Flag.

Rael reached home, stepping inside and kicking off his shoes with a tired sigh. As he walked into the living room, his eyes landed on Elias, who was sitting on the couch, completely absorbed in some bizarre game on his phone.

The screen flashed with bright, erratic colors as Elias swiped furiously, his entire body moving in sync with the beat of whatever chaotic nonsense was playing. At one point, he jumped up, struck a ridiculous pose, and yelled, "DIE!" before resuming what looked like a mix of dancing and battle strategy.

Rael just stood there, watching in silent disbelief.

Elias finally noticed him and grinned. "Nice level finish," he said proudly before turning his head—only to find Rael staring at him as if he were some kind of circus act.

"…What?" Elias asked, blinking.

Rael shook his head, deciding to ignore whatever the hell that was.

Elias stretched and yawned before glancing toward the kitchen. "Anyway, what took you so long? I logged out and saw there was no food, so I figured you went to grab some."

Rael was about to answer but then remembered exactly why he hadn't been able to get his Chinese food. That crazy woman had completely derailed his plans. He sighed and plopped down on the couch.

"You won't believe what happened," he muttered, rubbing his temples. "I ran into some girl at the store, and somehow, I ended up paying for her groceries, then getting dragged to a café, then paying again before running the hell out of there."

For a moment, there was silence.

Then Elias burst out laughing.

"Bro. Bro." He wiped a tear from his eye. "You got scammed twice. TWICE!"

Rael groaned, already regretting telling him.

Elias was still laughing when Rael pulled out his phone, navigating to his favorite takeout app with the efficiency of a man who had long accepted his fate.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," Rael muttered, scrolling through the menu. "I only managed to get groceries because of that whole mess. No Chinese food."

Elias, barely holding in another laugh, clutched his stomach. "Wait, wait. So let me get this straight—you went out to buy food, got sidetracked by some random girl, PAID for her stuff, then let her drag you to a café, PAID again, and ran away like you were escaping a crime scene? And after all that… no food?"

Rael didn't even look up, his thumb tapping the screen as he placed an order. "That about sums it up."

Elias whistled. "Damn. She got you good. You were basically her personal sponsor for the night."

Rael sighed, confirming his order. "She didn't even need me to pay. Her dad owns half the city."

Elias blinked, the laughter pausing for just a second before returning in full force. "NO WAY. You got finessed by a rich girl? That makes it ten times funnier!"

Rael pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm blocking you."

Elias, still laughing, threw an arm over the back of the couch. "Nah, man, this is premium entertainment. Who was she, anyway?"

Rael shrugged. "Sabrina something. Silver hair. Looked familiar."

Elias choked on his laughter. "SABRINA ASHFORD? Bro, she's like, the heir to a multi-billion dollar empire. And YOU paid for HER?"

Rael leaned back against the couch, eyes shutting as he sighed. "I hate this city."

As Elias wiped a tear from his eye, still grinning from Rael's earlier misfortune, the conversation gradually shifted back to something more relevant—their guild.

"So," Rael started, stretching out on the couch. "We need to start properly dungeon raiding in groups."

Elias raised an eyebrow. "Gale's already doing that."

Rael shook his head. "I mean as a whole guild. We need some kind of unity. A rallying point. Right now, everyone's just doing their own thing. If we don't get everyone working together, Argent Eclipse is going to feel more like a loose collection of players than an actual guild."

Elias clicked his tongue. "Tch. Look at you, Guild Leader mode activated."

Before Rael could respond, his phone buzzed. The screen lit up with a name—Evan.

He picked up. "Yeah?"

"Hey, Rael." Evan's tone was casual but carried a hint of something else. "I was wondering—since your guild has also reached Level 2, would you be interested in a friendly spar between our two guilds?"

Rael paused for a moment. Just as he was thinking about ways to improve the guild's unity, Evan conveniently called with an offer that lined up perfectly. He exhaled through his nose. If this game had a Luck stat, his would probably be capped at 99 by default.

But then, reality hit him. He had exactly two abilities to his name. No subclass. No defined role. And then there was Elias—his own teammate—a walking disaster in human form.

Maybe his Luck wasn't maxed out after all.

Yeah… this was probably just balance at work.

Rael snapped back to the conversation, considering the options. A simple PvP match was standard, but it wouldn't do much in terms of actual teamwork. They needed something that encouraged coordination rather than just individual skill.

