"Did I... just get scammed?"
Darkness held the steamed buns and dumplings in her hands, her expression showing the confusion of someone who hadn’t yet processed being tricked.
Those two shop owners had immediately changed their quarreling attitudes after she mediated by offering to buy from both.
This woman may be a pervert, but her intelligence was still intact. This outcome inevitably led her to suspect she’d been played.
"...Well, Darkness, you might have been played, but didn’t you get what you wanted anyway?" Adam naturally wouldn’t tell her outright that she was scammed.
Instead, he diplomatically informed her that she now had souvenirs for her servants back home.
Those two shop owners, one appearing to be an elf and the other a dwarf, were actually just acting, as Adam had discovered. Their goal was to hook customers like Darkness.
Their quarreling seemed so natural. These little tricks are everywhere in daily life, truly exploiting the weaknesses of human nature.
And to think they would do such things just to increase sales and make money! Really...
Well, making money isn’t shameful. The method might be questionable, but who could blame them when Darkness was so innocent that she fell for it?
Adam had another thing he was afraid to tell her for fear of disappointing the pervert.
The elf shop owner’s ears were fake, and the dwarf shop owner’s beard was fake too. It’s possible they really were elf and dwarf species, but their quarrel was definitely an act — or perhaps role-playing?
If Darkness found out about this, she would surely be devastated. To spare her feelings, Adam decided not to tell her this cruel truth. Preventing the collapse of her childhood fantasies — he was truly a qualified leader!
Walking through the alley with the speechless Darkness, they suddenly encountered an elderly woman at an intersection. She was carrying a bag of apples.
Perhaps because the apples were too heavy, her already hunched back was weighed down even more. She walked with unsteady, tottering steps, moving slowly and laboriously.
Just as Adam and Darkness were passing by, she lost her footing, and the bag suddenly dropped, scattering apples across the ground.
"Oh my~ Oh my~ My apples~" The old woman lamented with distress, then stooped to pick them up.
But perhaps due to her advanced age, her movements were slow and stiff.
Adam and Darkness stepped forward to help.
"Oh my~ Oh my~ Thank you both so much for your help." The old woman spoke words of gratitude, but her hands tightly gripped Adam’s, "Thanks to your help, if possible, please allow me to repay you."
Looking at his hand being firmly held by the elderly woman, then at the surrounding buildings, Adam suddenly realized something.
Only then did it dawn on him that the town he was in was not Axel!
"That’s not necessary!"
"No, please allow me to repay you!"
"No, no, you’re really too kind!"
"No, no, no, I must repay you!"
Trying to pull his hand away only resulted in it being gripped more tightly, making Adam question if she was really an elderly person.
At the same time, his suspicions were confirmed: This old woman was definitely up to something!
The old woman eagerly invited the two, pointing to a nearby shop, "Over there, there’s a café run by the Axis Cult. Why don’t we go there and have a nice chat?"
"I must respectfully decline!" Adam had no desire to go.
If it had been a beautiful young woman inviting him, he might have considered it, but with this old woman in front of him, he refused without a second thought!
"Don’t be like that!" The old woman wouldn’t let go. Looking at Darkness, she said, "You two are a couple, right? To be honest, I can also tell fortunes! Come, let me divine your relationship compatibility as a thank you gift! It’s free!"
"I must respectfully decline!"
Adam broke free from her tight grip, but the old woman then hugged his waist, and when he freed his waist, she grabbed his cloak.
With his strength, breaking free wouldn’t be a problem at all. But he didn’t dare. Although the old woman was irritating, she was indeed a follower of Aqua, and she was quite elderly. If he hurt her, his conscience would bother him.
"Hey, old lady, let go!"
"I won’t!" At this point, she showed none of her previous frail demeanor, clinging to him as if burning the last of her life force.
More importantly, she continued her persuasion.
"The fortune-telling results are in! If you continue , you’ll both face misfortune; you two won’t find happiness! But! If you join the Axis Cult, you can avoid misfortune! So, it’s best to join the Axis Cult at a time !"
"I’m already experiencing misfortune right now! ...Wait, I’m already a member of the Axis Cult!"
Adam suddenly remembered — wasn’t he Aqua’s representative? In other words, he had already joined the Axis Cult from the beginning!
"...Really?!" The old woman clearly didn’t believe him, "If that’s the case, then show me proof that you’ve joined the Axis Cult."
Does such a thing exist? Adam couldn’t help but doubt.
As far as he knew, even though he was Aqua’s representative, that stupid Water Goddess had never given him any accessory or proof symbolizing his identity.
"What, can’t produce it? So you were lying to me!" The old woman gripped even harder.
Perhaps seeing Adam in trouble, or maybe wanting to find more excitement herself, Darkness came to the rescue.
She stepped forward and pulled out a small cross from her chest. It’s better to call it a cross, as the shape was very similar, but it still had some subtle differences from a regular cross.
—It was an Eris Cult relic. Adam knew this was her proof as a member of the Eris Cult.
Seeming to understand what she was about to do, he anxiously scolded, "...Hey, you idiot, is now really the time to bring that out?"
But Darkness acted as if she hadn’t heard, holding the relic in her hand for the old woman to see clearly.
"Um... I’m a member of the Eris Cult. If you want this man to join, you’ll have to ask me first."
"You... you two won’t be happy!" The old woman seemed to be cursing them.
Really now, what is she saying?! This isn’t how a follower of Aqua should behave; such words are too harsh!
"So, just join the Axis Cult! Or... look, this is my granddaughter. If you join the Axis Cult, I’ll introduce her to you!" The old woman pulled out a picture from her bosom.
It showed a young, pretty girl... only about 7 or 8 years old.
"...Hey." Adam was dumbfounded.
After thinking for a moment, he suddenly pulled Darkness close. The noble lady let out a surprised yelp, then heard the man holding her declare loudly:
"Old woman, just give up! I am deeply in love with this woman; it’s impossible for me to join the Axis Cult!"
Not just Darkness, but even the persuasive old woman was shocked.
The old woman looked at the two embracing, appearing very affectionate. Then, she silently released her grip on Adam’s cloak, picked up her bag of apples, and quickly walked away.
However, as she left, the look in her eyes toward them was strange.
"...You two won’t be happy."
Was she deliberately cursing them? That’s too malicious!
But finally, the old woman left them alone.
"...Darkness, how should I put this... don’t take what that old woman said too seriously—" ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ NoveIＦire.net
"Mm, mm... I, I know."
"...Hey, you’re excited, aren’t you?"
Though she denied it, Adam could feel the gradually rising temperature of the noble lady melting in his arms and knew she was already excited.
"...This town is dangerous; we should head back."
After that, the two ended their not-so-pleasant sightseeing trip.
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