bookbashuk Chapter 2 The Taste of Trouble
Chapter 2 The Taste of Trouble
In the 29th year of the Xin Dynasty, in Jier Village.
Back at Hans’s house, the hunter’s wife, with her cascading purple hair, had already prepared dinner: well-stewed game and a few pieces of black bread.
At the dinner table, Lynn made a request to Hans:
"Uncle, I'd like to stay here for a while."
"Staying here is no problem at all!"
Hans, gnawing on a piece of meat with the bone, readily agreed, "But I don't keep idle people here."
"I can work."
Lynn smiled. "Also, I'd like to ask the village blacksmith to forge two swords for me. I'll repay the cost of lodging and forging the weapons in another way."
Hans put down the bone and looked him over curiously: "What do you need a sword for? You don't look like a warrior."
Lynn's physique did indeed appear thin compared to Hans, a burly man who spent years hunting.
"You have to learn to protect yourself."
"Alright."
Hans didn't ask any more questions, wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth, and said, "I'll get the blacksmith to lend you the money on credit, but how do you plan to pay it back?"
"Killing a pig is enough."
Based on his understanding of the prices in this area from the original work, Lynn had already made a plan.
The next morning, the fog had not yet dissipated.
Hans threw two sheathed longswords at him, the leather on the sheaths already peeled off.
"These are two swords from the old blacksmith Jeremy's collection, worth a total of five silver coins. Jeremy said he only bought them because of me."
Thanks.
Lynn crossed his two swords and tucked them into his belt at his waist, then turned and walked out of the village.
He had inquired about the surrounding area from the villagers early in the morning and knew very well that there was a wild animal called the tusked boar in the area, whose meat was delicious and quite valuable, and for him now, it was a good test subject.
"Be careful on the road!"
Hans called out from behind.
Lynn waved his hand, and his figure quickly disappeared into the morning mist.
After inheriting the physique of the Southern Warrior, his five senses and physical abilities were significantly enhanced. The various smells and sounds in the forest were automatically categorized in his mind with perfect clarity.
Is this what "humanity's strongest" sense is? It truly is!
Soon, following the hoofprints and the uprooted soil, he found a wild boar's den.
Roar!
A wild boar with tusks, as big as a calf, charged out of the bushes, its foul-smelling saliva dripping from its sharp tusks.
Lynn lowered his legs slightly, assuming a fighting stance.
The image of that dual-wielding warrior fighting on the battlefield flashed through my mind.
That's the feeling!
Just as the wild boar was about to collide with him, Lynn shifted his body to the left, and his longsword swept across the area.
The wild boar's massive body continued to charge forward a few meters due to inertia, crashing into an old oak tree with a loud thud, shaking off countless leaves.
It convulsed twice, blood gushing from its neck, and then quickly became still.
Lynn flicked the blood off his sword, making a preliminary assessment of his own strength.
"Probably... only at the early game level of two Tomato Warriors."
He smiled and dragged the hundreds-of-pounds wild boar carcass back to the village step by step.
With Nan Yong's physique, dragging something weighing several hundred kilograms is still a piece of cake.
When he threw the whole wild boar in front of the blacksmith's shop, the blacksmith who was forging iron and the villagers who were passing by were all stunned.
"You...you did this all by yourself?"
Blacksmith Gerald's eyes widened, and behind him, the old woman who looked like Gerald's mother peeked out from the blacksmith's shop as if in surprise.
"Hmm, this should be enough for the money on credit, right?" Lynn asked.
Looking at the clean, sharp cuts on the wild boar's body, the blacksmith smiled and nodded repeatedly, "More than enough."
After settling all accounts with wild boar meat, Lynn's life settled down for the time being.
Next, I need to figure out a way to infiltrate Frillie's team.
To deal with Frilian, you need to have some leverage.
The opportunity came quickly.
The next day, a plump and beautiful woman from next door came to his door, looking worried, and asked him to go deep into the forest to pick a medicinal herb called "Moonlight Grass".
It was said to be a highly effective medicine for treating her husband's rheumatism.
"Please, Mr. Lynn, that herb grows on a cliff edge guarded by magical beasts. No one in the village dares to go there. I heard you can defeat the tusked boar, so you should be able to deal with the magical beasts over there."
The beautiful woman pleaded pitifully.
"no problem."
Lynn agreed readily. For him, this was a win-win situation: he could practice his skills and also gain favor with the villagers.
The commission went smoothly. When he handed the moonflower to the beautiful woman, she thanked him profusely and mysteriously gave him an old magic book as a thank you gift.
"This is a magic spell I obtained by chance when I was young, a spell that makes women more voluptuous and attractive. Consider it a thank-you gift, but the effect of this magic only lasts for one hour."
Lynn smiled and accepted the magic book, which was the magic that the elf had always dreamed of.
More than a month has passed in the blink of an eye.
Lynn battled monsters and beasts in the forest every day, and his dual-wielding skills became increasingly refined.
At the same time, he didn't forget the important matter.
To travel to the Northern Plateau, the status of a Level 1 Mage is a necessary permit.
Although the Southern Hero's physique leans towards that of a warrior, his perception and control over magic far surpasses that of ordinary people. So he spent some time learning a few basic offensive and defensive spells from the priest in the village church.
That day, he bid farewell to the Hans family and headed to the nearest city, "Greyal," to take the magician level exam there.
Greyal is the largest city in the surrounding area, and the Magicians' Guild is located in the city center.
