A hundred gold coins. You really won't pay that?
Zora clenched her teeth, forcing down the urge to flee before she strangled this man with her bare hands. "This shameless prick..."
Kael Moonstone nodded with a shy, almost maiden-like softness. "I hate this," he murmured dramatically. "We've already shared life and death. I'm basically your person now. Talking about money at a time like this… doesn't it hurt our feelings?"
Zora stared at him.
She was absolutely speechless.
This… this prince...
this gorgeous, elegant, noble-looking prince...
He was the most shameless man she had ever met.
All this for one hundred gold coins?
He was willing to flirt, act pitiful, pretend to be in love, and even roll on the ground for money?
"I've been deceived, I fell for that face..."
"I'm so unlucky…" she hissed under her breath. "Cheated by looks again"
Before she lost control and shoved him off the building herself, she scooped up Black and White and marched straight out of the crowd. She absolutely refused to talk to this man anymore.
"Girl," Kael Moonstone called from behind. "Since I'm already your person, at least tell me your address."
Her walking pace instantly doubled.
This man was dangerous.
Not because of his strength, but because his shame level was below zero.
"Shameless. He's the most shameless man I've ever met," she muttered again, stomping down the street. Her cheeks puffed slightly in anger. "I usually take advantage of others. Today, I was taken advantage of by a crippled prince. How humiliating..."
Black chimed in, "And he used us as cushions. We didn't even get food in return. Master, he's even more shameless than you."
White gasped. "Yes, our cushion fee... He didn't even give us a snack. Unacceptable."
Zora winced at their comment. Their tiny accusing voices felt like needles poking her conscience.
"That's not my fault," she defended weakly. "I was trying to earn one hundred gold coins to treat you both. He's the stingy one, not me."
"Hmph, I don't believe it," Black pouted.
"Me neither," White agreed.
Seeing their suspicious eyes, she sighed and bought two steaming buns from a street stall. She handed one to each of them.
Instantly, the grape-sized eyes turned into star-filled, sparkling jewels.
Tiny little hands popped out of their fluffy bodies, grabbing the buns as if they were treasures fallen from heaven.
Zora couldn't help but smile, watching that.
These two were way too easy to bribe.
They hid in an alley while the furballs devoured their food. Once their stomachs were round and satisfied, she continued down the bustling street.
"Master," Black suddenly said in a serious voice, "that shameless man from earlier… he's not simple."
Zora arched a brow. "Oh? How so?"
"His spiritual strength is very strong," White explained. "If we guessed right, his rank is also extremely high. But… something is suppressing it."
"Suppressing?" Zora's steps slowed.
No wonder he fell from the third floor without the slightest panic.
He wasn't scared at all.
He simply knew it wouldn't injure him.
"So his core is sealed?" she murmured thoughtfully. "From the moment he appeared, he's been full of mysteries. Disabled legs, sudden elevation to prince, and suppressed strength… He must have many secrets."
"How strong was he originally?" she asked.
"Sky stage," the two furballs answered in unison.
Their firm tone made her eyebrows lift.
Three years older than her at most, yet his strength was in Sky stage?
This Kael was clearly no ordinary crippled prince.
"But seriously," she muttered, "why did that guy have to harass me?"
She pushed open the doors of Apollo Apothecary, the largest medicinal shop in the imperial city.
The moment she stepped inside, a wave of warm herbal fragrance washed over her. She inhaled deeply and started to sniff, distinguishing the scents she could smell.
"Mana Gathering Grass… Red Peach Fruit… Blood Coagulation Herb…"
Her eyes flashed with recognition, scanning the rows of drawers and shelves filled with rare medicinal ingredients. Despite her rough past, her knowledge of herbs was still sharp.
She stepped further inside, already planning her purchases for the next stage of rank.
Behind the counter, Eric Welsh, the treasurer of Apothecary, was seen carefully sorting herbs. When he saw her pause with her eyes closed, effortlessly murmuring each medicinal scent one by one, he froze mid-motion.
