Chapter 94: Interspecies Communication

Chapter 94: Chapter 94: Interspecies Communication

According to Hain, the shop owner was an eccentric Mage who didn’t like to be disturbed.

Hesia treated Belte to a simple lunch to thank him for his help, then headed for the Bell Tower alone.

’The alley east of the Bell Tower...’

He recalled the map of Rose Town in his mind as he walked. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, a wry expression on his face.

’Feipu Lane... isn’t that the main alley east of the Bell Tower?!’

’Could that shop be right next to my place?’

He searched around the entrance of Feipu Lane and, sure enough, found an inconspicuous path not far away.

At the end of the alley was a perfectly ordinary stone wall. Several old wooden crates and miscellaneous junk were piled at the entrance. Anyone who walked this far would subconsciously assume it was a dead end and turn back.

Hesia turned sideways and squeezed into the narrow path.

The path was dark and damp, its walls covered in slick green moss. He walked all the way to the end and stopped in front of the stone wall.

Recalling Hain’s words, he focused his mind and tried to sense the surrounding fluctuations of Magic Power.

At first, everything seemed normal; only faint Elements flowed freely in the air.

But when he concentrated his attention, he managed to detect a subtle hum on a certain part of the wall, like the buzzing of a gnat’s wings, along with a slight sense of spatial distortion.

The sensation was extremely faint. If one weren’t deliberately searching for it, they would definitely dismiss it as a trick of the mind.

’This is it...’

Hesia extended his index finger, aimed it at the core of the Magic Power fluctuation, and channeled a faint wisp of Magic Power from his body, slowly injecting it.

The moment his fingertip touched the rough stone wall, the hard sensation slowly faded away like melting ice and snow.

Immediately after, the entire wall rippled like water, and his hand passed through it without any resistance.

’This barrier is truly ingenious!’

Hesia took a deep breath and walked straight into the illusory wall.

The darkness he had anticipated did not appear.

From the inside, the wall was just a translucent Magic Barrier. He could even see the path outside clearly.

Behind the barrier was a stone staircase leading down. The staircase wasn’t long; Hesia counted as he descended—only seven steps in total.

However, when he reached the bottom of the stairs, he was met with an awkward sight.

A crooked wooden sign hung on the wooden door.

Painted on the sign was a goblin head with a crazed expression. A spring was attached underneath the head, making it look as if it could pop out at any moment.

Beneath this strange illustration—the shop’s name, "Pulsating Goblin Head"—someone had written a few words with a pen:

"Do not disturb!"

Recalling Hain’s confident demeanor, Hesia decided to try anyway.

To his surprise, the door wasn’t locked.

With a light touch of his knuckle, the door swung inward with a CREAK.

The scene inside the door was completely different from the outside.

An aroma wafted over him—a mixture of old scrolls, strange woods, dried herbs, and the faint smell of ozone.

The light inside the shop was bright and soft. The ceiling, similar to the stone wall outside, had a translucent quality that filtered the sunlight, making the room feel incredibly airy.

The four walls were lined with wooden shelves reaching to the ceiling, crammed with all sorts of peculiar items: wand cores of varying materials and thicknesses; half-finished staff heads inlaid with colorful crystals, Gemstones, or the eyes of strange creatures; glass jars containing indescribable plant roots and the skulls of small Demons; and a large number of scattered parchment Scrolls and Thick Hide tomes so heavy they could kill a man.

The floor was also piled high with things, leaving barely any room to walk.

It was less a shop and more a laboratory and storeroom combined.

Deep within this chaotic "treasure trove," a short figure stood with her back to the door. She was standing on a creaky wicker chair, on her tiptoes, struggling to retrieve a leather-bound book from a high shelf—one thick enough to knock out a Dwarf.

She heard the door open and froze. Without turning her head, she tossed a sentence over her shoulder in an impatient tone:

"We’re closed! Can’t you read the ’Do not disturb’ sign on the door? If you need something, come back tomorrow... no, come back next year!"

Her voice was clear and crisp, but laced with gunpowder.

Muttering to herself, she leaped up, finally yanking the heavy book down and cradling it in her arms.

Then, she jumped down from the wicker chair, her pair of small, furry feet landing on the cool stone floor.

Clutching the book, she took off on her short legs, pattering past Hesia with a TAP TAP TAP—or more accurately, past his waist.

Hesia’s gaze followed her, and only then did he notice a green-skinned, yellow-eyed creature tied to the wall on the other side of the room.

’A live goblin?!’

The goblin was tied up securely, unable to move. Its face was filled with confusion, and it made meaningless "guga" sounds.

The Female Half-Elf ran up to the goblin and flipped open the thick book with a RUSTLE. The title was *Interspecies Communication: A Demonstration Using Goblins as an Example*.

She quickly flipped through a few pages, pointed to a spot, then looked up at the goblin and began to try, gesturing wildly:

Her little face scrunched up as she mimicked a pained expression, speaking in a tone that attempted to imitate the goblin language, "Gwaigwai ga! Tongtong yue kaka, toutou DONG DONG DONG!" (The book’s meaning: Be good. The more it hurts, the more you have to nod!)

As she spoke, she nodded her own head vigorously, gesturing for the goblin to imitate her.

However, the bound goblin just stared at her blankly, as if it hadn’t heard a thing.

It ignored the pained expression on her face, and instead stared at the Female Half-Elf’s chest, which was rising and falling slightly from her imitation. Its mouth hung slightly open, a trail of drool dripping down.

The Female Half-Elf took a deep breath, seemingly restraining her anger.

Refusing to give up, she flipped through a few more pages of the book and tried a different sentence, one that sounded more cheerful:

"Ga-ge! Pu-wa! KAKAKA!" (The book’s meaning: Wonderful! Awesome! Some sort of strange revelry cry!)

This time, the goblin seemed to understand... or rather, it was infected by her sudden high spirits and strange syllables.

The confusion on its face vanished. It stared at her with fanatical excitement, its bound body squirming as it responded enthusiastically:

"KAKAKA! KAKAKA! KAKAKA!"

The Female Half-Elf looked at the goblin, which was so excited it was nearly convulsing, then looked down at the wretched book in her hands and finally understood.

Her little face fell, and her eyes blazed with the fury of being duped.

With a faint fluctuation of Magic Power, the copy of *Interspecies Communication: A Demonstration Using Goblins as an Example* instantly self-combusted, turning into a small pile of ashes that drifted to the floor.

The embers from the incinerated book had not yet settled, but the flames of rage in her heart surged anew.

She took another deep breath, suppressing the urge to blast the goblin into a pile of charcoal with a Lightning Bolt.

’No... today is the goddess’s designated day of rest. I shouldn’t use Magic.’

However, the goblin’s sickening gaze and its "kaka" laughter buzzed in her ears like flies. She stomped her foot in frustration.