Feel the Weight of the Armband (2)

A fair number of people were clicking their tongues at the lunatics frothing at the mouth for a shot at armband power.

Of course, separate from that crowd, there were also those who had complaints about the admins' policy itself.

The thing was, up until now the admins — who could at least be called "neutral" — had managed everything themselves, so the so-called power-tripping had been kept in check.

But the moment users got their hands on armband authority, the gallery would go the same way countless real-world community sites had gone before. Or rather, given that desertion was impossible here, it could get even worse. That concern was erupting all over the gallery.

And honestly, I shared that concern myself.

"Jessica, what do you think?"

"Hmm… Commander, I don't believe this is something I'm in a position to comment on."

At my question, Jessica just flicked her rabbit ears back and forth, dodging any real answer. So I grabbed one of those twitching ears and pulled it straight toward me, demanding a proper response.

"I asked, so try answering."

"Nyeuuuugh, fine, just let go of my eaaar…"

The moment I released it, the ear snapped back like a spring — coiling into her head and then unfurling again. For a second I wondered what kind of anatomy even allowed that, but the thought was promptly shoved into some dusty corner of my brain so I could listen to Jessica, who was finally opening her mouth.

"My ears are sensitive, so please be more careful when you touch them next time."

"Mm, alright. Will do."

"At any rate, according to what you've said, other commanders will be receiving management authority over that gallery community, correct?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"Assuming nothing major changes from what I've observed so far… I'd say the factions will likely reorganize around the rankers who hold gallery management rights."

"…Hmm."

Interesting take. I nodded and gestured for her to go on, but Jessica just shook her head — a clear signal that she'd said all she was going to say on the matter.

Ah. Did the admins deliberately set things up so you can't just solve everything through your adjutant?

It was a genuinely interesting possibility, so I nodded to Jessica that I'd heard her, then pulled up the gallery window I'd minimized and went back to checking the mood and public opinion.

And the moment that newly opened gallery window loaded, what I saw was…

Everything… is on fire…

For reasons unknown, the bait had shifted from armbands to veterans versus newbies, and even though the pages were flipping by the second, most gallery posts were racking up dozens of comments each. Looking at that blazing firepower, I could feel it — separate from the sheer deranged pressure of it all — that the admins weren't picking new armbands for no reason.

But the gallery's firepower, which had been putting on a spectacular campfire-execution show, didn't last long. Countless bystanders who'd been watching the situation sensed something off and stepped in, and the blaze was snuffed out.