Witnessing the unbelievable scene, the entire reception hall fell into a stunned silence, as if they couldn’t quite believe what had just transpired.
“Hmph! This is what you get for trying to approach my wives with lecherous intentions,” Yuan declared, his gaze fixed on the unconscious form of Joe, lying just outside the hunter association, blood foaming from his mouth. His eyes radiated disdain.
Anna and the others regarded Yuan with adoration, their hearts swelling with tenderness as they observed his fierce protectiveness. They were touched by how readily he had stepped in to defend them from Joe’s advances.
‘Heheh, as expected of my darling. He won’t let anyone lay a finger on us,’ Grace mused inwardly, her expression filled with pride and affection as she gazed at Yuan.
Meanwhile, the hunters stared at the unconscious Joe in disbelief, lying outside the association building. They hadn’t even registered Yuan’s movements, only witnessing Joe suddenly being sent flying out.
Then they turned their wide-eyed gaze towards Yuan, their disbelief evident. How could this seemingly slender boy dispatch A-rank hunter Joe with such ease?
“Tell me if I’m seeing things or not?! Did that kid really send Joe flying out of the building with a single punch?!”
“Your eyes aren’t playing tricks on you, it’s real. That kid is too fast. I couldn’t even see him move; I just saw Joe get sent flying.”
“Me too. He’s simply too fast for my eyes to keep up with. And look what he did – with a single attack, Joe became unconscious and he even left a permanent mark on his chest as a souvenir to remember his ‘mistake’ for the rest of his life.”
“Hahaha, who would’ve thought that Joe the tyrant would get beaten by a kid because of women.”
“Damn, it turns out that kid is really a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Thank goodness I didn’t make a move on his women, or my current state would be the same as that bastard Joe.”
“The saying ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’ really fits for this kid. I wonder how the hell he got so strong at such a young age. I’m quite curious.”
“I couldn’t agree more… Moreover, now it seems that he wasn’t bragging about slaying the Greater Flame Wolves, since he beat Joe, who is an A-rank hunter, with just a single move.”
“No doubt about it.”
Whispers of the astonished hunters filled the air of the reception hall at the Hunter Association. They still found it hard to believe that a young man had rendered Joe unconscious with a single move.
At this moment, Yuan shifted his attention to the receptionist, who stared at him with an expression of disbelief.
‘D-D-Did he just make Joe fly out of this building with a single punch?! How is this even possible? Clearly, this kid is a C-rank hunter and manaless. How did he do that?’ the receptionist marveled inwardly, struggling to grasp the reality of what had just transpired.
Ignoring the receptionist’s incredulous gaze, Yuan retrieved the 27 Greater Flame Wolf skins, some with attached heads and paws, while others were missing their heads, from his system storage.
“Here are the 27 skins of the Greater Flame Wolves I mentioned. They’re in very good condition, with no wounds or cuts,” Yuan informed the receptionist, brushing off her earlier behavior.
“Those are… aren’t those skins from the Greater Flame Wolves?!”
“Indeed. It seems the kid was telling the truth all along.”
“This is unbelievable! I’ve never seen so many Greater Flame Wolf skins at once. This is truly an eye-opener for me.”
“This kid really made a fortune on his first day in this city.”
Whispers buzzed through the reception hall as the hunters marveled at the sight of so many Greater Flame Wolf skins.
The receptionist stared at Yuan with wide eyes, her face a portrait of astonishment. She was flabbergasted by Yuan’s seemingly miraculous act of producing 27 skins out of thin air, without any discernible mana fluctuations.
‘H-How did he do that? How did he take out those skins from out of nowhere? He doesn’t appear to have any magic pouch. So, how did he do that…what he did is simply absurd!’ the receptionist mused inwardly, still grappling with disbelief.
Not only the receptionist, but everyone within the hall gazed at Yuan in astonishment, unable to fathom how he had accomplished this feat.
“H-H-How did you do that?! How did you pull out the skins from out of nowhere?” the receptionist inquired, her voice trembling, as Yuan’s action seemed nothing short of impossible.
“Why should I reveal my secret to you?” Yuan replied nonchalantly, causing the receptionist’s expression to turn cold.
Anna and the others exchanged concerned glances, puzzled by the sudden change in the receptionist’s demeanor.
“Mr. Yuan, although it’s rather belated to mention this, there are certain rules that every hunter must adhere to,” the receptionist suddenly stated, a hint of disdain in her eyes. She continued, “One of them is that fighting is prohibited within the Hunter Association building. If you have a dispute, it must be settled through an official duel with the approval of the association head.”
