The morning sunlight slanted across the inn’s slightly old but clean counter. Sofia and Gauss were chatting casually.
Suddenly, the light and shadow at the door flickered, and a figure walked in lightly.
"Welcome." Sofia greeted out of habit.
The newcomer, however, looked straight past her, with a faint smile landing on Gauss.
"Yo, morning, Gauss."
"Good morning," Gauss replied.
A friend of Gauss?
Sofia couldn’t help but scrutinize the guest carefully.
She wasn’t breathtakingly beautiful at first glance, but she had a unique charm, clear like morning dew in the forest, with a hint of wild resilience.
Her light blue long hair draped casually over her shoulders, her face clean and well-defined, her features soft and harmonious.
Her body was well-proportioned and strong, her steps agile. The smooth muscle lines of her calves betrayed a physique forged through long treks in the wild, in harmony with nature, definitely not a frail frame.
"This is my partner, Aaliyah."
Gauss introduced the two.
"Sofia, the owner of the inn, has always been a caring friend of mine."
Aaliyah shook hands with Sofia with ease and grace.
After some brief pleasantries and under several curious glances from the inn’s lobby, Gauss and Aaliyah left the inn side by side.
"How did you sleep last night?"
"Very well, very well indeed," Aaliyah answered instinctively.
Then her gaze fell on Gauss’s face and caught a trace of fatigue in his eyes, understanding dawning on her.
"You didn’t rest well?"
"A bit," Gauss didn’t brush it off lightly as he did with Sofia; facing Aaliyah, he didn’t hide, sharing the details of his nightmare.
This wasn’t playing favorites, but he knew telling Sofia was pointless and would only add worry.
Yet Aaliyah, as a Professional, might understand the possibilities behind it.
"A nightmare?" Aaliyah nodded, her expression turning serious.
Nightmares in themselves weren’t unusual; everyone had them, but having just completed a special mission made it worth noting.
"How about I use nature’s force to check your body? See if there’s any filth?" Aaliyah suggested.
The 1st-level Spell she mastered was Animal Conversation, and she was learning the second 1st-level Spell, Goodberry, though she hadn’t mastered it yet.
But neither spell could assist in checking the body.
Fortunately, nature’s force had a natural perception for corruption, pollution, and abnormal mental erosion, opposing them like water and fire.
Agreeing, Gauss nodded, and the two found a clean bench by the street to sit down.
Aaliyah motioned for Gauss to turn slightly to the side, then raised her hand, her warm palm gently resting on the nape of his neck.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as if drawing in the surrounding nature’s breath.
Then, she engaged the Druidic Perception, naturally keen on life energy and natural balance, much like a precise scanner, meticulously "scanning" the invisible aura and energy fluctuations emanating from Gauss’s body, trying to detect any discordant "odor" or foreign invading filth.
Aaliyah focused her mind, and her perception continued to extend.
Indeed, she could feel the fatigue in Gauss’s aura, a result of a lack of sleep. Although his energy field carried some discordant "noise," it was mostly normal; she didn’t capture any distinct characteristics of foreign evil, filth, or negative energy erosion from it.
It seemed more like he simply had insomnia and didn’t sleep well.
She slowly opened her eyes.
"I didn’t sense anything unusual, though it might just be because I’m not skilled enough," she added honestly. "But I sense that you might indeed be a bit tired. I noticed you take on tasks quite frequently."
"Keep an eye on it in the coming days. If that nightmare keeps occurring or something feels amiss, we’ll go to the church in Barry City for a more thorough check-up."
"Understood. Thank you," Gauss thanked sincerely.
He hadn’t particularly felt uncomfortable, asking Aaliyah to check was mainly for reassurance.
After getting a preliminary judgment, he temporarily set the matter aside.
Then the two began their business for the day, heading to the commercial street to handle the loot.
Gauss was quite surprised; Aaliyah turned out to be an adept negotiator hiding in plain sight.
This left Gauss, who usually only compared prices with three vendors and chose the one offering the most, a bit embarrassed.
So during the price negotiation, Gauss simply kept quiet and let Aaliyah handle everything.
"Although the edges of this hide are damaged, look at the texture and toughness of the core area; it’s top quality! Strip these intact scales, add a bit of tanning, and it’s perfect material for wrist guards or knee-pads linings."
"Rust? Boss, underneath this is real good steel. A little rust remover will make it as good as new, no need to reforge."
"...."
With Aaliyah’s negotiation, the loot that was expected to take an entire morning to sell was all sold off before noon.
Moreover, the selling price far exceeded Gauss’s expectations.
A whole 1 Gold and 10 Silver Coins!
Gauss estimated that by his own means, he would have gotten 90 Silver Coins at best.
The two immediately split the money.
Feeling the weight of the purse, Gauss wore a satisfied smile.
Gold and 40 Silver.
His on-hand cash assets crossed the two-digit Gold Coin threshold once more.