CHAPTER 179: MITHRIL MINE THIEVES?

Time rewound to one day earlier....

Vic, the branch head who had entered the Core Area of Roland Forest, had already been searching here for several days.

But just like their earlier investigations of the region, even after days of searching he hadn’t found anything unusual.

Except that the number of goblins was indeed very large—areas that used to have few goblins, including parts of the Core Area, had now become very common.

However, whether it was a lord-level goblin or traces of any possible conspiracy by the Lawrence family, nothing was found.

That was odd.

From the current situation, goblins of this scale shouldn’t exist without producing at least one lord-level goblin, and such a creature would certainly be accompanied by a massive goblin army that included numerous Bronze Goblins and Giant Goblins.

So where did all those goblins go?

Roland Forest is vast. Saying they had searched the entire forest might be an exaggeration, but during this period their whole group—including the Adventurers' Association—had indeed conducted an enormous number of investigations. Logically, if a lord-level goblin appeared, there should have been some sign of it.

Could they be hiding someplace unknown to people?

Like an enormous underground cavern that hadn’t been discovered, or perhaps trapped within a pocket dimension?

While pondering this, Vic suddenly sensed a strange spatial fluctuation.

Although Vic wasn’t a space mage—in fact, he wasn’t a mage at all—he was the branch head of the Adventurers' Association, and his experience was broad. When he was younger he had come into contact with related matters, so he was familiar with such subtle disturbances. In fact, this was not a normal spatial fluctuation;

otherwise someone who wasn’t a space mage couldn’t have felt it.

Vic dashed toward the direction where the odd sensation came from, and soon witnessed a shocking sight.

In the forest, right where he had passed countless times over the past days, the air rippled with countless fine cracks, as if a huge mirror covering the entire space had shattered.

“This is...”

[Joint Cultivation] Lv4 (29/100)

Early that morning, Lin Mo looked at the skill progress on his status panel and showed a satisfied look.

He had already suspected this before, but after the recent period—especially yesterday’s testing—he could finally confirm that as Ellie’s strength increased, the proficiency growth rate of [Joint Cultivation] also accelerated.

In other words, the proficiency gain for this skill was related to the partner’s level?

This was a significant conclusion: if Lin Mo could find someone higher level than him to practice Joint Cultivation with, not only could he gain attribute increases, but the skill proficiency would also grow much faster.

Still, as always: finding someone was the problem....

Lin Mo’s mind involuntarily pictured Sherfilia’s cool, indifferent face, then he shook his head.

Even if she had been friendlier to him lately, saying something like that would probably earn him a beating.

Putting those impractical thoughts aside, Lin Mo got up, washed, then patted the still-lingering-in-bed Ellie: “Time to get up. We have a new mission today.”

After spending several days inside the Secret Realm, they had rested enough;

in any case, Azure Orchid still hadn’t taken any low-level tasks with them.

Mainly because Lachesis—no, Sherfilia’s situation—was stable recently, and danger was secondary. Silverstream City rarely saw major incidents, so they wanted to first improve some higher-level skills. From that perspective, taking on powerful monsters was more cost-effective than messing with Beixi’s people. ℞𝓪𐌽ÓᛒΕＳ

So Azure Orchid planned to discuss with them and then take a mission like clearing a goblin settlement.

That kind of job would be easier, more efficient, and still grant experience.

Although the monetary rewards weren’t much, this was a special period—stability mattered most.

Landon and the Azure Orchid Team probably weren’t short on money either.

They could even split up briefly and do separate tasks;

after all, they were mainly collaborators.

They’d see the specific details once they reached the Association.

Ellie climbed out of bed;

compared to Lin Mo’s higher Constitution, her condition wasn’t as good.

But because [Joint Cultivation] had boosted her Constitution somewhat, it wasn’t terrible—washing her face perked her up.

Downstairs in the main hall, Sherfilia had already prepared breakfast.

However, she herself had already left—likely heading to the City Lord's Mansion.

