This time I chose Paladin.

Chapter 215 He simply wanted to win.
After exchanging personal information, Nie Weiyang sensed Lang Benye's lively thoughts, but there was no greed or calculation in them; rather, it was more like the joy of discovering an interesting toy.
"...Haha! It really is him! Now I've finally got my chance! That old Bai guy was bragging about how good his tracking was, this time I'm definitely going to beat his grandpa's underwear to a pulp!"

These thoughts flashed through my mind, so pure they were almost childlike.

But what the hell are those baggy shorts...?

Nie Weiyang remained expressionless, while Lang Benye was already beaming with excitement, his pale golden eyes sparkling with the elation of discovering a new game.

He suddenly grabbed Nie Weiyang's arm—with considerable force, revealing a fervent enthusiasm, but without malice.

"Bro! Dude! Boss! Number one in the world! Can we talk about something?"

He moved closer, lowering his voice, but couldn't suppress his playful eagerness. His tail swayed a few times, making his cloak rustle.

Nie Weiyang raised an eyebrow slightly, glanced at his arm that was being held, and then looked up at him: "What is it?" His tone was emotionless.

“You probably already know,” Lang Benye winked, giving him a knowing look, his ears twitching slightly. “The people from Yingjiang are waiting for you on the bridge! Right now you’re wearing a bounty… uh, a ‘welcome allowance’! Yes, a welcome allowance!”

"Two thousand silver rings! The rule is that whoever is the first to escort you, completely unharmed and respectfully, to the registration office by the bridge will receive this money!"

He spoke rapidly, almost spitting out saliva, but his eyes were filled with pure competitiveness: "I made a bet with a guy whose nose is sharper than a dog's and who makes a living by finding people. I bet he will never find you!"
“You’re helping me out. You don’t have to come with me. Just… hey, do whatever it takes to avoid being spotted by a white-haired, white-eyed assassin in white clothes!”

"Go report to the station yourself, and don't let that bastard get the money. If I win the bet, I'll give you five hundred... no, eight hundred silver rings! No, I'll give it to you if you cooperate with me, how about it?"

Nie Weiyang: “…”

He stared at Lang Benye's enthusiastic expression, which seemed to say, "I really want to win," and remained silent for a full two seconds.

The air was filled with the dampness of the river breeze, the hustle and bustle of the market, and a subtle atmosphere that said, 'Men's happiness is so simple.'

Nie Weiyang's lips twitched almost imperceptibly.

This person is a good person, but his playfulness is... unusually strong.

These characteristics subtly reminded him of someone... someone who, last week, left many people sighing with regret.

“Okay,” he agreed succinctly, then added, “The silver ring is unnecessary.”

Anyway, he was going to cross the bridge to register anyway.

Upon hearing this, Lang Benye's eyes widened: "How can that be! I, Lang Benye, keep my word!" With a 'you look down on me' expression, he pulled a heavy little money pouch from a leather bag at his waist and shoved it into Nie Weiyang's hand without saying a word. "Take it! If you beat that guy, I'll be happy! You have to keep this money!"

Nie Weiyang: “……?”

You paid the full amount before even doing anything?
Nie Weiyang held the bag of silver rings, looking at the druid in front of him whose eyes were shining with excitement because of a bet. He was speechless for a moment, and subtly wondered if he had mistaken the person for someone else.

He ultimately put the money pouch away, not wanting to discourage the other person: "...Alright. Thanks."

"Hehe, I should be thanking you!" Lang Benye grinned from ear to ear, patting Nie Weiyang's arm guard forcefully. "Go on, go on! Remember not to let Lao Bai catch you! I'm waiting to see the show!" He even enthusiastically pointed Nie Weiyang in a direction that avoided the main road and was relatively quiet. Then, humming an off-key tune, he contentedly squeezed back into the crowd watching the carvings, as if he had just made the most profitable deal in the world.

Nie Weiyang watched his retreating figure, shook his head, and actually stepped into the shadows, took out a hat, put it on, and then, as agreed, silently blended into the crowd of people in the market, heading towards the bridge registration office.

In fact, he probably didn't need to disguise himself much... After all, in this era, information transmission was so troublesome, and no one in this place knew what 'Nie Weiyang' should look like.

If Nie Weiyang wanted to approach somewhere silently, naturally no one could stop him.

Soon, he approached the bridge.

On the bridge, soldiers dressed in uniform and wearing insignia patrolled in sections at a steady pace.

Their steps were steady, their eyes scanning the river and the key structural points of the bridge with vigilance. The standard-issue cold weapons and spellcasting tools in their hands gleamed with a cold, hard luster in the sunlight.

Their existence, like armor plates riveted to a steel skeleton, is the most direct manifestation of order.

There were also some cleaners wearing durable work clothes, masks, and gloves. They either drove small electric sweepers or used specially made long-handled tools to clean up debris blown in by the wind, dirt left by mutated birds, and traces of previous battles from the gaps in the bridge surface.

Their work is trivial yet crucial, maintaining the most basic passage environment for this lifeline.

Even more striking are the groups of other professionals scattered across different parts of the bridge.

Some of them resembled engineers and technicians, carrying rough but somewhat complex instruments, attaching them to thick steel cables, huge rivets, or concrete bridge piers to measure something, occasionally bending down to record, or whispering reports into a communicator.

Their brows furrowed occasionally, clearly as they continuously assessed and protected the health of this behemoth, and also as they measured the immense pressure that the Great River would soon exert on the people.

Some people who looked like scholars, wearing protective goggles, were suspended by ropes from the bridge piers and carefully scraped samples of algae attached to the bridge with tools; others held homemade binoculars and observed for a long time the small birds that were temporarily perched in the shade of the bridge and on the steel cables.

Their existence means that even under the pressure of survival, humanity has never stopped understanding and exploring the mutated world around us.

He even saw a small group of older students, seemingly led by a teacher, leaning on the reinforced railing of the viewing platform, listening to the teacher pointing to the bridge structure in the distance and explaining something, their notebooks rustling in the river breeze.

This is hands-on teaching, passing on knowledge and survival skills to the next generation.

Nie Weiyang let out a breath, and finally, his mood subtly relaxed a little.

Everything is going so much better now than last time!
He doesn't care how much of this is due to his efforts, or how many people know what he did—as long as there is positive change, it's a good thing!
Nie Weiyang walked quickly along the shadows toward the bridgehead checkpoint. Just then, a snow-white figure stood up from the shadows at the bridgehead and stared intently in the direction Nie Weiyang had come from. However, the delicate-looking young man searched for a moment but did not see anyone.

After turning the corner, Nie Weiyang turned sideways and pressed himself against the wall to avoid being stared at, and smiled with interest.

—To be able to sense his presence from this far away... What a promising talent!
Brother, interested in doing chivalrous deeds?

(End of this chapter)