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Chapter 198: I’m a Conscientious Good Boss

After studying the contraption in front of her for a while, Miss Vilyric finally grasped some of its principles.

If I’m not mistaken…

She casually took out a crystal gem and placed it on the square stone marked with【Supply Biscuit】.

“Buzz ~”

The previously calm magic array reacted to the official currency, swiftly engulfing the crystal gem in silvery light, which then vanished. When it reappeared, it transformed into a stack of thick flatbreads wrapped in oily paper, three inches high!

“Just as I thought…”

Now, everything was clear.

There was nothing particularly complex about the mechanism; this magic array was a mid-range space transfer array, divided into two interconnected nodes, one here and the other likely established at the official camp outside the forest.

As long as someone in the forest sent the crystal gem to these supply points, the staff on the other side would place different types of supplies according to the corresponding stone’s position and send them back, completing the transaction. The energy required to activate the transfer was the crystal gem itself, which meant it wouldn’t react to unrelated items.

In this way, the officials cleverly achieved their promise of allowing contestants to use【Crystal Gems】as currency to exchange for supplies, without needing to expend much manpower or resources into the forest. If we’re talking about costs, it should only be the expenditure for building these transfer arrays.

Having finished her experiment, the black-haired girl stood up and glanced at the lush trees in the distance. As the sky grew darker, the forest became dim and it seemed unwise to continue roaming around.

As for this supply point…

There should be plenty of similar devices in the forest, like vending machines, so there’s no need to worry about not finding a place when it’s time to exchange supplies. This idea seemed simple, but coming up with it from scratch and making it operate smoothly certainly wasn’t something that could happen with just a snap of the fingers. It must be an idea provided by Lingyin Fairy Island.

Just when Miss Vilyric was silently pondering and considering her next actions…

Suddenly, a gust of wind rushed in from a distance!

“Smack!”

The girl, as if foreseeing the danger, instantly raised her hand to catch the flying arrow, snapping it in half with a crack, her silvery-blue eyes narrowing slightly.

She tossed the broken arrow aside, but her gaze shifted toward a dense tree crown not far away, where the rustling of branches revealed that the hidden attacker was attempting to flee!

“Hmph, let’s see your magic tool!”

Putting on a show, Miss Vilyric shouted dramatically, swiftly retrieving an oddly shaped weapon from her backpack and hurling it towards the tree crown!

The right-angled, elongated object spun in the air, clearing the thick foliage obscuring her view, and struck the target with a “Yow!” causing it to tumble down to the ground in a heap.

As the weapon hit, it did a big loop in the air and flew back to the black-haired girl’s hand.

It turned out to be a boomerang about the length of an adult’s forearm, seemingly made of wood, but with unsharpened edges. Its size was perfect for a single-handed grip, resembling more of a toy than a weapon.

The black-haired girl stepped forward to the short-haired girl dressed like a ninja, who was now lying motionless on the ground after taking a solid hit. With an expressionless face, she shrugged.

“Get up, stop playing dead. This thing doesn’t kill.”

“Uh… hehehe…”

Hearing Miss Vilyric say that, the girl, looking like a thief or a ninja, opened her eyes with an awkward look and slowly got up, rubbing her sore back, wearing a resentful expression.

“I say, sister, you went a bit too hard, didn’t you? That arrow wasn’t even aimed at you…”

“If it wasn’t like that, you’d be truly lying on the ground, unable to chat with me.”

With a flat expression, the priestess shot back, not dropping her guard around this unknown person. She tossed the goofy, harmless prank tool, the “boomerang,” in her hand.

“Now, tell me, what were you trying to do just now?”

This girl had actually arrived at the supply point before Miss Vilyric; upon her initial arrival, the priestess had already spotted her hiding in the tree crown but chose not to disclose that. She pretended to experiment with the supply point’s functionality to see what intentions the girl had.

If the girl was just passing by, the priestess wouldn’t bother with her, but if she was up to no good, she would inevitably make a move.

And indeed, she didn’t just stay put.

The thief girl’s agile little eyes darted around, and she smiled nervously as she explained.

“A misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding! I was just playing around…”

“Hmm?”

Seeing the black-haired girl glare at her while raising that unreasonable “magic tool”, the thief girl’s body trembled slightly, and she quickly put her hands up in a gesture of surrender, shouting loudly for her to stop.

“Don’t, don’t! Let’s talk it out, sister! No need to fight! Alright, alright, I actually just wanted the supplies you exchanged; I thought scaring you away with an arrow would let me grab them, but I really didn’t intend to hurt you…”

Noticing the girl’s voice faltering and her gaze sidelong with a hint of guilt, Miss Vilyric nodded.

She didn’t seem to be lying.

Stealing and tricking, sure, but not something that would involve murder or robbery, which seemed to match her overall vibe.

“What’s your name?”

Though disinclined to answer, the thief girl felt pressured by the priestess’s “magic tool” and could only sullenly reply.

“Le Qiao Qiao…”

After sizing her up again, Miss Vilyric took out those supply biscuits issued by the officials when she entered the forest, which she hadn’t touched yet, and waved them in front of the girl.

Le Qiao Qiao’s eyes lit up instantly, and some drool unconsciously dripped from the corner of her mouth.

Watching her with that greedy look, the priestess couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Are you really that hungry? It’s only been three to four hours since the competition started, right? What happened to the food issued by the officials?”

Staring intently at those hard, dry biscuits like they were some gourmet dish, the thief girl wiped her drool and admitted honestly.

“I finished it all ages ago… That little amount wasn’t even enough to fill my teeth, but I didn’t want to trade my crystal gems for food on the first day, so I just hung around the supply point, hoping to snag something…”

“Hmm.”

Observing the girl’s demeanor, which still lacked any pretense, the priestess pondered for a moment before speaking up.

“Le Qiao Qiao, would you be interested in accepting my employment?”

“Eh?”

The thief girl froze for a moment, her gluttonous expression fading somewhat in surprise.

She had thought that even if the other party didn’t kick her out of the competition, at the very least, they would take away the few meager crystal gems, but she never expected to hear such a strange term in this situation.

“Employment means… what does that mean?”

“Very simple.”

Miss Vilyric held up five fingers.

“For the next five days during the competition, I’ll provide you with plenty of food and supplies to ensure you’re well-fed and hydrated, but in return, you’ll have to stick by my side, completely comply with my commands, or in other words, work for me. How does that sound?”

“Oh…”

Le Qiao Qiao finally understood.

“So, you mean to be the boss and have me work for you, right? Sure, I’ve done that kind of thing plenty of times before. But let me be clear, I have quite the demands, and if I can’t eat enough, I might take off anytime.”

Tossing the stack of supply biscuits toward her, Le Qiao Qiao hurriedly caught them, and Miss Vilyric nodded, a barely noticeable smile creeping onto her lips.

“Don’t worry, I’m a conscientious good boss. Everyone who has worked for me praises me to the skies ~”