Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 243 Psychological Trauma and the Strange Taste of Meat
"Captain, we've investigated everything!"

In an inconspicuous room in Molten Scale Town.

Terry William sat on the sofa against the wall, wearing only a thin shirt.

The fine, standard heavy armor, a gift from the Duke of Morton himself, slightly modified for the mission to conceal his family's distinctive features, was now neatly arranged on the rack in front of him for his convenience in maintenance.

At the same time, a knight, also dressed in disguise, was reporting the situation to him.

"According to our informant at the casino, after Rotten Toe met Lawson that day, he brought back three corpses from the alley, which have now been chopped into pieces and fed to the dogs."

Although the situation was urgent, Terry William and his men followed Lawson and his group out of the tavern.

However, as the road the other party was walking on became more and more remote, the number of passersby gradually decreased.

Considering the possibility of exposure, no more people followed along.

Finally, all they saw was Lawson and his group walking into a narrow, dark alley.

To be honest, Terry William wasn't particularly concerned about his identity being exposed.

As long as he could confirm that Lawson didn't possess more information about the Morton family's heirloom than he did, he wouldn't mind just going up and having the other party capture him.

The current caution is simply out of concern that the other party might resort to desperate measures, resulting in unnecessary losses to the treasure.

"Have the identities of those three corpses been confirmed?"

He replied calmly, focusing on maintaining the nail polish in his hands.

"Two of them are ordinary people who frequent casinos, and the other is a dwarf dressed as an adventurer."

"dwarf?"

Terry William paused abruptly, lost in thought.

He knew Lawson's Fang Squad very well, thanks to the Duke's connections.

Naturally, he knew perfectly well that the dwarf wanderer named "Lame Ancient" was in the opposing team.

So when Lawson returned, his team wasn't completely wiped out; there were survivors.
Although some teams were disrupted by the Red Dragon, there was a possibility that the two could not reunite for a while.

But the current situation seems to be more in line with his initial guess: the Fang Squad has fallen into internal strife over the distribution of the treasure.

In this way...

That item should be in Lawson's hands by now?
No, considering that Rotten Toe's men have been searching frantically in town these past two days, perhaps the Duke's heirloom is still missing.

Hmm, maybe it's a deliberate act by Lawson to mislead the outside world, so we should be cautious.

Thinking of this, Terry William looked at his subordinates and asked:

"Has Lawson done anything else particularly noteworthy lately?"

"No, Captain."

“He has basically stayed at the Dragon Nest Inn for the past two days. When he goes out, we have brothers with him. Apart from his rotten toe, he has not had any contact with anyone else.”

"Have you checked all the exits from the town? Don't let anyone slip through."

"Captain, don't worry, we have brothers watching over us 24 hours a day."

Molten Scale Town is nestled in a rugged mountain valley, built against the mountain range, which gives the town's buildings a unique character, but also means that there are only two entrances, one at the front and one at the back.

Ahead lies the forest and wasteland of Panyun Province, while behind it lies the Ronglin Mountain Range, beyond which lies the Nianshu Territory of Yuansha Province.

Controlling the town's entrances and exits is quite simple.

"In addition, we should also pay close attention to other adventurers in town who are acting suspiciously."

If Lawson and Rotten Toe's actions weren't feigned, it would mean that a third-party force in the town had stolen the Duke's family's treasure.

If they wanted to seize the item, claim the credit for themselves, and save Lord Morton some gold coins, they would have to be even more careful.

"Yes, Captain!"

……

……

The nearly three-day rest period was short but memorable for the escort team.

We traveled all the way from Hegu Town to the border of Panyun Province, enduring wind and rain for so many days.

Perhaps the environment of Molten Scale Town isn't exactly great.

But the hot food and soft, comfortable beds in the inn were enough to soothe the adventurers' weariness.

After two nights' stay, even the dragonborn Sava, who had been affected by the appearance of the red dragon, had recovered to the good condition that a professional should have on an adventure.

Xia Nan goes without saying.

The chef at the Dragon's Nest Tavern was quite skilled, and these days he had ordered almost every local specialty dish on the menu for three meals a day.

