Chapter 14: The Bounty Bar (Part I)
There are a number of bounty tasks posted on each bounty board. The pale yellow paper describes each bounty creature in as much detail as possible. Although these bounty protagonists have marginal intelligent races such as jackals and bear goblins, more are bizarre monsters and monsters.
They're usually rewarded not because a part of these monsters is particularly valuable enough to sell for a large amount of money as a magic material, but because they've all killed too many adventurers, as well as knights in the Golden Alfalfa Order.
Adventure isn't about plowing the land with a hoe or driving a flock of sheep to graze, the land and the sheep don't have sharp claws and venom that won't tear people's bodies apart or turn you into puddles of pus, but the monsters of the Misty Forest forest do, and even more. Flesh is torn apart, devoured, and in painful wails and screams, life dies in an instant.
From palpitations to numbness, there are many experiences, and adventurers usually take it lightly. Life is on your left hand, life is on your right, and when your attention is on one hand, the other is ignored.
The creatures on the bounty pens are often different from normal monsters, and the lines between hunter and prey are slowly blurring after hundreds of years of tricks. When you hunt, you're also a prey to other creatures - there are monsters in the forest that will actively seek out and kill humans.
They approach silently through the fog or weave among the tall fir trees. In corners beyond your reach, danger is staring and waiting.
These monsters are undoubtedly very vicious, so the purpose of the bounty fence is more to remind adventurers to be careful of these guys who do not follow the rules of the game and do not feel comfortable taking themselves as prey.
"Are there werewolves in this forest?" said the half-elf Estelle, pointing to a page pinned to the bounty bar, his handsome face surprised.
Werewolves weren't really a species, they were once humans, humans haunted by an ancient curse. Legends about this creature have been passed down in books, operas, and proverbs since ancient times, including the proverb: "On the night of the full moon when the aconitum is in full bloom, even the purest of hearts cannot resist the curse's invasion of the heart......
Next to the half-elf, an adventurer in a gray linen robe and a buckskin shirt looked him up and down, a little contemptuous in his eyes, as if he were looking at a hillbilly who knew nothing.
"A werewolf surprises you?" the gray-robed adventurer scoffed.
"It obviously can't belong to the forest like those magical beasts. The half-elf turned to look at the sneer, "How did it come here, and why did it come here?" ”
"Why aren't werewolves born in the forest?" Greyrobe apparently unaware of the creature's origins, and he threatened in a low tone, "The Misty Forest will give birth to any horrible creature you've ever seen, heard, or dreamed of. And that includes even dragons!dragon!!!" he said twice, as if that would add to the horror, "that's not the place to be for a little white face like yours with a pretty face. ”
"You mean the Ancient Mist Dragon?" the half-elf didn't care about the offense in the gray-robed adventurer's words.
"No, it's not the rumored thing that no one has ever seen, it's a real dragon. The gray robe denied, "Well, the Nord brute next to you once killed one alone." He pointed at Barrett with his bandaged hand.
"That's a pseudo-dragon!" Barrett corrected, "a pseudo-dragon with wings outstretched, but it can't fly or breathe. ”
Even if it was a pseudo-dragon, it was arguably one of the most commendable moments of Barrett's adventure. But he didn't want his temporary companions to misunderstand anything and slaughter a real dragon alone? No, no one but the mage had that kind of strength, no one!
"Hey, Mr. Feeder, I'm complimenting you. The grey robe was very dissatisfied with the Nord barbarian's words, "In Bay of Pigs, when others praise you, you have to accept it gladly, and then praise it back in turn, which is polite." Have you forgotten?"
Only adventurers who don't have the strength need to flatter each other, and Barrett didn't say anything.
Estelle looked at the pair of dragon leather boots on Barrett's feet, "This is the trophy you left over from that 'dragon slaying'?"
