Max felt the immediate spike of hostility. The young man glared at Arlen and the others with open disdain, as though their mere presence was an offense. His hair, streaked with faint blue lightning, seemed to spark slightly as his emotions flared.
Arlen held his ground, his voice even but guarded. "Nothing. Just exploring the region," he replied coolly.
"Exploring the region?" Gyser scoffed, his sneer deepening. He spread his arms theatrically as though addressing a crowd. "For your information, our young master is currently also exploring the deeper areas of the Berserk Lightning Region. And we—" he motioned to the group of Thunder Monarch disciples clustered behind him, "—are gatekeeping. So I'm afraid I can't let you and your people go any further past this point."
Max stood there, his eyes narrowed into slits as sparks of faint blue lightning crackled around his fingertips, his senses stretched taut like a bowstring.
