Chapter 512: The Brooch Trade

The halfling Lili helped quite a bit, so naturally she deserved a cut.

Rod was generous with the girl—at first he intended to split it fifty-fifty with her.

But later Lili, taking Shi Ying's situation into account, and being the sort who didn't fuss over money to begin with, said that if Rod had invited Lady Kali instead back then, the job could have been done just the same; the key was that Rod knew the vault's location.

So she proposed a thirty-seventy split, plus a few Magical Items and scrolls she had her eye on.

Rod couldn't talk her out of it, so he agreed.

After they had just finished dividing the loot last night, Lili was still buzzing with excitement and had wanted to keep chatting with Rod.

But later, hearing him and the banshee Chris discussing the sleepover tax, she could only slink off in a huff.

"Master."

Tally dropped down from the roof of the ranger's cabin, her face full of bitterness.

"Tally may have no merit, but she has her hardships—can't I get a reward meal today?"

"No. Treasure-wise you may speak up, but on this matter, no."

"Master, nooo—"

Once she learned last night that Chris was going to sleep with Rod, she had hidden on the roof waiting, certain that the banshee wouldn't be able to handle it, and that her master, left hanging, would surely call her in.

What she hadn't expected was that the woman had actually held out for a hundred thousand Jin Along, even drifting off in consciousness several times.

Trying to steal a chicken and losing the bait for it.

Tally hadn't gotten a bite, and had spent the whole night listening on the roof, itching unbearably.

Rod, however, couldn't be bothered with her.

He pried open the little hand that had reached for his and set off to patrol the woods and train.

Turning his head, he saw in the distance the elf Lady Kali walking toward them, with Rat Girl Thirteen still trailing behind her, swinging a tree branch back and forth.

"Good morning, Lady Kali."

Lady Kali's expression didn't change, and she didn't choose to respond.

Elves, after all.

That's how it is—proud to death.

Apart from a few polite ones who'll reply verbally, most of them, like Lady Kali, will just give you a sour-faced glance, and that's already treating you like a person.

Rod was used to it.

He had never been one to fuss over such trivial matters of etiquette either; instead, he turned and smiled at the tall Rat Girl.

"Good morning, Thirteen."

Thirteen still couldn't speak.

Her hollow, lifeless eyes looked at Rod as she leaned in close, her pert bottom jutting outward, her steel tail swinging to wrap around his thigh.

Look at that.

She hasn't even grown a soul yet, and she still knows better how to respond than you—an old elf who's lived two or three hundred years, no less.

Lady Kali was about to speak.

She glanced at the sulking succubus behind him, paused briefly, then frowned slightly.

After that, the look she gave Rod softened considerably, and even her sour expression eased.

Rod: "?"

The elf Young Lady said, "The succubus race is precisely the way it is because food comes too easily to them, which is why they've developed the laziness now etched into their very bones. Controlling their diet a bit isn't bad—perhaps they'll make some progress."

"You can tell that too? Don't tell me elves can see essence just like succubi?"

"Succubi are a race that converts essence into spirituality; conversely, from the fluctuations and frequency of spirituality, one can read humans. I've taught you the knowledge of converting spirituality before—surely you haven't forgotten?"

Lady Kali said coldly.

Rod looked up at the sky, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"Speaking of which, the Lilith bloodline drawn out of Miss Wen Na last time—have you still not finished digesting it?"

Speaking of progress, he remembered that during the Axe Beach trip, he had also obtained a portion of Lilith bloodline.

Half a month had already passed, and still no change in Tally.

Tally stiffened at the words, guiltily whistling a soundless tune, imitating Rod by looking up at the sky.

"."

Seeing Rod stare at her discontentedly.

The succubus then stammered out, "N-not yet... haven't started digesting it yet."

"This week's rations, cut another meal."

"Nooo—you can't cut any more! If you cut more, the succubus really will starve to death! Master~~~"

Lady Kali cleared her throat twice and said coldly, "I don't recommend cutting further. If you cut more, the amount of spirituality in the body will be too low, which isn't suitable for digesting a high-grade bloodline."

"Right! Exactly right! This elf actually said something sensible for once! Master, you should listen to the expert's guidance!"

Tally nodded hurriedly.

"But the current balance is quite good—it won't cause the need to reduce activity to raise conversion rate due to excess essence, and can be maintained long-term."

"Huh?!!"

The succubus wailed, "Don't listen to her, don't listen to her! It's all bewitching nonsense! Right now my stomach is already flat from eating only one meal a day! Where's the balance in that!"

Rod, thinking it over: "Got it. This one is lazy precisely because she eats too much."

"You could put it that way... So, who exactly was feeding her so much before?"

The elf shot Rod a cold glance.

Rod let out an awkward laugh and didn't answer such an embarrassing question.

He pulled Thirteen's steel tail down a bit—the creature was affectionately wriggling and rubbing against him, getting closer and closer to forbidden territory.

"Coming to find me this early — has something happened?"

He changed the subject.

Lady Kali had clearly caught a glimpse.

Her face went cold, she flicked Number Thirteen on the forehead, and pulled her back.

"There is something."

"Go on, with the way we are, why be so polite about it."

"We don't really have any kind of relationship."

The elven Young Lady was as stubborn as ever; her face set, she hesitated for a moment.

She handed over a small wooden box — a delicate brooch set with an unknown gemstone lay quietly on a cotton cushion.

Her pale, slender fingers trembled slightly.

"This is?"

