“Boss, the bill, and open another room.”
A large hand wrapped in coarse gloves slapped down on the wooden counter with a sharp “pa!” The tavern boss, who had been eavesdropping with great interest, was so startled he almost slipped off his stool.
Had he really gotten so absorbed just now?
He didn’t even notice when the customers walked right up to him?
Looking up, he saw it was the two plainly dressed young adventurers from the corner—Izar and Luke.
A shiny gold coin lay on the table. The boss’s face immediately broke into a professional smile as he pocketed the money and called out to a tall tavern attendant, “Take these two guests to an empty room upstairs, and be quick about it!”
Izar and Luke still wore their [Veilshadow Cloaks], their presence shrouded. Amid the noisy tavern, they were like droplets of water vanishing into the sea, drawing no extra attention.
They followed the attendant up the creaking wooden stairs. Izar’s gaze, seemingly absent-minded, fell on the back of the attendant leading the way.
The attendant stood nearly 1.9 meters tall, muscular, but his eyes darted about, carrying a streetwise cunning.
At the door of a fairly clean room, the attendant took out a key and opened the door, speaking eagerly, “Gentlemen, this is the room. If you need anything, just say the word—”
He hadn’t finished when Izar suddenly spoke, his voice muffled behind the mask, “Attendant, at the Quiet Moon Dock, is there a place where adventurers and merchants can freely trade?”
The attendant paused, then replied, “There is, sir. At the east end of Quiet Moon Commercial Street, there’s a large open ground for adventurers from all over to set up stalls and exchange goods. There are also plenty of shops nearby specializing in supplies and gear for adventurers. If you’re interested, you can take a stroll there.”
Izar gave a casual “oh,” as if asking offhand, “Then… if outsiders want to sell magic potions here, is it easy to sell?”
The attendant shook his head, sounding quite certain, “That… I’m afraid not. To be honest, at Quiet Moon Dock, the market for basic consumables like magic potions has long been carved up by local merchant associations and steady suppliers. Prices are kept low, too. It’s tough for new faces to get in.”
Hearing this, Izar had a general idea.
Senior Emma specializes in potion-making, but she’s not the sharpest…
If she tried setting up a stall at Quiet Moon Dock and threatened the local interests, would they just let her be?
Only two outcomes awaited: either her potions had some special effect and sold like hotcakes, and then she’d get cornered in an alley for a “lesson” and kicked out of the market—or no one would pay any attention at all, and she’d lose everything.
The attendant saw Izar deep in thought, his eyes flickered, and he put on a fawning smile, lowering his voice, “Sir, you look like a man with connections. I’ve been around Quiet Moon Dock for over ten years and know all sorts. If you need anything—errands, information… or, heh, want some special ‘relaxation’ services, I can set it up for you, no problem.”
He rubbed his hands, his meaning clear.
Izar nodded expressionlessly, betraying nothing.
The attendant, seeing Izar wasn’t taking the bait, thought he’d lost his side income and felt disappointed, but then saw Izar shoot a glance at Luke.
The next instant—
Bang!
With a muffled thud, Luke slammed his back against the door.
The attendant hadn’t even reacted before a tremendous force shoved his hulking frame—he was 1.89 meters of solid muscle—helplessly into the cold wall, pinning him in the corner!
“W-what are you doing?!” All color drained from the attendant’s face. He instinctively shielded his chest, his voice trembling with terror, “S-sir! I—I only sell my skills, not my body! If you’re into those kinds of things… I-I can introduce you to real professionals! Please, spare me!”
He put on a look of heroic resistance to the death.
“Senior, what does he mean by ‘those kinds of things’?” Luke turned to Izar with innocent eyes, but didn’t loosen his grip in the slightest.
“Kids shouldn’t ask so many questions,” Izar replied, annoyed, as he deftly took out a vial of strange purple liquid from his storage ring and handed it to Luke, “Give it to him.”
“No! Don’t! Even if you take my body by force, you’ll never get my pure soul!”
The attendant was still melodramatically struggling and howling.
Izar couldn’t be bothered with his nonsense. He stepped forward, lightning-quick, and pinched the man’s jaw.
Those seemingly ordinary fingers contained terrifying strength; the burly man was caught like a vise, unable to resist, forced to watch as Luke poured the purple potion straight down his throat.
