Chapter 155: Chapter 155

Chapter 155 Elemental Combination?

"Depends on the situation."

Landon didn't give a flat-out refusal. After all, they were just adventurers. Even someone like Landon, who cared about big matters, ultimately had to judge by a mission's danger and reward.

Of course, based on past experience, Silverstream City wasn't stingy with rewards; they were usually fairly generous.

How it would turn out, they would find out when they were ready to accept the quest tomorrow.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about that. Today is still a rest day—most important thing is to relax..."

Huck finished speaking and stood up, heading toward the small door at the side.

Although it was a private room, in the men's area there was still a little passage to the lounge.

Sid and Benny followed closely, and Landon did the same; it seemed this was a standard routine for their team, or for most adventurer teams.

Lin Mo shot a wary glance at that small door; bad memories surged up and made him shiver.

Better not—he'd rather go see the dwarf matron for a massage. At least her technique was solid, the pressure just right, and she wouldn't get handsy.

"Lin Mo, brother, you're not coming?"

Huck suddenly turned back and asked curiously.

Then, as if remembering something, he added, "Don't worry, we won't tell Miss Ellie... or Miss Finnie."

Lin Mo waved his hand. "You guys go ahead."

Being handsome was sometimes a curse; Lin Mo simply couldn't stand overenthusiastic girls.

He preferred the seaweed bath—soothing and comfortable.

Lin Mo leaned by the bath, enjoying the warm water.

Only when the skin on his fingers began to prune did he climb out and head to the main hall to wait.

Wearing a robe, Lin Mo reached the private room's hall and found Ellie already there, hair dripping wet as she struggled to dry herself with a towel.

Bathing wasn't exactly Ellie’s favorite thing.

Soaking was pleasant enough, but coming out afterward—wet and cold—wasn't so nice.

Especially with that huge tail of hers; it took a long time to dry properly.

Lin Mo sat beside her and resonated with wind element alongside his mana, summoning a gentle breeze to help dry the fur on her tail.

"Lin Mo, you finished so quickly?"

Ellie immediately turned and, quite naturally, sat in his lap.

"Weren't you quick too? What about Finnie?"

"Miss Finnie said she'd soak longer... Sherfilia is with her, so no need to worry."

If Ellie hadn't said that, given Lin Mo's impression of Finnie, he might have worried about her fainting in the bath.

But her words were, in a way, a reminder that this was her time now.

Lin Mo kept helping to dry her fur and suddenly had a thought.

If resonating with wind element could generate blowing air, and resonating with fire element could heat or make flames, then what if wind and fire elements were combined?

Could he blow out hot air?

Thinking it, he tried it. With his other hand he resonated with fire element, then used the wind he formed to blow across it.

Ellie's tail caught fire!

Lin Mo immediately resonated with water element to snuff the flame. Ellie looked puzzled and turned her head. "What happened? I think I felt something warm back there just now?"

"No, it was your imagination."

As everyone knew, tails and wolf-girls were different creatures; before burning into flesh, Ellie didn't feel much pain.

Still, a small patch of her beautiful tail fur was left gray-blackened.

Ellie didn't pay much attention and soon lay back in Lin Mo's arms, enjoying the peaceful moment.

Lin Mo breathed a sigh of relief—next time he would study it more before testing.

It seemed combining different elements in magic wasn't so easy.

The main issue was control: once elements got close, they clashed, consuming each other's energy or producing violent reactions.

But in any case, it was an interesting research direction.

If he could make progress, maybe he could combine magics!

On a simple level, mixing spells could produce many interesting tactics—for instance, combining the excellent-grade skill Gale with the superior-grade skill Fire Wall—could that form a forward-moving wall of flame?

Or combine Lightning Strike with Explosive Fireball—could that create a blazing chain of sparks and lightning?

Those were all worth exploring.

On a deeper level, if element coordination or combination could reach a high level, it might evolve into new circuits... and once a route was successfully opened, there could be more than one or two—tens, hundreds, or even thousands—potentially creating a magical system different from today's!

Of course, that was far off. With Lin Mo's current strength, he still had a long way to go.

Best to stay grounded; pioneering breakthroughs weren't easy in the short term. Slowly try things while growing stronger.

After helping the little wolf-girl dry her fur and chatting a while, Landon and the others returned from their massages. Finnie, in fresh clothes, came out from the other side with cheeks flushed pink, looking a little lightheaded.

The activities weren't over—next they were going to have a big feast.

