After the heroic victory against the Nox Terminus, which may or may not have been achieved by sending waves after waves of players at it for two hours straight, normal (?) life has finally returned (?) to The Ranch.

_ Torenis: Got the new gear.

_ Manager: Nice! How strong is it?

_ Torenis: [Willing Host] is good. I lose some stats, but my pets and everyone in the party gain the same amount. Pretty OP for something that doesn't have maintenance cost.

_ Manager: Neat. I was worried when you said it didn't drop any pet. Good to see the set is beneficial for summoners.

_ Torenis: Ya. Almost feel like it was worth going through that endless hell of bosses. Anyways, we have some time off before the next patch, so I'll help out with the orders until then.

_ Manager: That would be nice. Let's see…

The two examine the bounty board in the guildhall to find a worthy commission.

No, not the metaphorical and digital board that is the game's forum. It's an actual (in-game) wooden board with paper missives all over its surface. Players wanting to take on the mission are to take the missive to the counter, where the clerks will process it, as well as explaining the details as needed. Be it a normal player wanting to make a quick coin or a guild member performing duties, everyone will get an authentic experience of working in an adventurer guild!

Except for the overworked clerks and their spreadsheet applications. They will have the guildmaster dead and the whole building burnt down before they part with the only tool that makes their jobs barely tolerable.

_ Torenis: Pet boss requests are the majority…

_ Manager: Well, that's obvious. Everyone wants a boss as a pet, but it's hard to get the [Summon Stone]. Drop chance is low. Taming is too dangerous, and you forfeit the rest of the loots. We can barely tame bosses level 5 and below by drowning it and the tank in healing spells and potions. Everything else beyond that is just sold goods from the market really.

_ Torenis: So nothing has changed on that. Alright, let's tame a level 10 today.

_ Manager: Someone's confident in their pet's evolution… Wait, hold on. You said [Willing Host] gives bonus stats to the party right? You can have someone else as party leader to boost your stats, then a generalist can [Devotion] you to make it even stronger, and another one for Etena… This may be significant!

_ Torenis: Well, that depends on how it interacts with LDR and [Devotion] bonus. It may only use my base stats in the calculation for all we know.

_ Manager: That's still an additional buff stack we can make use of! Okay! I'm calling in the members. Let's do this!

_ Torenis: Of course. Still, you are quite capable, aren't you?

_ Manager: …Excuse me, did you think any random stranger could be a manager and handle this guild's day-to-day matters as you spent MONTHS in the wild?!

Despite taking advices from his friend , it will still be a while before can thank his overly diligent crew without coming off as sarcastic…

____________

The arena, now known as Battle Oracle, is surprisingly busy, though not in the way its owner intended.

As most expected, there are not many tournaments on the level of the first one, which was a high hurdle both in organization and funding. Not many guilds can even afford giving away thousands of gold coins as prizes in the first place, let alone game-breaking consumables.

Instead, it became the battleground for many friendly mini tournaments, mainly between members of a guild or close friends. The prize pools are usually insignificant as a result, but the sheer amount of small groups wanting to prove themselves or try out new playstyles in a controlled environment with audience feedback is more than enough to keep afloat.

It is also low maintenance to boot. A clerk at the reception desk and a few janitors are all it takes to run the business. Even a guild composed of only two parties like can do it if they bother to.

_ Cinrald: Haaaah~ That was fun!

_ Clerk: Welcome back, Lady , Lady . How was your experiment with skill charges?

_ Vladina: It was… so-so? It is an extension to maneuver and gauntlet, which were likely Little Sprout's inspiration. Aside from the unorthodox use of physical skill mechanics, there's no notable difference in its application.

_ Clerk: So like… only use it when you are incapable of using your own skill or equipment?

_ Vladina: Exactly. As we had discovered previously, [Alchemy] items are expensive without specialized skills and hybrid items are too weak to bother outside of emergencies. You need very specific builds for it to work.

