Bryton looked at the man who had suddenly appeared in the room. His appearance was plain, unremarkable—so ordinary that one could easily forget his face. Naturally, this was the result of a spell Richard had used to disguise himself. This was the identity he operated under: Charlie.
"Mr. Bryton, you asked to see me. What can I do for you?" Richard casually waved a hand, summoning a chair to slide behind him. He sat down smoothly, his tone composed.
Bryton signaled his assistant to help him sit upright. He looked solemnly at Richard and said, "Lord Charlie, you're a sorcerer, aren't you?"
Richard gave no direct answer—only a calm gesture inviting him to continue.
"You can probably tell—I'm at the end of my life," Bryton said without hesitation. "There are legends that sorcerers can extend one's lifespan. Can you do that?"
"Extending lifespan…" Richard's tone turned serious. "That goes against the natural order. It's not something to be taken lightly."
"You can do it?" Bryton asked, eyes lighting up with hope. He added quickly, "If you can make it happen, money is no object!"
"I can indeed," Richard said, looking at the deeply wrinkled face of the aging tycoon. He then produced a long list and handed it over. "Gather everything on this list, and I'll give you a potion that can extend your life by ten years."
The moment he heard "ten years," Bryton's breath grew ragged, and his gaze toward Richard became even more fervent.
There's no one who doesn't want more time—especially not someone who was already on the edge of death.
This potion was now his greatest desire. Money could be earned again, women found anew, even sons fathered later in life—but once a man dies, everything he has turns to dust.
He took the list and glanced at it. His heart trembled. It contained an overwhelming number of items, most of which were highly sensitive materials or advanced scientific equipment—things even the wealthiest of men couldn't simply buy off the shelf.
Even with his vast influence, certain items were completely beyond reach—such as plutonium and uranium ore. Those were out of bounds even for him.
"What do you need all these materials for, Lord Charlie?" he asked carefully.
"I'm building a laboratory," Richard replied plainly. "I need the proper equipment and resources for my research."
That answer eased Bryton's concern. The list did include a lot of scientific gear, and it made sense that a top-tier lab would require enormous investment. It also reassured him: this meant the potion would be reproducible, maybe even scalable.
"Lord Charlie, this list is quite extensive," Bryton said. "I'll do my best to gather what I can, but some of these things are beyond even me."
Richard nodded slightly. He fully understood the cost of the items listed and knew no single man could handle it alone—he only gave the list to let Bryton try.
"My family still has some sway in this country," Bryton added. "If you'll allow it, I could reach out to other powerful families to help pool resources."
Richard nodded again. "The sooner the better. I need a fully operational lab to brew the potion. The essence of life—the active ingredient—will dissipate over time if not processed quickly. The longer the delay, the less lifespan the potion can ultimately add."
No! That added lifespan is mine!
The loss of life essence meant less time for him. Even losing ten days or half a month would cause the old man to grit his teeth in pain. For the first time, he truly understood the meaning of "time is money."
"My lord… what is this life essence? Where can it be found?" Bryton asked.
"All living beings contain it," Richard explained. "But the amount found in ordinary lifeforms is too scarce to be useful. Only certain extraordinary creatures of legend contain life essence in high enough concentrations. The most potent can grant up to fifty years of life. But to go beyond that, one would need even purer, higher-grade essence."
After giving a simple explanation, Richard left his contact information and exited the hospital.
Over the next few days, Bryton began mobilizing his connections and reaching out to fellow elites—especially biotech magnates and arms dealers. Many of the items on Richard's list required advanced biological tech to acquire, and arms dealers were known for their shady but far-reaching networks.
"Hello, Norman? It's Bryton."
"Bryton? I heard you've been holed up in the hospital lately. How's your health?"
"Not great. I actually wanted to discuss a potential collaboration."
"What kind of collaboration?"
"Remember those werewolf specimens from a while back?"
"I do. They were an elaborate hoax." Norman Osborn's tone was tinged with impatience. "If this is about that, I think we're done here."
"What if those specimens were real?" Bryton asked, ignoring the irritation in Norman's voice.
"Come on. Werewolves are just spooky bedtime stories."
"I had them examined by a professional biologist. They're real. Werewolves exist. Isn't Oscorp working with the military on human enhancement experiments? I think we could cooperate."
"…I want to see the specimen first."
"Of course."
Meanwhile, Richard received his first shipment of lab equipment. After inspecting it, he was quite satisfied. Though the devices weren't brand new, they were in excellent condition. If he had tried to acquire all this on his own, it would've cost tens of millions—and some of the items weren't even available on the open market.
He had everything shipped to his villa and began the process of enchanting the equipment.
Rune enchantment was one of the key technologies of arcane civilization. It possessed the power to turn the mundane into the miraculous. Originally developed for war—enhancing weapons and armor—it had since permeated every aspect of arcane society.
Enchanting these machines would require a huge amount of rare resources. Silver, gold, gemstones, and crystals were consumed during the process—sometimes even soul crystals were needed. On Earth, silver was cheap, but gold was pricey. Gemstones could be substituted with synthetics fused with elemental energy, and crystals were affordable enough.
However, synthetic gems and crystals could only support low- to mid-tier enchantments. High-tier enchantments required true magical gemstones and arcane crystals, which took time to craft.
Once the enchantments were complete, Richard began optimizing the werewolf bloodline, aiming to eliminate its weaknesses and flaws. He planned to use it to cultivate a group of loyal operatives.
People who could help him gather rare resources, generate income, or carry out dangerous missions.
He had no interest in running around all day doing things himself. If he had that kind of free time, he'd rather spend it with Katherine, exploring the art of life itself.