DanKatsu Volume 1, Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Guild Formation!

After returning to the dorm once, changing into our uniforms, and regrouping, we arrived at a certain place.

On the sign above the room, it read: <Guild Application Reception>.

"You came!"

"Greetings, Sir Zephyrus."

Inside, Princess Lana was standing proudly with Ester bowing politely at her side.

"Sorry, did I keep you waiting?"

"You’re late! You’ve got some nerve making me wait."

"Lady Lana, it wasn’t even five minutes."

As always, the princess was acting spoiled, but her smile was dazzling.

Ester, while lightly scolding her, couldn’t hide her own amused smile. Both of them were clearly looking forward to today.

"Yesterday, you kinda dodged my question, so let me ask again properly. Princess, you’re joining my guild too, right?"

"I guess I’ll have no choice but to join! …Besides, it’s classic—【Hero】 leads, 【Saint】 supports."

The princess declared it with unnecessary pride. The part she mumbled at the end was too quiet for me to catch—what was that about?

Well, I confirmed what I needed, so I was about to introduce Hanna… but then I spotted Sierra in the back.

I asked the princess and Hanna to wait a moment and walked over to Sierra, who was frozen stiff and staring at us.

"Yo. How’re you holding up?"

"Somehow… thanks to you, I’ve been accepted. I’m grateful."

"That’s good to hear."

Her tone was the same as always, but she seemed too nervous to move. I took her hand and led her over to the others.

"H-hey, wait. My hand…"

"You’re the one standing frozen there."

"B-but… hey, don’t tell me—that’s Princess Lana and Knight Ester?"

"You know them? They’re guild members. I invited them after you left yesterday."

"…Honestly, you’re unbelievable."

How rude. I’m perfectly following <DanKatsu>’s rules of common sense here.

"With this, our members are all together."

I pulled Sierra over, and everyone’s attention turned to us.

Among them, the princess and Ester both wore expressions of "I knew it, but still!"

They must’ve suspected as much.

"Normally I’d say let’s do introductions, but judging from your reactions, Princess, Ester—you already know Sierra?"

"Of course. There’s no way we wouldn’t know someone from the <Royal Shield>."

"<Royal… Shield>?"

Some kind of equipment? But no matter how I searched my <DanKatsu> database, nothing by that name came up.

"It’s my family’s title. My house has produced generations of top-tier shieldbearers. It’s not uncommon for our knights to be chosen as royal guards."

"That’s not all. During the Great Dungeon Flood 54 years ago, the Marguerite family held back the invading monsters and nearly eliminated all damage to the kingdom. That legendary feat is still spoken of in knightly households. As a reward, the Marguerite Count family was honored with the duty of protecting the royal family."

Sierra explained curtly, though with quiet pride, and Ester added on with glowing cheeks.

So—Sierra’s surname is Marguerite. Her full name: Sierra Marguerite.

Ester, as someone who also guards royalty, clearly looked up to the Marguerite family with respect and admiration.

It turns out that Ester and Sierra had known each other for some time, having trained together occasionally through their families. Not exactly close, but not on bad terms either.

The princess, meanwhile, had memorized the faces of all the <Royal Shield> candidates—not because she cared about them individually, but because Sierra had been a likely candidate for her personal guard after coming of age.

Apparently, if Sierra had secured a high-ranking job at 16, she almost certainly would’ve been chosen.

And Sierra’s job is 【Shield Princess】—the peak of the shield job. Definitely top candidate material.

Ester, on the other hand, met the requirements for 【Royal Guard Knight】, so her appointment as royal protector was practically guaranteed. She’d even been serving as Princess Lana’s trainee guard since they were little, given they were the same age.

Ester had even considered switching to the job 【Princess Knight】, but since that job was far superior to 【Royal Guard Knight】, her family gave immediate approval.

…Anyway, long story short, between protector and protected, they all already knew each other. No need for formal introductions.

That just left Hanna. But in front of nobles, she had gone completely stiff.

When I stepped closer, she looked up at me with teary eyes. Kinda cute.

"Zephyrus-kun, you didn’t tell me about this!"

"Well, what could you have done if I did? Better not to know—sometimes ignorance really is bliss."

And when you do find out… It’s usually misery. Sorry, Hanna.

"You’re awful, Zephyrus-kun~"

"Eh, you’ll get used to it. You’re higher-level than they are anyway, so just stand tall. Nobles or royals—it doesn’t matter."

In <DanKatsu>, level is justice.

Though if you aim too high for your level, it’ll be the death of you!

Well, since I’ve been guiding Hanna to focus solely on alchemy without detours, there shouldn’t be any problem.

That’s what I told her, but Hanna’s expression was uneasy.

"Are you sure? I won’t get thrown in jail or anything?"

"What do you think nobles are, Hanna?"

"What do you think, Zephyrus-kun!? They’re nobles—royalty even! What do you think they are!?"

