Chapter 93 - 91: Reaching an Agreement

Chapter 93: Chapter 91: Reaching an Agreement

"A quest posted by the Silver Scale Merchant Association?"

"Looks like they’re preparing to rebuild their trade routes."

A few minutes later, on the outskirts of the crowd, Mirana analyzed the situation seriously.

"It’s near the Lost Basin, so there will be quite a few High Level Monsters around. It’s definitely dangerous."

"But as long as we’re careful with our reconnaissance and keep a good watch, we should be able to avoid combat."

"Plus, the rewards are good. If I pick a quest worth around 600 points, I’ll be able to upgrade directly to a Silver Badge."

’I feel like it’s worth a shot...’

"No, I don’t think so."

Beside her, Lu Wei shook his head and immediately voiced his opposition. "If we avoid fights, there won’t be any loot."

"That would mean my only profit is a bounty of a few Gold Coins, which doesn’t at all justify the risk and time commitment."

"Any random goblin or kobold extermination quest would net me about the same amount, as long as my luck isn’t too bad."

"So, for me, the cost-benefit on this quest is way too low. There’s no way I’m accepting it."

With his arms crossed, Lu Wei made no attempt to hide his feelings and stated his position directly.

After all, this wasn’t child’s play. He certainly wasn’t going to inconvenience himself just to accommodate Mirana.

One had to understand that while the two of them were partners, their "core interests" were vastly different—

One wanted to get more points.

The other wanted to get more monetary profit.

Of course, most of the time, these two goals didn’t conflict.

That was why, even though Lu Wei had his reservations about Mirana taking on two quests at once last time, he ultimately just offered a word of caution.

When he saw how determined she was, he didn’t press the matter.

After all, by taking two quests, he could also get more loot and a larger bounty.

But this time was completely different.

The quest area was right next to the Lost Basin, which was, in the truest sense, the deepest part of the forest. All sorts of High Level Monsters appeared there frequently.

Although he had high Perception, and could indeed avoid most of these monsters, doing so meant he wouldn’t get any loot.

And to take such a huge risk and spend half a month just for a quest reward of a few Gold Coins...

There was no way Lu Wei would accept that!

’I’d be better off staying at the general store and selling goods!’

’Taking a few other random quests would definitely earn me more than this!’

"Let me be blunt, these dozen or so quests are a trap."

"High risk, low reward. What good are points to an ordinary person? Making money is what’s most important."

"Otherwise, people wouldn’t be so hesitant. Someone would’ve snatched them up long ago."

Glancing at the crowd still gathered in front of the quest board, none of whom had yet to tear off a quest slip, Lu Wei stated his conclusion decisively.

Mirana hesitated for a moment, then nodded lightly.

"You’re right. From your perspective, this quest really isn’t worth it."

"But I still want to try. I’ve done the math, and it would take me at least another month to get enough points by taking other quests."

"But from the looks of things, the Silver Scale Merchant Association will be here soon."

"I don’t know when the Earl of Lancaster will arrive, but I imagine it won’t be much later."

"So if I don’t seize this opportunity, I’m afraid it’ll be too late."

"And if I miss this chance, Kairos’s leg might never recover."

’Oh, what a shame.’

’So what does that have to do with me?’

Lu Wei shot her a sideways glance, displaying the cold indifference befitting a Crafty Merchant. "I completely understand how you feel, but we’re just partners. I have no reason to help you."

"I’ll compensate you for your losses."

Mirana thought for a moment, then named a price. "Ten Gold Coins. Is that okay?"

’Huh?’

’You can come up with ten Gold Coins?’

Lu Wei was taken aback. "You have that much money?"

"I do."

Mirana nodded earnestly. "If you agree, I can give it to you right now."

"..."

’Well damn, she’s that rich?’

’For real?’

Lu Wei’s mouth fell slightly open, his surprise mixed with a hint of suspicion.

He had wondered about the source of Mirana’s funds before, guessing at the time that she might have found a money pouch or something.

But now it seemed it wasn’t that simple.

After all, among the broke-ass crowd in Heitai Town, less than one percent of them would have 10 Gold Coins in their pouches.

"Come with me."

He hadn’t asked last time, but now Lu Wei couldn’t hold back any longer. He pulled her into a corner and asked with a very serious expression:

"Have you been working part-time on Pigeon Lane?"

"Pigeon Lane? Where’s that?" Mirana looked completely lost.

"Hm? You haven’t...?"

Lu Wei frowned. "Then where did you get so much money? Didn’t you use the Divine Blessing on yourself?"

"I... In any case, I didn’t steal it or snatch it."

Mirana hesitated, not answering directly, and only offered a very vague explanation. "I earned it through legal means."

’Bullshit!’

’What kind of legal means lets you earn 10 Gold Coins in just a few days!’

’Not even robbery is that fast!’

Lu Wei eyed her suspiciously, as if he were looking at a fugitive.

Seeing his expression, Mirana thought he didn’t believe her, so she immediately untied her money pouch and opened it for him to see.

"Look, I really do have ten Gold Coins."

"..."

’Lies! There are clearly at least fifteen Gold Coins in there!’

