Prancing Pony Inn

Taking a moment to catch his breath, Li Wei casually picked up a sausage roasting by the campfire.

The heat was just right.

A few bites in, and his Health Bar was full again.

His broken bones mended themselves unscientifically, wounds healed rapidly, and his pale complexion gradually flushed with color.

[20/20]

Li Wei felt his whole body relax all at once.

It was only then that he noticed the newly unlocked title system.

For now, the title interface held only a single entry: "Corpse Demon Slayer," sitting there all alone.

Li Wei focused on it, and an "Equip" option appeared.

"When a title is equipped, certain special beings and those with keen intuition can learn of your deeds through observation, while your related exploits will spread at an accelerated rate."

"—This is irrefutable proof."

Seemed... it really was just a title, with no actual stat bonuses.

Well, fine. Not a bad thing.

Without dwelling on it too long, he casually clicked to equip it, then turned his gaze to the remains of the Corpse Demon beside him.

Now that the evil Wraiths clinging to it had dispersed, it was just a somewhat twisted dried corpse.

This had to count as at least an elite monster, right? Wouldn't it be odd if it didn't drop anything?

Time for the pleasant part: looting the corpse.

Shuffle.

The dried corpse was flipped over.

By the moonlight, he could see quite a few shiny items glittering.

Clearly, this body had belonged to someone well-off in life—it was covered head to toe in burial jewelry.

"The evil has been driven out. Rest in peace."

Murmuring softly, Li Wei collected the jewelry from the corpse without any moral qualms and stowed it in his backpack.

His first earnings in Middle-earth.

These pieces looked to be in decent condition; they should fetch a good price.

He'd keep them in the pack for now and lay them out in the sun during the day to purge any possible curses.

That was a method mentioned in the original work, and it should be effective.

After tidying up the jewelry, Li Wei turned his attention to the ancient sword lying on the ground nearby.

As he picked it up, a line of description appeared:

[Ancient Tomb Old Sword · Attack +4]

Nothing else beyond that.

"Seriously? That's it?"

For an item dropped by an elite monster, why was its attack power the same as a wooden sword?

Just earlier, when the Corpse Demon wielded it, its attack was far more than 4, and getting hit came with a Wither effect.

Guess turning good really nerfs you by a third, huh.

Li Wei could only chalk it up to some inherent curse power within the Corpse Demon itself.

Though a bit disappointed, it was still a real sword made of metal, so he tucked it into his backpack anyway.

He had plenty of empty slots—might as well keep it as a souvenir.

All in all, the haul was decent enough.

Finally, after spending some time packing up, Li Wei quickly extinguished the campfire and set off under the moonlight.

Encountering a Corpse Demon right by the roadside.

Clearly, this place wasn't safe to linger.

But thinking it over, maybe the noise from chopping wood or the blatant campfire had just happened to attract a Corpse Demon that wasn't too far off.

Whoosh—

On the main road, a nimble figure sprinted swiftly.

The sun rose and the moon set.

It wasn't until the sky was streaked with dawn light that Li Wei suddenly stopped, scrambled up a small mound, and gazed into the distance.

At the edge of the horizon, a small town was clearly visible.

Even though he'd never been there before, the name instantly surfaced in his mind:

Bree.

"Finally..."

Li Wei's heart stirred with slight excitement.

He could finally see other humans.

But before that...

Li Wei jumped down from the small mound, pulled out a pile of jewelry from his backpack, and laid it out under the sun to air.

Before long, wisps of black vapor rose and evaporated from it.

The dull jewelry regained its luster.

The curse on it had been lifted.

After confirming there was nothing else unusual, Li Wei packed everything up and left.

As the saying goes, "A mountain in sight can kill a horse."

It wasn't until his usual "morning meal" time that Li Wei arrived before a large gate, submitting to the guard's questioning.

This was Li Wei's first time seeing humans in this world.

"Who are you?"

"An ordinary adventurer."

"An adventurer?"

