Chapter 79 - 71: Heart of the Brave and Alchemy Workshop
Chapter 79: Chapter 71: Heart of the Brave and Alchemy Workshop
[Heart of the Brave: You have gained the loyalty of a Hero. His powerful willpower will provide you with protection, granting you immunity to all fatal damage. This immunity can only activate once, after which it enters a recovery period. The recovery time depends on the Hero’s Ability. Current recovery period: 30 days.]
"Heart of the Brave?" Shire stared at the notification on his panel, a smile slowly spreading across his face.
’This effect is pretty good. Immunity to all fatal damage... that’s basically invincibility.’
’Even if it’s only once every 30 days, it’s still incredibly powerful.’
’Back when I was dealing with the Heart Stealer, I was caught between a rock and a hard place. If I’d had the Heart of the Brave’s buff back then, I would’ve dared to hug the Heart Stealer with a pack full of Hand Grenade Fruits on my back.’
’But that’s just a joke. It’s best not to play the suicide bomber if I can help it. The Heart Stealer taught me a valuable lesson: the creatures of the forest have all sorts of bizarre and strange Abilities. From now on, I have to be more careful in my judgment and try to be less reckless. One reckless brute like Red Eyes in the tribe is enough.’
’Besides, the Heart of the Brave has a 30-day cooldown. If I don’t manage to kill the enemy in one go, I’ll be the one who’s out of luck next.’
"Let me see your current status," Shire said with a smile as he brought up Little John’s panel.
[Name: Little John Franklin]
[Race: Human]
[Danger Level: 4, Slightly Strong]
[personality: Cautious]
[Title: Future Hero]
"Hm, it’s still a bit low, but it can be improved. If he gets as strong as the legendary Dragon Slayer Hero, Siegfried, does that mean I can become a Bomb Superhero?"
"Heh heh heh," Shire chuckled aloud. ’I should keep a low profile. This is just a last-resort lifesaving Ability. I can’t use it lightly.’
Little John had remained kneeling on one knee. He had made his vow after deep consideration, but now his Boss was staring at him with a meaningful smile, and he didn’t know if he should stand up on his own.
"Alright, alright," Shire finally realized the Hero was still kneeling on the ground and quickly pulled him up. "I accept your loyalty, my friend."
"However, you need to train even harder. If you become powerful, they won’t dare to scheme against you and Mary anymore."
’If you’re powerful, then I won’t have anything to fear either.’
"I understand, Boss. I will train even harder from now on." Little John nodded, his expression serious. "I won’t let Mary fall into danger again."
"It’s good to work hard, but remember to balance work and rest." Shire patted the other man’s arm.
’In theory, as long as Little John stays alive and loyal to me, the effect of the Heart of the Brave will always be active.’
’So, you’d better take care of yourself. If you train yourself to death, I’ll be heartbroken.’
At the same time, Shire discovered that the tax collector had actually given him a [Basic Computational Ability]. This came as a surprise; he had assumed the man was just an ordinary person who couldn’t provide anything, but it turned out there was an unexpected bonus.
Currently, he had to do all the calculations for the tribe himself. When these goblins needed to count past twenty, they had to pull over another goblin to help. If the one doing the counting was missing fingers or toes, it was even more troublesome.
With this Ability, he could now train a subordinate to handle inventory management in the future.
"What do you two plan to do in the future?" Shire asked, pulling Little John to sit down again.
"We’re planning to rent a room in Yangjiao Town and live there. I’ll work even harder. Mary is just an ordinary person; she doesn’t know how to fight. She plans to keep washing clothes for the rich to earn money, but I’m a little worried... I don’t want her out in public like that." Little John thought for a moment, his gaze drifting to his girlfriend in the distance as he spoke.
"Actually, you don’t need to worry too much. The tax collector’s death probably won’t be blamed on you," Shire said, stroking his chin as he patiently explained. "First, he only brought a few men to chase you, and they’re all dead. Second, he wouldn’t have dared to openly tell others about his sordid intentions. And finally, I did some... arranging at the scene. Even if someone finds the bodies, they’ll conclude it was the work of goblins."
"As for Mary, I believe she’s perfectly happy just being with you." He watched the human girl in the distance, who was patiently teaching Bai Mao how to cook, an appreciative smile on his face.
It was quite an interesting story. When he first saw Mary, her face was filled with despair. After they dealt with the tax collector and his men, Little John revealed who his Boss was. Mary was so shocked her jaw dropped wide enough to fit an egg. In Little John’s words, "I only told her I had an unexpected boss. It seems she really didn’t expect you to be so... explosive, Boss."
Later, after drinking the Healing Potion he gave her and applying some herbs to her ankle, Mary was helped to the Fortress, limping the whole way. She remained silent throughout the journey.
It was Buck Teeth who finally broke the ice and made her smile. The dolt had actively stepped forward to introduce himself: "Beautiful maiden, your eyes are like the something of my something, something-ing in the sky..."
Then he was sent flying by a kick from Shire. "That’s Buck Teeth. His brain is fried," Shire explained in just a few words.
Mary had laughed at that, but a moment later she started crying, only to finally end up smiling through her tears.
At the time, Little John had defended his girlfriend, saying, "Mary hasn’t seen many goblins before. Or rather, the goblins she knows are the little monsters from the stories people tell—ferociously cruel and irredeemably wicked."
"It’s fine, I understand." Shire wasn’t bothered. The reputation of goblins was what it was: greedy, cunning, and despised by all. The fact that she could manage a smile already showed that the girl was very big-hearted.