"That was what happened... When I returned to the village, everyone there was dead. I wanted to exchange the holy water I had for money and leave this place, but... then I ran into that elf... In the end, the money was gone too. Now I could only stay under Mr. Eliyi and see whether I could repay his life-saving kindness with this Refined Dragonblood formula..."
Denolan sat on the left side of the bed and told Tiadam everything he had seen and heard over the past few days.
"That sounded plausible enough, but—" Tiadam turned over and sat up on the right side of the bed. "Do you know what a Dragonblood Gem actually is?"
"Mm..." Denolan shook his head. "I only knew Dragonblood Gems were valuable. If I could successfully refine one and sell it to one of Canfor's wealthy nobles, I'd have enough money to bribe Alderbu's guards and leave Canfor."
"Ah..." Denolan's naivety gave Tiadam quite a headache. "Do you know why Dragonblood Gems are so expensive?"
"N-No..."
"Then let me tell you..." Tiadam rolled over and rose to his feet. "A Dragonblood Gem isn't simply an ornament or gemstone. It is—a weapon created by concentrating high-intensity magic."
"A... weapon?"
"As expected, you don't understand anything..." Tiadam glanced at Denolan. "Dragons are pure magical creatures. Their origin lies with the Elemental Queen among the Northern Old Gods—Winslan Naga. The blood of true dragons itself possesses immensely powerful elemental energy. Compressing and fusing the elemental energy within that dragon blood, then turning it into a solid, is Refined Dragonblood. Since those solids contain elemental magic, they are called Dragonblood Gems. If the energy inside those gems is released all at once, its power could hold back an army of thousands."
"That... that sounded... dangerous..." Denolan seemed at a loss. "I just thought... dragons were rare and difficult to deal with..."
"A dragon's strength and rarity are only part of why they are valuable. The more important reason is..." Tiadam grabbed Denolan by the collar. "Refined Dragonblood is one of the ten alchemical arts forbidden throughout the kingdom. If you're discovered, you could end up on the guillotine."
"The... guillotine..." Denolan felt as if the world were spinning around him.
"Don't be afraid..." Tiadam patted Denolan's shoulder. "Although researching Refined Dragonblood is strictly forbidden, aside from the royal capital, most other cities turn a blind eye to it."
"But... it's still against the law..." Denolan added.
"That's why Eliyi pushed everything onto us while he supplied the funds from behind the scenes." Tiadam spoke with some pride. "That brat often pulled this kind of stunt. I was already used to it."
"But... earlier, he told me to look everywhere for merchant mages... to cooperate with..."
"Maybe his identity wasn't something he wanted others to know about..." Tiadam sat back down on the bed. "They say he was an old acquaintance of some important figure in the royal capital. It would be bad if that big shot's political enemies got hold of something against him. That's probably why he had you seek out mages who traded magical goods—to protect the person behind him."
"Oh, that made sense." Denolan nodded, half understanding.
"I guessed Oyana was the first person he told you to find." Tiadam draped an arm over Denolan's shoulder. "And he must have warned you that if Oyana asked who sent you, you had to keep your mouth shut and never reveal him."
"H-How did you know all that...?"
"Of course I did." Tiadam said smugly. "I've dealt with Eliyi, Oyana, and those people plenty of times. I've seen more than enough of their tricks. Let me guess again—Oyana definitely didn't give you a clear answer. She only told you to go back and wait for news."
"You... you could guess that too?"
"Oyana's skill at fobbing people off was no exaggeration." Tiadam's brows drew together slightly. "But if Oyana didn't respond directly... then I guessed it would be pointless for you to seek cooperation from other magic shops."
"W-Why?" Denolan asked.
"Most magic shops in Canfor are run by witches, and Oyana is the leader of all the witches in Canfor. If she didn't agree outright, then there was basically no hope with the witches, the magical guilds that did business with them, or the shops either. You'd only be turned away at the door..." Tiadam looked at Denolan's face. "Earlier, you hurriedly said a merchant was willing to work with you. That merchant couldn't be... someone from the church, could it?"
"Mm..." Denolan shook his head. "This time, you guessed wrong. I never went to the Ouston Church or the secondhand shops under its control."
"Not the church? Then... who else had enough influence in Canfor to do business involving something like Refined Dragonblood?" Tiadam muttered to himself.
"Who it is, we'll know when we go tonight," Denolan said.
"Tonight?"
"Yes—tonight, they invited us to dine at her mansion. Look, the invitation has already arrived..." Denolan pulled an opened letter from his chest. "You know... when I opened the window this morning, it flew in from outside. At first, I saw a pigeon. But when it flew into my hand, it turned into a letter. Magic really was amazing..."
There was a hint of longing in the way Denolan spoke about magic.
