Chapter 178 Aftermath [Pt 5]

Chapter 178 Aftermath [Pt 5]

"Hup! And that's the last one!"

Rey grinned at the many sacks that lay in front of him, his cheerful expression unable to change.

'I can pack them all up in a total of forty-seven sacks. Not bad...'

Since the pile wasn't preposterously massive, as seen with the Hobgoblins, Rey could fit everything into [Inventory].

He still had his Spatial Rings, so he stored the other Items that occupied his slots in [Inventory], thus giving him enough space to store everything.

Once the process was complete, Rey stood all alone within the grand 99th Floor hall.

'Now that this is all done, I don't think there's anything left for me to do here.'

The rest of what greeted his sight would go to the Royal Council.

'They have the Dragon Corpse and now these too? If they take my advice and we launch a full-on raid, they'll be able to rake in even more profit.'

The more Rey thought about it, the more he realized just how rich the Alliance was going to become because of him.

'Well, it's fine. I probably shouldn't get too greedy...' He smiled, remembering a few faces of the beggars he saw on the street during the Excursion.

If some of these resources could be used for their sake—to better their lives—then he had no complaints

In the end, wasn't he also a human being?

"Alright! Time to head... b-ba...ck..."

Right there and then, Rey realized something that had completely skipped his mind since he woke up in this place a couple hours ago.

'The Half-Elf!'

Other than that, he also remembered something of equal pertinence.

'They'll be looking for me!'

How could he have forgotten that he was one of the Otherworlders who had come to this world for the sake of saving it?

He was a valuable asset to the entire United Human Alliance!

He had a few classmates who cared about him too.

'And I just bailed on them for this long? I don't even know how long I was out, or how long I spent here!'

He could only estimate, but he also had a theory that time operated much faster here than outside.

What if he had already spent days down here?!

'Ahhh! They'll all be worried. Especially after that Dragon attack too!'

Rey knew he had to hurry.

'I should probably go to the Royal Estate first. The Half-Elf can wait.'

He didn't even remember her name anymore.

'I'm sure they'll take care of her well for me. If not, well... let's not think of that for now!'

With those thoughts flowing in his mind, Rey put away his Enchanted Items and did away with his disguise.

Fortunately, he still had empty Spatial Rings to help him contain all his Items.

Once he returned to his normal state, he opened a portal and ventured inside.

"Haha... I can explain. But maybe later..." He rubbed his head awkwardly.

"A-ah! Yeah, sorry!"

As Alicia chuckled sheepishly, quickly separating herself from him, Rey simply responded with a stupid grin.

Everyone was now staring at him, including the two members of the Royal Council.

Rey thought he saw Lady Vida grin a certain wicked smile, but that was probably his imagination.

'This is so awkward!'

Fortunately, Conrad's voice saved the day right when Rey felt the burden weigh heavily on him.

"It's good to have you back, Rey. And just in time too."

'Just in time...? Time for what?' Were the first things that popped up in his head.

'Also, isn't he being too calm about all this?'

He didn't have time to process these thoughts, though, as the Grandmaster spoke yet again.

"Why don't you join everyone while we make the announcements?"

Rey was puzzled.

'What announcements? Why are they being made outside?'

Rey had a few thoughts in mind, but he dismissed them until they could be proven to be concrete.

"O-okay..."

He and Alicia walked towards the line, side by side, and while he focused on her charming smile, he could not completely ignore some of the stares he received.

For one, Billy's.

He wasn't looking at him with a jealous or rage-filled face. His expression connoted nothing short of defeat.

A kind of sorrow a guilty man had.

Noah, Trisha, Belle, and Adonis also had peculiar expressions to give him.

Most were positive—things like relief mixed with brief hints of hesitation.

'Looks like I'm not in trouble this time.' Rey sighed in relief.

If it wasn't him though, the question remained...

... Who was?

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[A/N]

Thanks for reading!

I don't know if you can tell, but the Second Arc is going to end very soon.

What do you think is about to happen, though.