Immediately they entered, a group of men swarmed over. They wore metal masks of different designs.
"Do you want to buy something specific? Is this your first time here? Let me be your guide."
"I can take you to where they sell the best weapons!"
"Strong men like you! Do you want me to sell you what will make you stronger down there? You'll be begged to stop! You'll destroy the bed and the neighbors will complain!"
"Do you want to sell monster cores? We can cut deals to what you want exactly. Do you want it made into Etherion stones or credits? I have the best rates."
More and more of them advertised their goods, but Severin ignored them all as he picked his way confidently over with Derrick behind him.
When they saw this, the salesmen all backed away because Severin gave the illusion that he was there before. And with Derrick behind him like a guard dog, they stopped pestering him. He must be someone important.
Severin began to walk around the underground market in the same fashion, seemingly exploring everything. But his blue eyes were like sharp blades, scraping and cutting information.
Finally, he stopped in front of a man selling different things. The man wore a mask, but it was painted in warm colors. When he saw Severin, he rushed over, rubbing his hand on his apron. "My loyal customer, you are back. What do you want this time?"
A common merchant tactic, saying that you immediately form familiarity between them. Severin smiled. "I need the mid."
The man froze and he seemed to flinch. He looked around subtly to make sure that no one was listening. Then he shrugged. "The what? I don't sell that here. I can interest you in a lot of Etherion herbs and how to use them. See here..."
Severin raised his hand clearly. His finger flashed in a series of numbers.
The merchant stopped and then he gestured. "Come here."
Mid is the short form of Midhan. It's an illegal drug made from the brain of monsters and their core. It's one that will directly stimulate the user's blood, raising their powers in an explosive burst.
Even normal people could briefly experience the power of a low-rank Hero.
But there is a problem. It is very addictive and it drains the lifespan of the user.
It was banned in the Empire and the Zenith Hero Academy placed a special kind of ban on it in the academy.
Even though the academy was lax on a lot of things, their true aim was to produce strong Heroes. Using illegal drugs like Midhan directly undermines that. The drug will ruin potential, makes the person dependent on it, while their life burns away like a torch.
What the Academy wants is strong Heroes, not some half-baked ones with a crumbling lifespan. So they banned any drugs or herbs like that.
And anything forbidden by the school? They go to the highest degree to enforce it in the most brutal way.
Even then, people still have ways of trading it, but it was a complicated process. You have to have someone to refer you. Severin of old didn't have and that was one of the reasons he ended up beaten.
But the main reason was that people were just being their usual asshole self.
Fortunately, Severin of now read about the hand gesture from the novel and was able to replicate it. The man led him into his shop, which was crowded with more goods. The smell was a mixture of dust and herbs of different kinds.
But he led them deeper, through a connected door and into a new room.
"Do you really have the money to buy anything?" Derrick asked in a whisper, his voice doubtful.
Severin shook his head and whispered back. "You'll have to beat them up."
Derrick couldn't make up his mind if Severin was joking or not.
"Welcome. Here you'll see a lot of things that are passed underneath the table. Whatever you want," the man said. He was trying to control himself, but he was happy that he landed a really rich customer so early in the night.
Severin looked around. "You have an impressive amount of things to sell indeed. Are you also selling the men that's hiding in the corner? From the looks of it, they're initiate stage."
The initiate stage is the first rank of the Advancement Stage, but in actuality it didn't count, because it's the rank that's given to those who are marked as having the potential of being Etherion users.
They can even use small Etherion, making them stronger than the strongest ordinary human, but not by much.
The man took a step away from Severin, his joy frozen in seconds. "What do you want?" he hissed.
Severin removed his mask and stared at the man. "Do I look familiar?"
The man is a merchant for years. His brain has been in use for so long that he's trained himself to recognize things on sight. And the person he was looking at was the boy he had his goons beat up months ago.
"Shit. It was really a misunderstanding. How can I maltreat the one that's my very good customer?" he said. His head began to shift subtly to the side of the wall.
Severin was ready for him and he flung himself forward, his figure shooting to the wall. Although he might be a failure as a Hero, he was still several times stronger and faster than a human.
When he reached the wall, he ripped out the curtain that was there and stared at the single rune carved into it. Severin knew enough about runes that he recognized that its function is like a one-way telephone, an alarm of sorts.
When the man saw Severin at the wall, he truly began to panic. He began to bow. "I promise you, it was really a mistake! It won't happen again, I swear! Please!"
Derrick gestured to the rune. "What does that do?"