Chapter 615 Conscription Order

Walking through the streets of Salt Rock Port, Xia Nan ignored the occasional stares from the people around him, his mind lingering on the young fisherman named Winsor.

His sharp Perception had alerted him to the boy's poor mental state the moment he stepped onto the small fishing boat. The bleak emotions the young man revealed during their ensuing conversation only proved it.

But... they were just strangers meeting for the first time.

Out of politeness, Xia Nan wasn't going to pry into the boy's past or make presumptuous guesses about his painful experiences. Winsor ferried him to the port and gave a brief introduction to the town, while Xia Nan paid for the service—that was the extent of their relationship. They were just passing acquaintances. Although Winsor's refusal to accept the money had significantly boosted Xia Nan's impression of him, it wasn't nearly enough to make Xia Nan play therapist and actively try to solve the boy's problems.

Right now, the truly important task was finding where the Barbarian Forgan lived.

"Clack."

His thick leather boots, still damp with water, stopped in their tracks.

Xia Nan looked up. Jutting out from beneath the eaves was an oak signboard painted with a row of dried herrings. The Salted Fish Tavern.

It was one of the few places in the small city of Salt Rock Port where adventurers regularly gathered.

He had settled on this destination after piecing together information from Winsor and pedestrians near the port.

He pushed the door open, and a warm, stuffy wave of alcohol and raucous noise washed over him.

It was indeed an adventurer hub, but given Salt Rock Port's nature as a small town, a veteran adventurer decked out in Fine equipment like Xia Nan was still a rare sight.

The bell on the door jingled crisply, and while the tavern's clamor carried on uninterrupted, gazes of scrutiny and fear converged on Xia Nan from tables all across the room.

Long accustomed to this, Xia Nan kept his expression perfectly steady. His naturally icy demeanor, sharpened by his striking features and heavy gear, formed a natural barrier that warded off unnecessary trouble.

His gaze swept across the hall as his Perception kicked in, observing every detail.

Compared to the Three-Legged Sea Dog in Barracuda Bay, the Salted Fish Tavern was clearly inferior in every respect.

Dim oil lamps, aided by the glow of the fireplace, barely illuminated the hall. The relatively clean wooden walls were hung with cheap decorations like sea beast bones and metal harpoons.

Uniform, featureless tables crammed the space. Coupled with the bottles piled on the tables and the debris scattered across the floor, the entire tavern felt like a chaotic mess.

As for the patrons...

At least from Xia Nan's sweep of the room, there was no one worth noting.

He guessed they were all ordinary adventurers who had yet to obtain a Class Level.

The only two figures who warranted a second glance were a young man and an older man sitting in a corner.

The younger of the two had striking blond hair and looked about the same age as Winsor. Although he wore a loose surcoat that completely concealed his gear, the relatively fair skin of his face and neck suggested a privileged upbringing. This boy had likely never done a day of hard labor under the sun in his life.

The middle-aged man sitting across from the blond youth was visibly far more composed. He had graying hair and wore the same style of surcoat, but beneath the loose fabric, his posture was rigidly straight—an instinct likely ingrained through years of rigorous training. His sharp eyes frequently swept their surroundings, on constant alert for danger.

Thanks to his exceptional Perception attribute, it took Xia Nan only seconds to deduce the dynamic between the two. Though they sat facing each other, the blond youth occupied the innermost seat in the corner. Flanked by walls on his back and left side, he was relatively well-protected.

The gray-haired man, on the other hand, had only one side against the wall, leaving his straight and slightly tense back exposed to the room.

Xia Nan hadn't tried to conceal his entrance.

Naturally, he drew the attention of the duo in the corner.

The blond youth's clear blue eyes were restless. He would steal glances at a passing waiter balancing a tray, or snap his head toward the neighboring sailors whenever they stood up to shout over a card game.

When he traced the sound of the opening door and spotted Xia Nan walking in, his interest visibly spiked at the sight of Fine equipment—a stark contrast to the ordinary gear he had seen on other adventurers during his journey.

Devoid of malice and fueled purely by curiosity, his eager gaze swept over Xia Nan's twin swords, armor, and greaves. It wasn't until the older man lightly kicked his calf under the table that the youth snapped out of his trance. He instantly averted his eyes, cleared his throat with exaggerated nonchalance, and reached for the cup on the table to look busy. Finding the cup completely empty, his hand awkwardly redirected in midair to scratch his neck.

In comparison, the gray-haired older man—who seemed to be the youth's guardian—was far more restrained.

Clearly an experienced traveler, the older man disguised his gaze well enough to blend in with the other adventurers. Yet, as a fellow Class Holder, he could sense the distinct, battle-hardened aura radiating from Xia Nan—an aura forged through grueling training and endless combat. Realizing that Xia Nan's strength likely outstripped his own, the older man immediately averted his eyes. "Smack!"

At the neighboring table—two tables temporarily shoved together—a group of adventurers sat around a few pitchers of ale and half a chopped roast sheep, deep in discussion.

A burly, heavily bearded man slapped a crumpled, yellowed piece of paper onto the table, his deep voice rumbling.

"Have you guys seen this?"

"A conscription order from the border!"

He held up a few thick, stubby fingers and waved them at his companions.

"Eighty gold! And that's just the signing bonus. You get it guaranteed the moment you join. I heard the pay gets even better once you officially enter the army!"

"Heh, I've been hacking lizards in the mines for three whole years and haven't managed to save up that much. Looks like we've finally hit a stroke of good luck."

Although it wasn't as rich in resources as the Misty Forest, most adventurers operating out of Salt Rock Port could still maintain their massive, noble-like daily expenses by hunting monsters in the nearby waters and surrounding salt mines.

