"Mr. Kurose Akira, are you feeling unwell?"
Natasha asked with concern, her beautiful eyes revealing deep worry for him.
"I'm fine…"
Akira waved his hand lightly, indicating that it was only excessive mana consumption and nothing serious.
He hadn't expected the Demonflame Silverphoenix Butterfly's hunger for mana to be so extreme—like a bottomless abyss that instantly drained every last trace of mana from his body.
As a result, he had come to Roxia's coming-of-age ceremony in a state of lingering fatigue.
"Mr. Kurose Akira, if you're feeling drowsy, would you like to rest for a while in my room?" Natasha suggested gently. "My bed might be a little soft… I hope you won't mind."
"Natasha, I'm really fine. It's just that my mana loss was a bit severe," Akira explained immediately.
"Is it truly only mana depletion?" Natasha asked softly, finally easing a little.
If it was merely mana exhaustion, then at least it was manageable.
"Yes." Akira nodded firmly.
Seeing this, Natasha smiled and extended her fingertip, lightly touching his forehead.
Her eyes were gentle as silk as she gazed intently at him, her voice soft and soothing."Mr. Kurose Akira, I believe I can help ease your condition."
The moment her words fell, a warm, gentle wave of mana enveloped Akira's body, gradually dispelling the fatigue brought on by mana depletion. In just an instant, he felt his vitality return—though his mana itself remained exhausted.
"Thank you very much," Akira said sincerely.
"You're welcome, Mr. Kurose Akira."
Natasha smiled and continued, "I'm going to see Roxia now. Please rest here for a bit. If you need anything, simply instruct the servants of the castle."
"Alright."
Akira nodded, watching Natasha depart before lifting his teacup and taking a small sip.
There were still thirty minutes before Roxia's coming-of-age ceremony began. At this moment, Yerman Castle was bustling with activity, guests coming and going without pause. Aside from young knights from the royal capital, there were also many friends Roxia had met in Sunset City.
Fortunately, the reception room Akira was in was separate from the noisy areas. He had never liked crowded places; a quiet environment suited him far better.
Just then, a male knight clad in silver armor passed by the doorway, drawing Akira's attention.
"An adventurer from another guild?"
Akira noticed that the knight was indeed an adventurer affiliated with a different guild, which stirred a trace of curiosity in him. What was this adventurer's purpose here? Was he merely an invited guest, or did he harbor other intentions?
As thoughts churned in Akira's mind, the half-closed door to the reception room was pushed open. A black-haired man with a buzz cut strode in cheerfully, followed closely by the silver-armored knight from earlier.
"Brother, what a coincidence!" the man called out enthusiastically.
The moment he entered, Alice beside Akira instantly became alert, pulling out her massive pair of scissors.
"O-oh, don't do that! I'm not a bad guy!" The man recoiled in fright, retreating several steps and daring not to come closer.
"Are you here specifically for Roxia's coming-of-age ceremony, or are you here for a quest?" Akira asked calmly, gesturing for Alice to stand down while turning his attention to the man.
He could tell at a glance—this man, like himself, was a player.
"My name's Xia Yu. I'm purely here for Roxia's ceremony, no worries," the man said, pointing to the knight behind him. "Pallen here is a friend from Roxia's Knight Academy. We were both invited."
"So you're guests," Akira said, introducing himself. "I'm Kurose Akira."
"Brother Akira!"
Xia Yu excitedly rushed over and plopped down beside him.
"This is great! All the players I've met so far were during quests. You're the first player I've met outside of one," Xia Yu said animatedly.
"Same," Akira replied simply.
"Haha~ what fate~ Got time, let's hit a brothel together sometime~"
Akira: "?"
"Oh right, Brother Akira, let me show you something," Xia Yu said, waving at Pallen to come over.
The knight stepped forward. Xia Yu pointed at the silver armor Pallen was wearing and asked, "What do you think of this armor?"
Akira's gaze slowly swept over the knight's armor. It was assembled from overlapping silver scales, each piece emitting a distinct sheen. The unique material gave it an especially solid appearance, clearly capable of effectively resisting attacks.
The quality of this armor was definitely not low—at the very least, it was of Rare grade.
"Nice armor," Akira commented.
"Right?!"
Xia Yu rubbed his hands together eagerly, a merchant's shrewd glint flashing in his eyes."Silver Scale Armor—five gold per set. Interested in buying one?"
"No interest," Akira replied without hesitation.
Five gold for one set?
It did look decent, but it absolutely wasn't worth that price.
"Really not considering it? My friend, one of a kind! Once you miss it, it's gone!" Xia Yu tried again enthusiastically.
"Such a treasure deserves someone who truly appreciates it. I am not its destined owner," Akira said calmly.
"Alright… that is a shame."
Xia Yu sighed in regret. The five sets of Silver Scale Armor in his warehouse were going to rot again!
After failing to make the sale, Xia Yu left dejectedly to search for other buyers.
With so many knights in Yerman Castle, he refused to believe he couldn't sell even a single set!
"That knight is very strong."
At that moment, Loserine whispered softly into Akira's ear.
"Mm."
Akira nodded. The knight named Pallen was far above them in level—if not level 30 yet, then at least around 27 or 28.
As for Xia Yu?
Probably a D-rank evaluation, or perhaps D+.
Once a player advanced to C-rank evaluation and founded a guild, their evaluation rank would become public and could no longer be hidden—it would even be displayed directly on guild rankings.
Although Akira still couldn't view the guild rankings himself, he had learned through heated discussions on the game forums that the current highest guild rating was B+, just one step away from A-rank.
To most ordinary players, reaching B-rank within just three months was practically an impossible feat.
—but whales were the exception.
Although the number of items purchasable directly with real currency was limited, they could buy gold, various items, and even high-quality adventurers from other players.
Having money is damn good.
Still, judging by Akira's own pace, reaching B-rank within three months didn't seem particularly difficult.
"Mr. Kurose Akira, the banquet is about to begin."
At that moment, Roxia walked into the reception room.
Today, she wasn't wearing her usual silver-white armor. Instead, she was dressed in a pale-blue formal gown.
Without the armor concealing her figure, Akira was surprised to discover that Roxia's body was… unexpectedly impressive.
The long gown perfectly outlined her graceful silhouette, and the proud swell of snowy white curves invited endless imagination. As a female knight, her body had been trained since childhood—there wasn't an ounce of excess fat.
At the same time, a peculiar fragrance drifted into his nose. Even from several meters away, the rich scent invaded his senses relentlessly.
It was a fragrance he had only experienced at zero distance while kissing Ivsha—
And yet Roxia needed to do nothing at all.
She merely had to stand there.
..
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