Chapter 76
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/
Volume 3 + Chapter 76: Harboring Other Motives
At the entrance of the shop stood an unfamiliar woman.
She had a tall figure, long black hair, and a beautiful face. Draped in a long coat, her curvaceous body was not concealed in the slightest. Underneath, she wore a black short skirt and semi-transparent black stockings. Hidden beneath the long coat, this combination of intellect and sensuality created a striking contrast. She was incredibly attractive and eye-catching.
Who is this person?
Xia Yi was a little confused.
But upon seeing this woman, the shop owner’s attitude did a complete 180-degree turn. He transformed from a proud eagle into a docile little bird.
“W-Why are you here?”
The shopkeeper quickly stepped forward and stood before the woman, looking nervous.
“Did something happen to our shop?”
The woman, from beginning to end, didn’t spare the shopkeeper a single glance. Her eyes were fixed on Xia Yi, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.
Xia Yi was even more puzzled.
Do we… know each other??
But just as she was about to ask, her eyes landed on the woman’s chest—and what she saw surprised her.
How could it be…
She was stunned.
Because the woman wore a brooch—the emblem of Rhine Alchemy.
Recognizing the emblem, Xia Yi remembered.
This woman was one of the Rhine Alchemy members she had seen previously at Laurel Academy, accompanying the fake Sword Saint!
“What happened here?” the woman asked.
“Doctor, here’s the situation!”
The shopkeeper handed over the material list to the woman referred to as “Doctor.”
It was clear that she was a staff of Rhine Alchemy, and this shop fell under their jurisdiction. That explained the owner’s respect.
“This girl is a student from Laurel Academy, named Xia Yi. She’s trying to buy large amounts of rare materials and even requested a complete set of alchemy tools, but she doesn’t have an alchemist license! That’s highly suspicious. Anyone capable of using these rare ingredients to make this kind of alchemical potion would have to be at least a master-level alchemist! And yet she has no license at all?”
Welp. That did it.
Xia Yi never imagined she’d get into trouble here.
She had learned alchemy in the Dragon Palace, after all—where would she ever get something like an alchemist’s license?
“I see. I understand the situation now,” the Doctor nodded.
“She needs to be arrested and locked up immediately!” the shopkeeper said indignantly. “Who knows if she’s brewing illegal potions to harm people?!”
Honestly, Xia Yi wasn’t too worried about going to jail. If needed, she could just write to the Lawrence family and ask Keith for help. Post bail and she’d be out in no time.
That was the privilege of nobility. Even if she made a mistake, she had plenty of room to maneuver.
The real problem was…
If she got arrested, would she receive a demerit?
And if that demerit got her expelled… she’d be in serious trouble. Especially since she was already in a negative points state.
“Boss, just go ahead and supply the materials on this list. I’ll cover the cost,” the Doctor said.
“Huh?!”
The shopkeeper was stunned.
So was Xia Yi.
“B-But, Doctor…”
“You misunderstood. This student, Xia Yi, is one of mine. I commissioned her to buy these materials,” the Doctor said, pulling out her alchemist’s license.
“It was my oversight not to have her bring this along. I was a bit worried, so I came to check. My apologies for the confusion.”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier! So it was all just a misunderstanding! We thought it was our shop that had broken some rule!” The shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief.
“Alright, I’ll go start gathering the materials.”
“Thanks for your trouble,” the Doctor nodded.
With that, the shopkeeper went off to prepare.
Xia Yi was now completely at a loss. She had just been bailed out by a total stranger?
“Xia Yi, you weren’t too scared, were you?” the Doctor walked up and asked.
“No, thank you so much. Doctor, I’m Xia Yi – Lawrence of the Lawrence family.”
Xia Yi expressed her gratitude using noble etiquette and introduced herself, making it clear that she wasn’t some shady character.
“My name is Claire. You don’t have to call me ‘Doctor,’ just use my name. As you can see, I work for Rhine Alchemy. That shop owner is willing to show me a bit of courtesy.”
Despite her high standing in Rhine Alchemy—being called “Doctor” meant she held significant rank—Claire didn’t act arrogant toward Xia Yi.
Still, something felt off.
Xia Yi really didn’t want to call her by name; it felt like it would make things too familiar.
Even though she was very grateful for the help, her dragon instincts were screaming: this woman was dangerous!
“Anyway, thank you, Doctor. I almost got arrested just now.”
“Actually, Xia Yi, I could have you arrested right now. If I just reported this incident to the authorities or the Holy Knight Order, you’d be behind bars.”
“W-What?!”
Xia Yi’s face changed.
Wait a second—was this woman trying to blackmail her into doing something?
“Xia Yi, why are you buying these materials?” Claire asked.
“…Just for making alchemy potions. Is that not allowed?”
“Actually, for the past few years, Rhine Alchemy has been regulating the potion market,” Claire explained.
“Too many evil alchemists were violating rules, producing dangerous or substandard potions for profit. Many innocent people suffered as a result.
For example, healing potions—which are vital for adventurers—were once mass-produced using substitute materials by unlicensed, corrupt alchemists. The potions were cheaper to make, but of terrible quality. Many adventurers ended up dying in battle because their potions didn’t work when they needed them most.”
“That’s…”
“Even worse, some evil alchemists created extremely dangerous potions and used them for crimes.
Honestly, Xia Yi, your current behavior is very similar to those people,” Claire said, shaking the list of materials.
“From my experience, this doesn’t look like a common potion. Students at Laurel Academy typically don’t have the skill to handle such rare, high-level materials.
You’re… suspicious.”
Crap. This was really bad.
How was Xia Yi supposed to know the laws had changed over the past six years?
Now she’d gotten herself noticed by this Doctor Claire, and things were even messier.
Maybe jail would’ve been better!
And it was too late to try and talk her way out of it—if Claire just brought the Holy Knight Order to arrest her, the consequences would be even more serious.
But Claire’s behavior was fishy too. If she really wanted to report her, she would’ve done it already. Instead, she was threatening her.
That could only mean one thing—
She had other motives.
“W-What do you want from me?!”
“Hehe~”
Claire chuckled, then leaned down and whispered softly into Xia Yi’s ear:
“Xia Yi, if you don’t want to be dragged away in chains… then…”
