Your Commander-in-Chief – Chapter 235

When the promised time was almost up, I managed to arrive at the gathering spot of the party members.

Upon reaching the spot, I warmly greeted my party members and began checking the numbers.

Counting the registered members in the raid party turned out to be quicker than counting with my own eyes.

As confirmed, there were a total of 38 members, which was 2 less than usual.

I looked at Iyap with a puzzled expression.

He was the one responsible for managing guild or raid matters in my absence.

But Iyap, perhaps unaware of the situation with the two who had yet to arrive, shook his head.

The nicknames of those still missing were [White Sand] and [King Galbi Tangsuyuk].

Both were newbies who had joined the guild this season.

I had invited them to the raid because they had shown decent skills and committed gameplay, but I never expected they would arrive later than me, the party leader…

I was quite taken aback.

How could party members arrive later than the party leader?

Of course, there were still about 5 minutes left until the promised time, so it wasn’t technically late.

I decided to sit down and wait for the two of them.

The Snow Mage, who had arrived with me, blended into the group of party members with a droopy expression.

The party members who had arrived early were exchanging various opinions with others who had the same class.

They discussed the named monsters we would be facing today, optimal skill combinations, timing for skill usage, and the trending class builds.

I couldn’t help but smile satisfactorily as I nodded my head.

That was exactly the kind of desirable attitude I wanted from my party members.

How wonderful it was to see them arrive early for discussions before the set time.

Everyone was serious about the game. The desire to clear this raid was evident in their eyes.

The Snow Mage had even spent 10 hours… no, 9 hours and 40 minutes farming before coming here.

She went to join the other wizards, her eyes sparkling as she engaged in conversation.

Watching her, I felt a swell of excitement.

If she could keep that energy up even after such tiring farming, maybe I could extend our farming time a bit more in the future.

As time passed, the 5 minutes of leeway slipped away.

The current time was 6:50 PM.

The promised time was approaching.

Although the raid was set to begin at 7 PM, the scheduled time with the party members was earlier at 6:50 PM.

The 10 minutes were intended for checking potions and doping drugs before the raid started.

The two had still not shown up by the promised time.

I hadn’t received any individual notices or messages.

If only they had left a note in my mailbox, I might have been able to understand.

I was starting to feel a surge of irritation.

While I was generally forgiving with my party members, I was strict when it came to keeping our scheduled times.

It wasn’t just about wasting my time. If one person was late, it meant wasting the time of 39 others.

That’s how time commitments work.

I opened the guild window to check the nicknames of the two.

[White Sand] and [King Galbi Tangsuyuk].

Both were offline, indicated by their greyed-out IDs.

I sighed and called out.

“Does anyone have the contact info for White Sand or King Galbi Tangsuyuk?”

I asked the party members, but received no response.

I nodded. Both were newbies who started playing this season.

While there were chances to build personal friendships, it seemed no one had managed to get hold of their real-life contact details.

“Everyone, please continue your preparations. We’ll start the raid at 7.”

I said this and stood up.

To be honest, the absence of those two wasn’t that significant.

It was just two DPS mages missing.

If it were up to my connections, I could easily fill the gap left by those two.

But that was where the real problem lay.

Once the raid started, that character would be bound to our party for a week, sharing the dungeon experience.

So I would have to take responsibility for them for a week, or until we cleared the raid.

It was time to find a substitute.

I began to cautiously move my fingers.

My guild, Soft & Chewy Cow, had over 300 members registered.

Given the waitlist, finding two magic DPS members wouldn’t be much of a hassle.

“Yeo – [Is anyone available to substitute for this week’s raid? Looking for two mage DPS. First named monster is already taken. Raid time is until 6:50 PM. Trials will continue until 11 PM.]”

I was looking for substitutes from the first party of the guild leader.

The response from the guild members was explosive.

Even offers from mages in the second party started pouring in.

Just as I had filled those spots, it hit 6:55 PM.

The much-anticipated White Sand finally logged in.

I deliberately said nothing and waited for his reaction.

After connecting to the game, he greeted the guild chat and slowly made his way to the promised location.

Since his real-time location was displayed in the guild status window, I knew what he was up to.

At 6:58 PM, White Sand finally arrived.

He galloped in on a large mount and jumped off.

“Hello!”

What an enthusiastic greeting.

But there was no one to return it.

Everyone was carefully avoiding my gaze, trying not to draw attention.

