Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 229 [Lichmia's Shapeshifting Resistance]

Filled with doubt, Xia Nan unconsciously frowned as he carefully examined Violet in front of him.

Although the young mage looked travel-worn, as if someone was constantly urging her forward, she didn't even enter the room until the last second of the agreed meeting.

However, judging from her fair and delicate face, and her hands that were smooth and tender with no calluses, possibly due to experiments or spells, she must have come from a fairly well-off family.

At least she doesn't have to work in the fields under the scorching sun all day, like a young lady from a noble family.

But that's where the strange thing is.

Compared to Violet's youthful appearance, which was about the same age as her, and her likely wealthy background, she was a much better match.

Her temperament, however, gives people a strong sense of contrast, a composure and stability that is not commensurate with her age.

He showed none of the frivolity often found among the world's aristocracy.

From entering the door, to greeting Xia Nan, to sitting down at the table.

The movements were simple and crisp, without the slightest affectation;
The common language they spoke used only common vocabulary and grammar. When it came to magical terms, they showed no sense of superiority and even took the initiative to explain their meanings to Xia Nan.

Although she appeared somewhat tired and busy overall, she was also remarkably poised and capable.

"Could it be some old guy pretending to be young?" Xia Nan wondered to himself. "But where did he get to know me? I've only been to Newme once in the past year, and I haven't even stayed there for many days."

"Mr. Xia Nan?"

Seemingly noticing the questioning look in the black-haired youth's eyes across the table, Violet called out softly.

"It's nothing." Xia Nan snapped out of her daze, her expression natural, and nodded slightly. "Let's continue."

"I already had a price tag in mind for this relic of resonance, and it took me quite a bit of effort to get my hands on it."

—I picked it up from the ground while I was running away.

"But since you're so eager for this staff, I'm willing to let it find a good home. Of course, the premise is that I can see your sincerity. After all, my armor is still being repaired at the blacksmith's shop because of it."

—This highlights the difficulty in obtaining the resonant relics.

"Not only did we lose a lot of valuable items (several fire oil bombs), but three teammates also lost their lives as a result."

—Hmm…that makes sense.

“Name your price. I believe you know its value.”

— By retreating in order to advance, you allow the other party to test your price with an offer, while also making it easier for yourself to raise the price further.

Even before meeting Violet, Xia Nan had already exchanged in-depth opinions with the appraiser "Downs" regarding the value and price of the resonance artifact.

He also learned that the products of such intense emotions are of little use to 99.9% of adventurers in the world.

Even when keeping items at home as decorative items, one must consider whether the residual thoughts and emotions on the surface of the items will have a negative impact on the mental state of those around them.

Only those spellcasters who have a professional need for it, or who want to use it to set up rituals or cast spells, can put the Resonance Relic to practical use.

Keeping them around is just taking up space.

Selling it at a reasonable price is the best course of action.

As for the specific price...

This is a compilation of information gathered by Towns and himself from various sources.

The maximum bounty specified in Violet's commission—300 gold—was something she naturally dared not hope to ask for.

He was already very satisfied that the deal was made for 200 gold in the end.

If the other party haggles quite hard, 150 gold is acceptable.

100 gold is Xia Nan's bottom line, but the market demand is too low. If the two of them still can't reach a price that satisfies both of them before dark.

85 or 70 gold, just grit your teeth and see...

"400 gold."

Amber-colored, crystalline eyes reflected the figure in front of her with short, black hair.

Violet sat upright in her chair and spoke with a serious expression.

"What do you think of four hundred gold coins, Mr. Xia Nan?"

"Cough cough..." The girl's exaggerated price, which seemed to disregard money, made Xia Nan's heart skip a beat, but he remained outwardly calm.

They even pretended to ponder for a moment, as if considering whether the price was reasonable.

"Mr. Xia Nan, to be honest, although I am a mage with rudimentary arcane skills and some savings, I have recently spent a lot of money due to various factors."

"400 gold is the most I can afford without affecting my normal arcane studies."

Violet's attitude was very sincere, and her offer far exceeded Xia Nan's expectations.

