F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 257: Highly Confidential Meeting (2)

"I see...so that’s why the old man, Nando, had to be left alone for now..."

"Yes...that old man...we owe him a lot. We must return to save him..."

Hailey nodded, but her thoughts were on something else.

A moment of silence later, she spoke her mind: "So, Mr.Finnley."

"Daru’s fine"

"Well then, Daru, have you thought of the possibility of bringing Nando back to our world for now? I can create an official identity for him, provided he shares his insights with us. He could be the government’s official advisor for the upcoming underworld expeditions, too."

Daru fell silent.

He had thought about the possibility, but the risks are quite significant.

"I did think about that..." he responded a moment later. "But the problem lies in his physical body. Even if he somehow managed to emerge in the Myriad Sword Realm’s Surface, he wouldn’t be able to return to Neo-Earth."

"Hmm...that’s a good point, but maybe we can do something about that. I’ll ask someone."

Daru and Caleb’s brows rose in surprise, the latter erupting into excitement.

"Really, sis?! Is that possible?"

"Maybe, but I’m not too sure. Don’t get your hopes up yet."

"I see..."

Caleb knew his sister quite well, and while she’s not one to dismiss possibilities, it was really just that — a mere possibility.

Her words didn’t mean she’s leaning towards success.

"Well, Daru has a lot on his plate, so it would be unwise to talk too much about the matter of returning to Limbo. Let’s defer the conversation for now and move on to the next."

Hailey shifted her head slightly, turning to look at the younger bladeborn.

"I believe you have an academy tournament coming up, yes?"

"Ah!" Daru realized. "I forgot about that...Is the Inter-Class Representative Competition not over yet?"

Hailey smiled.

"It’s happening in two days, though, so if you want to make it, you have to start traveling after our meeting."

"Huh? Why? Wouldn’t it happen in the academy?"

"No. The Novice Affairs Department Head had made changes. Massive changes. From now on, both the Class Representative Selection Tournament and the Inter-class Representative Competition would happen in the Myriad Sword Realm. Can you guess why?"

"No."

"It’s because of you."

"Me?"

"Yes, because you, an F-ranker, somehow became your class’s representative. To avoid such awkward and inefficient slot occupations in the future, they adopted this solution. Well, partly because a certain influential family protested, and since it’s been...uhh...uncertain whether you can participate, I didn’t intervene. But don’t worry. If you plan to go, you’ll have a slot."

Caleb’s jaw dropped, and his eyes widened.

"W-W-WAIT! What do you mean Daru is an F-ranker?! He’s clearly an S-ranker!"

Hailey only smiled and spun her laptop, allowing her younger brother, who sat across from her, to see the search results of the database.

There, Daru was listed as the F-ranker, Omaru.

"D-Daru, is this what Sigrun meant when she said you’ve managed to evade proper registration?"

Daru nodded.

"Ho–" before Caleb could ask further, though, his sister stopped him with a stern glare.

She then turned all the seriousness to Daru.

"Daru Finnley. First, allow me to apologize." Hailey began, noticing the slight frown on the young man’s face. "I have tried my best not to disclose your identity, and I was able to hold out until now."

His expression eased.

"But the Seven Sword Guilds are pressuring hard, and I plead that you reveal your identity in the upcoming tournament."

Daru couldn’t respond immediately.

In the end, it has still come to this, though he was strangely calmer than he expected. He wasn’t even too displeased, or anything, viewing it as a mere minor inconvenience now.

Daru planned on agreeing, but before he did, he realized he could use this as leverage to gain more information about what was going on.

Why was the Seven Sword Guilds being treated as an enemy instead of an ally?

After all, they were all humans, are they not? They should be working against the enemy races, not infighting.

"If I get to know why, I might."

Hailey met his gaze with a deep one of her own, then sighed.

"I was hoping not to tell you...at least not yet. You’re still a novice, Daru. Don’t burden yourself with what I’m about to tell you. Focus on becoming stronger first."

She paused, as if to check whether the younger bladeborn truly understood.

It seemed he did.

"Well, to summarize, the Seven Sword Guilds believe that the government is unworthy to rule, and honestly, I can’t blame them for thinking so. The structure of the government, in the current age, seemed more plausible to be the enforcers and administrative departments of a true ruling force. In humanity’s case, the top guilds."

She then sighed again. "The past few Prime Regents are to blame for this, really. One incompetent individual was understandable, but four consecutive? Unbelievable."

Hailey shook her head, as if lamenting the documents she had read the moment she assumed office.

It might be a bit arrogant to say for a twenty-one year old young woman back then, but she believed she really could’ve done a lot better, especially if she was still in the power position.

"Their foresight was extremely lacking, plus they were too soft and lenient, priding themselves on fairness and impartiality. They should’ve been unfair when it came to themselves. Of course, they didn’t have to suppress the guilds; they should’ve just made sure they would grow faster instead of taking care of the wolves who are now trying to devour us, the greedy bastards..."

Daru didn’t respond immediately. He had a different opinion. Still, he decided to stay true to himself.

"Well, I’d say in this situation, competence is king. If they’re more fit to rule, why not support the fittest so humanity could unite under one stable banner again?"

Hailey smiled.

"Do you believe me if I say we considered this? Only, once the bastards found out what we were planning, they immediately threatened back with a coalition, claiming we’re being impartial and they’re being suppressed."

"Shameless!" Caleb cursed. He, too, was only learning the reason now.

All he knew was that the Seven Sword Guilds were enemies. His sister always referred to them as filth back when they were younger, after all

"Of course, the guild we were planning to support, Iron Lotus, decided not to go through with the plan. They did not want to be eradicated, after all. But everything turned out fine, in the end."

"And why is that?" Daru asked.

"Because none of them are actually qualified to rule. The Seven Sword Guilds...they’re satisfied with the stalemate and are busy profiteering. Well, to be fair, the Veshari, the Vyrrkans, and the Aetherborns seemed quite content, too, and have even long since begun trading goods with each other."

Hailey’s face turned a notch colder.

"But I don’t buy it. We are growing too complacent. The enemies...I believe they’re preparing to break the balance. After all, unlike us, their rulers had a solid grip on those beneath them, and while infighting is unavoidable, the level is quite not like ours. If nothing changed, we’re sure to lose the Sword Trials."

Daru frowned.

’How dishonorable...’

Treating the Sword Trials as a business? That...is a rather insane level of greediness.