‘Now you’ll have to pay a heavy price for getting on my bad side, hmph!’ The receptionist snorted at Yuan inwardly with a cunning smile.
“Oh?” Yuan frowned at the receptionist after hearing her words.
‘This bitch…’ Grace gritted her teeth with frustration at the receptionist’s words and glared at her.
Yuan studied the receptionist for a moment, then he broke into a wide grin and spoke. “In that case, why didn’t you stop that idiot before he approached my wives? You should have been able to intervene before he caused trouble with me, right?”
“You…” The receptionist seethed in frustration, but she knew she was in the wrong, so she chose to keep quiet, sensing the dangerous aura emanating from the women beside Yuan.
“Who told him to mess with me? He got what he deserved,” Yuan stated with an air of nonchalance. He continued, “Furthermore, he should consider himself ‘lucky’ since I only left him unconscious with a few broken ribs. Anyone who’s had similar intentions toward my wives in the past met a much grimmer fate by my hand.”
“If he attempts anything foolish in the future, he should be prepared for a taste of true despair,” Yuan added, his tone laced with cold menace.
‘He’s truly dangerous, despite his young age… It would be wise for me to remain silent,’ the receptionist thought, feeling a shiver run down her spine from Yuan’s icy demeanor.
Seeing the receptionist trembling in fear, Yuan decided to shift the focus back to business. “Now, let’s get down to business. I don’t have time to waste here, shall we?”
“So, how much are you willing to offer for each Greater Flame Wolf skin? I’m aware that their current market price is quite high, given the rarity and difficulty in obtaining such skins,” Yuan inquired, donning a business-like smile.
The receptionist was taken aback by how swiftly Yuan shifted his demeanor.
She carefully inspected the condition of the Greater Flame Wolf skins. After confirming that none of them bore any wounds or cuts, she stated, “Each skin is indeed in impeccable condition, without a scratch or cut, as you claimed. This significantly enhances their rarity.”
“And you’re correct, the present market value for such rare material is considerable, particularly among the noble society,” the receptionist concurred. “As for the price… I can offer you 400 gold coins for each skin, and there are 27 in total. That amounts to… 10,800 gold coins.”
“600 gold coins for each skin is my final offer. Given their outstanding condition, I can’t accept any less,” Yuan countered.
“450 gold coins, I can’t offer more than that.”
“In that case, I’m sorry. I’ll sell them elsewhere.” Yuan swiftly stored the skins into his system storage.
Seeing the skins vanish into thin air, the receptionist panicked. ‘This is bad, I thought he was inexperienced in the market, but if he leaves now, I’ll be in real trouble with the association head.’
“Wait!” The receptionist called out to Yuan. “I’ll give you 500 gold coins for each skin, but I can’t go any higher than that.”
Yuan smiled at this and halted his steps. Turning toward the receptionist, he said, “500 gold coins each, huh? Not a bad offer, Miss. It’s a deal.”
Yuan retrieved the skins from his system storage and placed them on the reception desk.
“It’s been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Yuan. Here’s the 13,500 gold coins. Please check to ensure the amount is correct.” The receptionist handed Yuan a pouch filled with gold coins.
Yuan used his divine sense to confirm the count and found no discrepancies.
“The amount is exactly as you’ve stated, Miss,” Yuan confirmed before storing the pouch in his system storage. He continued, “By the way, may I inquire about where we can collect bounties for criminals? And could you recommend the best inn for us to stay the night?”
“It’s good to know there are no issues with the amount,” the receptionist smiled. She continued, “If you wish to claim any bounty rewards, you’ll need to visit the soldier’s camp at the west gate. That’s where you can collect any bounties.”
“I see,” Yuan mused. ‘Looks like we’ll need to collect the bounties tomorrow.’
“As for the inn you asked about, there’s a wonderful one with a reputation for delicious meals not far from here called the ‘Dandelion Inn.’ You’ll find it just a few blocks from here if you go straight,” the receptionist informed them.
“The innkeeper is known for being very friendly and for serving delectable meals. No guest has ever complained about the hospitality of the inn.”
“Dandelion Inn, huh?” Yuan repeated the name, then said, “Thank you for the recommendation, Miss. We’ll take our leave now.” With that, Yuan turned to his wives.
“Now that we’re done here, shall we head to the inn and secure our rooms as soon as possible?”
“Of course,” Anna nodded in agreement. With that, they left the hunter association and headed toward their carriage, which was parked in the association’s lot.