Having already said that, he no longer intended to haggle with the girl in front of him.

I opened my mouth, about to agree, but then I heard the other person add something else.

"Based on these 400 gold coins, if you need anything in magic or similar fields, I might be able to offer some assistance."

"Although those mid-to-high-level spells are still beyond my capabilities, I have a relatively complete memory of first-level and second-level spells."

Oh?
Upon hearing this, Xia Nan's eyes lit up.

400 gold for the resonance relic in his possession was already more than enough, and he was prepared to agree.

Now that the other party is willing to offer him additional compensation, he naturally has no reason to refuse.

You should know that you haven't yet gotten rid of the beastification curse on your body.

If we can find another solution from the other party, it might save him the 500 gold needed to buy the scroll to remove the curse.

With this in mind, he carefully chose his words and tentatively asked Vera:

"I wonder... if you possess any spells similar to 'removing curses'?"

"Remove the curse?" A hint of apology appeared on the girl's face. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Xia Nan, but third-circle magic is indeed beyond my capabilities."

It seems I can't avoid spending those 500 gold coins.

Having already prepared himself mentally, Xia Nan wasn't too disappointed. He decided not to waste any more time and would exchange the spell scrolls with Jasmine after the transaction was over.

"But... if possible, could you please briefly explain what kind of curse needs to be removed?"

Violet leaned forward slightly, her eyes fixed on Xia Nan in front of her, and asked softly.

That cautious demeanor, driven by fear of offending someone, was completely unlike what a high-ranking spellcaster should be like.

"Remove Curse as a third-circle spell is primarily due to its comprehensive protection against curse-type effects, and its quick casting action that allows for counterspelling in combat."

"Outside of combat, and without needing to consider casting time, knowing the type of curse you need to purify might provide a better solution."

“After all, I’ve mentioned it to you before.” A confident smile appeared on Violet’s fair face. “My memory of the Dharma charts is quite complete.”

Animalization is neither a secret nor something to be ashamed of.

Seeing that there was still hope for the money-saving plan, Xia Nan immediately explained his current predicament to the other party.

“That’s great!” Violet’s face lit up with a bright smile. “If it’s just beastification, I do have the knowledge to purify curses in a targeted way.”

"It won't take much time to prepare, and I happen to have the spellcasting materials with me."

“If you don’t mind, I can perform the spell for you now.”

Her considerations were quite thorough, considering that the two were currently in the Adventurers' Guild, which usually had magic arrays to supervise and prohibit adventurers from fighting each other.

The fact that she dared to cast a spell here already indicated that the spell she was about to use was not hostile to Xia Nan.

With things taking a turn for the better, and to save herself the trouble, Xia Nan nodded in agreement. "It'll be ready soon, you can just sit and relax."

Then Violet stood up, her hand, half-hidden by her sleeve, swiped across her waist pouch.

A few thin, purplish-blue vines and a small piece of broken bone landed in her palm.

Her slightly moist lips moved silently, and a magical glint flashed in her amber-colored, crystalline eyes.

hum-

Her deep chestnut ponytail bounced and swayed, her bangs moved without wind, and a faint, shimmering blue glow could be seen at the edge of her hair—a sign of highly condensed magical particles.

In his palm, the vines and bone fragments melted into the air like snowflakes, and a pale blue magical glow appeared above the table.

Like tiny fireflies, driven by their mental will, they enveloped Xia Nan's location.

……

【Lychmia's Shapeshifting Resistance (Low-Ring Adaptation Version)】

Level: Second Ring

School of thought: Protection
Effect: Purifies the curse that causes deformities in the body.

……

Following Violet's instructions, Xia Nan sat motionless in the chair, trying to relax her body as much as possible.

He could keenly sense the magical particles that suddenly became active in the room as the other person got up.

As those pale blue specks of light fell upon me, a strange sense of comfort welled up within me.

It's like bathing in a hot spring, with an indescribable warmth and comfort.

However, the warm spring water was not soaking his body, but his soul.

Roar--

As if in a hallucination, a strange, resentful, and violent roar of a beast burst forth in my heart.

