Dear, It's Time to Take Your Medicine! Chapter 21

Qin Chu did the math. He had no idea which idiot with sores on his head had set this exchange rate: one Mana equaled sixty-six Geli.

By that measure, the goods sold here could absolutely be called dirt cheap.

A rye bun as big as a head was no exaggeration when it came to filling one up. Even for miners working in the mines, it was enough to fill their stomachs. Buying two was enough food for an entire day.

It was definitely whole-wheat bread, dark and blackish, with traces of bran and husks still visible on top. Back on Earth, it would have been called healthy, nutritious, rich in fiber, and sold at an outrageous price.

Here, it was hardly considered delicious food. Its taste was not something ordinary people could endure. Going down the throat, it scraped at one's windpipe like spikes and knives.

Even the pets of noble households disdained it.

The pastries enjoyed by nobles cost ten Mana apiece, enough to buy nearly five hundred rye buns—enough to feed a miner for several months.

The outfit Qin Chu wore, which could only be worn once, had cost over a thousand Mana to make.

The class divisions of this world were that stark: two classes, two worlds.

In truth, commoners' lives had improved slightly now. Before this, things had been even more unbearable.

Under the nobles' inhuman exploitation, commoners had always lived in bitter misery. The fruits of their year-round labor were almost entirely handed over as taxes to the Empire and the nobility.

Add to that the attacks of Demonic Beasts, and calling their lives a living hell would not have been an exaggeration.

Though most commoners had grown numb, there were still some people of ambition. Some, unable to survive any longer, began joining forces with their companions to resist.

To quell the internal unrest, and because so many soldiers had died fighting Demonic Beasts and needed to be replaced by young commoners, the Empire slightly reduced taxes. It squeezed out a little benefit from between its teeth and ceded it to the commoners, easing the conflict between the commoner and noble classes.

Qin Chu's appearance was a novelty here. After all, few Knights ever came to the Commoners' District, and the people here did not know Qin Chu was a Hero.

Maritis and Angelica stayed on either side of him, constantly watching their surroundings. This place was a jumble of dragons and fish; no one knew whether the commoner approaching them might be a Demonic Beast.

Sniffing the strange mingled odors in the air, Qin Chu walked toward a fruit stall piled high with watermelons. Behind it stood a short, fat melon seller with rough skin and a face full of pits and pockmarks.

"Brother, how much is this watermelon per pound?" Qin Chu asked the melon seller.

The melon seller raised his somewhat cloudy eyes. "Two Geli each..."

Qin Chu nearly blurted out, Damn, are your rinds made of gold, or are the seeds made of gold? He held it in. Two Geli each was fucking cheap.

He had come looking for trouble, only to be choked up halfway through.

Qin Chu could not be bothered with more trouble. He stepped forward and placed a hand on the melon seller's shoulder.

"My lord, what are you doing?"

The melon seller looked utterly suspicious. He did not know Qin Chu's identity, but judging from Qin Chu's magnificent clothes and the dozens of Knights following him, he had to be a noble.

It was strange enough for a noble to appear in a market in the Commoners' District. Now this noble had even put a hand on his shoulder. Not knowing what he had done, the melon seller hunched up and put on a frightened look.

"Stop pretending, Demonic Beast. I can tell at a glance that you're not human. Show your true form at once..."

The next instant, Devourer activated, and invisible energy completely enveloped the melon seller.

As Qin Chu's strength increased, Devourer's effect grew ever stronger. In an instant, the melon seller felt the magic power in his body surge out like water pouring through an opened dam.

He tried to struggle, but Qin Chu's hand seemed glued to his shoulder. He could not break free at all.

His face instantly twisted, and he screamed in terror, "Murder! Murder..."

This was a very clever Demonic Beast.

"A noble is murdering someone in the street..."

The Skyvault Continent Was About to Change

This Demonic Beast was very clever. When Qin Chu attacked him, he did not immediately resist.

The crime of attacking a noble was extremely serious. The moment he fought back, the Knights beside Qin Chu could kill him on the spot, scatter even his ashes, and leave him no chance to argue.

