Choco-Rabbit Daily Log: Do We Level Up Outside the Game Too?!
Kinoshita Akane, twenty, has a problem: her ex-boyfriend dumped her with the words "you're too heavy," and the only place she's felt safe since is *Arcadia Chronicle*—specifically, her guild Chocolate Rabbit, where six players log in twice a week to raid, fish, farm, and never pressure each other. But when the guild announces its first real-life meetup at a strawberry farm in Aoba City, Akane has to do something terrifying: step outside the game.
Worse? The guild's resident high school pro game
Choco-Rabbit Daily Log: Do We Level Up Outside the Game Too?! - I Won't Hand Over the Guild! ~Akane's Resolve and Yamada-kun's Red Ears~
The guild hall doors closed earlier than usual.
Akane's avatar, Akane, sat in her chair with her cat ears twitching. The palm gripping her mouse was slick with sweat.
"...Everyone's here."
Ruri-hime's avatar spoke in a serious voice. Beside her, takezo tilted his head lazily.
"So what's going on? What'd Yamada dig up?"
"...That guy, Washida — he's done the same thing in multiple games."
A flat voice flowed from the noh-mask-and-afro avatar.
"He joins a guild, wrecks the relationships, crushes the guild. Over and over. They call him the Guild Crusher."
A heavy silence fell. Akane caught her breath.
(So I was right.)
(Washida-san planned to destroy Choco-Rabbit from the very start.)
(Even our match was just a pretext.)
"See! I told you! I said I didn't want strangers in!"
Runa's tiny avatar bounced up and down.
"I knew from the beginning that guy was bad news! And it's all because Akane went and accepted his challenge!"
"Ugh... that's, um, my bad..."
Akane shrugged.
"Well, Runa's right. I should've looked into him sooner too."
Eita let out a deep sigh.
"As the one in charge of this guild, I'm sorry. I put everyone in danger."
"It's not your fault, Eita-san! The one who's wrong is Washida-san — all of it!"
Akane's voice came out before she could stop it.
"I love this guild that you built, Eita-san. That's why I want to protect it."
"...Akane."
"So what do we do? That guy's still hanging around near the guild, looks like."
Yamada spoke in a cold voice.
"Saw him in the plaza earlier. He's probably scoping us out."
"What?! That's so unfair!"
"Unfair or not, that's just the kind of person he is."
Eita said quietly.
"But we can't run from this. Let's face it head-on, as a guild."
"I think that's the right call too."
The ponytailed elf avatar, TSUBAKI, spoke calmly.
"I'm comfortable here too. So I want to protect it."
"Well, more people is always fun. But I'm not letting anyone tear us down."
Kamoda said with a laugh.
"Then it's settled. We'll tell Washida-san ourselves — this place isn't his to take."
Akane nodded deeply.
(I'm not running anymore.)
(I'll fight, together with everyone.)
Central Plaza. Water trickled softly from the fountain over the stone paving.
Akane stood alone in the middle of the plaza.
(He should come.)
(According to Yamada-kun's info, he shows up here at this hour.)
Her heart was pounding. Sweat beaded on her palms.
(It's okay. I came alone, but everyone's watching from nearby.)
(So it's okay.)
"Oh my, all alone?"
A voice came from behind her.
She turned. A black-robed mage. Beneath the hood, only the mouth was visible — curled into a smirk.
"You lost. What are you doing here? Don't tell me you came to whine about it?"
Akane bit her lip.
(I'm scared.)
(But I won't lose.)
"...I'm not here to whine. I came to tell you something."
She looked Washida straight on.
"I never wanted to beat you. I wanted to protect the guild that Yamada-kun cares about."
"...Huh?"
Washida's smile vanished.
"Who do you think you are? You lost to me, remember? Your right to confess to Yamada-kun — I took all of it."
"Even so, I love this guild. I won't let you destroy everyone's place."
Her voice was trembling. But she didn't look away.
"...Hmph. Their place? Don't make me laugh."
Washida snorted.
"You're just gaming buddies, aren't you? You've never met in real life. Don't know each other's faces, don't know each other's names. How is something that shallow a 'place'?"
A small pang shot through her chest.
(It's true.)
(We've only met in person a handful of times.)
(But even so—)
"...What would you know?"
She took a step forward.
"What you really wanted was a place of your own, wasn't it? That's why you're doing this, right? Destroying other people's guilds to build one just for yourself!"
"...!"
