Chapter 80

Valencius confirmed that the man was not a serious addict or infiltrator, but rather a renowned minstrel who had committed this act out of pressure from not being able to think of a fitting song.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”

“You almost became an infiltrator just now.”

“Y-yes?”

The man, panicking, surrendered all of his tobacco.

While both could ruin a life, infiltrators were far more dangerous than drugs.

Unlike the ambiguous tobaccos allowed under the church’s tacit approval, even the slightest hint of infiltration could lead to burning at the stake.

“They will take your most precious thing in exchange for the bad music. If you need money or applause, perform on the square. Don’t drag every cousin of yours into this.”

“Ah, I understand.”

Valencius left the room, leaving the terrified man behind.

The red-masked figure grinned as it separated its fox mask from its chin.

“Still, it has greatly decreased these days.”

“No need for excuses. I think so too. It means that the local managers are starting to take notice. Be it my presence or yours. It’s all the same.”

“Last year during the confiscation process, all sorts of strange things crawled out.”

“Until what point did you see?”

“There were the most books. I was quite surprised to see people making all sorts of things with human materials.”

“Youth, uniforms, health, children. People can do anything for what they hold dear. When someone can do anything, if they have money and power, they become easily corrupted. Oh, just in case, I have to ask, you didn’t hide anything, did you?”

Valencius asked as he forcibly pressed the scales on the back of his hand into his skin.

With the cunning of the red-masked figure, it might have stored away several warehouses.

Fortunately, she shook her head firmly.

“What I desire is the freedom to earn money and freedom from money. To achieve that, I teamed up with Your Excellency and submerged my superior. However, to let someone else have their soul leashed for the sake of money is utterly ridiculous.”

“Right. A very good mindset. Keep thinking that way in the future.”

The two stepped out of the upscale tavern.

The tavern’s manager and attendants bowed their heads in greeting to the red-masked figure.

Even though they were low-ranking, a retinue composed entirely of sword-wielding mercenaries surrounded the front, back, and sides of the red-masked figure and Valencius.

It was a scene that unmistakably showcased her standing in this street.

“How much have you taken in?”

“If there are 100 shops, about 35 of them are paying me directly for protection fees.”

“How much more do you intend to take?”

“I intend not to exceed 40%.”

“Why is that?”

The red-masked figure secretly clicked her tongue at that seemingly naive question.

Though she appeared oblivious, Valencius had a sadistic side that wanted to hear what they both knew.

It was unclear whether it was something he was born with or something he caught from his twin brother.

“There’s a quality control aspect to it. It’s meaningful only if you protect those who are worth targeting. I also can’t have random people selling my name.”

“And.”

“Stagnant water rots. If I completely dominate this street, it will rot, and you’ll want to cut me off, right?”

That was the truth.

“I will be a carp in a pond, a frog in a well, a fox in a mountain without tigers. As long as there are people, a street of red names won’t disappear, but the owner can change as much as needed.”

“Then we’ll be able to see each other for a long time.”

Valencius finally responded with a satisfied voice.

The red-masked figure remembered the line he had drawn and said,

“In that sense.”

“Hmm?”

“I will tell you the recent rumors that have started to circulate. I heard it from a merchant who came from the west.”

The west; his steps faltered for a moment.

“What kind of rumors?”

“They say the city’s bandit Duke Valencius burned Marquis Sigmaine to death.”

“And.”

Valencius pondered whether to laugh or cry at this development.

“After violating his youngest daughter, he made the marquis a puppet, and his sister and brother were exiled to the outskirts. How much of it is true… doesn’t matter too much.”

In truth, this was a difficult rumor to believe.

Marquis Purioaito was a high noble known even to children, and no matter how much of a bandit Valencius was, he wouldn’t be able to lift his head in front of someone like him.

But this was the same Valencius who kidnapped Bishop Hong and slew his siblings.

That could have made one question the level of the story.

It might have drawn attention, especially with Emperor Jeilliris present and tangled in complex secrets involving magical realms.

Moreover, it was indeed true that Valencius had beheaded Sigmaine, and it was also true that the new marquis was the youngest daughter. The fact that her sister and brother had left the capital for the outskirts was also true.

A story based on facts has a strong appeal and persuasiveness.

“If you’re telling me this, it’s no exaggeration to say it has already spread widely in the capital.”

“It is still just a rumor for now, but soon it will circulate in the marketplaces. There’s even talk that Duke Valencius has scales growing on his body due to the marquis’s curse.”

Valencius internally hurled insults at the marquis’s attendants.

While it was generally traditional to maintain the same personnel, it was unavoidable that those who were not ordinary would be replaced.

Seeing Jeilliris ascend to the throne with blood on her hands, it wasn’t strange to think of Madame Laviecia and the palace attendants embezzling their budgets.

It was obvious that the new marquis had been lamenting with all sorts of grievances in the tavern.

“That’s something I can’t just brush off.”

The two had now passed the notion of ‘hope.’

Valencius took a money pouch from the red-masked figure and spoke.

Translucent dark-red scales had started to grow on the back of his hand again.

‘It’s progressing faster than expected. I can’t let it continue like this.’

* * *

Bioluminescent mushrooms covered five-story buildings, vines that ate people were grown in pots, and three-headed snakes walked their owners.

Valencius halted in front of a shop where green smoke billowed from the chimney on the second floor, yellow smoke rose from the window, and red smoke flowed from the living room window.

It was a magic potion shop run by Bastatin, one of the royal illegitimate children, located in the northern part of the Street of Learning.

When he lightly knocked on the door, it swung open immediately.

