Chapter 139 Smile of Gratitude

Larry gently cradled the goblin's flimsy, bony arms, his voice filled with compassion as he spoke, "You should conserve your strength. Don't exert yourself further, It's best if you don't speak anymore. We will ensure your well-being. Find ease in knowing that you're in good hands, little buddy. Rest at ease."

The goblin's disgusting, feces-stinking smile of gratitude widened even more. His yellowed, decaying teeth jutted out at odd angles, some broken and jagged like shards of glass. The stench of decaying dung reeked from his open mouth. The gums surrounding those rotting teeth were inflamed and swollen, oozing with putrid fluids dripping down his mouth. His lips were cracked and split as if repeatedly torn apart. 

As the Hermit grinned, his lips stretched to an unnatural extent, revealing the raw, red flesh beneath. Stinking saliva oozed from his mouth, mixing with the grotesque pus dripping from his misshapen mouth.

Despite the excruciating pain, an eerie smile crept across his mutilated face. His lips, shredded and tattered, were pulled back in a sinister parody of a smile. The corners of his torn lips curled upwards, revealing a nightmarish grin that defied the limits of agony and torment.

From within this stinking mouth, Hermit's elongated tongue slithered out, a twisted serpent of flesh. Covered in cuts and lacerations, the tongue danced in the air, its surface greasy with a mixture of saliva and blood.

Hermit's broken nose, flattened against his face, wheezed with each labored breath, producing a discordant whistling sound. The remaining fragments of his cheekbones protruded like skeletal spurs, giving his face an otherworldly, nightmarish appearance as he replied, "I will, Larry. I will. I will rest now. Thank you... thank you... thank you."

 The goblin succumbed to sleep once more, repeatedly thanking Larry until he fell asleep. Larry gently crossed Hermit's wimpy arms over his chest and covered his naked, flimsy body with a blanket.

Suzuka sat in the corner and complained, "God damn goblin! I was saving his sorry ass the whole time and didn't even get a word of appreciation. If he gets reduced to a bloody pile of meat, don't expect me to come and save him. This is the last time I'm touching that thing." 

Larry looked at her and whispered, "Don't be like that, Helen. I'm sure he is grateful for everything you have done for him. When he gets better, I will tell him you saved him."

She stood up and said, "Okay, I'm out of here. When can I expect to get the coin?"

Larry whispered while holding Hermit's hand, "Come back here tomorrow for the agreed sum. I will have the coins ready. I'll also turn in the quest and let Lisanna know that you'll be the one collecting the reward money. You can keep it all, of course. It'll be the 15 gold coins we agreed upon. I'll deal with David later. And, of course, this goes without saying, don't tell anyone about this place."

She walked out of the room, saying, "Got it, Larry. See you later, then."

Suzuka had finally completed the quest and was ready to head back home, happy that she will not see that ugly goblin ever again. Although it was almost evening, there was still some daylight remaining. As she stepped out of the building, she was greeted by gloomy weather. A gentle rain was showering the streets, the sky was painted in shades of grey, and large dark rain clouds dominated the horizon, indicating an approaching and lengthy rainstorm. She pulled up her hood and began her journey home to the Mystic Oasis Inn.

With some spare time on her hands, she picked up the box that Bill had given her, containing dragon scales, and made her way to visit Walter, the blacksmith. Despite the rain shower, she reached his shop after a short walk and entered. 

The day was slow, and he had no customers at the time. He was busy carefully adjusting fancy leather and high-quality cloth armor. Noticing her, he approached and said, "Well, well, well, hello there, my valuable customer. How may I be of service today?" With no customers for the day, Walter was putting in extra effort to make a sale.

Suzuka said, "Hey, Walter. I'm afraid I'm not here to shop, at least for today. I have something and I want your opinion." 

Walter's energy diminished when he heard she wasn't planning to buy anything, so he asked, "Oh well, what do you have in mind?" 

She showed a box and opened it, revealing dragon scales. Walter took one from the bunch and examined it closely, flipping it over and carefully inspecting it. After he finished, he said, "That is a dragon scale, all right. Very well hardened, naturally hardened, no chemicals used. Judging by their appearance, they seem to be harder than steel. Yes, yes, I can see you have good-quality dragon scales with you. The question is, what do you want to do with them?"

 Suzuka replied without hesitation, "I want to sell them. How much can I get for them?" 

Walter pretended to be lost in thought while he was actually pondering how to deceive her and take her money. After a moment of silence, he said, "Well... you see, dragon scales don't fetch a high price. Although they are a rare find, you might find someone on the black market willing to pay a few gold coins, but that's a long shot. Personally, I don't purchase materials like that. Working with steel and iron is much simpler and cost-efficient. However, if you're set on selling them, I highly doubt you'll get more than 20 silver for them."

Suzuka was disappointed, "Well that's a shame. I thought dragon scales would be of much more value than that."

Walter's intention was to squeeze every last coin out of her, and he began to suggest, "Well, you see, the era of rune letters is long gone and almost forgotten. There used to be a high demand for items like dragon scales long before I was even born. However, nowadays, hardly anyone uses them or rune letters. But, If you're willing to invest a substantial amount of funds and a massive amount of time, you could acquire an incredibly powerful armor set. I'm talking about enchanted armor, baby!"

Her interest was piqued upon hearing the alluring sound of enchanted armor. "First of all, Walter, don't start offering me deals that I can't resist declining. And second, tell me more about the armor."

