With the transaction complete, Lynn put on his new leather armor and prepared to leave. He planned to find a new type of monster to unlock his long-awaited second Rune reward.
Burst Step had been incredibly useful to Lynn so far, so he was naturally looking forward to this second Rune.
But just as he reached the door, a figure blocked his path.
“Master Mage, please wait!”
It was Henry, the blacksmith's son.
Lynn stopped. “What is it? Is something the matter?”
Seeing that Lynn was relatively approachable, Henry let out a sigh of relief.
“It's like this, Master Mage. I want to ask you to take me on an adventure with you! Just one commission together is fine!”
Take him on an adventure?
Lynn indeed didn't plan to head into any overly dangerous areas next, so bringing an apprentice along wouldn't be much of an issue.
But why should he bring along a Rogue apprentice whose actual strength he didn't even know?
Lynn spoke with amusement, “Does your father agree? And what benefit is there for me to bring you along?”
“Dad is just worried about my safety, but if it's with you, Master Mage, he will definitely agree!”
“As for the benefits... I can teach you a Skill—Steal! I guarantee that while there are plenty of adventurers in this town stronger than me, you can count the number of people who are better at stealing than me on one hand!”
Henry patted his chest as he made his guarantee.
It seemed he was truly confident in his thieving skills, even if it wasn't exactly something to be proud of.
Just as Henry finished speaking, Lynn suddenly felt a tug at his waist. He subconsciously reached down and caught Henry's wrist right in the act.
Henry looked up and gave an embarrassed smile.
“It looks like I still need to practice a bit more in front of you, Master Mage.”
Well, to prove his craft to Lynn, this kid had actually tried to use Steal on him.
However, crushed under Lynn's superior Perception attribute, the effect of Henry's skill fell short.
But from this brief exchange, Lynn realized that this guy's thieving level was indeed very high.
Even Lynn hadn't noticed when he had activated Steal.
It was purely because Lynn's Perception and Agility were high enough that he was able to react and stop him in time.
If it had been an ordinary class-holder, this guy might have actually succeeded!
Lynn sized the guy up.
He had curly brown hair and green eyes, with a harmless face that even looked somewhat friendly when he smiled. As the son of a blacksmith, he clearly hadn't lacked nutrition, and his build was quite robust.
Rather than a Rogue, this guy looked more like a Fighter.
If he hadn't experienced it firsthand, Lynn really wouldn't have believed that this guy was actually a master thief.
Lynn was actually somewhat tempted.
To acquire the Spellthief Assassin hidden class, he happened to need to level up his Steal skill to Lv.3.
If he had an "expert" like this to share his experience, his practice speed would be much faster.
And Lynn barely had to pay any price—he just needed to bring one more person along when doing quests.
As long as they didn't go to the volcano or the marsh, Lynn could guarantee their safety around Wingen Town provided he was cautious enough. Bringing an extra person wouldn't be too much of a hassle.
Just as Lynn was about to agree to Henry, Old Henry suddenly walked out and scolded, “Henry, what are you pestering the Master Mage for!”
“Hey, Dad, you're too late! I've already asked the Master Mage to take me on an adventure!”
Henry winked at Lynn, a pleading look in his eyes, seemingly hoping Lynn wouldn't expose him.
Since he had already planned to agree to the guy anyway, Lynn simply remained silent and nodded.
Seeing that Lynn didn't contradict him, Henry finally gained some confidence.
“Dad, with the Master Mage around, do you still need to worry about my safety?”
“But—”
Old Henry looked at Lynn.
Old Henry actually wanted to say that he only called Lynn “Master Mage” to show respect to this future mage lord.
But in reality, this guy himself was only a mage apprentice.
It was hard to say if he could even protect himself during an adventure, let alone bring another person along.
Yet in front of this Mage, Old Henry couldn't possibly say this directly.
If he angered these proud mage lords, things would end badly.
Helpless, Old Henry took a step forward and pulled Lynn aside.
“Master Mage, please allow me a few words with you.”
Lynn nodded and followed Old Henry back into the shop. To his surprise, Old Henry directly stuffed five gold coins into his hand.
“Master Mage, this is a small token of my appreciation. Please take extra care of my child during your adventures.”
Looking at the extra gold coins in his hand, Lynn was somewhat surprised.
This was nearly two years' worth of income for an ordinary farmer.
Even if Old Henry was a skilled blacksmith, it would be considered good if he could save up ten to twenty gold coins a year.
Although Old Henry charged over ten gold coins every time he sold Lynn a set of leather armor, the production time for a single set probably exceeded a month.
And the profit would be good if it even reached two or three gold coins.
Thus, five gold coins was quite a substantial sum for Old Henry.
“Does this count as a commission?”
“I suppose so... Henry, despite having the talent to be a blacksmith, has disliked staying in the workshop since he was a child. I think maybe he really needs to venture outside the town to understand what he truly wants.”
Old Henry's expression was helpless.
He knew very well what kind of temperament Little Henry had; just like himself, once he set his mind on something, he had to see it through.
He couldn't stop him.
Old Henry didn't complain much to Lynn. He simply called Little Henry back in and handed him the leather armor made from the hide of a young griffon, along with a long saber that, while not an enchanted weapon, was clearly made of high-quality material.
“When doing commissions, stay close behind the Master Mage. If you run into danger, take the Master Mage and flee together...”
Old Henry nagged Little Henry at length.
Although Little Henry listened attentively, his excitement was already written all over his face.
Clearly, the blacksmith's words had failed to dampen Little Henry's enthusiasm for adventure.
After leaving Old Henry's Blacksmith Shop on Blackstone Street, Henry walked excitedly beside Lynn and asked, “Master Mage, where are we going now? To the Adventurers' Guild to accept a commission? Or directly out of town to look for monsters?”
Lynn simply replied calmly, “First, we find some people to round out our party, then I'll take you out of town.”
Since he had accepted Old Henry's five gold coins, Lynn naturally had to ensure the guy's safety.
Moreover, he still needed to rely on him to teach him the Steal skill.
Therefore, for safety's sake, teammates were necessary.
This time, however, Lynn did not plan to bring Lupa and the Monk along.
Rate on N.U.
