Chapter 69: Encounter
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 69: Encounter
When it came to a man named Ganesha Aldebaran, it was impossible to think his Skills were anything less than extraordinary.
An invisible kingpin of the continental underworld, a tycoon, a merchant prince.
…That was the information available on the ‘surface.’
The ‘deeper’ truth Aiden knew was that Ganesha was so dangerous that all those titles were merely a ‘cover.’
So, while it was a good thing that such a man already held an interest in him and had high Affinity…
…The problem is, there’s nothing I can do about it right now.
He couldn’t just go looking for the man; he had to wait for Ganesha to make the first move. According to the Quest Window, there was no hostile intent, so there was no need to prepare for a confrontation either.
If he could meet him face-to-face, Aiden had ways to drastically boost his Affinity, but he couldn’t be the one to initiate contact.
Therefore, all he could do for now was focus on the tasks at hand.
The man was supposed to come to him eventually, right? And since he had no idea how Ganesha would approach, any preparation was pointless. In that case, he was better off using his time more efficiently.
Training was the only answer. He might get sliced to ribbons by Mayer every night, but putting those lessons into practice with his own body was another matter entirely.
So.
Getting his body beaten to a pulp while sparring with River since morning wasn’t something to be ashamed of.
“…Are you all right?”
“…”
The fact that Noel was holding back a laugh as she asked didn’t particularly embarrass him.
At least, that’s what he told himself. Besides, it would be heartless to scold the very person who had practically carried him to the pharmacy for wanting to laugh.
“…I’m fine.”
With that, he slowly opened the pharmacy door.
“Excuse me—”
“Get out of here right now!”
“…”
The timing was so perfect it was easy to mistake the insult as being aimed at him, but Aiden quickly realized the words weren’t meant for him.
The scene unfolding through the cracked-open door was already grim enough on its own.
A young girl sprawled on the floor was the first thing he saw.
She was so filthy it was impossible to guess the last time she’d washed, and her complexion was pale from malnutrition. She clutched her stomach, clearly in pain—a natural deduction, otherwise she wouldn’t have come to a pharmacy in the first place.
From her posture, it looked like she’d been shoved to the floor.
Finding the person who likely did the shoving wasn’t difficult. As Aiden shifted his gaze, he saw a middle-aged man with an angry expression standing behind the counter.
The store owner, most likely. And the owner of the voice that had just screamed at the girl to get out.
“I’ll pay, I’ll pay you. Please, my stomach hurts so much… Just painkillers, at least…” the girl begged, her voice trembling. It was unstable and weak, as if she were on the verge of death.
Despite her desperate plea, the owner who had just shoved her showed no signs of softening his stance.
Instead, as the girl tried to inch closer, his expression grew several shades more menacing.
“I told you to get lost! Any closer and I’m calling the guards!”
Aiden saw Noel’s expression twisting beside him.
To someone as naturally good-natured as her, this sight was an absurdity. Of course, it didn’t look like a normal situation to him either.
The girl had clearly stated she would pay and was visibly in pain. To treat a young child so harshly went beyond bad customer service; it was a despicable act, the kind that could ruin a man’s reputation.
What’s the reason?
Even as this outrageous scene unfolded before him, that was the first thought that crossed Aiden’s mind. It was the virtue of a swindler.
First, absorb all information about the situation quickly and accurately. Second, organize that information without letting any personal emotion cloud his judgment.
So, let’s see.
On the counter were the medicines prescribed for the girl, along with the small change she’d apparently offered as payment. Everything was scattered, likely from when she was pushed down.
A good clue.
In short, the owner hadn’t stopped the girl until she reached the counter with her money. Something must have happened when she tried to pay, or at the very least, when she got close.
Then what reason could he have to suddenly drive away a customer in poor health, even at the risk of his own reputation?
The reason wasn’t hard to deduce.
Aiden looked closely at the girl on the floor. He quickly found what he was looking for.
“Noel. Stop.”
Aiden whispered softly to Noel, who looked ready to kick down the door and charge in.
“Aiden, how can you say that right now—”
“Her wrist.”
“Pardon?”
“Look. At the girl’s wrist.”
Hesitating at Aiden’s sudden command, Noel followed his gaze to the girl’s wrist.
It wasn’t hard to spot the black marks pushing up from beneath her skin.
“…”
Noel bit her lip.
It was the undeniable sign of an infectious disease.
It wasn’t contagious to healthy people, but it was a common affliction for malnourished children from the slums, who were constantly exposed to contamination. It was only natural for people to fear the infected, even in an age of advanced medicine. Especially with a slum child, there was no telling what disease she might be carrying.