A phantom image of a black bear with a thick mane quietly appeared in the air behind Xia Nan, struggling and howling, yet unable to utter a sound.

As if some invisible force had pulled it out of Xia Nan's body, it gradually faded under the illumination of the magical glow.

Finally, it turned into a wisp of solidified black smoke and disappeared into the air.

At the same time, Xia Nan felt a sense of relief, as if he had unloaded some invisible burden, and his whole body relaxed.

I already understand.

The curse of bestiality has been completely eradicated.

I saved a total of 500 gold coins!
"The purification is complete, Mr. Xia Nan."

Violet sat down again, her expression unchanged, and there was no sweat on her face. Casting spells of this level seemed very easy for her, and she didn't even need a staff.

Even so, Xia Nan still sincerely expressed his gratitude to the other party.

"It was nothing, you're too kind."

The girl replied with a smile.

Not to be modest, but unlike the high cost of spell scrolls, for a spellcaster who already possesses the spell, the energy consumed in casting is only a small amount of mental energy, which can be recovered with a little meditation.

This is one of the reasons why many spellcasters are so wealthy.

Compared to a magic scroll costing 500 gold, even if a mage were to charge half that, 250 gold per use, there would be plenty of people willing to pay for the potential curse or other dangerous disease.

All the spellcaster needs to do is spend a little time and effort.

The transaction went smoothly.

Violet exchanged four hundred gold coins and a purification ritual for the yew wood staff in Xia Nan's hands.

She had planned to take the opportunity to ask the other party for some information, but Violet seemed to be in a very tight time.

After exchanging only a few pleasantries, he made it clear that he was leaving.

"Finally, thank you again for being willing to sell the Resonance Relic to me; it is very important to me."

She should thank us!
Knowing that the broken staff in his hand was definitely not worth that much money, he realized that he had gotten a good deal in this transaction.

Xia Nan suddenly felt something was amiss.

The gold coins weren't so bad, but the main problem was that even if the other party didn't say it explicitly, I would definitely owe Violet a favor.

And debts of gratitude, especially for someone with his personality, are the hardest to repay.

As he pondered, Violet, who had stood up from the table, seemed to sense his thoughts.

He paused, then said sincerely:
“Mr. Xia Nan, the price of an item is determined by the person who owns it. The Resonance Relic in your possession may not attract many people on the market, but for me, it is an important item that is crucial to my progress in learning arcane magic.”

"If I weren't so short of gold coins, I would be willing to give up 500 or 800, let alone 400."

"So please don't worry too much about it. We might not even see each other again in the future, and I would never ask you to do anything because of it."

"It really doesn't work..."

As she spoke, a slight smile appeared on Violet's lips, and she winked at Xia Nan.

"Shall we just be friends?"

Now that things have come to this point, Xia Nan isn't the kind of person who wouldn't know what's good for her.

He nodded to the other person and replied with a smile:

"Okay, let's be friends then."

……

"boom."

The wooden door to the conference room was gently closed.

Wearing a dark brown cloak, her beige robe swayed gently with her movements.

The slender girl walked with the same hurried steps as when she arrived, quickly descending the stairs and leaving the Adventurers' Guild.

Walking on the streets of River Valley, I felt like an ordinary adventurer preparing supplies before going on a mission, shuttling between various general stores.

It seemed normal, but as she moved further and further away from the Adventurers' Guild, the number of adventurers and even pedestrians on the streets gradually decreased.

Not daring to rashly use magic to check behind him, he used techniques he had learned from experienced practitioners to confirm that no one was following him.

At an inconspicuous street corner, Violet suddenly turned and disappeared into a hidden alley.

He immediately relaxed and slumped against the wall.

His once calm and normal face was now tinged with fear as he gasped for breath, his pale cheeks covered in a thin layer of sweat.

At that moment, the shadows cast by the narrow brick walls on both sides, enveloping her, brought her a sense of security she had never felt before.

"How...how could it be him?"

Sweat dripped from her delicately curved chin, soaking the front of her robe.

"Panyun Province...River Valley Town...Misty Forest...Xia Nan..."

"Damn it, I should have thought of that sooner!"

(End of this chapter)