When they returned, the carriage was much faster than when they left, and Lis and his group finally managed to enter Bright City before the city gates closed.
"I'm going off to drink, don't wait for me!"
Lunbos, with agility not seen in his usual demeanor, jumped off the carriage, greeted Lis and the others, and then disappeared in a flash.
It seemed he really was craving a drink.
Arsen shook his head and didn't say anything. As long as Lunbos didn't drink during a mission, he was free to do as he pleased at other times—after all, a Dwarf's constitution wouldn't suffer from it.
Ya'er didn't pay attention, happily rubbing her face against the Little Moon Spirit Leopard in her arms, completely ignoring the little cat's stretched-out pink claws struggling for freedom.
After her persistent begging and cooing along the way, Ailina finally agreed to let her take care of the Little Moon Spirit Leopard for a while.
"From now on, you'll be called Little Black!"
Ya'er held the Moon Spirit Leopard up in front of her eyes and joyfully bestowed the new name on the little leopard.
Ailina helplessly watched the Little Moon Spirit Leopard struggling in Ya'er's hands. Unsurprisingly, this little one would be her companion from now on, but Ya'er had just given it a new name.
It should have been something like "Dark Night Sacred Leopard" or "Moon Shadow Assassin"!
(Little Black: I don't want it at all!)
When the carriage reached near Feis Street, Lis also jumped down and said goodbye to Ya'er and the others.
Ya'er just waved her hand and then turned around to cuddle with the little black cat again.
Arsen, who was driving the carriage, turned around and said to Lis:
"We're going to the Mercenary Guild to hand in the task tomorrow morning. Do you want to come? It'll be a good time to divide the task payment among us."
"No need," Lis thought for a moment, "I also have some matters to handle. Keep the payment for me for now."
Casually, he tossed a bag containing Magic Crystals to Arsen and said, "This is from that raid on the Dog-headed Man's lair, worth hundreds of Gold Coins. Count this in as well."
Arsen caught the tossed bag and then threw it back to Lis, saying:
"No need, the loot obtained during the mission is personal and doesn't need to be divided by the team. Keep it,"
"All right then, see you around."
Lis nodded, and since there was such a rule, he certainly wouldn't refuse. After all, even though he was a Lord Viscount, he was still somewhat short on funds at the moment.
These Magic Crystals were also worth hundreds of Gold Coins, and more importantly, were needed for his own magical research.
-----------------
"Ah~~~"
The next morning, Lis woke up from the soft, large bed and lazily stretched.
Even though the subjugation mission had only taken two days, most of that time had been spent in the carriage. Despite his body being much stronger due to his training, the journey was somewhat exhausting.
After washing up, he went to the dining room to enjoy a sumptuous breakfast meticulously prepared by his master chef, and Lis happily patted his stomach.
Ever since he made some pastries for Ya'er in his own kitchen last time, his chefs had realized that Master Lis's culinary skills far surpassed theirs. Although it felt a bit odd, they humbly asked him for guidance.
Lis was naturally happy to teach his own chefs, since many times he was too lazy to cook himself. If the chefs could cook better, he could also eat more happily.
Like the modified egg pancake in front of him, Lis had especially told the chef to make a flat pancake griddle, and after a series of processes, it already had a seven or eight out of ten vibe from his previous life. Lis preferred it cooked a bit longer, biting into the soft and crispy pancake, simply too delicious to describe.
Housekeeper Joyce was still standing behind Lis, quietly standing there.
Having not seen each other for two days, Joyce, with slightly grayed temples, still wore his unchanged black suit, his elegant demeanor seemingly as unchanging as his attire, giving him an even more natural aristocratic air than Lis, who was more down-to-earth.
Joyce's eyes shifted to Lis, a dull Spirit Light swirling within them.
"You've progressed quickly and are about to break through the High-level Bronze tier. Moreover, this sensation... is it a blessing from the gods, or one from the gods of the Elf God System, because of that Elf companion?"
Lis's current strength was clearly visible to Joyce, who was well aware of Lis's experience joining the adventure team.
Contemplating in his mind, Joyce's expression remained as usual, not planning to do anything.
Lis didn't even know that the housekeeper standing behind him was a Legendary-tier powerhouse.
If Lis knew, he wouldn't just embrace... no, he would cling to both legs!
After breakfast, Lis habitually went to the yard to stretch and exercised his body, and rehearsed the Royal Swordsmanship with his longsword once more.
Although his strength wouldn't decrease due to the panel, tactile sensation, battle instincts, and other consciousness-level elements wouldn't be reflected in the panel.
So even though he had already acquired "All Martial Arts Mastery," he still needed to practice regularly, considering it a physical exercise.
After his exercises, with Rossi's assistance, Lis changed into a fresh set of clothes and then set off with Welf towards their destination for the day.
-----------------
Langai Street
Lis stood in front of the brick cottage he had visited last time.
It had been a month since his last visit, and the surroundings remained the usual dilapidated streets and muddy wastewater, but the surreptitious glances that had been cast his way were missing.
Indeed, this time Welf was with him; those who managed to survive in this chaotic area were sharp-sighted. How would they dare to risk their lives to spy on a clearly high-ranking noble with an advanced guard?
Shaking his head, a month had passed, and according to that young girl, Old Jack should have returned.
"Ding Dong~"
The familiar iron gate, the familiar knocking sound, but this time, there was finally a response.
"Who's there? Do you think I'm deaf, knocking so loudly?"
A fierce voice came from behind the door, and Lis said nothing, quietly standing in front of the door waiting.
Clang~
The door was suddenly pulled open from inside, and out walked a man who looked to be over fifty.
His slender form made it hard to believe that the loud voice just now had come from this body, the typical Kingdom old man's appearance but somewhat ferocious; with sparse brown hair and a leather jacket stained with splashes of alcohol and grease, it was hard to discern its original color.
At first glance, he was just an unkempt old man, nothing special about him.
But Lis knew that this man named Old Jack was not simple.
In his previous life's game, this Old Jack was a hidden NPC. Despite his temperamental nature, he was very popular among Bright City region's players.
Because this was a Secret Store!
Old Jack was the owner of this store, selling rare Magic Items and Equipment not commonly seen elsewhere, so even with his quirky temper, that meant nothing to the players' enthusiasm.
Lis came specifically for a special treasure in Old Jack's possession.
"Excuse the intrusion, Old Jack. A mutual friend recommended this place, and I came to buy some items."
Upon hearing this, Old Jack scrutinized the handsome young man before him, said nothing, stepped aside to open the door wider, and gestured for Lis and Welf to come in.