Genshin Impact: I Can Obtain Adventure EXP

by redx43

An ordinary young man, Nolan Walker, traveled across the continent of Teyvat. He was penniless and thought it would be difficult to survive until he beat up a slime: 【Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 32 Adventure Experience】 What? Defeat Enemies to Obtain Adventure EXP, which can keep improving your level and skills! From then on, Nolan understood that even as an ordinary person

1. EP 1

Chapter 1: Golden Light and Crossing Over

In a small rented urban room, the only light came from the streetlamp at the corner of the building across the alley, shining through the clothes that were rarely washed for days and through the window.

On the wooden desk that also served as a dining table, Nolan Walker was staring intently at the game screen running on his laptop. Due to the overly dark environment, blurred images were also projected onto his face, showing the Gacha banner interface in Tighnari's banner.

The lights weren't turned off to save electricity or anything. Ever since Tighnari's banner came out, Nolan Walker had been using his previously saved Primogems to Wish, but unexpectedly kept getting the wrong 5-star each time. This was yet another soft pity where he didn't get the current rate-up character. He continued wishing another 30 times without even a ripple.

As a college graduate who had just graduated and became unemployed, Nolan Walker simply didn't have the means to top up and spend money. He could barely make ends meet with some side jobs. However, he didn't want to miss Tighnari, so he painfully farmed chests, domains, and events for over 10 days, saving up each Intertwined Fate he obtained. Now he finally made it to hard pity right before Tighnari's banner ended.

Nolan knew that with the guarantee system this wish would definitely get him Tighnari. Thinking of the bittersweet past 10-plus days, he turned off the lights in his room and sank into darkness—he was determined to be blinded by the golden light!

This is the stubbornness of a loser, right?

With his palm on the mouse, he slowly moved towards the wish button. Even knowing it was a guaranteed 5-star, he still felt a bit nervous before the moment of truth.

Click.

A crisp sound rang out as Nolan pressed confirm. The wishing animation began playing, a brilliant shooting star descending. He watched without moving, repeatedly chanting gold, gold, gold in his mind.

In less than a second, the shooting star flashed golden, confirming that there was no error. He got hit!

Although extremely excited, Nolan didn't have anyone to share the moment with and he wasn't in the habit of talking to himself, so he could only silently rejoice.

One second, two seconds passed. Strangely, the golden shooting star on the screen kept expanding instead of the animation ending. Could it be a network issue? No way, at this time?

He always played full screen which made him dizzy, so he could see the taskbar showing his phone hotspot still connected fine. It wasn't a signal problem.

Just as he was feeling anxious, the golden shooting star showed no signs of stopping at all.

Could it really smash its way out?

As if responding to Nolan's thoughts, the sound of breaking glass rang out. Cracks like a spiderweb appeared on the screen with golden light bursting out from within.

Nolan's eyes widened but there was no time to think. The whole screen shattered and the golden light swallowed him whole, his consciousness going blank as the room was left empty.

"Boing, Boing."

Bouncing soft squishy noises that sounded like something jumping up and down. Still unconscious, Nolan turned over with an itch—it felt like sleeping on grass, the soft pointy blades brushing over his skin.

Wait, wasn't I just wishing? As if realizing something, fragments of memories flashed through Nolan's mind, ending at the scene of being struck by the game's golden shooting star.

He had just opened his eyes when a splash of water hit his face. Nolan instantly woke up.

Lying sideways on the grass, in his blurred vision was a blue blob jumping up and down. He wiped the water off and propped himself up with one hand. His sight gradually cleared—it was a hydro slime!?

"Hydro Slime! Wait, that's too weird. What's going on right now?"

Nolan uttered his voice in some surprise.

The soft and bouncy little thing in front of his eyes looked very cute, wasn't it the Hydro Slime in the game? It was exactly the same, could it be real?

Could it be that he had been knocked out by the golden light for several decades, and nowadays game companies could use biotechnology to create fantasy creatures from games to sell?

While Nolan was shocked, the sudden voice frightened the Hydro Slime. It angrily squeezed its body, poised to attack.

Nolan had seen this scene countless times in the game, so of course he knew what it was going to do.

"Hey hey, wait, calm down!"

He instinctively shouted, getting up to run away, but was a step too late. His raised butt was struck by the slime's bouncy body, knocking him flat on the ground.

Luckily it was grass, a bit of cushioning not to be seriously injured. He was now one hundred percent sure that this Slime was real.

In the end, it was a monster, even with its cute appearance, once recognizing Nolan as an enemy it ruthlessly pursued. It wanted to attack again.

Nolan swiftly rolled on the ground, narrowly dodging an impact. He crouched there catching his breath.

What's the situation here?

Keeping an eye on the hydro slime, he reserved the strength to observe his surroundings, wanting to confirm if he had truly come to Teyvat. Otherwise, how could such an identical Hydro Slime exist!?

The ground was grass, emerald-like fresh sprouts. The sky was vast with white clouds and blue sky rarely seen in modern cities. To the left was a forest and to the right a clear lake. In the center of the lake was a small island with a Statue of The Seven!

The Hydro Slime gathered its strength to crash into him again. Prepared this time, Nolan dangerously but narrowly dodged.

This Hydro Slime wasn't the big variant. Its speed wasn't too fast. For him as an ordinary human adult, with preparation, he could also dodge it.

Nolan looked at the Slime which seemed to be more angry look. He retreated two steps towards the Statue of The Seven.

The lake water was shallow enough to wade across. Getting closer to the statue, he confirmed it was undoubtedly the Anemo Archon Barbatos's statue

Recalling the long familiarized game map, comparing it against his current surroundings—unsurprisingly, this was Starfell Lake.

The scenery before him, the sounds of fish disturbed into swiftly swimming, the air carrying the scent of grass entering his nostrils, everything he saw, heard, and smelled told him without exception: This Is Another World!

This...this is just too amazing!

Nolan is just a bottom laborer on the earth, his life is depressing and hopeless, and only the expectation of his relatives is the driving force behind his continuous efforts.

But effort doesn't always pay off in this society, otherwise, why would the vast majority still fail to succeed?

Nolan wouldn't say he was fed up, but the meaningless day-to-day work had nearly extinguished all his passion.

Luckily, he had the Teyvat Continent to accompany him - one of the few places that could bring him peace and quiet.

He had long yearned for Teyvat while playing the game - what child doesn't love to fantasize? So when he suddenly crossed over into Teyvat, he had no doubts or disbelief about accepting this reality.

He didn't have any strong attachments holding him back on Earth either. Since he was here, there must be a way back too. After all, Teyvat was a land of supernatural powers - as long as he didn't give up, there would always be chances.

And since both Lumine and Aether were from worlds outside Teyvat and had some special abilities, it was normal for him to have something special too, like being able to control elemental powers by touching the statues of the Seven, right?

Filled with anticipation, Nolan placed his palm on the Statue of the Seven before him depicting Barbatos. A cool breeze blew by, but there was no reaction. His eyes widened in surprise. No...that's not right. Where was the promised elemental power conversion for otherworld travelers?

Boing. Boing.

The pesky Hydro Slime wasn't ready to give up the chase, splashing through the lake undeterred. Did it really have to hold such a grudge over such a small thing? It definitely lived up to being a monster.

Damn, really no reaction at all no matter how long he kept his hand on the statue. So much for wishful thinking on his part.

Well, even though he didn't obtain any special powers like Lumine or Aether, he still had to deal with the slime before him now. In fact, Nolan wasn't actually very afraid. He had defeated hundreds, if not thousands of slimes in the game before, even including Raiden Shogun herself.

It's not that he also has such ability, it's just that now he's not completely ignorant about this unfamiliar world, and understands that as an ordinary adult, he can deal with this small-type hydro slime if there's only one. At least running-wise, it definitely can't catch up to him.

However, Nolan didn't plan on just escaping. Instead, he wanted to try defeating it. After all, this was Teyvat - wilderness filled with monsters was commonplace. Living here, sooner or later one would encounter them.

Also, if the information provided in-game was accurate, slimes had a chance of dropping slime condensate when defeated. It should be in demand, and if sold, could fetch quite a lot of Mora. This would solve Nolan's penniless state after crossing over to Teyvat.

Otherwise, forget finding a way back - even just surviving would be troublesome.

During Nolan's brief contemplation, the hydro slime used its bouncy body to hop closer and closer. Nolan used the Statue of The Seven as cover, blocking the slime.

The slime jumped a bit to the left, so Nolan moved a bit to the right. It hopped right, so he stepped back left, repeatedly blocking its attack path.

The not-so-bright slime was extremely annoyed, deciding to just charge and smash this obstructing pillar. Gathering strength for one big jump...

Boing.

It dealt no damage whatsoever to the statue and bounced back, rolling on the grass.

Due to its physical composition, the water slime temporarily lost control of its body as it tumbled.

Now was his chance!

Seizing the opportunity, Nolan leaped forward, pounding the small slime's body wildly with his fists. Punching the jelly-like slime felt soft and springy - it wouldn't hurt his hands. After over a minute of punching and kicking for all he was worth, the slime finally dissolved into a puddle of elemental water on the grass, defeated.

Unfortunately, no slime condensate formed. Nolan felt somewhat disappointed.

Just then, an emotionless voice sounded in his mind:

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 32 Adventure Experience]

W-what? Nolan was stunned at first, but then he saw a familiar interface appear in his vision:

Name: Nolan Walker

Level: Lv.1 (0/100)

Race: Human

Title: None

Inherent Talent: Entangling Affection

Skills: None

Specialty: [Descender]

Adventure EXP: 32

Wasn't this a Teyvat fan-made mini-game that had become popular online recently? Nolan had also downloaded and played it before. Players would gain Adventure EXP from defeating enemies, which could be used to increase their Level or Skills.

Innate Talents were randomly obtained by each player and provided special titles, like [Honorary Knight], [Flying Champion], or [Unconferred Flower]. Unfortunately, Nolan didn't have one yet.

Skills had to be learned and trained. Specialties came from adventuring experiences - the more bizarre the experiences, the higher the chance of obtaining a Specialty.

He hadn't expected this fan-made game to cross over with him too. He was worried earlier about how to survive in Teyvat without any abilities, but this was just hitting the jackpot. All those times he rolled the gacha just to build up pity must have paid off with his streak of luck.

Only Nolan could see this panel. He tapped on the explanation for his Innate Talent [Entangling Affection] to see what it did, hoping it was a good one since that mattered a lot to players.

[You were once struck by the golden light of entanglement, awakening this talent within you. After interacting with characters, you will unlock corresponding affection levels. Upon reaching max Level 10 affection, you shall obtain empowerment from their Archon seats - however, this "character" scope is limited to the opposite gender.]

Based on the description, his Innate Talent seemed similar to the affection system in Genshin Impact, except at max level he would obtain some special Archon empowerment rather than a name card.

He didn't know what the exact effects would be though. It definitely wouldn't be easy to fulfill the conditions, since max affection represented complete trust and vulnerability with someone, requiring long periods of interaction to achieve. He could only let nature run its course.

Nolan tapped on his other trait - the Specialty[Descender]. As he guessed, it denoted him as someone who came from outside Teyvat, with no records on the World Tree, similar to the Traveler. And that was it for effects.

The current 32 exp was from defeating the hydro slime earlier. It wasn't enough to increase from Lv.1 to Lv.2 at 100 exp, he could only put it aside for now.

In any case, he was no longer empty-handed in Teyvat. The days ahead were worth looking forward to.

Phew~ Seeing the fan-made character panel that crossed over with him helped Nolan relax his emotions quite a bit.

Next, he just had to find ways to gain Adventure EXP, increase his Level, and steady his footing in Teyvat - to witness this splendid, fantastical world!

And so, Nolan Walker turned his gaze towards the fish swimming in Starfell Lake. If he remembered right, defeating them would also provide Adventure EXP according to the character panel.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 2: Mondstadt

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 5 Adventure EXP]

A black-back perch was knocked out by Nolan Walker with a rock.

Fishing was more difficult than he imagined, especially for a novice like Nolan.

Without any tools, his entire body was drenched before he managed to catch just 3 fish, each granting only 5 EXP for a total of 15 points. That was far less than what the slime had given.

Added to his original 32 points, he now had only 47. Still quite a way from leveling up. He recalled it was nighttime when he crossed over, and some time had passed since then. Judging by the sun's position and height, it should be early morning now.

Adventure EXP couldn't be rushed. He had to make it to Mondstadt city before night fell, otherwise being stuck outdoors with monsters and beasts roaming in the darkness would be too dangerous.

He was still just an ordinary person, and he couldn't deal with too powerful monsters.

Let alone Hilichurls, even a single wolf could easily finish him off, abruptly ending his Teyvat adventures.

That wasn't what Nolan wanted. He had to remain prudent.

Starfell Lake wasn't too far from Mondstadt. He remembered from the game's map that following the road through Whispering Woods would lead him there. Hopefully, there won't be any discrepancies.

It'd be best if things matched perfectly.

Nolan walked on the dirt wilderness road, carrying 3 tied-up black perch in his hands.

In his heart, he was a little regretful that he had gotten his clothes wet because of these fish. With the wind blowing over to cool him, he was worried that he would get a cold.

It was all due to his burning eagerness to test out the character panel. Ah, Nolan, you should have been more careful and restrained!

On the surface, he didn't show, but in fact, he was still super excited about having a character panel, and only now did he calm down a little.

The road from Starfell Lake to Whispering Woods was unexpectedly long. Reality seemed far vaster compared to the game. That wasn't too surprising though - the information provided in the game may be correct, but it is not complete.

Like right now, this stretch of road. In the game, it'd take just seconds of controlling the character to pass. But he'd already spent over 10 minutes walking and still only saw the first traces of the forest trees.

Nolan reminded himself that the prior game info could only serve as a reference. He absolutely could not blindly take it as the standard. The Reality was far more complex than any game.

After walking a bit more, he entered Whispering Woods. Due to the dense foliage and branches blocking sunlight, the environment was much dimmer.

Though monsters didn't litter the place, there were still wild beasts lurking in the forest that warranted extra caution.

However, he currently followed the main road where adventurers and Knights of Favonius on patrol often passed by, so regular beasts tended to avoid the area.

Soon he would reach Mondstadt City though - how would he find lodging there?

He had no Mora or sellable goods on hand. Nolan glanced at the black perch he carried. Rely on them? How much Mora could they fetch?

He felt somewhat worried over that.

Oh well, with no other options, he could only head to Mondstadt first and figure things out from there. Even sleeping on the streets was better than the wilderness.

Suddenly, a voice called out from up ahead:

"Huh? Are you an adventurer from Liyue? Why are you soaked all over?"

Following the voice, Nolan first saw a pair of curious eyes and a fair complexion, before his gaze was drawn to the cute red bunny ears above her head. He also spotted the goggles hanging around her neck. A familiar name surfaced to mind.

- Amber the Outrider!

Nolan was slightly surprised to meet a familiar face so quickly. He remembered during his initial explorations, taking Amber in his party saved quite a bit of trouble when solving world quests.

Nolan remembered Amber's identity in Mondstadt very clearly - "Outrider Amber, reporting for duty!" He could almost still hear those words ringing by his ears. And she thought I was an adventurer from Liyue?

Well, with his looks, it was understandable others would assume he was from Liyue. But how should he respond? Should he admit the truth?

The Traveler with their immense strength could proclaim being from another world, but he didn't have such capabilities. And the reality was far more complex than any game.

Claiming a foreign identity would just put him under the spotlight. If he drew even a hint of ill-will, that spelled nothing but trouble.

Yet he wasn't an adventurer either. A completely ordinary, average student like him could never fake that sort of bearing or habits.

As thoughts spun in his mind, Nolan's expression fell as he replied in a dejected tone:

"I am from Liyue, but not an adventurer, just a hapless fool bringing Liyue specialties hoping to trade them in Mondstadt, only to get robbed of everything by the Treasure Hoarders."

This excuse made a lot of sense. After all, large price differences did exist between regional specialties, so plenty of people transported goods from their hometowns to sell in other nations.

Aside from Hilichurls or other monsters, transports also faced danger from the Treasure Hoarders, who specialized in this business. Blaming them was perfectly reasonable.

"Treasure Hoarders near Mondstadt again huh? Looks like I'll need to report back and increase patrols around the area."

Seeing the somewhat miserable state of the dirt and dampness on Nolan's clothes, as well as the fish he carried, Amber imagined him getting mugged and dumped in the wilderness by the Hoarders. Starving, he caught some fish from the lake but was unable to build a fire, and he could not swallow the raw fish.

Kindhearted Amber gazed at Nolan with sympathy:

"Treasure Hoarders are detestable but don't worry. Now that you've met me, I won't let you wander destitute outside. Come with me to Mondstadt first. You must change out of those clothes, otherwise, you'll get sick from the cold."

Amber immediately perceived the difficulties faced by the Liyue youth before her eyes. Providing aid to others was a knight's duty. She extended her helping hand without hesitation.

Hearing Amber's words, Nolan sincerely felt warmth and security in his heart. He stretched out his right hand and expressed gratefully:

"Thank you, thank you very much. My name is Nolan, And I will definitely repay you in the future."

Amber had been wearing brown gloves, but now she swiftly removed them, revealing a bright sunny smile on her fair face as she shook the youth's hand.

"I'm Amber, Outrider of the Knights of Favonius!"

[Amber has developed good feelings towards you. Obtained 20 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.1 (20/100)]

Feeling the warmth transmitted from Amber's palm, Nolan suddenly didn't feel as cold despite his soaked clothing.

Seeing the affection points notification, just becoming acquainted gave 20 points? Probably related to Amber's helpful nature. There is still a long way to go to get to max level.

He should seize any chance to gain Amber's Affection - it was another way to improve himself. The Archon empowerment from reaching max level couldn't be weak with such harsh requirements right?

Well, it was good to have dreams. What if they actually came true?

With Amber the Outrider by his side, the owner of a Vision no less, Nolan no longer needed to worry about danger in Whispering Woods.

The forest was larger than he expected. Amidst the gloom, he could occasionally spot the pale blue-white glow emitted by Lamp Grass.

As he followed Amber towards Mondstadt City, Nolan tried asking about the situation there. For example, whether any major incidents had occurred recently in Mondstadt - this was his indirect attempt at finding out if the Stormterror crisis had happened yet. Amber seemed puzzled and said everything had been peaceful in Mondstadt lately.

Through their casual chat, based on information she unintentionally revealed, Nolan could roughly ascertain that the Traveler, Lumine or Aether, had not arrived in Mondstadt yet, so the main storyline probably hadn't kicked off either.

That was good news. Although unseen in-game, he knew the dragon calamity had caused considerable damage to Mondstadt. He preferred not facing it entirely unprepared.

Though he wondered how much Adventure EXP defeating Stormterror would grant...no, too dangerous. That was beyond what his current weak self could participate in.

As thoughts spun in his mind, Nolan noticed the surroundings gradually brightening. They were finally about to leave the forest.

"Nolan, hurry up and look right - that's Mondstadt city!"

Amber suddenly broke into a jog, her white over-knee boots lightly stepping across the road outside the forest, before turning back and waving at Nolan.

The not-too-intense sunlight illuminated her already fair face even more dazzlingly. The red bunny ears on her head swayed slightly, appearing oh so sunny and cute.

They were finally arriving, at Mondstadt city.

Nolan quickened his pace to catch up. Gazing afar, what entered his vision were the solid city walls, the single stone bridge filled with pedestrians, horse carts transporting goods passing by.

"How is it? Spectacular, right? Hehe." Amber smiled and asked.

"Well, it's the first time I've seen such magnificent city walls."

Nolan chose words befitting his identity. After all, Liyue Harbor lacked walls.

Walking further ahead, from the corner of his eyes Nolan spotted a Teleport Waypoint on a nearby hill. Noticing his gaze, Amber didn't stop and simply said:

"These strange devices are pretty common huh? No one knows what they do, just ignore them."

"Mm, they can be frequently seen in Liyue too."

Nolan casually replied. Of course, he knew Teyvat's Waypoints weren't just for show. They should utilize ley lines for long-distance transfers, though currently only the Traveler can use them for some reason.

If he could utilize them too that'd be great. He should test it out when possible.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 3: Methods to Gain Adventure EXP

Mondstadt City, the gates area.

As expected, everything was far larger than what was shown in the game. The streets near the city gates bustled with many peddlers and pedestrians.

Since his clothes had gotten wet, Amber knew Nolan had been robbed penniless by the Treasure Hoarders. So she paid out of her own pocket to buy him a suitable outfit from a nearby store that sells clothes.

It cost over 5,000 Mora - very ordinary clothing. At first hearing the number gave him a shock, but he quickly realized Mora differed from his original currency.

About 1 USD was equal to 100 Mora it seemed. The Mora coins created through Rex Lapis' divine powers sure existed in massive quantities.

They should have been endlessly manufactured ever since the first Mora was born, only stopping temporarily after Rex Lapis passed on the Gnosis.

Since Mora itself held intrinsic value as a medium of exchange, it would inevitably get used up over time. So there was no need to worry about rampant inflation from overproduction.

"I'm truly grateful to you again Amber. I wouldn't have known what to do if we hadn't met."

After changing into dry clothes, Nolan felt much more comfortable. Amber then brought him to Good Hunter restaurant for lunch.

