Standing on the periphery of the crowd, the expressions on the faces of the four members of the "Rock" squad could only be described as complex.
"Captain, that Genius Alchemist is calling us, right?" the archer Bask whispered, his lips trembling.
Captain Dosari opened his mouth but made no sound, as an answer was no longer needed; Lyle had already walked over with Enri.
"It really is Tang."
"You've got to be kidding me; I always thought it was just someone with the same name." The brothers Rel and Rand bumped shoulders, speaking with some excitement.
At this moment, Lyle's temperament and appearance had long since changed greatly from when they first met; although he didn't look different overall, the others had still been somewhat uncertain while he was in the crowd just now.
Nowadays, the name "Free Will" was quite famous in the Royal Capital; even though the other party was a "gold-rank" adventurer, no adventurer felt that he was only at that level.
This was an adventurer squad that had eliminated seven "gold-rank" squads, five "platinum-rank" squads, one "mithril-rank" squad, and the massive 70-person "Death Spreading Sword Sect."
With such strength, anyone who treated them as ordinary gold-rank adventurers would be a fool.
Thinking of this.
The four members of the "Rock" squad, who had just become excited, felt a bit awkward again.
In over half a year, they were still silver-rank adventurers; compared to Tang, who was now famous, they were truly obscure.
"Long time no see, everyone. I didn't expect to run into you here." Lyle walked up to them,
Smiling:
"It looks like a lot has happened during this time."
The changes in the few of them were quite obvious.
Captain Dosari had an extra scar on his face, Bask's arrow-drawing arm was equipped with magic gauntlets, and the Rand brothers had become stronger and more weathered.
Captain Dosari was clearly a bit restless; he raised his rough palm to wave but quickly lowered it, saying humbly with flushed cheeks, "Long time no see, Tang."
Thinking back to when he had planned to recruit the other party into his own team, Captain Dosari wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
"Hmm? silver-rank adventurers." Lyle looked at the silver nameplates on the four of them and teased half-jokingly:
"I'm stronger than you now, Seniors."
Familiar teasing washed over them.
It instantly brought back memories for Captain Dosari and the others of the brief time during their journey to "E-Rantel."
The originally somewhat awkward atmosphere dissipated, making them realize that Lyle didn't seem to have changed at all.
"We're being mocked, Captain." Archer Bask's tense shoulders relaxed as he crossed his arms and looked at the captain beside him.
"Hahaha."
The Rand brothers also laughed along.
"By the way, this is Enri." Lyle stepped to the side, revealing Enri standing behind him, and introduced her.
"Greetings, Seniors."
Enri's eyes were full of curiosity; up until now, she hadn't seen the Lord joke around with others like this. As she spoke, she bent down to bow.
However!
The moment Enri bowed, the four members of the "Rock" squad immediately stepped aside, all showing wry smiles.
"Tang was just joking; don't take it seriously." Captain Dosari said hurriedly.
Status and position among adventurers depended on fame and strength, not on something ethereal like "Senior."
Adventurers never recognized such things.
The "Senior" Tang had just used was merely teasing between acquaintances; if they truly considered themselves as such, it would be overestimating themselves.
Even if Tang didn't care, they had to.
"Let's talk while we walk." Lyle spoke with a smile.
"Alright."
Captain Dosari nodded immediately; he also noticed that their conversation just now had already attracted a lot of attention.
As Lyle stepped away, the four members of the "Rock" squad quickly followed, each puffing out their chest under the gaze of many eyes.
Lyle walked at the front, Captain Dosari followed a step behind, then Enri and the three other members of the "Rock" squad.
"Thanks for just now." After walking a distance, Captain Dosari spoke gratefully.
"What's wrong?" Lyle asked, puzzled.
"It's about that matter from back then." Captain Dosari smiled bitterly.
They had originally taken a gold-rank mission to escort Nfirea and his grandmother, but it ended in failure; it was one thing not to earn money.
The mission failure also affected their squad's rating, which was why they had remained a silver-rank adventurer squad until now.
But just now, with Lyle's fame, interacting with them and even leaving together was enough to significantly boost their adventurer squad's reputation.
"If you need to thank me for something like this, then don't treat me as a friend." Lyle was speechless.
Hearing this.
Captain Dosari's eyes reddened, and he nodded heavily: "Right!"
"You've been active in the Adventurer's Guild in the Royal Capital; you should know something about the Guild Master. What kind of person is he?" Lyle asked.
Captain Dosari did not hesitate and told him everything he knew.
Listening to the information about the Royal Capital's Adventurer's Guild Master, Lyle nodded thoughtfully.
What he was going to do next was to get the captured Emerald Leaf Witch out.
