Chapter 244 Psychological Shadows and the Strange Taste of Meat

"Captain, everything has been investigated!"

Inside an inconspicuous room in Molten Scale Town.

Trevelyan sat on a sofa against the wall, wearing only a thin shirt.

The suit of Fine standard heavy armor, personally gifted by Duke Morton and slightly modified for this mission to conceal the family's identifying marks, rested neatly on an armor stand in front of him to make maintenance easier.

Meanwhile, a similarly disguised knight was reporting the situation to him.

"According to our informant at the casino, after Rotten Toe met with Lawson that day, they brought back a total of three corpses from the alley. They've all been chopped into minced meat and fed to the dogs by now."

Back then, given the urgency of the situation, Trevelyan had led his subordinates to follow Lawson's group as they rushed out of the tavern.

However, as the path they took grew increasingly remote, the number of pedestrians gradually dwindled.

Considering the risk of exposure, they hadn't continued following with so many people.

In the end, they only saw Lawson and his men enter a narrow, gloomy alley.

Truth be told, Trevelyan wasn't particularly concerned about his identity being exposed.

As long as he could confirm that Lawson didn't possess more information about the Morton Family's Legacy Secret Treasure than he did, it wouldn't have mattered if he just went up and arrested the man.

The reason he was being so cautious right now was simply out of fear that the other party might fight to the death and cause unnecessary damage to the treasure.

Focusing on maintaining the armor in his hands, he asked in a steady voice, "What about the identities of those three corpses? Have they been figured out?"

"Two of them were ordinary people who often messed around in the casino. The other was a dwarf dressed as an Adventurer."

"A dwarf?" Trevelyan's hands suddenly paused as he fell into deep thought.

Based on the channels provided by the Duke, he had a very thorough understanding of Lawson's Hound Fang Squad.

Naturally, he was well aware of the dwarf Rogue named Bagu in their squad.

So when Lawson returned earlier, his squad hadn't been completely wiped out after all? There were survivors?

While it was possible that the squad had been scattered by the red dragon and the two had simply failed to regroup immediately...

The current situation seemed to lean more toward his initial guess: the Hound Fang Squad had suffered infighting over the distribution of the treasure.

In that case...

Shouldn't that item be in Lawson's hands now?

No. Considering how Rotten Toe's subordinates had been urgently searching for something around town over the past two days, perhaps the Duke's Legacy Secret Treasure was still missing.

Then again, it could just be a deliberate facade set up by Lawson to confuse outsiders. He still needed to be careful.

Thinking of this, Trevelyan looked at his subordinate and asked, "Has Lawson made any other unusual moves lately?"

"No, Captain."

"He's basically stayed at the Resting Dragon Lair Inn for the past two days. Whenever he went out, our brothers followed him. Aside from Rotten Toe, he hasn't had contact with anyone else."

"Are the town exits being watched closely? Don't let him slip away."

"Don't worry, Captain. We have brothers keeping watch twenty-four hours a day."

Molten Scale Town was nestled in a mountain col amidst rugged terrain. Built against the Molten Scale Mountains, not only did this give the town's buildings a unique flair, but it also meant that entry and exit were limited to just two passages at the front and back.

The front led out to the forests and wastelands of Cloudclimb Province, while the back faced the Molten Scale Mountains directly. Crossing the mountains would take one straight to Sticky-Tree Territory in Abyssal Veil Province.

Controlling the town's entrances and exits was an incredibly simple task.

"Aside from that, keep a close eye on any other Adventurers in town acting suspiciously."

If Lawson and Rotten Toe's actions weren't a facade, it meant a third party was operating in town, one that had stolen the Morton Family's treasure.

If they wanted to seize the item, claim the credit for themselves, and save Duke Morton some gold coins in the process, they had to be even more meticulous.

"Yes, Captain!"

The nearly three days of rest were brief yet deeply satisfying for the escort squad.

They had traveled all the way from Rivervale Town to the border of Cloudclimb Province, enduring the harsh elements for many days.

Perhaps the environment of Molten Scale Town couldn't be considered great.

But the hot food and soft, comfortable beds in the inn were enough to soothe the exhaustion in the Adventurers' hearts.

After staying for two nights, even the dragonborn Sava—who had been shaken by the appearance of the red dragon earlier—had recovered the prime condition a Class Holder should maintain during an adventure.

There was even less need to mention Xia Nan.

The chefs at the Resting Dragon Lair Tavern had decent skills. Eating three meals a day there recently, he had ordered almost every local specialty dish on the menu.