Amber sighed and said with a straight face:

"It's my duty after all. For you to be robbed by Treasure Hoarders within Mondstadt territory shows our Knights of Favonius still haven't done enough. Don't worry, I'll help keep an eye out for the Hoarders during my patrols and try recovering your lost goods as much as possible."

Hearing Amber say this, guilt welled up in Nolan's heart. Should he not have deceived her? He opened his mouth but no words came out.

"Right, what are your plans next? If you wish to return to Liyue, our knights can request some Liyue trade convoys to bring you back. Or if you stay in Mondstadt, we will also provide you with a temporary place to live."

Amber asked as she looked over at Nolan and pondered for a moment. Then she put on the gloves she had taken off during the meal and waited for Nolan's answer.

He didn't need to think this over at all. Returning to Liyue meant resetting back to his initial state upon arrival. Nolan could only continue spinning his lies.

He pondered for a moment and said:

"If possible, I'd like to find work and live in Mondstadt for a while. Going back to Liyue like this, I'd be looked down on and laughed at by others."

Nolan put his palms together sincerely making a begging gesture.

He had his own thoughts. If the knights provided temporary lodging, he could search for a job that granted both Adventure EXP and Mora.

Nolan had already thought about it. Just now he saw someone selling fish at the entrance of the city, and the business was not bad.

He could fish to earn Adventure EXP while also selling the catches for Mora for income. Once he became stronger via EXP, he would switch to being an adventurer since defeating monsters was the optimal way to obtain Adventure EXP.

If his plan worked out and he remained prudent, in time he could rival even an Archon with his mere mortal body!

Is this a boy's pride? Amber's forefinger slid up and down her cheek as she recalled Lisa's words before about how boys cared about face. When they got into such situations, it was best to just go along with them.

Sigh...alright then.

"Erm...you do have a point. So let me take you to a temporary place to live now."

Amber had no reason to reject Nolan's request. She got up to lead him to the relief shelter set up by the knights for people in difficulties.

After all, people like Nolan who came to trade but encountered robberies would occasionally be there.

Thus relief shelters were essential infrastructure in Mondstadt, and it was also a place for emergency response in the event of an unforeseen disaster.

A day later, after Amber finished making arrangements for him under the guise of a victim of misfortune, Nolan started pondering how to obtain Adventure EXP.

Once he became stronger, what couldn't he accomplish? So gaining Adventure EXP had to be his top priority.

The method of obtaining it was defeating opponents. As long as he overwhelmed the other side until they couldn't resist at all, even fish could provide EXP contributions.

Of course, the number of Adventure EXP depends on the strength of the opponent.

Fish only gave 5 points while the first slime he met granted 32. Yet that was still the weakest monster that even ordinary people could handle alone.

But Nolan wasn't strong enough right now, and it was dangerous to go directly to fight the monsters. So just like his earlier thoughts, he would start off gathering Adventure EXP from the fish to get through the weak early stage.

Catching fish with his bare hands was far too slow though. Nolan recalled the emergency 30,000 Mora Amber had lent him and wondered if he could buy a fishing net to catch fish faster and easier.

Thinking in this way, Nolan walked out of the small and simple temporary residence.

After spending some time familiarizing himself in Mondstadt city which wasn't that unfamiliar, he finally located a fishing gear shop and went in to ask:

"Boss, how much for a fishing net?"

The shop owner was a middle-aged balding man with white hair, bony features but still seeming quite spry in his movements despite the age.

Sanburn wore a light brown vest, his entire bearing resembling an elderly gentleman. Noticing Nolan, he set down the cup he had been wiping:

"Oh? A customer! How surprising, and rare to see someone from Liyue too. Mondstadt welcomes you, friend from afar! What kind of net were you looking for?"

"I am indeed from Liyue, sir. I need a durable, sturdy fishing net. Any good recommendations, preferably on the cheaper end?"

Nolan spoke with a calm expression.

He was still a little unclear about the fishing gear, what he wanted was a cheap fishing net that could catch fish, after all, this was not something he would do for a long time.

Moreover, the 30,000 Mora borrowed from Amber can't be spent too much in this, or else life will be very tight in the days to come.

Sanburn's eyes swept Nolan, probably also guessed that the Liyue person in front of him was new to Mondstadt, and likely faced some financial difficulties. After thinking a bit, he slowly replied:

"Hrmm...my shop here only sells top grade gear. All nets are from a famous Mondstadt fishing equipment factory, so there's no way for cheap bargains."

Speaking so, he turned and walked deeper inside, placing the cup in his hands on a table. From a wall hook, he took down a fishing net and said to Nolan not far away:

"This net originally cost 13,000 Mora. I'll sell it to you for 10,000. Made by Thorn Fishing Gear factory, as you know their trait is durable sturdiness."

Apologies, I don't know them at all. After all, he had only come to Teyvat for a little over a day. All his information originated from playing Genshin Impact before - the game definitely wouldn't elaborate in such minute details as fishing net manufacturer identities.

Nolan stroked his chin. 10,000 for a net was still rather suitable. Converted to his original currency, roughly 100 USD which was common for fishing nets. It showed the boss had indeed given a discount already.

"Alright, I'll take it." Having decided, Nolan didn't waste words and directly purchased it.

"Haha, great! Head to Springvale Lake tonight to cast your net. With some luck you'll harvest plenty fat catches by morning. Eat your fill then sell the excess early before noon when prices drop!"

Before retirement, Sanburn had been a fisherman himself thus knew many common tips in the trade. Hence he opened this gear shop after retiring.

Casting nets didn't have high difficulty. Success depended on location and luck for the most part. Just casual advice for now.

Nolan nodded his head, indicating that he understood, what the boss said was similar to what he thought.

Before leaving, he bought some more bait, then eagerly made his way out the gates, observing along the bank of Springvale Lake for suitable net throwing spots.

Because of the lack of a small boat, it was impossible to go to the center of the lake. So he could only make do with what he had, watching the depth of the water to cast the fishing net, and then sprinkle the bait, waiting for tomorrow.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 4: Fishing and Selling Fish

Early in the morning, the sky was still dark.

There weren't many people in the streets and alleys yet, but the shops and workshops for the morning market were busy preparing to open.

Some fully-geared adventurers had risen early, walking towards Katheryne to take on commissions and earn Mora - better to have funds for drinks later at Angel's Share tavern tonight!

Among them was Nolan, here to retrieve his net.

After an entire night passed, the amount of harvest depends on luck. Mondstadt wasn't a fishing focused nation after all.

Though some did work in the trade, not many, conveniently avoiding overfishing issues.

So Nolan wasn't worried about not having a single fish, and that was on the premise of having bait.

Stepping on the dewy grass, he walked Springvale Lake's bank once more. The dampness on his shoes likely came from the lakeside fog during nighttime.

A few minutes passed, and Nolan came to the location of yesterday's fishing nets.

A wooden stick was inserted into the soil, and the fishing net was pulled out about fifteen meters along the stick, which was not very big, and the shadows of the fish could be seen vaguely through the clear water.

Nolan grew somewhat excited. All he needed to do now was pull the net back in.

So heavy!

Only by grasping the net could its weight be felt. Seemed he made the right choice selling fish for a living, otherwise, how would a normal person like him easily gain Adventure EXP?

It took some effort to haul the net back onto shore. Plenty of fish both big and small got caught inside.

Mostly common ones like Glaze Medaka, Red-Belly Medaka, Black-Back Perch plus a few Bitty Bitterling.

[Defeated Powerful Enemy * 13, Obtained 65 Adventure EXP]

At this time, they were in a state of defenselessness, and without the need to kill them, they were judged to be successfully defeated by Nolan. If it wasn't for the fact that they could only be defeated once, it would be more perfect to raise them and brush them over and over again.

Unfortunately, no such loopholes existed.

But there were still benefits, such as he didn't have to sell the dead fish and could sell them more easily.

Removing the fish one by one from the net into a wooden tub, careful counting showed thirteen catches, 5 EXP each totaling 65. Added to his previous 47, he now had 112.

Exceeding 100 at last, enough to raise his level! He felt rather expectant over what would happen.

Whew~ Nolan took a deep breath, opened the character panel, and put Adventure EXP into the Level section. With a single thought the operation finished, and the number "1" behind Level flickered twice before slowly changing into "2".

Name: Nolan Walker

Level: Lv.2 (0/200)

Race: Human

Title: None

Innate Talent: Entangling Affection

Skills: None

Specialty:[Descender]

Adventure EXP: 12

No major changes occurred on his character panel, yet a clear, comfortable stream of warmth suddenly emerged within his body. Like radiation, this energy slowly encompassed every cell, nourishing and strengthening them. He could feel himself growing stronger bit by bit.

Strengthening time is very fast. Nolan's physical appearance has not changed much, still so ordinary, but he clearly feels that he has become much stronger.

Strength, agility, endurance, spirit, and even life force all improved comprehensively. Scars on his arm from childhood tumbles had vanished without a trace.

If he were to face that Hydro Slime again, he believed that he would be able to defeat it head-on with his bare hands without the help of the environment.

This didn't merely represent physical augmentation, but racial evolution, and elevation of the vital level. Most intuitively shown through Nolan's lifespan increasing accordingly as well.

Although he didn't know exactly how much it had been enhanced, this was indeed what he felt when his body was strengthened.

In the long term, perhaps there would never come a day when his lifespan ended - who didn't desire longevity?

Nolan felt very relaxed in both body and mood, incentivizing collecting Adventure EXP even more!

Advancing the schedule of becoming an adventurer had to happen faster since defeating monsters represented the proper approach for obtaining EXP. Though for that, he would need to learn combat skills and techniques, not knowing how to start currently.

While pondering, he recast his net and sprinkled more fish bait before carrying the tub of catches back to the city to sell off.

At the gates area and thanks to arriving early for a prime spot, business went very smoothly. As food, fresh fish would never lack buyers, especially with just thirteen catches that didn't even count as a tiny fraction for Mondstadt's massive population base - soon sold out.

On average each fish sold for 1,200 Mora, totaling 15,600 income for the batch, immediately recouping his net costs.

When funds allowed more leeway after a few more days, he could return Amber's borrowed Mora and rent a place for himself then.

The rescue center is not only remote but also small, so it's fine for short-term living, but it's too uncomfortable for long-term.

Nothing more he could do today for fishing, have to wait till tomorrow's catches. But collecting Adventure EXP still needed continuous momentum.

Nolan asked at several restaurants, checking if they lacked back kitchen helpers or workers to process livestock and seafood - representing another stable income and EXP source if he could get such a position.

Unfortunately, they all said they had enough staff and didn't need any.

Feeling tired after all the walking, Nolan slumped onto a street bench to catch his breath and gazed blankly at the azure sky, deep in thought. Suddenly from the corner of his eyes, he glimpsed a burly uncle dressed like a hunter passing by.

The uncle carried a hunting bow on his back. Furry animal ears poked from above his head while he sported a mustache below his lips and chin.

Nolan's thoughts jumped and some memories came back to him, he seemed to be the chief of hunters in Springvale not far away from Mondstadt City, Diona's father, Draff!

Wait...hunter!

Nolan realized that if he wanted to become an adventurer, he still lacked combat skills and techniques. But to learn those required someone to teach him.

Thinking so, becoming a hunter would make a good transitional job. Also needing to traverse the wilderness, hunters wielded formidable hunting skills too, just against beasts instead of monsters.

If he followed Draff to learn the hunter trade, later gaining self-sufficiency surviving outdoors, then becoming an adventurer wouldn't be far off.

Moreover, even beasts should provide considerable Adventure EXP gains when hunted - he guessed.

Hunting would also be able to utilize the entire daytime gap when there was nothing to do for the time being after fishing and selling fish. So the problem became, could he convince Draff to teach hunting experience and techniques to him, even letting Nolan tag along on hunts?

Watching Draff walk further and further away, Nolan pondered briefly before chasing to catch up anyway.

How do you know it won't work if you don't try?

"Hunter sir, please wait!"

Nolan called out to Draff without revealing familiarity, in case of misunderstandings.

The furry-eared Draff halted his steps, unexpectedly turning around to eye this Liyue youth who stopped him and said:

"Just now I noticed that you have been looking at me with a hesitant look. Is there something wrong?"

As an experienced hunter with a subtle sense of the environment, Draff noticed the source of the sight from the moment Nolan turned his gaze towards him.

However, he just assumed that Nolan was curious.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 5: Hunter's Archery

Nolan pondered for a moment, then spoke:

"Umm, it's like this, Hunter sir. May I ask if you take apprentices?

"I've always wanted to become an adventurer but I'm not too confident in my own abilities. So I wish to first become a hunter and learn wilderness survival skills and experience."

Reality is not a game. At least in his choice of words, Nolan felt he should be more respectful.

Draff was a bit surprised that someone actually wanted to become his apprentice. Hmm... Having an apprentice to help out would reduce his workload.

But the Mora he earned from hunting was barely enough to support his family and drinking habits. How could he afford to pay an apprentice?

Draff awkwardly rubbed the back of his head and rejected politely with an embarrassed smile.

"Haha, young man. You don't need extremely formidable abilities to become an adventurer. Helping run errands and do chores in the city still makes you an adventurer!"

What Draff said did make sense. Becoming an adventurer was very simple, but an adventurer who didn't leave the city wouldn't be able to fight monsters!

"An adventurer who doesn't leave the city, what kind of adventurer is that? Don't worry sir, I don't need Mora, I only wish to learn something!"

Nolan could see that Draff was still a little bit interested, but what factors could make him refuse? Thinking about the fact that he had a love for drinking, maybe it was the problem of Mora.

Seeing the Liyue youth's earnest gaze, Draff didn't have the heart to refuse. Having an apprentice around would be greatly beneficial. At least when encountering dangerous monsters, there would be someone who could seek help from the patrolling Knights of Favonius.

And he could save the excess Mora...

"Cough." But to prevent the youth from not being able to endure hardships and disappoint him, Draff lightly coughed and said solemnly, "Being a hunter isn't easy, there are definite dangers and injuries happen frequently. Are you certain about this?"

"Of course, Hunter sir. I only wish to give it a try. If it doesn't work out, at least I tried my best. This is my dream."

Nolan thought that Draff might still politely refuse, but he didn't expect it to go so smoothly.

Draff crossed his arms and gazed at the street ahead, pondering for a bit. Then he lowered his arms and said,

"Alright. While I don't know what considerations you have, and we're still strangers upon our first meeting, since you're willing to give it a try, I, Draff, am no petty man either. I'll take you for one month. What you can learn is up to your own capability!"

He also harbored thoughts of propagating his hunting skills to later generations. The town's youth nowadays were all unwilling to follow in the older generation's footsteps, thinking only of running off to the cities.

Sigh... Coming across a Liyue youth who was willing to learn now, teaching him wouldn't hurt.

When the youth returns to Liyue in the future, he might brag to others about the amazing hunter-master he met in Mondstadt!

Draff's thoughts started wandering off.

"Really? Thank you, Hunter- I mean, Sir Draff! I will learn diligently."

Nolan held back his excitement. His path of growth was progressing again, and the day he could gallivant freely in Teyvat was drawing near!

After calming down, Nolan briefly introduced himself and asked Draff when they would start hunting.

"Nolan huh... Liyue names really are easy to pronounce or it's just you?" Hearing his introduction, Draff lamented feelingly.

Then he said solemnly, "Let's have our hunting session in the afternoon. I just finished my business in the city and still need to return to Springvale. Wait for me at the city gates later."

"Of course, Sir Draff. Thank you."

Nolan bowed slightly again to express his gratitude.

"Alright, no need to be so formal with distant courtesy. We're not in a teacher-student relationship, just see it as seniors and juniors of hunting exchanging experiences."

Draff waved his hand and said with a smile. Nolan saw him off as he walked away on the stone-paved road, filled with anticipation for the afternoon.

With leisurely time still available, Nolan continued wandering Mondstadt's streets and familiarizing himself with everything.

Time flowed by swiftly like water. In the afternoon, Nolan put on the exercise outfit Amber bought for him with 5000 Mora. He arrived at the city gates to wait for Draff.

Speaking of which, he should return those 5000 Mora to Amber for the clothes later, can't take advantage of the girl.

Nolan didn't have to wait long before Draff appeared, dressed in hunter's garb. He carried a hunting bow on his back while holding another in his hand, which he passed to Nolan saying:

"This is the bow I used previously, very suitable for archery basics. Use it for now."

Nolan took it. This was the first time in his life that he had come into contact with a bow and arrow. On the surface, it looked a bit old, but there was no damage at all. It was quite good.

Following Draff's guidance, he properly equipped the hunting bow and quiver. Finally resembling somewhat like a hunter's apprentice.

"Mm, not bad." Draff nodded with some satisfaction, then said ponderingly, "I agreed to take you along for guidance, but there's another reason."

"Another reason?" Nolan was puzzled.

Draff smiled and explained:

"Recently, there have been more wild beasts in the Whispering Woods and Stormbearer Mountains area. There is a possibility that it will affect people's travel.

"So the Knights suggested us Springvale hunters could hunt more here. I think there are more prey than I can possibly take alone, in order to avoid wastage by then, I'll ask you to work a little harder."

"Of course, isn't that exactly what an apprentice should do!"

Nolan said happily.

Perhaps Draff felt having an extra person to share hunting experiences wasn't much, but to Nolan, this was tremendously important. Learning archery would greatly boost his combat ability.

"Haha, young people should be so energetic. Let's go, whether it's the craft of hunting or experience, the fastest way to learn is through practice."

Draff patted Nolan's shoulder, signaling him to follow. The two crossed Mondstadt Bridge, startling some pigeons that were foraging.

The fresh scent of grass brushed past their cheeks in the breeze. On the route to the hunt, Draff said to Nolan:

"For Springvale's hunting skills, one must first learn the bow. It was supposed to be taught from a young age to the younger generation to use it, and when you have learned it for a few years, you can follow the adults to hunt and further learn the other skills.

"Archery is difficult to grasp. It'll be pretty good if you can get basics in a month. For now, start with holding the bow."

Holding the bow wasn't hard. The key was stability, as stability was archery's foundation. Without stability, how could one shoot accurately?

While heading towards Whispering Woods, Draff began coaching Nolan on a hunter's archery.

The basics of holding the bow, picking up arrows, how to shoot to conserve stamina and conceal yourself.

This was an archery solely meant for hunting.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 6: A Trial Run, Hunting Boar

Whispering Woods, the environment was dark.

By now Nolan had basically grasped the key points of a hunter's archery. In Draff's words, next was spending time practicing more to familiarize and master the various techniques to gain a foundation.

His character panel's Skills section now displayed "Hunter's Archery Lv.1 (0/100)", representing he could swiftly upgrade it using Adventure EXP.

Unfortunately, there are only 12 EXP, so it's completely impossible to do so.

Nolan carried a backpack, following Draff ahead of him. Suddenly Draff crouched down halfway, eyeing fresh mud prints on the ground and said:

"Wild boar tracks, let's follow them."

Draff's footsteps were very light, semi-concealing his form with shrubs and trees in a half-crouching stance as he proceeded forth. Whenever his body touched branches or leaves, he would steady them to prevent noises startling the wild boar.

Nolan imitated accordingly. By this point Draff could no longer vocally instruct him.

After all, Even slight sounds could alert prey after all. Observing attentively was essential for qualifying as a hunter.

After a few minutes, Nolan heard a boar's content grunts as it rooted around for food. The two hid themselves behind a large tree.

That wild boar had a brown-red appearance, same as the in-game model. This reminded Nolan of some unpleasant memories exploring Teyvat, randomly getting slammed by wild boars while traveling.

Draff turned and signaled at him, before removing an arrow from the quiver behind and nocking it on his hunting bow. His movements weren't rushed yet very quiet, intentionally letting Nolan observe and learn.

Nolan understood and watched earnestly.

Draff took aim at the feasting boar after drawing back the bowstring. In a breeze-like instant, the arrow shot forth without much noise, accurately piercing the boar's front hoof making it release pained squeals.

"Nolan, it can't escape now. I'll leave the rest for you to practice on." Draff said.

A hunter's archery originated from insights during the hunt after all. Hunting made for the best teacher.

"Got it!"

Nolan had been eager to try. He wondered how much Adventure EXP this boar would provide.

Recalling Draff's bow handling guidance, he nocked an arrow and took aim at the boar frantically crashing around whining from its injured leg. His Level 2 physique felt easy drawing the wooden bow, even impressing Draff.

As soon as he let go, the arrow flew out from the string.

Thunk!

It struck a tree, barely evaded by the boar's chaotic flailing. First shots understandably lacked some accuracy.

The second arrow hit the boar's hind leg. Nolan actually felt awful for making the boar suffer more.

The third arrow finally ended the rampaging beast by striking true through its forehead.

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 20 Adventure EXP]

The familiar notification rang out. A boar with 20 EXP was equivalent to two thirds of a small sized Slime, which wasn't bad at all.

Slimes were monsters wielding elemental energy after all, naturally somewhat stronger than wild beasts.

"I've taught you archery fundamentals already. You just lack practice for entry-level now."

"Wild boars are too heavy to carry far. We'll retrieve this one later when leaving."

Draff observed Nolan's shooting process and gave an approving nod, ordering them to conceal the boar first before continuing on.

