"Eat, child. Regular meals show devotion to the gods and reward yourself."

  Prince Alfried picked up his knife and fork, expertly cutting into the rabbit meat. The utensils clinked softly against the plate.

  Watching the Church prince cut his meat, Luo Wei felt her image of him as a handsome old fox crumble a bit.

  She picked up her own utensils with mixed feelings and attacked a slice of soft bread.

  Alfried finished cutting a piece and remarked, "Porcelain plates are beautiful and white, but they're not as durable as silver. Their beauty shatters at a touch—so fragile."

  "And these forks—they keep your fingers clean when cutting meat, but they make such noise. Quieter to just use your hands."

  Luo Wei chewed her bread slowly without responding.

  Her silence might seem disrespectful to Prince Alfried, but honestly? The fact that she was willing to put anything on this table in her mouth was the biggest respect she could show him.

  Who knew if the food was drugged?

  But Alfried wouldn't let her off that easily. "I heard these white porcelain dishes and butter bread both come from a shop in Siria. Luo Wei, do you know this store?"

  Luo Wei picked up her napkin and dabbed her lips. "Your Highness means Escore Dessert Shop? It's on Academy Street. If you're interested, you should visit."

  "Oh?" Alfried looked surprised. "You sound quite familiar with this shop."

  Luo Wei smiled. "Your Highness is hinting at something. What you really want to ask is what relationship I have with this shop, right?"

  Alfried's expression relaxed. "So what is your relationship with this shop?"

  Luo Wei said modestly, "As Your Highness suspected, it's a small business of mine."

  The old fox was showing his claws. Perfect—she didn't want to play games with him either.

  Better to speak plainly than waste time on fake politeness.

  "Small?" Alfried shook his head with a sigh. "That's a gold mine!"

  "Two months ago, a traveling merchant brought two sets of porcelain dishes to the Holy City. He claimed they were sacred vessels kissed by angels, forged from pearls and moonlight. The bishops competed to outbid each other—one plate sold for a hundred gold coins."

  "Even His Holiness the Pope couldn't resist. He sent someone to buy a set from that merchant."

  Alfried's gaze deepened as he looked at Luo Wei. "Child, can you solve this mystery for me? Are these plates really forged from pearls and moonlight?"

  Forged from pearls and moonlight?

  Even Luo Wei, who came from the modern world, had to admire that merchant's storytelling skills.

  She picked up her wine glass and took a small sip, using the moment to think quickly.

  Escore sold plain porcelain plates for one gold coin each. That merchant had marked them up a hundred times. Bold move—he wasn't afraid of choking on his profits.

  Now Alfried was asking about the porcelain's price. Should she tell him that the plates they bought for a hundred gold coins were actually worth only one?

  If she said that, it wouldn't just ruin someone's business.

  The traveling merchants were partners with Escore. When that southern merchant Tim came to buy inventory, Luo Wei had told him the plates were priced at one gold coin each and wouldn't be discounted—whatever price he could sell them for was up to his skill.

  Rare things are valuable. If porcelain plates could sell for a hundred gold coins, that meant they were currently worth that market price.

  The high-priced plates were already sold. The buyers didn't lack gold coins—they only cared whether the plates' rarity justified the price.

  If the porcelain wasn't worth that price and made the Church look foolish, they wouldn't care who the middleman was. They'd come straight to her, the source.

  Rather than that, she should control the white porcelain production herself and confirm its scarcity.

  Then people who couldn't buy white porcelain would naturally come to her.

  After thinking it through, she set down her wine glass and spoke slowly.

  "The plates do contain the main component of pearls. This component enhances the porcelain's luster and translucency."

  Pearls were mainly calcium carbonate, and calcite—a calcium carbonate mineral—was used in firing ceramics. She wasn't exactly lying.

  "During production, the porcelain must rest under moonlight for several days to complete its transformation. The success rate is extremely low—out of a thousand pieces, fewer than ten transform perfectly."

  Traditional kilns burned for three days and nights regularly. Those ceramics really did spend two or three nights in the kiln inside the moonlit factory building. That counted as indirect moonlight exposure.

  She'd exaggerated the success rate a tiny bit. With her improved kilns enhanced by magic runes, the success rate for white porcelain was around forty percent—not nearly as low as she claimed.

