Chapter 72 - 27: [God of Wealth, God of Love, and Super Little Sun]

Chapter 72: Chapter 27: [God of Wealth, God of Love, and Super Little Sun]

The ancient coin, forged from an intertwining of black and white metals, was tossed into the air. It flipped under the ceiling of the adventurer’s barrack room and landed steadily back into his Nether Copper Hand Armor with a crisp CLINK.

"Is this a Divine Era Ancient Coin?" Samael held a leather money pouch, pinching a coin and examining it closely.

Two types of metal, one black and one white, were woven and fused together through complex casting techniques. The pitch-black base of the ancient coin was inlaid with silver-white metallic patterns.

The pattern on the front consisted of three small spheres arranged in an equilateral triangle, surrounding a large sphere in the center.

The back was inlaid with something resembling a crude bird with spread wings.

To be honest, this alleged "bird with spread wings" looked exactly like a spaceship from a sci-fi story. Samael pondered in silence, slowly closing his metallic palm over the coin.

"Anyway, we completed the mission, so taking the money puts me at ease," he said, studying the coin.

"At least Valak won’t crush us now..." Talia tossed her helmet aside, collapsed onto the bed, and let out a sigh of relief. "And he won’t leak our whereabouts. Valak is an arrogant Monarch. Given his personality, as long as it’s something he personally promised, it’s virtually impossible for him to swallow his pride and go back on his word. It’s all thanks to your genius plan... Although it deviated a bit from the original strategy, fortunately, the final result was more or less the same. How did you come up with bottled Magic? I almost forgot we even had such a thing."

"I’m a Dark Souls player. That means during a journey, I always have to think about what I can use from my pockets. I have to make good use of every tool," Samael explained. "Bows and arrows, shields, different weapons, different equipment, different items... Every item has its use. You always have to be mindful of what’s in your inventory."

"However, I originally thought Norman Passat wouldn’t notice the Mold Bag—their exteriors looked exactly the same. That way, the glass bottle would only have been crushed when the Moldy Grain Bag was thrown into the granary at the Underground City’s frontline camp, blasting the entire granary full of the Rotting Soil Roarers’ toxic slime." Samael shook his head slightly. "He was sharper than I imagined."

With a CLINK, he dropped the ancient coin in his hand back into the pouch and stared blankly at the bag full of ancient coins.

"You mentioned before that the Demon Race only uses these Divine Era Ancient Coins... Is its use limited to inside the Underground City? Or do Demon Monarchs actually trade with each other as well?" Samael looked at Talia.

"It’s a unified currency for the Demon Race, because Demon Monarchs also need to trade. Underground Cities in different regions produce different resources. If you want resources from other Underground Cities, you must use Divine Era Ancient Coins to make the transaction," Talia explained.

"This kind of cross-regional trade is usually conducted through the Demon Race’s Merchant Teams. Some Merchant Teams consist of high-ranking Demon Race subordinates dispatched by a Dungeon Monarch to escort precious resources. But most of the Merchant Teams are Exiles."

"What are Exiles?" Samael asked.

"They are relatively weak members of the Demon Race, deemed worthless by traditional Demon Race societal values. Therefore, they are banished from the Underground City to wander the surface of the Barren Land... Just... just like my sister." Talia sighed. "Not all of the Demon Race are powerful and terrifyingly majestic. That’s a stereotype. It’s just that the relatively weak ones have already been driven out. The cruel Underground City only allows valuable, strong individuals to remain.

"The Exiles banished from the Underground City huddle together for warmth, forming large-scale convoys. Like nomadic tribes or long-distance caravans, they travel between various Underground Cities to transport goods and conduct resource trade.

"They resort to brutal methods to remove suspected Demon Race features from their bodies, such as horns or scales. They disguise themselves as humans to acquire travel supplies in the Human Kingdom or the territories of the Elves and Dwarves..." Talia hesitated. "Uh, actually, in a certain sense, we can be considered Exiles now too, just the relatively strong kind."

"Oh... Speaking of which, I don’t think I’ve ever seen any features like horns or scales on you." Samael raised both hands and gestured the shape of demon horns on either side of his helmet.

"Not all of the Demon Race have these features. It’s random." Talia rolled her eyes at the ceiling. "Besides, these biological traits can be actively reshaped through the catalysis of powerful Demon Race Spiritual Energy—the principle is similar to human Demonization. It’s just that the Spiritual Energy of the Exiles is too weak. They lack the power to catalyze and transform their own forms, which is why they are forced to saw off their horns and tear off their scales.

"Humans think that the entire Demon Race has bizarre growths because, in Demon Race culture, traits like horns, scales, feathers, and sharp claws are symbols of strength and beauty. Therefore, many powerful individuals of the Demon Race, including Monarchs, often actively use Spiritual Energy to catalyze and alter their appearances. They think it makes them look more handsome or elegant.

"Humans also find it difficult to identify Exiles; they only see the powerful individuals from the Underground City. That’s why they assume that the entire Demon Race has such bizarre growths. This actually makes it much easier for Exiles to disguise themselves."

She touched her steel-gray hair and rolled over on her pillow, her gray eyes quietly gazing at the back of Samael’s armor.

Samael snapped back to reality. He tossed the leather money pouch back into the iron chest at the head of the bed and turned to look at Talia, who was lying on her side.

"Um... Well, about my appearance..." Talia averted her gaze for a moment. "I’m a half-blood, so my appearance is probably closer to a human’s... Were you human when you were alive, or... I mean, what are your aesthetic preferences? Do you think... having growths like horns or claws looks better?"