"Captain, are you here with your superior to attend the banquet?"
"Yes, but we are not simply here for pleasure."
The Captain glanced towards Carter Brigadier General and the Mayor:
"The Natural Church wants to hold a blessing ceremony on Sicar Mountain soon, so they hope the Royal Army troops stationed there can seal off the mountain at an appropriate time to prevent others from accidentally entering. This matter has already received the Kingdom's permission. Carter Brigadier General is discussing the details with the local administrative officials. If there aren't enough people then, the police will participate."
"Seal off Sicar Mountain? Isn't it autumn hunting season now? Sealing off the mountain now is really strange."
Xia De said, but he knew without guessing that this was related to the large-scale ritual the Five Gods Church was preparing:
"Then you must be very busy."
"It's nothing, we are soldiers, we just obey our superiors' arrangements. But, look at this."
As he spoke, Captain Rades mysteriously pulled a rhode cards from his pocket. When Xia De took it, he found that it was actually the special rule card 【Legend of the Brave: Swordsman Sebalon】.
"Oh, isn't this Carter Brigadier General's card?"
Xia De asked with some surprise.
"The day you visited me at the traveler's camp, I gambled with a colleague on marksmanship and hit all eight shots. I was really lucky."
Captain Rades smiled:
"Because of the murder case solved here a few weeks ago, the Brigadier General already admired me. That day, after seeing my marksmanship and learning that I was also a rhode cards player, he gave me this card."
"Eight shots, all hits? Captain, from now on, when people mention 'Eight-Gun Captain,' it won't be a sarcasm. You have a bright future."
Xia De also smiled and returned the card to the Captain:
"Want to play rhode cards together later?"
"Okay, but it has to be after nine o'clock, I still have things to do. However, playing cards is fine, but I won't gamble with you."
The Captain said with a smile:
"You are the champion of Big City Player 1853, I don't have the confidence to win against you."
Bidding farewell to the Captain by the crackling bonfire, Xia De was genuinely happy for his friend's situation. Compared to the other friends he, an Outsider, had met in this world over the past half-year, Captain Rades's journey from financial hardship to getting his life back on track was entirely witnessed by Xia De.
Even in such a dangerous and strange world, if a normal person maintains their passion for life, then with a little bit of luck, they can also embark on an upward path in life. For an Outsider who had seen all sorts of terrifying things here, this was also a small comfort.
He sighed with a smile, planning to go find a place to play rhode cards. But at this moment, a young man holding a wine glass approached him. This was not anyone Xia De knew.
"Hello, sir, interested in making a friend?"
The other person was also wearing a black formal suit, and his brown short hair was meticulously groomed. He held a red wine glass and asked Xia De with a smile. Xia De was stunned, his gaze moved away from the somewhat cute little bat pattern on the other person's head, and then he shook his head abruptly:
"Sorry, I'm not interested in loan sharks."
"No, no, I'm not a loan shark broker."
Xia De looked him over again and raised an eyebrow:
"Sorry, I'm only interested in young ladies."
"Don't worry, so am I."
The young Vampire replied with a smile, then lowered his voice:
"Someone as handsome as you, I've never seen in this City before. Are you an Outsider?"
"Yes, I came from a very distant place. A friend invited me to this banquet."
"Then, are you interested in trying some... fresh things?"
He lowered his voice, looked left and right, and with his left hand, which wasn't holding the wine glass, took out a rather exquisite small metal box from his pocket. The lid of the box had a bat pattern.
His finger pressed the button on the lid, and with a click, the lid opened, revealing three glass containers, only half the size of a pinky finger, embedded within, containing dark red liquid:
"Sir, this will be very interesting."
"What is this?"
Xia De took the box the other person handed him, but after touching the three test tubes, he didn't feel any elements.
"blood brew."
Upon hearing the answer, Xia De almost threw the item in his hand away like a steam bomb:
"Sorry, what?"
The young man was not surprised by his astonished expression:
"Wine containing blood ingredients. You're an Outsider, so you probably don't know, but this is quite popular here. Want to try it?"
He coaxed, and Xia De looked at the other person with even greater surprise:
"Whose blood is this?"
"Human blood."
The young man's lips curved into a smile:
"But don't worry, it's all human blood obtained through legal channels. After all, who would commit a crime for something that can be solved with money?"
"This..."
Xia De had heard that some people would sell illegal drugs during banquets, and even in Tobesk, the Northern Pearl, such things happened. But he didn't expect the local "illegal drugs" to be so potent.
"Besides human blood, we also added some hallucinogenic ingredients to the blood brew. It will be very interesting to drink."
The young man continued to coax:
"Of course, if you drink it while intimate with a female companion in bed, the effect will be even better. How about it, this tube is on me. If you're interested, I have more stock here."
Xia De had completely confirmed that this strange Vampire was a drug dealer in the traditional sense. He must have approached him because he was an Outsider with an unfamiliar face.
"This... Sorry, I'm not interested in human blood. If it were animal blood, I might consider it."
