"On that matter, Lord Ryan may rest assured. The Highland Mage Corps would never resort to any merchant's tricks in a transaction."
Pierce's confidence made Ryan lose his own. What kind of potion could possibly be worth at least two hundred thousand Gold Coins?
And that was only one set?
"Let me ask first, Mage Pierce. When you say one set—a whole series of potions—you mean it can only be used by... one person, correct?"
"Of course."
"One set of potions for two hundred thousand Gold Coins? Then consider those three Frost Ghosts a gift from me to the Highland Mage Corps."
"Lord Ryan, I don't think you understand the relationship involved."
"Two hundred thousand per Specter. What is worth two hundred thousand Gold Coins is not the Specter itself, but the magical results it can bring about. And I can tell you that those magical results are certainly worth far more than two hundred thousand Gold Coins. At present, what the Empire's mages lack are merely materials like Specters."
Ryan understood. In this arrangement, he was only responsible for gathering one of the raw materials.
He was a supplier, not a shareholder in any of this.
With that in mind, interest appeared in Ryan's eyes.
"Likewise, Specters cannot be bought even if one has the money. Does Lord Ryan think the Life Potions provided by the Highland Mage Corps can simply be replicated at will?"
"To be honest, forget about outsiders—even internally, we have no idea whether we'll be able to reproduce them in ten years."
After saying that, Pierce waved his mage's robe sleeve, and ten crystal cases of varying sizes were placed before Ryan.
From left to right, the first case was the largest, large enough to hold an adult. The final case could only be regarded