In this world, the power of nobles was that outrageous.

But he knew that the conflict between commoners and nobles was intense. Though the royal family and nobles had declared that they would cede some benefits to ease tensions, they could not completely cover up the clash between the two classes.

He wanted to use this to stir up the other commoners' dissatisfaction, making Qin Chu wary and forcing him to let him go.

What he had not expected was that Qin Chu was not a noble, much less someone who would act according to noble customs.

Hearing the melon seller howl, Qin Chu did not care. He chuckled softly, his tone calm, his voice low and full of courtesy. His manner was nothing like someone devouring a Demonic Beast; it was more like an elegant exchange between nobles.

"Sir, you are mistaken."

"I am not a noble. I am... the newly summoned Hero."

Qin Chu revealed his identity.

The melon seller's expression changed drastically the instant he heard those words.

Though only one night had passed, news of what happened at the banquet had already spread everywhere through every possible channel. He knew that the newly summoned Hero possessed a mysterious and powerful authority capable of seeing straight through Demonic Beasts' disguises.

In other words, the Hero before him had known his true identity from the start.

After understanding that, evil rose in his heart. He grabbed the watermelon knife from his stall and stabbed it straight at Qin Chu's stomach.

Clang...

Before the blade could touch Qin Chu's skin, it was sent flying away.

A massive two-handed sword swept across. With a wet splat, it cut the melon seller in half at the waist.

Thick, milky-white fluid sprayed everywhere, and a heavy stench rapidly spread through the air.

After being severed in two, the melon seller finally revealed his true form: another one of those ugly, milky-white worms, a Phantom Demon.

It really was a Demonic Beast. Worthy of the Hero.

The guards around them admired Qin Chu even more.

The commoners gradually gathering nearby watched the Knights slaughter the melon seller. They had initially been seething with anger. The Empire's newly issued laws no longer permitted this sort of thing. How dare this brutal noble still act like this?

But before they could become angry, they saw the two severed worms still wriggling ceaselessly. Their faces turned pale as they wondered what exactly was happening.

Tsk...

A little unfortunate. Before he could completely devour this fellow's power, Maritis had killed him. At least a third had gone to waste.

After a brief silence, Qin Chu turned to face the surrounding commoners and bowed slightly. "Everyone, I am the newly summoned Hero of the Skyvault Continent... Please do not panic. I am merely eliminating Demonic Beasts hiding within the city."

A Hero had entered the Commoners' District to eliminate Demonic Beasts in order to protect commoners?

Were Heroes not supposed to serve only the royal family, the Church, and nobles? Since when did they protect commoners too?

For a time, the expressions on everyone's faces varied. They could hardly accept this reality.

Qin Chu said nothing more. He soon turned and left to search for the next target.

Maritis hurried after him from behind. "Lord Hero..."

She felt somewhat troubled. What had just happened had been far too dangerous.

If she had not acted in time, the Hero would have been disemboweled.

"When you discover a new target, could you tell me first? Do not rashly approach them. It is dangerous..."

"Sorry, I cannot do that. I can only determine whether someone is truly a Demonic Beast after touching them myself. After all, it would be bad if we accidentally killed a commoner... Of course, if you can restrain the target I choose and let me inspect them afterward, that would seem safer."

Maritis's eyes lit up. This was a good method. Worthy of the Hero—he was truly clever.

Meanwhile, Candice had already left the Imperial City.

Her figure darted through a desolate forest. Following Lord Horus's instructions, she had to personally inform the seventh prince of the Hero's Party shield guard Benson's route.

She did not want to deal with those ugly creatures, but she lacked the courage to refuse Lord Horus's orders.

She did not know what Lord Horus intended to do, but she knew that she, the seventh prince, and even the Hero were all merely pieces in Lord Horus's plan.

As a chess piece, one had to show one's value as a chess piece.

The situation on the Skyvault Continent was likely about to change.

Traveling day and night without rest, Candice finally stopped before a tall mountain late the following night.

She looked around. The forest was lush and verdant, while gray-black miasma filled the air, carrying an oppressive, heart-palpitating aura.

