4 Accomplishments, Advancement!

Li Wei watched as the other three sales associates vanished from the floor as if granted a reprieve.

Aside from him, the remaining three sales associates, including Emma, were all more or less intimidated by Mrs. Dolores.

She was mysterious, elegant, and spoke fluent English with an Eastern European accent.

Most importantly, she was like a bottomless pool; she never displayed any emotion, nor did she ever lose control.

"How do you feel about the salary I'm paying you?"

After everyone else had left, she asked calmly.

"It's very high," Li Wei said truthfully, "and the benefits are good too. I really like it here."

"Hmm, if you want to keep your job," Mrs. Dolores said calmly, "don't be too curious. Be careful with your work over the next few days while I'm away."

Although Li Wei didn't understand why Mrs. Dolores would specifically say such a strange thing to him, he could tell it was a word of advice, so he nodded and agreed.

"That's all. You may go," Mrs. Dolores said. "Thank you for your hard work moving things today. Emma will give you a little extra bonus."

Li Wei had originally wanted to say that this was what a knight should do and that such a small matter was not worth mentioning. But upon hearing there would be a bonus, he selectively forgot that he was a knight, thanked Mrs. Dolores, and turned to leave.

But why did she say that to me? Li Wei wondered as he walked. Is it because I'm new? Or does this boutique have some secret?

After his morning part-time shift ended, Li Wei had sold a bracelet while simultaneously declining the advances of a charming, middle-aged female designer, which caused the tip he could have received—300 dollars—to shrink to 20 dollars.

Thanks to the 100-dollar bonus from Mrs. Dolores, Li Wei had earned a total of 384 dollars after taxes after three hours of blowing air conditioning, and he had also scored a free luxury lunch from Emma.

When he got off the subway at the Eighth Avenue station, Li Wei's gaze suddenly shifted to a sign hung by a real estate agency.

He currently had 7 gold coins on hand, and he only needed 0.1 more agility to get another 10 gold coins.

Although he had given Don Quixote 3,500 dollars for his emergency, he still had nearly 7,000 dollars left, plus the money from selling the 17 gold coins. It was enough to rent a decent apartment, or at least have a private room that was truly his own.

The pity was that renting in America required tenants to have a stable taxable income, a credit score, and an SSN (Social Security Number).

Li Wei currently had none of those three.

If he were to use Don Quixote's credit score and taxable income to rent—forget it; his credit score might be even worse than Li Wei having no credit at all.

At the very least, Li Wei had a handsome face, and as an Asian, he looked like a kind person.

However, the small storefronts along Eighth Avenue were different. They were filled with real estate agencies sporting Chinese signs, their windows plastered with dense A4 printouts of listings. There were many illegal immigrants and drifters here, and some listings only required enough cash.

The first unit: Midtown Manhattan, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 7,200 dollars, one month's rent as deposit plus three months' rent upfront.

Li Wei chose to skip it directly; it was too expensive.

The second unit: A brand-new building in Long Island, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 5,800 dollars a month, one month's rent as deposit plus six months' rent upfront.

Li Wei shook his head. Long Island was where international students gathered, and they checked credit quite strictly. Neither he nor Don Quixote could pass, and the requirement of six months' rent upfront was ridiculous.

The third unit: A 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom apartment on the second floor in the Bensonhurst area of 14th Avenue, Brooklyn. It was only 2,850 dollars a month, one month's rent as deposit plus three months' rent upfront, no credit check required. The landlord was an overseas Chinese who lived on the third floor.

Li Wei roughly looked at the photos posted. Although it was a bit further south, this place was at least better than the basement he lived in now. While living with the landlord might be slightly inconvenient, at this price and without a credit check, it was already much better than the others.

Li Wei took out his phone and snapped a picture of the listing, planning to ask about the price once he sold all his gold coins, at which point he would bring Don Quixote along to move in.

In the afternoon, Don Quixote returned a bit later than before. As soon as he returned to the basement, he impatiently dove into his partition to catch up on sleep, appearing exhausted to the extreme.

When Li Wei finished cooking dinner and called him to wake up, Don Quixote still seemed half-asleep.

He groggily grabbed his chopsticks, shoveled a few bites into his mouth, and hurriedly left again to wash dishes at the restaurant, not returning until late at night.

"Squire! Squire!" A sleepwalking Don Quixote woke Li Wei up again. "Wake up!"

Li Wei opened his eyes and looked at the fully dressed Knight Don Quixote standing in his partition.

"Are we going to slay a witch today?" He rolled out of bed and looked at Don Quixote, whose complexion seemed rather poor. "Sir Knight, you don't look so well."

"A mere trifle, not worth mentioning. Perhaps I sustained some minor injuries while dragon-slaying," Don Quixote waved his hand dismissively. "But after slaying the dragon, I sensed your potential, Squire!"

Upon hearing that there might be a mission, Li Wei immediately perked up.

"Yes, so please assign me a task! Sir Knight," he said. "I am ready!"

"Very good! Such spirit!" Don Quixote said. "Follow me, Squire!"

The two left the basement one after the other. This time, Don Quixote didn't try to drive; instead, he led Li Wei to a stone bollard by the side of the road and pointed at it without a word.

Li Wei looked at Don Quixote, who stood silent under the streetlamp, then at the stone bollard beside him, racking his brain to keep up with Don Quixote's train of thought.

"Is this the advancement trial for my knighthood?" Li Wei asked. "Is this... um... this... a stone for training?"

"Ha! Foolish Squire!" Don Quixote shook his head. "This is called a 'Seal Boundary Stone'. It is a trial that every knight must undergo. Being able to move the boundary stone proves that you have the qualifications to become a knight."

No sooner had he spoken than a mission notification popped up before Li Wei's eyes:

[Knight Squire Li Wei, you have received a mission: Move the Boundary Stone]

[The Boundary Stone is the final obstacle before the knight class-change trial. Move it to prove you possess the qualifications to become a knight.]

[Mission Reward: Agility +0.1]

It seemed this was the final mission of his Path of the Knight.

Li Wei stepped forward, took a deep breath, and moved the stone bollard aside without much effort.

Almost instantly, a series of notifications popped up in his field of vision:

[Mission: Move the Boundary Stone completed]

[Mission reward issued: Agility +0.1]

[Agility 1.1] -- [Agility 1.2]

[Path of the Knight: First stage, Apprentice Knight mission completed!]

[Gold coins +10]

[Class change triggered!!!]