Chương 155: It's Love at First Sight

Not long ago, Viabelu traveled by sea from the northern plateau to [Kel].

The ship he was on.

The same route that the Continental Magic Association chose to transport the ancient books was the same one.

"So, which ancient books have you read?"

No, not at all.

Viabiru tilted his head back and gulped down a mouthful of beer.

"I've only seen those boxes before; I even helped them carry them when they disembarked. So I remember the magical aura emanating from those [ancient books], and if I encounter them again, I can recognize them immediately."

Xia En nodded silently.

That is a problem.

The Continental Magic Association only said they were looking for clues about the lost item, but they probably didn't even know what the lost item looked like, since the entire transport team was missing.

To successfully retrieve ancient books, you need someone who can identify them.

Otherwise, you wouldn't recognize the thing even if it were right in front of you.

Thinking about this...

Shaen decides to cooperate with Viabel.

Before he could even speak, Viabel spoke first.

"I see your team has a very complete mix of classes. Are you also interested in taking on this commission? Could I join you?"

With that, Viabel summoned his staff.

It was a silver trident, very short, like a dagger.

"As you can see, I am a magician."

As he spoke, he looked at Frilian and Philon, "I can sense that your team already has two very powerful mages."

"Frilian goes without saying, a legendary mage, naturally the strongest combat force."

"This little girl with purple hair is also an excellent mage in terms of magical power alone, but her eyes are very innocent—she probably hasn't experienced much of the battlefield."

Upon hearing this, Philon frowned.

Viabel's words were tantamount to saying that she was all show and no substance.

The little girl was clearly unconvinced.

They were about to refute him.

Viabel noticed this, immediately put away his staff, and shrugged to indicate that he meant no harm.

"Don't misunderstand, I'm not questioning you, I'm just stating a fact."

"The missing ancient books may not have been attacked by monsters or demons, but more likely they were looted by some people."

"Therefore, I can not only serve as a combat supplement to the team, but also provide you with experience in dealing with [certain disgusting humans]."

"I have extensive experience in this area."

Viabel grinned.

"My Northern Magic Team is a mercenary unit that specializes in fighting demons, but in emergencies, we are also used in wars between nations."

"Human beings are fully aware of their own weaknesses."

"Deception, fraud, kidnapping, threats—even torture—are not uncommon in war."

"This is everyday life on the northern border."

When Viabelu spoke of these things, his eyes remained completely unmoved, as if he were talking about something as ordinary as eating and drinking.

This surprised Xia En.

At the same time, he also felt a strange sense of annoyance.

In the northern plateau, despite facing direct attacks from the demon race, internal strife still exists between city-states.

Humans can be really disgusting sometimes.

The next morning.

Viabelu successfully nominated himself.

The team has gained another member.

The team also successfully accepted the Lost Item Clue Bounty from the Continental Magic Association.

According to Viabelou's analysis.

There are three most likely possibilities regarding the whereabouts of this batch of ancient books: The first scenario involves goods being monitored at sea or at a dock, and then robbed after leaving the shore.

The second scenario is that the goods are followed and robbed en route after leaving the shore.

The third possibility is that the item was not being watched by anyone, but encountered some kind of accident during transportation.

Xia En thought both were possible.

"Let's start the investigation from the port area and see if we can find any clues."

The group set off for the port.

【Kel】is about two days' walk from 【Neutoral Port】, or half a day by carriage.

Without delay, everyone hired a carriage.

On the road.

Viabel was curious about Shane's profession.

What does "sage" mean?

Xia En stroked his chin. How to explain it? The role of a sage is not like that of a warrior, mage, or monk, where they are irreplaceable in a certain role.

On the contrary, Shane can freely combine entries.

Whether you specialize in defense and follow the warrior route, or specialize in support and follow the monk route, both are viable options.

In theory, as long as there are enough options for the terms, he can make himself an all-around all-rounder.

In fact, he is heading in that direction.

As he spoke, he examined the attributes of his existing entries: 【Xia En】 Status: Mental Strength · Excellent Attribute: 【Great Wisdom Appears as Foolishness (Gold)】: Simplifies complex magical formulas and theoretical knowledge into easy-to-understand "words". By mastering the words, one can quickly learn the corresponding magic.

