Chapter 38
"Oh hey Zen!" Rina called out as she spotted the newbie walking downstairs, occasionally yawning and rubbing his forehead due to the immense headache.
'This hall has really been through a lot. It's used as a quest hall, a drinking bar, a party hall, and now a dinner hall?' Zen thought as he scanned the room, taking in all the clan members happily seated at the different tables, eating their meals and chatting with one another.
The atmosphere was lively, filled with laughter, clinking cutlery, and the aroma of freshly cooked food wafting through the air.
Hearing his name, he strode forward to see Rina seated beside a bulky man who had his huge hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her and her chair closer.
"Hi Zen. How are you today?" Rina asked with a small smile.
"I should be fine, but I woke up with a banging headache and some dudes in my room," Zen replied, massaging his forehead slightly.
"Oh, you will get used to it soon," Rina chuckled cutely before her eyes widened and she facepalmed herself. "Right. Let me introduce you both. Zen, meet my boyfriend, my love, my life, and my darling boo boo bear, Renzo." She pointed at the bulky man beside her, who in turn waved at Zen with a warm smile.
"And Renzo, meet..."
"Zen, the newbie. Come on babe, who doesn't know him here? Wasn't it because of him that we got a party yesterday and got to spend all night long with one another?" Renzo chuckled, flashing a friendly grin at Zen.
"Nice to meet you, Renzo," Zen said, stretching out his hand. Renzo met it with a firm handshake and a reassuring smile.
"Anyway, I'm so famished. Mind if I grab something from your plate while I go get my food?" Zen asked, rubbing his hair slightly.
"Feel free. We are all family after all," Renzo replied, pointing at his plate and Rina's.
"Family, huh," Zen muttered with a sigh before grabbing a steak from Renzo's plate and running off while shouting, "Thanks for the steak!"
"Anytime," Renzo replied with a small smile.
"He sure is a good kid, right?" Rina asked.
"Yeah. Unlike that ungrateful punk who rose to power and forgot about us all," Renzo said with a stern frown.
"Come on, babe. Thought you might have forgotten about that by now," Rina sighed, rubbing Renzo's chest affectionately.
"How could I forget the humiliation I faced from that cocky kid? And I can't do anything because he is now a B ranker. Tch!" Renzo scoffed angrily.
"It's all fine. Here, have some dumplings," Rina said, stretching the food towards Renzo. He just sighed, took a bite, and smiled. "Yummy, right?"
"Yeah. Especially since it came from your hands," Renzo said, smiling widely.
"Oh stop," Rina giggled, and the duo happily ate their meal, chatting and laughing together. Meanwhile, Zen was in front of the food counter, getting ready to dish his plate while sneaking bites from the steak he had snatched from Renzo's plate.
"Zen, right?" A voice called from behind him. His eyes widened in shock, and his heart thumped loudly. He could never forget that voice.
He slowly turned around, his hand clutching the plate tighter, almost dropping it in surprise. Standing before him was a handsome young man that seemed blessed by the gods.
Slick, combed-back blonde hair framed his face, and his deep blue eyes swirled like the ocean itself. He had a tall, slightly bulky frame, standing around six feet, and a radiant smile that seemed to light up the entire room.
"Hi. I'm—"
"Jace," Zen replied automatically, his hands clenched tightly. This was the figure the system had warned him about: a player, not some NPC.
His pulse raced as he realized he was finally face to face with someone he had been anticipating, the presence of which made the room feel both smaller and more charged with energy.
Zen could feel a strange mixture of excitement and apprehension bubbling in his chest as he braced himself for what might come next.
"Oh! You still remember me?" Jace asked with a small chuckle while running his fingers through his slick blonde hair.
"How can I? You left a memorable notification in my mind," Zen replied, forcing a smile as he tried to hide his curiosity.
"Notification?" Jace asked, raising an eyebrow.
'Doesn't he have a system too? I thought since my system notified me that he was a player, his own system would have notified him as well.
Unless… he doesn't have one?' Zen thought with wide eyes as he stared at Jace repeatedly, trying to read any hints in his expression.
"Anyway, I'm not one for too many words. I'm here to recruit you for a gate raid," Jace said with a wide, confident smile.
"A raid? Recruit me? Why is that? Why me out of everybody else?" Zen asked, raising an eyebrow. The actions of this player felt slightly suspicious, but the opportunity was intriguing.
"Because we need a minimum of six members for this raid. I already have five, and I need you to make us six. Besides, I approached you because one of the members I recruited spoke highly of you. So here I am," Jace replied calmly.
"Huh? One of your members spoke highly of me?" Zen asked, tilting his head slightly in surprise.
"Yes. I think you both participated in a raid together. Her name is Aria, if I'm not mistaken," Jace added, scratching the back of his head.
"Oh." Zen simply replied, taking a bite of the steak from his plate and chewing thoughtfully as he kept his eyes fixed on Jace. "I'm not saying I want to join yet. But just in case, what is this gate rank?"
"It's just a C rank. You have nothing to worry about. Our team will comprise four C rankers: three of us as damage dealers, Aria as support, and the last C ranker as the healer," Jace explained with a confident smile.
'A C rank gate, huh? That means we will face D rank beasts and a C rank boss. Perfect for leveling up and racking up points,' Zen thought.
'I currently have 30 MP from a previous mission. This raid gives 70 more points, which will bring me to a hundred. Just 300 points more to officially become a C ranker. This is a solid opportunity.
I'm definitely strong enough to handle some D rank beasts. I can gather a lot of XP while the others deal with the boss. And I can study this Jace to figure out more about him. Nice. This is a win-win situation.' Zen's grin widened as he considered the advantages.
"Judging by that wide smile on your face, you're in?" Jace asked, clearly amused by Zen's reaction.
"Yeah, sure. But I need to finish my meal first," Zen replied, hurriedly scooping food into his mouth.
"That's fine. We leave in an hour. That will give everyone time to prepare and gather here. Meet in front of the quest board in an hour. Don't be late," Jace instructed before turning to leave the hall, allowing Zen to eat in peace.
'He seems trustworthy, but I need to study him more to know if he is friend or foe. This raid gives me the perfect chance to do that,' Zen thought with a sly grin as he continued digging into his meal, savoring every bite while mentally planning his strategy for the upcoming gate raid.