Holan's sudden voice startled Geoffrey and the others, making them shudder slightly as they all turned to look at her.

  Holan strode forward with her long legs, stopping in front of Caius and pointing at the bloodstained sack. "Is this really a Wolf Demon?!"

  "A Wolf Demon from the Bloody Lands?"

  "Mhm." Caius nodded, his eyes lighting up as he revealed a simple, honest smile. "Are you interested?"

  "Interested? Very interested!" Holan immediately responded, her face full of excitement.

  Her current research project was focused on the Bloody Lands and the Bloody Creatures within them.

  She needed samples of Bloody Creatures to experiment on and develop highly targeted magic potions.

  Hunting Bloody Creatures wasn't difficult, but the problem was their scarcity in this region. The nearest Bloody Lands were over a thousand kilometers away from Grilla City, making it nearly impossible for such creatures to appear nearby.

  There wasn’t enough time to send someone on a distant hunt, so she could only ask around and search the markets and black markets of neighboring cities for any Bloody Creature corpses for sale.

  So far, she had only managed to acquire a few Bloodfish corpses, but that was far from enough.

  Her competitor, another magical research team, had somehow gotten their hands on a Bloodeye.

  The stronger the Bloody Creature, the more effective the potions created from them.

  If she failed to outperform her rival this time, the academy’s funding would ultimately go to the other research team instead.

  That would make things incredibly difficult for her.

  Not only would many of her projects be forced to shut down due to a lack of funds, but she and her team would also have to endure the mockery of the rival team.

  The path of magical research was already difficult enough. If things continued like this, whether her research team could even survive was uncertain.

  Most likely, they would end up disbanding due to a lack of progress.

  After all, magical research burned through money, and the academy wasn’t going to fund an extra team that wasn't delivering results.

  Holan herself could manage, but some of the younger members in her team relied on the research funding to get by. If the team disbanded, they would be in serious trouble.

  But now, a large sack of fresh Wolf Demon remains was right in front of her—it was practically her lifeline!

  With a Wolf Demon sample, she was confident she could develop an even more effective blood-targeting magic potion!

  By then, the one crying would be that old bastard Callum! Hahaha!

  "Since you’re interested, how many Gold coins are you willing to pay?" Caius asked with a smile. That was the most important question to him.

  His words snapped Holan out of her fantasies, and she was about to respond immediately.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  But then, she thought about her research team's dwindling funds and hesitated.

  She could chip in some of her own money, but the problem was… she was broke.

  The extra funding she had applied for from her Clan hadn’t been approved yet, her salary as an instructor hadn’t been paid, and she had already spent a lot of her own money to purchase potions. Right now, she barely had anything left.

  Looking at Caius’s expectant expression, Holan gritted her teeth and said, "I'll offer… two thousand Gold coins!"

  The money she had left, combined with the research funds her team had remaining, totaled just over three thousand.

  Until she secured victory in the competition and received the academy’s funding, she still needed to keep the team running. Her team members needed to eat too, so… this was all she could afford.

  Under normal circumstances, the corpse of a Wolf Demon—something that usually required a high-rank Gold-tier warrior to take down—would easily sell for at least five thousand Gold coins.

  At any other time, she could have easily afforded it, but right now, she could only hope that Caius was clueless about market prices and would let her get a bargain.

  There was a good chance of that happening since the trade of Bloody Creatures wasn’t widespread yet. Many people hadn’t even seen one before.

  Unfortunately for Holan, while Caius didn’t know the exact market price, he was an expert at negotiation.

  Seeing Holan struggle to offer her price while looking at him with hopeful eyes, he immediately knew that this sack of mangled flesh was worth more than that. The only issue was that the beautiful instructor in front of him probably didn’t have enough money.

  So, he fell silent, not giving an immediate response.

  Holan’s heart skipped a beat.

  The longer Caius hesitated, the more anxious she became. And since they were in the academy, if her competitor, that old fox Callum, saw this, he would definitely bid against her.

  Callum had seniority and far more wealth than she did.

  After about three minutes of silence, Holan started to feel restless.

  If worst came to worst, she would just borrow money—no matter what, she had to get her hands on this Wolf Demon corpse.

  But just as she was about to speak, Caius suddenly raised a finger.

  "Fifteen hundred."

  Holan: "???"

  She had expected Caius to make an outrageous counteroffer, but she never thought he would voluntarily lower the price.

  Was he not trying to make a profit?

  But then, she saw the simple and honest smile on Caius’s face.

  It was clearly a sincere and straightforward smile, yet it somehow gave Holan the feeling of dealing with an old fox.

  "But there’s a condition," Caius added.

  Holan was momentarily stunned before instinctively stepping back with caution. "Tell me first. If it’s too much, I won’t agree."

  "Relax," Caius waved a hand. "I just want some information."

  What was the most valuable thing?

  In Caius’s opinion, intelligence was one of the most valuable commodities!

  There were dedicated information brokers in the wastelands, and some pieces of intel were worth terrifying amounts of money.

  Good intelligence could bring him greater benefits and help him avoid unnecessary losses and dangers.

  The Wolf Demon might sell for a higher price elsewhere, but Caius wasn’t looking for a one-time deal.

  "What kind of information?" Holan still remained vigilant. However, the next moment, she heard Caius ask—

  "What’s your favorite color?"

  Holan: "???"

  That’s it?

  Though surprised, she still answered, "Pur… Purple."

  Caius pursed his lips and nodded. "Figured."

  Holan: "…"

  What did that mean?

  Was she just… teased?

  But before she could think further, Caius continued, "There are three things I want to know."

  "First, what types of monsters exist in the Bloody Lands, their specific values, and how they can be monetized."

  "Including the Wolf Demon remains I have here."

  "Second, aside from being a student, what other legal and reasonable ways are there to enter Hydis Magic Academy?"

  "By 'enter,' I mean join—without being considered an outsider, and having the ability to move freely."

  Upon hearing this, Holan's lips parted slightly. "You… want to enter Hydis?"

  "Yes," Caius nodded without hesitation. "I’d like to experience it."

  "Experience? This isn’t a place for sightseeing," Holan said seriously, her tone now strict. "This is a sacred institution for training elite mages—only those truly eager to grow belong here."

  "I understand. That’s exactly why I’m asking. If I didn’t respect Hydis, would I bother emphasizing 'legal and reasonable'?" Caius lifted his chin slightly.

  Holan: "…"

  "Fine…" Holan nodded. "I’ll tell you what I know. What’s the third thing?"

  Caius: "Where’s the restroom?"

  Holan: "Wha… What?"

  She thought she misheard.

  Caius shrugged.

  "I just walked around and couldn’t find it. Now I really need to go. Urgent. Directions, please."

  Holan: "…"

  She was certain now.

  This big guy wasn’t the least bit simple or honest!