Chapter 218 Herb finder
"How can you do that to me? Am I just some object for you to exchange for pleasure?" Kevin wore a teasing smile as he looked at the annoyed Keith brushing her teeth.
In the night, Kevin declined Zaria's proposal, and she reluctantly left. But since then, he'd been emotionally pestering Keith, acting like a bothersome and irritating girlfriend. Early the next morning, after waking her up with a kiss, he continued his annoying behavior, and from the look of her still sleepy and irritated eyes, it seemed Keith had had enough.
"Shut it," she said in a slightly loud tone.
Kevin, still wearing a teasing smile, wrapped his arms around her waist, toothbrush in his mouth, and replied, "Yeah."
As Keith rinsed her mouth and tidied up, she asked, "just curious. Why you turned her down?"
Rinsing his own mouth, Kevin responded, "wasn't in the mood." He felt a bit suspicious about how she knew about his encounter with Viana. It wasn't easy to discern unless someone had an unusual ability, but Kevin wasn't entirely convinced that Keith had figured it out that way. It seemed more like a sense of smell rather than an ability to detect someone's sexual activities.
He was suspicious that she might be spying on them. "Why not? Aren't you always in the mood?" Keith asked, unsettling Kevin's thoughts.
"I just wasn't at that time," Kevin replied, turning to her as she stepped into the shower.
"Well, suit yourself. Let's save water and shower together," Keith suggested, prompting a smile from Kevin. He eagerly joined her in the shower, playfully grabbing her butt. "You know, my dream is to save enough water to make an ocean. Do you have similar dreams?"
Keith chuckled at Kevin's silly joke as she pressed her body against his. "Yeah, something like that."
After their steamy shower, they relished a lengthy make-out session, ironically taking nearly half an hour in their attempt to "save water."
As they strolled into the cafeteria, they found over 30 individuals gathered for a meeting. Out of the group, only ten would be journeying to Chernbogs Den, while the rest were assigned to stay aboard the ship, managing its operations and handling the items procured from Chernbogs Den.
"Oh look, it's the lovebirds," Benny teased, jealousy lacing his tone, drawing everyone's attention to them and causing Keith to blush.
"I'm gonna kill him for sure," Keith muttered through gritted teeth.
"Hey, future-dead man Benny," Kevin greeted with a smirk, taking a seat next to his friend as Benny acknowledged him with a nod.
"Why am I gonna be dead?" Benny asked, confused, until he suddenly felt a tight grip on his shoulder.
Surprised, he looked to see an angry glare from Keith, causing him to gulp nervously, fully aware of the reason for his impending demise.
He chuckled nervously, glancing around as he said, "Oh, Keith, I was just kidding..."
"Do it as much as you can now....You won't be able to soon..." Keith's voice took on a threatening tone.
"Hey, my dear, did you forget about your aunt? Are you that in love with this man?" Suddenly, a sad voice interrupted her threats. Keith blushed even more, turning to her aunt with a flushed face, mumbling, "Aunt, you too..."
Yelena smiled, seeing her niece embarrassed, taking her hand as she said, "I was just teasing you..."
Keith's blushing face remained turned down, still feeling the heat of the moment, while Kevin observed the scene with a smile.
"Good morning, Auntie Yelena," Kevin greeted, breaking into the teasing moment.
Yelena turned towards Kevin, her eyes teasing as ever, and replied, "Good morning to you too, handsome."
Kevin grinned at the playful banter, but Yelena continued, "I heard you were in my niece's room all night?" Her raised eyebrow hinted at a mischievous curiosity.
"aunty!...." Keith blushed even deeper at Yelena's inquiry, and she hastily grabbed her hands, pulling her away from the gathering. Yelena chuckled softly at Keith's flushed face, shooting a quick glance at Kevin before guiding Keith away from the situation.
Kevin smiled, shifting his gaze towards Benny, and his friend just as they turned to face him.
Yelena sighed, glancing at her embarrassed niece as she spoke. "Hey Keith, you can stop now. I won't tease you any further."
Keith, still skeptical but noticing they were nearly out of the cafeteria, halted with a blush on his face.
Yelena sighed once more, muttering to herself, "What am I going to do with this girl?" before continuing aloud. "So, were you two together again last night?"
Keith fumbled for words, his cheeks growing even hotter under Yelena's pointed question. "Aunt Yelena, it's not what you think..."
Yelena raised an amused eyebrow. "Oh, spare me the details."
Keith fell silent when his aunt pressed for details. Sensing her hesitation, Yelena let out another sigh before speaking. "Sweetheart, I don't mind what you do in your relationship, but you should be careful about who knows about it, at least."
