When Matthew saw Ace grab those two pill bottles, he lost his composure and yelled, "NO!"
Matthew was about to attack Ace when he forced himself to stop in his tracks because he finally remembered he was in Kelby Pills & Weapons Shop. Because of his loud yell, everyone around him began to take notice.
"What? Don't tell me I need your permission to sell my own things. Is this how Kelby Pills & Weapons Shop treats its customers?" Ace took advantage of the situation and raised his voice, questioning Matthew.
Just as Ace had anticipated, everyone around them started looking toward old man Matthew with questioning gazes.
The young attendant panicked too. 'This old man never does this kind of thing. What's happening? He's acting like an idiot!'
"N-no, no! It was just a misunderstanding. You can do whatever you like with your own things. I simply didn't feel well, and I lost my composure. Everyone, I apologize for letting you see me in this state. I hope you can all forgive this old man's rudeness." Matthew bowed toward everyone apologetically.
'This brat is a cunning one. If he hadn't hurriedly grabbed those pills, I never would've behaved like a moron! He tricked me into acting rashly, and now there's nothing I can do while he walks off with them. But how the hell did he notice?!' Matthew ground his teeth in frustration.
He was right that Ace had outwitted him deliberately. Now Ace could leave safely with those "suspicious pills."
"Tsk, just a misunderstanding. And here we thought there'd be a good show to watch. What a letdown. Everyone, let's mind our own business." Someone watching chuckled, and after hearing him, the others laughed as well and went back to their own affairs.
"Haha, little brother, these pills are all yours, so it's your decision whether to sell them or not. Sell what you want, and keep what you don't. We have no objection." Old man Matthew turned to Ace and said this while forcing a dry, rather ugly laugh.
"Oh, don't worry. I only need these two Healing Pills for myself. I'm selling all the others." Ace replied with an innocent smile, as if he'd done nothing at all.
"Go report this transaction to the upper floors and get 23,500 Ruby Coins for our little brother here. I'm not feeling well today, so I'll be retiring for the day." Old man Matthew hurried off toward the upper floor of the building, his face twisted with irritation.
'Why is he going that way?' the young attendant wondered, but couldn't find an answer. She didn't dwell on it and quickly fetched Ace's payment.
"Here is the Ruby Crystal Card — your 23,500 Ruby Coins are stored in it. You can use it like normal currency, or withdraw coins from it anywhere in the Lands of Cities," said the young attendant, handing Ace a white, square crystal card.
The number 23,500 was written in red across the card.
Ace had heard of these crystal cards before; they could be used anywhere in the 4th-Level Lands, so he wasn't surprised and simply accepted the white card.
After finishing his business, he left quickly, sensing the old man was up to no good.
Old man Matthew was hurrying toward the upper floors of the Kelby Pills & Weapons Shop building.
He'd just stepped onto the 3rd floor when a man blocked his way and mocked him disdainfully, "Old man, where are you going in such a hurry? Slow down, or you might die of exhaustion. Hehe."
This man's face wasn't particularly attractive, rather ordinary, with short black hair. He was an Apprentice Alchemist named Caleb, extremely arrogant, having reached that status at just twenty-six. That's why the Kelby family had poured vast resources into him, hoping to groom a White Alchemist out of him.
However, becoming a White-Ranked Alchemist wasn't easy.
That was why the Kelby family had placed Caleb in this shop, so he could gain experience and make pills for it in the meantime. It was a form of practice that let him sharpen his alchemy skills relatively quickly, while the family recouped some of its investment.
Yet all the attention, praise, and easily earned resources had made Caleb arrogant, and now he looked down on nearly everyone. He listened to no one except the Kelby family's higher-ups and their direct descendants, and always liked to throw his weight around.
"Young Master Caleb, this old man has something very important to attend to, so please forgive this old man for not entertaining you," Matthew said respectfully, though hostility flickered in his eyes at Caleb's earlier insult. Alas, there was nothing he could do about it.
"Hmm? Something important, huh? Tell me what it is, and I'll decide whether it's important." Caleb grimaced after hearing Matthew.
If he remembered correctly, this old man had always been quite respectful toward him, but now he was showing his irritation openly.
'Something's not right.' Caleb thought suspiciously.
"Young master, please, just this once, could you not be like this? It's important enough to report to the shop owner himself!" old man Matthew said, sighing in frustration. Had it been anyone else, he would've slapped them silly by now.
"YOU!!" Caleb was about to flare up at the rude old man, but thought better of it. 'What could be important enough to report to the shop owner himself? He even risked offending me for it. Well, I suppose I'll have to see for myself.'