“Still, we can’t just leave her like—”
“Of course.”
She started to protest, but Aiden cut her off, his voice flat and even. A moment later, a smile spread across his face.
It was an expression she remembered.
One she had seen before.
It was the kind of smile that had allowed this man to take root in a corner of her heart.
The characteristic smile he wore whenever he was about to act on his convictions.
The next moment, Aiden stepped through the pharmacy door.
* * *
His brisk, cheerful stride was completely at odds with the grim atmosphere. The shop owner and the girl on the floor both stared at Aiden, stunned.
Ignoring them, Aiden continued toward the counter with light steps.
Locking eyes with the owner, Aiden spoke in a bright, refreshing tone.
“Please ring up these medicines for me.”
Snapped back to reality, the owner eyed Aiden with suspicion. He glanced at the girl, wondering if they were together, but she was staring at the newcomer with an equally dazed expression. That didn’t seem to be the case.
“…These medicines weren’t prescribed for you, customer.”
“No, as it happens, these are exactly the medicines I need.”
His brazen attitude drew a dry chuckle from Noel, who watched from behind. When someone was that shameless, their blatant lies somehow stopped looking pathetic.
He was openly offering to buy the medicine for the girl. The owner seemed flustered, his eyes darting around for a moment before he regained his composure. Once he understood Aiden’s intent, a look of strong aversion crossed his face.
In any case, the owner had no desire to sell the medicine in this situation. It would be trouble if this man was also carrying the plague. Regardless of the establishment, if rumors spread that an infected patient had visited, business would dry up completely. A sales record was the clearest proof of their visit.
However, since he couldn’t just search a customer for lesions, the owner tried a different approach.
“Customer, all the products here require a doctor’s prescription…”
“I know that’s not true. Let’s not fool each other.”
“…”
“The medicines slum kids buy are all pretty much the same. None of them are special enough to require a prescription.”
Aiden gave the owner an even brighter smile. Though his face was smiling, it carried an unspoken pressure: We both know how this works, so let’s not play games.
At this, the owner’s expression shifted as he tried again.
“Even so, I can’t just sell them to a patient who shows no symptoms…”
Frankly, it was a flimsy excuse. The man he was speaking to was covered in cuts and bruises. Furthermore, that excuse only really worked for items that strictly required a prescription, and Aiden had already pointed out that these were not in that category.
The excuses left were usually shabby but effective.
‘We’re out of stock, so we have to save these for more urgent customers’ was a classic example. Even if the back room was overflowing with inventory, if the seller said it, the buyer had little recourse. Simple, yet powerful.
So, how do you shatter an excuse like that?
The same way. You offer something simple and powerful in return.
The method Aiden chose wasn’t just powerful; it bordered on sheer madness.
He pulled a fountain pen from his pocket. It was a gift from Cisella, something he cherished and always carried with him. Using it like this gave him a pang of reluctance, but his resolve was quick, and his actions were swifter. He rolled up his sleeve, exposing the bare skin beneath his coat and shirt.
Then, with a casual flick of his wrist, he moved the pen.
He plunged the nib into the outside of his upper arm and sliced straight down toward his wrist.
The pen ripped through his skin. Fresh blood spurted out, mixing with the ink and streaming down in a dark red river.
The act was so casual that it took a moment for everyone to process what he had just done. The shopkeeper stared at him like he was a lunatic, Noel let out a choked gasp from behind, and the girl on the floor went pale.
The metallic tang of blood filled the air. Within seconds, Aiden’s arm was drenched. Blood dripped to the floor—drip, drip. He raised his gushing arm and slammed it onto the counter, displaying the wound for all to see. It was a rude, senseless, barbaric act.
Yet the process was simple, and the effect was immensely powerful.
And through it all, Aiden kept smiling.
“Wow, this hurts like crazy.”
Terror began to creep into the owner’s eyes.
“It hurts so much that I think I’ll need painkillers to soothe it. Don’t you think so?”
Twirling the blood-soaked fountain pen in his equally bloody palm, Aiden spoke clearly. A small pool of blood was forming on the counter.
He was still smiling.
“Ah, and I’m worried about a secondary infection, so I’ll take some antibiotics as a bonus.”
To the shopkeeper, that polite voice was the most terrifying sound in the world.
“…How does a person just keep becoming more and more…”
“…”
Of course.
Noel’s voice, now laced with total resignation, echoed painfully in his chest.