"Are you by chance… the Vixens?"
Llandra stepped forward gracefully and extended her hand.
"Why yes, we are," she said with a polite smile. "And you are the Crimson Vanguard, are you not?"
The blonde-haired knight removed his helmet and shook her hand firmly. His hair had clearly been flattened from wearing the helmet most of the day.
"Yes, we are," he said with a nod. "Sir Aldric Valen."
He gestured toward the towering figure beside him.
"This is Gromm."
The massive rock man bowed his head politely.
"It is a pleasure to meet you."
His voice was deep but gentle, which caught the group slightly off guard. At over nine feet tall and built like a walking fortress, his polite demeanor contrasted sharply with his intimidating appearance.
Aldric then gestured toward the third member.
"And this is Lily."
The small gothic girl stood quietly beside them, holding an enormous black scythe. She wore a dark schoolgirl-style uniform trimmed with lace and ribbons.
She didn't smile.
In fact, Bunny wondered if she had ever smiled in her entire life.
Nyxian, on the other hand, was absolutely loving the vibe.
The two goth girls stared at each other.
For Nyxian, the look was pure interest… maybe even lust.
For Lily, it was more curiosity mixed with complete emotional indifference.
"I thought that was you," Aldric said. "Based on the statues and stories we've heard."
He smiled warmly.
"Congratulations on completing the Frost Raid faster than our time. Quite a feat."
Before anyone could respond, a familiar tiny voice interrupted the moment.
Pixelle returned.
"The tree has no respect for fairies!" she complained loudly. "Even I could not convince it to move us up in the line!"
She crossed her arms and huffed.
"Instead it's letting some group called the Crimson Vanguard go next. Probably some half-wit party that has no idea what they're doing and is just delaying us from finishing the raid first."
She paused.
Then looked up.
And noticed the three adventurers standing there.
"…And who are these people?"
Llandra immediately stepped in, her voice calm and diplomatic.
"This is Sir Aldric of the Crimson Vanguard," she said smoothly. "He was just congratulating us on breaking their record in an earlier raid."
Pixelle froze.
The realization hit her instantly.
She had just insulted them directly to their faces.
"Oh!"
She straightened up quickly.
"Hello, Sir Aldric."
She puffed her chest proudly.
"I am Queen Pixelle Starbloom, ruler of the Fairy Kingdom."
She remained in her tiny three-inch form as she introduced herself.
Aldric bowed respectfully, holding his helmet under his arm.
"It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness."
Pixelle smirked slightly at the respectful gesture from such a large human.
She liked when "big people" respected her authority.
Even if her attention remained firmly locked on Jax.
At that moment, Jax returned from the registration tablet and joined the group.
Llandra spoke immediately.
"This is my husband, Jax Darquebane. Leader of our group."
She deliberately emphasized the words my husband.
The statement was aimed directly at Pixelle.
A subtle reminder.
A royal declaration.
Pixelle's wings twitched slightly.
Perhaps it was simply rivalry.
The other Vixens, however, seemed far less concerned about Pixelle's obvious fascination with Jax.
And Jax himself remained completely oblivious.
While he was a master flirt when business required it—negotiating deals, securing trade agreements, charming merchants—he was still remarkably clueless when someone genuinely liked him.
Aldric extended his hand.
Jax met it halfway, pulling him into a warrior's embrace.
"It's mighty fine to meet such a legendary group as yours," Jax said warmly.
Aldric chuckled.
"Your group has made quite the name for itself in a very short time."
He nodded respectfully.
"I congratulate you on your accomplishments."
The two men spoke easily, not as rivals but as fellow adventurers.
They seemed to genuinely enjoy each other's company.
The Vixens watched with confusion.
They viewed the Crimson Vanguard as competition.
Enemies even.
Why was Jax chatting with them like old friends?
But Jax wasn't discussing raid strategies.
Instead, he asked something surprisingly mundane.
"When you guys took on the Frost Raid and had to camp overnight," Jax asked, "how did you handle that?"
Aldric groaned.
"Miserably."
"We split our group between multiple tents," he said. "But Gromm can't exactly fit in one."
He glanced toward the rock giant.
"And he snores loud enough to wake a mountain."
Gromm looked offended at first.
Then he smiled sheepishly.
"I am a mouth breather."
Jax laughed.
Over the next hour, the two groups talked casually.
Jax explained the concept of dimensional storage tents.
Sadly, he didn't have any available to sell.
But he handed Aldric a small business card.
"If you're ever in Solmere, stop by this shop."
He handed another card as well.
"This one is for Barb."
"She's the one who built our carriage."
Aldric studied the card curiously.
"She might be able to build one for your group too."
Then, two hours later, a loud alarm echoed across the campsite.
A glowing notification appeared above the raid entrance.
NEXT PARTY PREPARE FOR ENTRY
GATE OPENING IN TWO MINUTES
The mood instantly shifted.
Aldric stood.
"So it begins."
Jax and Aldric clasped hands once more.
Then Jax did something unexpected.
He walked over to the rest of the Crimson Vanguard.
One by one, he shook each member's hand.
Memorizing their names.
"Tharok," the human off-tank.
"Stormfang," the twin-blade striker.
"Brakka," the massive orc wielding twin axes.
"Selene," the elven archer.
"Darius," the fire mage.
"Talia," the ice mage.
"Riven," the scout.
"Orin," the support mage.
"Sister Elowen," the healer.
"Mira," the light mage.
"Cassian," the bard.
"Lily," the silent scythe wielder.
Some greeted him warmly.
Others looked suspicious.
Several clearly shared the Vixens' opinion.
Why would someone befriend their competition?
Finally, Jax stepped back and spoke sincerely.
"At the end of the day," he said, "the world gets stronger when raids like this are completed."
He nodded respectfully.
"I wish you success."
Then he added quietly,
"But more importantly… I wish you all a safe return."
No one could argue with that.
Even if some still doubted his sincerity.
Moments later, the gate began to open.
The bark of the World Tree shifted and split apart, revealing a glowing passageway within.
The Crimson Vanguard moved immediately.
They entered in a disciplined formation, each member taking their assigned position like a perfectly trained unit.
One by one they marched inside.
The gate sealed shut behind them.
And just like that…
The Crimson Vanguard had a two-day head start.
Now the Vixens—and Jax—had to figure out how they were going to pass the time.