How Many Surprises Can This Man Give Me

Golden Rose Inn, second-floor guest room.

When Lynch pushed the door open carrying steaming soup dumplings, the atmosphere in the room was in a subtle tranquility.

Felsy was already awake. She was sitting at the head of the bed, holding a cup of warm water in her hands. Her long silver hair fell casually over her shoulders, and her usually cold face now carried a bit of the laziness and rosiness of having just woken up.

Seeing Lynch enter, her gaze subconsciously lingered on him for a moment. A barely noticeable hint of shyness flashed in her eyes before she casually looked away, shifting her attention to the oil-paper bag in Lynch's hands.

"You're back?"

Her voice was very soft, yet it carried a familiarity that only family members shared.

"Yeah, I bought breakfast. This place's buns are said to be a must-try, with thin skin and lots of filling."

Lynch smiled and placed the breakfast on the table, then turned to look at Kuma, who was sprawling on another chair, her two animal ears still twitching.

"Kuma, stop pretending to be asleep. Your ears perked right up when you smelled the meat."

"Hehe... Brother Lynch is the best!"

Kuma immediately resurrected, bouncing up from the chair. She grabbed a bun and stuffed it into her mouth, asking indistinctly as she chewed, "By the way, Brother Lynch, did you go look for that Professor Scarlett or whatever? Did you see her?"

At the mention of this, the expression on Lynch's face became a bit strange.

He pulled out a chair and sat down, spreading his hands helplessly:

"Don't even mention it. She disappeared a long time ago."

"Disappeared?" Felsy raised her eyebrows slightly, seemingly not surprised, but still asked cooperatively, "What happened?"

"I heard from the nuns at the church that she left early this morning before dawn. And she left in a hurry, didn't even take a carriage, just rode a horse frantically back to the royal capital. That posture... it was almost like she was running for her life."

Lynch shook his head, lamenting with a face full of pity, though inwardly he was taking pleasure in her misfortune:

"What kind of nonsense is this? Just yesterday she was insisting on telling me 'I'll personally guide you' and 'You're a genius,' but after sleeping on it, she ran off without even saying goodbye. City folks these days, their minds are truly impossible to figure out."

Hearing the words running for her life, Kuma, who was gnawing on a bun, couldn't stop her mouth from curling up wildly, revealing two small, pointy canine teeth.

How could she not run for her life?

That was the Divine Punishment Dreamscape personally woven by this genius! Even if she was a Tier 6 Grand Magus, her current mental state was probably like a frightened bird. Let alone taking Lynch away, she'd probably have nightmares for the rest of her life just hearing the name Lynch.

"Kuma, what are you laughing at? Are the buns that delicious?" Lynch gave her a strange look.

"Cough, cough! Delicious! Too delicious!"

Kuma quickly restrained her smile and nodded seriously. "I just think that bad woman... oh no, that professor was too impolite! It's good that she left, saves her from always pestering you, Brother, and trying to steal... cough, steal the spotlight from Lady Witch!"

Felsy cast a faint glance at Kuma, a hint of good job approval showing in her eyes. Then, she elegantly picked up a soup dumpling and put the matter to rest with a flat tone:

"Since she's gone, there's no need to discuss enrollment anymore. Perfect, we didn't want to go to the royal capital anyway."

"Yeah."

Lynch nodded in deep agreement. "That's what I thought too. Life in that kind of academy is too restrictive, and you have to deal with all sorts of scheming. How could it be as comfortable as us farming in the village? Plus..."

He glanced at Felsy, his eyes softening:

"Your body still needs rest. The air in the royal capital is bad, and there are too many people; it's not suitable for recovery. We should just go back to Buena Village. The scenery there is beautiful, perfect for recuperating."

These words made Felsy's heart feel warm.

She took a gentle bite of the bun, the savory broth blooming on the tip of her tongue.

"Mhm. I'll listen to you."

...

After breakfast, the three of them simply packed their luggage and checked out of the room.

Although Scarlett's unannounced departure saved Lynch the trouble of explaining, it also made his original plan to stroll around some more feel dull. Coupled with the fact that he was still thinking about the herbs and the pile of loot back home, the three decided to set off for the village immediately.

Before leaving Shattered Gold Town, Lynch deliberately took a detour to that alchemy shop.

He stood in front of the display window, looking at the Phonograph Bird Music Box that was still placed in the most prominent position.

An exquisite brass birdcage, a lifelike mechanical bird, and a base engraved with complex patterns. It was really beautiful and very suitable to be placed at Felsy's bedside to relieve boredom.

But...

Lynch touched the coin pouch in his breast pocket.

After all the expenses for food and lodging on this trip, plus the cost of snacks and sundries bought earlier, his pitiful little stash of secret savings was down to less than thirty silver coins.