【Accelerated Thinking (Gold)】: A true sage must have a clever mind. Permanently enhance your wisdom and understanding, and accelerate the speed of interpreting documents.

[Time Management (Gold)]: Where is the boundary between the past and the future? The best way to avoid "futurism" is to suppress the flow of your own time. Now you can deceive those who like to "read the future".

【Strong Luck (Purple)】: You are the chosen one of destiny, with a luck value of ma, and those around you will also be affected to a certain extent.

[Brain Lockdown (Blue)]: Locks off one's thoughts to prevent others from spying on or influencing them, greatly increasing resistance to mental magic.

【Numerical Mirror (Purple)】: Perfectly replicates your opponent's physical stats during battle, let your opponent see in the mirror.

【Iron Head (White)】: Greatly increases the physical defense of the head.

[Invulnerable to Swords and Spears (Blue)]: Swords and spears cannot harm you.

[Dual Swords Style (Gold)]: Inherited from the dual-wielding sword fighting techniques of the southern kingdoms, the Southern Hero has improved it into a "Dual Swords Style" swordsmanship more suitable for slaying demons. With this swordsmanship enhancement, attack speed can be increased to twice its original speed.

———【Dual Blades Style: Shadow Assassin】: Surprise Attack Skill———【Dual Blades Style: Moon Wheel】: Slash Skill———【Dual Blades Style: Ferocious Transformation】: Armor-Piercing Skill 【Charm (Blue)】: You can bewitch the target, causing them to lower their guard and accept your commands. The duration of the effect depends on the target's mental resistance.

【Return to Owner (Blue)】: Reflects enemy magic attacks, returning them 100% of the time.

【Deal Card (Purple)】: Designate a target and randomly deal a card to them. If the card is Good Luck, the target's hit rate will be forced to 100% for a period of time. If the card is Bad Luck, the target's hit rate will be forced to 0% (card effect lasts for 15 minutes).

Evaluation: A person.

Of course, the magic affixes he possesses are not on this panel, nor are the affixes on weapons and armor.

Based on this, his skill level should be considered to be at a stage where he can barely protect himself.

"Ah, a mere sage like him, it's good enough if he can even protect himself—"

"what?"

Viabel was puzzled.

Xia En immediately snapped out of it, "Just think of me as a support, that's fine."

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"I see—" Viabel nodded.

"If you encounter danger after that, stand with Zain and hide behind me. I will protect you."

Viabelu spoke very seriously.

In the northern borderlands, monks and mages skilled in support-type combat techniques are both rare finds. In battle, if necessary, he would sacrifice himself to preserve teammates with greater combat value.

This is the best option for maintaining the team's combat effectiveness.

"OK."

Xia En readily accepted.

next to.

Zain and Shutark glared at him with contempt. They didn't say anything, but their meaningful glances, if translated into language, would surely be considered extremely offensive.

Xia En simply assumed they were having an eye twitch.

Ignore it completely.

Neutoral is the largest ice-free port in the north.

Rows of huge sailboats were lined up on the dock.

Workers moved about busily and orderly, carrying goods.

Amidst the resounding bugle calls, flocks of black-tailed gulls took flight and landed, filling the air with the scent of seawater and sunshine.

In front of the dock is a bustling market street.

Shops of all sizes lined the streets, offering a dazzling array of seafood, local delicacies, and exquisite imported goods.

Everyone disembarked from the carriage.

They were immediately drawn to the lively scene before them.

Frilian and Philon ran to the grilled squid stall, staring intently at the sizzling squid slices on the hot plate.

The chef, holding a spatula, laughed heartily when he saw the two girls.

He deftly grabbed two skewers of raw squid from the shelf next to him, spread them out on the hot plate, and the originally snow-white meat sizzled and soon became firm and translucent, with the edges curling up slightly and turning golden.

The grease seeped out little by little, condensing into tiny oil droplets on the iron plate.

The chef grabbed a handful of chopped scallions and sprinkled them evenly over the squid, pressing down with the spatula in his hand as needed.

The crackling sound continued.

The aroma spread, tempting the appetite.

Not to mention Frilian and Philon, Shane couldn't hold on either.

As they left the stall, each person had two skewers of grilled squid in their hand.

