After the auction ends, I’m escorted to where the flower is kept. It has been too long, but finally, I have found the herb needed for my survival. There is one problem: I still have to figure out who has all the Isrier flowers in their possession. They somehow found a way to prevent new flowers from taking root in that hidden cave. 

We stop in front of a wooden door and the auction employee opens the door and gestures for me to enter. I walk in, and in the middle is a large wooden desk and chair, and on the desk, is the encasing with the Isrier Flower, and in the chair sits a masked man. 

At first glance, he looked very familiar, like I had seen him sometime recently. I could see strands of silver locks peek out from under his hooded robe. His build was very familiar as well. Where have I seen this man…

I walked closer to the seller and stood there awkwardly twiddling my thumbs. The man before me crossed his legs and the man that had stood behind him came towards me. He also wore a mask. He reached out to me with a tray and I quickly pulled out my pouch with the gold in it and handed it to him. He then walked over to the hooded man and presented the tray with the golden pouch. He slightly opened it before closing it again and pushed the encashed flower towards me. 

“Before you leave, tell me why you need this flower”

That startled me and I almost squealed. “Sorry?” 

“Why do you need this rare flower that only mages or other expert healers seek?” the man asked. 

I could feel his eyes on me, he was watching me closely and I felt scared to even swallow. My throat felt dry and my back felt itchy, which I was dying to scratch but it felt like my body was frozen stiff. His gaze felt cold. 

Then I told him the same story I had told the raven guild master, the story about my unfortunate friend. I made sure to cry as well, but I’m sure the mask soaked up most of the tears. 

At the end of it, the man looked at the encased flower before sighing and got up. I watched him carefully and he turned around to leave. The man that had stood with him walked up to me thanked me for the purchase and followed his master. 

Making sure I was the only one in the room, I let out a big sigh and examined the Isrier flower. It was my first time seeing it up close. The closest I had gotten to the flower was in books as drawings or illustrations. I felt the tears well up and I quickly wiped them. I could cry after I had made the potion and successfully prolonged my life. 

Before I went back to my hometown in the Empire, I made a short stop by the Intelligence Guild. I needed to get information on this seller. He seemed to be able to get his hands on the flower somehow and I needed to find a way for me to get my hands on them one way or another.