The golden Divinity Shard Holder Ranking appeared in the upper-right corner of every player's vision in the Yan Country War Zone.
There was only one name on the ranking.
Ghost Shadow.
And beside his name was the glaring number "1."
In Falling Leaf Town's resurrection plaza, the sea of countless white flashes fell silent for the first time.
When they had been killed instantly, the players had felt angry and confused.
When Ghost Shadow had earned over a hundred points, they had been shocked and envious.
When Data Emperor's analysis post came out, they had understood what happened and admired him.
But now, the ranking crushed all those tangled emotions, leaving only one thing.
The bitter taste of helplessness.
The gap between people really was that vast.
A Shield Warrior who had just revived stared blankly at the ranking. His lips trembled for a long time before he finally managed one sentence.
"Why...?"
Why, indeed?
The question echoed wildly through every player's mind.
On the forums, the optimism sparked by the discovery of a new strategy vanished the instant the ranking appeared.
"I'm sick! Seriously sick! More than three hundred people in our guild spent two hours and died at least five hundred times to bring down an Obsidian Golem Lord, and we got nothing!"
"Did they put up this ranking just to humiliate us? One name, and that's it? Are they telling us not to bother because their chosen one's already been decided?"
"Where are the Sword of the Firmament guild members? Come on out! Did you know how these shards dropped all along? What's the point of keeping it secret?"
Data Emperor's analysis post, once hailed as an essential guide, became the next target.
"A test of brains? Bullshit! It's pure luck! Ghost Shadow got lucky and claimed