Ch.300[Chapter 300] Clan Wars

Sir Dominic moved to avoid the shards of exploding glass windows.

The city had long since transformed into a battlefield, and merchants were already starting to repair their shops as if it were perfectly normal.

Of course, their repairs would often collapse again before completion, but still, the merchants continued to rebuild their shops.

However, Sir Dominic didn’t notice any of this scenery at all.

“Clan. A clan…”

Sir Dominic was still thinking about clans, and his thoughts were so consumed by it that there was no room for anything else.

He was so deeply absorbed in thoughts about clans that even when a bomb flew from somewhere and exploded on top of Sir Dominic’s head, he simply continued walking through the explosion.

Sir Dominic thought about clans.

More precisely, a debate was raging in Sir Dominic’s mind about whether he should join one or not.

‘You’ve been fine without one until now. You’ll continue to be fine.’

The anti-joining faction voiced its opinion in his mind.

‘No. A new era is coming with the beta test, and we need to change too. We should join a clan.’

The pro-joining faction raised its voice.

‘I’m a tank anyway, and my abilities are excellent. I can survive just fine without clan synergy or clan support.’

‘Surviving and living well are different things. In Gachaland, value is everything, right? What’s wrong with wanting to increase that value?’

‘I’ve increased my value this much on my own. I can continue to do so.’

‘No. Don’t you remember Mr. Musashi? Have you forgotten his aura that transcended 5-star?’

Abruptly, Sir Dominic’s footsteps stopped.

Musashi’s aura. He remembered that terrifying red cloud and dragon.

Sir Dominic remembered Musashi’s aura not because it was frightening.

It was simply because it was the strongest aura Sir Dominic had ever experienced.

Sir Dominic sighed.

Despite thinking about it alone for a long time, he couldn’t easily reach a conclusion about the clan issue.

I should probably discuss this with Sir Dominica.

Thinking that Sir Dominica would be an appropriate person to consult about clan matters since she also didn’t have a clan, Sir Dominic resumed walking.

How much further did he walk with his tangled thoughts and complicated feelings?

Sir Dominic suddenly stopped in front of a certain shop while walking.

A placard reading ‘Our shop is open for business as usual’ and a half-collapsed building.

Sir Dominic looked at the building which, compared to the debris scattered around, was relatively intact but didn’t look particularly safe either.

Sir Dominic momentarily lost himself in the aromatic scent of roasting coffee beans wafting from the ruins, then entered the building.

A clear bell sound rang as he entered.

“Welcome.”

Perhaps an employee of the shop.

A barista wearing a neat vest and bow tie greeted Sir Dominic.

Sir Dominic sat on a chair in front of the counter.

That was the only seat available, probably because the building had collapsed.

“Here’s the menu. Please let me know when you’ve decided.”

After handing over the menu, the barista began wiping dust from cups and warming them.

Sir Dominic stared blankly at this scene before lowering his head to look at the menu.

Fortunately, there was caramel macchiato, which Sir Dominic liked, and he immediately ordered it.

“I’ll have a caramel macchiato.”

“Yes.”

The barista immediately prepared to brew coffee and started making the caramel macchiato.

The barista must have been quite skilled, as it didn’t take long to completely prepare the caramel macchiato.

“Here’s your caramel macchiato.”

“Thank you.”

Sir Dominic took a sip of the warm, sweet caramel macchiato.

The sweet caramel supplied nutrients to his brain, and the bitter coffee aroma awakened his muddled mind.

Sir Dominic quite liked this caramel macchiato.

Thanks to it, his complicated mind felt somewhat clearer.

“Give me another one.”

Sir Dominic boldly downed the remaining caramel macchiato in one shot and ordered a new one.

One might expect his throat to burn after gulping down hot coffee, but Sir Dominic endured it with damage reduction, defense, and resistance from his knight characteristics.

“…Yes.”

The barista’s eyes widened in surprise at Sir Dominic’s eccentric behavior, but soon nodded.

He thought that refusing a customer’s request would go against the spirit of service.

The barista started brewing another caramel macchiato and spoke to Sir Dominic.

He was intrigued because such customers were rare.

“You seem to like sweet things.”

“That’s right.”

Sir Dominic nodded.

To those who knew Sir Dominic, it was well-known that he liked sweet things.

It was because he could now eat as much sweetness as he wanted here, whereas in Feralant he could only eat small amounts.

Since this fact was already known to people around him, Sir Dominic had no hesitation in acknowledging it.

“Usually, people who like sweet things fall into two categories: those who move their bodies a lot and lack sugar, or those who use their brains a lot and need more sugar.”

The barista said as he served the newly made caramel macchiato to Sir Dominic.

“You seem to be thinking a lot right now.”