"Let's go — I'm coming with you. And if this isn't as important as you claim, you know what happens when I'm in a bad mood, right?" Caleb smiled darkly and went with Matthew.
They reached the fifteenth floor within minutes.
This floor of the shop was beautifully decorated with expensive jade and marble. One could stand before the window and take in the city's inner region, enjoying its beautiful view at night.
A young man with black hair, pale skin, and luxurious clothes sat in a chair beside the window, watching the crowded market with a frown on his handsome face.
"What do you mean, you couldn't find him anywhere? Is he a ghost? Did you search every part of the outer region?" the young man asked, his voice gentle but carrying clear anger beneath it. Still, he didn't lose his composure.
"Yes, young master. I even searched the slums, though only lowlifes live there. So I assumed he'd already left the city after robbing that fat man's shop. He's probably afraid of getting caught."
A figure knelt before the young man, clad in full-body black light armor — no one could make out its true shape beneath it — and wearing a black fox mask. Only its hazel eyes were visible through the mask's eye holes. But from its voice, clear and pleasing to the ear, it was obvious this was a young woman.
"Black Fox, I'm not angry with you. It's just a shame that I won't gain a new pawn out of this. More importantly, I won't get my hands on the Black Ghost's secrets," the young man said, disappointed.
Intense greed flickered in his eyes at the mention of the Black Ghost's secrets.
Anyone capable of cracking a 1-star treasury in mere minutes had to be hiding some remarkable secret, and he'd wanted it from the start.
As for whether to accept him as a pawn — that was the Black Ghost's own choice. If the Black Ghost agreed to serve as his tool, he'd be taken care of; if not, he'd meet the fate of all his enemies — killed without mercy.
The young man was still lost in thought about the Black Ghost's secrets when he heard footsteps approaching and said calmly, "Go, search again for any trace of the Black Ghost. Even someone with skills is bound to make mistakes and leave behind clues when in a hurry."
At his order, Black Fox vanished like smoke.
"Young Master Asher, Caleb is here to see you, with old Matthew." Caleb's voice rang out loudly in the quiet room.
This young man's name was Asher Kelby, eldest son of the current head of the Kelby family, and heir to lead it next.
He was known as a cultivation genius, having already opened the 3rd Gate of the Qi Gates Realm at a remarkably young age. He was intelligent, calm, and ruthless.
That was why he'd been appointed owner of the Kelby family's largest shop. He never spared his enemies, not even mortals — he eliminated them to prevent any future trouble.
"Come in," Asher said in a neutral tone.
"Young master, this old man wishes to report something urgent," Caleb said, gesturing toward Matthew beside him with a smile. He wasn't as arrogant as usual, still somewhat afraid of this ruthless young master.
"Hmm? Speak." Asher, uninterested in either visitor, continued gazing out the window.
"This old man greets the young shop owner. I wish to report that I saw two White-Grade Qi Pills in the hands of a boy who appears to have come from outside River-Flower City..."
Matthew reported everything respectfully, not daring to hide anything from Asher. "In the end, the boy proved too sharp for me, and I failed to acquire the pills."
He finished his report, conveniently leaving out that he'd wanted the pills for himself.
"Where is he now?" Asher finally turned and looked at the old man impassively — though a greedy glint lit his cold eyes, the same look he'd had while discussing the Black Ghost.
White-grade pills were rare in a 2-star city. Most were held by the city lord, and even the White-Grade Alchemist resided in the city lord's mansion. Ace had two of them on him now, though he had no idea what that meant.
Even Caleb was stunned by Matthew's account.
'If I had those white-grade pills, I could reach White-Grade so much faster!' Caleb thought greedily, though he knew there was nothing he could do about it now.
Now that Asher knew about the pills, Caleb could forget about them — he knew full well he'd never get his hands on any of them.
The moment Matthew mentioned them to Asher, they had already become his property.
"After the encounter, I came straight here to report to the young shop owner," Matthew told Asher respectfully.
"Caleb, take this old man and two of my guards. I need those pills as soon as possible. If you fail to get them, the two of you will disappear as well. And make sure no one else learns about these pills besides the three of us. Understood?" Asher warned them coldly, his eyes turning icy, radiating killing intent toward both Caleb and Matthew.
"Yes! We'll get those pills, no matter what!"
Both men spoke at once, sweat running down their faces, their backs drenched.
'How the hell did I get dragged into this mess...?' Caleb cursed his rotten luck!