_ Clerk: I see. It is regrettable. Then again, Lady 's… methods are rarely meant to be understood or usable by mere mortals.

_ Cinrald: Is it me or you guys respect her more than your own guildmaster…? Speaking of which, did you find out what that girl got from the tournament, ?

_ Vladina: You'll have to pay for that… Is what I want to say, but I honestly have no idea. When Su and I passionately discussed 's options prior to her no-damage challenge, it was mentioned briefly, but my (ex-)wife dismissed it as non-combat asset. Something do to with dead bodies, apparently…

_ Cinrald: …Well, she did desecrate many player corpses for that. Without anyone dying too.

_ Vladina: Yeah. It's probably a non-combat skill or title for real. Then again, she kills people with food so I wouldn't count it out just yet.

_ Cinrald: Aren't you supposed to consider its value as a buff or utility first…?

_ Vladina: *Shrugs* Only if it were literally anyone else.

The great all-knowing sage sits down on the other reception seat. The capable clerks can handle requests for , sure, but it's rude to leave it to them all the time.

_ Vladina: Okay, back to work! Did anyone ask for me while I was out?

_ Clerk: Yes. A guildmaster has submitted a request for you. They are looking to buy a settlement from the sounds of it.

_ Vladina: Nice! Another source of income!

While not inquired as often as the arena rental service, ' realtor service is actually the more profitable one out of the two. For just a small (treasury-breaking) upfront payment and a tiny (also treasury-breaking) rent payment every week, anyone can have their own plot of land to build their dream village in this fantasy world!

Players can also make camp in the middle of nowhere, yes. Whether they survive the first corruption raid that passes by the general vicinity is a different question however. It's unlikely that anyone unable to afford land from the little sages would be able to afford a proper defense, even if it's no longer as costly as it used to be.

_ Cinrald: …This is what you call a protection racket, isn't it?

_ Clerk: Exactly what it is.

_ Vladina: Shut up! It's rent! RENT!!!

____________

Ample Chest, the number one destination for merchants. Also the number one victim whenever an economic disaster occurs, but please don't tell the merchants that.

_ Manager: , I have good and bad news.

_ Olkan: D-did you finally change your mind about my proposal? When do you want to hold the ceremony? I'll ask to lend us his guildhall as the venue for our special da…

_ Manager: Sure sure. And the good news is…

_ Olkan: If you are going to play along, at least pretend it was the good news!

The manager with massive assets looks at her guildmaster as if (because) he was trash. Having known this maniac for a long time, he wants to marry her simply because of one (two) reason, which is the same reason why she doesn't want to reciprocate, ironically.

After all, it is a bit unreasonable to ask this handsome man to grow a nice chest, even by fantasy standards.

_ Manager: We have come to an agreement with the merchant flooding the market with fish. They will bulk sell the fish to us at the same low price. After that, we only need to use [Transmutation] to turn them into useful materials. It will also deal with the decreasing supply of low-level materials problem we had had before this happened.

_ Olkan: They cooperated? I thought whoever did that was trying to screw us over… And good job on solving the low-level material crisis at the same time!

Thanks to some alliance taking literal months to kill the Nox Terminus, CSF's player demographics have shifted towards the later stages of progression. With the majority of players graduating from hunting giant rats and the likes, there are fewer and fewer sellers of said rats' meat as time goes on. Since trash materials are used in non-essential or decorative crafting to save coins, it means the cost-saving methods are becoming more expensive.

was understandably anxious about the long term effects of that trend, as expected of the merchant guild's leader. To say that he is thankful for dealing with that problem is a bit of an understatement, even if he had to suffer a mini heart attack for it.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

_ Manager: I'm sure if and had tried, we wouldn't have a market left without Sateri-chan's intervention.

_ Olkan: …Uh, hold on. Did you just say and were the culprits behind this incident?

_ Manager: As for the bad news…

_ Olkan: Please don't announce something like that then refuse to elaborate!!!

