Chapter 45 – New Medicines (Start)
The early morning air was exceptionally refreshing, especially after a recent large rainfall. Currently, so long as you opened a room and allowed the cold refreshing air in, it would at once awaken someone up.
Only, what upset people was that the heavy rain also had blowing winds. Although the winds weren’t strong, but the winds rolling the rain drops, throwing it into a person’s face would hurt just like being scraped with blades.
Flying everywhere was the rains, blending with the winds; it was simply like individual knives.
Therefore, today on the streets of Ricca town, all the pedestrians had hasty expressions. Occasionally, the people coming out to work would use a speed several times higher than normal; once they finished, they would hurriedly return. Who would wish to foolishly be out and about in such a terrifying weather.
That was what Rumont thought has he watched.
Under normal circumstances, under such a nasty weather, even the ferocious magic beasts and bearbug kinds, would also hide and not come out to forage. As for the Adventurers with hunting or killing missions, they naturally wouldn’t embarrass themselves of running into the forest do somehow do useless actions.
Only, at the moment there were still a few Adventurers, for unknown reason that were still proceeding outside of the town. These Adventurers had wrapped their bodies up tightly, quickly going about on the roads lightning fast.
Focusing on Briar Forest, Rumont always thought it was strange———that place, what did it contain? The way it attracted people, did it still have a secret that he hadn’t yet realized?
Certainly, a majority of Adventurers still remained at the town. They had congregated at Mort’s Inn to drink liquor today, enjoying it to the utmost.
Mort’s Inn was destined to be unusually boisterous today.
Even Rumont also broke his precedent of not entering the forest to practice his martial skills. Instead, he hid within his room, lost in thoughts with his jaw propped up.
At this moment, in front of him was a small accounting book that was currently opened up on top of an old wooden table. Written on it was several small sparse lines of words, which constantly reminded him that his current business with the drugstore, was facing depression.
This was the record of the earnings in the recent days of the drugstore. What made Rumont depressed was that it was clear that the number of injured Adventurers wasn’t low, but the medicines his store sold recently were still unexpectedly low.
Listening to Nick’s opinion, the reason wholly originated from the opposing drugstore.
Recently, after the opposite drugstore’s operation of low profits, they had surprisingly again lowered the medicinal prices by no small amount, so much that it was still cheaper than a lot of the distinguished medicines Rumont sold by roughly a tenth.
A tenth, this wasn’t only a figure. A bottle containing the medication with the results of a Mending, its pricing was about 10 silver coins with an efficacy of a month.
Reducing it by 10 percent, was 9 silver coins. Don’t belittle this 1 silver coin. It represented the change in the Adventurer’s hearts, after all, who would hate money? Going out for Adventures, they would frequently use medicines, accumulatively, it wouldn’t be a small expenditure!
What’s more, 1 silver coin was enough to enough to live at Mort’s Inn for a day. Therefore, apart from a lonely few Adventurers, the other people all successively went to the opposing drugstore to buy things.
“Want to fight a battle of pricing with me huh?” Although this kind of thing would frequently happen at businesses back on Earth, Rumont’s current face wasn’t too good to look at.
The significance of the store was of no small matter to Rumont. It was the first store he opened, bearing the weights of his hopes and dreams.
He really intended to keep the drugstore running. Thus, even if others wanted to ruin his drugstore, he would still need to quickly think of a new solution. Thinking of a possible way of reversing the present disadvantage.
However, how would it be so easy.
Ignoring the fact that he was only a Rank 2 Druid, there existed a tremendous disparity of power compared to the Rank 5 Druid Jeff. As the Ranks of a Druid got higher, they would be able to grasp onto even more spells and skills, not to mention was that his recipes of medicines, as well as recognition of medicinal characteristics were also much better.
Jeff could easily utilize his capabilities with an even higher efficiency rate. The medicines he synthesized, the cost would be less than Rumont by roughly a tenth. Furthermore, the success rate of the medicines synthesized by Rumont were also unconditionally inferior to when the Rank 5 Jeff synthesized medications.
Even if it was Jeff’s female apprentice, it would be accepted that under Jeff’s guidance, their extent of skillful compounding medicines wouldn’t necessarily be too different from Rumont; it may even be possible to be even higher by a touch.
Moreover, the other was purely in it for the hands-on practicing of and familiarizing of medical characteristics. As for him, he still needed to worry about the business situation of the drugstore. What’s more was that he needed to temper his martial skills in addition to studying at the Shrine’s library.
The even more frightening thing was that as a Rank 5 Druid, they had already established a greenhouse and laboratory; the production costs were advantageously low.
With these contrasting elements, the good and bad differences were immediately seen. If Rumont didn’t possess the Shennong Horn spatial region, just from the manufacturing of raw materials side of things, excluding the basic expenditure costs, there wouldn’t even be a competitive pricing.
Although the production costs were quite low, yet if they couldn’t sell anything, they would also not have a profit!
“In the end, how should I think of a solution to reverse the disadvantages?” Rumont opened his eyes, carefully thinking back on all the things he’d seen and heard in the previous world.
How to carry out such a scheme, this was absolutely the biggest problem. The pricing war couldn’t be continued in such a fashion, it couldn’t be fought like this; then how should it be fought?
Recalling back all the things he once saw in the previous world, Rumont then opened his eyes, and decided on an idea.
It was still necessary to reduce the manufacturing costs!
