Chapter 378: Taking a Girl to a “Gentlemen’s Club”? |
Lin Mo quickly realized one thing—even without considering whether the other party could be trusted, this matter was still quite tricky.
Purely in terms of value, mid-tier Epic Level materials aren't actually outrageously expensive.
If it's a type that isn't highly scarce, some might even only be worth around four to five hundred thousand gold coins.
But first, the level of this Sunflame Tiger King, Bytelund, is 37, which places it at the very peak of mid-tier Epic Level magical creatures. Just one more level, and it would be an upper-tier magical creature.
Therefore, the value of its materials would probably need to double, reaching the million-level.
And that's just the pure material value. For example, if you were to post a task at the association, the offered reward would have to be at least double that, reaching two million gold coins.
Tasks inherently have a premium; the more difficult the task, the higher the premium. And even then, it's likely no one would accept it...
In Nasadok Town, there are indeed some Epic Level adventurers, but Epic Level adventurers capable of dealing with a Level 37 magical creature are a completely different concept.
Since adventurers of the same level are generally far weaker than magical creatures, to reliably handle a Level 37 magical creature and ensure no failure, you'd need at least a Level 39 Professional.
Lin Mo can afford two million gold coins now, and it's not that he's unwilling to spend it. The worry is that even if he wants to spend that money, he might not be able to.
Can't find the right person, and even if found, such high-level experts don't lack two million...
It just goes to show that after reaching a certain height, money at least ceases to be a major issue. What becomes more important are power, background, and connections. Of course, in this world, the most important thing is undoubtedly strength.
If your own strength is solid enough, you can ignore all other problems.
However, Lin Mo's current strength is clearly not solid enough, so he needs to borrow some "influence."
"Then I won't continue to disturb you. I'll collect the remaining materials as quickly as possible and trouble you again then."
"Ah, no need to be so polite with this old man. Go on, go on..."
Xavier waved his hand with a chuckle. This little old man had no airs when dealing with such young, promising, and polite people, being very amiable and kind, a completely different person from when he dealt with his good son and good grandson.
After bidding farewell to Grandmaster Xavier and leaving the Master Craftsman Forge, Lin Mo headed straight for the Adventurers' Association.
Lily was currently there experiencing the Adventurers' Association's training rooms. Besides her, Flora, Eve, and Ellie were also there. This trip out, only Finnie and Sherfilia were accompanying him.
Oh, and Lena, but she's currently farming inside the Portable Space.
As the Portable Space grew larger, the area of the Experimental Field Lin Mo allocated to Lena also expanded more and more, now reaching a truly outrageous extent that Lena simply couldn't farm completely.
Furthermore, her previous results had already begun to yield some initial profits. Although those profits weren't a big sum for the current team, they were at least enough to completely cover Lena's costs and earn a decent income.
The Planter profession, if one reaches a certain height, can also be quite profitable. It can't compare to Alchemists and Blacksmiths, but it's enough to reach a very affluent level, and with high stability.
When Lin Mo arrived at the Adventurers' Association training rooms, Lily was being besieged by the others.
There was no other way; the others' current strength still had a considerable gap compared to Lily's. Even without considering that set of overpowered armor, Lily could still handle them with ease.
Lin Mo and the others had the extra attributes beyond their main stats provided by Ellie, but while Lily didn't have that, she wasn't far behind.
After all, she was a Paladin, having Constitution and Mana as her two base main stats from the start. Her combat methods were also quite varied. Her only shortcoming was somewhat lacking offensive power, but against opponents significantly weaker than herself, it was more than enough.
Lily handled the situation with ease, and Lin Mo and the others also fought very comfortably.
An opponent who could let them go all out without any worry of injuring her was extremely rare. They could all attack without any reservations, giving 120% effort. In such full-force combat, the accumulation of experience and techniques, as well as the growth in skill proficiency, were all very rapid.
In the middle of the fight, Ellie suddenly caught a familiar scent, immediately stopped, and pounced over.
"Lin Mo, you're back~"
A figure like a young swallow returning to its nest, paired with the hint of coquettishness hidden within that straightforward voice, was truly adorable.
The corner of Lin Mo's mouth naturally curved into a faint smile as he reached out to catch her, holding her and spinning around twice.
"Why are you back so early?"
Flora also walked over quickly, smiling as she looked at him, putting on the demeanor of a big sister.
