GIJS

Chapter 148 Let's get closer.

"The first opportunity for status promotion is... the 'Status Alliance Battle!'"

Many participants tilted their heads at the term "Status Alliance Battle." While they understood "status" and "battle," the word "alliance" was unexpected.

As if to explain that part, Jeong Hae-jin added more details.

"The first main competition of Dynasty Castle is an alliance battle. Teams with the same status will form alliances to create entirely new stages. Teams that perform better than higher-status teams in the alliance battle will be able to rise one status level. Conversely, teams that perform worse than lower-status teams will see their status decrease."

As soon as Jeong Hae-jin finished speaking, murmurs spread throughout the room.

"Rise one status level? So we could say goodbye to these uncomfortable cushions?"

"Rising is only possible one level at a time, but falling can be more drastic."

"If some teams rise, others must fall."

"Then how is the scoring done? Will it be just among ourselves again? That seems too unfair."

At the mention of scoring, Jeong Hae-jin continued.

"Previous evaluations were scored solely by your assessments, but this time a new evaluation system will be introduced. The scores will be determined by a combination of 30% from the residents of Dynasty Castle, 30% from experts, and 40% from 400 global audience members. Your new status will be based on the combined scores from these three groups."

"Whoa—!!"

This time, the Guardians, who were assigned to the slave class, cheered loudly. They had felt quite unfairly treated by the initial evaluation, so they waved their brooms and cheered loudly.

"Whoo—!! Whoo—!! Whoo—!!"

"Guardians, Vamos—!!"

Although they didn't make as much of a fuss as the Guardians, the 7IN members also had smiles of satisfaction. If the audience and experts were involved, the results would likely be more objective. Like the Guardians, the 7IN members could not accept their preliminary results.

"We have to make it to at least the commoner level this time."

"That's a given."

"I'm a bit worried about forming an alliance with those guys, though..."

Hyun-su said this while looking worriedly at the Guardians. The Guardians were now playing with their straw cushions, tossing them around as if having the time of their lives. It seemed they were overjoyed at the opportunity to rise in status.

"There are ten days left until the first competition. During these ten days, teams with the same status must unite to prepare their competition stage."

"Understood!"

Everyone answered loudly. It seemed like they only needed to prepare for the competition now, but Jeong Hae-jin's explanation was not over.

"However, not all statuses will be able to prepare under the same conditions."

"...?"

"Dynasty Castle is equipped with all facilities for composition, arrangement, recording, and training. However, the quality of these facilities varies according to status. Higher statuses will have access to better facilities."

The members shook their heads, as if they had expected this.

"We expected this level of disparity when we got those crappy lodgings."

"The practice room is fine as long as there's a mirror."

But the differential treatment didn't end there.

"Additionally, meals will also be provided differently. The highest status, royalty, will have a dedicated team of chefs. These chefs will provide the finest cuisine exclusively for the royalty."

"Wow—."

Everyone looked at Velocé with astonishment. Even the Veloce members seemed surprised by such privileges.

"Nobles won't have dedicated chefs, but they will receive delicious meals made from high-quality ingredients at every meal. The quality of meals will decrease as you go down in status."

The Guardians, who had been excitedly tossing their straw cushions around, now seemed deflated. The mention of differentiated meal quality had clearly taken the wind out of their sails.

"Wow, so petty about food..."

"This is really too much."

"If it's dirty, they should just rise in status."

So, what would the meals for slaves be like?

While the members wondered, Jeong Hae-jin announced the final condition of the status system.

"And lastly, participants of noble status and above may command slaves."

"...What?"

"Royalty and nobles can assign slaves to daily chores, practice assistance, cleaning tasks, and other simple labor."

"...Oh my."

"Of course, excessive labor will be subject to penalties."

This meant that inhumane tasks like sitting as chair substitutes or cleaning bathroom facilities would be forbidden.

Still, being used as errand runners by other participants was far from pleasant.

At the news that slaves could be commanded, the noble teams seemed particularly pleased.

Teibo, where Pi Houkam was from, showed no attempt to hide their joy. SHINO, while smiling broadly and occasionally glancing at the 7IN members, clasped their hands in a gesture of greeting, but this only seemed more insincere to the 7IN members.

"Are they apologizing or what..."

"Aren't they the ones who made us slaves?"

