Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

  Lin Li formed a good impression of the Seven Leaf Grass medicinal store. The only issue was that the middle-aged man who was manning the shop did not once stand up or even speak up to welcome them. He felt that the middle-aged person had to be the manager because he could tell from the decor and layout of the store that the owner should be one who cared about the feelings of the shop's customers. In that case, how could it be the same person who had remained still even after seeing the customers enter?

  They were in Seven Leaf Grass medicinal store, which was well-known throughout the entire Breezy Plains. Although it was always compared to the Time Consignment Store, Seven Leaf Grass did seem rather noble and prestigious because its main clientele comprised mostly lofty aristocrats. The manager felt that the Seven Leaf Grass was prestigious for serving only esteemed pharmacists, while the Time Consignment Store was cheap in his opinion because it peddled potions or magic weapons and equipment, and served warriors and mages.

  As the manager looked up at the four people who had just come in, his heart turned numb. Who would be willing to give you a free meal!?! Although the four of them were all wearing magic robes, mages weren't significant here, let alone the ones who were dressed shabbily.

  Wilkinson and the other pharmacists were now the stars of the Breezy Plains, whom all the forces knew about. Hence, they had deliberately disguised themselves as mages on this trip out with Lin Li.

  Lin Li only cared about his own well-being, and was not bothered about what others thought of him. Before he came to Anril, he'd been just a homebody who didn't care about his appearance at all.

  It was much worse for Ujfalusi and Norfeller. Due to the fact that they were Undead creatures, their strong Undead aura could not be hidden at all. Hence, they seemed distasteful regardless of how well they were dressed.

  After confirming their identities with a glance, the manager who despised the Time Consignment Store felt nothing but disdain for them. He was planning to let them take a look and scram, and could not be bothered to waste his time talking to them at all. The manager humphed coldly in disp.l.e.a.s.u.r.e and lowered his eyelids as if he were going to sleep.

  Wilkinson wasn't an oblivious and unscrupulous nerd. He could obviously tell that the manager was looking down on them with contempt. After joining the Pharmacist Guild, he was accepted as a student by Teacher Balbo all thanks to his hard work and talent. Who would dare to despise Balbo's student in such a disrespectful manner? He had gotten to where he was today based on his own talent, hard work, and stellar performance. Those who were jealous of him did not have anything to say at all.

  Although calmness was the basic requirement for a pharmacist when preparing a potion, Wilkinson was still in his twenties, after all. Being young and vigorous, how could he tolerate letting others look down on him? However, when he was about to react, he discovered that Master Felic was looking at the medicinal herbs nonchalantly, while the two Undead creatures remained calm and unfazed.

  The Undead obviously wouldn't have any emotional fluctuations, for they had already lost their lives, and were nothing but empty shells. Hence, why would they care about the opinions of others? To Ujfalusi and Norfeller, their only concern was the safety of their master. Unless someone threatened Lin Li's safety, nothing had anything to do with them.

  Lin Li was not bothered by the manager's lack of enthusiasm. He was just there to buy medicinal herbs anyway, not to perform a stand-up comedy. He didn't have the time to teach the manager a lesson, either. He walked along the rows of crystal medicine cabinets in the hall, after which he realized that he was in need of several kinds of medicinal materials.

  Lin Li took the time to study and analyze the formulae that William had given him. The Divine Potion was difficult to formulate, and even though he was a pharmaceutics Guru, he still wasn't that confident. Besides, the required medicinal materials were not that easy to gather.

  Staring at the different medicinal materials that were to be used for other formulae, Lin Li felt that the formulae were not mixed randomly. It seemed that formulating the other formulae, one would very possibly be enlightened, and then have more confidence in preparing the Divine Potion.

  Although the crystal medicine cabinets were arranged like supermarket shelves, the medicinal materials in them were not easy to obtain. Lin Li wrote down some of the medicinal materials required by the formula on paper, after which he walked towards the middle-aged person, and said, "Please help me get these medicinal materials." He then slid the piece of paper towards him.