He was still a long way from the price tag of fifty coins.

"Sigh..."

Lynch sighed and somewhat reluctantly withdrew his gaze.

This was probably the only regret in what was originally a fairly perfect trip.

"What's wrong?"

Felsy noticed his pause and followed his gaze, only to see a bunch of messy alchemical items. "Want to buy something?"

"No, just looking."

Lynch smiled to cover it up. "I just think that thing... isn't actually that great. The craftsmanship isn't delicate enough, and look at the bird's eyes, they're a bit dull. The cost-performance ratio is too low."

In order not to let his wife see his embarrassment, Lynch activated forced nitpicking mode.

"Really?" Felsy didn't think much of it; after all, she didn't know much about these little human gadgets.

"Of course it's true."

Lynch pulled her along to head back, but he was secretly calculating in his heart.

Since I can't afford it, I'll just make it myself!

As a transmigrator with a system, even though he hadn't unlocked the Alchemy skill tree yet, he was very good with his hands!

In his past life, he had watched countless videos by DIY bloggers, after all.

"The principle is just a mainspring and a musical comb, right? Add a little magic drive..."

Lynch conceptualized in his mind as he walked, "I'll go back and ask Asik, that bookworm, about the principles of sound production, then ask Rhodes for some scrap metal... I might just be able to craft a unique one by hand."

"Besides, something made by myself has more heart in it. Yeah, it's decided!"

Thinking of this, Lynch's mood became bright again.

...

The journey back was very smooth.

Because it was broad daylight, and this trade route had just been cleared recently, they didn't encounter any blind magical beasts.

When the familiar village entrance fence appeared in his field of vision, Lynch actually felt a long-lost sense of intimacy.

"East or west, home is best."

Lynch sighed with emotion.

However, when they walked into the village, they found that the atmosphere in Buena Village was a bit off today.

Usually at this time of day, the villagers would either be working in the fields or gathering at the village entrance to chat. But now, every household had their doors and windows tightly shut. All the able-bodied young men were gathered in the clearing at the village chief's house. Holding various farm tools and crude weapons, each of them wore a solemn expression, as if a great disaster was imminent.

"What happened?"

Lynch's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly hurried over.

"Lynch! You're finally back!"

The old village chief was standing on a large rock, puffing on his dry pipe with a miserable look on his face. Seeing Lynch appear, it was as if he had seen a savior, and he was so excited that he almost tumbled off the rock.

"Chief, what happened? Why does everyone look like this?" Lynch supported the old village chief and asked in confusion.

"Sigh! Something terrible has happened!"

The old village chief knocked his pipe against the sole of his shoe and said in a heavy tone, "The Lord's messenger just came. He said... he said that a massive beast horde, the likes of which hasn't been seen in ten years, has erupted in the mountains to the west!"

"A massive beast horde?"

Lynch frowned. "Is it over by Black Rock Village?"

He remembered the adventurer named Carl he had met a couple of days ago.

"Yes! Right over there!"

The old village chief sighed. "I heard that Black Rock Village is... is already gone. A large number of magical beasts broke through their defenses and are now spreading toward our plains."

Hearing the words Black Rock Village is gone, a suppressed commotion and sobbing broke out in the crowd.

Although the two villages were separated by dozens of miles, they were neighbors after all. Everyone understood the principle that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold.

"Then what do we do?" Lynch asked. "Has the Lord dispatched the army?"

"He did, but the main forces are all guarding the eastern fortress. That's the main road leading to the town, and it's the Lord's lifeline."

The old village chief shook his head helplessly. "The messenger said that our Buena Village is relatively remote and isn't on the main attack route of the beast horde, so we will only be 'grazed' by it. Therefore... therefore, the Lord told us to figure out a way ourselves to hold on for three to five days, until the main forces can free up their hands to come and support us."

"Grazed by it? Figure out a way ourselves?"

Lynch wanted to curse out loud upon hearing this.

Weren't they just being treated as abandoned pawns?

A so-called massive beast horde, even if it just "grazed" them, would be a devastating disaster for a small village with only simple wooden fences!

Those packs of starving magical beasts wouldn't care if this was the main defense line or not; they only knew that there was human flesh to eat here.

"Everyone, don't panic!"

Lynch took a deep breath and shouted loudly, trying to stabilize the situation. "Since the Lord won't care about us, we will take care of ourselves! Our village has walls, hunters, and... and an apothecary!"

"As long as everyone works together, holding out for three to five days won't be a problem!"

Although these words were a bit pale, Lynch was now a famous person in the village and its only Tier 2 powerhouse, even though the villagers only knew he was very strong. His words served somewhat as a stabilizing force.

