Chapter 232 - What Payment Would You Like?

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Repayment for kindness.

Revenge for grudges.

A life for a life.

These were virtues celebrated in countless cultures since remote antiquity. In the past, it had therefore been far from uncommon for people to devote their entire lives to their saviors or risk their lives trying to kill their enemies.

But as times changed, virtues became vices, and few now staked their lives on personal debts and grudges.

... With a very few exceptions.

One princess, for instance, who had not only upheld those musty old virtues for nearly a thousand years, but even forced others to repay their debts when necessary.

["... A life for a life?"]

'Yes.'

["So in exchange for saving one person, she forces someone else to repay the favor by becoming her slave for life?"]

'Strictly speaking, the payment has to equal the value of the life saved.'

["That's the same thing!"]

Yu Na-gyeong was horrified. Yet neither Limon nor Li Qingyu, who was conversing with Maia, showed the slightest agitation. Li Qingyu merely asked calmly, as though confirming what she already knew.

"I take it payment in some other form is out of the question?"

"Do you think otherwise?"

Maia sneered.

Li Qingyu smiled ruefully. If money, treasure, or anything else could pay for her treatment, the Green Dragon Princess would never have been so widely avoided. Looking at the woman who embodied that title more thoroughly than any of her predecessors, Li Qingyu murmured.

"... Kindness must always be repaid, grudges must never be forgotten, and only a life can equal a life?"

"Indeed."

Maia agreed without hesitation with the Green Dragon Clan's time-honored maxim. Then, with a cynical expression, she continued quietly.

"Many proclaim that they will repay you for saving their lives. Yet when the time comes, most forget that debt—or even repay it with enmity. That is the world we live in."

Show mercy and cure someone for free once, and they expected free treatment the next time, calling you shameless merely for trying to charge a fee. Someone who had acted ready to give you their entire fortune at death's door would feign ignorance once they survived. Some even stole your money and fled after you saved them, or tried to kill you to silence you.

It was not because they were evil. That was simply human nature. As the Green Dragon Clan's princess, Maia understood that fact all too well. With a cold sneer, she continued.

"If you never know when or how someone might default on their debt of gratitude, is it not only natural to collect it in advance?"

That was the Green Dragon Clan's law. Even a fellow princess of the Seven Dragons Society could be no exception. Maia delivered those words mockingly, watching Li Qingyu with eyes as keen as blades.

"Above all, that man's treatment will be extremely expensive."

Hermann's illness should have killed him long ago. Treatment with the Divine Monarch's skill was forcibly keeping him alive. He looked healthy on the outside, but his disability itself proved that the underlying illness remained intact.

Maia explained that even she could not guarantee a complete cure, and enslaving one or two ordinary people would not balance the value of his life. Speaking in a manner utterly unlike a physician treating an illness, she declared flatly:

"A lifetime of unpaid service from a unit-captain-caliber expert, or ten years from a master-level expert. Unless I am promised at least that much repayment, I have no intention of treating him."

"That certainly is expensive."

Li Qingyu smiled ruefully.

Every master-level expert in the Seven Dragons Society was as powerful as a duke-class player, as well as a family head or an elder responsible for a major subsidiary. Their unpaid service was a staggering price, comparable to acquiring an entire sizable corporation.

The same held true for unit-captain-caliber experts. Depending on their training, they might one day reach master level themselves. Even attaining sufficient mastery of the Seventy-Two Martial Schools and the ability to lead a unit already made each of them worthy of being called a genius.

And she intended to charge their entire lives as a treatment fee. Profiteering did not come more outrageous than this.

"Well? Do you still wish to ask me to treat him?"

Maia smiled derisively. Another clan might have been different, but she knew perfectly well that the already fallen Black Dragon Clan would never pay such a price. Least of all for a mere sculptor with no connection to the clan.

"Of course."

That was why Maia raised an eyebrow at the unexpected reply. Far from appearing troubled or hesitant, however, Li Qingyu continued with the same cheerful smile.

"Don't worry about the fee. I've come prepared with payment that will more than satisfy you, Maia."

"You seem quite confident."

"Yes. I intend to pay with my body."

At that moment, silence descended on the banquet hall once again. Yu Na-gyeong looked as though her eyes might fall out, and Hermann could not close his gaping mouth. The musicians froze, forgetting even to play, while Barbara blinked vacantly. With all but three people stunned by that unimaginable bombshell, Maia spoke after a brief silence.

"... Enough with the unfunny jokes, Li Qingyu."

"But I meant it."

"Then you truly intend to serve as my slave? You, the Black Dragon Princess?"

"If I did, how much would you value me at?"

"..."

She could do all sorts of things, from paperwork to survival cooking, so her services would be expensive. At that unimaginably brazen answer, Maia raised an eyebrow, while Yu Na-gyeong opened and closed her beak as though her soul had fled her body.

"Don't worry. Serving as your maid for a few months might be fun, but I don't have that much time to spare either."

She chuckled briefly, as though she really would have considered that option if she had the time. Then Li Qingyu lowered the hand covering her mouth. Looking at Maia with eyes as deep as obsidian, she continued.

"So instead of becoming your slave, I'll pay another way."

"Another way..."

Maia narrowed her eyes, tapping her fingers on the table as she pondered.

