Chapter 230 [Lichimia's Transformation Resistance]

Filled with doubt, Xia Nan unconsciously furrowed his brow, carefully sizing up Verol sitting before him.

The young mage looked travel-worn, as if someone were constantly urging her forward. She had even waited until the very last second of their scheduled meeting time to enter the room.

However, her pale, delicate face and her hands—which bore a few ink stains and burn marks likely from experiments or spellcasting but were otherwise smooth and free of calluses—suggested she came from a rather well-off family.

At the very least, she didn't have to toil under the sun all day. She looked like the eldest daughter of a noble house.

But that was exactly what was strange.

Despite her likely affluent background and a youthful appearance comparable to his own...

Her temperament offered a sharp contrast, exuding a calm stability that didn't match her age at all.

She lacked even the slightest hint of the frivolity common among the nobles of this world.

From the moment she walked through the door to greeting Xia Nan and sitting at the table, her movements were simple and crisp, completely devoid of any affectation.

She spoke Common using only ordinary vocabulary and grammar. When it came to magical terms, she didn't show a shred of superiority and even took the initiative to explain their meanings to him.

While she faintly appeared tired and busy, she was exceptionally poised and capable.

'Could she be some old monster pretending to be young?' Xia Nan guessed in his mind. 'But where would she know me from? I've only been to Nym this past year, and I barely stayed there for a few days.'

"Mr. Xia Nan?" Verol called out softly, seemingly noticing the questioning gaze of the dark-haired young man across the table.

"It's nothing," Xia Nan replied, immediately snapping back to reality. His expression natural, he gave a slight nod. "Let's continue."

"Regarding this Resonance Relic, I naturally have a price in mind. It took quite a bit of effort on my part to get my hands on it."

He had just conveniently picked it up off the ground while running away. "But since you want this staff so urgently, I'm willing to let it go to a good home. Of course, that's provided you show me your sincerity. After all, because of it, the armor I was wearing is still at the blacksmith's being repaired."

He listed out the hardships of obtaining the Resonance Relic one by one.

"Not only did I lose a large number of precious items"—a few Fire Oil Bombs—"but three of my teammates even lost their lives because of it."

Hmm—there was nothing technically wrong with saying that.

"Make an offer. I believe you know its value."

It was a retreat to advance; letting the other party make an offer tested the waters while also making it easier for him to raise the price further.

Long before meeting Verol, Xia Nan had already exchanged in-depth opinions with the appraiser Downs regarding the Resonance Relic's value and selling price.

Through that, he learned that this kind of product—steeped in intense emotions—would not be of any particular use to 99.9 percent of the adventurers in this world.

Even if kept at home as a decorative collectible, one had to consider whether the residual thoughts and emotions clinging to it might negatively affect the mental states of those around it.

Only those with professional needs, or spellcasters who wanted to use it to set up rituals and cast spells, could put a Resonance Relic to practical use.

Keeping it around was purely a waste of space.

Selling it for a suitable price was the best way to handle it.

As for the specific selling price, he had synthesized the information he got from Downs with everything else he had learned.

The maximum bounty listed on Verol's commission—300 gold—was naturally too much to hope for.

He would be more than satisfied if they could just close the deal today for 200 gold.

If she bargained hard, 150 gold was also acceptable.

One hundred gold was Xia Nan's absolute bottom line. However, since market demand was so low, if they still couldn't negotiate a mutually agreeable price before dark...

...he would just have to grit his teeth and take 85 or 70 gold—

"Four hundred gold."

Her crystalline amber eyes reflected the figure of the dark-haired young man sitting before her.

Sitting up straight in her chair, Verol spoke with a serious expression.

"What do you think of four hundred gold, Mr. Xia Nan?"

"Ahem—" The young woman's exaggerated offer—as if she didn't treat money as money at all—made Xia Nan's heart skip a beat. On the outside, however, he remained completely composed.

He even put on a show of pondering for a moment, as if considering whether the price was reasonable.

"Mr. Xia Nan, to be perfectly honest, although I have some savings as a mage with crude arcane accomplishments, my expenses have been quite high lately due to various factors.

"Four hundred gold is the absolute most I can offer without affecting my normal arcane studies."

Verol's attitude was incredibly sincere, and her offer had far exceeded Xia Nan's expectations.