The night was deathly quiet. There was no sound of nightingales or insects, nor was there any wind.

This place was plainly a dead zone. Even Candice, with half Demonic Beast blood flowing through her veins, could feel the deep oppression.

Gray-white fog shrouded the foot of the mountain, horrifying and strange.

Taking a deep breath, Candice suppressed the irritation in her chest and dropped to one knee before the mountain. "Candice, intelligence agent number thirty-four of the Imperial City of the Orwell Empire, requests an audience with His Highness the Seventh Prince on urgent business."

There was not the slightest sound around her.

She knew that because of her identity, those Demonic Beasts would not easily allow her to meet the seventh prince. Perhaps at this very moment, behind that fog, a group of Demonic Beasts was watching her and laughing smugly.

"This is extremely important intelligence. If it is delayed, there may be serious consequences," Candice added.

After quite some time, a pale gray figure flickered in and out of sight within the dense fog. Through the blur, she could make out the twisted outline of a human-shaped silhouette.

"Candice, what important intelligence could you possibly have?"

"Tell me. I will relay it to His Highness the Seventh Prince."

The voice was sharp and piercing, making one feel intensely uncomfortable. As it spoke, strange limbs within the fog twisted more and more frequently. Its body was like an amorphous lump of flesh, writhing without pause.

"Sorry, this intelligence concerns a grave matter. I must meet the seventh prince personally."

Candice's answer clearly angered the Demonic Beast in the fog. In an instant, the gray-white fog around them churned violently and formed an enormous skull.

It was sinister and terrifying.

With a whoosh, the skull flew toward Candice. Its gaping jaws seemed intent on swallowing her whole.

"You filthy lowborn! You mongrel with human blood in your veins! You dare speak to me like this? What right do you have to meet His Highness the Seventh Prince?"

A cold gleam flashed in Candice's eyes. She nearly lost control, but she endured it. Her fingers clenched tightly, and the resentment in her chest toward Demonic Beasts grew ever stronger.

She was clearly working for them, yet they were unwilling even to put on a superficial pretense.

In an instant, the enormous skull formed from fog had arrived before Candice. Its gaping maw would swallow her in the next moment!

From beginning to end, Candice did not move an inch.

"Stop..."

Just as Candice was about to be swallowed, a deep voice, like drums beating, came from the depths of the mountain.

The huge skull abruptly stopped. Then it shot backward, shrank, and vanished, as though it had never existed.

"Let her enter."

The dense fog parted to both sides, revealing a narrow path.

The mountain before her was merely a hollow shell. Its interior had long since been excavated by Demonic Beasts and turned into a temporary camp for His Highness the Seventh Prince.

Within the fog on both sides, she could sense vast numbers of shadowy, twisted limbs. One look made her scalp crawl. Who knew how many pairs of black or crimson eyes pierced through the fog, staring fixedly at Candice.

Even with Candice's strong will, goosebumps rose all over her body at this moment. She could not feel even a trace of goodwill in those gazes.

Hoarse voices, whimpers, mournful cries, and roars—every kind of sound pierced her ears from all directions.

Normal humans simply could not approach the territory where Demonic Beasts lived. The torment of sound, sight, smell, and everything else was enough to make one's soul collapse.

Huff...

Candice took a shallow breath, opened her eyes again, and followed the parted fog deeper inside.

The terrifying pressure continued for a long, long time. At last, Candice stopped walking.

Inside the mountain's belly stood a small palace. Within it was a throne built from white bones, with two ghastly skulls forming the armrests.

Upon the throne sat a massive figure.

An aura of terrifying pressure rushed toward her. His body stood dozens of meters tall, majestic and imposing.

He had dark-red skin as tough as steel, and beneath it, thick blood vessels coursed with flowing liquid.

His limbs were covered in thick, hard scales that gleamed with a metallic luster. He looked more like an enormous human, except the nails on the ends of his fingers and toes were all sharp as blades and curved like hooks.

Two curved goat horns rose from his enormous head.

One massive arm supported his chin, while a scarlet eyeball larger than a washbasin stared down at Candice's tiny figure.