At first, Viabelu refused, saying that he grew up on the plateau and didn't like to eat this.

But Xia En could see clearly that the other person forced him to look away, not daring to glance at the squid skewers even once.

Yes, I wouldn't dare.

Xia En remembered the other party's money bag with only a few copper coins left.

Finally, the decision was made forcefully: two skewers per person.

"Stop talking nonsense, the person who pays has the final say."

Sharing a small snack is nothing, and all this fussing and haggling isn't Xia En's style.

After that, everyone inquired about information at various locations along the dock.

pity.

There are so many cargo ships docking every day that people can't possibly remember all the people coming and going.

Even the shipping association at the docks rarely recorded the names of the goods carried by customers, only the size, weight, and freight charges.

As for the dockworkers, they couldn't get any information at all.

They toiled away every day, only concerned with how scorching the sun was and whether they could earn a few more copper coins for food that night. They had no energy to care about what they were carrying. Only a few scattered individuals knew that the goods they were carrying that day were destined for [Oisast].

But besides the main road, there are countless smaller paths leading to Oisast, and no one noticed when they set off or which path they took.

The investigation stalled from the very beginning.

Just as Shane was at his wit's end, Frilian ran over excitedly.

The elven girl held a huge white conch shell in her arms, looking as happy as a child over a thousand years old.

"Hey, Philon, this conch's spiral is actually left-handed! It's super rare, let's buy it."

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"" Philon remained silent.

The little girl's expression instantly turned serious as she looked at the excited Frillie.

"What can we do with this?"

"This is extremely rare."

"So, what can this be used for?"

Philon gave Frillie no chance to get away with it.

Under Philon's stern gaze, the white-haired elf gave in and put the conch back, looking aggrieved.

(Three people ≡) The group continued walking forward.

Xia En deliberately lagged behind the group and took a closer look at the large white conch shell.

It really is a left-hand thread — night.

Everyone stayed overnight at the [Dockside Hotel].

After an afternoon of visits, everyone was exhausted, but there was almost no usable information.

Everyone seemed a bit listless during the meal.

The atmosphere at the dinner table was somewhat heavy.

Xia En put down his spoon and said, "Tomorrow, narrow down the search to bakeries, blacksmith shops, carriage shops, or herbal medicine shops. The transport team will need to prepare supplies before setting off, so we might be able to find some information from these places."

"At the very least, we need to find out exactly when the transport team set off and which route it took."

Everyone nodded silently.

That's all we can do.

After the meal.

Frillie immediately felt sleepy.

Philen was about to take her back to her room to rest, but Shane intercepted her.

Using the excuse that "sleeping immediately after eating can cause indigestion," he dragged Frillie to take a walk on the seaside boardwalk.

Frillie looked reluctant.

Without thinking twice, Xia En dragged him away.

The sea at night is a deep, dark blue-green. Occasionally, the sea breeze whips up a cluster of white waves, which crash against the seawall, creating a splashing sound.

The wind carried the cool scent of the sea, but it wasn't cold; it felt refreshing on my face.

The two walked slowly.

Frillie yawned every now and then.

The elven girl's eyes were filled with thin tears, as if she were about to fall asleep at any moment.

Xia En found it funny.

This guy, I don't know where he gets so much sleep.

"Give."

Shane took a huge white conch shell out of his backpack and put it into Frilian's hand.

Frillie slowly opened her sleepy eyes.

"It's the conch shell from during the day."

"yes."

Frillie touched the conch's unique left-hand spiral pattern, her eyes shining with a glimmer of light.

"Did Philon agree?"

"I bought it, don't tell her."

Frillie blinked.

"Isn't all the money in Philon's hands? —" Xia En proudly raised his chin.

"How can a man not keep some savings on the side?"

"Hmm—you have a secret stash of money, huh?"

As she spoke, Frilian's eyes swept over Shane up and down, focusing on his waist.

Xia En was on guard.

Protect it with one hand.

Take a step back.

Frillie couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips into a smile, a faint smile slowly spreading across her previously calm face.

A gentle night breeze lifted the girl's white ponytail, the strands of hair fluttering lightly against her fair cheeks, her ruby earrings swaying gently.

Xia En paused.

For a fleeting moment, his heart also wavered.