Kayla felt a bead of cold sweat trickle down her forehead. The man before her was terrifying.
He hadn't raised his voice. He hadn't moved a single muscle. He was just staring at her with a displeased expression.
His eyes, which she had expected to be nervous or greedy, were just.cold. And his lips were twitching in what seemed to be clear anger.
How long had it been since a stranger gave her this feeling? She was from the Hero Guild. Her position in the Financial Department was only below one person and above everyone else.
Wherever she went, there was not a single person who didn't fawn over her. They all wanted to get in her good books. Even the leaders of various industries respected her.
The scientists of the Union, and even the elixir industry leaders had to bow their head when greeting her. And this person...
Despite his sharp reaction, she still couldn't get herself to feel displeased. She still hadn't forgotten Blaze's words before she left.
"No matter what, get a contract with him. I want him to keep supplying his elixirs to us! If you mess this up, don't think about returning!"
The words kept echoing in her mind. Who was Blaze? The strongest Hero, and Earth's representative in the Galactic Council.
The Guild needed Blaze more than Blaze needed the guild. If he wanted, he could easily take over the guild and no one could stop him.
The only reason he wasn't the Guild Leader was because he considered it a hassle. He wasn't even on earth for most of the year.
When a person like that asked something to be done, she would have to be a fool to mess that up.
She had dealt with S-Rank Heroes, representatives from other worlds, and the stingiest corporate overlords in the galaxy, but this seemingly ordinary man in a faded t-shirt was making her feel nervous.
She couldn't help but wonder. 'What did we do wrong? Was it the knock? Were we too loud? No... it must be the money. Of course, it was the money!'
A genius alchemist who is capable of curing Mana Overload, living in a place like this? There was no way a man as talented as him would have been poor enough to not even afford a good place to live.
He lived here because he wanted to, not because he couldn't afford a better place. And they had just insulted him with a measly fifty thousand credit payment for his precious elixirs.
To him, it must have looked like they considered his elixirs worth only this much. She couldn't believe that they had made such a rookie mistake.
"Mr. Leo... No, Sir," Kayla said before quickly correcting the way she addressed him. Even though Leo was younger than her, she addressed him like a senior.
"Please forgive us! It wasn't our intention! We will quickly correct the mistake."
Leo's cold expression didn't change, but his eye-twitch just got a little faster.
'Apologies?' he thought, even more confused. 'Are they apologizing before they vaporize me? Is this how the Guild handles supposed scammers? A polite apology and then zapping them?'
"The credits we transferred you were a mistake," Kayla continued, bowing her head slightly. Her gesture made all twenty guards flinch.
'Of course it was a mistake. But it seems they are not blaming me. Did I misunderstand them? Just what is going on here?'
"Please give me a minute! I'll make sure it's handled!" She turned around and walked back, but the guards and the bulky man stayed behind.
This time, the Guards showed Leo even more respect. This was the first time they had seen Kayla bow before a person who wasn't a top ranked hero after all.
At the end of the long hallway, Leo could see Kayla pacing back and forth as she talked to someone over a call.
The situation was so confusing that Leo's expression, if it was even possible, grew even more blank. He was completely lost.
The girl ended the call and slowly walked back.
She had only taken a few steps back when Leo heard a light chime coming from his communication device.
"What is this now?" Leo brought out the glass slab from his pocket and checked the notification.
He immediately froze in place, and the slab fell off his hand. It fell on the ground, showing a notification that had taken only half the screen.
[Galactic Bank: Official Credit Transfer]
[You have received a payment of 100 million Credits]
[From: Hero's Guild (Emergency Procurement Division)]
"Yeah, it is a nightmare. It's definitely a nightmare!" Leo mumbled, refusing to believe his eyes.
The heck was going on? First they sent fifty thousand to him, and then they sent him a whopping hundred million?
Did they think his plans already weren't ruined enough that they had to send more money that could be considered profit by the system?
He couldn't see the kind of face he was making. But at the moment, it had a lot of emotions flickering. Shock, confusion, disbelief but mostly anger.
As if mocking him, the system also gave an announcement at the exact moment.
[System processing... Investment detected: 'Leo's Miraculous Elixir']
[Return on Investment: +100 million Credits]
For most, it would've been a rewarding notification. But for Leo, it was no different than a middle finger being shown to his face.
"Mr. Leo, the first transfer was a mistake. I have corrected it." The woman returned, with a triumphant smile on her face. She looked genuinely relieved as if she had corrected her mistake.
"I know that your elixirs are much more valuable than a mere hundred million credits. However, our financial situation isn't as good as people think. So we can only pay a hundred times the market price for the most expensive elixirs."
This was the first time that elixirs that could heal mana overload were introduced in the world. There was no understanding of the exact value of these elixirs since they hadn't been sold in the market before.
Still, the woman paid Leo a hundred times the price of the most expensive elixirs ever sold. Calculating all that, it came out as a little under hundred million, but she added a little on top.
"In the future, I'm sure the price will rise even more. So you don't have to worry!"