Lena also came downstairs;

after three of them ate, they headed to the Adventurers' Association together.

On the way, Lin Mo and Ellie detoured toward the City Lord's Mansion, while Lena went straight to the Association. She had been resting at home yesterday studying planting-related matters;

today she returned to work.

Unlike before when she took the front desk just to earn a living, Lena now treated the Adventurers' Association front desk more like part of her life than a mere job.

There she could meet all kinds of people. Although many adventurers avoided her, as long as a small portion were friendly, Lena was happy.

She loved this job because it had introduced her to her best friend and the most important people in her life.

Meanwhile, Lin Mo entered the City Lord's Mansion and unsurprisingly saw Sherfilia’s figure.

Finnie was eating breakfast in their private dining room while Sherfilia stood behind her, tidying her hair.

Just-awakened Finnie looked a little drowsy—more spaced-out and even cuter than usual.

“Mr. Lin Mo... and Miss Ellie.”

When she saw Lin Mo, she visibly brightened and waved: “Mr. Lin Mo, want to join me for a bite?”

“Sherfilia already made breakfast.”

Lin Mo waved: “It’s still early. No rush—take your time.”

That said, Landon and the others were probably already on their way to the Association.

But no matter—they were often late;

a half-hour delay wouldn’t change anything.

While they waited, another figure suddenly entered.

Sherfilia slightly bowed, and Finnie smiled: “Mother, you’re here.”

Lin Mo turned and saw Lady Beixi.

Standing beside her was a maid who looked somewhat familiar—also ivory-haired but with long hair, a very voluptuous figure, and an age similar to Lady Behira.

Could she be Sherfilia’s mother?

The maid smiled and gave Lin Mo a nod in greeting.

Lady Beixi nodded to her daughter, then looked at Lin Mo: “What a coincidence. I came looking for you...”

“Has something happened?”

Lin Mo’s expression immediately became serious.

Lady Beixi shook her head: “It’s not a huge matter, but there is a situation. The mithril mine near Silverstream City was attacked last night.”

“The mithril mine?”

Lin Mo, of course, knew about it. Before coming here, Flora had told him that near Silverstream City there was a mithril mine—a source of mithril—so mithril gloves were somewhat cheaper here than elsewhere.

A place like that would certainly be important.

Given Silverstream City’s current state, a mine attack was indeed a noteworthy situation.

“Who carried out the attack?”

To be honest, Lin Mo was puzzled. If the mine had simply been attacked, it seemed unrelated to him. Why would Lady Beixi look for him specifically?

“That’s the interesting part...”

A cold smile crossed Lady Beixi’s lips: “After investigation, there were two waves of thieves who entered the mithril mine. One wave was goblins;

the other was a gang from Lania City.”

“The Bloodsea Gang?”

Lin Mo immediately thought of that name. For Lania City’s gangs, he only knew this one. Intriguingly, from previous pursuit incidents it was known that the Bloodsea Gang essentially acted as the black gloves of Viscount Caroline Lawrence of Lania City.

So this attack on the mithril mine was related to Viscount Caroline?

“Exactly.”

Lady Beixi nodded: “I heard about it from Flora. You have old enmity with the Bloodsea Gang;

why not let you handle this matter?”

Lin Mo smiled at once—so that was it.

This was indeed a good proposal.

When the Bloodsea Gang sent people to hunt him, he hadn’t forgotten, but he never had the chance to retaliate;

after all, he couldn’t leave Silverstream City and go to Lania City just to cause trouble.

Moreover, in terms of difficulty, this incident involved goblins as well—no need to worry.

“No problem.”

He agreed readily.

Lady Beixi then told him some details, including the approximate enemy numbers.

From current intelligence, the goblin force was estimated at around three to four hundred, while the exact number of Bloodsea Gang members was uncertain. However, they had a clear understanding of the gang itself.

The Bloodsea Gang’s boss was only a Level 5 Professional.

