With his extremely high Perception it was easy to listen in on the conversation Aside from the absolutely obnoxious flirting from the Tooya and Diego most of the talk was on the latest rumor that the Zone was slowly expanding the time freezing barrier creeping backward Apparently in the North a whole suburb was revealed Just like that 10 000 new souls were added to Zone 1
Randidly was making plans to check on whether this was true when someone walked into the room
Ah Randidly said standing Hello Sonya
Chapter 510
The grey haired woman nodded at his words after she had schooled her face from the shock that was there previously Apparently she hadn’t considered that someone else was bold enough to open a random door and squirrel themselves away
Mr Erickson I’m surprised you let the factory long enough to attend this Sonya said a touch of irony in her words
Randidly’s lip curled but he said nothing Truly she was right
She joined him on the couch with her own plate of food and drink and for a long time they simply sat there After a few minutes of tension something eased between them as both of their unconscious acknowledged each other as fellow introverts Both preferred this silence vastly to the frantic energy of the party
It was only after Sonya produced a bottle of wine from her interspatial watch and offered some to Randidly that they spoke again Mostly they spoke of steel prices and whether they were being skimped on it They were both aware that stirring up negative emotions in regards to Foreman Davey was the point of the party and while Randidly was satisfied from the straightforward impression that Foreman Davey gave him it seemed Sonya was waivering more
They shared several drinks Catching Sonya’s eyes wandering in a strange way Randidly abruptly realized that this woman probably had a Vitality total that might not even be ? his Drinking a whole bottle of wine probably wouldn’t knock her unconscious but some of her reasoning would be inhibited Perhaps that was the reason for providing so much free alcohol
Randidly was about to suggest they switch to water when Gregory Muldane another influential steelworker surreptitiously opened the door and snuck in He froze briefly when he spotted Randidly and Sonya but his wizened and twisted face quickly bloomed into a smile
So you guys too eh He said throwing himself down between Randidly and Sonya Randidly saw with a sinking feeling he carried his own bottle of wine But very quickly he forgot about that as talk turned from the politics of the steel factory to the particulars
They talked about shifts in purity in the ore and the optimum temperature for the blast furnace and the time the carbon splicing could occur before impurities would emerge in the metal To his surprise Randidly found himself so taken with the frank and open the way these two people were talking that he revealed the general idea behind his Erickson Steel the fact that he used a method to mix in the bones of monsters into the metal
Both considered that for a long time slowing sipping their drinks Outside the party was going full swing The two idiots Tooya and Diego were dead drunk their arms draped around petite women heedless of the calculating looks in the eyes of the waitstaff and bartenders
Still within the safety of the small sunroom Randidly finally felt like he felt a place to relax Although Randidly didn’t intend to dedicate himself to this fully he still found the process of making the metal to be incredibly fulfilling Hard work is sometimes its own reward and comparing knowledge Randidly felt like he was among peers in metalworking at least
These two would likely have even more exaggerated results if they possessed Randidly’s stats and Skills
The next thing that took Randidly by surprise was words out of Sonya’s mouth very soon after a small burp That woman is really pretty She’s been looking at me
Both Randidly and Gregory looked up curiously Sure enough a curvaceous woman in a turquoise dress was leaning up against the side table by the pool She had wide set eyes and soft looking lips As Sonya indicated her eyes had wandered away from the party and locked on their figures through the window
When Gregory and Randidly looked at her she smiled as if she had a secret that she was only willing to share if they came over Instantly Randidly was put on guard
Gregory giggled Ohoho what a pretty young thing
Shut up you old pervert Sonya said slapping Gregory good naturedly Both of them stunk of alcohol There were four empty wine bottles on the floor She was looking at me Let’s go talk to her
Uh Randidly began but they were both standing
They cast impatient glances his way and then walked off arm in arm
Uh Randidly said again slowly standing Then he sighed Gathering information was the point He had already learned a bit about the profit margin that Foreman Davey was making on him and the situation with the expanding Zones He would likely learn more if he went out there So he followed them
Ah our main guest arrived
Griffith smiled coolly at Ricky Stain as he hurried over to greet him at the door
Griffith knew why Ricky wanted him here Ricky was only a Tier 1 Citizen and wanted the legitimacy that Griffith provided As a Tier 2 Citizen who had gone with the initial exploration party into the borderlands Griffith’s influence was not small His presence at this party would likely give weight to the appeals that Ricky was making Besides Griffith’s appreciated the significant upfront money Ricky was willing to pay as well as the portion of his business that he would give to Griffith in exchange for his appearance
It wasn’t fear that drove Griffith away from the expedition after the initial disasters but rather a seemingly impassable wall Although Griffith was almost Level 40 he had felt helpless before those Level 60 monsters in the borderlands They were too quick to hit with a plasma rifle and even when you did they often could survive the shot long enough to kill five men under constant fire
It was a bitter realization But Griffith accepted it So he returned to the relative safety of patrols and made some money where he could on the side to make up from the decrease in pay from his change in employment This one night would do a lot to relieve the financial burdens in which Griffith currently found himself
Come in come in Ricky was saying his eyes slightly glassy The party is going very well The steelworkers are taking the bait hook line and sinker hahah
Ricky handed him a drink but Griffith was relatively unamused As he was going to be owning a part of Ricky’s business he would like to see some proof before he relaxed Where are they
After leading him out to the pool deck Ricky pointed to two Hispanic men who were taking shots off of an Asian woman’s stomach There are two And the others Uh Oh there they are
Griffith followed Ricky’s upraised arm to a group of three that was strolling towards a beautiful
Griffith almost dropped his drink When he looked at the group of three one of them was gazing back at him with sharp brown eyes That gaze cut right through him left him feeling just as bare as if he was being hunted by a Level 60 monster But just as soon as their gazes met the other man looked away turning towards the beautiful woman Griffith instantly became serious
One thing he learned in the borderlands was to trust his instincts And instantly his instincts warned him against letting his guard down around this man
Ignoring the throbbing beat of the music Griffith turned to Ricky All those three are steelworkers
Ricky nodded an empty smile plastered on his face After a deep breath Griffith breathed back Then let’s go and introduce ourselves
Tatiana looked up a with a smile as the three approached her as if she had only just now noticed their approach As if she hadn’t tagged them gently out into the party with a smile a minute ago Do you three believe in magic