Yecheng put heavy emphasis on the words "entire fortune," and the moment Rex and his team noticed it, their expressions turned extremely awkward.
As relatively experienced adventurers, there was no way Rex and his companions' total assets amounted to just that small pouch of copper coins. They'd said it only to take advantage of what they assumed was a clueless country bumpkin.
They never imagined the world would be so small. They thought they'd never see each other again—but just hours later, here they were face to face once more, and the person they had tried to fool was actually the younger brother of the woman Rex had been pursuing!
"Sister Soya, I didn't know you were so helpful. But I don't like owing favors. How much did you give to Yecheng? I'll pay you back," Soya said directly.
Rex became even more embarrassed. His intention was to score points with his goddess, but if the truth came out, he'd be out of her good graces for good.
"Haha… It's nothing, really. I just enjoy helping people," Rex said thick-skinned, trying to brush it off. Thankfully, Yecheng only smiled slyly and didn't expose him.
"He really is a new adventurer who just registered today," Soya explained. "But he claims he has a certain level of strength and wants to take on higher-ranked missions. I was worried about him, so I thought maybe you guys could show him the ropes."
In Soya's mind, Rex's group wasn't the strongest in the town, but they were certainly competent enough to take care of a newbie like Yecheng.
But as soon as she made her request, Rex and his companions looked like they were suffering from constipation. In fact, two of them didn't even hesitate to come up with lame excuses and immediately bailed.
"Rex, I suddenly feel a bit sick, so… I'm gonna head out first."
"Same here. I just remembered I promised my girlfriend I'd go shopping with her today. Totally forgot. Sorry!"
Rex was screaming inside. That first guy was flexing muscles all the way here—sick, his ass. And the second one? Rex had known him forever and never heard a word about a girlfriend. Shopping? What, with his left and right hand?
"Sister Soya, you can see for yourself. My teammates just had some unexpected emergencies. Looks like we won't be able to carry out the mission today. Maybe we can reschedule and take your brother another time?"
Rex knew exactly why his teammates had fled. If not for the fact that Soya was present, he would've run too.
This so-called "new adventurer" brother of hers was a total monster hiding in newbie clothing! Letting them "show him the ropes"? This guy had literally beaten all three of them with bare hands earlier. Going into the wilds with him now felt like asking to be left dead in a ditch.
"Sister Soya, I'm really strong. If you don't believe me, how about I spar with this Mr. Rex?
If I win, let me take on a higher-ranked mission. If I lose, I'll follow your plan and take only missions suitable for my current rank. Deal?"
Of course, Yecheng and Soya weren't actual siblings, but since she had introduced him that way earlier, he didn't want to ruin the act.
"I'm sorry! I just remembered I've got something really important to do today—so I'm out!" Rex shouted suddenly, bolting.
Fight Yecheng? Was this a joke? That would be pure masochism. The three of them couldn't last even a minute against him earlier, and now he was supposed to go one-on-one? Might as well just call himself a five-second man and be done with it.
Running away in front of Soya was humiliating, sure, but it was still better than being publicly humiliated in a fight.
"I agree," Soya said. "If you can beat Rex, I'll make an exception and give you a higher-level quest."
But before Rex could take a step, Yecheng's hand clamped onto his shoulder. With a grin that reached his molars, he said, "Then I'll be in your care, kind-hearted Mr. Rex."
There's never a shortage of spectators, especially in an adventurer guild where people have way too much free time.
As soon as they caught wind of a fight, a crowd of adventurers surrounded them, some with mugs of ale in hand, and even started placing bets.
Rex looked like he was suffering from serious constipation. He and Yecheng were now completely surrounded by onlookers. If he tried to back out now, his reputation would be destroyed across the entire adventurer scene.
Truly, lust was a blade that cuts to the bone. If not for his desire for Soya, how could he have ended up in such a mess?
With no way out, Rex finally drew his sword and stood at the ready, facing Yecheng with a grim expression.
"No way… Look at Rex. He's totally serious. His opponent's just a rookie who registered today. Is that really necessary?"
"Damn, I think I lost my bet. I was hoping for a surprise upset since Rex has been chasing after Soya for a while. Thought he might go easy on her 'brother.' But now? Looks like he's going all in. Respect."
Everyone had seen Yecheng register that very day. And while Rex wasn't the best adventurer around, defeating a clueless rookie should've been easy.
But unlike the onlookers cheering for the spectacle, only Rex knew the truth: the white-haired man in front of him was no newbie at all.