The place that was selected for the dinner was a lot fancier than expected. Just a few minutes walk from the main Guild, the restaurant that was selected was a fancy Japanese restaurant.
A large tatami mat covered the entire floor, with several wooden tables spread throughout the room. Recruits and members sat at each one, surrounded by bottles of alcohol and an assortment of dishes.
“Wow, there are a lot of people.”
It was also relatively lively.
The moment we came in, all sorts of eyes fell in our general direction. Or to be more precise, in Kyle’s direction.
He was like the star of some sort of show, gaining the attention of everyone.
Seeing how much attention he was getting, I stepped to the side and tried my best to be as small as possible, but…
Giiiiii—
I felt a certain gaze pierce me from the side.
I didn’t need to look to know who it was as I promptly ignored her.
Cra Crack!
“Uh?”
“Careful! The glass broke!”
“What sort of glass is this?!”
“Someone, please help!”
Even as the sound of something shattering echoed, I remained steadfast. I was inwardly shivering, though.
To be able to break a glass with her bare hands…
’Get me out of here.’
“Hey, let’s sit over here.”
Kyle pointed towards a certain table and dragged me over. Thankfully, there weren’t many people at the table. There were a couple whom I was unfamiliar with, and that was good enough for me.
Besides Kyle, I pretty much wanted nothing to do with anyone within the Guild.
“Why do you look so tense? This is just a regular dinner party. All you really have to do is eat and drink.”
“…I can see that.”
It was practically what everyone was doing.
But…
Wasn’t everyone just drinking a little too much? I looked around, and I could already see some people taking several shots.
Wasn’t it a little too early for that?
The dinner had yet to start…
“Don’t worry about them. This is normal.”
“What?”
“Well, the things we see during our work… Many of us want to forget, so that’s pretty much why most people here drown themselves with alcohol. Don’t worry about them. They’ll be back to normal in a day or two.” \
“Really?”
Staring at one of the people and seeing the glaring black circles beneath their eyes, I struggled to believe him.
They looked even deader than me.
’And here I thought that was hard.’
Seems like I had overestimated myself.
“Hello.”
A soft voice pulled me out of my thoughts. When I turned, I saw a small girl with a bowl-cut hairstyle and a cute face. She looked at me shyly, and I felt my heart skip a beat.
Could it be that she’s…
“You’re here for Kyle, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t even hesitate as she looked at him. He was busy talking with someone else at the moment. Wait, looking carefully, wasn’t the table a little surrounded?
’Oh, fuck.’
“Here.”
I didn’t even hesitate and just stood up from my seat.
’I can see things will escalate soon enough. It’s best if I leave before it’s too late.’
“Thank you. Thank you.”
The girl thanked me a couple of times before taking the seat.
I merely nodded at her before looking around.
Now then…
Where should I sit?
As I scanned my surroundings, my gaze eventually fell onto a certain table.
Eventually, our eyes met, and I sighed.
’Well, it’s at least better than being with Kyle.’
And so, I calmly walked towards the first-year recruits’ table, where Myles was located, as he waved at me.
“It’s nice seeing you here. I didn’t think you’d come.”
***
’Like I thought, I just don’t like him.’
Zoey’s gaze continued to bear holes towards the distant figure as he nonchalantly moved around the restaurant before settling down at another table. The more she looked at him, the less she liked him.
She tried.
She really tried to ignore him and forget about everything.
And yet…
Somehow, someway, he always seems to know exactly what kind of buttons he needs to push in order to piss her off.
And the worst part? He wasn’t even trying.
It was like he’d been born with a gift for getting under her skin.
“Ugh.”
If not for the fact that he was with Kyle, she really wouldn’t have been able to stand him.
’I should just be mature about it and—’
“Is something bothering you, Zoey?”
A soft, charming voice pulled her from her thoughts. When she turned, her eyes met a young man with brown hair and clear blue eyes. He was undeniably handsome, and as he looked at her, a gentle smile played on his lips.
Zoey’s lips twitched at the sight of him.
’Not him again.’
He was someone she was somewhat familiar with. He belonged to a year lower than her, and he was a somewhat promising recruit.
Rowan was it?
She couldn’t really remember.
“How can I help you?”
Zoey still decided to smile.
“I was just ah… I just wanted to say hi. You kind of looked lost in thought there. Did that guy perhaps annoy you?”
Rowan’s gaze fell on the distant Seth as he laughed.
“You were kind of glaring at him the entire time.”
“Ah, yeah.”
Zoey scratched the back of her head.
Was she that obvious?
“What did he do? It’s rare to see you angry.”
“It’s nothing.”
Zoey dismissed him with her hand.
“Just some petty stuff.”
“…Is that so?”
Despite her words, he didn’t really let go of the topic.
“I’ve never seen him before. Is he a new recruit?”
“No, just an observer or something like that.”
“An observer?”
Rowan’s face turned weird.
“What is he doing here?”
“He just got in and stuff. Something like that, yeah.”
Zoey was trying her best to show her disinterest by answering vaguely and shortly. And yet, Rowan didn’t seem to get the hint at all.
Rather…
“Do you want me to help you?”
“What?”
Zoey’s head snapped towards Rowan as he looked back at her.
“Just say the word. If he’s annoying you, then I can, you know… Do something.”
“What in the…”
Zoey’s brows furrowed tightly.
Help? What do you mean help? Did he really think she needed help for matters like this?
Sure, Seth did annoy her, but it wasn’t like she planned on doing anything about it. She was petty, but not that petty.
’I guess there are disadvantages to my appearance.’
Zoey knew at heart the reason why Rowan had approached her and asked about Seth.
She wasn’t that dumb.
It was obviously because he liked her.
But yeah… She wasn’t really interested.
Zoey was true to her goal. She didn’t plan on engaging in any romance until she accomplished her goal.
And so, she just found his presence rather annoying.
She was just about to answer back when…
“Hahaha, looks like everyone is here.”
The door of the room opened, and the Section Chief entered, alongside him were the other team leaders of the Containment Sector.
Immediately, the room fell silent as all eyes fell on them.
This was the first time that they had seen all team leaders present, alongside the Section Chief.
This wasn’t going to be a regular dinner, was it?