5 Milio

"Battle won, but your victory was far too easy. You gained no valuable experience."

"Oshirresh sensed your slight happiness, but it was so faint that she couldn't even be bothered to glance at it."

"Your reputation in the Ixialia region has risen slightly, but your level has not increased."

As for the system's report in his mind, Yuan Chen wasn't surprised at all... After all, it was simply too difficult for a level-two elemental mage to inflict any meaningful damage on him.

A level six against a level two, and on top of that, Oshirresh's Demon's Curse gave him an absolute advantage over his opponent's specialty, the Axiom of Water. Under those circumstances, if his opponent so much as brushed the hem of Yuan Chen's clothes, it would be an insult to the past twenty-odd years of his life...

Although that was how he felt, the Demon's Blessing still forcibly turned his indifference into a trace of pleasure. Fortunately, Yuan Chen managed to suppress that feeling in time, then stepped forward and helped his opponent up.

"Thank you for the match. I learned a great deal from fighting you."

"Don't try to comfort me."

At Yuan Chen's words, Audan gave a wry smile. "I didn't even touch the hem of your clothes. If that taught you a great deal, then there's no justice in the world."

Hearing this, Grandma Lupe nodded and said, "Yes... Speaking of which, though I can't be certain, you seemed to use different schools of magic during the fight, didn't you?"

Though she didn't know much about Ionia's schools, the people of Ixialia understood elemental magic through the Yuan Chu Axiom far better than the people of any other nation in Runeterra.

In that case, as a former member of the Elder Council of Yuentar, Grandma Lupe could tell that Yuan Chen had switched between different schools during the fight. The shapes and paths of the Water Flow made it clear...

The first was resilient, the second, sharp.

Yuan Chen didn't hide anything. He nodded and said:

"Yes. At the start of the fight, I used the Battle Dance, a traditional dance of the Vastaya Tribe. It's vibrant, grand, and dazzling, but not suited to combat.

"After that, I used the traditional silk dance of Placidium. Neither was created for combat, but I've always believed that prosperous Ionia would one day face an invasion by the Valoran Barbarians, so I've been adapting them for battle."

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, the farmers in the crowd nodded without thinking—

They didn't know much about Ionia, but from Grandma Lupe's account, it seemed to be another secluded civilization like Ixialia. To the people of Ixialia, the inhabitants of the Valoran Continent were a bunch of uncultured upstarts and barbaric invaders.

What was that saying again? How did you quickly bond with strangers? Find someone you both hated.

Especially since the Noxians had never been ones to keep to themselves...

At that, Grandma Lupe nodded and said:

"You've proven through your strength that you truly are a scholar and elemental mage from across the distant sea. I also accept that you've passed the first trial. But there are still two more trials you must complete before everyone in the village will accept you."

Yuan Chen wasn't surprised by Grandma Lupe's words—it was clear from his regional reputation.

Though his regional reputation had risen slightly after his victory, he was still at -1, which meant he was rejected. The villagers might have changed their minds about him and accepted that he was an elemental mage and a scholar from the outside world, but they still didn't accept him as one of their own.

"Then what else do I need to do?"

"Do something for our village." Grandma Lupe pointed toward the Primeval Jungle outside the village. "Recently, an unknown beast has been prowling near the village, hunting creatures throughout the surrounding area. It easily destroys every trap we set. It's attacked and threatened our hunters, and even ruined our crops."

"If you can drive it away, everyone here will be grateful to you."

Hearing Grandma Lupe's words, the burly stonemason beside her nodded and said in a gruff voice, "That's right! The beast has been prowling around the rocky hills lately, so we have to be on our guard whenever we go to gather stone. If you're willing to take on this trial, I'll accept you, whether you succeed or not!"

"Me too!"

A burly, bearded man wearing heat-resistant gloves and holding a pipe between his lips said:

"Without enough ore, my blacksmith's shop is about to shut down! It's all that damned beast's fault... If you're willing to help drive it away, I'll give you weapons and a shield for free! Of course, you'll have to return them afterward. My craftsmanship doesn't come cheap..."

Hearing the villagers' words, Yuan Chen nodded, then turned to Grandma Lupe. "If that's the case, I'm willing to challenge the beast for the sake of the village. But before that, could I rest for a while?"

A sheepish look crossed Yuan Chen's face. "I've been drifting at sea for a long time, living on raw fish every day. To be honest, I haven't had a proper meal in over a month."

At that, Grandma Lupe tightened her grip on her cane, then turned to the villagers beside her. "All right, what does everyone think?"

"Haha! No problem!" The burly blacksmith stroked his wooden pipe and laughed. "The young fellow's challenging a beast for the village! A little food is nothing. Leave it to me!"

"Ha! A scholar from Ionia, huh? Now you can try some of Ixialia's unique delicacies!"

"That's right! Ixialia's Honey Fruit is the best! So is our Raptor Stew! Speaking of which, what's good to eat in Ionia? I'll trade you Honey Fruit for some!"

At that, Yuan Chen smiled. "Back home... Five Flavor Soup and Plum Jerky are pretty good. I'll see if I can make some when I get the chance!"

"Haha! It's a deal!"

A woman who looked like a farmer laughed. "If it's good, you can sell it at the county market. There are lots of people there. You might even run into someone else from another place, like you!"

"Thanks to the attitude you've shown, your reputation in the Ixialia region has risen slightly. Level UP. You have reached LV0."