  Chapter 528 - Don't Be Silly

  Pursing his lips, the manager stared at the newspaper on the table impatiently, thinking to himself that he would have to walk around the whole hall in order to get all the herbs that Lin Li asked for. Remaining seated, he pressed his finger against the sheet of paper, rubbed it back and forth twice, and c.o.c.ked his head sideways as he glanced at Lin Li in contempt. "You want these herbs? Do you know how much they cost?"

  "What do you think?" Lin Li asked with a frown as he thought to himself, Why do you have so much nonsense to say? Hurry up, get me the herbs I want and scram. It's none of my business even if you die sleeping.

  "Hey, young man. You'd better be more pragmatic. You can't afford to be a pharmacist." The manager slid the piece of paper back to him and closed his eyes again in a bid to take a nap.

  Lin Li slammed his hand against the table and urged, "Could you hurry and get me my herbs?"

  Thud!

  The manager slammed his hand against the table too, and stood up to say, "You want these herbs, eh? Pay up first. Otherwise, I won't be able to sell the damaged herbs after they're exposed to the air if you go back on your word once I retrieve them for you. Do you know how strict pharmacists are with expensive herbs and ingredients? Do you think you can make potions just by pouring the herbs and ingredients all into one pot?"

  Lin Li found being questioned about his pharmaceutical knowledge absolutely ridiculous and absurd. However, he could not be bothered to argue with the manager, either. He asked, "How much do they cost?"

  "Hah, fine, I'll calculate it for you." The manager stared at the paper on the table, and looked up at Lin Li before continuing, "20,000 gold coins."

  "How much?" 20 thousand gold coins was nothing to Lin Li. Had the manager welcomed them warmly and politely when they entered, Lin Li would have been more than willing to give him a 20,000-gold-coin tip after purchasing the herbs that were worth 2,000 gold coins. However, the manager actually had the audacity to charge him 20,000 gold coins for the herbs. He would be a fool if he were to pay.

  "You can't afford it, eh? Didn't I already tell you that you're too poor to be a pharmacist? Look at you people. So what if you're mages? Do you even know what pharmacy is about? Have you ever seen real potions before? You're just a bunch of country bumpkins, and yet you're thinking of becoming pharmacists. Do you even know how to use these herbs? Are you going to cook them into porridge?" the manager sneered.

  Upon hearing his words, Lin Li's frown vanished, and his lips curled into a smirk. Actually, it was not that infuriating to be mocked by an ignorant person who was blowing his trumpet ridiculously. In fact, it was absurd and hilarious.

  "Don't be silly, concocting potions is meant for pharmacists to do. You country bumpkins should just go back where you came from. You can't even fork out 20,000 gold coins, yet you're thinking of becoming pharmacists. Psht…" the manager rebuked.

  Wilkinson couldn't take it at this point of time anymore. Master Felic was a Master of pharmacy who was more knowledgeable than Teacher Balbo. He should be respected by everyone. How could he be insulted by such a horrendous person? Boiling with fury, he felt an urge to reveal his identity and berate the manager who didn't know any better. He wanted to let him know that mages were not to be insulted.

  "Shameless!" the manager barked angrily after seeing that Lin Li still had the cheek to smirk. He ripped the piece of paper into shreds, crushed them, and got ready to throw them at Lin Li.
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  However, at this very moment, a sharp and icy cold dagger was placed against his throat before he could even open his palm.

  Although the dagger was only placed against the skin of his throat, its chilliness seemed to have penetrated his skin. He wanted to swallow his spit, but had no choice except to stop for fear that the movement of his Adam's apple would cause his skin to be slit by the dagger. He had no idea when he released his hand, but all of the broken bits of paper had already been cast all over the ground, appearing extremely obvious against the clean and bright marble flooring.

  How dare these barbaric bumpkins treat me like this!? The manager could hardly believe the reality. Although he was not a remarkable person in the city of Roland, no one dared to underestimate the Seven Leaf Grass medicinal store. Even a reckless Warrior and an arrogant Mage would have to address him politely as Mr. Manager!

