Luke led Kailina out of the Secret Intelligence Bureau through the back door. On the way, they hired a carriage and climbed aboard.
Steam-powered locomotives were expensive and required professional maintenance, so animal power remained the primary means of transportation.
Many nobles, officials, and merchants disliked the pungent smell of engine oil and preferred luxurious carriages that showed off their lofty status.
The poor roads made the carriage jolt violently.
Kailina, on her first field assignment, seemed very nervous. She held her hands together in her lap, looking ready to draw her Magic Wand and cast a spell at any moment.
Sitting opposite her, Luke smiled. "Relax. I'm worried you'll cast a spell right now and blow up this carriage."
Kailina gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Detective Chief. Whenever Captain Black Mamba comes back from a field assignment, I have to help her write up the report. They always seem to run into some vicious serial killer.
"Some of them are innocent, but I know the Cape District is dangerous. I have to keep you safe."
Luke hadn't expected Kailina to be so nervous because she was thinking of protecting him.
"Oh? Are you protecting me... because you want to? Or because your 'loyalty' is telling you to?"
Kailina thought for a moment. "I... I don't know. The device stimulates my brain, so I can't tell whether it's what I truly want or an order from 'loyalty.'"
"No, you can tell the difference—you just need to learn how. The brain is the most complex organ in the human body. No device can control it completely. I'll teach you a method that combines breathing with meditation. Once you've mastered it, you'll be able to tell which thoughts are truly yours and which have been forced upon you.
"It won't free you from the device's control, but it will help you understand who you really are."
"Really?" Kailina was thrilled, but then she asked anxiously, "Could this cause trouble for you?"
"If you don't tell anyone, who would know?"
"Thank you, Detective Chief. I definitely won't tell anyone."
Luke taught Kailina the breathing and meditation technique. The shift in focus soon helped her relax.
The carriage reached its destination and stopped.
It was a very narrow alley, without even an official name. People in the trade called it Black Potion Alley.
In the Golden Shield Empire, the production and sale of magic potions were monopolized by the state. Only those approved by the Imperial Pharmacist Association could produce and sell them.
But legitimate magic potions were generally expensive, which had given rise to the black magic potion trade. Potions made in private workshops came with no guarantee of quality and could have side effects, but their price gave them a major competitive advantage.
Besides, some black magic potions had effects that legitimate ones did not.
The Cape District's unique environment had given rise to a large-scale black magic potion industry.
Black Potion Alley existed almost in the open.
Luke and Kailina's arrival immediately caught the attention of the people in the alley.
Their clothes made it clear that they were people of standing. Kailina, in particular, had the air of a Noble Lady—something difficult to imitate and even harder to conceal.
Some people gathered around, trying to stop them from entering Black Potion Alley.
Luke took out a 100-mark Imperial Mark and handed it to the man at the front.
"I'm a potion buyer. I'm here to see Ralph."
The man took the money, looked at Luke and Kailina, then waved the others aside.
"Ralph? The Aphrodisiac his family made killed an old gentleman last week. A lot of merchants won't touch their potions anymore.
"Sir... if you're looking to buy an Aphrodisiac, I can recommend someone else. They use a formula approved by the Imperial Pharmacist Association. Guaranteed safe and effective—and your companion will be satisfied.
"The Ralph family likes adding all kinds of strange things to their potions."
Kailina realized what the Aphrodisiac was and lowered her blushing face.
Luke took out another 100-mark Imperial Mark.
"Ralph and I are friends. Take me to him."
The man quickly accepted the money.
"No problem! Actually, the gentleman who died was already eighty. The Ralph family's potions are a little strong, but you'll be as vigorous as a dragon after taking one.
"Follow me."
Luke and Kailina followed the man farther into the alley.
The entire alley reeked of potions. Some potion ingredients and containers had been carelessly tossed onto the muddy road, and a few were reacting and bubbling with colorful foam.
The management was lax, and the sanitation was a serious concern!
The man led Luke to the entrance of a workshop.
"This is Ralph's potion workshop. You can go right in. Just a friendly warning: with the Ralph family's potions... it's best to drink half a bottle."
"Thanks."
Luke led Kailina into the workshop, where the acrid smell of potions was even stronger.
Just inside was a small courtyard.
A well was connected to a long trough. Several women sat on either side, washing potion bottles.
At the far end of the courtyard was a small door leading underground. A burly man stood guard outside it.
Luke didn't stop. He kept walking.
The man blocked the entrance to the basement. "Who are you? If you want to do business, wait here."
Luke grabbed the man by the arm, twisted him to the ground, and stepped over him on his way to the basement.
Kailina carefully hopped over the man and even remembered to say, "Sorry!"
The man's screams alerted the people in the underground workshop.
When they saw Luke coming down, they grabbed whatever weapons were close at hand and rushed at him.
Luke didn't stop. He kept walking.
"Kailina!"
"Yes, Detective Chief..."
Kailina pulled the Magic Wand hidden in her sleeve. Its tip shone with a brilliant light, and a magical blast sent one of the men rushing at Luke flying.
She fired off blast after blast, knocking away everyone who charged at them.
Kailina gathered up her skirt and hurried after Luke, using magic to move a box blocking their path to the side of the wall.
She kept apologizing to the stunned workers. "Sorry... sorry... Detective Chief, wait for me..."
Luke continued forward, noting that everyone hit by Kailina's magic was still able to get back up.
If he'd brought Shelley, it would have been a completely different scene.
They passed through the ingredient room, the milling room, and the dissolving room...
Kailina stayed beside Luke, pointing her Magic Wand ahead. The bright light at its tip scared most of the workers into holding still.
Anyone bold enough to attack got thrown aside by magic.
Luke passed through one room after another with almost no resistance, until four people blocked his way.
They were built differently from the ordinary people he'd encountered earlier.
Their leader was a short old man with a white beard and hair. His bulging forehead made him look like Shouxing.
The old man glared at Luke and demanded, "Who are you?"
Luke slowly took the Detective Chief's badge from his pocket and pinned it to his chest. "The new Detective Chief of the Cape District Secret Intelligence Bureau... Meteor."
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