Chapter 97 97 True Potion

Chapter 97 Chapter 97 True Potion

Eyes wary as his foot trudged through the bazaaar, the harsh sounds of people haggling filled the air from every stall he passed. It was like everyone was angry, aggressive, and eager to showcase their bargaining power.

Under the stretched out tents, side by side with the store owners, housewives and mothers mercilessly haggled their way into good deals. Occasionally, there one or two naive youths would appear- and it was painfully clear that the merchants were leading astray- like lambs to the slaughter.

Focusing solely on his own affairs, the first thing Nexus did was to buy a ridiculously over prized horse- to look the part.

Thanks to hours of watching Monica, he mounted the black stallion with the saddle which the horse merchant had thrown in a saddle for free, and he carefully trotted out of the shabby stalls- maneuvering his way towards the more luxurious shop complexes that were all built in the style of modern plazas.

Around the corner, nudged between a fancy private club, and a small clinic was Nexus' first target.

Above the door frame, on the stone arch just below the vaunted ceiling, were two words imprinted in bold print;

TRUE POTION.

The pharmacy's building was the color of white washed stone. Two massive stone pillars, in the manner of Roman architecture, were lodged at the entrance of the building. On each side of the pillar was a statue of a pole with a snake encircling around it. It was the rod of Asclepius- the universal symbol of medicine.

Taking a deep breath, Nexus kicked the horse into a much quicker gallop, willing it to move forward. Fortunately for him, the streets were not so busy on this side of the city. So his lack of experience with the horse went by unnoticed.

Hat over his head, dark trench coat on, Nexus pulled up at the entrance, and dismounted. As he tethered his horse, his trained eyes washed over the intimidating building curiously. It screamed class. It screamed opulence.

It was just perfect.

His face relaxed into a more comfortable expression. The tension at the edge of his eyes disappeared as he put on a very comely, and more confident expression.

As soon as he opened the door, the overwhelming whiteness of the whole place hit his eyes. Seriously, it was the cleanest, the most organized, and the most modern room he had seen since he came to Castra city.

The white paint on the walls, and the ceiling shone brilliantly- like a powerful declaration of just how serious this business was.

Fiercely expensive marble pillars were lined all through. They were equidistant to each other, towering like sentinels. The floor looked liked it had been flattened by polished limestone. Rows and rows of neatly stacked shelves stood in array a few feet away from the entrance.

To Nexus, it looked like someone had dreamt about what a pharmacy would look like on earth, and then tried to replicate it here. For a shop in medieval times, it was not too shabby at all.

"Can I help you gentleman?"

A small man, with a thin strip of hair above the upper lip, dressed impeccably appeared from beyond one of the shelves.

Nexus put on his new persona;

"I don't know if you 'can,' but you 'may.'"

The man frowned slightly;

"I beg your pardon?"

"I'm looking for the manager of this pharmacy. Get him for me."

The man nervous face tightened even more nervously;

"You're looking at him. Is there a problem? Are you from the government?"

Nexus ignored him.

Placing his two hands behind his back, he moved forward- towards the stack of shelves, pacing himself with unhurried steps, putting on his best impression of a disapproving face. The small man promptly rushed after him;

"Sir, can you please state your busin–"

"I'm here to offer you the deal of a lifetime champ."

"A deal?"

"Yes. A deal." He turned around to face the manager; "This is a mighty fine establishment you got here. But look around, it's almost midday- look just how empty the place is. I'm guessing I'm probably your first customer today huh?"

The manager's eyes squinted, and his face contorted defensively;

"We're just having a slow day that's all."

"Wake up mister manager!" Nexus' tone suddenly took on a more aggressive tone; "Do you want to be out a job? If you don't strap up, you're going to become redundant around here."

His clean shaved face whitened instantly;

"I'm sorry, but who did you say you were again?"

Nexus smiled. He dipped his right hand in his pocket and said two words dramatically;

"Your saviour."

He extracted his hand and held up the vial to the man's face;

"Like I said, I'm here to offer you the deal of a lifetime. Question is, are you in or out?"

The smaller man stared at the vial in Nexus' hand. The creases on his forehead continued to fold. He cocked his head, and squinted his eyes, staring intently at the mysterious blue liquid glittering in the small vial- surprise was etched into the corners of his eyes

He was taken in. And Nexus knew it;

"What is that?"

"This is drug is the first of its kind to hit the market. As I'm talking to you right now, you are the first and only pharmacy in town to have the privilege of looking at it."

Nexus stretched out his hand to him; "Here, look at it thoroughly. It's some real big boy stuff."

The manager took it gingerly in both hands and held it up- examining it expertly;

"What does it do?"

Nexus knew he had him hooked.

"Not so fast, before I divulge trademark secrets, we have to talk business first."

Suddenly, an apologetic looked crept across the face of the manager. Shaking his head slightly, he handed back the vial to Nexus;

"I'm really sorry mister. That was a really good pitch, but it's way above my paygrade. I'm strictly on sales and lower management here. So I don't have the authority to make any deal with you."

Nexus refused to be deterred;

"Then step on it man! Do you realize just how big a deal this drug is? It could get you promoted! Get me someone with some real authority around here!"

The small man looked like he was in a quandry. His brows knotted together, and his eyes flicked back and forth as he considered his next step. He was no fool. This could go either way for him.

But somehow, he felt strongly about this, and couldn't understand why.

After a short stretch of silence, he finally mouthed his reply;

"Fine," he said quietly; "I'll take it to my boss. But I'm going to trust your word on this, I'm going to need you to do the same. . ."

He stretched out his hand and held out his open palm;

". . so you're going to have front me a sample of the drug. I need something to present other than just word of mouth. You do understand that don't you?"

Nexus resisted the urge to smile.

"Of course," he said flatly; "I totally understand."

He handed over the vial to him.