The mature woman maintained her sharp gaze on Sol and Thorwyn as she waited for their answer.
Sol, not wanting to cause a scene, raised his hands in a non threatening manner. “I’m sorry, but I really don’t know what you’re talking about. Like I said to the guards, a few months ago I bought a spatial ring from Chloe, and now that I have more money, I wanted to buy a few more items that caught my eye.”
The woman rolled her eyes, clearly not fully believing him. “Honey, you aren’t the first to try pulling that on me. You’ll have to try a little harder than that.”
“It’s true,” Sol insisted. “I wasn’t even an A-Ranker when I met her. And… I’ll be honest, I don’t even know who you are.”
“Pfft! Hahaha! Yeah, sure you don’t.” The woman laughed loudly at his statement as it was one she truly hadn’t heard before. But as she laughed she noticed Sol’s facial expression showed visible confusion at her reaction causing her to pause.
The woman stared at Sol for a moment, then, to his and Thorwyn’s surprise, she suddenly burst into laughter. It was a rich, genuine laugh, as if she had just heard the best joke in years.
Thorwyn’s ears twitched in confusion. He glanced at Sol and let out a soft whine. “Awoo? (Is she a weird human?)”
Sol nodded silently in agreement.
As her laughter died down, the woman wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eye and finally noticed Sol’s expression. He wasn’t laughing and was honestly even more confused. Instead, he was simply watching her with a neutral, slightly puzzled look.
Her amusement faded as she asked, “Wait… are you actually serious?’
She studied him again, but she couldn’t decipher whether he was telling the truth or not.
"Fine," she said, curiosity creeping into her voice. "Then prove it."
With a flick of her wrist, she reached into a small leather pouch at her side and pulled out a conch shell unlike anything Sol had ever seen. Its surface shimmered in an iridescent array of colors, shifting like liquid opal under the sunlight. Without warning, she tossed it toward him.
Sol caught it effortlessly, and the moment his fingers wrapped around its cool, smooth surface, he instinctively activated [Analysis].
[True Blues
Unique
Durability: 447/450
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
Skills: [Liar’s Fire] Lv MAX]
[[Liar’s Fire] Lv MAX: Detects whether the holder is speaking the truth. If they are not, it will ignite them with powerful flames that cannot be extinguished through normal means. These flames consume not only oxygen but also mana to sustain themselves.]
Sol raised an eyebrow. 'A truth detector?'
The woman smirked. “Go on, then. Say it again.”
Sol glanced down at the shell in his hands. He wasn’t particularly worried. 'I wasn’t lying, so this won’t do anything to me. But even if it did, I doubt it could hurt me that badly.'
Without hesitation, he met her gaze and repeated, “I wasn’t an A-Ranker when I met Chloe, nor do I know who you are.”
Silence.
The shell remained cool in his hands. No flames erupted, no searing pain, no punishment of any kind.
The woman’s confident smirk faltered ever so slightly.
Sol nodded and simply handed the conch back to her. “Satisfied?”
She didn’t answer right away. Instead, she exhaled a long breath through her nose, her eyes narrowing as she reassessed him. The confidence she had displayed earlier was still there, but now, there was something else, disappointment. Not in Sol, but in herself.
Then, almost to herself, she muttered, “To think someone from this city doesn’t know my name…”
“Well, I’m not from here. I’m from Initium.” Sol said with a shrug.
“Initium? That little town nearby?” Her brow furrowed, and without waiting for a response, she turned back to her mansion and beckoned an attendant over.
The stout attendant ran over and immediately bowed. “How may I assist you, Miss Rondine?”
“We haven't done a good enough job spreading our influence. Go to Initium and invest 10,000 gold. Make sure to invest in the most frequented stores, not just the most profitable ones. Include in the contract a clause to rename the stores to align with our brand and to hang a portrait of myself in each one.”
“10,000?!” Sol exclaimed in surprise at how casually she decided to spend such a ludicrous amount of money.
Hearing his shock, she nodded pensively. “Hmm… You’re right, it’s not enough. Raise the budget to 30,000 and also invest in the Adventurer’s Guild and public projects.”
'It tripled?!' Sol thought, holding back his voice in fear that if she heard his surprise again, she’d raise the number even higher.
“As you wish, Miss Rondine.” The attendant bowed again before leaving to carry out her orders.
Having settled the matter, she turned back to Sol and Thorwyn and gave a curtsy bow. “I apologize for my earlier blunder. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Madeline Rondine, owner of Rondine Emporium’s Crestelia Branch and an A-Rank merchant.”
“A-Rank merchant?”
Sol had sensed she was an A-Ranker from the moment he met her as he could see the two law technique tethers extending from her body, but he hadn’t investigated further out of respect for Chloe’s mother’s privacy. He would only go that far if he knew or at least had an inkling that the person he was facing was an enemy.
“Of course. Not all A-Rankers are fighting brutes, you know?” she said with a teasing smile before continuing. “So, you really only came to my daughter to trade. I had warned all the important forces not to approach her, or I would bankrupt them. But since you aren't with them and were truthful about your intentions, I’ll allow you to buy from her. Follow me inside.”
“But I thought you said A-Rankers should only go to you.”
She let out a short laugh, taking a puff from her pipe before saying, “What kind of mother would I be if I stole a customer from my own daughter?”
She didn’t wait for Sol and Thorwyn as she walked into her mansion. Sol and Thorwyn exchanged glances before following behind her.