Chapter 5: First Meeting

Knock! Knock!

The door creaked open, and Inam felt strangely nervous. Most of the Tiacauh were generally brawny and simple-minded individuals.

Garde was different.

Among the Tiacauh, Garde was the only one she considered well-read. Despite not having received formal education, when she conversed with Garde, she felt like she was back in her school days, facing her teacher. Garde was roughly the same age as her.

'I hope these Colombians don't provoke him' she silently prayed. Garde was rational during conversations, but he could be utterly wild during combat.

Inam turned her gaze to the white-haired woman behind her. She was significantly taller and stronger than an ordinary girl, wielding what appeared to be a shield but was more like a staff, complete with a dragon horn symbolizing the Vouivre race. This gave the impression of a robust figure.

The Vouivre were one of the strongest races on this continent. Even the fierce and skilled Adakris appeared slightly inferior when faced with a Vouivre.

While Inam felt anxious, the door squeaked open.

With a height of almost two meters, the figure practically touched the door frame. What was more impressive than the height was the sheer bulk of muscles covering the person's body. This person's body was akin to a gnarled tree root, knotted and hard like steel.

Compared to the person at the door, Inam, who was petite, seemed like a child. Holding a pair of chopsticks and munching on something, the crocodile-headed person leaned out.

"Inam?"

"Garde, I brought the books you requested the last time," Inam stammered, handing over a package containing several books, including titles like "The Art of Woodcarving," "Colombian Fashion Magazine," and "Leather Crafting from Novice to Master."

Seeing the package, the crocodile-headed man broke into a joyful smile. "Oh, thank you so much, Inam. I was just thinking about asking you when you'd have time to bring them, but you've brought them already."

The crocodile-headed man reached into his room and rummaged around, producing a large golden nugget which he handed to Inam.

A trade-off between services. "You don't have to give me this much..."

Inam was tempted to stuff the gold nugget into her pocket, driven by her merchant instincts. However, she knew how to make the right choice.

"Next time, I'll bring you more books that interest you."

Hearing Inam's words, Garde nodded in satisfaction, then turned his attention to the people behind her.

"Inam, who are they?"

They were visibly different from the ordinary Tiacauh people, in terms of both clothing and race.

After a brief glance at Inam and the group behind her, Garde raised an eyebrow and pulled her behind him.

There were a total of thirty-four people, with five of them having little to no combat capability, and the remaining twenty-nine were equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and gear. In case of a fight, the best option would be to force them into chaos.

Garde observed the distance between himself and the survey team. Although he wasn't particularly fast, charging into the crowd should be feasible in the first moment.

Most importantly, this group seemed quite weak.

Garde casually looked at one of the members of the survey team, and their status panel changed to another person's information.

#======#

Character: Sonis

Codename: Gray Stone

Gender: Male

Combat Experience: Three years

Birthday: May 16th

Race: Pero

Height: 178cm

Oripathy Status: Non-infected

Physical Strength: Standard

Battlefield Mobility: Standard

Physiological Endurance: Excellent

Tactical Planning: Average

Battle Skills: Standard

Originium Arts Adaptation: Ordinary

Evaluation: A seasoned Rhine Lab security personnel, with average strength.

#======#

Since birth, Garde could not only see his own six-dimensional attributes but also those of others. These attributes ranged from Deficient, Ordinary, Standard, Excellent, to Outstanding.

Ordinary meant exactly what it implied, the level of an average person. Through training, an ordinary person's attributes could reach the standard required to become a soldier. To be considered excellent, a bit of talent was needed.

Therefore, under normal circumstances, if a single attribute reached the Excellent level, it could be called a veteran. If two attributes reached the Excellent level, it could be considered elite no matter where they were placed.

Of course, many factors influenced the outcome of a battle, and attributes could only serve as a basic reference. Even those with the same evaluation could have significant variations.

Among the group, Garde only cared about the woman at the front of the team.

#======#

Character: Saria

Codename: Saria

Gender: Female

Combat Experience: Two years

Birthday: April 23rd

Race: Vouivre

Height: 174cm

Upper Chest Circumference:

Lower Chest Circumference:

Waist Circumference:

Hip Circumference:

Oripathy Status: Non-infected

Physical Strength: Excellent

Battlefield Mobility: Standard

Physiological Endurance: Excellent

Tactical Planning: Excellent

Battle Skills: Excellent

Originium Arts Adaptation: Outstanding

Evaluation: Director of Rhine Lab Defense Department, with remarkable strength.

