This adventurer is overly righteous.

"The first thing I do every morning is to cast a protective spell on myself."

Kroya gave Carter an answer that was barely acceptable.

The Blessing spell, unique to priests, creates a protective transparent film on the target, effectively absorbing impact. The actual defensive power depends on the priest themselves.

One's own magic level determines the effect of a spell, and for spells like Blessing, which are unique to priests, the connection between the caster and the deity they believe in also affects the spell's effect.

The Blessing spell is only the lowest level of magic. Due to its level, its effect is often mediocre. Carter once worked with some priests to clear monsters, and the Blessing spells they cast were far less powerful than those shown by Kroya.

In Carter's memory, the priests' protective spells were quite fragile; a goblin's stone could easily create several cracks.

Kroya was hit head-on by the giant field mouse, but miraculously escaped unharmed thanks to her protective spell.

Either Kroya possesses astonishing magical power, capable of producing remarkable effects even with low-level magic, or she is actually a devout fanatic, and the goddess adores her.

"How much money did those guys give you in total?"

Carter's gaze swept across the distance as the villagers went about their business.

"Two silver and thirty copper coins, a large field mouse is fifteen copper coins, and they offered one silver and ten copper coins for the biggest one, but they didn't want the horn and left it for me."

"That's definitely the market price."

Carter nodded slightly.

As an experienced adventurer, Carter knew the importance of negotiating with buyers; almost no novice adventurer hadn't been pressured to lower their prices.

"So, with the mission reward included, you'll get six silver and thirty copper coins for this trip."

"That horn could probably sell for around five taels of silver."

The special organs and tissues that grow on these monsters are excellent materials that can be used to forge weapons or make potions. They have always had a good market and can account for half or more of the total value.

"Then the total income is close to twelve taels of silver."

Even Carter was surprised by this number; Croya's luck was simply extraordinary.

"When you go back, remember to have your sword serviced, or just get a new one."

This is a final piece of advice. Now that Kroya's mission is complete, all he needs to do is return safely to the Adventurers' Guild and submit proof of his completion. Carter has other tasks to do. According to the original plan, he would only stay by Kroya's side for two or three days. Based on past experience, this amount of time is more than enough for a novice adventurer to complete his mission.

However, Kroya does not belong to the typical type of novice adventurer.

Carter needs to speed things up now. Adventurers' Guild missions have time limits, and most missions are considered failed if they are not completed within half a month of an adventurer taking them on.

"Leaving already?" Kroya was still eating meat. "You seem to be in a hurry... Oh right, you said you had other tasks to do."

"Do you need any help?" Kroya asked simply.

Carter, who was originally planning to say angrily, "Yes, I'm leaving. You've wasted so much of my time," paused for a moment.

What help can a novice adventurer like you possibly offer?

For the first moment, Carter thought this: as an experienced elite among adventurers, he naturally had the pride to face newcomers. But then, he remembered Kroya's highly effective protection spell.

It seems that it really can...

"After all, I wasted a lot of your mission time."

  

Croya wouldn't feel at ease about something that affected others; he would at least try to make amends.

And there will be rewards.

Your sincerity and kindness, and your consideration for your companions, are commendable qualities.

[Magic power slightly increased]

"How effective is your protection spell?" Carter asked after a moment's thought.

When adventurers cooperate, the most important thing is to know each other well. However, the attributes of adventurers are private matters and it is not convenient to ask them directly. They can only estimate based on their performance.

Kroya's strength is at least F, and his martial arts skills are around F+, which is stronger than previously predicted. He has completely transcended the scope of ordinary novice adventurers.

Although he had always regarded the other party as a novice who knew nothing, Kroya's strength was definitely comparable to those skilled veteran adventurers, and he was fully capable of assisting elite adventurers like himself.

"You can try it yourself."

In reality, the effects of spells are not as visually apparent as in games, and Kroya has no idea exactly how much this slight increase means.

However, based on the results of previous tests, if Kroya's magic power is divided into ten units, then the protection spell released using one unit of magic power is enough to withstand three full-force slashes from him.

In real combat, that translates to three chances to save your life.

During the conversation, Kroya cast a protective spell on a tree branch about the length of his forearm on the ground. One unit of magic power disappeared from his body, and a transparent luster covered the surface of the branch. Other than that, nothing changed. Kroya then picked it up and held it horizontally to his side.

That means Carter should chop the tree branch with his sword.

Carter immediately understood and drew his sword.

"Keng"

A flash of cold light streaked through the air. Carter had used eight-tenths of his strength in that sword strike, enough to cleave even a rock in two. Yet the tree branch remained unmoved, though several conspicuous cracks appeared on it.

One more sword strike, and we can shatter Kroa's protective spell.

Both Croya and Carter were surprised by the result.

"This is the strength of an elite adventurer." Kroya assessed in his mind. The opponent's strength might have reached f+ or even e-. If he didn't use magic, Carter's strength would be much higher than his own.

This single sword strike alone is enough to demonstrate the difference in their raw strength.

Terrifying...

"What kind of rookie adventurer is this?" Carter maintained a calm expression, but his mind was in turmoil.

After the opponent's protective spell blocked a sword strike with 80% of its power, it only showed obvious cracks.

Doesn't this mean that even if I use all my strength, I can't break through Kroa's protective spell in one go...?

Humans do not possess the tenacious vitality of magical beasts, and battles without armor often end in a single, decisive blow. However, Kroya's Blessing spell can provide crucial protection against certain fatal attacks in such situations, greatly enhancing the adventurer's survivability.

Although I'm reluctant to admit it, this new adventurer, Kroya, seems to be incredibly strong.

Terrifying...

"So, regarding the mission reward, we'll split it 30/70, you get 30% and I get 70%. During the mission, you just need to cast a protective spell on me, is that alright?"

Carter said after thinking for a moment.

Although dealing with an ogre is not a task that Carter needs teammates to complete, with Kroya's assistance, there is no possibility of him getting hurt.

For adventurers, being injured means being unable to take on the next quest, which in turn means losing income for a period of time.

However, putting aside these vested interests, Carter's willingness to give 30% of the mission rewards to Croya also carries a hint of support.

This is a newcomer with unlimited potential, not only because Kroya has mastered magic exceptionally well, but also because of some inexplicable feeling that Carter has never encountered in other adventurers. Perhaps the word "kindness" can be used to describe it.

Carter felt that Kroya might become a reliable adventurer companion in the future, someone he wouldn't have to worry about betraying or plotting against, someone pure and sincere...

"No problem." Kroya extended his hand. "Then..."

"It's a pleasure working with you."

The two said in unison.