At the mention of Teacher Dana, the blunt Hicks waved his hand. "That woman won't do. I haven't seen many women in Stormwind, but I happened to see her once. She's over thirty, practically an old matron. Her face is decent, but her figure is like a wooden stake—nothing where there should be something. If you say she has a beautiful heart, I'll agree, but as for her looks... nah, definitely not."
"What about Lady Jaina then?!" Hicks continued, unconvinced. "A daughter of a noble house, only nineteen, beautiful, sweet voice, long legs, willow-leaf eyebrows, and cherry lips. Surely you have nothing to say against her?"
Verdan gave a cold "Heh" and a sneer. "She's alright, and she has plenty of suitors... but they're all looking at the fact that her father is a Stormwind Lord and an old aristocrat, not at her."
Hicks asked, "Why? They don't appreciate a beauty?"
Verdan replied, "The woman has such bad body odor... no one can get close to her!"
The other three were stunned. "Is that true?"
Verdan puffed out his chest, acting mysterious and smug, but refused to answer further.
Tess was exceptionally bright. Tasks Wayne taught her once seemed as if she had practiced them a hundred times.
Seeing her handle everything perfectly, Wayne stopped worrying and focused on his own screen. However, his ears remained tuned to the conversation in the quartet's channel.
In Wayne's post-transmigration memories, there were very few fragments concerning the people and affairs of Stormwind City. Clearly, in his first twenty years, this blacksmith's nephew had no opportunity to enter the city and interact with high society.
But even with his modern aesthetic sensibilities, the grey-haired girl named Tara sitting at the counter was indeed a top-tier beauty.
If he had to categorize her, she followed the path of extreme purity.
"What about the Park District then?!" Verdan's voice rang out again in the game. "There's a Priestess of the Moon there named Tyrande! Surely there's no argument about her. Don't tell me she's over a thousand years old; Night Elves only reach adulthood at three hundred. You can find people five thousand years old all over the place there."
Hicks shook his head. "Never seen her." He looked at Verdan.
Verdan also shook his head. "My tastes aren't that unique. I don't touch Night Elves..." He then looked at Hudson.
Hudson shook his head helplessly. Being someone who preferred to act with decorum and gravity, he didn't really want to participate in this topic, but he didn't want to act too aloof and alienate his comrades either. "If you guys haven't seen her, I certainly haven't. But I have seen a few Night Elves; regardless of gender, they do have a unique sense of beauty. It's just those glowing eyes of theirs always make me hesitate to look directly at them."
Verdan agreed. "Exactly! That's why I can't accept them. Last time I saw a Night Elf male, both his eyes were glowing green. It made my skin crawl."
Hicks remarked, "That won't do. If I married a woman like that, and I woke up in the middle of the night and she glanced at me, wouldn't she turn me green from head to toe?"
"Verdan, where did you see someone with glowing green eyes? That sounds pretty creepy to me."
The four were startled. They checked the game and found that their party still only consisted of the four of them. How did Wayne's voice suddenly break in?
Verdan asked, "Miller, you can hear us?"
Wayne intentionally joined their topic. "Of course. I'm the boss, how could I not hear? If you need food, drinks, or to renew your time, I can hear you even while I'm playing. And when you're talking about beauties, there's no way I'm missing out."
Verdan asked, "Then you tell us first—is the girl sitting next to you the best-looking person you've ever seen?"
Wayne didn't want to dwell on the topic, but he gave an honest answer.
"She's beautiful, truly beautiful. Goldshire doesn't have anyone that good-looking. Even the maids in Stormwind Keep are quite pretty, but they're far behind her."
Verdan laughed. "I told you! Heh heh."
Wayne continued, "Tell me more about that green-eyed Night Elf. I think I saw one when I was coming back from Stormwind. I was wondering who he was."
Verdan replied, "That's probably just a common sight. Night Elves often have glowing eyes, though usually they're silver or amber. Green is rarer, but I saw one once near the Mage District."
Wayne asked, "Is he a mage?"
Verdan replied, "How should I know? Maybe, but a lot of male Night Elves are Druids."
Wayne pressed further, "Are green eyes common among Night Elves? Maybe... I mean, have other green-eyed Night Elves come to Stormwind?"
Verdan said, "Doesn't seem like many... most have yellow pupils. I've only seen that one with green pupils."
Wayne then said, "I think I also saw a strange person, a human. Black hair, but a one-eyed man—lost his right eye. But I forgot if I saw him in Stormwind or Goldshire."
As soon as these words were spoken, the chatter in the quartet's channel vanished.
Wayne was surprised by their reaction. "Is this person... famous?"
Hicks, usually the loudest, whispered, "That's the owner of the 'Old Town' cheese shop... and he's the richest man in Stormwind's commoner district."
Wayne pretended to be ignorant. "Oh my, look at me, acting like an uncultured country bumpkin."
Hicks replied while hacking at monsters, "Miller, don't play dumb. With your current wealth, forget the cheese shop owner—even low-tier nobles in Stormwind can't compare to you."
To avoid making them suspicious, Wayne shifted the topic back to the game. He checked their progress and taught them a few moves. Sure enough, the group immediately forgot about the beauties and the strangers, throwing themselves wholeheartedly into the game.
Wayne returned to his own channel and asked Rainier. This Knight Lieutenant and Vice Commander often had opportunities to visit Stormwind Keep for military business; he was the one who truly had access to high-level intelligence.
"Vice Captain, I wanted to ask you about a few people."
Rainier was slightly surprised. He hadn't expected Wayne to be interested in the gossip of the "big shots."
"Is the first one you're asking about that one-eyed cheese shop owner?"
Rainier smiled slightly, thinking that anyone who had been to Stormwind's Trade District would find it hard not to remember that man. He replied, "Of course."
"What about a Night Elf with green eyes? Do you know him?"
Rainier's brow furrowed slightly. He didn't answer directly. "Why are you asking about him?"
Wayne made up an excuse. "Oh, I saw him at Stormwind Keep. His pupils were green. I also saw someone with a missing eye, but I couldn't remember where. I was just curious."
Hearing Wayne mention Stormwind Keep, Rainier knew that was where he had recuperated. He relaxed and said, "The Night Elf is a guest of the Royal House. His name is Broll Bearmantle, a powerful Druid."
Wayne pressed on: "Then... have you ever seen a thief with brown hair, a middle-part hairstyle, and blue eyes?"
Rainier, who was following Wayne across the map to farm more Silver Rathalos, stopped in his tracks. Wayne stopped too.
Rainier looked at Wayne with an indescribable expression—surprise, doubt, and a hint of unease. "Why are you asking me about these three people?"
Wayne said, "It seems you know something."
Seeing Rainier remain silent, he added, "Only the two of us can hear this conversation. You can be absolutely at ease."
Rainier asked, "You still haven't answered my question. Why did you mention these three specific people at the same time?"
Wayne didn't hide it. "Because those three are the ones who attacked this net cafe twice in the early hours of the morning."
Rainier, who had been tense a moment ago, suddenly relaxed and laughed.
"Kid, don't talk nonsense. If those three really wanted to attack your shop, forget about having a net cafe—you wouldn't even have a single brick left standing in Goldshire."
"You'd better keep a close eye on your coin purse and stop worrying about petty thieves day and night."
After those words, Wayne knew Rainier was unwilling to say more. After all, he and Wayne didn't have a very deep relationship, and Rainier's steady, rule-abiding personality meant asking further would be futile. He simply turned his attention back to the game.