Chapter 45-employment relationship

"Yes." The name Melody—mentally transforming into something reminiscent of a dessert for Frank—made his expression appear quite surprised. "I shouldn't have known your name at this moment. Uh... this is really bad."

Perhaps it was the unique accent of the elves, but whenever this woman got nervous, nasal suffixes started popping up at the end of her sentences, making Frank's nostrils feel ticklish.

Frank naturally entered a highly vigilant state and quickly asked in his mind, "Vicky, can Tiffany defeat her?"

"The opponent is an experienced elven adventurer, with combat professions including Elven Swordsman and Elven Mage. They have a significant attribute advantage, and the chance of winning in a direct confrontation is no more than 0.1%. However, sacrificing Tiffany to delay and protect your escape increases the success rate to over 40%."

Don't say I can't make the impossible choice.

Frank assessed the power gap between the two sides and decided to soften his stance, smiling as he said, "Miss Flamewaltz, I've heard that fire spirits are candid and passionate beings, not adept at lies and deceit. Today's encounter seems to confirm that."

Melody played with the fiery strands of hair dangling by her ears, straightening her slightly curly and shiny hair around her fingertips. After some thought, she said somewhat impatiently, "Ah, I really hate jobs that require lying. Handsome, let's be clear. I'm in urgent need of money."

"Uh... how desperate are you?" Frank immediately realized that a money-loving target was the best to win over—just offer more money.

"I owe the casino this much." She raised two fingers. "I have three days to raise the funds and pay off the debt. Ha ha, even though the enforcers there can't do anything to me if I don't pay, I'm still a noble, and nobles have to keep their word. I had no choice but to come to the Adventurer's Guild to see if there are any high-paying yet neglected tasks."

Frank asked amiably, "So, is the task directly related to me?"

"Yeah, but I need to keep the details of the mission confidential. I can only say that's why I approached you." Melody sighed, resting her cheek in her hand as she crossed her legs and lightly kicked her feet. "Handsome, your brain isn't as excellent as your face. If only it were."

No, no, I've never been praised like this before. Frank's face started to flush a bit.

Tiffany hastily swallowed the drink in her mouth and spoke with a sense of urgency, "What conspiracy do you have against my master? If you don't explain, I'll be angry."

Melody waved her hand without even looking at her. "I'm talking to your master. Slaves shouldn't interrupt."

"You're clearly planning something against my master! A slave must sacrifice everything to protect their master!" Tiffany stood up, her slender arms hanging down, tightly gripping the wooden stool.

Melody sighed. "If I really wanted to harm Frank, with his terrible abilities, he'd be dead by now."

As she spoke, the red-haired elven woman suddenly drew the elven rapier from her waist.

Unlike the long conical structure of the stabbing swords used by other races, the preferred weapon of Elven Swordsmen did not forsake chopping and cutting functions. It was more like a narrow double-edged sword with a thickened spine to enhance piercing power.

This type of weapon, classified as an Elven Rapier, had far less armor-piercing ability than a pure stabbing sword, but it excelled in resilience and flexibility, perfectly aligning with the elegant and swift combat principles of the elves.

As soon as the weapon was drawn, Tiffany exclaimed and stood in front of Frank, arms outstretched.

Melody didn't do anything except give the sword a little shake before sheathed it again, still sitting with her legs crossed.

But Frank, who had been watching the movements of this fire spirit closely, was sure he had seen a lightning-fast sword move—Tiffany hadn't even had time to block his view.

He pulled Tiffany behind him, about to ask what had just happened, when he saw a piece of wood from the simple bowl Tiffany had drunk from earlier fall off, shaped like a flame.

Melody smirked triumphantly. "See, didn't I prove I'm not just trying to scare you?"

"Melody," Frank cleared his throat nervously, subtly shifting his chair back, ready to flee at any moment, "what exactly do you intend to do by approaching me?"

"I said it before, to be your bodyguard. I heard you're wealthy, and being your bodyguard would help me pay off my debt."

Tsk, this pattern of showing off force before collecting protection fees felt oddly familiar, like first planting a virus and then offering antivirus software solutions.

