Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 361 The Orangery and the Snowy Night

For Xia Nan, whose physical attributes are as high as 8 points and whose physical recovery efficiency far exceeds that of ordinary people, only 6-7 hours of sleep a day is enough to fully replenish his energy, making his perception of "one day - 24 hours" much longer and more durable than in his previous life.

Currently, having completed a full training process on the outskirts of the town, cleaned his body, and had two failed attempts with the tavern owner and the town's blacksmith, and even taken a stroll around the town square.

It was only morning.

For reference, when I returned from the square, Horak was having his breakfast in the hotel lobby. The two members of the Blackwood Squad, as adventurers, may have gotten up a little earlier than him, but they had only just finished packing their equipment and came down from the second floor.

"You mean... all the residents of Girth have been affected by that thing?"

Sitting at the dining table, Margaret frowned and asked in surprise in a voice that only the few people at the table could hear.

"At least the innkeeper, the blacksmith who clashed with Mr. Horako yesterday, and several peasant women in the town square are like that."

Xia Nan nodded slightly.

He did not answer directly, but the three different identities of "tavern owner," "blacksmith," and "peasant woman" were enough to illustrate the wide influence of the gemstone.

Since they were all in the same boat, he had no reason to hide information except for matters involving his own secrets. Taking advantage of the fact that they were all together, he shared the information he had gathered and some of his own conjectures with Margaret and the others.

I also hope that my teammates can use their much richer adventurer experience to help me broaden my thinking and find the key to breaking the deadlock.

"It shouldn't be..."

"If that priest truly worships the goddess [Santia], how could she, according to her doctrines, allow something that can influence human sanity to circulate in the town?"

Beside him, the dwarf Soldin expressed his doubts.

Xia Nan had already thought about this on his way back to the hotel after leaving the square.

The answer is actually quite simple, just two points:

1. Pastor Moen was aware of the pastel gems, and he tacitly approved of the current situation in Goat's Horn, even secretly fueling it.

2. Pastor Morn was completely unaware of anything related to gems, and was even affected by their charm effects just like the ordinary residents. After all, he was just a clergyman in a church in a remote town, not some divine favorite under the watchful eye of the gods. Let alone mind control, even death on the spot might not attract the attention of the powerful goddess [Goddess of Agriculture], who had billions of followers.

No one on the field could answer Soldin's question.

Everyone fell silent as if by unspoken agreement.

But without a doubt, at this moment they should all have answers similar to Xia Nan's.

The situation in the town was confusing. If it weren't for the discovery that the [Dream Corridor] was the "natural enemy" of the pastel gems, which could not only easily eliminate their charm effect, but also absorb their energy to recharge the device, Xia Nan would have left long ago and would never have gotten involved.

Now, the caravan members were increasingly aware of the complexity of the situation in Goat's Horn. As the captain of the Blackwood Squad, Margaret tossed her dark golden braid that draped over her shoulder behind her head, looked at Horak across the table, and earnestly suggested:

"How long will it take to process the goods brought by the caravan?"

"Staying in town any longer... is too dangerous."

"To avoid getting into any unnecessary trouble, Mr. Horako, please handle this as soon as possible. We need to leave quickly."

Faced with the female swordsman's urging, the wealthy merchant's round face showed a hint of helplessness.

He didn't answer, but turned his head to look at the caravan's second-in-command sitting next to him, his assistant "Afu".

“Mr. Horako and I already discussed the relevant issues last night,” Afu took over the conversation and explained.

"In fact, in order to speed up the process as much as possible, we no longer even consider the price of the goods, even if we lose money."

"The real time-consuming part right now is the replenishment of supplies."

"From Giethoorn to River Valley, it's a journey of more than ten days. Even if we can find some small villages along the way to rest temporarily and buy food from the villagers, we still need to buy enough supplies for at least ten days while trying to save as much as possible."

“But in a remote town like Giethoorn…it takes time.”

