Realizing these two were indeed the Adventurers who had come to save her, the young woman breathed a sigh of relief. The anxiety that had plagued her for days finally subsided.
"Thank you…"
She sincerely thanked her saviors, then looked at the two men with their fervent gazes, a bit awkwardly. "Um… could you untie me first?"
"You got it, boss! No problem, boss!"
Lin Mo stepped forward cheerfully, cut the ropes with his Short Knife, and helped the young woman to her feet.
Having been tied up for so long, her limbs were numb. It took a while before she regained her strength.
Before leaving the camp, Lin Mo and Bain carefully inspected the area to ensure they hadn't left any traces that could lead back to them, then they quickly departed.
Since they were all injured, they had to be extra careful on the move, which naturally slowed them down. By evening, they were still a good distance from the town.
Traveling at night was out of the question, so they had to spend the night in the forest. Everyone set up their own tents. The daughter of the commerce association's boss didn't have one, so she shared with Millian.
Lin Mo started a campfire with a flint and took out some bread from his pack.
They wouldn't have to eat salty, tough jerky today because he had caught a rabbit on the way.
Evan volunteered to skin and gut the rabbit, rub it with salt, skewer it with a broken-off branch, and roast it over the campfire.
Under the bright flames, the sound of sizzling oil filled the air. The aroma of fat wafted out, making everyone, who hadn't eaten well in days, swallow their saliva.
The rabbit wasn't very fatty, but it was a decent size. Split among them, it still provided a good amount of meat for everyone.
As Lin Mo gnawed on a rabbit leg, he checked his attribute panel.
After the day's battle, his Stealth Skill Level was now Level 2 (7/20), and his Slashing Skill Level had reached Level 2 (15/20)!
Killing the Quasi-Professional captain from the Blood Sea Gang had granted him 5 points of Skill Level, the same as he'd gotten from that Mutated Goblin.
This made Lin Mo once again marvel at his luck and courage back then.
Facing an opponent on par with a Quasi-Professional, if he hadn't seized the perfect opportunity to blind him, even the current him would have stood no chance.
'My strength is still too low!'
Lin Mo keenly felt his own weakness. Even with two Skills, he was barely considered "a tall one" among low-tier Adventurers. At the end of the day, he was still a rookie who hadn't escaped the bottom rung.
'If I want to survive in this world, I have to get stronger as fast as possible.'
Fortunately, with the attribute panel, not only was increasing his strength far easier than for a normal person, but more importantly, he could concretely see his own improvement, bit by bit. That was highly motivating.
The Slashing Skill was only 5 Skill Level points away from leveling up.
Lin Mo recalled what Bain had said before.
Besides gaining Attributes when a Skill was first acquired, you could also get a bonus for skillfully using it and for completely mastering it.
Complete mastery naturally meant raising a Skill to Full Level, while skillful use probably referred to the intermediate levels.
For example, for an Ordinary quality Skill, he knew from his already Full Leveled Slacking Off Skill that the max Level was 5. Therefore, for Slashing, which was also an Ordinary quality Skill, the standard for "skillful use" was most likely Level 3.
In other words, if he just grinded another 5 Skill Level points, Lin Mo's Attributes would increase again!
"We sweated a lot on the road today. Everyone remember to clean your wounds and reapply medicine."
After they finished eating, Bain reminded them.
Lin Mo's injuries weren't serious; he could handle them himself.
Evan's were about the same. Bain and Millian's were more troublesome.
After tending to his own wounds, Lin Mo also helped Bain with his.
As for Millian…
"Millian, let me help you clean your wound!"
Evan eagerly volunteered. From the almost-glowing look in his eyes, even a fool could see he had ulterior motives.
"Get lost!"
What greeted him, naturally, was a disgusted eye-roll from Millian.
"I… I'll help…"
The merchant's daughter, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up.
The Yuri Commerce Association was just a small-scale commerce association in Roland Town. She wasn't some truly pampered daughter of a wealthy family. She had, of course, learned basic things like how to treat wounds.
"Then I'll have to trouble you."
Millian nodded.
"It's no trouble, no trouble at all…"
The young woman waved her hands repeatedly. After all, these Adventurers in front of her had all been injured saving her.
It was getting late. The night watch order was the same as the previous night: Bain would take the first half, and the younger members would split the second.
The fatigue from battle, combined with a body weakened by injury, sent Lin Mo quickly to sleep.
Of course, it was only a light sleep, and his weapon was within arm's reach. Although they had gotten to know each other quite well over the past two days, and he didn't think Bain and the others were bad people, one could never be too careful. Over a hundred Gold Coins was no small sum—enough to tempt most low-tier Adventurers with the wicked idea of taking it all for themselves.
It turned out his worries were unnecessary. The night passed peacefully.
Lin Mo woke up early, before his watch shift. He rubbed his sore, swollen eyes and looked ahead.
The campfire was still blazing, as if someone had just added wood. The crackle of the flames was incessant. At the edge of the firelight, Millian was sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees. Evan was half-squatting beside her, and the two were whispering to each other.
The young Ranger held the broken White Oak Bow in her hands, gently stroking the snapped section in the middle.
Evan saw her distress and comforted her, "Don't worry. We'll earn lots and lots of Gold Coins from this mission. When we get back to town, you can buy a new one. We'll buy the best this time! We'll go to the second floor of the Association and get one that's sturdier than this!"
"Don't waste money."
Millian tapped him lightly. "And there's no need to use the team's funds; we need to save that money for more important things. The Iron Thorn Wood Bows at Edgar's shop are very good. When the captain distributes the reward, if you lend me a little, it should be enough…"
"Oh, okay!"
Evan nodded without hesitation.
Millian looked him in the eye. "You agreed so readily. What if I can't pay you back?"
"If you can't pay me back…"
Evan met her gaze, seeing the rare softness in her eyes. The very air around them seemed to grow tender in that moment.
Though they called it a loan, he had no intention of making Millian pay him back.
"If you can't pay me back, then… then…"
He stammered, stopping and starting, but ultimately didn't dare to voice the bold thought in his mind.
Luckily, the campfire concealed his face; otherwise, he would be frighteningly red right now.
"Coward~"
Millian chuckled softly, the corners of her lips curling up. Her voice drifted away on the wind.
"Thank you."
…
Lin Mo watched this scene from a distance, his heart feeling both warm and a little bittersweet.
'When will it be my turn for a moment like that...'