Chapter 200 : Chapter 200
Chapter 200
No matter how much one regrets it, the past is still the past.
Especially if it’s something she herself turned the page on.
Yi Ning only sulked for a short while before quickly returning to her usual cheerful self.
As for breakfast, of course she mooched it off Lester’s household again.
During the meal, Yi Ning noticed Lu Zheng’s faint awkwardness about freeloading.
She could bet that the moment Lu Zheng got his hands on some money, he’d start thinking of ways to repay Lester.
That wouldn’t do.
Yi Ning already had her plan set.
The gold coins they got from the church—aside from a small portion for living expenses and travel—must all go toward buying materials, so she could make convenient little gadgets and eventually build a spaceship to return to Blue Star.
There could be no wasting.
But if Lu Zheng wasn’t allowed to do something to express his gratitude, that guy definitely wouldn’t let it go.
Yi Ning stuffed the bread-like item on her plate into her mouth. After chewing a few times, she took a sip of a milk-like beverage. Once the bread had fully softened in her mouth, she swallowed it all down together.
“Mmhm~”
The rich milk flavor perfectly brought out the subtle sweetness hidden in the bread, making Yi Ning squint in bliss.
But the joy brought by such deliciousness was soon driven out by the irritation of figuring out how to keep control over their finances.
Yi Ning stuffed another piece of bread into her mouth, contemplating how she could convince Lu Zheng.
She wasn’t worried about Lester.
Earlier in the morning, before breakfast, Lester had specifically come to find her and offered to let her and Lu Zheng continue staying at his place.
Yi Ning could see through his intention easily and casually agreed.
Wasn’t it just that he wanted to build a good relationship and maybe tag along on some higher-tier missions with Lu Zheng?
That worked out perfectly. Lu Zheng already wanted to learn some experience from Lester and his team.
It was a win-win situation.
Except Yi Ning won twice.
So she generously told Lester that Lu Zheng hoped to learn from the members of the Friendly Money-Making Squad and that the two parties should interact more.
As soon as Yi Ning said that, Lester eagerly agreed.
After all, in his view, Lu Zheng—an A-rank adventurer who had even made it through Hottledo Forest—didn’t need any veteran team leading him.
Now that Yi Ning said this, wasn’t she just giving his team an excuse to tag along?
In the end, Yi Ning not only freeloaded off Lester’s team twice, but also neatly paid off the favor she owed them!
Only Lu Zheng was still hard to deal with…
If worst came to worst, when they left later, she’d have the Great God Kir bestow individual blessings to each member of the Friendly Money-Making Squad based on their ability.
Yi Ning glanced gloomily at Lu Zheng and downed the rest of her milk in one go.
…
Because they’d previously accepted a church task involving the purchase of the Great God Kir’s blessings, Yi Ning and Lu Zheng headed straight for the church address Lester had mentioned after finishing their freeloaded breakfast.
But before they even reached the church entrance, a giant “Not Approved” symbol loomed into view.
“Wow, this really is…”
Yi Ning’s mouth twitched.
It seemed the church had taken this “Not Approved” symbol as a divine manifestation, proudly hanging it at the top of the building. But for the two who understood what those three characters really meant, the whole thing felt… abstract.
The closer they got to the church, the more people there were on the road.
Lu Zheng glanced around and realized that most people were heading toward the same destination—the church.
He bent down slightly and whispered into Yi Ning’s ear.
“Lester said this church’s only been around for barely a decade, but they already have this many believers?”
Normally the one blowing hot air into his ear, Yi Ning finally got a taste of what that felt like.
As Lu Zheng spoke, his warm breath slipped into her ear canal along with his words.
Yi Ning’s ears were already sensitive. With Lu Zheng’s sudden assault, a strange current surged through her entire body.
“Ugh… um…”
Yi Ning took a deep breath and forcibly swallowed the sound that had nearly escaped her lips.
Then she calmed herself and shot Lu Zheng a disdainful “you fool” expression, sidestepping a few paces to neatly remove her ear from the danger zone near his mouth.
“Are you dumb?”
“Didn’t that sister-con Lester’s little sister say so? As long as you go to the church and properly participate in some prayer activities, you’ll receive a little gift from the clergy when you leave.”
“It’s usually some practical little item or commonly-used food ingredients.”
“She did?”
Lu Zheng scratched his head, confused.
He didn’t remember hearing anything like that.
Which made perfect sense.
Because he hadn’t heard it.
Yi Ning had gotten that bit of info while chatting privately with Lester’s sister—Lu Zheng hadn’t been there at all.
But Yi Ning knew Lu Zheng wouldn’t nitpick about things like that, so she casually used this explanation to slip away and avoid further “ear trauma.”
And indeed, Lu Zheng didn’t press the issue.
He just looked around at the crowds headed toward the church, voicing some doubts.
“All these people were convinced by those genius marketing tactics? Does that really count as being a believer?”
And based on what Yi Ning said, it seemed there were no restrictions on receiving gifts—you could just walk in anytime.
“How does the church have this much money?”
Yi Ning quipped, “They’ve got a ton of industries. They even run a bank. How could they not have money?”
Lu Zheng: “？”
He wasn’t surprised the church had businesses.
He’d already seen plenty of convenient devices in Lester’s house bearing the church’s insignia.
But a bank?!
Yi Ning didn’t continue answering his puzzled expression.
Mostly because she didn’t know the details either.
Lester’s sister didn’t seem too familiar with that area, so they hadn’t gone into much depth.
She only knew that the church offered loans to civilians at decent interest rates, and also encouraged people to deposit their gold coins there. If you were willing to withdraw your funds in church-issued Kir coins, you’d even get a little extra interest.
“We’ll find out once we get there.”
The two stopped chatting and picked up their pace.
Although they’d heard from Lester that the church was big, once they arrived at the church’s plaza, the sheer scale still left them stunned.
Beautiful gardens, magnificent fountains…
If they hadn’t known better, Lu Zheng might have mistaken the place for a nature park.
All of it displayed a single word:
Wealth.
“No wonder they run a bank. This is a real luxury.”
Yi Ning couldn’t help but sigh.
They followed the large crowd through the church plaza’s main gate and saw that most people were heading into the luxurious cathedral at the center. A smaller portion were walking toward some simpler buildings beside the main church.
“I see this is the first time for you two. Are you here to attend service in the cathedral, visit the church supermarket, or perhaps handle some banking business?”
“If you’re attending service, you’ll each receive a small gift afterward. Since it’s your first time, the gifts will be extra generous~”
Before Yi Ning or Lu Zheng could even react, a nun-like figure darted through the crowd like a fish in water and appeared right in front of them.