Chapter 217: The Regulation Board

Evren reached across the marble table, pulling the slim tablet toward himself to read the text. His dark eyes narrowed as he scanned the result.

"The Capital Alchemical Regulation Board," Evren said in a calm, measured voice. "What authority do they actually have over patent filings?"

Calista swallowed hard, her slender fingers curling into the fabric of her skirt as she tried to make sense of the notification.

"They control the regulatory board for all medicinal and alchemical distribution in the Capital," Calista explained. "Whenever a new formula exceeds standard Grade-Three potency, the automated system routes it through the Regulation Board’s review panel for verification."

Amber scoffed with crossed arms. "That notice didn’t ask for a verification meeting, Calista... it ordered you to surrender protocol samples within forty-eight hours."

"It could just be an automated classification flag," Calista suggested, trying to find a logical explanation. "Our three formulas are significantly more potent than anything on the commercial market. The registry’s automated algorithms might have flagged them as hazardous or counterfeit."

She looked at Evren with an earnest, determined expression.

"I have all the molecular synthesis logs, toxicity reports, and batch yields saved on my tablet," Calista continued. "If we go down to their headquarters in District One, I can present our data directly to the registrar and clear up the misunderstanding."

Evren studied her hopeful face for a quiet moment. He had dealt with enough corrupt syndicates in Veridia to know that monopolies rarely made ’honest mistakes,’ but seeing Calista standing tall and wanting to fight for her work mattered more.

"Alright," Evren said, pushing his chair back and standing up. "Grab everything you need. We’ll go to the Regulation Board’s headquarters right now and hear what they have to say."

Amber stood up immediately. "I’m coming with you. If someone in this city thinks they can bully my family, I want to be in the room when they try."

"I’ll coordinate with Walter on Floor 76," Zephyra offered. "Just in case this isn’t a routine clerical error."

Within fifteen minutes, the three of them were in the private express elevator heading down to the tower’s motor pool.

Evren slid behind the wheel of his black armored sedan, pulling out of the garage and merging into the bustling morning traffic of District One. The streets were filled with sleek executive transports and uniformed guild personnel heading to their offices.

Calista sat in the passenger seat, clutching her tablet and her journal.

"Are you nervous?" Evren asked quietly, glancing over as he navigated a wide roundabout.

"A little," Calista admitted with a soft sigh. "Two years ago, people in the Capital treated my name like poison, so walking back into a regulatory building feels surreal. Having you and Amber beside me makes all the difference."

Evren reached over and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "You have nothing to fear from anyone in this city, Calista. Not anymore."

Twenty-three minutes later, the sedan pulled up before a dome-shaped monument of white granite and polished bronze.

A massive gilded sign arched over the grand entrance, reading: The Capital Alchemical Regulation Board — Central Registry & Regulatory Hall.

Dozens of high-ranking alchemists in fine robes and executives in sharp suits hurried up the marble steps. Evren stepped out of the vehicle and held the door open for Calista and Amber.

Calista took a deep breath, stepped out onto the pavement, and stood fully upright.

Her steps were smooth, steady, and completely unassisted as she walked up the grand staircase between Evren and Amber.

Several clerks and apprentice alchemists glancing at the trio stopped in their tracks, their eyes widening in shock as they recognized the fallen heiress of House Vesper walking on her own two feet.

They passed through the soaring atrium, taking an ornate brass elevator to the third floor where the Executive Registry was located.

A secretary seated behind a black jade counter eyed them with mild surprise before checking their dispute code.

Within five minutes, they were ushered into an expansive corner office lined with towering bookshelves, glass display cases of glowing elixirs, and a heavy obsidian desk.

Behind the desk sat a middle-aged man in emerald-green silk robes adorned with three golden alchemy flasks pinned to his lapel.

His thinning grey hair was slicked back, and his thin lips curled into a practiced, patronizing smile as he gestured toward the leather armchairs.

"Miss Calista Vesper," the man said in a slow, reedy voice, introducing himself as Chief Registrar Ralev Crowe. "I’ve been expecting you, though not this early. And I must say, the rumors of your recovery appear to be entirely accurate... quite a miracle."

"Thank you, Director Crowe," Calista replied politely, choosing to remain standing beside Evren and Amber. "I assume you know why we are here."

Crowe shifted his gaze from Calista to Evren and Amber, his smile stiffening with a subtle trace of caution. Rising slightly, he placed both manicured hands flat on the obsidian desk and bowed slightly.

"And of course, Chairman Evren and Lady Sterling," Crowe said. "It is a rare privilege to receive the hero of the high-rank incursion in my humble registry."

Evren met the man’s eyes with a calm stillness that sent a faint chill across the registrar’s neck. "Then you know our time is limited, Director Crowe. Let’s discuss why Starlight’s filings were flagged under a restricted dispute code."

Crowe cleared his throat quietly, settling back into his high-backed leather chair and steepling his fingers over his chest. Even with a national hero standing before him, the registrar maintained an air of authority.

"Chairman, allow me to speak candidly as a public servant," Crowe said in a diplomatic tone. "Your martial valor is beyond question, and your guild’s contributions to the capital are immense. However, surely an esteemed leader understands the constitutional separation between military prestige and civil jurisprudence."

He shifted his eyes toward Calista.

"Miss Vesper has no legal standing to commercialize these formulas," Crowe continued. "And I would respectfully advise a warrior of your distinguished standing not to tarnish your spotless public reputation by shielding a compromised enterprise."

Calista took half a step forward, her brow furrowing in bewilderment. "Starlight is a legally registered corporation, and I developed these three formulations personally from isolated botanical strains. I have our complete synthesis records, stability logs, and clinical proofs right here."

