The moment Luke revealed his identity, the four men who were blocking the way all lost their momentum.
This was just a black magic potion workshop, and they were not capable of fighting against the ferocious Imperial Secret Intelligence Bureau.
"Hello, Inspector Meteor." The old man quickly bowed to Luke. "I'm Ralph, and these three are my sons."
"I know that we have violated the laws of the empire by illegally producing magic potions."
Ralph's confession was very familiar. It seemed that the Secret Intelligence Bureau had visited their place a lot. Perhaps the people from the Security Department also came often.
As long as the fine was paid, the production of black magic potion would continue as usual.
But Ralph didn't expect that the inspector of the Secret Intelligence Bureau would come personally this time. He didn't know how much money he would need to send this person away.
Thinking of this, Ralph's expression turned ugly.
It seemed that this time he had to spend a lot!
Luke smiled and said, "Old Ralph, I'm not here to fine you. I'm here to discuss business with you."
Business?
Ralph was puzzled.
His black magic potion workshop specialized in aphrodisiac potions.
What kind of business could he, a dignified inspector of the Imperial Secret Intelligence Bureau, discuss with him?
"Inspector, don't joke with me."
"I have nothing to joke about with you. This is not a place to discuss business. Let's look for some other places."
Ralph didn't know what the inspector of the Secret Intelligence Bureau wanted to do, so he could only invite him to his office.
It also served as a potion mixing room.
On the test bench, curved glass tubes were connected to different containers. A semi-spherical glass pot was boiling some green liquid.
Ralph walked in and took the oil lamp under the glass pot. He asked his son to bring a chair over before they were all chased out.
"Inspector... We black magic potion merchants seem to be making money, but the profits are actually very little.
"Purchasing raw materials, hiring labor, transportation, and all kinds of arrangements. The money that we can earn is really not much.
"If we're making money, we would not be living in Black Medicine Alley.
"Sir, please take a sit..."
Luke didn't sit down. Instead, he walked around the small potion mixing room and looked at the equipment.
"Old Ralph, other magic potion workshops probably don't have such professional potion mixing equipment like yours."
When talking about these devices, Ralph couldn't help but say proudly, "My Lord, most of the magic potion workshops here produce potions according to existing formulas. They're safe, but it's not competitive.
"I like to make some adjustments to the potion formula to make the effect of the potion more intense.
"The improved aphrodisiac we make is a hot commodity in the rich district."
"But... someone died."
Ralph immediately denied, "No, no, no. The potion that the deceased master drank was not one of ours. Before we confirm the formula, I will personally drink the potions we make.
"Even if it results in death, I shall die first."
"You tried it yourself?" Luke looked at Ralph, who was so old that he couldn't even walk, in disbelief.
"Inspector, if you don't believe me, I'll drink a bottle now."
"No need, no need..." Luke stopped Ralph.
If there was really an old master from a wealthy district who had died from drinking the black magic potion, someone would have come looking for him long ago.
This rumor was probably made up by jealous peers.
It was also possible that many people were satisfied with the old master's death, and those who benefited from it did not want to cause any more trouble.
But no matter what the truth was, it had nothing to do with Luke's purpose of coming here.
Luke sat down, and Karina stood behind him, still holding her wand.
"Please sit..." Luke asked Ralph to sit down and said, "I want to invest in your magic potion workshop."
Ah!
Ralph was shocked. "Inspector, did I hear wrongly? You want to invest in my magic potion workshop?"
Luke replied, "You didn't hear wrongly. You don't have to ask for a specific reason. If I invest in your magic potion workshop, the profits will be you getting 20%, and I 80%.
"I can provide you with protection and sales channels. In the future, the magic potions produced here could be approved by the Cape District's Secret Intelligence Bureau as special items. They would be escorted out of the port by the empire's secret agents and sold all over the world."
Luke's words immediately made Ralph excited.
A Secret Intelligence Bureau special item approval was enough to make the Ralph family prosper, not to mention that the Secret Intelligence Bureau had taken the initiative to send people to protect them.
These were the kind of gold bars that the imperial secret agents of the empire would force into your arms.
But Ralph still asked in disbelief, "Inspector, is it okay to do this? This is an illegal workshop. It's illegal..."
"Didn't I come here to make it legal? With the Cape District's Secret Intelligence Bureau and me on top, you have nothing to be afraid of.
"Do you want to do it or not? Tell me. If you're afraid of taking risks, I can go to another shop."
"Let's do it!"
That's right... The inspector of the Secret Intelligence Bureau would be in charge of making black magic potions. What did he have to be afraid of?
"Awesome!" Luke pointed at the green potion that Ralph had just taken and asked, "This is the featured aphrodisiac, right?"
"Yes..." Ralph quickly took the reagent bottle and said proudly, "This kind of aphrodisiac is effective and strong. It doesn't put too much of a burden on the body, and its effect is better than all similar products on the market.
"The old masters in the rich district all liked it. If they could promote it to the world... I guarantee you'll make a lot of money!"
Luke took the reagent bottle and waved it in front of him before handing it to Ralph.
"According to your previous formula, use the ingredients I tell you to make another bottle of potion. Reduce psyllium powder by 10 grams, and increase whale fat by 5 grams. Add 8 grams of fire cotton seeds to the slime gel before stirring and bake it to pudding form.
"After the original medicine is prepared, heat it over the fire until the color changes... After the color changes to a blue color that's the same as my secretary's eyes, store it in the freezer with a constant temperature of -5 degrees for half an hour."
"Inspector, you know my formula?" Ralph asked in surprise. "Impossible, only I know the formula of this potion. Even my son doesn't know!"
"You don't have to worry about where I got the formula from. Just make a bottle of the potion according to what I said and evaluate its effects, okay?" Luke said mysteriously.
Ralph didn't dare to ask any more questions and immediately made the potion on the spot according to the steps and improvements of the aphrodisiac potion.
Karina reminded Luke carefully in a low voice, "Inspector, as a high-ranking civil servant of the empire, you are personally involved in the production, transportation, and sale of illegal drugs...
"O-once exposed, it will definitely affect your work experience."
"You should know that I've come to the Cape District's Secret Intelligence Bureau with a heavy responsibility," Luke said to Karina. "Everything I've done is to complete the mission Her Highness gave me.
"I brought you here because I trust you."
Realization dawned on Karina.
Since the inspector was taken care of by the Eldest Princess, there must be a deeper meaning behind what he did.
As the inspector's confidential secretary, she only had to think about how to assist him.