#======#

At the doorstep, Garde and Saria locked eyes, Garde remained expressionless, appearing as though he were wary of some impending threat.

Sensing the tense atmosphere, Inam, who had already been pulled behind Garde, hastened to explain, "Garde, they are not enemies. They just want to make a trade with you."

"Trade?"

Garde looked at Saria and raised his crocodile-like chin. "Come in."

Garde spoke in Colombian, surprising the survey team with a sudden switch from his rugged appearance to his native language. They began to buzz with curiosity.

"You can speak Colombian?"

Even Saria, who stood at the forefront, gazed at Garde with an uncertain expression.

For this mission, they had even prepared linguists proficient in various Sargon dialects.

However, when they finally found the person they were looking for, they realized that he could speak their language!?

Garde said, "It's not a difficult language to learn. Once you've learned Victorian, you have basically learned Colombian.."

Apart from Colombian, he even knew the dialects of Agor. learning Colombian was not a significant challenge.

Garde went into his room to tidy up a bit. The room was small, and it couldn't accommodate all of them.

After a brief discussion, the survey team selected Saria, who served as the security team leader, and a Caprini scholar to join Garde in conversation. Inam acted as a witness.

After their introductions, Saria, responsible for both security and public relations, got straight to the point. "Mr. Garde, this expedition is a business operation led by Colombian authorities."

"We heard that you had entered the so-called Forbidden Land, the Foehn Hotland, and retrieved a potion capable of curing Oripathy. So, I hope you can act as our guide and take us into the Foehn Hotland once again. I believe our compensation won't disappoint you."

To be honest, Saria had initially doubted whether Garde had truly entered the Foehn Hotland. However, upon meeting him in person, her doubts vanished.

On the surface, Garde appeared fierce, but from the perspective of dealing with people and things, he didn't seem like a brute. Especially when they entered Garde's room, the books and notes neatly arranged on the bookshelves made her realize that this almost entirely atavistic Adaklis ancestor possessed a level of intelligence not inferior to them.

"The Foehn Hotland?"

Upon hearing Saria's words, Garde finally understood why they had come.

Garde shook his head repeatedly. "No, you might have it wrong. I wouldn't dare enter that forbidden land. Even the Khagan, the conqueror of the grasslands, leading the formidable Nightzmoran Legion, disappeared there. How could I have entered and come out alive?"

Garde was a master at lying, his eyes didn't even blink as he fabricated the story. The Foehn Hotland was no amusement park, and he had almost died there the last time. There was no way he'd go there a second time.

"Is that so? I thought that the person in this picture was you, Mr. Garde."

Saria took out a photo from her pocket, which appeared to be taken with a drone. Due to the strong winds and sandstorms, only a blurry figure could be seen.

However, from the various contours of this figure, Garde's shape could be faintly discerned.

In the midst of the sandstorm, the colossal figure of the crocodile-man, like a demigod, emerged from the far end of the hotlands. He tightly grasped a bottle of azure potion.

Garde's eyelids twitched when he saw this photo. He wiped away a tear that appeared on his face.

"Since you've found the photo, I won't hide it anymore," Garde sighed, his gaze dimming.

"Truth be told, the person in the photo isn't me, but my father!"

"Your father!?"

Saria and the Colombian scholar looked at Garde, then back at the photo, wearing expressions of disbelief.

"Yes, that's my father!"

Garde looked at Saria and the Colombian scholar with a tone of sorrow.

"Think about it. Four years ago, I was only fourteen. How could I have dared to enter the Foehn Hotland alone?"

"It was my father who bravely ventured into that land of death to retrieve the medicine that could cure my seriously ill mother."

"And, after leaving the Foehn Hotland, my father died from severe injuries. Half a year later, my mother followed him."

At this moment, Garde, who weighed over three hundred pounds, cried like a child.

"I only regret that I was too young at the time to help my father. Otherwise, he wouldn't have suffered such severe injuries or died."

"Don't be deceived by my appearance. In fact, I don't like violence at all."

"The biggest wish in my life is to become a scholar!"

Garde wiped the corner of his eye and looked at Saria and the Colombian scholar, earnestly asking, "Ms. Saria, Mr. Palvis, I want to ask, does Colombian universities accept foreign students like me?"

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