  "You… You people!" Despite trembling uncontrollably, the manager still tried to suppress his fear, and yelled in a shrilling voice, "What are you people trying to do!?! Don't forget where this is. My boss is acquainted with Castellan Arathor. If you dare lay a finger on me, you can forget about leaving Roland City!"

  The manager did not have any skills in magic or martial arts, and was actually terrified beyond words at this point now that he had a dagger placed on his throat. In fact, his legs became weak, and he couldn't stand straight anymore. If Lin Li had been dressed impeccably, he would have thought that he was a powerful and prestigious Archmage, and knelt down before him to beg for mercy. Even if he hadn't, he would've spoken to him in a mellower tone, and things wouldn't have come to this.

  However, he felt that the four of them were definitely not mages that were supported by a powerful force. The manager was very confident in his judgment, and although he dared not move, he could not hide the panic in his eyes, and his mouth kept clamoring for a moment.

  "Open your eyes and see clearly. This is not your country. Seven Leaf Grass is not a place for you to cause a stir or make trouble; you'd better consider the consequences of your actions. Don't mess with people you shouldn't be provoking.

  "Let me tell you, I am a person who serves noble pharmacists and lords. So what if you're mages? You're just fooling those ignorant villagers. We're not short of mages here."

  They're just bumpkins who haven't seen the world. Once I show them my prowess and assert my dominance, they'll definitely be terrified and apologize immediately!

  However, the manager's judgment was obviously not as good as he had imagined, because he had no idea that the person holding him down was actually a Vampire. Vampires would never hesitate to kill, just like how humans would never hesitate to kill chickens.

  Although Lin Li, Norfeller's master, was a human being, and he'd not easily kill because of some trivial matter, once he decided on a target, he'd never hesitate to kill him. Norfeller, who was closely associated to his master through the blood oath, would obviously be influenced by it and follow the example set by his master.

  Once Norfeller increased the force applied on the dagger, he would be able to slit the throat of whoever dared to offend his master. When that happened, even a pharmacist would not be able to save the other party.

  The manager's throat had already begun bleeding. At this moment, someone at the stairwell raised his voice as he made his way down.

  "Larry, what are you doing? Why is there such a ruckus? Don't you know that I'm discussing an important deal with some guests upstairs!?!" barked the owner of Seven Leaf Grass, who was a handsome middle-aged man in his fifties.

  He'd initially been talking upstairs with the guests, and when it was time to talk about the important things, there was a ton of noise coming from downstairs, which made him feel embarrassed. Everyone in Roland City knew how prestigious Seven Leaf Grass was, and even the castellan would have to speak to him politely. Who's the person who has the audacity to cause a stir at my place!? he thought.

  As soon as he stepped out of the stairwell, he was greeted with a clear sight of the commotion. The owner's face grew sullen when he saw the manager of his store being held down with a dagger placed against his throat. He'd initially thought that it was just a verbal argument, and blamed the manager Larry for not handling the matter appropriately. However, it seemed that Larry was being bullied.

  When the skin of his throat was cut, the manager knew that he had encountered a ruthless person who wouldn't care about his status or background, and would simply kill without hesitation or consideration of the consequences. At this point, the manager had already begun regretting what he'd said, and was on the verge of begging for mercy.

  At this moment, the boss of Seven Leaf Grass made his way downstairs while Lin Li hollered for Norfeller to stop.

  When the manager saw this scene, he knew that the dismal magicians were definitely daunted, and rejoiced over the fact that he had not begged for mercy. Since they dared not do anything to him, there was nothing for him to be afraid of. The thought of it made him feel energized, and he began complaining to his boss while ignoring the wound on his neck.

  "Boss, it's not that I defied you, but these foreigners are just too tyrannical! Look at my neck, it's bleeding because they cut me. I was kind enough to reason with them, but they don't take Seven Leaf Grass seriously at all. They whipped out their daggers and threatened to kill me." The manager struggled to break free while yelling, "Let go of me, let go of me!" He knew that they wouldn't kill him anyway.

