"...Alone?"
A hint of confusion started to grow on Kenneth's face as he heard Rhys's words. He did not really know whether to be happy or sad about that statement. On one hand, he would lose the Commander of the Underworld Corps from his stream, but on the other, it would also remove the risk of Ayesha just blitzing through the Hole and practically erasing all the monsters and assets within the area.
"But, didn't all of you buy equipment just for this?" Kenneth could not help but be curious as he asked Rhys.
"Well..." Rhys turned to look at Ayesha, who very slowly looked away as Katarina and Lina also looked at her. The women had actually completely finished their preparation last night, but when Ayesha decided to play and test the oversized gauntlet that she bought, Katarina and Lina opted to do the same.
They all laid out all the protective clothes and armor they bought in a park and placed them on mannequins, where Ayesha tested their durability with the gauntlet. But alas, Ayesha did not seem to fully understand what the two meant, as she destroyed everything including her gauntlets. To be fair to her, Rhys had the same notion as Ayesha.
How could they understand that the two meant to just test them to their lower limits, when they did not say anything at all? And so, just like that, 95% of everything they bought from the mall was destroyed.
That was also when Rhys realized that it wouldn't make sense to bring any of the three with him to the Exploration. Not even counting Katarina and Lina, Ayesha alone would dominate the entire exploration as he knew exactly how strong she truly was.
He had already decided to recruit more people into the guild, and he told the world they should watch the stream so he could show them what he was capable of — bringing the three would undermine that. His goal by becoming an Explorer was to gain enough influence that could allow him to make a wave in the world.
He was already starting to do that, but if he truly wanted to make the wave as big as possible...
...the world needed to see what he was capable of. He and him alone.
"...They are only here to support and cheer me on," Rhys smiled.
"Wow... well," Kenneth looked at the three women one by one; his eyes, batting several times, "I don't really know how we can all be as lucky as you."
"Pft, fill your balls first and talk," Ayesha scoffed as she looked at Kenneth, "Try being broken all your life and have people stepping on your shattered body parts, tell us again how lucky the Recruit is."
"That—"
"No," the smile on Rhys's face did not disappear as he looked at Ayesha, Lina, and Katarina, "He's right. I'm... very lucky to have the three of you in my life. You're the three reasons why what I'm doing even matters."
"Stop it, gods..." Ayesha quickly walked away and started waving her hand, "...I'll just rest in the tent until this is over."
"Just call us during the stream if you need us," Lina also waved her hand as she also headed to the tent.
"Be careful down there, okay?" Katarina looked Rhys in the eyes for a few seconds, before just nodding and following the two.
"Wilder's Harem..." Kenneth let out a very long and deep sigh as he placed his hand on Rhys's shoulder, "...No wonder you named your guild like that."
"I... didn't name it."
"Can... I help you?" Rhys squinted his eyes as he looked at Audrey. But as his eyes turned to Eimi, he quickly widened his eyes in fear of being accused of mocking her small eyes.
"I know you get this a lot, but you're really tall," Audrey brushed her hair and tucked it between her ear; her eyes, looking up directly at Rhys's face; obviously wanting to take a peek behind his hair, "How tall are you?"
"I'm 6'6"," Rhys tried his best not to sigh, "There... are still a lot of people taller than me. Like basketball players."
"Pft, you're funny too," Eimi let out a small giggle; her voice incredibly high-pitched.
"...Thank you," Rhys could really only smile in response. By all means, these two women were already incredibly beautiful; but Rhys found himself somewhat numb after spending all his time with Katarina, Lina, and Ayesha. The only thing he was truly looking at were the hearts floating above their heads.
And for some reason, 3 out of 5 were already filled up.
'Show me your cock.' 'I want to touch you.'
"Kh."
"Are you alright!?"
"Do you need water?"
"No, I'm... I'm fine," Rhys almost swallowed his own tongue as he heard Audrey and Eimi's thoughts respectively. He already knew this from Ayesha and Lina, but women truly are frightening creatures; the way they could just hide their thoughts...
...unlike the three men they were with who had been staring at him with an obvious look of annoyance on their faces. Rhys thought that if no one else was here, the three would have already stabbed him in the face a thousand times.
"Remember to stick with us, okay?" Audrey let out a sigh of relief as she smiled at Rhys, "This is your first time doing a collab, so we'll teach you how it goes."
"That... will be very helpful. Thank you, Ma'am."
"Please, I feel old when you call me that. Why don't you just call me... your girlfriend?"
"Oh," Rhys blinked.
"Audrey! Why are you flirting with him!?" Eimi almost gasped as gently pushed Audrey away, "I'm sorry about—"
"Okay, everyone ready!?"
Fortunately for Rhys, Kenneth returned and clapped his hands to save him from the sudden situation he found himself in. Kenneth then started waving his hands like a conductor as he looked at his guild members, "Turn on your cameras...
...and let's make some money!"