Chapter ss1: Side Story 1 - Dream in a Dream (1)

The... enemy... do... can... no... think... that... wait... see... if... I...

An unintelligible mixture of sounds rang out. It resembled nails scratching a blackboard or a broken TV buzzing in the background.

Whatever the noise, it sounded quite disturbing and annoying. She didn't want to hear it any longer and squirmed with all her might, but it wouldn't stop ringing in her ears.

She had to open her eyes and wake up. It wasn't easy, but she managed to move her eyelids after focusing all her strength. Her eyelids twitched and she slowly opened her eyes. Silence finally descended like a miracle and a ray of sunlight shone on her. Rachel realized she had fallen asleep in a chair.

Now awake, she spotted a man sitting at the center of the vast empty room.

"I'll do it!"

He enthusiastically shouted while staring at her with his clear eyes.

Rachel looked at a document on the table in front of her and glanced sideways at the English Royal Court interviewers sitting in a row.

Dake, the guild's HR manager, spoke up.

"Alright, there's also a practical test if you pass the interview. Are you prepared for the practical test?"

Practical test? Rachel tilted her head and tried to recall. Practical test... What was that again? No, what am I doing here in the first place? I know an interview is going on, but... Oh, right! The recruitment for the English Royal Court guild. We were worried since we didn't have enough talents.

"Yes, I have honed a particular skill to become the English Royal Court's shield. Please allow me to demonstrate!" the man shouted enthusiastically.

Rachel read through the document that contained his information and background.

[James Finley]

Physique: 179 cm, 75 kg

Age: 22, Male

Nationality: British Commonwealth

Abilities: Defensive Wall, Mana Rampage

Role: Warrior

Curriculum Vitae: Graduated 27th in Batch 2029 of La Guild Lumière, 6 months of probation, 6 months of training at Penzberg, Germany.

Remarks: Guaranteed hero appointment once accepted.

He graduated 27th from the best French guild, La Guild Lumière. Rank 27 at Cube would've guaranteed a hero position anywhere. However, he had to volunteer for a year to improve his resume. Fortunately, he only had to spend a year because he placed 27th at La Guild Lumière. He would've had to become a mercenary instead if he placed lower than 50th in other guilds.

"Yes, thank you for your enthusiasm."

James Finley became the English Royal Court's top candidate despite a lackluster resume. Others would surely ask why they hired a graduate from the Lumière guild, but that was the English Royal Court's current reality.

"Yes!"

Finley replied with a big smile before leaving the interview hall.

The hall became empty after the interviewees left. This majestic hall decorated with renaissance art felt like a shell of its past glory.

"Right, thanks for the hard work everyone. Vice Leader?"

Dake glanced at Rachel. She nodded and stood up. Only then did the other nine interviewers rise.

Rachel returned to her office to finish more tasks. The other interviewers walked down the corridor discussing the talents today.

— Quite a lot of heroes came to our recruitment.

— That seemed to be the case.

— Isn't this all thanks to Vice Leader Rachel?

"..."

Rachel booted up her computer as soon as she arrived at her office. Most guilds busily recruited at this time and dungeons also appeared all over England. The most important task had to do with the royal palace.

She felt lethargic like sinking into mud the more she worked. Around 103 individuals applied for the January recruitment, but barely 10 seemed immediately useful.

Most applicants simply wanted to become a hero. The English Royal Court could nurture them to become the future, but these applicants only considered the guild as a stepping stone to progress in their careers.

"Haaa..." Rachel sighed from her pent-up frustrations.

She poured her entire life and passion into this guild with no results to show for it. All her hard work felt futile. Were her goals unattainable from the start?

Rachel barely managed to stay afloat and not drown in this abyss.

She focused on some documents to distract herself from the pitiful reality. These documents all painted a grim future for the English Royal Court. However, these pieces of paper couldn't be compared to the shame they experienced in real life.

Rachel immersed herself in reviewing and approving the stack of documents. She finally took a break at four in the morning and checked online.

[HERO COMMUNITY]

Only academy graduates could access this secret information exchange site. It existed separate from the dark web and Violet Banquet. She spent at least 20-30 minutes every day browsing through posts for helpful tips and information.

Scroll... Scroll...

One post caught her eye as she scrolled down. She couldn't help but read through it.