"Right! We can't just sit here and wait to die!"

"Let's fight those beasts to the death!"

The villagers raised their pitchforks and hoes. Although their legs were still trembling, there was at least a glimmer of light in their eyes.

...

Returning home, Lynch closed the courtyard door, and the calm facade on his face instantly collapsed.

"This is trouble."

He sat on the stone bench in the courtyard, his brows tightly furrowed. "This is real trouble now. Even if they say it's just a graze, who knows how many magical beasts will swarm over."

Relying solely on that Abyssal Gazer scarecrow could frighten off low-tier magical beasts, but if packs of Tier 2 or even Tier 3 magical beasts came, the scarecrow would only be dismantled into firewood.

"I must strengthen our defenses."

Lynch looked at Felsy and Kuma standing to the side.

"Honey, don't go out for the next few days. It's safest at home."

Lynch instructed, "Kuma, your task is to stay by Felsy's side without taking a single step away. Leave all the fighting and killing outside to me."

"You're going out?" Felsy looked at him, her purple eyes flickering slightly.

"Yes."

Lynch nodded, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes. "Passively taking a beating isn't my style. Since the beast horde is coming, I'll go prepare some 'gifts' for them."

He recalled his experience of farming monsters on the northern slope a couple of days ago, as well as the system's prompt: As long as there are enough magic cores, you can level up like a rocket.

If the beast horde really came, it would be both a crisis and an opportunity for him now.

As long as he could withstand the first wave of impact, the corpses of magical beasts littering the ground would mean countless magic cores and an endless stream of experience points!

After leveling up, his monster-farming speed would be even faster, creating a positive feedback loop.

The most ideal outcome would be surviving the beast horde while also improving his strength.

"Moreover..."

Lynch opened the system panel.

Following his advancement to Tier 2, the system seemed to have unlocked some new functional sections.

Current Facilities: Beginner Herb Garden, Simple Wooden Wall, Abyssal Gazer (Totem)

Unlockable New Facilities:

1. Mana Watchtower (Requires 5 Tier 2 Magic Cores): Automatically locks onto enemies and fires high-energy arcane rays.

2. Thorn Trap Zone (Requires 50 Tier 1 Wood-element Magic Cores): Spawns venomous living thorns around the territory to delay and damage intruders.

3. Fully Automated Alchemy Workshop (Requires 1 Tier 3 Magic Core + Blueprint): Enables assembly line production, freeing up the host's hands.

Looking at these enticing facilities, Lynch's eyes turned red with desire.

How were these mere defense facilities? This was clearly the prototype of his Demon Lord Castle!

As long as he had these things, let alone a beast horde grazing them, even if the main force of the beast horde came, he was confident he could turn them into fertilizer!

"I lack magic cores... I lack them too much!"

Lynch gritted his teeth.

In his current inventory, he only had the dozen or so Tier 1 Wind-element magic cores he had farmed on the northern slope that day, which was nowhere near enough to unlock any of the advanced facilities.

"I have to go hunt."

"Before the main army of the beast horde arrives, I need to go to the outskirts and 'stock up'!"

Lynch stood up, his eyes becoming more resolute than ever before.

"Felsy, what do you want to eat for dinner?"

He suddenly turned his head, putting on a relaxed smile. "I might come back a bit late tonight, so you can have Kuma cook some porridge for you first."

Felsy looked at him quietly.

She could feel the eager desire to grow stronger radiating from this man, as well as the determination to risk his life to protect this home.

She didn't stop him, nor did she ask too many questions.

She simply stepped forward, reached out, and gently adjusted his slightly messy collar.

"Come back early."

Her voice was very soft, yet it felt like the most powerful blessing.

"If you don't come back... I'll burn that scarecrow you made."

"...Don't! That's my masterpiece!" Lynch didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Then come back alive."

Felsy raised her head, and in those purple eyes, Lynch's reflection was clear and profound.

"Okay. I promise."

Lynch squeezed her hand, turned around, and strode out of the courtyard gate.

Amidst the wind and snow, his back appeared somewhat thin, yet incredibly unyielding.

Behind her, Kuma looked at her superior staring longingly after him like a devoted wife waiting for her husband's return, and could not help but sigh inwardly.

"Alas... My Lady."

"If you are truly worried about him, couldn't you just wipe out that whatever beast horde with a single forbidden spell? Why let him risk his life?"

As if hearing Kuma's inner thoughts, Felsy turned her head slightly and gave her a faint, sweeping glance.

"This is his battle."

Felsy said softly, "And also... the growth he seeks for himself."

"Besides..."

The corners of Felsy's lips curled into a playful smile:

"I also really want to see just how many surprises this man can bring me."