"Probably."

Watching the nobles' delight stirred something unsettling in the 7IN members.

With Jeong Hae-jin's closing remarks, the explanation time ended. As with the initial setup, cleaning up was again the responsibility of the slave members.

"Boring—!!"

"Kehehe!"

"G, Ganbare!"

Whether it was the Chinese idols openly cheering "Do your best!" or the Japanese idols giving sly smiles and making fist gestures, it was equally unwelcome.

"...This won't do."

"We must escape from being slaves at all costs."

Their plan was to rise in status as quickly as possible.

And for that, they needed to...

"We are not a Fxxking SLAVE!"

"Let's go to the god damn palace!"

"Let's cut off the king's head!"

"Whoo—!! Whoo—!!"

First, they needed to get closer to these crazy people.

* * *

Though the cleaning was already done, the Guardians had no intention of returning to the slave quarters. It seemed they planned to stay in the main hall and have as much fun as possible until the production team intervened.

They were using brooms as guitars and making electric guitar sounds with their mouths, then they used the brooms for Quidditch.

Less than ten minutes after starting Quidditch, they switched to field hockey, and then back to flying around on brooms, shouting wildly.

Watching them, Gunja couldn't help but marvel.

"I've always prided myself on being unique..."

"But these people are on a whole different level."

Even Hyun-su, who was known for his social skills, seemed overwhelmed by the madness.

Amidst everyone's hesitance, it was surprisingly In-hyuk, the most reserved member, who took the initiative.

"Hola."

"O, Hola mi amigo!"

"Como estas?"

"No es bueno~"

In-hyuk mixed English and Spanish to strike up a conversation with the Guardians. When the Guardians heard Spanish, they eagerly shook hands with In-hyuk and began chatting amiably.

"Isn't that Spanish?"

"It seems so..."

"See, I told you. He's definitely a Mexican gang member."

After chatting with the Guardians for a while, In-hyuk returned to the 7IN members.

"Hyung, when did you learn Spanish?"

"Honestly, are you part of a Mexican gang?"

"...No. Spanish is mandatory in American high schools."

"Hmm, it still seems suspicious. Anyway, what did they say?"

"They want to play together."

"Eh? Right now?"

"They said they're going to have a broom UFC match, and they're inviting us to join anytime..."

"Broom UFC? What's that?"

"I don't know either."

But the members soon found out what broom UFC was. The Guardians started using brooms like clubs and began attacking each other.

"Ka-ha-ha-ha!"

"Hey, Fxxk you!"

They would have joined in for a more casual game, but broom UFC was no easy game. It looked like only someone who had had a drink could handle their energy.

"...Wow, they're really out of their minds."

Yet Gunja watched the Guardians play with a satisfied smile.

"However, they are people who keep their own rules."

"Eh? How so?"

"Even amidst all this chaos, they are constantly chanting 'rules.'"

"Rules?"

"Despite the disorder, clear rules exist among them. They seem to cherish their rules."

"That's not rules, it's something else... Well, never mind."

Meanwhile, the Guardians had changed their activity again. Maybe tired of broom UFC, they began using tin dustpans as cajóns (Peruvian rhythm instruments) to beat out rhythms.

Ching, thud, cha-ching—!!

Even amidst the chaos, the rhythm was good enough to move your shoulders. As one excited Guardian began beatboxing, the music became richer.

At that point, the 7IN members were still hesitating, unable to join in.

Until Gunja, with a smiling face, approached the Guardians like a man who had soaked in water and was now loose and limber.

"Etiquette, etiquette."

"Oh, Oh, Come on—!!"

"Etiquette, etiquette, etiquette—."

"Yeah—!!"

Receiving cheers from the Guardians, Gunja stood in the center of the stage.

Driven by the exuberant mood, Gunja still had a duty.

He needed to naturally unite these oil and water-like groups. Combining oil and water was the only way to overcome this rotten class system.

Feeling the rhythm from the beatboxing and matching his steps with the tin dustpan cajón sounds, Gunja slowly began to compose verses in his mind.

The first line of this impromptu poetry performance had to capture the hearts of these individuals.

Yes, observing and listening to what they liked was worthwhile.

He already know what these people enjoy.

At last, a short and strong word burst forth from Gunja's mouth.

"Rules!"