Chương 379: Inferior, Bitter Wine

A week had passed since Roland received Miss Dura's start-up capital.

The interior of the Golden Sparrow Tavern is largely intact and only requires minor renovations before it can be put into use.

Thus, the once-closed and abandoned Rotating Golden Sparrow Tavern in a corner of the commercial plaza in the lower part of Black Iron City was revitalized.

The tavern was lit with warm-colored magic crystal lamps, and the surrounding flowerbeds were planted with glowing grass, illuminating the nearby streets.

Roland has officially begun her new identity in the dark underground.

A low-ranking succubus belonging to the Grey Gold Merchant Guild is in charge of taking over the operation of the bankrupt Sparrow Tavern.

However, the tavern's operations were not going well, and its revenue was extremely poor.

……

Nine o'clock at night.

In the dark underground, there is no alternation of day and night. People's daily routines are reminded by the clock tower in the city center. With the nine chimes, the lively nightlife begins.

Inside the Rotating Golden Sparrow Tavern, only a few scattered guests from other races were seated.

Roland, dressed as a maid, sat behind the bar, holding the brewing technique notes left by the former owner of the tavern, and carefully read them word by word.

Behind the bar, on the background wall, there is a huge round shield with the silhouette of a canary engraved on it.

Driven by the inferior magic crystal, the round shield rotated slowly and steadily, emitting a low-key warm light that added a touch of warmth to the dark underground environment.

In the dark depths of the earth, canaries are considered auspicious by many deep-sea miners, whose appearance signifies that the air quality in the mine is safe and secure.

Back when the Spinning Bird Tavern was still bustling, the miners who drank there affectionately nicknamed it "Big Bird Spinning Around."

The tavern is now quiet and peaceful, and the scene looks beautiful, but for a tavern that makes a living from liveliness, it's nothing short of a death sentence.

Roland put down the brewing guidebook in her hand, and without disturbing any customers, quietly turned around and walked behind the bar.

Rows of large wooden wine barrels lie horizontally on the wall, exuding a classic atmosphere. Water taps are embedded in front of the barrels for drawing wine at any time.

These are all properties left behind by the tavern's former owner, a bankrupt greenskin goblin, and they are very well preserved.

The barrels contain a type of liquor called "Muddy Slag Bitter Wine," a popular drink in Black Iron City, especially among the lower-class laborers.

Its main ingredients are saprophytic mushrooms grown in caves in the lower city, plus a handful of low-quality rye grains, mixed with heavily polluted underground river water and fermented.

The taste of the turbid, bitter wine is terrible. It is astringent and has a faint sour smell, like eating a mouthful of moss from a street corner.

Even so, the workers still enjoyed it immensely.

Because the turbid lees wine is not only cheap, but also has a satisfactory alcohol content. After drinking a large glass, one is already slightly tipsy and can temporarily forget the hardships of work.

Over time, the main product of the taverns in the lower city district was changed to turbid and bitter wine.

Theoretically speaking, the murky, bitter wine at the Golden Sparrow Tavern is no different from that of other taverns.

Because the brewing methods are all the same, the only difference is in the details. For example, some tavern owners will mix in half a spoonful of sugar to improve the taste, or even add a few drops of bewitching herb juice.

However, customers who visited the Revolving Goldfinch Tavern all gave it negative reviews, saying that it wasn't as good as other taverns.

Roland then disguised herself and pretended to be a customer visiting other taverns.

Just as the customers said, the murky, bitter wine at the Revolving Goldfinch Tavern was not as good as that at other taverns.

"Where exactly did things go wrong...?"

Roland walked back to the bar with a wooden glass full of drinks in her hand, lost in thought.

Just then, the sound of the door being pushed open rang out, causing the wind chimes to ring out crisply.

A lizardman hidden under a cloak strode in, went straight to Roland and sat down, then let out a long sigh of relief.

He was an information broker in the lower city, a thief who wasn't even an apprentice, and at best an ordinary person with some magic.

He wouldn't dare do anything underhanded, but he was quite adept at gathering information that wasn't exactly confidential.

The lizardman thief spoke as soon as he sat down.

"Lady Laura, I've done my job. I've found out the information related to brewing."

Roland immediately perked up, handing over the freshly brewed, bitter wine with a radiant smile.

"Mr. Giss, have a drink and rest for a bit. Tell me about the intelligence slowly. If it's useful, I'll reward you handsomely."

The lizardman thief, referred to as "Gis," was taken aback, then bowed and scraped as he accepted the drink from Roland's hand.

To put it bluntly, what he does is street thugs.

Now, to receive a smile and respect in return from a stunningly beautiful woman, it's hard not to feel a little dazed.

It took him a while to come to his senses. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the succubus horns on Roland's head and the heart-shaped tail swaying behind her, and the romantic impulse in his heart suddenly cooled down.

Alas, it's a pity she's a succubus.

For ordinary people who want to rise above others in the dark underground, it's best to keep their distance from succubi.

The magic of the dark underground is inherently polluted and difficult to absorb and purify. If one indulges in momentary pleasure and is drained dry by a succubus, one will truly regret it.

Giss held the wine glass with both hands, took a few sips as Roland instructed, and then began to recount the information he had obtained.

"Boss lady, I've been wandering around all the taverns in the lower city these past few days."

"The reason why other taverns' stale bitters taste better than yours is because they use modern brewing equipment."

"Brewing equipment?"

Roland hadn't expected this reason.

She thought it was another tavern that had developed a new recipe, but the problem turned out to be with the equipment?

Without making a sound, Roland took out three silver coins from her pocket, stacked them up, and pushed them in front of the lizardman Gis.

"Tell me more about this brewing equipment; I'm very interested."

"This is your tip; it's not included in the payment."

"Hey, thank you so much, boss lady! You're so generous!"

Giss was overjoyed to receive a tip so soon, and thanked her profusely, wishing he could tell Roland what color underwear he was wearing that day.

"Boss lady, the new brewing equipment is actually not much different from the old one, except that the filtration technology has been improved."

"As you know, life is tough for us in the lower city. All the pollution from the upper city is dumped into the lower city, causing our mushrooms, rye, and other crops to accumulate a lot of pollution."

"Therefore, filtering out contamination from ingredients is the most crucial step in brewing wine. The less contamination, the better the resulting cloudy and bitter wine will taste."

Roland nodded slightly.

"You mean other taverns are using new equipment that significantly reduces food contamination, allowing them to brew better, murky wine than mine?"

"Yes, yes, no one can match your intelligence, boss lady."

Roland ignored Giss's clumsy flattery and changed the subject.

"Now that you've found out about this, do you know how to purchase new brewing equipment?"

"Um, boss lady, you might not be able to buy this new brewing equipment."

Why?

Roland frowned.

A flicker of fear and hesitation crossed Giss's eyes.

"Because the new brewing equipment belongs to the devils."

"Those taverns that have been equipped with new facilities are also owned by the devil lord."