“…You observed correctly.”

Sir Dominic was impressed by the barista’s insight.

As he said, Sir Dominic’s mind was currently in turmoil over the clan issue.

“Actually, I’ve been worrying about clan matters.”

“Clan matters?”

“Yes. Clan matters.”

“Well, there’s been a lot of talk about wars between clans these days.”

The barista smiled wryly as if to say, “This place ended up like this because of that war too.”

“Anyway, if it’s about clan matters, are you a clan leader?”

“No.”

“Then are you a clan executive?”

“No.”

“Then are you a member of a clan that’s about to be merged?”

“No. I don’t have a clan.”

The barista blinked at Sir Dominic’s words.

He hadn’t expected that Sir Dominic wouldn’t have a clan.

“I’m sorry. I assumed joining a clan was a given.”

“No need to apologize. It’s just that I found it bothersome.”

Sir Dominic waved off the barista’s apology.

“Then what do you mean by clan matters?”

“Well, I’m wondering whether I should join a clan or maintain my current clanless state.”

“Ah.”

The barista let out an exclamation of understanding.

“Indeed. There’s no better time than now to join a clan.”

The barista nodded, comprehending Sir Dominic’s concern.

“So, what do you think?”

Sir Dominic posed a question to the barista.

He didn’t intend to follow the barista’s advice, just to use it as a reference.

“Would it be better for me to join a clan, or better not to?”

“It would be better to join.”

The barista immediately answered Sir Dominic’s question.

“Aside from various benefits, the greatest effect a clan provides is that it serves as a meeting place for people.”

Sir Dominic listened attentively to the barista’s words.

They sounded quite plausible to him.

“Narrowly viewed, a clan might seem like just a place to gain benefits and increase value, but in reality, it’s all about people. There’s no better place than a clan to build relationships between people.”

“It’s different from a workplace, different from a workplace,” the barista said with a grin.

Sir Dominic thought as he drank his half-cooled caramel macchiato.

The barista’s words seemed right.

However, the barista’s words only slightly tipped the scale in Sir Dominic’s mind; it wasn’t advice decisive enough to make a final decision.

Nevertheless, Sir Dominic was grateful to the barista for answering sincerely.

“Thank you. That was somewhat helpful.”

“You’re welcome.”

Sir Dominic drained the remaining coffee in one go.

Then he returned the empty cup to the barista and stood up.

Having received advice from one person, he thought about seeking additional advice from several others.

Sir Dominic took out some Credit from his inventory, slightly more than the cost of the coffee, and handed it to the barista.

“The extra is for the advice. Thank you for the counsel.”

With those words, Sir Dominic stormed out of the shop.

All that remained in the shop was the barista, staring blankly at Sir Dominic who had come and gone like a storm, and the considerable amount of Credit in his hand.

…

Before the beta test began, the fierce struggle between clans proceeded without constraints of time and space.

In the skies above Gachaland, beyond in outer space, battleships were fighting, and deep in the seas of Gachaland, pirates and ghosts were slashing at each other.

Clans with superior numbers were battling clans with superior technology, demolishing the city streets, and people of Eastern style were deploying battle formations and clashing.

In the midst of this worldwide war situation, Arkus and Ogreson were squatting in the middle of the battlefield, drawing on the ground with twigs.

“…I wonder when we’ll be able to see Sir Dominic.”

“He should definitely be here. If my memory serves me right.”

As they said, the place where Arkus and Ogreson were located was exactly where Sir Dominic had asked to meet.

“Alright, let’s say Saint Dominic did ask to meet here. But…”

Ogreson threw the twig in his hand to the ground and said:

“A week! A week! We’ve been waiting here for a week now!”

After stomping on the twig with fury, Ogreson glared at Arkus, breathing heavily.

“Are you sure this is the right place? Aren’t you mistaken? Maybe you just dreamed it?”

“No! …Probably.”

Arkus initially denied Ogreson’s words with a burst of anger, but then spoke with an uncertain voice.

“…At this rate, I fear we might return without even properly seeing Sir Dominic’s face.”

Seeing Arkus’s attitude, Ogreson’s anger dissipated.

As much as Ogreson was angry, Arkus was equally anxious and impatient.

“We’ll see him. We’ll definitely see him.”

Of course, if we don’t… it must be because my faith is lacking, thought Arkus, but he didn’t voice this thought.

Arkus glanced to his left.

There was a system window that Arkus had pushed aside.

The same was true for Ogreson.

“It would be nice if we could see him.”

Arkus could feel his confidence gradually diminishing and his anxiety increasing in real-time.

To erase this anxiety, Arkus picked up a twig again and began drawing the sign of the cross on the ground.

On the system window, a time of 3 days remained.