NOVPUBWatching the pitiful middle-aged man trembling before him, Aiwass couldn’t help but curve the corners of his mouth upward.
The character of Mister King sure is interesting…
Aiwass had made it clear to him that both he and Isabel were acquaintances of his. This was undoubtedly a friendly gesture, as neither ministers nor princesses of Avalon were obligated to divulge such secrets to him.
——And yet, he trembled even more violently.
What exactly was he afraid of?
Was it the fear of having learned information he shouldn’t have, terrified of being silenced? Or did he think his death was certain, and so Aiwass chose to reveal these things to let him die with understanding?
Seeing that Mister King didn’t dare to initiate conversation, Aiwass had no choice but to knock on the armrest to attract his attention.
"Name," Aiwass asked.
"Augustus Kante."
Mister King answered.
...August?
Aiwass was momentarily taken aback.
What a great name! No wonder you chose the codename King…
He mused internally.
Augustus was the title of emperors in the Roman Empire. And in this world, emperors of the Heracel Empire had also used this title for a period of time.
The Kingdom of Star Antimony is the country within the Heracel Empire that has preserved its traditions most completely, so it’s not strange that the King knows this historical reference.
But the real daredevils are surely Mister King’s parents.
By analogy, this is like a child with the surname Huang being named "Huang Shang," or a child with the surname Bi being named "Bi Xia."
——If this were in modern times, this might just result in some teasing from classmates.
But the thing is, the Kingdom of Star Antimony he lives in does indeed have Kings and nobility!
You have brave yet crazy parents, Aiwass thought to himself admiringly.
Aiwass strove to suppress the subtle emotions arising in his heart, adjusting his facial expression to avoid laughing unintentionally.
He continued with a stern face, "Path and profession? What are you here for? Come clean."
"I am a Botanist of the Path of Balance."
Augustus volunteered, "I’m currently second Energy Level, and just yesterday on that ship, I went through the promotion ritual."
He mentioned this with regret.
Just last night, a quite friendly Ritualist had come to personally guide his promotion ritual.
And a few days earlier, everyone on the ship had shared their experiences with the promotion ritual. At the time, Augustus had praised them repeatedly for their kindness. They had exchanged toasts, forming a brief friendship in warm spirits, which lasted less than three days.
——So when he saw these new friends of his, drawing Weapons against the officials with practiced ease and striking to kill, Augustus was utterly stunned.
What’s going on!
How come this group of friends I just made starts fighting the cops to the death on sight!
Oh, and these aren’t even the Inspectors, equivalent to the Kingdom of Star Antimony’s police, but Inspector Officials. They’re akin to Star Antimony’s special agents or royal spies... Otherwise, with the level of coordination they displayed, if there had been fewer than twenty cops, they could probably have wiped them out in an instant.
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That’s murder!
And not just any murder, but attacking and killing them in public!
At that moment, Augustus had guessed their identities.
——This ship I boarded, it wouldn’t happen to be Avalon’s well-known smuggling vessel, would it!
Somebody save me, I’m going to be killed!
"By the Hourglass above, I’m a legitimate businessman! I’ve never even committed fraud, let alone smuggling! The goods I’ve sold have all been fair and square, I’ve never made a dishonest penny!"
August couldn’t help but shudder at the thought and immediately extended his hand to swear, "In the name of the Hourglass, I swear that my previous dealings have always been legitimate… You might not know, but I was forced out of Star Antimony precisely because I refused to collude with those people…"
"The person I met at a certain promotion ceremony before, he went by the code name ’Antlers’ at that time. He claimed he needed a large quantity of plant oils, and placed an order with me for eight hundred White Crown Coins’ worth of goods. That’s almost the equivalent of five hundred Gold Coins in our area, a very big order.
