Absolute Beast Dominion - Chapter 323: Commoner’s Plight

Chapter 323: Commoner’s Plight

Leo thought for a while.

“Alright, I will buy two at the cost you suggested. 4,000 AC by cutting the 50% tax and the cost of raw materials,” he said.

“The rest you can sell to others. I guess Brok would be ready to buy, as he is a Peak 2-star individual, and these potions will be of great help. As for the other 3 girls, they are high 2-star individuals… it might actually be harmful for them. You will be permitted to set up a stall in the academy building in the territory’s name once you have stockpiled enough.”

“Is that alright?” He tried easing her mind with his next words.

“Don’t worry, the cost of the stall will be covered by the tax that you will be paying me.”

Hearing Leo’s words, Veronica’s expression brightened. Being a girl, she looked very good with that happy expression on her face.

“Thank you, my lord! I will do my best to contribute to the territory!” she declared.

Then Leo recalled her previous words.

“What help were you planning to take from the territory exactly?” he asked, as Veronica seemed to be needing some materials.

“Lord, Miss Miho said that the territory has magic fruits that require your authorisation to buy and consume. I would like to buy those fruits to create enhancement potions, especially the white-tier Bloodwarm Cherry and mid-green-tier Swiftroot Apple. Both can be used to make recovery potions and speed-enhancing potions, respectively. And since they are enhancement potions, they can be sold for higher prices than the standard cost of their respective tier.”

Seeing no response from Leo, she insisted further.

“I will pay the full market price of the fruits!”

“Ah, no, it’s not that. But I am curious as to how many potions can be created from one fruit…” He took out one of each fruit.

The Swiftroot Apple was a small, fist-sized fruit, apple-green in colour with thin skin threaded with root-like veins.

The Bloodwarm Cherry was a tiny berry-like fruit, deep crimson in colour.

Veronica took both fruits ceremoniously and examined them with careful eyes.

“Lord, if I make a potion by extracting its essence, 1 Swiftroot Apple could be made into 1 Mid-green tier speed boosting potion that enhances the agility of a mid 2-star individual by 100% for an hour. Its cost would be around 3,000 AC. As for the Bloodwarm Cherry… 2 cherries for a white-tier potion that will increase body recovery by 100% for a 1-star individual for 1 hour. The cost of such a potion would be 1,000 AC.”

Leo recalled the prices that were listed in the Aurelius Hall.

Stoneleaf Plum [White] – 10,000 AC / 100

Bloodwarm Cherry [White] – 15,000 AC / 100

Swiftroot Apple [Mid Green] – 30,000 AC / 100

For a Swiftroot Apple, 1 cost around 300 AC, but the return from the potion was 3,000 AC—a ten times profit.

As for the Bloodwarm Cherry, 2 cherries would be 300 AC, but the return was 1,000 AC, a 700 AC profit… but wait.

“What extra things will be required other than the fruits?” Leo asked.

“Glass vials—1 costs 5 AC. Since I can’t use magic, I need fuel; for one potion… I think 1 AC worth of fuel will be utilised. Then come the reagents and catalysts, which are expensive. For the agility potion, 500 AC worth of agent and catalyst will be used in a single potion, and for Bloodwarm Cherry, 100 AC worth of agent and catalyst.”

“It still brings profit to a great margin,” Leo concluded, to which Veronica nodded.

So in total 1212 AC of investment, and we get a return of 4,000 AC. A profit of 2,788 AC, of which I get 50%… very profitable.

But then another question arose in Leo’s mind.

“Who will buy the white-tier potion? I think most of the first years are already in the 2-star realm.”

“Lord, if students won’t buy our products, we can sell them to the academy, albeit at a 10% lower price. After that, the academy supplies the potion throughout the empire. So, there is no worry of me working hard uselessly. I just need to produce legitimate potions.”

Leo nodded.

“But I guess you need time for trial and error to perfect the recipe, isn’t it?” Leo asked.

Veronica nodded.

“Yes, Lord…” she said with a downcast gaze. An alchemist needs hundreds of trials and errors to perfect themselves in the creation of the product they are trying to make repeatedly. And due to this, Leo needs to be ready to waste a lot of resources on her.

“Veronica,” Leo called, and both siblings became attentive. Leo’s tone this time was different.

“I am ready to support you, but what guarantee can you give me that you won’t run away after perfecting your skills and using my resources?”

Veronica clenched her fists. This was the most challenging part of the life of a commoner with life-talent. A life-talent requires heavy resource investment in order for them to stand on their feet. But commoners like Veronica cannot afford that investment. It was apparent from Virat’s sullen body and weary face, which screamed of the hardships he had endured for them to be able to get admitted to Aurelius Beast Academy.

But joining the academy was just the first step; what came next was deciding on a person as their backer. One could be lucky if a teaching staff took them under their wing, but that privilege was only available to nobles and exceptionally talented individuals.

Once again, even if you were exceptionally talented as a commoner, that talent was not visible until you got a chance to showcase it. But even for showcasing it, you needed prior experience—which a talented commoner would always lack and be outshone by a comparatively less talented noble who had more experience.

At this stage, resourceless people like Veronica could only bet their chances on people like Shub and Leo.

Shub, in the sense that he had offered her to join his territory, flourish there, and get support—but the hidden malicious intent was visible. He wouldn’t allow her to take away resources to train herself, stand on her feet, and at the end of the day, simply leave. People like Shub would always want something back; in this case, it was her body and freedom.

Next were people like Leo, who recognised her talent and were ready to support her with no malicious intent—but under one condition: she would need to be under him with a loyalty clause or a contract that binds her for a certain period of time, and Veronica knew it wasn’t going to be less. Especially when Leo will literally make her climb to a place she is capable of.

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A/N: FUCK! I SLEPT!!!