64: Chapter 46 Interlude 64: Chapter 46 Interlude Xia Nan furrowed his brows, his dark eyes scanning the man in front of him who reeked of alcohol and exuded an unfriendly demeanor.

He knew clearly that under the influence of alcohol, certain regions of the human brain would be affected, leading to some aggressive and irrational behaviors.

Although he had just crossed over to this world not long ago, and his own strength wasn’t particularly formidable.

But in the face of potential offense from strangers, he was already prepared to respond.

And subconsciously began assessing the battle strength of both sides.

“Hmm…

severely drunk, so there’s probably no chance of disguise.”

“Unsteady on his feet, this could be utilized whether to retreat temporarily or to attack immediately.”

“Against a humanoid opponent, the Beheading Longsword is more suitable, but the length of the blade might be inconvenient given our current proximity; I need to create some distance first.”

“Judging by the opponent’s physique and attire…”

Meanwhile, Chapton watched the two people in front of him fall into an eerie silence.

He gradually sensed something was off.

That man, drunken and somewhat out of his mind, he knew him.

Bernie, a famous drunkard in town.

Clearly a proper adventurer who lived off mission bounties, yet he spent almost every moment soaking in River Valley Town’s taverns.

Only when he was really out of money did he occasionally join his former team for a couple of missions to earn some drinking money before lingering back in town.

His drinking behavior was terrible.

In the less than half a year he’s been in River Valley Town, his White Sparrow Tavern had already thrown out the drunk and disorderly Bernie three times.

It was only because he was a somewhat decent person when sober that he hadn’t put Bernie on a blacklist long before.

As for the black-haired youth on the other side…

Chapton suddenly noticed that the youth in front of him had slightly bent forward, clearly ready for combat, with his hand even slightly raised, seemingly prepared to grab the sword hilt at any moment.

“No need for that, no need for that.”

Behind him, two middle-aged men dressed as adventurers hurriedly stepped forward.

They grabbed Bernie, who seemed on the verge of passing out due to his heavy drunken state, laughing awkwardly:

“Sorry, he drank too much, we got caught up in the revelry and didn’t keep an eye on him.”

Then they turned to Chapton behind the bar, patting their chests loudly and saying:

“Put today’s expenses for this friend here on my tab.”

They then apologized to Xia Nan and dragged Bernie back to their seat.

It wasn’t because they saw through to Xia Nan’s strength.

These experienced low level adventurers might backstab a close comrade over a valuable piece of equipment on a mission.

But that’s because there’s sufficient profit on the scales.

Surviving mission after mission, they certainly wouldn’t ignore everything and only let emotions dictate their actions.

A trivial matter that could easily be avoided with a wave of the hand, yet could unnecessarily create an unknown, strength-unknown enemy.

Even a fool would know what to choose.

They’re all in the same line of work; who knows where they might meet again in the future, or in what state they might be then.

In such a situation, with two companions present, there’s no way Bernie would conflict with Xia Nan.

Of course, if you assumed they were kind people just for that, you’d be sorely mistaken.

After all, if huge benefits tempting enough to twist their moral compass were truly in front of them, they wouldn’t hesitate to act just as fast.

The imagined scene didn’t happen, and the small episode in the tavern ended just like that.

Although Xia Nan felt surprised, he didn’t have any extra thoughts.

With someone voluntarily offering to pay, he naturally went along.

“I’ll have the number three set meal,” he said to the tavern owner in front of him.

Having eaten dry rations in the forest for so many days was tough to handle.

No lie, one night he even dreamt he returned to the previous world, eating to his heart’s content at a restaurant he often visited.

Now that he finally finished the mission, he naturally had to reward himself properly.

Speaking of which, it was because of the unusual timing and most shops being closed that he had nowhere to handle his spoils.

Otherwise, following the adventurer’s manual, going through all the various shops would take him half a day at least.

Sizzle—

Heat rose, and the aroma of food entered his nostrils with each breath.

It was still the combination of stewed meat, mushroom soup, and white bread.

Dipping the bread in the mushroom soup.

Taking a bite.

“Tsk.”

The soft dough almost instantly melted in his mouth with a milky fragrance, intertwining with the sweet fresh taste of the mushroom soup as he swallowed.

Xia Nan squinted his eyes in pleasure.

“This is the life one should be living,” he thought to himself.

Meanwhile, the tavern owner Chapton placed a drink that looked a bit pricey on the table.

“This one is on us at the White Sparrow.”

Facing Xia Nan’s puzzled gaze, he said so.

“Thank you.”

With no reason to refuse, Xia Nan nodded in gratitude.

The glass landed on the table, with the crystal-clear liquid gently swirling.

While eating dinner, his thoughts wandered, his eyes slightly unfocused.

By the time he returned to River Valley Town, it was already dark, with no place to handle his spoils, so he planned to first rest a night at the White Sparrow.

The bandages wrapped around the “Green Pine” Wooden Sword on his back were a disguise he used out of concern that someone might notice something unusual.

These days, keeping an eye out, once he had the chance to custom order a sword sheath at the Blacksmith Shop, it should be much more convenient.

The drink settled in his stomach, leaving a spicy taste on his tongue.

Yet his body had no reaction whatsoever.

Xia Nan guessed it should be due to his current high Constitution of 8 points taking effect.

The previous 1 point of Strength and 1 point of agility he gained from the Full Level Vortex Slash made him feel like he had changed bodies, his battle prowess skyrocketing.

Now, having absorbed the Dewdrop, which brought 3 points of Constitution, the enhancement was significant to say the least.

After traveling the entire day, even Wood, who had already gained a Professional Level, was left heaving and gasping by the end.

Yet he felt at ease, not the slightest bit strained, as if he’d merely taken a stroll.

Though part of that was due to the Dewdrop replenishing his stamina, lost over the journey, it was enough to prove Xia Nan’s current endurance mighty.

On the other hand, although he didn’t have a game interface to visually show an increased health bar, the enhancement in Constitution also meant he could endure more damage in combat.

Even though he hadn’t tested it, he was confident that in the short term, he could repeatedly unleash the Vortex Slash without impairing his body functions.

The situation where his arms would go sore after executing several cuts no longer existed.

Looking deeper, the enhancement in Constitution naturally implied an increased ability to withstand strikes.

If he were to now return to Mist Forest and have that Petrified Lizard hit him from behind again…

Xia Nan suddenly shivered, the back of his heart seeming to ache faintly.

“Death wouldn’t be the outcome, but let’s not try it.”