SS Awakening: My Monster Merging System!

Chapter 161: Drinking Together [2]

Zich had originally been about to head back to his hotel room to organize his thoughts and take a rest. Plus, he was never a fan of alcohol and had never had one before. Hearing this, he stopped and turned to look at her.

"Why?"

Helen didn’t answer. She looked at Jayden first, then at Mira, her tone more serious than usual.

"Because we still have to compete tomorrow, and if we keep going our separate ways like this, how are we supposed to bond as a team?"

Zich didn’t respond right away.

Mira, however, nodded, finding the idea quite good.

"I don’t see anything wrong with it."

Jayden, on the other hand, frowned immediately.

"I’m not interested."

Helen looked at him, her tone slightly raised.

"That’s exactly why you should come."

Jayden’s expression grew colder.

"What do you mean?"

"It means if you can’t even sit at the same table with us and have something to eat, then if we really need to coordinate tomorrow, you’ll only make things worse."

The atmosphere grew a little heavier at that.

Jayden could certainly tell that Helen wasn’t simply inviting him for a drink or trying to make things look good. She was reminding him that the four of them from the First Shelter were now the human representatives, and no matter their internal conflicts, they couldn’t afford to display their fractures in front of all the other races.

After a few seconds, Jayden said coldly, "I’m only going because we’re all human representatives."

"Well, I love all of you already," Zich said and turned around. "If you don’t mind, I’ll be..."

Even before he could leave, Helen grabbed him by the shirt.

"You are not going anywhere."

Zich looked around, seeing that they had drawn quite the attention, and he couldn’t help but sigh softly before reluctantly agreeing.

Seeing this, Helen finally showed a hint of satisfaction on her face.

"Then let’s go. I know a place."

Zich asked, "You’re paying?"

Helen paused midstep, turning to look at him.

"You were hesitating just a moment ago, and now that you hear I might pay, you’re willing?"

"I’m just confirming the details."

Helen took a deep breath, then finally said, "I’ll pay."

Zich immediately followed.

Mira walked quietly beside him, as if she saw nothing wrong with Zich’s reaction at all.

Jayden brought up the rear, his expression as cold as if he were being forced to attend some kind of punishment activity.

The place Helen took them to was a large bar in Central City’s mixed district.

It wasn’t exactly low key. A sign at the entrance indicated it was permitted to operate in Central City’s neutral zone. The interior was spacious, with different areas roughly divided according to racial habits. The human tables were in the center, the Velhair sat on the other side drinking heavy red liquor, the Keth, and so on.

The bar was filled with candidates, scouts, merchants, resting city guards, and plenty of people who were clearly just there to gather information or prepare for Toronto.

The moment Zich’s group of four walked in, quite a few eyes turned toward them.

"Representatives from the First Shelter."

"Helen Magnus."

"Jayden’s here too."

"That farm girl."

"And that summoner, Zich Grave?"

These mutterings weren’t loud, but they weren’t kept particularly low either. Clearly, many people didn’t mind being overheard.

Helen seemed used to this kind of attention, leading the three to a table near the corner with a good view. It wasn’t conspicuous, but it allowed them to see most of the bar and, if necessary, make a quick exit.

After sitting down, Zich’s first move wasn’t to look at the menu. It was to check the prices.

Helen noticed and couldn’t help the corner of her mouth lifting.

"I said I’d pay."

"I’m just confirming you’re not getting ripped off."

"You’ve been more cautious ever since that Keth merchant scammed you."

Zich didn’t argue. That incident was a disgrace to him.

The menus came quickly. Helen ordered a few normal dishes and drinks. Mira ordered a dark fermented beverage.

Jayden originally didn’t want to order anything.

Helen went ahead and ordered for him.

Jayden frowned.

"I didn’t say I wanted anything."

"You came. So eat something."

Jayden was silent for a moment, then didn’t refuse any further.

Four people sat at the same table, and the atmosphere was awkward at first.

No one spoke. In the end, it was Mira who broke the silence.

"The simulated mud today was too wet."

Zich looked at her.

"Do you have to evaluate the mud even when we’re drinking?"

"That’s important information," Mira said seriously. "When the ground is too wet, root stability decreases. But if you can control the water flow, you can actually make your enemies’ footing even more uncomfortable."

Zich was at a loss for words because... because this was information he really didn’t need.

Before long, the conversation circled back to the next day’s competition.

Helen put down her cup, her tone more serious than before.

"Starting tomorrow, the competition probably won’t be as chaotic as the first stage, but it won’t be easy either, as the Global Union is known for changing the event each year. But if it’s like last year’s team based segments, we can’t keep acting like scattered sand."

Jayden looked at Zich out of the corner of his eye and spoke from the side of his mouth.

"Some people make cooperation difficult."

Zich held his cup, his tone calm.

"I’m easy to cooperate with. As long as you’re not trying to kill me, steal from me, or force me to explain things."

At those words, Jayden, however, didn’t explode like he used to. He just stared at Zich for a few seconds, then said coldly,

"I still don’t trust you."

Zich shrugged it off. After all, this was nothing new. It was widely known.

Jayden was silent for a moment. After a while, he spoke again. However, the words that came out of his mouth shocked everyone, including Zich himself.