Chapter 46: Interlude

Xia Nan furrowed his brows, his pitch-black eyes scanning the reeking, alcohol-laden man before him from head to toe. The man clearly possessed an aura of harboring ill intentions.

He knew all too well that under the influence of alcohol, certain regions of the human brain become compromised, leading individuals to engage in radical and mentally unhinged behaviors. Although he had only recently transmigrated into this world and his current strength wasn’t particularly formidable, he was already fully prepared to handle any potential offense from this stranger.

Subtly, he began assessing the combat parameters between himself and his opponent.

“Hmm… heavily intoxicated. There should be no possibility of him faking it.”

“Unsteady on his feet. Whether I decide to temporarily retreat or launch an attack, I can exploit this flaw.”

“When facing humanoid enemies, the Beheading Longsword is more suitable, but given the current distance between us, the length of the blade might make it awkward to fight. I need to create some distance first.”

“Judging by his physical build and attire…”

At the same time, Chapton watched the two men before him who had fallen into an eerie silence. An uneasy feeling gradually crept into his heart.

He recognized the man who was currently in a daze from drinking. Bernie—a well-known drunkard in town. Despite being a genuine adventurer who relied on quest bounties to survive, he spent almost every waking moment cooped up in the various taverns of Riverbend Town. Only when he was completely out of coin would he occasionally head out on a couple of missions with his former squad, returning to lounge in the town once he had earned enough for his liquor.

Furthermore, he was a terrible drunk.

In the mere half-year since Bernie had arrived in Riverbend Town, Chapton had personally thrown him out of the White Chickadee Tavern three times for drinking and causing trouble. It was only because the man was actually quite decent and good-natured when sober that Chapton hadn’t blacklisted him entirely.

As for the black-haired youth on the other side…

Chapton suddenly noticed that the youth had already lowered his stance slightly, clearly adopting a combat posture. Even his hand was faintly raised, looking as though he were ready to grip the hilt of his sword at any given second.

“Whoa, it’s not that serious, it’s not that serious!”

From behind, two middle-aged men dressed in adventurer attire hurriedly stepped forward. They grabbed Bernie, who reeked of alcohol and looked as though he would pass out cold in the next second, and offered a sycophantic smile:

“Terribly sorry about this, he’s had way too much to drink. We were busy watching the commotion over there just now and lost track of him for a moment.”

The speaker then turned toward Chapton behind the counter, patted his own chest, and barked loudly:

“Put this friend’s expenses for today on my tab!”

Following that, he offered a few more words of apology to Xia Nan before dragging Bernie back to their table.

It wasn’t because they had discerned any terrifying strength within Xia Nan. These highly experienced, bottom-tier adventurers might be willing to backstab and turn on a companion they spent night and day with during a mission for the sake of a priceless piece of equipment—but that was because there was enough profit stacked on the other side of the scale.

To survive mission after mission, it was naturally impossible for them to be the kind of fools who ignored everything and simply let their emotions dictate their actions. Creating a completely unknown enemy with unrecognized strength over a trivial matter that could be resolved with a simple gesture? Even an idiot knew how to choose.

They were all in the same trade; who knew if they might cross paths somewhere in the future, and no one could predict what state they would be in at that time. Under these circumstances, with two companions present, it was naturally impossible for Bernie to clash with Xia Nan.

Of course, if one were to assume these men were good people based strictly on this interaction, that would be a massive mistake. After all, if a colossal profit capable of tilting their internal moral compass were to suddenly appear before them, their strike wouldn’t be a single blink slower than anyone else’s.

The imagined confrontation failed to materialize, and the minor interlude within the tavern concluded right there.

Although Xia Nan felt somewhat surprised in his heart, he didn’t harbor any superfluous thoughts. Since someone was offering to treat him, he naturally went with the flow.

“One Number Three Combo,” he said to the tavern proprietor before him.

After eating dry rations in the forest for so many days, it was truly hard to bear. To be perfectly honest, there was even a night where he had dreamed of returning to his past life, finding a restaurant he frequented, and gorging himself. Now that he had finally concluded the mission, he naturally had to give himself a proper reward.

Come to think of it, it was only because of the peculiar timing—most of the shops on the street had already closed, leaving him with nowhere to process his trophies. Otherwise, running through the various shops according to the Adventurer’s Handbook would have eaten up the better part of his day.

Sizzle—

Steam rose, and the aroma of food rushed into his nasal cavity with his breath. It was still the classic combination of stewed meat, mushroom soup, and white bread.

He soaked the bread completely in the mushroom soup. Taking a bite:

“Tsk.”

The soft dough melted into a milky fragrance in his mouth almost instantly, intertwining with the sweet freshness of the mushroom soup as it was swallowed into his stomach. Xia Nan narrowed his eyes in absolute enjoyment.

“This is the kind of life a human is supposed to live,” he lamented silently in his heart.

Meanwhile, the tavern proprietor, Chapton, placed a glass of liquor that looked rather expensive before him.

“This glass is on the house, courtesy of the White Chickadee,” he spoke, meeting Xia Nan’s puzzled gaze.

“Thank you.”

There was no reason to refuse a free drink, so Xia Nan nodded in gratitude.

As the glass settled on the table, the crystal-clear liquor rippled gently. He ate his dinner, his thoughts drifting as his eyes lost focus slightly.

The sky had already turned dark by the time he returned to Riverbend Town, leaving him with no place to handle his trophies, so he intended to rest at the White Chickadee for the night first. The bandages wrapped around the [Pine Verdure] wooden sword on his back were a layer of concealment he had crafted out of concern that someone might notice something amiss. He would observe things over the next few days; once an opportunity arose to find a blacksmith shop and commission a custom scabbard, things should become much more convenient.

The alcohol traveled into his stomach, leaving a burning sensation on the tip of his tongue. Yet, his body showed absolutely no adverse reaction.

Xia Nan surmised that this should be his current Constitution—which was as high as 8 points—taking effect. Previously, a mere 1 point of Strength and 1 point of Agility brought about by maximizing his level in [Sweeping Slash] had made him feel as though he had swapped into an entirely new body, causing his combat power to skyrocket. Now, after absorbing the dewdrop, the subsequent 3 points of Constitution provided an enhancement that could not be described as anything short of massive.

After rushing along for an entire day, even Wood—who had already obtained a professional class level—ended up with his chest heaving, panting heavily by the end of it. Yet he himself had handled it with absolute ease, without a shred of exertion, as if he had merely taken a stroll. While a portion of this was due to the dewdrop helping him replenish the stamina he had consumed along the way, it was also more than enough to prove the sheer strength of Xia Nan’s current endurance.

On the other hand, although it wasn’t as visually explicit as a skyrocketing health bar in a video game, the enhancement of his Constitution was enough to allow Xia Nan to sustain significantly more damage on a combat level. Although he hadn’t tested it yet, he was certain that the current him should be able to unleash [Sweeping Slash] multiple times within a short duration without affecting his bodily functions. The awkward predicament of his arms growing sore and limp after hacking a few extra times no longer existed.

Delving deeper into the thought, an increase in Constitution meant an enhancement in his body’s ability to take a hit. If the current him were to return to the Mist Forest and let that basilisk strike him from behind again…

Xia Nan suddenly shuddered, his upper back seemingly radiating a phantom ache.

“I certainly wouldn’t die, but let’s just forget about that.”

(End of Chapter)