Chapter 57

Rifregon (1)

The soldiers who approached me closely scanned me from head to toe. Then, one of them scratched his chin slyly and said, "What are you? You look suspicious. Wearing a robe in broad daylight and wandering around this alley?"

...What the hell?

Just because I pulled up my hood, you call me suspicious? I thought it was some nonsense, but then I understood the situation.

'Are they trying to extort me?'

Compared to other dominions, the 6th Dominion was particularly chaotic in every way. It wasn't unusual for soldiers, who were supposed to maintain order, to rob passersby.

One of the soldiers flashed a wicked smile and waved his hand. The other one, standing a bit further back, brandished his spear threateningly.

"If you want to pass quietly, show some respect. Otherwise, you can get a few hits and come with us."

I couldn't help but laugh at their blatant robbery.

"...Are you serious? Is this some kind of joke?"

Their expressions twisted nastily.

Ignoring them, I looked around above me. My ability has no middle ground; if I don't kill them, I have no way to subdue them appropriately.

I had been slaughtering monsters in the Magic Realm, yet here I was, unable to subdue two soldiers who were less than level 20. What a legend.

Even so, I didn't want to kill them. Just as I was about to use spatial leap to escape to the roof of a building, a new voice called out.

"Hey."

Someone was approaching from the potion shop I was about to head to.

A woman with short hair, a long scar on her face, and a sword at her waist. She held a bottle of potion, which she had just bought.

The soldiers, for some reason, flinched and stepped back when they saw her.

She glanced between them and me, then said in a cold voice, "Scram, morons."

She was talking to the soldiers.

One of them, looking angry, opened his mouth to say something, but his companion urgently stopped him.

"Hey, hey... let's go."

The two of them glared at the woman and then fled down a side street.

I could hear them muttering as they left.

"Damn, a mere slave wench acting so high and mighty..."

...Slave?

I looked at the woman who had chased the soldiers away with just a word.

But she didn't even glance at me and walked past, continuing on her way. What's going on?

She helped me, but it's a bit strange that she left without a word.

I stared at her retreating back for a moment, then shrugged and continued on my way. I headed toward the potion shop she had come from.

Creak.

I pushed open the old wooden door with a sign and stepped inside.

The interior was as old as the exterior but had a neat and tidy atmosphere. However, there was a smoky smell from various mixed ingredients.

Various colored potions were displayed everywhere, reminding me of the scene from the Alchemus Workshop.

As I looked around, an old man emerged from behind a display case in the corner. He was the one I was looking for.

'I found the right place.'

He glanced at me, then walked to the counter and sat down, saying, "You're a new customer. What potion are you looking for?"

I thought for a moment before answering, "I'll just look around first."

"Feel free."

The old man leaned back in his chair and picked up a pipe from the desk.

He filled it with tobacco from a drawer, lit it, and started smoking.

I watched him for a moment, then moved to look at the potions on the display.

I said I would look around because I needed to be cautious about how to start a conversation with him.

'Grand Alchemist Gulpil.'

One of the most renowned grand alchemists in the current continent.

And the person who created the elixir, 'Defier's Holy Blood.'

That was the old man's true identity.

Why he was running an old potion shop in this deserted alley, I could guess based on his current situation, but...

After organizing my thoughts, I turned my gaze back to the old man.

I approached him, who was lazily puffing on his pipe, and asked, "Shopkeeper, how long have you been running this shop?"

He frowned.

"Young man, what's with the questions... about a year now, why?"

A year.

I asked again, "What's your name, shopkeeper?"

"My name? Phelon. What do you need it for?"

"No."

I shook my head.

"I'm asking for your real name, not an alias."

The atmosphere suddenly turned cold.

The old man's usual lazy demeanor vanished, replaced by a sense of intimidation.

He put down his pipe and looked at me sternly.

"Who are you?"

I answered calmly, "The 7th Dominion Lord."

"…What?"

The old man's eyes widened.

I continued, "I have no intention of threatening you. I just want to have a conversation, Alchemist Gulpil."

He glanced out the shop window with a stiff expression. I added, "I came alone."

"…Are you really the 7th Dominion Lord? The one who was recently enthroned?"

"Yes."

"How can I believe you?"