"He paid half the down payment and then said I only needed to send half the goods first. Afterwards, he would pay the other half, and I would deliver the remaining goods—I’ve been in this business a long time, and I’ve never met such an easy-going customer. Normally, delivery comes first before the final payment… It’s as if he wasn’t afraid at all that I would bail on the deal."
——Of course, now he knew why.
When August thought of the dozens of Transcendents of various Paths and no insignificant Energy Levels that were employed as mercenaries on the ship, he immediately understood why ’Antlers’ wasn’t worried about him bailing.
If he bailed and was caught by them, he could only imagine their attitude would be far less friendly…
"I just wanted to see if he had any other requirements… It’s rare to meet such a generous customer, so I wanted to negotiate a long-term trading agreement."
August answered with unusual sincerity, "I was ready to pay the tariffs! I even brought money with me… The goods are all plant oils. According to Avalon’s customs laws, plant oils are not categorized as alchemy ingredients but as botanical products, with only a 12% tariff… This is the first batch, worth four hundred White Crown Coins. I brought fifty White Crown Coins with me this time, even if that customer doesn’t plan to pay the tax, I can make up for it myself…"
At this point, he felt very wronged.
He had thought it was a windfall, a big order handed to him on a silver platter. There really is no such good thing in the world!
It’s hard to find a customer who doesn’t haggle, pays up front, and places huge orders, only to turn out to be a smuggler…
No wonder he didn’t haggle. It turns out he didn’t need to go through customs at all.
Avalon imposes a hefty 54% import tariff on Star Antimony’s alchemical products, and even alchemy ingredients are taxed at 30%. The goods can hardly make it through.
If "Antlers" could bypass customs, then it meant that not only was his supply abundant, but his cost would invariably be lower than everyone else’s by half. It meant that if he made his move, he could easily monopolize the market.
August was by no means a fool.
He now understood why Antlers wanted such a large order of goods…
It should count as an investment in himself. After all, if he could make plant oils, he could make other types of botanical alchemy ingredients. What he was doing now was essentially building a relationship with August; when he reached the second Energy Level, he could produce simple alchemy products and even larger batches of alchemy ingredients and intermediates… Actually, what Antlers was aiming for was that part!
Simply put, all August wanted was money, but what he wanted was August himself!
August was filled with regret. "Why on earth did I suddenly have the urge to come and have a look…"
Indeed, greed does not pay…
In fact, he didn’t need to come at all this time. The reason he came was simple: because he wanted to see if this wealthy customer might need something else — he might also be capable of supplying those other things without going elsewhere to buy them, and could provide a one-stop shop with lower prices, too.
If he could clinch some business, he wouldn’t be short of orders for at least a few years.
But now, just thinking back on it, August felt a chill run down his spine.
"Antlers" had employed dozens of mercenaries alone.
If he discovered that "Antlers" was a smuggler and tried to run away, he’d probably be caught and dragged back directly…
After all, he’d genuinely sold goods to this side and taken dirty money. By then, they would have leverage over him.
…But now, it seemed like the danger of life and death had just shifted from behind to in front of him. Smuggling cases exceeding two hundred Gold Coins were already capital offenses in Star Antimony. He could be beheaded at least three times.
"Minister Moriarty, please discern the truth!"
The King spoke with a pained expression, "Whatever you ask of me, I will obey your command. Whether it’s to denounce the former minister or something else, but I can’t go to jail — I have a family to support! My daughter is still at home waiting for me to return…"
Although August now knew that this exceptionally young minister and the princess were acquaintances he had seen in a promotion ceremony before.
But at this moment, he didn’t dare to familiarly refer to him as "Fox".
August was very aware of his status as a prisoner.
——Absolutely don’t act haughty or think you can secure any benefits. To figure out a way to survive this ordeal would already be a very good outcome.
If it were in Star Antimony, he’d probably have already been taken to a secret room for execution and torture.
He’d heard that Avalon values the rule of law and evidence, so there might still be hope… perhaps.
Perhaps my ass!
——All the evidence he could present was in his dreams!
