Chapter 82: Chapter 80: Sin

“Beat him to death!”

“Kill this double-crossing scum.”

“How dare you collude with the Drow! Have you no conscience?”

“Aren’t you afraid that every bottle of Alchemy Potion you sell to them could one day become their weapon against us High Elves?”

Even from a distance, as David and the others walked towards the windmill workshop situated within the Century Aroma flower fields, they could hear the High Elf, who appeared to be the Workshop Supervisor, angrily berating the elf who was already subdued, tied up, and being continuously beaten by other Alchemy Apprentices.

“Should we stop this?” David asked, hoping to seize the opportunity to intervene and, incidentally, visit the workshop.

The Silver Dragon father, believing David felt pity for the beaten elf, thought to himself, This child is just like me, too kind-hearted.

But sheer kindness cannot make one an ally of justice.

He immediately shook his head, dissuading him. “This is a private matter within the Duke of Silver’s territory. Unless other factors come into play, even I shouldn’t intervene.”

Having said that, he looked at his son, who seemed to want to speak but hesitated, and asked, “Moreover, you’ve heard it yourself. This Alchemy Apprentice dared to collude with the Drow from the Gloomy Region, trafficking military-grade Alchemy Potions meant for High Elves—possibly even the strictly controlled Anger Potion. This is a transgression that touches the very bottom line of the High Elves of the Dewensen Kingdom, an unforgivable crime.”

“By the way, have you ever heard of the Anger Potion?”

David nodded. “Of course. I’ve heard it’s something that can temporarily enhance perception, strength, stamina, Magic Power bursts, and mental magic resistance—in short, a great thing that significantly increases combat power for a short period. It’s also quite attractively priced, and demand in the market often exceeds supply.”

Furthermore, according to the Drow, this stuff is very helpful for certain… explosive performances and is popular among some Nobles with certain performance-related issues.

I’ve not only seen this stuff,

David mused, I even tried the Dragon Blood version back then, just like with the Sobering Potion. It just didn’t seem to have much effect on me as a Red Dragon. Not even as much as using my own Wrath…

The moment Attilicia heard this, he knew he had to cut off the boy’s obsession with wealth right away. “No! This is not a good thing at all, boy! If you knew the source of its ingredients and the negative aspects of its side effects, you wouldn’t think so.”

“Ah? Isn’t it just Red Dragon… er, Red Dragon blood?” David nearly let slip.

“Yes, the blood of the Red Dragon…” Priest Attilicia hesitated slightly before continuing with disdain, “Red Dragons are synonymous with Pride, Wrath, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and even with Jealousy and Lust. The raw material comes from the blood of such a Monster, inherently a source of sin. Its effects are naturally destructive and brutal.”

“Although the Edra Magic Association of the High Elves, through in-depth research, unanimously determined that it doesn’t have physiological addictiveness like the Drow’s Hallucinatory Potion and temporarily classified it as a second-level controlled substance, permitting mass production and military use.”

“But I’ve also done some clinical research on it and experimented with animals like squirrels. It significantly enhances immediate combat power, especially for warriors, but its side effects are just as deep-rooted. Even though it indeed lacks physical addictiveness, did you know? That sensation of becoming instantly powerful and surpassing one’s limits is also addictive—a psychological addiction.”

“Such an irregular source of strength, if abused, could easily lead some with weak spirits to internal decay, gradually becoming as Prideful and irritable, Slothful and Greedy as… Red Dragons, envying the strong, despising the weak, indulging in their inner evil desires without limit, and ultimately becoming completely Red Dragon-like.”

“Do you still think that the apprentice who colluded with the Drow to smuggle this thing is to be pitied?”

As David listened to Priest Attilicia’s lengthy lecture, he was almost rolling his eyes.

This wasn’t just stereotyping—it was naked prejudice.

He could feel it; this Attilicia, this Silver Dragon Priest, had a huge prejudice against Red Dragons!

Touching the core monopolized interests of the higher-ups, then being discovered yet powerless to resist—that’s naturally a death sentence, David thought. But in front of this priest from the Hall of Justice, he naturally had to phrase it differently.