Due to some unknown reason the wild beast numbers increased greatly around Whispering Woods and Stormbearer Mountains lately. Thus there were many hunters here hunting.

Most were residents of Springvale. They got to know this Liyue-looking youth. Regarding hunting they were willing to give pointers, benefiting Nolan tremendously.

"Phew~ It's dusk." Draff glanced at the setting sun while wiping sweat from his brow. "Let's call it a day and come back tomorrow."

"Very well, Sir Draff." Nolan slightly nodded.

Today's gains weren't bad. Aside from the first boar, two more got encountered later which Draff claimed as rarely seen luck.

Aside from those, one wild rabbit, two Fowl, and considering Nolan needed live practice for his archery, Draff would first injure the prey before letting him finish them off - granting better training effect.

The boar gave 20 EXP, rabbit 10, Fowl 10 each. In total, Nolan earned 90 Adventure EXP that afternoon.

Just two more days until level up probably. Meanwhile under Draff's guidance and practice, his Hunter's Archery rose slightly without investing any EXP.

Now it is "Hunter's Archery Lv.1 (12/100)"

If he did put in those 90 EXP, it could instantly boost to next level. But Nolan chose not to.

He preferred reserving precious Adventure EXP for level ups, while he could still ask Draff to teach him about Hunter's Archery in the near future, so a little bit of saving doesn't hurt at all.

Because of the excessive prey, Draff and Nolan couldn't carry it all back themselves. Luckily Springvale had its own transport team.

Return trips often had several carts collecting all hunters' quarries altogether to deliver into Mondstadt city. There were specialized merchants to purchase them. So no need to worry much.

Due to the good hunting harvest today, despite him clearly saying he didn't need Mora for following Draff to learn, the latter still split some profits with Nolan - 20000 Mora.

It counted as a day's normal income. And Nolan did lack money, so he didn't decline too much.

Anyway, between fishing and hunting now Nolan finally had sources of income. No need to worry about starving to death in this foreign world.

Both also provided Adventure EXP for his own growth - overall not too bad.

A long night passed away. At dawn, like yesterday Nolan went to collect his fishing net.

But upon reaching yesterday's location, he suddenly discovered the wooden peg used to mark and pull the net was gone! Nolan's heart skipped a beat.

Taking a closer look, the fishing net was missing too! What was going on?

Could some big fish gotten caught and tore the net away? Nolan examined the hole left by the peg in the soil. It didn't seem like the net got forcefully pulled out, but rather the peg got manually uprooted.

Surely nobody would take just a few fish right?

Clueless and frustrated, Nolan heaved out a vexed sigh.

If another dozen or more catches waited for him today, then he just lost at least several dozen Adventure EXP now.

And that brand new net bought with Mora - gone after one use! If he found out who did this, he would absolutely make them pay dearly!

After circling the lakeside fruitlessly for clues, Nolan gloomily prepared to leave. This bizarre occurrence made him rather reluctant trying to buy and fish here again. Only to get stolen once more, that would certainly feel awful since he couldn't monitor the net forever.

Unfortunately the distance from the gates made it unlikely any patrolling Mondstadt knights would notice this area.

Otherwise he could've asked if they saw anyone approaching around this spot, obtaining some leads to maybe locate the thief.

Nothing he could do now except swallow this dumb loss.

As Nolan moved to depart, pondering ways to salvage his Mora and EXP income stream, perhaps he could cooperate with local fishermen - use Mora to directly purchase catches, gain EXP after defeating the fish, then resell them?

No good, whether to sell at cost price or tacking on a small premium posed an issue. Too high and people would just go elsewhere better priced, too low meant no profits for himself.

Just then, his right foot seemed to step on something hard.

Glancing down after lifting his foot, a coppery metallic object got trodden on. He bent down and picked it up, wiping away the mud on its surface.

Its complete shape emerged—round, like a badge. There was embossing on it, the pattern depicting a bird curled up around something...

In the next moment, Nolan was struck by sudden realization. Wasn't this the Treasure-Seeking Raven Insignia he often farmed for treasure in-game?!

Treasures under raven's wing, identifying badge for members of the Treasure Hoarders! The Treasure-Seeking Raven Insignia!

(End of chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 7: Level Up

The Treasure-Seeking Raven Insignia represented the identity of Treasure Hoarder members. Besides them, no one else would carry this on them, lest they get reported to the Knights of Favonius for questioning if discovered.

The Treasure Hoarders scoured all over trying various means to uncover hidden stashes of treasure unknown to others. On top of stealing and robbery, their villainous reputation was extremely notorious.

They practically ranked as public enemies that everyone in Teyvat reviled.

It wasn't hard to deduce why this insignia appeared here. Treasure Hoarders passing by likely noticed some rare, valuable fish gotten caught in his net by chance.

With their philosophy of doing anything for Mora, they certainly wouldn't let such easily obtained wealth slip by.

Tsk... Who knew the casually made-up story of getting robbed by Treasure Hoarders would become true now!

While other possibilities existed, discovering this dropped insignia here made that the greatest possibility.

As such, he definitely wouldn't swallow this loss. Sooner or later they would have to spit out everything taken from him doubled!

Nolan swore internally.

More than just the Mora, this also represented precious Adventure EXP losses! He didn't obtain much daily, how could it be easy to bear!

Standing on the verdant grass pondering for a while, Nolan decided to shelve this matter first. Aside from needing time to locate them, whether he could even beat the Treasure Hoarders still posed an issue.

His current Level 2 self might not necessarily triumph against them. He should keep focusing on ways of gaining Adventure EXP and improving himself first.

Though asking around for Treasure Hoarder intel as preliminary steps didn't hurt.

When afternoon came, Nolan still refrained from buying fish for EXP and then reselling method. Aside from wasting effort, no profits either.

At the city gates, while waiting for Draff, Nolan asked two gatekeeping Knights dressed in silver-gold armor about the news.

"Say, Sir Swan and Sir Lawrence, has the Knights of Favonius obtained any recent Treasure Hoarder news?"

Nolan, carrying the wooden hunting bow given by Durav, leaned against the side of the city gate and asked.

"Treasure Hoarders? Doesn't seem so."

Swan shrugged, metal pauldrons clinking against the cuirass. They were familiar with this Liyue youth rescued and brought back by Outrider Amber. Also knew he fell into dire straits after getting robbed. So it wasn't odd he asked about this.

"No news huh? Bit of a pity." Nolan didn't feel too letdown. Nothing could be rushed regarding these matters.

"Though I did hear Captain Kaeya mention some suspicious fellows he ran into by the beach days ago. But occupied by other duties then, by the time he returned they had vanished. And that's the end of that I suppose. Hopefully, this bit can aid you somehow."

Dressed in the same Favonius armor, Lawrence stroked his chin trying to recall the details to relay.

"Stormterror's Lair beach?"

Nolan pondered a bit. Since it already happened days prior, likely not much viability for follow-ups anymore. Though that area by the seaside held abundant Hydro Elements, frequently spawning Hydro Slimes. He could search there later when monster hunting.

"Much appreciated Sir Lawrence. It's still a lead of sorts I guess. Maybe some harvests if I trace things from there." Nolan smiled and said.

"Perhaps so." Lawrence scratched his head. "But if you do want to investigate, best to bring Miss Amber along. She is our reconnaissance expert, most suited for such tasks."

"Yes, And if you really do encounter Treasure Hoarders, Miss Amber can protect you as well," Swan added solemnly.

After all in their eyes, this Liyue youth wasn't some Vision wielder. He only started learning hunting from Springvale's hunting chief Draff these couple days. Surely not that capable yet.

Seeing their worried expressions, Nolan earnestly said:

"Don't worry, I won't go without certainty and preparations. Of course, if Miss Amber has time I'll also invite her to assist."

"It's good that you understand yourself."

The two knights didn't elaborate further.

Right then, Nolan spotted Draff waving at him from afar by the Mondstadt bridge, signaling their hunting departure time. He bid the knights farewell for now.

Carefully dodging pedestrians on the bridge, Nolan jogged to meet up with Draff.

"Seeing you chat so merrily with Swan and Lawrence, I didn't come over. But we gotta hurry now, other hunters from our village already gone ahead into the woods. Latecomers like us get nothing if we delay more."

Draff said with a smile as he looked out over the Whispering Woods.

"How can that be, Sir Draff's hunting skills are so formidable after all." Nolan performed an astonished reaction cooperatively.

"This has nothing to do with good or bad. Us Springvale hunters around the same generation, our hunting skills tempered over decades generally differ little. For a bountiful harvest, the key is to 'go first'."

Like conversing with a junior, Draff shared his experience. "Arrive before others, gain the spoils first."

"It does make sense."

Draff's words reminded Nolan of the early bird gets the worm. Prey and opportunities are often singular. Slower by a step meant eternally slower by that step.

Perhaps the analogy wasn't too accurate, but the meaning got across.

What followed was similar to yesterday. Draff coached Nolan on using Hunter's Archery while hunting. Upon discovering prey he injured them first, leaving the finishing blow for Nolan's practice.

Through such practical battles, Nolan progressed swiftly, just as Draff said—hunting itself was the best way to train Hunter's Archery while gaining deeper comprehension and experience.

Hunter's Archery emphasized steady, precise, agile, unexpected shots, finally integrating with body maneuvers to conceal yourself so prey discovered you first. Grasping these basics meant entry-level.

For the next month, Nolan thus followed Draff in and out of Whispering Woods and Stormbearer Mountains. He made plentiful harvests daily, directly selling the spoils to various merchants back in Mondstadt.

He averaged around 10,000 Mora income daily. After a month passed his savings reached 355,600 Mora, roughly equalling 3,000+ USD. Not huge but ample to escape poverty.

More importantly, Draff discovering most prey first before letting him practice granted considerable Adventure EXP gains that he always invested first thing upon reaching the threshold for level ups.

Presently he reached Level 6, Hunter's Archery relying on diligent practice also hit Level 2. Several hundred Adventure EXP still remained that would let him rise further soon.

Now Nolan's character panel became like this:

Name: Nolan Walker

Level: Lv.6 (0/600)

Race: Human

Title: None

Innate Talent: Entangling Affection

Skills: Hunter's Archery Lv.2 (122/200)

Specialty: [Descender]

Adventure EXP: 512

His comprehensive abilities like strength and speed at Level 6 could thrash his former self. By Draff's judgment, Nolan could hunt independently now.

Draff also felt exceptionally astonished at Nolan's growth speed. While marksmanship still needed improvements, his physical qualities already compensated well enough for those flaws.

Of course, Nolan understood that presently he only exceeded ordinary folks by a fair margin. Still a bit away from veterans like Draff or the Favonius Knights after years of specialized training.

Teyvat continent and the reality are fundamentally different. The Energy Level is much higher than the Earth, so the spirit that nurtures it is also much stronger than the Earth.

Each other can not be generalized.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 8: Knights of Favonius

"Alright, after over a month of hunting, the beast numbers in Whispering Woods and Stormbearer Mountains returned to normal levels, and won't skyrocket again in the short term. I need to take a good rest and then have a big drink after a month of consecutive work. From now on you'll have to rely on yourself!"

The light of the setting sun, caressing the emerald green of the earth, colored Teyvat in an intoxicating golden hue.

Draff, who kept his moustache and stubble neatly trimmed, once more sold off today's spoils. Standing at the end of Mondstadt Bridge, he heartily patted Nolan's shoulder and said earnestly.

Regardless, Nolan was a junior that followed him a whole month. Draff still hoped he could make something of himself whether as hunter or adventurer.

"Don't worry Sir Draff, I won't disappoint you."

After a month's growth, Nolan felt much more self-assured compared to when he first arrived lost and confused. His words turned relaxed too.

"Haha, great! Visit me at Springvale Town when you've time."

Draff guffawed loudly and waved, getting ready to leave. His fellow hunting buddies back in town waited impatiently.

"I'll be sure to. And I'll have Good Hunter's best bartender mix their finest liquor over!"

Nolan smiled while calling out to Draff's departing back.

Sure enough, Draff shuddered instantly upon hearing that, hastily turning back and urging:

"No no, never bring Cat's Tail's drinks!"

Nolan looked at him puzzled.

Realizing his lapse in composure, Draff lightly coughed and smoothed it over.

"I mean their liquors don't quite suit my taste. Angel's Share's grape wines fit me better...yes, that's right."

If Nolan bought Cat's Tail mixes saying they were for Springvale's village chief, his daughter Diona would surely erupt again over her 'most hated drunkard dad' business.

He clearly knew his daughter stood as Cat's Tail's best bartender.

"Hahaha, very well Sir Draff, safe travels!"

Nolan lightly laughed and waved.

Draff turned around and said, "Fine. In the future, if you want to learn the hunting from me remember to bring wine!"

Due to a full month of continuous hunting, it had been long since he heartily drank to their hearts' content with the townsfolk.

After all alcohol affected cognition. Not staying clear-headed in the wilderness was dangerous.

With work done now was precisely time to celebrate back home. Thinking of that, Draff's footsteps lightened considerably.

Under the golden sunlight, on the grassy path, the hunter hummed a tune. The evening breeze gently lingered. Gaze following long after the senior willing to help him, and the youth felt truly grateful.

Returning citizens trickled back to Mondstadt in pairs and threes. Unharmed adventurers safely back even gathered at Angel's Share over drinks, toasting the Anemo Archon's blessings.

In over a month at Mondstadt, Nolan kept a low profile. Perhaps due to his personality, he didn't befriend many. But that wasn't because he was introverted or socially awkward, it was just a way of his lifestyle.

Even so, his understanding towards Mondstadt's various facets grew much deeper now, perfectly integrating himself into the city.

Nolan didn't head back immediately, instead walking towards the Knights of Favonius' direction.

Time to return the money owed to Amber. This past month she frequently dropped by the relief shelter to check on him, even asking if he lacked funds. Her thoughtfulness truly touched Nolan.

So with no monetary woes for now, he should return Amber's money soonest. Nolan disliked owing others.

Mondstadt's layout was rather special. Walking in from the gates, the terrain elevates with higher areas further in. The lowermost section were residential and commercial districts for citizens.

Midway up was where the Knights of Favonius Headquarters lied, quite a distance needing stairs to reach, honestly quite tiring.

At the peak was the plaza with an enormous Barbatos statue. People liked strolling here during their free time. Any events or announcements also generally held here.

And at Mondstadt's utmost summit was the Cathedral of the Anemo Archon—displaying Mondstadters' respect for Lord Barbatos. After all it resembled nations on Earth with "Divine Right of Kings".

Except for the "King" here was the Anemo Archon himself. His sole management philosophy for Mondstadt was "My people are free to do as they please."

Outstandingly hands-off, sounded nice when phrased as freedom. Actually, he was too lazy managing anything.

Thus the Knights of Favonius managed most affairs under normal circumstances, doing quite a decent job too. Though a darker age of aristocrat rule did exist long ago.

Amidst these meandering thoughts, Nolan finally arrived before the pale stoned three-story Knights headquarters. Two Favonius guards stood stationed at the entrance.

Seemed around shift ending time judging by their spirits. One wore glasses while the other didn't.

Nolan frequented this location often when playing, but no longer recalled any names beyond key characters. Most players cared not for minor NPCs after all.

Nolan could directly enter the inner headquarters. Mondstadt's greatest library lies inside, open to the public, and managed by Librarian Lisa.

Though routine inquiries still occurred to prevent vandals, despite the low probability. After all, this was the stronghold of Mondstadt's mightiest warriors. Only lunatics would think to kick up trouble here.

Just picture it - newly entering the great hall, Lisa's office on the left, library on the right. The notorious "Witch of Purple Rose" as librarian right there.

Those two tended to stay put daily for work. Imagining potential scenarios already felt dreadful.

"Hello there." Nolan got intercepted by the guarding knight Porthos, who first performed the Favonius salute and greeted him, then asked:

"What business brings you to the headquarters? If you wish to borrow books from the library, I'm afraid Librarian Lisa already went off work during this break period."

Visitors during this break time surprised Porthos somewhat. "Irregularities" always demanded extra awareness.

Moreover, the guest dressed as some Liyue hunter.

Things weren't too peaceful lately. First Captain Kaeya spotted suspicious people at Stormterror's Lair beach. Then Outrider Amber brought back a Liyue youth attacked by Treasure Hoarders from Whispering Woods.

There had always been an ominous feeling something would happen. He should diligently fulfill his duties.

Though that robbed Liyue young man couldn't possibly be you, right? Porthos scrutinized Nolan while thinking silently.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 9: «Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals»

"Sir knight, I'm not here to borrow books. May I ask if Miss Amber is around?"

Nolan shook his head and replied in denial.

"Oh? You are looking for Miss Amber? Could it be that you are the young man from Liyue that she brought back?" Although Porthos used a questioning tone, his tone was one of certainty.

Nolan wasn't surprised the knights caught wind of him. The relief shelter fell under their administration after all. Amber housing him there would inevitably inform relevant staff.

With just these number of knights and internal personnel, words of the Liyue youth's plight spread amongst them.

Nolan nodded and smiled graciously:

"If it wasn't for Miss Amber's helping hand, I may have still been wandering outside now."

"Haha, how could it be." Porthos similarly revealed a smile, "Regardless of who's in trouble, the Knights of Favonius will never stand by idly."

The spectacled knight Otto also walked over and said:

"That's right. Miss Amber possesses deep compassion and respectability. She should be inside headquarters currently, go on in and look for her."

"Very well."

Nolan stepped onto the entrance stairs and pushed open the heavy wooden doors. A spacious main hall entered his sight, gaze naturally falling upon the innermost stairs to the second floor.

The headquarters' second floor was quite mysterious. Never unlocked in-game, so no one knew what lied up there.

The first room on the left - Acting Grand Master Jean's office. Despite being labeled as Solitary Confinement, the next room basically transformed into Klee's bomb research lab.

Any new bombs that Klee had could have been researched while she was in solitary confinement, after all, when she wasn't in solitary confinement she was either digging for a great secret treasure or on her way to do so.

The library was on the right, also guarded by a knight. Seeing no Amber after a sweep, Nolan walked over and asked: "Sir knight, is Miss Amber around?"

The stern-faced Wyratt, posture upright as well, answered in a middle-aged man's tone:

"Miss Amber is at the Acting Grand Master's Office for work reports. Please wait for a bit."

"I see."

Since then, Nolan could only stand by waiting.

What a pity Lisa already got off work, else he could browse the library to kill time... Hmm?

That knight said Lisa leaving meant no book loans registered, but reading inside should still be allowed right? With people guarding here there shouldn't be worries of books getting taken either.

Thus Nolan tried asking: "Excuse me, Sir Knight, may I read inside the library?"

Wyratt glanced at the youth and nodded:

"Of course."

"Thank you. Also Sir Knight, could I trouble you to inform Miss Amber someone's looking for her at the library when she's done?"

Nolan thanked him and further inquired—in case he missed Amber exiting not seeing her inside.

"Uh-huh. Go ahead." Receiving the same brief answer, Nolan once again expressed his thanks and gently pushed open the wooden door of the library and walked in.

At a sweeping glance, the layout seemed identical to the game - split above and below with both levels filled by oceans of books. No wonder Lisa chose librarian work. Perhaps no workplace surpassed here for ideal scholarly environments.

Aside from killing time waiting for Amber, another intention Nolan suddenly thought of—whether combat skill learning methods could be found in here?

If he could really find it, it would be greatly convenient for Nolan to acquire different skills.

It wasn't that anyone could be as happy to instruct others in archery as Draff did. So it was important to have an avenue where he could learn skills from books.

Even though learning without instruction might be slow, Nolan wasn't relying on talents. As long as he managed to grasp the entry fundamentals from guides successfully until a skill registered on his character panel, raising efficiency via Adventure EXP remained viable.

Whether there was talent or not didn't matter.

Nolan searched through the bookshelves one by one. Each shelf was labeled with what type of book it was, so it didn't feel like a hassle.

It had to be said that it was worthy of being the largest library in Mondstadt, basically, all types of books were there. The combat skills that Nolan wanted were also found on the wooden bookshelf on the left side of the first floor against the wall.

The entire shelf contained various combat skill training methods and predecessors' summarized experiences.

Brimming with anticipation, Nolan randomly plucked out a book. Its cover prominently displayed "Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals" in large font. Clean and straightforward, he instantly recognized this taught foundations of Favonius swordsmanship.

Exactly what he currently needed. Hunter's Archery from Draff only marked fledgling comprehension so far. Learning some melee skills proved necessary.

He didn't immediately grab and read it, however, temporarily replacing the book back on the shelf to check out other options first.

"Favonius Archery - Fundamentals", "Universal Combat Breathing Rhythm Compendium", "Mitigation Techniques Against Large-Type Hilichurls", "Rhinedottir Single-Handed Swordplay", "Basic Grasping of Polearms"...

Perusing the many book names, some covered weapon utilization while others detailed countering specific monsters.

Overall though, nothing stood out as particularly incredible or containing transcendent superhuman abilities.

This made Nolan a bit disappointed.

Of course, he didn't hold major expectations to begin with. In Teyvat, elemental powers were the most common supernatural forces. Humans required Vision, an external magical apparatus, to utilize them.

If there is no "Vision" that can guide the elemental power, the probability of ordinary people contacting the elements rashly will be eroded, which can lead to minor illnesses or life-threatening situations.

