Maen City, Sandalwood District.
The polished grey stone pavement was clean and tidy, flanked by exquisite stone houses on both sides.
A few servants dressed in linen clothes and carrying vegetable baskets scurried by, their heads lowered as they hurried along.
At a nearby intersection, a pair of guards wearing armed gambesons and carrying long wooden-handled spears patrolled the area. Their sharp eyes swept across the surroundings like hawks, unwilling to let any suspicious activity slide.
At the entrance of the district, two peculiar figures emerged, immediately drawing the attention of the patrolling guards.
At this moment, Vivian had put away her umbrella and the wooden board she usually carried, looking like any ordinary girl. Blake had also changed back into his chef’s uniform.
However, even with such low-profile attire, they couldn’t escape being questioned by the guards several times.
‘It’s probably this big guy’s fault for being too conspicuous…’ Vivian grumbled internally.
She had even been forced to show her identification along with him. At this point, she felt like strapping her identity card directly to her forehead.
The two struggled through the checks for a while until the patrolling guards finally became less frequent. Vivian finally had the peace of mind to observe her surroundings.
From time to time, exquisite carriages drove past them, causing her to turn her head and marvel at the sight. Having been in this world for several months, this was her first time visiting such a clean and orderly place.
Finally, there was no “fragrant” dung or messy clutter everywhere. Instead, she occasionally saw beautifully manicured little gardens. She felt like a country bumpkin entering a grand palace, unable to take it all in.
“This is the Sandalwood District, the heart of Maen City,” Blake explained when he noticed Vivian seemed unfamiliar with the area. “It’s named because most of the courtyard gates here are made of sandalwood.”
“We should be careful. Those living here are either nobles or clergy. At the very least, they are wealthy merchants. They aren’t commoners like us. The Blue Whale Merchant Guild we’re looking for is at the very end of the third street ahead, after taking a left turn.”
“Mhm, mhm,” Vivian replied absentmindedly.
Suddenly, Vivian’s wandering gaze caught something. There was a familiar back up ahead. The more she looked, the more familiar it felt.
Shining short blonde hair, familiar silver-white armor, and a longsword hanging from the waist.
Vivian squinted to get a better look.
‘Isn’t that my husband? He vanished early this morning, and it turns out he came here.’
A playful idea struck her. she made a shushing gesture toward Blake.
Blake looked at her, confused.
Then, Vivian stood on her tiptoes and crept up behind Nolan.
A sneak attack!
She kicked off the ground with her legs, jumping high in an instant. She threw her arms around Nolan’s neck from behind, clinging to him like a koala.
In front of her, Nolan suddenly felt a massive force pushing against his back, followed by a cold, flat board crashing into him.
His heart jolted, and the blood in his body seemed to freeze instantly.
‘An enemy attack?’
Without time to think, his body reacted instinctively to the stress. With a twist of his waist, he reached behind him, grabbed the “enemy,” hoisted them high into the air, and slammed them violently into the ground.
*Boom!*
A violent powerbomb!
“Awooo—!”
A certain someone let out a scream worthy of a cartoon cat.
A deep pit was formed in the ground, with cracks spreading in every direction. Vivian had been slammed head-first. Her feet were sticking up toward the sky while her entire upper body was buried deep into the stone pavement!
“No, Vivian!”
Nolan finally realized who it was and let out a startled cry.
This was bad!
He hurried forward, grabbed Vivian’s flailing little feet, and pulled her out of the hole.
“Are you all right?” Nolan asked worriedly, his heart filled with guilt.
‘It’s all the fault of those damn demons and cultists performing sneak attacks all day. They’ve made me so high-strung.’ He added another mark to the demons’ tab in his heart.
“Bluh, bluh…”
Vivian shook the dark mud off her face and spat out a large clump of dirt from her mouth. “I’m fine, my head is just a little dizzy.”
Given Vivian’s constitution, this level of damage didn’t even count as a scratch. She shook her head and lowered it, fidgeting with her fingers while looking aggrieved.