_ Manager: Because transmuting fish cost additional materials, we will have the enact a new policy to help keeping costs down. Namely, we will use fish for all of our [Cooking].

_ Olkan: I would prefer you girls letting me know before deciding on a policy… Wait, wouldn't that mean…

_ Manager: Yes. All guild-provided food will be fish for as long as the supplies last.

_ Olkan: …NOT THE FISH!!!

Today is yet another peaceful day in the greatest trade city of CSF.

Also soon to be known as the greatest fish market of CSF.

____________

On paper, Unity of Mankind alliance has a city of their own. On the map, it is called United Frontier. On the board, the place is known as the biggest mercenary hub in the game.

…On the actual ground, most players coming here for the first time will think they arrived at the wrong place. After all, it looks more like the makeshift encampment filled with leather tents which builds for their big raids, if not sloppier. It barely looks nicer than 's square camp, and that is not a compliment.

At the center of the encampment, several menacing-looking players sitting in a circle, facing and talking to each other like some kind of war council preparing for war. A scene out of a historical drama show. One that takes place before the ultimate battle to turn the tide of the war or decide the fate of a nation to be specific.

Then a maid starts handing out modern sweets to everyone and throws immersion is right out of the window.

_ Cosetha: Xerrio? You still there?

_ Xerrio: Still here. Was checking the sheets. Something's the matter?

_ Cosetha: Just curious why you are sitting here instead of working. Out of a job already?

_ Xerrio: As if! You know we have an entire backlog to go through!

_ Cosetha: I know. I processed many of them in your stead, mind you. Is it the new bandit group in the southern areas?

Unlike who accept requests from pretty much everyone like a typical adventurer guild, 's army prefers contracts on the bigger side. As a result, their work tends to involve large scale PvP between guilds, though some good-paying odd jobs do slip in every once in a while.

Why not just reject those jobs? Because the pay is good, and no legendary mercenary company can rise to power without an odd job kicking off the plot, according to biased media.

_ Xerrio: Yeah. We are struggling to locate their base of operation. Too fast to be based off Tyrel, too coordinated to be random brigands. They need at least some kind of warehouse to store their supplies and act as a [Recall] waypoint.

The muscular guildmaster plops down a wooden frame with a map scribbled on it. Although CSF's map in the UI has been updated to include landmarks and cities thanks to the hard work of the [Cartographer Origin] title owner, custom maps created using [Construction] are still widely used by players for various reasons. This one in particular, contains various notes and points of interests written by the guild members themselves.

_ Xerrio: It's either a very well-camouflaged base or a part of a boss camp not affiliated with us. Some of our members are staking out and disguising as caravan guards as we speak, so hopefully we can locate their hideout soon. Based on their attack patterns, my guess would be…

As long as he is not in combat, the leader of the mercenary army is a capable strategist who can command not only his guild, but also the allied guilds fighting under the same banner.

As long as he is not in combat…

_ Cosetha: [Construction].

Creating a small red flag in her hand, the maid places it on the map. It is right on top of a drawn marker indicating a boss camp which belongs to a new big guild. An upstart outside the influence of the anti-Sprout alliance, so to speak.

_ Cosetha (PM): Overheard it from one of the patrons. Don't tell anyone.

_ Xerrio: Tell me sooner if you have critical intel!!! Move out you lazy bums! Pack the trebuchets too! This one is a tough one to crack! GO GO GO!!!

The maid simply shrugs as she sends the bloodthirsty mercenaries scrambling for war.

It's not like she was actively involved in the first place. She was only practicing intelligence gathering as instructed by her (?) dear .

____________

The Azure Gold Mine built by Blue Blood Federation was, in fact, not a gold mine, or even a mine for that matter. It's actually a quarry since most of the [Mining] is done on the surface. The settlement part is small compared to the total walled area, which makes it technically more of a mining base than a town. Not that a quarry needs big living space for tourists per se…

This settlement's economy is also as deceiving as its name. There are indeed many miners camping the ore spawns here, but the majority of the members use the town as a supply hub while they venture in other zones. Each zone has a different ore composition, so it doesn't make much sense to camp exclusively in the same place forever. That, and they aren't miners.

