Returning to the small town, it was approximately 10 AM.

The journey had been relatively smooth, without encountering any monsters, which actually left Lin Mo feeling somewhat restless and eager for action.

He had been hoping to maybe hunt a few goblins or something along the way to level up his [Slash] skill to level 3.

Upon returning to town, the first thing to do was naturally to turn in the quest.

The group entered the Adventurers' Association, and Lin Mo immediately spotted the catgirl at the counter furthest to the side.

There were still remarkably few adventurers at her station, as usual. Even fellow half-beasts seemed to prefer gathering around the human receptionists to chat for a bit. Only those truly in a hurry came to her counter, seeking convenience and speed.

Where the quest was accepted was naturally where it should be submitted.

Lin Mo walked straight over and took out the 150 Qingfen Grass plants from his backpack.

Despite all the unexpected events along the way, the quest he originally accepted was actually just a simple material collection task.

Yet he had somehow gotten entangled in troublesome affairs, from which he had profited quite handsomely. It was hard to say whether this was good luck or bad.

"You're back!"

The girl behind the counter was visibly happy to see Lin Mo.

Lena naturally remembered this "odd person" well—someone who, for reasons unknown, didn't seem to show the usual prejudice toward her.

Not seeing him for the past couple of days, Lena had actually been somewhat worried. After all, with the adventurer profession, no one could predict when misfortune might strike. Every expedition carried the risk of never returning.

"Quest submission. These are the collected Qingfen Grass."

Lin Mo handed her the somewhat messy herbs. Lena nodded, "Understood, please wait a moment."

She took the large bundle of herbs and began organizing them one by one while counting the quantity.

Watching her movements, Lin Mo's gaze naturally fell upon her delicate hands. They looked no different from human hands, but perhaps because of years working indoors, her skin was exceptionally smooth and tender, so pale it almost seemed to glow.

"Total of 150 plants. Each at 3 silver coins, so that's 4 gold and 50 silver."

"3 silver coins?"

Lin Mo paused in surprise: "Wasn't it 2 silver coins?"

"Recently, it's not just monsters—there have been bandits appearing outside town too. While this has led to more extermination and escort quests, it's not very friendly for novice adventurers. With a small influx of veteran adventurers, many young people have chosen to develop elsewhere. Few are willing to take on simple material collection quests like this, so we had to increase the rewards."

At this point, Lena suddenly glanced around and whispered: "Normally we should settle at the price when the quest was accepted, but these minor quests usually don't record time. So the employer won't know when you accepted the quest. I'm calculating at the current price for you—please don't tell anyone."

Lin Mo gave her a surprised look, then smiled understandingly: "Don't worry, I won't say anything. I'll come to you for future quests too."

"Thank you, meow~"

Lena smiled sweetly. This kind of relaxed, equal interaction was quite rare for her, so she cherished it greatly.

The catgirl took out 4 gold coins and 50 silver coins from the counter, carefully counted them, placed them in a pouch, and handed it to Lin Mo.

Lin Mo accepted the pouch, waved, and turned to leave.

"So fast?"

In the main hall, watching Lin Mo return with the cloth pouch, Evan showed a look of astonishment as he waited.

"I accepted the quest there where there were fewer people."

Lin Mo pointed toward Lena's counter. Evan immediately showed an understanding expression: "Uncle Bern is still in line, plus we have to wait for the employer to come confirm. Probably won't be until afternoon."

"Then we might as well have lunch here."

Lin Mo checked the time—it was about lunchtime anyway.

The Association naturally provided food services at reasonably fair prices, only slightly more expensive than outside.

Including the merchant guild leader's daughter, there were five people total. Lin Mo ordered a whole roast chicken, a large plate of cheesy mashed potatoes, plus each person got a steak, a white bread loaf, and a cream of mushroom soup.

The roast chicken wasn't the common domesticated chicken from Lin Mo's previous life, but rather a native wild fowl of this world—quite large, weighing over twenty pounds, about the size of a turkey.

But the meat wasn't as dry as turkey; instead it was tender and juicy, with quite good flavor.

After completing the procedures, Bern also sat down to eat together.

The Association would handle contacting the employer to come verify in person.

It turned out much faster than expected. Shortly after finishing the meal, a slightly overweight middle-aged man rushed hurriedly into the Association.

"Father!"

The young woman who had been waiting for so long immediately stood up and excitedly went to meet him.

Father and daughter finally reunited, embracing each other and weeping uncontrollably.

Yori knew very well that in this dangerous world, losing contact almost certainly meant life or death separation.

When he posted the quest at the Association, he hadn't held much hope, only thinking that even recovering his daughter's body for burial would be enough. When the Association personnel came to notify him earlier, he could hardly believe his ears.

So he immediately put down all his work and rushed over.

"Thank you, truly thank you so much!"

He excitedly grasped Bern's hands, thanking him repeatedly.

"Just doing our job—it's what we should do."

Lena smiled sweetly. This kind of relaxed, equal interaction was quite rare for her, so she cherished it especially.

This time, Miriam didn't pull away or roll her eyes at him. She just quietly watched the father and daughter pair before them, silent for a long time.

After confirming completion of the quest's additional objectives, the Association also distributed the 100 gold coins Yori had prepaid when posting the quest. Bern held the heavy, full bag of gold coins, feeling their substantial weight, unable to conceal his excited expression.

According to their prior agreement, he gave Lin Mo 40 gold coins. Of the remaining 60, he first distributed 4 coins to each team member.

The remaining 48 gold coins weren't for him to keep alone, but would serve as team funds for expenses and major item purchases.

Such as food supplies, accommodation costs, various alchemical medicines, including armor and expensive weapon acquisitions, etc.

These matters were generally discussed collectively, with Bern having the final say.

"4 gold coins... I remember the iron-thorn wood bow at Edgar's shop sells for 5 gold coins."

Evan muttered to himself while proactively taking out one gold coin and handing it to Miriam.

"Want to come check out the smithy together?"

Bern extended an invitation to Lin Mo.

Since Lin Mo had been planning to go there anyway, he naturally had no reason to refuse.

Although the sword he previously acquired for 50 silver coins had been quite a bargain, it had issues with insufficient sturdiness and durability. After several intense battles, the blade already showed some damage. If he continued using it, there was no telling when it might break during combat, just like Evan's previous sword.

Lin Mo wouldn't cut corners on something as important as weapons. So when it was time to replace, it was time to replace. Money that needed to be spent shouldn't be saved at all.