However, it was necessary to succeed in finding a type of feasible method to reduce the manufacturing costs of the synthesized medicines. To use even less materials, to create even more medical compounds with an even better efficacy. Once this was achieved, not only would it win over the customers, it would also avoid the opponent’s competition strength; losing out in one’s own capabilities.
“Let’s do it like this!” Although he currently still hadn’t worked out the specifics, no longer being ignorant of a goal, a person’s psychological condition would naturally improve by a lot.
At this time, Rumont started to feel his hunger. Having no choice but to pat his stomach, he then conveniently took a pastry and placed it into his mouth.
It was delicious when it entered his mouth, there was really nothing to say about Madame Mort’s culinary skills. This was brought back by Nick and them when they went to buy it earlier on; currently eating it, it was still warm.
It was in Rumont’s belly in just 2 or 3 bites, lifting his mood at once.
Suddenly, a clamouring burst of noise attracted his attention.
“It’s clear that the medicines sold here are bad! And to think it was created by a Druid! As I see it, it’s also a scammer!” a person was currently at the entrance of Rumont’s drugstore, shouting loudly.
His loud voice immediately attracted numerous amounts of observers.
“What’s this about?”
“What’s happen?”
“I don’t know either, I’ve only just arrived!”
Gossiping was definitely an inborn trait amongst humanity. With the current cold weather, there were obstinate observers braving the dagger like winds and coming over.
Seeing that there were people watching, the young man was even more full of energy. He casually threw a bag of medicines onto the drugstore counter top, before loudly saying: “tell me what you’re going to do! My brothers ate your medicines yesterday and not only were they not cured, instead they worsened! Your so-called life-saving medicines are clearly poisons!”
Saying this, he pointed to his side where there was certainly an extremely wrapped up person. Seeing that he had pointed at himself, he even gave a few coughs, proving that he was really worsening.
The townsfolk was immediately in an uproar.
“Nonsense!” Nick stood at the entrance. Facing the denouncer and the not understanding crowd, his own complexion was a touch red: “the medicines at my store have all gone through meticulous processings, it hasn’t affected the others, why is it only your brother that has a problem?”
Thinking it over, he was currently thinking as if he was already the owner and needing to please the masses first. He quelled his anger before saying: “how about this, I’ll invite your brother to come in and let Rumont examine him first, allowing everyone present to be eye witnesses. If in the final examination, if it’s really because of the medicines at my store that lead to his worsening, then, the store is willing to compensate everything. However, if it’s not……”
“This……” the person immediately hesitated. Originally thinking he was bullying a youth, he never expected such a surprising demand. He and the other, were both hired with money to intentionally stir up trouble, how would there really be an illness.
As a result, he casted his gaze over to the crowd. A person amongst the crowd gave him a signal with their eye. He at once understood tacitly, and laughed loudly.
“The one that’s lacking here is me, if I entered your store wouldn’t I be dancing along to your tune? Rumont’s basically the owner of this store, how do you expect me to believe you? Everyone!” He turned his body around, and yelled loudly to the crowd: “this store scams people! Everything sold is fake, don’t be misled!”
When the people heard these words, they began to discuss. Just when Nick hadn’t said anything, a middle-aged man suddenly came through amidst the crowd.
“What is this about?” Rank 5 Druid Jeff watched the farce with a water deep gaze and coldly asked.
“Sir, it’s like this……” once the youth saw Jeff, he immediately slowed down midway. Jeff was different to Rumont, Rumont was only a Rank 2 Druid. Furthermore, he didn’t even have a backing, as for Jeff, he was already a Rank 5 Druid.
No matter which profession that reached Rank 5, they would be able to obtain a considerable amount of advantages. This was a world decided by power.
The words that were just spoken, was told again to Jeff. Going against the youth’s expectation, he thought that the Druid would stand on his own side and face against Rumont, unexpectedly, he looked sharply towards the “invalid” instead.
“He simply isn’t sick at all.” only with a glance and Jeff had made a decision.
It was different to the doctors on Earth. Druids had a superhuman power of interacting with a living object’s vital energy. Only a short interval of a response would be sufficient enough to determine whether the person was sick.
Without doubt, the intensity of the determining ability had a direct relationship with the comparative level of a Druid’s Rank.
Since the Rank 5 Druid Jeff had already spoken, then in that case, those people were sure to be free of sickness. Moreover was that among everyone’s eyes now, Jeff and Rumont were mutually hostile in relation; naturally there wouldn’t be words of absolving without cause.
Therefore, the final result was naturally the dingy people walking away.
“Master Jeff, many thanks for you help.” at this time, Rumont who also understood the situation came from the backyard and sincerely thanked Jeff.
Jeff lightly voiced a hmph while promptly without even responding, departed with an indifferent face.
“That man, really……” shaking his head, Rumont couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.
And during the moment when he wanted to turn around and enter the store, a figure in a not too far off distant made him wrinkle his brows.
“So it was him……” the Tax Officer was mixed amongst the crowd, walking off into the distance.
Him appearing at this moment made Rumont ponder deeply: “Barcas, it looks like I really can’t leave you alone eh. I need to resolve this quickly. Otherwise, always causing a disturbance would be really bothersome……”
If it was said that the past solution needed, wasn’t to necessarily annihilate them physically, then currently, Rumont’s intentions had already reached such a point.
A spark of gloomy fire was birthed in the centre of the eye and immediately concentrated; a grim smile emerged.
I’ll let you live a few more days.
Bo~ 