Opening his eyes, although the previous events weighed heavily on his conscience—Kaiden sat up with purpose. That short rest served as the buffer needed to urge him into action. He couldn't sit around sulking continuously. As a guild master, he had a certain image he needed to maintain as well as actions that needed to be completed.
If his despondency was to be rubbed off on the members, that would cause adverse effects. Therefore, pushing his sulking thoughts to the back of his mind—Kaiden readied himself.
In the beginning, where momentum mattered, there was little to no time available to waste. In this everchanging and always advancing game once you lost your edge it would be difficult to reclaim it. Furthermore, each day the competition became increasingly vast—just as he was able to obtain fortuitous encounters, he remained aware—so were the others.
"I may have messed up, but there will be a time in the future to redeem myself. However, right now...I need to suck it up and complete the task I have set for myself. First things first…"
"Hehe, that's my Key... now go get them tiger." chuckled Gentle Whisper as she equipped her armor. Of course, because she was a cloth user, her curves became as silky as her equipment.
'He is so resilient. I wouldn't think he would come out of his melancholy so soon.'
Of course, that resiliency was attributed to the fact that his memories had also experienced despair far deeper than so. As a result, this event was unable to consume him.
Pulling up his friends' list, Kaiden called Kassandra. Although he had finalized the deal. Due to the short mishap, he didn't receive the bank information yet. As a result, he HAD to call Kassandra for she held all the information. However, because her character was offline, he had to resort to using her actual number she left.
As he called, it rang continuously. One ring...three rings... five rings... until finally a silence.
"...Hello." a hurt voice sounded on the other side. It would be a lie if Kaiden said his heart didn't falter when he heard such a sorrowful tone.
"...Ms. Blair, you didn't leave the bank information. Also, meet me in-game at the town entrance, if you can."
"...Give me 10 no...30 minutes please." asked Kassandra as her tone carried a heavy sadness."
"Take your time, I will be waiting."
Pulling out the Kingdom Announcement Device, Kaiden sent a message that reverberated throughout the kingdom.
[Pendragon Kingdom User Announcement-
Unsheathed: Ethereal Conviction is once again commencing the recruitment process. For more details, please come to the Lunar Essence Mansion entrance. Tests will be conducted. Additionally, if you are under Lv.35 you are automatically excluded unless the reason is plausible.]
The reason Kaiden excluded the users under Lv.35 is because of the limited spots of the guild. Additionally, at this point where competition hadn't even openly begun, being under Lv.35 spoke volumes of your talent—for players that started the first day that is.
One, this could mean that they didn't focus much time in the game causing their level to be lower than the current norm. However, Kaiden wasn't looking for casuals at the moment. These small, select few in his mind would become the base of the guild.
Two, their talent was on the lower side meaning when it came to combat ability, they were lacking. Once again, Kaiden didn't have the time at this moment to meticulously train novices nor did he have the staff or means required to do so.
As for the viable reasons, perhaps they were targeted by guilds, a party, etc. Overall, as long as Kaiden deemed the reason viable—there was a chance of acceptance.
Correct, Kaiden would be the one monitoring today's recruitment event.
Within a few moments, the pathway before the Lunar Essence Mansion was filled with users of many different races, classes, and levels.
Walking out from the gates of the Lunar Essence Mansion, Kaiden inspected the crowd with a solemn gaze as he waved his hands creating 3 stalls.
This was a feature exclusive to Administrator and above ranked personnel in a guild. They were able to create recruitment stalls with the help of the system. Moreover, they could control the type and number of stalls created.
"Please separate into 3 categories. Those who are Lv.42-44 migrate to the first stall. Those who are Lv.38-41 line up before the second stall. Lastly, those who are Lv.35-37, proceed to the third stall."
After Kaiden asked, the crowd began lining up in that exact manner. In a short period of time, there were 3 extensive lines of people. However, there was also a random bunch of users stuck in the middle as they didn't fall under any category.
"You all in the middle, based upon your reasoning you can be placed in the last group."
Even though everyone in their group provided their reasoning a lot were excluded. Why? Because Kaiden felt no aura exuding from their presence. This was a telltale sign of a lack of combat ability.
However, there were also some who made it to the last group. Additionally, Kaiden came across a few familiar faces in this bunch that made his eyebrows jump. He was shocked that these players were only Lv.33 and 32. He was positive they should be higher than this.
"You two, come over. Why is your level so low? Your levels were similar to mine at the start of the game."
Walking over, the duo confronted Kaiden with bitter smiles. An Orc with an outlandish physique stood before him as he sighed in distress. Indeed, the orc standing before Kaiden was the same orc who purchased his items at the stall at the beginning of the game—Unyielding Roar.
"Ehh...you see… we had a run-in with the Sunset Triad. They wanted us to join them, however, we don't agree with their style. So we rejected it. As a result, I and my sister have been hunted since. We've been killed about 10 times now and honestly, I'm kind of hard-pressed to level. They keep scouts on us—limiting our options."
"Sister?"
"Correct, this is my older sister HarminousLily. She's an Elven Oracle and more of a tomboyish thing who loves games."
*THWACK*
"Hey, who are you calling a thing? I suggest you watch your mouth unless you want to end up on your back again. You must love counting stars." said the beauty standing next to Unyielding Roar as she thumped her staff against his head.
