Lucienne stared at Theo for several seconds before a wide smile spread underneath her veil.
She pushed herself up without another thought.
Before anyone could say something, she walked straight toward Theo.
’’Well,’’ she said sweetly. ’’It’s certainly been a while.’’
The conversations throughout the restaurant died down almost immediately.
Several members of the church began looking between the two of them.
Theo nodded slowly.
’’I wasn’t expecting to run into you here either,’’ he said, smiling faintly.
Lucienne let out a soft chuckle as she shook her head.
’’I can’t say the same,’’ she said lightly.
Theo paused for a moment, his brows furrowing.
But before he could ask what she meant, Nadia’s voice rang out beside him.
’’Excuse me,’’ she said strangely. ’’You know these people?’’
Lucienne’s gaze slowly shifted toward the girl.
She maintained her smile as she nodded once.
’’Naturally,’’ she replied sweetly. ’’We’ve even fought each other before.’’
Nadia’s eyes flickered between the two of them.
She almost couldn’t believe her ears.
’The daughter of one of the Seven Virtues knows these country bumpkins?’ she thought. ’But how is that possible?’
Before Nadia could think any further, Lucienne looked back at Theo.
’’I have to say,’’ she said, her eyes briefly scanning his body. ’’You seem to have grown quite a bit stronger than last time.’’
Theo smiled wryly.
He scratched the back of his head, not quite sure what to say.
’’I’ve had a few opportunities,’’ he said. ’’But I’m sure it was the same for you.’’
Lucienne nodded with a smile.
But before she could open her mouth, another young man seated at the church’s table slowly rose to his feet.
’’Lucienne,’’ he called out with a strange smile. ’’Maybe it’s best to save the catching up with your... friend for later.’’
Annoyance flickered through Lucienne’s eyes as she turned around.
But as she noticed all the stares she was receiving, she couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh.
’’You’re right,’’ she said with a forced smile. ’’My apologies.’’
She looked back at Theo once more.
’’We’ll have plenty of time to talk later.’’
With that, she gracefully returned to her seat.
For a brief moment, none of Theo’s group said a word.
Iris simply watched Lucienne return to her seat, her expression calm and unreadable.
Beside her, Owen slowly let out a low whistle.
"Damn,’’ he muttered, shaking his head. ’’Truly an exper—’’
Thud!
Before he could continue, Lyra’s fist buried itself deep into his stomach.
’’Guh—!’’
Owen instantly doubled over, clutching his abdomen.
"W-What was that for?!" he wheezed.
Lyra withdrew her hand as if nothing had happened.
"You were about to say something stupid," she said coldly.
While this happened, everyone continued staring at them strangely.
But neither Theo nor anyone in his group was bothered in the slightest.
Nadia turned toward them awkwardly before gesturing to the third table on the side.
’’Take a seat,’’ she said. ’’We’d like to start the meeting now.’’
Theo nodded once.
Behind him, the others stopped their antics too.
Together, they all sat down at a separate table from the others.
As peace and silence returned inside the restaurant, Nadia made her way to the open space between the three tables.
"Since this is the first time all three groups have gathered," she began, "we’ll keep this simple."
She paused briefly, her gaze sweeping across each group.
’’First, introductions,’’ she said. ’’We’ll be spending a considerable amount of time in dangerous terrain while heading to Petra.’’
"I don’t expect all of you to become friends. Once we arrive, you’re free to do whatever you want."
"But until then, I expect everyone to listen to my instructions and watch each other’s backs."
No one objected to her words.
After a moment, she gestured to the Church’s table first.
’’We’ll start with your group,’’ she said politely.
The same young man from before stood up confidently.
Just like Lucienne, his robes were adorned with seven golden crosses rather than interlinked rings.
’’My name is Gabriel,’’ he began. ’’I will be leading the Imperial Church’s expedition into Petra.’’
His gaze swept through the room before landing on Theo.
"I am the son of the First Virtue, the Virtue of Faith. As long as you follow my instructions, I will do everything in my power to ensure your safe passage through the desert."
He paused for a moment, his eyes narrowing.
’’As the strongest among the youngest generation, I can promise that much.’’
The entire restaurant remained silent as Gabriel sat back down.
Only Lucienne’s soft scoff rang out through the silence.
Nadia acknowledged him with a nod of her own.
"Thank you,’’ she said before turning to the other group. ’’Your turn now.’’
Theo’s gaze also landed on the other group.
He’d been paying so much attention to Lucienne and the Church that he’d completely forgotten about the second group.
A broad-shouldered man with short black hair let out a hearty laugh as he pushed himself to his feet.
’’My name is Darius,’’ he began immediately. ’’I’m the leader of this expedition team, which is a branch under the European Dragonfang Hunting Group.’’
A faint murmur spread amongst the Church members.
Even Iris and Jim couldn’t help but glance up.
And their reactions were for good reason.
Dragonfang was a group that had been created by the Grandmaster-level hunter considered closest to becoming the Worldwide Hunter King.
It had been over two decades since its creation, yet the group was considered the strongest in the entire Eastern Hemisphere.
’They only have a thousand members, all of whom are the best on their core level,’ Theo thought, staring at the man. ’And ten of their Gold Cores are here?’
Darius grinned as he noticed the reactions around the room.
’’Looks like I don’t need to say anything else,’’ he said, throwing himself back into his chair.
A few quiet chuckles came from the Dragonfang members behind him.
As the restaurant grew quiet once more, Nadia nodded lightly.
’’Thank you,’’ she said before turning to Theo halfheartedly. ’’Now your... group.’’
Theo pushed himself to his feet with a smile.
’’My name is Theo,’’ he said calmly. ’’And I’m the leader of this expedition team from the Northern Line Hunting Group.’’