But at certain times, it was her whose pleas for mercy were the loudest, whose words were the most embarrassing...
Fortunately, besides Lin Mo and Eve, no one else knew about this, and Eve's personality clearly wasn't the type to talk about such things. So, Flora's image in everyone's eyes was still relatively mature and reliable.
Lin Mo gave her a slightly teasing look. Flora's face flushed slightly, returning a glare, then walked over to him as if nothing had happened, straightening his collar—although his collar was actually very neat and didn't need any tidying up. With Sherfilia around, such small details wouldn't be a problem.
Everyone gradually gathered around. Lin Mo simply brought them all into the Portable Space. These matters were better not discussed outside.
In the living room of the Portable Space, everyone sat around the sofa as Lin Mo began recounting his earlier trip to the Master Craftsman Forge.
"So, the key issue now is these two harder-to-obtain materials?"
Lin Mo nodded: "The other three materials aren't very difficult to get; just another trip to the dungeons. But these two materials are both quite troublesome..."
He then looked at Lily beside him and asked, "Lily, would the royal family possibly have Eclipse Moon Grass?"
Lily, currently not wearing her helmet, her slightly childish face showing a light frown, said, "I'm not too sure, but something of not very high value like this, the royal treasury most likely wouldn't specifically collect it."
Hearing this, Lin Mo felt somewhat disappointed, but upon careful thought, it made sense. Although Eclipse Moon Grass was somewhat hard to obtain, as Lily said, this material was only relatively scarce; its actual value wasn't much higher than other Exceptional-Grade materials.
And Exceptional-Grade items naturally held no special collection value for the royal family.
"However..."
Lily seemed to think of something and immediately spoke again: "I know a place that might have this kind of material."
"Where?"
As soon as Lin Mo asked, he already had some guess.
"The Oxivis Trading Company."
Sure enough, the answer from Lily's mouth completely matched Lin Mo's guess.
The royal family wouldn't be bored enough to collect such materials, but the Oxivis Family, being businesspeople, might be different.
Hearing this name, everyone instinctively turned their gaze to Finnie beside them.
Seeing everyone's eyes shift to her, Lily also looked over, somewhat puzzled.
"Right, I haven't introduced her yet..."
Seeing Finnie's somewhat flustered look, Lin Mo spoke up to ease the atmosphere for her: "This is Finnie. Finnie Lavelle. You can also call her Finnie Oxivis."
Lavelle was Finnie's father's surname, while Oxivis was her mother's surname.
"Oxivis?"
Lily blinked, not reacting immediately. She had never paid much attention to gossip among the nobility, so she wasn't very clear about the Oxivis Family's various affairs.
So, Lin Mo gave a brief explanation of Finnie's background.
"So that's how it is."
Lily finally nodded in understanding: "So, Miss Finnie is actually Nuolun's older sister?"
As a princess of the Violet Empire, it wasn't surprising that Lily knew Nuolun.
Finnie nodded: "Nuolun is a very good child..."
"Indeed."
Lily also deeply agreed with the response.
Their back-and-forth made Lin Mo's mouth twitch.
Was Nuolun a good child?
She was a devil!
Her personality, calling it 'mischievous' might even be a compliment.
But remembering how she behaved in front of Finnie, from Finnie's perspective, she really might think Nuolun was a good child.
"Then let's go find Nuolun about this."
Lin Mo immediately made the decision.
Although normally, a girl like Nuolun would be very difficult to deal with, it was different for Lin Mo.
Just Finnie alone could handle her perfectly, and now there was Lily too.
From the earlier conversation, it was clear that in front of Lily, Nuolun was definitely a well-behaved child.
With these two combined, wouldn't Nuolun be completely at his mercy, to be shaped as he pleased?
"So, we depart for the Imperial Capital tomorrow?"
Lin Mo nodded. Originally, he wanted to rest a couple more days, but this matter was better done sooner than later. And for them, traveling wasn't much different from resting anyway, as they were all inside the Portable Space.
Of course, even so, that was tomorrow's business. As for today, they needed to take it easy no matter what.
Ellie and the others had also practiced enough earlier. For the afternoon, they could stroll around this small town and have a good rest.
As a town primarily populated by adventurers, Nasadok Town's entertainment industry was naturally very developed.
