Chapter 457: Separation

Chapter 457: Separation

“The scheming… oops, that’s not the right word, more like cooperation, between the Sorceresses?” Zheng Yichen muttered to himself. Besides this reason, he couldn’t think of anything else that would make Irene choose to show off at this moment. Others might be clueless, but not Zheng Yichen. To everyone else, Irene seemed drawn to the Purple Vine Guild’s heritage. Whether she intended to join or cooperate, her actions signaled something.

Perhaps Qin hadn’t consulted Irene about anything before, but now they had reached an understanding. Even after the Auction ended, the subsequent impact of the space crystal would still be huge. It stirred the hearts of many, even attracting attention from the Sanctuary Church folk.

After this, Irene disappeared. To others, she must have gone to discuss matters with the Purple Vine Guild President. Just imagine—the Purple Vine Guild might gain a powerful Spellcaster. Even if it wasn’t full membership, simply establishing strong ties would give their rival guilds headaches. Damn it.

A space crystal! Even exhausting their deepest reserves couldn’t yield such a thing. That item wasn’t something money could buy. Like Space Fragments, they were essentially ‘farmed’ drop items, non-tradable, and vanished once you left the instance. Who knew what great luck the Purple Vine Guild had to land such a treasure.

Well, although it was extremely precious and reportedly slightly more common than an Element Heart, its demand wasn’t as high as the Element Heart. Powerful figures all had their Personal Spaces. If someone already owned that, why would they chase this piece? Those without were usually not strong enough to obtain it anyway. The Purple Vine Guild bringing this out wouldn’t trigger a catastrophic disaster, but its sheer appeal was undeniable.

In short, the Purple Vine Guild played another masterstroke with this Auction. Luck even seemed to favor them exclusively. For instance, the sudden appearance of a contributing Red Dragon, who tossed his Scales into the Auction. Even if just for money, this forged a link with the Purple Vine Guild. Folks from other guilds seriously doubted the Purple Vine Guild didn’t try to pull some strings to win over the dragon’s favor. Seriously… why were they so fortunate?

On another note, Zheng Yichen’s suspicion was correct. The space crystal stemmed from the cooperation or scheme between the Sorceresses. If Irene had chosen to act, it meant partnership. Without a response, the item would still play its role per normal procedures. Speaking of Sorceresses cooperating, Qin was surely the best partner to have, while Dan Marina was undeniably the most effective one. But Dan Marina definitely ranked top three in names you’d least want to cooperate with.

By the way, where had that woman run off to this time? She vanished right after the Auction. Zheng Yichen wanted to find her, but he got tangled up by Augusta the dragon. The reason was simple. Augusta had finally gathered all the materials Zheng Yichen needed for the massage dragon bed. Even before the Auction concluded, he hurriedly sought out the Purple Vine Guild. About the materials on the list, the Guild said those things were easily solved… as long as the money was sufficient!

Hearing that, what was there to wait for? Augusta directly intercepted Zheng Yichen, wanting him to collect the goods and get started. Using the Alchemical Puppet Avatar felt good, but his true body had endured wind and sun outside for several days now. Plus, his Dragon Lair had stood empty all this while. He felt a bit uneasy not hurrying back. He’d earned plenty from ticket sales anyway. Okay, honestly, after just selling one Scale, he didn’t care about that ticket money anymore.

“How long will it take to finish?”

“If the materials are all here, one day should be enough,” Zheng Yichen thought aloud. A bed wasn’t anything complicated. With sufficient materials, it could be made quickly!

“Hmm, good then!” Augusta nodded. Feeling it could be done in a day was pleasing. As for the comfort level… well, he probably wouldn’t dare to mess that up. He’d just wait one extra day.

“…Hmm?” After getting rid of Augusta, Zheng Yichen returned to the Purple Vine Guild. Following an official, he entered a warehouse and retrieved the materials Augusta mentioned. Leaving again, he spotted a familiar figure… Dan Marina. She saw him too, offered a somewhat forced smile, greeted him, and then walked away quickly. Other than the smile, everything else seemed perfectly natural, her reaction utterly normal.

This made Zheng Yichen’s eyes sharpen. Would Dan Marina ever show a forced smile? Obviously not. Since such a reaction happened, there absolutely had to be something fishy going on.

Glancing around and seeing nothing suspicious, Zheng Yichen quickly left, returning home. He found Loris already back: “Eh? You’re off work?”

“…Hmm,” Loris nodded, sitting calmly. Zheng Yichen scratched his head. “Right then, I better get busy.”

“Alright.”

After Zheng Yichen left, Loris glanced toward the direction he went and stood up. She returned to her room. Inside, a Teleportation Magic Array pattern was now clearly visible. This connected directly to a secret location within the Purple Vine Guild – though the array wasn’t fully formed yet.

Looking at the materials in his Personal Space, Zheng Yichen shook his head. It was just too much. Making it in the Workshop here would be rather impractical. Better to start crafting from the Underground Base instead. It was just a bed. Considering Augusta’s size… Tsk, a several dozen-meter body! This bed… probably would be the largest bed he’d ever make. Whether there would be larger ones later?

That depended on whether his own body grew.

“Sigh~ Well, guess I’ll see you all sometime later then.” Looking at the few small Spatial Expansion Pouches before him – these were the tiny kind, couldn’t hold much, but sufficient for gold coins – they were freebies provided by the Purple Vine Guild for large transactions. The quality was nothing special, just average. Wood sighed softly and picked up his pouch. There wasn’t much else to say. The desire to retire had been there for a while.

Plus, getting a huge sum of money all at once stimulated them. Wood and Rick felt even less inclined to keep muddling through this line of work. The existing desire to quit, amplified by the money, made the decision crystal clear. No more talking. Rick picked up his own heavy pouch: “See you around sometime.”

