White Elf When the store manager heard this, she just lazily straightened up from the door frame, with a hint of insightful smile in her silver eyes, and gently shook her head.
"Of course I'm not telling you this because of any philanthropic character." Her voice was extremely soft, but it also carried a kind of transparency that had accumulated over the years. "I'm just choosing a suitable collaborator who can listen and have the ability to solve problems. And you, this strange stranger, you seem to be the person I'm looking for."
Stranger.
When these three words came out of the elf shop manager's mouth, Li Wen's body did not change at all, but the eyes under the hood became sharp in an instant. She didn't ask back, nor did she try to defend. She just looked at the other person quietly, waiting for her next words.
"Don't be so nervous." The elf shop manager seemed to see through her vigilance. She waved her hand to indicate that she meant no harm. "The years I have lived may be longer than the history of this city. I have met too many people and seen too many things. Although I cannot fully understand the origins of you 'foreigners', the aura that is incompatible with this world in you is more conspicuous than a bonfire in the dark night."
She paused, her silver pupils scanning the chaotic scene in the distance that had been controlled by the Investigation Bureau, and her tone became calmer.
"Especially your attitude towards death is really fascinating. Ordinary creatures are afraid of death and regard death as the end. But you seem to just regard it as an insignificant fall, dust it off and stand up again, and even... actively use death to obtain benefits. This ability is really suitable for dealing with certain difficult and dangerous matters."
"I have a commission." The elf shop manager finally revealed her purpose, her tone becoming a little more serious, "A commission that only someone like you can complete."
"Entrustment?" Li Wen finally spoke, his voice flat and without any emotion, "There seems to be no reason for me to work for you."
"There will always be a reason." The elf store manager smiled confidently. She walked back into the store, took out a piece of yellowed parchment from behind the counter, and slowly unfolded it in front of Li Wen. It was a hand-drawn architectural structural diagram. Although the lines were simple, the layout and annotations were extremely detailed.
"Just half a month ago, 'Raphael's Curio Collection' 'bought' an ancient relic from an old friend of mine through some disgraceful means." She pointed to a room marked by a red circle on the structural diagram, "I need you to get it back. As for the reason... you only need to know that that thing is extremely important to me, and people like Raphael are not worthy of having it."
Li Wen's eyes fell on the structural diagram and he wrote down the guard routes and possible magic traps marked on it. She did not agree immediately, but asked instead, "Since it is so important to you, why don't you do it yourself? With your strength, it must not be difficult to sneak in there."
The feeling this elf store manager gave her was unfathomable. He was definitely not as simple as an ordinary bookstore owner. What's more, the other party claims that she is older than Camelot, which means that the era in which she was active can be traced back to at least the Bronze Age.
As we all know, White Elf is the humblest pure-blood descendant of Silver Elf. Generally speaking, their lifespan is less than half that of High Elf, that is, they will die at about 500 years old. This means that she has either extended her life through some rituals or spells, or... she has been a transcendent above Stage Five a long time ago.
"Me?" The elf store manager smiled self-deprecatingly, "I'm just an old guy who is guarding this dilapidated bookstore and trying to survive. In Camelot, there are too many pairs of eyes staring at me, and every move I make may cause unnecessary trouble. And you, as a stranger who no one knows, are the best blade. You are sharp enough and secretive enough. Even if the action fails, no one will trace the matter to me."
Her words were straightforward and cruel, and she did not hide her intention to take advantage of Li Wen.
"What's more..." She changed the topic, with a cunning light shining in her silver eyes, "Isn't the thing you strangers fear the most is death? For this commission, this is precisely the most precious trait."
Li Wen was silent. The other party is right. For ordinary players, as long as the rewards are generous enough, risk is never the primary consideration.
But she is not a normal player. She still has to look for clues to the original code, but she has no time to waste on such things.
But...
"What is the reward?" Li Wen asked aloud. The words of rejection can be said later. Before that, you must at least know how much compensation the other party is willing to pay for it.
When the White Elf store manager heard this, he just smiled nonchalantly, as if he had already expected Li Wen to ask this question.
"For ordinary strangers, a bag of gold coins is enough to stay in the most expensive hotel Royal Capital for ten years, or a high-quality elf short sword with the runes of 'Demon Bane' and 'Frost', may be enough to make them excited." She said slowly, with a bit of carelessness and laziness in her voice, "But you don't seem to care about this. What you want is the knowledge, right?"
Li Wen did not confirm, of course, did not deny.
"In that case, I can give you two choices." The elf store manager stretched out two slender fingers and waved them gently in front of Li Wen.
"First, a sum of money that is enough for you to buy a decent house with a garden in Camelot. With it, you can settle down here and conduct your research calmly as a wealthy scholar without having to worry about livelihood. Or you can use this money to collect unpopular classics, secret books, or even books that are full of forbidden knowledge that are not allowed to be spread."
This proposal sounds great, but it is meaningless to Li Wen. Money is useless in some places, such as in front of Sunday Secret College's strict knowledge barriers. What's more, she doesn't have time to waste on how to spend the money.
"It seems that there is no need to continue talking. Let's see what else can arouse your interest..." A deeper smile appeared on the corner of the elf shop manager's lips. She moved closer and lowered her voice, "For example... this black Feather Bookmark."
She opened her palms, and lying quietly in her palms was a bookmark made of the feathers of an unknown bird. The feathers were completely black, and under the dim light, they glowed with a deep blue color like the starry sky.