So even if the Knights had methods to handle elemental powers, such information wouldn't be casually placed on shelves. Fearing curiosity might cripple some commoners practicing them.

After settling his thoughts, Nolan merely took that initial «Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals» to a nearby table to read.

If Librarian Lisa still worked he could've borrowed some back for simultaneous study and practice. Alas, rambunctiously swinging weapons around in the library breaks all kinds of regulations and etiquette.

Reading revealed « Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals » to be foundational swordsmanship summarized and compiled by the Knights. It contained training methods for both one-handed and two-handed swords.

What all Favonius Knights learned, nothing unique. No wasted words, explained very clearly.

Some learning experiences from senior knights were also included to reduce many detours for Nolan, faster to start.

He didn't expect coming to repay Amber would discover unexpected gains at the library.

Seemed Amber really was his lucky angel. He ought to properly thank her when possible.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 10: Dinner with Amber

The library was brightly lit and quiet.

Amber was stopped by Wyratt when she came out of the Acting Grand Master's Office, hearing that a young Liyue man was looking for her and was now waiting inside the library.

Knowing who it was, Amber stepped into the library with her knee-high white boots on.

Looking around the second floor, there was no sign of anyone.

Her twitching rabbit ears picked up faint sounds of pages turning from below.

Contact between moderate heels and the floor resembled melodious notes. Reaching the wooden stairs she indeed spotted Nolan at a corner downstairs.

At this moment, he seemed to be concentrating on reading and did not notice Amber's approach.

Amber quietly smirked hiding behind bookshelves, soundlessly sneaking around the youth's back.

Stretching out her right hand, she was trying to scare him.

Immersed in reading, Nolan temporarily forgot his purpose here at the headquarters. Just then a sweet floral fragrance entered his nose, breaking his concentration.

This fragrance was not unfamiliar to Nolan, it seemed to be Amber's scent.

Could it be that she came over?

Thinking this way Nolan naturally turned his head back, when suddenly a white palm poked his cheek.

Soft and tender, slightly warm.

"Uh..." Amber flinched for a moment then withdrew her hand and hid it behind her back, laughed a little awkwardly, and said, "Originally I wanted to tap your shoulder to scare you, but I didn't expect you to turn back."

Of course, Nolan thought nothing of it, but he still flirted:

"It's fine. It's the first time I've seen the lively and enthusiastic Miss Amber like this. Hmm. Such a difficult look, haha."

"Hey, you!.."

"Oh, forget it. Sir Wyratt said you were looking for me outside, what's the matter?"

Knowing each other for about a month, they were rather familiar. Just joking around. Amber swiftly smoothed her expression and got to the point.

"Oh right. Remember I borrowed Mora from you before? Here to return it."

Nolan pulled over a coin pouch tied at his waist, inside were Mora of varying denominations, totaling exactly thirty-five thousand Mora.

After all, he didn't have any inventory system like games to stow it in, he could only use the pouches like ordinary folks.

"Huh? No need!" Amber was slightly surprised and didn't think that Nolan was here to return the money. At that time, She said it was borrowed back then, but in fact, in her mind she didn't plan on asking it back, "You still need Mora in your life right now, so just keep it for now."

"That won't do. I earn a steady income hunting now. Can't owe your money without returning it."

Nolan grabbed Amber's wrist and firmly stuffed the Mora into her palm.

"...Mm. Fine then." Amber revealed a smile without further refusal.

[Amber Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 50 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.2 (10/200)]

A prompt sounded in Nolan's mind. Amber's affection for him rose to Lv. 2.

This Should be a relatively slightly close relationship.

Previously, when he met in the Whispering Woods, he was considered a new acquaintance, and the occasional encounters over the course of a month had raised his favorability a few times.

Now due to Nolan's insistence on principle again, he earned more of Amber's Affection.

After a short period of time, Nolan came to understand affection degree's mechanics.

Generally, for most people, affection for an unfamiliar person comes from their first impressions.

Just like Nolan meeting Amber. He wasn't some egregious villain either. Kindhearted Amber discovered someone needing help, so her initial impression wasn't bad, some fondness was normal.

After getting acquainted, if not a one-sided relationship then they occasionally or often meet, then the two will naturally become familiar with each other. No Need to do anything, with the deepening of mutual understanding, affection will naturally increase.

Of course, the premise is that Nolan must not conduct himself in ways Amber disliked throughout this natural process.

Nolan guessed Amber still saw him in an understanding phase. Over time and contact, he didn't require conscious effort. Amber would regard him as a friend sooner or later.

However, that was it. Obtaining her Archon's empowerment absolutely demanded exceeding mere friendship.

Nolan needed to actively look for opportunities to contact Amber, and sooner or later their relationship would evolve in quality.

As an ordinary man, he just needed to socialize ordinarily. Not to show too much rush, or be gain Amber's disfavor, then it would be a waste of effort.

After Amber stored the Mora, her attention was drawn by the book on the table. Curiously she asked:

"You wanna learn Favonius Swordsmanship?"

"Yep. In the future, I plan on traveling Teyvat and becoming a powerful adventurer in the future. You can't do it with only a little bit of archery."

Nolan spoke more happily about her future direction.

"Nice aspirations." Amber nodded. Sitting by on a chair she said, "It's a pity that I'm not too good at swordsmanship, or else I could teach you... Well, there's a training ground behind the Knights' Headquarters with all sorts of implements, so you can go there if you're practicing swordsmanship."

"Great, I was just wondering where I could train!"

The training ground behind the Knights' Headquarters, Nolan was too familiar with it, it was the place Where a young girl named Eillin often requested the Traveler's guidance on swiftly destroying wooden poles.

"By the way, to thank Miss Amber for helping me, I would like to invite you to the 'Good Hunter' restaurant for dinner. You shouldn't have eaten dinner at this time, right?"

Nolan said as he looked at Amber with a sincere gaze.

This invitation was reasonable, after all, Amber did help him a lot, so buying a dinner was not wrong. Plus meals were rare chances to raise affection, can't miss it.

"Giving help to those in need is the duty of a Knight of Favonius. How can I ask for something in return? Forget the dinner..."

Amber shook her head and refused.

"Actually, I still have something I want to ask for your help. And I heard long ago Good Hunter's Sticky Honey Roast and Spicy Stew are delicious. Why don't we talk about it over dinner?"

Nolan unleashed his anti-Amber Noble Phantasm flawlessly.

"Sticky Honey Roast and Spicy Stew!" Amber's fair-skinned neck twitched imperceptibly, her gaze brightened a bit, and then she said without haste, "Since you need my help, there's no other way, let's go now."

[Amber Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 50 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.2 (60/200)]

"Mm, let me return this book first."

Nolan smiled as he placed the «Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals», which he could not register to borrow for the time being, back on the bookshelf in's original location.

Sure enough, eating and giving gifts are techniques to raise affection. Almost Lv.3 now, should be friends already right? Feeling rather close by this point.

He entered the Headquarters still during sunset moments. By the time they departed night had fallen, curtaining the skies with darkness.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 11: Adventurer

Mondstadt City, Good Hunter Restaurant.

On the wooden tables and chairs near the street, Nolan and Amber sat opposite each other as Sara, the waitress of the Good Hunter, served two orders of Sticky Honey Roast and Spicy Stew:

"Two Flaming Red Bolognese coming right up."

As it was just about dinner time, the restaurant was quite crowded and seemed to be buzzing with people.

Amber picked up her shiny silver knife and fork and sliced a small portion off the large piece of meat on her plate and put it in her mouth. The sweetness of Sticky Honey Roast and Spicy Stew blended perfectly on the meat, the texture was filling and fresh and silky.

"I thought you said there was something you wanted my help with? What is it?" Amber asked, narrowing her eyes in enjoyment.

[Amber Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 10 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.2 (70/200)]

Watching Amber's Affection towards him increase again, Nolan blanked briefly. It seems that Amber is quite happy. He chose right coming here after all.

Nolan also replied while cutting the fried meat:

"Well I'm a hunter now, continuing to occupy the relief shelter seems inappropriate. So I wanna move out and wanted to ask your advice on it."

He still had more than Three Hundred Thousand Mora, even if it wasn't much, it was enough to live in a more comfortable environment for a change.

"That's it?" Amber said, "I thought there was something more important."

Nolan actually mainly wanted to tell her about it, after all, he couldn't move out from the Favonius' Relief Shelter without telling the people who helped him. As well as finding opportunities to get in touch with each other more often, so that Amber's Affection towards him would just be increased a little bit.

But now that he thought about it, there were indeed other things he could ask Amber for, so Nolan asked:

"Miss Amber, whenever you've time could you instruct me a bit regarding archery?"

Nolan remembered Skills on his character panel obtaining a Trait upon reaching Level 10. Meanwhile he could also fuse two same typed Skills at Level 10 to create an even stronger combined Skill.

If he could learn Amber's archery skill and fuse it with his current Hunter's Archery skill, it would definitely transform into a stronger skill.

Moreover, without the "Vision", the way for him to become stronger was not only leveling up, but the skills aspect was also an important part.

"Just call me Amber." Amber took a bite of the Sticky Honey Roast and Spicy Stew and pondered for a while, "Teaching you is fine I guess. As a Scout Knight, I usually have to patrol outside, so I can teach you when I'm not on a heavy mission."

"Mm, Thank you, Mis- uh Amber."

Nolan nodded.

Indeed there was no rush to learn, mainly because there weren't enough Adventure EXP. So he would go to Katheryne later to register as an adventurer, and tomorrow he would take commissions to fight some monsters.

"As for moving out from the shelter, that's simple too." Amber's white cheeks outlined a smile and said, "I have a very very good friend, her family has many vacant houses in Mondstadt City that can't be rented out for certain reasons. If you need it, I think she will be happy to rent it out cheaply to you as well."

Amber's very good friend, could it be Eula? Nolan thought secretly.

Eula served among the Knights of Favonius, just like Amber. Surprisingly, The Clan that Eula belonged to was the Lawrence Clan - reviled old nobles of Mondstadt's past history.

Because in the past history of Mondstadt, the Lawrence Clan was the old nobility that oppressed the people, and nowadays it was not well received by most people.

Just as Eula had always claimed to be the 'descendant of sinners', her joining the Knights of Favonius was considered unthinkable by both the Lawrence Clan and the people of Mondstadt.

Although she didn't care about all the this, she was probably lonely and miserable inside.

Amber the angel appeared to be one of her few salvations. Though she only called Amber a "nemesis".

The Old Nobleman Lawrence's house, which has such a bad reputation among the people of Mondstadt, owns some real estate that can't be rented out, causing idleness is also very normal.

As for this, Nolan didn't mind, rather was looking forward to the opportunity to get to know Eula.

"I'll have to trouble you then Amber, thanks!" Nolan spoke rather delightedly.

The two of them chatted as they finished their dinner, and after Nolan paid up, they said goodbye to each other.

He promptly made way to the Adventurers' Guild reception desk near the city gate.

Dressed in a corset dress with maid ribbons atop her head, Katheryne as elegant as ever had both hands folded before her abdomen - as elegant as ever.

She looked at the young man in front of her with a smile on her face and uttered the words that had been repeated countless times:

"Ad Astra Abyssosque! Welcome to the Adventurers' Guild."

"Hello, Miss Katheryne, I would like to join the Adventurer's Guild, may I ask for help with registration?"

Nolan asked politely.

He knew that joining the Adventurer's Guild to become an Adventurer was actually quite simple now, but Nolan, who had done the Story Quest before, knew that the Heroic Performance of the Traveler after the Dvalin's turmoil would greatly stimulate newcomers to come and join the Adventurer's Guild.

And as per Branch Chief Cyrus, most rookies were greenhorns who'd get badly battered fighting even slimes. So aptitude tests got implemented to filter out rash hotheads.

"Yes, please wait a moment."

The elegant and skillful Adventurer's Guild's Receptionist Katheryne said in a calm and gentle tone, then turned around and took out the registration book from the neatly organized cabinet.

"Please fill in your information."

Katheryne handed the registration book as well as a quill pen to the young man in front of her.

Receiving them, Nolan placed the ledger atop the front desk and started filling details like his name and current lodgings. The feather quill was his first time handling. Felt pleasant enough.

He quickly filled in his name and current address, and handed the registration book back to Katheryne.

Katheryne carefully flipped through it, then nodded and smiled:

"Mister Nolan, from now on you are a member of the Adventurer's Guild."

"You can take commissions independently from the guild. Or join or form an Adventure Team to accept higher difficulty ones together."

[Katheryne Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 30 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.1 (30/100)]

Huh?!

Nolan got slightly dumbfounded. Wasn't Catherine an android? She actually has good feelings? Does she really have her own consciousness or intelligence?

Well...it's always a good thing no matter who has a good feeling towards you.

"Miss Katheryne, are there any conditions needed for this formation of an Adventure Team?" Nolan asked curiously.

Nolan knew that in the original game, Bennett had his own "Benny's Adventure Team", but because he was too unlucky, the adventurers who joined his group couldn't stay for too long.

Consider - something as simple as commissioned Sweet Flower gathering. Then - poof - plot twist reveal as disguising Anemo Mimics! After several bouts of such traumatic luck, anybody would snap.

If Nolan formed his own team, grinding Adventure EXP perhaps might proceed much smoother in the future.

"There are no special requirements for forming an Adventure Team, as long as you can find like-minded partners."

Katheryne replied in a gentle manner.

"I see." Nolan nodded as if he understood, then asked, "Does the Guild provide many monster subjugation tasks?"

Rather than wasting time randomly searching, obvious efficiency existed in obtaining locations directly from the Guild.

While proofreading beforehand inevitable oversights under my carelessness still persist I'm afraid.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 12: Noelle

It was late at night, but the streets of Mondstadt were still bustling.

Katherine, who stood quietly, answered patiently:

"There are often monsters appearing in the wilderness, and the investigation officers in the Adventurers' Guild can collect relevant information every day. It is impossible to clean them all up."

"Only the monsters that the Guild has judged to pose a threat to residents will be issued commissions for adventurers to clean up."

"So there are also quite a few commissions to kill monsters."

When Nolan heard this, he was slightly excited. It seems that he won't lack monsters to fight in the future.

"However, I don't recommend that new adventurers like you take on commissions that are too dangerous on your own," Katheryne said worriedly and helplessly.

She had seen too many new adventurers who overestimated their own strength and came back in a mess.

Of course, Nolan knew that with his current strength, he could only deal with stray ordinary monsters.

Generally, the monsters that pose a threat to residents are unlikely to be just a single slime or hilichurl or something, and the number may not be small either.

It would be great if there was someone who could hold back the monsters and let him, as an archer, output damage from the back.

Nolan fantasized.

Wait a minute! This didn't seem to be out of the question.

He thought of the most indispensable person in the team when the game first opened, the person who literally changed the gameplay - the omnipotent maid miss - Noelle!

As we all know.

Noelle is an even more kind-hearted good girl than Amber. In Mondstadt, as long as you have a trivial matter, she would be happy to complete it for you.

It's as if helping others is her real job.

At the same time, Noelle, as the owner of the Geo Archon's Vision, has excellent defense as her greatest strength. Activating her shield makes her invincible. If he could get her help, what would Nolan have to worry about not getting Adventure EXP?

Now that it was late, and he had asked all he needed to ask, Nolan decided to head back first.

Tomorrow, he would go find Noelle to see if she had time. With her personality, she would definitely be happy to help him. Then he would go to the Adventurers' Guild to take on commissions to eliminate monsters.

Although it was a bit of a suspicion that he was taking advantage of Noelle, it was also because of his talent of "Entangling Affection", that in order to make use of it, he had to get to know more girls.

Going to Noelle for help is also to provide an opportunity to meet and get to know her.

Returning to the small temporary residence of the rescue center, Nolan thought that several things needed to be done recently.

Moving out of the rescue center, which needed to wait for Amber's news.

Then invite Noelle to form a team together to complete commissions and eliminate monsters for Adventure EXP, this is the most important. He will take action starting tomorrow.

As for the matter of finding a foothold with the Treasure Hoarders, there is no hurry. After all, his strength has not improved yet, he can't go looking for death.

Lying in bed, Nolan closed his eyes. As he fell asleep, it was as if the clock had been wound up. Tick tock, tick tock, and it was early morning.

Upon waking up, Nolan went through simple ablutions and went to a nearby bakery to buy a cream-filled bread roll for breakfast. After eating, he practiced his Hunter's Archery skills as a post-meal exercise to aid digestion.

Seeing that he was getting closer to Lv. 3, Nolan nodded satisfactorily.

It was about time, so Nolan should go invite Noelle. She should be at the Knights of Favonius now, right? As a maid, she probably has to clean floors and such. Let's go take a look first.

As for shouting Noelle's name at the sky, using the "Noelle Summoning Technique", that's impossible, he still wants to keep some dignity.

After walking for a while, he arrived at the Knights of Favonius Headquarters.

He greeted the two Knights of Favonius at the door and asked if Noelle was there, but was told that she went to help Miss Margaret at the Cat's Tail tavern find her lost cat.

Sigh~ his luck really wasn't good.

But he thought of another way. Since Noelle went to find the cat, he could just go to the Cat's Tail tavern first and wait there. After all, Noelle would definitely bring the cat back to the Cat's Tail tavern after finding it.

This idea was pretty good indeed. Before leaving the Knights of Favonius HQ, Nolan first went to the library to borrow two books - "Favonius Swordsmanship - Fundamentals" and "Favonius Archery - Fundamentals".

These two books would be enough for now. Just for getting started, it probably wouldn't take too long.

At the time of registering, Nolan also finally met the Librarian Lisa, who was indeed as elegant and intelligent as he remembered.

However, it was still early morning but she already looked lazy and unmotivated. In this state, could she really work properly?

Nolan silently complained in his heart.

Not daring to disturb her too much, after borrowing the books Nolan left the Knights Headquarters and hurried towards the Cat's Tail tavern, just in case he missed Noelle.

There were fewer people at the Cat's Tail tavern in the morning. Nolan found a seat at one of the outdoor tables outside the tavern.

To avoid looking too awkward, he ordered a non-alcoholic drink, which cost over 500 Mora.

While waiting for Noelle, he opened "Favonius Archery - Fundamentals" and started reading. Compared to learning swordsmanship from scratch, archery was obviously easier for him since he already knew Hunter's Archery.

"Favonius Archery - Fundamentals" was very different from the Hunter's Archery skills Nolan had learned. It seemed much more standardized and systematic, but at the same time also very basic, without the concealed and flexible advantages of Hunter's Archery skills.

But precisely because it was basic, it was relatively easy to pick up and very suitable for Nolan to use to make up for his lack of fundamentals.

After all, he had only learned Hunter's Archery skills from Draff for a little over a month, without systematic basic archery training. Without a good foundation, using the Hunter's Archery skills always felt less smooth.

He didn't know how much time had passed as he flipped through the thin book several times. He felt that he had already remembered the key points and just needed some practice to probably grasp it.

This was also the advantage of already knowing Hunter's Archery skills. Learning the more basic "Favonius Archery - Fundamentals" gave him a feeling of learning from the masters.

Suddenly, relatively loud footsteps slowly approached.

Nolan looked in the direction of the sound and saw Noelle walking from the fountain above towards the Cat's Tail tavern, wearing her comforting maid-style armor. She held a black cat in her arms, stroking the little cat's head with her right hand which had a white metal gauntlet.

From the calm gaze of the black cat, Nolan felt a kind of hopeless emotion.

He almost couldn't help from laughing out loud.

When Noelle got closer, Nolan took a deep breath, stood up and actively greeted:

"Miss Noelle, hello. I have something I'd like to ask for your help with."

"Huh? Do you know me?"

Holding the black kitten, Noelle was puzzled at first, then her face clearly flushed red with embarrassment when she heard Nolan's following words. She waved her hands repeatedly:

"Please, no need to be so formal with the request, as long as someone needs help, it's my duty to assist."

"Ah!" Before Nolan could reply, Noelle suddenly cried out in surprise.

The cat she had finally found and caught jumped down from her loosened hands. Just as it was thinking of running away again, Nolan reacted swiftly and grabbed it.

"Meow meow meow!"

The black cat flung its limbs wildly in mid-air.

"Phew, luckily it didn't get away." Noelle's expression relaxed as she patted her chest.

Margaret, the owner of the Cat's Tail tavern, hearing the cat's cries hurried out. She took the black cat from Nolan's hand, rubbed her face affectionately against the cat, and said:

"That's great, my little prince you finally came back. Do you know how worried I was when you ran so far away?"

Noelle really is such a warm person!

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 13: Commission

Cat's Tail Tavern.

After the heartwarming reunion with Little Prince, Margaret steadied her black round hat that almost slipped off, and sincerely expressed her gratitude to Noelle.

Noelle embarrassedly touched the hair beside her ear:

"These are just things I should do. Miss Margaret, please don't take it to heart."

"Now that I think about it, I don't know how many times I have troubled little Noelle over my cats going missing. I really need to find an opportunity to properly thank you."

Margaret hugged little Prince with one hand while pondering.

"N-No need, how could I accept rewards for such trivial matters." Noelle quickly declined, then said, "Ms. Margaret, someone else still needs my help, so I'll be going first."

"Huh? Noelle don't leave so quickly." Margaret called out from behind.

