Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 450 - 18: One Day Tour in Senaya_1

Chapter 450: Chapter 18: One Day Tour in Senaya_1

"Little Maggie, why don’t you recommend some places?" Standing in Central Square, which is also the only spacious place in the city, Catherine asked, "Where would you typically recommend to visitors for sightseeing?"

"Hmm, let me think." Maggie cocked her head, with her finger tapping on her lips and her eyebrows were furrowed, "If it were the guests I normally handle, I would introduce them to buy specialties in the business street, such as the costumes of the wasteland dwellers, handicrafts, bone products from underground magical beasts of the wasteland, strange tools excavated near the goblin ruins, medicines from the local area, ancient books with unreadable texts in the ruins of the wasteland and some trinkets with the characteristics of the western wasteland; most of these stuff are largely useless and quite expensive. But the customers do not care about this minor expense, and they don’t care whether the products are useful or not. After shopping, I would recommend them to nearby restaurants in the city center for lunch. I usually suggest Exotic Sennaya, Water Paradise and Botanic World. They are indeed very unique, but the biggest feature is the price - it’s considered very cost-saving if a meal for three or four people only costs a thousand gold coins. After lunch, they would rent a carriage and take a trip around the nearby Misty Wilderness and Singing Hills, these two places are quite interesting; they would be very satisfied on their first visit. If there’s still time, they could play in the Upwind Valley for a while, it’s quite fun; no matter where you enter from, as long as you are within the valley, you would always feel like walking against the wind, even if you turn around to go back, the way back is also against the wind."

"Huh, the Upwind Valley is here?" Vivian gasped, "Scholars have always been studying the cause of Upwind Valley, but there’s no definitive conclusion yet. I’ve always wanted to see it with my own eyes, we must go there later."

"Upwind Valley, Wall of Memories, Undying Floating Flames." Freya, a mechanic by profession, which is a branch of scholars, though biased towards mechanics, she’s also well-educated, "These are the three mysterious phenomena in nature. They’re clearly visible, tangible, but nobody can figure out the actual reasons behind. I highly recommend going and see."

"Stop causing trouble, you two." Catherine glanced at the two girls, who seem endless when discussing theoretical knowledge, "Little Maggie, don’t mind them. What else is there?"

"That’s pretty much it," said Maggie. "By the time they finish these tours, they are already quite tired. After having dinner in those three restaurants again, they usually head back to rest."

"From what you say, it doesn’t sound like you are recommending them for sightseeing." Pannis leaned into Maggie’s face, teasing with a smirk, "It seems more like you’re recommending them to spend money. Aren’t you afraid they will give you trouble once they realize what you’re doing?"

"That’s exactly what I’m doing, recommending them to spend money, since all these businesses are controlled by the Business Federation, and I get a commission." Maggie placed her hands on her hips, speaking proudly, "I only make recommendations, I don’t force them to spend. Both parties are willing, there’s nothing for me to be afraid of, hehe."

"Really? You’re not worried about being exposed for taking a cut?" Pannis stretched his mouth into a vicious grin, threatening, "I’ll expose you to them, unless...when we get there, we arrange a meeting together, have some tea, and then..."

"Maggie, hit him."

"Bang," Maggie obediently punched Pannis in the nose. Even though a gentle punch from an average person feels like a light tap to professionals, Pannis still yelped and jumped up, covering his nose and glaring at Lina, "Why let her hit me?"

"Your face was too inviting." Lina adjusted her glasses and calmly replied, "It would be uncomfortable not to punch it."

"Hey, what kind of reason is that," Pannis complained to Catherine, "Catherine, as the team leader, do you really stand by and watch one team member bully another? Doing so will damage team stability."

"Humph." Catherine sneered, flipped her long hair, turned around and walked away, "Little Maggie, let’s go. Don’t bother with this idiot."

"Hmph." Just as Pannis turned to Vivian for help, Vivian also snorted coldly, her face full of disgust. She rolled her eyes, held her head high, and brushed past Pannis.

"I have to admit, sometimes you are even dumber than a blockhead. I don’t know if it’s genuine or if you’re just pretending." Freya patted Pannis on the shoulder, offering what seemed to be consolation, then her eyes lit up, she opened her arms and lunged, "But it’s exactly this kind of Mr. Pannis that I adore, only this kind of Mr. Pannis could firmly hold a girl’s heart."

"Help me." With a fearful expression, Pannis fled from Freya’s embrace and ran, "I suddenly feel that there’s danger on the ship, I need to get back onto the ship. Help!"

"Tsk." The three girls simultaneously gave a cold snort. Touched by their moment of camaraderie, they looked at each other and snorted again in unison.

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"Those three restaurants indeed have their own unique charms. Exotic Sennaya, from its interior decor to food flavors, encapsulates the authentic characteristics of the Western Wasteland. Water Paradise created an expensive, small, artificial lake in the shop to allow guests to dine in the lakeside pavilion and Plant World built an artificial garden for diners amidst a sea of flowers. Particularly the last two, despite being surrounded by yellow barren sand outside, boast of lakes and plants within. This contrasting beauty has many people willing to spend their gold coins. However, in terms of strictly the food, I don’t recommend them," explained Maggie, like a professional travel guide, to the girls who were planning to dine out and explore the city. "These places primarily rely on their ambiance for business, and the flavors of their food are not much different from regular restaurants. If you genuinely wish to enjoy delicious dishes, follow me. The real local delicacies are in spots hard to find for tourists, and only locals know about."

