▲19. Black Market [ II ]▲

He then pulled out a drawer. "For the legendary, we only have the Druid's Blood."

He took out a mini transparent glass bottle.

In it was a bright green liquid, shimmering as if hit by direct sunlight.

"He asked for the best..." Kaida thought to herself, a bit suspicious of the potion.

Her eyes glowed crimson, checking for the mana content.

"This is real..." she thought, quickly releasing the mana in her eyes, almost blinded by the power emitted by the potion.

Mana is usually seen as photons; the higher its quantity, the brighter the object.

Having been almost blinded confirmed its authenticity.

"I will take it..." She took out the same black leaf, placing it on the counter.

"Ok, but it's really expensive, you know..." the shopkeeper said, slowly pulling the black leaf across the counter, waiting to see if she would change her mind.

"How much?!" Kaida inquired curiously.

The shopkeepers never spoke about price, only deducting the amount from the black leaf, which served as both a token and debit card.

To ask only meant the price had gone above what was normally expected.

"It's..." The shopkeeper hesitated, causing Kaida to raise her brows.

"It's 50 million," he said softly.

"50 million?!..." Kaida's eyes narrowed in confusion and suspicion.

This guy wanted to cheat her or so she thought.

The cost of potions wasn't supposed to be that high. The last she could remember was a couple of hundreds of thousands for a legendary, but 50 million—that was a stretch.

The most powerful legendary artifact was around 100 million, and that was a weapon.

Weapons were more expensive than potions, as there were magicians and healers who could do what potions could.

But for weapons, it was a different story—no matter how strong one is, equipped with a weapon, they are stronger.

"How could this be..." Kaida growled, her eyes sharp as she stared at the fidgeting shopkeeper.

"...Do you want to cheat me?!" she hissed, her mana threatening to explode.

"No!!... No!!..." He waved his hand defensively. "We wouldn't dare... It's just the gates have been hectic lately... The druids' rank seems to have spiked. They are now considered S-rank humanoids..." he explained, emphasizing the dangers of procuring the blood of an S-rank creature.

Creatures capable of single-handedly destroying a whole city.

50 million was even a little low but considering it was a potion, not a weapon, it was ok, as people didn't normally purchase portions.

"S-rank?!" Kaida echoed, surprised by the sudden news.

It's been a while since she watched the news or went raiding herself, so this was news to her.

One might have questioned the authenticity of the statement, but this was the black market—the most honest trade center in the world.

Allegedly.

"They won't lie to me, right?!... The young master only has one billion in his account now. I can't spend it recklessly; I got more things to get..." she mused, staying quiet all this while as she stared at the potion.

"Why don't you hire a healer? They are cheaper, you know," the shopkeeper suggested, noticing the pondering gesture.

"A healer?!" Kaida's eyes turned cold as she remembered the healer she had gotten.

From her investigation, she found nothing on the healer, despite her just being C-rank.

And that was suspicious.

Not to mention what Richard had said to her:

"I may not have my memories, but from my brief stay here I can tell someone wants to kill me... They can and will bribe anyone. You are the only one I can trust. If you leave me too, I would die..."

She remembered Richard's words, thus taking someone would not be appropriate.

Richard had explained, almost pleading, the dangers of hiring someone.

He knew from his previous life how untrustworthy and easily bought people were. As long as someone offered more, they would betray you.

Someone wanted him dead, and the person had more money accessible to his money than he did.

Kaida was skeptical at first, but upon musing on it, she believed that it could be true—someone or a party was out to get him, as Richard laid down all of what he had observed upon his arrival.

Richard had decided to trust her only because if he died, she could too—the only person who wouldn't kill him even if offered the world as she wouldn't be there to enjoy it.

"No!! It's ok, I will buy it," Kaida pushed the leaf towards the shopkeeper.

"Are you sure?!"

"Yeah," she nodded.

The transaction was swift, as the shopkeeper deducted his money and gave back the black leaf and the Druid's Blood.

"Thank you."

Kaida turned her attention elsewhere—to the clothes division.

...

She proceeded to buy a few defensive garments and a few pairs of haste shoes, all at the legendary level.

Her total cost was around 200 million, including the potion.

"That should be it for now," she nodded satisfied.

Done she headed out of the black market's exit, appearing at the tree she entered from.

"Now for the cover-up," she thought, her eyes glowing eerily in the night, searching for a prey.

It would be suspicious if she just went back empty-handed. The black market was a secret, after all—she had to keep it that way.

"Found you," she muttered, her gaze fixed on a spot.

She rushed towards it, a trail of fire in her wake.

Dying almost as quickly as they were born.

After a few minutes, she arrived in front of a large building, its design foreign to her world.

It stood a few inches taller than herself, the metallic ceiling rusted and falling off.

The building stood as a rectangular structure with only one entrance, opened widely, darkness within its depths.

Her blazing gaze remained fixed on the opening as she perceived her target.

"Let's lure them out first."

She took out a small dagger, cutting her thumb.

The blood slowly dripped from her thumb, the metallic smell drifting in the still air.

" Huuuurrrrrghhh!!"

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A N

Sorry!! Sorry!!

I had to take my license exams and couldn't publish.

My stockpile was finished before I knew.

I messed up, I didn't want to miss a day.