"Your father is a brave and fearless noble, and your Ross family's 'Blood Rose' Divine Chosen has left legendary tales in the empire." Simon Mapleleaf uttered some polite words, though in reality, the two had no connection whatsoever.
Moreover, the old earl's first Divine Chosen had died long ago, in the war against the elves. Simon Mapleleaf declared loudly, "I greatly admire his valor and hope to meet him one day."
Simon Mapleleaf was a short, plump man with extremely pale skin, his face covered in freckles and lumps. He lay in the arms of two naked maids. After speaking, he pursed his lips to suck the cherry from a maid's hand, chewed it leisurely, then with a 'pui' sound, spat out the pit along with saliva onto the maid's snow-white skin.
The maids showed no displeasure; instead, they kept giggling coquettishly.
It was truly decadent, but Phield wasn't surprised—many nobles were like this. After all, from childhood, they got whatever they wanted, raising their pleasure threshold so high that to feel joy, they needed even more stimulation.
As long as it didn't involve him, Phield didn't care.
At Simon Mapleleaf's gesture, Phield sat down in a chair and politely replied: "You are the most skilled noble I've seen at managing a territory. The prosperity of Maple Leaf City is unprecedented to me."
"Haha, I like your honesty."
The two upheld the noble spirit, exchanging pleasantries for quite a while.
"Seriously, Phield, you've inherited your family's bravery and wisdom. Not many can venture into the cursed lands and come out unscathed." Simon Mapleleaf struggled to sit up, waving his hand to dismiss the maids, signaling the end of small talk. He stood up.
"Let's go to the reception room to discuss.
Since you're not interested in these mediocre powders and rouges, forget it. Perhaps you'd like elves or mermaids—heh heh, unfortunately, I don't have any on hand right now. The previous batch was turned into dishes and bought by other nobles."
Phield felt a wave of nausea but maintained a blank expression: "You even have mermaids?"
"Of course. Next time, I'll take you to an interesting underground banquet—guaranteed to satisfy all your fetishes." Simon Mapleleaf raised his eyebrows with a wicked grin.
"Haha, as expected of Baron Maple Leaf." Phield laughed heartily. He had no interest in underground banquets, but as the seller, he naturally had to flatter him a bit. Then, Phield sighed in a tone of relief: "Making it out of Nightfall Domain was thanks to my soldiers and the goddess's blessing. I'm surprised myself that I survived—it seems luck is on my side for now."
Simon Mapleleaf clapped in admiration: "I love dealing with lucky people."
Arriving at the luxuriously decorated reception room, Phield's goods had already been inspected and delivered to the manor. From the room, they could see the sherry barrels outside the door.
"What are these?"
"Sam, bring out the monster for Baron Mapleleaf to see."
Phield didn't rush to sell but had the guard bring in a skull—the head of the mutated rat from the grand winery. The head alone was as large as a young man's body, with horns and sharp teeth, like a demon from the region, baring a ferocious sneer.
"This is the first transcendent monster I encountered in Nightfall Domain, a corrupted giant rat demon. Its fur burned with purple demonic flames, its claws could easily tear through thick scale armor, and with one spit from its mouth, it would unleash a banshee's wail. My vanguard troop was burned to death by its demonic flames in a single encounter—seven men! Damn it, those were knights meticulously trained by the Ross family, reduced to piles of charcoal in the end."
"Hiss~"
Simon Mapleleaf drew in a sharp breath, rubbing his chin: "Maple Leaf Fortress has never encountered rat demon attacks; they look truly dangerous."
Nobles didn't care for facts; they valued prestige and flair more.
Phield lifted the skull, showing a lingering fear expression, fabricating a fairy tale story: "This monster came and went freely in my team, invincible under its sharp claws—there was no way to counter it. Can you understand that kind of despair? I could only pray for a miracle."
Simon Mapleleaf nodded: "Like eating all the honey but having no stock left—that kind of despair."
"At the critical moment of life and death, the goddess responded to me—a bolt of lightning carrying divine might struck this damned beast on the head. Only then did my knights find the opportunity to slay it."
"Thank the goddess!" Simon Mapleleaf listened with his mouth agape, tracing the prayer symbol of the God of Love on his chest, saying with lingering fear, "The northern province is synonymous with hell. The church and royal family have launched multiple expeditions without success. For you to come back alive from there is a miracle in itself."
"Yes, but for the empire's peace and precious treasures, I'm happy to take risks." Phield shrugged, tugging at his collar to dissipate heat. "Especially precious treasures, like the out-of-print fine wine that's been extinct for ten years—black pearl wine. This greedy rat demon was a discerning clever monster, guarding the wine treasures fiercely."
"Oh my god, what did I just hear? Black pearl wine? The one from ten years ago, exclusive to royal banquets?" Simon Mapleleaf's eyes lit up: "Quick, let me see those out-of-print fine wines; I can't wait."
Nobles had no resistance to precious things.
Although Phield hadn't found obtaining the wine particularly difficult, as long as he made others understand the difficulty involved, the wine's price would soar, and its prestige would rise significantly.
Prying open the barrel lid, the rich aroma of wine filled the room. Simon Mapleleaf eagerly tasted it, then showed an intoxicated expression: "This is the taste. You know, my father treasured a bottle and only let me have a cup on his birthday last year! The velvety smooth mouthfeel—I bet my father would be jealous to death of me."
Phield smiled: "Of course, noble beauties need to rely on noble aristocrats; noble fine wines need noble people to taste them."
Even modern people shopping prefer to buy a product with a 'story,' like the simplest: Family, I'm giving you a welfare—goods originally worth nine billion, I forced the boss at knifepoint to discount, now only nine bucks, aren't you grabbing it?
"I feel like I've found a kindred spirit; I'll buy these precious wines." Simon Mapleleaf admitted without hesitation, then called a servant over and whispered a few words. "Wait a moment, Baron Phield; I need to discuss the price with my advisor. This isn't a small deal."
"Please do."
After a brief discussion, Simon Mapleleaf offered 500 gold coins per barrel.
It was exactly Phield's startup capital for going to Nightfall Domain.
Typically, the wine nobles drink is priced at 25 copper coins per cup, so an ordinary wine's full barrel price is about 26 gold coins and 41 silver coins.
But this time, he made a huge profit!