Chapter 25 : Stranger
QueenBee, in real life, returned to the villa where she lived with her family.
She heaved a loud sigh as she couldn't shake off the image of Khan from her head.
Why was she thinking about him that much even?
QueenBee did not have any answers to this question.
"Why does my sweet, little Crystal look so annoyed today?" a young man's voice came into her ears.
Hearing the concerned words, QueenBee, whose real name was Crystal, quickly changed her facial expression to look normal but she was already caught.
Crystal looked at the young man and smiled a little bit. "I'm not angry though."
The young man crossed his arms over his chest and inclined backwards, gaping at Crystal with eyes of disbelief.
"I met Khan today, Trey."
Trey was Crystal's brother and someone who also had a shared interest in New Eden.
Naturally, the topic of Khan would be something that interested him too.
Trey was shocked. "Khan…?"
Crystal nodded her head again, affirmation what she had said earlier.
She went ahead to narrate the entire event to him, easily piquing her brother's attention.
Trey walked over to where Crystal sat on her bed, gently ruffling her hair while commending her for the work she had done.
"Good work, my sweet sister," Trey said. "At least, now we can narrow down our plan to your novice village."
"And those guys…"
"Grand Nexus?" Crystal scoffed and then chuckled. "He rejected their offer."
"Hahaha! The balls of him," Trey could not help but blurted, impressed by how bold this Khan person was.
"Looks like he really is no pushover."
Crystal shook her head. "He's not."
"Were you able to win him over then."
Silence.
There was a sudden pause in their conversation, as if Crystal needed that question to sink into her head first before answering.
She heaved a sigh.
"He refused my extension of friendship."
"What?"
Trey was shocked.
Theirs was a family that everyone wanted something to do with even down to their involvement with the military.
Yet, this Khan person dared to reject his sister's offer of alliance, someone who was tired of people wanting to be her friend.
Indeed, she had tried her luck to befriend Khan but the latter truly refused, discharging her interest.
Trey paced back and forth the room for a while as if thinking about something serious.
"Crystal…" he called out to his sister.
"Yes?"
"I will connect you with the military rep in your novice village. We need Khan as an asset, at least that's what father and grandfather believe, and seeing that he already had brushes with a major guild, he may need our help."
Crystal rolled her eyes. "Trust me, I don't think he needs us one bit."
"Whether he does or does not… that's not the problem right now."
Trey seemed to have an idea of why someone like Axton (Khan) was important to the ruling power, though this idea was vague.
One thing was sure about was that someone like Axton needed to be on their side against the foretold destruction of the world.
Nothing else mattered.
For Crystal to be interested in this person, it meant that there was a high probability that he was really Khan.
Strength was admirable to both friend and foe.
'To be this strong so early. It's possible that he has an S rank talent,' Trey thought deeply, 'and not just any random S rank talent. It has to be one that everybody should be wary of.'
Turning his attention to his sister, Trey noticed how she was still drawn deep into her own thoughts. He guessed it was still about Khan and wondered if what she narrated was truly all that happened.
'Hmm. There's no way she likes him,' Trey wondered. 'She definitely does have a thing for strong people but when even stronger people emerge, this interest will die off.'
******
(Grand Nexus Guild Base, Novice Village #666)
Silva and some of his guild members were gathered around a table for a meeting.
The matter being discussed was about the same player — Khan.
The Grand Nexus, however, spoke about Khan from a different perspective now.
*Bang*
Silva smashed his fist on the table in front of him.
"That bastard almost embarrassed us in front of the entire village. There's no way he will get away with it."
"It's possible he has an S rank talent," another added. "Such an attitude is something that can come from having one."
"And so bloody what?!" Silva snapped right back. "We also have an S rank talent."
He beat his chest proudly. "I, myself, have an A rank talent."
"So what are your orders?"
Silva sat back down on his chair. "We already have someone watching him but that won't do. Send more people."
"Yes."
The bad blood between Axton and the Grand Nexus was boiling faster than both parties could handle.
At this point, a clash between the two sides was looking inevitable.
******
Meanwhile, Axton had abandoned the idea of coffee now and forever.
He came to understand the way that it was either your thing or it was not.
He decided to have a proper meal and return back home to continue playing New Eden.
There was so much time in his hands after all, since he was jobless.
Now that New Eden has changed his life, especially in matters of his finances, he is definitely going to devote more time to it.
He looked at the mysterious bracelet as he laid down on his bed.
The bracelet reappeared when he logged out and disappeared once he was in the world of New Eden.
[Welcome back, Khan]
The mechanical AI-like voice greeted him as he logged back in.
Axton instantly appeared in the novice village.
'I should level up my beast, along with some other things,' he thought.
He was considering options of growing his character to be even better when a voice interrupted him.
"Good day, young man," the man greeted politely. "How are you doing?"
Seeing what was displayed above his head, Axton's eyes grew a little extra wide from surprise.