Since she had put it that way, he no longer intended to haggle with the young woman.

He opened his mouth, just about to agree, but then heard her add to her offer.

"On top of these 400 gold coins, if you have any needs regarding magic or similar matters, I might be able to provide some assistance."

"Although mid-to-high circle spells are currently beyond my capabilities, my memory of 1st-Circle and 2nd-Circle spells is relatively comprehensive."

'Oh?'

Hearing this, Xia Nan's eyes couldn't help but light up.

Four hundred gold in exchange for the Resonance Relic in his hands was already more than enough; he had been fully prepared to accept.

Now that she was willing to offer extra compensation on her own initiative, he naturally had no reason to refuse.

After all, he still hadn't cleansed the lycanthropy curse from his body.

If he could find an alternative solution through her, it might directly save him the 500 gold he would have spent buying a Remove Curse scroll.

With this in mind, he carefully considered his words before probing Verol.

"I wonder—do you know any spells similar to 'Remove Curse'?"

"Remove Curse?" A trace of apology appeared on the young woman's face. "I am truly sorry, Mr. Xia Nan, but 3rd-Circle Spells are indeed beyond my abilities."

'Looks like I won't be able to save that 500 gold after all.'

Having already prepared himself mentally, Xia Nan wasn't too disappointed. He figured he wouldn't waste any more time; once this transaction was over, he would just go find Molly to exchange for the spell scroll.

"But—if possible, could you briefly explain what kind of curse you need removed?" Verol asked softly, leaning forward slightly with her eyes fixed on Xia Nan.

Her cautious demeanor, as if she were worried about causing offense, didn't look at all like how an aloof and mighty spellcaster should act.

"Remove Curse is a 3rd-Circle Spell primarily because of its comprehensive effectiveness against curse-type effects, as well as its rapid casting time that allows for counter-casting in combat."

"Outside of combat, where casting time isn't a concern, if I can know the exact type of curse you need purified, there might be a better solution."

"After all, as I mentioned to you earlier," Verol said, a confident smile appearing on her pale face, "the spell list I have memorized is quite comprehensive."

Lycanthropy was no great secret, nor was it anything to be shy about.

Seeing that his money-saving plan still had hope, Xia Nan immediately explained his current predicament to her.

"That's wonderful!" A bright smile bloomed on Verol's face. "If it's just lycanthropy, I actually do know a targeted purification curse for it."

"It won't take much time to prepare, and I happen to have the spellcasting materials on me."

"If you don't mind, I can cast the spell for you right now."

She had considered things quite thoroughly. After all, the two of them were currently inside the Adventurers' Association, which usually had monitoring formations set up to prohibit adventurers from fighting each other.

The fact that she dared to cast a spell here already proved that the magic she was about to use harbored no ill intent toward Xia Nan.

Things had taken a turn for the better, saving him from wasting any more effort. Xia Nan nodded in agreement.

"It will just take a moment. Keep sitting and relax."

He then watched Verol stand up, her hand—half-concealed by her sleeve—brushing over her waist pouch.

A few thin, purple-green vines and a small, fractured bone fragment fell into her palm.

Her slightly moist lips moved soundlessly, and a flash of magical light gleamed in her crystalline amber eyes.

Whoosh—her dark chestnut ponytail bounced nimbly, and her bangs moved without any wind. A faint, glowing blue light could be seen flickering at the edges of her hair—a sign of highly condensed magic particles.

In her palm, the vines and the bone fragment melted into the air like snowflakes, and a pale blue magical glimmer subsequently materialized above the table.

Like tiny fireflies driven by spiritual intent, they drifted toward Xia Nan and enveloped him.

[Lichimia's Transformation Resistance (Low-Circle Adapted Version)]

Level: 2nd Circle | School: School of Abjuration | Effect: Purifies curses that cause the body to develop mutation-type traits.

Following Verol's instructions, Xia Nan sat motionless in his chair, relaxing his body as much as possible.

He could keenly sense the magic particles in the room becoming suddenly active as she stood up.

And as those pale blue motes of light fell onto his body, an inexplicably refreshing sensation welled up from his heart.

It was like bathing in a hot spring, a warmth and comfort that was hard to put into words.

Only, the warm spring water was currently soaking not his body, but his mind.

Roar—like a hallucination, an unwilling and violent, bizarre beastly roar echoed in his mind.

