The lady stared back at Kent as though scrutinizing him to determine whether what he said was true. After an intense 30 seconds of staring, she seemed to find her answer, her expression shifting as if she had just discovered a rare gem.
Kent noticed the look in her eyes and immediately understood what she was thinking. Without hesitation, he dismissed any direction she might want to take.
“Being part of a noble or merchant family is not something I’m interested in. They’re all about scheming and backstabbing.”
The lady seemed to grasp Kent’s point and decided to back off. However, that doesn’t mean she completely dismissed the idea.
“But of course,” she replied, choosing not to press further. Instead, she led him to the section of the store that housed the poison-type herbs.
“While you may not like the idea of joining a noble or merchant family, you should know that they come with amazing benefits and protection. However, as great as that might sound, showing exceptional skill during the competition has its downsides,” the lady explained, her tone neutral and unreadable.
“How so?” Kent asked.
“For starters, the noble and merchant families are highly competitive. They always strive to have the best of everything. If you become the top ranker in the competition, they’ll try to recruit you.
But if you refuse, they won’t take it kindly. They may resort to nefarious methods to get their way. In short, if they can’t have you, then nobody else can,” she warned.
Kent nodded with a thoughtful expression.
The last thing he wanted was to get entangled with these noble families. But since they seemed to have a problem with his unwillingness to join them, the best he could do was unleash an army of battle dolls on them.
And if that wasn’t enough? Well, he was now a [Create Necromancer], capable of far more than just summoning battle dolls.
With that thought lingering in his mind, Kent continued browsing through the store, carefully checking and selecting the herbs he needed while keeping an eye out for new ones to add to his collection.
Money wasn’t an issue for him.
“You seem to be picking a lot. Do you know the store has a policy that prohibits returning herbs to the shelves after they’ve been picked?” the lady remarked, eyeing the stack of herbs Kent had gathered.
“Don’t worry, I planned on buying all of this,” Kent smiled, continuing to select herbs.
“Are you one of those?” the lady asked thoughtfully.
“One of who?” Kent replied.
“You know, those impulse buyers,” she smiled as she said it. Kent smiled back and picked four herbs: Bloodthorn Vines, Crimsonbell Flowers, Fevermoss, and Blightcap Spores.
“I assure you, I’m not an impulse buyer. I just like impulse buying. The two are completely different, by the way.” Kent wasn’t sure if he had just made a fool of himself or if it actually made sense.
The lady glanced at the four herbs in his hand and asked, “Since you’re not an impulse buyer, why don’t you tell me what these four herbs are used for?”
“They can be used for three different types of poison, as well as antidote pills if a few minor ingredients are added. But with just these four, you can make a Crimson Curse Pill,” Kent replied, showing that he knew exactly what he was buying.
“Not bad,” the lady said, seemingly impressed. She followed him, watching Kent pick dozens of herbs, filling the dimensional basket in his hands.
The baskets contained a dimensional space-type formation inside, allowing him to fill it without worry.
“Are you done?” the lady asked after sighing. She had been following Kent for two whole hours, just watching him pick herbs like a madman.
“Yes,” Kent smiled and began walking back to the counter where he would pay for the goods.
On their way, he picked a few more, making the lady roll her eyes. A few minutes later, they arrived at the counter, where he presented his basket and waited for the total sum to pay.
Meanwhile, a few meters from Kent’s location, down a section he had traversed during the hours he spent picking herbs, a young lady with long dark hair, an air of arrogance, and a frown on her face kept looking through shelves for a specific type of poison herb that had once been there.
She seemed to have memorized where that herb was and went straight there to check, but it was long gone, making her frown.
After looking for ten full minutes, she started moving toward the counter where Kent was currently being attended to.
A few steps before she reached the counter, where she planned to complain, she saw the Dreamshade Flowers being picked from Kent’s basket.
“Stop!” she commanded, as if she owned the store. But her command worked, as the lady counting the herbs seemed to freeze in her tracks.
“What seems to be the problem?” the counter lady asked.
“That is my herb. I saw it yesterday and came for it today. I want it back,” she said arrogantly, drawing attention from the buyers and sellers inside.
Whispers started to spread.
“Who is that young lady?” a man asked, looking in her direction.
“Shush! Don’t you know her?” another man said, shushing the first man.
“That is the only disciple of the Wicked Poison Witch… You know, that old witch who is one of the Seven Pill Saints we have on this continent.”
The first man paled upon hearing that. They knew who that old witch was and what she could do to people. In fact, among the Seven Pill Saints, she was regarded as the most dangerous of them all.
It wasn’t because she was the best.
No.
It was more like she was dangerous. She specialized in making poisons, so when they called her a monster, she truly deserved the title. Her pills were some of the most potent poisons this continent has ever seen. Stay connected via My Virtual Library Empire
People who recognized her seemed to want to distance themselves from where the young disciple of the wicked Pill Saint stood.
One time, a certain merchant family offended the old witch, who, overnight, poisoned the entire family, leaving them in agonizing pain for three whole months. Both old and young, she showed no remorse.
Had it not been for the king stepping in, she would have left them like that for who knows how long. So because of this, in the four kingdoms, nobody wanted to mess with her or anyone related to her.
They feared her like a plague. If possible, they all wanted to run outside first until she left before returning. Disciple or the real deal, they wouldn’t want to test their luck.
“I am sorry, miss, but this herb has been accounted for by this young man,” the counter lady said, pointing at Kent.
The young disciple lady turned and stared at Kent with eyes filled with disdain and arrogance. Right now, she felt like she was invincible—and she was. Despite being inside the most powerful store in Althea Kingdom, she indeed felt untouchable, thanks to her master.
However, today, in the eyes of the Chaos Dragon, she was a nobody. And he made sure she knew that.
“Stop looking at me with those eyes. No matter who you are, whether the daughter of the king or the princess of the demon empire, this herb won’t be given to you today or ever. So you can just run along,” Kent spoke, and jaws dropped.