Chapter 219: Finding Rangar
"Let’s at least pick up some proper quests to work on alongside the fourteen-day quest," Cassandra said, once again taking charge of the group.
They had stopped along one of the academy’s broad stone paths between the nearby stalls and buildings. The Light Tree towered above the rooftops in the distance, while players moved between the shops and training grounds. More than a few slowed down after noticing the unusually striking group gathered beside the road.
Martin was more than happy to let Cassandra handle the planning. His ears perked up, and he focused on her, using the suggestion as an excuse to ignore the women surrounding him.
Katherine stood close on one side, elegant even in her altered appearance, while Elisebeth had claimed most of the space on the other. Cassandra, Alexandra, Annie, and Rias completed the loose circle, leaving Martin feeling far more surrounded than the open path should have allowed.
Keeping his thoughts under control was becoming increasingly difficult. If he continued entertaining those impure ideas, he might eventually convince himself that he actually deserved all of them, and that would only end badly.
Cassandra opened her mouth to continue, only to pause when she noticed him staring directly at her. One hand remained on her hip while the other rose toward a loose strand of hair. Her composed smile faltered slightly, and the silence lasted just long enough for the others to notice.
Annie brightened immediately. Elisebeth caught the hesitation as well, though her reaction was considerably less cheerful.
"Elder Sister?" she prompted.
"Ah!" Annie leaned out from behind Rias. "You call Elder Sister ’Elder Sister’ too?!"
Elisebeth turned toward her, and Annie beamed back.
"Hehe, the more, the merrier."
"Isn’t your family already huge?" Elisebeth asked.
"Hehe! It is!" Annie replied. "That’s why the more, the merrier!"
Cassandra’s expression tightened slightly. To Annie, the comment was harmless, but Elisebeth knew how complicated Cassandra’s relationship with her family was. They had spoken about it before, and Cassandra had even changed her surname and distanced herself from her relatives to keep them out of danger.
She had made that choice for their sake, so she could not treat the subject lightly. Her family was not a funny story or a convenient part of her past. They were people she had chosen to protect by leaving them behind.
Martin noticed the change in her expression. Her shoulders remained straight and her chin stayed level, yet the hand near her hair had gone still.
A quiet cough cut Annie off.
Her smile softened when she caught the warning. After giving Cassandra a small nod, she slipped back behind Rias without asking any more questions.
Rias glanced over her shoulder. "Could you stop treating me like a wall?"
Annie placed both hands on her shoulders and peeked around her again. "You’re a very curvaceous wall that anyone would love to hide behind. Please don’t mind me! Haha!"
While Rias stared at her, Martin pressed his lips together to keep from laughing. Annie remained completely unbothered and continued smiling until Rias finally sighed and gave up. Arguing would only encourage her.
The distraction gave Cassandra enough time to collect herself. She tucked the loose strand of hair behind her ear, though her fingers lingered there for a moment before falling back to her side.
"We need to get as many Night Espresso members as possible into the Level Sixty Hidden Dungeon," she said.
Her voice had returned to normal, but she did not look at Martin again.
Alexandra folded her arms beneath her chest. "Got any ideas?"
"We know someone who understands the Light Tree’s dungeons better than most, don’t we?" Cassandra asked with a knowing smile.
No one answered right away because they had all pictured the same cheerful NPC, a man with endless energy and an alarming talent for picking up modern slang.
Martin chuckled once he realized who she meant. "Rangar might know something, but finding him won’t be easy."
"He spends half his time near the Light Tree and the other half chasing new players around the academy," Rias said. "That narrows it down more than you think."
"Unless someone says something interesting somewhere else," Alexandra added. "Then he’ll appear there first."
Annie peeked around Rias’s shoulder again. "He sounds fun."
"He is," Martin said. "Until he learns a new word and uses it ten times in the same conversation."
"That sounds even more fun," Annie replied.
Elisebeth glanced toward the Light Tree. "Even if Rangar can’t get anyone inside, he might know who can help. He seems to know everyone."
Cassandra nodded. "Exactly. I’m not expecting him to ignore the dungeon’s requirements for us. I want information. If the Light Tree has a condition we haven’t found yet, someone connected to the academy might know where to start."
The fourteen-day deadline had sounded generous at first, but the dungeon’s remaining ninety percent made it anything but comfortable. Every day spent searching for access was a day they could not spend exploring, and Cassandra clearly had no intention of leaving everything until the final few days.
"We should also take quests while we search," she continued. "Standing around asking everyone about one dungeon will draw attention. We may learn more by helping the right people."
"Finally, a plan that includes hitting something," Rias said.
Alexandra’s lips curved. "You were getting bored?"
"I’ve been standing here while everyone stares at us."
That was true. Some players slowed to a crawl as they passed, while others stopped at the stalls and pretended to inspect the same items for far too long.
Annie leaned closer to Rias. "See? A wall is useful."
Rias ignored her.
"We have the whole evening to look for him," Katherine said.
She moved a little closer to Martin before adding casually, "And after that, we’ll all be alone."
His imagination betrayed him at once. An evening with six women already sounded dangerous, and Katherine had somehow made the words all alone sound far more suggestive than they should have.
Martin swallowed before answering. "Yeah..."
The group went quiet as the women turned toward him one by one. Elisebeth’s eyes sharpened, Cassandra narrowed hers, and Rias raised an eyebrow while waiting for him to explain himself. Annie only looked curious, which somehow made everything worse.
Katherine wore an innocent smile that fooled no one, while Alexandra studied him with far too much amusement. Martin straightened and turned his attention toward the passing players as the others stared daggers at him.
Several nearby players immediately pretended they had not been watching.