Lu Wei’s quick glance was all it took for his "Crafty Merchant’s Pinpoint Eyes" to assess her entire net worth.

Amid his surprise, he quickly started scheming in his head.

To be honest, he didn’t actually care where Mirana got the money from.

But this was an excellent reason to raise the price.

"The origin of your money is shady, so 10 Gold Coins isn’t enough."

"...Then how much do you want?"

Mirana bit her lip and asked softly, "Is 13 gold coins okay? I still have to pay for Kairos’s medicine and lodging, so that’s all I can spare."

’She didn’t deny it, so the money really must be from a shady source!’

"13 gold coins..."

After a quick mental calculation, Lu Wei decided the amount was acceptable.

Adding the quest bounty, the total would come to 20 Gold Coins.

Gold Coins for half a month’s work... even with no loot, that was a pretty good deal.

’But I can squeeze out a little more.’

’A Crafty Merchant has to take advantage of someone’s desperation to maximize profits.’

"For Kairos’s sake, I suppose I can accept."

Throwing in a favor by mentioning the pitiful Kairos, he added, "But you also have to agree to one condition."

Mirana took half a step back, suddenly wary. "What condition?"

"After this quest, you have to join my squad."

Lu Wei revealed his true intentions. "You’re on your own right now anyway. I don’t think that’s too outrageous of a demand."

"..."

"No, I can’t do that."

...

...

About ten minutes later, Lu Wei pushed through the crowd and, under the envious, surprised, and schadenfreude-filled gazes of the onlookers, tore a quest slip from the board.

[Reconnaissance — Map Drawing (8)]

The reward was 7 Gold Coins and 700 points, making it one of the more difficult quests among the dozen or so available, on the upper end of medium difficulty.

Mirana actually only needed 600 more points to upgrade to a Silver Badge, but considering the quest specifically stated that "the full or partial reward will be distributed based on the quality of the map," the two of them chose this slightly higher-tier quest to give themselves some margin for error.

Moreover, the area for this quest was closer to the Dome Pillar, so Lu Wei could also make arrangements for the construction of the "Golden Sword Hu Commercial Complex."

In any case, the fact that he took the quest slip meant he and Mirana had reached an agreement on their cooperation for this mission—

The quest bounty and all loot would still go to him, plus an additional payment of 13 gold coins.

In addition, Mirana had agreed to join the Mushroom Squad after Kairos’s leg was healed.

Until then, the two of them would remain in a simple "partnership."

’Hmm...’

’To be honest, Lu Wei didn’t really understand why Mirana insisted on waiting until after Kairos’s leg was healed.’

’After all, they were already "companions in fact, if not in name."’

’So for Mirana, agreeing now or later made no real difference.’

’Did she think that joining his squad now would make Kairos feel "betrayed"?’

’But would anyone really care about that...?’

’It’s just switching teams, not switching husbands.’

’I don’t get it...’

Holding the quest slip, he squeezed out of the crowd and looked at Mirana, who was waiting for him outside. Lu Wei simply couldn’t understand the point of her insistence.

But since it made no difference to him whether it was sooner or later, he didn’t dwell on it and quickly went to the counter to place a "quest lock."

This was a service the Adventurer Association provided specifically for those who were certain they would take a quest but couldn’t depart immediately.

You paid a deposit, which would reserve the quest for up to three days.

As long as you activated the quest within those three days, you would get the deposit back.

If more than three days passed, or if you changed your mind and decided not to take the quest, the deposit would be forfeited.

"Alright, it’s done."

Returning to Mirana with the quest slip, Lu Wei planned out his next steps. "Let’s set out the day after tomorrow. Any problems with that?"

"Okay. Is it just the two of us again this time?"

"No, this trip is too long. It’ll be better to bring Furen and Bai Ya along."

"Furen is no problem, but Bai Ya..."

"She has some combat ability now."

Lu Wei knew what Mirana was worried about and explained casually, "Even if she can’t help much, she at least won’t hold us back anymore. Plus, she can cook for us."

Mirana was taken aback. "Was it that Skill Book?"

Lu Wei nodded. "Yeah. You should probably learn a Combat Skill or something too. Otherwise, that high Power of yours is just going to waste."

"..."

’I’d love to, but the money I finally managed to save up for a Skill Book all got scammed away by you.’

Mirana shot him a look and silently counted out 13 Gold Coins from her pouch.

Her once-bulging money pouch instantly deflated.

"Here. This is the payment we agreed on."

"Huh? You’re giving it to me in advance?"

Lu Wei was a little surprised. He had originally thought Mirana would only pay half upfront, or maybe even wait until after the quest was finished.

But since she’d already taken it out, he certainly wasn’t going to be polite about it.

"Then I’ll just take this... By the way, aren’t you worried I’ll just take the money and run?"

"It doesn’t matter. I know where your general store is."

"So you’re threatening me?"

"No, I’m just saying you won’t run."

Mirana tied the money pouch back onto her waistband and looked up. "And even if you did run, it wouldn’t matter. You can just consider the money a thank-you for saving me."

"..."

’Bai Ya! Did you hear that!’

’Now *this* is how you really repay someone!’

’What’s the damn point of saying "thank you" a million times!’

’Only Gold Coins are real!!’