Noelle was very enthusiastic herself and happy to help others, but had some trouble dealing with other people's enthusiasm, such a contradictory yet cute personality.

Following Noelle out of the Cat's Tail Tavern, Nolan smiled and said to her:

"Not surprisingly from Noelle who has the title of 'the maid of all maids', your exploits are known all over Mondstadt, so it's hard not to know you."

"It's not as amazing as you make it sound. But anyway, just leave any matter to me! I can help with anything!"

Noelle shyly lowered her head, fiddling with her skirt. Then she spoke again brimming with enthusiasm.

Do her utmost best, appear by the side of everyone who needs help - this was Noelle's own expectation of herself.

If someone could unhesitatingly call out her name when in trouble, she would be very happy.

[Noelle Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 60 Affection Points. Current Affection Level Lv. 1 (60/100)]

Seeing the increased affection points, Nolan was a little stunned for a moment. They had just met and she already had 60 affection points towards him. Was it because she felt recognized?

As expected, while being shy on the surface, she was still very happy inside with other people's praises.

"Um, Noelle, here's the thing. I'm a new adventurer from the Adventurers' Guild who wants to take on a commission to go out into the wilderness and clear out monsters that threaten passing residents. But going alone I'm worried I can't handle it, so I hope you can be my teammate."

Nolan told Noelle his idea of needing her to form a team.

"I see, so that's why." Noelle thought for a while and nodded, "Clearing threatening monsters is also my duty. I can go with you now."

As the Knights' maid, she had many duties, like cleaning the hall. But those were already completed. After helping Miss Margaret find Little Prince, she had nothing else to do.

So going adventuring with Nolan would not affect anything.

"Really? That's great!" Nolan spoke rather excitedly, "Then let's go to Katherine now to take on a commission."

"Mm."

Led by Nolan, Noelle came to the Adventurers' Guild. After hearing Katheryne say "Ad astra abyssosque! Welcome to the Adventurers' Guild." once more, he asked:

"Miss Katherine, I'd like to take on a commission regarding eliminating monsters."

"Alright. Are you going alone, or teaming up to go with Miss Noelle?"

Katherine also noticed Noelle not far behind Nolan. She was quite familiar with Noelle's enthusiasm. With two people eliminating monsters, it would also be safer.

"Yes, since it's my first commission, I'd like to trouble Miss Noelle to keep watch."

Nolan had no embarrassment and said graciously.

"Since that's the case, the Guild's investigators discovered that in the direction of the Thousand Winds Temple, the small lake by the roadside has spawned many Hydro Slimes. Please help eliminate them to prevent them from attacking passersby."

Katherine took out a commission document with detailed information and handed it to Nolan.

These Slimes were not too strong. With Noelle around, it wouldn't be too dangerous either, and quite suitable for a new adventurer to complete.

Katherine would still give some consideration when giving out commissions.

Generally, she wouldn't let an adventurer take on a commission that was beyond their ability.

Nolan looked carefully. The document stated the route clearly, as well as the approximate number of monsters they would face. The commission reward was 80,000 Mora.

According to commodity prices where even a cup of juice costs 500 Mora, this commission reward should be the normal level for the same type of commission.

Sure enough, high risk - high reward.

After leaving the Adventurers' Guild and the city gates, Nolan and Noelle would travel on foot together over a considerable distance to their destination near the Thousand Winds Temple.

It would take quite some time.

During that month as a hunter, Nolan had tried but indeed could not use those teleport waypoints, but as expected was unable to operate them.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have to travel in such a primitive manner, even though it was common for people of Teyvat.

Now he sorely missed the click to instant travel days in the game.

Beside him, Noelle walked in knee guards and armored boots, the metal clinking rhythmically with pleasant sounds. Nolan suddenly noticed her empty hands - she didn't seem to be carrying any weapons!?

It was probably due to being used to the game mentality where weapons could be conjured out of thin air, which caused him to not realize this issue immediately.

Could it really be done in reality too? Thus Nolan couldn't help but curiously ask:

"Noelle, where is your weapon?"

"As for weapons, I stored it inside my Vision." Noelle's soft lips parted slightly as she gently answered.

"Vision!?" Nolan looked at her in surprise and asked, "Isn't the Vision an external device that can guide elemental power? It can also be used to store weapons?"

Noelle lowered her head in thought for a while, then explained:

"For people with Visions, this is actually a very simple technique. You just use your own elemental power to envelop the weapon and it can be stored inside. Taking it out is as easy as releasing elemental power."

"That's way too convenient." Nolan sighed with envy as he touched the hunting bow on his back.

He remembered what seemed to be Eula's character demo video that had a scene of Eula dismissing her claymore into thin air after defeating enemies.

If it was stored in her Vision, then this setting would also make a lot of sense, at least it could explain why ordinary people were unable to do such feats.

The sunlight's angle changed slightly larger, and the temperature was also a bit hotter.

Even walking on the main road they still had to stay vigilant, after all in the wilderness, a monster could pop out to ambush them anytime. Like groups of roaming Hilichurls that often raided passing merchant convoys.

Not long after, Nolan and Noelle finally approached the site of their commissioned mission.

Nolan's eyes lit up. He could spot Hydro Slimes that looked clear as lake water from afar, bouncing around as if surrounding something.

"Help! Save me! Noelle, please hurry and help me!"

A woman's cry for help came from ahead. Her hoarse voice suggested she was being mobbed by the Hydro Slimes.

"Oh no, someone's in danger!"

Noelle in her maid-style armor suddenly harnessed the power of her Vision, a splendid greatsword appearing in her grasp. She rushed forward urgently.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 14: Rescuing Vile

There was only a brief sound of armor colliding. A figure beside him went from stillness to extreme speed in an instant. The muddy ground was stamped with imprints of metal boot heels. She swept past the wind and airflow, leaves flying in her wake.

Nolan pressed down his windswept hair, amazed inside at Noelle's powerful physique.

He didn't waste any time and quickly took down the wooden hunting bow from his back, hitched an iron-tipped arrow, and followed closely behind.

Noelle charged straight into the group of Slimes surrounding the girl, standing in front of her with greatsword raised in both hands, stance at the ready. A semi-transparent shield instantly materialized, blocking a water bullet attack from a Large Hydro Slime.

Nolan swiftly assessed and determined the number of Hydro Slimes as well as the current situation.

One Large Hydro Slime, with five Small Hydro Slimes. No mistake, it matched the commission description. The abundant water elements in this small lake must have attracted the Hydro Slimes over.

When the Adventurer's Guild investigators discovered them earlier, there were no attacks on people yet. And generally, they wouldn't become alert if left alone. So this commission wasn't particularly urgent.

Could it be that the girl provoked them on purpose? Nolan didn't think too much for now. Saving the person first.

He effortlessly drew back the bowstring. The iron arrowhead shot stealthily towards a Small Hydro Slime, piercing through its body with a splurt. Water elements splashed and its condition clearly weakened somewhat, but it wasn't defeated yet.

It vigilantly wobbled its soft, bouncy body, unable to spot Nolan in the distance. It channeled its anger into a headbutt at the only target it could see, Noelle.

Clang!

Its headbutt bounced off Noelle's breastplate armor, hurting itself significantly in recoil. Nolan shot it down with another arrow. With a Pop, the water elements burst forth.

A lump of Slime Condensate dropped.

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 35 Adventure EXP]

A pleasing voice sounded in his mind. The corners of Nolan's lips curled up slightly, he was in a good mood.

And so, with Noelle guarding the girl behind her and blocking the enraged Large Hydro Slime, Nolan picked off and defeated the Small Hydro Slimes one by one from afar.

The ones that fell short didn't count, on average, it only took two to three arrows to defeat each Small Hydro Slime. In the process, he deliberately employed techniques from "Favonius Archery - Fundamentals" that he just learned, successfully grasping it as it appeared on his stats page.

Arrows continuously fired. They could still be retrieved before being completely ruined, so it wasn't wasteful.

[+33 Adventure EXP]

[+37 Adventure EXP]

[+31 Adventure EXP]

[+38 Adventure EXP]

The five Small Hydro Slimes earned Nolan 174 Adventure EXP. Added to his previous 512, he could level up again.

He promptly invested the 600 Adventure EXP into his level. A familiar heat flow emerged in his body, every cell was being nurtured and evolved. Nolan's strength improved significantly again.

Seeing 86 Combat EXP left, not enough to increase character level, but just enough to raise Hunter's Archery skills to Lv.3.

After allocating EXP, Nolan's stats panel was refreshed:

Name: Nolan Walker

Level: Lv.7 (0/700)

Race: Human

Title: None

Innate Talent: Entangling Affections

Skills: Hunter's Archery Lv.3 (0/300), Favonius Archery - Fundamentals Lv.1 (2/100)

Specialty:strong[/strongDescenderstrong]/strong

Adventure EXP: 9

If this fanfic game stats panel was still the same as Nolan's understanding, then his character level at Lv.7 would be around the level of average monsters already.

And average monsters were generally around Lv.1~Lv.20, higher leveled ones are more rarely seen. With weaponry and skills, Nolan could be considered strong on the average monster level.

Nolan remembered that Level 20 represented a milestone. Upon reaching that level, he could obtain racial expertise, signifying that as a human, he had reached the pinnacle that ordinary people could grow to in their natural state.

To quickly get to Level 20, he still needed a lot more Adventure EXP. Nolan shifted his gaze back to the last Large Hydro Slime.

By now, with Nolan having taken care of the other Small Slimes, Noelle no longer needed to split her attention to protect the young woman behind her.

The splendid greatsword, judging by its looks should be a Favonius Greatsword. Its blade was covered in rich amber Geo elemental power, forming the shape of an enlarged and elongated sword edge.

Before the Large Hydro Slime could jump up to attack, she swung the sword down. The Slime was like a balloon being smashed down. However, this Large Hydro Slime was truly tenacious, only retreating a bit.

It seemed this Slime had high health, defense, elemental resistance, and so on - thick-skinned and sturdy.

But since it couldn't break through Noelle's armor, the outcome was self-evident. With Nolan joining the fight, one arrow after another struck its body until his last arrow finally defeated it.

Larger water elements than the Small Slimes burst forth. Being relatively close, Noelle reflexively used her hand to block, but her maid-like armor was still drenched. The rose pink skirt was partially soaked through too, though it didn't impact much.

Luckily where the Slime burst, the condensate merged into higher quality Slime Concentrate. Aside from selling to alchemists as alchemy material, it could also be used to craft potions, or even innovatively in cooking.

At the same time, defeating the monster also earned Nolan combat experience.

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 119 Adventure EXP]

It was the most he had ever gained, directly satisfying a little more than one-seventh of the level-up progress.

"Noelle, are you alright?" Nolan asked with concern.

"Ah, please don't worry, it's just that my clothes got a little wet. Let's check on her first."

In that last hit Noelle's armor broke before she could re-condense elemental power again, which led to her getting splashed by the water.

The young woman they rescued had light orange hair tied in a ponytail, some hair tips dangling beside her cheeks. Her top and sleeves were separate pieces. Her bloomer-like shorts were slightly puffed up.

She looks confident and youthful. Nolan appraised inwardly.

Noelle helped the young woman sitting on the ground to her feet. Her knees were a little red, probably scraped when knocked down by the Slimes, but it was just a minor injury.

"Thank you so much for your help, or else I may have never made it back to Mondstadt!"

The young woman patted her chest, still flustered.

[Vile Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 252 Affection Points. Current Affection Level Lv. 2 (152/200)]

"It's good that you're fine. We also came to clean up these Slimes to complete an Adventurers' Guild commission. Didn't expect someone would be in danger."

Noelle's metal glove-covered hands embarrassingly stroked the silver-gray hair strands falling beside her eyes.

"Mm, right." Nolan echoed in agreement.

At this time he felt very surprised inside. He didn't expect saving someone would give him so much affection, directly surpassing girls who currently had affection towards him.

It was probably comparable to a friend level already. After all, it took Amber quite some time to reach Lv.2 at Affection Level towards him.

Nolan could not help but think in his heart, if the rescue was a little more dramatic and he did a hero saving the beauty, would Vile fall head over heels for him with max Affection Level!?

Haha, quite wishful thinking. Though why did this name Vile seem familiar?

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 15: Thousand Winds Temple

Near the Thousand Winds Temple, the small lake was cool and refreshing. Noelle used the lakewater to clean Vile's injured knees, applied medicinal powder, and then wrapped clean white bandages around the knees.

These medical supplies were what Nolan carried in his adventure backpack. Generally speaking, they were necessities for outdoor adventures.

During this time, Nolan picked up most of the still usable arrows. Also, with his enhanced physique and memory from the level up, he recalled who Vile was.

In the game, Vile's identity was an Information Broker, claiming no information in all of Mondstadt escaped her.

Nolan knew that much of what she knew was gossip, interesting trivia, and such. Like how Barbara likes spicy food, Diluc once drank a wine called "Fire-Water" from Snezhnaya and got drunk for three days straight.

Of course, she also knew her fair share of valuable intel. But precisely because that information was valuable, she wouldn't casually divulge it like the trivia.

Overall Vile's information-gathering abilities were quite strong indeed.

So was she here gathering some kind of intel too? What could it be? Nolan felt a little curious.

Under the shade of the tree, Noelle, who could do anything and was careful and skillful, had finished treating Vile's scrapes. Vile excitedly got up and moved her legs around:

"As expected of Noelle, doesn't hurt one bit!"

"Miss Vile, please don't make intense movements for now." A tinge of helplessness showed on Noelle's fair face.

Vile, whose bare knees were now decorated by the bandages wrapping her shorts, gestured reassuringly in response:

"No problem, Noelle, I trust your skill."

As an Information Broker who claims to know everything about Mondstadt, Vile of course recognizes Noelle. But that young Liyue-looking adventurer seemed unfamiliar. Could he be someone who only recently arrived in Mondstadt?

She had been keeping an eye on the Treasure Hoarders' movements lately. They seemed to be planning something big. An ordinary, mundane person like Nolan wasn't someone she paid much attention to.

Of course, Vile was still very grateful to this young adventurer who helped save her. She immediately went up to him and said:

"Thank you to you and Noelle for saving me. I'm Vile, an Information Broker. If you need anything just ask, consider it repayment!"

Nolan was just thinking it hard to have a rare chance of getting Noelle to come out with him for a trip. He couldn't just simply defeat some slimes, complete the commission, and casually head back.

Although Monsters were so common in Teyvat it was absurd, but if not actively searching for them, it would be hard to randomly encounter any for a while.

If they returned to Mondstadt now to submit this commission and then took more time to accept and travel to another commission location, it would be hugely time-consuming. It would be far more convenient if he could learn of some monster locations from Vile.

Even with Nolan's game familiarity, he didn't have any particular advantage here, since monsters wouldn't have fixed spawn points in reality anyway.

Places that were too dangerous like Stormterror's Lair did have lots of monsters, but he didn't yet dare to go with his current strength.

Nolan took his thoughts back a little and asked directly:

"Miss Vile, I do have a small question to consult you about. Do you know of any monsters suitable for new adventurers to train on? And their locations?"

"Oh? Looking for monsters to practice on huh." Vile crossed her arms, head lowered slightly in contemplation.

This young adventurer mister asked the hard question for her. After all, she was just an ordinary person without strong abilities herself. She usually wouldn't casually scout out the monster's whereabouts either.

That was the job of the Adventurers' Guild scouts.

You don't necessarily have to fight monsters for practice...

"I don't know much about monster locations either. But if you want to practice, are you interested in the Treasure Hoarders?" Veir beamed as she spoke.

"Treasure Hoarders? What do you mean?"

Nolan twisted his wrist, a little sore after pulling the bowstring for so long, and asked in puzzlement.

Vile thought for a bit then explained:

"I actually secretly followed a group of Treasure Hoarders here. While hiding carefully I didn't expect there to be a group of slimes nearby."

"As for why I was tailing the Treasure Hoarders, I feel like they seemed to have discovered a top-tier precious artifact inside the Thousand Winds Temple!"

"Huh? An Artifact!"

Noelle's right hand covered in the armored glove gently obscured her soft lips and widened slightly in surprise.

As the name suggests, Artifacts were left behind by predecessors. It is said that every artifact relic witnessed an unforgettable story, transformed by the historical years precipitating onto it.

The holder can feel the historical profundity contained within Artifact, and obtain inconceivable power from them.

With few in number, artifacts were very rare. To historians, they had immense research value and had to be carefully safeguarded as historical artifacts.

Thus they were quite prejudiced against crude fellows who would wield artifacts in fights.

"Artifact huh."

Nolan was also rather surprised. After arriving in Teyvat, he seldom heard anyone mention Artifact. It seemed obtaining them wasn't as simple as the game made it.

Artifacts generally appeared more often in certain domains or ruins. But Teyvat denizens didn't have the game's map to easily locate such places.

Then even if lucky to discover a ruins, there might not necessarily be an artifact inside. Even if present, maybe only a few pieces with no respawns. So artifacts really were extraordinarily scarce and rarely seen.

Of course, this referred to high-tier ones. Low-quality 1-star and 2-star artifacts could be obtained from treasure chests.

If the Treasure Hoarders really discovered traces of some top-tier artifact, their luck must be quite good!

"So what you mean is...?" Nolan already had some guesses.

"You can use the Treasure Hoarders as practice targets. With good luck, we may even gain an artifact."

The corners of Vile's mouth rose as she said indifferently.

"It seems like a decent proposal, but how strong are these Treasure Hoarders? Can we handle them?"

Nolan stroked his chin, pondering for a bit without rushing ahead rashly. He asked cautiously.

He wasn't someone easily tempted just by potential gains. After all, with his stats page, what he was owed would come in due time by staying alive. There was no need to take risks.

Vile shifted her stance to stand on her uninjured left leg, smiling gently at Nolan's prudent attitude in agreement:

"Mr. Adventurer, you possess the same precious trait as I do."

As an information broker, the most important thing is to be cautious, so as not to accidentally step over the line and into someone else's bottom line when peddling information, which would be troublesome.

"To avoid making a huge commotion, they only sent six men over. All ordinary people, perhaps not too hard to deal with."

Vile spoke confidently.

Nolan admitted he felt a little tempted.

"Hmm, what do you think Noelle?" Nolan turned his body slightly, looking towards Noelle beside him asking for her opinion.

Noelle would be doing most of the work. If Noelle had a different opinion then he would have to respect that.

With his understanding of Noelle, he also felt uncertain if she was willing to resort to violence to resolve this.

Monsters were fine, but the Treasure Hoarders were human. Perhaps the kindhearted her was unwilling, Who Knew?

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 16: Treasure Hoarders

emT/N: Treasure Hoarder's Name May Not Same as Game, Don't Compare Them. They Are a Bunch of EXP for MC Anyways - Not Important./em

A green leaf was carried over by the breeze. Noelle gently pinched it between her fingers before letting it go again.

Facing Nolan's question, she stroked the silver-gray hair strands at her temple saying:

"The Treasure Hoarders are bad people. If they get their hands on the artifact, they will surely utilize it for ill ends. So we should stop them!"

Noelle spoke very reasonably. The Treasure Hoarders were after all a loosely organized band of thieves where the members had money-blinded hearts.

Once they caught a whiff of treasures, be it domains or ruins, they would try their luck whether they were capable or not.

So when adventurers also went exploring those domains and ruins, aside from monsters the obstacles they faced could also include the Treasure Hoarders.

"Alright, since we all agree let's go to The Thousand Winds Temple and teach those guys a lesson!"

A smile appeared on Vile's face. Although she had told this important information that was meant to be sold to the Knights of Favonius, she wasn't unhappy about it, as a way of repaying the two for saving her life.

With Vail leading the way and Noelle following closely behind, Nolan as the archer was last, vigilantly observing their surroundings.

The trio followed the grassy slope up to high ground, and the entire Thousand Winds Temple within their sight.

Stone pillars of unknown purpose stood erect. Layers upon layers of massive stairways extended downwards. In the middle of the Thousand Winds Temple was a circular structure that resembled a colosseum arena on closer look.

Below the colosseum-like structure was a passage leading inside. Two Treasure Hoarders stood guard outside, while the rest were likely within.

It was evident they were also highly vigilant.

In principle, adventurers should have already combed these ruins inside out long ago, taking anything valuable. Could it be that the Treasure Hoarders discovered new unexplored regions?

Without knowing the full details, the three decided to first sneak over and somehow take out the two Treasure Hoarders guarding the passageway.

Because they couldn't attract the attention of the Treasure Hoarders, it took some effort for them to get there.

Originally, with Nolan's strength, it would not be a problem for them to directly beat up the two Treasure Hoarders. But that might startle those inside the passage and cause them to flee.

Thus the task of silently taking out the two guards was left to Noelle.

If it was Nolan, even with a sneak attack he couldn't swiftly and soundlessly take them out.

As they got closer, taking cover behind massive rocks, Nolan and them could clearly hear the two Treasure Hoarders' conversation.

"Veg, how come the boss and they have been inside for so long without coming out yet? They won't encounter any danger, right?"

Aurn, wearing a black cowboy hat decorated with feathers and holding a repeater crossbow, spoke worriedly.

"Don't worry, Boss Johnny took a whole pile of potions inside. Even if they meet ruin guards, they can take it apart!"

Compared to the indecisive Aurn, Veg seemed much more confident.

