Honestly, I'd been hoping to ease my bloodlust a little and kill her for trying to con me, but I'd gotten more out of it without killing her.

Not only had I gotten some potions out of it, but possibly a place to experiment with potions far from prying eyes. I could also blackmail her into selling my potions in her shop to the brothels so I wouldn't have to do the work of trying to go from brothel to brothel selling them.

I'd also figured out what my fake identity would be. The pieces had fallen into place perfectly.

Trygve Teigen from the Kingdom of Sørgentsen, northernmost country on the continent, was the first son of the late and great potionmaker Ulf Teigen—whose greatest accomplishments were somehow never captured in history—who now lived in the red light district. I'd use this cover to start making some money selling performance-enhancing potions to brothels.

I'd have to learn how to make that potion, but surely the recipe would be in a book somewhere. And there was no better potion to learn than the one brothels used to help their customers have a fully happy and satiated night.

On the other hand, Gerard Viscoti, third forgotten son of Duke Viscoti, had a boat ticket to Praor Swa for right before classes would begin at Caemor, so if Father sent either of my brothers for me, if they were any good at looking or even cared to actually look, they'd be directed to three separate places. The hotel I'd checked into when I got here, Caemor Academy where I registered with my own name, and Praor Swa where I'd bought a single ticket under my name. A lot of leads to follow up on for two brothers who didn't care much about me.

That didn't mean my plan wasn't still on shaky grounds. My name would also connect me to Rolf and the magic shop, so there was a chance I'd have to abandon that project as Gerard. If Rolf or Alis ended up getting involved with my brothers, then I might have to deal with them in an unsavory way. I liked them, though, since they were useful still, so hopefully I could figure that out soon.

The other unfortunate news was that I now had a little brother. I thought the System would tell me some other Quest had been completed when I decided to let him stay with me on a trial basis (“Congratulations! You've completed your Quest [Adopt the Orphan like the Saint You Are]!”), but nope. Thank the Shevira, right?

His name was Danio. He didn't know his last name. He didn't know his age. He'd recently been kicked out of the shelter he'd been at but said he didn't know why. Which was obviously a lie. I liked the kid.

But if he was going to be the brother of Trygve Teigen, he needed to look the part.

Back at the tailor shop, I paid a premium for a rush job. One suit was ready, so I changed into it, slicked back my hair, and had them take Danio's measurements as well. We went to a nearby clothing shop and I bought him a few simple and clean outfits to wear in the meantime.

Then I took him to the red light district and my garishly furnished apartment. The walls had a bold, bright patterned wallpaper and all of the furniture was oversized and wood. It was hot as balls inside, too, but the cold tile floor helped. I'd have to figure out a way to keep this place cool without sacrificing security.

I had Danio sit down with me at the table to level with him. Looking at him properly now, he had quite the tan and his light brown hair had been bleached from being outside all the time. He didn't look a thing like me, but I didn't look much like my father or oldest brother either.

"If you're going to be my fake little brother," I told him, "I'm going to need you to do a few things for me."

"Sure," he said. He was looking around the room, his hazel eyes wide and mouth open. Luxury did that to people sometimes. Like me in my first life.

Danio better be more useful than I was in my first life or he’d be homeless again quickly.

"And you'll have to keep a lot of secrets," I told him.

"Easy."

"And you'll have to help me sell potions."

"Why?"

"So I can afford this apartment." I gestured around. The apartment had a nice kitchen for this world, an informal dining area with a door to a deck, a study with books already on the shelves, and three small bedrooms each with a bed and wardrobe.

"This place is so nice," he said. "I've never lived in a nice place like this. Not ever. How much is the rent? Is it a lot? Will selling potions really pay for it? What happens if you don't pay the rent? Do we get kicked out? Will you kick me out?"

I gave him a look, and he shut up. "The cost of the rent is none of your business. You won't find out what happens if we don't pay since you'll be helping me sell the potions, right? We won't get kicked out."

Danio nodded, his too-long hair falling into his eyes. "You won't kick me out though?"

"Not if you do what I ask."

"Okay. I can do that. I'm really good at following instructions." He perked up, excitement lighting his eyes. "There was this one time at the shelter I was at that I was asked to run messages and I did it and I was told I did a really good job. I've also been asked to trail people and to listen for information and all kinds of stuff. I'm going to be super good at whatever you ask me to do. I promise."

I walked to the kitchen and opened a bottle of wine. I opened the bottle and took a swig because I needed it. Was there a way to teach him to stop talking without frightening him into running away? I wanted to groan but just sat down across from him again. Thankfully, he'd stopped running his mouth.

"You'll dress nice," I told him. "You'll call yourself Danio Teigen. You're the second son of the late and great potion maker Ulf Teigen. He died just last year. He had a lot of debt. We sold everything and left our country. We came here because the weather's nice and the people are friendly."

"But then why was I in the slums?"

Smart kid. "You got lost."

"But I know this city like the back of my hand."

I took a long drink and sat back. "Does this city know you, though?"

"...No."

"And will you be recognized anywhere?"

"...No."

"You got lost."

He nodded, seeming to understand. "Okay."

"You'll go to school. You'll study hard. And you'll work for me. You'll learn all kinds of things. The first thing you'll be doing for me is finding out where the best brothels get their love potions from."

Danio's eyebrows lifted. "Okay. Sounds fun. I can do that easy."

"It's alright if you're noticed. The hope is that you'll be delivering my potions to them and receiving payment from them unless I find another method before I've acquired the potions. They should know you're connected to me and that you're to be treated well. Got it?"

"Yes."

"Now for the first secret you'll be keeping." I stood up and headed to the master bedroom. I opened the wardrobe and hung up my new suit. I changed back into the clothes I was wearing as Gerard Viscoti and came back out. "If you ever see me looking like this, you don't know me. Got it?"

His eyes widened along with his smile. "Got it."

[Notice]

Congratulations! You have completed your Quest [Gain Danio's Loyalty]. Mastery of the [Silver Tongue] Skill has increased by 1%.