Hearing the door open, Li Ang turned around and saw the chestnut-haired girl with her hands crossed behind her back, lips pursed.

"What brings you over?"

The inn's door was rather primitive, with the inside bolt being the actual lock. Since Li Ang was about to leave, he hadn't bolted it.

"Just came to take a look."

Zoe's cheeks held an unusual blush, but Li Ang ignored her, bowing his head to sort through the Demon materials.

The girl walked a circle around him and then sat on his bed.

Li Ang sorted the materials of the Sandstone Spiral Turtle, Poisonous Flying Serpent, and Sandnest Maggot, noting that at his current level of Equipment Creation, he couldn't use the Maggot's materials, while those from the Turtle and Serpent could help him gain experience.

As for completing the request to eliminate these two Demons, parts of their bodies must be provided as proof.

For the Spiral Turtle, you chose its head, and once the Stone-Piercing Beak was removed, the head was useless and could serve as proof of quantity.

For the Flying Snake, you chose the tip of the tail. While hard, it wasn't as strong as the truly hard materials; the Flying Snake's materials of note were its lightweight skin and wing membrane.

Halfway through sorting them, Zoe's voice came from beside him.

"When you came out from the underground arena, I was browsing the bookstore. What were you and Dorothy chatting about in front of that jewelry store?"

Her tone was wistful, and Li Ang recalled the startling glance from the Half-Elf maiden, feeling a bit unnatural.

"Since when did you start calling her 'sister'? Didn't you not even want to call her by name before?" Li Ang deflected.

"I found out she's actually quite nice. The Demon Worm's venomous sting came so fast, and she didn't even have time to use the Flower Vine, only managing to use her body to shield me.

"I always thought it would be fine with just you and me, Li Ang, but thinking that way is selfish. A team can't rely on just two people. By doing this, I feel she's a good partner too."

Li Ang chuckled, "Isn't that great? Recognizing each other allows for better cooperation."

"So, what did you say back then? What do you mean by 'wear it anywhere'?"

The smile disappeared from Li Ang's face. "Uh, well, just consider it gibberish. You don't need to understand these things."

Li Ang felt his sleeve being tugged by Zoe.

He didn't look up, "What is it?"

"Look at me."

With a questioning look up, Li Ang felt like he'd been electrocuted all over.

The girl retracted her toes, her slender legs bent and lifted, her perfectly shaped feet hanging down, toes curled.

She still wore the black stockings he'd given her to absorb sweat, the loose cuff rolled up high.

The chestnut-haired girl covered half her face with her hands, sneaking peeks through her fingers with shimmering red eyes.

"I-I don't know a lot of things, those books never explain clearly, even the new ones.

"But I think you like—"

Her voice grew quieter, her knees slowly straightened, and she gently stretched her feet toward him.

The long but plump and adorable toes curled slightly, stepping onto his palm. Li Ang keenly felt the softness of the footpad and the rounded feel of each toe.

"On Satus Island, you were always secretly watching, right?"

The flames spread down her slender neck, as if burning with all her might. She weakly lay down; her gentle, sweet aftertone was faintly trembling.

"I-I truly don't understand, don't know what I can do. Dorothy knows so much; I have no idea how to outshine her.

"What I want to say is, whatever you like, I can do it too.

"You used to always stare, so now let you play..."

Feeling her small foot move in his palm, Li Ang couldn't help but grip it. Her warmth and the heat from his palm fused together, making it momentarily unclear if it was physical sensation or the rhythm of Magic Power.

Zoe's voice was like a whisper, "I read that people in books prefer the socks on, but if you like them off..."

Her delicate fingers pinched the stretchy black fabric.

"I prefer them off."

"Th-then... suit yourself... Also, for things I don't understand, will you teach me? I just want you... to always think of me..."

…

Li Ang walked out of the inn, energized.

The Little Wild Cat ran vigorously all day, her muscles and bones strong, but still needed relaxation. After a deep toe massage, she went for a good rest.

Sigh, the departure time is later than planned.

Li Ang carried the materials through many shops, finally finding a Weapon House where he could rent tools for a fee.

After more than ten days, he finally began advancing his Equipment Creation level.

[Specialty: Equipment Creation]

[Tier: 2. Next Level: 19/500 Experience]

He could now choose to make Fine Armor and weapons, as well as Malleable Magic Robes.

The so-called malleability allows for additional Spirituality-rich materials to be added to the original base to improve its quality.

These were all transitional for advancing his specialty level.

[Detected necessary tools, materials detected [Refined Iron Ingot][Rugged Shell][Stone-Piercing Beak][Stone Scraping Claw][Lightweight Scale][Jet Poison Fang][Gliding Fine Scale Wing Membrane], blueprint available]

The first choice Li Ang made was [Blueprint: Fine Short Dagger].

Weapons require metal, while equipment needs fabric and thread, but these additional materials are available at these Weapon Houses, so no further consideration was needed.

[Blueprint confirmed, detected materials available for addition [Lightweight Scale][Stone-Piercing Beak][Jet Poison Fang], add?]

The system immediately prompted him with suitable Demon materials to use. After confirming, his body moved on its own as knowledge poured into his mind.

First, grind and process the Demon materials, then forge the metal ingots into shape. As the weapon took form, sequentially integrate the processed materials, and the weapon gradually took shape.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.