They went straight to Silverstream City's largest hotel, the Richard Grand Hotel. Landon ordered a large spread, including expensive magical beast meat and rare high-energy fruits and vegetables—one meal's value reached as high as three gold coins.

Landon had paid for the baths earlier; it would be awkward for him to pay for this too, and Lin Mo certainly wouldn't cover the whole bill, so they split it. Lin Mo's party was small and ended up paying one gold coin.

After eating their fill—well, because they had to go on an adventure tomorrow there was no alcohol—everyone headed back to rest and prepare to gather early the next morning.

That afternoon, in the city lord’s mansion meeting hall, Bishop Fletcher of the Holy Light Church, Chairman Vic of the Adventurers' Association, City Lord Behira, and many senior city officials were gathered for a meeting.

A relatively young nobleman was the first to speak. "City Lord, with respect, the rescue operation needs to move faster!"

Someone nearby agreed at once. "Yes—delay any longer and the chance those innocent girls have of being murdered will only increase..."

An older man with gray hair stroked his beard and looked at the young speaker. "You must understand: the newly discovered underground passages could easily be traps. At this point, we can't even be sure whether the girls are in there."

"All the more reason to send a rescue force in to search thoroughly right away!"

Torren grew more agitated and slapped the table.

"Then you will be responsible for any losses if the bunker is a trap?" another middle-aged man frowned. "You realize this matter may involve Lawrence as well as goblins. Are you perhaps an undercover agent for Lawrence trying to waste our troops?"

Torren flushed red with rage, on the verge of lunging.

"Torren, this is a meeting room, not a duel arena."

Behira stopped him in time, then turned to the middle-aged man. "Joel, you're not a child. You've been an officer for many years—surely you know what to say and what not to say. No need to pick a fight with a young man."

"Forgive me, City Lord."

Joel bowed his head. "But lately, the guard losses have been... "

Behira inhaled deeply. "I know, Joel. Those soldiers were under your command, so I understand your caution. But some things must be done."

"City Lord, this is indeed strange."

Fletcher reminded them.

"I know, Bishop Fletcher."

Behira nodded. Indeed, the bunkers' exposure was oddly conspicuous, almost as if they wanted to be found.

"If there may be Silverstream citizens inside a bunker, even if it's a trap, we have to try!"

"I've already recalled the Silverplate Guard and the Shadow Squad."

"Then what about the deeper forest scouting..."

Those units had been tasked with investigating the forest interior recently to find the root of the problem.

Chairman Vic spoke up. "That girl has grown into a very powerful mage. Also, after arranging this work, I myself will head into the Roland Forest's Core Area to investigate."

Behira looked at him with some surprise.

"Haha, this old bone may be creaky, but I'm not done yet. Goblins, the Lawrences, and that damned necromancer—this recent string of trouble has been wreaking havoc. It's about time I moved and taught them a lesson!"

"As expected of Chairman Vic!"

Joel gave a thumbs-up. "I remember when I was a kid, you were one of the city's top adventurers."

And one of the hottest-tempered.

Back then, Vic had been a hot-blooded youth more blunt than Torren.

"You call me out? You were a notorious troublemaker in your youth too."

Vic glared. "Do you forget how you got into the city guard? You fought the guards before becoming a professional and were hung up to be beaten—if the old captain hadn't seen potential in you, you'd probably still be in prison!"

Joel laughed. "Young and foolish back then..."

Young people tended to be direct and impulsive—Torren was no exception. As one aged and responsibilities grew, the edges got worn down. For more chapters visıt novel✶fire.net

Vic looked at him. "Do you want to try leading a team in the bunker rescue?"

After the bickering, Vic still had a good opinion of the young man.

Though noble-born, Torren lacked most of the typical noble airs and acted like an adventurer.

In fact, he had been doing adventurer work and didn't resemble his father, who helped the lord with city governance.

Despite his birth, Torren's talent made him more suitable for elite units rather than regular guards—possibly a member or leader of an elite like the Silverplate Guard.

In short, he was worth cultivating.

Torren blinked. "Uncle Joel, aren't you going?"

"Of course I go," Joel said. "I don't mean you lead the guards. I mean lead the adventurers who respond and search and rescue one of the bunkers... City Lord, what do you think?"

Joel put the idea forward, but whether it happened was up to Behira.

Behira glanced at Torren. Though impulsive, Torren was capable; he also had a reputation among adventurers. From that perspective, letting him lead or accompany the adventurers into the bunkers was a good decision.

