A Necromancer Who Just Wants to Plant Trees

Chapter 1669: 456 Major Tears Apart and Legendary Sniper

…

Six months later.

Northland.

Sword Winter City.

Half-Ear Inn.

Alicia pushed open the door, marked with sword scars and rivets, and quickly stepped into the tavern on the underground level.

...

A cacophony of noises and a foul smell hit her face.

She sniffed.

The scene she had once loathed had not only become familiar, but it also gave her a sense of security that arose spontaneously.

“I’m really beyond saving…”

The woman in her early twenties scratched her chestnut long hair in dismay.

Facing the bartender who came over to offer his eager services,

she waved her hand impatiently and walked straight to her own booth.

She removed her left boot and vigorously shook out the foreign entities inside—

Several coarse pebbles fell out.

These were the culprits that had caused blisters on her foot today while she was on a private job.

She placed her foot on her knee, glanced at the blister underneath, took a needle from her belt, heated it over the candle for a few seconds, then skillfully pierced the blister.

“It doesn’t hurt that much…”

She didn’t hurry to put her shoe back on; instead, she let her foot air out to ease the discomfort.

Following that, she cauterized the opened blister closely over the candle flame.

This was a small trick taught by the leader.

Although it might not truly be effective.

But she was eagerly learning any skill related to this new way of making a living.

She was doing quite well.

In recent months, the leader had praised her intelligence several times.

She responded modestly, but inwardly she acknowledged the praise.

Alicia indeed had an adaptability far beyond ordinary people.

If not,

as a noble lady accustomed to luxury, she would never have survived till now after the disaster that ripped the heavens and shattered the earth six months ago took her entire family and fortune!

In the past six months,

she had often felt grateful during the nights that her father had chosen swordsmanship over poetry for her.

She was also thankful for the teachings bestowed upon her by several swordsmanship instructors.

Of course,

there was also the fact that she had not been lazy in this aspect.

Otherwise, even if she had survived that great disaster and found a relatively safe city like Sword Winter City, she would not have been able to survive as she was now—

On her way to Sword Winter City,

she had seen too many girls of her age enter makeshift tents with burly men for a bit of food.

What was even more infuriating

was that under the disaster, most people had no integrity at all, even if some were willing to share some food, it tended to be far less than what had been agreed upon beforehand.

Thus, most of them ended up as bones in the wilderness.

In the worst of times,

they and those weaker than them had become food for those somewhat stronger.

“Hiss…”

Lost in thought, she accidentally pressed her foot directly onto the candle flame, which startled Alicia and made her lean back, causing the old chair in the tavern to creak loudly.

Not far away,

the lizardman owner scolded loudly:

“How many times have I told you not to indulge in your peculiar fetishes in public!”

“Otherwise, I’ll start charging for the candles on the table based on time!”

Alicia crisply flipped him the middle finger.

Then she silently put on her boots.

After doing all this,

she asked the bartender for a mug of diluted barley beer.

She then checked the earnings from this private job:

“Busting my ass and I only made eight Alliance Small Gold Coins…”

“Being a mercenary isn’t easy…”

The former noble maiden sighed softly.

There were too many others in the same line of work.

These days, from any corner of Sword Winter City, you could pull a few ragged, idle youth who dared to claim they were mercenaries who had participated in dragon slaying.

But if tomorrow there was a new vacancy for digging moats,

those young people would be experienced excavation workers again.

According to the leader,

nowadays, finding a decent job in the city was no easier than finding a Holy Knight in a brothel.

Previously,

mercenaries were only active at sea, especially in the chaotic Free Islands.

But after the disaster known among the people as “The Great Tear,”

the entire landscape of Northland dramatically changed, the environment became harsh.

Many died.

But many also lived to reach the city.

Lacking work, they were willing to do anything for a bite of food.

Craftsmen, mercenaries, prostitutes, thieves…

Sword Winter City gathered more than ten times its former population.

Most people had a hard life.

But the local wealthy of Sword Winter City made fortunes as a result.

To protect these fortunes,

they hired even more hands.

This was certainly good news for those powerful mercenary squads.

But for the newly-formed squad that Alicia belonged to, though seemingly competent,

because of their lack of experience and reputation, they also struggled to accept tasks within the city.

Everyone had it tough.

Fortunately, they could barely make ends meet.

“Adding today’s money with the income from the next task, I should be able to redeem the Magic Bracelet I pawned…”

“Damn hobgoblin swindler, that jerk makes a 30% profit off me!”

That 30% was still considering the face of their leader.

But Alicia still wasn’t satisfied in her heart.

She took a swig of barley beer, her gaze unsettled, pondering whether to pay that hobgoblin swindler a nighttime visit.

But thinking of the two barbarian burly men who were always at his side,