Green Monster Epic

Chapter 254: A Helping Hand (Third Update!)

"Brother Allen, Keira!!"

Suddenly, behind the two gnolls, a tall figure appeared, disregarding the status of the gnoll guards. He simply passed between them, his heavy body squeezing the two gnolls aside. The crossed spears were pushed to the sides, almost injuring passersby who were eager to watch the excitement.

When the two gnolls looked up, their scarlet eyes widening, ready to confront the newcomer, they paused upon seeing his face. The words about to escape their mouths were forcefully swallowed back, and they mumbled a respectful greeting: "Captain Alba!"

"What are you doing here? Isn't today your shift to guard the city gate? Slacking off again??"

Alba turned around, as if only then noticing the two gnolls. He glared at them and began to scold them in a deep voice, appearing quite familiar with them.

"No, we received a report that..."

"Get lost! Do your own jobs first!!!"

Alba impatiently interrupted the gnolls' explanation. Despite Mansa City seeming to exude an air of civilization, in reality, both the city's residents and the guards protecting the city retained the lazy and cunning nature of wilderness folk. Therefore, Alba, seeing these two slacking off, assumed they were up to no good, probably trying to extort Allen, a newcomer to Mansa City who looked easy to bully.

He wouldn't have bothered if he hadn't encountered them, but since he had, and Allen had crossed paths with him twice and even exchanged blows once, Alba admired Allen's skills. Thus, Alba felt he couldn't ignore it and decided to help Allen out of this trouble.

"Brother Allen is someone I know. If you have any issues, come find me later!!"

What could the two gnolls say? They could only dejectedly acknowledge his words before slinking away.

Seeing them leave, Allen slowly lowered his right hand, which had been reaching behind his back. The solemn expression on his face gradually relaxed, and he looked up, offering the ogre Alba a grateful smile.

"Alas, the quality of the city's guards has always been low. They rely on their status and power to cause trouble. As for me, I'm just a member of the City Lord's Mansion and can't interfere too much. I can only help you out of this predicament."

Alba still believed that the two gnolls were acting on a whim. Now, facing Allen, he even felt somewhat apologetic. It seemed Alba had deep feelings for Mansa City, his words carrying a hint of regret and helplessness.

"It's nothing. At worst, I'll just avoid them next time."

Allen didn't expose the matter, simply downplaying it and preparing to move on.

"It's fortunate you came, Alba, or else we would have been bullied by your people, hmph!"

Keira glared fiercely at the retreating figures of the gnolls, her eyes flashing with a fierce light. Despite Keira's usual lively and cunning demeanor, she was, after all, an adventurer and naturally had her own temper. She wouldn't endure the city guards like ordinary commoners.

Of course, Keira was also a little curious. The other party had directly targeted Allen and even knew his name, clearly prepared and indicating another hidden hand behind them. However, seeing that Allen didn't want to say more and with a member of the City Lord's Mansion present, Keira suppressed her curiosity and began to banter with Alba.

"Speak, how are you going to apologize for your colleagues?"

"..."

Alba smiled wryly, his gaze sweeping over Keira's tight-fitting and exquisite leather armor at her waist: "You're already like this; can you still eat?"

"Hmph!"

Keira rolled her eyes at Alba, haughtily replying: "As long as you're treating, I can empty your wallet!!"

"Why don't we go to the temple? I'll buy some food here to take back and use the temple's kitchen to make a meal for you, as a thank you to Mr. Alba for his help today."

After the previous incident, Allen felt it was too unsafe outside. Plus, having explored almost all the unique stalls on Fragrance Street, Allen had some ideas in mind and wanted Keira and Alba to give him some advice.

"Isn't that too much trouble? Why don't we just eat here?"

As an ogre, his greatest hobby besides sleeping was eating. Alba spent most of his monthly salary on Fragrance Street. This time, he had come to Fragrance Street to satisfy his cravings, which was how he encountered Allen. Thinking about the journey to the temple, although not far, if Allen were to relight the stove and cook, it would take a lot of time. Although he wasn't on duty today and had plenty of time to spend with Allen and the others, the cravings in his mouth and the aroma floating in the air were sending signals to his brain, urging him to quickly find something delicious to fill his stomach.

"Let's go, let's go. This guy keeps bragging about his amazing skills. I took him to eat at so many snack stalls just now, and he didn't seem satisfied. Let's go try it out and see what his so-called gourmet food is like!!"

Keira was full of curiosity about Allen's skills. At the same time, her stomach was indeed too full and needed some time to digest. She also persuaded Alba.

Seeing that Allen and Keira were both determined, Alba naturally couldn't dampen their spirits. After swallowing a mouthful of saliva, he reluctantly agreed.

Of course, nothing could be made without ingredients. This allowed Alba's cravings to be somewhat alleviated. While Allen was searching for ingredients on Fragrance Street, Alba secretly bought some of his usual favorite snacks, devouring them in a few big bites to appease the cravings in his stomach.

Soon, Allen had bought the fillings and flour for making dumplings, as well as half a carcass of wilderness beef. Considering Alba's appetite and his own plans, Allen spent a lot of money on the purchase. He bought two hundred pounds of oat flour alone, casually carrying it in his hand, which startled the other two.

"Isn't this the ingredients for more than just one meal!!"

Keira said in surprise.

"We're going to be bothering the masters in the temple's kitchen for so long, and there's nothing much to repay them with, so let's just treat them to a meal. Whatever's left over, we can just give it all to them."

Allen didn't tell the truth. Without confirming the feasibility of his plan, he wouldn't easily reveal the reason for buying so much stuff.

Keira and the others were only surprised by the quantity of ingredients Allen bought. They weren't very concerned about his true intentions. After receiving his answer, they nodded casually, understanding, and didn't say much more.

Another dazzling journey through the alleys ensued. At some point, the faint, prying gaze behind Allen reappeared, returning to its original state until Allen and the others entered the living area of the Oak Temple in Mansa City.