I’m not Goblin Slayer Chapter 074

Gauss picked and chose in the general store, buying quite a few things.

Several sets of ordinary linen clothes for changing.

A black cloak, draped neatly behind him, could both provide shade and block rain, and if necessary, could be spread on the ground as a blanket.

Jet-black leather boots with thick wooden soles, their surfaces polished to a shine, tightened at the sides with metal buckles.

An extra-large tanned leather water skin.

A larger adventurer’s backpack, with more buckles, an external tool net, hidden compartments, and storage pouches, capable of holding more tools and equipment.

All in all, he upgraded a wave of daily use equipment, spending another 8 silver coins.

But Gauss wasn’t overly distressed; old things needed to be replaced, and earning money was meant for spending.

Before leaving the shop, he thought for a moment and bought a set of ceramic tea cups, which also came with a small booklet titled “Guide to Brewing Tea.”

After eating, Gauss, clad in his brand-new gear, returned to the inn.

“You’re back? This outing seemed longer than usual?” Sophia asked when she saw Gauss enter with a package.

“I stayed out a few more nights.” Gauss walked up to the counter. “Oh, by the way, Sophia, this is a gift for you.”

He placed the tea cup set on the counter.

“Why did you buy me a gift?” Sophia looked at him strangely.

“I just happened to see it when I was buying things, and I remembered you usually like brewing flower tea, so I just bought it on a whim. It didn’t cost much.”

Gauss didn’t think much of it; he just remembered Sophia’s usual care and prepared a small gift.

He wasn’t an ungrateful person and couldn’t accept others’ care with a clear conscience.

“You really shouldn’t have, buying me these things. Can I still return them now?”

“Probably not, Sophia, just keep them. I’m a bit tired, I’m going upstairs to rest first.” Gauss shook his head, and without waiting for Sophia’s reply, he quickly walked upstairs.

“Hey, wait… Oh, well… Thank you then!” Sophia’s voice still came from behind him.

Early in the morning.

Along with the surge of magic, an invisible, transparent armor condensed around Gauss.

A familiar warm current permeated his body along the surface of the armor, making Gauss feel warm all over.

“Mage Armor Lv 2 ( 19/20)”

This proficiency had been stuck for several days.

For Gauss, this was clearly not a normal progression.

Could it be that unlike 0-level cantrips, a 1st-level spell approaching Lv 3 was enough to touch the threshold of a professional pathway?

Gauss remembered the information about professionals that Shopkeeper Grolm had shared with him: as long as one practiced a skill to an extremely proficient degree, one would feel the guidance of a mysterious force in the surrounding world.

Following that guiding force, one could embark on a professional pathway.

But he didn’t seem to feel any such guidance.

“It’s time to visit the Thorny Cabin again.”

Although there was a suspicion of disturbing others, Gauss currently had no other familiar professionals in the spellcasting domain, so he could only shamelessly pay a visit.

Mainly, he felt that his last interaction with Ms. Anderni, the halfling, had been quite pleasant, so she probably didn’t have any aversion or rejection towards him.

Leaving the inn, following the map’s guidance, Gauss easily arrived at the Thorny Cabin this time.

Just like his last visit, the cabin’s outer walls were still mottled, overgrown with moss.

The oak door, inlaid with copper bells, was also covered in dust, looking as if it had been abandoned for a long time.

“Thump, thump!”

He gently knocked on the door.

Perhaps it was because it was his second visit.

This time, after he knocked twice, the door automatically opened with a “creak.”

“Come… in!”

Anderni’s voice, like she was talking in her sleep, came from inside the hall.

Stepping over the threshold and into the passage, the door closed automatically behind him.

Upon entering the hall, sure enough.

Anderni was covered with a soft woolen blanket, comfortably sprawled out and fast asleep in a wicker chair, her eyes tightly shut, with faint traces of dried drool visible at the corners of her mouth. One leg was kicked out from under the blanket, dangling and swinging from the armrest of the wicker chair.

Gauss couldn’t help but feel a black line appear on his forehead as he watched.

Even though there were no customers usually, this was just too lazy.

Besides, this time of day should be normal business hours for a shop, right? Why was she still sleeping?

Damn it, he really envied the daily life of a retired bigshot…

“Haaah—”

Perhaps sensing an outsider in the hall, Anderni yawned and sat up from the wicker chair, not caring that her pajamas were loose. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she sat in the chair chewing on air, blankly staring for several minutes.

A few minutes later, her brain seemed to reconnect, and her gaze gradually became clear.

“Eh! Gauss? Why are you here?” She turned her head to look at Gauss, startled.

“I’ve been here for a while.” Gauss couldn’t help but remind her. “Senior Anderni, what if another customer came in and saw this scene? It wouldn’t be good, would it?”

Although Anderni was a halfling and probably didn’t fit most human’s dating standards, what if there were some special individuals who preferred the unusual? Even if she was a professional, she should still be careful, right?

“Don’t worry, outsiders can’t get in at this time. Not many people have permission to my front door.”

“…” Gauss pursed his lips, a question mark appearing on his forehead.

Should he thank Anderni for her trust?

If he remembered correctly, they had only met once before, right? She was so trusting as to set up shop entry and exit permissions for him?

Although this likely only triggered when Anderni herself was present, it still didn’t quite match their level of familiarity, did it?

So why?

Gauss didn’t think his Charm, which was 5 points before and had just risen to 6 now, possessed such a captivating ability.

And would a professional adventurer who had adventured for many years and entered retirement be a simple, naive sweet girl? There must be a crucial point he couldn’t understand.

Anderni glanced at Gauss, who was lost in thought, and spoke.

“What are you looking for me for today?”

Based on her understanding of Gauss’s financial situation from last time, she analyzed that he probably wasn’t here to buy things.

“Heh… it’s like this.” Gauss didn’t dwell on his previous confusion and quickly focused on the topic he was about to ask about.

For all adventurers, everything related to professional advancement was crucial.

He hesitated for a moment, then explained the changes happening to him, mainly the slight warmth his body felt after training Mage Armor.

However, to his surprise, even though he had demonstrated the cantrip Mage Hand last time and now had an additional 1st-level spell, Mage Armor, Anderni showed no curiosity about it.

After listening to Gauss’s narration, she merely blinked, then her eyes glazed over, lost in thought, as if beginning to ponder the changes in Gauss.

A moment later, a thick, hardbound tome suddenly dropped from the air into her hand.

She licked her fingers, placed the book, which was almost half her body size, on her crossed legs, lowered her head, and quickly flipped through the pages.

The pages rustled as she turned them, making one wonder if such a fast flipping speed could actually find the desired content.

Just as Gauss was secretly wondering, Anderni’s finger suddenly stopped.

“Found it! I know why!”