Brian’s words carried no hint of provocation.
They were as calm and casual as inviting an old friend to share a drink.
But Liz’s gaze was fixed squarely on Red’s face.
It was as if the air itself froze, the surrounding clamor sealed away by an invisible barrier, leaving only a chill and oppression in this corner.
“I heard from Red that your people from Dawnblade like to drink red wine. Here.”
Brian slid a glass of wine toward Liz, but she didn’t take it, ignoring Brian’s words as if he were nothing but irrelevant air before her.
She lifted her chin slightly, proud as a princess.
“Red.”
Her voice was soft, yet brooked no argument.
Just a name, but it was as much a command as any order.
Seeing this, Brian at Red’s side understood what it must have been like for Red at Dawnblade.
“You don’t belong here.”
Back in Dawnblade, Liz had never allowed Red to attend these kinds of banquets.
No one knew her reasons.
Letia guessed it was perhaps out of worry that Red’s looks would attract too much attention.
Of course, that was only Letia’s guess.
“Why?”
Red put down his wine glass and looked at the girl before him.
Meeting Liz again, she was still just the same.
She was once his closest companion, also his best friend.
He’d cheered for her when she was chosen as Hero, and worked side by side with her in Dawnblade.
When he’d been lost about his future, she’d pulled him up from the ground.
It was also her who led him to become an Artificer.
Once, Liz had smiled at him with genuine joy.
Once, he’d been willing to entrust his back to this very girl.
By every feeling and reason, Red was sincerely grateful to Liz.
But… all of that was in the past now.
At some point, Liz’s attitude toward delving the dungeons had changed.
She became obsessed.
Forward…
Forward…
Always pressing forward without pause…
He had sacrificed so much to help her.
She was dissatisfied with his slow progress, and he grew exhausted from the mounting pressure of that life.
Even if not for what happened on the twenty-third floor, their parting was only a matter of time.
Maybe, to her, he was the one who’d betrayed her.
Seeing Red’s silence, Liz continued coldly.
“The Gilded Chamber of Commerce didn’t invite you, did they?”
Since her own invitation had Red’s name on it, Red shouldn’t have received a separate one.
Before Red could answer, Brian burst out laughing.
“Hahahaha!!”
Liz’s face went cold as ice at the man’s unrestrained laughter.
“What are you laughing at?”
“I just remembered something funny…”
Brian downed his wine in one gulp and said cheerfully, “Miss Liz, don’t you know what this banquet is for?”
“To promote magitek devices.”
“Exactly, you do know.”
Brian wiped the smile from his face.
“So, since you know, why are you asking how Red ended up here?”
“What are you talking about?”
Liz’s mind still hadn’t caught up.
But then Brian pulled a silver object from his pocket.
Seeing it, Liz froze.
She knew what it was.
A small mechanical device that Red had developed.
But why was it in Brian’s hand?
Wait…
Liz was no fool; she now understood what this banquet was actually promoting.
Brian, seeing the look on Liz’s face, couldn’t help but laugh again.
“Looks like the clever Miss Liz finally figured it out? This banquet is to promote the Bloodhound Hunter Spider that Red developed, so why would the star of the show need an invitation?”
This time, Brian’s smile was a little mocking, even derisive.
“But I’ll say this, Red’s little gadget is really amazing—I had no idea Dawnblade had something this useful.”
Red, silent to the side, thought Brian sounded almost like a cuckold.
What did he mean, “my little gadget”?
Damn…
“Our Blood Legion already placed an order for thirty units. Even Radiance of the Firmament, with their noses in the air, couldn’t resist buying ten for a trial.”
Liz clenched her fists tight.
“This spider is clearly a simplified, stripped-down version.”
“I know that, of course.”
Instead of being annoyed, Brian only grinned wider.
“But for something that fits in your palm, it’s incredible at scouting, searching for people, and treasure-hunting.”
“I can only imagine how smooth and easy things must have been when Dawnblade used the ‘full version’.”
Brian didn’t say it outright, but Red could tell what he was really thinking.
Always wanted to see that look—your jealous face.
Red found it hard to watch any longer, genuinely worrying that hot-tempered Liz might draw her sword right here.
Not because he was afraid of a fight, but because it would spoil the mood of the banquet.
According to Otto, Litt would also be coming after her duties at the convent.
It would be a shame to ruin the atmosphere.
“All right, Brian, that’s enough.”
Red patted Brian on the shoulder, and at the same time gave Liz a way out.
“Your teammates are looking for you. You should go—they’re the ones you should cherish most. Don’t make them wait too long.”
“Hmph…”
Liz, still scowling, gave a cold snort at Red’s words, then turned on her heel and walked away.
Watching her go, Red picked up his wine glass and poured himself another drink.
“To us.”
“You’re just going to let her go like that?”
“We’re not really friends anymore, but we’re not enemies either. No need for anything more.”
***
Elsewhere, Letia suddenly felt a stabbing pain in her mind.
Then a long string of images and text flashed through her head.
To summarize: it was the classic “show off and slap face” scene.
Except the one whose face got slapped was Liz.
The problem was…
Liz had already come back, scowling!
Was this cursed script really supposed to be a cheat?
Letia felt like she had a mouthful of old blood stuck in her chest, neither able to spit it out nor swallow it down, left to grumble furiously at all the useless “outdated scripts” flooding her mind.
Shouldn’t it have let her know the plot in advance?
And what happened?
By the time the drama was over, the melon was cold, the face-slapping scene wrapped up, and the script finally showed up late.
What use was that!
As Letia was grumbling about missing out on the gossip, her communication crystal rang.
She picked it up and saw an unfamiliar number.
“Hello?”
She wasn’t sure who was calling, but Letia answered anyway.
“Is this Miss Letia? Please come to the lounge on the second floor, the president of the Gilded Chamber of Commerce said someone is looking for you.”