This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 305, Section 304: Puji's House
The morning chill had not yet been completely dispelled by the sunlight. The lobby of the "Puji House" hotel was empty and quiet, with only a few diners having breakfast.

As a newly opened hotel, it's normal to have few guests.

Old Dylan sat alone behind the counter, his rough fingers gripping a quill pen. He was carefully checking the various expenses for recent purchases of ingredients and repairs of utensils, muttering numbers under his breath as he prepared to report the expenses to his superiors later.

Just then, a small face with freckles peeked out from behind the kitchen curtain.

"Boss!" the young girl Bianca reminded them, "The lamp oil in the guest rooms is almost gone, and there's not enough firewood in the kitchen!"

"Okay, okay, I'll go to the market to buy it in a bit," Old Dylan replied without looking up.

Bianca is currently the only employee in the restaurant, handling both cooking and cleaning, while Old Dylan only takes care of customer service and bookkeeping.

Business is slow right now, but we can manage. We can hire more people later if we have more customers. Right now, the town of Mushrooms has no shortage of people.

As a major rear base for human forces and a mushroom-producing area, new faces migrate here every day for various reasons.

Bianca fled her homeland, which had been turned into a battlefield, with her mother to seek refuge here. It is said that her father was under the command of Duke Brunus and was fighting against the demons in the northwest.

As Mushroom Town prospers, finding a job is not difficult.

Those who are strong and healthy can sign up to join the guard team, those with strength can join the logging team, and those who are quick and nimble can apply to take care of the mushroom fields. But almost none of these positions will accept a young girl like her.

Therefore, Bianca cherished the job she had with Old Dylan, especially since she urgently needed money to treat her mother's illness, and Old Dylan's wages were quite generous.

"Squeak—" The wooden door of the inn was pushed open, making a rather rough sound.

Dylan frowned. How could a newly installed door make such a noise so quickly?

Two guests entered. The man in front wore a dark travel cloak, looked travel-worn, and walked with a steady gait, carrying a hint of wariness.

Behind him followed a woman—Rita, the same demon spy from last time.

Her attire was unremarkable, a simple gray-brown long dress, like that of a member of her family.

Old Dylan's gaze met Rita's for a fleeting moment without leaving a trace, then he turned to the man, his tone as usual: "Checking in?"

“A quiet room.” The man’s voice was deep and concise.

"Turn left at the end, hot water is one copper coin a bucket, you need to help yourself." Dylan said as he took out the key to room 109. This room was reserved for "special guests", far away from other rooms, and had a secret passage leading directly underground.

As he handed over the keys, he casually remarked, "Relax and rest, guest. You seem a bit too tense."

The man's expression changed slightly, a hint of embarrassment flashing across his face. He grabbed the keys and strode towards the guest room.

Rita gave her a slightly apologetic look, followed by a glance.

Dylan then sat down and muttered to himself in a voice only he could hear, "Sigh...the new recruits these days have such poor manners."

His eye contact with Rita earlier had made him realize that this man was also a demon spy, probably Rita's junior or subordinate.

So many spies were sacrificed recently, and now it's natural to gradually fill the vacancies. However, in Old Di's opinion, the quality of this batch of new recruits is somewhat questionable.

Look at that stiff posture and overly vigilant expression; it's as if "I have a problem" is written all over his face.

It was only because Mushroom Town was currently a mixed bag that he had this opportunity; elsewhere, he probably wouldn't have even been able to get through the city gates.

His lack of professionalism prompted even Old Dylan to offer a word of advice.

Dylan secretly pondered that he had to establish a new rule: new recruits must first undergo observation and evaluation before they can be introduced into "Puji House," otherwise wouldn't that implicate everyone?

The wooden door creaked open again, and this time it was an acquaintance, but not a spy.

"Vera? What happened to you?" Dylan asked in surprise, looking at the newcomer.

He and Vera's group were old acquaintances, dating back to when Dylan provided the "Five-Layer Strategy." They had some connection, except for that ridiculously beautiful female elf he hadn't met—that harem-building brat...

However, Vera looked miserable at this moment. Her leather armor was covered with scorch marks, and what was worse, most of her handsome blond hair had been burned off, leaving a small bald patch on her head. Her current appearance was even worse than his own!

Vera gave a wry smile: "Sigh, I tried to explore the eighth floor, but I suffered a great loss."

Dylan's gaze swept over Felyn and the elf, noticing that the edges of their robes also bore charred marks, though these were located in inconspicuous places on the sides of their bodies.

It's easy to imagine that in that critical moment, Vera was at the forefront, bearing the brunt of the impact.

Dylan nodded and asked, "So you're here to stay at a hotel?"

Unexpectedly, Vera shook her head: "No, I've already bought a house in Mushroom Town and officially become a local."

"You didn't come here just to say hello, did you?" Dylan raised an eyebrow.

Feiling stepped forward: "Boss Dylan, look at Vera's pitiful state, stop hiding it! Take it out, it won't hurt you to lose your silver coins!"

Dylan suddenly realized what was going on. He squatted down and rummaged under the counter for a while. With a soft clatter of bottles and jars, he finally pulled out a small glass bottle containing a dark green, viscous liquid.

"Do you want hair growth serum?"

"Excuse me, may I have my information checked?" the elf Sirian stepped forward, speaking politely.

"Go ahead." Dylan pushed the medicine bottle over.

Sirius carefully uncorked the bottle, gently fanned the air around the bottle, brought it close to his nose, and sniffed it carefully.

A moment later, a hint of surprise and admiration flashed in his eyes: "It really is genuine hair growth solution! I never expected to see it here. May I ask, do you know this pharmacist?"

"I have no comment on that."

Feling quickly interrupted, "Alright, alright, who cares who did it! As long as Vera's hair can be saved! How much?"

After seeing the four people off, Dylan stood alone behind the counter, feeling both amused and exasperated.

I had only sold one bottle of the potion by chance, but I never expected the word-of-mouth to spread so quickly.

Selling one or two bottles occasionally is fine, but if you're going to do this business long-term, you absolutely need to have some cover-up measures.

At the very least, the source of the materials must be presented in a way that is transparent and verifiable.

I'll have to discuss this with the boss later.

……

That evening, Dylan met with two spies in the basement.

The man was indeed Rita's new partner; he was mainly there to make an impression.

Of course, since they were already there, the two sides took the opportunity to exchange various pieces of information.

Dylan, however, was most concerned about the situation on the front lines:
Humanity lost another city on the northwestern front, and Duke Brunus's remaining army retreated in panic. The Sword Saint went to meet them with the reinforcements.

(End of this chapter)