Yuan Chen smiled and nodded. He didn't think much of the increase in his regional reputation. He knew from experience that his current regional reputation was limited to this village, the only place he had explored in Ixialia.

Once he went to a county, which was larger than a village, the reputation he'd earned here would be swallowed up by the county's size, and drop back to -1 once more.

Counties were what the people of Ixialia called their "big cities." Aside from the capital, Yishuaoken, all other large cities were commonly called this or that county. They were marked by large Elemental Tower Bases, where many Elemental Apprentices studied.

The leaders of counties and large villages were often members of the Elder Council of Yuentar. In other words, the Yuentar were Ixialia's intellectual elite as well as its ruling class, and held an extraordinary status.

Ordinary minor offenses shouldn't have mattered much to them, but Grandma Lupe had been demoted straight to commoner... That could only mean she or her family had once committed some unforgivable crime.

That was what had gotten her exiled to a little village so far from civilization... It didn't even have a small Elemental Tower Base.

Unfortunately, the League of Legends universe had very little to say about Ixialia, so even Yuan Chen didn't know what had happened...

As for the increase in his regional reputation level... It was just like when he'd been in Ionia. When he'd gone to Placidium to study, his accumulated reputation in his homeland had carried over to the Placidium region, and his level had instantly dropped from LV3 to LV0.

If he wanted to make a name for himself in Ixialia and establish a stable regional reputation, he'd have to go to a big city and accomplish something significant. Otherwise, no matter how much he did in a tiny village, it would be a drop in the ocean compared to the entire Ixialia Empire—barely a splash.

But given Ixialia's unique circumstances... If he rashly went to a county right now, the most likely outcome would be the Road Protectors capturing him, then either exiling him to the Primordial Jungle to fend for himself or sending him back out to sea on a makeshift raft.

Well, because the terrain and dense jungle kept places isolated, Ixialia didn't have a traditional army. Instead, it had special "Road Protectors" to maintain order—

As their name suggested, the Road Protectors maintained the roads that connected Ixialia's counties and ran through the Primeval Jungle. They faced all kinds of dangers in the process, from extreme weather to ferocious beasts, so they were highly respected.

All in all... In a place like Ixialia, with its unusual customs, he had to start small if he wanted to earn people's acceptance. Only then, when someone discovered he was an outsider, would people vouch for him and guarantee his good character... Otherwise, he'd be exiled as soon as he was found out.

After the first trial was over, Grandma Lupe led Yuan Chen back to her large house.

She sat down on the bed, looking a little tired, and set her cane aside.

She glanced at Yuan Chen, who had already taken a seat behind her, and a hint of emotion showed in her eyes. "Do you hate me?"

"Hate you? Why?"

Yuan Chen looked puzzled as he ate, glancing at Grandma Lupe in confusion—

"Because I've given you a few more unnecessary trials."

Grandma Lupe said, "I'm sure you can tell that if I wanted to, I could let you stay in the village without driving away that beast."

"How could I? If that were the case, I'd probably always be an outsider here, wouldn't I?"

Hearing Grandma Lupe's words, Yuan Chen smiled and shook his head.

"Though I'm not the first outsider to set foot on this land, as a scholar, I hope to learn more about the stories that have unfolded here and the wisdom it has nurtured. If I stayed here solely on the strength of your reputation, I'm sure I'd never be able to shake off the label of outsider..."

"That's right. Scholars are all like that."

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, Grandma Lupe smiled with relief and said:

"Some outsiders have wanted to stay here before, but they were too eager to get ahead...

"They didn't understand that for the people of a simple village, you have to sweat alongside them before they'll remember your name and what you've done, and truly accept you."

As she spoke, a trace of emotion entered Grandma Lupe's eyes.

Yuan Chen nodded. It was a little embarrassing to admit, but he hadn't thought that far ahead.

The main reason he'd decided to take on the second trial was that he hadn't sensed any happiness from the villagers...

Oshirresh's Blessing kept Yuan Chen in a state of happiness forever. The cost was immense, but in return, it let him sense the happiness that arose because of him. In this case, he hadn't felt any of that happiness... In other words, the villagers hadn't accepted him.

By contrast, when he agreed to get rid of the unknown beast, Yuan Chen had felt a great deal of happiness from them. It had directly raised the village's regional reputation from LV-1, rejection, to LV0, indifference.

Though LV0 regional reputation meant they were merely indifferent to him, the fact that they no longer rejected him was already a good start.

In fact, although most of them were still cold toward him, simply offering to help drive away the beast had already earned him some people's approval.

While Yuan Chen was still thinking, a boy suddenly pushed open the door nearby.

A handsome boy with a cheerful smile, short hair, and reddish-brown skin came running in from outside like the wind.

As he ran, he called, "Grandma Lupe! I'm back! I heard we have a guest! Can I meet him?"

At the sight of the boy, a smile appeared on Grandma Lupe's face. But then, as if she remembered something, a hint of sorrow passed through her eyes. In the end, she smiled and said:

"Milio, don't rush. Be careful not to fall!"

Staring at the boy, Yuan Chen heard Grandma Lupe call him "Milio." The hand holding his bread stopped halfway to his mouth and froze in midair.

Then, his thoughts whirling and surprise in his eyes, he asked, "Your name is Milio?"

Grandma Lupe could hear the deep surprise in Yuan Chen's voice.