Eighty gold was naturally nothing to a "rich man" like Xia Nan, whose net worth had already surpassed ten thousand.

Truthfully, the vast majority of adventurers could also scrape that amount together if they just saved up for a while.

However, the culture of the adventurer profession across the Aifala Continent meant that ninety-nine percent of low-tier adventurers couldn't save a dime. They had absolutely no habit of saving, spending whatever they earned. They would only take on their next quest once they had squandered all their gold at the taverns and card tables.

Those who could plan ahead even slightly, setting aside extra funds for equipment and supplies, were already considered remarkably disciplined.

Under these circumstances, eighty gold was undoubtedly a massive fortune to the adventurers currently in the tavern.

As soon as the burly man finished speaking, several adventurers gathered around, looking visibly tempted.

"Are you serious? Eighty gold? Since when is the kingdom this generous?"

"Doesn't Servia rarely hire adventurer mercenaries like us? Why the sudden call to arms?"

"Are there any requirements? Do they provide weapons and gear?"

Just as the crowd was buzzing with discussion, a slightly gaunt adventurer sitting at a nearby table sneered.

"Conscription? Sometimes I really wonder if the lizards in the salt mines cracked your skulls open and licked your brains."

"The kingdom hasn't even filled out its own standing army. A few armies up in the Northlands just discharged three thousand men a couple of months ago. I remember we were discussing it right here in the tavern not too long ago. Did you all forget?"

"At a time like this, they're suddenly drafting soldiers, and they're specifically looking for adventurer mercenaries like us... Heh, what do you think that's for?"

The gaunt adventurer's cynical tone drew plenty of curses and rebuttals. At the same time, however, the problem he pointed out made the sharper adventurers realize something was off. The excitement stirred up by the lure of gold quickly cooled. The burly man obviously hadn't thought that far ahead either. At first, he found the gaunt man's words grating, but upon closer thought, he realized they actually made a lot of sense.

Refusing to back down out of pride, the burly man kept his face taut. He gave an awkward harrumph and slapped the table.

"Then you tell me—why is the kingdom issuing a conscription order right now?"

"Tsk, a conscription order, and from the border, no less." The gaunt man sneered. "It just means war is brewing again, and they want to recruit some adventurers to use as cannon fodder. What else could it be?"

Hearing this, the blond youth huddled in the corner couldn't hold back any longer and chimed in.

"Even though our relations with the neighboring country used to be poor, they've clearly improved over the last two years!"

"During the autumn harvest the year before last, didn't the neighboring kingdom send a delegation? They traveled all the way to the Imperial Capital, and rumor has it the talks went pretty well. I recall the envoy's fleet even passed through Salt Rock Port. They must have stopped here to rest for a few days, right?"

"If they were really planning to go to war, they would've started preparing ages ago. What would be the point of sending a diplomatic mission?"

Both sides sounded perfectly reasonable, leaving the burly man's head spinning. Unsure of whose side to take, he retorted purely on instinct.

"Well... maybe they aren't fighting the neighboring country. Pirates, bandits, or some other random mess—anything's possible, right?"

Naturally, no one took his nonsense seriously.

Faced with the youth's rebuttal, the gaunt adventurer clearly realized the hole in his own logic. He awkwardly turned his head, adopting a nonchalant posture as he muttered under his breath.

"I'm not going off to die, anyway."

Seeing that no one had a comeback, the blond youth looked as though he had just won a victorious battle. He tilted his chin high and was about to continue his arrogant rant when he suddenly caught the utterly helpless look in the older man's eyes, abruptly snapping him back to his senses.

Looking rather guilty, he gave the older man a sheepish grin, obediently sat back down, and kept his mouth shut.

Xia Nan had witnessed the entire debate, his sharp hearing ensuring he hadn't missed a single word.

'Conscription? The border?'

The eighty-gold signing bonus held zero appeal for him. He had a clear goal and had no desire to be tied down to any specific organization or region. As for the Servia Kingdom's conscription order, he couldn't care less.

Following the habits he had developed since transmigrating, he simply filed the tavern gossip away in his mind and walked toward the bar.

The owner of the Salted Fish Tavern, who was also manning the front counter, was a one-eyed man around forty years old.

There was no classic cliché of being inexplicably looked down upon. The entire reason Xia Nan wore his full combat gear was precisely to avoid such pointless friction.

A skilled judge of character, the owner took one look at the black-haired young man and immediately deduced he was a formidable, veteran adventurer. As a result, his service was almost overly attentive.

Xia Nan had barely taken a seat before the tavern owner slid a cold, iced mug of ale onto the counter in front of him.

"What can I get you to eat? The drink is on the house."

Xia Nan's gaze swept over the menu on the wall behind the man. Failing to spot the familiar dish he was looking for, he felt a twinge of disappointment and casually ordered a few of the more expensive items.

He didn't waste any time and got straight to the point.

"Have you hosted a Barbarian adventurer recently? He wears a wolf-pelt cloak and might be carrying—"

"You must be Mr. Xia Nan, right?"

The tavern owner interrupted him mid-sentence.

Xia Nan was momentarily taken aback—he hadn't introduced himself yet. But he quickly realized what was going on. Keeping a straight face, he simply gave the man a nod.

"It is you!"

Seeing Xia Nan confirm his identity, the tavern owner breathed a sigh of relief. He turned and hurried toward the back room, tossing a quick remark over his shoulder, "I'll be right back. Please wait here a moment!"

Less than half a minute later, the man emerged from the back room holding a familiar-looking envelope.

Xia Nan reached out and took it.

Stamped over the flap was the exact same wax seal he had seen once before at the Adventurers' Association—a distinct frost-blue wax pressed with the emblem of a roaring Winter Wolf, marking it as a letter from the Barbarian, Forgan.