Vivian and Nolan were scattered on both sides of the ruins, bending over to dig through the dirt.
A moment later, the two other companions buried under the rock pile were dug out by the couple. The four of them worked together to clear an open space in the middle of the wreckage, checking their respective injuries.
Vivian and Nolan — one was thick-skinned while the other had high-defense armor — were basically uninjured. President Cole possessed a high-level magic shield that could negate a single instance of magic damage.
As for the most heavily injured, the orc Black, only a portion of his beloved chef’s outfit had been burned away, revealing a small, thick patch of chest hair. Seeing the other three looking at him with searching and curious gazes, he had to explain himself.
“I was once blessed by the God of Beast Roars, Grosh, and I have a certain resistance to magic. Therefore, the fire magic’s damage to me wasn’t very significant.”
In other words, the massive fireball Shawn released had ultimately only destroyed the Blue Whale Chamber of Commerce’s building and killed his own pitiful subordinates. As it turned out, Vivian, Nolan, and Cole were completely unharmed…
The four stood in a circle, discussing their next plan.
“President Cole, do you know what the demon that attacked the caravan looked like?” Nolan asked.
“Hmm… I’m not clear on the specifics, as I wasn’t at the scene of the attack.” Cole answered while lowering his head in thought. A few seconds later, he spoke. “But Tomin mentioned it to me after he returned. I remember him saying, ‘It was too late at night, so I couldn’t see clearly what the demon attacking us looked like.'”
“Then do you know the location of the attack? We can go to the scene to investigate,” Nolan asked immediately, not at all disappointed.
“He said the caravan was attacked while passing the road behind Thorn Slope. But I don’t know where Thorn Slope is, either…” Cole spread his hands helplessly. “Because that wasn’t our originally planned route.”
Hearing this, Nolan turned to look at Vivian. He wanted to hear what a local like Vivian knew about the place.
Vivian’s eyebrows twitched as she noticed Nolan’s expectant gaze. And so, Vivian blinked. “Ehehe~”
She chose to act cute, attempting to gloss over the situation. Unfortunately, this ‘local’ had actually only arrived a few months earlier than Nolan. Furthermore, she only ever hung around the vicinity of her home and had never even left the city.
Expecting to rely on Vivian? Nolan was destined to come up empty-handed.
“I think I know where this Thorn Slope is,” the orc, Black, who had remained silent until now, spoke up. “It’s north of Marne City, about 15 miles away. There is a small mound there covered in a plant called ‘Frost-Tooth Bramble.’ Hunters often go there to hunt wild boars because the boars love the tender leaves of that plant.”
Black was clearly very familiar with the terrain and landmarks around Marne City.
“Great! We’ll set off now. Target: Thorn Slope!” Vivian jumped up excitedly, shouting with a voice full of energy. Her tone became unintentionally loud in an attempt to alleviate her recent embarrassment.
However, she was interrupted by a discordant voice.
“In the name of City Lord Brun Griffin! You are under arrest!”
Just as Vivian was about to step forward, a spear was suddenly pointed at her neck.
What was this for?
Vivian tilted her head, her gaze following the length of the spear. Oh — it was the guards, who were always arriving late. When Shawn was strutting around with his group of lackeys, there wasn’t a trace of them to be seen. Now that the dust had settled, they finally showed up to make a scene.
Vivian snorted and reached out a hand to grab the spearhead pointed at her. She tightened her grip slightly.
The iron spearhead was instantly crushed into powder. Vivian opened her palm, and the fine iron dust slowly drifted down.
“Get lost,” Vivian said, glancing at the guard coldly.
The guard holding the now headless spear was struck with horror, staring dumbfoundedly at the crushed tip. He stumbled back several steps, even tripping over a piece of rubble and nearly falling.
“Don’t make things difficult for them, Vivian.”
Vivian suddenly felt a gentle touch on the top of her head, carrying a hint of comforting warmth. Her eyelashes fluttered as she looked up. It was that brat Nolan.
‘You dare touch my head!’
Vivian’s cheeks flushed instantly as she puffed them out. This wasn’t the bashful blush of a little girl; it was Vivian boiling over with rage. Usually, she was the one who got to pat others’ heads. When had she ever been the one being patted?
Vivian was fuming. ‘I’m only this short because of guys like you who love to pat people’s heads!’
In her anger, Vivian immediately leaped high into the air and sat directly on Nolan’s neck. She began to frantically mess up the clean, short, pale-gold hair on top of Nolan’s head.
“That’s what you get for touching my head!” Vivian muttered fiercely while she continued her assault.
“Stop messing around, there are people here…” Nolan quickly reached his hands under Vivian’s armpits, lifting the small girl up.
“No, I have to pat you back, or else I won’t grow tall!” Vivian spoke as if it were a matter of great importance. With a twist of her waist, she broke free from Nolan’s hold. Then, she continued to sit on his neck and commit atrocities against his hair.
Nolan was out of options; he wasn’t as strong as Vivian and couldn’t stop her misdeeds at all. Fine, it wasn’t a big deal anyway. A faint smile tugged at the corner of Nolan’s mouth. He could only let her have her way helplessly.
It wasn’t until Nolan’s hair looked like a bird’s nest that Vivian finally jumped down from his shoulders, satisfied.
Hmph, hmph~
After her successful revenge, Vivian’s mood immediately improved, and she happily began humming a tune from another world.
“I’ll go explain things to the guards. Don’t do anything rash,” President Cole said. Seeing that the atmosphere had softened, Cole took the initiative to walk up to the guards. He began explaining the sequence of events to them.
—
“I see. My subordinates were too abrupt. Please accept our apologies.” A guard captain wearing weathered armor apologized to Vivian and the others.
“Can we go now?” Vivian asked.
“Please, go ahead.” The guard captain signaled his subordinates to step aside.
Vivian and the other two began to walk, intending to head to Thorn Slope to continue investigating the demon attack.
“Everyone, please wait a moment,” Cole called out to stop them. He stepped forward and handed a brass badge to Vivian. “This is my personal token. I hope you will accept it, Miss. Though I, Cole, have little influence, I do have some spare coin. In the future, if you ever need my help, feel free to come to the Blue Whale Chamber of Commerce and find me.”
“Thank you, President Cole.” Vivian quickly tucked the badge into her clothes.
“Until we meet again, then.” She waved her hand and left the Blue Whale Chamber of Commerce.
Cole didn’t look away until their figures disappeared around the street corner. Then, he lowered his head and sighed softly. Gazing at the ruins of his destroyed Blue Whale Chamber of Commerce, he felt a sense of melancholy.
His hard work of many years had been reduced to rubble. The demon attack had already caused losses in goods, personnel, and money, leading to the chamber losing a significant amount of wealth. Now, the reconstruction of the chamber would be another massive expense.
His heart was filled with worry. But a person always has to keep moving forward, don’t they…
Cole rubbed his nose and smiled bitterly.
“May the God of Light, Elios, protect your path, Miss Vivian.”
Cole knelt in the open space among the ruins, closed his eyes, and devoutly prayed for Vivian.
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