Uh, the category of people who get access to superior jobs, right? Yeah, I know that much.

"I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I’m pretty sure that’s not it…"

Hanna read my mind and rejected my reasoning, but honestly, I think she’s the one overthinking things.

"Well, it’s fine. Just go talk to them, alright? —Princess, Ester, let me introduce you. This is our guild’s production specialist, the 【Alchemist】 Hanna. She’s already secured a spot in the <Dungeon Production Department, Alchemy Division>."

I nudged Hanna forward as I made the introduction. For some reason, when I mentioned the last part, she looked at me with wide eyes like, ‘Wait, I was already accepted!?’

Didn’t you put that down as your first choice when you enrolled? If you get the job you hoped for, the acceptance is basically automatic. How do you not know that?

Anyway, setting that aside, I continued the introduction.

"She and I have been tackling dungeons as a pair up until now. By the way, she’s an 【Alchemist Lv. 22】. Bright future ahead, huh?"

That sealed the deal — I’d caught the attention of the princess group.

"Her level is that high…? For a first-year student to break Lv. 20 this early in the term, I don’t think that’s ever happened in history."

"Yes. I thought Sir Zephyrus was a complete outlier, but it seems he was blessed with an excellent supporter as well."

"It’s been since the entrance ceremony, hasn’t it? You’ve pulled way ahead since then. But from now on, we’re guildmates. I’m looking forward to working with you, Hanna-san."

"L-L-Likewise!"

Hanna was still stiff as a board, but it looked like they accepted her just fine.

Though seriously, Hanna, you talked to Sierra normally during the entrance ceremony, didn’t you? Just do that again and you’ll be fine.

What? You didn’t know she was a noble back then? Still, nobody chopped your head off for rudeness, so you’ll be fine.

I wonder how long it’ll take for Hanna to loosen up…

After introductions, it was time to officially apply for guild registration.

That’s why we’d all gathered here at the <Guild Application Reception>.

To form a guild, three conditions had to be met.

The staff checked those and then confirmed the identities of the members.

Everyone filled out the application forms, handed them in, and had our student handbooks scanned — simple as that.

"What will you name your guild?"

The young female clerk asked us.

The answer had already been decided.

"《Eden》."

I replied without hesitation.

To me, it was the perfect expression of my real <DanKatsu>.

A dream fulfilled — a sudden arrival at paradise.

No other word fit better.

"Just to confirm, <Eden>, correct?"

The clerk looked at all five of us.

"<Eden>… nice choice! I like it."

"Yes. No objections."

"I’m fine with it, too. Actually, I kind of like it."

"Yeah. Sounds good to me."

All four gave positive responses.

I was half-expecting the princess to fuss about it, so I had a second and third choice ready just in case, but thankfully, my top pick got through. Yesterday’s brainstorming session wasn’t in vain.

"Understood. That completes the guild formation application. Congratulations on the founding of the F-Rank Guild, <Eden>."

We all accepted her blessing with smiles.

And so, our guild <Eden> was officially recognized and established.

After receiving the guildroom key, some instructions, and the certificate of approval, the application was done. Immediately, the princess, unable to wait any longer, spoke up:

"Hey, let’s go check out the guildroom right now!"

"Yeah, let’s. Since we’re all here, we might as well!"

That was what all of us wanted, so we headed straight for the guildroom.

Ester asked where we were headed, so I checked the room number on the document together with her.

"Sir Zephyrus, where is the guild room located?"

"Ah… oh! Looks like it’s on the 5th floor of Guild House A."

VIP treatment, I guess. Well, I guess that’s to be expected since we’ve got a princess and other high-profile members.

After all, this academy has over a thousand guilds.

That’s why there are five whole buildings just for F-rank guilds.

The A building is where rooms are given to people of importance. The top floor, especially, was considered VIP-only and, back in the game, you couldn’t even enter it until the second playthrough during certain quests. In reality though, things seem to work a little differently.

When we stepped outside to head toward Guild House A, I could feel the sudden stir of commotion around us.

Once again, we’d attracted attention.

The students’ gazes weren’t just on me, the 【Hero】 who’d already drawn recruitment battles before, but also on the princess trailing behind me, her <Silver Tiara> glittering, and on Ester walking by her side like a guardian, and Sierra, daughter of the famous <Royal Shield> house.

Hanna was hiding behind me, using me as a shield from all the stares.

"Hey, isn’t that…?"

"What’s with that insane lineup!?"

"Princess Lana, the rumored 【Hero】, the prodigy knight Ester, and Sierra, daughter of the Shield family?"

"And the last one… I can’t see her."

"Yeah, but if she’s with them, she’s got to be someone on par with that group."

"Wait, did they form a party?"

"No, that building is… isn’t that where the <Guild Application Reception> is?"

"D-don’t tell me they just registered a guild! They’re still first-years!"

"Look at the badge on the 【Hero】’s chest—it’s the <Plains> badge."

