; it would be Mythical level.
“Still, this seems pretty rare. If you need anything later, just let me know. I’ll help you out.”
“Yep! Go ahead and give it a try! Just tap it a little.”
At Leo’s urging, I touched the name section of the card twice.
[Would you like to use the Sub Account?]
[Please choose a name to use for the Sub Account. This name will be fixed as the account’s nickname and cannot be changed.]
…A name?
What should my name be as a Raider…
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