LIGHTNOVELONLINE 0059 – Pay For Life
Raising its head, it bared its sharp teeth in the direction of Athena, growling lowly to assert its dominance.
While Athena was running desperately, she shot an arrow towards the monster. The arrow pierced deeply into its flesh, causing the monster to wail in pain. It then turned and chose to flee into the distance.
But Athena wouldn't give it the chance. Arrows flew one after another, each faster than the last. The damage inflicted by the arrows, combined with the power of the moonlight imbued within them, gradually seeped into the monster's limbs and body, chilling it to the bone, freezing even its soul.
The monster was gradually engulfed in the chilling cold, its limbs weakened, unable to take another step, and it collapsed heavily to the ground. Athena approached and slashed its neck.
| [ Black Panther Beast ] Level: 4 Strength: 10 Defense: 8 Skills: Claw, Silent |
Another monster met its demise, and only an hour had passed since the beginning. Blood pooled around, its metallic scent thickening in the air. It was no longer safe to stay here, as it might attract uncontrollable entities.
The corpses of monsters within the area battlefield wouldn't disappear, yet one couldn't obtain loot or experience points from killing them.
Returning to where Mikmik was, the woman who had been there before remained seated, not daring to flee.
The woman spoke first, "Let's talk. I didn't really mean to harm you just now, after all, I'm not that foolish. It was just a smoke that induces unconsciousness."
Seeing Athena's advancing steps without pause, and the glinting black axe, the woman decided to get straight to the point.
"I have money, a lot of money. I can buy my freedom with silver coins!"
Athena ignored the woman's words, continuing forward. When the woman was about to make a desperate attempt, seeking a chance for survival, Athena just retrieved her arrow.
No waste allowed, especially since her supply was limited.
"How many silver coins?" Athena inquired.
The woman looked at Athena with a complex expression, hesitating before speaking, "50?"
Fifty silver coins was not a small amount. After all, she couldn't harm the woman now, and even if she did, there would be no benefit. It was better to let her go for now and exchange for 50 silver coins, a stable outcome.
Seeing Athena lost in thought, the woman thought she wasn't satisfied, so she gestured with her fingers, indicating "1", and loudly said, "100 silver coins, that's my limit!"
Though somewhat regretful, Athena abandoned the idea of bargaining further.
"Alright."
| [ Theater of the Stage has sent you a friend request, Accept/Decline ] [ Accept ] [ Theater of the Stage has sent you a trade request, Accept/Decline ] [ Accept ] [ Congratulations! You have received 100 silver coins! ] |
In truth, Theater of the Stage was afraid of Athena taking the money and not fulfilling the promise. But now, her life and freedom were in Athena's hands. She had no other choice.
If Athena was indifferent to Theater of the Stage before, now she found herself somewhat liking her, albeit only for her money.
"You may leave."
She wasn't someone who would break promises. In the future, as more regions intersected, her reputation might spread as fearsome, but it must never be that of untrustworthiness.
Theater of the Stage hesitated as she stood up, taking a step towards the exit, then turned back to ask Athena, "Miss, can you take back the thing you used to track me earlier?"
She had searched almost everywhere, even checking herself repeatedly. Yet no matter where she went, she would still hear a cat's meow behind her, signaling a warning.
"It's not following you anymore. Rest assured."
"It? Is it really a cat?"
Athena couldn't be bothered with her and turned away, not wanting to linger in this place for long. As Theater of the Stage watched Athena's retreating figure, she still felt uneasy. After walking a distance, fearing that Athena might have a change of heart and come back for her, she confirmed that Athena indeed had no intention of bothering her and began to run frantically.
Meanwhile, at the location of the giant rabbit, more and more monsters were attracted by the scent of blood, leading to a fierce battle as Athena had anticipated.
Athena walked and pondered continuously. She somewhat regretted not questioning Theater of the Stage clearly earlier. If Theater of the Stage was willing to offer 100 silver coins, it proved that she had more than just that amount.
Where did the other party get so much money from? Or was their entire region relatively wealthy? Well, it didn't matter; she might catch her next time.
If Theater of the Stage knew what Athena was thinking, she would probably be furious.
Athena opened the map and saw that the densely packed red dots were dispersing, with some even inexplicably disappearing.
The direction where the red dots disappeared was ahead of her, causing her to abruptly stop her steps.
Athena looked solemnly at the gloomy forest ahead and decisively chose to bypass it, running towards the direction where there was a river.
Initially, she ran in that direction to find a water source. There were plenty of monsters here, so she could easily kill one for food. However, without water, survival would be difficult.
In the forest she passed through, there was a tree thinner and more frail than the others, looking diseased as if it could be snapped by the wind at any moment.
A monster accidentally wandered into it, and suddenly the ground cracked open, thick roots emerging to bind it layer by layer. The monster was trapped in a cage made of roots, crushed, and absorbed until nothing was left of its blood and limbs. The frail tree swayed slightly, growing a new patch of green leaves.
After running for a while, occasionally stopping to rest and killing one or two monsters along the way, she even caught a normal white rabbit. Athena finally arrived at the riverside, where the turbulent river water flowed clearly.
Feeling thirsty, Athena wanted to drink immediately but hesitated. She dropped the white rabbit on the ground, while Mikmik threatened from the side with bared teeth and claws.
The white rabbit timidly approached the riverbank and drank the water. After tasting its sweetness, it became bolder.
After resting for a while, Athena saw that the rabbit was fine and decided to go and scoop some water for herself.
Suddenly, a fish leaped out of the river, aiming to devour the rabbit. But Athena was faster. With a swing of her axe, she struck the monstrous fish as it jumped out of the water, chopping it directly onto the ground.
The fish was nearly a meter long, transparent from skin to bone, invisible underwater.
If it hadn't jumped out, Athena wouldn't have noticed it.
The white rabbit was scared stiff and fainted on the spot.
Athena squatted down and scooped up some water with her hands, drinking it. The cool and sweet river water made her feel alive again. Mikmik also drank some water beside her.
