"What’s going on?"
"Was he drunk and accidentally stepped out of the barrier?"
"He’s not that stupid!" Besides, they did not have alcohol right now!
Finn ignored the commotion outside while he was plating their breakfast, which these people had already paid for the previous day. Of course, money-making was still there, so he definitely wouldn’t miss the chance.
"Meal sets are now ready! Seconds can be bought for 3 gold or 10 cores each!" he yelled, and asked the guests to head to them. They were annoyed it wasn’t being served directly, but what could they do?
Some definitely had the face of ’You will pay for this later’ though.
Anyway, their annoyances were pushed down when they saw the food. He served Charred Citrus Hoovensore Beef Skewers and Roasted Thornroot with Sweetened Citrus drizzle today, both E-Class food, which was already good enough for these bastards.
They didn’t think too much since it was still essence food, and it was definitely more delicious than what they usually ate. They nodded, satisfied with the food and asked for seconds, and thirds, and even more.
He also managed to subtly gain some market insight. He asked how much a flavor-enhancing sauce could sell for, even if it wasn’t essence food. He gave them a taste, and their eyes brightened, giving him an answer.
He saw greedy glints in the merchant’s eyes, so he decided to assume the actual value to be twice what they were saying. They probably would tell a high but lower-than-correct value, so if he ever decided to do business, they’d get it for less.
Finn smiled, liking the money he was receiving as well as the approximate amount he could get, and just let them be.
While eating, someone even looked at his status gem. "Amazing, I recovered quickly," one said, clicking his tongue, and the others did as well.
The greed in their eyes sharpened the more they saw in this place, and some of them were already thinking of whom to contact to help them out. A person who could have such a thing could not be underestimated, and they’d need to investigate more.
They had seen the effects of the barrier first and foremost. Many of them knew what the classic barrier tools were, even if some hadn’t actually seen one before. They all knew this one was far superior. For one, normal barriers wouldn’t let people attack from the inside!
Plenty of nobles would be interested in getting this pie, even for educational purposes!
"Do you own this place?" Vara asked Finn, acting casual.
"I am the Innkeeper, and I am just assigned to take care of the place," he said, lying with a straight face. They couldn’t have a mere Awakened dude as the boss figure, right? They’d just look down on them again.
"Who is your master, then?"
Finn definitely didn’t say ’none’. These people would only respect fists, and this meant he had to have a backing.
Finn’s back was straight, and he stood up incredibly proper. Durgan, who was watching from the side, blinked at the change in demeanor. "I am sent by an elf noble," he said. Even his accent suddenly sounded a bit more refined. "I cannot say any more, unfortunately."
They tutted."Then where is your master?"
"Well, I apologize, even I do not know when he will return," he said. "In exchange, I will sell you a packed lunch for half the price, what do you say?
...
By half price, it was still more expensive than how he’d normally sell it, of course.
They all bought some, and he packed them lunch that wasn’t very insulated, making sure that its scent was strong.
He might not have a Beast Attracting Potion, but he was confident in the attractive effect of his food.
Now that they’ve recovered, a small Awakened-level mob wouldn’t be a threat to their lives, but they sure as hell would cause a lot of inconvenience. Not to mention, they would literally pay for this trouble!
They took a long time to leave because the merchants tried to make a deal with him. They were really arrogant too, trying to buy the inn for a few hundred gold, which was barely even enough to buy a small commercial building in a town.
"Do you think the construction cost of this place could compare to building in a town?" he asked, sounding as if he built the place brick by brick. "That’s an insult to all the hard work that went to building this place!"
Finn would’ve just let them go and get attacked by beasts thanks to his food, but then they started to be threatening. "The rules will kick us out if we damage anything. What if we’re about to leave, anyway? You think we can’t attack you?"
"Are you threatening me?"
"Maybe," Vara the merchant said with a smirk.
It seemed that after a day of not seeing anyone stronger than Durgan among the staff, and after recovering their health, his arrogance had returned. It was the same with others.
"I have plenty of connections. I recommend cutting a deal now before things get dirty when we call for reinforcements."
Finn smiled, and the next thing the merchant knew, a fist was right in front of his face.
Pak!
"AH!"
Similarly, Durgan also attacked another merchant (they were just the easiest target), and the goblins bit the legs of another.
Anyway, since the threats were blatant now, and they had already checked out (and milked for money), there was no need to be polite anymore.
Before they could react, a few mercenaries were also attacked, and by a feline appearing right behind them.
BANG!
Finn then jumped back, barely avoiding the attack of a mercenary. And because they attacked him, it was a signal that they ought to get kicked out.
Evo was the quickest and lunged towards Finn while the rest of his staff were distracted.
It was just that before the punch could connect, a black and white figure passed by, and he was thrown out of the barrier so forcefully that when he hit a tree, it fell down, along with another one.
BANG!!
"What?"
Anyway, this show of force made everyone pause, and then they looked at the black-and-white creature now sitting on the ground, looking at them with an unreadable expression.
The guests shivered, but also angry and wanted to retaliate.
At this moment, Clen raised his hand. "Do you want to get kicked out and leave your items behind?"
"..."
Clen sighed and rubbed his temple, knowing full well that allowing this to go on was especially disadvantageous to them.
"Go."
"Don’t you dare eat the food I made! Throw it out in the forest, will you?!" he yelled, knowing they’d do the opposite just to be vindictive. Better, if they threw it out, it would still work against this favor!
Anyway, he didn’t have a good impression on many of them.
The bright side was, they didn’t manually fill up the feedback; the Inn System would tell the truth. Although they didn’t like him, the fact was that most liked the Inn itself and enjoyed their stay (to the point they got greedy in fact), still counted their feedback as ’positive’.
[Active Mission: Receive a good review from 50 Guests]
Reward: 5,000 Hearth Points, Growth-type equipment, Activation of a Surprise Mission
Progress: 26/50]