Chapter 274: Chapter 274 Meeting.
As the time kept ticking in the room, she couldn\'t afford to make her customer wait too long. So she sighed in resignation and began to calculate how much the prices were.
"You can have it for fifty gold".
Soma and Xiao Lian opened their eyes in shock at how cheap the book was. Usually, a grimoire or some ancient book would be worth over a thousand. No, even a hundred thousand gold is still worth considering in terms of its value, as it contains knowledge from ancient civilizations.
However, the woman offered it only for fifty gold, which is considered a cheap item.
"Are you sure?".
"Yeah, as a matter of fact that book was not something I own but my father who passed away years ago found it in one of the ancient ruins in Chinese by chance".
"I am sorry to hear that".
"No, no it was already a long time ago".
Now, as Soma looked at the book that had been prized over fifty gold, he hesitated. He felt rather happy and guilty at the same time because he felt that the book in his hand was not something ordinary.
Soma steeled his resolve and approached the counter, taking his gold. He laid it on top of the counter and began searching for other items or even books that might give him a clue about the gift he was looking for.
"Um, Boy this gold was too much".
"Yeah, consider it as my bonus".
"But…?".
Soma had placed a hundred gold coins on the counter, not fifty coins as the woman wanted.
"Then, how about I buy it with these parchments, this is the same as the book right? You can\'t read it".
"Yeah, that is true".
"How about it?".
"Well, thank you for your patronage".
After completing the purchase, Soma began to look at the other items in the place. First, he scanned the items in the glass box, which contained many accessories and equipment that had some enhanced effect on them.
However, Soma gasped as he realized that Hina would carry many accessories in her body if his gift were also the same. So, he shifted his attention toward the book instead.
He searched on the first selves and caught many interesting books and grimoires that contained ancient knowledge and even spells.
On the second selve, he stopped in his rack to find something it would be worth for her as a birthday party. It was a thick book containing many intermediate and advanced fire spells from ancient wizards.
This was something he wished for, and when he tried to go to the counter, he caught another grimoire and collected it in his hands.
"These two please".
"Alright".
The woman began to inspect the grimoires with her own appraisal item, put away the item, and opened her mouth.
"These two books will be worth, Forty Million Gold".
"...Okay".
Soma felt something inside him scream for the price, she had said. Reluctantly, he summoned a mountain of gold and some gold bars that startled the woman and even Xiao Lian, who sat still on the chair.
For the first time in her life, the woman had never seen a person bring their own currencies in their hands. Also, the amount of wealth that Soma possessed, it showed a glimpse of his status, whether he was a merchant or an Awakener. Soma began to take some gold bars and coins, counting them while the woman measured their purity.
The transaction finished thirty minutes later. This is one of the biggest hassles in this world for a person who carries much wealth in their hands. But Soma hesitated to put the gold in the bank for some unknown reason.
He sighs in place, stores the two grimoires in his hands, and addresses Xiao Lian.
"Finally finished, want to continue our outing?".
"Mm".
"Both of you thanks for your patronages and I enjoy our conversation together".
"Mm, Me too, Hope we can meet again later".
"Fufu, that\'s true, me too".
Soma didn\'t utter a single word as he nodded his head slightly before pulling the entrance door and stepping outside.
As usual, the market was still crowded, and the street was bustling with activity. Soma grabbed Xiao Lian\'s hand and began to enter the street despite the crowd. Slowly, they passed the pedestrian and arrived at the small stall that sold some sweet snacks.
After that, they visited many more stalls that sell not just sweet but also savory and salty food. Soma bought the food to store it in his relic for an emergency situation.
Xiao Lian\'s mouth began to water, smelling the sweet fragrance and tangy juice from the fruit and jam on the stall. They joined the line, and finally, it was their turn. Then, Xiao Lian began to order a huge size of crepes filled with something that made Soma grimace in nausea: "Oh my god, how much sugar is in that piece of snack?"
For Xiao Lian this much exposure was probably fine because she always takes care of her appearance by exercising regularly and also her training. However, that won\'t work for the regular girls who saw her in horror.
The two of them began to enjoy their outing together. Because of their current situation, Soma also occasionally buys some ingredients and some spices just in case a situation happens.
Also, if he found some rare ingredient that he never saw, he would buy it and try it later if he had a chance to cook it. Thanks to his relic, which had an unlimited capacity and stoppage time, Soma can buy many ingredients without worrying if they will spoil or expire for his packaged food.
As the sun had already shifted above them and glared at the land beneath, Soma decided to stop their business and search for some food.
"Xiao Lian, what do you want to eat?".
"...I want something different, like spicy stuff!!".
Soma shrunken his face slightly, hearing the food she mentioned. The season was nearing the end of summer, which still retained its scorching heat, and she wanted to eat spicy food despite this weather.
"Let\'s go search for it!".
"Mm".
He and Xiao Lian began to search for it using a phone in Soma\'s hand. They followed the route before they stood in front of one of the Chinese restaurants that serves Mafo Tofu as their main dish.
From the looks of it, the store was pretty promising. The store itself was painted in black and red with a picture of the cartoon Chibi Devil and Chilly, plus the rating on the review of its customers was pretty high from standard.
"Let\'s try inside".
"Mm, Lets go, Ah?".
"Hm?!".
Looking at Xiao Lian\'s surprised attitude, looking at something behind Soma. He followed her gaze and found a handsome boy with sharp eyes and black hair. Wearing a stylish casual outfit in black, stood there with a frown upon looking at Soma\'s group.
"Tch!".
"Lin Fan, What are you doing here?".