  But Alfried didn't know that. As long as she didn't make it too outrageous, how would he know she was lying?

  To make the lie more convincing, Luo Wei added: "White porcelain is sacred. I never intended to sell it at high prices. Those with fate can obtain it cheaply—it all depends on destiny."

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  This meant she'd need to recall the white porcelain from merchant Tim, or just destroy it.

  Fortunately, she hadn't sold much porcelain. Troy was busy with other matters and couldn't mine alone. The porcelain factory lacked raw materials and had low production efficiency.

  So far, she'd only sold two sets to Princess Lilith, one set to the Siria City Lord, and various cups and dishes ordered by noble students at the academy—maybe a dozen sets total.

  Of the thousand porcelain sets contracted to merchant Tim, only two hundred had been shipped due to packaging and transport difficulties. The rest were still stored at the factory.

  Between his life and gold coins, he should know which to choose.

  For Luo Wei, after reducing white porcelain production, she could make colored porcelain with slightly lower glaze quality to sell to minor nobles as mid-range goods. It wouldn't hurt the factory's business.

  After listening, Alfried sighed. "Decorated with pearls, transformed by moonlight—truly precious objects. I wonder who could be fated to own such treasures?"

  Luo Wei smiled lightly. "Those who know me are fated. If Your Highness likes them, I have a set I was planning to use myself. I can give it to you."

  She expected Alfried to decline, but surprisingly, he accepted with obvious pleasure. "Good, then I thank you."

  Luo Wei was genuinely surprised. Had he brought up the porcelain not to threaten her, but because he actually liked it?

  She guessed right—Alfried really did love these things.

  Strange, really. He had rooms full of gold and silver, which bored him eventually. But this porcelain—white as mutton fat, smooth and delicate—he couldn't put it down.

  The Western Continent had never had such objects. Even if they existed, they couldn't have originated from poor, backward Siria.

  Luo Wei came from the Misty Plains, and the porcelain appeared right after she arrived in Siria. He reasonably suspected the dessert shop selling porcelain was connected to her.

  He hadn't expected that when he tested her with a casual mention, she'd not only admit it freely but offer him a set of white porcelain.

  The Misty Plains princess had rare generosity. Perhaps only a powerful, prosperous nation could nurture such magnanimity.

  Some in the Church still doubted this princess's origins, but Alfried thought her identity was beyond question. Western nobles didn't have the skill to make white porcelain, and the Holy Knight Commander had already verified her identity. What was there to doubt?

  The more powerful Luo Wei's background appeared, the more interested Alfried became.

  Seeing that Luo Wei had barely touched her food, he asked with concern, "Is the meal not to your taste?"

  "The texture and flavor are... a bit lacking," Luo Wei set down her fork and replied gently. "But this is already the best Western meal I've had."

  She hadn't touched the rabbit meat at all—she really couldn't stomach slippery rabbit fetus meat. She'd only eaten one slice of bread and two small pieces of fish.

  Alfried also set down his fork. "The best Western meal, but not the best meal. Are the foods of the Misty Plains even more delicious than these?"

  Luo Wei's tone was casual, but her expression held hidden pride. "The Misty Plains produces abundant spices. We have many culinary capitals—almost everyone is a gourmet."

  Alfried yearned for the scene she described. "What a magical place. The people there must live carefree, as if in paradise?"

  "Worries exist everywhere," Luo Wei sighed. "All people have troubles. I'm a princess, yet I'm stranded in a foreign land—what about common people?"

  Alfried agreed. "The mortal world is full of suffering. No one can escape their bonds. What difference is there between commoners and nobles?"

  They spoke in low voices, sighing deeply. Anyone watching might think they were kindred spirits meeting late in life—an old man and young woman bonding across generations. In reality, two foxes were sparring.

  Luo Wei was waiting—waiting for Alfried to reveal his purpose for this banquet first, to avoid being completely controlled in the negotiation.

  Alfried was also waiting—waiting for her to ask for his help first, so he could make demands based on how desperate she was.

  They probed each other, hinting indirectly, appearing relaxed while their hearts burned with anxiety.

  Whoever spoke first, whoever could sit still longer—it depended on who needed the other more urgently.

