News of Riven's capture spread like wildfire across Rosendun . Bards sang of the valiant soldiers who braved death to restore order. Of the great red general who led his front line s with courage, and his trusted lieutenants who led the assault on the towers. But the loudest of praises were heaped on the Great General Leila Lightwood, the shrewd tactical genius who dared Riven’s steep cliffs to launch a surprise attack on the drakul king. As the ‘supposed’ leader of the Hopeful Maggots, it was later revealed that Absalon's guild was a sub-guild of hers. She had coordinated the attack with him in secret so as not to tip off the drakul.

Following the events of that fateful night, waves of change rippled over the country. First and foremost was the new King's strange decision concerning the drakul . Not only did he forgive their crimes, but he urged co-habitation from his countrymen. He refused to give them a separate land of their own, instead insisting that all of Rosendun should live together as one.

The first few days were hard on the drakul, as most men still harbored an intense hatred for their kind. But despite counsels against, King Parissius stood firmly by his decision. However, it has to be said that were it not for the drakul's fierce loyalty and pride, the king’s first policy in power may very well have backfired.

Where the other races showed hatred, the drakul emulated kindness. Where the others looked upon them with contempt, they returned acceptance. The drakuls’ attitude stemmed from the vow they made to make this work, and while some could argue they weren't actually at fault, the drakuls never brought it up.

Eventually, the Rosens began to feel shame for attacking these prideful race, who refused to stoop to their level. Slowly, but evidently , the attacks ceased. Bards thus lauded the King's decision to stick by his plan, as it would usher in a new age of peace in Rosendun.

Elsewhere, Absalon was promoted to a guest- general of Rosedun's main army with his lieutenants, each commanding sizeable legions.

The relatively unknown guild 'Hopeful Maggots' received plenty of plaudits from the people for their heroic antics behind enemy lines. They were granted a piece of land in Ranad, where a guild home was built in their honor.

It wasn't long till most adventurer s under the sun wanted to join the renowned guild . Unfortunately, the maggots’ stringent selection process weeded out ninety-five percent of the applicants, until eventually, the clamor for recruitment slowed to acceptable levels.

Meanwhile, under Leila's watchful eyes, Absalon led an army comprised of the Hopeful Maggots and Rosendun’s forces on their first real conquest to end civil wars and monster invasions in Rosendun . These troublesome spots had to be cleared before they could say the country was genuinely united under a single flag . Of course, this also meant removing the high-level beasts around the borders to open trade routes with other countries.

This quest filled adventurers with a 'sense of purpose,' which most felt they lacked before. Many decided to join the army's ranks to try and work their way up. Others started actively forming guilds to rival Hopeful Maggots ’ undisputed control. A few others switched to crafts at the behest of the royal palace, which paid top Syros for well-made works. It was rumored this request for an influx of craftsmen also came from the Hopeful Maggots.

Naturally, for the craftsmen to succeed, gatherers were needed to work the environment and obtain necessary raw materials. And in turn, for the gatherers to achieve success , they needed warriors to clear dangerous beasts from the surroundings. And finally, for the warriors themselves to succeed, it all came back to the excellence of the weapons craftsmen made.

After all, it was soon clear crafted weapons were superior to store-bought stocks.

This rapid increase in activity occurred in less of a fortnight. Rivalries grew, new players flocked to Rosendun, and the economy flourished as a result of the influx of adventurers.

In a month, there was a difference so stark; many could scarcely believe they were still in the same country. Racism had been all but squashed, guilds were growing left and right, and it seemed talks could soon resume with nearby neighbors.

It was a change worthy of the history books, and the name on everyone's lips was Leila Lightwood: leader, healer, visionary, disciplinarian, and ridiculously beautiful femme fatale . Most of the changes were rumored to have been proposed by her, and it was no wonder her guild was still the most feared despite having the smallest numbers of all.

BUT

Despite the glowering endorsement Leila and her guild-mates received, rumors float ed in undercurrents. Stories of the true leader: a so-called demon who instigated the attack, devoured the previous king, and forced Absalon to submit. Bards secretly sang t ales of a demon hound that dragged his enemies to the gates of hell. His name was unknown, but some claimed he may have once been a da eben .

With no proof, however, these stories were seen as uncouth slander against Leila's Maggots and were usually kept to backrooms and drunken bar talks.

Indeed, Rosendun had entered a golden age... but the man primarily responsible for bringing it there was nowhere to be found.

Hopeful GuildHouse,

Ranad .

6 th Mazem, 1092.

The Hopeful Maggots ‘leader’ had her head buried in piles of paperwork. Whoever said running a guild was easy didn't know what they were talking about. It was terrifyingly time-consuming, and she found herself having to forcibly tear herself away from the table when she'd spent way too long.

Leila placed her quill on the desk and rubbed her eyes. After a moment, she looked out the window at Fera's statue, which had been renamed to Fera's S quare once it became a local attraction. She couldn't help but feel a surge of pride at the adventurers running about accepting quests and whatnot. The town had really grown, just as he'd said it would, and with the way things were going, even his crazy dream might be a reality.