Mainly, though, there weren't many options...

Goblin invasions happened frequently, and much of Silverstream City's guard was spread out protecting villages and towns, including many mid-level officers.

She was now short both soldiers and commanders.

Hence the recall of the Silverplate Guard and Shadow Squad.

With that resolved, they moved on to serious discussion about tomorrow's task distribution and tactics.

Joel spoke first. "We found five bunkers. The Silverplate Guard and Shadow Squad can each take one. I will lead the remaining city guard to take one. The remaining two will have to rely on the city's adventurers."

"But we don't know how many adventurers will volunteer... We'll have to split them into two teams, and that will be up to Chairman Vic."

Vic nodded. "Leave that to the Association. Rest assured—we will post the missions today and try to assemble a team first thing tomorrow morning to depart early."

Behira agreed. "Torren, compile the current known detailed information into a document and give it to Chairman Vic."

Torren pointed at himself in confusion. "Me?"

He looked at Joel as if to ask why not him.

"Why else?" Joel grinned. "I'm taking troops out directly."

Adventurers needed time for mission postings and gathering, but the army did not—so they'd depart tonight and march through the night to start the rescue early.

Torren pursed his lips. He could do the paperwork well—he'd been taught since childhood—but he preferred to go to the battlefield and fight monsters and enemies for real.

"As for the task assignments..."

The meeting continued but wouldn't last long; rescuing people was the priority. Before long, the two elite units and Joel’s remaining guards departed.

At the same time, Silverstream City declared martial readiness. Most of the city's forces had been sent out, though surrounding towns and scouts would monitor the area. With the city's defenses thin, caution was essential.

The next morning, Lin Mo arrived early at the Adventurers' Association and happened to meet Lena who had come to work.

As expected, the quest board was already crowded.

Many adventurers had gathered to watch the commotion.

"What's going on? What happened this time?"

"Can't say it was an incident exactly... but they've found the suspected location of the girls the goblins took. They're organizing rescue teams..."

"That's got to be rescued—too bad I'm not strong enough, otherwise I'd join the fun."

"Right? The board says it's in the Deep Forest Area of Roland Forest, near the Core Area. I wouldn't dare go there."

"So the post makes it clear: professional status required. Only professionals can sign up."

"But I have to say, the reward is outrageous..."

"Normal, given the danger."

Lin Mo listened to snippets and pushed toward the front.

"What are you doing? I..."

The man suddenly saw Lin Mo's Bronze-rank Adventurer Identification Badge hanging at his chest and swallowed his words, smiling as he made way. "Please, big brother."

The badge worked well.

Lin Mo smiled and didn't argue, then read the task notice carefully.

[Call to Arms]: Due to a rampant goblin crisis, many girls in Silverstream City and nearby towns have been abducted by goblins. The city lord and the garrison have actively searched, and yesterday they finally achieved a breakthrough!

Next came the bunker locations and related intelligence—sparse but clear, enough for anyone to immediately understand the mission's cause and objectives.

Therefore, we call on the wider adventurer community to help rescue those innocent abducted girls!

Note: Due to high danger, only professionals may participate!

Then came the most important part: the rewards.

Adventurers tended to be straightforward; many were heroic types eager to punish evil and protect the innocent.

But dangerous missions still depended on pay.

As the earlier chatter indicated, these rewards were indeed extravagant.

Generosity summed up in two words—lavish.

Just this base pay was like a reassurance pill to would-be volunteers.

After all, not everyone was an expert like Lin Mo or Landon. For most adventurers, this base pay equaled or exceeded what they'd normally earn on a single outing.

This second reward was additional incentive and not insignificant.

But so far the rewards were conventional—money—still a bit uninspiring. It might draw many adventurers, but it wouldn't necessarily lure top-tier experts.

What followed was the heavy-hitter.

If you asked adventurers what they most wanted, many would say money.

But if asked what they'd use money for, excluding those who only saw it as a living, most driven adventurers would answer with two things: skills and equipment.

For those without stellar talent who learn skills slowly, equipment could be even more important than skills.

They didn't have the time or energy to master more skills, but a good weapon and armor would tangibly raise combat power.

A suitable Excellent-grade weapon could make up for months or years of effort!

Superior-grade gear was even more staggering.

Once equipment reached Superior grade or higher, the boost was huge—rumor had it a Superior item could even erase the gap between professionals and non-professionals!

A professional using it would effectively gain half a rank.