Yes, these players' official jobs are treasure hunters. They are responsible for maintaining a stable supply of high-end materials for the market. While is their main client, they also accept occasional contracts to grind specific items in quantities that are harder to find on the market. Whether it is [Enhancement] materials from a boss or a rare metal requiring multiple hours to find one, Blue Blood Federation has them covered.

_ Elix: Found anything new today?

_ Manager: …You can unlock a title by using [Lightning] attacks on enemies in Thunder Huts multiple times.

_ Elix: …I won't ask why you were doing something like that. Still, no luck today either…

Known only to a selected few, beneath the treasure hunter facade lies the true nature of 's organization… Well, they are still looking for treasures, just not what most people consider treasures.

They are searching for the next Magnus Bestia.

When it comes to knowledge and efficiency, are a level above the average Blue Blood Federation members. The wise little girls are too few in number however, so they provide potential leads while the numerous hunters under 's command handle the field work. Not a bad arrangement per se, but the lack of result can be discouraging at times.

_ Manager: Say, , do you think there's any Magnus Bestia left in the first place?

_ Elix: Not a clue. We can only do our best and hope that we stumble upon one, and pray to Sateri-chan that it wouldn't be an Avitus Caelicola.

To avoid unnecessary bloodshed and minimize the risks of a kill steal, the alliance's top brass and have come to an agreement regarding unique bosses. is entitled to all Avitus Caelicola regardless of who discovers it first, whereas the alliance is given free rein to all Nox Terminus, no question asked. That way, everyone can get their share of [Artifact] loots. Except for the peasan… normal players of course.

That being said, Magnus Bestia bosses remain a contested area. It would be unfair to hand them to either side for free, and leaving them to unaligned players is obviously out of the question. In the end, it was decided that these bosses would be handled in a first come first serve basis, resulting in the tireless work from the alliance's members to locate them.

_ Manager: *Sighs* Figured as much. I heard from the beta guys that no one knew these bosses existed. literally walked into one by chance.

_ Elix: If there was another one like that, it has no way of hiding from the number of players on the server these days… Anyway, what's next on the list gave us?

_ Manager: …Throwing stuff at monsters.

_ Elix: … said something about drowning in fish. I'll ask him if he can spare some for us to throw.

And so begins a new urban myth of an SG-rank title which is unlocked by throwing fish at every single monster in the game.

____________

When it comes to settlements, it is taken for granted that one would need for their siege engines. Despite the overwhelming recommendations, there will always be players who try to build one without an unstoppable ballista that can end all raids (as well as treasuries). The majority of attempts fell within days, but the few that survived the initial onslaught get to enjoy their peaceful virtual life without a massive debt.

Shortly after the nerf to corruption raids, a small village appeared at the further edge of the Honey Swamp, southeast of Tyrel. Most passersby thought it was another futile attempt of new players who had not experienced the pain of building stuff outside the defensive walls and kept moving. It was a hard lesson any settlement builder would have to learn eventually.

No one expected it to stand strong until this day.

…And still without a wall.

Behind the door of the biggest manor in the village, a well-dressed woman with a shining neck-line is greeting a group of returning players.

_ NPC: Welcome back, guildmaster. There is a package addressed to you.

_ Ignar: Ah, thanks. Let's see here… "Thank you for taking care of us. Here's a little gift from our first independent boss raid. Hope to play again with you guys soon!"… is what it says.

_ Tippe: The sender… Oooh, those guys! They seem to be doing well with their new guild.

_ Maximus: Heh. Those nubs should have used the materials to upgrade their gears.

_ Ignar: Ahaha. Give the graduates some slack, Max. I'm sure they wouldn't waste important materials because you drilled that lesson into them.

is not a normal guild. A normal guild works towards the betterment of itself, whereas this one is more of a charity. These veterans take in all newbies who ask, arm them with equipment and help them grow. When the once-newbies become full-fledged adventurers, they are encouraged to found their own guild, which is the opposite of what an underdeveloped guild should do.