He glanced at Lena, then sighed again. Everyone in the team had held some hopes regarding Lena. Sadly, those hopes were unrealistic, with no real chance. So, even with regrets, it was time to part. They just weren’t people from the same world. Best to let it go.

“Ah… Alright then, guess I’ll head back too.” Gale hesitated a few times, then spoke with difficulty. Wood and Rick looked at him, puzzled. Gale was still young. He could forge ahead in this profession for many years. This money was more than enough for him to get stronger while enjoying the Adventurer life… Yeah, truly enjoying it.

“Wouldn’t you reconsider?” Wood asked.

“No, it’s settled. I met her, you see?” Gale said with a touch of emotion. He had hesitated too. Wood and Rick were getting older; retiring made sense. He was indeed young, his passion still burning: “Of course, I’ll probably still take on some small Quests later for fun. I don’t want to live like you guys planning your old-man lives. So I’m sure the Boss will see me plenty later.”

“Hmm… That works too,” Rick nodded. “Good luck, Boss.”

“Sure,” Oss replied, a bit conflicted. If he hadn’t known his teammates so well, he might have pounded the table by now. After dividing the money, everyone scattered. Only Lena, who originally seemed the most likely to leave, stayed behind. Oss didn’t know what to think. Should he be grateful? Something else?

It felt like all the surplus people had run off, specifically creating this chance for him. Regardless of his teammates’ choices, Oss couldn’t let himself stay idle. Well-informed people could know about his relationship with his sister. Right now, she was studying and growing within the Sanctuary Church. She even possessed a rare Talent uncommon among ordinary folk. She could develop very well there. If she developed well, she’d definitely get noticed.

Consider the activities of groups like the Dark Church. Even if their strength didn’t match the Sanctuary Church, they could still challenge them. They might avoid targeting his sister directly, but her big brother was a prime target. He couldn’t live a quiet life; he had to constantly push himself to get stronger. Also, because of his identity, he absolutely couldn’t leverage the resources of the Sanctuary Church.

He couldn’t lean on any other faction’s resources either.

Ally with positive factions? They wouldn’t want a Cultist. Ally with the negative ones? His sister was in the Sanctuary Church! How could he join Dark Forces? Therefore, he was forced to remain a basically neutral Adventurer. Anything he wanted, he had to fight for himself. His path as an Adventurer could not stop.

“Stop looking at me! I don’t want to go back yet! Going back after being out such a short time? No way,” Lena immediately shook her head. “Or do you have some thought about me? That’s anything but easy, you know.”

” … ”

“Heh, Boss~” Rick nudged Gale and winked. “The tone has shifted a bit.”

Oss shook his head. Anything but easy – wasn’t that still possible? Unless he became strong enough to make Nobles treat him as an equal? He was strong enough now, but all that came from his unique encounters. Without them, even a ‘Mid-Rank’ Professional would pose trouble for him. Forget his current ability to defeat a High-tier Professional!

All this was thanks to these eyes. Whether facing Mages or Warriors, these eyes were devastating. Against Mages, the only hassle was their Shields. But fully utilizing his ‘Spellbreaker’ trait made shattering Shields quite simple. The effect of Elemental Sight was insanely useful. For Warriors, he often didn’t even need his eyes’ Kaleidoscope state, sometimes not even stage three. Just stage two allowed him to easily dominate the most skilled Warriors.

These eyes were given to him by Lena!

“Planning to leave now?”

“We were planning to head out together,” Wood said. He and Rick had discussed earlier; there was overlapping territory on the way back; traveling together provided mutual support.

“Take me along then. I haven’t decided where to settle yet. If I find a suitable place, we might even become neighbors.”

…

“Enough feeling down, Boss. What you need to think about now is finding new teammates fast. Unless you plan on adventuring alone?”

“Oh… Right.” Oss nodded, snapping back to reality. Adventuring solo just didn’t work well. Even though Rick and the others hadn’t been keeping up with him in strength, they still provided significant help on adventures. At the very least, tasks became much easier with them. Otherwise, with Lena also in the team, if he had to handle everything himself… venturing would become a slog.

“Here.” Lena placed a sheet of paper before Oss. Puzzled, Oss picked it up. His expression shifted slightly. The paper recorded detailed information on Adventurers currently active in Kaja. It perfectly addressed his current awkward situation.

With clear targets for finding suitable companions, this list likely didn’t cover everyone. But since she noted them down, these were probably suitable candidates. Their strength levels far exceeded Gale’s group, matching Oss’s current capabilities… As for character, he trusted Lena’s judgment regarding people implicitly.

No wonder Lena was always going out after arriving in Kaja—she was preparing this! Realizing this made Oss feel a bit ashamed. He and his friends had basically been eating, drinking, and relaxing in Kaja these past few days, paying little attention to much else. While that was the normal rhythm for Adventurers… Describing Lena in simpler terms: What a truly good woman she was!

“Actually, it wasn’t too troublesome. Just learned more at the Adventurers’ Guild. Kaja saw plenty of visitors recently; it required just a bit of careful noting. And you know, pretty ladies often get more helpful information.”

Oss nodded. Although Lena’s words could sound ambiguous, he understood her. She was purely the type you could admire respectfully, but never actually reach. So Oss wasn’t worried about her suffering any disadvantages!

“Alright then, let’s go contact these people later.” Oss stated immediately. The information on the paper included their temporary lodgings in Kaja. Time waited for no one. The Auction was over. Without pressing business, some Adventurers or Mercenaries remaining in Kaja would soon depart. Better to act sooner. They had rested enough during the earlier days of fun.