"'Please come to my residence at dusk for dinner, so that we may discuss our cooperation...'" Tiadam read through the contents of the letter. "They didn't even mark the location for dinner. These mages really loved playing at being mysterious."
Denolan asked, "So, are you going or not?"
"Of course I'm going—" Tiadam took Denolan's hand. "But before we go, we need to make some preparations."
"P-Preparations? What preparations..." Denolan, who had never attended a dinner banquet, asked, "Did we need to buy gifts for them?"
"Gifts are for after the partnership is established. What we need to buy now is something more important than gifts," Tiadam replied.
"Then what about the money?"
"We'll borrow it from the innkeeper. Eliyi will cover it in the end anyway. We can't work ourselves to the bone for him for nothing!"
"Has the letter been delivered?" Yetara reclined sideways in his lavish mansion, still wrapped in a heavy mink coat.
"The letter has been delivered, my master."
The maid placed a platter of fragrant braised steak before Yetara.
"Today's lunch is steak from the Ailanfa Divine Cattle brought from the royal capital. The seasonings include pepper, Sichuan pepper, fennel, cumin, wormwood, and premium white matsutake dug from beneath cedars in Deidan. First, Larideli green-shell coconut oil is heated over a low flame for two to three minutes. Then pepper, Sichuan pepper, fennel, cumin, and wormwood are added to the pan and cooked until fragrant. The spice residue is strained out, after which the Ailanfa Divine Cattle steak is added. Once both sides are seared golden brown, vegetable broth that has been simmered for two days is poured over it. It is then gently stewed over low heat for two hours before being served to you at noon..."
"It'll do." Yetara wiped his mouth with a napkin. "How are the preparations for tonight's dinner? Have all the ingredients been prepared?"
"About that..." The maid froze for a moment before answering, "The merchants have prepared most of the ingredients, but... we are short on rose salt produced in the Chilabudan Archipelago."
"Oh, is that so..." Yetara said absentmindedly. "Have the seasonal vegetables from the Lower District been collected? Give me a brief report on the accounts..."
"Yes—" The maid pulled an account book from beneath her skirt. It clearly recorded the taxes Canfor had collected this winter from outside the North City and West City.
"Although agricultural production in the West City and North City districts has increased, Rosa Kevin's Curse has made most food inedible. In accordance with the policy you established, we have taken all heavily contaminated food as tax payments from the farmers of the West City and North City districts. At present, Canfor's treasury holds approximately one hundred ninety-seven thousand pounds of contaminated pumpkins, two million eight hundred thousand pounds of contaminated potatoes, three million two hundred thousand pounds of contaminated radishes, one million one hundred thousand pounds of contaminated sweet potatoes, and another one hundred fifty pounds of cabbage, mustard greens, and other produce..."
"Strange?" Yetara pondered silently. "Rosa Kevin's Curse occurred more frequently this year than it did last year, so why had this year's tax revenue increased by only a little?"
"Perhaps because of the Ouston Church..." The maid rose to her feet. "This year, Brother Abelato of the Ouston Church recommended to Bishop Labrador a policy of free holy water. Polluted food could be exchanged for holy water. I heard it has already been promoted in the East City district, where the curse is most severe, but the results have been mediocre... The curse in the East City district has even grown worse."
"They promoted it in the East City district, yet the taxes from the North City and West City districts were affected. That damned old fraud Labrador, always playing these tiresome tricks. If it weren't for..." Yetara viciously slapped the duck-down cushion on the sofa, gritting his teeth. "If it weren't for those little brats! I... I... Forget it. I'll wait until I recover, then settle the score with them slowly."
"How are the undead creatures outside the city doing now?" Yetara asked.
"The situation is not optimistic. Those monsters have begun corroding the barrier of the Three Great Angels. I believe Canfor will face a major battle before long."
"How long is before long?" Yetara seemed to be in a bad mood.
"Two days. My lord, should you leave this place and go to Alderbu?"
"Rubbish—" Yetara cursed. "If I could leave, would I still be staying in this damned place? The Northern Old Gods ordered me to keep a close watch on Risala's Spider Demons and stop those bastards from getting in touch with Myude's people. If I leave Canfor now, the Northern Old Gods won't let me off easily."
"Then what should we do now?"
"What should we do—" Yetara let out a long sigh. "Of course, gather the mages, witches, martyrs, and the Forest Elves still remaining in Canfor to face the undead monsters' attack together. Then ask Lapidemi, the general defending Alderbu, for help and see whether he can send Holy Knights as reinforcements. If that still doesn't work... then we can only pack up and run..."
"Then should I go organize the merchants' association and treasury now?"
"Uh... don't make it too conspicuous. Pick out the valuable magic books and ancient texts." Yetara slumped over his sofa. "What a pity, all the effort I put in over these decades. I wonder... whether I could buy another mansion and furniture this good somewhere else... My heart hurts so much..."
Before you continue