Although some dishes were disappointing or didn't suit my taste, most were delicious, especially the "Red Scale Mushroom Soup," whose spicy and savory flavor made Xia Nan linger.

He even considered buying the recipe from the other party's boss so he could make it himself.

Unfortunately, after communicating with them, I discovered that it was not for sale.

The good news is that, according to the chef who accepted one of his silver coins, this dish with a slightly spicy flavor originated from the southeastern region of the mainland and was adapted for local tastes before becoming a specialty of Xiejiao Longchao.

If I ever leave the Kingdom of Servia, I should have the chance to taste that incredibly hot and spicy dish that makes my throat feel like it's on fire, yet I still can't help but keep eating it spoonful by spoonful.

"how much is this?"

Xia Nan bent down, pointed to a water bag with a red dragon scale pattern on a stall in front of him, and asked the stall owner.

The necessary supplies had been prepared two days ago, and after this mission, there would probably be no more opportunities to come to this remote town next to the Molten Scale Mountains.

The mission went smoothly and Xia Nan was in a good mood, so he thought he'd buy some local souvenirs while he was at it.

If you happen to pass through again on your way back, you can prepare a few small gifts to give to some of your acquaintances in River Valley Town, to maintain your limited network of relationships in this world.

However, it's unclear whether his adventurer attire caused the other party concern, or whether his inherently cold demeanor was simply too aloof.

The stall owner, who was shrouded in his shadow, first stammered out a price of one silver coin.

Xia Nan casually cut the price in half, intending to ask the vendor to haggle, but to his surprise, the vendor immediately agreed.

Before Xia Nan could even take the copper coin out of his pouch, the water bag, which was quite well-made, was handed over with both hands.

He didn't care about the price difference of the five copper coins anyway, and the stall owner's reaction only made him feel bored.

He placed the money in the other person's hand, threw the water bag into his backpack, and left without lingering.

The aroma of roasting filled my nostrils with each breath, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a roadside stall that looked just like a barbecue stand.

Xia Nan's eyes lit up as his gaze swept over the meat skewers on the hot coals, and he walked straight up to them.

Gazing at the tall figure carrying two swords ahead, Violet dawdled behind, sighing inwardly.

This was their team's last day of rest in Molten Scale Town. All preparations had been completed, and it was the team members' free time.

Sava and Luca weren't familiar with each other before, but after spending time together, they unexpectedly discovered they shared a common hobby. They had already arranged to go out together this morning.

Hai'an and Wood stayed at the inn. On the one hand, the half-elf was currently being hunted, making it inconvenient for him to go out too frequently. On the other hand, they also discussed their upcoming itinerary and plans after arriving at Sticky Tree Territory.

I'm under a lot of pressure because this commission has already wasted a lot of time, so naturally I can't afford to slack off or rest.

I had originally planned to stay in my room and meditate, using this precious time to recover my strength.

Unfortunately, he didn't realize it at the time, and when Xia Nan asked everyone if anyone wanted to go out with him, he subconsciously blurted it out.

By the time I realized it, it was too late.

Actually, they hadn't even left the house, so changing their minds and refusing would have been as simple as saying a few words.

But when the person being rejected is Xia Nan... Violet would rather go out with him.

Her ponytail, tied behind her head, swayed gently as she moved. Her amber eyes reflected Xia Nan, who was carefully examining a skewer of meat in front of her, as if it were some unknown trophy.

Violet's expression became somewhat complicated.

Having spent so many days together in the same team, she had never seen the other party go all out.

However, based on his own insight honed from years of professional experience in his previous life, he was able to make a rough estimate of Xia Nan's strength.

Even if it's different from what I remember and shows an unusually fast improvement rate, the other party's current professional level should not exceed level 5.

To be honest, at least he has memories of his past life, as a former extraordinary mage.

No matter how renowned Xia Nan's future reputation may be, given that she has not yet fully matured, she should not be acting this way when facing the other party.

In fact, Violet knew in her heart that, in terms of combat strength alone, Xia Nan was probably no match for her when she was a transcendent mage.

But it's like some kind of unspeakable psychological shadow.

