"Tell me you’re kidding," Arnar said, turning to face me in disbelief.
Not bothering to answer, I took out my phone, pulled up the documents, and handed it over.
"Read for yourself."
I shook my head in dismay as Arnar snatched the phone from my hand with surprising enthusiasm.
I made sure they read the original documents themselves. That way, when the joint venture inevitably failed, they couldn’t blame me for misleading them.
"I now understand how Mille felt. This is better than a multi-billion-denar lottery," Arnar remarked, handing my phone back before starting the car and pulling onto the road. "I can’t believe I’m driving around a big shot."
"Look who’s speaking," I shot back. "It’s my honor to be driven around by the Hero of Skyonee."
"No, it’s my honor."
"No, no, it’s my honor."
Amidst our banter we had reached our destination without realizing it. She had brought me the A-rank Torcano Dungeon in Avery’s neighborhood.
As I got out of the car, Arnar teased, "Do you need help, or do you expect me to open the door for you, Mr. Big Shot?"
"How dare I, a commoner, trouble Ms. Hero with such things?"
I stepped out of the car, and the doors automatically closed behind me.
Yep, we continued that nonsense for the entire journey. Currently, I was beginning to think Arnar was being passive aggressive toward me for tricking her on the deal.
"Phwew-it!"
"Damitri, has the next raid started already?" Arnar asked after whistling at the Hunter monitoring the monster gate.
"Not yet, guild leader," Damitri answered, recognizing the voice even before turning around to spot Arnar, wiping the sweat from his forehead as heat radiated from the monster gate behind him.
"Great. Call off the team. I’ll take the next raid with Mr. Big Shot here. And go fetch me an item with summoning skills for him," Arnar ordered.
Seeing Damitri still standing there hesitantly, she snapped impatiently, "What are you waiting for? Move it, da-vay!"
"So, using a summon while raiding a high-rank dungeon gets you the Summoner class," I said, subtly eyeing the Enmity Chemical drums bearing the Chimera Chemicals logo, along with their staff working among the Valorant Guild Hunters.
"There are many other ways, but this one is the easiest and quickest, just like you asked, Mr. Big Shot," Arnar replied, leading me toward rows upon rows of container offices, labs, and quarters. "Come on. Let’s get you registered as a hunter through Valorant guild and properly geared up for the raid, so you don’t shrivel up the moment you step into the gate."
"Is it really that hot in there?" I expected the habitat of A-rank Torcano monsters to be scorching, but not to the point where someone could dry up just by stepping through the gate.
"It’s an A-rank gate with volcanic terrain. The air in there is hot enough to air-fry a thirty-pound turkey in seconds."
Arnar’s tone made me wonder if they had actually air-fried an entire turkey in there. Before I could ask her about it, a sudden shout caught our attention.
"Arnar!"
"Wait, right there!"
I turned to find a tall redhead in a lab coat running toward us with a furious expression. My eyes, however, were glued to her chest as it swayed with every step. It was mesmerizing enough that I found it difficult to look away, but Arnar’s words quickly snapped me out of it.
"Like what you see? They’re one hundred percent natural."
"You speak as if you’ve experienced them," I said, composing both my expression and my thoughts.
"Your little top would blow right off if I said yes, wouldn’t it?" Arnar mocked with a grin.
"What do you take me for?" I immediately protested, though my eyes couldn’t help but dart toward the redhead’s massive assets as she approached.
"Arnar, how dare you call off the raid to help some rich asshole acquire the Summoner class when you know we only have three days left to prepare for the demonstration? The professor is completely losing his mind over there. If he weren’t stuck in the lab making arrangements, you’d be hearing from him right now."
Catching up with us, the redhead didn’t waste any time giving Arnar a piece of her mind.
Up close, her entire figure was even more devastating. She was tall, with pale, clear skin, symmetrical features, and a voice lovely enough to make me forgive her for calling me a rich asshole.
"Dr. Grace, the professor said the demonstration would go a lot smoother with the Hindinberg’s Gargoyle Heavy Tiltrotor aircraft, right?" Arnar asked.
Grace nodded in agreement as Arnar moved toward me, placing her hands on my shoulders, she continued, "This rich asshole here is willing to sell us one for a third of the market price if we help him acquire the Summoner class in preparation for his duel with Julian Reinfield tonight."
"Oh." Grace nodded, then quickly apologized. "I’m sorry. Please don’t take my words to heart. We appreciate your generous help and wish you the best for your duel."
Their words, combined with the fact that both women were taller than me, sent my thoughts wandering into a rather dark place. Fortunately, noticing the difference in our heights meant I could easily crash my head into their god-given airbags, quickly drew me back to the light.
Also, I wasn’t short, those two were simply too tall. Most high ranking hunters were tall with an athlete’s bod, it was the effect of leveling their class, their growing stats, and various skills.