Taking a breath, he spoke aloud, "The young miss is remarkable," He praised in amazement. "Just from scent alone, you identified every herb correctly."
He had spent decades working in a medicinal shop before he sharpened that ability. Yet this girl, barely 15 or 16, did it as easily as breathing.
Zora simply smiled. "The treasurer flatters me."
"But how does a young girl know so much about medicinal herbs?" Eric leaned forward, curiosity sparkling in his eyes. His passion for pharmacology radiated from him in waves.
Seeing his excitement, she easily guessed the type of old scholar obsessed with herbs. His question wasn't an interrogation, but was just pure, innocent curiosity.
"I studied pharmacology from a young age," she said calmly, "It's something I've always liked."
"So you're a physician?" he asked eagerly.
She nodded lightly, confirming it.
In her previous life, her elders had been famed medical masters. She followed them everywhere, learning formulas, identifying herbs, studying illnesses, and eventually, she surpassed them. She had been called a prodigy doctor before she even reached adulthood.
Confidence in medicine had always been the one thing she never lacked.
Eric Welsh stared at her with admiration. "Such talent at such a young age… your future will be extraordinary."
"What herbs do you need, young miss?" he asked warmly. "Our Apothecary carries everything, from common to rare. Just name it."
She strolled along the counter, glancing at labels, comparing names and prices. Yet her eyebrows slowly climbed.
"These prices…" she murmured.
Why were some of the cheapest herbs suddenly ten times more expensive? And herbs that should've been extremely valuable were practically being given away? Something felt wrong.
Is this because of the thousand-year gap? she wondered.
Blood Coagulation herb and Sage Grass were once cheap and common, but are now absurdly expensive. Yet some rare herbs were cheaper than vegetables.
Her eyes paused sharply on a small, glowing stalk of grass. A soft white light pulsed from its green leaves.
It's the Star Sage Grass, a top variant of Sage Grass.
Her breath caught at its sight. But she took a breath to calm herself and asked. "Treasurer… this Star Sage Grass is only one silver coin?"
Eric Welsh nodded. "Yes. Star Sage Grass has no real use anymore. It's just rare, nothing more. If you want it, I can even give it to you."
Give it? GIVE it?
Zora nearly fainted from joy.
In her time, Star Sage Grass was a treasure needed for countless high-ranking pills. Pharmacists fought for it. It would've been auctioned at sky-high prices.
Yet here, after a millennium, it became useless garbage?
These people… they truly know nothing.
"I'll buy it," she said quickly. "And also show me Blood Coagulation Herb, Immortal Peach Fruit…"
"Right away," Eric Welsh replied happily, gathering her herbs and fruits.
When she finally stepped out of Apothecary, she still felt like she was floating. She had actually bought Star Sage Grass… for a silver coin.
"Since I crossed over, this world keeps surprising me," she murmured, unable to suppress her grin. "What a heaven-sent fortune."
From her conversation with Eric Welsh, she learned something crucial. All old pill and potion recipes had been lost.
Refining pharmacists were rare and revered.
Precious herbs like Star Sage Grass had lost their purpose entirely.
And she, who remembered every ancient pill recipe, was the only one who knew their true worth.
No one would fight her for the herbs she needed.
No one would suspect her.
She could gather treasures while everyone else ignored them.
It was like the heavens had dropped a pie directly on her head.
"A pie is good," she sighed, "but I still need money to eat it."
Her excitement dimmed slightly when she checked her purse.
She wanted to refine her mana core to speed up her rank. She had bought the herbs already, but the Bone Flower was expensive, and she still needed to buy a furnace.
And her savings?
Only meagre five gold coins.
A pitiful, miserable number.
She had been locked away for years, given barely enough to survive. No rewards ever reached her hands. Everything she owned was the result of her own frugal savings. She was supposed to be the daughter of a General, the heir of House Phoenix, and yet, look at at situation… Abandoned by everyone… left with nothing but 5 mere gold coins to survive...
"The poor really can't afford to breathe…" she groaned, rubbing her forehead.