"Haha, I see. Well, join the first group then. Your levels were initially over 42 already so you've cleared that hurdle and shall be an exemption."
As the pair walked away Kaiden caught HarminousLily's back view and was struggling not to completely turn around. Outwardly, he kept his solemn appearance in front of the crowd, however, inwardly he was doing mental jumping jacks.
'My GOD! That ass. How in the…she should've picked a physical class… Now that would be a sight.'
Based on view alone, he could calculate that HarminousLily's hips were at least 2 inches wider than Gentle Whisper. But, they had nearly the same plumpness when it came to volume.
'Come to think of it...I haven't seen Kassandra's body. It's also covered...WAIT! Why am I fetishizing her? I'm already treading deep waters with her.'
"Alright. The recruitment event will now commence."
At this moment, Kaiden began to individually evaluate the crowd starting with the first group. As he filtered through, certain members didn't make the cut. While their stats and gear matched, they were heavily carried by the gear. Their movements were unrefined and their attack patterns were unreliable.
To make matters worse, when Kaiden tested these people he didn't wear any armor and simply used Angurvadal. The results were still one-sided bullying. Of course, Kaiden didn't execute any of his exclusive skills.
However, Kaiden also found many hidden gems as he tested each of the groups—most of them originating from the 2nd group. Moreover, Kaiden was extremely impressed by Unyielding Roar who had an impressive amount of Strength.
'Hm, I didn't realize this earlier but he's a prime candidate. If he joins, he'll receive the same attention as the Captains.'
"Those of you who have passed the evaluation to different extents have gained the basic requirement to join Ethereal Conviction, however, what I want to know is...are you willing to devote yourself to a Kingdom? If so, sign these and you will soon be the primary witnesses of future greatness."
Sending out close to 800 copies of water-downed Destiny Sealing Contracts when compared to Hollow Stance and the others, Kaiden crossed his arms. As the crowd read the contracts, a few expressions became skeptical as others simply pondered on the possibilities of the future.
Why were a few skeptical? Simple. Because the contract didn't hold many repercussions and only vague benefits. On the other hand, the layout of the guild hierarchy and management structures were well defined. They were mentally comparing this to the requirements of other guilds and felt this was too good to be true.
It was a known fact that in the circle of Overlord and above grade guilds, even the basic members had heavy roles to fulfill in order to keep their membership. They were treated as disposable items—either present the extent of your use or get lost. That was the standard of those guilds.
"I see that a number of you are currently wearing skeptical expressions. You must be slightly on guard about the lack of tedious tasks. Am I correct?"
Nodding, a majority of the present users agreed with his words.
"Well that is because the contract you currently hold is for basic members—responsibility is minimal as the benefits are too. If you are interested in truly contributing to the guild then I can provide the more demanding versions for core and main members. However, the main members of the guild are currently at full capacity, ergo you would be in-name main members."
In World's Destiny, the roles for members in a guild had capacity limits. At most, the main member count could only take up a maximum of 20% of the guild's total capacity. Followed by 30% for core members. Leaving the remaining 50% for basic members. The reasons this existed would be further explained in the future when the guild features are unlocked.
"Although you guys won't be the 'main members'—because you have joined early during the infant stages of this guild, if you stay—your benefits will definitely trump the later recruits."
Sending out the core and main version of the DSC, some instantly signed as they were looking for a guild to call home and grow. However, there were some who were conflicted. Should they join an unknown guild or garrison at a known guild but ultimately experience no progression.
One yielded benefits over the long run as one yielded benefits short term. Was the investment worth it? However, if these bunch of people knew that over 50% of the available plots existed inside this person's hands… they would immediately seek shelter here.
"As I am on a tight schedule, if you are going to sign and haven't done so then please sign."
A few minutes later as Kaiden wrapped up the recruitment event the member count of the guild read '907/1,000'. He was completely satisfied with this number—although everyone didn't sign, Kaiden wouldn't force anyone to. In his eyes, if they signed of their own accord—that would yield the best results.
[System: You have received a message from Snow Bunny.]
"I'm here at the entrance…"
"Coming now."
Equipping his armor once again, Kaiden stormed towards the town entrance shocking the new recruits…
"W-What the FUCK?! How can he be so fast? He had to invest all if not most of his Attribute Points in Agility. No, wait… his attacks were also ridiculous… My god, what is going on!?" screamed Unyielding Roar.
"Stop yelling and close your mouth. It's unsightly. So what, he's clearly strong. Just get stronger." criticized HarminousLily.
"Yes…"
….
Running, Kaiden saw Snow Bunny in the distance in her usual cloak.
"Bunny."
"... Don't call me that. Ms.Blair or my full in-game name is fine."
Smiling bitterly Kaiden nodded, 'Yeah...she hates me.'
"I didn't receive yours or the company's bank information…"
"Yes, I forgot… I'll send it now."
Tapping her fingers, a few seconds later, Kaiden heard a chime. An indication popped up on the virtual interface alerting him of the addition of new bank recipients. Initiating the transfer, Kaiden transferred $100 million. That caused his bank account to dwindle to slightly over $70 million.
"It is done. I'm heading out to level. Would you like to tag along?"
"..."
Silence overtook the atmosphere as Snow Bunny stared at the floor.