Chapter 195 The Drow and the Cutout Leather Suit

Rivervale Town, White Chickadee Tavern.

The sticky, chaotic din intertwined with the light clinking of glasses. The boundary between day and night blurred in the air, obscured by an aroma of alcohol so thick it felt ready to condense.

The sorrow of losing teammates, the thrill of scavenging leftovers in a Goblin Lair, the eager anticipation of a breakthrough in combat technique proficiency...

A complex swirl of emotions lingered in this small border-town tavern. Much like the mellow liquor rolling down their throats, it catalyzed their deepest, most primal desires.

"Damn it, money really is hard to make these past two years!"

"I remember when I first started out, my brother took me along. We'd do just one mission a month, and the silver we earned couldn't even fit in a bag. We could just lie in bed the rest of the time and do whatever we wanted. It was great."

"But look at things now. Just this one set meal, which wouldn't even be enough to feed my Little Jack, costs me two whole silver coins."

"If they want to rob me, they should just take it straight from my pocket and save the effort!" complained a scruffy, shabbily dressed man in cheap leather armor. He sat huddled at a small table near the tavern door, his face flushed with alcohol.

The table in front of him was almost entirely covered with empty bottles. Only through the gaps could anyone barely glimpse the empty plates buried underneath, still stained with food scraps.

"Why don't you look at where you are?"

"If you want to eat cheap, find a random joint on another street. You could drink yourself to death for a single gold coin, and nobody would care."

"Why come to the White Chickadee Tavern?" countered an adventurer he knew, sitting beside him and picking up the conversation.

"Other places..." The drunkard narrowed his eyes, his cheeks already flushed crimson from the booze, and hiccuped. "...are no fun to drink at!"

Glancing at the man's delirious, stuttering state, the adventurer beside him seemed to get an idea. He probed suggestively, "Where's your brother? Didn't you say you had it made when he was carrying you? Why are you out working solo now?"

"Dead." No obvious emotion showed on the drunkard's face, as if all the feelings he should have been displaying were already paralyzed by the alcohol beneath his rigid expression.

"When we were clearing a cave... hic... we were unlucky enough to run into a Bugbear."

"One hammer swing, and his brains came out."

As he spoke, the drunkard grabbed a bottle and gestured wildly in the air at the other man.

"Didn't you save up some money during Hunting Day a while back?" the acquaintance pressed, his gaze instinctively dropping to the man's rather deflated waist pouch.

"I was recovering from my injuries, wasn't I? I barely left the house for a month."

"By the time I came out to look for work, Hunting Day was almost over. I couldn't find a single goblin in the forest—only other, far more dangerous monsters."

"I finally managed to hold out until now, but before I could even take on a few more quests, this happened."

"Fucking terrible luck!"

Hearing his complaints, the acquaintance took the opportunity to shift his body closer.

Half faking it and half genuinely commiserating, he sighed, "Ah, the Misty Forest acts up every so often. Aren't you used to it by now?"

"It hasn't been too bad lately, just a bunch of wild beasts popping up out of nowhere. As long as you're careful, you can handle them."

"Did you forget the first half of the year? The forest was swarming with venomous snakes and scorpions. They were everywhere, hiding in almost every bush."

As he spoke, his left hand, concealed by the wooden table, quietly reached for the drunkard's waist.

His technique was highly practiced, making it clear this wasn't his first or second time pulling such a stunt.

With his palm facing down and his fingers slightly spread, he brushed past the drunkard's waist pouch in the blink of an eye.

When he pulled his hand back, two gold coins, gleaming dazzlingly in the light, were already pinched between his index, middle, and ring fingers.

With a flip of his wrist, he naturally slipped the coins into his shirt, as if they truly belonged to him.

Meanwhile, the dead-drunk patron remained completely immersed in their previous topic.

"If there's a problem on the outskirts of the forest... hic... it must be because of something in the inner region."

"With so many wild beasts popping up lately, I'm guessing some high-level monster inside went berserk and scared all the animals out."

Having already secured his prize, the acquaintance lost all interest in chatting and merely brushed him off with a few perfunctory words.

"The inner forest has even less to do with us. We'll just wait for the town's Class Holders to handle it."

"Waiting a day or two and making a little less money doesn't matter much."

With that, he stood up and headed for the tavern door.