  "Dear guests, I don't know how my manager offended you, but we can talk things out nicely. There's no need to kill. Could you let go of him first? Tell me, what rude and offensive things has he done to make you so angry?" The owner was a businessman, and naturally had a good temper since he could manage Seven Leaf Grass so well. However, he definitely had a sullen expression now since his subordinate had gotten bullied.

  Lin Li knew clearly what the owner meant, but he was too lazy to argue with him. He smiled and instructed Norfeller to let go of the manager.

  The owner humphed coldly, and chided the manager, "What are you waiting for? Hurry and come here to tell us what happened. How did you offend these customers?"

  Chapter 529 - Leader Sienna

  The manager scurried towards the owner while holding his neck with one hand as it bled. He miserably said, "Boss, you can't blame me. They came in to buy some things, but when it was time to pay up, they complained that the prices were too expensive. He even accused us of being swindlers."

  Staring at Lin Li and the rest, the owner turned and chided the manager, "Didn't you tell them that we only supply herbs to pharmacists?"

  Upon hearing his boss's words, the manager was certain that he would definitely be blamed if the owner were to ask for the exact quote that he had given Lin Li. However, if he were to mention that the herbs were to be supplied to pharmacists, the problem would then lie with pharmacists. He reckoned that they definitely wouldn't be able to get a pharmacist to come here and confront them.

  The manager quickly added, "I saw that they were foreigners, and kindly reminded them that the herbs here are only to be used by the pharmacists. However, not only did they not listen, they even threatened me unreasonably. Look at my neck… Had you been a minute later, I would probably never have seen you again…" He then moved his hand away and revealed his bleeding wound.

  Seven Leaf Grass had been operating in Roland for numerous years, and various professional guilds, mercenary squads large and small, and aristocratic families—be it upstarts or those which had a long history of more than 1,000 years—all had to show him some respect. The owner's face became more and more gloomy as he stared at the wound on the manager's neck. Although the wound was not serious, Lin Li and his company's behavior was equivalent to giving the boss an insult.

  However, the owner was a self-proclaimed person of status who wouldn't yell and scold them like the manager did. Glancing at the four shabbily dressed mages, the boss turned his head and reprimanded the manager, "How many times have I told y
ou, even though most of our guests are noble pharmacists, we will inevitably come into contact with people from all walks of life. If you insist on serving only aristocrats, you will definitely cause a misunderstanding sooner or later."

  "Yes, yes, Boss. It was negligence on my part," the manager hurriedly chimed in. Actually, the bleeding had already stopped long ago, and he was only keeping his hand on his neck for the sake of gaining sympathy.

  "Enough. Just take this as a lesson to remember. If you make such a mistake again, I'll chase you out of Seven Leaf Grass," the owner barked sternly.

  Even a fool could tell what the manager and owner were driving at. Wilkinson was simmering with anger that was threatening to explode. Damn it, how dared he allude to nobility when he was yelling like a barbarian just now? What aristocrat spoke in such an uncouth manner?

  Wilkinson felt a strong urge to lose his temper and reveal his pharmacist identity. However, he dared not do so after staring at Lin Li, who was remaining composed. Yeah, we're senior pharmacists. Why should we stoop to the level of these merchants? Even if we reveal our identities, so what? All we would get is an apology and end up seeming like petty people, he thought.

  After reprimanding his subordinate, the owner turned his face to the side and said to Lin Li and the others, "Dear mages, I'm really sorry. We run a herbal medicine business here, and we usually interact with pharmacists more frequently as compared to mages. It may be that the manager Larry didn't explain things to you clearly, and thus caused a misunderstanding, resulting in you guys feeling offended by him. But now that I have punished him, can you hear me out calmly?"

  Although the owner of Seven Leaf Grass sounded kind and polite, everyone could understand the true meaning behind those words. He was just trying to say, "We are here to serve the noble pharmacists. You mages are no big deal to us here in Seven Leaf Grass. You didn't earn any respect, because you don't know your place at all."