The long snake found next to my pillow when I was a child can make me scream even if it's just the crudest snake toy when I'm an adult; the experience of falling into a lake and almost drowning when I was a child makes me subconsciously stay away from all bodies of water as an adult, and I don't even dare to go into a children's swimming pool.

Violet knew this very well.

Even if I were to step into the extraordinary realm again in the future, or even become a legend in the mortal world.

When she recalled another time and space, that rainy night countless years ago; when she recalled the ground piled with minced flesh and limbs, covered with entrails and blood; when she recalled the tower of blood and bones made up of humanoid heads that were angry, bewildered, or terrified.

I still can't stop the trembling and panic from the bottom of my heart.

All she wants now is to end this mission as quickly as possible.

The plan formulated based on her memories from her previous life is certainly important, but getting away from the source that makes her uneasy and even affects her normal thinking and actions is also necessary and urgent.

"So, are you going to eat it or not?"

The familiar voices instantly triggered the girl's protective mechanism, causing her body, shrouded in a beige robe, to tremble involuntarily.

Her bright eyes momentarily dazed, then snapped open and closed twice before regaining focus.

Xia Nan was holding a few meat skewers in his hand and waving them in front of her.

"I just bought this. Do you want some? It's on me!"

A stiff smile appeared on her face, and before she could even think of refusing, she had already taken the meat skewers offered to her by the other person.

However, what Vera didn't notice was...

Xia Nan bought a total of 5 skewers, but only ate half of one of them herself.

As for why...

To be honest, the meat skewers didn't taste as good as he had imagined.

Perhaps it's the abundance and variety of delicious seasonings from a past life, coupled with the food safety guarantees provided by highly developed societies.

This led Xia Nan to misjudge these roadside barbecue stalls.

His physical abilities, far exceeding those of ordinary people, endowed him with a far stronger sense of taste than the average person.

With just one bite, he could taste the strange meaty smell that should have been masked by seasonings, but was now only sprinkled with coarse salt and had naturally developed after being left out for a long time.

It's definitely edible, though the taste might be a bit strange, but it won't affect your health.

But having finally earned some money, he couldn't bear to suffer such injustice. He couldn't possibly mistreat himself.

But just throwing it away seems a bit wasteful.

Fortunately, he had a teammate with him who was willing to help him deal with the food.

He would hand the meat skewers to the other person and watch them chew and swallow.

"Thank you, it tastes good."

"What's wrong?" Violet asked, her eyes filled with confusion.

Xia Nan didn't reply, but simply shook her head slightly.

Speaking of which, the question of who will own the [Dream Corridor] that Luca brought back that day has been temporarily put on hold.

After all, they were still on an escort mission, and Haian had not yet completely escaped Newme's pursuit.

He and Violet agreed that after arriving at Sticky Tree Territory and completing the commission, they would discuss the matter in detail.

Currently, this uniquely styled metal artifact is still kept by its finder, Luca, who carries it with him at all times.

"I wonder where Sava and Luca went. Did they leave early this morning?"

Walking along the bustling, slightly narrow street, Xia Nan glanced at the shops on both sides without giving it much thought, and simply asked a question casually.

He certainly didn't think there was any ambiguous relationship between the two.

After all, given the Dragonborn's body structure—covered in scales like an upright lizard, with no discernible sexual characteristics—he couldn't fathom how bizarre their fetishes must be to pique the interest of intelligent beings from other races.

Violet did know a little about where the two had gone.

"According to Wood and the others, they went to the casino in town."

"casino?"

Xia Nan was somewhat surprised.

Sava is one thing, but I never expected that Luca, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, and his honest and simple appearance, would have such a hobby.

Then he thought again that in this world, at least in the Panyun Province where he was currently located, there really weren't many ways to pass the time.

Especially for adventurers, who are neither rich nor poor, but far wealthier than ordinary people and do not need to worry about making a living, yet not as wealthy as city nobles and cannot spend money like water to buy all kinds of luxury items to satisfy their desires.

In his spare time, he could only relieve his stress by drinking alcohol, going to brothels, and playing cards.

“Look.” Violet slightly raised her chin, gesturing for Xia Nan to look ahead.

"That's the casino."

(End of this chapter)