Before coming to Silverstream City, a Level 5 professional would have been unimaginable to Lin Mo.

But now, although not much time had passed, a Level 5 professional was no threat to Lin Mo.

“If that’s the scale, we shouldn’t need much assistance. With Azure Orchid Team and us, two adventuring teams should be enough.”

Lady Beixi nodded: “Then I’ll entrust it to you. After it’s done, come to me to collect the reward.”

She didn’t specify the reward, but judging by Lady Beixi’s generous nature, it wouldn’t be small.

That settled what task they would take.

Finnie finished eating, and Lin Mo took Ellie, Finnie, and Sherfilia straight to the Association.

Lady Beixi watched their backs until they walked away, then looked to the maid behind her.

“To avoid accidents, go with them and have a look.”

“I understand, Miss.”

The ivory-haired maid nodded, bowed, and left the room.

On the way, Sherfilia frequently glanced back.

“Anything wrong?”

Noticing her behavior, Lin Mo asked.

Sherfilia shook her head: “Nothing.”

They soon arrived in front of the Association, pushed the door open, and Lin Mo quickly found Landon and the others in the hall.

“You finally showed up. Come see this—what mission should we take? We’ve been discussing it forever with no result.”

“No need to consider that.”

Lin Mo smiled mysteriously: “We’ve got a bigger job.”

...

“A mission from the City Lord?”

Landon was stunned. In fact, he still didn’t know Finnie’s true identity. So hearing that Lin Mo knew the City Lord and could accept a mission directly from her was naturally astonishing.

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

The other Azure Orchid members were clearly excited—this was a mission directly issued by the City Lord, something not every team could get.

Their reactions showed that Lady Beixi the City Lord had considerable prestige locally.

“Don’t rush. Let’s sort out the information first.”

In a key moment, Team Leader Landon steadied the overly excited group, calmly making a simple analysis and plan.

They then bought some extra supplies.

Unlike previous forest adventures, the mithril mine was further away, and there wouldn’t be many monsters along the way to hunt for food. So they needed to prepare more provisions.

Water wasn’t a problem: near the mithril mine there was a river, and along its banks there seemed to be a special monster called the Crystal Ore Beast.

These creatures were also frequent thieves of mithril ore, but normally there were guards near the mine to guard against them.

This time, the mine theft occurred partly because the attackers were numerous and partly because many guards were sleeping that night;

the patrol guards were killed, so no one detected the incident in time.

By the time the anomaly was noticed, it was already late.

And while goblins were one thing, the Bloodsea Gang came prepared—those guards alone couldn’t hold the mine.

The good news: there was a dedicated road to the mithril mine.

So they could take carriages and avoid much trouble.

Lady Beixi had arranged everything;

at the city gate two fine carriages were waiting.

Azure Orchid members took one carriage, while Lin Mo, his Silver-Grey Team members, and Sherfilia boarded the other.

This time Sherfilia didn’t insist on not getting in;

instead she went up to sit on the carriage roof.

When Lin Mo mentioned it, Finnie frowned and scolded Sherfilia a bit.

She merely told her not to be so picky and not so rigid...

But Sherfilia clearly heard it in one ear and out the other.

She behaved obediently enough, but whether she truly listened was another matter.

She glanced at Lin Mo—her expression still unreadable, but there was a faint chill that made one’s skin prickle.

Lin Mo shrugged. If this had been earlier, he might have worried more.

But now he held the City Lord’s seal of authorization—he wasn’t afraid at all.

The carriage smoothly rolled along the road;

the journey still had some time.

From Silverstream City to the mithril mine was almost a full day, so by the time they arrived it would be near night—perhaps the thieves would show up again.

But the trip was somewhat boring.

A goblin ambush would at least make things interesting.

Lin Mo found himself oddly nostalgic for those old green-headed foes—their big round skulls would be satisfying to chop.

Yet they never encountered any. One reason was that the main road to the mithril mine was crucial, so Silverstream City took extra care and assigned people to clear it.

