New Century Warriors

Chapter 19. Laoya

"Oh my god, isn't that Loya?!"

An unexpected person appeared in an unexpected place.

Lei Ye had a very subtle feeling, like a wife caught cheating by her husband. Although he was neither husband nor wife, it was still very subtle. He tried to break free from Ye Lei's embrace, but he couldn't.

"Just a little longer, it'll be over soon." Ye Lei rubbed her face against his chest.

In this position, Raino had to look Loya in the eye; she was smiling, an awkward smile.

Lei Ye was also embarrassed, and he could only mutter a complaint under his breath.

"There are still guests."

"Oh, it's alright. It's Loya, she's not a stranger."

Why do you talk like you're very familiar with Loya?

They really seemed very familiar with each other. When Raino saw Venus suddenly change her posture, she resembled a maid who, though not dressed as a maid, was extremely elegant, and kindly served Loya a cup of tea.

"Please have some tea."

His familiar attitude was as if Loya were a frequent guest at his home.

Lei Ye was momentarily confused about his relationship with Luo Ya on Line 2.

He had a rather good impression of Luo Ya from Line 2. Although she was soft and gentle, she was still better than arrogant and conceited. Moreover, she now had Da Lei, whose stats were not bad. It was no surprise that Lei Ye from Line 2 was willing to get along with her.

But when Lei Ye thought about the scene of the severed hand, he felt a strange sense of unease that Luo Ya and Ye Lei could get along so well.

"Sir, are you shy? But your reputation as a foolish couple has spread throughout Hillius."

Venus teased Lei Ye and Ye Lei in a low voice as she served them tea.

When Ye Lei heard the words "idiot couple," she didn't argue; in fact, she seemed quite pleased.

She finally let go, ending the overly long hug, and turned to look at Loya.

"My mood suddenly improved, so I'll give you a 50% discount."

"Really? Thank you so much!"

Lei Ye stood to the side, completely bewildered, but dared not ask any more questions.

The two exchanged money and goods. Luo Ya presented a small gold coin with both hands, and Ye Lei handed her a storage bag.

The two shook hands, thus completing this mysterious transaction ceremony.

"Are storage bags this cheap now?" Raino exclaimed in surprise.

On Line 1, storage bags were expensive necessities for explorers, much like a house or car for modern people. You could live without them, but it would be very uncomfortable, so they were priced particularly high.

When Lei Ye bought his first storage bag, he almost went broke, but he still felt it was worth it.

He didn't expect the storage bags to be so cheap in the new season.

"Of course it's just a temporary loan. How could we sell our limited edition storage bags so easily? Besides, Miss Loya can't afford them. She wants the old clothes inside. As you know, Miss Loya has always been a kind person. Every winter she collects our old clothes and gives them to children from poor families. She doesn't even ask us to pay for taking the clothes to the laundry; she pays for it herself."

Oh, it's not a storage bag.

Wait, what do you think Loya is going to do?

"Loya, you..."

Lei Ye opened his mouth, then turned to look at his old elf teammate in disbelief.

That's so touching.

Loya on Line 1 is actually quite selfish. To put it kindly, she reserved all her kindness for her teammates. To put it bluntly, she doesn't even look at anyone outside her teammates and almost never lends a helping hand to those in need.

Why can't Raino save money? Is it really because Mori no Kawa pays him a particularly low salary?

It was because he couldn't help but offer help to victims like Tata. He wasn't exactly a philanthropist; he could pretend not to see suffering unless it happened to someone close to him. But Hillius was the frontline city of the Frey Empire, surrounded by monsters, and there was always the possibility of alien invasions. He often witnessed disasters in such a place, and his heart wasn't hard enough to resist helping those who suddenly found themselves in trouble.

Of course, he used his own money, and for this reason, the economic gap between him and his teammates widened.

On Line 2, Loya became the impoverished person.

Now it makes sense. Lei Ye hadn't understood it yesterday. Even if Luo Ya was a lowly A-rank mage, why was she so poor that she couldn't even afford meat? It turns out that Luo Ya, who wasn't in a team with him, spent her money on things like this.

Okay, that's great.

"Can I see my old clothes?" Raino asked.

Loya tilted her head blankly. "What?"

"It's nothing, I'm just taking a look."

Although she didn't understand why, Loya still handed over the storage bag full of old clothes.

"Thanks."

"I really miss those days," Lei Ye thought to himself.

Here's a question: After you get a new cup, what do you do with the old one?

Lei Ye put the old one away... no, he donated the old one to the children in the mountains.