“Sorry, my fault. I accidentally startled you.” Vivian chose to admit her mistake. She shouldn’t have played that kind of joke.
“No, no, no, it was my fault. I was too sensitive and overreacted. Plus, I hit you so hard,” Nolan hurriedly shook his head in denial, the words pouring out of him as he tried to take all the responsibility.
“No, no, no, I startled you first. It’s not your fault you reacted that way,” Vivian shook her head back, disagreeing.
“If it weren’t for…” Nolan shook his head again.
“No, it’s not…” Vivian mimicked him, continuing to shake her head.
—
Neither could convince the other, and the scene remained at a standstill.
Meanwhile, Blake stood to the side, feeling quite awkward. He was currently frozen in a strange posture.
At first, he thought Vivian had run into an old enemy and harbored ill intentions. He thought she was trying to sneak attack the kid in front of her, but had been caught due to her poor skills.
Seeing the “attack,” Blake had quickly shifted into a combat stance and raised his fists. He was just about to step in and help.
Suddenly…
‘Huh! Why are they hugging and being so lovey-dovey?!’
Blake’s large eyes widened in an instant. The Orc’s brain capacity felt a little insufficient for this situation.
One second ago, the two were fighting; the next, they were arguing. And as they argued, they suddenly stopped and… stuck together like two pieces of sticky rice cake.
This…
Seeing this, he quickly stopped and pulled back his fists. He stood in place, mimicking the appearance of the Great Prophet back in the Orc tribe. He rested his elbow on one palm and rubbed his rough chin with his fingers, putting on a look of deep contemplation.
First, it was to ease the awkwardness. Second, he was trying to use the Great Prophet’s wisdom to understand the scene before him. He had lived in human society for many years, but he hadn’t seen many scenes like this.
‘I remember now. This is called… flirting, or something like that. I heard someone mention it once.’
‘It’s a friendly interaction between human couples to make their lives more flavorful.’
In short, it was something far beyond an Orc’s understanding.
—
With a faint blush on her face, Vivian put on a smile and practicedly took Nolan’s hand, leading him toward the massive Orc.
“Blake, let me introduce you. This is my husband, a Paladin who follows the Light—Nolan.”
When she talked about her man, she puffed out her chest proudly. She looked exactly like a smug brat.
“Nolan, this is Mr. Blake, the owner of the Blood-Boiling Bakery. He’s a pastry chef.”
Vivian introduced them to each other. Blake lowered his hand and gave Nolan a solemn salute.
“I’ve heard of you. Your name has spread through every alley of the Rusty Hammer District. They say a Paladin arrived in the city and pierced through a demon taller than a hill with a single sword.”
Facing the rumored hero who saved the city, Blake’s tone carried more respect.
Hearing this, Nolan didn’t know how to respond for a moment. He was too embarrassed to lie, so he turned to look at Vivian. Their eyes met.
Vivian gave him a meaningful wink.
Nolan nodded. He understood.
He turned back and returned the greeting with a humble smile. “The rumors are a bit exaggerated. In truth, it was only because the two of us worked together that the demon was defeated.”
Nolan was very modest. He secretly added in his heart, ‘Actually, I only contributed a single drop of blood… so this technically isn’t a lie.’
Blake was about to say something when he was interrupted by Vivian’s urgent inquiry.
“Quick, tell me, what are you doing here?” Vivian poked at the hard muscles of Nolan’s waist from behind him. ‘He disappeared so early in the morning without even waiting for me…’ She pouted, looking a bit unhappy.
“I came to investigate the demon attacks outside the city. Derek said the headquarters of the merchant guild that was attacked is in this area, so I came here to ask around.”
“What a coincidence!” Vivian exclaimed, feigning complete surprise. “We’re here for the same thing. Blake and I took the City Lord’s bounty. We’re planning to take down that demon and make a killing.”
“This is perfect. With the three of us teaming up, that demon won’t be coming back!”