Both of them covered their mouths and noses, looking disdainfully at each other.

Then, the guard showed a resigned expression and shook his head in helplessness. His appearance shifted, seemingly removing the disguise, and turned into a young man.

"Oh, it's you. Didn't expect to meet you here," Dekan said, the slightly familiar voice not surprising him. He had already guessed it was Mauleon when he saw the [Hypnosis Gas.]

"Unscrupulous merchant, you're quite lucky to still be alive," Dekan said bluntly.

"Pot calling the kettle black, you unscrupulous card maker of the border town," the young man with pear-colored hair replied, his face revealing his usual casual smile. He always carried this demeanor, effortlessly navigating through social interactions.

His actions before swindling people were smooth and sophisticated, and his face was handsome. Although Mauleon always carried a smile, his eyes never showed much amusement. He exuded a strange charm mixed with a hint of danger, a contradiction that drew people in.

Even with Dekan wearing a mask, Mauleon recognized the eerie priest before him as Dekan.

However, Dekan remained silent at this moment, seemingly staring death at Mauleon.

"Don't be so scary. Our deal was fair and square. I just made a little profit," Mauleon said, sensing the unfriendly aura coming from Dekan. He quickly raised his hands in a gesture of peace.

He knew why Dekan was angry. It was probably about that batch of [Goblin Gangsters.]

"Is it really just a little?" Dekan found Mauleon's words somewhat amusing and asked in return.

"Absolutely, let me calculate for you..." Mauleon said as he took out a small ledger from his pocket, beginning to jot down calculations and doodles.

He muttered to himself about the price differences between the border and the capital, market supply and demand, transportation and sales costs, investment risks, and so on.

Dekan remained silent, but his fists were gradually clenched. The more he listened, the more uneasy he felt.

Dekan found himself having a strange illusion - he felt like Mauleon wasn't doing calculations, but rather preparing to issue fines like a traffic cop!

"Wait a moment, if you keep going like this, I might end up owing you money!" Dekan quickly stopped the merchant.

Mauleon: "I always stick to fair business practices, how could I possibly cheat you?"

Dekan: "Are you not afraid of being struck by lightning for saying that?"

Although just now Mauleon seemed to have made no sudden moves, Dekan sensed that Mauleon had quietly used a mental spell card at some point. It seemed to lower the target's hostility.

For a moment, Dekan actually considered letting Mauleon off the hook.

Dekan smirked inwardly, then secretly used [Rampant Desires]. This deepened his hatred towards Mauleon and his obsession with money, roughly offsetting Mauleon's mental magic influence.

Furthermore, he also used [Rampant Desires] to disturb Mauleon, attempting to expose his inner ugly desires. In the best-case scenario, it could make him spontaneously combust.

However...

For some reason, [Rampant Desires] didn't seem to affect Mauleon. It was as if it had never been cast.

There was only one answer then.

Mauleon had also used mental magic on himself to counteract the effects of [Rampant Desires]!

"Tsk. Dekan cursed inwardly.

"Let's forget about this for now, we can settle this account later. Let's deal with the current situation first," Dekan shook his head with a sense of resignation.

He pretended as if nothing had happened.

Then, he looked at the mayor and the engineer who were already lying on the ground.

His meaning was clear - deal with the urgent matters first, and then tackle the important but non-urgent matters later.

"Of course, it's only natural," Mauleon said calmly as he closed the ledger, a smile spreading across his face.

Dekan returned the smile. It felt like a meeting of old friends, where past grievances were forgotten, and everything seemed pleasant again.

Dekan was certain now

It was impossible to reason with Mauleon in an honest manner. The two of them, as non-combatants, not only couldn't fight, but even if they did, it would probably be difficult to quickly subdue the other.

"I had planned to lock them in the confessional, increase the dosage of the hypnotic gas so they wouldn't wake up for a day, leave some food and water inside, and then weld the door shut," Dekan explained.

"After gathering information from the town, we'd leave as quickly as possible for the city-state. Even if they managed to report the incident, it would take about four days for news to reach the city-state."

"We'd get 100 gold coins as operational funds and use the four days to quickly navigate through this Shadow World. If we're wanted afterwards, it doesn't matter. After completing the mission, we could have a carefree journey through the Holy Land."

Dekan didn't hide his intentions as he shared his plan with Mauleon.

Dekan's goal was clear - he had finally encountered a Shadow World with an open map and wanted to ensure there was plenty of time to explore the limited-time Holy Land map without regrets.

"Well, our ideas are a bit different," Mauleon said, stroking his chin.

Dekan replied, "Tell me yours."

Mauleon explained, "The first two steps are similar to yours, but after obtaining the starting capital, I would use it to establish myself and build wealth. Within four days, I would consume the city-state. Then, utilizing the power of the entire city-state, I will complete the Shadow World within the remaining six days. I'd also issue warrants and hunt down all the followers of the Resurgence Church."

Dekan thought Mauleon's plan was decent and perfectly reflected the style of this unscrupulous capitalist.

However, Dekan couldn't help but mock Mauleon inwardly.

What a pitiful solo player, having to play this game all by himself. I, on the other hand, have a great companion to enjoy this journey with."

"Since the two of us have met, there must be an even better solution, right?" Mauleon smiled suggestively.

He continued, "After all, I'm quite interested in the journey you mentioned. Besides, the more funds we have during the journey, the better, don't you think?"

Dekan replied, "Indeed, and I'm also curious about the wealth building' you mentioned."

Mauleon proposed, "How about...?"

Dekan didn't hesitate, "Then what's there to think about? Saving the endangered city-state and town is our duty."

Mauleon extended his hand to Dekan, who quickly grasped it.

With an agreement sealed by their handshake, the two of them decided to go and do some good deeds.