Chapter 123 -123-Another Pet Evolution Card

Chapter 123: Chapter123-Another Pet Evolution Card

For now, John had no idea where the rest of the pocket watch was scattered.

He didn’t even know how many fragments there were in total.

Still, he made a mental note of it.

From now on, whenever he came across a similar watch fragment...

He would prioritize collecting it.

If he ever got the chance to restore the entire watch...

John was very curious to see what he would get.

...

With his treasury reward chosen, John didn’t leave immediately.

He still had over a million Military Merit left to spend.

The deepest section of the Dawnstar City Treasury was directly connected to the highest-level Military Merit exchange area.

Ordinary soldiers rarely had access to this place.

But John’s current Military Merit and authority were more than enough.

He opened the exchange list directly.

[Current Military Merit: 1,299,500]

[SSS-Rank Reward Exchange Requirement: 1,000,000 Military Merit]

[SS-Rank Reward Exchange Requirement: Varies Based on Item Value]

"One million for a single SSS-rank item."

John clicked his tongue.

Expensive.

Very expensive.

Fortunately, he could afford it.

He began browsing through the list.

After finding the Mystic Watch Fragment earlier, ordinary offensive equipment had completely lost its appeal.

John quickly narrowed his search to pets and defensive items.

Before long, an icy-blue crystal appeared on the list.

[Pet Evolution Card]

[Quality: SSS]

[Effect: Forcefully increases the quality of one SS-rank or lower pet by one rank!]

[Maximum Quality: SSS!]

[Exchange Price: 1,000,000 Military Merit]

John’s eyes immediately lit up.

Now this was useful.

Leviathan was already SSS-rank.

Ice Rose was still only SS-rank.

And now that both [Shared Status Panel] and [Mobile Health Pack] were tied to his pet...

The stronger Ice Rose became,

the more John himself benefited.

One investment.

Two upgrades.

"Exchange."

[Exchange Successful!]

[Military Merit -1,000,000!]

[You have obtained SSS-Rank Pet Evolution Card ×1!]

He still had over two hundred thousand Military Merit remaining.

John kept browsing.

In the end, he found a black war helm in the armor section.

[Obsidian Guard Helm]

[Quality: SS]

[Equipment Level: Lv40]

[Constitution +180]

[Physical Defense +450]

[Magic Defense +450]

[Special Effect — Tenacity: Final damage taken reduced by 15%!]

[Special Effect — Lifeguard: When taking a large amount of damage from a single attack, gain an additional brief period of damage reduction. Enters cooldown after activation.]

John nodded in satisfaction.

His damage output was already massively overkill.

Adding more survivability was actually more useful at this point.

Exchange.

That used up most of his remaining Military Merit as well.

This trip had netted him—

A Mystic Watch Fragment.

An SSS-rank Pet Evolution Card.

And an SS-rank damage-reduction helm.

Not bad at all.

John headed toward the treasury exit.

Just as he reached the entrance...

The white-bearded old man was already sitting in his wooden chair again.

This time, he wasn’t asleep.

His lone eye swept John up and down.

His gaze almost seemed capable of looking directly through the Void Arsenal.

A moment later,

the old man waved his hand.

"No problem."

"You can go."

John paused.

So the old man really could tell exactly how many things he had taken.

Good thing he hadn’t gotten greedy earlier.

Just as that thought crossed his mind...

Rapid footsteps suddenly came from inside the treasury.

"Boss!"

"Wait for me!"

John turned around.

Aya was running toward him with a small box in her arms, her face glowing with the satisfaction of a massive haul.

"I’m done picking too—"

The white-bearded old man suddenly raised a hand.

He pointed one finger at her.

"Freeze."

Buzz!

A streak of blue light instantly entered Aya’s body.

The smile on her face froze on the spot.

One foot remained suspended in midair.

Her entire body was locked in an absurd running pose.

Completely motionless.

Aya’s eyes darted around.

She clearly hadn’t even realized what had happened yet.

"Huh?"

The old man stood up from his chair.

He raised one hand.

Aya’s entire body floated straight into the air.

"W-Wait..."

The old man flicked his wrist.

Aya shook along with it.

Clink!

A ring fell to the floor.

The old man shook her again.

Clatter.

Scrolls.

Potions.

Daggers.

Gems.

Necklaces.

Materials.

One item after another began falling off Aya’s body.

Then more.

And more.

Clatter-clatter-clatter—!

Within moments, a huge pile had formed on the floor.

It looked like someone had emptied an entire sack of treasure from midair.

John: "..."

White-bearded old man: "..."

Both of them fell silent.

John slowly raised his head.

He looked at Aya floating in the air.

Aya looked down at the pile beneath her feet.

Her expression went from confusion...

to pale-faced panic...

and finally,

pure horror.

Their eyes met.

The corner of John’s mouth twitched.

Weren’t they supposed to take one item each?

Were you planning to move the whole treasury out?

The white-bearded old man stared at the mountain of treasure on the floor.

A vein bulged on his forehead.

His hand shook again.

Clink.

A golden ring hidden even deeper dropped to the ground.

Aya’s eyes filled with despair.

"No—!"

"You found that one too?!"

The old man’s face darkened.

"Anything else?"

Aya shook her head frantically.

"That’s really everything!"

The old man stared at her.

Aya remained frozen in midair, her gaze clearly starting to wander.

The old man sneered.

He flipped his palm.

Then gave her another shake.

Plop.

A purple gemstone fell out of Aya’s hair.

John turned his face away.

His shoulders began trembling.

Hold it in.

He had to hold it in.

Aya stared at the gemstone rolling across the floor.

She completely broke down.

"Nooooo!!!"

...

The atmosphere on the way back to camp was unusually heavy.

Aya walked ahead with her head lowered.

Tears kept dripping down her face.

Even her long white hair somehow looked lifeless.

John walked beside her.

His expression was rigid.

But the corners of his mouth kept twitching.

Every time that scene replayed in his head...

He almost lost it.

Especially the moment the old man shook that gemstone out of her hair.

It was tragic.

And absolutely hilarious.

Aya suddenly turned around.

Her eyes were red from crying.

"Boss."

"Are you laughing at me?"

John’s expression instantly turned serious.

"No."

"Your mouth is crooked!"

"Muscle spasm."

"..."

Aya cried even harder.

John coughed lightly and patted her shoulder.

"Alright."

"Don’t be so upset."

"You were the one stealing his stuff."

"That old man was already being pretty generous. He kept the items and let you keep your life."

Aya sniffled.

The tears still wouldn’t stop.

John continued trying to comfort her.

"Besides, he doesn’t look like the kind of person who gossips."

"And I definitely won’t tell anyone."

"So you don’t have to worry."

"Stay strong."

Aya stopped walking.

John thought his comforting had finally worked.

Then, the next second—

"Waaaaah—!"

She started crying even harder.

Then she covered her face and ran off.

Within moments, she had left John far behind.

John stood there with a baffled expression.

"Why is she even more upset now?"

Forget it.

A woman’s heart.

Impossible to understand.

He shook his head.

He didn’t chase after her.

Instead, he suddenly remembered the Pet Evolution Card he had just exchanged for.