"We’re counting on you then," replied the four girls. They rarely enjoyed pure sightseeing in an unfamiliar city and were excitedly interested in the experience. "You must introduce us to the most delicious local specialties."

"Let’s go to a restaurant that I regularly visit. I promise you that it’s delicious." Maggie led the five through winding alleyways of the city. They saw variously adorned tourists of various races wandering around the city, pointing at sights curiously. As they delved deeper into the city, there were fewer tourists. The streets were mainly occupied by locals, shrouded thoroughly in robes.

"Given such a hot environment, why are they dressed like this?" Lina adjusted her glasses and asked curiously. "Don’t they feel hot?"

"The sunlight here is too harsh, and they dress that way to prevent skin burns," explained Maggie, who often visited the place, with clarity. "Also, during the day, the temperature is high, so it helps to prevent dehydration. Of course, this only applies to the poor. If one is slightly rich, they dress like that because, hehe, it’s relatively cooler."

"Cooler?" The girls widened their eyes in surprise and asked Maggie incredulously. "Are you sure? How can it possibly be cooler dressed like that?"

Only Vivian had a sudden realization and inquired tentatively, "Are they using crystals?"

"Impressive, you guessed it right," praised Maggie. "The inexpensive, small, ice-attribute crystal shards, fifty Taels each, several chunks for one gold coin. They are placed in a specialized device to slowly dissipate the energy stored within the crystals in the morning. Then, they are inserted into the robes. This creates a pleasant coolness throughout the day. Consequently, exactly how much one can afford to spend each month on four or five gold coins for this luxury entirely depends on their wealth. Now, here we are at the Stone Grilled Lizard place. Hello uncle, I brought some friends for dinner."

"Ha ha, little Maggie, it’s been a long time," greeted the shop owner, who was lazily sitting in the shadowy part of his store, leisurely drinking water. He quickly rose to attend to his guests when he heard Maggie’s voice. "There’re six of you, right? Please come in and have a seat."

The girls entered the old house, constructed out of yellow soil, with a sense of curiosity. The entrance was a bit narrow, causing a slight difficulty for Freya to enter. However, it was quickly resolved — by entering sideways. Just like Mr. Pannis had suggested, upon entering the house, the girls felt a wave of cool air. It seemed as though the blistering exterior temperature was entirely blocked by the walls. Maggie quickly dashed to a corner with familiarity, smirked at Pannis, and then gestured towards the girls, "Come over here, ladies. It’s the coolest spot with the best ventilation. You won’t feel hot even while dining."

"Will it get hotter when dining?" Catherine, having seated herself, asked. "Is there anything special about this?"

"Hehe, it will with the first dish." After a round of clanging from the kitchen, Maggie responded with a mysterious grin, "Look, here it comes - Stone Grilled Lizard."

"Oh, so it’s this. It is indeed wonderful," remarked Pannis as he noticed the shop owner walking out of the kitchen carrying six plates and a basket containing a large stone. "It’s genuinely a specialty of the Western Wasteland."

"Have you eaten it before?" asked Catherine. "What’s the deal with the stone?"

"That’s a specific local stone with a robust heat absorption property. After exposing the stone to the sunlight for two-three hours, the stone becomes hot enough to fry an egg or grill meat." After the shopkeeper placed the stone in the center of the table and the dishes around it, Pannis pointed towards the plates, "One serving per person. These are local large lizards. The best meat from the back and the hind legs is thinly sliced and grilled on the stone. When each side changes color, it’s ready to eat. The stone naturally contains mineral salts, which when steak is cooked on, seeps into the meat, bringing out its flavor without any additional seasonings. And it tastes exceptionally delicious."

"Yes, correct, Mr. Pannis." Even though Pannis loved to tease her, Maggie clearly knew it was all in jest and had nothing against him. She happily picked up a slice of lizard meat with a tong and flattened it on the stone. "I also frequently order Mole Meatballs, Fried Rock Bird Breast, Stone Bamboo Slices, Stir-fried Wild Ants, and finish with Lichen Thousand Layer Pancakes. You should try them all, and I assure you that it’s going to be an experience you won’t forget."

"The taste is excellent," said Catherine as she placed a slice of lizard meat on the stone. Immediately the meat made a hissing sound and started changing colors within seconds. Once both sides were ready, Catherine tasted it with apprehension. A mixture of simple and wild flavors filled her mouth. She could not help but give a thumbs-up to Maggie. "As expected, you are an expert around here. Now, not only am I looking forward to the other dishes you recommended, but I am also excited for the sites we will be visiting that you have yet to recommend."

"Hehe, let’s go somewhere a bit far then," blinked Maggie. After a little whisper, she added, "How about we go to a hot spring in the afternoon? I bet none of you have bathed in a hot spring in the summer. I promise you will fall in love with that feeling." (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please come vote at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest encouragement. Mobile users can read at m.qidian.com.)