Lord of Rot

Becky looked down at the exquisite wooden box.

The wood wasn’t particularly precious, but the carving was excellent, and the surface was even decorated with Gemstone Shards.

The box alone probably cost several Silver Moon.

It was common sense that the product should be more expensive than its packaging. No one would use a gold box to hold a pile of horse manure.

She didn’t think Leech was lying, but the price probably wasn’t 30 Silver Moon. 25 Silver Moon at most.

This was the wisdom of ’Charming’: all men love to lie.

Besides, the price was reasonable. A scent like this would be far more popular with noble ladies than their current pungent perfumes, which could only partially mask body odor, and some of which could only be bought with Jinri.

Silver Moon. That would completely price out the low-to-mid-tier market. While the nobles of Iron Stone City were relatively wealthy, sales still wouldn’t be high. She could sell a dozen boxes at most.

One bar of soap looked like it would last a long time. The returns were too low.

But Becky completely misunderstood Leech’s sales strategy.

A high price? Of course the price had to be high for the nobility.

’They don’t want the best, they want the most expensive.’

Once Porcupine Brand built a reputation, he would create lower-grade soaps with simpler scents and plainer packaging. The minor nobles and small merchants who couldn’t afford the premium version would surely not miss the chance to buy them, gritting their teeth and paying up.

The nobility demanded to be a cut above, while the middle class yearned to chase the upper echelon.

He wanted it all: the high-end noble market and the low-price mass market.

’Cost? As long as production is high, the cost can be pushed down even further.’

Leech wanted to turn Porcupine Territory into a brand. He was worried some scholar would get their hands on the soap and decipher its secret. After all, the production method was a bit too simple, which was why branding was so important.

However, in this era, the brand effect wasn’t actually that strong. People had no concept of ”genuine products.”

Making ”Porcupine Brand” beloved by the nobility would yield greater future returns than just making soap beloved by them—assuming his plan succeeded.

”I can help you sell some in Iron Stone City,” Becky said. ”If you could lower the price a bit, my dear Leech.”

”Miss Becky,” Leech shook his head, his expression earnest. ”We’ve been cooperating for so long. I’m sure you know me well. We’re friends. A cost price of 30 Silver Moon is no joke. Besides, the production process is complicated and the raw materials are precious. No matter how much manpower we throw at it, we can’t increase production... 30 Silver Moon really is the cost price.”

”I could try recommending it to my friends. They’ll definitely love this scent,” Becky persisted, not giving up.

”How about... 29 Silver Moon and 15 copper stars?”

After saying this, he saw Becky’s expression and said with a smile, ”Given our relationship, 29 Silver Moon isn’t out of the question.”

In the end, they settled on 28 Silver Moon per box. For every box Becky sold, she would directly contact the person Leech had stationed in Iron Stone City, who would then return to Porcupine Territory to get the merchandise.

You could basically understand it like this: it was a no-inventory business with direct-from-factory sales. Becky was essentially a dropshipper.

”Your squire is quite cute,” Becky Simon said, glancing at Radish. ”You could leave him in Iron Stone City.”

She had seen too many men like Little Joel, who looked like they wanted to eat her alive. She had had enough of that. Radish’s shy demeanor, on the other hand, was more to her taste.

”Radish is my squire. I’m afraid that’s not possible. But rest assured, the person I’m leaving behind has also been carefully selected,” Leech refused her outright, adding, ”We’ll be taking our leave now, Miss Becky.”

Leech’s unspoken thought was: ’If you want to mess around, go find a Groom. Don’t ruin my squires.’

”May the Four Gods bless you,” Becky replied softly.

After Leech left, Becky’s gaze fell back on the exquisite wooden box on the table.

’He always manages to come up with something new.’

The Little Pill sold well in Iron Stone City. Even though Becky kept reducing the dosage and mixing in more flour, demand still outstripped supply.

It brought her a considerable income each month.

’If only I’d managed to bag him at the ball back then.’

