In the evening, Li Jiya, dressed in thief’s attire, quietly left the Rose Court.
Thief’s attire was characterized by its concealment, allowing for unrestrained extreme movements. Consequently, thieves did not seek fine armor, prioritizing comfort above all else. Most wore a simple cloak with a hood to hide their features. A leather belt cinched their waist, holding a leather or cloth pouch for a thief’s small tools. Their weapons were typically daggers or short blades, along with various hidden weapons concealed in unknown places.
Li Jiya had not told Lady Karol about the Jufeng Mercenary Group’s suspected plan to attack the Orc Treasury. After all, it was still just speculation. Lady Karol’s attention was currently focused entirely on the Elf Envoys, so Li Jiya decided it could wait until they had secured the gold.
When Li Jiya arrived at the rendezvous point, the tavern was already closed. The narrow streets were deserted, the moonlight casting a cold gleam on the smooth stone pavement. Ordinary city dwellers were reluctant to burn candles at night. Coupled with the fact that nights in Nuta City were never peaceful, most people shut their doors and rested early. Occasionally, birds swept quickly over the rooftops.
A soft call came from behind a house. Li Jiya spotted two figures there and cautiously approached.
Hidden in the shadows were Yan Xing and Grey Mouse. Both wore cloaks; Yan Xing carried a canvas backpack, while Grey Mouse, having shed his Jufeng Mercenary Group uniform, had an oversized hood pulled over his head.
"Everyone’s here," Yan Xing said. "I have something for you from the Thunderous Swamp."
He took off his backpack and retrieved two small mechanical hand crossbows. The crossbow arms folded for easy carrying when not in use. To operate one, a user simply pressed a switch to spring the arms open, then drew the string and loaded a bolt to shoot. After demonstrating how to use the hand crossbow, Yan Xing gave five crossbow bolts to Li Jiya and Grey Mouse each.
"These are specially made bolts," Yan Xing explained. "They’re enchanted with air Magic to give them a secondary acceleration after being fired. There aren’t many of these; I didn’t manage to steal a lot, so use them sparingly."
Li Jiya examined a bolt. She’d just tested the hand crossbow’s strength... decent enough. However, the crossbow’s small size meant that even with considerable power, its bolts wouldn’t inflict much damage due to their short acceleration time. Ten meters was about its effective killing range. Using alchemical bolts was an effective way to increase a hand crossbow’s lethality.
As an excellent spy, Li Jiya immediately sensed something special about the bolts the moment she picked one up. The shaft’s material was unknown but extremely light. Logically, such a light shaft should be fragile, yet this one was quite stiff. Could it be some alchemical material?
In contrast to the shaft’s lightness, the arrowhead was quite heavy—much heavier than typical hand crossbow bolts. Triangular heads offered stable flight and good armor-piercing capabilities. This bolt alone could significantly improve the hand crossbow’s lethality. With the added Enchantment to increase its speed, Li Jiya couldn’t begin to guess how powerful such a compact hand crossbow might become.
Yan Xing’s gadgets are truly exquisite!
Impressed, Li Jiya stowed the hand crossbow and secured it, along with the bolts, to her belt. Grey Mouse might not have recognized the finer qualities of the hand crossbow and bolts, but he knew anything related to Alchemy and Enchantment was undoubtedly high-grade. He followed Li Jiya’s example and secured the items to his waist.
Next, Yan Xing took two pairs of shoes from his backpack.
Thieves didn’t demand highly defensive armor, but they had strict requirements for footwear. It might not seem important at first glance, but during a chase, a good pair of shoes could mean the difference between life and death. Yan Xing certainly understood the importance of shoes for high-speed, high-agility professions; it was akin to how in an Olympic 100-meter sprint, performance depended as much on the high technology of the running shoes as on physical fitness.
"These are shoes I’ve prepared for you," Yan Xing said. "Try them on. If they fit, they’re yours. If not, give them back to me."
Li Jiya took the pair meant for her. The shoes bore the distinctive style of the Eternal Domain. Then came the sensation of lightness: they were exceptionally light, both shoes together seeming to weigh less than an egg, yet they were also very sturdy.
What material could they possibly be made from? Li Jiya wondered. Are they another alchemical product from the Thunderous Swamp?
While she was still puzzling over the shoes’ material, Grey Mouse had already put on his pair.
"Is this... is this Enchantment with air Magic?" Grey Mouse exclaimed, already feeling the difference. "I feel like I’ve become lighter! And the grip—it’s just like my feet have turned into beast claws.
"Lord Terence, are you really giving me these precious shoes?"
"You’ve done so much for me," Yan Xing answered. "The shoes and that hand crossbow are both yours." The rightful source is novel fire.net
"Thank you, Lord Terence!" Grey Mouse said. Without a hint of regret for his old footwear, he tossed his previous shoes into a corner. Then, he turned to Li Jiya. "Miss Xue Jun, hurry up and put them on. I’ve long heard that the Alchemy of the Thunderous Swamp is quite unique, and today I’ve seen its incredible power firsthand.
"With these shoes, I feel like I could even try to break into the Thunderous Swamp’s Envoy Mansion!
"Haha... just kidding."
Yan Xing also urged Li Jiya, "It’s getting late. Put on the shoes; let’s go."
Li Jiya was already wearing a pair of alchemical boots enchanted with air Magic. She hadn’t wanted to switch to new shoes that would require breaking in, but after hearing Grey Mouse praise this pair so highly, she took off her current ones.