Chapter 116: I’ve Found You

My eyes were watering from coughing.

One hand gripped the edge of the table while the other covered my mouth, and I kept reading the words on the wall.

Orochimaru.

One hundred million Veyra.

I blinked. The number didn’t change.

Rose got up from her chair and came over. She placed a hand on my back and patted it gently a few times.

"What happened?"

"N-nothing!"

I coughed again as I tried to answer. Rose moved my glass of water in front of me and looked at my face.

"Are you sure? You’re acting a little strange."

"What? Who, me?" I grabbed the glass. "No. I’m super normal right now."

Rose studied me silently for a few seconds.

I knew that wasn’t the kind of answer a normal person would give. But with dozens of questions running through my head at once, I hadn’t managed to come up with anything better.

"Okay," she said at last.

Once she sat back down, I slowly drank some water. Over the rim of the glass, I looked at the notice on the wall again.

Why was Orochimaru wanted in the underground city?

This was my first time here. I didn’t owe any shops money, hadn’t stolen anyone’s belongings, and the worst thing that had happened to me so far was getting thrown out of a witch’s shop.

So what had led to that notice?

And what was with that fucking price?

They’d set the reward as though I’d destroyed a city or devoted my life to committing countless evil deeds.

My gaze drifted toward the other tables.

People eating, two men arguing at the next table, an employee carrying an order...

A moment ago, I hadn’t cared about any of them. Now I was waiting for one of them to turn and stare at my face for a little too long.

I tugged my sleeve down to cover the black band around my wrist.

Whatever happened, I had to make sure I didn’t use Umbrella here.

I set the glass on the table and turned to Rose.

"Can we go buy the potions now?"

Rose lowered her fork.

"Already?"

"Yeah. Did you have something else planned?"

"Well..." Her gaze briefly drifted toward the window. "Maybe we could’ve gone to the arena and watched a few fights. Or walked around a little more."

The arena?

Right now, even the thought of sitting in a corner and watching other people beat each other up sounded exhausting. Besides, I didn’t want to linger somewhere my name was on a hundred-million-Veyra wanted poster.

"I think this is enough for my first visit," I said. "We can come back another time. Maybe I’ll have a little more money by then."

The slight disappointment on Rose’s face gave way to a smile.

"Okay. That’s a promise."

I was about to nod when she continued.

"But our next date doesn’t have to be somewhere like this. I’d rather you took me somewhere more romantic."

My hand stopped on the glass.

I stared at her for a few seconds.

"A date?"

"What?" She tilted her head innocently. "A girl and a guy go out together, shop, and have a meal. Isn’t that a date?"

I could have argued with every part of that.

But I was sure she’d only enjoy it more if I did.

With a sigh, I pushed my chair back.

"Is teasing me really that much fun?"

Rose looked at me without answering.

As I walked toward the counter to pay, I heard her mutter something behind me. I was trying to work out what she’d said when the man behind the counter spoke to me.

By the time I paid and turned around, Rose was on her feet, waiting.

"Come on," she said. "I know somewhere we can buy potions."

---

The shop Rose took me to was much smaller than the weapon shop.

There were no elaborate decorations or objects moving on their own in the window. Bottles of different sizes lined narrow shelves, with small labels beneath them. A sharp smell that reminded me of dried herbs filled the shop.

After hearing what Rose wanted, the shopkeeper behind the counter began asking questions.

Rose pointed to a few bottles. The man placed some in front of us and returned one to the shelf. I listened to their conversation while checking the price tags.

Eventually, we settled on a low-grade enhancement potion.

The pale amber liquid in the small glass bottle shone like gold when held up to the light. I couldn’t see any sediment or anything else inside.

From its appearance alone, I wouldn’t have been able to tell it apart from an ordinary drink.

The price made the difference clear enough.

Two hundred and fifty thousand Veyra.

A quarter of the competition’s prize money was going into a bottle that fit in my palm.

Rose looked at me.

"Is this the one you’re getting?"

I nodded.

This was why I’d come here. If I backed out because of the price, we would have spent the whole evening here for nothing.

After I paid, the shopkeeper placed the bottle in front of me.