A month had passed since the Battle for Riven , yet humorously, the last time she'd s et eyes on the real leader was three weeks ago. The lazy bum claimed he wanted to ex plore, and selfishly pushed all responsibilities unto her.

Leila smiled. Not that she minded . She enjoyed actually controlling her fate for once . In reality, Adachi Ayumi’s life was dictated by her father, corralled by her teachers and strangled by her peers. Here, Leila was in charge of her fate: a fact she relished to no end.

Leila glanced beyond Fera’s Statue to the sky’s horizon. It was unknown who exactly she was thinking of when she whispered, "Where are you?"

Northeast Rosendun

Achoo!

"I wonder if someone's talking about me," muttered a certain daeben .

Accompanied by his trusted direwolf, and three adventurers, Kashi rode towards the northeast borders.

Auditorium ,

Restricted Sector .

Wednesday, 13 th May 2043.

Suzuki, like many others s ea ted in the medium-sized hall, wondered what they were called for. The young gamer could count almost thirty people in the room. Amongst them were familiar faces in the form of Saeko Minako and Jade Yuhi: two people he had spent a good portion of his offline time with. The only missing person was Taiga —

“Yo.”

‘Speak of the devil.’

As if summoned, Taiga walked into the room dressed simply in a T-shirt and jeans. His hair and eyes remained as wild and intimidating, drawing nervous glances from those present. The young man, unaffected by the glances, swept his eyes across the room. He grinned when he spotted Suzuki and took a seat beside him.

"How's you been?" Taiga asked.

"Good."

An awkward silence ensued.

Taiga, however, did not seem to care. "And your avatar? What's his name again?"

"Never told you."

"True." Taiga scratched his head. He still found it hard to believe just how anti-social the kid was. It was hard getting him to string words together, let alone hold meaningful conversations. "So, you have any idea what we're doing here?"

"Dunno. But I'd bet James is behind it."

Taiga picked up on the familiarity. "Been meaning to ask. How do you two know each other?"

Suzuki shrugged but then said, "He saved my life."

"N 0 kidding?" Taiga chuckled.

"Dead serious."

"Huh," Taiga snorted. "Doesn't seem the saving type."

"He's not. He's a demon who'll use anyone, even an underage kid to get what he wants. But since my angels don't come to work often, I gladly accepted his help."

Taiga raised a brow. "That's a bit dramatic."

Suzuki looked at Taiga with an unsettling gaze . "You think so? My avatar's starting to rub off on me I guess."

"Odd choice of words, but I get what you-" James Shouyou's entrance gave Taiga pause. "I guess you were right about the culprit."

Shouyou was soon joined by Akari and Yukino. Each of them wore serious expressions that caused shiver s to run through the class.

Shouyou started the introductions. "Thank you all for coming as soon as you were called. For those who don't know, I am Shouyou James, and this is Akari Seki. He spoke to you all on the first day , and I'm sure each and every one of you are well-acquainted with the lovely Miss Asagi Yukino. She has been watching over you all, both mentally and physically. I heard some of you even got injured just so you could see her, but sadly she's already taken... somewhat." The mood lightened as they laughed at his jab.

Suzuki sighed and shook his head. It was really infuriating just how well that man could handle people. To be fair, though, he too had learned a thing or two from him.

Shouyou continued his address. "Most of you are currently wondering why you've been called here. Well, the reason is simple: you guys are going to make history." He paused to let his words sink in, watching as their gazes flickered between confusion, curiosity, then tinges of excitement. At this stage, he continued, "When you first arrived, you were told this was to find a cure for the phenomenon called p arallel... That was only half-true . While finding a cure for parallel is certainly a by-product of this project, it is not the main focus."

Once again, Shouyou paused for effect. When the room quieted down, he continued, "What we're about to reveal to you is both top-secret and dangerous. Those in this room are the ones we believe can handle the pressure and risk that comes with this job. But, if you're uncomfortable, feel free to leave now. We won't hold it against you, and you can still stay on-campus for as long as you'd like."

No one moved from their seats. Of course, no-one did. Shouyou hand-picked them.

"Good. Seki'll take over from here. I wish you good luck." With that, Shouyou exited the room, leaving the inhabitants fixated on the director.

Yukino dimmed the lights as Akari set up projections on the screen. A moment later, the bespectacled man opened with grim eyes, "I'll get straight to it... Japan will soon be invaded, and we need soldiers."

It took a second for his words to full y register, but when they did.. "EH?! What Did You Just Say!?" "Invasion!?" "From Who!?" "What The Hell Is This!?" "Who The Hell's Invading Us!?" "Why is this happening?"

