Chapter 74: Selling Pill 2

Moon and Nox waited in the quiet shop until he returned a few moments later, gesturing for them to follow inside.

He led them into a cramped, private office that probably belonged to the shop owner.

There was another young man sitting there behind a wooden table.

The table was made of blackwood, precious and elegant—very odd for this type of low-grade city market.

Judging by the appearance of the young man, Moon guessed he could appraise the medicine because he had the same dress as the pack healer he saw in the Veilies Pack—a dark olive long robe with a shoulder mantle.

Underneath was a gray tunic, and his sleeves were tucked into black leather wrist wrappers.

A leather belt was peeking through his open robe, and a monocle was hanging from his neck with a silver chain. There was a row of instruments laid out on the large table in front of him.

Moon sat on the chair placed in front, and without any more delay, he pushed the vial onto the table.

"It’s a poison-removing pill," he said.

"A very rare and precious one," Nox added, his gaze lingering on the monocle on the young man’s chest.

After a while, he looked away.

"Levi," the young man said as he took the vial. "You can call me Levi," he said again.

"Astra."

Moon’s name was now known by many, so he chose to use his last name.

Nox tilted his head as he sat comfortably on the chair. "Mastra," he said proudly.

Levi looked at him and smiled. "So you are just an extra," he said softly.

Marina giggled from the side.

She had entered with them but did not say anything. She just stood behind Moon.

As he opened the vial and sniffed inside, Levi’s eyes became complicated.

"What type of poison does it remove?"

"Corpse poison, corroded dark energy," Nox replied.

Levi poured one pill into his palm.

Three radiant green, round pills rolled softly, emitting a fresh fragrance.

After a while, Levi’s eyes brightened as he sat up straight. The leisurely mood vanished from his sharp gaze.

He looked at Moon, then Nox, and smiled shrewdly.

"I see, I see. Black Sea poison. That’s it. Why didn’t I guess it earlier? Hm..." He kept muttering, more like he was talking to himself than the others.

Then, his brows knitted again.

"Where did you get the herbs?"

Nox clicked his tongue in annoyance. "That’s irrelevant, mate. You know the rogue city rules: no questions."

Levi chuckled. "I know, but it’s tough not to ask. There are no herbs to remove Black Sea poison. How am I going to assure my clients?"

"Just eat one, and everyone will know," Nox shrugged.

"That’s too risky."

"Are you buying or not? If not, we have other places to go." Nox stood up.

Levi waved his hand hurriedly. "Oh, don’t get angry. Okay, let’s test the pill first."

Nox sat back on the chair. Levi pressed a stone bell beside his table, and the old man who was at the counter came back.

Levi instructed him to get a man who had recently gone to the Black Sea area.

The old man looked at them suspiciously, but did not question them.

He went out to get the patient.

Meanwhile, Levi turned his attention to Nox again. Since Nox was the one negotiating, he assumed he was the pill owner. He didn’t ask who made the pill, because he knew they would not reveal it.

"How much do you want?"

"2,000 siki," Nox said nonchalantly.

Both Moon and Marina hitched in their breath hearing this.

Moon had no idea about pill prices, but he still knew 2,000 siki couldn’t be a small amount.

Marina knew better—2,000 siki was enough to buy a courtyard in Malong Village.

With connections, they could even buy one on the outskirts of Malong City.

And there were three pills.

Levi chuckled. "That’s too much. This pill doesn’t have that strong a fragrance for being a high-grade pill. Though the pill is rare, 2,000 siki is still too much, friend."

"That’s for a normal pill, mate. What is my pill? It’s a Black Sea poison-removing pill. How many people are fighting to enter the sea and find treasure every year, and how many have died? Imagine if the news spreads that one man entered the sea but came out intact—alive. What kind of uproar will it cause?"

Levi’s eyes fluttered.

That was true, and more importantly, he had no intention of selling them at all.

He wanted to keep them for himself to study.

After a while, the old man came back with a person covered in black cloth—even his face was covered. There was a faint, pungent smell around him.

Marina pressed her nose in disgust as she moved further away.

"Has he already started to rot?" Levi furrowed his brows. The old man pushed the man into the corner and sighed.

"That’s how it always is."

"Feed him one." Levi gave one pill to the old man.

Seeing the old man hesitate, Levi chuckled. "What is there to be afraid of? It’s not like he will make it in the end anyway."

The old man hesitated no longer. He lifted the dark mask from the man’s face and pushed the pill into his mouth.

They all looked at the man intently for any reaction.

Moon was also curious about the effect of his own medicine. He had fed the brothers so many elixirs from the witch, combined with his essence, Qi supplements, and mid-grade pills, that he had not really seen any rot or the dark side of the Black Sea poison.

Others couldn’t see the man’s face, but Moon could.

There was no charm or inscription on the black cloth the man wore, so his divine sense could easily see his face.

It was an utterly gruesome sight.

The skin was peeled off, resembling the scavengers they had fought. The flesh was black and like a muddy shore.

Moon just took a look and withdrew his sense with a bitter taste in his mouth.

Soon, their wait ended as the man finally stirred.

It was a slow twitch at first, but then he started to struggle and tremble violently, as if his very bones and muscles were shattering and crumpling.

The old man got scared and started to swear as he kept the man in place, holding him tight.

Levi didn’t move or show any emotion whatsoever.

Nox was eagerly watching with a confident look. But Marina was sobbing slightly, hiding behind Moon.

After a while, the room fell silent again.

"Lift his mask," Levi ordered.

"But..." The old man’s voice trailed off.

"Do it," Levi pressed.

As the old man lifted the black cover, his hand shook. His eyes became moist with excitement.

He snapped his head at Moon, Nox, and then Levi, and said in a low, suppressed voice,