Chapter 348: Two Usages of the Human King’s Phase

Chapter 348: Chapter 348: Two Usages of the Human King’s Phase

Lance pushed open the door of an Adventurer’s inn called the "Golden Oak Leaf."

The inn was located in a bustling part of the Dongcheng District. It was one of the several high-end lodgings that Vance had strongly recommended before Lance left White River City last time.

Word was that not only was the security tight and the rooms exceptionally soundproof, but the food served in its restaurant was also quite delicious.

As soon as he entered, Lance saw many well-dressed, finely-equipped Adventurers sitting in the lounge, conversing in low voices.

The atmosphere here was clearly much better than the cheap hostels in the outer districts.

He walked straight to the counter.

The receptionist on duty was a young Sub-human Species girl who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen.

She had short, flax-colored hair and a pair of cat ears perched on top of her head.

’It’s a Cat Girl.’

Lance felt a small surge of joy.

He noticed a collar around the young girl’s fair neck, from which hung a small, Golden Acorn-shaped bell. It made a faint sound with her movements and looked utterly adorable.

This must be the signature feature the Golden Oak Leaf inn used to attract customers.

"Welcome to the Golden Oak—"

The Cat Girl had been looking down, organizing a thick registration list. Hearing approaching footsteps, she instinctively raised her head, a professional smile at the ready as she prepared to greet him.

But the moment her eyes met Lance’s face, her words abruptly cut off.

THUMP, THUMP...

The Cat Girl felt her heart suddenly start to race, and her cheeks began to burn uncontrollably.

Her little ears shot straight up, and the Golden Acorn Bell on her neck let out a series of faint TINKLES from her slight trembling.

The looks and aura of the black-haired young man before her were a perfect match for her tastes.

It was no wonder the young girl lost her composure.

Lance’s natural charm was originally around 8 points, which was already considered exceptionally handsome in this world.

Later, after fusing with the [Crimson Dragon] Source Material, the [Dragon Phase] forcibly added a base bonus of 5 points to his charm.

The two combined meant that Lance’s current appearance was already beginning to show the early signs of a kind of Extraordinary charisma.

Not to mention, he also possessed the ridiculously overpowered passive Effect, [Human King’s Phase].

This Effect would automatically apply a unique "favorability filter" to the subconscious of anyone he interacted with.

With all these factors stacked together, the Cat Girl was struck with the strange illusion of love at first sight the moment she saw Lance.

This was also the reason why Lance had been able to fit in so perfectly with the merchant caravan earlier.

Under the filter of the [Human King’s Phase], his aura would seem like that of a reliable kinsman in the eyes of others, making them unknowingly pour their hearts out to him.

Since Lance had been spending all his time in the Underground City lately, he had mostly been around Nieve, or brutes like Cassis and Julius who had nothing but fighting on their minds.

Therefore, he had yet to truly realize just how lethally effective his charm was on Ordinary women.

"Don’t be nervous. Are you new here?"

Lance observed the girl’s flustered state and keenly noticed the fluffy tail under her uniform’s skirt, wrapped tightly around her right leg in shyness.

’Hey! There’s a bell on her tail, too. Nice.’

"I’d like a single room, please."

"I-I’m not new..."

The Cat Girl muttered to herself, trying to keep her voice steady.

"Um... Sir, a single room here costs two Silver Coins per day."

In a backwater place like Gray Rock Town, this price would be considered daylight robbery.

However, in a provincial capital like White River City, where every inch of land was precious, it was just the standard rate for a high-end inn.

After all, not only was it in a prime, commercially bustling location, but the rooms were also equipped with all sorts of expensive, advanced devices that offered immense convenience.

"No problem. I’ll take it for three days, to start."

Lance agreed readily.

He had over 20 Gold Coins’ worth of savings stashed in his hidden compartment, so he wasn’t worried about the lodging fee at all.

"Of course, sir. Also, I’ll need to see your Refugee Screening Permit."

The Cat Girl took out the registration book and explained apologetically.

