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Chapter 15

Ju was stunned for a moment.

Moonflower could not remember her real name since he found her inside the lake, so he gave her one. Although he didn't feel the name was good enough, she seemed fine with it.

The young boy, even his name, Ju, could not remember the background behind it. All he knew was that Ju was the name that his parents gave to him.

His memories of his parents were in disarray, but that was a matter the teenager would deal with later.

"Moon…Moon-flower," he muttered. Thinking of the night, he found her under the bright full moon, delicate and helpless like a flower.

A Flower is blooming under Moonlight.

"Her name is Moonflower," Ju said once more affirmatively.

The little girl's eyes brightened as she held Ju's hand tighter. It did not matter what she might have been called before; her name was Moonflower now, and that was all there was to it.

"Oh, Moon-flower, I see," Tylen said with twinkling eyes. He then placed a medium-sized brown pouch on the desk.

"We were lucky to get a good deal today, better than normal. The apprentice of an alchemist was in urgent need of the body parts of foxes, so he paid a slightly higher price." Oberon said in a booming voice.

"It's 500 gold coins," Aron said lightly.

"You can check it if you want," Zabel added.

But Ju shook his head as he took the pouch and placed it by his side.

"It's fine."

When they saw Ju's tactfulness, Tylen, and the group's looks eased further. They were slowly beginning to warm up to this quiet boy. He was silent, could fight well, and never questioned anything they did.

However, Ju thought to himself.

"They had been lying right from the forest; they purposely kept my exceptions low so that when they gave me a higher amount than was promised. I would be grateful and would not think much of it. Even now, those body parts are worth much more than they are saying. Still, I can't act on my own right now. Tylen is a familiar face in Ender Town. It is easier for him to move goods. Suppose I decide to hunt and sell alone. I might be targeted. For now, I have to play along."

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The young boy gently felt the pouch in his right hand.

When Tylen dropped it on the table, Ju knew it contained five hundred coins.

"Ju, you have so much power at such a young age. I can imagine you have been through quite a lot." Tylen said lightly as he took a sip of his drink, as he wanted to continue

"What I am driving at is..."

'Tylen, let's leave the talking for now; let's eat!' Oberon waved his hand as he called the waiter.

Fresh rabbit meat cooked in a thick broth with vegetables and herbs was served. Oberon had ordered 30 plates for just the six of them, but still, it was hardly enough. People who could use Essence needed much more energy than mortals, so their appetites were enormous.

In fact, the most desired food for Essence Artists was powerful spiritual beasts and spiritual plants infused with Essence, which provided much more energy. This source of food was still paramount in an Essence Artist's journey.

The flesh obtained from a beast that had formed a core provided benefits. Pseudo-spiritual beasts, like the foxes Ju had hunted earlier, were not all that different from normal animals.

The amount of essence and energy humans could derive from beasts was far less than what the beast could gather if it ate the essence user instead. This was why pseudo-spiritual beasts provided little to no essence for the consumer at all.

The benchmark was a beast that had already formed a core.

Ju and the others ate normal rabbits. Of course, they could not afford to eat that type of spiritual beast just yet; it was too extravagant.

Even though Ju had often fantasised about the taste of such powerful creatures, it was still a pipe dream to acquire them for now.

Large jars were also brought forth; Ju perceived the thick, pungent smell of alcohol from them, although they didn't smell half as rich as the Old Kai usually drank.

Tylen quickly poured for everyone, but his expression turned slightly awkward when he got to Ju and Moon-flower.

"You should have ordered a drink made from only fruits." Zabel chuckled.

"Well, to be honest, if you are old enough to fight in life or death battle against spiritual beasts, then you are old enough to drink," Aron muttered.

Ju took the cup and sipped. Not wanting to be left out, Moon Flower did the same.

Ju felt a rush of heat in his lower abdominal region, gradually spreading to other parts of his body. Under the bandages, the skin around his face grew flushed.

The young boy was even beginning to feel lightheaded; when they saw this, Tylen and others laughed.

"It was just one sip, Ju. You would be a very lightweight in the future." Oberon mocked.

But when it was Moon-flower, there seemed to be no change in her countenance; this was someone relatively younger than Ju, and within moments, she had finished her cup with a regular expression.

"Can… Can I have more?" She spoke out for the first time.

Looking at the child, who was not up to ten years old yet quickly finished a cup of flame spirit, provoked odd looks from Tylen and the rest.