Watching as the cups were pushed one by one towards him, Field felt a bit speechless.
"Alright, I prefer drinking alcohol over water," he said. "I came here to ask a few questions. You don't need to be so nervous."
With that, he looked at Vina. Vina remained silently still.
Although he couldn't see her eyes, Field knew she was looking at him. So, unable to resist, he asked, "Aren't you going to ask me why I'm here?"
Upon hearing this, Vina buried her face into her turtleneck sweater, then a small voice came out. "Ask... what?"
Field sighed and wiped his face. "To be honest, if you tell me, it'll be easier for me to identify the culprits and help you."
Upon hearing this, Vina became a bit anxious and spoke in a stuttering voice, "I don't want..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Field interrupted, "If you don't speak up, I won't be able to help you. You won't be able to go to school normally, let alone to Hades."
"And then Grandma Renra and your sisters won't be able to live a better life. Is that what you want?"
In fact, the two matters were not related. Even if Vina was bullied at Haidou, she could still go to the Hades Academy because of the internal quota given by Holland.
But Field was "threatening" her.
Sure enough, upon hearing Field's words, Vina became somewhat flustered and her speech became disjointed. "I don't want..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Field said, "If you don't want to, that's fine. Come, identify."
"Who's this?" Field directly picked up a portrait and asked, not giving Vina a chance to retreat.
Vina turned her head and looked, then whispered, "Frieda..."
"Okay, what about this one?"
"Alanna..."
"And this?"
"Linsha..."
"And this?" Field pointed to the portrait of the girl who had been given a score of 50.
When she saw this girl, Vina actually took a half step back, indicating that this girl who had been deducted 50 points had left a considerable shadow on Vina.
"Manna... Mana..." Vina finally managed to say.
Field nodded in satisfaction.
On the side, Grandma Renra watched this scene and inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
Although Field's tone just now seemed threatening and fierce, it turned out to be surprisingly effective.
She usually asked Vina in a gentle manner, afraid that her words would hurt Vina. But now it seemed that Field's approach was more appropriate.
If she were to do it, she would definitely not be able to speak to Vina like this.
She cherished this girl too much.
"The sinners have been identified. Now it's time for retribution." Field stood up and said to Vina, "When are you going to the academy tomorrow?"
"At five in the morning," Vina replied.
After the identification, she inexplicably felt a bit relieved. It seemed that speaking it out made it okay, so she resumed speaking normally, without stuttering. But still in a very soft voice.
"So early?" Field asked.
Vina nodded, made a humming sound, but it was so soft that even Field couldn't hear it clearly.
"Alright, then I'll come to find you tomorrow morning at five, and we'll go to the academy together," Field said.
With that, he put away the portraits and walked out, briskly.
At this moment, Vina suddenly remembered something and hurriedly chased after him, calling out, "Wait..."
"What is it?" Field turned back.
"You didn't take the deed..." Vina said, then took out a neatly folded old piece of paper from her pocket.
Field just glanced at it and then turned back to continue walking forward, leaving behind a sentence, "You keep it for me for now. Give it to me when I've paid the final installment."
With that, he walked out of the gate of the welfare institute.
Vina watched his departing figure for a while before softly saying, "Alright." Then she returned to the house and went to Grandma Renra, smoothing out the wrinkles on the blanket covering her.
"He's gone?" Grandma Renra resumed knitting the sweater.
Vina nodded softly. "Yes."
"What do you think of him?" Grandma Renra suddenly asked.
Vina was slightly startled, then fell silent for a moment before saying, "He's a good person."
Grandma Renra smiled and gently touched her cheek. "Grandma thinks so too."
...
"Get up, little kitty, it's time to work!" Field said hastily.
Kiki rubbed his eyes and woke up, looking outside. The sun was shining brightly.
"What time is it now, meow?" Kiki asked.
"Midday," Field said as he picked up his backpack.
"We're leaving now?" Kiki asked in surprise.
"We were supposed to leave after dinner, but there's been a change of plans. We're leaving now," Field said. He had originally thought that Vina would leave for the academy in a few days, but it turned out she was leaving early the next morning, so he had to hurry.
It seemed like another all-nighter was in store for him. He planned to finish the two silver-level tasks tonight and rush back before Vina left for the academy.
In fact, he could have taken his time; a few days' delay wouldn't have mattered. But after hearing what Ellie had said, Field understood how terrible the bullies led by Manna were.
Frame-ups and scapegoating were just commonplace for them, and that was just on the outside. It was easy to imagine how tough Vina's life was at the academy.
So he couldn't just stand by and watch. If he delayed even for a day, the mushroom girl would probably be bullied again.
