021. Nala's Payments to Zhen

A blackened path of blood mixed with dirt was created by the corpses dragged from the middle of the road. 

All the corpses were dragged to the back of Nala's bar while some people picked up weapons and collected them in a large cart. 

"How often does this happen?" asked Zhen who was observing the surroundings and watching the townspeople return to their normal activities. 

Nala sat on the ground and tried to catch her breath. "More often than you'd expect."

"Once a week?"

"Haha, not that often."

"Once a month?"

"2 to 3 times a month."

"Wow, that's a lot."

"Indeed."

"And you get extra income from selling the weapons of the dead. Including the townspeople themselves."

"Since it's a territory without any kingdom authority, we have to get our income from wherever we can."

"Fair enough. So, how big is your bathtub?"

"Why do you think I have a bathtub?"

"Come on, even a blind man knows that you're the highest authority in here, some luxuries thing should be there, right?"

Nala chuckled slightly, "It's big enough for you to lie down and drown, and you'd know it anyway considering our contract at the beginning."

"I just wanted to make sure."

The ground that had been glowing purple was no longer emitting light.

 Nala's magic chains also faded and finally became transparent and disappeared, revealing chain-patterned burns wrapped around the skin of the woman who was no longer wearing a top. 

Nala covered her breasts with both hands then looked at Zhen while smiling awkwardly. 

"Scar on women are something to be ashamed of, aren't they? Hehe."

Zhen averted his gaze casually. "Not really. A scar indicates that the person is a warrior. Which means a brave and tough person. I don't hate brave and tough person."

Nala only smiled faintly. "What a flirt." 

The shirtless woman began to stand up slowly and ordered her workers to bring her clothes.

Meanwhile, Zhen glanced at Nala's burnt skin while thinking about the abyss magic Nala was using. 

'Abyss magic is a risky magic that ignores all the rules of traditional magic. It's nothing new, but generally abyss magic is divided into 2 categories; long-duration passive magic, and instant fatal magic used to attack.

However, this woman, she used attack-type abyss magic for a long duration, plus she used it not just as a weapon, but an extension of her own body that could be manipulated at will.'

Nala looked at Zhen who continued to watch her body and only smiled faintly with a friendly face. 

"Ara... Ara... Are you starting to fall for me?" asked Nala slightly teasing the elf. 

Zhen just smiled, "It's possible that your abyss magic is not limited to physical chains but heart chains also. And you just chained my heart"

"Ara... You're such a smooth talker."

"Haha, with a woman as beautiful as you are, anyone would be a smooth talker."

"You should have adding more terms at the contract."

"Haha, it's possible."

Nala's waitresses arrived with clothes and a bottle of beer. Nala quickly gave directions on what to do with all the mess. 

Zhen, on the other hand, was still deep in his own thought.

'The kingdom of Eleindal that rejects the existence of heroes from other worlds, a prodigy that can surpassed heroes, and the chrono academy that i never heard before and yet managed to creates a new type of abyss magic. This era is developing faster than I expected.' Zhen thought as he looked blankly ahead.

"Mister elf," rebuked Nala who brought Zhen back to reality. 

"Just call me Zhen." Zhen replied as he turned to face Nala.

"About what Skar said before," said Nala as she lowered her head. 

Zhen once again turned his gaze away with a sigh. "Client's personal matter is none of my business. I kill, you pay. That's it. I'm not interested in your personal problems."

Nala raised her head and smiled. "Thank you."

"Mr. Zhen! This girl is still alive even though she seems to have lost a lot of blood," Zaltar shouted making Zhen and Nala focus on the waitress lying on a pool of blood. 

"Ara... I almost forgot. Mister Zhen, can you heal that girl?" asked Nala a little anxiously. 

"But that's will be a different payment." Zhen replied casually.

"I'll make her pay later, just relax."

"As long as there's payment, I don't think there's a problem."

"Mister Zhen! She's dying!" shouted Zaltar in panic and Zhen's wolf barked while walking in circles. 

"Yes... Yes... I'm coming -"

Zhen fell silent when he saw Alice's face. His eyes widened as if he saw a ghost. Alice's facial features and hair were exactly like someone he recognized.

"Ashia?" muttered Zhen.

"Her name is Alice," Nala said, walking up to Zhen. "Who's Ashia?"

Zhen shook his head slightly and regained his senses.

"Nothing, just someone from the past," Zhen replied quickly and healed Alice with level 3 [ Healing magic ].

All of Alice's wounds were covered, the burns disappeared, but did not replace the blood that had flowed out. 

"You didn't heal her completely," Nala said.

Zhen stood up straight with a slight smile. "This is enough."

"But, she's just a waitress, her life could be in danger."

Zhen laughed, "Hahaha, turning a knight into a maid. It's very funny."

Nala shocked for a moment then smiled slightly. "How did you know?"

"Hahahaha, I don't know how you forced her but her face must been very cute when she first showed it to the people."

"I know, right?" Nala responded with a thin smile. 

Zhen turned around and walked towards Nala's bar.

"Where are you going?" asked Nala, watching Zhen walk past her. 

"To the bathtub, your building is that bar, right?" Zhen replied casually. 

Nala couldn't help but sigh at the response, "People with great sense can be troublesome sometimes."

Zhen smiled widely while chuckling slightly, "Thanks for the compliment."

"It's not a compliment," Nala replied with a smile. 

-----------------------------------------

The 5 square meter room was filled with hot steam. The walls were made of quality wood with a relaxing scent and the floor was a collection of neatly arranged pebbles.

When Nala said she had a big bathtub, it wasn't an exaggerated sentence because Zhen was lying at the bottom of the bathtub filled with warm water. 

Zhen closed his eyes and let his body relax peacefully. 

The journey after killing heroes had left him exhausted and a warm bath was exactly what he needed right now. 

"Mister Zhen, I put the clean clothes on the table beside the door," Nala said, causing Zhen to raise his head above the surface. 

"Yes, thank you." Zhen replied quickly and leaned against the large bathtub. 

"I didn't expect to see a descendant of Ashia. It's been so long since I last saw that face." Zhen smiled as he exhaled. "Well... After all, I'm the first hero, of course time feels so long."