Chapter 348 Departure!

The role of "Association Receptionist" might not sound like anything special at first glance. It was easy to associate it with a tavern server or a shop clerk.

To some extent, however, it served as the bridge and hub connecting the Association with its adventurers. It was the "face" of the Adventurers' Association.

Far from the traditional role of simply pouring tea and networking, receptionists were often required to manage information, allocate quests, and guide newcomers—

They had a massive amount of duties that required immense time and energy to learn and master.

As a behemoth whose sphere of influence spanned the entire continent, the Adventurers' Association placed great importance on these grassroots positions, which practically represented the Association itself in its daily interactions with adventurers.

Even though the vast majority of the staff in this role were ordinary people who had yet to step into the professional domain, the Association still maintained a comprehensive evaluation and promotion system for them.

For the newest trainees, memorizing the Association's rules and regulations, and mastering the procedures for issuing and accepting quests, was the foundation of everything.

Beyond that, maintaining a clean front desk and a neat appearance, flawlessly executing simple task registrations, distributing rewards, filing paperwork, and demonstrating enthusiasm, patience, and a willingness to learn—these were all crucial metrics. Once the review period ended, these factors determined whether a receptionist was dismissed or had the "trainee" prefix removed from their title.

Further down the line, as a receptionist improved their capabilities—including verifying quest reports, handling client complaints and minor frictions between adventurers, accurately matching quests to the right teams, negotiating crises, assessing local political movements, and evaluating the impact of large-scale natural disasters on the quest ecosystem—their title, income, and status would gradually rise in tandem.

Some high-level Association receptionists might not be particularly strong themselves, but over the years, their network of connections would stretch across the continent, reaching from shadowy underground organizations to the highest royalty of massive kingdoms, and even forming ties with Legendary rank entities.

When Molly first started, she naturally yearned for the bright future described by her trainers, dreaming that she might one day become a big shot who even Class Holders had to treat with respect.

But as she sat at the Association's front desk day after day, dealing with countless trivial matters and an endless stream of chores, her enthusiasm gradually wore away.

A while ago, the thing Molly looked forward to most every day was sunset—the moment she got off work.

The moment she sat down at her desk every morning, she would start counting the days until her next day off.

More than once, she had wondered in despair if the rest of her life would pass like this, fading away in an endless waiting cycle of "work, rest, work."

She only managed to persevere by comforting herself with the relatively high income and stable living environment, telling herself this was a job many ordinary people could only dream of.

That was until a few months ago, when an incredibly young man with short black hair—who had already attained a Class Level—walked up to her counter. Molly finally saw a glimmer of light in her dreary life.

She attached great importance to this adventurer named Xia Nan.

As an official receptionist who had already shed her "trainee" prefix, she could see the black-haired young man's absurd speed of improvement. She tracked it through the rapid frequency of his submitted quest reports, the swift escalation in quest difficulty from F to E to D, and the changing equipment he wore every time they met.

Molly knew very well that compared to other rookies at the same stage who were still getting used to their Class Holder status, Xia Nan's actual strength already far surpassed normal levels, even though it had been less than a year since he completed his advancement quest.

She understood what this meant.

And she absolutely could not waste this opportunity.

Because of this, Molly practically became Xia Nan's personal receptionist.

She showed the fullest and most passionate enthusiasm during every interaction—even when she was completely exhausted from a full day of busy work.

She was extremely responsible, utilizing her professional skills to the fullest, and even dared to negotiate with her superiors to secure more benefits for Xia Nan.

She didn't need Xia Nan to repay her.

She was an Association receptionist, and he was the adventurer she was responsible for.

All he needed to do was continue increasing his strength at his current pace—even if he slowed down a bit later, it didn't matter—and keep completing quests issued by the Adventurers' Association.

Then, as his dedicated receptionist, Molly would continuously earn performance merits, giving her the chance to turn her early career dreams into reality.

And this was exactly why she was willing to voluntarily leave her post on a busy workday—at the cost of working overtime later—to seek him out at the White Chickadee Tavern using the address he had previously left.

