Chapter 254 - 165: Reward Settlement
Chapter 254: Chapter 165: Reward Settlement
I need to get up. I have things to do this afternoon.
Lin Mo roused Ali, whose body was limp as mud.
They dragged themselves out of bed, washed up, and headed downstairs just in time for lunch.
The inn’s food was the same as ever: run-of-the-mill, neither great nor terrible.
To be honest, he had little appetite, having just woken up. That, combined with the big feast from the night before, meant he just had a light bite.
He pushed open the inn’s main doors, and sunlight washed over him. The prosperity of Silver Stream City remained largely unaffected. Compared to when Lin Mo had first arrived, people’s faces now held a hint of worry, and he often overheard conversations about the recent events. Still, there was no sense of despair among the majority. Clearly, they trusted the City Lord to handle everything.
The city’s laborers were as busy as ever, living out their ordinary, day-to-day lives.
For the common folk of this world, these somewhat impoverished yet stable days were a rare and precious thing.
Since he hadn’t eaten much, he would occasionally stop at a food stall to buy a sweet or salty snack. Ali stayed close, practically glued to his side, humming a tuneless little melody.
’Days off are always this wonderful.’
But there was something even more wonderful: collecting his mission reward.
This reward didn’t involve a special ceremony, such as the bestowing of a medal, so he didn’t have to go to the City Lord’s Mansion. It would be distributed directly by the Association.
The Association’s president, Vick, was out, so the vice president was handling matters in his stead.
The Association’s vice president was a robust, middle-aged man, likely of the Warrior or Knight Profession. He had a steady demeanor, said little, and was crisp and efficient in his work.
"According to the conscription articles for this special mission, your deserved reward is a base reward of 25 gold coins, plus a rescue reward of 21 gold coins, for a total of 46 gold coins. In addition, there is the reward for killing Goblins: 14 Level 1 Goblins, worth 112 Gold Coins. Your total reward comes to 158 Gold Coins!"
The man currently receiving his reward was a Level 2 Professional. He looked vaguely familiar to Lin Mo; he must have been one of the teammates from the same Cave.
The man cheerfully collected his reward. For a Level 2 Professional, that was a pretty good haul.
There were still quite a few people in line ahead of him. Lin Mo probably could have cut the line, but he wasn’t in a hurry, so he just ordered a glass of fruit wine and sat to the side to wait patiently.
A short while later, a waitress from the Association, dressed in a Maid’s uniform, approached with a tray. On it sat a glass of bluish-green fruit wine, garnished with two small, kumquat-like fruits.
Lin Mo took a small sip. It was sweet and sour, and its low alcohol content meant there was no bitter aftertaste. It was quite pleasant.
For someone like him, who wasn’t a fan of ale, fruit wine was an excellent alternative.
Of course, it was also a bit pricier.
With Lin Mo’s current fortune, however, he didn’t mind the cost.
He casually tipped the Association Maid a few Copper Coins. Realizing that Gold Coins were too large a denomination for everyday expenses in the city, Lin Mo had exchanged some for Silver Coins and Copper Coins, which he kept in a separate pouch just for city use.
The young Maid was clearly delighted. The few Copper Coins weren’t a fortune, but they certainly weren’t a small amount either—it was as much as she’d earn in two hours of work.
"Thank you, kind and generous Adventurer!"
She nodded her thanks, gave a slight bow, and left with the tray.
Lin Mo’s gaze lingered on her for a moment. To be honest, he was quite a fan of things like maids and maid uniforms.
Just as he had a soft spot for girls with beast ears.
"Hey, mind if we join you?"
Even though it was the afternoon, the Association was crowded. In addition to those there specifically to collect rewards, there were also people accepting or turning in routine quests. It seemed the number of Adventurers in the city had indeed increased recently.
Most of them had come from neighboring towns. Their homes were farther from Loran Forest, and the quests they usually took on mainly involved dealing with wild creatures like Ratmen and Kobolds. While there were some stronger Demons, the overall quantity and quality of quests couldn’t compare to what Silver Stream City offered.
On top of that, Silver Stream City had recently increased the bounty for killing Goblins, attracting many low- and mid-tier Adventurers.
"Sure."
Lin Mo nodded, his gaze falling on the speaker.
He looked very young, likely a rookie. His companions were a group of three or four others around the same age. One of the girls sat down beside him as if it were the most natural thing in the world, leaning in to whisper something in his ear.
The sight made Lin Mo think of his first teammates—his first real ones, at least, not counting the poor saps who had died at the hands of a Mutated Goblin.
He wondered how Bain and the others were doing, and whether anything had progressed between Evan and Millian.
Roland Town wasn’t safe; he hoped they had decided to move...
As his thoughts drifted, the young man sharing his table suddenly pointed to the glass in front of Lin Mo. "Hey, what is that you’re drinking? I’d like to order one too."
"I think it’s called Sour Orange Mead?"
Lin Mo said the name after a moment’s recollection. Noticing the young man’s simple equipment, he added, "1 Silver Coin a glass."
Sure enough, the young man’s face immediately fell into an embarrassed expression. He gave an awkward laugh, then turned to whisper with the girl beside him, abandoning his extravagant idea.
Lin Mo drained the rest of the fruit wine in his glass.