Because of the manuscript, Silas and Sophia were brought before a throne woven from pea vines.
Calling it a throne was a bit of a stretch, it looked more like a comfortable hammock.
It sat slightly above their line of sight, allowing Silas to see only what was above the black boots.
A white cake-style dress with a very girlish flair hung naturally down, concealing the legs.
An odd pairing, yet surprisingly harmonious.
Silas thought to himself.
He didn't raise his head to look at the boot owner's face. Instead, he kept his gaze level, waiting for the other party to speak first.
He could feel eyes scanning down from above, lingering on him for a moment.
That gaze seemed to pierce through his body, seeing straight to his deepest core.
"Hmm?"
After studying him for a moment, the other party suddenly let out a soft sound of surprise. "A lucid Beyonder on the Secrets Suppliant pathway?"
She found out!
How did she figure it out!
Silas's heart suddenly tightened, and he almost jumped. But immediately, he summoned the illusory tide to protect his consciousness, which quickly restored his calm.
All of this happened in a very short time. To Sophia's eyes, he only swayed slightly.
Even after having his Sequence exposed, he showed no overreaction.
"Oh right, they said you were a 'Shepherd'!"
Sophia seemed to remember something. "And they called you 'Mr. A.'"
"I'm not Mr. A."
Silas immediately refuted.
Because the moment she said that name, the gaze from above seemed to become quite hostile.
If he didn't explain, who knew what might happen to him. "I don't believe in the True Creator. That guy is just a lunatic who spouts nonsense."
Same as always, straightforward disparagement of the True Creator, quickly and forcefully proving he wasn't one of His followers.
"...A lucid Shepherd who's reached Sequence 5?"
From atop the throne, the Queen's voice carried curiosity.
"How rare. Counting you, I've only seen two people lucky enough to manage this... How did you do it?"
"Well, that's, because of certain accidents."
Silas gave a dry laugh, not planning to explain.
"You don't want to say? Understandable."
The lady on the throne said lightly.
Though she knew Silas was concealing something, she didn't use her authority to force him to speak.
Everyone fell silent for a moment. The atmosphere became very quiet, so quiet that one couldn't even breathe loudly.
"By the way, Your Majesty, we came to present the manuscript you requested."
Sophia hastily broke the silence, taking the initiative to step forward.
She turned back, signaling Silas to take out the item.
An invisible servant floated over, received the manuscript from Silas's hands, and respectfully presented it before the Queen.
Silas watched as the manuscript floated up from the servant's hands, standing upright in the air, spread out in order, allowing the other party to examine it.
The Queen quickly browsed through the manuscript, murmuring numbers and formulas under her breath in a low voice, seemingly confirming the manuscript's authenticity.
She can actually understand this stuff...
Silas thought. Well, of course. There might be people who would forge manuscripts to deceive her, if anyone had the nerve.
"That's right, this is indeed Hermosiuin's manuscript."
She confirmed.
At this moment, Silas could feel a relaxed sigh from Sophia beside him.
The manuscript pages were collected one by one, received by the invisible servant, and taken away directly.
It seemed the Queen was determined to have this transaction.
"I'll pay 5,000 pounds, or the corresponding price in Beyonder materials, or I can help you solve some troubles."
She said.
5,000 pounds!
Silas was momentarily stunned by this enormous figure. Even if he and Sophia split it 70-30, he could still get 3,500 pounds.
This was a fortune, enough for an ordinary person to live luxuriously in Bakerland for a lifetime.
Even if he didn't take the money and exchanged it for other corresponding items, it would be equivalent to a Sequence 6 Beyonder item!
Silas was still thinking about what to exchange for when he saw the red-haired girl beside him excitedly step forward.
"Your Majesty, I want the Hunter pathway Sequence 7 and Sequence 6 potion formulas.
If there are corresponding main potion ingredients, that would be even better!"
She said excitedly.
Hmm?
Silas couldn't help but glance at her.
She actually wants those things?
From Sophia's numerous Beyonder items and the temperament revealed in her words and actions, she should be a descendant of an established Beyonder family.
How could someone like that possibly lack these low-Sequence potion formulas and materials?
"According to market prices, the Sequence 7 potion formula is 800 pounds, Sequence 6 is 1,500 pounds.
The corresponding main potion ingredients are 600 pounds and 1,500 pounds each."
The Queen said.
There are two main potion ingredients in total, which meant getting everything would cost 1,200 pounds and 3,000 pounds respectively.
Hearing such expensive prices for the potions, Sophia, who had been excited just moments ago, suddenly froze.
After a few seconds, she looked at Silas beside her with some resentment, her eyes roughly meaning, "If it weren't for you, I could have taken all of this."
Silas smiled noncommittally. "Just sell any one of the Beyonder items on you and it would be enough."
"I won't sell!"
She said huffily, turning her head away from him.
"Aren't you two together?"
The Queen asked.
So Silas briefly explained that the manuscript was obtained by the two of them together, and they had agreed on a 70-30 split.
According to the contract, Sophia could get 30% of 5,000 pounds, which was 1,500 pounds, only enough to buy two Sequence 7 main ingredients, or the Sequence 6 potion formula.
"Your Majesty, I'm willing to pay an additional 500 pounds. Together with my 1,500 pounds, that's 2,000 pounds total, in exchange for the complete Hunter pathway Sequence 7 potion formula and Beyonder materials."
Sophia said, seemingly having made up her mind.
"Acceptable."
The owner of the black boots gave brief instructions, and an invisible servant came forward to lead her inside to retrieve the corresponding items.
"What about you? What do you want? Money, Beyonder items, or some help?"
After sending Sophia away, the Queen asked Silas.
Silas thought for a moment.
Money?
As for money, he wasn't particularly short on it at the moment.
Silas had received several hundred pounds from that noble lady last time, which was enough for living expenses.
Additionally, he estimated he would be stuck at Sequence 5 for quite a long time and had no immediate need to purchase Sequence 4 potions.
Currently, his main problems were two: one was his mental state, the other was Lanevus.
The former kept him in a semi-mad state, while the latter carried an evil god's offspring and surely harbored deep hatred for Silas, who had caused him to become this way.
Among them, the most urgent to solve was the mental problem.
But how trustworthy was this Queen?
If he asked her to help solve his mental problems, she would inevitably peer into his mind and might discover his special nature... If she discovered his uniqueness and took the opportunity to seize it, would he have any way to resist?
Silas hesitated.
He'd been tricked once already, so caution was natural.
Maybe he should choose a Beyonder item instead.
3,500 pounds would roughly correspond to a Sequence 6 level item, not particularly strong but not weak either... Wait a minute.
Suddenly, inspiration struck and he had an idea.
Right! He wondered if there were Beyonder items that could treat mental conditions. That way, he could heal himself while avoiding direct exposure.
"Your Majesty, I hope to obtain a Beyonder item from the Spectator pathway."
Silas spoke.
"Are you trying to treat your mental condition?"
Without a second thought, the Queen asked directly.