The Herb King

"We will take our leave now. Next time, just visit my mansion. It's such a hassle to go here. I'm a busy person you know." Aethelwolf said in a joking manner.

Jade Kristine smiled lightly at his words. "Yes, Sir Aethelwolf. I'll come by your mansion every now and then for my lessons. I'm sorry for troubling you." She said.

Aethelwolf chuckled and shook his head. He then carried the sleeping Olivia in his embrace.

"I'll see you guys out." Jade Kristine offered. She then led Aethelwolf and Johann out of the mansion.

"Goodbye, Jade." Aethelwolf smiled at her and walked away.

"Goodbye, Miss Jade." Johann also bid farewell before leaving.

Jade Kristine watched their departing figures with an absentminded look. "Did he just call me by my name?" She muttered to herself. That guy was probably younger than her based on his looks, but he acts as if he was the older one.

Thinking about this, the corners of her mouth rose upward.

***

"Sir Aethelwolf, I heard that Supreme Director Karman has already appointed an Administrator as his successor. From the looks of it, Miss Jade is hiding her abilities because of that matter. The Supreme Director might cause her trouble if he finds out her true abilities." Johann sighed and shook his head. He was also a major figure in the field of Alchemy in the Leone Empire so he has some people in the Alchemy Tower.

Aethelwolf gently rubbed the head of Olivia as he muttered in a cold tone. "Jade Kristine is now my student. I won't allow anyone to harm her even if he is someone from the Imperial Family!"

Karman Leone is the uncle of the current emperor. He has full authority over the Alchemy Tower and he controls more than 20% of the pill market in the entire Leone Empire!

Johann felt a chill when he heard his words. He thought that this young man was just a talented and hardworking Alchemist, but he sometimes gave off the aura of a prehistoric beast. "Are you planning to let her take the Supreme Director's position?" He asked while looking at the young man's side profile.

Aethelwolf turned his head at Johann and smiled mysteriously. "Perhaps..." He muttered.

Johann looked at him speechlessly. 'Does he plan to openly go against Karman?!'

Karman Leone is a member of the Leone Imperial Family and the emperor would surely take the old man's side. It would be unwise to make enemies with him.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot. Have you refined the next batch of pills for the clinic?" Aethelwolf asked.

Johann nodded his head and answered. "Yes, Sir Aethelwolf. I have already started refining them and I would probably complete the quota in five days." Aethelwolf has already given him the pill recipes of the pills they sell in the clinic. They were only 2nd-Grade Pills and it wasn't difficult to make them. Besides, the recipe that Aethelwolf gave him was very detailed so it was impossible for him to fail in making them.

"That's good. You can let your people do the menial process, but you must not teach the core steps of those pill recipes." Aethelwolf warned him. He trusted Johann, but there might be some spies from other households among his subordinates.

"Don't worry, Sir Aethelwolf." Johann nodded his head.

"Just endure it for now. Once I have a full grasp of Jade Kristine's personality, I will let her help you with this task." Aethelwolf smiled at the old man.

Johann laughed at his words.

Soon, Aethelwolf dropped Johann off at his mansion and he returned home after that.

"Greetings, Sir Aethelwolf." Hyacinth and Rendell greeted him.

"Oh, you guys are already here?" Aethelwolf stared at them in surprise. He sent Hyacinth to their clothing shop to give the contracts of the new employees and he sent Rendell to buy the surrounding land outside their mansion.

"Sir Aethelwolf, I talked with the land owners and I managed to convince them to sell their land to us. I came back to get your go signal." Rendell said as he took out a piece of paper. He then handed it to Aethelwolf and said. "This is the total amount of money we need to purchase everything. I've already calculated it. Please check it."

Aethelwolf scanned the contents of the paper.

Rendell stared at him nervously. He worked hard in convincing those obnoxious landowners, but the final decision was still in Aethelwolf's hands. He knew that his boss was planning to expand their territory because of the growth of the Lassiter Household. If this deal goes through successfully, it would be a huge brownie point for him.

Aethelwolf returned the paper to Rendell and nodded his head. "Not bad. I thought it would take you more than three days to convince those landowners. It seems like I have underestimated your negotiating skills. Go to Sir Anton Lassiter and ask for the money from him." He patted Rendell's shoulder and said. "Good job."

Rendell smiled dumbly at his words. He then scratched his head in embarrassment. "Thank you for trusting me, Sir Aethelwolf. I will get this task done before this day ends." He said before he walked away.

Aethelwolf then turned his head at Hyacinth. "How was your trip to the clothing shop?" He asked.

Hyacinth handed him a folder and said. "This is the signed contract of our new employees. They were happy after they heard of your generous offer." She could still remember the joyous smiles of their new employees as they signed their contracts.

"What about the designs I gave you? Have you sent them to our seamstresses?" Aethelwolf stared at her.

Hyacinth nodded her head. "The designs you made were amazing! Our seamstresses said that they haven't seen such beautiful clothes. They are full of praises for you." She smiled as she reported. Truthfully, she was also amazed by the designs he made. She believed that those clothes would soon become a trend in the Leone Empire.

"Good. Tell them to print the brand name on every clothes they make. The prints must have the unique seal of our clothing shop to prevent fakes from popping up." Aethelwolf also suggested the name of the clothing shop as well as the logo they would use to print on their clothes. It was a technique used by the major corporations in his past life to increase the value of their products. It was called branding.

"Yes, Sir Aethelwolf. I have already informed them about that. I will monitor the printing of our brand name to make sure that nothing goes wrong. I will send some of our people to observe our seamstresses. Some noble households might try to poach them to get hold of our designs." Hyacinth was worried about this. It was only a matter of time before the others would learn how to make their clothes. By then, they would have to share the market with those people.

Aethelwolf chuckled when he heard her words. "You don't have to worry about that. We are not just selling clothes, Hyacinth. What our clothing shop sells is its brand." He said before leaving her.

"Brand?" Hyacinth pondered upon his words and a look of realization dawned on her after some time. She couldn't help but look at Aethelwolf's back with admiration. Other than being a high level Alchemist, her boss was also a genius businessman! Perhaps even Brian Linaza couldn't hold a candle to him.

She finally understood why Aethelwolf emphasized the importance of their brand name.

Other people would soon copy their designs, but they wouldn't be able to copy their brand name since it would infringe on their rights. Once they build the image of their brand to the market, the people would prioritize their products over other shops.

"How did Sir Aethelwolf think of all these marvelous ideas?" Hyacinth muttered to herself.

***

Aethelwolf gently laid Olivia down on his bed. The girl was still sound asleep and she didn't even wake up from the rough ride in the carriage. She was even drooling in her sleep.

Aethelwolf stared at her face and affectionately caressed her cheeks. He never would have thought that taking care of a child was actually so heartwarming and fun. He enjoyed her company and he felt strangely attached to this little girl. Was it his 'old man soul' acting up? He had no idea.

Suddenly, Olivia woke up from her sleep. She rubbed the drool coming out of her mouth and stared at Aethelwolf with squinting eyes. "I want the shake that I had for breakfast." She muttered.

Aethelwolf chuckled and pinched her cheeks. "Is that so?"

Olivia sat up while rubbing her sleepy eyes. She then nodded her head. "Mn."

"Alright. Let's go down and tell the servants to make that shake for you." Aethelwolf rubbed her head gently.

"Okay." Olivia said. She then extended her arms as if telling him to lift her.

Seeing this, Aethelwolf smiled gently. "Let's go." He said as he carried the little girl.