Chapter 24: The Matchmaker’s General Store

Future Warrior! So this was what Jiang Xiaoyu’s life had come to! Waving his hand to summon an army, standing in the back ranks to command the battle—just the thought of it made his blood boil.

Excitement was one thing, but there was a problem he had to fix immediately.

His glasses.

During class, Teacher Zhao Lu had written so many key points on the board, and he hadn’t seen a single character. If this continued, forget being a Future Warrior, he wouldn’t even be able to pass his final exams.

He tapped the aberration sitting next to him who was currently spacing out. “Hey, do we have a store in this school? I need to get some glasses.”

The aberration was so startled by the tap that it nearly launched itself out of its chair, only stabilizing itself mid-air before responding: “A store? Yeah, there’s one in the Academic Affairs hall. It’s called the ‘Matchmaker’s General Store,’ the only supplier of materials in the school. They sell everything—aberration beast materials, weapons, gear, daily necessities, you name it, they’ve got it.”

“A store inside the Academic Affairs hall?” Jiang Xiaoyu thought that was a bizarre layout. Usually, school stores were next to the cafeteria or beneath the dorms. Why stick one in the Academic Affairs building?

“Convenience,” the aberration explained. “Students are always there turning in quests or collecting rewards; they can just buy and sell materials while they’re at it. Plus, it’s the only designated shop in the school. It’s got official backing, the prices are fair, and they never cheat their customers.”

Jiang Xiaoyu figured that sounded reliable enough. He tucked the black card the principal had given him into his pocket, squinted, and called out toward the second row: “Cousin! Let’s go, come with me to buy something!”

Xiaoqi, who had been resting her chin in her hand, stood up and followed him.

The Academic Affairs building was tucked away behind the teaching block, a gray-black edifice that looked significantly more imposing than the classrooms.

Two thick stone pillars stood at the entrance, carved top-to-bottom with dense, complex runes.

Jiang Xiaoyu squinted at them for a long time—he couldn’t see a thing, just two massive black pillars.

Pushing open the doors, a cold, chilling wind blew from the depths of the hall.

The ceiling was high, with a giant spirit lamp suspended from the dome, casting a dismal green glow over the entire space that made it look like a horror movie set.

But Jiang Xiaoyu was already used to the dim “mood lighting” of the Huangshan Vocational Institute.

Directly opposite the entrance was a row of administrative windows where staff in uniforms sat. To the left was a display board filled with notices and quest bounties. To the right was a shop enclosed by glass.

The storefront was small but impeccably clean. A sign hung on the glass door with five characters: Matchmaker’s General Store.

Below it was a printed notice: “School-designated supplier. We purchase all types of aberration materials and sell equipment, medicine, and daily necessities. Fair prices, no swindling.”

Through the glass, one could see neatly arranged shelves packed with bottles, jars, and various boxes.

Compared to the bleak, empty shops outside, this place looked surprisingly legitimate.

Plenty of students were coming and going; some carried bags of newly bought materials, others hauled baskets of beast horns hunted from the Trial Forest.

Jiang Xiaoyu pushed the door open and entered.

A smell, a blend of dried herbs, metal, and some indescribable charred scent, rushed to greet him.

The shop was busier than it looked from outside; several students in Sports Squad training gear were waiting in line at the counter, while others picked through goods on the shelves with quest sheets in hand.

A woman stood behind the counter.

She wore a red dress, her hair pulled back into a neat ponytail, and looked to be in her early thirties.

Her features weren’t exactly stunning, but her smile felt comfortable—the kind of reliable, trustworthy comfort that made you feel like you didn’t have to worry about being ripped off. She was expertly ringing up a Sports Squad student, the abacus beads clacking rhythmically as she muttered, “Three Rhino Horns plus one bottle of Body-Refining Paste, that’s twenty-three thousand ghost coins total. Your student card points deduct three hundred, so the actual payment is twenty-two thousand seven hundred.”

Jiang Xiaoyu wandered around the store, picking up one item after another to inspect. There was plenty of stock, bottles, boxes, bags, all lined up perfectly. But he couldn’t find any glasses.

Everything else was on the shelves, but there was no eyewear section.

He walked to the counter, waited for the Sports Squad student to finish paying and leave, then leaned in: “Boss, do you have any glasses? Like, 1,500-degree myopia glasses?”

The Matchmaker looked up and glanced at Jiang Xiaoyu. In that instant, her brows knitted together for the briefest second before relaxing.

This customer had no aura of supernatural energy, yet he wasn’t entirely ordinary either there was a faint, indescribable aura about him.

However, what really caught her attention was the girl in white standing behind him. That girl stood so quietly, saying nothing, doing nothing, yet it made the Matchmaker’s back inexplicably stiffen.