Although there were a few misses or dishes that didn't suit his tastes, most were quite delicious. The Red-Scale Mushroom Soup stood out in particular; its spicy and savory flavor left Xia Nan craving more.

He even thought about buying the recipe from the owner to make it himself when he got back.

Unfortunately, after asking, he found out it wasn't for sale.

But the good news was that, according to the chef who had accepted his silver coin, this slightly spicy dish originally came from the southeastern region of the continent. It only became a signature dish of the Resting Dragon Lair after some localized tweaks.

If he ever left the Servia Kingdom in the future, he should have the chance to taste that scorching hot delicacy the chef had described—one that made a person's throat smoke, yet was so delicious they couldn't help but shovel it into their mouths spoonful by spoonful.

"How much for this?"

Bending down and pointing at a waterskin stamped with a red dragon scale pattern on the stall in front of him, Xia Nan asked the stall owner.

He had already finished buying necessary supplies two days ago. Once this mission ended, he likely wouldn't have another chance to visit this remote town beside the Molten Scale Mountains.

Since the mission was going smoothly and he was in a fairly good mood, Xia Nan decided to pick up a few local souvenirs.

If he passed by on the return trip, he could prepare a few small gifts for his acquaintances back in Rivervale Town, helping to maintain his rather sparse social connections in this world.

However, whether it was his Adventurer attire making the man anxious or his inherently chilling aura, he couldn't tell.

The stall owner, enveloped in Xia Nan's shadow, nervously stammered out a price of one silver coin.

Xia Nan casually haggled it down by half, expecting the owner to counteroffer, but to his surprise, the man agreed immediately.

Without even waiting for Xia Nan to fish the copper coins out of his belt pouch, the stall owner hurriedly handed over the finely crafted waterskin with both hands.

Xia Nan hadn't actually cared about the five-copper price difference, and the owner's reaction made the exchange feel rather dull.

Placing the coins into the man's hands, he tossed the waterskin into his backpack and turned away without lingering.

The scent of charred meat drifted into his nose with a breath. Catching sight of a roadside stall that looked just like a barbecue stand in the corner of his eye, Xia Nan's gaze swept over the meat skewers roasting on the hot coals. His eyes lit up, and he walked straight over.

Watching the tall figure carrying twin swords on his back, Verol dawdled behind him, sighing inwardly.

This was their squad's last day resting in Molten Scale Town. Since all preparations had already been completed, it was free time for the team members.

Sava and Luca hadn't known each other well before, but after spending this time together, they surprisingly discovered they shared a common hobby.

They had made plans early on and headed out together this morning.

Hai’an and Wood stayed at the inn. On one hand, the half-elf was currently being hunted, making it inconvenient for him to go out too often. On the other, they needed to discuss their upcoming itinerary and plans for when they arrived in Sticky-Tree Territory.

She was under a lot of pressure. This commission had already wasted a great deal of time, so naturally, she couldn't afford to slack off and rest.

She had originally planned to stay in her room and meditate, using this precious time to recover her strength.

Unfortunately, caught off guard when Xia Nan asked if anyone wanted to go for a stroll with him, she had spoken up out of pure reflex.

By the time she realized what she'd done, it was already too late.

In truth, they hadn't even left the building yet, so going back on her word and refusing would have only taken a single sentence.

But when the person she had to reject was Xia Nan... Verol would rather just follow him out for a walk.

The ponytail tied behind her head swayed gently as she moved. Her amber eyes reflected the image of Xia Nan ahead, who was holding a meat skewer and inspecting it closely as if it were some unknown trophy.

Verol's gaze turned somewhat complicated.

Having spent so many days together in the same squad, she had never seen him fight at full strength.

However, drawing on the sharp eye she had honed over years as a Class Holder in her past life, she had formed a rough estimate of Xia Nan's strength.

Even if it differed from her memories and he was showing an abnormally fast growth rate, his current Class Level shouldn't exceed Level 5.

Truth be told, since she possessed memories of her past life as a mage at the Transcendent Tier Grade...

No matter how resounding Xia Nan's reputation might be in the future, while he had yet to fully mature, she really shouldn't be adopting this kind of attitude toward him.

Deep down, Verol knew that if it were purely a matter of combat power, the current Xia Nan was very likely no match for the former Transcendent Tier mage she had once been.

But it was like some unspeakable psychological shadow.