"Something boring I happened to dig up while looking through things. Keeping it is useless, so I'll sell it to you. How about I give you a neighbor's friendship price."

Rod was no fool.

He caught the tremor in the elven Young Lady's throat.

Clearly this was not, as she claimed, merely a 'boring thing.'

And the fact that it had come to needing to be 'sold' meant her savings had clearly run out.

Not to mention she regularly performed all sorts of ritual magic for everyone in the forest, big and small, free of charge.

Lately, over the past half year or so in the forest, several troublesome and hugely costly rituals had been launched one after another — especially that forest-wide advancement ritual, which lasted two months, with piles upon piles of casting materials.

Rod would have liked to cover these costs.

But Lady Kali had a strong-willed and proud personality — she took care of everything herself, and on top of that wouldn't let you ask; the moment you did, she'd say you were insulting an elf's pride.

Which left Rod quite helpless.

"Fine, I'll buy it."

It was rare for this one to speak up, so Rod naturally wasn't going to let the chance pass.

"Let's say twenty thousand Jin Along will do. This is an extremely rare Black Moonstone — on the continent today it's a thing that has a market but no price. Even if you took it apart and smelted it into a weapon, it would still be worth a fortune."

Rod shook his head.

He told her about raiding the treasury of the red dragon Nass last night.

And he made a point of mentioning the importance of the 【Phantom Great Dragon】 she had provided.

Who knew her face would go cold: "Facing a dragon in the depths of a nest with no escape — do you know what would happen the moment it breathed dragonfire? Lily is also a reckless one, actually going along with you on this kind of reckless adventure!"

"That's not the point!"

Rod hurriedly waved his hand. "The point is we succeeded, and got a huge haul of treasure!"

"."

"For the payment of this job, plus buying your brooch, I can offer you this price."

So saying,

Rod didn't wait for her to refuse — he handed over a spell-pouch, and smoothly took the brooch from her hand.

Lady Kali gave a cold snort, opened it, and froze on the spot.

"."

No more, no less — exactly two million Jin Along.

One hundred times the amount she had proposed.

She knew perfectly well Rod had deliberately given extra, but the so-called dignity of an elf in her heart would not permit her to say a word of thanks.

Otherwise she would simply have gone to Rod to ask for money, rather than through this method of having him buy something she treasured.

Of the four million eight hundred thousand Jin Along in cash,

Rod and Lily split it seventy-thirty — Rod could get 3.01 million. Even after giving Lady Kali the lion's share, he himself had more than enough for now.

Besides,

if he ever urgently needed money, given Lady Kali's personality, she wouldn't possibly refuse.

Just keeping his savings in a different place, that's all.

Rod smiled as he examined the brooch in his hand: "This thing's pretty. I can keep it properly, and when someday some girl is willing to marry me, I'll give it to her as an engagement gift."

Lady Kali was also straightforward — she tucked the spell-pouch away.

Grateful as she was inside, she said nothing.

She even let out a cold snort from that smoothly lined, unblemished throat of hers.

"Hmph, don't you already have more than enough women?"

Tally, off to the side, shot her hand up and eagerly declared: "Me! Tally is willing to marry Master! For life after life, I want to be with Master!"

"You're just a plaything."

"Ah? Wuuuuh—"

Rod paid her no mind and went on speaking to Lady Kali: "A wife, naturally, has to be a girl who can take charge of the big picture, capable and competent — best a mage, and even better a mage who knows everything. An elf would be even better — their looks stay fresh long enough, you'd never get tired of looking at them no matter how you look."

Lady Kali's eyes flickered with panic for a moment.

With a cold snort she turned and left.

She must have been quite flustered — she was even walking with the same hand and same foot.

Rod laughed, then turned and patted the head of the crying succubus.

He was just about to say he'd gone too far, that she wasn't a plaything, that sort of thing.

Tally's expression flipped — from sorrow to fawning smugness.

"How was it, Master? Did I act well? I get it! Treating a woman with an unusually special attitude can boost her favorability!"

"... Not bad, I guess. You don't mind me calling you a plaything?"

"Master is such a gentle person, definitely wouldn't do that! I can feel the love for me from Master's vital essence — although recently it's dropped by more than half, but! Tally will definitely perform well and fight to restore it soon!"

She revealed a big, bright smile, the sunlight so warm it hardly seemed like a succubus.

Rod was briefly stunned, feeling this girl was somehow rather cute.

"So... can I get extra food today?"

"... No."

Demon Control Alliance.

【Super-Distance Teleportation】 Area.

The land Naga Eve swayed her snake tail leisurely as she arrived here, ignoring the gazes from the surrounding men who glanced at her either intentionally or not.

She tapped open the fluorescent stone sub-body of the recently hotly-discussed dwarven creation 【Rock Heart】.

The Jin Along required to teleport to Shi Ying Town in the Dusk Hills — 【Three people or fewer: 2,311 Jin Along】.

She immediately sucked in a cold breath.

"What's going on? Why is it so expensive?!"

Eve grimaced, thinking she might as well just walk there.

At this moment, a figure passed by, happened to catch a glimpse of her fluorescent stone's contents, and let out the same exclamation.

"Holy crap! 2,300?"

Eve turned her head.

She saw it was a canine-girl with golden hair, a hot figure, her lines natural yet full and rounded.

Especially those slightly fitted high-waisted long pants paired with a short little jacket — long legs aside, they perfectly showcased her slender waist and peach-shaped bottom.

(End of Chapter)