The next evening, when I logged into Arcana Online, Leah greeted me warmly.

She wasn’t wearing her usual flashy outfit; instead, she had on a plain traveler’s outfit, making her look different.

“You’re here?”
“Yes!”

Today was the day I promised to join her guild, so we met in Cradle Village, and she handed me the invitation.

With that, I was once again a member of the Frey Guild.

“Alright! From now on, you’re to call me Leader!”
“Yes, Leah Leader!”
“No! Just call me Leader.”
“Got it! Leader Leah!”
“Are you teasing me…?”

I laughed and told her I was only joking as she poked my cheek.

“Haha! Just kidding, Leah!”
“Leader!”

When I mentioned that sweating the small stuff wasn’t good, I pulled out some equipment from my inventory that looked similar to what Leah used to wear. She stared at it with wide eyes.

“What… what is this?”
“It’s a gift from the future you.”

Or maybe I should say, from a different version of Leah?

Luckily, I still had it in my inventory from when she’d given it to me after upgrading her gear.

Could it be she had planned this far ahead, predicting I’d need it?

Scary Leah… She doesn’t just think one step ahead—she thinks several steps in advance.

Well, it must’ve just been a coincidence.

“Is it really alright for me to accept something this valuable…?”
“Of course!”

When I assured her she could use it freely, she looked at me with a moved expression.

“Next time, I’ll treat you to something delicious!”
“I’d love some sushi!”
“Leah’s wallet is ready to take a hit…”

Knowing her wallet situation, I’d better not go overboard.

“Alright! Then, first member of the Frey Guild, Yuna! Let’s go recruit more members!”
“I already have a few people in mind.”
“Really?!”

Her hand gently patted my head in approval. Leah was capable, beautiful, kind… everything one could hope for in a person who could support someone like me.

“So! Don’t you want to sponsor a broke student right now? The price is free!”
“Um… I’ll pass.”
“Why?!”

Laughing at my disappointment, Leah urged me to go on, and so our "kidnapping"—I mean, recruitment—of Frey Guild members began.

Our first target was, of course, Sasha from the Beastfolk.

I already knew her location.

Switching to the channel she frequented, I headed to the lakeside and spotted her fishing.

Excitedly, I waved and approached, but I’d overlooked one crucial detail.

She didn’t remember me.

“Who are you, acting all friendly?”

I was momentarily caught off guard, but I kept my expression composed and invited her to join the Frey Guild.

I even presented two options.

“Would you like to join the Frey Guild? Or be kidnapped?”
“Is this really an invitation?”
“What’s your answer?”
“No way! It’s too much hassle! There’s nothing worse than being tied to an organization!”

With that, Sasha took off like a shot.

Typical Beastfolk speed—she was incredibly fast.

But unlike before, she was no longer a ranked player.

Now, she was just a beginner.

With a few quick steps, I caught up to her, which made her gasp.

“Don’t follow me!”
“I’ll keep following you until you join!”
“No way!”

In the end, I caught her and brought her back to Leah, who handed her the invitation with a bright smile.

“Welcome to the Frey Guild!”
“I’m not joining!”

In response to her stubborn refusal, I pulled out an item I’d planned to give her if she joined.

“If you join now, there’s a freebie!”
“I told you, I’m not—”

The moment she saw the item, she fell silent, her mouth hanging open as she checked its details.

“You’re really giving this just for joining?”
“Yes!”
“No return policy or rental fee…?”
“None!”

Hearing that, she took the invitation and joined immediately.

Capitalism reigns supreme in this society.

Or, considering I lead the Red Revolution, maybe that’s not the best stance.

Hmm, well, whatever!

Sasha looked happy, inspecting the Red Dragon Gauntlets I’d given her.

I planned to gather all of Frey Guild’s old members, one by one.

---

“Any protests happening today?”
I feel the urge to start a revolution.

[Comments]
- “Do you even know what ‘revolution’ means?”
- “Wave the red flag and uphold solidarity!”
- “Back in my day, it wasn’t red—it was scarlet!”
- “Calling it ‘red’ makes it sound cheap, haha.”

“When I say red flag, doesn’t it feel wrong?”
It just sounds… like China. If it’s a revolution, it should be ‘scarlet.’

[Comments]
- “Lol, for real.”
- “Calling it ‘red’ is just dull, lol.”
- “Correct it to ‘scarlet,’ please.”
- “[Author] Correction made.”

“If you call it a ‘redhead,’ doesn’t it sound childish?”
Say ‘scarlet hair.’
Doesn’t it evoke revolution?

[Comments]
- “Someone’s been studying well, it seems.”
- “[Author] sounds like they came from North Korea?”
- “I am. North Korean defector here.”
- “[Author] No way, lol.”

“When’s the next protest?!”
I’ve been practicing flag-waving!!!

[Comments]
- “They say it’s becoming an official event?”
- “Admins mentioned they’d announce it.”
- “The guild leader will inform us.”
- “[Author] For real?”

Once they tasted protest, the players realized.

Revolution is sweet.

Just then, the game company posted an event announcement.

“It’s here!!!!!!!!!!”
A coup event is here!!!!!!!!!!!

[Comments]
- “Why did this actually become a thing, lol?”
- “The devs made it official, lol.”
- “Let’s wave those red headbands and flags!!!”
- “Let’s goooooooo!”

“Isn’t it over the line to invade the Star City?”
That place is full of knights and mages.

[Comments]
- “The flag of revolution knows no boundaries!”
- “I wasn’t raised to be weak!”
- “[Author] When did you ever raise me, lol.”
- “Want a taste of the flag?!”

While many players were eagerly preparing, there were those who couldn’t understand why this was happening.

These players gathered within Star City, while those joining the revolution began assembling at a campsite outside the city.

A campsite full of monsters waving flags and preparing for action.

Unlike Cradle Village, Star City was massive, and people were half excited, half anxious to see if this would work. Then, something started flying toward them from the sky.

“Is that… are those griffons?”
“The griffons from Death’s Gorge?”
“And there’s more than just a few of them?!”

Hundreds of griffons flew across the sky, then began descending.

With current rankers around level 50, facing a level 60-recommended monster like the griffon was nearly impossible.

But something was off.

These griffons were twice, even five times the size of the ones in videos.

And their level indicators showed they were over level 100.

In short, just brushing against one would be fatal for an average player.

But if such monsters joined their protest?

Victory was within reach.

Then a voice echoed.

“The first to arrive can ride a griffon for the protest!”

There was a brief silence before the crowd surged forward.

When else would they get the chance to ride a griffon?

Those deemed lucky enough were chosen, and as the first player prepared to mount the griffon—

“I refuse.”

With one kick, they were logged out.

“Uh… this wasn’t in the plan. But don’t worry! There are plenty left, right?”

The leader of the Red Revolution looked at us with a bright smile.

Yuna was looking at us. If we backed out now, would she let us go?

Everyone recoiled, frantically waving their hands as something slowly approached.

“Get on.”

The regular players watching breathed a sigh of relief.

Glad it wasn’t them up there.

---

The bells of Star City rang.

An alarm echoed across the city as the gates shut tight, marking the start of a lockdown.

“What’s the enemy’s size?”
“There are so many, we can’t tell!”
“Is that even an answer?! Get out there and find out!”

How many could there be?

Climbing the city walls to count the numbers, they were left speechless.

A sea of people filled the ground, and the problem was, they were joined by monsters.

And the sky was filled with griffons.

Ah, was this the end for Star City?

Just then, something happened.

The crowd parted, and someone began walking forward.

A… girl?

She pulled something from her dimensional space, and a loud sound echoed out.

“Reform Star City!”
“Reform Star City!”