"What! He already cleared a Beginner mid-tier dungeon!?"

From what I could overhear, it seemed the girls were quite well-known too. Maybe even more than me, honestly.

And Hanna’s reputation had suddenly skyrocketed. All I could do was wish her good luck.

"…How annoying." 

Sierra muttered, clearly fed up with all the stares, but the princess and Ester didn’t seem bothered at all.

Maybe they were just used to it.

We finally reached Building A while under heavy attention, and the onlookers scattered off somewhere.

There was really only one reason we would’ve gone into the Guild House, so it was only a matter of time before rumors about our guild's founding spread throughout the entire academy.

"Phew, finally here…"

When we reached our guild room, Hanna let out a drained sigh.

I pulled out the key, unlocked the door with a click, and stepped inside.

Normally, an F-rank guild room is completely plain—just a table with ten chairs, nothing more.

This VIP room, though, had a bit more flair: lighter wallpaper, and white tables and chairs with a slightly luxurious feel. Still, VIP or not, it was only F-rank. It was plain all the same.

Hanna staggered to one of the chairs and flopped into it, going limp.

"Oh my, Hanna, are you alright?"

"S-Sierra-sama, this really took a toll on meee…"

"Honestly, I told you to just call me Sierra."

"I-I could never do something like that…"

Hanna trembled, muttering, "I must’ve joined some outrageous guild after all…" and Sierra tried to comfort her.

Well, she’ll just have to get used to it. No way we’re letting her escape now.

Meanwhile, the princess and Ester wandered around the bare room, looking curiously at everything.

"Hey, what do we even do in this room?"

The princess had been all excited until we came in, but now, seeing how plain it was, she looked puzzled as she dragged Ester over.

"Well, the first thing we should do is decorate it."

Saying that, I pulled something out of my <Item Bag (Capacity: Large)>: a household altar and, of course, our divine figure of <DanKatsu> players—the <Lucky Cat-sama>.

"…A white cat plushie?"

"H-how cute." 

Ester said softly.

Oh? Looks like Ester has a thing for plushies. Good to know.

But alas, <Lucky Cat-sama> is sacred. No one’s allowed to touch.

I installed the household shrine where the blackboard would normally be, placing <Lucky Cat-sama> right in the center.

In that instant, a soft orange glow burst forth, filling the entire room.

"W-what’s this!?"

"…It’s beautiful." 

Ester murmured, her eyes sparkling, while the princess let out a startled cry at the sudden phenomenon.

Hanna quickly wiped away her tears and glanced around, and even Sierra’s eyes widened at the sight.

"<Lucky Cat-sama>, <Lucky Cat-sama>—please, grant us your blessing of <Good Fortune>."

I clapped twice, bowing deeply in prayer.

And sure enough, a brand-new skill—『Luck』—sprouted on my status.

"Yes!"

This was the power of <Lucky Cat-sama>.

Its official name, <The Cat That Brings Good Fortune>, was a guild-only installation item. Just by placing it in the guild room, every member would gain the skill.

Of course, there were plenty of other guild installation items, but this was the only one I had. And since F-rank guilds were limited to one, I couldn’t put up any others anyway.

After confirming that the princess, Hanna, Ester, and Sierra all had the new skill safely attached to their statuses, I lined up the desks and pulled out a lavish feast from my <Item Bag (Capacity: Large)>.

Every dish was handmade by Hanna.

Her cooking was nothing short of divine, so the <Princess Job> members would no doubt be satisfied. Absolutely.

I’d already had Hanna prepare it yesterday and this morning, knowing full well this would happen.

The glowing light spreading through the guild room created just the right atmosphere.

What better setting could there be for a party? It was the founding celebration of our guild—time for a banquet!

"Alright, everyone got a drink?"

"Already holding mine!"

Since I was the guild master, it fell to me to lead the toast. Once I confirmed everyone had their cups, I noticed something odd.

Everyone had dressed neatly, fixing their appearance and waiting eagerly… but hold on a sec. Didn’t Lana just take off her <Silver Tiara>? Wait, what—Sierra and Ester had taken their symbols too!?

Eh? That’s removable!? I froze, staring in disbelief.

That shouldn’t even be possible. In the game, you couldn’t take them off! What the hell!?

"Zephyrus, hurry up already!"

"R-right! Sorry for the wait."

Pushed by Lana’s urging, I shoved my shock aside and raised my cup.

No need for a long speech, short and sweet would do.

"Then, here’s to our future together! To Guild <Eden>—cheers!"

"""" Cheers!""""

With that modest toast, everyone raised their glasses and took a sip.

It’s been just under three weeks since I started Real <DanKatsu>.

And finally—finally—I’ve achieved my goal of creating a guild.

The true fun of <DanKatsu> only really begins after founding a guild!

From here on out, I’ll savor every last bit this real <DanKatsu> world has to offer!

────Real <DanKatsu>, Guild Founding Achieved.

Part One — End —

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