Chapter 898: Chapter 448: What Do You Want? (2)

The brown-red crystalline eyes looked at Xia Nan. As the palm turned, offering the cigarette box, her fiery long curls swayed slightly. She raised her chin slightly, gesturing:

"Some good stuff from Shire Island, want one?"

Upon seeing this, Xia Nan hadn’t reacted yet. Standing quietly by the window, Hai Yin’s expression froze for a moment.

Having been with her captain for many years, how could she not know what such an action truly meant.

Even she herself, only after joining the "Sword of Vengeance" for over three months and truly showing her value in a mission, received her first cigarette from Captain Lorin.

Of course, a large part of the reason was that she had just come of age at that time.

But even today, Hai Yin still remembers the pungent smell that filled her nostrils, making her eyes water.

Clearly, it’s just the first meeting, so why is it...?

The druid with the Silver Ring Snake Bracelet felt a faint resentment in her heart, but in the next second, thinking about the illusory Black Wolf over the sea earlier, she felt she could accept it.

She even began to fantasize about the scene of her becoming her teammate.

As far as she knows, the other party really doesn’t have a fixed team.

If Xia Nan actually becomes her teammate... it might not be so bad?

Meanwhile, sitting on the sofa, Xia Nan wouldn’t know the thoughts in the druid’s heart beside him.

Facing the silver-white cigarette box being offered to him.

He displayed a polite smile, tactfully declining:

"No, thank you."

Even though his pressures, both in the past and now, weren’t small,

he’s never been particularly interested in tobacco and similar things and doesn’t have the intention to try right now either.

By contrast, he was more curious about how, at this world’s level of technological development, they could actually produce "cigarettes"? 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Although Xia Nan isn’t particularly knowledgeable about cigarettes, he knows that such a finger-length item contains a lot of technology.

Whether it’s the highly flexible and breathable paper or the precise tools that cut countless tobacco leaves into filaments in large quantities, they are not something medieval development could achieve.

However, given the various levels of technology development due to faith, race, magic, and other factors that make cities like isolated islands, it’s not impossible.

To some extent, even if an airship were to fly overhead, Xia Nan wouldn’t be too surprised.

Faced with the black-haired youth’s courteous refusal, Lorin didn’t have any particular reaction, as if she was just casually asking.

Slightly nodding, she took out a cigarette from the silver box. She rotated it half a turn between her fingers and made a light swiping motion towards the table’s Scale Fire Saber.

"Sizzle."

Along with the fleeting flicker of light in the air, the end of the cigarette was lit.

The first inhalation was deep enough to make her cheeks sink, and the line of her neck tensed.

Raising her head, leaning back against the sofa, a long breath resonated in the room, and the pale white smoke exhaled from her barely parted lips, spiraling upward, veiling half of her face like a mist.

"Do you want to attend the ’Moon Tide Banquet’?"

The not-so-loud female voice mingled with the scent of smoke in the air reached Xia Nan’s ears, making him tense up.

Finally coming to the main topic, he couldn’t help but gather his thoughts, responding affirmatively.

"Yes."

"I won’t ask why you want to attend the banquet." With her index and middle fingers holding the cigarette, her long but evidently calloused fingers surrounded by smoke, "But you should know, I’m limited in the number of people I can bring."

The brown-red eyes slightly narrowed, her gaze passing over the table with the scimitar, looking toward Xia Nan across the room.

"Give me a reason to bring you."

That makes perfect sense.

The terms of Xia Nan’s transaction with Hera involved the other party introducing him to a channel into the "Moon Tide Banquet." Whether or not he could successfully persuade the other side afterward was entirely up to him.

And this was his first meeting with Lorin. Even if he had fought alongside the members under her command, he had no clear interest relations with the "Sword of Vengeance" adventure fleet or Lorin herself.

Given that each attendee was limited in the number of companions, she had no obligation to bring Xia Nan.

To join Lorin in the Moon Tide Banquet, Xia Nan needed to pay an appropriate price.

He had been prepared for this before coming.

Hearing the other party say this, he then presented the conditions he had prepared beforehand.

"1000 gold, how about it?"

Undoubtedly, this was a considerable amount.

Even though Xia Nan’s bank savings started with the number "3," it represented a third of his liquid assets, excluding future equipment forging costs.

But... it’s worth it.

As long as he could obtain clues to the Dream Weaving Corridor key, let alone 1,000 gold, he wouldn’t hesitate to add another zero to the end of that number and squeeze the goblins in the forest a bit more.

But unexpectedly, faced with Xia Nan’s considerable offer, Lorin shook her head in rejection without hesitation as soon as he finished speaking.

"I don’t want your money."

No money?

Xia Nan’s heart sank immediately.

This was troubling.

He was well aware of his own worth.

Since Lorin wasn’t interested in his gold, what she sought could only be two things.

First, Equipment;

Second, Battle Skill.

Regarding the former, it had to be admitted, compared to his peers or even higher-level adventurers, he had far more Enchanted Equipment than average.

But choosing which one to part with was difficult.

After all, the majority played a crucial and even trump card role in combat.

The Blue Equipment was definitely out, the Ash Fall Straight Sword was a no-brainer, and Spring Breath’s Tear and Dark Scale Guard were defiantly not considered.

Among the Green Equipment, the Dead Line ring, his first Enchanted Equipment after transmigrating, was invaluable in battles till today and had to be kept, as for other items like the Leg Armor and Crystal Dagger...

Frankly, they weren’t exactly dispensable either.

Regarding "battle skills," choices were even scarcer.

Teeth Hunting required the instructor’s cold air assistance for entry; Gravity Control was so demanding the entire world couldn’t find another with that skill; Gravity Etching and Heavy Tide were companion battle skills, not transferable; Embers Resonance required Exotic Fire Energy.

Hence, when choosing which skill to impart from Xia Nan’s repertoire, the only remaining viable option was the basic move Vortex Slash, left by his predecessor.

But it’s a legit battle skill capable of being trained into, not like the garbage techniques that cost a few copper coins a basket in the grocery store.

The training method, though... exchanging it for clues to the Dream Weaving Corridor key, seemed feasible.

Lost in thought, Xia Nan pondered in silence for a moment before speaking:

"If it’s equipment you’re interested in trading, I think we need to discuss our terms more thoroughly."

"I don’t want your equipment."

The pointed toe of her boot, crossed over her left knee, lightly tapped the air, as the woman with fiery long curls languidly replied.

That made her goal very clear.

Xia Nan felt slightly assured.

"Regarding battle skills, I can provide the training method for one I know, which is definitely useful but requires extensive practice and isn’t guaranteed to be mastered."

"I don’t want battle skills either."

Lorin responded.

Hmm? What does she mean?

"Then what do you want?" Xia Nan couldn’t help but frown.

With a flick of her fingers, the cigarette ash, glowing a dark red, drifted down, falling onto the sofa beside her thigh.

Lorin blinked, her brown-red eyes shifting slightly, reflecting the black-haired youth across the table.

"I want you."