As he packed up, Field couldn't help but sigh.
Damn sense of responsibility. I'm really a good guy!
After packing up, Field rushed downstairs, pulling Kiki along.
"Hey, you... huh?" Evelyn was about to say something to Field when he suddenly pulled Kiki out of the tavern, leaving Evelyn confused.
"Why are they running away like they're fleeing a disaster..." Evelyn muttered.
But the next moment, Field rushed back, approached Evelyn, and magically produced a Mona Red Flower from his hand, gently placing it behind her ear without waiting for Evelyn's reaction.
"It's so beautiful!" Field smiled satisfactorily, then rushed out again, leaving Evelyn in disarray in the wind.
Only when teasing voices came from the tavern did Evelyn realize.
"You little brat, you stop right there!!!"
Listening to the roar behind him, Field laughed heartily and ran even faster.
After rushing out of the city gate, Field didn't stop; he only got faster and faster.
Kiki was pulled along, almost floating in the air.
Then Field hooked his hand, and Kiki landed on his shoulder.
Kiki quickly grabbed onto Field's neck, looking tense.
Because Field was running too fast, much faster than a carriage. He could cover ten or twenty meters in one step, and the surrounding scenery was rapidly moving backward.
Kiki was afraid that if he let go even a little, he would be blown away by the rushing wind.
So, with a flash of light on Kiki's body, a visible green light appeared around Field's body.
The wind resistance immediately decreased, and Field's speed increased.
"We're not taking the carriage, meow?" Kiki asked.
"Nope, the carriage is too slow. We're running there!" Field said.
"What? Over a hundred kilometers, seriously, meow?" Kiki asked in amazement.
"Of course!" Field grinned.
"Hold on tight, little kitty, I'm going to speed up!" Kiki was surprised; they were already so fast, and he could still go faster?!
As it turned out, yes!
When the aura patterns appeared around Field's body, Kiki felt what true speed was like.
"Too fast, too fast, I'm going to fall off, meow!"
"Phew..." Field let out a long breath as he looked at the forest floor covered with red mushrooms, nodding with satisfaction. He was emitting steam from his body after an hour of sprinting over 160 kilometers; this speed was satisfactory. Considering he was also carrying a heavy hammer, a bag of equipment, and a little cat-girl, his speed was impressive. If he had traveled light, he could have been even faster.
Thankfully, he had the foresight to buy stamina potions. After drinking one to replenish his energy, Field took out three bottles from his bag. The task required him to collect three pounds of Nine-Dragon Worms. These worms were slightly larger than soybeans, making them challenging to gather in sufficient quantity. Fortunately, Kiki proved to be invaluable this time.
In the forest filled with red mushrooms, Field had learned from Evelyn that Nine-Dragon Worms liked to eat a type of mushroom called "Blue-Eyed Mushroom." These mushrooms were blue with concentric circles, making them easy to spot. Once they found the Blue-Eyed Mushrooms, they could find the Nine-Dragon Worms. With Kiki's agility, catching worms was both fun and straightforward for her.
"I've caught five!" Kiki announced, putting five Nine-Dragon Worms that were feasting on mushrooms into a bottle.
"Good job, keep it up," Field praised.
Encouraged by the praise, Kiki doubled her efforts, and her efficiency in catching worms even surpassed Field's.
"While you're searching for worms, also look for thirty Purple Umbrella Mushrooms," Field instructed. This was another task Field had specifically sought out, and doing them together increased their efficiency.
"Got it, meow!" Kiki replied.
After more than an hour, they finally collected three large bottles of Nine-Dragon Worms and thirty Purple Umbrella Mushrooms.
"Alright, onto the next area, Mount Aronas!"
Upon hearing this, Kiki quickly hugged Field tightly, and the next moment, Field dashed out like an arrow, heading straight for Mount Aronas.
It took them about an hour and a half to reach the foot of the mountain because the distance between Grille City to the south and west of Mount Aronas was nearly two hundred kilometers.
When they arrived at the foot of the mountain, it was around four or five in the afternoon. Field drank another stamina potion, packed the other task materials, and hid them in a tree. He then carried his heavy hammer along with Kiki and began climbing the mountain bare-handed.
He chose this method to avoid accidentally breaking the bottles while descending quickly later. Field didn't want to end up picking mushrooms and worms off the ground.
Mount Aronas was over six thousand meters high, and snow began to appear around four thousand meters, making the temperature quite low. Kiki was shivering from the cold; her short sleeves and shorts weren't suitable for freezing temperatures. So Field activated his qi to generate heat, making Kiki feel much better.