"Otherwise, I'd be a madman impersonating a dominion lord in Caldric. There's no reason to lie about something that would be revealed with a little investigation."

The old man, Gulpil, frowned and sighed.

"Knowing how to find me is meaningless to ask. What's your reason?"

He was asking why I sought him out.

"If you're here to ask me to make an elixir, forget it. I can't do it anymore."

"No."

"Then are you here to recruit me? Threatening to kill me won't work, so forget that too."

"Neither."

He was a person who had created a new drug recognized as an elixir.

It would be great to recruit him, but I wasn't here for that purpose.

Grand Alchemist Gulpil.

In the main story of Lasa, he appeared as a powerful ally who provided significant help to the player's party at a crucial moment.

He was also a sage, as evident from how he helped the boy on the street.

Therefore, even if I didn't recruit him, it would be good to protect him from danger.

Because he was probably...

"Trying to avoid the eyes of Sainthea and come to Caldric, right?"

Gulpil clicked his tongue.

"You must have already done your background check, so why ask?"

He was originally a member of the Sainthea faction.

The most powerful and influential mage group in Sainthea, the Mage Tower.

He was an alchemist who belonged to that group but was betrayed by the Mage Tower and the royal family for some reason related to the elixir.

After barely escaping with his life and evading pursuit, he ended up in Caldric, not in the southern continent, a few years later.

I asked, curious, "Is there a reason you chose to settle in the capital of the 6th Dominion?"

No matter how I thought about it, given his character and other factors, Mahia was not a good place to settle.

It was a city with the tyrant's dominion castle and daily 'slave gladiatorial fights.'

He shook his head and said, "Circumstances led me here. I was planning to leave as soon as possible anyway."

"Then you should come to the capital of the 7th Dominion."

I said it naturally.

Gulpil looked at me in disbelief.

"You said you weren't here to recruit me?"

"I'm not recruiting you. I'm inviting you to the land I govern."

"So what exactly...?"

"I don't want anything from you, Gulpil. I just want to protect you from Sainthea's pursuit."

He looked increasingly confused.

"You want to protect me without wanting anything from me? What does that mean?"

For a dominion lord to offer protection without any reward would naturally be hard to believe.

But what could I do, it was all true.

"First, understand this, Gulpil."

I decided to be honest.

There was no point in giving a weak reason to someone of Gulpil's caliber.

"You are one of the most outstanding alchemists on this continent. Just by having someone like you stay in our land, it's a benefit to us. Caldric has no reason not to take care of you."

"…Even if I have no intention of working with you?"

"Sure, intentions can change. Honestly, you can think of it as a way to win your favor."

I knew Gulpil's character well.

In the game's main story, he helped the player's party to the end because of a small debt.

In short, he was the type who couldn't stand to receive without giving back.

So, it didn't matter if he didn't want to work with me right now.

As long as I kept him close and gradually built a good relationship, I could get his help when needed.

"…Winning my favor, huh."

Gulpil laughed bitterly.

"Being offered this by the exalted lord of Caldric, I don't know what to do with myself."

Though he said that, he was a person who, in terms of reputation, was on par with a dominion lord.

He was only in this situation, hiding from Sainthea, because he lacked the power to defend himself.

"Can I finish this?"

Gulpil pointed to the pipe he had put down.

I nodded, and he put it back in his mouth.

He puffed on it thoughtfully, staring into space, then spoke.

"Does the Grand Dominion Lord know about my existence?"

"No."

"Then the 6th Dominion Lord?"

"He doesn't know either."

Gulpil let out a small sigh and continued.

"If I go to the 7th Dominion, will I have to stay in the dominion castle?"

"I can arrange a place wherever you want."

The Alchemus Workshop came to mind.

It wouldn't be bad to subtly introduce him to her.

Scarlet is a talented alchemist, and it would be great if she could learn some alchemy from Gulpil.

Gulpil seemed lost in thought, smoking silently for a while.

After a few minutes, he slowly nodded.

"Alright. I'll go to Enrock as you suggest. Even if I refuse, you'll keep an eye on me, won't you?"

...Hmm, I didn't plan to do that.

But since he seemed to have considered that in accepting my offer, I didn't deny it.

Just as I was about to say he made a good decision, he spoke again.

"But, I have one condition before that."