Two days had passed since Xia Nan encountered Zanfrui and Wenser in the Underdark.
The third young master of the "Silver Lake Shield" family had been willing to teach him the training methods and practical techniques of [Returning Tide Shield Stance] without holding anything back, asking for nothing in return, simply to repay Xia Nan for his help at several crucial moments.
But whatever the case, Xia Nan was, after all, a decent person with relatively high moral standards.
He could not simply learn the combat technique and run off, abandoning the others as burdens.
In practice, even though Zanfrui did not demand it, he was still honoring their earlier agreement.
He kept both Zanfrui and Wenser with him, searching for an exit while also using his Perception to look for any traces Ak, the member of their party, might have left.
On the other hand, he had to admit that there was an enormous gap in strength between Xia Nan and these two young men who had only recently entered the profession.
Following behind Xia Nan, they were nothing short of dead weight.
Thus, to minimize any trouble caused by delayed communication, he had laid down ground rules for the two young men when they first set out two days earlier.
They had established exactly what the two should do if an emergency arose during their adventure, maximizing their chances of survival and preventing a panicked, hasty response from making the situation worse.
As for the specifics, it ultimately boiled down to one thing-follow Xia Nan's orders.
They did not need to panic, nor did they need to demonstrate their courage.
If Xia Nan thought they could fight, the two would stay with him. If Xia Nan thought it might be dangerous, all three would retreat immediately.
They only