Who Says I’m Not a Legitimate Adventurer?

Chapter 86: Strike First to Gain the Upper Hand

These items were usually tightly stored by major guilds or powerful noble families, rarely shown to others.

Lance had once heard Flora mention that in the place known as the alchemical holy land, “Viridia,” there was a practical-tier curious object enshrined called 【Philosopher Stone】.

It was a semi-transparent, irregular crystal.

As long as it touched any liquid—so long as the amount did not exceed the volume of a standard cup—the liquid would instantly solidify into thumb-sized crystal beans.

This transformation not only fully preserved the potion’s original efficacy, but also greatly extended its shelf life, even making it as convenient to carry as candy.

At the most intense moments of battle, one only needed to toss a single piece into their mouth for instant effect.

This had also become the most renowned specialty of a certain school in Viridia.

As for the remaining three percent—

Those were truly taboo objects worthy of being called “Fire Theft.”

They possessed effects powerful enough to distort the rules themselves, but precisely because of that, they were often accompanied by curses from the Gods.Users had to pay some twisted and painful price to complete that cruel equivalent exchange.

However, Lance had yet to hear any confirmed information about curious objects of this level.

Perhaps precisely because of their blasphemous nature, they had already been jointly suppressed by the major temples at the earliest signs of their emergence.

Lance withdrew his wandering thoughts and refocused his attention on Jeff’s panel.

Compared to that uncertain curious object, the second secret was what truly made his heart tighten.

【Jeff’s Secret Two: Just yesterday, in the northeastern area of town where Adventurers gather, informants seemed to have spotted traces of a Half-Elf. After multiple inquiries, it was confirmed to be an intern from Violet Academy in White River City.】

【His boss, Buck, had recently advanced into the “Thief” class and urgently needed a sum of money to purchase upgraded equipment. This gang had previously succeeded in kidnapping Demi-Humans and selling them off, and everyone had tasted the benefits. This time, the boss planned to repeat the trick—once they kidnapped the target and handed them over to the underground organization “Dark River,” the deal would be done without a trace.】

【That very night, Jeff had already locked onto the Half-Elf’s location. Although the other party had concealed their appearance, those aristocratic lifestyle habits were far too obvious. However, that Half-Elf seemed to be accompanied by a very vigilant Adventurer partner.】

【Yesterday, the boss ordered him to first gather information on that partner today, planning to officially make a move in one week. He had originally intended to track the target today, but unfortunately, he was outmatched and got beaten up. Now his heart was filled with resentment.】

So the reason those hyenas had targeted him ultimately traced back to Cecilia.

“What a hassle…”

Lance rubbed his temples with a headache.

According to that commission task sheet, matters like this were also within the scope of what Adventurers might encounter. Unless the intern faced a life-threatening risk, or the mentor chose to terminate the internship, it had to be resolved jointly by the intern and the mentor’s party.

And the method of determining life-threatening risk did not seem to rely on reports from the mentor’s party, but rather a trigger-based judgment. He guessed it involved some kind of item or high-ring spell.

So in the end, the decision still fell to him.

In truth, he could tell that Cecilia valued this internship greatly.

After all, she was now considered his friend. Unless absolutely necessary, he would not choose to terminate it.

That left only one option.

To see if he could resolve it in a good way.

Graystone Town, although a gathering place for Adventurers, did not have high-level resource points or dungeons. Most of the people here were low-level Adventurers.

This resulted in gangs like the “Ghoulhound,” which lurked in gray areas, generally sharing a common trait.

The ignorant feared nothing.

These people had extremely low levels of education. Their minds were filled with nothing but gold coins and the law of the jungle.

They had no idea what kind of strange and unpredictable methods spellcasters possessed, nor did they understand what a behemoth like Violet Academy truly represented.

In their narrow understanding, as long as they killed someone and buried them in the forest, or kidnapped them and sold them through underground channels like “Dark River,” the matter was completely settled.

Even worse—

They had succeeded before.

This survivor bias bred blind confidence, pushing them further and further down the path of courting death.

This was what made Lance find the situation most troublesome.

However…

Lance reviewed the intelligence again and found the only piece of good news.

The boss of this gang, Buck, had only recently become a professional.

Based on the scale of this small gang, aside from Buck, the rest were likely all still below the threshold of becoming professionals.

“Only making a move in one week?”

Lance calculated the timing in his mind.

One week was enough for him to do many things.

As long as he maintained his current monster-hunting efficiency, within a week he could not only obtain at least two new skill specialties, but might even extract the racial talent of the Stone-Shell River Crab.

Combined with the existence of the Codex—this divine tool where the enemy was exposed while he remained hidden—

Lance looked at the organizational chart on his retina, resembling a wanted list.

Not only did it thoughtfully include the appearance portraits of every member, it even clearly marked their names.

A bold plan took shape in his mind.

Since these people planned to act in a week, why couldn’t he strike first?

During this time, he could fully utilize his advantage of operating in the shadows, peeling them apart like layers of an onion, eliminating the informants and enforcers scattered across the town one by one.

Even if Buck was a professional, as long as all his subordinates were killed and he became a commander with no troops—

Relying on him alone to carry out the entire process of kidnapping, transportation, and contacting “Dark River” would be nothing but a foolish dream.

As long as he avoided that one professional and refrained from direct confrontation, the remaining trash mobs were nothing more than experience packs delivered to his door.

“But before that…”

“I need to understand what enhancements one gains after becoming a professional, and what direction the ‘Thief’ class develops in.”

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.

Only by accurately assessing the gap in combat power between both sides could he truly hold the initiative.

Lance quickly skimmed through the remaining secrets under Jeff’s panel.

The more he read, the more his teeth clenched. These people truly committed every possible evil—none of them were innocent, and every member of the organization had participated.

Destroying such an organization would practically be doing a good deed.

He opened that intricate web of relationships.

Since these hyenas engaged in black-market dealings had surely offended many people, their enemies could probably fill the entire sewer system of Graystone Town.

As long as he put a bit of thought into it when taking action, leaving behind some misleading traces at the scene—

For example, specific weapon wounds, or certain underworld coded markings used by particular gangs—

He could shift the blame onto other organizations that held grudges against the “Ghoulhound.”

By then, when dogs bit dogs and both sides were covered in wounds, who would pay attention to a newly registered rookie Adventurer?

The plan in his mind gradually became more refined.

Even that sole professional, Buck—

If handled properly, before this commander without troops could react, he might end up with strength but nowhere to use it, ultimately dying in some dark corner in frustration.

Having sorted out his thoughts, Lance closed the panel and quickly walked out of the dark alley.

Instead of heading home directly, he turned back toward the armor shop he had visited earlier.