The Adventurers' Association, a second-floor meeting room.

Xia Nan looked at the young woman before him, who had gone out of her way to find him at the tavern and drag him back to the Association.

He couldn't help but feel confused.

Perhaps because there were too many prying eyes at the time, she had merely mentioned that there was news regarding the equipment he had put on consignment at the Association.

She hadn't elaborated further.

Now that they had deliberately come to a closed room provided by the Association, this matter likely had other developments that required detailed discussion.

He didn't say a word, just quietly watched her and waited for an explanation.

The summer heat was intense. After running back and forth, Molly, who only had the physical constitution of an ordinary person, was panting heavily. Her bangs were plastered to her forehead in clumps.

Casually wiping the dripping sweat from her cheeks with her sleeve, the blonde girl leaned against the desk. It took her quite a while to catch her breath. She looked up at Xia Nan, who was waiting patiently, her eyes holding a hint of apology.

"I'm truly sorry to disturb you during your rest, Mr. Xia Nan."

Xia Nan waved his hand dismissively. His gaze swept over the girl's sweat-soaked short hair, silently gesturing for her not to mind.

Having interacted with him many times, Molly knew the black-haired young man's style. After expressing her apologies, she skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point.

"It's like this, Mr. Xia Nan," she began. "A few days ago, we finally got word regarding the enchanted equipment you named the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole], which you put on consignment at the Association a few months ago."

Xia Nan gave a slight nod of understanding, though he felt a bit surprised.

After the dwarf from the Oathkeeper Blackwood Squad bought that flail, this piece of loot from the lycanthrope incident was the only item he had left on consignment at the Association.

Therefore, when Molly mentioned the consignment situation back at the tavern, he had already guessed what it was about.

What surprised him was—

Was someone actually interested in this piece of equipment?

He had jokingly mused to himself many times that the fishing enthusiasts of this world wouldn't pass up such a god-tier chumming artifact.

But to be honest, as the days went by, Xia Nan had gradually stopped expecting the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] to sell.

Perhaps the special effect of "attracting all small plankton within a one-mile radius" could be incredibly useful for fishing.

However, its activation requirements were absurdly harsh—"use the spear tip to stab a live, healthy cetacean at a frequency of 60 thrusts per minute for ten continuous minutes, without interruption."

This meant the effect was exceedingly difficult to trigger.

There couldn't possibly be a fishing enthusiast who would go out and torture a whale for ten minutes just to chum the water, right?

"A registered Class Holder in the Adventurers' Association has expressed interest in buying this equipment you consigned, and they hope to negotiate the price," Molly said.

Xia Nan would never complain about making too much money. The effects of the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] were practically useless to him anyway, so turning it into cash was ideal.

Since someone was willing to buy it, he would be perfectly fine even if they lowballed the price, as long as he could get rid of it.

"But this is where the problem lies," Molly explained earnestly, sitting across the desk. "Initially, that Class Holder wanted to meet with you and discuss the equipment's price face-to-face."

"However, considering the immense distance between our two Adventurers' Association branches, it wasn't worth making a special trip just for this item. So, upon learning the actual situation and taking the advice of the Association staff over there, the buyer decided to use the Adventurers' Association as an information channel to negotiate the specific price with you."

"What do you think, Mr. Xia Nan?"

"It's doable," Xia Nan nodded, though his brow furrowed slightly. "But I have to go on a long trip soon, and I won't be back for at least three months. Will there be enough time?"

Hearing this, Molly pondered for a moment, trying to think of a solution for him.

"How about this, Mr. Xia Nan."

"I can try negotiating on your behalf first, to see if we can delay the transaction."

"But if they disagree, just to be safe, if you want this transaction to go through and you trust me, perhaps—"

"You could give me a base price, then set a high asking price, and I'll slowly hash it out with them?"

Xia Nan saw no issue with that. He hadn't expected the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] to sell in the first place, and keeping it on him served no purpose. Whatever money it fetched was pure profit.

