Chapter 30: A Warm Welcome and Shared Meals

When we emerged from the Adventurer’s Guild, the sky had already begun to darken.

“Thank you so much,” I said to Tiffany, my gratitude heartfelt. She truly hadn’t needed to come all this way with us. Not only that, but she had also stayed to help us with registration and strength testing. Originally, back in the Amaral Forest, she had only agreed to guide us to Navarrelli, yet she had ended up doing so much more for us.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Tiffany replied, seeming to find it no trouble at all, her expression one of complete naturalness. “Since you’re my angel sister now, it’s only right for me, as your elder sister, to look after you more.”

“Besides, you two angels have nowhere to go tonight, do you? Why not just stay at my place?”

Angelina and I exchanged glances, both feeling that her enthusiasm was truly overwhelming. Yet, what she said was undeniably true; we had just arrived in this city, and if we didn’t go to her home, we would be left to wander the streets.

“Alright, to be honest, we have our own selfish reasons too.”

Seeing our persistent air of discomfort, Tiffany could only sigh and admit.

“After all, angels are incredibly rare to encounter. If we become good friends with you two angels and build a strong relationship, it will bring us many benefits in the future, especially since Angelina is such a powerful angel. As for Brook and Amos, with two beautiful angels by their side, they’re already so overjoyed they’ve probably lost their minds, so how could they possibly care about such things?”

Although we both knew these were words of comfort, since she had put it that way, it felt awkward to dwell on it any further.

“So, where should we meet up with Amos and the others now?” I mused, estimating that the two boys should have already completed their mission by this time.

“Let’s head to our rented rooms first,” Tiffany suggested after a moment’s thought.

“They’ll probably go back there once they’re done.”

She then led Angelina and me down a small path to the right of the Adventurer’s Guild, weaving through various alleyways, turning left and right repeatedly, before finally emerging back onto the main thoroughfare and stopping in front of a weapons shop.

“This is the place,” she announced, leading us up the stairs at the back of the shop. “We’ve rented out two rooms upstairs for the three of us. The landlord is the shop owner downstairs.”

Once upstairs, I noticed two doors flanking a narrow hallway. She opened the one on the right and ushered us inside.

“This is the room I live in by myself.”

“I can’t believe how spacious it is inside!”

Gazing at the room before me, I realized its area was genuinely quite generous, spanning about twenty square meters and complete with an attached private bathroom. The entire space was simple yet tidy, with minimal furniture. A large bed occupied the spot by the window, adorned with several fluffy stuffed animals, lending a distinctly girlish charm to the surroundings.

“Naturally,” Tiffany affirmed. “It’s a shame, though, that I’m often out on missions with Amos and the others. I rarely get to come back, so I don’t have many opportunities to stay here.”

Tiffany appeared quite pleased with her room, yet she lamented not being able to fully utilize it.

“That’s precisely why I invited you both,” she explained. “Since you don’t have any money right now, you can make do here for a few days until you find a place to rent.”

It seemed she had planned this all along. Although I truly felt reluctant to impose on her further, considering Angelina’s and my current predicament, having someone willing to take us in felt incredibly fortunate.

“But there’s only one bed here,” Angelina pointed out, without much sentiment. For someone of her wealthy background, such a room was utterly ordinary. Her immediate concern was how to arrange sleeping if they were indeed staying the night.

“Well, of course, you two will sleep on the bed, and I’ll just make a bed on the floor.”

Tiffany’s face lit up with joy, as if our staying there was a grand event that brought immense honor to her humble dwelling. “Angels are esteemed guests, and I’m already thrilled you’ll be here. Besides, I’ve always wanted to try sleeping on the floor.”

“How could we let you do that? It’s unheard of for a host to sleep on the floor!” I quickly interjected, finding it quite a headache to deal with someone so overflowing with self-sacrificing kindness.

Seeing Tiffany and me endlessly debate who would sleep on the floor, Angelina let out an exasperated shout: “Enough!”

“Both of you will sleep on the bed. I’ll take the floor. It’s settled!”

Her tone brooked no argument, and her decisive declaration left both Tiffany and me momentarily speechless. I had never expected her to display such a commanding side; perhaps venturing into a new world truly broadened one’s horizons.

I pursed my lips. While I had no objection to her sleeping on the floor, the idea of sharing a bed with Tiffany felt somewhat awkward.

Just then, footsteps echoed from the hallway outside. Tiffany, her spirits instantly perked up, blurted out.

“They’re back.”

She then opened the door and went out to greet them.

****

“Huh? Did you actually manage to talk them into coming back?”