Adventurers, a classic high-income but unstable profession, basically had no habit of saving money. The money they earned, besides using it to improve themselves, was mostly spent on enjoyment. They spent lavishly, not saving at all.
For businesspeople, this was arguably the best customer group.
Whether it was the food and beverage industry, service industries like massage and bathing, or some industries that couldn't be described in detail, they were all quite common in Nasadok Town and very advanced, leading the entire industry.
Many now-very-popular practices originated here.
Of course, Lin Mo wasn't very interested in these things, so he initially had no intention of going at all.
But...
"Romantic Home," the leader of the custom industry in Nasadok Town, one of the largest and most famous establishments in the Violet Empire.
As the front desk of Romantic Home, Mary, 35 years old this year, believed she had seen all kinds of customers.
Whether it was any bizarre request or special fetish, to her, it was all commonplace...
But she swore, today's scene truly opened her eyes.
When the door was pushed open, she walked over with a smile as usual. Looking up, she saw a new face—the reason she was so sure, of course, wasn't because she remembered all customers, but because if this customer in front of her had been here before, she couldn't possibly have no impression.
So young!
That was her first reaction.
So tall! So handsome!
That was her second reaction.
Seeing the Adventurer Badge belonging to a Gold-level Adventurer pinned on Lin Mo's chest, Mary's eyes were practically shining.
This was absolutely a top-tier customer!
Young and wealthy, outstanding appearance. For such a customer, there would be plenty of girls willing to pay to serve him.
However, just as she was about to enthusiastically greet him and introduce the establishment's services to this new customer, Mary's expression suddenly froze.
A fair, delicate arm suddenly reached in from outside the door, very naturally wrapping around the young man's arm.
The newcomer wore a set of Mage Robes, with a very graceful figure, and also wore a badge symbolizing Gold-level Adventurer status on her chest.
This...
Mary only glanced briefly before immediately determining that not a single girl in their establishment could match this level.
As the Empire's largest custom establishment, if purely based on looks, they did have some. But adding that graceful figure and the unparalleled temperament...
Mary stared for a good while before finally shifting her gaze back to Lin Mo, with a somewhat speechless expression.
Seriously, buddy? You brought such a great beauty to this kind of place?
Mary had never encountered such a thing before. For a moment, she was thrown off, not knowing how to receive them.
Finally adjusting her thoughts, just as she was about to speak, a girl's voice came from ahead.
"Move aside, move aside! I want to see too!"
"Don't push! Hey! What are you grabbing my shoulder strap for? There's a pervert here!"
Then, a large group of chattering girls swarmed in all at once, each of them roughly the same level as the previous great beauty.
So many top-tier beauties momentarily stunned Mary.
What stunned her even more was that after these little beauties came in, they all gathered around the young man who had entered first, chattering and starting to tease each other.
...
Wiping the cold sweat from her forehead, Mary maintained a polite smile with difficulty and asked, "Um, may I ask what you all are here for..."
She was completely baffled now, not knowing what this group was here to do.
Customers bringing their girlfriends to visit such places were already rare, but in her over-ten-year career, she had at least seen a few.
But bringing so many top-tier beauties all at once? She had truly never seen or heard of that.
And these people all seemed to be no ordinary folks, each wearing a badge symbolizing Gold-level Adventurer status on their chests!
Just what kind of celestial beings were this group?
"What are you talking about?"
Hearing Mary's words, Ellie immediately looked over with a confused expression: "Isn't this Romantic Home? What else can you do when you come here? Of course, it's to have fu— Mmmph..."
Flora reached out and covered the little wolf's mouth, smiling as she said, "Just came out of curiosity to take a look. Your establishment won't mind, right? Of course, we'll definitely pay."
"This... like this..."
Mary wiped the sweat from her forehead: "Then, please come in?"
Lin Mo's mouth twitched, momentarily not knowing what to say.
God knows why he had agreed to the ridiculous suggestion of visiting a custom establishment together.
There was no need to think much; such a suggestion could only have come from those two, Ellie and Flora.
When he saw those two huddled together whispering earlier, Lin Mo had guessed they were up to no good, but he hadn't expected it to be this outrageous.
The custom industry in this world was very developed.
When Lin Mo first crossed over, he had accidentally wandered into one due to lack of understanding and stayed there for a night.
He still remembered to this day how awkward the situation was when the young girl knocked on his door that night...