If Molly could help sell it, it would save him a lot of trouble.

He didn't agree immediately, though. Instead, he asked about the logistics after the sale.

"So, after the transaction is complete, will your Association handle the shipping?"

"Of course!" Molly nodded with a smile.

But just as she said that, she suddenly glanced back toward the door like a guilty thief. Seeing it tightly shut, she leaned forward and lowered her voice.

"Under normal circumstances, if the buyer and seller of consigned goods are separated by a long distance, the Association helps transport the item for both parties."

"But on top of the original transaction fee, they also deduct an additional labor fee from the total amount, based on the shipping distance."

"—It's actually quite a lot."

The blonde girl paused, lightly covering her mouth with one hand, and whispered.

"So, in many cases, if the traded item's value isn't that high, some experienced adventurers reject the Association's channel. Instead, they hire passing adventurers or merchants to transport it."

"Compared to the two, the Association charges a higher fee, but it's much safer. Even if an accident occurs during transport, resulting in the item's loss or damage, they compensate you in full."

"Handling it privately might not be as secure as the Association, but it saves a fortune in shipping costs."

"My personal advice—"

"If your equipment sells for a relatively high price, handing it over to the Association for transport is safer; conversely, if you want to save some money and are willing to take the risk, you can find someone to transport it yourself."

Lightly tapping his fingertips on the table, Xia Nan understood Molly's meaning and pondered his options.

Although the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] was enchanted equipment, it was still just a white-grade item. It probably wouldn't sell for much.

200 gold? 300 gold?

If shipping alone ate up a fifth of the sale price, or even more, it would be too much of a loss.

So, did he really have to find someone to transport it himself...?

As he considered this, he suddenly thought of something. He withdrew his gaze from the table, his eyes refocusing as he looked at Molly.

"You haven't mentioned where this Class Holder who wants to buy it is from," he said.

"Oh, right, I'm so sorry!" she replied. "It's Barracuda Bay, Mr. Xia Nan."

'Could there really be such a coincidence?'

Accompanied by Molly's farewells, Xia Nan walked out of the Adventurers' Association with a weird expression, a long object wrapped in layers of linen cloth now in his hand.

Naturally, it was the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] he had consigned to the Association.

Just now, when Molly named the Class Holder's location, all of his previous deliberations went out the window.

No matter how secure and safe the Association's channel was, could it give him more peace of mind than keeping the item on him?

No matter how cheap passing it off to a merchant would be, if he personally brought the item over, he wouldn't have to pay a single extra cent.

After all, the destination for his upcoming long journey was the Southern Archipelagos of the Aifala Continent.

And Barracuda Bay in the archipelagos happened to host the only local branch of the Adventurers' Association. He was bound to visit it no matter what.

This being the case, Xia Nan could simply bring the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole] along himself. It would even satisfy the buyer's request for a face-to-face negotiation, and perhaps he could sell it for a higher price then.

Thinking about it carefully, the Southern Archipelagos were near the ocean, so there was definitely no shortage of cetaceans. The people living there would certainly have a higher demand for fishing gear than inland adventurers.

It wasn't strange that they were interested in the [Tide-Surge Lure Pole].

But the timing of it all—it lined up perfectly with the moment he was about to set off on his journey.

If it had been just a little earlier, or a few days later, it might not have worked out this perfectly for him.

Xia Nan couldn't help but feel a subtle sense of serendipity.

Time quietly slipped by, and in the blink of an eye, two more days had passed.

Having bid farewell to his familiar friends and made ample preparations for his journey, a fully armed Xia Nan strapped on a heavy backpack stuffed with all sorts of travel supplies.

He stepped out of the White Chickadee Tavern, crossed the street, and arrived at the Rivervale Town courier station.

There, amidst the rolling of carriage wheels and the neighing of packhorses, two familiar figures he hadn't seen in nearly a month were already standing by a carriage, waiting for the final member of their party.