Through the small window of the town gate, a face peered at Li Wei with suspicion, looking him up and down, especially lingering on his clothes.

"Strange attire, but we don't turn away so-called adventurers here."

The window closed, and the guard left.

Li Wei wanted to say something more, but the next moment, the gate suddenly swung open.

"Come in, Master Adventurer."

Li Wei nodded in acknowledgment.

He also glanced at the top of the guard's head.

Twenty HP, just like himself.

A pure human.

"By the way, I'd like to ask about the Prancing Pony Inn. I hear it's a decent place."

"That way, straight ahead." The guard pointed in a direction.

"Thanks."

It wasn't too long a walk—at least, not compared to the distances Li Wei had covered these past days.

Soon, a building with a conspicuous sign appeared before him.

Carved into the wooden sign was a horse mid-leap—hence, "Prancing Pony."

The Prancing Pony Inn, run by the Butterbur family for generations.

Business here seemed consistently good; even in the late morning, quite a few people were gathered inside.

Ignoring the curious glances, Li Wei headed straight for the bar as soon as he entered.

"Hello, guest. What can I get for you?"

"I need a place to rest, and some food."

After speaking, he looked down at his own clothes.

This outfit really stood out here.

"If possible, could you also prepare a set of clothes for me?"

The bartender hesitated, not agreeing right away.

After all, running errands wasn't part of the inn's services.

Yet, looking at this guest with his unusual attire and demeanor, he felt the man had done something extraordinary.

After only a brief pause, the bartender replied cautiously:

"It's possible, sir, but it depends on how much you're willing to pay. This isn't within our usual scope of business..."

Clatter.

An old-fashioned-looking coin landed on the counter, its crisp sound drawing several glances.

"Is this enough?"

The bartender gently picked up the ancient coin, squinting to examine it closely.

"...Sorry, sir, I can't appraise its value. Please wait a moment—I'll call the owner."

Soon, a middle-aged man hurried over.

He first glanced at Li Wei, then at the coin on the counter.

He couldn't look away.

"Beautiful, truly beautiful."

The innkeeper murmured, "Though it's just a silver coin, it's clearly aged, and this craftsmanship... I'm afraid it's already lost. Sir, are you sure you want to entrust this to me?"

The coin's material itself wasn't rare, but its significance, age, and the history it represented held value—some people would pay a handsome price for it.

"Yes."

"Very well."

The innkeeper said, "The finest room, the richest food and drink, and the best cloth in all of Bree—I promise you, everything will be top-notch."

"Now, please rest a while. I'll prepare these things."

After roughly measuring Li Wei's build and asking a few questions about style preferences, the innkeeper headed out.

Not long after, the barman followed orders and brought over a large platter of roast meat, stew, and other house specialties, along with some fresh fruit and a mug of Prancing Pony's signature ale, its foam nearly spilling over.

Taking a sip, there was a clear malt aroma.

After wolfing down a hearty meal, Li Wei's satiety bar shot back up to full—both segments.

Downing the entire mug of ale in one go, he also picked up a drunkenness buff lasting several dozen seconds, manifesting as a slight dizziness.

Taking advantage of the short-lived buff, Li Wei went straight back to his room, shut the door, and lay down on the unfamiliar yet soft bed.

Even though food alone kept his body from tiring and his mind from any real strain, out of some ingrained human habit, and with nothing else to do, he still lay down to rest for a bit.

Lying down was always more comfortable than standing.

He didn't wait long before a soft knock sounded at the door.

Li Wei immediately sprang upright.

"Who is it?"

"Sorry to disturb you, sir. I'm the barman, here to deliver your clothes."

Click.

The door swung open, and Li Wei took the clothes.

"Sir, please try them on to see if they fit. If they're not to your liking, I can exchange them for a new set."

With that, he left.

Li Wei closed the door.

A moment later, after changing into the new outfit, he looked down to check.

Not bad. Aside from his slightly soft features and pitch-black hair, he looked almost like a local.

The authenticity was striking.