"Hello, Mr. Yami. I'm Mizuki Nakahara, current manager of LycoReco and an intelligence officer. I'll also be in charge of your liaison work."
"And I'm Kurumi, a hacker, now working under LycoReco as well. I'll also be handling things related to you."
Neither had met Yami Tsukishiro before.
But after hearing their introductions, Yami could already piece together their roles. His eyes flickered with quiet amusement as he replied, "I see… so that's who you are."
Though both Mizuki and Kurumi carried themselves with confidence one with the calm professionalism of a handler.
The other with the smug air of a genius hacker their postures straightened unconsciously in front of Yami.
That power… the way he'd stepped right out of the shadows, it was impossible to ignore.
"Just the four of you at LycoReco?" Yami asked, tilting his head slightly.
He remembered the intel, LycoReco's manager wasn't supposed to be Mizuki.
"Originally, our store manager was Mika," Mizuki admitted with a faint smile,
"but he was reassigned some time ago. I've taken over as acting manager."
"…I see."
That explanation lined up. Yami chuckled softly, sighing in mock admiration.
"Haha… directly surrounding me with four beautiful girls? Not bad. Excellent, even."
"—!!"
Takina Inoue's shoulders stiffened at the remark, her eyes widening just slightly.
She'd heard the rumors. About how unpredictable "Unknown" was. About his overwhelming strength. About… questionable demands.
Her mind began spinning with ridiculous possibilities. What if he really does ask something outrageous…?
Yami, meanwhile, had tossed out the comment half-jokingly and already forgotten it.
Eriri, standing silently off to the side, clenched her hands at her sides. Watching Yami laugh and chat so casually with the four of them left her oddly restless.
They were all beautiful, all capable and three of them were clearly more mature than her. That taste in her chest… sour, unpleasant.
"Mr. Yami," Mizuki spoke up again, steering the conversation back to business. "Do you have any insight into the current situation?"
Compared to ordinary adventurers like them, it was obvious, if anyone could see through this world's mechanics, it would be the man who commanded shadows.
"In truth," Yami said calmly, "I don't know that much either. What I do know is that this is a new berserk node in the world."
He leaned back, tone light, as if it were nothing more than trivia. "For now, there's no resisting it. All you can do is obey the rules of this berserk world, and move accordingly."
"So this is part of a rampage," Nishikigi Chisato muttered, crossing her arms.
"And here I thought it was just a parade of oversized freak monsters…"
Inoue Takina and the others nodded along with Mizuki's line of thought.
Only Eriri, standing at the edge of the group, looked completely lost. Her eyes dimmed slightly.
She really didn't understand all this talk about a world "going berserk," or about "big monsters." None of it made sense to her.
"Then… Mr. Yami," Mizuki asked carefully, "what are your plans?"
"There's no need for titles," Yami replied casually.
"Just call me by name."
He pulled up the glowing ranking board in front of them, his gaze sweeping across the list.
"Judging by the way things are set up, the ranking isn't just for show. It's likely to be extremely important." His lips curved into a slight smirk.
"So here's the plan: with the five of you under me now, we'll aim to secure half of the top ten."
"…Half of the top ten?" Mizuki froze for a second, the weight of that idea sinking in.
"You understand, don't you?" Yami continued smoothly.
"Good things should stay within the family. If there's any benefit tied to the ranking, better that our side claims it than outsiders."
It wasn't even a question to him. Chisato, Takina, Mizuki, Kurumi, they had been placed under his authority by higher-ups.
And Eriri… well, he'd already declared her his "pet." By his logic, they were all his people now.
Kurumi tilted her head. "So, what exactly should we do?"
Yami's answer was simple: "Grab your weapons and follow me."
"I-I'll work hard, Yami-kun!" Eriri blurted out quickly.
There was a spark in her eyes, an odd competitiveness. She wanted to prove herself, to do better than the others.
Yami chuckled softly, scratching her chin as though she were a kitten. "Then let Chisato teach you how to handle a gun. Chisato, you're fine with that, right?"
"Of course." Chisato gave a thumbs-up with her usual easy grin.
"Leave her to me."
With Yami leading them through the city, things went far smoother than before.
His shadows spread wide, guarding their flanks, which meant the others could go all-out without worrying about defense.
Mutant beasts fell one after another, disappearing into fragments of light.
By the time night arrived, the leaderboard had shifted drastically.
[Total Players Remaining: 5288 / 10000]
Half of the participants were already gone. The beasts had only grown fiercer as the day wore on.
And then came the updated rankings:
[Ranking]
1st: Yami Tsukishiro – 4800 pts
2nd: Nishikigi Chisato – 210 pts
3rd: Inoue Takina – 189 pts
4th: Mizuki Nakahara – 130 pts
5th: Kurumi – 101 pts
6th: Yor – 92 pts
7th: Ryuju Momo – 65 pts
8th: Sawamura Spencer Eriri – 43 pts
…
The sight left many stunned.
Three new names had suddenly appeared in the top ten, faces most players hadn't even seen before.
And with their arrival, several of the previous heavy-hitters were pushed clean out of the upper ranks.
Aside from Yami's overwhelming lead, the others on his team had climbed the rankings as though they were being carried on wings.
--
A/N:
Update on the R-18 chapters—goal is 300 Power Stones.
But listen… there's a catch: SEND THEM TO MY NEW NOVEL, NOT HERE.
👉 One Piece: Devour Gol D. Roger at the Start