Aiven's Terms

Soon, they arrived at the viscount's estate.

Aiven got out of the carriage unhurriedly and fed the Ironclad Rhinoceros another Healing Potion before heading toward the estate.

Sir Enzo was frantic with worry, but he didn't dare rush Aiven. He could only wait until Aiven caught up, then hurry toward the room.

"Apothecary Aiven, long time no see."

Inside the room, Master John and Master Olay looked toward the doorway. When they saw Aiven, both smiled.

"Mr. John, Mr. Olay." Aiven greeted the two masters with the respect due to his elders, then looked toward the Luxray still unconscious on the floor.

Purple blotches still covered the Luxray, though it no longer looked as frightening as before. Clearly, the two apothecaries had managed to suppress the poison.

But they could only suppress it, not eliminate it. Before long, the poison in the Luxray's body would flare up again.

"Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Aiven."

Just then, a gentle voice reached Aiven's ears.

He turned toward it and saw Phyllis in a purple dress. He paused for a moment.

The viscount's daughter really was beautiful, especially with her purple dress and matching shawl of purple hair.

"Of course."

Aiven's momentary distraction passed, and he looked back at the Luxray on the floor.

"Mr. Aiven, can you cure it?" Sir Enzo asked nervously.

He knew Aiven could cure the Luxray's poison, but what he was really asking was what it would take for Aiven to do so.

Aiven stepped forward to examine the Luxray and make sure of his diagnosis. The Luxray had indeed been struck by Petilil's Deadly Poison Technique.

Petilil, nestled in his arms, blinked its round eyes and turned to look at Aiven. The little one recognized its own poison!

"I can."

After examining the Luxray, Aiven gave a firm answer.

Everyone present, including the masters, was stunned. They hadn't expected Aiven to know he could cure it just from a glance.

The two masters had spent half the day studying the poison and still couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Could this apothecary named Aiven really be that much better than they were?

Sir Enzo was delighted. He knew Aiven had agreed to cure the Luxray, but he didn't immediately urge him to get started. Instead, he waited expectantly.

Sure enough, Aiven soon added, "But..."

Everyone turned to look at Aiven, eager to hear what terms he would name.

Even Phyllis, usually so composed, wore an unusually grave expression.

When she saw Aiven enter with Petilil in his arms, she had already confirmed what she'd suspected.

Her foolish younger brother really had gone to the other man's farm to steal Petilil, and that was how the Luxray had been struck by that terrifying poison!

But since Aiven was willing to come to their estate, he must be able to cure the Luxray. There would certainly be conditions, though.

She was terribly anxious about what terms Aiven might propose. Besides curing the poison, they would surely involve holding them accountable and demanding compensation.

"I want the Ironclad Rhinoceros outside—the Ironclad Rhinoceros Carriage!"

Aiven glanced around at them, the corner of his mouth curling slightly as he calmly stated his terms.

At that moment, he could clearly hear the people around him gasp. They were truly stunned.

An Ironclad Rhinoceros Carriage cost hundreds of gold coins... Master John mentally calculated its value, his eyes wide.

He had always thought of himself as a greedy man, and his prices in City of Ambition were the highest.

But compared to the young apothecary before him, he suddenly felt his own prices had been quite reasonable...

Apothecary Aulai, standing on the other side, looked utterly astonished. To an apothecary, that price seemed far too steep.

He eyed Aiven suspiciously. Could this young apothecary really be that greedy?

Link, however, remained calm. The strange things about the carriage had already made him suspicious, and he had a feeling Aiven had deliberately named such a high price.

The Ironclad Rhinoceros Carriage... This... This... Sir Enzo looked anguished. He'd known Aiven would demand a high price, but this was far too much!

Choose between the Luxray and the Ironclad Rhinoceros—that was the impossible choice Aiven had put before him, one that tormented him endlessly.

The Luxray was one of their family's main sources of strength and far more important than the Ironclad Rhinoceros. But the Ironclad Rhinoceros Carriage was also a symbol of the family's prestige.

His heart twisted with anguish. He wanted nothing more than to have Aiven seized and force him to hand over the antidote!

Of course, that was only a thought. He didn't dare do such a thing. Neither Aiven's status nor the viscount's family's honor would allow it!