Like waking up to find a long snake next to your pillow as a child, only to grow up and shriek at even the crudest toy snake; or nearly drowning in a lake during childhood, only to subconsciously avoid all bodies of water as an adult, too terrified to step into even a kiddie pool.

Verol knew with absolute certainty.

Even if she stepped into the Transcendent Tier again in the future, or even became a Legend in the mortal world...

Whenever she thought back to that rainy night in another timeline, countless years ago; whenever she remembered that ground paved with guts and blood, piled high with minced meat and severed limbs; whenever she recalled that tower of blood and bone, built entirely from humanoid skulls frozen in anger, bewilderment, or sheer terror...

She still wouldn't be able to stop herself from shivering and panicking from the very depths of her soul.

Right now, she only hoped to finish this mission as quickly as possible.

The plans she had formulated based on her past life's memories were important, of course, but getting away from the source of this anxiety—the man who was actively disrupting her normal thoughts and actions—was just as urgent and necessary.

"Well? Are you going to eat?" The familiar voice ringing in her ear instantly triggered the young girl's mental defense mechanisms, causing her body beneath the beige robe to shiver involuntarily.

Her crystalline eyes lost focus for a moment, blinking twice before finding their target again. Xia Nan was holding a few meat skewers and waving them in front of her.

"Just bought them. You want some? My treat!"

Forcing a stiff smile onto her face, before the thought of refusing could even sprout in her mind, her hands had already reached out to accept the skewers he handed her.

However, what Verol didn't notice...

Was that Xia Nan had bought a total of five skewers, yet had only eaten half of one himself.

As for the reason, it could only be said that the skewers tasted nowhere near as good as he had imagined.

Perhaps it was the sheer variety of delicious seasonings and the strict food safety standards of the highly developed society in his past life that had caused Xia Nan to misjudge these roadside barbecue stalls.

His superhuman physical constitution granted him a sense of taste far sharper than an ordinary person's.

With just one bite, he could detect the strange taste of aged meat. A flavor that should have been masked by spices, but was currently only dusted with a pinch of coarse salt.

Eat it? Sure, it was edible. It just tasted a bit off; it wouldn't exactly harm his health.

But having finally earned some money, he refused to subject himself to such a grievance. There was no way he was going to mistreat himself.

Yet throwing them away just like that seemed a bit wasteful.

Fortunately, he had a teammate trailing behind him who was willing to help him dispose of the food.

He shoved the skewers at her and watched as she chewed and swallowed.

"Thank you, it tastes quite good."

"What's wrong?" Verol asked, her eyes filled with confusion.

Xia Nan didn't reply; he just gently shook his head.

Speaking of which, the issue of who owned the [Dream Weaving Corridor] that Luca had brought back that day was temporarily put on hold.

After all, they were still in the middle of an escort mission, and Hai’an hadn't completely escaped Nym's pursuit yet.

He and Verol had agreed that once they reached Sticky-Tree Territory and completed the commission, the group would discuss the matter in detail.

For now, the bizarre metallic artifact was still being kept by its finder, Luca, who carried it with him.

"I wonder what Sava and Luca are up to. They headed out first thing this morning, didn't they?"

Walking down the bustling, lively, yet somewhat narrow street, Xia Nan inspected the shops on both sides and asked casually, not thinking much of it.

Of course, he didn't think there was any sort of romantic relationship between the two.

After all, with the dragonborn's anatomy—like a bipedal lizard completely covered in scales, devoid of any discernible sexual characteristics—he truly couldn't fathom how obscure someone's fetishes would have to be for an intelligent creature of another race to take an interest in them.

Regarding where the two of them had gone, Verol actually had a bit of information.

"According to Wood and the others, they apparently went to the town's casino."

"A casino?" Xia Nan was somewhat surprised.

He could understand Sava, but to think that a guy like Luca—with his thick eyebrows and large eyes, looking every bit the honest, simple fellow—would actually have such a hobby.

Then again, on second thought, there truly weren't many forms of daily entertainment in this world, or at least not in Cloudclimb Province where he currently resided.

This was especially true for Adventurers, who occupied an awkward middle ground: far wealthier than commoners and completely free from worrying about making ends meet, yet nowhere near the level of city nobles who could throw gold around like dirt to satisfy their desires with all sorts of luxury goods.

During their free time, they could only rely on alcohol, brothels, and card tables to relieve the stress weighing them down.

"There." Verol tilted her chin slightly, gesturing for Xia Nan to look ahead.

"That's the casino right there."