Barrett nodded, not refuting the 'dragon slaying' statement, which didn't make any sense: "That guy only has some of the skin under his armpits that can be used for boots, and the rest of the skin is too hard. ”
He also used to have a set of studded leather armor made of pseudo-dragon skin with scales. It was arguably the best set of leather armor available to the average adventurer. The claws of many monsters are unable to break through its defenses. But during an adventure, the leather armor was corroded by the acid spit of a mutated dinosaur, which saved Barritt's life by blocking the fatal blow. For adventurers, this is where the greatest value of the leather armor on the body lies.
"Boots made of dragon skin, leather armor made of petrified cowhide, I noticed you at the first sight of the crowd. The half-elf joked with a smile.
"What's the use of that? Maybe one day he'll feed himself to the forest. The gray-robed adventurer pulled out the dagger pinned to his waist and began to cut the bandages on his hand as he continued nonchalantly to the half-elf, "If I look like you, I mean if my mother had been a long-eared elf instead of following a drunkard who only knew how to get herself drunk, maybe the women would have blushed shyly when they saw me, instead of being full of disdain." If that were the case, I would go into the boudoirs of those noble ladies and be happy every day. Seriously, have you '' a lot? How's it like?" he smiled lewdly, like a grinning vulture.
Barrett thought Estelle would be angry about it, but he didn't. The half-elf always had a very polite smile on his face.
"Gold coins will also get you what you want. The half-elf said, "It's more pleasing than looks."
"That's different, many noble ladies don't eat this set, only 'lovely people' will be like this. I heard that those noble ladies would bathe in milk, and their skin would be white and tender like boiled eggs with their shells, and the smell of violets would come out of their bodies. And the underside is also smooth and hairless. The gray robe smiled again, "I will lick from their toes all the way to their necks, and I will not miss any place." Trust me, I will!"
"You can go to 'Carol the Hairless,'" said another adventurer who was browsing the bounty column disdainfully, "and it will at least satisfy your last request." ”
"Fuck you, I'm not going to go to a female goblin. The gray-robed adventurer scolded.
'Carol the Hairless', a female goblin in a large cage, is used by many adventurer teams to trick new adventurers who have joined and don't know anything. Barrett had seen it once, and he really didn't want to remember that scene.
"Even if I were given more gold than a goblin, I wouldn't touch these filthy little greenskins with. After the gray-robed adventurer finished speaking, his expression seemed to be a little hesitant, as if in front of the massive amount of gold coins, the mother goblin had also become a little attractive. "No, it won't. Then he repeated it in a less certain tone.
Ryan is also hairless, and for some reason, Barrity's mind suddenly flashes the girl with burgundy hair.
When did it happen? Barrett couldn't remember, but he remembered that it was by a meandering river, the water was clear, and the sunlight was dazzling on the water. Barrett took out the water bag and poured out the liquid that already had a faint smell inside.
When he squatted down to get water, a pale blue dress slipped down in front of his eyes, and a pair of beautiful bare feet connected to a white calf came into his eyes.
Barrett involuntarily looked up from below, and in what should have been a dense jungle, he saw only a smooth and tender valley, and further up, burgundy hair scattered on pink buds.
The girl smiled at him, the smile made him a little dazed, the light on the flawless carcass, a soft halo, the girl turned around, and walked into the river so lightly.
The wonderful curve made Barrett's throat as dry as the Mawela desert, and he was thirsty, subconsciously swallowing his saliva in the hope of bringing a little moisture. But such an act is undoubtedly futile, because saliva cannot extinguish the heat. There was still a flame burning in his throat, burning to the bottom of his heart, all the way down, all the way down......
He wanted to bury his head in the water and pour a few mouthfuls of it. I want to follow the seductive figure into the river, and follow the water flowing down from my hair and breasts to find a moist place that can quench the flames. He knew that the moist ground would quench the flames, but it would be as hot and warm as the flames.
But in the end, he did nothing but turn around and left, without even taking water. He vaguely heard the girl whispering behind him, like talking, like cursing, and although his senses were keen, he couldn't tell the difference.
......