“I just feel, Priest Attilicia… you seem to have gone a bit too far to the other extreme.”

“Since this thing has been developed and produced, and has already achieved recognized results, and unlike the Drow’s Hallucinatory Potion that directly destroys the body and spirit of the user, its effects can be recovered from and restrained—for example, by using your… our Silver Dragon’s blood to create a Sobering Potion for timely relief. Then it is relatively controllable and relatively safe.”

“At the same time, the fact that the Edra Magic Association of the High Elves has conducted research, determined its safety level, and permitted mass production and application sufficiently illustrates this point.”

“Priest Attilicia, don’t you think that an idea like yours—aiming to stifle something at its source out of concern for potential risks, ignoring all potential uses and values—is also somewhat…”

“Pride and prejudice?”

“I…” Priest Attilicia seemed to have never anticipated that his young son could have such profound insight into the matter. Yet, this perspective was entirely opposite to his own and aligned with those profit-driven High Elves, leaving him somewhat taken aback… and in inextricable pain.

Especially that last remark about ’pride and prejudice’; it pierced his soul just as Pafila’s tail tip had once stung him, causing his entire body to tremble.

Ah… this child. He’s ultimately been led astray by that scoundrel Pafila! Attilicia lamented internally. No, I must guide him back, save him before it’s too late! Kindness and justice—that is the path we Silver Dragons must tread!

But before he could speak, perhaps due to their rapid approach, the Workshop Supervisor at the entrance also noticed their arrival and immediately commanded, “Come on! In accordance with the laws of the Silver Wheel territory, execute this traitor who colluded with the Drow on the spot!”

“What?” The group of apprentices, who were previously beating the culprit with gusto, were also stunned. Execute him? Just like that?

According to the norm, shouldn’t it be reported up the chain of command first and ultimately handed over to the Duke of Silver, or at least to Princess Elizabeth herself, for judgment?

“MM! MMMMM!!!” The apprentice, who was originally willing to accept punishment, began to struggle frantically.

Eventually, one of the older apprentices, seeing the supervisor’s subtle gesture, immediately drew the portable Magic Wand from his waist and aimed it at the head of the offending apprentice.

At this moment, Priest Attilicia, who should have spotted the problem and intervened immediately, had his mind entirely filled with how to reverse his child’s thoughts and convictions, which seemed to show ’signs of distortion.’ He was completely oblivious to the tragedy unfolding before him.

“Stop!” A blast of icy air erupted from David’s mouth. A powerful, chilling wind surged forward, and a conical area before them visibly frosted over in an instant, freezing the supervisor, the would-be executioner apprentice, and the struggling unfortunate elf solid.

“What happened?” Priest Attilicia finally snapped back to reality. He was also somewhat at a loss for how to judge David’s rash intervention in the Duke of Silver’s private affairs; the old father’s heart was in turmoil.

David couldn’t be bothered with idle talk. His tail tip prodded each of the three ice sculptures in turn, and the three High Elves finally shivered back to life.

The freed prisoner apprentice immediately knelt before Priest Attilicia and cried out his innocence, “Priest Attilicia! I was wrong! I did indeed collude with the Drow to sell potions!”

“But all of this, it was the supervisor who secretly instigated me to do so! And him, him, him, him—they were all involved!”

Every Alchemy Apprentice pointed out by the accused turned deathly pale, a look of Despair on their faces.

As for the exposed Workshop Supervisor, he collapsed directly to the ground and fainted from extreme fear.

“This…” How could Priest Attilicia not realize that if not for David’s decisive action, a most unjust and unrighteous bloody incident might have occurred right before him, a priest of the Hall of Justice?

What was more terrifying was that they had nearly missed uncovering an entire ’crime syndicate’ hidden within the territory of the Duke of Silver!

“You noticed it a long time ago?” Priest Attilicia, for the second time in one day, looked at his son—who seemed ’somewhat a stranger’—with new respect.

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