Keith nodded, realizing they'd been too open about their relationship, inviting all the teasing they'd received.
Yelena patted Keith's hand gently, a reassuring smile on her face. "You're young, dear. It's natural to make a mistake."
As Keith's teasing came to an end, Kevin found himself at the center of more teasing once Benny's fear of Keith subsided. "Come on, spill it. What were you two up to?" Benny asked, his tone almost pleading.
Kevin glanced at Benny's imploring expression but maintained a composed demeanor, despite feeling a hint of disgust. "Nothing, just cultivating," he replied calmly.
"Don't fib, if you don't want to share, just say so, man. No need for lying," Benny retorted, unconvinced. He suspected that even if they were cultivating, it might involve more than just academics—perhaps dual cultivation of some sort.
Kevin, unconcerned about whether anyone knew he was being untruthful, simply grinned and resumed eating his breakfast. Engaging with the others around him, the group engaged in casual chatter while Keith sat nearby with Yelena and her husband, her uncle somehow catching Kevin's gaze and offering a friendly smile.
Kevin involuntarily shuddered at the smile, still harboring suspicions that he had one sided pervert feelings for him, Nonetheless, not wanting to appear impolite, he gave a nod and a smile in return, swiftly diverting his attention to Benny, avoiding further eye contact, especially after observing Benny seemingly scanning his body like a human x-ray the previous day.
During their conversation, the topic swiftly shifted to the resources available on the exchange list for Noxlight. A bald man named Boras piped up, mentioning, "I heard they even have a Heaven-grade weapon up for exchange?"
Benny, who had just been pestering Kevin with questions about him and Keith moments before, nodded earnestly. "More than one."
The bald man's eyes widened in shock. "Seriously?"
Kevin's confirmation resonated within the conversation, his mind retracing the contents of the list. Among the myriad items listed, the weapon they spoke of stood out, its price tag exorbitantly high. Even the most basic Heaven-grade product demanded a staggering 2000 Noxlight flowers. The mere thought sparked incredulity in Kevin; he considered the herb a rarity, a treasure so scarce that it would be nothing short of a miracle if their entire team could lay hands on 200, let alone 2000.
As he mulled over the implausibility of such a feat, a vision of the inevitable chaos looming ahead materialized. The jungle, devoid of any binding laws, would transform into a lawless realm where the lines between ambition and ruthlessness blurred. Kevin could already envisage the struggles that awaited—a fierce scramble for the coveted resource, driven by desperation and greed.
He foresaw a grim scenario unfolding, one marked by ruthless competition. In a place where survival rested on securing these precious commodities, the human inclination to exploit others' labor would rear its head. The scarcity of the Noxlight flowers would breed an environment ripe for conflict, where individuals, driven by avarice, would not hesitate to resort to aggression and deceit.
Their advantage over other teams lay in the ease of finding the herb, yet the pivotal factor for their success rested in acquiring just one Nox flower.
Locating the Noxlight flower posed a challenge distinct from protecting it. While the herb wasn't as rare as other valuable flora, its elusiveness stemmed from its unique ability to absorb both light and darkness. This peculiarity rendered it nearly invisible, detectable only by sheer luck or specialized devices. Kevin suspected that Keyana and the rest of their team likely possessed such tools, yet Keith seemed oblivious to this advantage.
The Nox flower's elusive nature presented a paradox—they could shield it from others, but unearthing it was an entirely different conundrum. Its concealment within both light and shadow made it a needle in the haystack, a cryptic treasure camouflaged in plain sight.
Kevin pondered the implications of this enigmatic property. In a landscape where visibility was a luxury and the essence of the herb rested in its clandestine existence, the hunt for this elusive blossom would become a test of skill, intuition, and perhaps a dash of luck.
Kevin, unlike others, possessed the treasure radar from the system— that he trusted would effortlessly pinpoint the elusive Nox flower. He envisioned how seamlessly he could detect the flower with this technology; acquiring the just one noxlight flower was all that stood between them and an edge in the hunt, as he need one to get it register there to find more of them.
Amidst his contemplation, the ambiance in the hall abruptly shifted. Conversations ceased, forks paused mid-air, and all eyes fixated on Keyana, positioned at the heart of the cafeteria, clutching a small box while an identical one lay on the table before her.
The silent anticipation was palpable as an unspoken understanding pervaded the room. Though the purpose of the boxes was apparent, Keyana took it upon herself to enlighten everyone. "I won't take much of your time," she began, her voice carrying across the hushed room. "This device is called the Herb Finder. As the name suggests, it's designed specifically for locating herbs..."
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