Warriors will die if they charge.

The intelligence disappeared completely after the six snake-men were smashed into mincemeat, which disappointed Marcus. He urged Jenny to pay quickly, as each snake-man was worth at least five hundred gold coins, otherwise he would continue to curse.

The adventurers weighed their options privately for a while; there was still a month before the next supply ship would arrive.

Currently, only the combination of Marcus and the Mysterious Archer in the camp can accurately identify the snake people's disguises. The wisest choice is to scrape together some money as protection money and get through this month peacefully.

Eighty-one adventurers pooled together about two hundred gold coins, and together with the monster hunting reward that Jenny had promised beforehand, they used the guild's reserve funds to give Rye Wine a total of two hundred and fifty gold coins.

Although the number was not very auspicious, Marcus still grinned and "sorry" accepted it. After splitting the money with rye wine, he would still have more than eighty gold coins left to renovate his little villa.

Bardin accepted the bag of gold coins without ceremony, counted them carefully, and found the amount didn't match. He then angrily berated the captain who was gloating:

"Hard man, as we agreed before, the team's rewards will be split equally, and no one will have any special privileges. There are only 83 gold coins in the bag, and we are still short 4 silver and 7 copper coins."

Marcus's eyes twitched at the dwarf's stubborn insistence. He handed Bardin another gold coin and watched as Bardin took out a money bag full of silver and copper from his backpack and exchanged it for 9 silver and 8 copper as change.

There's really no way to deal with the dwarf's bad temper. He spent his own money to prepare all the supplies for this adventure, including potions, tools, backpacks, and a whole host of other things. But when it comes to sharing the rewards, he won't be stingy with even a single copper coin.

The captain then handed Trissy a bag filled with 84 gold coins. Drow glanced at the bulging bag and shook his head in refusal.

"Take it."

"OK."

After the spoils were divided, it was time for a good nap. Rye Beef found a corner in the guild hall, lit a campfire, ate some bread and beef and mutton that Boss Hawk had brought, and then drifted off to sleep.

Nothing happened that night; apart from the adventurers' celebration and discussions as they temporarily escaped danger, the camp was extremely quiet.

The next morning, after replenishing supplies at the camp, Marcus, who was having breakfast at the union, confessed to Jenny, "We're about to set off to find the treasure. Hopefully, when we see you next time, the hellfire will be burning your hair."

Jenny, who was drinking soup with a bowl and spoon, was stunned for a moment. She asked indistinctly, "No, no, didn't you just get a lot of money? Why are you still thinking about going into the rainforest?"

"Of course we should take risks, otherwise what would be the point of calling it an adventure?"

The stubborn and straightforward warrior was uninterested in Jenny's attempts to persuade him to stay. As for the protection money the adventurers had collected, wasn't that something they did voluntarily? I never said I wanted to stay at the camp.

After breakfast, we were ready to set off immediately. The adventure was for the system-rewarded coupons to use for a high-stakes gamble.

As for making money? That's another matter.

In front of the union's gate, the midday sun cast a scorching white light onto the ground, making it difficult to open one's eyes. Trish muttered softly, "It's so hot."

Marcus was used to Zhuo'er's complaints; she always complained about this and that in front of him, but he could always adapt quickly in the end.

Deeper into the rainforest, the team leader waved his hand: "Let's go!"

"Wait!" Jenny rushed out of the guild, having changed out of her receptionist uniform into a smart leather belt, and was carrying a fine staff.

She was panting, leaning on her staff, her short golden hair sticking to her forehead, looking extremely delicate: "I'll go with you. I minor in botany at the academy, so I'm sure I can help you."

"You, little girl, panting after just a few steps, do you expect a tough guy to carry you through the rainforest?" Bardin subtly implied that Jenny was a burden.

"I can manage." Jenny looked around at the sparsely populated camp trail and lowered her voice. "I'm afraid there might still be snake people. Going to the rainforest with you is dangerous, but... at least I can get a good night's sleep."

"You should stay here," Trish said coldly. She considered him a useless burden, and if danger arose, she would not hesitate to throw the troublesome mage apprentice into the jaws of a wild beast.

Marcus raised his hand to shield his eyes, gazing at the pale, blazing sun hanging in the sky, and pondered for a moment.

While mage apprentices may lack combat prowess, they can compensate for the extremely scarce spellcasting ability of rye wine.

He didn't expect Jenny to be able to unleash powerful spells to defeat the snake-man, but he desperately needed someone with some knowledge of magic to prevent the three magical Muggles from being completely fooled by the snake-man.

"Can you take care of yourself, Jenny?"

"Yes!" Jenny nodded firmly. Judging from their ability to deal with the snake people yesterday, Rye Wine was a very strong team. Three experienced warriors were enough to deal with most threats.

As long as you don't do anything foolish, it's definitely safer than staying in the camp.

"How could Rye Wine refuse a girl looking for excitement and thrills? Let's go for a stroll in the woods and experience the blessings of the Water Queen, haha."

Jenny's eyes were full of joy, but Trish's cold rebuttal made her situation very awkward.

"What if we encounter danger? The three of us can easily get away, but with an extra burden, we'll have to consider many more things."

