Chapter 99 - 97: New Skills

Chapter 99: Chapter 97: New Skills

’Oh crap, did I really just let the fox into the henhouse...?’

Lu Wei was quite worried about Bai Ya’s threat.

After all, Confession and his money pouch were his most precious things.

Although Bai Ya had most likely just said it offhandedly, he had to be on his guard.

"Isn’t Bai Ya coming with us?"

Beside him, Aryan watched Bai Ya walk away, glancing back every few steps, and asked softly.

Her tone, however, wasn’t entirely sincere; it held a hint of nervousness.

Only after hearing Lu Wei say, "Don’t worry about her," did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

And that’s where it all had the faint scent of a ’green tea’ act.

But in Lu Wei’s eyes...

"Let’s go. What do you want to eat?"

"Anything’s fine! I’m happy to eat anything as long as I’m with you~"

"How about we get some barbecue, then?"

"Yay! Barbecue is my favorite~"

"Um... were you waiting long just now?"

"Mmm, it was a little while, but since I was waiting for you, it wasn’t hard at all~"

"Hehe..."

’Look at that!’

’Like hell she’s a ’green tea’!’

’No matter what anyone says, she’s just a sweet, understanding little sister!’

...

...

After finishing dinner with Aryan and dropping her off at Sawing and Sewing, by the time Lu Wei returned to the small wooden cabin, Bai Ya, Zovir, and Anna had already eaten.

The two little slaves were chattering away, discussing their other four companions. It sounded like everyone was shining and thriving in their respective fields.

As for Bai Ya, she looked like she was trying for some Yin-Yang Strange Qi, but since she lacked the emotional intelligence for the "Yin" part, all that was left was the "Strange Qi."

"Back so early? Didn’t you go watch a play today?"

"There’s no play on today."

Lu Wei shot her a sideways glance and lectured her directly, "Aryan helped me save a ton of money. It’s only natural for me to treat her to a meal. I don’t know what you’re being so sarcastic about."

"I..."

Suddenly finding herself on the moral low ground, Bai Ya was rendered speechless, her expression gradually turning to one of shame.

"I’m sorry..."

A moment later, she fidgeted with her fingers, lowered her head, and explained weakly, "I was just a little mad that you didn’t take me to eat with you..."

"Stop right there! If I brought you along, wouldn’t I have to spend money on another person?!"

Lu Wei declared righteously, "And what about Zovir and Anna’s dinner?!"

"Ah..."

Staring with wide, stunned eyes, Bai Ya was now completely at a loss for words.

’So it was all because I was being inconsiderate?’

’Come to think of it, that must be right. After all, there was nothing wrong with what the captain said.’

"I’m sorry, it’s my fault..."

Feeling even more ashamed, she quickly apologized again, "I promise I won’t be like this again!"

"Hmph. Let’s hope so."

Having easily resolved the conflict in just a few sentences, Lu Wei let out a cold snort and finally dropped his stern act.

Although Bai Ya was a little dumb, this did have one benefit.

She was very easy to PUA.

"By the way, go find Furen at the inn tomorrow. Tell him to get ready. The day after tomorrow, we’re setting out to complete a very difficult commission. It should take about 15 days."

"Ah, okay..."

Bai Ya gave a dazed agreement, then hesitated for a long while before stammering in a small voice:

"Um, I’m not questioning you or anything, I just wanted to ask... when you said ’we’ just now, does that include me?"

"Duh. If you don’t go, who’s going to cook?"

"..."

Although it wasn’t a direct answer, the "deep meaning" of his words was not very subtle, so this time Bai Ya only took two seconds to react.

Immediately after, she jumped for joy and exclaimed in delight:

"So that means I’m included, right!"

"Yay! I can finally show what I’m made of!"

’?’

’What skills are you, a cook, going to show off?’

"Let’s not talk about showing off skills for now. First, go find some books about Elves tomorrow and have a read."

A thought suddenly occurred to him, and Lu Wei added casually, "Look into what kind of habits Elves have and whatnot. It would be best if you learned some Elven Language."

"Huh? Why do I need to read about that?" Bai Ya was stunned.

"Because I have a premonition."

Lu Wei’s tone was certain, as if he were speaking of something that was bound to happen.

"It’s very likely we’ll encounter Elves this time."

...

...