The exam content was not complicated; it consisted mainly of basic magical theory and practical operations.
After passing the exam, Lynn received a piece of parchment with a gold-embossed emblem.
It is the Level 5 Mage qualification certificate, the entry ticket to take the Level 1 Mage exam.
However, Nan Yong's physique is not suitable for mastering magic, and his chances of passing the first level exam on his own are slim.
Therefore, his plan from the very beginning relied on the Frillien squad.
More accurately, it requires Philon.
As long as you can travel with them, you can use Philon's status as a first-class mage to successfully pass through the northern border checkpoints and reach the northern plateau.
He actually hoped to arrive at the Land of Souls with Frilian and her group, but their spot in the team was reserved for Zain, so he didn't insist on it.
Back in the village, another ten days or so passed.
Lynn sat under a big tree at the entrance of the village, wiping the twin swords that the blacksmith had just re-polished.
In the two months since he transmigrated here, he has fully adapted to life in this world, and he also knows that apart from being able to synchronize his abilities by touching the Nan Yong statue, he doesn't seem to be able to synchronize the abilities of other statues, such as Simmel.
Perhaps it's necessary to fully synchronize the abilities of a legendary figure first.
Furthermore, taking into account the time, Frilian and her group will definitely arrive in the village today.
Sure enough, three small black dots gradually became clear at the horizon.
They are the Radish Fairy, the Eggplant Magician, and the Tomato Warrior.
Lynn sheathed his twin swords, brushed the grass clippings off his trousers, and went to greet him, saying:
"Hello, the great magician, Lady Frilian."
Frillie stopped, her bright eyes sweeping over him as she blinked. "Who are you?"
"My name is Lynn, and I am a traveler."
Lynn kept smiling.
Frilian stared at him for three seconds, then scurried behind Philon, peeking out only half her head with a look of disgust.
"Philan, there's a troublesome vibe about this person."
She said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, "Let's go quickly, or we feel like we're going to get involved in something strange."
Lynn's smile froze for a moment.
Being disliked to your face is a terrible feeling.
"Ms. Frillian."
Philon sighed, looking at his master with a hint of helplessness.
"That's very impolite. Besides, this gentleman doesn't seem to have any ill intentions."
"It's not out of malice, it's just trouble, and I hate trouble."
Frillie stubbornly shook her head.
Lynn looked directly at Frillie and said:
"Lady Frilian, I only wish to travel with you for a while."
"turn down."
Frillie answered immediately.
"Just travel together to the northern plateau."
"turn down."
"I will pay you a fee, a rare kind of magic."
Lynn slowly and deliberately threw out the bait.
Frillie's ears twitched, and the disdain in her eyes instantly turned into curiosity: "What magic?"
Lynn's lips curled up slightly. "It's magic that will make you more feminine, although it will only last for an hour."
Ferren's eyes suddenly turned disdainful, and he held his staff horizontally in front of him, saying, "Ms. Frilian, this guy is indeed very dangerous. Let's go quickly."
Frillie immediately jumped in and shook hands with Lynn: "Deal!"
"Ms. Frillian!"
Ferren was so angry he spewed out a giant mushroom.
"So, we're comrades now?"
Lynn withdrew her hand.
"Give me the magic first."
Frillie beckoned impatiently with her finger.
Lynn immediately handed over the magic book.
Frilian snatched the spellbook away, moving as fast as a cat guarding its food.
He then carefully opened the book, completely ignoring the almost freezing gaze that Philon was casting at him from the side.
Hugh Tarker, scratching his tomato-colored hair, leaned closer and whispered, "Um, Mr. Lynn, how do you know Frillian?"
"Because I've seen her statue."
Lynn answered.
"You can recognize it at a glance just by seeing the statue?" Shutark was taken aback.
Before he could ask any further questions, a hand suddenly grabbed him by the back of his collar.
With a blank expression, Philon dragged the Tomato Warrior three meters away from Lynn, his eyes looking at him as if he were some kind of contagious disease.
It's getting late.
Lynn didn't care that Filon disliked him. He glanced at the setting sun that was gradually sinking into the mountains and said, "There's only one inn in the village, located on the west side of the square. I'll take you there."
"Okay, thank you."
Frillie was engrossed in the magic book and didn't even look up.
Philon sighed heavily, dragging his good-for-nothing master toward the hotel. As they passed Lynn, he glared at him fiercely.
The group soon arrived at the hotel.
Lynn didn't want to interfere too much in the internal life of Frillian's squad, so she chose to continue living at Hans's house.
Maintaining an appropriate distance is the foundation for long-term cooperation.
At dinner time.
With a dark expression, Philon knocked on Frillie's door, carrying a tray of food. Her suppressed, angry reprimands came from inside.
"Ms. Frillie! Please do not experiment with this kind of magic on a hotel bed!"
Lynn sat in the downstairs hall, listening to the commotion upstairs. After silently taking a sip of ale, he returned to Hans's house.
Early the next morning, Lynn packed her bags and waited at the hotel entrance.
Not long after, Frilian and her group came down as well.
Frillie looked to be in good spirits and was even humming an unknown tune.
Philon was sulking, clearly holding a grudge.
Shutark walked at the back, looking dejected, as if he had been affected by the "war" between the two mages last night.
"Good morning."
Lynn took the initiative to greet him.
"morning."
Frillie nodded.
Philon just glanced at him without saying a word, clearly still angry about the magic.
"Let's go."
Lynn didn't pay attention and took the first step.