Zhuo'er spoke cryptically, but the meaning was clear: Jenny couldn't adapt to the team's rhythm and was someone who needed to be taken care of.

Marcus waved his hand dismissively: "Don't think too badly of things. With my brains, the dwarf's strength, and your eyesight, there's no danger that can't be resolved."

Trish glared at Marcus and walked straight toward the camp exit without saying a word.

After a while, when she didn't hear footsteps behind her, she turned around and found Marcus still teasing Jenny.

The girl's blush spoke louder than any sweet words, and the blazing light from the staff further demonstrated her sincere heart.

Drow's cloak began to tremble, anger burning within him, and he roared in a low voice:

"Are you waiting to be eaten by the Water Ghost Queen?! Get over here right now!"

-

After walking for a while and leaving the safe zone near the camp, the rainforest begins to reveal its vitality to the adventurers.

Large raindrops fell sparsely, extinguishing the last starlight hanging in the night sky. The forest awoke in the sunlight. The unlucky wind couldn't penetrate the dense jungle; it was like a vicious dog chased away with a stick, carrying away the morning mist and hurrying away from above the treetops.

A macaw perched on a chestnut tree, its beautiful yellow and blue feathers shimmering in the damp woodland. It looked down at the rye wine passing by on the narrow animal trail and chattered away.

"It's you, adventurer! We're saved!"

"Hooray, don't leave me behind."

"I shouldn't have come here, Mom."

Trissy's cloak fluttered as she watched the mocking magical beast perched on the chestnut tree branch. She had never seen this creature before; it was likely a scout of the snake people, mimicking human speech to lure adventurers into a trap.

The macaw, oblivious to the danger, was still perched on the treetop, sticking out its tongue and saying, "Caw, I'm going to die. Adventurers shouldn't come here."

"This little guy is quite cute," Marcus remarked, thinking to himself that perhaps on the way back from the adventure, he could catch a few to take back to the yard. Keeping fighting cocks is too tacky; parrots would be different...

"Cute? It's a magical beast that can talk, and maybe even use magic!" Trish retorted, lifting her cloak and aiming at the trigger from a hip-fire stance.

The crossbow string snapped back with a sharp crack, and just as the magical beast spread its wings to dodge, the arrow pierced its chest, which was covered in magnificent feathers.

The parrot fell from the treetops, a few scattered blue feathers drifting past Trish and landing on the muddy rainforest ground. She stared at the lifeless magical beast and fell into a long silence.

She tucked the crossbow into the shadows of her cloak, and under the silent gaze of the three, she spoke with difficulty:

"It's actually cuter when it's dead."

Zhuo'er's stubborn insistence made Marcus feel like she was this silly parrot who thought she knew everything, but was actually just a half-baked expert on the surface.

The captain stepped forward, picked up the macaw carcass that had fallen into the mud, pulled out the arrow by its foot, and smoothed things over for the embarrassed Trish:

"Yes, it can only go into the stomach after it dies, that's what makes it so adorable."

Bardin muttered to himself, "These birds that mimic human speech can fetch a lot of money if you catch them; the guild lists them at three gold coins each."

Jenny raised her hand and added in a low voice, "To be precise, these rare blue-and-gold macaws fetch four gold coins if captured alive, and they're very popular in Silver Mountain City."

"Dwarf, are you saying I've done something wrong?" Triss looked down at the dwarf, believing that any visible or invisible threat must be eliminated.

A talking bird would definitely reveal the location of the rye wine.

Let's assume that even if it's not a magical beast, its chattering and human-like manner would still attract the attention of the snake people.

Yes, I am eliminating potential risks, and this idea is firmly in Tracy's mind.

"No, silly elf, but next time before you shoot an arrow, figure out how to solve the problem first, and you'll definitely do better."

"..." The outline of a hard object appeared under Trish's cloak; it could be a powerful crossbow or a scimitar capable of beheading a dwarf in one strike.

"Stop arguing, you two. The adventure has only just begun." As the captain, Marcus naturally had to show some authority, and he righteously laid the two bowls of water flat:

"Tracy is vigilant, which is a good thing. It can make up for our team's lack of scouts."

"But you've been leading the way the whole way, and the silly elf almost crashed into a tree just now." Bardin scratched his cheek with his index finger, a hint of confusion on his rugged face.

"Couldn't you have waited until I finished speaking, dwarf?" Marcus coughed twice and continued his analysis, "You did a good job too, reminding her in time not to be careless..."

"Shut up, or I'll kill you both!"

An annoyed Zhuo Er made the two of them shrug.

She was a strong-willed woman, but the rainforest was an environment completely different from the dark regions. The scorching sun, the burning heat, and the snakes and scorpions slithering across the damp ground all affected her senses, which were still in the process of adapting to the surface.

For some reason, Marcus said that going to fight the snake people for the golden scales might cause a conflict, and Trish became extremely nervous and serious.

The captain unfolded the map drawn by the snake-man, studied it for a while, and then analyzed it in a deep voice:

"Hmm, after walking for about two or three more days, we'll reach the stream where May grows beautifully... I don't know what kind of water ghost druids they are, they even drew the map backwards, no wonder they're a bunch of beasts."