The mad lads still do it anyway.

And yet, for some bizarre reason, their treasury has not depleted despite the constant splurge spending on newbie equipment. It actually grew.

_ Ignar: I'll leave the new NPC assignment to you Max. Gotta send our friends a reply and organize the rooms for our new automated helpers.

_ Maximus: Got it. Oi, clerk, follow me.

_ NPC: Understood. Please lead the way.

The grumpy archer brings the guild clerk NPC to a backroom while his companions leisurely enjoy their drinks at a table. Being close friends with the min-maxer, they know he is going to crunch numbers silently behind the door for a long time.

_ Tippe: Man, the NPCs for hire are a lifesaver, but I'm still lightheaded whenever I see the bills for their service…

_ Ignar: You don't say. Then again, merc NPCs do not need LDR to use so they obviously need a different compensation. Max will make sure we don't use more than we can pay for, so don't worry.

_ Tippe: It's terrifying when you think about it. We were still a single party playing with a few newbies when you founded the guild. Now we need NPCs to help with crafting gear for hundreds of new recruits, and we are not even using our own pocket!

_ Ignar: Haha, to be honest, I'm just as surprised as you are. Max only wanted to get rid of low-level materials quickly and I thought it wouldn't hurt to get along with newbies while we were at it. The graduates paid it forward to the next generation on their own volition.

Unbeknownst to the core guild members, not asking for low-level equipment back after handing them out is considered a big act of kindness. The "graduates", wanting to return the favor, finance through various means which in turn allows their benefactors to take in even more recruits. The virtuous cycle continues to run its course in this (no longer) little sprawling village, to the point that it is now known as Starter Village among the player base for everything its dwellers have done for the community.

And just like that, the biggest soft alliance in the game has been formed.

____________

Under a gazebo at the top of the world, three players are standing in stunned silence.

_ Hessenria: Just to confirm, , you don't have anything to do with it right?

_ Shadyna: I really don't! I expected it to turn into a big bowl of bone broth!

_ Hessenria: …I can't decide if that expectation of yours is better or worse than… whatever this is.

After months of monotonous grinding in the empty void, the great gathering of space bones is completed. The last "ladle" was brought back by Gelly, ending the days of unpaid pet labor, finally.

Then the crafting sphere turned purple and started emitting dark smoke from its surface.

_ Hessenria: No matter how you look at it, this thing looks like bad news… It does not seem to be doing anything however.

_ Merashiel: May~be it needs a little sti~mu~la~tion~?

_ Hessenria: Get your head out of the gutter, Mera! , stop poking it with your sword hilt!

Even though it's already the end of the day, the tavern mistress is still not getting any break.

_ Merashiel: Just kidding~ It has the same texture as the dark gate, don't you think?

_ Hessenria: Gate? Ah, you mean the blocked gate at the end of the world after a Nox is defeated?

_ Shadyna: I saw it the other day too! What does it mean though…?

_ Hessenria: An "under construction" sign. If it is the same at the gate, it means we need to wait until the next patch because Sateri-chan has not added it in yet.

_ Shadyna: Oh~ I see!

_ Hessenria: Well, tomorrow will probably be the level 40 patch so this might be delayed. It's one of the biggest patches after all.

_ Shadyna: Got it! I'll just check it every day then!

_ Hessenria: Sure. That's a good plan.

_ Merashiel: Sateri-chan may also be generous and introduce both patches on the same day~

_ Hessenria: True, but more content at the same time can have more bugs. We are not in beta anymore, remember?

_ Merashiel: Indeed~ She has to be a ti~ny bit crazy to take on additional risk like that.

_ Shadyna: Even Sateri wouldn't be that crazy right~?

Laughing without a single care at the top of the world, the girls are oblivious to the event waiting for them.

The person in question is, in fact, crazy enough to do just that.