Lance stood where he was, his gaze sweeping quickly over the girl before him under the shadow of his hood.
Although he had seen her information before, seeing her in person instantly raised the alarm bells in his mind to the highest level.
He had never expected that what that old fox handed him was not only an inexperienced noble young lady—but also a Half-Elf!
Those slightly reddish pointed ears peeking out from her hair, along with those ruby-like pure eyes, all proclaid her rare bloodline.
In this world of Adventurers, such exquisitely inhuman beauty, in certain dark corners, was directly associated with the label of “high-value commodity.”
Although the entire continent had signed the 《Eternal Sacred Covenant》—
Under this sacred legal frawork, all benevolent races possessing souls, language, and intelligence had their personal freedom absolutely protected.
Any act of capturing, trading, or imprisoning such races as slaves, playthings, or forced labor within the covenant’s jurisdiction would be considered a cri against civilization, punishable by execution upon discovery.
But laws could only restrain those willing to follow them.
In this world, there would always be desperadoes willing to trample the rules for piles of gold coins.
After all, once soone was locked deep inside a private dungeon, who would deliberately search beneath the estates of great nobles to find them?
Damn it, I signed too early!
This was practically a walking bundle of trouble.
Although today so many interns had set off in grand fashion with their teams, their identities would soon spread throughout the Adventurer circles of Graystone Town.
That would provide so deterrence to those outlaws.
But what if?
Human trafficking was imnsely profitable. If even one or two greedy wandering Adventurers decided to take the risk, this internship would turn into an escort mission.
Lance’s fingers rubbed lightly against the hilt of his sword. It seed he would have to make thorough preparations.
Just as he was carefully observing her features, a notification suddenly appeared on his retina.
【Through careful observation, you have identified the distinct physical traits of the Demi-Human Race · Half-Elf. Half-Elf Research Progress
1】
Looking at this line of text, Lance couldn’t help but twitch at the corner of his eye.
What was going on?
When he had researched Goblins before, he had to go through all kinds of trouble—beheading, piercing through—putting in enormous effort.
And now, just by staring at her for a few monts, the research progress increased?
Could it be that good-looking races really received favoritism from this improper system?
This double standard was way too obvious.
“Y-You… hello.”
Just as Lance was still in shock, Cecilia, having caught her breath, spoke cautiously:
“May I ask… are you a mber of my internship team?”
“No.”
Lance answered bluntly.
Hearing those two words, Cecilia actually let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Because although this man had helped her earlier, those eyes hidden in the shadows had been examining her with an extrely critical gaze from the very beginning.
That feeling made her very uncomfortable.
If her future teammate were soone like this, this internship would probably be quite unbearable.
However, Lance’s next words completely shattered that small sense of relief.
“I’m not a team mber.”
Lance took out the commission docunt from his chest and displayed it in front of the girl.
“I am your internship ntor.”
“For the duration of this period, all of your internship activities will be handled solely by .”
“What?!”
Cecilia’s eyes widened.
Just one person?
No warrior to hold the line, no priest for healing, not even a scout?
This was completely different from the standard party composition taught at the academy!
But faced with the commission docunt bearing the Guild’s bright red seal, the girl ultimately accepted this reality with difficulty.
Professor Gideon had said to trust the Guild’s arrangents.
“My na is Raven.”
Lance put away the docunt, his tone calm.
“Senior, hello. My na is Cecilia.”
The girl imdiately changed her form of address. Although her voice still carried a trace of unease, her manners remained impeccable.
“Senior” again.
Those two words made Lance involuntarily think of that foolish kid Damian.
He wondered how the boy’s injuries were healing. These past few days he had been busy making ointnts to earn money and had completely forgotten about it. He should go check on him another day.
Lance withdrew his thoughts, his gaze turning stern again.
“Now, I’ll teach you your first lesson.”
“Yes!”
Cecilia imdiately straightened her back like a recruit awaiting inspection.
Lance raised his hand and pointed at the finely crafted violet uniform she was wearing.
“Take that outfit off.”
“Ah?”
Cecilia froze.
Without wasting words, Lance turned and walked toward the entrance.
“Follow .”
Leading the way, he explained to the bewildered girl behind him as they walked:
“Violet may represent nobility in human cities, but in an environnt like Copper Creek Forest, it’s called a target.”
“Bright colors are extrely easy to attract the attention of monsters, especially those with poor eyesight—they are highly sensitive to color contrast.”
“And the material of your uniform is too high-end. Silk, gold-thread embroidery—”
“Not only does it provide no effective physical protection, it’ll tear the mont it catches on shrubs. More importantly…”
Lance stopped and glanced back at her.
“This outfit is basically shouting to every ill-intentioned wandering Adventurer that you’re easy prey.”
Cecilia listened in a daze. Although she felt a little aggrieved that her uniform representing the academy’s honor was being belittled, upon thinking carefully, what he said did seem reasonable.
The two walked one after the other and soon arrived at a clothing shop located on the edge of the Craftsman District.
This place didn’t sell anything high-end—only durable, rough cloth garnts.
After entering, Lance didn’t bother choosing. He directly pulled a dark brown hooded linen cloak from the rack and tossed it into Cecilia’s arms.
“Put it on.”
“Cover your ears—and that eye-catching outfit completely.”
At the ntion of “ears,” Cecilia awkwardly touched them.
So even Senior thought her bloodline was a problem?
But rembering soone was waiting for her, she quickly changed into the cloak.
Once the girl clumsily wrapped herself in the cloak, which carried a faint coarse-fiber scent—
Lance pointed at the worn wooden stool in the shop ant for custors trying on items.
“Sit down. Take off your shoes.”
“Ah?”
This ti, Cecilia was truly stunned.
She looked down at the polished leather shoes on her feet, then at Lance.
Though full of confusion, with the senior’s command before her, she could only blush and obediently sit down.
The girl reached out, unfastened the buckle, and removed the delicate leather shoes.
Inside were pure white cotton ankle socks, wrapping her feet.
Standing nearby, Lance professionally estimated the size.
The forest paths were all mud and slippery moss. Shoes like these, with no grip whatsoever, would twist an ankle within a few steps.
Then he’d have to carry her—that would be the real trouble.
Just as his gaze swept over those white socks—
The familiar blue notification box popped up again.
【Through careful observation, you have identified the distinct physical traits of the Demi-Human Race · Half-Elf. Half-Elf Research Progress
1】
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