The eyes beneath the hood widened slightly.
"...Shut up. What could you possibly know about me?"
The voice dropped low.
"I don't know. I don't know anything about you. But there's one thing I do know. Hurting people because you're lonely — that's the saddest thing of all."
Washida was, for a moment, at a loss for words.
That was when it happened.
"Someone like you will never get my big brother's guild!"
Runa came charging out.
"I love it here! Competing with Akane, learning from Yamada-kun, spoiling my big brother — all of it, this is my place!"
Runa's avatar planted herself in front of Washida.
"...We don't bind people, we don't rush them, but we help when they're in trouble. That's our rule."
Eita stood beside Runa.
"We can't welcome anyone who won't follow that rule. I'm sorry, but this is the guild's consensus."
"Well, more people is always fun. But anyone who comes to wreck things can get lost."
Kamoda spoke lazily, but firmly.
"I'm still new here, but I can tell this is a comfortable place. So I want to protect it too."
Tsubaki quietly followed.
Behind Akane, everyone stood in a line.
(Everyone...!)
(I'm not alone.)
"...Tch. Don't be ridiculous."
Washida clicked her tongue.
"You'll all regret this. Your precious place — I'll tear every last bit of it to shreds."
Light from a teleport spell enveloped Washida. Gone.
Only the sound of the fountain remained.
"...Is it over?"
Akane murmured softly.
"For now. But knowing him, he might try something again."
Eita sighed.
"Well, when that happens, we'll just chase him off again — all of us."
Kamoda laughed.
"Yeah. No need to carry it alone."
Akane turned toward Yamada. The noh-mask-and-afro stood silently.
"Yamada-kun, thank you for looking into everything."
She bowed her head.
"...Whatever. Not like I care."
Yamada said that and turned his face away.
That was when Akane saw it.
The side of the noh mask. Around the ear — just barely, faintly red.
(...Huh?)
(Was Yamada-kun's ear red just now?)
(Can that even happen with a game avatar?)
Her heart skipped.
"What are you staring at over there for?"
Runa peered intently at Akane's face.
"Huh?! I-I wasn't staring! I didn't see anything!"
She shook her head frantically. Her face went hot all at once.
"Hmmm? Well, whatever. Anyway — case closed!"
Runa said, looking satisfied.
"Yeah, case closed. ...Want some coffee?"
Eita pulled out an in-game coffee item.
"Oh, nice. I'll take some too."
"I'll have some as well."
"Me too! I want some!"
"I-I'll have some too..."
Akane raised her hand timidly.
"...I'm good."
A curt voice. But Akane couldn't get that red ear out of her head.
(Was Yamada-kun actually happy?)
(Or was he embarrassed?)
(...Either way, it's cute.)
She fought hard to suppress the grin tugging at her lips.
"But hey,"
After a sip of coffee, Kamoda spoke up.
"That guy said he'd make us regret it, at the end there."
The air in the room tensed, just slightly.
"...Yeah. He might still be plotting something."
Eita's voice dropped.
"Huh, what, there's more...?"
Akane looked at everyone's faces anxiously.
"I don't know. But let's stay on guard. That's it for today. Good work, everyone."
The meeting was adjourned.
Before logging out, Akane looked at the plaza one more time. The spot where Washida had vanished.
(...Will he come back?)
(But when he does, we'll all be together again.)
(We won't lose.)
She gave a small nod.
The next day. Akane came home from university and opened her computer right away.
She logged in and checked the guild bulletin board.
That hateful challenge date Washida had posted — it had been cleanly deleted.
In its place was a new post from Eita.
'New member admission requires unanimous consent as a general rule.'
A simple, single sentence.
That one sentence slowly warmed something inside her chest.
(Eita-san...)
(He's really looking out for us.)
She let out a breath of relief.
Just then, her chat pinged.
【Runa】Coming to the strawberry farm today? Kamoda-san's giving out new strawberries
Akane's face lit up instantly.
【Akane】I'm coming, I'm coming! Definitely coming!
She sent the reply and closed the game.
She opened her closet and started looking for something to wear.
"What should I wear?!"
Humming to herself, she began picking out clothes.
Meanwhile.
Somewhere in Aoba City. In a dim room, a woman sat facing her computer.
On the screen, a game login page.
Washida logged in with a different account.
She opened a chat window. Only one recipient.
'The plan isn't over yet.'
She sent the short message.
The glow of the screen cast Washida's face in pale blue.
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