“Excuse me…? Aren’t you going to invite me to the raid?”

Invite to the raid? If he was late, wasn’t there something more important to say first?

I looked down at him with my arms crossed.

“Party Leader…?”

“You’re late, aren’t you?”

“Ah… Yeah, I guess I’m a bit later than yesterday?”

White Sand said this as he started looking around.

Seemingly, he finally noticed the strange looks from the party members directed at him.

“The agreed time was until 6:50!”

“What? Ah… But the raid starts at 7, right?”

“The agreed time was until 6:50!”

“That’s… well…”

I raised my eyebrows at his words.

Was it really so difficult to say ‘I’m sorry I’m late’?

He stood there awkwardly, trying to force a smile.

“White Sand, check how many of us are here. How many do you think?”

“Uh…?”

White Sand’s eyes went wide at my question as he began to count the members.

Time passed, and after a moment, he finally spoke, looking somewhat surprised.

“There are 40 of us…?”

“Yes. There are 40 of us. The party’s maximum capacity is 40.”

“But… what about my spot?”

“You’re late.”

“But come on, no way… I’m a regular party member.”

“You were late, White Sand.”

His voice began to harden.

White Sand frowned, losing his smile as he registered my attitude.

An apology still didn’t come, and instead, he started exhibiting signs of feeling offended.

“Well… This is a bit…”

“If you had just mentioned that you might be late beforehand, I would’ve waited. But you said nothing.”

“But we’re starting at 7 anyway…”

“The agreed time was until 6:50. That’s a promise. You broke it unilaterally, White Sand.”

“Honestly…”

“Is it that hard to utter one simple apology? ‘I’m sorry for being late.’ Just that one sentence seems so difficult for you?”

Feels like he didn’t appreciate being scolded by someone younger than him.

White Sand crumpled his face and sighed.

With that contorted expression, signs of stubborn pride began to develop.

He refused to acknowledge his wrongdoing till the end.

“You’re so uptight.”

“I’m indeed uptight. My temperament is also unpleasant. So apologize. Not to me, but to the other party members.”

This was an opportunity.

If he apologized to the party members for being late, I would forgive him.

But he stubbornly held his ground.

His head was too stiff.

Like a straight branch.

This is what the recent kids have become…

I clicked my tongue and shook my head.

My judgment about White Sand was concluded.

He was someone I couldn’t work with.

“Hey… Did I really do something that wrong? Huh? You guys, the raid starts at 7 anyway, right?”

White Sand stopped engaging with me.

Instead, he poured out his thoughts to the nearby party members.

He seemed to hope for some sympathy, but that was a poor choice.

Those present had been with me for a long time.

When people share a long time together, they inevitably influence each other.

So I knew. The party members were thinking the same as I was.

[Yeo has expelled White Sand from the guild.]

“Huh…?”

The guild and the raid party were mine.

I operated them as I saw fit, recruited and expelled members at my discretion.

So, he was no longer needed.

I wouldn’t even use titles anymore.

“Get lost.”

“What…?”

“I said get lost.”

“…”

“If you don’t want to die, get lost.”

I said this and drew my sword to aim it at him.

He was no longer even a guild member, so there was no hesitation in swinging my sword at him.

White Sand let out a deep sigh and raised his staff.

I raised my eyebrows at that.

Was he actually going to try something?

“Trusting those water buffalo nearby… Cough!”

His words went unfinished.

He was deeply slashed by the swiftly swung Demon Sword.

As expected, I didn’t kill him in one hit. I tightened my grip on the raised sword and swung down.

Whoosh-!

The blade traced an odd trajectory like a white snake stalking its prey.

In the moment the cursed blade shimmering with golden divine power pierced through White Sand’s chest—

Swish—!

[Lawlessness +10]

A small voice whispered into White Sand’s ear.

“Remember, if you catch my eye again, you can expect to die repeatedly.”

He stared with bulging eyes, his mouth twitching but unable to utter a sound.

Soon, strength drained from his body.

I withdrew the sword that had pierced his chest and turned away.

Just as the blood splattered across my cheek, Helena, who had used Blink, approached and wiped my cheek.

The current time was 7:03 PM.

We were already 3 minutes late for the raid start.

I turned to my party members with a beaming smile.

“Sorry for being late! Let’s start the raid!”

But even my smile couldn’t break the cold, frozen atmosphere.

The party members were too busy gauging my reactions.

I awkwardly smiled and scratched my cheek.