Chapter 226: Rhayne Burst Into Tears

After Max made his speech, the citizens found it difficult to calm down until Lieutenant Garrick himself had to order them to return to the underground shelter.

The citizens complied, as the threat of the monsters still persisted.

But with the appearance of Max, who was obviously a B-rank as well, why would they still fear?

They were already smiling by the time they returned to their families hiding in the underground shelter.

At the same time, Lieutenant Garrick and the others accompanied Max as they slowly proceeded toward the southern post, where monsters continued to loom in the far distance.

Inevitably, Max had to pass by Julian, who was growling at him like a startled cat.

Max simply cast an indifferent glance at Julian while feeling slightly surprised by Jaden’s eyes when he shifted his gaze toward him.

Jaden appeared to have been tamed and wary around him.

At the same time, Max could perceive that Jaden no longer treated him as an enemy—though he couldn’t be certain based on a single glance alone.

Max didn’t place much importance on the two of them. They no longer posed a threat to him.

At the same time, he recalled what he had sworn to Julian.

That was why, when he perceived Julian’s intense gaze on him, he tilted his head upward and stared at the leaderboard rankings.

Although Lieutenant Garrick and the others found Max’s actions strange, even more so when the adventurers followed his gaze, they didn’t question him as they proceeded toward the ranger post.

Julian, on the other hand, was extremely infuriated.

He was already aware that Max and his Guild had taken first place on the leaderboard.

He had anticipated it, but seeing Max’s name at the top of the rankings once again reminded him of Max’s provocation during their first encounter.

He was exasperated, but he was helpless.

Max had truly lived up to his words, which made Julian even more infuriated when he recalled his response to Max’s provocation.

He had already sworn to embarrass Max, but... it was already too late.

Max had progressed so quickly that not only was he stronger within the game, but he also had stronger backing in the real world.

Julian could no longer embarrass him.

In fact, he was the one who felt embarrassed.

He couldn’t help but recall Max’s speech.

He felt threatened.

Aside from the province where the Lewis Guild was primarily established, Mirefall Province was the main branch location of the Lewis Guild.

Although the Lewis Guild could continue operating there and focus on fighting monsters to avoid coming into conflict with Max’s Guild, Max himself had announced that his younger brother would expand his Guild into Mirefall Province as well.

Which meant that the Lewis Guild’s branch was now threatened.

Julian grew anxious.

If his brother became dissatisfied with him again, he would definitely cut ties with him.

Julian didn’t want such a terrible thing to happen.

He had to prevent Max from wiping out the Lewis Guild in Mirefall Province.

Julian desperately thought of a countermeasure, while Jaden merely observed him in silence—his thoughts unknown.

At this point, Max had already reached the ranger post, and not far from him was Rhayne.

To his surprise, Lieutenant Garrick called Rhayne.

Rhayne couldn’t refuse the Lieutenant’s order, so she reluctantly proceeded toward them.

Rhayne couldn’t even look at Max.

Her emotions were complicated.

She felt angry, frustrated, displeased, and overwhelmed by various other negative emotions toward Max.

Max, on the other hand, felt similar lingering emotions.

But compared to Rhayne, he was able to keep his gaze on her.

Lieutenant Garrick didn’t notice their subtle reactions and introduced Rhayne to Max.

"This is Rhayne. After you left, Rhayne became the hero of the village. Not only did she purge the demons who tried to exact revenge on us after you killed the demon in the dungeon, but she was also the leading figure who investigated the presence of the dark mages.

"Unfortunately, she and her party disbanded. Even so, she continued to protect the village.

"Especially now, she has been tasked with defending this place, and her unique class makes her stronger than ordinary rangers."

Max smiled at Rhayne, who finally tilted her head and met his gaze.

Rhayne was shocked.

For some reason, a wave of relief surged through her body, making her feel weak.

Thankfully, she was able to compose herself, preventing herself from collapsing as her body almost went limp.

What’s going on?

Rhayne was honestly confused.

When she saw Max smiling at her, for some reason, she felt an immense sense of relief that left her exhausted.

Not only physically, but mentally as well.

Rhayne was perplexed.

She had expected Max to ignore her.

She had even prepared herself to endure his indifferent gaze, pretending that their previous encounter had never happened.

But instead, he smiled at her.

That simple smile was enough to make all the emotions she had been suppressing suddenly surge to the surface.

She didn’t understand why.

She didn’t understand why seeing him again made her feel relieved instead of angry.

She heard Max say in a soft tone, "Good work, Rhayne. You’ve worked hard."

Rhayne stared at Max in disbelief.

She couldn’t process what was happening.

She tried her best to remain calm, but she was so frustrated that she felt like crying.

Why do I want to cry?

Crying because this man is complimenting me?

Don’t fuck with me, Rhayne! Why are you feeling this way?

Rhayne was trembling.

She clenched her fists, desperately trying to control herself.

She had no reason to feel this way.

She had been angry at Max.

She had blamed him.

She had even told herself that she would never forgive him.

Yet, after hearing those simple words from him, all of those emotions suddenly felt insignificant.

That only made her even more frustrated.

As she fought against herself, Sister Elira suddenly embraced her tightly.

Sister Elira said, "It’s okay. Whatever you’re feeling right now, it’s okay."

Lieutenant Garrick was stunned. He did not expect Rhayne to have such an excessive reaction.

Max himself was dumbfounded.

He didn’t know what was happening to her.

Is there something wrong with her?

He didn’t know how to react.

Aren’t we supposed to act like nothing happened between us?

Since they were in front of the NPCs, they naturally needed to act as though they didn’t know each other.

However, Rhayne’s reaction had betrayed their previous interaction.

"You two know each other?" Lieutenant Garrick asked.

Sylwen was curious as well.

Max shook his head.

"No, I don’t know her."

Only then did Rhayne suddenly burst into tears.

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