"What kind of team-based activities were you thinking?" he asked.

Evan chuckled. "I was thinking classic capture the flag, but instead of a flag, we use a moving target."

Rael raised an eyebrow. "Moving target?"

"Yeah," Evan continued. "Each team designates one member as their 'target,' and the goal is to capture the enemy target while protecting your own. To capture someone, you need to subdue them and hold them in a designated capture zone for a set amount of time. Of course, the 'target' isn't just dead weight—they can fight back, and their team can break them out before they get fully captured."

Rael tapped his fingers against the table. It was actually a solid idea. Unlike standard PvP, where fights were straight-up eliminations, this format would force players to think about positioning, strategy, and teamwork. Plus, it meant different playstyles could shine. Agile players could evade capture, tanks could serve as bodyguards, and strategists could set up ambushes.

"That could work," Rael admitted. "It'll test how well each guild functions as a unit, not just how strong individuals are."

"Exactly." Evan sounded satisfied. "Also, it keeps things interesting. A lot of guilds get stuck just running PvP duels, and honestly, that gets old fast."

Rael nodded to himself. "Fine. We'll do it. When were you thinking?"

Evan's voice took on a competitive edge. "Three days game time. No reason to wait."

Rael smirked slightly. "Alright. We'll be ready."

As the call ended, Rael sat back in his chair, his mind turning over the upcoming challenge. It wasn't just a simple spar—this would be a real test of how his guild could function as a team.

Elias, who had been quietly scrolling through his phone, looked up as Rael stood up. "What's up?"

Rael shrugged nonchalantly. "Twisted Demons just asked for a team-building activity. They want a friendly challenge tomorrow."

Elias raised an eyebrow. "Twisted Demons? Wasn't their guild leader your old teammate?"

Rael nodded. "Yeah, Evan. He's been pushing his guild to get stronger. That just means it'll be a good test for us."

Elias smirked. "Guess we better bring our A-game then, huh?"

Rael gave a small grin. "Definitely."

* * *

Rael stood tall at the podium in the guild hall, his voice steady and commanding. "Alright, listen up, everyone. We've got three days in-game to prepare for the 'Capture the Human' activity. It's basically a 'Capture the Flag' game, but with one of us as the flag. Our goal is to defend our person while trying to capture the other guild's flag in return."

Mira, always eager, raised her hand with her usual sunny enthusiasm. "Who will be the flag, though?"

Rael turned to Elias, who was sitting next to him, a prideful smile on his face, clearly relaxed and ready for whatever came next. The guild was quiet. Too quiet.

Suddenly, Elias looked up, the realization hitting him like a ton of bricks. The entire guild was staring at him. His confident expression faltered. "Wait… Why me?"

Leon chuckled from the back of the room. "Well, you do have 'professional bait' listed on your resume." He grinned, clearly enjoying the situation.

Gale, who had been quietly observing, nodded in agreement. "Yeah, your Trapmaster class is perfect for this. You're the ideal person to be the flag and defend yourself."

Elias looked from Leon to Gale, then back to the guild. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. "Seriously?" he groaned, a little exasperated. "I'm the flag?"

Kazan, the Berserker, threw in with a grin. "Don't worry, Vice Leader. I'll protect you with my life!" He gave Elias a thumbs-up, his tone brimming with mock sincerity.

Elias scowled at him, clearly not amused. "You just like pain," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

The rest of the guild members nodded without hesitation, and Elias let out a deep sigh, knowing it was pointless to argue. 

By the time everyone turned their attention back to Rael, they were baffled. Somehow, in the span of a few seconds of silence, he'd managed to pull out a set of specs, a PowerPoint screen, and—of all things—a teaching stick. The guild members exchanged confused glances, but remembering how their leader was at times, they just shrugged it off.

Rael adjusted his glasses, oblivious to the stares. "Alright, listen up," he began, tapping the whiteboard with his stick. "Twisted Demons. Their leader, Evan—known in the pro scene as 'Maple'—is a tanking monster. We don't know exactly what class he's running this time, but we can make a pretty solid guess."

He clicked to the next slide, showing a blurry image of Evan in full armor. "Knowing Maple, he's gonna go all-out with aggressive plays. And that's where we come in."