[Elf’s Flask]

[Species: Magic Items]

[Level: Ordinary]

[Value: 1 gold and 3 silver]

[Introduction: A magical Crystal Flask, a specialty of the Elf Race. Once a day, a small amount (not exceeding one pound) of non-magical material can be placed in the jar to be completely annihilated. Commonly used for disposing of excrement, destroying trash, or for pranks.]

[Note: You don’t want to know where the vanished matter went.]

「Early the next morning.」

After breakfast, Bai Ya went to the inn to find Furen.

Lu Wei, however, couldn’t wait and headed straight for the Black Market, where he found Sebas in the same spot as last week.

This renowned Kalin Port merchant, who went by the moniker "A Promise is Worth a Thousand Gold," had brought seven or eight strange little trinkets this time.

There was a Beast Taming Collar that could control beasts with an Intelligence of ≤1, a Sound-Seeking Stone that could achieve Resonance with specific sounds, a Shadow-Entwined Gauze from the Shadow Plane, and the sac of a Gelatinous Monster that could be used as a preservative.

They were indeed all things one rarely gets to see.

Unfortunately, their prices were generally not that high, with the most expensive one being around 3 gold coins.

And they weren’t necessarily easy to sell.

"This is an Elf’s portable toilet."

Tossing the Crystal Flask back to Sebas, Lu Wei said with a look of disgust, "It’s not worth much, just a little over 1 gold coin."

"Oh, no wonder the things I threw in before disappeared."

Sebas nodded. "Good thing I didn’t use it for drinking."

"..."

’Not a good thing. You missed out on a rare flavored beverage.’

Lu Wei shook his head. He didn’t care about the Crystal Flask’s use; his disgust was purely due to its price.

After all, he was supposed to get a twenty-percent cut of the profits from these trinkets.

But as it stood, none of them were very impressive. All of them together were worth less than 10 Gold Coins.

He would only get a little over 1 Gold Coin.

Although it wasn’t a small amount, because he had hit the jackpot last time, Lu Wei’s expectations for today were inevitably a bit high.

His gaze fell upon the last piece, a white, translucent stone. He very solemnly threatened the Goddess of Fortune one more time, then took it in his hand.

[Hardened Lung Alveoli of the Bottom-dwelling Demon Fish]

[Species: Material]

[Level: High Level]

[Value: 2 gold and 4 silver]

[Introduction: After being crushed, it can create a temporary air bubble in the surrounding area, allowing for breathing underwater or in poisonous gas zones. It is a key material for crafting certain Water-Repelling Magical Items.]

[Note: Gurgle gurgle~]

’Gurgle gurgle my ass!’

His hopes instantly shattered, Lu Wei handed the lung alveoli back to Sebas with a helpless look on his face.

"It’s the Hardened Lung Alveoli of a Demon Fish. Crushing it creates an air bubble for breathing underwater. It can also be used to make water-repelling items."

"It’s worth 2 gold and 5 silver, but it should sell for a bit more in Kalin Port."

"Is that so? That’s not bad at all. I only spent 5 Silver Coins to buy it."

Sebas nodded, very satisfied with the four-fold profit.

Although the others didn’t earn him as much, at least he didn’t lose money on any of them.

Looking at it this way, although he didn’t possess Lu Wei’s profound Scholarship, he must have had some special judgment skills of his own.

Otherwise, his picks wouldn’t have been so accurate.

All in all, Sebas was quite content with this week’s results.

Lu Wei, however, was a little bummed, finally realizing that hitting the jackpot wasn’t an everyday occurrence.

But right now, none of that mattered.

"By the way, you haven’t forgotten that I asked you to buy a Professional Skill Book last week, have you?"

Looking at Sebas, his hope rekindled, and he asked with great anticipation, "So, did you get it?"

"Yes, I got one."

Sebas’s answer made Lu Wei’s heart leap with joy, but then it sank just a little.

"You requested a Ring One Magic, preferably a Mage’s Long-Range Attack Skill."

"I don’t know many Mages, only two or three, and they all happened to be out on missions this week, not in Kalin Port."

"So in the end, I asked a Priest... as you know, the one thing the Northern River Valley doesn’t lack is Priests."

"I asked him to go to the Priest Association to buy this one. It’s the only Ring One attack Skill a Priest has."

"In terms of power, it’s not that different from Magic Missile."

"And didn’t you say it would be best if it was a Skill with a Perception Bonus?"

"This one has a Perception Bonus..."

As Sebas explained, he took out a Skill Book with a golden cover that seemed to emit a faint glow and handed it to Lu Wei.

"Here. Light-guided Arrow."