Behind him came the clatter of a bottle falling to the floor and the drunkard's muttering, which gradually faded as sleep overtook him.

The acquaintance could no longer suppress his joy, a triumphant smirk tugging at his lips.

He pondered to himself, 'Tonight I can just call for two hot... no, three!'

'It isn't my money anyway, so spending it will be...'

"Creak."

The grating screech of hinges interrupted his thoughts.

Right in front of him, the tavern doors were slowly pushed open.

The freezing sunlight unique to winter days, mixed with a bone-chilling wind that seeped straight into the pores, howled through the crack in the door.

Backlit by the sun, a black-haired young man with a cold, severe aura stepped into view.

Metal plates and ring clasps clinked lightly together. The dark, grayish-black Plate-Chain Composite Armor caught the light, its matte surface coated in a faint, cold gleam.

Dull, grayish bone fragments, secured by rivets and cords, protected his shins and thighs like a suit of armor. Their smooth, polished lines looked like a natural extension of the iron armor above.

Two sword hilts of different sizes jutted out behind his back, and a small dagger hung at his waist. The Arm Shield on his left forearm was dark and lusterless, its material indistinguishable, while a faintly reflective silver-white iron ring sat on his right index finger.

A veteran adventurer armed to the teeth.

That was his first reaction.

He didn't even need to see the man in combat. Just this incredibly Fine equipment and that solid, steady demeanor were enough to prove his strength.

He might even be... a Class Holder!

Suddenly, the two longswords strapped to the man's back reminded him of a name frequently brought up in the tavern a while ago. Intrigued, he couldn't help but take a few extra glances.

Because of that, his gaze was noticed.

Narrow, piercing eyes shifted slightly, sweeping over him.

The adventurer, who had just stolen two gold coins from his acquaintance, felt a sudden chill brush against the back of his neck.

He violently shuddered.

He immediately lowered his head, not daring to look again.

'Greysword!'

With such a highly recognizable outfit, even though he hadn't heard much about the man lately, a little recollection allowed him to identify this figure who was rumored to have already obtained a Class Level.

The secret rumors that once circulated in the tavern flashed through his mind. As if by psychological effect, the terrifying chill on his neck grew even more pronounced, to the point of a faint stinging sensation.

The incredibly cold, sharp face from that brief glance surfaced in his mind, along with the indescribable, invisible aura of low pressure.

He naturally didn't dare cross the man at a time like this.

Shifting his steps, he turned away, pretending to just be passing by (which he actually was).

He planned to take a lap around the tavern and leave on his own after the man took a seat.

...

Xia Nan was in a rather terrible mood.

On one hand, it was because of his massively shrunken net worth.

His bank savings, which had once neared four digits, were left at a pitiful 271 gold, 7 silver, and 3 copper after the back-to-back blows of the 500-gold leg guards and 255-gold armor.

He had pretty much hit his lowest point in recent times.

To be honest, over two hundred gold coins would normally be considered an absolute fortune for an ordinary commoner in town, or even for the vast majority of low-tier adventurers.

If one lived frugally and made a few low-risk investments, it would easily be enough to retire on.

But having previously held a sizable sum, and after experiencing such massive expenses in a short period of time...

Even knowing the money was well spent and not wasted...

Xia Nan still felt somewhat irritable, harboring a slight sense of anxiety and urgency.

He wished he could charge straight into the forest right now, clear out a few goblin lairs to vent his frustration, and earn some extra cash on the side.

On the other hand, the reason for his emotional turbulence was his recent experience at the blacksmith shop.

He had already found the exact material needed to upgrade his [Snake-Scale Arm Shield] into a piece of true Magic Equipment: "Bone-Eroded Patterned Steel."

And the amount of grams met the requirements, too.

However, the prerequisite to obtaining the steel was that he had to complete a commission on the Association Second Floor's quest board regarding a "Lycanthrope Investigation."

Setting aside the difficulty for the moment, the most crucial issue was the requirement to accept the quest:

—A four-person party.

Xia Nan had always been a lone wolf; unless absolutely necessary, he rarely teamed up with others while adventuring.

His past few teammates had suffered heavy casualties.

Right now, he could actually only find two people in Rivervale Town: "Greenblood" Adeline and the rookie, Abi.

He meant no disrespect, but realistically speaking, neither of them had obtained a Class Level yet.