She placed her journal on the desk, opening it to reveal the content.

Director Crowe didn’t even glance down at it. Instead, he reached out with one manicured finger and pushed the journal aside with quiet dismissiveness.

"You misunderstand the fundamental nature of the law, Miss Vesper," Crowe said calmly, keeping a wary eye on Evren’s reaction. "When House Vesper collapsed under catastrophic bankruptcy two years ago, all unpatented botanical archives and research drafts were surrendered to the Regulation Board under Municipal Liquidation Section 11."

"The moment your three formulations entered the registry portal at dawn, our automated analytical matrix flagged their cellular and meridian recovery catalysts as derivatives of confiscated Vesper assets," Crowe declared. "Under statutory law, those formulas are the exclusive intellectual property of the Board."

Calista stared at him in utter shock, her face draining of all color. "That is a blatant fabrication!"

"My family never possessed these formulas; I synthesized them from scratch," Calista protested. "The Board had absolutely no hand in their creation."

"The Board holds the master catalog of all liquidated Vesper assets, Miss Vesper, and the Municipal Commerce Court agrees with our assessment," Crowe countered smoothly.

He opened a desk drawer and retrieved a stamped parchment embossed with the red wax seal of the municipal magistrate.

"As of eight-forty-five this morning, the Commerce Court has issued an administrative injunction," Crowe said, sliding the document across the obsidian stone. "All commercial operating accounts under Starlight Pharmaceuticals are officially frozen pending formal litigation."

Amber’s golden aura flared violently. "You froze her accounts before even conducting an evidentiary hearing? That’s an illegal shakedown!"

Crowe flinched as the scorching heat washed across his desk, a bead of sweat forming on his brow as he looked into Amber’s blazing eyes.

"Lady Sterling, please compose yourself," Crowe warned in a cautious voice, keeping his hands visible. "Drawing mana or threatening an appointed registrar inside District One is an act of high treason. S-Rank status does not grant immunity from the laws that govern civil commerce."

Evren placed a calming hand on Amber’s shoulder, his touch instantly diffusing her heat while his eyes remained locked on Crowe.

"If this is merely an intellectual property dispute, why execute an injunction within an hour of filing?" Evren asked. "What else have you authorized, Director?"

Crowe swallowed hard under Evren’s predatory stare, feeling the suffocating pressure of an apex hunter who had stared down a Level 102 behemoth and walked away unscathed.

He leaned back slightly, gripping the arms of his chair to steady his nerves before tapping the court warrant.

"Under Municipal Code 48, any production facility suspected of housing contested alchemical assets is subject to immediate lockdown to preserve evidence," Crowe explained, choosing his words with extreme care.

"Even as we speak, a twelve-man Board Enforcement detachment has been dispatched to District Two to execute a Pre-Emptive Asset Quarantine on Starlight’s complex. Our officers will padlock the perimeter, and confiscate all stock until the dispute is resolved," Crowe added.

Calista gripped the edge of the desk, horrified. "The facility hasn’t even begun test runs! Seizing our equipment and raw materials will destroy months of biological culture!"

"Which brings me to our proposed resolution," Crowe said, turning his full attention toward Evren with an earnest, calculating expression.

"Seeing Chairman Evren standing here today, I presume Miss Vesper was fortunate enough to secure your sponsorship," Crowe said smoothly. "The Board has no desire to antagonize a national hero over a fledgling enterprise, which is why we are prepared to offer an amicable commercial compromise to safeguard whatever capital you may have advanced her."

"Under our terms, the Board will formally register the core patent titles under our repository," Crowe explained, sliding a multi-page licensing agreement across the stone. "In exchange, the Board will grant Starlight an exclusive manufacturing license."

"To clear the administrative dispute, Starlight will pay an upfront regulatory authorization fee of five hundred million," Crowe detailed with a thin, polite smile. "Furthermore, the Board will receive a thirty-five percent royalty on all gross pharmaceutical profits."

"The moment Miss Vesper signs this licensing agreement and transfers the initial clearance fee, the enforcement detachment at District Two will stand down from their quarantine," Crowe added. "Your facility can begin production unhindered, backed by the full prestige of the Regulation Board."

Calista stared at the licensing contract in disbelief, her hands trembling with indignation.

"You’re claiming full ownership of my life’s work, charging us half a billion just to turn on our own machines, and demanding more than a third of our revenue in perpetuity," Calista protested. "That isn’t a regulatory compromise... it’s extortion disguised as administrative oversight."

"It is the cost of doing business in the Capital, Miss Vesper, and it spares your venture from total liquidation," Crowe replied calmly, keeping a wary eye on Evren. "Without our patent seal and licensing clearance, not a single bottle from Starlight will ever legally enter a pharmacy or hospital in this Empire."

Director Crowe picked up an antique brass fountain pen, extending it across the obsidian desk toward Calista with a cautious, lingering glance at Evren. "Sign the licensing terms, Miss Vesper. It is the only sensible way forward for everyone involved."

Evren stepped forward, his silhouette casting a long shadow across the registrar’s desk.

He didn’t touch the pen, and he didn’t spare a glance at the licensing contract. He looked straight into Crowe’s eyes with a cold, terrifying stillness that made the registrar’s throat tighten with sudden dread.

"You assumed that because I am a hunter, my only power lies in drawing a blade," Evren said softly, a dark smile playing at the corners of his lips. "And you assumed that your codes and laws made you untouchable."

He leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper. "You really should have checked who was backing Starlight before sending your men to District Two."