Veg's weapon was also a repeater crossbow. He raised his right hand covered by tattered gloves, laughing as he said:

"After the boss and others succeed, we'll go have a banquet tonight to celebrate a feast! Hehe, our luck's way too good recently huh."

"A month ago we dug up an adventure journal on the coast near Stormbearer Point recording traces of an artifact relic. Not to mention we also found the recorded sealing materials."

"Especially that Golden Koi fish. Can't buy it anywhere, yet it conveniently appeared right in front of us in the end, how bizarre!"

Aurn nodded in agreement:

"Running into that net with the Golden Koi at Lake really was unexpected. Don't know which poor fool left that net there, getting us these benefits."

"What's more, only the fish head was needed to undo the seal. We sold the rest of it for 150,000 Mora! Too bad we couldn't taste that delicacy ourselves!"

"Oh please, aren't you satisfied getting such a fat share? Whether it be Golden Koi or other delicacies, it goes out the other end the next day after eating. For us, the Mora we obtained is far more substantial than fleeting food."

Veg sneered disdainfully at Aurn's sentiments.

These Treasure Hoarders risked life and limb in the wilderness all for the sake of those round coins! Only Mora was almighty, with it anything could be done!

Hearing this from afar, Nolan was enraged. So it was this bunch of thieves who took his fishing net, even selling his fish for a lot of money!

How preposterous. He'd already decided not to make trouble for them for the time being until they delivered themselves to his doorstep.

Just as he was about to have Noelle take action, the ground lightly shook.

"What's going on?"

Veg and Aurn's faces were filled with horror, looking left and right but not noticing anything amiss.

Nolan's hand was against the rock. Faint but continuous vibrations transmitted over, making him inexplicably think:

"Could it be a minor earthquake?"

"No, it's not an earthquake. Look over at the passageway!" Vile shook her head, gazing towards the passage the Treasure Hoarders guarded.

"Run! Quick run! It's Ruin Guard!"

Several people simultaneously ran out from the passage while yelling outside. Chasing behind them was a gigantic humanoid mechanism. Its metallic body seemed corroded and dark in color, with glints of light emitting from its head as if they were its eyes.

Its upper body spun wildly, turning the surroundings into a shredding machine along with its twin mechanized arms. Its lower half stepped normally like human legs, causing tremors with every footfall.

Spotting the source of the tremors to be a ruin guard, Veg was no longer as nervous. He even shouted mockingly inside:

"Boss! It's just a single Ruin Guard, right? A few shots at its eyes will paralyze it. Aurn! Let's aim for its eyes together!"

Inside the somewhat gloomy passage, the Ruin Guard's "eyes" shone so dazzlingly.

Just as Veg and Aurn raised their hand crossbows, pulling the trigger about to shoot, Aurn suddenly noticed the shining "eyes" seemed to have multiplied. Could he be seeing things?

Aurn rubbed his eyes, looking again. Now apprehension and fear showed in them as his crossbow-holding hands trembled too.

"Hey...you kidding me?"

Bullets of sweat flowed from Veg's orange sideburns as he couldn't help but retreat a couple of steps.

"Morons! Stop aiming already! There are five Ruin Guards! Run!"

Johnny led his three subordinates out of the passage, seeing the other two still frozen there. He directly slapped them awake.

Aurn adjusted his black cowboy hat, knocked askew by the boss, finally reacting as he fled together with Veg and Johnny's group.

Hidden at the side, Nolan also felt waves of dread. The ground tremors intensified continuously. If they didn't escape now, this place would also get shredded by the Ruin Guards soon.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 17: Conflict

emT/N: Treasure Hoarder's Name May Not Same as Game, Don't Compare Them. They Are a Bunch of EXP for MC Anyways - Not Important./em

Out of the gloomy passage, the five Ruin Guards fully displayed their mighty and fierce appearances under the sunlight.

Just as Vile attempted to get up, her injured right knee gave out from standing up too hastily. Noelle swiftly pulled her close by the waist before she fell, then brought her to higher ground.

Nolan similarly retreated. There was no other option, a little later will became meat paste.

Nolan's group was also discovered by the Treasure Hoarders. Aurn said:

"Boss, there are other people here!"

"I can see that, I'm not blind," Johnny stroked his stubbly chin, pondering briefly, "Let's go, we'll follow them. Can't let others catch wind of our business."

"Yes, boss!"

After reaching the high point, Nolan's group heaved in relief, no longer in the ruin guards' detection range. They shouldn't come under attack here.

Just what did those Treasure Hoarders do inside to lure out five Ruin Guards?!

"Phew...too terrifying!"

Vile patted her chest, waves of lingering fear.

"Sorry, Miss Vile, I was a bit rough," Noelle said somewhat apologetically.

She was referring to hastily pulling Vile along to retreat under the urgent circumstances. From Nolan's perspective, Vile's posture then really couldn't be described as...elegant.

"We almost became Vile sauce, who cares about poise?! If anything, it's Noelle saving me again!"

Vile tried to wipe the nonexistent tears from the corner of her eyes to prove she wasn't exaggerating. She truly felt moved.

"Pfft-"

Hearing the term "Vile sauce", Noelle couldn't help but laugh softly, hands folded over her lips.

Nolan withdrew his gaze from the two girls, looking down at the Thousand Winds Temple below. With no targets now, the ruin guards halted their sweeping spins, and instead just wandered down below.

Gradually, his eyes lit up. Nolan was extremely familiar with ruin guards. The "eyes" on their heads were the core. Destroying them would paralyze the Ruin Guards.

These were all precious Adventure EXP.

Nolan looked at the wooden bow in his hands. He wasn't confident its power could shatter a ruins guard's core. Moreover, there were five of them. If he attacked one, the rest might lock onto him.

He certainly didn't wish to taste their missiles firsthand.

In the game's lore, Ruin Guards were made as weapons of war by the people of Khaenri'ah. The most common type, and was code-named "Field Tillers" by the people of Khaenri'ah. Their means of "tilling" new territory - What faced them was blood and fire after all.

This really left one at a loss for words.

Just as Nolan silently complained inwardly, he suddenly noticed that the bunch of Treasure Hoarders had slipped away without a trace. Fled pretty quickly.

Eyeing these ruin guards, even Noelle's shield probably couldn't withstand simultaneous attacks from them for long. For safety's sake, they should hold off provoking them for now.

Just as he turned to look back at the two girls in that split second, his peripheral vision glimpsed a sharp cold light shooting towards him!

It was as if time stopped, or his mind accelerated. He only felt his body stiffen, no longer under his control.

Damnit, this is bad!

Nolan watched helplessly as the crossbow bolt was about to pierce into him.

"Danger, watch out!"

A tender cry that inspired safety from its sound alone entered Nolan's ears.

Noelle's tender lips parted as she shouted. Apprehension showed in her eyes that were chatting merrily just a moment ago. Sensing Nolan's crisis, her body reacted on instinct, flinging both arms wide as Geo Elemental Power surged. Her breastplate manifested, shielding Nolan before her.

Bang!

The sharp crossbow bolt collided with the translucent armor - like an egg hitting a boulder - preposterously bouncing aside, falling onto the grass.

Phew~ Nolan quietly breathed a sigh of relief seeing this situation.

Fortunately, Noelle was here, otherwise, he would have nearly met his end. His future was meant to be smooth sailing, yet he nearly perished midway.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel terrified and angry at the same time.

His gaze looked past Noelle towards the direction where the ambush originated from.

Wearing common street hobo attire, a group of six people - it was none other than the Treasure Hoarder's group from earlier!

"Boss, It's the Vision!"

The person who spoke had a slight tremor in his voice.

Aurn was following behind Johnny, and the crossbow bolt from earlier was shot under the boss's orders. In Johnny's mind, Nolan was likely the strongest out of the three men.

Taking him out first would make things easier later.

But he didn't expect that maid-dressed girl to be a Vision Holder! Aurn admitted he panicked a little.

Johnny scolded angrily: "Idiot! What is there to be scared of, just a little girl, so what if she has the Vision!"

Johnny was a middle-aged man with brown hair parted to the sides and a tanned complexion, his expression looking rather serious.

Though he spoke as if there was nothing to fear, his many years of experience told him to be cautious when facing a Vision Holder who could control elemental forces, regardless of age.

Make one wrong move and get struck by powerful elements, the human body simply can't withstand such forces.

Thinking about the item he obtained from the ruins though, Johnny felt much more relaxed.

"Hey! Who are you people, why are you here, have you been following us?!" Johnny addressed the three with an aggressive air.

"Huh?" Vile almost laughed. We're the ones who got ambushed yet you bite back, "None of your business, who says the Thousand Winds Temple belongs to your family, can't even come here adventuring!"

"Who goes adventuring while sneaking around watching others, you guys must be plotting something!"

Rike was a yellow flat top haircut youth, an alchemist in the Treasure Hoarder's group, skilled at using and crafting potent fire element concoctions.

Nolan's gaze lowered as he frowned, deep in thought.

The current situation - the Treasure Hoarders have some apprehension towards Noelle, but aren't fearful enough - means they must have some hidden trump card to deal with her.

According to the information provided by Vile, this group of Treasure Hoarders were ordinary people.

The two with feathers on their hats were crossbowmen, the two standing slightly behind used elemental potions, and the plump one holding a shovel was a gravedigger.

And their goal was to locate artifacts. Nolan glanced at the boss of the Treasure Hoarder's group - could they have truly found something?

What kind of artifact gave them the courage to face a Vision Holder that manipulated elemental power?

Nolan felt they were bluffing. From his game knowledge about artifacts, the boosts they provide the user can be considerable, but that is on the premise that the user has decent underlying capabilities.

Otherwise, if the base self is trash, even if given a 5-star fully Upgraded Artifact that provides a nearly 50% increased attack, the end result is still trash, right?

"So what do you guys want?" Nolan peeked out from behind Noelle, smiling.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 18: The Difficulties of Both Sides

emT/N: Treasure Hoarder's Name May Not Same as Game, Don't Compare Them. They Are a Bunch of EXP for MC Anyways - Not Important./em

Thousand Winds Temple, above the hill, Nolan and the others were confronting the members of the Treasure Hoarders.

Johnny felt unable to advance or retreat at this moment. The Sacred Artifact was already in their hands, they could have just withdrawn. But they discovered something even more valuable inside the ruins.

If he brought this news back to Lord, he would at least become the second in command of the treasure hunters in the Mondstadt region.

But these adventurers happened to see them. If they went back and reported the abnormal situation here to the Adventurers' Guild, the possibility that the secrets inside the ruins would be exposed would be very high.

It would be troublesome to get the benefits at that time.

So they had to keep these people here. Johnny folded his burly arms and said, "Everyone, we can't let the discovery of the ruins leak out. How about you leave after we finish handling things here?"

"You want to restrict our actions? You must be dreaming." Nolan looked at him strangely.

Although his own strength was still lacking a bit, with Noelle here, she could easily take these people down!

"Boss why waste words, I don't believe just one Vision can stop us!"

Veg aimed his crossbow at Nolan's group, speaking impatiently.

Vile with an injured knee hurriedly hid further behind Nolan, she couldn't help much in this situation.

Nolan frowned, slightly wary as he gripped his bow firmly, ready to fight any moment.

If it weren't for being caught off guard earlier, and he didn't instinctively detect the danger due to his lack of combat experience, with his physique enhanced by the improved body, it wouldn't have been difficult for him to dodge the crossbow bolts when prepared.

Johnny reached out and blocked Veg who was aiming. He also knew these adventurers would not easily agree.

Then he persuaded them again, "You should see clearly the situation. There are six of us, all with powerful weapons. The outcome is self-evident if we really start fighting!"

What nonsense is this Treasure Hoarder's group talking about? Do they really think they can fight against Noelle... Nolan felt a little speechless.

Noelle's fair face looked solemn, the magnificent Favonius Greatsword already summoned in her hand. She would not simply believe the nonsense of the Treasure Hoarders.

Although Noelle was formidable, the other side still had 6 people. She may not be able to protect both him and Vile.

Nolan silently invested 98 Adventure EXP into the skill [Favonius Archery - Fundamentals] raising it up level to Lv.2.

At the same time, some knowledge about using archery appeared in his mind, as if he had practiced for a long time, completely without any feeling of unfamiliarity, and could exert the maximum power of the current level at any time.

Just now, the remaining EXP in the character panel was only enough to level up the [Favonius Archery - Fundamentals]. Any bit of strength improvement counted, at least he would have a bigger grasp if fighting really occurred.

Although he had full confidence in Noelle's might, some preparations still had to be made.

"Since it's like so, don't blame us for not giving face!" Johnny's gaze turned sharp. He signaled with his hand, "Catch them!"

"Yes, boss!"

Veg couldn't wait to shoot out the crossbow bolts. The crossbow bolts one after another hit Noelle's Geo Shield, but they all bounced off without any effect.

"It's Useless! Boss, this Elemental Shiled is too hard!"

Veg said dejectedly.

Nolan and Vile were behind Noelle, and the members of the Treasure Hoarder's group simply couldn't attack them, so they didn't fear the crossbows either.

Before breaking through Noelle's shield, the members of the Treasure Hoarder's group did not dare to get close either. Didn't they see that terrifying greatsword? Getting close was no different from seeking death.

But this is also very passive.

After all, Noelle was also worried that if she took the initiative to charge forward to attack, Vile, who had injured her knee and was a little inconvenient to move, might become the target of the Treasure Hoarder's attack.

Therefore, Nolan had to create an opportunity to take Vile away from the battlefield, and then let Noelle go on a rampage and sweep them away.

Therefore, taking advantage of the gap in the Treasure Hoarder group's attack at this time, Nolan utilized the Level 2 Favonius Archery he had just upgraded and shot arrows at them one after another continuously!

"Bastard!"

The treasure hunters had no choice but to retreat slightly to dodge. Their bodies could not withstand arrows directly.

Time passed quickly.

Nolan kept attacking them with arrows. His right hand reached back to the quiver, only to grab empty air. He seemed to have used up all the arrows.

He helplessly put down his hand. Bows and arrows had this trouble. Arrows were consumables and still limited.

The trip here to Thousand Winds Temple had exhausted quite a lot already, so the originally not plentiful arrows were used up.

It looked like he had to practice swordsmanship as soon as possible, lest he run out of arrows and have to engage in hand-to-hand combat. Of course, even without any fighting skills, his enhanced physique could go toe-to-toe with the few members of the Treasure Hoarders in a one-on-one situation.

It could be said that even without weapons, Nolan alone had considerable combat power relying solely on his excellent physique.

And an excellent physique would naturally also enable one to run fast.

Now those people in the Treasure Hoarder's Group had retreated quite a distance because they were dodging Nolan's attacks, and could not attack him for the time being, which was a good opportunity to slip away!

Thinking of this, Nolan swiftly carried Vile directly on his shoulder, burst out with extremely fast speed to retreat, and said, "Miss Noelle, I'll leave the rest to you, go beat them up!"

...

"You bastard, aren't you being too arrogant!"

Upon hearing Nolan's words, the yellow-haired Veg raised his crossbow to fiercely shoot over once more. Rows of crossbow bolts kept hitting Noelle's Hauberk, but they could still only be bounced off meaninglessly.

Seeing his companion attack again, the other crossbowman had no choice but to attack as well, trying to forcibly break through the shield under the combined tremendous power.

Unfortunately, they failed even after their crossbow bolts were exhausted.

"Mr. Adventurer, please leave it to me!" Noelle nodded, and with a stomp of her armored boots, she charged towards the members of the Treasure Hoarder's Group at a speed that ordinary people could hardly imagine.

Seeing this, the Treasure Hoarders were shocked and quickly dispersed. They had witnessed how sturdy that girl's shield was earlier.

The powerful crossbows were useless. Not only getting slashed, but even just a collision would lead to injury!

Therefore, they could only avoid the front line for the time being.

But how could their speed be better than Noelle's?

The air currents from her charge could not be avoided in time. Grass and soil splattered as the armored boots landed. Noelle had closed in before Johnny in an instant.

The burly man's pupils violently contracted. Even with a 4-star Artifact's empowerment, he could not react in time, only able to reflexively pull out his scimitar to guard.

"Boom!"

The greatsword and scimitar clashed, and the tremendous kinetic force traveled through the weapons. Johnny simply could not stand firmly at all, his entire body shot out like a cannonball!

After flying over dozens of meters, he tumbled and rolled several times on the grassland before reacting to stab his scimitar into the ground, barely stopping himself.

"Boss!"

The other Treasure Hoarder's members called out worriedly with eyes wide open.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 19: One on One Battle

emT/N: Treasure Hoarder's Name May Not Same as Game, Don't Compare Them. They Are a Bunch of EXP for MC Anyways - Not Important./em

Their boss who is so powerful was actually sent flying so far by just one move?!

This is the power of the Vision Holder!

Johnny barely propped himself up, took a breath, and yelled at the other Treasure Hoarders: "Idiots, hurry and send two people to catch those two behind, the rest come with me to stop her, otherwise we'll all be doomed!"

"Yes, Boss!"

The other members of the Treasure Hoarders immediately responded. Alchemist Rike and Veg ran to both sides, trying to bypass Noelle to attack Nolan and the others.

The remaining three cooperated with their boss Johnny to try to block Noelle.

"Don't even think about it!" Noelle was more worried about Nolan and Vile, so without saying a word, she directly intercepted one of the members of the Treasure Hoarders who was trying to chase after Nolan and Vile.

Seeing Noelle coming towards him, Veg couldn't help shouting in horror:

"Boss, come help us quickly!"

Johnny frowned, looking at Rike who successfully bypassed Noelle and went towards Nolan and the others. After thinking about it, he decided to trust that Rike could defeat that brat.

So he went to assist Veg with the remaining manpower.

On this side, seeing only Rike coming over alone, Nolan actually felt a little like laughing. Did these guys really think he was very weak?

"Ms. Vile, you back off a little bit first, I'll take care of him."

Nolan said to Vile while paying attention to the Treasure Hoarder's members coming over.

"Okay, be careful." Vile nodded. Due to her injured knee, she couldn't help, otherwise, she felt that the two of them fighting a member of the Treasure Hoarders would be much easier.

Not long after, the members of the Treasure Hoarders slowly approached.

Rike looked disdainfully at this seemingly destitute adventurer who came from who-knows-where with a sneer. He felt that even using an elemental potion to deal with him would be a waste.

Moreover, if he accidentally killed him, he wouldn't be able to catch him to threaten the Vision holder to leave either.

So he decided to subdue him with martial arts.

Nolan realized that the cocky Treasure Hoarder member in front of him seemed to want to compete with him on fist sizes? Pfft, was this what a fool looked like?

Very good, this was exactly what he wanted. He would be more cautious if this member of the Treasure Hoarder group took out an elemental potion, but now watch as I beat you down!

Before launching an attack, both of them slightly lowered their center of gravity and took a stance. They were both novices in martial arts.

Nolan was just mimicking the posture of the protagonists in martial arts movies, while Rike only knew the two-bit Kung Fu that he practiced with the boss.

After being vigilant of each other for a while, Nolan employed the strategy of doing nothing and responding to changes.

Seeing the young adventurer in front of him not daring to attack, Rike thought he was afraid. He couldn't help but look down on him even more, with a fierce smile appearing on his face, "Kid, watch me teach you how to be a man!"

With a stomp of his short boots, even a few blades of grass were lifted up. He charged at Nolan and swept his leg fiercely towards his face.

The gust of wind blew towards him. With Nolan's current eyesight, he could see Rike's movements clearly.

He didn't use any exquisite moves either, after all, he didn't know any. He simply raised his left hand and blocked it in the path of Rike's attack.

When his hand and foot touched, Nolan grabbed his foot with a backhand and lightly pulled it forward. His strength, which was much greater than ordinary people's, successfully made Rikelose his balance and fall towards Nolan.

The panic and disbelief in Rike's eyes were clearly visible.

Nolan's freed right hand was already ready. His five fingers clenched tightly, accumulating a bit of strength before punching the member of the Treasure Hoarders in the abdomen.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!"

Rike painfully covered his abdomen and fell to the ground, he couldn't even send out a scream, he could only cough to ease the pain.

How could he not expect that someone who clearly looked so thin and weak actually had so much power, just one punch made him unable to resist.

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 150 Proficiency Points]

[Comprehended skill "Martial Arts Lv.1"]

The two continuous prompts from the character panel made Nolan overjoyed. He didn't expect that defeating the member of the Treasure Hoarders would give him so many proficiency points, and he also comprehended the skill [Martial Arts].

Weapon-based archery or swordsmanship required practice before one could get started, while unarmed martial arts were a kind of physical skill, and were much simpler to pick up.

Just one fistfight would do.

Nolan being able to easily defeat Rike was also within his expectations. Although his outward appearance was not impressive, his enhanced physique was genuine, he was just more low-key in showing it off.

It was precisely because of this that he easily misled the Treasure Hoarders.

"Hey! Rike, you can't be joking right, so easily taken down?!" On this side, Veg, who was blasted away by Noelle's accidental collision, happened to catch a glimpse of Rike falling down mid-air and shouted in disbelief.

The next second, he fell to the ground and rolled around for several turns before stopping.

He was considered lucky. The other few who had tried to surround Noelle earlier didn't even have time to use their weapons and elemental potions before being slapped away by her sword like flies, flying seven to eight meters away.

