Amberser kept emphasizing that the item wasn't worth the price, and that if he had to urgently deliver it to the doorstep, he would have to build a special Teleportation Circle capable of transporting living creatures, which meant even higher additional costs.
Although just a small bottle could dissolve tens of millions of Gold Coins and be stored in its special form in the small bottle, it really wasn't worth it.
But Headless Bro insisted and unhesitatingly threw in more money.
This left Amberser with no excuse to refuse, so he had to make another trip to Alchemy City, and then, under the shocked gaze of the sales clerk, he purchased a bottle of genuine Living Mercury Solution.
Amberser had checked the merchandise; it was the real deal.
Then Amberser returned to the castle, built the Teleportation Magic Array, and after half a day's work, he sent the item to Headless Bro's place, and ended up tearfully earning twenty thousand Gold Coins.
It's not that he was greedy, but it's only reasonable for his commission to rise proportionally with the increase in the item's unit price, right? You can't expect to earn three thousand on a ten thousand Gold Coin deal and still only earn three thousand on a hundred thousand Gold Coin business.
Moreover, the fee for the Teleportation Magic Array wasn't cheap either—the materials might not be expensive, but the expertise was!
For a Teleportation Magic Array set up by a Legendary Spellcaster plus a commission, earning just twenty thousand Gold Coins was really fair. Amberser could pat his ribcage and say that across the entire continent, you couldn't find a lich with more reasonable charges than him.
Looking at the pile of shiny Gold Coins before him, Amberser felt his Soul satisfied to the greatest extent. Satisfying his own obsessions was the only way a lich could feel pleasure.
Of course, cursing the Silvermoon Tribunal a few times while counting his coins made the moment even more enjoyable.
One day, Amberser would make those sprout-like Elves understand that inflating the price of Magic Potions would have consequences!
Dealing with Headless Bro's business was done, so next, he ought to focus on the order from Withered Rose.
Creating a high-ranking undead capable of breaking through the walls of the Laine Imperial Capital was no simple matter; even just creating a draft design would require a long time to research. Besides, since there were two fake bottles of Living Mercury Solution as well, Amberser didn't want to waste them—perhaps he could use the Living Mercury in some new designs.
With the support of funds, Amberser could be more daring in his experiments.
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In the distant west, within the dark catacombs across the vast ocean, the light of the Teleportation Circle slowly faded away.
The burly Knight pinched the glass vial containing the Living Mercury with two fingers.
The headless figure was frighteningly tall; Amberser would probably only come up to this Headless Knight's knees if he were to stand before him.
He wore heavy black armor, embossed with layers of mysterious magical runes that radiated a mystical glow; on his cape fluttering behind him was an exquisitely embroidered Bone Dragon in flight.
He was the Bone Dragon Family's son-in-law by marriage, the Legendary Headless Knight—Gareth Alkarnos.
The surname was only added after marrying into the family; the former Gareth was just a common human Knight who died on the battlefield due to the treachery of his companions. Originally meant to be a war hero, he was beheaded by the enemy instead.
Over one hundred years after Gareth's death, more than two hundred heads hung at the very place where he was executed.
The companion who had betrayed him went back to become a war hero, became a noble, and his family thrived for over a century. But over a hundred years later, Gareth sent every member of that family to the guillotine.
This massacre made Gareth the most wanted criminal in the Laine Empire, and the strongest human empire dispatched an entire Paladin Legion to hunt down Gareth.
Gareth fought from the Laine Empire to the Golden Kingdom of Salokma, enduring five years and three thousand miles of battles, escaping from the hands of thousands of Paladins, and even cutting off the heads of hundreds. Gareth advanced to Legendary Rank amidst desperate straits, causing the greatest loss to the Laine Empire since its founding.
The Emperor of Laine came close to calling upon the ancient Divine Artifact, the Magic Dragon Armament, to wield power beyond Legendary to slay Gareth.
But later, the Legendary Headless Knight suddenly disappeared, leaving no trace even the Laine Empire could find. Such a legendary fierce man had suddenly become a son-in-law.
Fortunately, not many knew about this; not even the members of the Elegy Poetry Society knew that the Headless Bro in their chat group was the fierce man who had forced the Emperor of Laine to don the Divine Artifact and lead the charge himself; otherwise, the Laine Empire would die of rage.
The Gareth who once felled a thousand paladins with a two-handed greatsword was now more like a timid little altar boy, tiptoeing to the wall with the bottle of Living Mercury in hand.
He tapped his finger against several spots on the wall, and soon after, several magical runes lit up. With a rhythmic thud emanating from his chest, the stone wall slowly cracked open, revealing a spatial transmission portal.
A few simple acts encompassed the unlocking of a password, magical, and voice recognition, a triple-layered security; if there was even a minor error in any of these layers of protection, what would have appeared after opening the wall wouldn't be a portal, but a room chock-full of love letters.
If his wife discovered this, the roomful of love letters would serve as a romantic twist, aiding his escape from an otherwise tight spot.
Gareth had transformed from a relentless, ruthless man into a sly and cunning married one. If the Emperor of Laine ever found out, who knows what he'd think.
Gareth stepped into the portal with focused attention, and in the next second, emerged in another room piled with love letters.
Indeed, he had prepared two rooms for this trick.
Even if his wife found the portal, she would have to open another secret door to find the true location of his little golden vault.
After several twists and turns, he reached the true gold vault, and a veritable mountain of Gold Coins appeared before his eyes.
Amberser haggled with the ladies of Alchemy City all day over mere ten or twenty thousand discounts, which for Gareth was nothing more than pocket change.
Gareth opened the glass bottle and placed it before the mountain of gold.
Then he stretched his hand out toward that golden mountain.
A vast surge of Dark Magic Power erupted, turning the hundred-ton gold mountain black. With a muffled sound from his chest, he lifted the entire mountain with one hand.
Gold Coins scattered, forming a tornado.
The clattering coins fell, landing perfectly inside the small jar.
The glittering coins vanished the moment they entered, the continuous stream entering the small glass jar, disappearing as if by magic.
In just a short amount of time, the large gold mountain had completely disappeared, leaving only the Living Mercury Solution in the expansive, empty chamber. The gold, now stored in a special energy state, was undetectable even to magic specifically designed to sense treasures.
Gareth capped the small glass bottle with great care, remarking, "You get what you pay for after all. Brother Diga is a stand-up guy; I can do business with him again."
Just as he was about to return satisfied, but as he turned around, a semi-transparent ghost appeared before him.
This was a stunningly beautiful ghost with a lithe figure, horns growing on her head—a so-called Dragon Soul.
The beautiful Dragon Soul crossed her arms and sneered at Gareth, "Now, who did you say you were going to do business with?"
With a snap, the glass jar in Gareth's hand fell to the ground, spilling the Living Mercury all over.
"My... my dear... how did you...?" Gareth's words stumbled, utterly unprepared for being caught red-handed by his wife despite all his precautions.
The beautiful Dragon Soul pulled out a Necromancy Codex, quickly flipped to the last page, and scribbled a message.
[The Pale Skeleton: Sister Rose, thank you for the tip. Next time, I'll invite you to the Dragon Tomb for tea.]
[Withered Rose: You're welcome. Consider those two Bone Dragons I sent you last time as a returned favor.]
[The Pale Skeleton: The Headless Knight's crown probably won't be restored for a few years, so no one needs to worry.]
[Diga Ultraman: ???]