Chapter 80: 80 Not a Knight

In the mushroom house filled with glass bottles and shards.

Xiao Hei curled up on the fungal bed.

The wound on its shoulder had long healed, but regrowing its scales would take several days.

A Puki appeared outside the mushroom house.

Although this Puki emitted a honey-like fragrance, Xiao Hei remained unmoved.

It even cracked a few precious glass bottles with a "crack-crack" sound, then turned away.

With no other choice, the Puki leaped hard.

The mushroom house was slightly too tall—it didn't make it.

It leaped again, barely reaching the edge, then clawed and wriggled its way up.

The Puki ran back and forth twice inside the mushroom house, filling the entire room with honey scent.

Xiao Hei's nose twitched occasionally, but still made no move.

The Puki simply pressed close, swaying its cap in front of Xiao Hei—

Closer and closer—

Finally, it rubbed directly against Xiao Hei's mouth.

Xiao Hei had intended to push it away, but when its tongue licked the honey on the cap… it couldn't help licking twice more.

Kinda tasty…

Soon, Xiao Hei obediently clung to the Puki like an octopus, gnawing along its edge.

Three more identical Pukis jumped in from outside, circling Xiao Hei, waiting for her to eat each one in turn; soon the mushroom house was filled with deliciousness.

Huh—

Thanks to the fake flower vine for providing the flavor—turns out, sweet stuff really is the way to go.

Having calmed Xiao Hei, now came cleanup.

The Pukis scattered spores where the explosion had occurred, letting the fungal carpet regrow.

A fat Puki wobbled over to the edge of the swamp zone.

Its thick fungal tentacles reached into its own pouches and quickly pulled out the adventurers.

One lump…

Two lumps…

…

All tossed into the swamp.

This mess was still my fault—I should've been better with language, able to foresee their plan ahead of time.

I've started learning Common Tongue from Dilan, but plans never keep up with changes.

I should've just kept Xiao Hei in the mushroom forest for a day, or let her go play on the sixth level.

I also shouldn't have let my attention drift—I was focused on the scouts.

But what can I do? Dilan triggered a plotline…

—

Beneath a large tree beside the forest, a girl with sun-kissed skin stood amid the cicada songs.

Her coarse linen skirt fluttered lightly in the wind; her woven basket, cradled in her arms, overflowed with wild fruits of all kinds.

The girl's gaze met Dilar's as he rode past on horseback.

Dilar pulled the reins, turned his horse, and rode toward the girl.

"My lord knight?"

The girl nervously stepped back two paces.

Seeing this, Dilar—who had never in his life been called "My lord knight"—dismounted, keeping his distance to avoid frightening the girl.

Without explaining he wasn't a knight, Dilar asked directly:

"Little girl, is your village nearby? I need to refill my water."

He patted the water bag at his waist.

After studying Dilar a few more moments, the girl pointed to a narrow path.

"Thank you, little girl."

"Thank you, little girl."

Having confirmed the direction, Dilar mounted his horse and rode off.

No choice—the Puki on his back needed water soon, or it'd dry up.

"Why did the knight lord say it twice?"

…

Amid the villagers' puzzled stares, Dilar placed his limp backpack atop a wooden barrel and lowered both into the well.

The village elder, worried the pack might contaminate the well water, opened his mouth to speak.

But seeing the longsword at Dilar's waist, he swallowed his words.

About two minutes later, Dilar turned the winch and hauled up the barrel and backpack.

At this point, the backpack looked noticeably fuller.

Dilar first lifted the scout, shook it hard twice, then slung it back onto his back after draining off most of the water.

Only then did he fill all the water bags. He hadn't expected it—originally, he'd prepared enough water for three days, yet the scout had used up most of it.

Fortunately, after this refill, he could make it to Noweid, where he'd buy more water bags.

Oh!

Dilan patted his pocket, pulled out a few copper coins, and stuffed them into the village chief's hand beside him.

"This is the water money, take it."

"This is the water money, take it."

After Dilan left, Lin Jun's voice came through in his mind.

"Dilan, I have to remind you — you just said that line twice again, without translating it for me."

"Ah? Like that…"

Dilan scratched his head, a little embarrassed.

Having to say the same sentence out loud and in your head back to back — it's pretty easy to mix them up.

The boss wants to learn the common tongue this way; wonder if it's actually reliable…

Following the path back, faint shouts drifted from ahead.

Dilan craned his neck, saw no one, but spotted a grass basket on the ground not far off, with wild fruits scattered all around.

And… a horse tied up by the roadside?

That village girl?

Dilan let his horse pick up the pace a little.

As the distance closed, the muffled sounds grew clearer — a girl's slurred cries for help.

Tracking the sound, in a thicket not far from the road, he found a knight pinning a struggling girl beneath him.

Not a fake knight like Dilan — the man in front of him had an emblem embroidered on his clothes.

Dilan didn't know whose house it belonged to, but without a doubt, this was a genuine knight in a noble's service.

Only what he was doing right now wasn't very "knightly."

The girl's blouse had been torn to shreds, bruises on her arms and face; though her mouth was covered, when she saw Dilan, her teary eyes suddenly lit up.

The noble knight naturally noticed the mercenary passing by as well.

The burly fellow said nothing, but his sullen, hawkish gaze was clearly warning Dilan not to meddle.

"Oh? Dilan, you want to stick your nose in?"

The boss's voice came through in his mind — maybe it was his imagination, but the boss seemed… quite interested?

"Should I?" Dilan asked.

"How would I know? I'm just a backpack.

But if you get involved, it might delay the trip, you know."

"…"

Delay the trip — in other words, Bella would be in that much more danger…

Seeing Dilan keep staring at him without leaving, the nearly two-meter-tall hulk grabbed the girl by the hair and stood up.

His hand also reached for the scabbard hanging on the horse.

"What, old man, you looking to die?"

Sigh—

Why does everyone and their mother call me old man — I'm only 45…

Dilan swung down from his horse; by the time he landed, the longsword at his waist was already in his hand, its edge pointed straight at the noble knight.

"You really going to butt in?"

He really shouldn't get involved.

Has he become less cautious after getting stronger?

But… this girl looks about Bella's age…

Dilan drew a deep breath and spoke: "How about everyone just leaves, and we pretend none of this happened?"

"Ha!"

He seemed to find the adventurer's brazen act laughably absurd.

"A stray dog dares to bark at me?"

The noble knight flicked his hand and flung the girl to the ground.

He drew his knight's sword in a backhand grip — a blade a size larger than the longsword in Dilan's hand.

"Struggle all you want with your toy sword — I'll let you watch yourself get chopped into mincemeat!"

With a sweep of his blade, he advanced on Dilan with a vicious grin.

…

…

…

"Translate, quick! He's talking tough, right? This is exactly what I want to learn!"

Thanks to dues Cheese for the Alliance Chief, and thanks to everyone for all the support — the extra chapters will be released together when the book goes on sale.

(End of chapter)