Chapter 255: You Will Be Seen as "Delicious

Chapter 255: Chapter 255: You Will Be Seen as "Delicious

「The next morning.」

Lance stood by the sink and quickly washed up. The icy water on his face instantly cleared his head.

He glanced at his panel: [Nightmare Infusion (Lust): 0.5%].

After last night’s experiment, he now knew how to increase the infusion rate.

’This weakling just doesn’t know when to quit. One round with the shower head added 0.01%.’

’I went too hard the first two days, so I held back a little last night.’

’Now, let’s see what happens when it reaches 1%.’

After all, from what Yvette had told him, the Nightmare was probably far more formidable than he had imagined.

’If the collective Mental Power of all beings can give rise to a Legendary, then what about their collective dreams?’

’What would they create?’

’Perhaps I’ve underestimated Witches after all.’

He ate a quick breakfast without much thought.

He made his way to the intersection where he’d agreed to meet Nieve, habitually scanning his surroundings.

Even more Adventurers had shown up for the Summer Crown today. A bustling crowd had gathered in the camp.

Lance figured that in a few more days, the trading street here would become even more lively.

Before he could get lost in thought, Nieve’s figure appeared at the end of the street, right on time.

She was wearing the same form-fitting light armor as yesterday, and she walked with a steady gait to stand before Lance.

But the first thing she said after stopping almost made Lance choke.

"Lance, Nieve didn’t get the Potions."

The Snow Lady’s face was tense.

For some reason, Lance thought he could detect a hint of grievance on her otherwise impassive face.

"Nieve was caught by Philis."

Lance stood there, stunned. ’Caught?’

’Are the defenses at the Silver Hand stronghold really that tight now?’

’Even a core member has to be interrogated just for taking some supplies from logistics?’

But as Lance thought about it, he realized something wasn’t quite right.

He looked the naive girl up and down and asked tentatively,

"Be honest with me. Exactly how many Potions were you planning to grab from the warehouse last night?"

Nieve had no intention of hiding anything.

She earnestly stretched out her arms and made a huge circle in front of her chest.

Lance slapped a hand to his forehead in despair.

’What kind of insider ’borrows’ Alchemy Potions by the barrel?’

’There’s a difference between quietly pocketing a few things and blatantly stocking up for a new store.’

’This Snow Lady clearly didn’t understand the difference.’

’No wonder that Cat Girl caught her red-handed.’

’If she hadn’t been caught in the act, the quartermaster would’ve probably been strung up and flogged after the inventory check the next morning.’

Seeing Lance’s exasperated sigh, Nieve seemed to realize she had messed up.

She quickly pulled a handful of small glass vials from the specialized leather pouch at her waist.

"But Lance shouldn’t worry. These are for Lance."

Lance instinctively held out his hands to take them.

It was a cluster of seven or eight delicately crafted Alchemy Potions.

These Potions, brewed from the exclusive formula of a top-tier team, were worlds apart from the cheap stuff sold at market stalls.

The vials were made of some sturdy material, each about the length of an adult’s finger. The design was extremely practical, allowing an Adventurer to uncork and drink one with a single hand in the heat of battle.

A faint, shimmering light—an intertwining of pale gold and light blue—swirled within the vials.

The liquid inside was pure and translucent, with no impurities visible to the naked eye.

Lance looked at the potions in his hand, puzzled.

"Didn’t you just say you couldn’t get the potions?"

"This is Nieve’s personal ration."

Nieve looked at Lance and carefully explained, "Lance doesn’t need to worry about Nieve’s supplies. Nieve only needs Magic Potions for fights, so she doesn’t use these Stamina Potions."

Lance instantly understood.

This was her personal allotment from the Guild, meant to be used in life-or-death situations.

At this realization, an uncontrollable warmth spread through Lance’s chest.

Just as Lance took hold of the potions, the system panel automatically displayed the item’s information.

[Basic Stamina Recovery Potion: Quality Value 12. Upon consumption, restores a large amount of stamina to Professionals Level 3 or below within three seconds. Additional Effect: Stabilizes mental state. No hidden drawbacks or side effects.]

Just like when he inspected equipment Attributes, Lance found that ever since he’d become a Pale Guard, his system panel could automatically identify the attributes of certain items.

Lance did a quick mental calculation.