Akari allowed the crowd to scream for a while, then raised his hand to silence them. Strangely, none had even made a move to leave the room despite their obvious displeasure. He had to admit: Shouyou knew his stuff, "They are a new coalition called the United Front. Right now, it includes the U . S, Britain, and the former U.S.S.R. China and North Korea haven't joined yet, but it's looking like they might eventually join up. Israel is set to announce its inclusion in the upcoming weeks. They will all invade."

Taiga whistled. "Whoa , Whoa , Whoa. Aren't we completely surrounded then? Do we even stand a chance? Few nuclear bombs, and we're K.O."

"Therein lies our sole advantage. They will... no cannot use nuclear weapons on us."

"Why not? If they cared about the public backlash, they wouldn't be invading in the first place."

"They don't care about the public's opinion on this. Soothing the masses will come after they obtain their objective."

"Which is?"

"The coils. Right now, not only are we the sole producers, but it's impossible to reverse-engineer, causing total dependence on us for power. ” Akari paused to adjust his glasses, then continued, “As you recall, the recent ri se in anti-global warming protests forced governments to seek alternative energy sources. Hydro-plants have too many negative environmental effects, so the Tesla coils became the de-facto energy source. Think about it. Having your entire country powered by an object you have no control over. Any half-intelligent leader would know this is a huge threat to national security."

"So if they can't make it..."

"Yes, just abduct the producers and force them to work for you."

"Wow. The world's really fucked up." He turned to Suzuki. "What you think?"

Suzuki shrugged. "It was only a matter of time before this happened. If anything, it's only happening this way because of the kind of country we are." He spoke a bit louder than he intended to, and his words drew curious glances from everyone present. Their eyes urged him on.

Akari, intrigued, voiced the room’s intrigue, “Do go on, please.”

Suzuki glared at Taiga. He hated being in the public eye the most. However, just because he hated it, did not mean he would run away. The young man collected his thoughts and then elaborated , "If I were a leader and I really needed a particular resource, I would get it, no matter who it belonged to. If trading doesn't work, I invade and steal it. Of course, to do this, the support of my people is needed, so I spin a tale or two. It doesn't have to be accurate, just enough to get the ignorant masses of my back.

“ In some cases, if done really well, it might even garner their support. Look at colonization where the colonists went 'to educate the barbarians.' Or when troops are sent into other countries 'to quell the horrible, horrible incidents. ' But what every last one of these 'acts of selflessness' have in common is the country or state involved always get something that didn't belong to them. And they get these with the thumbs up or general indifference of their people.

“ The problem with Japan is that we don't have enough terrorist activities to incite armed interventions . W e're arguably the most technologically advanced country, and we're often ridiculed for being 'too damn nice.' Spinning a story to create a good reason for an invasion is just too difficult. So what do you do? Invade first, get what you want, then appease the annoying masses. Well, at least that's what I'd do."

The shrewdness in Suzuki’s voice caught everyone off-guard. It was kind of scary. This guy wasn't just talking , h e meant every word he said.

Taiga especially was impressed. "And here I thought you couldn't complete a sentence. Next thing I know, you're pouring out essays."

"He looks familiar. Who's he again?" Akari whispered in Yukino's ear.

She raised her PDA and brought up his profile. "Mato Suzuki, Age seventeen. L.N.E profile: Kashi. Level 82. Guildmaster of the Hopeful Maggots."

"He's the daeben !?" Akari asked incredulously. "They are nothing alike."

"Interestingly, Shouyou-san's comments on him say he is , ‘ few screws short of insanity... in a good way .’"

Akari looked at Yukino like she had uttered the most incredulous sentence in history. "Can someone be insane in a good way?"

Yukino shrugged and then said with a teasing smile, "I don't know. You'll have to ask him yourself."

Akari sighed. "I'll pass." He returned his attention to the room, which had erupted in a heated debate about the virtues of war. The instigator had somehow slunk into the background, letting them fight amongst themselves. In that vein, he and the rumored, elusive bore similarities.

*cough**cough*

Akara loudly cleared his throat, redirecting the crowd’s attention to himself. "To combat the incoming threat, we will have the thirty-five of you present test and improve our Gladiator series. Clear progress will upgrade you to the Ragnarok series, of which there are only six spots available. It is advised you keep playing Live no Evil as each of you has shown increases in your NS(Neuro-sync) levels since you started playing. That'll go a long way in aiding your integration into the Gladiator series."

Yukino stepped forward. "That is enough for today. We'll give you some time to let this sink in, but for those of you who want to get started immediately, we've decided to split you into six teams. Each team will live in suites here in the restricted sector. Don't worry, there's more than enough space for you all in the suites. In fact, most would find it a nice upgrade. The teams are as follows..."

Suzuki waited as names were called out . The completed teams met their new teammates and were then handed brochures and keys to their new homes.

"Team four: Mato Suzuki, Minako Saeko, Yuhi Jade, Taiga, and Usman Taki."

Suzuki glanced at the familiar faces, then at a dark-haired young man with quite the charming smile. He shook his head. Just great. They were just starting, and his team was already a number short. This should be a fun experience.....