I picked it up and checked the cap. It was tightly sealed.

At last, I’d found what I needed.

As we left the shop, I felt some of the tension leave my shoulders. At least I’d managed to do something about Marven instead of just thinking about him.

With Rose walking beside me, I raised the bottle to eye level.

The liquid flowed from one side of the glass to the other as I moved it. I wondered how much difference something this small would make to my body.

Its color was different from the potion Cecilia had given me too. Would its effects be different as well?

"Are you going to keep staring at it until we get home?" Rose asked.

"When I’ve paid this much for something, I have the right to admire it a little."

Rose laughed.

We continued back the way we’d come. When the road narrowed, Rose moved a few steps ahead. I was still turning the bottle between my fingers, watching the amber liquid change shades in the light.

Just then, someone bumped into my shoulder.

I stepped to the side to regain my balance.

The bottle slipped in my palm.

I closed my fingers around it, trying to catch it, but its glass neck slid through them.

I heard the tinkle of breaking glass.

When I looked down, the potion was spreading across the dirty ground at the edge of the road.

A few shards of glass remained on the stones. The broken neck, still capped, lay right beside my foot.

For a while, I just stared.

As the amber liquid soaked into the dirt, my hand remained in the air as though I were still holding the bottle.

"...Seriously?"

Then I looked at the man on the ground.

A long white beard spilled out from beneath the worn fabric covering his head. His old clothes were worn at the elbows, and dust clung to his knees. The cheek I could make out beneath the shadow of his hood was lined with deep wrinkles.

The old man had fallen onto his side and lay at the edge of the road.

I looked at the shattered potion bottle again.

Then at him.

I didn’t know whether to feel upset, get angry, or believe this was all some bad joke.

Two hundred and fifty thousand Veyra...

I’d paid for it only a few minutes ago.

Now there was no way to separate it from the dirt.

I gritted my teeth.

I’d seen him veer toward me at the last moment. There had been enough space for him to walk past, yet he’d bumped straight into my shoulder.

He’d done it on purpose.

Great. A scammer was just what I needed.

He’d probably start groaning any second and ask for money for his broken bones or a leg he could no longer walk on.

Meanwhile, my money was already soaking into the dirt at his feet.

I spread my arms and looked at his face.

"Oii. How much longer are you going to lie there?"

He didn’t answer.

He didn’t even move his head.

The tension between my brows eased a little.

"Oi?"

The old man’s beard lay across his chest. I couldn’t make out his whole face beneath the fabric, or tell whether he was breathing.

I waited a few more seconds.

An unpleasant unease crept into my anger.

Don’t tell me...

No.

We’d only bumped into each other. I’d barely even moved.

There was no way I’d killed someone just by bumping into them.

"Hey, old man."

My voice came out quieter this time.

He still didn’t move.

I swallowed and crouched beside him. Taking care to avoid the broken glass, I reached toward his shoulder.

"Noctis..."

Rose’s voice stopped my hand.

I turned.

She stood a few steps away. Her gaze shifted from my face to my outstretched hand. Her brows were furrowed, and the concern in her voice made me even more uneasy.

"Who are you talking to?"

For a few seconds, I couldn’t understand the question.

"What do you mean, who am I talking to?"

I pointed at the man on the ground.

"This old scammer."

Rose looked where I was looking.

Then turned back to me.

"But there’s no one there."

My hand remained frozen in the air.

I could hear the murmur of the crowd. Someone in a nearby shop was calling out to a customer, and farther down the street, metal clanged against metal.

There was no smile on Rose’s face.

Even so, my first thought was that she was joking.

What else could it be?

The man had bumped into my shoulder. I’d felt the impact. My bottle had slipped from my hand and shattered right before my eyes.

You can’t be making a joke like this, Rose.

I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Slowly, I turned toward the man on the ground.

He had raised himself slightly.

Propped up on one elbow, he had turned his head toward me. His hood had slipped back a little, bringing his face out of the shadows.

His eyes were pure white.

There were no pupils, nothing to show me where he was looking.

Even so, I was certain he could see me.

The old man’s cracked lips parted.

"I’ve found you..."

"Chosen One."