He remembered it clearly. He was probably in high school at the time, and his family was quite strict. The safest place Lei Ye could think of was his worn-out down jacket that he had never worn again. It had deep and large pockets, which were perfect for hiding things that he didn't want his family to find.

But one day when he returned home, he found that all his old clothes were gone. He asked around and found out that a large truck that was collecting old clothes for children in mountainous areas had come that afternoon. His mother, being kind, had donated all the old clothes in the house without asking for any money.

What else could he do? Lei Ye was in great pain during that time. His first love was sent to the mountains by her parents, which was one thing, but he really couldn't imagine the harm he had caused to the children in the mountains. He was truly sorry and it really wasn't intentional.

After that, Lei Ye rarely hid things in his old clothes anymore. However, he still had the habit of checking his pockets before putting away out-of-season clothes, and occasionally he would find some small change or things like headphones that he could never find.

"It doesn't seem to make any sense..."

Thinking of this, Lei Ye smiled bitterly. These were all Lei Ye's clothes from Line 2. Why was he making such a fuss?

However, since he already had it in his hands, he still took a look at it.

Most of the clothes were rather unfashionable, similar to what Ye Lei was wearing now. However, Lei Ye also noticed some particularly girly dresses, with pink skirts and sexy tulle. Lei Ye was momentarily dazed. He could imagine Ye Lei wearing these and being intimate with her in the room. That must be... sexy and cute.

Just as Lei Ye had predicted about his female fans, they were all very good at hiding their true identities. This giant octopus female fan was indeed very good at hiding her identity, pretending to be such a cute girl next to him for five years.

Lei Ye didn't own many clothes, which he had already guessed. He didn't really like buying new clothes. If he found a piece of clothing that he was comfortable wearing, he would alternate it with another similar piece and wear it until it was out of season or broke.

There was even a sock section in one corner of the storage bag.

Speaking of this other world, the heavy industry here isn't very good, but the light industry is quite something, with all sorts of stockings available.

White, black, yin-yang, flesh, cotton, silk—it's dazzling.

When it comes to socks, the first thing to look at is the white stockings, because that's where you can more easily tell their quality. Why look at the quality? Because if the quality is poor, it means they were just for fun or disposable, and they won't absorb the scent well enough. But if the quality is good, it means they're probably socks that you'll wear out, and the longer they're used, the stronger the scent will be. Also, you can clearly see stains on the white stockings. Raino has always scoffed at the white stockings in online pictures because they're too clean. True connoisseurs crave a touch of everyday life, like a few specks of dirt on the soles of the white stockings. That's like wasabi to sushi—a detail that only a connoisseur can appreciate.

Then some people might ask, "Teacher Lei, what's the use of your judgment?"

Nonsense, after confirming food safety, let the chef continue serving the dishes. After seeing the white, you'll see the black.

Lei Ye couldn't help but recall the scene when he confronted Ye Lei. The key to discovering Ye Lei's fake identity was that the scent system for the feet was not done properly when she created the character.

She on Line 2 has made so much progress.

He carefully examined the socks, then turned to look at the little leather boots on Ye Lei's feet, and couldn't help but waver. Recalling their first meeting, this person... from the very beginning, she was trying to emulate the perfect beautiful girl in Lei Ye's fantasy novel. Over the past five years, she has filled in more details, becoming more and more realistic, like a precious and dignified beauty.

He found himself irresistibly drawn to her, not because he saw the perfect girl in his mind, but because he saw someone trying to sculpt themselves into his perfect girl, even though that person was a monster.

He realized that such emotions were dangerous, and his hostility towards Ye Lei lessened. He shook his head and stopped thinking about these things.

"I... I should wash it." Raino tried to put the storage bag into his pocket.

I'm secretly keeping a pair of socks for my research on the giant octopus; hopefully, no one will find out...

Ye Lei smiled at Lei Ye without saying anything, but Luo Ya reacted extremely, almost jumping up and lunging at him, "No way!"

"Um?"

The loud shout startled Lei Ye, who stood frozen in place as Luo Ya snatched the storage bag back from his hand with a snap.

Realizing she had lost her composure, Loya turned her head away.

"You two have already taken such good care of me. Look, Miss Ye Lei is repairing my staff for free. How could I let you pay for the laundry?"

"But it's not cheap to have the laundry room wash so many at once, right? I'm doing it for free," Lei Ye replied instinctively.

Not only are there strange services in the Red Light District, but there are also succubi who provide laundry services. After fighting various monsters, the guild's explorers' armor and clothes may be stained with various slimes, bloodstains, or even poison. The explorers are already very tired after taking a job and returning to the day-rental inn. They don't have time to do laundry, so they ask the succubi in the Red Light District to help them.