Xia De returned the golden box in his hand to the other person.
"No problem, no problem, I also have animal blood brew."
As if he had already guessed what Xia De was thinking, the young man took out another box from his pocket, identified the label, and handed it to Xia De.
The golden box still contained three identical test tubes, and there was still no trace of any elements:
"This is crow blood brew. Please rest assured, we have disinfected the blood during processing. This batch of goods has a very good effect. For a handsome young gentleman like you, when facing an enthusiastic female companion, this will make life more... sweet."
Xia De hesitated for a moment:
"It's not easy to come to a new City, trying something new isn't bad. I'll take all of these, but if it's just ordinary alcohol, I won't let you off."
The young Vampire said with a smile:
"Don't worry, I'm a businessman, I won't do anything to ruin my reputation, and you can ask around, Baron Brad and many gentlemen from City Hall use our goods. Especially older gentlemen, they always feel powerless when exercising. The first tube is on me, the other two tubes are 8 shillings and 5 pence each."
This wasn't particularly expensive, so Xia De paid the money. The young man then gave Xia De a business card and told him that if he needed more, he could order them there.
"Is this a means of livelihood for the impoverished Vampires here, or is it part of some cursed ritual?"
After the other person left, Xia De held the golden box and wondered. But he leaned more towards the first point of view. From the other person's tone and skilled sales tactics, he must have been doing this business for a long time.
"I'll ask Grandma Cassandra later."
He put the small golden box into his pocket, sighing at the corruption of the local nobility.
In fact, nobles everywhere were corrupt. Every Saturday, when he listened to Leia's lessons, he also learned about the secret affairs of the nobles. If she hadn't grown up in such an environment, Leia probably wouldn't have accepted Xia De's "all or nothing" behavior so easily.
Thinking of this, he looked at the moon in the starry sky with a hint of melancholy. Above the bonfire-filled grounds, the moon was still so bright.
"Look, who is this? Watson, you really did come."
While he was lost in thought, a voice came from behind him again. Xia De immediately turned around. This time, it was Priest Augustus. The Old Priest was still wearing his Priest's robe, his face flushed in the firelight, and he seemed to be in a very good mood:
"Since you came to the banquet, why are you here alone looking at the moon? I think the young ladies of Mi Fort should appreciate your looks."
Priest Augustus held a wine glass and casually clinked it with Xia De's. He knew that the drink in Xia De's cup, which looked like wine, was most likely just fruit juice.
"I wouldn't approach strange girls in a foreign City."
"Worried about Annette or Louisa getting angry?"
The Old Priest indeed understood everything. Xia De gave an awkward smile:
"I was thinking about some troublesome things, Priest Augustus, do you know about the local blood brew?"
"I know."
The Priest nodded without hesitation:
"There's a group of impoverished Vampires in Mi Fort, who moved here a long time ago. They run red wine wineries, but some of them also make a living by selling blood brew. They sell cheap or expensive blood brew to the poor and to the upper-class nobility."
At this point, the Priest made no attempt to hide the look of disgust on his face:
"They call it blood brew, but it's actually just illegal drugs mixed with blood. The Church knew about this before, but since it doesn't involve the extraordinary, they can only participate when the police arrest them. The Kingdom is very wary of the Church interfering in ordinary criminal cases. But if there's no blood brew, there'll be fruit wine, and if there's no fruit wine, there'll be other ways. You can't completely catch everyone who sells illegal drugs."
This also reminded Xia De of Mr. Bernhardt's evaluation of the local Vampires, which was "they have forgotten what decency is."
"The local Vampires are just a bunch of drug dealers?"
Xia De found this amusing.
"Yes, they are not members of the same clan. It is said that they are the losers of internal racial struggles. Actually, I hope they cause trouble, so the Church will have ample reason to intervene directly and round them all up."
Priest Augustus sighed, and Xia De became even more curious about what the Bernhardt uncle and nephew were doing here. This group of impoverished Vampires now possessed three sage-level relics.
He handed one of the small test tubes to the Priest, asking the Priest, who was proficient in potions, to analyze if there were any problems. The Priest naturally agreed and then changed the subject:
"Alright, let's not talk about such annoying things. Watson, why are you here? Didn't you not want to come?"
"I'm going to see a friend later."
"You have so many friends. If you have time, you can go to Auction Hall No. 3 and take a look. I heard there are good things inside, but I'm not sure if the information is accurate."
"Understood, I'll go take a look later. Oh, speaking of which, are there any special rhode cards in this auction?"
Xia De asked casually.
"Of course there are."
Priest Augustus replied, then raised an eyebrow:
"I know you're the champion of Great City Player, but you can't be too addicted to this game. In my opinion, the harm of rhode cards is only slightly lower than illegal drugs."
Priest Augustus believed in the inherent evil of human nature, and therefore always disliked rhode cards. This was also why the others in his group repeatedly warned Xia De not to tell the Priest about their gambling during the Great City Player period.
