"No, I mind, I really mind!"

Ronald decisively refused the young girl's request, not even intending to listen to what she had to say next.

In contrast, the young girl stood elegantly on the beach.

When she asked this question, her expression was still quite confident.

Because the girl knew what kind of benefits her appearance would bring in front of men, and she didn't mind using this advantage to help herself.

And such confidence met with Ronald's current refusal.

The most direct reaction was the disbelief on the young girl's slightly immature face:

"Mind...mind?"

Mumbling a few words softly, the girl quickly regained her composure, ready to negotiate seriously with Ronald:

"Sir, I think we can still discuss this. Look at me..."

"You look at me first!" Ronald directly interrupted her attempt to negotiate, turning his head to point at the city beside him. "I've come to this city with only a week to fully relax. So—I think any lady wouldn't steal someone else's rare, precious, once-in-a-lifetime vacation time, right?"

"..."

"Huh?"

The girl was dumbfounded by Ronald's barrage of adjectives.

She stood there in a daze, her mind seemingly unable to process the scene before her.

Watching the girl's reaction,

Ronald walked over and gently patted her shoulder:

"Anyway, I'm going to head into the city now."

"If you run into any trouble, you can seek help from the Neeks officials. Although you might not receive fair treatment, as a Caster, your safety should not be an issue."

Leaving this last piece of advice, Ronald turned and walked toward the city.

He certainly wasn't joking with the young girl.

Now that the ships from Greed and Ente rolled have reunited, Ronald could boldly predict about the upcoming long journey—his good days were numbered.

If he didn't seize the chance to rest well, 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

was he supposed to return to the ships and be pestered by those young people from Ente rolled every day?

Ha—spare him!

...

Thus, Ronald walked steadily towards the city.

After a few seconds of silence, the young girl behind Ronald also quickly started moving to follow him.

The two of them drew closer to the city, one after the other.

This city, apart from some areas with breakwaters, didn't have any obvious defense facilities like walls. Looking into the distance, one could even see the bustling scene at the entrance of the busy canal.

Yet, in the process of continually approaching, when Ronald was about a hundred meters from the city,

his footsteps suddenly halted.

Because Ronald noticed that the girl behind him had stopped a few seconds earlier, and was faintly sobbing.

"Sigh..."

Ronald wasn't some heartless fiend.

So with a sigh, he paused and turned to look at her.

The reason for the girl's reaction was quite obvious.

She had stopped and started sobbing because her clothes were still wet.

Ronald had a spell for protection, so he wasn't affected by the seawater.

But the young girl was different.

While moving rapidly in the water, not only did she gulp seawater, but every piece of clothing she wore was completely soaked. If she entered the city in such a state...

She wasn't even a well-mannered lady.

Even a resident from a primitive village, uneducated since birth, might feel a bit shy.

After all...she's just a kid.

At that moment, Ronald thought of Phil, whom he had left in Kurpis.

Although he was eager to enjoy this precious week of vacation, he wouldn't put a child only a few years younger than Phil in such a situation.

Feeling a wave of compassion, Ronald stepped forward and quietly chanted an incantation:

"The greatest improvement in the productive powers of labor, and the greater skill, dexterity, and judgment with which it is applied, seem to be the effects of division of labor…"

At times like this, the Invisible Hand was the most useful.

Almost as soon as he finished the incantation, the girl's clothes were instantly dried by the power of the spell. Ronald even used the remaining power to straighten her messy hair and wrinkled clothing.

During the whole process.

The expression on the girl's face changed significantly.

She had just been coldly treated by Ronald, yet now was being helped voluntarily by him to dry her clothes and escape the awkward situation.

So much so that, at the moment, even a blind person could see the change in her feelings.

Thus, seeing it all, Ronald promptly doused her with cold water:

"Now let's enter the city."

"But first, let me make it clear: don't expect me to provide any excessive assistance. I'm just an ordinary person who knows a bit of magic."

"..."

This time the girl didn't even speak.

She just nodded lightly like a frightened bird and quickly followed Ronald with small steps.

Then Ronald walked ahead, with the girl following closely behind, her head down.

They seemed as they were when they had just come ashore from the beach, yet something felt different as they continued toward the city.

...

Bringing a young girl naturally slowed Ronald's pace a bit when entering the city.

However, in this world, a young man like Ronald escorting a girl through the streets was not an uncommon sight, so he didn't encounter any trouble.

In this manner, they successfully found an inn in the city.

Not being short on money, Ronald booked a suite and, under the hospitality of the inn staff, entered the room.

Once the door was closed, Ronald took off his coat without saying anything. He simply pulled out a treasured book, found a spot with good lighting in the living room, sat down, and began to read attentively.

During this time, the young girl who had followed them looked a bit apprehensive.

Whether Ronald was taking off his coat, sitting in the chair, or pulling out and reading a book, each action caused small ripples of emotion within her.

Until half an hour later.

When she realized that Ronald was just quietly sitting in his chair reading,

The girl could no longer contain her emotions and walked gently towards Ronald. Coming from behind, her gaze first landed on the book in Ronald's hands as she glanced over his shoulder.

"..."

Her professional education standards immediately allowed the girl to understand the text.

Then, overwhelmed by her tangled emotions, the girl almost instinctively pointed to the book in front of Ronald and asked:

"Huh!"

"Isn't this Moralis's record?"

"I remember this book is considered contraband in Neeks. Where did you get it?"