Later, Lin Mo never went to similar places again, nor was there any need to.
Thinking about it this way, he did feel a bit curious.
Clearly, Ellie and Flora shared the same curiosity...
As the largest establishment in Nasadok Town, the decor of "Romantic Home" was naturally very exquisite and luxurious. Moreover, the style was carefully designed. Upon entering, one could naturally feel an ambiguous atmosphere. Combined with the slightly dim environment, it certainly felt like the real deal.
Such large establishments basically had different grades of private rooms, just like regular high-end inns.
Flora directly chose the highest-grade room. Just the accommodation fee for one night was 300 gold coins.
Even in Nasadok Town, this was a rather outrageous price...
The top-tier rooms were indeed quite luxurious in configuration, and the room space was also very large, a full two to three hundred square meters, with complete facilities and many items clearly designed for other specific purposes.
Including sofas, chairs, bathtubs, etc., they were all specially designed, different from ordinary ones.
Ellie tried lying on a chair and immediately exclaimed, "Wow, this is really good... feels very convenient!"
"Look over there, there are so many peculiar little toys..."
Flora noticed another area, showing an intrigued expression.
On the surface, she appeared composed and at ease, but in reality, just imagining the scenarios of using those things on herself, her legs were already starting to feel weak.
It just goes to show, regarding a mage's endurance... though being worse than Finnie was something Lin Mo hadn't expected before.
Other girls like Lena and Finnie were also curiously looking around the room. Although their personalities were more introverted and shy, after all, they were now considered experienced. Their faces flushed with shyness, not as bold as Ellie and Flora, but not as extreme as Lily, who didn't even dare to look.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Lily immediately turned and ran to open it like escaping. Standing there was the front desk staff who had led them in earlier.
Mary glanced at everyone present, still finding it hard to maintain composure.
These people appearing in their establishment felt so incongruous... Regardless, work had to continue. So, after much hesitation, she still asked, "Hello, would you like any company here?"
She asked very cautiously, as the current situation was completely different from her usual work and could easily cause dissatisfaction among these beautiful girls.
These people didn't look like they were here to consume; more like they were here for some kind of "research."
"Yes! Of course!"
Before Lin Mo could even react, Ellie eagerly raised her hand beside him: "How can you come to such a place without ordering anyone? Hurry up and bring your establishment's 'menu' over."
Mary's mouth twitched, but she still presented the establishment's directory.
Ellie eagerly flipped it open and started picking without any reservation.
"This one's no good... this one's average too, feels the quality isn't very high..."
Flora also leaned over with a smile: "This one seems pretty good, quite cute."
"True, but she's just a bit small, like Sherfilia."
"?"
Sherfilia clenched her fist, suppressing the urge to hit someone.
Finally, after some picking and choosing, they selected three of them, clapped their hands, truly like big spenders here to consume: "This one, this one, and this one... send these girls over."
Lena and Finnie huddled together, blinking their eyes, not speaking, but clearly also somewhat curious.
Only Eve was completely unconcerned about these matters, looking like her mind was wandering elsewhere, probably pondering whether the angle of a certain skill's execution could be further optimized.
Lily stood by the door like a Door God, already wearing her helmet, her face unseen.
Lin Mo shook his head helplessly. Fine, if they like to mess around, let them. It's just curiosity anyway...
Large establishments were quite efficient. Soon, the three girls were brought over.
When they pushed the door open and entered, they were clearly also dumbfounded.
Mary quickly pulled them aside, explained briefly, then apologized and hurriedly left.
The three establishment girls looked at them nervously, glanced at Lin Mo, then glanced at Ellie and the others beside him, momentarily unsure whether they should "get to work."
Fortunately, Ellie quickly came over, pulling them to sit on the edge of the bed and starting to chat.
Lin Mo listened for a bit. Ellie's opening line was a thunderous statement: "How do you usually work? What's the process?"
What followed was some exchange about knowledge, techniques, and the like.
Finnie and Lena had also come over at some point, opening their round eyes wide, listening with serious expressions.
So, you guys are here to learn the ropes?
The establishment girls were also encountering such customers for the first time and were initially a bit reserved. But after all, they were experienced. As time passed, they talked non-stop, with Ellie exclaiming from time to time.
"You can do that too?!"
"Let's try that next time..."
Hmm, although it felt a bit awkward, coming here seemed to have its benefits?