"Is this type of flower a newly discovered species?" Mason asked hesitantly. Though he mostly believed Ron's words, the effects of the Nether Orchid still seemed far too miraculous.
Even if it only enhanced the ambient elemental concentration and improved a mage's meditation efficiency, those two effects combined in a single plant were borderline unbelievable.
The former could only be achieved through a high-grade Elemental Gathering Array engraved into a magic tower, while the latter typically required outrageously expensive magical potions—and those even came with diminishing effects due to resistance buildup.
"If the Nether Orchid didn't have such unique properties, do you think a flower shop would only sell one type of flower?" Ron replied with a smile.
Mason suddenly understood, nodding in realization as everything now had a plausible explanation.
Why hadn't this miraculous plant appeared before now? Obviously, it had been tightly controlled by the Human Empire.
Why was it being sold publicly now? Surely because the Human Empire had fully researched it and was now looking to profit.
Why here, in Chaos City? Of course, because this was the trade center of the entire continent.
Why was the shop owner such a young man? Because he was the Seventh Prince of the Human Empire. It was clear that Emperor Andrei III had entrusted him with great responsibility.
Everything made sense—the truth was laid bare!
And then Mason suddenly got excited.
If all this was true, then the slight loosening of his bottleneck earlier couldn't have been an illusion!
This plant, called the Nether Orchid, had a scent that really was helpful to him!
Mason swallowed nervously and asked after a brief hesitation, "How much is one plant?"
As a teaching assistant at the Magic Academy, he earned 5 gold coins a month. However, he had a 30 gold coin monthly reimbursement allowance for anything magic-related.
That was also why many mages flocked to the position of teaching assistant.
Take Professor Hicks, for example—an advanced mage like him received a monthly reimbursement of 1,000 gold coins and even had access to rare items.
That kind of position was something even more mages dreamed of.
"One Nether Orchid costs 20 gold coins," Ron said.
Mason immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
He lived frugally, so his savings were substantial. The price of 20 gold was entirely affordable.
And as long as he could prove that the Nether Orchid genuinely helped with meditation, he could get the cost reimbursed—it would just count toward this month's allowance.
Since he'd been stuck at a bottleneck and hadn't spent any of his monthly allowance yet, this timing couldn't have been better.
So Mason said, "No problem, I'll buy one. However, I will verify everything you said earlier, and I'll also study the plant. If you're lying, I will report you to the Magic Academy and call on all the mages in Chaos City to boycott you."
Ron smiled. "Of course. If the Nether Orchid doesn't perform as it should, then you should do that. I fully support it."
Mason was very satisfied with Ron's attitude. After paying 20 gold coins, he left with a Nether Orchid in hand, visibly excited.
"Whew…" Ron sank into the chair behind the counter with a deep breath.
[Daily Quest] – [Convince a Mage to Buy a Nether Orchid]:
"[Congratulations, Host, for completing the quest. Your reward has been issued.]"
[Main Quest] – [Open for Business: Sell 100 Nether Orchids]:
"[Progress: 1/100.]"
Looking at the system panel, Ron smiled with satisfaction. "At least I've taken the first step."
That dwarf named Mason was a teaching assistant at the Magic Academy. As long as the Nether Orchid worked well for him, he'd definitely spread the word at the academy. After that, selling them wouldn't be a problem.
Ron rubbed his chin and started thinking about another issue.
Mason's questions earlier made him realize something important—he really needed to come up with a solid explanation for the origin of the Nether Orchid.
Right now, the shop was still obscure, and the plant wasn't widely known, so it wasn't a big deal.
But once the Nether Orchid became popular, it would definitely attract investigation and suspicion from people with ulterior motives.
Sure, he'd waved his "cheap dad's flag" in front of Mason and managed to bluff his way through for now—but what about later?
What if his shop really took off and even attracted his father's attention? How would he explain it then?
Ugh, headache!
System: "[Daily Quest Triggered.]"
[Daily Quest] – [Come Up With a Plausible Explanation for the Store's Supply Chain]:
"[Objective: As stated above.]"
"[Reward: Once complete, you'll no longer have to worry about people questioning your store's supply source~]"
Ron narrowed his eyes. "Shouldn't this be the kind of thing the system helps solve directly?"
[Shop]
[Permanent Mental Interference]: 100 Wealth Points per use
(Temporary item. Will remain in the shop until the related quest is completed, then be removed.)
System: "[Once someone questions the shop's supply chain, Host can redeem this item. No side effects.]"
"…," Ron rubbed his chin, suddenly having some new ideas.
It looked like the system could generate daily quests based on his thoughts. Even if they didn't always come with rewards, they often brought up relevant shop items that helped solve his problems.
Could be useful in the future?
But for now, this approach probably wouldn't work.
He glanced at his basic status panel—
Wealth Points: 20
Just enough to flip a girl's skirt twice.
Still broke...
Seeing that number instantly turned Ron back into a couch potato.
The sun was already starting to set. Ron flipped the "Closed" sign and headed next door to the BBQ shop.
"Lyle!" Ron waved at the dwarf owner who was tallying up bills at the counter. "As we agreed—you help me out, and I treat you to dinner."
Since the BBQ place didn't get much business in the afternoons, Ron had asked Lyle to help out by pretending to be a passing customer whenever a mage got close to his store and casually mention the flower.
No need to exaggerate or lie—just stick to the truth.
Lyle had agreed readily, and Ron promised him a meal.
"Alright, I'm coming!" Lyle got up, gave a few instructions to his two staff members, and followed Ron out the door. "So, where are we eating?"
Ron led him back into his own shop and upstairs to the second floor. He gestured for Lyle to sit on the sofa and put on an apron as he said, "You're gonna see my cooking skills today."
Lyle was a bit confused—why were they at Ron's house? And Ron was going to cook?
"You serious?" Lyle asked, surprised. "You don't really look like the cooking type."
Ron had a pretty face—one look and you'd think he was some spoiled rich kid. Definitely not someone who'd cook for himself.
"Are all dwarves this blunt?" Ron laughed with a shrug. "Don't underestimate me—I've trained hard in the kitchen too, y'know."
"Uh-haha…" Lyle scratched his head with an awkward laugh. "That's just how I am—don't take it personally. I'll look forward to it, then."
"I like straightforward people," Ron said as he finished prepping the ingredients and walked into the kitchen. "Feel free to look around—it'll take about twenty minutes."