Rael paced in front of the board. "We can't predict all the variables here. Ascent has so much flexibility that we can't just rely on the same old strategies. That's why we're going full defense for this challenge. We'll keep our target protected at all costs and focus on drawing out Evan's aggression."

He pointed at the screen. "If he's smart, he'll try to overwhelm us with pure force, which means our job is to anticipate his moves and use his rush against him. We'll bait him into making mistakes, and when he does, we exploit it. Our strength lies in waiting for the right moment and turning the tables when he least expects it."

The guild members exchanged looks, nodding in understanding.

"Any questions?" Rael asked, adjusting his glasses once more.

* * *

Rael stood alone under the vast sky of Solmora, the cool night air calming his mind. He gazed at the stars above, their twinkling patterns soothing him as he tried to clear his thoughts. There was so much on his mind—the strategy, his guild's performance, the upcoming battle with Twisted Demons. Despite it all, the sky was breathtakingly beautiful. It was a moment of peace before everything kicked into motion.

Suddenly, a notification pinged in front of him, snapping him out of his thoughts. A system interface message flashed:

[Maple: "Is everything ready on your end?"]

Rael glanced back to see his guildmates in the distance, jumping around and doing odd stretches, their laughter filling the air. It was chaotic, but it felt... right. Like a family preparing for something big. He couldn't help but smile at the sight.

He took a deep breath and tapped the screen in response.

[Noctus: "Yeah, we're ready."]

He tapped the screen again to close the message, but before he could even think to pocket his hands, the world around him began to shift. The sky darkened, and the landscape warped into something entirely new. In the blink of an eye, he found himself standing in the middle of a barren wasteland. The dry, cracked earth beneath his feet seemed to stretch endlessly. A cold chill hung in the air, though it wasn't quite snow—it was as if a light dusting of ice had settled over the desert.

Three moons hung high in the sky, casting an eerie glow that made the scene feel even more surreal. Rael couldn't help but stare at them, transfixed for a moment. The arena was unlike anything he had ever seen before.

A voice pulled him from his thoughts. It was Evan, standing nearby with a calm, reflective expression.

"The moons are so beautiful," Evan said, his voice carrying a quiet reverence.

Rael glanced at the sky, taking in the three moons that hung above the barren landscape. Then, Evan turned his gaze back to him, the competitive fire in his eyes returning. "Twisted Demons are ready."

Rael turned to face the opposing guild. They stood a short distance away, their eyes sharp with determination, clearly prepared for the battle ahead.

Evan gave the sky one last glance, his expression thoughtful, before he turned back to Rael. "Isn't this arena something?"

Rael nodded, still captivated by the moons. "Yeah, it's... something."

After a few quiet exchanges, both guilds began to move toward their designated zones. The atmosphere was thick with anticipation. Rael couldn't help but take one last look at the strange moons above as he turned toward his own guild.

Rael moved toward his guildmates, his gaze sharp as he approached them. The atmosphere shifted from playful chaos to focused intensity. They were all ready for his instructions.

"Alright," Rael began, his voice steady and commanding. "Elias, you are the flag. You'll stay within the designated flag zone, about a 400-meter radius. You can move within that space, but your primary goal is to keep the flag safe by staying within the boundaries."

Elias gave a nod, his expression serious as he adjusted to his role.

Rael continued, "Our original plan was to stay defensive, but this map's a desert, and that's going to change things. There's no cover, and the open space will make it harder to rely on positioning like we planned. We'll still stick to our defensive strategy, but we'll have to tweak how we set up. I've got an idea, though. Stay sharp."

He turned toward Elias again. "You and twenty others will defend you. They'll stay close to you and keep the enemies away. It's your job to keep moving within the zone and avoid getting caught, but your main job is to stay put in the zone as much as you can."

Takane, standing nearby, gave a deep bow. "I won't betray your expectations, Leader."

Rael nodded and then gave Gale a sharp look. He signaled him with a small nod.

Leon's voice broke through the moment. "What about me and the others, Rael?"

Rael gave a small smile, his eyes flicking toward Mira. "We'll be using every tool we have. Don't worry about the details—just be ready to adapt."

He turned back to the group. "Let's get in position. Trust the plan."

The team nodded, understanding their roles without needing to be told everything. They moved with purpose, ready to face whatever was coming.