Seven or eight of these high-quality Recovery Potions would be more than enough to counteract the physical toll of extracting a Demon Talent today.

"Thank you, Nieve."

Lance thanked the girl before him sincerely.

He could feel the girl’s unconditional trust in him.

He also couldn’t help but worry that she would definitely be taken advantage of someday.

Since he had accepted her valuable Potions, Lance felt he had to compensate her somehow.

He immediately recalled the scene in the tavern yesterday.

After Nieve ate that cream puff, her eyes had lit up with sheer amazement.

In fact, he had already studied his system panel after returning to the inn last night and knew why she had reacted that way.

[Sensory Overload: Your physical touch forcibly activates the target’s sensory systems in the area of contact, granting them a short-term buff. This state slightly increases the target’s Spiritual Power cap and Casting Focus, and provides additional resistance to negative mental Effects.]

[Note: Any part of your body is considered "delicious" by this race.]

By touching her hand yesterday, he had accidentally triggered the Snow Lady’s naturally dull sense of taste.

That was what had allowed her to experience the charm of human cuisine for the first time in her life.

So, Lance looked at Nieve and said,

"After we finish grinding mobs today, I’ll treat you to a good meal."

At the mention of food, Nieve’s eyes visibly lit up.

"Will Lance feed Nieve tonight?"

She tilted her head up, staring intently at Lance with her ice-blue eyes.

Although the girl’s expression was still its usual deadpan mask,

Lance could somehow feel her entire aura brighten in an instant.

Lance even had the illusion of seeing a large, invisible tail wagging frantically behind her.

Her eager expression reminded him of that silly dog Uncle Rein was always tying up.

"Yeah, we’ll eat together."

Lance smiled and nodded, then handed the Potions back to her.

"Until I need to use them, you should hold onto them for me."

Lance gestured to his own clothes.

Nieve recalled Lance’s wild fighting style from the day before, how he’d recklessly charged through the hordes of demons.

Indeed, if Lance carried the glass vials, they’d probably get crushed in the middle of a fight before he even had a chance to drink one.

She nodded, took the Potions, and tucked them safely back into the leather pouch at her waist.

"Today, we’ll find a good spot to grind. Safety is the top priority."

"Nieve will listen to Lance."

The Snow Lady obediently agreed and followed closely behind Lance as they headed deeper into the First Area.

...

「At the bottom of an abandoned mine in the First Area.」

The Mad Slaughter Silver Crown on Lance’s head emitted a faint, silver glow.

Drawn by the Aura, a veritable Demon Tide surged madly from the surrounding tunnels.

But the state of the battle was completely different from the day before.

Whenever any Demon came within a ten-meter radius of Lance, a ripple of azure Magic Power would rapidly spread across the ground.

The ripple snaked up the Demons’ ankles, and their movements instantly became sluggish.

This was Nieve’s Frost Domain.

This powerful Skill forcibly reduced the movement speed of any Demon of a lower Level than her by 20%.

Nieve stood at the forefront of their defense, holding a Knight Sword.

The blade was coated in an azure light.

This was her unique Professional Specialty, which allowed her to treat heavy, two-handed weapons as if they were a Magic Staff.

Furthermore, when she performed a physical slash, a portion of her immense Spirit Attribute was converted into Frost Damage, which was directly imbued into the sharp blade.

She brought her sword down heavily on a nearby Rust-Armored Slime.

The violent frost Magic Power erupted, instantly blasting the creature into a pile of icy fragments.

The frozen Demon couldn’t even splash its internal corrosive acid.

She then freed her left hand and quickly cast a One Ring Spell behind Lance.

A sturdy Ice Barrier instantly shot up from the ground.

Empowered by her deep Source Magic Pool, the ice wall gained an additional 3-point Hardness Bonus.

Four Bomb Goblins, attempting a sneak attack by throwing bombs from behind, were stopped dead in their tracks by the ice wall.

Three violent explosions sounded from beyond the wall, which merely sustained a few more cracks.

Meanwhile, Lance had a Blind-Eyed Crystal Lizard by the neck, pinning it firmly against the rock wall with one hand.

He didn’t even turn his head.

Ash Dragon Breath erupted in his palm. A torrent of silver-red, superheated gas blasted through the gaps in its scales and surged directly into the Crystal Lizard’s body.

With a muffled pop, the Crystal Lizard’s internal organs were incinerated, killing it instantly.