Luckily their bodies were still decent from frequent adventuring outdoors, otherwise, they would have been completely incapacitated.

"That's great, I didn't expect you to be so capable!"

Vile, who was retreating behind, was a little worried about Nolan earlier. Now it looked like there was no big problem.

"Mm-hmm!" Noelle, who had just casually slapped those people away, saw that Nolan was unharmed. Her expression was also excited as she nodded in agreement.

[Vile Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 20 Affection Points, Current Affection Level Lv.2 (172/200)]

[Noelle Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 20 Affection Points, Current Affection Level Lv.1 (80/100)]

Nolan's performance in easily resolving the enemy couldn't help but make their affection towards him increase slightly.

The boss of the Treasure Hoarders, Johnny, half squatted up from the grass. With the bonus of the relic, his injury was not as serious as the others.

At this time, seeing Nolan, he was also very surprised in his heart.

"Hmph!"

He snorted, his gaze fixed on him. If he didn't catch him or the injured woman behind, there would be no way to threaten that Vision holder.

Then forget about monopolizing the treasure, even being able to return intact would become a problem!

Johnny suddenly said to Veg, the lightest injured member of the Treasure Hoarders in the distance, "Veg hurry up and capture him, I believe in you!"

"Yes, boss!"

Johnny stroked his chin, his eyes calm, and said, "Be careful, Veg, that kid is quite capable."

Nolan's strength was truly beyond his expectations. He could let Veg continue testing out his depth.

"Watch me, boss, I will definitely punch out two of that kid's teeth!"

Veg stood up and nodded heavily. He was farther away from Noelle here and closer to Nolan, so he rushed over very quickly.

Seeing Veg go up, Noelle wanted to go back to defend.

But Nolan stopped her, "Don't worry, Miss Noelle, we'll continue to deal with this opponent, you can go knock out the rest."

"Uh, Okay!"

Noelle recalled Nolan's decent martial arts skills just now and felt that he could handle the Treasure Hoarders, so she agreed and then shifted her gaze towards the other members of the Treasure Hoarders who were slapped away by her.

"Stop lying down, hurry up, and get up to block her!"

"Yes, boss!"

The other three members of the Treasure Hoarders quickly got up and vigilantly watched Noelle. After being slapped by her earlier, they were now afraid and didn't dare act rashly.

While they focused on Noelle, Johnny retreated back a step.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 20: Harvest and the Secret Ruins

Nolan paid attention to the character panel, calmly throwing 100 Adventure EXP into the [Martial Arts] skill that he had just comprehended, and a lot of knowledge about Martial Arts surfaced in his mind.

The use of physical strength, the method of positioning to fight with others, observing the timing of an attack, and so on, all of this knowledge and experience about Martial Arts, mastered in an instant by Nolan!

[ Martial Arts Lv.2 (0/200) ]

As an archer, Veg was much stronger than Rike in terms of physique as well as skill.

He blindly rushed over thinking that he could beat Nolan, but in the end, he was easily crushed by Nolan with his strong physique as well as his skillful Martial Arts techniques.

The hat-wearing Veg became the second member of the Treasure Hoarders to be knocked to the ground by Nolan after Rike.

[Defeated a Powerful Enemy, Obtained 173 Adventure EXP]

Looking at the Adventure EXP obtain prompt, Nolan was in a good mood. He looked towards the remaining four members of the Treasure Hoarders who were being one-sidedly abused by Noelle, but his gaze suddenly paused - one, two, three... there's no fourth! Where's the leader of that Treasure Hoarders group?

Ran away? He suddenly realized how these Treasure Hoarders could talk about camaraderie, the leader must have taken the chance when his teammates were being beaten to escape!

No wonder he let his teammates go first.

After all, as the Boss of the Treasure Hoarders, even if they ran separately, Noelle would definitely catch him first when she chased after them. So that's why he let his teammates go to stop Noelle, everything was just to make everyone, including the other Treasure Hoarders, focus their attention on this.

As expected of someone who could become the leader of a Treasure Hoarders team, Johnny naturally wasn't someone who couldn't assess the situation. Since they were at a disadvantage without any chance of winning, he must have wanted to cut losses in time.

The losses he cut were for himself, the damages were let his companions take, he really was despicable!

Now he had sneakily run away without even a shadow, and even in order not to make any sound from running to draw everyone's attention, that guy had even left behind his saber!

"Ah, the leader of that Treasure Hoarders team is missing!" At this time, Vile also noticed the situation.

"What! How could that be!"

The remaining members of the Treasure Hoarders were all beaten down once again, and it was only then that they noticed that Johnny had actually abandoned them and left!

These people also immediately tried to roll over and escape, but they suddenly felt a pain in the back of their necks and then instantly lost consciousness, after they fell down a figure in armor appeared behind them - it was Noelle.

She had her hands clasped together in front of her, face slightly red as she revealed a somewhat embarrassed look and said: "Um, I don't have much experience fighting others, I didn't notice the Treasure Hoarders team leader actually ran away."

"Uh it's fine, after all, no one noticed, and it was just a Treasure Hoarders team after all. We'll catch him next time we meet him!" Nolan consoled. Unfortunately, Johnny had taken away the Sacred Artifact he obtained.

Johnny escaping was now a given, probably couldn't be caught anymore, so next everyone found some firm vines nearby and tied up the few members of the Treasure Hoarders team who had no strength left to resist.

Then they woke one of them up. Nolan smiled and asked: "Please tell us the secrets you guys discovered in the ruins, or I'll throw you down to be crushed by the ruin guards!"

"Don't! Don't! Don't do this!" The members of the Treasure Hoarders Group cried out in a hurry, "I'll say it, I'll say it, please don't do it!"

Nolan looked at him with calm eyes, a breeze blew by, and below came the mechanical sounds of the ruin guards' movements.

The Treasure Hoarders Group member sighed nervously and said:

"A month ago we found the adventurer's diary at Stormbearer Point, which contained clues that the Thousand Winds Temple had a high-star-level artifact, and we did find an artifact when we came here."

"But also as the diary states, it was sealed. That adventurer had no way to find the materials to unseal it, so he probably gave up and left the diary at Stormbearer Point."

"Our Leader, Master Strange Bird is very resourceful, materials for something as trivial as unlocking a seal would naturally be very easy for him to gather most of through various channels. Even the rare Golden Koi fish was also obtained by us."

Nolan heard the Golden Koi fish again inexplicably distressed, feeling like he had lost a billion Mora.

"And then it went as you saw." The members of the Treasure Hoarders Group didn't know Nolan's thoughts and continued to speak, "Today it was very smooth to unlock the seal to get the artifact, but to our surprise, there was actually a secret teleportation portal inside the seal!"

"This is most likely a Secret Ruins that has never been explored before. You guys should know its value, but before we could celebrate for long, those ruin guards appeared and we had no choice but to retreat first, and then we met you all."

The member of the Treasure Hoarders Group even spread his hands after finishing his speech, indicating that that was it.

"You guys actually discovered the Secret Ruins!"

Vile walked over, a trace of surprise on her snow-white face under the daylight. Under her dark shorts were her legs which still hadn't recovered from the knee injury, looking slightly imbalanced when she walked.

"Hmph, that's why we're making things difficult for you guys." The member of the Treasure Hoarders Group still spoke with some reluctance.

Everyone knew that a Secret Ruins that had never been explored before represented countless Mora, rare artifacts, and precious treasures. Even though there were many dangers, it was still something everyone desperately sought after!

If it wasn't for the appearance of these few adventurers, their Treasure Hoarders Group would have been able to swallow this Secret Ruins on their own.

Noelle with silver-gray bobbed hair sheathed the sword in her hand. Walking in the tall armored boots, they made a clanking sound. She approached and looked at the Treasure Hoarders member.

The members of the Treasure Hoarders shrunk their necks in fear.

Nolan didn't completely believe his words and continued to wake up the other members of the Treasure Hoarders to ask them, confirming the same answers before nodding his head. Then he asked them about the recipes for elemental potions.

As captives, they had no right to refuse at all, and could only confess everything.

The member of the Treasure Hoarders named Rike was allowed to give a copy of the formula of the two elemental potions of thunder and fire to Nolan, before knocking the Treasure Hoarders unconscious.

"Mr. Adventurer, how should they be dealt with?" Noelle turned her fair face and looked towards Nolan, her eyes slightly puzzled as she asked.

"For being so cooperative, we'll hand them to the Knight of Favonius. They'll receive due punishment!"

Nolan said after thinking for a moment.

"Hmph! Too easy on them!" Vile humphed coldly with her arms crossed.

Noelle couldn't help parting her soft lips to let out a laugh, not forgetting etiquette as she covered her mouth slightly with a hand.

"Today's harvest is really not bad, and dangerous too. It's thanks to Noelle, otherwise, there would have been trouble!"

Nolan said with slight emotion while collecting the loot.

"Mr. Adventurer also performed very impressively." Noelle would not attribute all the credit to herself. Humility was a knight's virtue, although she wasn't an official knight yet.

But Noelle had always demanded this code of conduct from the Knights of Favonius from herself.

"Speaking of which, why are you collecting things like crossbows and sabers?"

The confused Vile asked from the side. These shouldn't be too useful for him right, could he be planning to sell them?

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Chapter 21: Defeating the Ruin Guards

Nolan asked Vile as well as Noelle to help gather all the arrows and crossbows that could still be used, and facing Vile's question he said:

"I want to try using the crossbow bolts to see if I can defeat the Ruin Guards."

"Uh, isn't that too dangerous?"

Vile shifted her stance slightly, the orange ponytail swaying just a bit to indicate her puzzlement. She had no idea why Nolan was so fixated on "training" by fighting monsters.

"That's why I'm using the Repeating Crossbow," Nolan replied.

Originally, Nolan didn't want to mess with the Ruin Guards, but after discovering the thieves had such excellent weapons, he felt there was a chance to paralyze them by striking their cores.

The main thing to watch out for was choosing targets carefully to avoid aggroing a second Ruin Guard. He needed to maintain distance, which would be tricky with just his wooden hunting bow.

After all, the hunting bow lacked power. It was fine for hunting but against the high physical resistance of the Ruin Guards, it fell a bit short.

The Repeating Crossbow could fire multiple bolts rapidly. If he could hit the Ruin Guard's core in a short period, there was a chance to paralyze it.

"Plus, don't you want to check out the ruins the Treasure Hoarders discovered and see if there really is a secret domain or ruin?"

Nolan asked with a smile. As an intelligence broker, one couldn't just take the information at face value without verifying it - that would be irresponsible.

"Well, that's right too."

Vile conceded, cupping her chin in thought. The intelligence about a possible Secret Ruins would fetch a high price from the Adventurers' Guild or the Knights of Favonius, regardless of who she sold it to.

"By the way, do you guys know how to use a bow? Are you any good at shooting?" Nolan asked Noelle and Vile.

"Huh? You want us to use the Repeating Crossbow?" Noelle turned her head, gazing at the emerald grass as she responded weakly, "I train in Favonius Bladework, so I'm not very good with bows..."

Looking at the side of her face through her silver-gray hair, one could glimpse the delicate and snow-white ears that were hidden in the gap between the hair.

Vile could also guess what Nolan was thinking and said with a smile:

"I learned some archery before, so hitting the Ruin Guard cores with the Repeating Crossbow isn't a problem."

He probably wanted them to use the two crossbows left by the thieves to jointly attack the Ruin Guard cores. With the firepower of the crossbows, they had a decent chance if they could land their shots.

"Great, let's try it then," Nolan said excitedly.

"Leave the protection of you guys to me," Noelle said confidently, while slightly clenching her fist in a 'fighting' gesture.

Having decided to clear out the Ruin Guards, Nolan took stock of the spoils from the Treasure Hoarders.

The two Repeating Crossbows were for fighting the Ruin Guards. Between unused bolts and usable ones, they found nearby, they had over forty in total. He and Vile could split them evenly.

The two elemental potion formulas can't be crafted for the time being because of the lack of materials, but the recipe could be copied so each of them got one - a fair distribution of the spoils.

As for the scimitar Johnny left behind, Nolan planned to use it to practice [Favonius Bladework - Fundamentals]. Though it was a blade rather than a sword, it was still a one-handed weapon so it should work.

Buying a brand new one wouldn't be cheap, so saving money now made sense since it was just temporary for learning the basics. He'd need a higher-quality single-handed sword eventually in the future.

Vile and Noelle were not interested in the scimitar, so Nolan took it directly.

Next was dealing with the Ruin Guards roaming around the Thousand Winds Temple. In order not to be targeted by all five Ruin Guards at the same time, they had to be careful to keep a sufficient distance.

Using the rubble and broken stone pillars in the Thousand Winds Temple to hide themselves, they went down the grassy hill again.

The patrol routes of the Ruin Guards didn't overlap too closely. Nolan's group staked out a fixed spot and took aim with the crossbows.

They waited for the Ruin Guards to wander within firing range.

The Treasure Hoarders' crossbow could fire five arrows in a row, with an effective range of 70~80 meters, which wasn't that great, but it was still impressive.

Moreover, A distance of over seventy meters probably wouldn't attract aggro from the other Ruin Guards.

Before long, a Ruin Guard lumbered towards their position in its mechanical, sluggish stride.

The glowing core on its head was exposed. Nolan and Vile aimed the crossbows, waiting to fire.

Noelle was on alert to the surroundings to prevent accidents.

The Ruin Guard stepped onto the rocky ground, completely oblivious to the ambush over a hundred meters away in front of it.

The kingdom that created them was long gone. With no orders, they could only wander aimlessly until a living being appeared before their eyes, triggering hostile recognition.

Then, whoever it was would witness once again the proud technological brilliance of the fallen nation of Khaenri'ah.

Alas, at this moment the despicable foreigner was dishonorably lying in wait with two female companions.

Seeing the corroded Ruin Guard approach firing range, Nolan's gaze sharpened. In a low voice, he said to Vile beside him:

"I'll say when to shoot, then we fire together."

Most of the techniques in the Level 3 Hunter Archery and Level 2 Archery Fundamentals are also applicable to the crossbow, so it is appropriate for him to judge the timing of the attack, and Vile only needs to be in charge of aiming.

The breeze swirled a bit of dust around her feet, and Vile brushed her fingertips across her forehead beneath the tips of her hair, wiping away nonexistent sweat and taking a deep breath, she had been ready for this for a long time.

"Ready... Three, two, one, shoot!"

Seeing the rusted Ruin Guard enter an optimal range, Nolan gave the order.

Ten bolts flew from their Repeating Crossbows towards the glowing core on the Ruin Guard's head. Precise hits - the first two bolts glanced off its sturdy shell.

Starting with the third, damage appeared on the core. Bolts four, five, and six widened the breaches, golden electricity crackling outward as the Ruin Guard froze mid-paralysis, not yet collapsed.

The final bolts extinguished its light completely. With a crash, the Ruin Guard collapsed to the ground.

"It really collapsed!" Vile's complexion was filled with the emotion of excited words.

[Defeated A Powerful Enemy, Obtained 422 Adventure EXP]

The corner of Nolan's mouth rose slightly. Although he had encouraged Vile and Noelle to fight the Ruin Guards for the sake of Adventure EXP, but to obtain so much EXP after defeating it was still beyond his expectations.

Now that he has accumulated more than 600 Adventure EXP, He is close to leveling up again...

Nolan thought silently, and his gaze looked at the remaining Ruin Guards with even more fervor.

One of the Ruin Guards had fallen, and the rest were still wandering around on their own as if they wouldn't react if they didn't find an enemy.

It seemed that although the Ruin Guards were powerful, it wasn't difficult to deal with them when they understood their weaknesses.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

strong⩥⩤⩥⩤⩥⩤/strong

Chapter 22: Teamwork

Nolan used the same tactics to take down the remaining Ruin Guards, gaining huge amounts of Adventure EXP each time.

However, in the last one, he ran out of crossbows and arrows, so there was no way to continue using such a tricky method to solve it.

Adventure EXP: 2162

Nolan looked at his character panel - more than 2,000 Adventure EXP would allow him to level up twice, but it wasn't enough for a qualitative change.

Enhanced physical quality is still difficult to create a threat to the Ruin Guard, but there is no need for him to fight alone, there is still Noelle.

Noelle could easily defeat a Ruin Guard herself, but then Nolan wouldn't obtain any EXP.

In order to obtain Adventure EXP, he had to land the final blow.

After some thought, Nolan invested 1500 Adventure EXP into leveling up twice.

After two consecutive level-ups, his body experienced an even greater warmth than before, and Nolan felt as if every cell of his body was in a hot spring, which was warm and extremely comfortable.

If it wasn't for the fact that there were two ladies beside him, he might have made some strange sounds.

The evolution ended quickly. Nolan checked his character panel again:

Name: Nolan Walker

Level: Lv.9 (0/900)

Race: Human

Title: None

Innate Talent: Entangling Affection

Skills: Hunter's Archery Lv.3 (0/300), Favonius Archery - Fundamentals Lv.2 (0/200), Martial Arts Lv.2 (0/200)

Specialty: [Descender]

Adventure EXP: 662

The information on the panel was much richer than before, and there were still quite a few Adventure EXP left. Nolan didn't continue to use it for the time being, he hadn't thought about whether to keep it for leveling up or skill enhancement.

With so many skills, he couldn't train them all evenly. Specializing was crucial, or he'd just be mediocre at everything and not much stronger overall.

After stretching and moving around to get used to his enhanced physique, Nolan looked at Noelle.

She gazed seriously at the last Ruin Guard, her fair, soft face directed at it.

Her maid-like skirt fluttered in the breeze. Her silver-white greaves looked heroic, yet cute on Noelle.

"Noelle, there's one Ruin Guard left. Shall we team up and take it down?" Nolan suggested.

He added with a smile, "I'm stronger now, so I won't drag you down."

"Mr. Adventurer must be joking, I'm not as powerful as you think I am."

Noelle demurred, resting her hands on some rubble as she lowered her eyes shyly.

What a warm yet modest person.

"Noelle, I'll go first and attract its attention. Then you look for a chance to leap up and strike its core, paralyzing it. Leave the final blow to me!"

Nolan swiftly laid out his plan.

"Huh?!" Noelle looked surprised at his words. She waved her hands quickly, "I should be the one drawing its attention. What if you get hurt-"

She shook her head vigorously, as if to banish some unpleasant mental image, repeating herself, "No, no."

"Don't worry, the Ruin Guard's movements are sluggish. I'm confident I can evade it. As for the core...I don't have the power for a decisive strike, but you definitely can!"

Nolan gently shook his head in explanation.

The Ruin Guard's weakness was obvious, but its core wasn't so fragile that a touch would shatter it. Even crossbows needed over a dozen hits. Ordinary unarmed people really couldn't break through its defenses without a weapon.

If a sneak attack failed and it targeted you instead, one of its spinning attacks would be deadly. Even in-game, Noelle's Breastplate talent (Elemental Skill) wouldn't block more than a few hits.

What's more, Noelle was still growing. Unlike games, she couldn't just use EXP books to instantly hit level 90. She didn't have Max-Defense Artifacts either, just an Energy Recharge Favonius Greatsword.

So to be on the safe side, it was better to let the more powerful Noelle attack the core decisively in one hit, minimizing accidents.

"If you say so...alright," Noelle conceded with a nod, accepting the plan.

"I'll cheer for you guys!" Vile piped up excitedly nearby.

"Mm," Nolan smiled. "Let's move then."

Nolan and Noelle emerged from the massive rubble concealing them. The Ruin Guard didn't notice them immediately.

If they were targeted by the Ruin Guard at a long distance, there was a high probability that it would use a missile attack, which could track targets - rather troublesome.

In order to avoid this situation, Nolan and Noelle were waiting for the Ruin Guard to turn its back in their direction before they acted.

Nolan held the scimitar contributed by the Boss of the Treasure Hoarders in his hand, and Noelle picked up her Favonius Greatsword.

Their footsteps made little sound as they slowly closed in, then accelerated.

Suddenly, the Ruin Guard ahead spun abruptly, its core flashing as if entering attack mode.

As expected, Ruin Guards didn't use sight to survey, just sensing range. Front or back made no difference.

"Mr. Adventurer, Watch out!"

Noelle looked at the Ruin Guard's huge rust-colored steel fist slamming into Nolan.

It hadn't been felt until he got closer, the Ruin Guard's massive body actually felt so intimidating.

Nolan admitted that his previous actions had gone too smoothly, causing him to underestimate them a bit.

But its sluggish blow was nothing to him now! With agile footwork, he easily dodged sideways.

Bang!

The stone slabs cracked, dust and debris spraying outward.

At this moment, because of Nolan's attack, the Ruin Guard's back was exposed, and there was a light emanating from there, which was the same as its head's "eye", the core of the guard!

"Noelle, it's up to you!" Nolan shouted.

"I understand, Mr. Adventurer!" Noelle seized the moment, her Favonius Greatsword with Geo Element, and charged forth unstoppably like a juggernaut.

"Haaa!"

The petite body ran up at breakneck speed, like an unstoppable chariot, the high-heeled armored boots stomped on the ground, leaving a slight crack.

Noelle leaped high into the air, the enchanted Favonius Greatsword shone with a golden light, holding the sword in both hands and stabbing down at the core of the Ruin Guard's back!