That was all Walter needed to hear. He was ready to sugarcoat his story to the extent that even honey would taste like water in comparison. "Ah, the enchanted armor! Let me amuse you with its wonders. Picture this: the design, oh so flexible! It can mold itself to any size you desire, even transforming into a bikini armor, darling, to flaunt your jaw-dropping body and highlight every curve. It's not just eye candy, though. This armor is a master of deception, an expert in distracting foes, especially those pesky goblins! With your dragon scales, my dear, it'll be a work of art, an elegant ensemble that makes even royalty green with envy!"

"But wait, there's more! The exposed parts of your precious skin needn't fret. This armor is enchanted, blessed with a magical layer as thin as a whisper. It'll wrap around you like a loving embrace, creating a second protective barrier. Any damage you face will be swiftly dealt with, thanks to the dragon scale with defense runes engraved upon it. The more runes, the merrier, my dear!"

"And the cherry on top? It's light as a feather, my friend! None of that clunky, suffocating men's armor for you. Can you even imagine swaggering around in a full set of iron plates? Absurd! You'd be a slow-moving target, a walking tin can begging for trouble. But fear not! This enchanted beauty provides just the right amount of coverage - minimal yet effective. It's like wearing the whispers of the wind, and thanks to its enchantment, those exposed parts of yours won't cause a lick of worry!"

Suzuka chimed in and said, "Yes, yes, I'm familiar with that rune engraving and skimpy armor. I've had a few runes carved myself. What's next?"

Walter rejoiced, "Ah! You're familiar with the craft, and you even know how to engrave them. If that's the case, I strongly recommend that you at least consider it. I know that engraving and shaping dragon scales will be time-consuming and costly, but it will be armor for a lifetime. The armor will be impenetrable, and let's not forget the other possible rune letters, such as strength, to increase your might, the void rune for storing your items, and others." 

Walter paused for a second, he didn't want to sell her this idea any further without knowing that her mana pool is big enough to support the armor. "But! I have to confess, it sounds incredible, but it has a flaw. You need to have a considerably deep mana pool for that; it will provide incredible defense, but it also consumes a lot of mana. if your mana pool is not high I would not recommend it."

"Mana is not my biggest concern, it's over 5 stars. What worries me is the price it will cost me." 

Walter hesitated for a second, then spoke, "Well, I would say about 20 gold coins."

Suzuka was surprised, "That's not so much considering the benefits. I was expecting much more."

Walter said, "The thing is, you will be the one engraving the letters. I will simply design and put it together. Also, if you decide to place an order, you will need to go and kill the Blue Slime King and retrieve his concentrated slime. We need it to create the same soft, sticky texture I used for your battle gloves. The enchanted armor will have to adhere to your body like a glove, maintaining contact with your skin so it can be activated and feed on your mana. The armor will stick to your body as if it were your own skin, offering maximum mobility and flexibility. And if you don't like to show off your beautiful body, you can wear it under your leather armor or gambison."

 "Yeah, it sounds great. The axe you mentioned a while ago also sounded great. However, I still don't have any coins to spare. Honestly, I only have one silver coin in my pocket at the moment," she confessed honestly.

Walter smiled at her and said, "There's no rush. When you have it and decide to give it a go, just come by and ask. I will gladly make you that armor."

Suzuka bid farewell and returned to the Mystic Oasis Inn. She collapsed onto her bed and drifted off to sleep. Morning arrived swiftly, and she eagerly made her way to the guild to claim her reward. Upon entering, her attention was immediately drawn to David brooding in the distant corner. Having no interest in engaging with him, she headed straight for Lisanna. Approaching her, Suzuka asked, "Hey, Lisanna. Did Larry come by yesterday? He was supposed to turn in the quest."

Lisanna answered with a warm smile, "Hi, Helen. No, I haven't seen Larry. And by the looks of it, the little puppy that follows him around is waiting for him in the corner as well, like the good doggy he is." Lisanna couldn't resist jesting at David.

Continuing, Lisanna said, "But I heard the news. Word spreads quickly in this town. You and Larry's group got into trouble yesterday. Something about bringing a goblin into town and being arrested for disturbing the peace by organizing fights with monsters in the streets. One of my girlfriends told me that David was torturing a helpless and defenseless naked goblin right in the middle of the street. She said it made her sick to her stomach witnessing such cruelty," Lisanna purposely heightened her voice so that David could hear it, "She also said that it looked like David was molesting the goblin, hahaha!" 

David heard that and shouted back, "I-I did no such thing! I was trying to kill the bastard not molest him! Don't make things up!"

Suzuka hesitated to discuss the matter and replied, "I'm not sure if I'm the right person to ask. I merely acted as muscle and defended against monsters. I have no knowledge about the goblin, its purpose, or what will happen to it."

Lisanna chuckled, "Oh, it's not such a big deal. Probably some rich bastard wanted a pet for himself or something. My friend also told me that this goblin can talk. Goblins like that would fetch a high price in the black market, sold as a slave or a party freaks for some amusements. I would like one for myself, they can get really funny."

"But that doesn't matter now, he probably didn't survive the beating. My friend said he was pounded into a bloody mess. She mentioned that the guards had to use a shovel to scrape his remains off the pavement and toss them into a barrel or something. She also said that David got smacked across the face with a buckle by the guard. Oh, what a shame. I wish I could have seen that."

Suzuka nervously chuckled and said, "Haha, yeah. I think I'll sit at the table and stop bothering you, I'll just wait for Larry here. Maybe he'll show up." She sat down, leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes, attempting to doze off.