When Leo showed the list of materials he wanted, the receptionist's eyes widened. Her gaze darted between the long list and Leo himself, as if she were looking at something unreal, her expression almost kitten-like in its disbelief. Even she knew that a fresher could never afford this many items. But at least there was the Verdant Ascension fruit, which would cover almost 1/3 of the expense, but still not enough.

She quickly sat down and began calculating. It took quite a while.

Advancement Material List:

1. Attributeless Elemental Crystal – 55 - 137,500 AC

2. Shadow Elemental Crystal – 5 - 150,000 AC

3. Mist Elemental Crystal – 3 - 60,000 AC

4. Poison Elemental Crystal – 2 - 40000 AC

5. Fire Elemental Crystal – 2 - 20000 AC

6. Space Elemental Crystal – 3 - 150000 AC

7. Wood Elemental Crystal – 20 - 500000 AC

8. Solar Elemental Crystal – 5 - 200000 AC

9. Wind Elemental Crystal – 5 - 75000 AC

10. Thunder Elemental Crystal – 5 - 125000

11. Life Essence Drop [Peak-Blue] - 30ml - 150000 AC

12. Spirit Crystals [Peak-Blue] – 30 - 150000 AC

13. Spirit Dew Drop [Peak-Blue] – 30ml - 150000 AC

14. Ascension Fruit [Nature – Blue] – 2 sold - +1400000

15. Low 3-star Soul Crystal – 5 - 50000 AC

16. Low 3-star Mana Crystal – 16 - 160000 AC

17. Low 3-star Feline Beastcore – 1 - 25000 AC

18. Low 3-star Wood Beastcore – 1 - 35000 AC

19. Low 3-star Canine Beastcore – 1 - 15000 AC

The grand total came down to 2,192,500 AC.

Leo stared at his pitiful balance, which was about to be completely emptied.

Balance: 1,366,040 AC.

This was what he was left with after the analysis.

"Tsk… should have asked for another million from that pig instructor," Leo muttered under his breath.

Beside him, the blonde receptionist caught his expression and scoffed loudly.

"Show off," she said with a curl of her lip. "And here I thought he would sell the fruit. Turns out he was just here to waste our time. See, Layla? Learn from this incident. Don't indulge needless customers. They hog your time and shoo away real buyers."

As she spoke, another customer stepped up to her counter with a small bundle of materials. The blonde receptionist turned to them immediately, shooting Layla a smug glance.

"Oh! These are Wild Verun Berries," she said brightly, suddenly all smiles. "Very useful for restoring vitality. They go for 5,000 AC per ten pieces…"

Leo shot her an annoyed glance.

"What the hell…?" he muttered, shaking his head as if to physically remove her from his thoughts. He exhaled and finalized his decision.

He had no choice.

Leo sold two out of his four Verdant Ascension Fruits for 1.4 million AC, bringing his balance up to 2,766,040 AC.

When Layla saw Leo casually take out another Verdant Ascension Fruits from thin air, her eyes widened in shock. The same reaction rippled across the surrounding counters. The blonde receptionist froze mid-transaction, her smile stiffening as the realization hit her.

But Leo didn't stop there.

"I want all the materials I asked you to count," he said calmly, glancing at the clock. "As quickly as possible."

5:15 PM.

Miho's match would start soon.

Leo turned back to see Layla still frozen in place.

"Excuse me," he added, his tone sharper now. "Please be quick. I have somewhere to be."

That snapped Layla out of her stupor.

"Y-yes!"

Soon, the transaction was completed. Two large bags filled with materials were placed before Leo. Just like that, his balance dropped again, settling at 573,540 AC.

The total transaction amounted to 3,592,500 AC, and with that, Layla's commission came close to 18,000 AC. The onlookers stared wide-eyed. Layla herself was dumbfounded—on her very first day, she had earned more than she ever imagined. Especially when compared to the blonde receptionist, who was now visibly fuming with embarrassment and regret over the lost opportunity.

The time had already crossed 5:30.

Before Leo could fully secure all the materials, a sudden surge of intense emotion slammed into him through his soul bond.

Anger.

Pure, burning anger.

"Lily…?" Leo's expression darkened. "Shit. Did something bad happen?"

He quickly collected the bags and bolted toward the arena.

— At Arena No. 4 —

Lily knelt on the ground, holding Miho's bruised body in her arms. Miho was covered in wounds—deep cuts, bite marks scattered across her flesh, and one arm twisted at an unnatural angle, and a deep gash running across her face. Blood soaked into Lily's clothes and pooled on the stone floor beneath them.

Lily desperately tried to heal her, mana surging through her hands, but the wounds refused to close. It was as if her skill simply wasn't taking effect. Miho continued to bleed profusely.

She was in immense pain, though not in immediate danger since she wasn't transported to the temple.

Lily sharply turned her head toward the man standing nearby—a man with golden hair, watching them with a downcast gaze that carried an unmistakable hint of superiority.

"Bastard," Lily spat. "Do you really think torturing someone weaker until they pass out is something to be proud of?"

Her eyes glowed faintly pink, the change so subtle it was imperceptible to the naked eye.

"What?" Nord scoffed.

"Didn't I do the right thing? A weak person—and a girl at that—ranked higher than me? Me, the great heir of Birel Viscounty?" He puffed out his chest, flaunting his noble status as he played with a ornamental dagger that he had used to slash at Miho during the match.

"Shouldn't I be teaching lessons to commoners who've gained nothing but a tiny bit of power?"

Around him, his supporters erupted into cheers.

"Lord Nord is great!"

"The weak have no say in this world!"

"Lord Nord is the strongest!"

Nord smirked and continued, his gaze locking onto Lily.

"And who are you calling a bastard? Do you think you're something special? Challenge me. Let's see who really has power."

He was confident that Lily was obviously ranked lower than him, and only she could issue a challenge.

Lily trembled with rage. She wanted to strangle him where he stood, but even the slightest movement caused Miho's wounds to reopen, making her squirm in pain despite being unconscious. The blood beneath them spread further.

"Miho, hold on," Lily whispered "I'll take you somewhere your wounds can heal. I'm sorry… my ability just isn't working!"

Her frustration was overwhelming.

Nord looked her up and down, a cruel smile spreading across his face.

"Quite the body you have," he said slowly. "How about you spend one night with me, and I'll help that girl heal? Of course, from then on, you'll both be my slaves—"

Suddenly, Nord's eyes bulged.

A thick vine shot up from the ground and wrapped tightly around his neck, lifting him off his feet. His hands clawed at it as the blood flow to his brain was abruptly cut off, panic flashing across his face in an instant.

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