Chapter 79: Loot’s Time
Bob’s face flushed red with embarrassment, and he quickly turned away, pretending to be interested in something else.
I chose to ignore him and stepped forward, bowing my head slightly toward Alice.
"Thank you, Alice, for helping us."
Alice smiled, her expression softening.
"Now this is a polite gentleman. You’re welcome, my dear," she said, winking her left eye at me.
My face turned bright red. She’s too beautiful when she does that...
Beltimore cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses.
"It seems both of you managed to complete the trial, even if things got a little messy toward the end," he said. "But I’ll admit, you both pulled off something extraordinary. We honestly didn’t expect you to take down all those beasts."
"Good job recognizing their weakness. And Alan..."he looked directly at me and paused, his voice more sincere now, "I want to apologize for underestimating you. You’ve proven yourself to be a force to be reckoned with. Like they say, ranking isn’t the true measure of strength."
Hearing that made something swell in my chest. I could not help but feel just a little proud.
I could not even remember the last time I was praised. Even back at the office, my boss only ever complimented me when he was about to dump more work on my desk. So I developed a bit of trauma whenever someone praised me. But coming from Beltimore... it felt different.