However, when Lei Ye went to the bathroom last night, he saw a large magical artifact next to the toilet that he had never seen before on Line 1. It was the first time he had ever seen such a thing, but he knew at a glance that it was a washing machine.

Putting himself in Lei Ye's shoes, for the sake of those laundry succubi's survival, he probably didn't treat the washing machine as a commodity, but only used it himself. However, if he was just trying to save his old friend Luo Ya some money, it shouldn't be a big problem.

"It's okay, it's okay..." Loya murmured, shaking her head.

Ugh, that pinched sound, that turtle-like cowardly manner of speaking and behaving, it's so weird it's almost disgusting.

Well, Lei Ye lost the desire to help her. She didn't want to save the money herself, so let her be.

It's just a pity about the socks.

"Oh, right," Ye Lei, who had been watching the show, suddenly spoke up, "I have some unwanted underwear here, do you want to recycle it?"

"This, this is a bit..."

"He mostly wore his old clothes, so I bought him a lot of new ones from the capital, so he doesn't plan to keep the old ones."

"want."

"Thank you for your hospitality! Here's a large gold coin for you."

"Huh?" The first part was a rapid-fire question and answer, and this last sound was from Lei Ye.

He finally realized that something was wrong.

Used clothes are one thing, but what kind of underwear can sell for so much money?

A large gold coin... When Lei Ye saw Loya at the guild tavern yesterday, he thought she was in dire straits, unable to even afford meat. How could she still afford to do charity with so much money?

"Okay," Loya hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "I understand. Can I pay in installments this time? I've taken on a part-time job as a civil engineer, so I won't be in arrears for too long."

"no problem."

What the hell is this "civil engineer" thing?! Did Loya, who can't stand any hardship, end up carrying bricks?!

Is this the reason why you, on Line 2, gained the power of melee combat?

As Lei Ye watched Luo Ya happily accept another storage bag, he found it increasingly difficult to contain himself. He suddenly felt that Luo Ya on Line 2 might not be as good as Luo Ya on Line 1.

It's strange that someone would buy his underwear at such a high price.

Why?

...It's better not to ask. Ye Lei's smile was so cunning; it seemed this wasn't the first time this had happened.

Let's just pretend we're used to it, like everyone else.

Hillius is a magical land where extraordinary people gather. Lei Ye always forgets this underlying logic. On the surface, Loya seems to have improved, but she is definitely brewing an even bigger disaster elsewhere.

Just then, in his daze...

(Emergency broadcast! Evil invasion! Emergency broadcast! Evil invasion!)

(All explorers of Sylphias, upon hearing this announcement, please immediately assemble your teams, fully armed, and gather at the main entrance of the guild!)

The two lines that suddenly rang out were the mechanical female voice that Lei Ye had heard in the guild, extremely loud, echoing in the sky above Hillius.

Then came a burst of electrical noise, followed by the sound of staff members.

(All explorers, please be prepared this time, the vile form is here! Wow, she's super angry, super angry!)

Are you angry?

Why?

Loya's expression suddenly turned serious. She looked at Ye Lei, who tacitly handed the repaired staff to Loya.

"There's an emergency; I have to go into battle."

"Okay, it's up to you now. Good luck!"

Lei Ye instinctively wanted to follow Luo Ya as she walked out, but Ye Lei grabbed his arm.

"Where are you going?"

"The broadcast didn't say..."

"What's it to you? You want to watch the show again? Go back to your bed! I'll call you when it's time to eat."

Oh, right.

He's Boss Lei now, not Lei Ye from the Forest River anymore. As an ordinary citizen, when faced with such an emergency, he should lock his doors and windows, retreat into his quarters, and accept the guild's protection, instead of acting like a fool and rushing over to join the fun.

Damn it, the underlying code of Dongbairen is starting to exert its power. I really want to go and watch the battle. He is really curious about what the other evil one looks like.

Of course, he also genuinely wanted to contribute to protecting the city. After all, he was now very strong, and the enemy was a special boss. Having one more person with his fighting ability could reduce the number of wounded or even dead.

However, judging from the use of "this time" in the broadcast and Ye Lei's use of "again," emergency broadcasts like this seem to occur frequently. Perhaps we can trust the explorers of Hillius...

"Oh, right, Loya—"

Ye Lei suddenly stood up, opened the window, and shouted outside.

"I'm planning to use your money to go on a date with my sweetheart in a few days. Do you want to come along?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end.

Lei Ye heard a pathetic response from someone who had suffered a loss.

"good--"