After settling in Scorchstone City, Talier took Sylutia to visit her sister Winnie’s residence.
“My grandpa said Sister should find a way to get me a job in Scorchstone City, otherwise if I spend every day playing with the village idiots, I’ll become stupid too.” Talier complained softly as they walked—this was also why she had followed Sylutia to the city.
Hearing that, Sylutia covered her mouth and let out a quiet laugh.
“What does Sister Winnie do for work in the city right now?”
“I’m not sure about her exact job, but I know my brother-in-law. He works at the Oak Barrel trading guild—something like bookkeeping, I think.”
“People in our village are happy if they can make three silver coins a month, but my brother-in-law gets six silver coins at the guild. His pay is pretty good.”
“Sister’s jobs change a lot. Sometimes she teaches little kids as a tutor, other times she works as a front-desk attendant.”
“Front-desk attendants make around 3.5 silver a month. Tutors make quite a bit more—at most five silver in a month.”
Talier explained life in Scorchstone City to Sylutia. Ordinary laboring peasants earn about three silver per month and it’s hard work—less leisurely than village life. Slightly better jobs, like waiter, front-desk, or shop clerk, pay 3.5–4 silver but generally require youth, literacy, and decent looks.
Compared with other shops, the Adventurers’ Guild clearly had far more foot traffic. Many people came and went; Sylutia could see plenty of people carrying weapons and gear, and a few of them were very muscular. She could sense the Aura power radiating from some of them.
Name: Unknown
Race: Human (mortal body)
Status: Healthy (minor hidden injuries)
Talent:
Sturdy [Good Grade]: You easily develop solid muscles, provided sufficient nutrition; this talent increases your appetite.
Fate Card: [The Brawny One] (Tier 1 — Bloodline); inside a light-red frame, a robust figure stands proud, showing off pronounced muscles.
‘Through Breathing Method training and activation of the Bloodline Aspect, your physique steadily strengthened. The brute force conferred by those muscles is the real deal.’
Effect:
[Brawn Lv.2]: Increases your base strength. Even without using any secret techniques, you possess more than twice the strength of an average person, allowing you to wield heavier weapons and wear thicker armor.
Ability Cards:
[Breathing Method Lv.2] (Bloodline): Regulate blood flow through breathing to drive and amplify whole-body strength and reaction speed. This ability places load on the heart and body and cannot be used for extended periods (recommended no more than 3 minutes per day).
[Blood-Red Muscle Lv.1] (Bloodline): Activates features of the Bloodline Aspect to rapidly expand your muscles and temporarily boost strength. (Recommended no more than twice per day)
————
A burly man strolling by with his companions entered the Adventurers’ Hall laughing and chatting. The Bloodline Aspect power that radiated from him was so obvious that Sylutia found it hard not to notice.
Seeing Sylutia’s gaze drift toward the burly man in the distance, Talier followed her line of sight.
“That’s a badged adventurer,” she said when she saw the crossed-swords copper emblem affixed to his armor.
“So he’s an adventurer whose strength the Adventurers’ Guild recognizes. Some quests can only be taken by them.”
The girl nodded, and the two continued on.
After they left, the burly adventurer and his companions walked into the Adventurers’ Hall. A young boy trailing behind them spoke excitedly.
“Brother Jello, how much reward will we get this time?”
“Hahaha, at least sixty silver. Don’t worry—you won’t miss out.” He patted the boy with his broad palm.
“Mick, you did great this time. Study well and you’ll be like me someday, haha.” He gave a hearty laugh of encouragement. The other companions laughed too—some teased the newly joined boy, others offered quiet encouragement.
“Of course I will. I’m going to make big money.” The boy Mick rubbed his nose with pride.
“I’m the century’s rare genius from our village—at sixteen I mastered the Breathing Method, and my sword skills are unmatched.” Indeed, with that confidence and ability, his pride was understandable.
“I only realized the Breathing Method when I was in my twenties,” Jello said with a touch of nostalgia, recalling old times.
“Forget the past—tonight we drink and feast,” one of them said. They approached the Adventurers’ Guild front desk and took several sacks from behind them, opening them to reveal wolf heads—one massive wolf head with bright crimson fur was among them; its lower jaw had a torn opening.
The display immediately drew attention throughout the Adventurers’ Hall.
“Wow, a Red Wolf head. That’s a Blazing Sun Tier-1 Red Wolf!” someone recognized the wolf’s origin at once.
“The others are good-quality Tili Wolf heads. They should fetch a decent sum.”
“Red Wolf pelts are even more valuable; many nobles buy them. I wonder where they got it—seems they didn’t hide it this time.”
“They’re veteran adventurers; they wouldn’t casually take them out if they weren’t confident.”
“Who’s the leader? He looks really strong—his blood aura’s heavy too.”
“That’s Jello. Don’t you know him? He’s a famous adventurer in Scorchstone City. Not many can beat him.”
“That strong? How does he compare to Lord Solan?”
“He can’t compare. Lord Solan is the Scorchstone City Guard Commander, appointed by Viscount Xuefeng. His strength reaches Castle Aspect Tier 2.” The responder shook his head.
“If he weren’t appointed, Lord Solan would drop to Tier 1, and then Jello would stand a chance.”
“Noble lineage isn’t something ordinary people can match.”
As they talked, Jello’s companions beamed proudly and posed for the girls in the hall.
“Tonight’s going to be fun.” One of them hooked an arm over a friend’s shoulder and grinned.
“Of course. We worked hard on that bounty so we can let loose for a few days, haha.”
Ten minutes later, after calculations and registration, the front-desk attendant placed sixty-four silver coins on the table.
“Tier-1 Red Wolf head bounty: 50 silver. The other 31 Tili Wolf heads, based on quality, are valued at 14 silver. If you also have the Red Wolf pelt, the guild will purchase it at a high price.”
“How high?” Jello scratched his chin.
“Around 60 silver,” the front attendant said after a moment’s thought.
Jello blew on his fingertips and nodded slightly. “That’s fair, but you’re a little late—the pelt’s already been reserved by someone offering 80 silver.”
“I won’t say who. I suppose there’s no need for you to ask.”
“That’s a shame. Next time you harvest a Red Wolf, please consider the guild.” The front attendant politely declined to press the issue.
Jello only teased and nodded, winking at the attractive attendant. “How about we have a drink tonight?”
The attendant, wearing a brown-and-white uniform, gave a professional smile and waved him off.
“Sorry, I don’t go out casually at night.”
“That’s no fun at all,” the man said in an exaggerated bard-like tone.
He picked up the money pouch, turned, and hollered to his waiting companions: “Alright brothers, tonight we go to the Blood Boar Tavern—drink big and raise hell, hahahaha!”
“Ooh~”
“Jello, you’re the best captain I’ve ever seen!”
“Brother Jello!”
“I’ll follow you from now on.”
“Good brother.”
“Let’s go, let’s go!”
The group left the Adventurers’ Guild under envious stares. People gathered at the front desk to examine the wolf heads turned in as bounty.
“It’s a Red Wolf. One eye was slashed, and the jaw’s injured, but it doesn’t look fatal…”
They analyzed the trophies slowly, and the Adventurers’ Hall remained lively late into the night.