Chapter 138: Judgement?

Chapter 138 -134: Judgement?

The atmosphere by the campfire was still lively.

Perhaps because meeting a talking War Lizardman perfectly matched Furen’s idea of a grand adventure, he was particularly excited and had been the most talkative one throughout the meal.

Marcus was also in a great mood.

After all, this mission had been much simpler than he had imagined.

The fierce battle he’d anticipated never happened. The so-called “Leader Level Monster” was nothing more than a weakling who only knew how to set traps, and they’d effortlessly acquired a huge chest of spoils.

You had to admit, this was probably an Adventurer’s happiest moment.

Compared to the monotony of a daily job or a life spent toiling in the fields, this kind of “sudden surprise” was simply intoxicating.

Though it could just as easily be a “sudden disaster,” what Adventurer ever thinks of themselves as unlucky?

“Fortune is always on the side of the brave.”

Taking another big gulp of the steaming mushroom soup, Marcus beamed, his mind inevitably turning to this divine oracle from the Goddess of Fortune.

As the Divine Spirit with the most Believers on the Falanis Continent, the Goddess of Fortune rarely revealed Her miracles.

Or perhaps, She was revealing them all the time.

After all, no one has bad luck forever.

And when good fortune did strike, who was to say whether it was “destiny” or “a sign from the Goddess”?

It had been the same for Marcus before.

But today, he was utterly convinced he had been blessed by the Goddess of Fortune.

He wasn’t referring to the chest of spoils, however.

It was…

‘Lu Wei must be disguised as an ordinary Adventurer, carrying out some secret mission.’

‘If I can help him out a little, maybe I’ll have a chance to become a Professional…’

As these thoughts ran through his mind, Marcus hesitated, wondering if he should go over and “get on better terms” with Lu Wei.

But before he could decide, Mirana beat him to it.

“I’m full.”

On the other side of the campfire, Mirana gently set down her wooden bowl, then stood and walked straight toward Lu Wei.

When Bai Ya saw this, her expression immediately grew anxious. She finally remembered she had this love rival to deal with.

Mirana and Lu Wei had barely interacted over the past few days, so she’d nearly forgotten all about it.

‘What are you doing?!’

‘Stop right there!’

‘You’re not allowed to whisper secrets to the Captain!’

Her hand holding the wooden bowl tightened unconsciously. Bai Ya stared wide-eyed at Mirana’s back, feeling incredibly anxious.

But she couldn’t actually speak up to stop her, so she just lowered her head and began gulping down her soup, trying to finish quickly so she could go break the two of them up.

Meanwhile, Mirana had already reached Lu Wei.

Then, she got straight to the point and asked:

“Can you lend me some money?”

…

…

[Judge’s Longsword]

[Species: Weapon]

[Level: High Level]

[Value: 5 gold and 3 silver]

[Introduction: Forged from Dark Steel, which is native to the Land of Exile, and tempered with a Secret Technique, the blade has a deep, dark gray hue. The fuller is wide and long, engraved on the inside with Judgement glyphs designed specifically for executioners.]

[1. User Power +1, Perception +1]

[2. Light Devourer: Reflects almost no light, making it extremely difficult to perceive in darkness.]

[3. Judgement: The user will not feel guilt when killing any living creature.]

[Note: The silence of the law is not weakness, but merely the wait for the final moment of execution.]

‘Damn, it’s even got “Judgement”…’

‘It’s pretty underwhelming, though.’

A little over ten minutes later, the large Wooden Box was open.

Marcus and Bai Ya were squatting beside it counting coins, the crisp clinking of metal a refreshing sound.

Lu Wei, on the other hand, held a black Longsword, gave it a casual swing, and then handed it back to Mirana, looking unimpressed.

Obviously, the latter wanted to borrow money to buy this Longsword in the upcoming team auction.

She had touched it back in the cave and already checked its stats, which was why she’d had her eye on it.

Although in Lu Wei’s eyes, this Sword was honestly rather Ordinary.

Although it was rare for a piece of High Level Equipment to have three properties, all three felt very mediocre.

The two Attribute points were standard fare, and neither “Light Devourer” nor “Judgement” directly increased combat effectiveness.

‘No feeling of guilt?’

‘What the hell is that good for??’

‘If you’re killing monsters, or vicious bandits, who would feel guilty in the first place!’

‘Don’t tell me Mirana plans to use it to kill ordinary people, or even children?’

‘That’s impossible!’

‘That would make her a total monster?!’

“I don’t get it.”

“She probably just likes the ‘Light Devourer’ effect.”

Muttering to himself, Lu Wei turned to look at Mirana.

“How much do you need to borrow?”

“Enough to buy this Sword.”

Mirana thought for a moment. “5 Gold Coins should do it. If I don’t need that much, I’ll give you back the rest.”

Lu Wei nodded. He also figured the Sword would go for 5 Gold Coins at most in the auction.

Even if Marcus and the others joined the bidding, it was unlikely anyone would think its three properties were worth any more than that.

“Alright, but just so we’re clear, I charge interest.”

“Of course. That’s reasonable.”

Mirana asked, “If I pay you back within half a month, how much is the interest?”

Lu Wei smiled. “Friendship price: 1 Gold Coin.”

“…Never mind then. I won’t borrow it.”

Mirana froze for a second, then shook her head decisively. To Lu Wei’s astonishment, she walked straight over to Furen.

“Furen, can you lend me 5 Gold Coins?”

“Oh, sure, no problem. But I don’t have that much on me right now.”

Furen scratched his head. “Can I lend it to you after we’ve divided up the loot from this trip?”

“Of course. How much interest will I need to pay you?”

“Huh? Interest? We’re teammates! Why would I charge you interest?”

“I see. Thank you so much, then.”

Mirana nodded, then glanced back at Lu Wei.

Her gaze was calm, but for some reason, Lu Wei couldn’t help but feel like she was provoking him.

Meanwhile, by the Wooden Box, Bai Ya, who had been secretly eavesdropping, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

‘Thank goodness!’

‘So she was just borrowing money!’

‘But why would the Captain ask for so much interest?’

‘Even the most unscrupulous moneylenders and pawnbrokers wouldn’t charge such a high rate.’

‘Could it be…’

‘Ah! I get it!’

‘The Captain did it on purpose! Because the Captain doesn’t like Mirana!’

‘That has to be it!’

‘After all, when I owed the Captain money, he never said a thing about interest!’

‘Which means…’

‘The Captain likes me!’

After this round of “flawless logical” deduction, Bai Ya’s cheeks instantly flushed red, and her heart began to pound.

She hurriedly lowered her head, pretending to be focused on counting the Silver Coins in her hand.

But a moment later, unable to resist, she secretly turned her head to sneak a peek at Lu Wei, whose face was filled with regret.

Her own hopeful expectations caused Bai Ya to completely overlook the “I just lost a huge deal” expression on Lu Wei’s face.

But even so, her happiness didn’t last long, and she soon found herself plagued by a sliver of doubt.

‘Strange, I’ve already ruled out the possibility of that War Lizardman being a love rival.’

‘And now I know the Captain doesn’t like Mirana.’

‘So why hasn’t that feeling of unease I had before gone away…?’