"Well... if it's 20 gold coins, I might not be able to help you..." "Wait a minute!" Melody widened her eyes, her red pupils filled with astonishment. "Who told you it was 20 gold coins?"

Frank was equally surprised, recalling the glorious image of countless veterans of the gambling addiction support group. "How much did you gamble? 200 gold coins?"

Melody blinked and once again raised the same fingers as before. "Two. I owe two gold coins." Huh? Two gold coins? 460 local silver coins? You're an upper-class subspecies of the elf race, at least considered nobility, aren't you embarrassed to owe such a gambling debt?

Is the meaning of "nobility" in this world different from what he once understood? How come there are succubus nobles who pick their food and borrow money for the journey home when they're hungry, and fire spirit nobles who dance on the street to earn money after owing two gold coins and need to work hard for it?

Frank almost couldn't resist slapping the gold coins on the table for Melody, all in appreciation of her prominent assets.

"Hey, what's with that expression?" Melody said disapprovingly. "I spent my travel expenses from home in the first month. If I don't borrow money, am I supposed to resort to robbery? I'm a noble fire spirit, I wouldn't do anything to disgrace my family."

Friend, you're wearing a high-slit dance skirt revealing your thighs and a low-cut tight top showing your cleavage, dancing on the street to earn tips, and you lost 2 gold coins in debt at the local casino in this small place. Your family's face must already be covered in shame!

Frank pretended to dig into his pocket and pulled out two gold coins from his pocket, placing them on the table and covering them with his palm. He spoke softly, "So, how long can I hire you for with these two gold coins?"

Melody turned her head and observed the mesmerizing gleam of the gold coins between his palm and the tabletop—legend has it that the color of gold, shining with the purest magical power, established its value in ancient times, captivating countless lives. It wasn't until Frank asked again that she swallowed her saliva and sat up straight, saying, "Are you sure you want to hire me directly with two gold coins?"

"See if your price is reasonable, and you also need to tell me why I need a bodyguard."

"My strength is formidable," Melody took a deep breath, her expression becoming more serious. "How about a month?"

Before Frank could respond, Tiffany couldn't help but jump up and shout, "Earn this much in just twenty days? That's enough to buy over a hundred of me! I don't believe a hundred of me can't beat one of you!"

"Tiffany, sit down. I can't finish my drink. Help me with that," he covered the little slave's mouth and said seriously, "Melody, your price isn't too greedy— at least for someone in debt from gambling. Your offer is quite restrained, so I only have one last question for you. If you can answer it, our employment relationship will be established immediately."

"In the next few days, many adventurers with ill intentions will approach you, trying to investigate information about a goddess," Melody leaned closer to him, scrutinizing him from head to toe. "I can see you're not a priest, and you also have the smell of a mixologist on you. Perhaps my employer has received your favor and is worried you'll come out on the losing end in this investigation."

Sure enough, it was the trouble brought to him by the Moonlight Church believers. He had wanted to say they wouldn't find out about him so quickly, but then he realized that one of the participants in the ritual was a follower of the other side. In this small town, being discovered was easy.

Fortunately, the constraints of the Guardians clearly stated that they must not kill each other over religious differences. The nobles wouldn't allow religious fanatics to cause trouble and tarnish the reputation of their territories. So as long as Frank didn't leave the city area, his life should be safe. The price of Moonlight's Rest included high-quality security guarantees, so he felt he probably didn't need a bodyguard.

But Melody's figure was just too hot.

With her slim waist, long legs, ample chest, and perky buttocks, just recalling the elastic and powerful muscle lines of her body when she performed made him unable to resist fantasizing about the feeling when that naughty part of his body was held tight.

Replacing a simple bodyguard responsible for security with spending money to hire a beautiful woman to accompany him and incidentally take care of security work, those two gold coins suddenly felt extremely valuable.

Moreover, most importantly, Melody's employer wasn't hard to guess.

Currently, Frank had few acquaintances, and someone with such connections to quietly handle things must be the lovely administrator lady from the Adventure Guild.

As an unverifiable person once said, only food and love should not be let down.