Brook’s familiar voice drifted in from outside the door.

“That’s incredible, just like you! I thought we’d have a hard time ever seeing those two angels again.”

“Keep your voice down, they’re still inside the room. It took a lot of effort to convince them to stay.”

“But they must have heard us, you were shouting so loudly just now.” This voice clearly belonged to Amos.

“It’s all your fault! If they run off, you can expect to go hungry!”

Then Tiffany ran back into the room from outside, followed by the two boys.

I glanced at Angelina, who had clearly heard everything, a wry smile gracing her lips. Having been subjected to this little performance by the trio, we couldn’t help but wonder if it had all been a deliberate setup.

Noticing our expressions, the three of them realized they had been exposed, and looks of panic flickered across their faces.

“Let me explain…” Tiffany began, her mouth opening to say more.

“There’s no need!” I cut her off. “Since you all are so keen on us staying, we’ll just spend the night here then. Besides, I had already promised you.”

Angelina offered no objection. “Honestly, whether it was intentional or not doesn’t matter. Just know that we are truly grateful to you all, for without your help, we might still be wandering in the forest right now.”

“So you’re still willing to stay?” Tiffany asked, her face beaming with delight at our words. It seemed after all her talking, her only focus was whether we would agree to stay.

“Of course,” I nodded. Behind her, Brook and Amos instantly broke into expressions of joy.

To my surprise, seeing our ready agreement, Tiffany suddenly looked as if she had something more to say but was hesitant.

“Actually…”

“Actually what?” I asked, feeling a bit confused.

“Actually, it would be even better if you could stay a few more days!” Brook, standing nearby, couldn’t wait and blurted it out for her. Tiffany immediately nodded her head vigorously, like a chick pecking at rice.

I pressed a hand to my forehead, utterly speechless, truly unable to fathom them. Were people in this world all this kind? I’d finally met three, and they all turned out to be complete goofballs.

****

Having just turned in their mission and received their rewards, everyone decided to celebrate that evening by dining together at the best restaurant nearby. Sally, however, had not emerged since returning to the church.

At an upscale restaurant named “Maple Story,” Amos ordered the most expensive deluxe set meal for everyone, resulting in the table being laden with an assortment of food platters, both large and small. I was nearly bursting from eating, and dessert hadn’t even arrived, forcing me to finally surrender.

To be honest, the food here didn’t taste as good as the meal we’d had in the small town previously. However, it certainly made up for it in sheer quantity; even before all the dishes were served, I noticed that almost everyone present was already full.

“It’s a shame Sally couldn’t make it; it feels like something is missing.”

Although Sally and I weren’t particularly close normally, having traveled together for so many days, a certain camaraderie had developed between us.

“There’s nothing to be done,” Amos replied. “Their church has strict doctrines. Returning this time signifies the completion of her mission, leaving her no reason to go out again.”

Amos had accompanied Sally to the church, so he was well aware of the situation and could only offer me words of comfort.

“By the way, how is Ling doing?”

My thoughts drifted to the dark elf girl who had always clung to me, though she had now transformed into a light elf.

“I’m not sure,” Amos shook his head. “After she arrived at the church, she left with other church personnel. Sally said it was for her to meet with other light elves first.”

So that was it. I felt relieved; it seemed like a good resolution for her.

“Can you tell me how much money you received for this mission?”

As everyone chatted idly after the meal, I posed a question I was quite curious about, having always wondered about the compensation for their mission.

“A total of 15,000 Sillas,” Amos stated without hesitation, giving me the figure after a brief calculation.

“It’s not an exorbitant amount, considering it was merely a reconnaissance mission—just scouting the destination and gathering on-site information. Furthermore, since it was a joint task privately issued by the City Guard and the Church, there was no commission taken by the Adventurer’s Guild.”

“That’s right,” Tiffany added. “These privately issued missions are usually highly sought after. Amos was only able to secure this one thanks to his connections within the military.”

Only then did I recall her mentioning that Amos frequently took on expeditions hired by the military.

“So, what’s the Adventurer’s Guild’s commission fee?” Angelina suddenly leaned in and asked, having realized a crucial point.

“Roughly 10-30%, depending on the mission’s rank and difficulty.”

That certainly wasn’t a small amount. If this mission had been issued by the Adventurer’s Guild, they would have likely lost several thousand Sillas in income.

“There’s nothing for it,” Amos sighed, acknowledging the high commission fees. “After all, the Guild possesses the most abundant resources. Opportunities for private work like this are incredibly rare and hard to come by; securing this one was purely a stroke of luck.”