Chapter 94 | My Lady Goddess, I Swear I'm a True Believer!

In a spacious and bright room, golden sunlight streamed diagonally through the window, casting a warm patch of light across the wooden floor.

Loria leaned back against the soft headboard. Although her face was still a bit pale, her spirits were much better.

Beside the bed, her maid, Annie, sat without leaving her side for a single moment.

Suddenly, a chorus of lively, chattering footsteps echoed from outside, drawing closer and closer. Even through the wooden door, their energetic buzz was palpable.

“I'm telling you, Captain, now that the young lady is awake, we have to visit her immediately! We need to max out her favorability!”

“Jiumeng is right! Captain, you're the number one hero who saved Miss Loria with your own hands. Your favorability must be through the roof!”

“Yeah, exactly! What if there's a follow-up hidden quest? We'd strike it rich!”

The teammates chimed in one after another, their faces animated with excitement.

They were carrying quite a bit of fruit in their arms, which they had traded from lifestyle players that morning. It had cost them a lot of Merit Points.

Silent Rain walked at the very front, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose in utter resignation.

He really hadn't wanted to come—it was just saving an NPC, no big deal. Unfortunately, he couldn't withstand the combined nagging of his four teammates and had been dragged here against his will.

The Knight of the party, Kazama—the unlucky fellow who had been gored in the backside by a rock-armored boar last time and became the laughingstock of the whole team—chuckled and nudged him with his elbow.

“Don't be a wet blanket, Captain! We're already here! Knock on the door, quick! Let's get another boost to our favorability!”

Silent Rain fell silent for two seconds before finally resigning himself to his fate. He raised his hand and knocked gently on the door twice.

“Come in.”

A gentle, crisp, and melodious female voice drifted from inside the room.

Just as Silent Rain was about to push the door open, it swung inward.

Annie opened the door. She was wearing her signature pure white maid outfit, her skirt still slightly dusty from their trek through the forest, but she looked in much better spirits than she had a few days ago.

Jiumeng's eyes lit up, and he immediately squeezed to the front with a brilliant grin.

“Hello, Miss Maid! We came specifically to visit Miss Loria!”

He had chatted with Annie the entire way back when they rescued her, so they were already quite familiar with each other.

Annie puffed out her cheeks, looking a little huffy as she corrected him in a soft voice:

“It's Annie! Stop calling me 'Miss Maid'!”

“Alright, alright, I get it, Miss Annie.”

Jiumeng changed his tune with a grin, though his tone didn't sound like he would actually remember at all.

Annie gave him a dry glare, but she still stepped aside to let them in.

The five of them filed in one after another, instantly making the small room feel much livelier.

Loria leaned against the headboard, a faint smile gracing her lips as she watched them enter.

Kazama was the most enthusiastic. He stepped forward quickly and placed the large pile of fruit they had traded for onto the wooden nightstand.

“Miss Loria, we brought you some fruit! It was just picked, very fresh!”

“Thank you for your kindness,” Loria thanked them softly, a touch of warmth shining in her eyes.

After they exchanged greetings, Silent Rain stood by the bed, his posture ramrod straight but completely silent, like a wooden post standing guard.

Jiumeng couldn't take it anymore. Seeing his captain's aloof demeanor, he couldn't help but tease:

“Captain! Say something! Don't just stand there acting all cool and aloof the whole time! You're the one who saved her, talk to her!”

“Yeah, Captain, don't just stand there,” the party's Ranger, Lightfeather, chimed in.

Silent Rain felt the tips of his ears grow slightly warm.

He was truly terrible at small talk and polite pleasantries. He was great at fighting and clearing dungeons, but saying comforting words was harder for him than soloing a boss.

As a result, he genuinely didn't know how to start.

Watching this unfold, Loria couldn't help but let out a soft giggle.

She observed the quiet, dark-haired youth before her. Although he looked cold and distant, he had been steady, careful, and thoroughly reliable when he rescued her.

Aloof on the outside, but surprisingly gentle on the inside.

Her clear, sky-blue eyes filled with sincerity and goodwill as she looked directly at Silent Rain and said softly yet solemnly:

“Thank you so much. Thank you for saving me.”

The youth raised his eyes, his expression flat and his tone concise and clean:

“You're welcome.”

A brief reply, short and sweet, without a single extra polite phrase.