Kiki's task this time was to be Field's eyes. Field focused on climbing bare-handed, and with the strong wind and his large physique, he needed to concentrate on climbing. Meanwhile, Kiki was perched on Field's back, searching for targets.
"I see it, there's a White Peach Blossom tree to the left!" Kiki reported.
"Alright, hold on tight!" Field said, as he exerted force with his hands and feet, his muscles visibly tense. Kiki could feel his muscles flexing as he propelled himself upward.
With a burst of strength, Field propelled himself upward, then his fingers dug into the mountainside like iron hooks, allowing him to climb rapidly in the direction indicated by Kiki. In no time, they reached a White Peach Blossom tree, and Field harvested thirty-two blossoms.
As they continued, guided by Kiki's directions, they spent over an hour collecting two hundred White Peach Blossoms.
The task only required one hundred blossoms, but Field had other plans for the extra flowers.
Looking at the sky, the sun was about to set. The golden sun painted the sky orange, and the clouds resembled flames, as if the whole sky was ablaze. Watching the sunset from the mountains was a unique experience, but now was not the time to appreciate the beauty.
"Let's descend!" Field announced, and without hesitation, he let go of the mountainside, and his body began free-falling.
Kiki's pupils contracted in fear as she hugged Field's neck tightly, letting out a scream.
"We're falling, we're falling!"
"Haha!" Field laughed heartily as he spread his limbs to maintain balance, gradually approaching the mountainside. As they were about to make contact, Field's feet moved rapidly, running down the almost vertical mountainside, while he reached out with one hand to scoop Kiki from his back, holding her protectively.
After a mad dash, Field arrived at the foot of the mountain at lightning speed, with the sun almost setting.
Field raised his heavy hammer with one hand and slammed it into the ground.
A huge shockwave reverberated, causing Field to fly backward, but it also offset some of the downward force.
"Boom!!!" With a loud noise, the ground shook violently, and cracks appeared on the surface.
Despite feeling a bit numb from the vibration, Field stood up as if nothing happened.
In his arms, Kiki curled up, held securely by one of his hands.
This is also to prevent Kiki from not holding on tight and being thrown out.
"You can open your eyes now," Field said.
Kiki cautiously opened her eyes, which had been tightly shut. "Are we dead?" she asked, shivering.
"Nope," Field said, setting her down. "Get yourself together; we're getting ready to head back."
Kiki's legs were a bit weak, so she took a moment to recover before finding the materials hidden in the tree. Field then carried her back, packing everything securely.
They ran back as before. By the time Field returned to Haidu Tavern, he had already consumed five of the ten stamina potions he had flaunted, and Kiki had also drunk one, leaving only four bottles, showing just how exhausting the journey was. And even though they had stamina potions, they still felt tired. Drinking so many bottles in a short period had significantly weakened their effects.
When they returned to the tavern, Field's eyelids were practically fighting each other. He was very tired, don't forget he hadn't slept last night because he stayed up all night doing tasks.
Around ten o'clock at night, at Haidu Tavern.
"You're back so soon?" Evelyn was surprised to see Field and Kiki.
Without saying much, Field directly dumped the task materials on the ground and then yawned, saying, "Quick, count it up; I'm about to fall asleep."
Evelyn could tell he was very tired, so she immediately had someone count the materials.
Then Evelyn was shocked.
Both of the time-consuming Silver-level tasks were completed! And it only took half a day. This efficiency was terrifying!
"Aren't you supposed to hand in the tasks in Grille City?" Evelyn asked in confusion.
"Last-minute change, pressed for time, so we just came back..." Field yawned again.
"Is the carriage that fast?" Evelyn asked again.
"We didn't take a carriage, we ran," Field smirked. "Are the tasks counted?"
"They're counted..." Evelyn was still in shock.
Ran?! Considering the distance to and from the two tasks, did Field run nearly eight or nine hundred kilometers in half a day?! My god, what kind of monster is this?!
But Field obviously didn't have time to chat with her. After receiving the commission, he carried the already sleeping Kiki upstairs.
"He must be exhausted..." Evelyn laughed and shook her head.
Little did she know, Field came back down just after going upstairs, waving to Evelyn.
"What's up?" Evelyn walked over.
But Field didn't say anything. He just reached out his hand, and a White Peach Blossom appeared on Evelyn's ear.
Evelyn was stunned once again, staring blankly at the tired behemoth in front of her, at a loss for words.
"Stay beautiful," Field grinned, then yawned and went upstairs.
"Even when he's that tired, he still has the energy to flirt with me, really..." Evelyn didn't know whether to be angry or amused.
She then took off the White Peach Blossom from her head and looked at it before putting it back on.
"Perhaps I should buy a white dress..."