Exchanging her body for benefits was nothing. If she had succeeded back then, perhaps the honey and the soap would all be hers now.

But the cost of the soap was so high, she couldn’t be sure.

”That useless Kolan Fosak! He was worse than a Groom!”

The thought of Kolan Fosak, who had stolen a ring and fled, made her fume. He couldn’t have run away just because of a single jeweled ring. There might have been a deeper reason, but the man was dead. What was the point of thinking about it?

’First, I’ll take a bath.’

She wanted to test if this soap was truly as magical as Leech claimed.

Softer, smoother skin; no more worrying about dry, chapped skin in winter; a rich fragrance; cleansing and stain-removing properties. You could even use it on blisters from new shoes, or just place a bar in the privy to make the whole room smell of flowers when you used it.

Only a noble would spend dozens of Silver Moon just to make their trips to the privy smell a little nicer.

After hearing Leech list so many benefits of Porcupine Brand soap, she was growing impatient to try it.

After leaving Iron Stone Castle, the first thing Leech did was scold Little Joel.

”Is Becky Simon someone you can just stare at?”

”My lord, I... I just couldn’t help it. She’s too beautiful,” Little Joel said with his head down, looking aggrieved. There was another sentence he didn’t dare say aloud.

’She was wearing a layer of gauze that felt even more naked than wearing nothing at all.’

”She will be the death of you,” Leech said. ”If you want to play around with women, you can stay in Iron Stone City. This place is a holy land for it. But I have no use for a squire who’s ruled by his urges.”

”No, my lord!” Little Joel cried. ”I want to continue serving you. I’ve sworn an oath to the Four Gods to serve you faithfully until I die.”

Radish, who was standing to the side, also pleaded for him.

Leech sighed. ”Remember your station.”

You couldn’t even look at a noble lady if she were standing naked in front of you. She could have Little Joel’s head cut off for a perfectly legitimate reason.

Besides, Leech knew full well who that outfit was for. It wasn’t for others; it was for him. He himself hadn’t dared to stare, yet Little Joel had the audacity to gulp in public.

’’Charming’ hasn’t given up on her desire to ride me, I see.’

It was only because Becky Simon wanted to continue doing business with Leech. Otherwise, no matter how promiscuous a noble lady was, she would not endure the humiliation of being stared at by a mere squire.

”Report to Sir Quick Blade when you get back,” Leech said. ”If you do well, you can come back and be my squire again.”

Little Joel lowered his head. ”Yes, my lord!”

From a Knight’s squire to a common Soldier, he had just lost his shortcut to becoming a Knight. But Little Joel didn’t dare to complain.

This was also to save Little Joel’s life. With his way of doing things, he was bound to anger some noble lady or another while following Leech.

’Either he’ll change, or he won’t come back at all. As a soldier on the battlefield, the superficial courtesies aren’t so strictly required. All you need to do is follow orders and know how to fight.’

Leech’s thoughts soon returned to Becky.

’Becky Simon is desperate for money. What is she really trying to do?’

As a Baron’s daughter, getting money should be as simple as asking for it. She might not get a huge fortune, but she should have a constant stream of pocket money.

There had to be a reason she chose to go around her father, Baron Spark—a reason no one else could ever know.

’In any case, it has nothing to do with me,’ Leech thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Becky Simon emerged from her bath. Stroking her smooth skin and sniffing the faint fragrance wafting from her body, she couldn’t help but reveal a satisfied smile.

She had never felt cleaner. The smoothness was as if a layer of grime had been completely washed away.

The murky water in the bathtub seemed to prove it.

And it smelled so good.

”Those noble ladies are going to go crazy for this.”

It was a pity she didn’t know enough nobles. Buying at 28 Silver Moon and selling at 30, she could only earn a little pocket money.

She wanted to sell it for more than 30, but that was impossible. Leech would surely announce 30 Silver Moon as the public price, and she didn’t want to lose some of her friends over it.