Abi, in particular, was just a newcomer who hadn't been in the business for long. He had to struggle fiercely for half the day just to deal with a few goblins, and even going all out didn't guarantee a victory.

Dragging those two into a Class Grade quest would undoubtedly be leading them to their deaths.

With that in mind, it seemed he only had one option left—

Find a Class Grade pick-up group at the association.

But that would involve considering a myriad of problems, like "who to look for," "how to find them," "quest reward distribution," and "whether the teammates are reliable"...

It was extremely troublesome.

Aside from those two pressing matters, Xia Nan also had to earn a massive amount of association points in the coming period to exchange for material items and premium combat techniques.

The former was needed to commission custom gear from Barn, enhancing his overall strength and margin for error;

The latter was an absolute necessity for a Class Holder's leveling and class transition.

'Fuck!'

'There are way too many things to do!'

Xia Nan cursed inwardly.

At the same time, he decided to first drink two bowls of long-overdue cream of mushroom soup to soothe his mind.

Having been away from Rivervale Town for nearly two months, even though he'd had chances to taste similar things during that time, he genuinely missed the classic flavor unique to the White Chickadee Tavern.

"The usual, one Set Meal No. 3," Xia Nan called out to Chapton from afar.

He had already exchanged greetings with the man earlier when he came to the tavern to retrieve the loot coins deposited by the caravan.

Thus, he didn't linger this time, merely scanning the surrounding tables in search of an empty seat.

Then, he spotted the lean, formidable middle-aged man wielding a stone spear—the self-proclaimed captain of the "Sea Thorn" adventure team, named "Cash."

It was this very man who had explained the information regarding leveling up and class transitions to him on the Association Second Floor just moments ago.

Right now, he was sitting at a table not far from the bar.

At the same time, what was even more eye-catching was the woman sitting across from Cash. She had slightly dark skin and a head of smooth silver hair.

Unlike the tanned complexion of laborers who worked long hours in the fields or on ships, weathered by the wind and sun...

The woman's skin color was a natural, shadow-like darkness, deep and profound, with even a faint tinge of purple.

She had a smoking-hot figure and seemingly didn't mind showing off her physical advantages to the world.

The angle from behind and to the side prevented Xia Nan from seeing her face clearly.

But precisely because of that, he was able to witness some of the charm of the woman's appearance.

Unlike the other adventurers in the tavern, whose bloated outfits prioritized utility while neglecting aesthetics...

The woman wore an extremely tight, form-fitting black leather armor that looked as if it were painted on. It perfectly accentuated her slender waist and the breathtaking curves of her full upper and lower body.

It even featured cutout designs on the sides of her thighs and her lower back, exposing her smooth, delicate skin and alluring back dimples that perfectly fit the curve of a palm.

The sleek muscle lines beneath the thin clothing, the ornaments and braids adorning the ends of her silver hair, combined with her dark skin—they all gave her a mysterious, dangerous beauty.

His Perception attribute, which had reached "10" points, quietly went to work. While admiring her physical beauty, Xia Nan also noticed many far more elusive yet critically important details.

The long, sharp ears poking out from her silver hair; the two Short Daggers resting against her full thighs, protected in pitch-black sheaths; the faint, dark purple tattoos visible through the cutouts of her leather suit; the unnaturally wavering shadow cast on the floor by the tavern lights...

The information pooled in his mind, and after filtering it through his limited reservoir of knowledge, he reached a conclusion:

This was a mixed-blood Half-Drow Class Holder, likely belonging to the Rogue class, who wielded daggers as her weapons.

Without a doubt, in the White Chickadee Tavern—a place that drew in swarms of low-tier adventurers year-round—this slender woman with Drow blood attracted countless fiery gazes from all around.

Yet not a single person dared approach to strike up a conversation.

A Class Holder, striking attire, Drow, Rogue...

When those elements were stacked together, one could only say that anyone with even a shred of reason and the slightest desire to keep living in this world wouldn't want to go anywhere near her.

Xia Nan had crossed paths once with her companion, the middle-aged man named Cash.

However, it wasn't in his nature to take the initiative to go over and mingle in an obviously inappropriate setting.

Averting his gaze, he was just about to continue looking for an empty seat.

Up ahead, however, Cash suddenly spotted him.

"Xia Nan?" he called out, waving from a distance.