[Forum: Different International Guilds]

[Is the English Royal Court guild still hopeless?]

— Radish Kimchi 2030.12.30 22:49:36

[Has the English Royal Court guild made any developments? I think it's been 3 years since Rachel, Cube's rank 3 graduate, joined them. Are they still stuck in the gutter? I heard her rivals, Yoo Yeonha and Chae Nayun, are rising through the ranks at Essence of the Straits.]

[Comments]

[Yep! England is a mess right now and the guild is crashing along with it. It's only been 3 years since Rachel graduated, so she should still be a prospect. However, she's already become the vice leader. They must be short on staff to give her that position right away. Look at Essence of the Straits. Yoo Yeonha might be Yoo Jinwoong's daughter, but she started from the bottom and barely managed to become a team leader.]

[England, France, and Germany no longer stand shoulder-to-shoulder. France and Germany dominate England now. England is around the same level as Spain and Italy?]

[I think Switzerland is on the rise these days. They have quite the golden lineup with Sehit, Varga, Vals, Tilma, and Maritz. Also, I heard they have 3 potential prospects enrolled in Cube this year.]

[Oh, I completely forgot about Switzerland lol. They seem to have a bright future with those patriotic five. Anyway, England is a no-go.]

[I suggest joining them if you desperately need to become a hero. It won't be that difficult to jump ships later using the royal family's name lol.]

Tak!

Rachel roughly moved the mouse and closed the site. It didn't anger her since they dissed everyone in the Hero Community, including the site creator himself.

"... Suggest joining them if you desperately need to become a hero?"

Bam!

Rachel lightly slammed her fists on the desk. Those words annoyed her the more she thought about it. To be treated like a stepping stone felt too harsh since her other members could read this too.

"Radish Kimchi... Radish Kimchi..."

Rachel muttered as she accessed the community forum to search for previous posts by Radish Kimchi. She suspected another guild hired this part-timer to slander them.

However, Radish Kimchi turned out to be just another academy graduate diligently asking around for a guild to join.

"..."

Rachel silently closed the site.

Then she suddenly recalled her schedule tomorrow.

[Afternoon - Lesson With Master Shin Yeohwa]

"Ah..."

Rachel weakly gasped as she thought about her elemental class with Shin Yeohwa. Of course, Shin Yeohwa was the best elementalist in the world. Rachel endured the harsh teaching and considered it a tremendous opportunity.

However, a single lesson cost over 1.5 million pounds. It originally cost 500,000 pounds, but the figure ballooned over three times in two years.

[Thirty-six million pounds of taxpayer money is being used every year for Vice Leader Rachel's private lessons.]

Rachel recalled reading such an article. The country spent thirty-six million pounds, or fifty billion won, for her as an elementalist. She pondered what that actually meant.

Of course, the prime minister told me my strength is England's pride and urged me to continue. However, that's not going to solve any of the guild's problems if only I grow stronger. I also don't want to suspect master's qualifications, but it feels like there's more chatting and punishing than the actual lesson these days...

The completely exhausted Rachel looked at her Cube graduation photo on her desk.

"I wonder what he's doing."

She often thought of someone from time to time despite her busy schedule. He made quite an impact, but disappeared like a mirage. He could only be found in the first year photo and not in their second or third year ones because he suddenly dropped out. His decision perplexed everyone since he quickly rose through the rankings and caught the attention of several guilds.

Kim Hajin...

The things she went through with him seemed like a fleeting dream.

Rachel stared at the framed photos while reminiscing about her Cube days. The three years she spent there consisted of fierce competition and burdening responsibilities. That precious time allowed her to fully devote herself to growing. She thought she had already grown up, but was still just a kid back then. Only now did she truly become an adult.

Then could she be experiencing growing pains right now?

Rachel sighed as she leaned in her chair. Moonlight shone through the window and a cold chill enveloped her body.

Three years had passed since she graduated from Cube. She still had many desires, but suppressed them. She couldn't even manage her current tasks and her failures caused an avalanche of additional work.

Rachel felt exhausted. Her will to not give up, her unfortunate patriotism, and her responsibility as the princess tied her down. The young vice leader slowly shut her eyes as darkness covered her face. Her straight back and rigid neck began to relax. Only the sound of gentle breathing filled the office.

The English Royal Court's youngest vice leader fell asleep in her office like usual.