Dragonkin Priest

"If you're a passerby who's too willing to believe others, there's a good chance you'll walk into 'Thorns.'"

"What awaits you certainly won't be a warm and welcoming Hill Dwarf proprietor. It'll be a bartender with ulterior motives, a hall full of thugs, and thieves watching you like a tiger stalking its prey."

"Don't be surprised. Thorns is simply a black inn that specializes in cheating and killing passersby."

"Of course, if you're a suspicious person who thinks he's trying to deceive you and decides to do the opposite, things will be a little different."

"When you walk into the 'Green Dragon Princess,' you'll deeply regret not taking that old man's advice and realize that you've misunderstood a good person who was merely pointing you in the right direction."

"Because... the Green Dragon Princess is also a black inn."

Inside the warm, dry Treehouse.

A woman with green eyeshadow carefully carried over a glass of green, bubbling drink and placed it in front of Roger, then flashed a bright smile:

"Fortunately, you're smarter than either of the two types mentioned above."

"Welcome to 'Dragon Tooth Village.'"

Roger inclined his head slightly in thanks.

He accepted the drink but didn't take a sip.

The woman didn't mind. She straightened her jet-black hair and gracefully sat down.

"My name is Cindy. I'm the chief of this village."

With a smile in her eyes, she introduced herself: "Two children from our village saw you this morning. You scared them half to death."

"But please don't take it to heart. They really did only encounter you because they were tracking the Jackal Beast's corpse."

"May I ask your name?"

Roger didn't hide it and gave her his name.

A little over ten minutes earlier, Roger had arrived at Dragon Tooth Village.

After he explained his purpose to the guards, the woman before him, who called herself Cindy, had received him.

Cindy was around thirty, with attractive features and a striking figure.

Her upper body was wrapped only in a pale-green bandeau, exposing her snow-white chest and pert navel. Below that was a grass skirt woven from reeds, beneath which something seemed to be moving faintly, inspiring all sorts of thoughts.

But Roger didn't dare underestimate the woman before him.

Qi Divination Technique showed that her profession was "Dragonkin Priest."

As for her level, life, traits, and other detailed categories, they were all strings of question marks.

That meant either Cindy's strength far exceeded his own, or she possessed some secret technique that could resist the Qi Divination Technique's analysis.

Either way, it proved that this woman was far from as simple as she appeared.

Throughout his contact with Cindy, Roger had been extremely cautious.

During their conversation.

Roger told Cindy, following the same story as before, that he was an Adventurer who had come from the west of the wetlands.

His companions were pursuing the remaining Jackal Beasts.

As for him, he had come ahead to see whether he could obtain some supplies from a human settlement.

"An Adventurer from the west?"

"Your companions are all pursuing the Jackal Beasts?"

Cindy's face revealed a smile she could barely contain.

She looked deeply at Roger:

"You really are the most cautious Adventurer I've ever met."

Roger remained silent.

"But you didn't come from the west, and you don't have any companions. All the Jackal Beasts were killed by you alone, weren't they?"

Cindy crossed one pale, shapely leg over the other, her tone light:

"I'm not questioning you by saying this—when adventuring alone outside, it's only natural to be cautious."

"I just want to tell you: relax a little. We mean you no harm."

Roger looked into her clear, limpid eyes and suddenly asked:

"You've been to the Jackal Beast settlement?"

"Yes." Cindy answered frankly: "After those two reckless little fellows told me what happened, I went to the scene myself."

"And I found traces of battle from only one person."

Roger nodded, then asked again:

"Then what's wrong with the phrase 'an Adventurer from the west'?"

Cindy smiled and lifted the drink in front of her, taking a small sip:

"There are no more Adventurers in the west."

"That's the territory of the Lord of Evil Spirits. Living people can neither enter nor leave."

Roger suddenly understood, and his mood relaxed somewhat.

At least he hadn't made a logical mistake. He had simply lost to an information gap.

After all, coming to an unfamiliar place made that unavoidable.

"I have a commission."

Cindy suddenly spoke.

Roger's spirits rose. He knew the important part had arrived.

That woman had clearly said so much to him for a reason.

"Let's hear it." He didn't commit himself.

Cindy nodded, her tone turning serious. "The old man you met on Lettuce Avenue is named 'Hanfulan.'"

"He's the biggest villain on Yellowstone Island. The Green Dragon Princess and the Thorns Inn are both his properties."

"He has always been Ruthless and Vicious toward passing Adventurers. Killing people and taking their money is an everyday occurrence for him."

"He's also filled with malice toward the island's other residents."

"Recently, he gathered a group of Marshland Refugees and began harassing our village frequently. I'm worried the villagers will be harmed if this continues, so I hope you can eliminate him for me."

After hearing her out, Roger said nothing.

With a beaming smile, Cindy took one item after another from a cabinet beside her and placed them in front of Roger.

"What does this mean?" Roger asked.

"The commission's payment. You may choose any one item."

Pointing to the first item—a crude wooden token—Cindy said: "This is a precious riding pass. With it, you can go to the Beast Tamer in southern Yellowstone Island and ride the 'Flying Dragon Express.' The Flying Dragon Beast will take you anywhere in the Great Wetland... well, except the west."

Then she picked up the second item—a delicate silver-white ring.

"This is the 'Wind Control Ring,' a top-grade magical item. Combined with a specific incantation, it can let you control raging winds."

Then her hand pressed down on a yellowed sheet of parchment:

"A map of the 'Green Dragon Temple.' It's said to be the Great Wetland's greatest treasure trove. Although I only have half of it, it's still worth a fortune."

Finally, she lightly patted herself.

Roger froze for a moment.

"Lastly, there's me."

The Dragonkin Priest lightly bit her pearly lower lip and pressed her slender jade finger against the pale-green bandeau. Together with her slight forward lean, it created a tremendous visual impact.

"I absolutely won't disappoint you."

Her tone grew suggestive.

The shadow stirring beneath her grass skirt also revealed its true form.

It was a slender, scaled tail.

Roger coughed, stood up, and pushed the Dragonkin Priest away as she nearly pressed herself against him:

"Sorry, that's not what I'm interested in... Er, no..."

"In any case, I refuse."

In the end, Roger successfully exchanged for food other than fresh lettuce and some fresh water in Dragon Tooth Village.

He didn't accept Cindy's commission, for a very simple reason—

He wasn't an Assassin.

He hadn't even figured out Hanfulan's background.

From beginning to end, all he had heard was Cindy's side of the story.

Although Roger had indeed smelled a strong scent of blood when passing those two inns,

That didn't mean Cindy hadn't lied or concealed important information.

In short, Roger felt that the commission carried enormous risks and offered very little reward. He had no reason to accept it.

However, he had obtained one very important piece of information from Cindy.

There was a Beast Tamer on Yellowstone Island.

She raised a whole team of Flying Dragon Beasts that could take people anywhere in the wetlands.