Loria was slightly taken aback, and her smile deepened.

He seemed cold, but he was actually a surprisingly gentle and pure person.

In her heart, she couldn't help but feel a touch of curiosity toward this taciturn youth.

While the atmosphere between those two grew a little subtle, Jiumeng had already pulled Annie into a corner to whisper. To be precise, he was digging for information:

“By the way, Miss Annie, where did you guys come from?”

Jiumeng lowered his voice, putting on a casual, offhand expression.

Annie wasn't particularly on guard. Since it wasn't a secret anyway, she answered honestly, “We're from Tecabelo. We belong to the Silver Leaf Chamber of Commerce.”

“Tecabelo?” Jiumeng's eyes lit up instantly, and his ears practically perked up.

Could it be a new map? Most likely! It had to be a brand-new, undiscovered area!

So he quickly pressed further: “What kind of place is that? Where is it exactly? Is it far from here?”

Hearing this, Annie tilted her head, a hint of confusion appearing on her cute face.

Tecabelo was one of the few major cities in the northern region of the Kingdom of Ariel. How could anyone not know about it? Were they not citizens of the Kingdom of Ariel?

Although she was full of doubts, considering they were her and her lady's saviors, Annie still explained patiently:

“Tecabelo is a major city in the northern border of the Kingdom of Ariel, just south of the Starfall Forest. If you head north from Tecabelo for about twenty-odd kilometers, you'll reach the edge of the forest. Come to think of it... that's where we were attacked.”

Speaking of which, she suddenly realized another question that shocked her even more:

“Wait... are we in the Starfall Forest right now? Since when did such a large town appear here?”

Having been brought back by them, Annie had been conscious the entire time. She had wondered then why they were heading deeper into the Starfall Forest.

Hearing her question, Jiumeng was just about to say something when three sets of steady footsteps approached from outside the door.

Since the door was left open, three figures quickly appeared at the entrance.

“Miss Lilith?”

The players in the room were stunned. They hadn't expected to run into Lilith here.

Aside from Lilith and West, there was also a white-haired elder standing beside them, carrying an exceptionally dignified aura. He looked very unfamiliar.

The players immediately began plotting: A new NPC? Since he's walking so closely with Lilith, his status must be extraordinary! He might even be a high-level NPC!

Lilith was slightly surprised to see the five of them in the room, but she understood once she saw the fruit on the nightstand.

She lifted her skirt slightly and curtsied:

“God-Chosen Ones, thank you for coming to visit Miss Loria.”

“Oh, it's nothing!”

“You're too polite, Miss Lilith! If you have any quests for us in the future, just let us know. We guarantee we'll complete them beautifully!”

“Yes, exactly! And this elderly gentleman, if you need any help, please don't hesitate to ask! We're super capable!”

The teammates immediately chimed in all at once, each of them incredibly eager, terrified of missing any opportunity to pick up a quest.

Silent Rain stood to the side, silently pinching his brow, unable to bear looking at his spineless teammates.

Schutard looked at this group of energetic, enthusiastic, and pure young people, his eyes filled with emotion and praise.

From Lilith's words just now, he had learned that these five God-Chosen Ones were the ones who had rescued Loria along the way and escorted her back safely.

His expression suddenly turned incredibly solemn as he offered his sincere gratitude:

“Thank you, God-Chosen Ones, for your timely rescue. By saving Loria, you have done me and the entirety of Windhaven Town an immense favor. We are deeply indebted to you.”

His voice was old but gentle.

Then, he took out some high-grade magic stones he had kept in his collection, intending to present them as a generous reward to thank them.

But before he could even speak, the players waved their hands in unison, each looking righteous and noble:

“Elder, you're being too polite! Helping those in distress is only natural for us!”

“Exactly! We were summoned by the Goddess to protect this continent and help its people. How could we accept a reward for that?”

“If you really feel bad about it, just give us any monster-slaying quests you have in the future!”

Their words were grand, high-sounding, and completely selfless.

In reality, they all knew exactly what they were doing:

They had no idea what those magic stones were even used for. It was far better to trade them for the favorability of an "important NPC."

Judging by the old man's relationship with Lilith and his concern for Loria—this was absolutely a high-ranking NPC! Raising his favorability was definitely much more cost-effective than taking a few useless rocks!