Though commonly described as a life for a life, slavery was not the only way to pay for her treatment. What mattered was payment equivalent to the value of a life. There had indeed been precedents involving betrothal, organ donation, and other methods. Once she excluded everything Li Qingyu's status, sex, and other circumstances made impossible, only one option remained.

"Surely you do not mean to offer your body for clinical experiments, Li Qingyu?"

"Y-Your Highness?"

"Didn't I tell you? I'd pay with my body."

"Your Highness, Black Dragon Princess...!"

Barbara was horrified. However far the Black Dragon Clan had recently fallen, it was far too outrageous an offer for a fellow princess of the Seven Dragons Society to make.

Maia herself, however, showed no further agitation. She merely stared at Li Qingyu with somber green eyes.

"Have you forgotten that those who volunteer as our clan's test subjects are not guaranteed to survive?"

"That only applies to ordinary people."

Though it varied by experiment, volunteers who became the Green Dragon Clan's test subjects had roughly a fifty-percent chance of survival or less. But that was only for ordinary people. Li Qingyu explained that she could withstand most experiments easily enough. Speaking with a cheerfulness utterly unsuited to someone volunteering for life-threatening experiments, she smiled.

"Even you can't have had the opportunity to conduct clinical experiments on a princess, Maia. I think that makes this ample payment. What do you say?"

"..."

"Oh, but please keep the dissection to a minimum. I'm not married yet, so I'd rather not bare my insides."

Was she shameless, or simply mad? After studying Li Qingyu for a while as she said such outrageous things with a cheerful smile, Maia slowly nodded.

"Certainly, if you volunteer for clinical experiments, Li Qingyu, I could conduct some quite interesting ones."

"...!"

"But I shall refuse your offer."

Barbara, who had looked ready to faint at the first statement, finally heaved a sigh of relief at Maia's refusal. Li Qingyu, on the other hand, tilted her head.

"Is even my body insufficient payment?"

"The payment itself is sufficient. But what we need is a test subject whose death would not matter, not a precious jewel we must carefully safeguard."

Maia snorted coldly. If anything went wrong while she experimented on Li Qingyu, she would have to fight the Black Dragon Clan to the death. Yet if she took precautions to avoid any trouble, it would be more of a medical checkup than a clinical experiment.

In short, Li Qingyu's offer was an empty shell that only looked appealing. A swindle truly befitting the Black Dragon Clan's princess.

"You don't have to handle me so delicately, you know."

"Spare me the nonsense. Whatever you say, I have no intention of accepting that offer."

Another princess might have been different, but she would decline to accept such an offer from Li Qingyu only to be stabbed in the back. Having made an exemplary choice for a princess dealing with the Black Dragon Clan, Maia suddenly twisted her pale bluish lips into a curious smile. Pointing beside Li Qingyu, she added:

"However, if that man wishes to pay the fee, I would gladly accept him as either a slave or a test subject."

["Eek!"]

Yu Na-gyeong was horrified. She wondered whether Maia intended to use her, a talking bluebird, as a laboratory animal.

Fortunately, however, that finger was not pointing at her. It pointed at Lee, the black-haired young man who had been silently watching events unfold with her perched on his shoulder. Of course, that was horrifying enough to Yu Na-gyeong in its own right.

Li Qingyu, by contrast, was not surprised. Smiling as though she had expected exactly this, she merely opened her mouth to refuse the offer.

"What are your terms?"

Li Qingyu froze. Yu Na-gyeong nearly broke her neck turning to look behind her.

"What terms do you mean?"

"The duration of my service as a slave, and the conditions if I volunteer for clinical experiments."

Yet Limon, who had frozen them both in place, paid them no mind. He merely questioned Maia with impeccable politeness, as though he needed to know the terms before deciding how to pay.

Yes. Impeccable politeness. He was even speaking deferentially.

For Li Qingyu and Yu Na-gyeong, it was beyond shocking. They were so bewildered that they wondered whether this really was Limon.

Maia, conversely, had no particular reason to be surprised, since she did not know Limon's true identity. She narrowed her eyes and spoke after a brief silence.

"One year as a slave. For clinical experiments, I shall guarantee your life."

"Ten days of service. Clinical experiments would likewise be limited to ten days, and only administering medication and checking my pulse."

"... Are you attempting to negotiate with me?"

Maia raised an eyebrow in disbelief. As her already fierce gaze sharpened further, the pressure she exuded became terrifying.

But, naturally enough, Limon did not so much as flinch as he met her eyes. He merely gave a bright little smile—finally striking fear into Yu Na-gyeong and making Li Qingyu swallow hard—and replied cheerfully.

"If that doesn't suit you, please forget it."

"... One month, provided you also allow me to check your pulse, take the medicine I give you, and undergo a thorough examination."

"I did say to forget it if that doesn't suit you."

"..."

As though compromise were out of the question, Limon replied with a gentle smile that brought someone else to mind. After glaring at him for a long while, Maia slowly closed her eyes. She tapped her fingers on the table, lost in thought, before opening her eyes again and speaking in a displeased tone.

"May I choose which to accept—slavery or clinical experiments?"

"I will concede that much."

"I shall not thank you."

Maia snorted coldly at Limon's attitude, as though he had no reason to make concessions but would at least let her choose out of consideration for her dignity.

"Then what payment would you like?"

Whether he served as a slave for ten days or became a test subject for ten days, he seemed not to care. Looking at Limon's shameless smile with her somber green eyes, Maia spoke quietly.

"The payment I want is..."