Another reason: reports said the goblin populations hadn’t increased in the past two days;

they had actually decreased somewhat.

That wasn’t good—it likely meant the goblins were preparing a major move.

If nothing unexpected happened, Silverstream City’s real crisis was drawing closer.

But Lin Mo wasn’t too worried. From Lady Beixi’s demeanor it was clear she had prepared for this.

So this wasn’t something he needed to overthink—he’d just lend his strength when the time came.

With nothing else to do, he meditated.

Lin Mo meditated whenever he had free time during adventures or rest, so the skill had progressed nicely.

After roughly two hours of meditation, he glanced at his panel.

[Primary Meditation Technique] Lv2 (19/20)

Almost ready to level up?

Although meditation is an excellent-grade skill and reaching level three wouldn’t grant attribute points, he was only a hair’s breadth away—Might as well level it up.

Leveling from two to three still offered skill improvements.

So Lin Mo closed his eyes again, and after a while...

“Skill [Primary Meditation Technique] Lv2 (20/20) upgraded!”

“Current skill [Primary Meditation Technique] Lv3 (0/40)”

[Primary Meditation Technique] Lv3 (0/40): Enter meditation state, increase mana recovery rate by 24% and spirit recovery rate by 24%!

Well, the boost was real but limited.

Upgrading twice only raised it from 20% at level one to 24% now.

Overall, though, this skill was very useful. Beyond the obvious mana and spirit recovery increases, after each meditation Lin Mo’s mind cleared, his thoughts became more orderly, and many negative emotions disappeared.

For example, he had been slightly impatient earlier, but after meditating, his mood became very calm.

On the carriage, Ellie sat quietly while Sherfilia sat next to Finnie, occasionally whispering to her.

There wasn’t any conflict—nor did Sherfilia or the others hold anything against half-orcs—just unfamiliarity, so they seldom made small talk unless necessary.

Lin Mo’s waking brightened the atmosphere.

Ellie eagerly scooted up to him, leaned on him, and closed her eyes in contentment.

An envious glance immediately landed on them.

As expected, it came from Finnie....

The girl peeked shyly this way, then quickly lowered her head as if afraid of being noticed—her bashful expression was unbearably cute.

Lin Mo recalled what Lady Beixi had told him earlier.

Maybe he should take the initiative?

Though saying that, how would he act proactively?

Lin Mo had no real experience in love.

As for his relationship with Ellie? Their story was less like romance and more like him being forced into something...

Well, anyway.

Luckily opportunities to connect kept appearing;

as time ticked by, soon it was midday.

Because they likely needed to stand guard or perhaps fight tonight, resting along the route was important: they’d stop for lunch and even take a short nap afterward.

Given their pace, time was still ample.

Unlike forest adventures, the road’s surroundings were desolate, not forested.

That’s also why goblins were rarely seen here—without goblins there were few monsters or animals, so they couldn’t hunt and had to eat the rations they brought from the city.

Finnie held a delicate packed meal, pouting as she nibbled it piece by piece.

She wanted to bring sweet, soft cake, but Sherfilia forbade too many desserts.

Lin Mo thought that as a Professional, her body couldn’t be treated like a regular person’s, so a little dessert shouldn’t be a problem.

But considering Finnie’s role as a relatively low-activity priest, Sherfilia’s caution made sense.

Finnie’s cake-eating was a little scary.

Finnie usually had a small appetite, but when it came to snacks and sweets she seemed bottomless. She ate slowly yet, somehow, a whole cake would be gone in no time.

That was when Lin Mo stepped up.

He took out the pots and pans he had specifically brought. After acquiring a Spatial Ring, these things didn’t need to be compact—he could buy the best and stuff them into the ring without taking much space.

He also had plenty of meat and vegetables—yes, he planned to cook here.

Finnie’s eyes were immediately drawn—she blinked like a greedy child who was too shy to ask. Her expression was irresistible...