"This is a new directive just issued by the White River City General Administration Office. All inns are required to strictly verify the identity of every guest, and we need to see a permit stamped by the City Guard. Without this permit, we aren’t allowed to check you in."

The young girl didn’t know why the higher-ups had issued this directive. She had only overheard some guests discussing that it seemed related to the massive Underground City rampage a few days ago. The city was on high alert for dangerous individuals who might have mixed in with the refugees.

Hearing this requirement, Lance frowned slightly.

He hadn’t needed this so-called screening permit the last time he came to White River City.

So, when he entered the city earlier, it hadn’t even occurred to him that he would need such a thing to check into an inn.

However, it wasn’t like he had no way to solve this.

’Activate [Human King’s Phase]!’

Besides making others see him through a favorability filter, this ability also granted him a powerful negotiation skill.

Through the intervention of Star Realm Power, any promise he made would automatically be backed by an extremely high degree of credibility.

As long as he spoke, his words would become incredibly believable in everyone’s subconscious. Even if he asked to borrow an expensive item, the other person wouldn’t worry about him defaulting on the loan.

Of course, the ability had its limits.

If he broke a promise even once, the ability would be severely damaged. It could only be slowly restored by continuously accumulating genuine trust from others.

Lance looked at the young girl before him and decided to test this ability.

"I promise I’ll go to the City Guard office first thing tomorrow morning to get the permit."

Lance said this with utmost sincerity, gazing into the Cat Girl’s eyes.

The moment he spoke those words, bolstered by the Human King’s Phase, a feeling of absolute trust for Lance washed over the Cat Girl’s heart.

’This young man is so handsome, and he speaks so sincerely! He would never lie to me!’

The young girl thought resolutely.

"I believe you!"

The Cat Girl nodded emphatically.

This was the first time Lance had ever used this ability.

He looked at the girl’s excited expression and felt as though she thought agreeing to his request was some incredibly momentous occasion.

Even her cat tail, which had been shyly coiled around her leg, now peeked out from under her skirt and began to wag happily behind her, its bell making a crisp, tinkling sound.

The young girl picked up an Alchemy Seal that was glowing with a faint light from its Ether and, with a STAMP, pressed it directly onto a blank spot in the registration.

Just like that, she absentmindedly skipped the verification step and completed all of Lance’s check-in procedures.

"Thank you."

Lance picked up the Brass Key engraved with his room number from the counter, satisfied. He then casually asked:

"By the way, do you have any specialty dishes? I’ve been traveling all day and I’m a little hungry."

Hearing Lance ask about food, the Cat Girl immediately grew very enthusiastic and began to rattle off the inn’s signature dishes.

Lance listened for a bit before finally ordering the signature slow-stewed hindquarter meat.

After carefully writing down the order with a quill pen, the Cat Girl tilted her head, her little ears twitching.

"Sir, this dish needs to be slow-cooked, so it might take a little while."

"That’s fine, I’m not in a hurry. It’s a perfect chance to go back to my room and take a bath," Lance said with a casual wave of his hand.

"In that case..."

The Cat Girl gave a sweet smile, two shallow dimples appearing on her cheeks.

"Then, when the meat is almost done, I’ll personally come to your room and knock to let you know."

She shyly pinched the hem of her uniform with her fingers, adding, "You can choose to have me bring it to your room, or you can come down to the restaurant to eat. Either is fine."

"Alright."

Lance smiled, then turned with the key and walked toward the stairs.

’In reality, a high-class inn like the Golden Oak Leaf had a special Communication Bell in every room.’

’Once the kitchen finished preparing a meal, they could use an Array to directly notify the guest in their room. There was no need for a receptionist to personally run up and remind them.’

’You have to wonder if this Cat Girl wants to deliver the food, or be the food.’

...

Lance used the key to open the door and entered his room on the third floor.

The room was spacious and furnished in a warm, comfortable style.

He walked to the window, pushed it open, and let the fresh air in.

The view from the window was wide and open, offering a clear overlook of the streetscape of the entire Dongcheng District. He could even see the magnificent Magical Elevating Bridges spanning the White River in the distance.

Staying here really gave one the sense of living among the upper echelons of White River City society.