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After regaining his balance, Mason’s eyes glinted with menace. He raised his staff, the gemstone at its tip erupting with a violent surge of magic...
"You can try if you dare." Leon stepped forward, a faint smile on his face. Yet the magical energy swirling around him made it clear—if Mason dared to attack, this young mage would show no mercy.
"Matthew, you’re just in time!" Mason called out when he saw Leon approach. He didn’t dare lay a hand on the old butler, but his tone remained aggressive. "I came to support your Gilded Rose, brought friends to help your business. Who would’ve thought you’d be selling fakes? Now my friend’s in trouble after drinking your alchemical potion—so, how are you going to compensate us?"
Leon casually brushed aside Mason’s raised staff. "I know that dragon-eye gem is nice, but you don’t need to wave it in my face..." He drawled, "Which alchemical potion did your friend drink that caused a problem?"
"The Elixir of Life!" Mason answered instantly—he’d already asked around. The Elixir of Life was a top-tier alchemical potion, and the number of alchemists in Seaview City who could make it could be counted on one hand. Their prices were far beyond what the Gilded Rose could afford.
Besides, I saw that Elixir of Life myself—it was dark red...
Only a failed Elixir of Life turns dark red.
"Take a look—he’s drunk more than half the bottle, and not only has his injury failed to heal, the wound that was already closed is bleeding again!" Mason said, signaling his men to bring over a stretcher.
The young man lying on the stretcher looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. His injury was on his right arm. Once the bandages were removed, a deep, long gash was revealed. Judging by the blood around the wound, it had clearly reopened after having healed once before.
“I know you’re strapped for cash right now. You can’t even pay off your uncle’s debts. But if you’re broke, why not just say so? For the sake of our old friendship, I could’ve asked my father to help you out. But you had to go and sell fake alchemy potions?” Mason’s face was the picture of heartbreak, but inwardly he was gloating. You humiliated me at the Tower of Sages—now I’ll not only wreck your shabby shop, I’ll make you lose face in front of everyone.
That’s right—the so-called 'friend' was someone Mason paid a few hundred gold coins to recruit. The wound on his right arm? Mason helped split it open himself. As for that so-called Elixir of Life, Mason had already made sure half the bottle was dumped out, leaving just enough for 'evidence.' With witnesses and proof ready, there was no way Matthew Merlin could escape this trap.
What, you’re saying this Elixir of Life is real?
Don’t kid yourself. Maybe you can fool others, but tricking me, Mason, is a pipe dream. The Twinmoon Merchant Alliance has a master alchemist who swore to me personally that any dark red Elixir of Life is a failed product.
“So what do you want, then?”
“I’m not asking for much. But my friend suffered a huge loss—surely the Gilded Rose should make amends, right? My terms are simple: first, compensate my friend with ten thousand gold coins. No more, because you can’t afford it; no less, because that would show no sincerity. Second, issue a public apology, admit that your Gilded Rose sold a fake potion that harmed him, and guarantee nothing like this will ever happen again.”
Even Mason himself felt his demands were harsh. All of Seaview knew the Goldspark Trading Company was bankrupt, and that Matthew Merlin couldn’t even pay off his uncle’s three-thousand-gold debt. How could he possibly come up with ten thousand gold coins for compensation? Worse yet, even if he paid, that wouldn’t be the end: he’d have to publicly admit to selling fake alchemy potions. That would be true humiliation—after this, Matthew Merlin would never be able to hold his head up in Seaview again.
“Fine. The Gilded Rose is open for business—if there’s a problem with that bottle of Elixir of Life, then compensation and an apology are only fair.” No one expected Matthew Merlin’s response to be so calm and straightforward; he agreed without the slightest hesitation.