Know When to Stop

As Lin Jie and William quietly withdrew from the shadows of the Mechanical Shrine, carrying several heavy ingots of mutated brass and a strange roll of light-absorbing rubber tubing, the "Artisan Leader" in the heart of the lair still seemed too enraged over losing a combat squad to come to its senses.

It was still at the top of the shrine, furiously hammering a metal plate with its little hammer, venting its rage.

That gave them perfect cover to retreat.

"We should go," Lin Jie said decisively. "We've already found far more than we expected. There's no need to take greater risks just to hunt down the leader. We've confirmed the location of this lair, and the Association can organize a larger sweep at any time."

William immediately agreed with this clear-headed, rational decision.

For a Caution Rank investigation, their haul tonight was already outrageously bountiful.

If they chose to keep fighting, they'd have to face dozens of Gremlins and the fury of an Artisan Leader whose strength might exceed Caution Rank.

Knowing when to stop was one of the most important qualities of a good hunter.

The two followed the way they'd come, and with Marcus, their "bodyguard" aboveground, waiting to meet them, they safely made it back from the filthy, slippery underworld.

When the first rays of morning sunlight pierced London's mist and fell across their mud- and oil-smeared faces, all three of them felt as if they'd returned from another world.

They didn't linger in the docks. Instead, they took a carriage straight back to the I.A.R.C. London Branch beneath the British Museum.

When the three of them—especially Lin Jie and William—appeared on the clean, brightly lit main road of the Underground City looking as if they'd just been dragged out of a mud pit, they immediately drew everyone's attention.

The investigators and scholars passing by cast curious glances their way.

Their destination was the Task Settlement and Material Evaluation Office in the administrative district, where several stern-faced appraisers and record keepers worked.

The person who received them was an old scholar wearing gold-rimmed glasses and carrying himself with an air of strict professionalism. His name badge read "Material Appraiser—Level Two."

"Commission L-1888-C017: investigate the cargo thefts in West India Docks. Executor: independent hunter Lin Jie. Assistant: Level Five investigator William Keane." William stepped forward and submitted the report in his clipped, military tone.

"The target has been identified. The UMA responsible is a Caution Rank creature known as a Gremlin. Its lair is beneath Warehouse No. 3 in West India Docks, within the city's sewer system. We've mapped the exact coordinates. The four missing Night Watchers have been confirmed dead. Three of them were transformed into Mechanical Wraiths."

"My partner and I joined forces to eliminate one squad from the group, nine Gremlins in total. Since the mission's complexity exceeded Caution Rank, we didn't proceed with a full sweep. We chose to withdraw after bringing back intelligence and key materials."

William's report was objective and precise.

As the Level Two appraiser took notes, he gestured for them to place the materials they'd brought back on an assessment table made from a special kind of stone.

William first set down the "claws" and "crystal lenses" collected from the Gremlin corpses.

The appraiser tested them with various instruments, then quickly announced his findings. "Standard Caution Rank UMA biological materials, with moderate activity and slight traces of Mechanical Curse. Under the standard rate, each complete set can be exchanged for two Association points. Nine sets, eighteen points total."

Lin Jie had expected this result.

The points were just enough to buy about three Alchemy Bullets. For a successful mission, it was a fairly ordinary reward.

Some of the low-ranking investigators watching nearby nodded knowingly when they heard the appraisal.

That was the normal payout for a Caution Rank mission.

But what happened next left everyone present stunned.

Lin Jie took a deep breath, then solemnly placed the mutated brass ingots he'd carefully wrapped in oilcloth, along with the roll of light-absorbing rubber tubing he'd taken from the "Mechanical Shrine," on the assessment table.

The moment the wrapping came off, the Level Two appraiser, whose expression had been indifferent until then, jerked so violently that his gold-rimmed glasses nearly slipped off his nose.

"Th-this is..." His voice trembled with disbelief. He didn't reach for an instrument. Instead, he put on a pair of white silk gloves and picked up one of the mutated brass ingots as if he were touching a priceless treasure.

"This pure yet chaotic spiritual essence... these perfect curse runes... These aren't biological materials!" The appraiser's breathing quickened. He looked at Lin Jie and William, his eyes filled with shock. "They're the product of deep spiritual saturation! And the saturation has lasted for at least ten years!"

His words sent an uproar through the room!

Everyone knew what "spiritual saturation" meant. It signified raw materials far more precious and rare than ordinary biological materials!

Things like these could usually only be found deep inside the lairs of powerful UMAs that had occupied their territory for decades, or even centuries.

And these two had brought back materials of this caliber from the most basic Caution Rank mission?

It was unbelievable!

"That's right," Lin Jie replied calmly, meeting the gazes of everyone around him. "We found a shrine built from materials like these in the heart of the lair. Given the risks, we only took a few of the items with the strongest spiritual essence."

His offhand remark stirred an even greater commotion among the onlookers.

They'd only taken... a few samples?

Did that mean a vast treasure trove of top-grade materials still lay hidden deep underground?

The Level Two appraiser was so excited he could barely speak. He immediately pressed the alarm bell on his desk.

Soon, a white-haired old man with a badge reading "Material Appraiser—Level One," clearly someone of higher rank, hurried over with several assistants.

When the Level One appraiser saw the items on the assessment table, his expression mirrored that of the appraiser before him: he was equally stunned and delighted.

"High-quality Chaos Brass. It can be used directly to forge Spellbreaker weapons capable of disrupting an enemy's precision equipment! And this Void Rubber is the best supplementary material for making Infiltrator cloaks! The quality of these materials..."

After testing them repeatedly with the most advanced instruments, the Level One appraiser solemnly announced his final verdict. "Overall, these materials' rarity and spiritual purity meet the standard for high-quality Town Rank!"

High-quality Town Rank!

Those words set the mission settlement hall abuzz.

Every newcomer looked at Lin Jie with a complicated mixture of envy and jealousy.

Soon, the final settlement figures were announced.

[Commission No. L-1888-C017, mission completion rating: Exceeded Expectations (Grade A)]

[Base reward: 15 pounds. Bonus for exceeding expectations: 10 pounds. Total: 25 pounds.]

[Points for standard materials: 18.]

[High-quality material reward: one-time bonus of 50 Association points, based on material value!]

[Special contribution bonus for being the first to independently discover a high-value material lair: 20 Association points!]

[Total rewards: 25 pounds and 88 Association points!]

When the figure appeared on the settlement board, Marcus let out a loud whistle.

More than eighty points was a fortune. For many rookie investigators who spent their days struggling through Caution Rank missions, it would take months, or even half a year, to save that much!

Lin Jie looked at the long string of new numbers in his Hunter's Handbook and felt a surge of excitement.

But he knew that more important than the money and points was the recognition he'd earned from the organization as a whole.

With a flawless tactical victory, he'd proved his worth to everyone.

He'd shown that in a successful hunt, an outstanding Interpreter and tactical mastermind could create just as much value as a powerful combatant.

After carefully taking possession of the materials, the Level One appraiser walked up to Lin Jie in person and handed him a gold-embossed business card.

"Mr. Lin, I'm the head of the Evaluation Department. If you acquire any more interesting materials, please contact me right away. The Evaluation Department's doors will always be open to you."

That was the most important recognition of his abilities.