CHAPTER 70: [ SHAH, TRICIA AND HUNTER ]

Alexander was walking out of the stadium, crossing paths with other dungeon runners who couldn’t help but stare at him.

He could feel the discomfort, some even doing so much as trying to sneak a picture of him.

In a seamless fashion, he activated [ Witness of all Path ], opening the world before him.

On the way out, past the tents and right next to the gates he could see a group looking at him.

Four dungeon runners, one of them he recognized.

And here I thought he just went home.

"Veil!"

Silver raised his hand in the air, waving it to grab his attention.

Alexander reached the gate, the group quickly moving over.

They all wore normal outfits, but the bags they held showed they participated in the tournament as well. From the way they interacted with Silver alone he could guess they were most likely a team.

"Thought I’d wait here since it was taking a while. Got through it all?" asked Silver.

"Yeah."

The three dungeon runners with him awkwardly stared at him, two girls and a guy who all seemed to be as new as Silver.

"Oh, right. This is Shah, Tricia and Hunter," he said, pointing at each of them.

They all blinked a few times, as if their consciousness just resurfaced. The only person who didn’t seem to be having a good time was Hunter, who scoffed.

Tricia and Shah both had opposing aesthetics. Shah wore heavy and dark makeup, and had a very defensive stance. Tricia, on the other hand, looked like someone from another world entirely. Tight jeans, a spotless white shirt, and not a trace of dust or tension.

"Nice to meet you, Veil," said Tricia.

"Sup," said Shah.

He nodded as answer. Silver took a step forward, slapping his shoulder while smiling brightly.

"He doesn’t talk much, but he’s a nice guy," he said.

"What the fuck are we doing? We’re fighting this guy tomorrow. This is stupid, I’m leaving."

Hunter swung his bag over his shoulder, and crossed the street on a red light without a single care.

"There he goes again," said Silver, sighing.

A short moment of silence was quickly filled by Silver who took a step forward.

"Let’s go there," he said, pointing across the street.

A coffee shop, known for its coffee-themed ice cream.

Alexander recalled the few times he visited that place, he truly liked it but the prices were simply out of this world.

The premium cappuccino ice-cream bowl was something he only got once in a while, always leaving 20$ lighter than he arrived.

"I see you considering it," said Silver, proud. "Alright, let’s go!"

The girls looked at each other for a moment, then agreed, all three of them waiting for Alexander’s answer.

It had been a long day, going through the dungeon with Fae earlier and completing numerous mandatory steps to participate in the tournaments.

"Sure."

It looked as if Silver had been holding his breath, completely relieved when Alexander finally agreed.

The inside of the coffee shop was exactly the same as before, it must’ve only been a year since his last visit but nothing had changed.

It was elegant, the interior design looked like it catered to nobility. The tables were made of polished wood that reflected the light coming from the posh chandeliers hanging from the ceilings.

The brown leather sofas resembled those of old diners, but the tall backrests gave them a more refined edge.

The walls had no posters, oil and acrylic paintings were hung around. Some depicted vast landscapes such as grass fields or a mountain range, others were portraits of people who belonged to a different era.

They sat down next to a tall window that gave on the street, the stadium visible with all the runners coming out of it.

"What will it be?"

The waitress waited next to their table, a bright smile on her face as she patiently looked at each of them deciding.

"Want to look?" asked Ticia, moving the menu toward Alexander.

"No thanks, I already know what I want."

The waitress nodded, her pen and notepad ready.

"I’ll have the premium cappuccino ice cream bowl," he said.

"Oh, you know, I might try that one as well," said Silver.

Tricia closed her menu, "make it three."

Rolling her eyes, Shah grabbed the menus and handed them to the waitress.

"I’ll have a regular vanilla with a medium coffee. Black."

"Right away," she said, walking away from the group.

The atmosphere was slightly heavy, with Tricia blushing and twirling her hair while Shah looked like she’d rather be anywhere else.

You should’ve followed Hunter when he left, thought Alexander.

Tricia then leaned forward over the table, tugging at Silver’s sleeve while tilting her head toward Alexander.

"So, Veil..." started Silver.

"Alexander’s fine."

"Can I call you that as well?" asked Tricia.

"...Sure."

Silver cleared his throat, Tricia leaning back against the backrest, while Shah’s gaze was outside the window, out of the conversation.

"We know we won’t make it to the end. We started recently, had we started six months ago maybe it would’ve been different, but we decided the experience could be good—and it could help with team bonding."

Alexander’s tired gaze went to all three of them.

"Not a bad idea," he replied.

"Right? But we don’t want to have an unfair advantage. That’s why we discussed it earlier, and we agreed we would make our match together fairer, this way you also get something out of it. We’ll do one versus one, Hunter insisted to go first, he’s also our strongest member at level 45..."

Tricia inched closer to Alexander, he could feel her generous chest brushing against his arm as she leaned on his shoulder.

He didn’t move or flinch, instead remaining perfectly still with his attention elsewhere.

"I’ll go second, let’s have a fair match okay?" she said with a vibrant tone.

The only person who seemed against it was Shah, who sighed loudly while rolling her eyes once more.

Her elbow was on the table, her face resting on her palm while looking away.

Both Tricia and Silver stared at him, awaiting his response.

He barely reacted, gazing into the distance behind Silver.

"Don’t," said Alexander with an authoritative tone.

Silver and Tricia exchanged a quick glance while frowning, unsure if their approach had perhaps been too direct.

"One versus one makes the most sense, and—"

Silver was cut by Alexander once more.

"Not you."

Confused, they shared another look.

Alexander’s facial expression was grave, ’don’t try me’ could be read all over it.

"Wha—" started Silver, before following Alexander’s gaze leading behind him.

A few rows behind stood Fae, her hands on the hilts of her swords.

Both of them shared an overwhelming stare, Fae standing defiantly while Alexander’s gaze doubled in intensity.

He said it one more time.

"Don’t."