Galaxy's First Ruler

"Who… Who…"

Aldrich had been contemplating Meuric's scars since the first time he saw him. He didn't wonder about their authenticity, but their origin. As Aldrich used the horrifying Skill, HELL RESONANCE, to just say simple words, Meuric hooted like an owl.

Meuric's face was bloody, his size was enormous, but that didn't save him from getting the fear of the unknown. The words that had almost echoed in his mind seemed to have come out of nowhere. There was no one around him, and in this search of making some sense out of these words, the young boy forgot to scream he was holding for long.

Aldrich saw the intended effect taking place, and he again spoke out using his Rumok.

"To your right…"

Meuric snapped his head and finally saw Aldrich standing in the same place, and with the same posture as before. But soon his eyes again became teary, and the teen bawled his eyes out.

"Mr. Tudor… Sniff! Sniffff!!! Mr. Tudor, you died, too?!! I am sorryyy…. Sniff! I am so sorry…"

Meuric kept rubbing his eyes with his left hand, and tears and snot came out of his eyes and nose. Aldrich was about to say something, but the overgrown boy didn't seem to stop yet.

"… Sniff! Father said to be fearless, big brother said to slam heads of the nobles, and big sis said to not speak like my usual self… Sniff! And now… Now, I am dead. Sniff! Oh, mother! She will miss me. Sniff! And I caused Mr. Tudor's death, along with mine. Mr. Tudor is so humble even after dying. Sniff!!!…"

Sigh!

Aldrich let out a sigh, seeing Meuric's non stop blabbering. It seemed Aldrich had caught a chatty one this time. Not caring for anything, and not even the pain, Meuric kept muttering about his family, and the girl that he liked, but he couldn't confess to.

Aldrich shook his head inwardly and again used Rumok to speak out.

"OK, that's enough. Look around, kid. You are not dead."

"Huh?!!!"

Meuric let out an astonished grunt and scanned his environment. Aldrich saw him looking around, and then finally his eyes landed on his broken fingers. But the young boy didn't let out any scream. Aldrich nodded his head as he realized that his warning was still in Meuric's head, despite the outburst of emotions.

"I am not dead… I am not… Hahaha!!! Father will be so proud of me. I finally killed a Rare Ranked Beast in one punch. Haha!!! But how are you speaking, Mr. Tudor? Oh! You must have used some sound-based Skill. Hmm, Hmm. And why are you standing there? Oh, you can't move because of some reason. Hmm, Hmm…"

Aldrich almost narrowed his eyes, as Meuric, who looked like a simple brute, kept bringing out theories after theories. Although they weren't the entire truth, for Meuric to even come close to the reasoning behind Aldrich's actions was a feat on its own.

'It seems Siwan was right. All those who had come here on recommendation are cream of the crop. Then…'

Aldrich kept formulating plans after plans to accommodate this high IQ of others. He slightly nodded at Meuric, accepting that he had used a sound-based Skill and the reason for his stalled movement. He took out a Rare Ranked HP potion out of his Count level FIR and threw it at Meuric when he wasn't looking at him.

Potions didn't have rank, per se. But they were divided based on the effects they could bring in Dreamers. A Rare HP Potion could heal non-fatal injuries of almost all kinds on a Common Ranked Dreamer. And its effect dropped with the rise of every level in Rare Rank. The good point about them was they were artificial and could be mass-produced.

The potions as a reward in Dungeons were highly rare. When they appeared, it would be like a one in a million chance for the Dreamer. One could get an idea of their effectiveness from the only potion Aldrich had got so far from a raid, the Hurt-Burn Venom.

For Ranks below Viscount, this Potion could decide life and death. And not all were fortunate enough, like Aldrich, to not have any fear of dying. If a Dreamer was to get this potion, and the news was to spread around, it could easily result in a bloodbath.

As the HP potion landed on Meuric's lap, the teen stared at it for a full minute. Little by little, his eyes widened, and his mouth opened up in shock.

"A RARE HP POTION… OH, MOTHER MANA!!!"

Meuric lifted the vial, containing deep red liquid, and looked at it from different angles.

"Wow… It isn't bad… There are impurities, but for a Common Dreamer it's more than enough…"

Aldrich didn't stop Meuric from jabbering out words after words. It didn't take Aldrich long to find out from Meuric's unrestrained sentences that this young boy had some skills in the subject of Potioneering. Meuric, unaware of Aldrich's half-closed devilish eyes, didn't stop until he was out of breath. But instead of pouring this potion into his belly, he looked at Aldrich with a puzzled gaze.

"Even my family can't afford more than a few of these. Mr. Tudor, I didn't know you were so rich. But then why are you so weak? Tch! Tch! Don't worry, Mr. Tudor, I will protect you. You can count on me. I promise! And we Boids never back out from our promises. You…"

Gulp! Gulp!

Cough!!!

Meuric didn't even stop talking before emptying the potion in his mouth, making him let out a dry cough.

Cr-crack!!!

The young boy gritted his teeth, and one by one brought his broken fingers in their original shape. The potion took care of the rest. In less than two minutes, his right hand became as it was before.

Invigorated by the potion, Meuric jumped to his feet. But there was still a lethargy in his actions. Aldrich wanted to just give a hint of his resourcefulness to Meuric. That's why he didn't give him the SP potion along with the HP one.

Aldrich saw Meuric approaching him step by step. With every step, his face kept becoming ruthless, and by the time he towered over Aldrich, the young boy had lost all the hints of tears.

He again extended his hand out for a handshake and called out.

"I am Meuric Boid. A 26-year-old Potion Crafter, and the Galaxy's future Potion God."