For the noble Young Miss captain of "Blue Rose," getting Tina out was just a matter of a word, but Lyle didn't have any connections in the Royal Capital.
At least not on the surface.
Getting the Emerald Leaf Witch out was actually very simple; asking either Imina or Leinas to help could easily do it.
But it wasn't necessary.
He had been in the Royal Capital for three days and indeed should visit the Adventurer's Guild Master here; this matter was a good opportunity.
His current identity couldn't just be limited to the rumors people heard; it needed to become more real.
Turning "fame" into "influence" was one of the steps in his next plan.
Royal Capital · Adventurer's Guild
Before even entering the area, one could see the bustling flow of people and dense carriages; in any city, the Adventurer's Guild was always the liveliest place.
The heavy oak doors were wide open.
The clamor poured out from the guild, mixed with the smell of ale and fruit wine; for most adventurers, alcohol was an indispensable drink.
The guild provided drinks and food, though the prices were generally higher; ordinary adventurers naturally couldn't afford it, but the adventurers in the Royal Capital were clearly wealthier than those elsewhere.
Stepping into the guild.
The tables in the spacious hall were already full of people; some adventurers without seats leaned directly against the walls, chatting and laughing.
The smell of alcohol grew stronger in the air.
Lyle saw the dense crowd of adventurers; their gaze fell upon the mission notice board, where the number of adventurers was actually the lowest.
"It's really lively. Why are there so many people?" Lyle was somewhat surprised.
Captain Dosari looked normal: "After all, Prayer Day is coming soon, and most adventurers won't take on missions during this time."
"Prayer Day?"
Lyle was a bit puzzled; he didn't know much about the festivals of this world.
"The new year is coming soon. After Prayer Day, there will be a festival; it's a grand annual event in the Royal Capital." Captain Dosari spoke excitedly to himself.
I see.
Lyle understood; was it a festival similar to welcoming the New Year?
Thud!
A large wooden mug slammed onto the table, and a shirtless, burly adventurer shouted toward the front desk: "Another one!"
The voice, tinged with a hint of drunkenness, was not prominent in the noisy environment.
However, after putting down his glass, the burly man soon noticed several figures at the door: "Oh, Dosari, are you guys from 'Rock' still planning to take on mission work at a time like this?"
"If you ask me, stop trying so hard and just be silver-rank adventurers honestly, hahaha."
,
The mocking voice came, immediately causing the people around to laugh along.
Captain Dosari's face instantly turned red; he wanted to snap back in anger, but in the end, he opened his mouth and
Forcibly held back.
Clearly, the other party was not someone he could afford to offend.
"Sorry you had to see that, Tang." Captain Dosari scratched his hair sheepishly.
Lyle shook his head, just about to say something.
Suddenly.
A commotion broke out among the adventurers in the hall, along with the sound of whistling.
A blonde-haired female adventurer with a hot figure walked down the stairs, her body tightly wrapped in black leather armor.
Instead, it further revealed her slender waist and graceful figure; a dagger was strapped to each side of her long legs.
Her golden pupils were cold, and her expression was stiff; she looked like someone who didn't joke around.
Although some of the adventurers below were whistling and casting many hot gazes, no one took the initiative to step forward or even utter foul words.
Clearly.
This female adventurer was either very strong or had a special status.
Dosari's expression changed even more, and he quickly lowered his voice to speak to Lyle: "That's the female adventurer I mentioned to you before who always stays by the Guild Master's side. Her name is Samantha."
Under the curious gazes of the crowd.
Samantha walked down the stairs and headed straight for Lyle's group, who had just entered the guild's main entrance.
Seeing this scene, everyone was a bit surprised; the adventurer who had mocked the "Rock" squad just now had a look of shock on his face.
"Samantha."
Samantha stepped onto the wooden floor, walked up to Lyle, and a smile appeared on her stiff face. The corners of her eyes tilted up slightly as she extended her hand.
"Tang." Facing this, Lyle remained gentle and gave a shallow response; as for the hand she extended,
He acted as if he didn't see it.
"Is there anything you need help with?" Samantha's expression stiffened for a brief moment, then she lowered her arm,
Not caring.
"Please introduce me to the Guild Master."
"Alright."
Samantha smiled brightly.
As Lyle and Enri disappeared up the stairs, the atmosphere in the hall, which had briefly quieted down, became noisy again.
And the members of the "Rock" squad were surrounded by the crowd.
Next.
No one knew what Lyle talked about with the Adventurer's Guild Master; they only knew that many adventurers saw with their own eyes that when Tang, the leader of "Free Will," came out again.
The usually strict Adventurer's Guild Master actually walked downstairs with Lyle with a face full of smiles.
That evening.
The Emerald Leaf Witch, who had been taken away by Gazef, had already returned to the inn.
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