Chapter 360.3: This Is A Precious Mission Item!

She thought that mercenaries were rough people with stubbles, having more scars than wrinkles, but unexpectedly, the one who came in was a young man had a scholarly appearance.

Staring at Ample Time for a while, Elisa asked with curious interest, "Can you tell me how you did it?"

Ample Time's expression turned a little strange.

He certainly couldn't say that he spent 200 silver coins asking a fat rat for help and found the silly cat jumping on the giant wall.

Of course, it was not all Make Me’s credit; Dori also helped him a lot these days.

For some reason, the little black cat, which looked like a coal ball, was a bit afraid of him but not so much of Dori.

Could it be that the smell of engine oil was intoxicating?

Anyway, the commission requested by the head of the Alliance Office had finally been completed.

The total reward was 25 chips.

Without considering contribution points and Regional Prestige, from a monetary perspective, he made a massive loss.

"... It's a long story."

"... It seems to be an inconvenient secret. Well, I won't ask." Elisa didn't ask further, comforted the cat in her arms for a while, and then gently placed it aside.

Looking again at the man standing in front of her, she suddenly blinked mischievously. "As a trade-off, can you tell me about the world beyond the giant wall?"

"Beyond the giant wall..." Ample Time found himself in a bit of a dilemma, showing a puzzled expression. "This scope is too broad. Where should I start?"

Elisa said, "Just tell me your story. For example... Where are you from?"

"The northern suburbs," Ample Time answered truthfully.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Upon hearing this response, a hint of surprise appeared in Elisa's eyes. "You're from the northern suburbs?"

"Yes, is there a problem?"

"Mhm, nothing. It's just that recently, my father often mentioned that place."

Shaking her head lightly, Elisa's eyes flashed curiously. "Can you tell me what it's like there?"

"It's hard to describe. If I were to evaluate it, it's not wealthy, but it's a place full of hope..." After organizing his thoughts for a moment, Ample Time used a limited vocabulary to briefly describe the situation there.

He thought the girl wouldn't be interested, but unexpectedly, she listened with unexpected seriousness.

After about 15 minutes or so, Elisa closed her eyes, pondered for a while, and suddenly a smile appeared on her face. "Thank you for chatting with me for so long."

"You're welcome... By the way, can I trouble you to write a thank-you letter?" Suddenly remembering the task requested by the NPC named Hal, Ample Time quickly added.

That was close. He almost forgot the main purpose he had come.

"No problem, I've already written it." Elisa smiled and nodded to a servant standing nearby.

The slightly old-fashioned servant took a step forward and handed a letter to Ample Time from his arms.

Ample Time accepted the letter from him, politely declined the invitation for afternoon tea, thanked them, and under the escort of 2 guards, left the luxurious mansion.

Turning two corners, he saw Dori standing under a street lamp with her arms crossed.

The green-haired girl was kicking a bottle cap on the ground with her toes, passing the time.

Seeing Ample Time approaching from the street corner, she immediately stopped and walked up to him, asking, "Did you give Little Black to her?"

"Mhm, you’ve developed attachment in just half a day?" Ample Time teased as he looked at her.

Dori raised her eyebrows. "How... How is that possible? I was just checking."

Ample Time chuckled, "I believe you."

He could feel that she actually quite liked the affectionate Little Black. However, she was aware that it was someone else's pet. Not to mention, she couldn't even take care of herself properly, let alone a picky eater like that animal.

"Hey." Dori called out to him suddenly.

Raising an eyebrow, Ample Time replied, "What is it?"

"Is the bank president's daughter beautiful?" Dori asked curiously.

Ample Time replied casually, "Quite good-looking, she’s a dignified and elegant girl."

Dori twitched her nose, seemingly her curiosity was satisfied. However, her expression was still pretty strange. "... Speaking of which, why are you interested in the task that only rewards you with 25 chips?"

"Chips are not my goal; I need this letter." Ample Time gently shook the envelope held between his fingertips and put it back in his pocket.

The 25 chips were just a part of the mission reward. If it were only for the money, he wouldn't have taken on this task in the first place. But explaining this to an NPC would be too troublesome. Some had tried, but they couldn't understand the concept of the game, and directly stating that their world was just a game seemed impolite.

Perhaps that was also part of the game setting.

A frown appeared on Dori’s face. "A letter?"

"Mhm, a valuable mission item." Ample Time nodded seriously.

"...?"

Without explaining to the confused Dori, Ample Time headed straight to the newspaper office.

Handing the letter to the NPC Hal at the would officially complete this mission.

Although he didn't know what use this new NPC named Hal had, increasing favorability was never a bad idea.

Watching the joyful Ample Time, Dori, following behind him, wore a complex expression on her face. She still didn't understand why this man, who could easily take out more than 50,000 chips, was interested in a mission that only offered 25 chips.

Could it be his love for cats?

But that didn't seem likely.

Or maybe... He wanted to get close to the bank president's daughter through Little Black, become Mr. Malvern's son-in-law, and leap into a wealthy family.

Thinking of this, Dori's expression changed from complexity to disdain.

"... Heh, you must be dreaming." She snorted coldly.

"Mhm? What did you just say?" Ample Time turned to look at her suddenly.

"Nothing." Leaving behind these words, Dori turned her face to the side, leaving Ample Time puzzled.

It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the Newspaper Office.

Inside, the room was noisy, with everyone displaying dark circles under their eyes. Yet, they all seemed full of energy, even excited.

When the high-level members of the New Alliance heard Hal's plan, they immediately approved a monthly budget of 200,000 chips for the newspaper.

200,000 chips!

And it was a monthly allowance!

Upon hearing this news, the editors who used to work under Mr. House were so excited that they almost forgot to breathe.

The Voice of Boulder Town didn't even earn this much money in a year!

And their new boss was willing to contribute such a large sum every month, continuously supporting their business without seeing any immediate returns.

With this money, they could do a lot of things!

Just when everyone in the newspaper office was discussing the next plan, the office door opened.

Seeing Ample Time returning with the thank-you letter, Hal's face immediately showed a delighted expression as he eagerly took the letter. "Great, you're finally back, my friend! We're discussing the layout of the next issue, and your timing couldn't be better!"

"I don't quite understand. What does finding the bank president's daughter's cat have to do with your newspaper?" Ample Time couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, looking at Hal, who was holding the envelope like a treasure.

Before Hal could speak, one of the editors next to him spoke enthusiastically on his behalf. "We're planning to dedicate a whole page in the newspaper for missions. How to attract people with needs to write to us? The best way is to show them results."

Another bald editor chimed in, "That's right. I'm sure those mercenaries who have never been interested in reading newspapers will start buying ours from now on!"

"Why don't we start a Mercenary Weekly?" another editor suggested.

Hal's eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers. "This is an excellent idea!"

Ample Time coughed. "In my opinion... Why not serialize a novel in the newspaper? Post 500 words every 3 days, ending each issue at a cliffhanger. I guarantee your newspaper will be sold out."

Upon hearing this, Hal was slightly stunned for a few seconds before showing an ecstatic expression on his face. "This is a fantastic idea! My friend, how about joining us?!"

"I don't need to... But I can recommend an expert to you. There's nothing about Boulder Town that she doesn't know, and even if she doesn't know, I believe she'll find out somehow..."

Saying this, Ample Time looked towards the office door, where the short-haired girl was standing with her arms crossed, looking idle. "How about her?"