"Let me see..."
"You tall guy in the front, don't block the way! I can't see anything..."
"A Pandaren... so these things actually exist in this world!"
"Do you think they eat people when they're hungry?"
...
Amidst the surrounding shouts, discussions, and clamor, Dughan inevitably began to grow anxious and restless.
The onlookers weren't just the residents of Goldshire; many were visitors who had come for the Darkmoon Faire, which was currently setting up in the large clearing south of town.
The Faire officially opened today, and Stormwind had even deployed a battalion of guards to assist with security—partly because many members of the Horde would undoubtedly find various ways to "smuggle" themselves into Elwynn Forest to attend the event.
Most of those people would leave immediately after visiting the Faire, but a small fraction would seek thrills by causing trouble. The most problematic among them were the Horde Rogues; relying on their Stealth, they frequently ambushed low-level adventurers or committed acts of theft and arson in Goldshire.
Unexpectedly, at this critical juncture, a Pandaren had appeared. The emergence of a race that existed only in legends immediately eclipsed the hype of the Darkmoon Faire, drawing people from all directions to gather here.
To make matters worse, this Pandaren was no ordinary traveler.
When he and a smaller Pandaren girl approached the town in a slow-moving kodo-drawn carriage, the guards had immediately intercepted them, entering a state of high alert at the sight of these two unfamiliar creatures.
The guards, who stood watch all day, had never even heard of—let alone seen—creatures with black and white patches on their bodies and such round, stout frames.
The Pandaren claimed to be from the Wandering Isle and had traveled all over the world. He said his friends called him "Master Chen," while his closest acquaintances called him "Old Chen."
Beside him was his niece, named "Li Li," also a member of the Stormstout family.
Their previous stop had been Dun Morogh, which was hosting the annual Brewfest. This stop was Goldshire; Chen wanted to bring Li Li to see the Darkmoon Faire, and then they planned to explore Westfall.
The guards initially didn't buy their story—until Chen produced an "Ironforge Transit Permit."
The guards were all too familiar with this token. Merchant caravans, transport teams, and visitors from other friendly races like Gnomes, Dwarves, and Goblins who entered the borders for the first time all relied on such permits to pass.
Usually, people carried permits issued by their own nations; for instance, Night Elves carried proof from Darnassus, while Dwarves and Gnomes carried tokens from Ironforge.
However, the fact that two Pandaren held an Ironforge permit along with a gift and signature from the King himself put the guards in a difficult position.
Not daring to let them through on their own authority, they hurriedly reported to Dughan. Dughan arrived at the scene, conducted an inspection, and immediately confirmed the Pandaren's identity.
Dughan had long heard of his deeds. During the time when the joint forces of the Alliance and Horde fought against the demons...
Not only that, but Chen's friendship with Lady Jaina, the ruler of Theramore, was extraordinary.
Even... it was rumored that he shared a very deep bond with Thrall, the Warchief of the Horde...
Dughan had no desire to provoke such a figure, so he personally escorted him into the town.
Chen was polite enough. Although he kept rubbing his round belly and complaining about being starving, he still asked Dughan if there was a man named Wayne in Goldshire. It turned out that besides seeing the Faire, they wanted to meet this Wayne during their visit.
Dughan and his guards nearly had their eyes pop out of their sockets when they heard this. They wondered how even a race as rare as the Pandaren knew of Wayne's reputation.
Driven by immense curiosity, they drove the kodo carriage to the entrance of the net cafe. They hadn't expected the crowd of onlookers to grow so large that the center of town became completely blocked, leading to the scene of the urgent knocking and shouting at the door just moments ago.
Wayne roughly understood the situation and invited the two Pandaren into the net cafe. Dughan then commanded the guards to begin dispersing the crowd, but the people were unwilling to leave.
If this were in the world before Wayne's transmigration, this would be a free exhibition of a "National Treasure"; it would be strange if people didn't swarm the place.
After Wayne, Tess, Chen, and Li Li entered, they immediately shut the door.
Chen's physique was simply too large; the gaming chair couldn't even accommodate half of his rear, so Wayne had no choice but to let him sit on the floor.
Wayne could hardly believe that the fat panda in front of him was the legendary Chen Stormstout—the man who could easily take on ten opponents at once and was friends with major figures like Thrall, Jaina, Rexxar, Bronzebeard, and Vol'jin.
The last time Wayne had seen him was in the Valley of the Four Winds—though, of course, that was in the game before his transmigration.
As soon as Chen and Li Li sat down, before they could even say thank you, Chen's prominent black nose began to twitch and sniff incessantly.
He sniffed so intensely that he even closed his eyes, following the scent and leaning his head forward until it pointed directly at the warming cabinet.
Chen asked, "What is that?"
Just as he spoke, a loud "Grumble..." resonated from his stomach.
Wayne took out two "Movie Combos" and told Tess to charge them to his own account. He handed them to Chen and Li Li as a meeting gift.
Chen took the bag and sniffed it up close. "Oh heavens, it smells wonderful. Is this for us?"
Wayne nodded. He was still in a state of disbelief, watching the two of them without blinking.
It wasn't until Chen spoke his next sentence that Wayne knew he wasn't dreaming.
"Thank you. Next time, it's on me."
Wayne laughed and asked, "How did you hear about me?"
Chen emptied a bag of popcorn into his mouth in just a few bites; the Coke bottle in his hand looked like a tiny vial of oral medicine.
He spoke while eating and drinking: "After we left Brewfest, we encountered a group of Goblins while passing through the Badlands. They were in a bit of trouble at the time."
Li Li added excitedly, "Yes! Those Goblins were fighting a group of 'dark Dwarves'!"
Chen replied, "Oh Li Li... those weren't 'dark Dwarves.' They called themselves Dark Iron Dwarves... those Goblins seemed to have gotten too close to their fortress, and a friction broke out between the two sides."
Li Li chimed in, "Uncle and I jumped in and chased them off with just a few moves!"
Chen sighed. "Mmm... that is true, but it cost me half a bottle of hard-earned Brightbrew Lager..."
Li Li continued, "Uncle took a huge gulp and then breathed a ball of fire at those Dwarves! Several of the Dwarves' clothes were set on fire! Then we used the chaos to help those Goblins escape. Hehe! It was fun!"
Wayne: "Huh?"
Tess: "Escape? Didn't you just say..."
Chen pointed at the now-empty popcorn box and asked, "Is there more? I'm not full..."
Wayne thought to himself that popcorn wasn't going to cut it. Given the appetite of these two, even if he poured the entire warming cabinet's worth of popcorn into their mouths, they wouldn't be satisfied.
He opened the window and shouted to Boss Farley, who was peeking in from outside: "Bring ten orders of roasted mutton chops! The fattier, the better!"