The Ruin Guard was simply unable to dodge such a hit, and its steel body sank downward, emitting a short-circuiting zippy sound as golden currents flickered, falling into a semi-paralyzed state.

All that was needed now was one final blow!

"Mr. Adventurer!" Noelle called out.

Nolan instantly comprehended, jumped onto the back of the Ruin Guard with his scimitar in hand, and slashed with force.

Crackle, Boom!

Deprived of energy, the Ruin Guard crashed lifeless to the ground.

[Defeated A Powerful Enemy, Obtained 522 Adventure EXP]

...

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Support me on - Advanced Chapters There!

/RedX43

Chapter 23: Returning to Mondstadt

Depending on their strength, Ruin Guards could drop three useful materials - Chaos Devices, Chaos Circuits, and Chaos Cores.

These Ruin Guards were not very strong, just yielding Chaos Devices.

Like Slime Condensate, Chaos Devices could be used as material for alchemically enhancing weapons. Though mechanical in nature, they contained unusual energy and were considered rare.

After gathering the spoils, Nolan said to Noelle and Vile:

"Let's go see what's inside the ruins."

"Uh-huh."

They nodded lightly, also curious about the unknown ruins.

Soon, the three of them walked into the dark passageway where the Ruin Guards came out. The stone walls had some moss growing on them, giving people the feeling of a long history.

Durable hunting shoes, Lightweight ladies' boots, and knee-high armor boots - only these three different footsteps echoed softly in the quiet passageway.

Perhaps the serene surroundings made them unconsciously avoid chatting and disturbing the atmosphere.

This Ruins passageway seemed to be newly excavated by the Treasure Hoarders Group, and no one had discovered it before, so it had to be said that they were really lucky.

After walking almost a few dozen meters, the three of them came to a more open space, surrounded by many traces of the Ruins Guards that had been parked when they were not activated, the five relic guards outside might have gone out from here.

There is a stone door on the right side, which has been opened, before going in again, Nolan noticed that there is a stone tablet outside the door, what is written on it seems to be the way to unlock the seal. It read:

Golden reflections upon clear lake waters;

Crystal of lightning in stone crevice;

Primordial slime fluids of fire;

Fragment from jet-black meteorite;

Forbidden scroll of Hilichurl shaman;

Fill the five slots of the stone door in sequence, to undo this seal!

"Isn't this too obvious? Shouldn't unlocking seals involve cryptic clues that rely purely on guesswork?" Nolan complained.

"Not necessarily. Ordinary people would still find these materials hard to obtain," Vile pondered for a moment and shook her head.

"Looks like knight novels aren't fully accurate after all," Noelle said regretfully.

The main characters in the books had gone through a lot of hardships to gain their rewards, Not everything matched reality.

"Oh well, let's see if there's really a Secret Ruins inside," Nolan concluded.

Since the seal had already been unlocked everyone didn't continue to care about it, and in no time at all, they crossed the stone door to the inside, which was likewise a simple stone room.

Right in the center was a stone altar plateau, which likely meant to hold some artifact, but unfortunately, it was taken away by the people from the Treasure Hoarders group.

"Look guys, it's the Secret Ruins!"

Vile said in surprise, pointing to the right corner.

Nolan sniffed and looked over, only to see a massive spatial rift tear hovered quietly, the rift in space wasn't void and deep black, instead, it looked like a starry sky, dotted with stars.

"Is this the entrance to a Secret Ruins?" Nolan had seen it in-game but was still awed to witness it up close in reality.

"Hmm... It's also the first time I've seen one, I don't know the principles behind it. If it were the learned Miss Lisa, she'd probably understand," Noelle said, equally surprised.

"Should we go in and take a look, the more information we gather, the more valuable it'll be!" Vile said with some excitement.

Nolan gave her an "Are you serious" look, at a loss for words.

"Miss Vile, we don't know what's inside. Going blindly is too dangerous. We should leave it to the Adventurers' Guild's experts," Noelle advised gently.

Nolan who had played the game knew that no matter what kind of Secret Ruins, there was a high probability that there would be a bunch of monsters. He was afraid of appearing in a pile of monsters as soon as he went in.

Nolan felt it was better not to be so reckless.

"Now that we've confirmed an actual Secret Ruins, let's head back for today," Nolan suggested.

They'd been out on the commission quite a while. Returning to Mondstadt now, it would be nightfall.

"Alright."

Vile naturally understood the reasoning behind this, and disheveledly lowered her hands and hung her head.

Along the way they came, the three of them walked out of the ruins passageway, and then began to return to Mondstadt City, while also betting on a few members of the Treasure Hoarders.

Overall, Nolan was quite satisfied with this adventure.

On the return trip, they divided the spoils. Despite Noelle's protests, he insisted she take a share. After all, she had contributed the most this time. He couldn't let her suffer for nothing.

The Slime Condensate obtained from defeating Slimes as well as the Chaos Devices of the Ruin Guards could sell quite a few Mora.

Vile accepted her portion nonchalantly, and in return for saving her life, she was also willing to help sell these materials. They could split the Mora after seeing the total.

Nolan had no objections. In the end, soft-hearted Noelle reluctantly agreed under his firm attitude.

[Noelle Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 50 Affection Points. Current Affection Level Lv.2 (30/200)]

[ Vile Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 30 Affection Points. Current Affection Level Lv.3 (2/300)]

To Nolan's delight, their affection had grown. They could be considered close friends now.

Just as the sunlight became golden and the sun was about to set, Nolan and the three of them finally saw Mondstadt from afar, the magnificent city wall looked as epic as magnificent under the golden sunlight.

More and more adventurers on their way back could be seen nearing the city, some in groups likely from the same party.

Instead, there were not many who were scattered and alone.

After all, without strong strength, it was not only difficult but also dangerous for adventurers to venture out alone.

Back inside Mondstadt City, Nolan's trio first handed over a few Treasure Hoarders to the Knights of Favonius, patrolling the city. The Knights also offered public commendation and rewards.

Vile hurriedly said no, her identity as an intelligence broker was not suitable to be known by too many people, with letting everyone recognize her in the future, how could she collect intelligence?

As for Noelle, although she had not yet become a Knight of Favonius, she had always demanded herself by the standard of a Knight, so naturally, she would not accept the praise and reward.

As for Nolan, it didn't matter if he was praised or not, but he still wanted the reward money. However, with both girls declining, he had no choice but to act likewise, reluctantly letting it go.

After bidding farewell to the patrolling Knights, they came to the Adventurer's Guild to submit their commission.

After Confirming the completion of the Commission, they received a 100,000 Mora. Noelle accepted half without protest this time. This time she also understood that she couldn't refuse and didn't say no more about not needing anything.

What was rather unexpected during this time was that there was a young male with unusual clothing who was handing out flyers to the people passing by.

Nolan and the others were also stuffed with one, and curiously looked at it, simply saying that it was a new recruitment for an adventure group called 「Verdant Wings」, with very good benefits, and there were adventurer mentors who would accompany newbies, take them on adventures and so on.

It was a common thing for adventure groups to recruit new members, so Nolan didn't care too much about it.

Then there was the news about the discovery of the Secret Ruins, and after thinking about it everyone decided to tell the Adventurers' Guild.

Maybe selling it to those large adventure groups could get more Mora, but it was more troublesome.

First of all, we have to look at the reputation of the adventuring group, and also compare the prices offered by different adventuring groups, then we can choose the one with the biggest gain.

It was simpler to just tell the Adventurers' Guild directly. The Adventurers' Guild wouldn't take their information for nothing.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

strong⩥⩤⩥⩤⩥⩤/strong

Support me on - Advanced Chapters There!

/RedX43

strong⩥⩤⩥⩤⩥⩤/strong

Chapter 24: New Specialty

Informing Katheryne about the Secret Ruins discovery at Thousand Winds Temple, her expression registered faint surprise. She seemed rather taken aback, and said she would report it to Cyrus, the Mondstadt Adventurers' Guild branch master:

"Sir Cyrus will immediately arrange for investigators to go to the Secret Ruins to conduct an investigation. If your report is verified, the Adventurer's Guild will give you generous rewards."

"Great, looking forward to it!" Nolan responded excitedly.

[Katheryne Has Developed a Favorable Impression of You, Obtained 70 Affection Points, Current Affection Level Lv.2 (0/200)]

Because Nolan chose to inform the Adventurers' Guild about something as significant as the discovery of the Secret Ruins, Katheryne couldn't help but feel more affection towards him.

This delighted Nolan further.

After the matter was concluded, they left the Adventurers' Guild. Vile was the first to bid farewell, saying that she was going to contact a buyer to sell the materials obtained from the monsters.

Probably because the abrasion on her knee was still a bit painful, her walking was still a bit unnatural.

"Goodbye, Miss Vile."

Noelle said with perfect etiquette, smiling serenely as she waved.

Then she turned to Nolan and said:

"Mr. Adventurer, I shall return to the Knights for now. Please come find me again if you need aid in the future!"

"Mm, Thank you, Noelle." Nolan smiled and nodded, "When you're free later, I'll visit properly to express my gratitude."

This left an opening for future interactions with Noelle. After all, Even good friends would grow distant without maintaining the relationship.

"Oh!"

Noelle shook her head, and hurriedly said, "No need for such trouble. It's getting late, I should head back."

"Goodbye."

Nolan bid farewell to Noelle and walked alone on the streets of Mondstadt City.

Because he had fought with Slimes, Treasure Hoarders, and Ruin Guards in the wild his clothes had long been dirty and sweaty. He decided to go back and take a bath, then go to the Good Hunter to eat dinner.

The intense exercise had really worked up his appetite.

After experiencing this first commission, the overall result - was quite smooth, but it also exposed many of Nolan's shortcomings.

First of all, the bow and arrow was a bit too restrictive for him.

Mainly because using arrows was just a bit less convenient, the number of arrows that could be carried was limited and it was more troublesome when it ran out. After all, you can't say to the enemy wait for me to pick up the arrows that can still be used first and we will fight, right?

Moreover, the wooden hunting bow given by Sir Draff was limited in power, and he himself couldn't condense Elemental Power for his arrows like Vision Holders.

Affected by its own material, Nolan's Archery skills were only high enough to fight wild beasts, but it was a bit lacking against monsters. It might not even be able to break the skin when facing some powerful monsters.

He had to focus on mastering 'Favonius Bladework - Fundamentals' soon, and the aspect of improving Archery skills can be put aside first so that it can also make up for the shortcomings of his Martial Arts that can only be used with fists.

Just As Nolan pondered, the character panel that had been quiet for some time, suddenly, popped up on its own, and a line of text appeared.

[Today, You, an Ordinary Person, Experienced a Hearty and Commendable Adventure, Leaving an Insignificant Mark in the History of Another World. ]

[You Shamelessly Invite Noelle, a Lovely Maid from the Knights of Favonius Whom You Have Never Met, to Join Your Adventure Party and Start Your First Adventure. ]

[A Sunny Afternoon. ]

[You and the Lovely Maid Noelle Defeated Many Hydro Slimes and Rescued the Besieged Young Information Broker - Vile.]

[After Obtaining Information About the Artifact, You Were Greedy and Clashed with the Notorious Treasure Hoarders. However, with the help of the Almighty Maid and Your Little Bit of Wit, You Successfully Resolved the Crisis and Gained a Lot. ]

[You and the Information Broker Used Despicable and Shameless Means to Defeat the Powerful Ruin Guards that Should Have Been Insurmountable. Fortunately, You and the Cute and All-Powerful Maid Noelle Used Tacit Cooperation to Defeat the Last Ruin Guard Head-on, Saving Some Face for You. ]

[You Discover a "Secret Ruins" Among Unknown Ruins. ]

[You Returned to Mondstadt Safely, Successfully Submitted the Commission, and Selflessly and Generously Informed the Adventurers' Guild of the Important "Secret Ruins" Information. You Have Gained a Small Reputation in Mondstadt. ]

[In This Adventure, You Performed Relatively Well, and the History You Experienced and Created will be Remembered as a Character's Specialty—]

[Please Wait...]

Nolan with a surprised face only felt that his mind began to automatically recall what he had experienced today - A scene of mundane images appeared, the encounter with Noelle, defeating the Slime to save Vile, everything.

And so on all The memories gathered and focused, coalescing into some kind of power that added to his body.

[You've Obtained a New Character Specialty: Maiden Savior]

What a sudden, pleasant surprise!

Looking at the newly obtained specialty, Nolan's heart was exceptionally excited.

You should know that Specialties were quite difficult to get. First of all, the means for acquiring Specialties are quite limited, such as leveling up to level 20 will inevitably obtain a specialization, which is called a "Racial Specialty".

Generally, it is Nolan's characteristics that are generally not found in the human race, which can be regarded as a breakthrough in the upper limit of the race, such as long life, rapid self-healing, etc.

There are also skills-related specialties. For example, if a person has a particularly strong talent in practicing swordsmanship, then he may have skills and specialties such as "Swordsmanship Proficiency" or "Swordsmanship Genius".

The last thing was Character Specialty, and the method of acquiring this kind of Specialty had to do with Nolan's own deeds.

The more legendary, incredible, and memorable the thing is, the greater the probability of obtaining Specialty from it.

The[Descender] strength that he got from transmigration is a Character Specialty, likely stemming from the memorable experience of "an otherworldly being descending wearing Teyvat".

If that was the case, it seemed that Nolan's adventure today was far too different from that, and shouldn't be able to meet the criteria for gathering character specialties.

But since it appeared anyway, it probably means this experience did have some memorable aspects.

After re-reading the text description several times, Nolan realized the most likely parts were[Leaving an Insignificant Mark in the History of Another World. ]and [You Have Gained a Small Reputation in Mondstadt.].

It was indeed memorable for a stranger to leave a small trace of himself in the history of a strange foreign world.

It seems that this should be considered "Beginner's Luck" or something like that, and it probably won't be so easy to gain Character Specialty in the future, so perhaps you'll need to do something that will have a greater impact on the world.

The only thing certain is that if he gives the middle finger to the "Sustainer of Heavenly Principles", there's a good chance that I'll be able to get a Character Specialty without any surprises.

Ahem - That is if the other party understood Nolan's meaning, and then he survived.

Nolan retrieved his own thoughts that could not help but disperse and associate in the direction of death, and then somewhat expectantly wanted to see the specific effect of the New Specialty.

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

Support me on - Advanced Chapters There!

/RedX43

Chapter 25: Eula Has a Grudge Against Me

The name "Maiden Savior" is supposed to be derived from rescuing Vile from a group of Hydro Slimes, and the exact description of the effect is. Let's see:

[You Have a Knack for Getting Along with Girls, Making it Easier to Raise Their Affection.]

This Character Specialty made Nolan's eyes light up. Gaining others' affection wasn't something that could be forced.

After getting along with each other, you should actively look for opportunities to make contact with each other, but don't be too rude, and then just do what you need to do.

As long as you don't cause the other person to resent you, that's a big win!

Although the results of such a laying method are very slow, but it is safer and more stable. After all, the most difficult to fathom is the emotions of human beings.

One misstep could ruin everything.

And now that Nolan possessed this, it was like he had put on a Charisma Plus Character Specialty, so he thought that the road to gaining affection would be a lot smoother.

Perhaps the time when he obtains the power blessing of his first Archon is not far away.

Besides his excitement, Nolan looked at the more than 1000 Adventure EXP on the character panel and thought about taking out 900 EXP to throw into the leveling up - raising it to Level 10, a nice round number.

The now-familiar warmth suffused his cells as if bathing in a hot spring. This time, Nolan couldn't resist making strange sounds.

"Mm~ mm hmm ah!"

Nolan accidentally bumped into Sanborn, the owner of the fishing tackle store, while walking on the street back to his residence, and hastily converted his exclamation into a drawn-out sneeze.

"Good afternoon, long time no see, Sir Sanborn." Nolan greeted somewhat awkwardly.

The white-haired Sanborn looked at him and was silent for a while before saying as if remembering, "Oh! It's you. Good afternoon. I haven't seen you come to buy bait lately, is the fishing business not doing well?"

"Thank you for your concern, sir." Nolan smiled politely then reached out and patted the hunting bow and quiver he was carrying and said, "I was fortunate enough to be seen by Sir Draff, the hunter chief of Springvale Town to bring me into the hunting profession. Now I'm a newcomer adventurer in the Adventurers' Guild, Haha!"

A wisp of surprise surfaced on Sanborn's still hard and solid face:

"This.."

"Nowadays you young people are all so impatient. You should know that when I first started fishing at Cider Lake, I did it for half my life. Sigh..."

There was no preachy reprimand in his tone, just a bit of lament. What he lamented was not the immaturity and recklessness of young people. Nolan could feel a kind of sadness in it.

What Sanborn lamented was that time passed by generation after generation, and unknowingly he had grown old.

"After all, My goal has always been to become an adventurer who 'journeys into the stars and abyss'. Everything before was just small steps toward that," Nolan said, smiling. On this, he had never been lost.

"By the way, isn't it a bit early for Mr. Sanborn to go eat dinner at this time?" Nolan changed the subject, not wanting to talk in a heavy direction.

"Not early. I'm going to see an old friend and chat. Alas, recently he helped me import goods but the price has risen a lot, it shouldn't be like this." Sanborn rubbed his white hair and sighed again, unable to conceal his sadness.

"Oh?" Nolan frowned, slightly puzzled, "Does Mr. Sanborn have any difficulties? Maybe I can help you."

Sanborn put his hands behind his back and looked at the sky, thinking for a moment:

"That's right, you're already an adventurer now, it's normal to take on some commissions. Then please come to my store for a bit tomorrow morning, I have some things I want to trouble you with."

"How can an adventurer's job be called troublesome?" Nolan hooked his waist and laughed, "Don't worry, I'll come on time tomorrow morning."

"Haha, young man it seems you are really suitable to be an adventurer." Sanborn smiled brightly, then said, "Then it's a deal, my old friend is still waiting for me, so I'll go over first."

"Goodbye." Nolan waved goodbye.

Evening rays slanted over the balcony planters of a nearby house, illuminating the Windwheel Asters unique to Mondstadt, their interconnected leaves spinning freely in the breeze.

Just like a windwheel.

Nolan childishly stopped to watch for a while, until a slight chill made him come to his senses - The sweat from adventuring had been blown dry. He mustn't catch a cold!

Although with his current physical condition, he wouldn't catch a cold, but it was his habit to take care of himself.

Back at the simple temporary residence, Nolan hastily boiled water and took a hot bath, feeling fresh and clear all over, very comfortable. He had just wanted to continue the slightly upward inflection that was forcibly interrupted by his sneeze.

Knock knock.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. The fragile wooden door shook slightly. Nolan coughed twice as if choking and shouted:

"Who is it? Wait a moment, getting dressed."

"It's Amber."

A spirited girl's voice came from outside the door. Just by hearing it, he could immediately find the matching appearance in his memory - it must be Amber!

After all, besides her, no one else would come to the Knight Order's relief shelter looking for him.

Hearing this, Nolan hurriedly put on a sleeveless vest and a slightly thinner pair of pants, took some time to tidy up his appearance, and then opened the door.

"Amber, and..."

Outside the house, Besides red-bunny-hairpin, goggle-wearing Amber, there was also a girl with icy-blue hair styled to accentuate her figure. She wore a black leather leotard with a semi-translucent silk panel teasing at smooth skin and a cute belly button.

Matching black leather thigh-high heeled boots and half-leg belts adorned her legs, with elegant silvery metal decorations befitting nobility.

A name surfaced in Nolan's mind - Eula.

"Hmph. Just because you're Amber's friend doesn't excuse leaving us waiting so long outside...I'm now holding a grudge!"

Eula turned aside, arms crossed, leaving Nolan her flawless profile.

"Um, her name is Eula. She is my good friend. As for what she said about holding a grudge, don't pay attention to it, haha." Amber pulled the goggles off her head and hung them back at her neck smiling sunnily.

Nolan said with a faint friendly smile:

"Although it feels a bit odd, but having a grudge held means I've left some impression at least. Makes me quite happy."

Knowing her story, he understood that when Eula said she held a grudge against someone, it wasn't just a casual catchphrase.

It meant that even though Nolan was still a stranger to her, it was really remembered by her clearly.

"It's good that you can think that way, Eula is actually a very good person." Amber looked a little happy, nodding her head repeatedly as if she had met a soulmate.

[Amber Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 300 Affection Points, Current Affection Level Lv.3 (170/300)]

(End of Chapter)

To be continued...

? ﾝﾐﾮ? ﾝﾐﾩ? ﾝﾐﾫ? ? ﾝﾐﾞ ? ﾝﾐﾧ ? ﾝﾐﾚ? ﾝﾐﾫ? ﾝﾐﾨ? - ? ﾝﾐﾝ? ﾝﾐﾚ? ﾝﾐﾜ? ﾝﾐﾝ ? ﾝﾐﾡ? ﾝﾐﾩ? ﾝﾐﾞ? ﾝﾐﾬ ? ﾝﾐﾡ? ﾝﾐﾫ?!

? ﾝﾐﾚ? ﾝﾐﾫ? ﾝﾐﾨ?.? ﾝﾐﾨ?/? ﾝﾐﾞ? ﾝﾐﾗ? ﾝﾟﾑ