"These are the gains from today's Dungeon exploration."
"Everything is here." After leaving the Dungeon, Lili, whose appearance had undergone a drastic change, handed the bag to Keare.
Normal parties would typically distribute the valis after exchanging it.
But now there was no need to save money to leave the Soma Familia, so this extra income wasn't that important to her!
"You went to a lot of trouble today."
The girl's attitude was unexpectedly frank, and she didn't flinch in the face of his questioning gaze: "Besides, I said at the beginning that I was helping for free."
"Alright."
"Then I'll take it."
Keare didn't stand on ceremony with her.
Mainly, the gains from the Dungeon exploration were very abundant; just the "Blue Butterfly Wings" dropped by rare species totaled 7 pairs.
According to the Adventurer's Guild's buyback price, the minimum profit was 150,000 valis.
"At least for the foreseeable future, I won't have to worry about the Familia's food and drink."
Is it really that serious?
Lili knew very well the problem Keare was facing, which was a severe lack of money, and it was also a way to show her stance to her partner.
She tugged at the corner of her mouth: "Actually…"
"I still have quite a bit of valis saved up. If you need it, you can tell me."
However.
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a little regretful, not because she was reluctant to part with the money, but because Keare knew the origin of this money.
"Of course."
"I must take these ill-gotten gains and critically examine them!"
Why would he refuse money?
Moreover, those things were done by Lili and had nothing to do with him; what Keare needed to do was to safeguard the victims' property!
If they wanted to claim it.
The prerequisite was that they could prove that this valis was theirs.
—
Adventurer's Guild.
For Eina Tulle, she was clearly not in her usual state during work today, largely due to Keare, whom she had encountered that morning.
Although her impression was quite good.
But she wasn't so infatuated; she was more concerned about safety. Had she missed anything when explaining the monster distribution in the Dungeon?
As evening approached, Eina still hadn't seen Keare return.
"Could it be… really as Keare said?"
"Will he make it back alive?"
She tried to shift her attention, dealing with the piled-up work forms in front of her, but eventually realized that she clearly couldn't do it with willpower alone.
And Eina's unusual behavior undoubtedly attracted the confusion of a short pink-haired girl not far away.
Misha Flott actively leaned over, the fire of gossip burning brightly in her eyes. She decisively and stealthily approached her best friend's workstation.
During this time, her good friend had even received praise for her work.
So...
The only thing that could make a girl so preoccupied was matters of the heart!
She gently placed her hands on Eina Tulle's shoulders, and her controlled movement still made the half-elf miss jump, her glasses falling onto the desk.
"Misha!!"
"What are you doing?!"
"That's what I should be asking you. You seem out of sorts today. Did another Guild staff member confess to you?"
Misha didn't mind being kneaded on her chubby cheeks at all.
She mumbled: "You said we wouldn't talk about romance, so why are you still bothered by this? Who is it, really? I promise I won't tell!"
"It's not about those things…"
Eina gently shook her head, carefully wiping her fallen glasses, finding an outlet to release all the pent-up emotions in her heart.
She sighed helplessly:
"It's just… a new Adventurer came to me this morning to inquire about monster information in the Dungeon, and I'm worried I didn't explain something clearly."
"He hasn't returned yet!"
"That's true."
To the gentle Eina, Misha ultimately didn't say, "Don't worry, just do your job," and propped herself up on the desk with her hand.
It was a small help, nonetheless.
"Do you remember the name of the Adventurer who consulted you?"
"Maybe you were too busy just now, and he just exchanged all of today's Dungeon gains with another staff member?"
"Or…" The pink-haired girl's smile was teasing, and she couldn't help but jibe: "Miss Eina, who has a one-sided crush, doesn't even know the other person's name!"
"Of course I do."
Eina looked up and answered seriously, but facing her best friend's gossipy smile, she belatedly realized she had fallen into a linguistic trap.
Because of her inner nervousness—
Her pointed ears, symbolizing her half-elf identity, were now slightly red.
"You admit it?!"
"Misha! I said I know the Adventurer's name!" She emphasized again, but she could only place her hopes there.
Eina Tulle explained:
"Keare!"
"Here!"
As soon as the girl's voice fell, the extremely familiar voice of the young man came. She stopped joking with her best friend and put on her red-framed glasses again.
She turned around and saw the young man's handsome face:
"Good evening, Mr. Keare. I am Guild staff member Eina Tulle. How may I help you?"
"Yes, yes."
Keare placed all of today's Dungeon exploration gains on the counter, his gaze briefly lingering on the short pink-haired girl.
Soon.
He focused all his attention on Eina: "Miss Eina, please help me exchange these items for valis."
"No problem."
Looking at the young man who was safe and sound in front of her, Eina smiled gently and nodded, the stone that had been weighing on her heart finally settling.
As it seemed now.
Keare was indeed a qualified Adventurer; he always managed to leave the Dungeon safely!
But as she focused her attention on the package placed in front of her, she noticed the few pairs of thin, cicada-wing-like Blue Butterfly Wings, her eyes filled with surprise.
Eina looked up, her gaze seeking confirmation as she looked at the young man.
"These are… drops from the rare species Blue Butterfly!"
"Of course."
"My luck was pretty good; I encountered them on the 9th floor. They should be worth some money, right?" What Keare cared about most was today's total earnings.
However, the answer that followed was undoubtedly a splash of cold water.
After a quick price check, Eina explained seriously: "The Adventurer's Guild's buyback price for this material is 15,000 valis."
"It's about what I expected."
"However."
"The price for external acquisition is higher than the Adventurer's Guild's buyback price." When mentioning this, Eina couldn't help but lower her voice.
She looked left and right, confirming that she hadn't attracted any extra attention.
She quietly explained: "Mr. Keare, if you have time, you can take the Blue Butterfly Wings to the Pure White Sanatorium and find the Dian Cecht Familia."
"The Battlefield Saintess, Miss Amiti, has been collecting these materials recently."
Dian Cecht Familia.
"Battlefield Saintess" Amiti Tialasse.
Keare perked up. How could he not be familiar with the Pure White Sanatorium? He was picked up by Hestia when he was unconscious there.
"Are these Blue Butterfly Wings… materials for medicine?"
"I'm not sure about the specifics, but it seems like she encountered a very difficult patient." Eina shook her head slightly, her eyes puzzled.
"Thank you for the information, Miss Eina."
"This is my job." Ignoring Misha's strange gaze, Eina sat up straight, her upturned lips as sweet as a girl next door.
She asked:
"Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Keare pondered carefully, shrugging his shoulders and speaking openly:
"Hmm… I actually also wanted to know if there's a shop nearby that can repair armor, to avoid making my Familia's Goddess worry about safety."