Chapter 69: Detour

One day later, they finally walked out of the labyrinth.

After completing the ritual to leave the labyrinth, they finally left the pink land behind.

Facing them was a tree-lined avenue.

The fresh and normal scent of soil drifted into their noses, giving them a feeling of being completely refreshed.

At the far end of the horizon, only the tips of three standing white spires were visible; their full forms remained unclear.

"Look, the relay station ahead."

The half-dragon Xia Li pointed forward, where a small-scale relay station stood.

"There, dedicated caravans will transport people back to Emerald City at a cheap price. Of course, you can also choose to charter a carriage."

"I will wait for you nearby for twenty days. If you do not return after twenty days, I will have to leave you behind."

Having said that.

She stopped and watched the three of them depart.

"Thank you. You are the best guide I have ever seen among half-dragons."

Rod shook hands with her to bid farewell.

"I guess you haven't met many half-dragons either."

She winked and squeezed the palm of Rod's hand.

Then she whispered softly, "We'll spar again when we have time in the future."

A moment later.

Gema negotiated the caravan's fees.

He paid the money.

He quickly boarded the carriage with Rod.

The long carriage was full of people; sweat and sour stench rushed toward them.

The two of them happened to take the very last empty seats.

As soon as they sat down, the carriage was about to officially depart.

The coachman shouted loudly and cracked his whip with a snap.

They headed toward Emerald City.

Sitting next to Rod was a group of mercenaries.

They wore tattered, perforated leather and sand-dust capes washed to a pale white, gathered together chatting and laughing.

Among them was a girl holding a staff, who seemed to have a very good relationship with them.

And since she boarded the carriage just now, her gaze had been drifting toward Rod's body.

"Mr. Rod, the journey will take about three days; rest while you can."

Gema said.

Having passed through the open-air labyrinth, their tense nerves finally relaxed.

This goblin lady immediately began to feel drowsy.

"Didn't you say earlier that even at the latest it would only take two days?"

"I don't know the specific reason myself. I heard there is some situation requiring a detour."

"Is that so?"

At this moment, Rod felt someone squeeze in beside him.

It was that female mage.

Only then did Rod realize she wore the simplest mage robe, her appearance cute and lively, with all her bangs combed up to reveal a smooth, broad forehead.

"Hey, hey, hey, Bana, what are you doing!"

The mercenary she squeezed out said discontentedly.

But that was all; in the end, he obediently gave up the seat and continued chatting and laughing with his companions.

"I know why! Handsome Mr.!"

Her eyes burned as she stared straight at Rod's face.

Rod smiled and introduced his name.

After a simple self-introduction, this young mage named Bana explained the reason for the detour.

"Because of dragons! Mr. Rod! Dragons!"

The girl described it exaggeratedly, drawing a large circle with her hands.

"So there are dragons near Emerald City?"

"Yes! I heard it is an old dragon, who every five years invites another female dragon over as a guest... that is, to have children."

Hmm.

Something like a mating season?

"You understand, Mr. Rod. The extremely low conception rate of dragons is common knowledge; this old dragon is even worse. I heard it has gone a hundred consecutive years without leaving a single dragon egg."

"Sounds very close to Emerald City, doesn't it? Won't the City Hall do anything about it?"

Rod asked.

"No, they even opened viewing platforms and a 【Shared Vision】 spell. For just five silver Jin Alongs, you can witness the entire dragon mating process with your own eyes!"

"... Will that dragon gentleman really allow such a thing to happen?"

"Why wouldn't he? Sixty percent of the ticket revenue goes to this old dragon. Dragons, after all, love shiny things the most."

Rod was speechless, a black line of exasperation appearing on his forehead.

What kind of otherworldly romance action film is this?

Over the next three days.

Rod quickly became familiar with this Miss Bana.

As for Tally, she didn't mind at all, because she knew her master had little interest in humans, especially one of this flat, washboard sort.

She spent most of her time sleeping in the shadows, except for mealtimes at night.

During this period, the caravan was ambushed once.

It was a band of bandits made up of kobolds and boar-men.

A force of twenty to thirty, with spiritual accumulations ranging from Tier 1 to Tier 3, uneven in strength.

Even more interesting, they were led by a Tier 4 banshee.

This was the first time Rod had ever seen a spirit-type race.

Until now he had always assumed they were a monster type; he hadn't expected them to be counted among the intelligent races.

He had heard that on the southern part of the continent there was a ghost city inhabited entirely by spiritual races.

Most of the people in the caravan were mercenaries, but their strength was terribly thin, roughly on par with the enemy's composition.

They couldn't hold up against the bandits' greater numbers, plus a Tier 4 banshee.

They were soon beaten into a scattered mess.

Rod had no choice but to act; a single 【War Stomp】 nearly cleared the field.

The bandits were scared off, fleeing in panic.

Afterwards, the caravan immediately waived their carriage fee.

Beneath Jade City.

A super-large city famed throughout the world for its unique fusion of emerald-green vegetation and walls.

Gazing at a city far grander and more massive than Blazing City, Rod couldn't help but let out a "Wow" of admiration.

Especially those three towering white spires piercing the clouds.

They seemed to radiate magical power at every moment, emitting a faint, shimmering halo beneath the sun.

"Big Brother Rod, you must come find me, okay?"

Bana bid him farewell with great reluctance.

Unlike Rod, who got off at the south gate, she and her companions were to get off at the west gate; they had other matters to attend to.

After the incident of driving back the bandit gang, she had completely become Rod's fangirl, clinging to him every day wanting to talk and chat.

If not for the fact that she couldn't stand her companions' teasing words and glances, she would have gotten handsy long ago.

"Let's go, while there aren't many people yet."

Gema said, pointing at the city gate.

Although the line was already quite long at this point, in the eyes of the goblin lady, who had been here several times, it still counted as few people.

"I still recommend finishing our business as soon as possible, Mr. Rod."

"Still thinking about the banshee? That's just one of the many races on the continent."

What Rod hadn't expected.

This goblin lady was unusually superstitious.

She had always believed that the appearance of a banshee foreshadowed death.

"No, it's not like that, Mr. Rod. Spirits perceive things very differently from us; they can always sense something special."

Rod couldn't bear to let her worry and fear; they were all somewhat acquainted by now.

After all, for a goblin, Gema was already getting on in years.

"Don't worry, I have connections. It's too late today to know if it'll work, but at the latest tomorrow—tomorrow morning I'll go advance first, then we'll play around for a couple of days before leaving."

"Two days isn't enough, I want to play for five~ I still want to see dragons mating~"

Tally jumped out and said.

Mm. I want to see that too.

"Perhaps Gema, you could wait for us over at the relay station first."

The goblin suddenly looked ashamed.

"I'm sorry, I've affected the guests' mood; I must be overthinking it."

(End of chapter)