Chapter 57

Jullian, Catharina, Jonathan, and I leave the slum after we have a pleasant tea time with Madame Vermillion or Hellel if we are alone with her.

"She is pleasant."

I look at Catharina and nod.

"Yeah. The tea she brewed was delicious. I wonder if she is willing to tell me about her supplier."

"You have her calling card, right? You can ask them about it."

"From the look on your face, you know a lot about their organization. Can you tell me about them?"

When Hellel gave me this medallion, I could see Catharina widen her eyes as if she knew what it was, and I had a feeling she knew about it. How? If Hellel's word is to be trusted, only a few people know about their existence and even ask Catharina about it.

Sadly, the woman beside me only smiles and keeps sipping her tea.

"Hmmm~ Maybe! What are you willing to give me for this information?"

She gives me a cheeky grin, and I sigh a little. However, I have a small smile on my face. Catharina is pleasant company to have. She is witty, smart, and open-minded. She did not believe any rumor from the noble in the north and only judged what she saw, and I can respect that.

"What kind of item do you want?"

I can give her a low-level item for her information. That magic staff is an exception. It is a high-level item, but it is not really rare. You can get them from regular mobs at around a 10% chance of it dropping.

"Hmmm, do you have any item to increase my mana regeneration? Or an item that can cut my chant like that magic staff."

"I do have the first one, but the second one is a little bit tricky…"

"I don't mind."

I nod and take out another necklace. This necklace will increase the player's mana regeneration by 50 MP per second. It is a mid-game necklace, and we have a lot of them. We usually use this garbage to enchant other equipment that is more powerful.

"Here. It will increase your mana regeneration by quite a bit."

She takes the necklace and smiles. As she is about to say something, Jonathan closes her mouth and says.

"Wait a second, Cat. We don't know if this item is a real deal or not."

I quickly stop Jullian from saying something and say.

"Oh? Really? Even after what I show in the shop, you still doubt me?"

"Yes."

I look at him for a second and say.

"If you don't want to trade, we can cancel the agreement. I don't really need the information as I can get them myself."

To begin with, this is not a trade agreement, but I want to offer a friendship. The item in her hand is something more valuable than the information she has; by looking at it, Catharina knows about it.

She quickly puts her hand on Jonathan's shoulder and says.

"Jon! Don't worry about it. I trust Gwyn."

I can see something inside Jonathan's eyes, and my mind connects the dots. I know this! I watch this on TV and on the Internet.

Catharina looks at me and says.

"I will give you a report before you go, Gwyn. I swear in the name of my family."

I give her a gentle nod and walk away. However, before we get too far away. I suddenly said,

"Don't worry, Jonathan. I will not take Catharina away. She is beautiful, but I will not take away someone else's partner."

After saying that, Jullian and I walked away from them. I look at Jullian and say.

"Jullian, what kind of food do you want for our lunch?"

At the mention of food, he quickly distracted and said.

"Hmmm, I like some fish for lunch."

"Fish? We have fish for breakfast, you know?"

"Yes. However, I want to try all kinds of fish in this place because it is close to the sea."

"Hmmm, fair enough. Our home is too far away from the sea to be able to have fresh fish like the one in this place."

"Yes! We have the best meat, but this place has the best fish."

And he is telling the truth. While my family does not produce high-quality meat, our ally is the one producing it. They sell their meat to us at a lower price, and boy, do they taste great. It tastes like the artificial cow breed from Japan to make sure their cow is still the best.

That cow is the result of hundreds of years of research, but the cow from our neighbor almost has the same taste and texture.

I snap from my thoughts when we arrive in front of our inn, but to our surprise, there is a carriage waiting in front of the inn.

When we got closer, one of the knights looked at us and quickly toward us.

"Young master, Gwyndolin!"

"What can I do for you, Sir Knight?"

Before he can say something, a woman walks out of the inn, it is Princess Bernadette. When she saw us, she beamed and said.

"Gwyn! Jullian! It is good that I met you here. I don't need to go around the city to search for you."

I bow for a second and say.

"What can I do for you, princess?"

"Gwyn! You can call me Benne, you know?"

"That is a bit informal, don't you think?"

"Bah! A friend did not need to be formal! We are friends, aren't we?"

That is a bit unfair, don't you think? A quivering lip and teary eyes are unfair. I can only sigh and say.

"Very well, Benne."

"Great! Anyway, I came here to give you this."

She gives me a letter with a royal seal on it. I look at her for a second and open the letter. The letter is a summoning notice to the palace by the king. As the new Grandmaster of Medicine, the king wants to ask for my advice.

I don't know if this is a genuine invitation or some kind of trap. For now, I will trust the princess, and I can run away if necessary.

I look at the princess and say.

"Of course, I will answer the invitation. Should I take a bath first? I don't think I can meet his majesty like this."

"Ah, don't worry about it. The servant in the palace has already prepared your bath and clothing for you. You can also bring Jullian with you. Please, get inside the carriage, and we will go to the palace."

I nod, and Jullian and I get inside the carriage before us. Benne is the last one to get inside before the driver takes us to the palace.

"Can you tell me the reason His Majesty called me?"

"Hmmm? I don't know the details, but my father wants to talk business with you."

Business huh? Interesting.