  From Luo Wei's perspective, the war at Gelu City had nothing to do with her. She only wanted the magic stone mine, and her purpose for the mine was to create a long-distance teleportation array to the Misty Plains.

  Even without the magic stone mine, she could still draw a long-distance array—it would just take a few years. She could afford to wait.

  Now look at Alfried. By inviting her to this banquet, he'd already made the first active move. His status and the information he possessed put him in the stronger position.

  Such people actually relaxed first in negotiations, because whether he spoke first or second didn't make much difference to the benefits he'd gain. For him, time was most precious.

  The barefoot aren't afraid of the shod. The Church prince would definitely consider this.

  Luo Wei was very patient. She believed Alfried would back down—unless he really wanted to kill her.

  Their conversation had stopped at some point. Silence blanketed the banquet hall.

  Bruce and Antoine, standing behind them, slowed their breathing. The oppressive atmosphere was suffocating.

  The intense fragrance of melting aromatic resin saturated their clothes and hair. The invisible air grew heavy and dense, as if pressing down hard on their shoulders.

  In the flickering candlelight, Alfried gazed quietly at Luo Wei. In his eyes, dark as the deep sea, light and shadow intertwined as surging waves silently swallowed the suffocating reflection.

  After a long moment, he laughed softly.

  "Interesting, interesting. I haven't met such a stubborn child in ages."

  He seemed to find something amusing. Fine lines appeared at the corners of his eyes, and shallow creases formed on his smooth, pale forehead. Ripples danced in his dark blue eyes.

  "We both prefer quiet. Today's banquet lacks laughter and cheer—it's rather lonely! Don't you think, Luo Wei?"

  Luo Wei smiled. "Your Highness prefers quiet, so naturally the banquet should suit your taste. Don't worry about my feelings."

  Alfried's smile was ambiguous. "But today I prefer liveliness."

  "Really?" Luo Wei looked at the dishes on the table. "I thought Your Highness only prepared lunch for two because you already predicted I'd come alone."

  Alfried leaned back in his chair. "You hinted to Bruce yesterday that only you would attend today. Preparing more would be wasteful."

  Luo Wei smiled with pursed lips. "What waste? My friends are all gluttonous, poor commoners. They only eat and drink, useless for important matters. Give them this food and they'd fight over every scrap."

  Alfried: "If useless commoners can win repeatedly in the Magic Tournament, what would useful commoners do—overthrow the Church?"

  Luo Wei grew serious. "I don't know what Your Highness means by that. My friends may be commoners, but they're honest, law-abiding commoners. They have absolutely no disloyalty toward the Church."

  Alfried looked at her with deep eyes, then turned his head to order: "Bruce, Antoine, go outside and stand guard. Don't let anyone in."

  "Yes, Your Highness!"

  The two knights gripped their swords and strode out.

  The door closed. The air inside grew even more stagnant.

  "Honest? Law-abiding?" Alfried sat in the main seat, speaking leisurely. "Those words don't seem to apply to your friends. Beastmen and demons are cruel and bloodthirsty. For thousands of years, they've been humanity's mortal enemies."

  "Luo Wei, your friends will only drag you down."

  Luo Wei frowned. "Is Your Highness mistaken? My friends are all ordinary people. How could they be beastmen and demons?"

  Alfried: "Ordinary people? A sea giant, a lich, a cat beastman, a dragon of despair—which one is ordinary?"

  Luo Wei's heart sank. She hadn't expected him to even know Hessel's identity. How did he find out?

  She calmed herself and asked Alfried: "If Your Highness believes they're beastmen and demons, why not send people to arrest them?"

  Alfried spoke with pity. "Just as you don't want to lose your friends, I don't want to deprive innocent people of freedom. If they haven't done anything wrong, I think I should show them tolerance."

  "Tolerance toward beastmen and demons?" Luo Wei looked skeptical. "Your Church has always hunted them, hasn't it?"

  "You said it yourself—the Church hunts them, not me," Alfried said calmly. "Unlike the Church, I sympathize with their plight."

  "Beastmen and demons are all victims of the gods' wars. Like humans, they have good and bad among them. I don't agree with wiping them all out, but unfortunately I have little influence in the Church. Not many people trust my words."

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  patreon.com/BZDXG - Unlock a HUGE stash of advance chapters now!

  Dive deeper into the story ahead of everyone else!