The phantom of a thick-maned black bear quietly surfaced in the air behind Xia Nan, struggling and howling madly, yet unable to make a single sound.

It was as if some invisible force had yanked it out of Xia Nan's body. Under the illumination of the magic's radiance, it faded away at a visible rate.

Finally, it turned into a wisp of materialized pitch-black smoke and vanished into the air.

At the same time, Xia Nan instantly felt lighter, as if some invisible burden had been lifted from him. His entire being relaxed.

He already understood in his heart.

The lycanthropy curse had been completely eradicated.

He had also saved a full 500 gold coins!

"The purification is complete, Mr. Xia Nan."

Verol sat back down, her expression unchanged and without a drop of sweat on her face. Casting a spell of this level seemed incredibly easy for her; she didn't even need a staff.

Even so, Xia Nan still sincerely expressed his gratitude to her.

"It was just lifting a finger. You're too polite," the young woman replied with a smile.

It wasn't false modesty. Unlike the exorbitant cost of crafting spell scrolls, for a spellcaster who had already mastered the spell, the only cost to cast it was a bit of spiritual energy, which could be recovered with a little meditation.

And this was one of the reasons why many spellcasters were so wealthy.

Compared to a 500-gold magic scroll, even if a mage charged half the price—250 gold per cast—there were plenty of people willing to pay when faced with potential curse infections or other dangerous diseases.

Meanwhile, all the spellcaster had to spend was a little time and energy.

The transaction went very smoothly.

Verol used four hundred gold coins and a purification ritual to exchange for the Yew Staff in Xia Nan's hands.

He had originally planned to take the opportunity to ask her for some information, but Verol seemed to be very pressed for time.

After exchanging just a few brief pleasantries, she indicated her intention to leave.

"Finally, thank you once again for being willing to sell the Resonance Relic to me. This is incredibly important to me."

'And she still has to thank me?'

Knowing full well that the broken staff in his hands was absolutely not worth that much money, he knew he was the one who had gotten the better end of the deal.

Xia Nan suddenly felt a bit uneasy.

The gold coins and such were fine, but the main issue was that even if she hadn't explicitly said so, he now definitely owed Verol a favor.

And debts of favor, especially for someone with his personality, were the hardest to repay.

As he was thinking this, Verol, who had stood up from the table, seemed to sense his thoughts.

She paused and said with a sincere expression, "Mr. Xia Nan, the price of an item is decided by people. The Resonance Relic in your hands might not interest many on the market, but to me, it's a vital tool that concerns the progress of my arcane studies."

"If it weren't for the fact that my gold coins are truly limited, I would have gladly paid not just 400 gold, but 500 or even 800."

"So please don't take it to heart. We might not even see each other again in the future, and I will absolutely never use this to demand anything of you."

"If that still isn't enough—" Verol's lips curled up slightly as she winked at Xia Nan. "Let's just consider it making a new friend?"

Since she had put it that way, Xia Nan wasn't someone who couldn't read the room.

He nodded at her and replied with a smile, "Alright, then let's be friends."

"Click."

The wooden door of the meeting room was gently closed.

Wearing a dark brown cloak, her off-white robe swayed gently with her movements.

The slim young woman's footsteps were just as hurried as when she arrived, walking swiftly down the stairs and leaving the Adventurers' Association.

Walking down the main street of Rivervale Town, she looked like an ordinary adventurer preparing supplies before a quest, weaving between various general stores.

It seemed normal, but as she moved further away from the Adventurers' Association, the number of adventurers and pedestrians on the street gradually dwindled.

Not daring to recklessly use magic to check behind her, she used techniques she had once learned from veterans to confirm that no one was actually tailing her.

At an inconspicuous street corner, Verol suddenly turned and slipped into a hidden alleyway.

Her whole body instantly went slack as she slumped heavily against the wall.

Her previously calm and ordinary face now held lingering traces of fear. She gasped for breath, a layer of fine sweat already breaking out on her pale cheeks.

At this moment, the shadows cast by the cramped brick walls on either side, enveloping her, felt safer than anything she had ever experienced.

"H-How could it be him?"

Sweat dripped from her delicate, dainty chin, staining the front of her robe.

"Cloudclimb Province... Rivervale Town... Misty Forest... Xia Nan..." she cursed. "Damn it, I should have realized it sooner!"