Chapter 364 - 364 - Huh? I Did That?

The moment Royman raised the subject, everyone's eyes were already turning again and again toward where Ottar and Hedin sat.

The top two on Orario's annual contribution rankings: the answer was all but written plainly on everyone's faces, and there had never been any suspense to it.

Whether in raw strength or overall scale, these two Familias outstripped every other faction. Even the Ganesha Familia, one of the so-called "Big Three" itself, only barely came close in sheer size, and as for quality, that went without saying.

One side boasted a top-tier Lv.6, three top-tier Lv.5s, four top-tier Lv.4s, and a great many elite Lv.3s and Lv.2s.

The other, though slightly weaker in individual combat power, still had three top-tier Lv.5s and at least four or more Lv.4s, backed by a large core of Lv.3s and Lv.2s. More to the point, that side was nearly a full tier ahead of all Orario in teamwork and tactical execution.

From this it was plain that the strength of Orario's two pillars led the field by a near-vertical margin.

"Second place: the Freya Familia!"

As Royman's words landed, an "of course" look surfaced on everyone's faces.

"Under Captain Ottar's unparalleled, outstanding leadership, the Freya Familia has consistently upheld a pioneering, enterprising spirit of adventure, breaking through the boundaries of the Dungeon's unexplored frontier time and again."

He paused briefly, as if letting that achievement settle into everyone's minds, then continued in that full, official tone:

"This year, the Freya Familia successfully completed a total of eleven Dungeon Expeditions, and has now reached the deep Unexplored Region: the 45th floor."

The instant that progress was announced, the whole room went quiet.

Leon shot a quick glance at Finn, then exchanged a look with Jeanne and Rose, musing inwardly:

The Freya Familia's clear rate is actually ahead of the Loki Familia's? Makes sense, though... at this stage Evilus is still an external enemy, so the Freya Familia probably isn't as crazy internally as it gets a few years from now. At the very least they wouldn't pull a brain-dead move like sniping their own teammates to steal a Great Feat.

Add to that their individual strength being a cut above to begin with, and even if their teamwork drags them down, they can muscle through on raw power alone. But the 45th floor... that's probably their current ceiling, unless they completely change that every-man-for-himself "superstar" playstyle...

But one thought of that pack of fanatical devotees in the Freya Familia, and Leon shook his head.

While his thoughts ran wild, Royman was still reading out the Freya Familia's yearly accomplishments in that tone full of praise and ceremony:

"As an important member of the Order Alliance, the Freya Familia this year repelled, for the third time, the invasion of the Rakia Kingdom led by the war god Ares, powerfully safeguarding the city's safety and peace and upholding Orario's prosperity and stability."

"The dedication and responsibility of the Freya Familia are something Lord Ouranos and the Guild always keep in mind."

"Therefore, after joint deliberation by the great god and the Guild, it has been decided..."

Royman raised his voice, letting every word land clearly:

"Over the coming year, the Freya Familia will continue to enjoy the top-tier treatment for S-rank Familias: a full waiver of management fees."

"Let us once again, with applause, thank the Freya Familia for the extraordinary contributions they have made to this city!"

Once again he rose first, his round face wreathed in smiles, and clapped vigorously.

Finn and Riveria kept their composed bearing throughout, rising together with polite smiles, as if a rival's honors deserved respect too.

Hedin merely pushed up his glasses, his expression placid as still water, as though all of this were a matter of course.

Ottar kept his arms crossed and only gave a slight nod.

As for the "runner" Allen, he let out a barely audible "tch," then turned his face away, hiding his expression in shadow.

Alise noticed his movement and muttered under her breath:

"What a prickly personality, honestly..."

Asfi happened to catch her grumbling and let out a snort of laughter.

Lucky for her the applause covered it, or the "cat man" might well have started hissing at her on the spot.

...

Across the room.

Leon clapped along hard with the rest of the crowd while grumbling to himself:

Good god... this old fart Royman has held the Guild Master's seat for over a hundred years, and he sure knows the game. Tsk, another full-year management fee waiver... that "year-end bonus" really is plain and unadorned.

The applause died down, and Royman had already recovered that brisk, businesslike expression, his gaze sweeping to the next slot on the list:

"Now then, on to third place..."

...

...

The meeting pressed on, and the time slipped quietly toward twelve midnight.

But from the moment the meeting entered its final rewards-and-penalties phase, there wasn't a single drowsy soul left in the entire conference room. Even the "runner" Allen, his leg jittering and his tail flicking impatiently back and forth, with irritation and impatience written all over his face, reined himself in and listened through the major accomplishments of every great Familia over the past year.

Even though he never regarded these beings as rivals.

Never gave them so much as a second thought...

"Lastly..."

Royman's voice pulled everyone's attention back, that formulaic welcoming smile hanging on his face once more:

"Allow me to turn our attention to a member who joined our alliance just today: the Demeter Familia."

Whoosh!

In a flash, the eyes of the whole room, old farts, middling ones, and small fry alike, converged at once on Leon, Jeanne, and Rose.

In those gazes there was scrutiny, expectation, caution, inquiry, and no small amount of amusement too...

The emotions in them were so complex that even an old hand like Leon couldn't, for the moment, guess what was actually going through these people's heads.

"Ahem..."

Royman glanced down at the parchment in his hand, then read it out in a solemn, clear tone:

"The Demeter Familia, as a large collective long devoted to commerce and agriculture, has year after year provided this entire city with a stable and ample supply of grain, not only securing the dietary needs of all citizens at the most fundamental level, but also upholding the city's food security and social stability at the strategic level."

"Beyond the irreplaceable contributions it has made in those basic areas of public welfare, the Demeter Familia has recently achieved a remarkable breakthrough in the cause of Dungeon Expeditions as well. Under the outstanding leadership of Miss Persephone, Mr. Hart, Miss d'Arc, and Miss Marbleheart, the Familia pushed its Expedition record from the 25th floor, where it had stalled for years, all the way to the 27th floor in one go, demonstrating striking growth and combat power."

"Furthermore, in the face of two consecutive attacks by external hostile forces, the Demeter Familia each time threw itself into maintaining order and rescuing civilians, valiantly shouldering the duty of protecting the city."

"Its performance in the most recent attack, code-named the 'Blood-Red Christmas,' was especially outstanding."

"By the Guild's tally, the Demeter Familia routed roughly two hundred enemy combatants in total, including several Lv.3 and Lv.4 enemy officers, as well as a number of assassins from an outside professional Assassin Organization, significantly weakening the threat posed by hostile forces while also cutting off outside attempts to probe the city, and shaking the trust between the enemy and outside organizations in their cooperation."

"This bought us precious time to breathe and regroup."

"And so I propose that we, with warm applause, offer the Demeter Familia our heartfelt congratulations and highest respect for the many accomplishments it has achieved!"

Huh?

Since when did I do any of this?

When did I shake the trust between Evilus and the Assassin Organization?

Cut off outside attempts to probe the city?

What in the world is any of this!

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