The potion burned as it went down.
The attendant slumped to the floor in despair, pale as death, mumbling, “It’s over… I’m tainted… I’ll become nothing but a beast driven by lust, mindless…”
Izar couldn’t take his self-indulgent imagination anymore and punched him on the forehead, “Shut up! Keep it up and I really will feed you mute poison!”
He looked down coldly, voice lowered to a chilling menace, “Listen well. What you just drank is a special ‘Severing Soul Powder’—lasts seven days!”
“This poison is colorless and tasteless. After taking it, it’ll hide in your body. Starting tomorrow, you’ll have to come to me on time every day for an antidote. If you miss a day… hmph.”
Izar let out a sinister laugh, “You’ll learn what it feels like to be gnawed by a thousand insects, wishing for death, until your guts rot away in agony.”
He paused, his gaze sharp as knives on the attendant’s ashen face, “And inside the poison is my unique ‘magic mark.’ If you dare tell anyone a word of what happened today… you’ll bleed from every orifice and die on the spot! And that death will be ten times more horrible than the poison’s.”
“Master! Have mercy!” The attendant fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing as if his life depended on it, “I—I admit I’ve been light-fingered, sometimes taking guests’ intimate belongings, but it’s not a capital crime! I have an old mother, eighty years of age, and a child only three!”
In his panic, he moved too much and a wrinkled book tumbled out of his chest with a “plop.”
On the cover, in flamboyant letters, it read—《The Overbearing Lord Fell in Love with Me》
Izar: “……”
Luke: “……”
Attendant: “……” The air froze.
“You only steal from men?” Izar couldn’t help but ask, his worldview shaken a bit.
“Y-yes…” The attendant’s face was crimson, wishing the earth would swallow him.
Izar’s scalp tingled, but he forced the topic back on track, “If you want to live, do as you’re told! The antidote must be taken for seven straight days to clear the poison completely.”
“During these seven days, I need a completely obedient ‘servant.’ If you do well,” Izar flicked another shiny gold coin to him, “you’ll get your rewards.”
The attendant fumbled to catch the coin, dazed, then realized, “S-sir… you just wanted… a temporary servant?”
He was close to tears. If you wanted a servant, couldn’t you just hire one?
Why use poison?! What kind of fiend are you!
Izar grinned darkly, his girlish voice now especially sinister, “I haven’t decided what you’ll do yet. I’ll let you know when I need you. If you don’t want to die, you know what to do, right?”
“Yes! Yes! Understood! My lips are sealed! I’ll never tell!” The attendant nodded like a pecking chicken, swearing with all his heart.
Izar, satisfied with the response, finally got to business, “Tell me, do you know a stallkeeper nicknamed ‘Know-it-all’?”
“Know-it-all? I do, I do!” the attendant answered at once, not daring to hold back. “He has some ties with Miao Miao Bookhouse, sells books and art at the dock all year round. But secretly… he does other business—helps Quiet Moon Chamber of Commerce push magic items and potions, and also sells information. He’s sort of an external member of the Chamber.”
Izar nodded—this matched his suspicions. “That’s all for now. Go do your work. And mind your tongue.”
The tavern attendant, relieved as if pardoned, muttered yes, scrambled up, and all but tiptoed out of the room, “considerately” closing the door behind him.
Finally, only Izar and Luke were left in the room. The air fell silent at once.
Know-it-all is with Quiet Moon Chamber of Commerce…
How could an external member of the Chamber so easily spill insider schemes to an outsider like him?
What good did it do Know-it-all? Wasn’t he afraid of the Chamber punishing him?
Was there a deeper plot at work?
Izar rubbed his brow.
In his years of experience, Quiet Moon Chamber of Commerce, as a massive commercial organization, followed one core belief: profit above all.
As long as the gold was right, they’d provide any service—including “respect.”
So… could it be that scamming Emma wasn’t enough, and now they wanted to fleece all the students from Starlight Academy? Targeting them on purpose?
But he quickly dismissed that idea.
What good would it do to offend Dean Claire?
A top-tier Eighth Circle Archmage’s wrath was not something any Chamber wanted to risk, no matter how large.
So, what was their real goal?
……
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