"But please rest assured, I have already given the order, and everyone in the caravan knows how urgent the situation is, so no one will be delayed."

"Once we've resupplyed, we can set off immediately!"

At this point, Afu suddenly hesitated.

A rare hint of hesitation appeared on that serious and rigid face. His lips trembled twice before he slowly opened his mouth again, lowering his voice to the minimum.

"The decision is yours. If the situation in town truly escalates to the point where we must leave immediately... please take Mr. Horako with you and leave the town first. The rest of the caravan and I can wait..."

"Afu!"

Horako interrupted, his usually warm, round face now expressionless.

He patted the other person's shoulder twice, heavily.

After a moment of silence, he simply shook his head.
"Don't overthink it, just focus on getting the job done as quickly as possible."

"Coming to Giethoorn was my decision."

"Now that I've brought you all here, you should all come back together."

After speaking, without waiting for a reply, he looked at Xia Nan and the other two people at the table with a sincere expression.

"Gentlemen, the situation has changed. I have no right to demand that you do anything, but... at least for the sake of gold coins, if anything happens in Goat Horn Town, please let me know so that we can make some preparations in advance."

Knowing full well that the closer they got to this moment, the more they needed to rely on the professionals in the team, Horako kept a very humble attitude and did not put any pressure on him just because he was an employer.

In this situation, not to mention Margaret and Salding, who were originally the ones who accepted the escort commission, even Xia Nan, who was just hitchhiking, would not mind helping them out if he could.

At the dinner table, the group did not discuss for very long.

Among them, Ah Fu, the team manager with the heaviest burden and the most affairs to handle, just stuffed a few mouthfuls of food into his mouth and quickly left to do his work.

Xia Nan planned to wander around the town, just like he had in the morning, to see if he could find anything. With his exceptional perception, he would make the most of his strengths, walking around the town and chatting with the residents; he was bound to gain something.

After learning about the strange situation in Yangjiao Town from Xia Nan, the two members of the Blackwood Squad naturally couldn't remain indifferent.

Margaret planned to go to town with Xia Nan to gather information. As the captain of an adventurer's party, she had been in the business for many years and could be said to have grown up in the mixed world of taverns. She had seen all kinds of people, from nobles of the kingdom to beggars on the street. Her eloquence was not outstanding, but at least she wouldn't kill the conversation with just a few words like Xia Nan.

It filled his last gap in knowledge.

The dwarf Soldin was left at the inn to protect Horako.

……

……

In the morning, the warm sunshine shone on the busy streets, and a gentle breeze carrying the noise brushed against my face.

Her wheat-colored skin shone with a healthy glow in the sunlight, and her neatly braided dark blonde hair swayed gently as she moved.

Margaret rested one hand on the hilt of her sword at her waist, her sharp gaze, characteristic of a swordsman, sweeping across the crowd of passersby.

Out of the corner of his eye, he unconsciously fell on the deep, dark figure in front of him.

Many years have passed since she took over as captain of the Kuroki Squad from her father. Now that she is voluntarily handing over the leadership of the operation, she seems a little uncomfortable and even a little too involved.

He seemed to be just an ordinary member of an adventurer's party. After leaving the inn, he didn't even ask where the two were going or who they should ask for information. He simply followed behind the young man who had saved their Blackwood party and was both exceptionally strong and extremely young.

As for Xia Nan... he has his own place to go.

It was neither a bustling trade street with a large number of vendors and shops, nor a well-connected post station where a large number of porters gathered year-round.

Instead, they headed towards the outskirts of the town.

About twenty minutes later.

As the number of pedestrians on the road dwindled and the buildings on both sides of the street became less dense, the vast plains and fields behind could be vaguely seen.

A small orange grove came into view.

Low, mottled stone walls surround both sides, and the air is filled with a refreshing fragrance of slightly bitter orange leaves and sweet orange pulp.

