"Boss, are we just going to let him go like that?"
A hint of confusion appeared on Abi’s somewhat naive face.
He lowered the wooden shield with iron edges from his front, still holding the recently purchased one-handed sword in his right hand.
A few minutes ago, they faced that sharp-featured and imposing cold black-haired adventurer.
The scene reached a stalemate.
Even the mist floating in the air seemed to freeze, making him afraid to take a deep breath.
Just when Abi thought he was about to engage in the first "real" battle of his short adventurer career,
Adeline, whom he called "Boss" and was also their team leader, took the initiative to lead them back a few steps.
At the same time, she reversed her grip on the one-handed hammer in her hand, swinging it lightly like a pendulum towards the opponent twice.
Signaling they had no hostility while giving the initiative to the other side.
Adeline, who was fit and short-haired, stood motionless at the forefront of the team.
Her dark brownish-yellow eyes were fixed on the direction where Xia Nan’s figure disappeared.
As if wary of him pretending to leave, only to circle back for a surprise attack on them.
"What else?" Abi only felt a teasing voice coming from behind him.
"If you don’t let him go, what do you want to do?"
The speaker was the last member of the three-person team.
Carrying a longbow, positioned at the back of the team, the shooter "Old Berg".
Despite the "Old" in his name, he was actually only in his thirties or forties.
But his adventuring experience was quite rich.
Allowing the recently joined Abi to learn many useful things.
"Isn’t that what you told me before," Abi scratched his head, his voice gradually lowering under the other’s intense gaze, "When encountering other adventurers in the wild, you should..."
Old Berg deliberately coughed twice, trying to interrupt what was about to be said.
But it was still heard.
Seeing Adeline turn her head, glaring at him fiercely.
Old Berg grinned awkwardly and explained to Abi:
"Well... you have to look at the specific situation."
"Why are you so rigid, you need to be flexible!"
"What’s wrong, was there anything special about that person just now?" Abi had been standing behind Captain Adeline, with his view obstructed by the mist, unable to clearly see the situation on the ground.
His deepest impression of Xia Nan was only the two swords of differing lengths he carried.
"Aren’t you aware of where this place is?"
Seemingly detecting the indifference in Abi’s tone, Berg raised an eyebrow and gestured toward the dense and towering oak trees surrounding them.
"In a place like Mist Forest, a ’Lone Wolf’ daring to enter alone would have perished long ago without some skills."
"What if, I think he looks about the same age as me, it’s possible he heard somewhere that adventuring is profitable and came in impulsively,"
In front of familiar people, the peculiar stubbornness of the young let Abi retort stubbornly.
"You think everyone is like you?" Berg shook his head, and suddenly a hint of seriousness appeared on his face.
"That chain armor is superbly crafted, the details are handled perfectly—a masterpiece from ’Rock Hammer’, at least 50 gold!"
"I’ve never seen that Gray Sword, but it’s definitely not cheap either."
"Expensive equipment doesn’t mean anything, those noble lords of Neum..."
"Think about it again," Berg interrupted the newcomer in front of him, "that armor surface has blood on it, which is not his own."
"The key point is that kind of aura."
"After a battle, a person’s gaze is different from their usual demeanor."
"Like you, a rookie who can’t even hold a sword steadily and hasn’t seen much blood."
"But his kind... tut tut."
"In a place like River Valley Town, you might not feel it walking on the road."
"In a desolate place ... if you had a chance to look into his eyes just now, you would understand everything."
"Really?" Even with the veteran in the team saying so, Abi couldn’t help but feel a bit hesitant, no matter how unconvinced he was, "Is it really that mysterious?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
Berg rolled his eyes at him, not bothering to respond further.
Just as Abi was about to ask more, Adeline, who was in front of the two, finally withdrew her gaze after confirming that Xia Nan had completely left and turned back to say:
Abi immediately fell silent.
However, his expression was not one of fear or terror, but of deep respect mixed with admiration.
The group did not leave immediately.