Page 62 of Queen of Vengeance

Still, he had come too far to back down now. He took a deep breath and held it as he stepped into the crackling atmosphere of magic surrounding the portal.

Crossing through the portal was like crossing through the surface tension of water. It was cold—a shock to the system.

Then, as suddenly as the shock began, it ended and he was once again bathed in the warmth of Solare.

When he opened his eyes, he was now standing in the Federation of Setas.

“This is where all the potion-making happened. Any potionist worth his weight finds himself here at one point or another. Now here I am, ready for my turn.”

The buildings surrounding him were much grander than the ones he was used to in Dask or his school. They weren’t made of poor, porous stone, and the city’s walkways didn’t suffer from dirt floors.

Jax’s heels clipped against the cobblestone floor as he walked to the office of Anzul Peigue. He could hardly contain his excitement, but he was able to contain it well. It would be embarrassing for him to reveal that he’d never visited a place like this in his life. Instead, as he entered the building, he made sure to exude confidence as he was greeted by the male receptionist there. “I’m here to see Mr. Peigue. I have an appointment with him.”

“Ah! You must be Mr. Ransom. So good to meet you. I will give Mr. Peigue’s office a call if you’ll please wait right over there.” The receptionist motioned toward a seating area on the right.

Jax didn’t think he was going to be able to sit down. He was practically bursting at the seams. He clenched his teeth together and gave the receptionist a wiry smile. “Thank you.”

As he made his way over to the seating area, he noticed a group of men in suits enter the building, following behind a much bigger man.

The much bigger man appeared to be a Dragon Shifter. He had yellow and red scales running out from his nose and down his neck. His eyes were sharp as they flickered around the room.

“Mr. Elfin, our two o’clock position has been cancelled. It appears he had a family emergency,” one of the smaller men meekly spoke to the Dragon Shifter.

“Is no one reliable anymore? How can we find a decent potionist if these people don’t show up?” The Dragon Shifter they called Mr. Elfin balled up his fists, and all of his scales turned bright red.

“He’s looking for a potionist to back, huh? That must mean he’s a potion producer—and by the looks of it, a very successful one.” A devious plot popped into Jax’s mind. Without a second thought, Jax turned away from the chair he was going to sit in and began following Mr. Elfin.

“Excuse me, sir.” He spoke up, but it was nowhere near loud enough and they continued walking. “Mr. Elfin!”

Jax raised his voice, but Mr. Elfin didn’t so much as budge. That was when Jax realized he was being ignored.

A fire lit in his belly, giving him the strength he needed to start chasing after Mr. Elfin.

“I don’t have time to be solicited by a nobody potionist with hand-me-down clothes!” Mr. Elfin began shouting before Jax appeared in front of him suddenly in a puff of smoke. Mr. Elvin jumped back, and his scales turned from bright red to deep orange. “How did you do that, boy?”

“With the potion I invented. Mr. Elfin, if you’ll give me a moment of your time, I swear you won’t regret it.” Jax managed to perfect the art of pleading while not appearing to be pathetic.

Mr. Elfin appeared to admire that about him. “Fine, come with me.”

He began walking again and Jax followed behind.

“Mr. Ransom. Anzul Preigue is ready to see you now,” the receptionist called out to the now empty waiting room of Anzul’s office. He looked around, confused as to where Jax went.

“Anzul is a small fish in a very big pond. I’m looking to catch a much bigger fish.” Jax followed Mr. Elfin to his office where they were allowed some privacy.

Mr. Elfin walked to the back of his office and lowered himself into his chair with great distress. “Well, go on then. I don’t have all day.”

He waved Jax on.

“Right.” Jax fumbled into his bag, pulled out the certified potions from the patent office, and passed them along to Mr. Elfin’s men.

“I’ve spent the last few years of my life honing my potion writing and mixing skills. It has allowed me the ability to create new and innovative potions. You’ll find some works in there that defy previous works by other potionists.”

Jax unlaced the pouch from his belt that contained the remainder of the port powder.

“Impressive. Now show me how it works.” Mr. Elfin said nonchalantly.

Jax wasn’t sure if he was disinterested or a reserved man.

---