The orange trees, which are not particularly tall, are arranged in a strict order, and you can see the low wall at the end of the orange grove at a glance; each fruit tree has been carefully pruned, and the branches and leaves are lush but not messy.

The dark green leaves are tough and have a surface that looks like it's coated with wax. Sunlight filtering through the gaps in the leaves refracts into faint halos. The heavy, orange-red fruits bend the branches, making them look like round lanterns that stand out against the light reflected from the leaves.

Xia Nan discovered this orange grove when he returned from his morning exercise. He noticed signs of recent pruning of the orange trees and made a mental note of it.

I recalled learning from the tavern owner that Giethoorn mandarins were a local specialty, and that all the shops in town had stock of them through a wide distribution network.

Thinking that if they wanted to gather information, the managers of this orange grove might be a good target.

I've come here to try my luck and see if I can make a profit.

It didn't go to waste.

Unlike the deathly silence that followed dawn, the two had barely stepped into the garden when they heard the crisp sound of scissors clashing together.

Looking in the direction of the sound, one could see a young girl in her early twenties, dressed simply, standing on tiptoe and busy under a lush orange tree.

A faded dark blue headscarf wrapped around her head, with only a few strands of dark brown hair, damp with sweat and clinging to her skin, peeking out from her forehead and ears; her cheeks were flushed with a healthy blush, and although her skin wasn't fair, it radiated a grounded glow bestowed by the land and labor.

Wearing an old dress made of coarse linen, the girl was focused on her work. A small basket for holding tools was slung over her left arm, while her right hand, with visible calluses, held scissors. With a "snip" sound, she precisely and skillfully removed some dry or overcrowded branches from the orange tree. Her movements were fluid, as if she had repeated them a million times.

Hearing unmasked footsteps behind her, the girl gripped the scissors and hurriedly turned around.

His gaze swept over the armor and equipment on the two people, and he subconsciously took two steps back, his sweaty face revealing panic and fear.

“Don’t be afraid.” Margaret stepped forward, smiling gently. “We’re just passing by and mean no harm.”

"Is this your orange grove? It's very well maintained. No wonder the mandarins produced here are so delicious."

Upon hearing this, the girl immediately gave a slightly shy smile.

"Good day, adventurers." She awkwardly bowed to them, then turned around, took a few oranges from the basket at her feet, wiped them with her skirt, and presented them to them. "Would you like to try this year's honey oranges?"

Xia Nan nodded slightly, took the orange handed to him, and without saying a word, gave Margaret a look, signaling her to continue.

He had already explained the information he needed to gather to the other party while he was at the "Cashmere Rusty Nail" inn, so there was no need to say anything more now.

Silently understanding his meaning, Margaret kindly removed the fallen leaves from the girl's shoulder. They quickly became acquainted in just a few words and naturally steered the conversation toward the town and the highly respected priest.

The orange grove girl, who had little life experience, was almost completely defenseless against the female swordsman's attacks.

Her eyes lit up at the mere mention of the word "Moen," revealing a deep-seated reverence.

"You mean Grandpa Moen?" The girl's clear voice was filled with deep respect. "He is the messenger sent by the great [Goddess of Grains] to protect us."

"As far back as I can remember, Grandpa Moen was already the pastor in the church. Many people in the town, even the uncles and aunts, were practically raised by him."

"Without him, there would be no orange grove in our family, and... I might not even exist."

The girl's clear eyes revealed a look of reminiscence.

He turned his head slightly and looked at the most robust and fruitful orange tree in the very center of the orange grove.

"That was when I was a child, about five or six years old. That year the orchard had a very poor harvest, and the winter was particularly cold. The snow was so deep that it blocked the door. I had a high fever, and my forehead was said to be as hot as burning coals. Even the old woman in town who was a herbalist shook her head when she saw it."

The girl paused, her eyes glazed over, as if drifting towards that distant and cold snowy night.

(End of this chapter)