“Welcome! You’ve arrived at Bastatin’s magic potion shop. If there’s anything you desire, please let me know. A healing potion? A potion for mental clarity? A potion to enhance memorization? A luck-bringer? An aphrodisiac? Every potion you seek is here.”

A cheerful man with tangled green hair and chick-like yellow eyes shouted the same greeting as always in a lively voice.

Today, he wore a neat apron over his shirt, resembling a handsome florist more than a magician.

Inside the shop, customers were buzzing around as usual.

“!”

As soon as Bastatin caught sight of the new customer’s face, he opened the side door and shouted.

“I’m sorry! Today’s business ends here!”

“What?”

“No, I haven’t even chosen everything yet.”

“I’ll put you down as number one for tomorrow’s waiting list. I apologize!”

A man with white hair and a red band around his eyes was glaring at him with reptilian, vertically slit pupils.

“Tell an attendant to go to the Street of Learning and bring in the incense. Let’s watch and listen together from here.”

“Y-yes.”

Bastatin studied Valencius, something he hadn’t done in the past.

He was a royal illegitimate child with a strong lineage of reptiles, and now, Valencius was exuding a subtle aura that dragons instinctively serve.

Valencius naturally stepped into the back of the shop and said, “I see you’ve been practicing handling poisons a lot these days.”

“Haha. Can you tell?”

“Your hair, the veins on your wrists, the new potions in the shop. And that liquid you’re debating whether to take right now.”

“Haha. I was caught right away.”

“Don’t think that smiling will make this go away.”

“Ah! I surrender! I surrender! After risking my life to help defeat infiltrators, you’re going to kill me?”

Valencius withdrew his scaled hand.

That was indeed the truth.

Bastatin had demonstrated that he had the ability and qualifications to take responsibility for his lineage.

“Alright. Then let’s talk intelligently. Hand over any poison or potion that can stop the dragonization.”

Bastatin gasped in shock at Valencius’s request.

“What part of that is a conversation? I’m a merchant… I need something in return!”

He changed his expression and swept his green hair back, forming a circle with his thumb and index finger.

Valencius scoffed at his attempt to take control of the conversation.

Bastatin was a shrewd person for his age, but he had lived for 40 years tangled up with all kinds of lowlifes and subhumans.

Very few could win a power struggle against him.

“Sure. You want a return? How long has it been since you paid your taxes?”

“?!”

Farmers owe 10% of their harvest to the lord and 10% to the church.

But the taxes for artisans and merchants moving through the city are different.

Each territory has its own tax items and amounts, and sometimes certain guilds or merchant associations are given privileges, making it very complex.

“Magic potions have lower taxes due to recent amendments in commercial law regarding support projects.”

“Ah.”

“Approximately 50% of the net profit?”

“Hiii!?”

Since manufacturing ability itself is important in this business, it usually results in profits dozens of times the cost.

It was natural for the taxes to be on the higher side.

Bastatin rolled his eyes in shock, his expression nearly frozen.

“By the way, have you registered with the Magic Potion Association?”

Valencius asked with a sadistic smile reminiscent of his sister.

He knew full well that he hadn’t registered.

The Magic Street was led by wizards from noble families who had not been able to find work after graduating from the academy.

They suppressed legitimate complaints from each guild and association with their lineage and abilities.

“Unregistered magic potions are illegal. At the very least, they might be confiscated; worst case, the church could mark you as a heretic and execute you. Have you really lived without a trace of shame before the heavens?”

“Your Excellency, please let me explain…”

“And do you think that is stronger than my influence, which has successfully brokered a meeting between the saint and the emperor?”

“Y-yes!? When did that… Ah! Aah!”

Valencius’s golden pupils began to slit like a reptile.

“Don’t even think about trying to take anything from a duke already undergoing dragonization! Tell me whatever you know! Can this damned mutation be suppressed or not?”

Valencius thundered, then let out a deep sigh.

“Ha.”

Dark-red scales rose and fell around his neck.

He shut his eyes tightly, taking a deep breath.

“I’m sorry. This might be a side effect that’s making it hard to control my emotions. Huh? …Did you end up putting poison in there?”

“W-well, that is… Your Excellency…”

Valencius spat out blood-tainted saliva and drew his sword.

“Since it has lizardman blood, it will regenerate no matter where I cut it, right?”

“Your Excellency! Your Excellency!”

* * *

“First, let’s conduct an examination.”

Bastatin narrowly escaped what would have forced him to wear prosthetic legs for life.

He casually swept his tangled green hair aside and handed Valencius a vial containing a blue liquid.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen what it looks like, but I’ve experienced similar symptoms to yours.”

Valencius’s yellow eyes glimmered.

“Is that so?”

It was too important a matter to hide his curiosity and desperation.

He couldn’t afford to be subjugated to her after receiving trust from Jeilliris mere days ago.

“I’ve experienced it, and many royal and noble individuals with strong reptilian traits visit regularly as well.”

“Is it a common symptom?”

“Yes. To me, it seems Your Excellency is unable to control your powers rather than undergoing dragonization.”

Valencius listened, suppressing his anger.

Bastatin continued.

“After all, the imperial family originally possessed draconian blood, right? It’s probably just showing itself a bit harshly due to stimulation.”

“Then.”

“If you take this potion, Your Excellency will better be able to control the abilities you have gained, such as fire abilities and scales like that.”

Valencius internally smiled with satisfaction.

Bastatin’s voice carried a certain degree of assurance.

Though he hadn’t been interested in the subject before his return, it seemed like quite a bit of research had been conducted in this area.

“What if the potion doesn’t work?”

“You would likely become an evil dragon and be hunted down.”

Valencius immediately drank the potion.