Kurose Akira cast a sidelong glance at Liu Xue.
Ever since he'd mentioned that he'd recruited an Elite-tier adventurer, she'd fallen into silence, quietly eating her noodles.
Every so often, she'd lift her head and stare at him with a strange look—her gaze filled with unconcealed admiration.
Ahem.
If she ever found out that what he'd actually recruited was an Epic-tier adventurer—and that there was even a Legendary-tier adventurer currently stationed in his guild—this girl would probably ascend straight to heaven from sheer envy.
"Oh, right. There's also a hidden objective in that commission," Akira added kindly. "There's an Explosive Rat Leader hiding in the village granary. It's level 3. If you're planning to clear the hidden task, you'd better prepare in advance."
Although he and Liu Xue weren't particularly close, Liu Ling had always treated him well. Naturally, Akira was willing to extend a bit of help to her younger sister.
"Oh… thanks for the reminder," Liu Xue replied softly.
Her eyes shimmered as she listened, trusting his words without question.
Despising lucky bastards and accepting help from lucky bastards were two completely different things—she could tell the difference.
"Akira, I've transferred today's pay to your WeChat. Go ahead and accept it."
At that moment, Liu Ling finished cleaning the kitchen and walked over with a warm smile. Business had been unusually brisk today, nearly exhausting all their ingredients, so there was no need to open for dinner.
Akira opened WeChat.
300 yuan, waiting to be claimed.
"Thanks, Sister Ling."
"No need to thank me. Same time tomorrow—six in the morning. I'll have breakfast ready for you."
"Got it."
"Then I'll head out first. See you tomorrow!"
Akira wiped his mouth, stood up, and left Liu Ling's noodle shop.
…
After work, Akira didn't head home right away.
He stopped by a supermarket first, buying food and daily necessities.
Then he went to a fruit shop and picked up some fresh fruit.
Even after all that, he still had 230 yuan left from his wages—more than enough.
Once he got home, he put everything into the fridge, then put on his VR headset and entered the game world.
When Akira arrived at the guild, Ivsha was already there, waiting as usual.
Even though Akira had deliberately logged in an hour earlier today, Ivsha had still arrived before him.
As for Loserine—she had never left the guild at all, still fiddling with that jigsaw puzzle.
"Good morning, Mr. Akira~"
The moment Ivsha saw him, she immediately stood up to greet him.
A gentle smile hung on her exquisitely beautiful face, as if something good had happened.
"You're in a good mood today?" Akira asked curiously.
"Yes. Sister Carrie and the others found a young baron who's willing to provide financial support to help the church through its crisis," Ivsha explained.
"Is that so? That's good news," Akira said with a faint smile.
Yet inwardly, he felt puzzled.
If the church's crisis had truly been resolved, then logically speaking, Ivsha's character quest should have changed.
But he'd received no system feedback at all.
"Perhaps it really is a good thing… but for some reason, the baron's gaze makes me feel uneasy," Ivsha said softly. The smile faded from her face, replaced by a trace of worry.
She was grateful that the baron had alleviated the church's crisis, yet his eyes gave her a strange sense of danger—as though something hidden lurked beneath the surface.
"Is that so?"
A chill flashed through Akira's eyes.
If the man's goodwill concealed ulterior motives—especially if he intended to harm Ivsha—then Akira would never allow it.
"Maybe I'm just overthinking it," Ivsha continued gently. "Sister Carrie said the baron is also a newly rising Judicator Knight. I hope he still follows the original ideals of justice."
"What kind of person he really is—we'll know once we meet him in a couple of days," Akira proposed. "Perfect timing. I was planning to visit your church anyway."
"You're really going to the church? That's wonderful!" Ivsha said excitedly. "I've mentioned you to Sister Carrie many times—she's wanted to meet you for a long time!"
Her eyes sparkled with anticipation, clearly looking forward to Akira meeting Sister Carrie.
"…Why did you mention me to her?" Akira asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Th-that's…"Ivsha's voice faltered. A faint blush spread across her cheeks as she said shyly,"I told her… that you're the person I admire most."
After speaking, she lifted her head. Her clear, luminous eyes locked tightly onto Akira's, a trace of greedy affection shimmering within them.
"Ahem!"
Akira hurriedly looked away.
He absolutely did not believe Ivsha's feelings were merely admiration.
"Mr. Akira, your face is red. Are you feeling shy?" Ivsha asked innocently.
"It's hot. Facial flushing is a normal physiological response."
"I-is… that so?"
"Alright. We should go handle the commissions. Once we finish the Sunset City request tomorrow, we'll go back to the church together," Akira said calmly.
"Mmm~"
Today, Akira couldn't go to Ivsha's church yet.
He already had an appointment with Lady Natasha. Although it was scheduled for two in the afternoon, Ivsha's character quest was extremely important, so he needed to make thorough preparations rather than rushing things.
At the very least—
He had to be prepared to stay up all night.
So he decided that today's plan would be to clear two relatively simple commissions first, then head to Sunset City.
Commission Task II (F+):Collect Lava Ore (0/10)Reward: 3 Silver Coins, 300 EXP
Commission Task III (F+):Defeat Flame Golems (0/3)Reward: 5 Silver Coins, 500 EXP
Two fire-terrain missions?
Akira frowned, a bad feeling creeping up his spine.
Still, he decided to clear these two first. Since they were on the same map, it would save time.
Just as he was about to step into the teleportation gate, he suddenly paused—as if remembering something important.
Turning around, he looked at Loserine and called out,"Stop playing with the puzzle. Time to get to work!"
Faced with Akira's command, Loserine froze in place.
Her skeletal fingers hovered in midair, refusing to fall.
After several seconds of hesitation, she finally placed the puzzle piece back onto the pile.
Then she stood up and followed after Akira.
…
Several hours later—
As the teleportation array flashed with white light, Akira and Ivsha returned to the guild.
But their condition was… less than ideal.
Akira's clothes were burned and tattered, making him look utterly miserable.
Ivsha wasn't doing much better. Her nun's habit had once again split due to the use of her wings, and after being scorched by flames, it was so badly damaged that it clearly needed to be replaced.
Only Loserine was the exception.
Elemental magic immunity, combined with the special material of her platinum armor, left her completely unscathed.
"So this is fire terrain? Absolutely disgusting," Akira complained.
Both commissions had taken place in fire terrain. Sudden flame eruptions had caught him off guard, leading to this sorry state.
And it was precisely this mission that made him truly understand the value of Fire Gems.
Thankfully, both commissions were simple.
The level 5 Flame Golems were instantly killed by Loserine in two strikes—no difficulty whatsoever.
The only loss was… two sets of clothes.
Akira turned to look at Ivsha beside him.
Her scorched nun's habit exposed patches of snow-white skin.
Although no private areas were revealed, the constant tearing and mending due to the expansion of her demonic wings was always a hassle.
Akira decided he should buy Ivsha a dedicated combat outfit.
After all—
He had to protect Ivsha properly. The "wife" he'd drawn—how could he let others look at her?
"Ivsha, go take a bath first. I'll buy you a new style of nun's outfit," Akira instructed, sending her off to get cleaned up.
Ivsha glanced at the clock, then at Akira's condition, and softly suggested,"Mr. Akira… there's only one hour left before your appointment with Lady Natasha. Time is tight. How about we… bathe together?"
Her voice was shy, yet her eyes gleamed with delight—clearly having found another opportunity to take advantage.