The elegant woman called over a male waiter.
He looked young and handsome, yet he seemed to harbor a faint sense of fear toward her.
Of course, a hint of desire also lingered in his eyes.
Shu Yue glanced back and forth as the waiter approached.
“Mr. Liya, please allow me to handle your identity registration.”
“Oh.”
She gave a brief response, stood up, and followed him out.
The registration process was extremely simple and concluded in less than 10 minutes.
Holding the dark silver badge, Shu Yue sighed inwardly.
‘Having connections really makes a difference. If I didn’t have this letter of introduction, it probably would have taken a lot of time for someone with the identity of an ordinary noble like Liya White to register at the Alchemists Guild. I might not have received this for several days.’
The badge was roughly the size of a gold coin, engraved with the emblem of the Alchemists Guild—an arrangement of countless squares interlocking with one another.
It shimmered with a brilliant, multicolored radiance under the light.
Supposedly, this represented the first and only Philosopher’s Stone.
Shu Yue gripped it in her hand and looked up at the waiter.
“Can a Mercury Grade Alchemist buy sub-dragon blood?”
“Sub-dragon blood?”
The waiter thought for a moment and nodded.
Once a person became a guild-certified Alchemist, the thresholds set for ordinary people vanished—especially the restrictions on purchasing materials.
Sub-dragon blood was not something a commoner could buy.
Shu Yue’s eyes lit up when she heard it was available.
“I need a lot. The more, the better!”
“Certainly, I will make the arrangements for you right away.”
Seeing Shu Yue’s excitement, the waiter hurried to lead her to a guest room to rest.
He went to inform someone else about the materials.
Shortly after Shu Yue sat down, a young and beautiful woman entered the room carrying a small wooden clipboard.
“Mr. Liya, how much sub-dragon blood do you need to purchase?”
“How much do you have?”
Shu Yue raised an eyebrow.
The woman’s expression stiffened, and she replied with a sheepish smile, “I’m sorry, I cannot answer that question…”
“Oh.”
Shu Yue pondered for a moment before suddenly saying, “Then let’s start with 100 liters!”
“Very well— *cough, cough, cough*…”
The woman had been about to agree, but the words caught in her throat as she realized what Shu Yue had just said.
100 liters?
Her expression became incredibly awkward.
If Shu Yue weren’t a distinguished guest, the woman would have thought some commoner from the streets had come in to make a fool of her.
“Mr. Liya, 100 liters is simply too much. Even all of Grey Pine City doesn’t have that much sub-dragon blood.”
She had initially thought he meant 100 milliliters.
She never expected him to say liters!
Shu Yue curled her lip, her excitement dampened.
The guild didn’t even have 100 liters of sub-dragon blood?
“Then fifty liters?”
“…”
“Forty liters?”
“…”
“Do you have twenty liters?”
“Um, Mr. Liya, our sub-dragon blood is measured in milliliters, and…”
The woman was merely an employee; she didn’t dare offend Shu Yue, who was a member of the guild.
Thus, she took the initiative to explain the hidden circumstances.
“Mr. Liya, you may not be aware, but sub-dragon blood itself is a very precious alchemy material. Although the guild maintains a certain inventory, it is primarily used as an emergency reserve. Furthermore, sub-dragon blood is a vital ingredient for Dragon Blood Medicine. Whenever we receive a shipment, it is immediately refined into medicine and supplied to the various noble families within Grey Pine City.”
“Dragon Blood Medicine?”
“Yes. Its effect is to help temper physical strength, which is of great help to warriors who follow the Combat System. This is very attractive to the nobility, so the guild always prioritizes supplying them.”
“I see…”
Shu Yue finally understood why the guild’s supply was so low.
The reason the woman hesitated to agree was that the remaining sub-dragon blood was for emergencies; a single person definitely couldn’t take too much.
In short, it was rationed.
“Fine. I won’t empty your stores, but you must give me at least half of the sub-dragon blood.”
“I need to ask for instructions.”
The woman didn’t dare make the decision herself.
After excusing herself, she immediately went to inform her superior.
***
In an office deep within the guild building, the elegant woman who had yet to introduce herself to Shu Yue was somewhat surprised to learn of the newcomer’s massive appetite.
She turned her gaze to the black-haired noble girl sitting across from her.
“Vanessa, why do you think this Liya White wants so much sub-dragon blood?”
The girl named Vanessa possessed a poised and elegant demeanor, showing a refined temperament despite her young age.
Her dark eyes reflected her thoughts for a moment before she shook her head.
“We could go ask him.”
“Go if you wish.”
The elegant woman didn’t have much interest in Shu Yue and didn’t plan to use this opportunity to meet again.
Vanessa, however, let out a shallow laugh and made a joke.
“Perhaps he’s refining an aphrodisiac?”
Besides making Dragon Blood Medicine, sub-dragon blood had another widespread use: enhancing male potency.
As she spoke, Vanessa turned her gaze toward the chestnut-haired girl sitting beside her who had remained silent.
“Emily, what do you think?”
“Hmph!”
Emily curled her lip, completely unwilling to acknowledge her best friend.
Vanessa covered her mouth as she laughed.
“Since you don’t want to see him, Emily, I’ll go see what kind of person your fiancé is. After all, he even resisted Lady Sharon’s Drunken Soul Desire Fragrance.”
“Go if you want! I don’t like him anyway, and I will absolutely never marry him!”
The more Emily thought about it, the angrier she became.
She didn’t know what had gotten into her father.
He used to dote on her so much, yet this time he completely ignored her feelings, marrying her off to a man she had never met or even heard of.
It was simply too much!
Vanessa smiled at her best friend’s huffing and puffing.
She stood up, bowed to Sharon, and followed the messenger woman out.
Two or three seconds later, Emily also stood up from the sofa.
Her pretty face carried a heavy cloud of resentment as she walked out.
Sharon said nothing.
She was wondering why a man could resist her fragrance.
She could clearly sense that Shu Yue’s strength was only at the Tier 1 level.
It should have been impossible to guard against a potion dispersed in the air.
At first, the Drunken Soul Desire Fragrance would only increase a person’s favorable impression, but as they inhaled more, the desires in their heart would become increasingly obvious.
Eventually, their mind would be completely hooked by the source of the scent, turning them into a puppet controlled by lust.
Of course, she hadn’t used much on Shu Yue—only enough to make a man hard enough that he would need an outlet to soften again—yet Shu Yue hadn’t shown even the slightest reaction.
“Truly strange…”
While Sharon was sighing, Vanessa had already reached Shu Yue’s door.
The maid opened it for her.
Inside the lounge, Shu Yue looked over, her heart filled with doubt and surprise.
‘Who is she?’