ALL NOVEL 95. What Do I Have to Pay?
Walking to the inner chamber, the smile on Mary's face instantly disappeared.
"Clang!"
Furiously tossing the dried Berbercane fruits into the basket, Mary muttered angrily to herself: "Damn it! What kind of love potion did Allen give Ms. Vera?"
"Just because he's talented?"
"But is my talent any worse than his?"
Feeling indignant, Mary yanked out two bottles of dwarven liquor. The liquid sloshing inside the glass bottles reminded her of the color-gradient, mysteriously beautiful "Cat's Eye."
Mary's expression turned dejected again as she slowly placed the liquor in the basket.
"Okay... fine, maybe I'm a bit less talented than him."
"But I'm not weak either. Ever since I joined Aretuza, I've always been the top student."
"If it weren't for Ms. Vera coming, the headmaster had even planned for me to be Aretuza's successor."
As she thought this, Mary regained her confidence.
"Yes! If I could make it through the brutal environment of Aretuza, there's no reason I can't surpass him here."
Picking up four bottles of water essence one by one, and tossing in the drowner hearts, she checked the materials with renewed determination, stood tall, and walked out with her head held high.
"He's just a witcher. If I, Mary, use a bit of skill, I can definitely win back Ms. Vera's favor."
….....
"Zzzt~"
A faint electric shock sounded. Allen held his breath, carefully observing the drowner heart before him. Using a magical scalpel, he meticulously followed the magical veins on the heart, carving away useless flesh bit by bit and adding intricate patterns.
Refining drowner heart essence was difficult, especially with the hair-thin magical veins that couldn't be mishandled. Circulating his magic, Allen split the drowner heart into four equal parts, feeling relieved and reflecting: "No wonder refining essence requires Level 4 alchemy."
"If my eyes hadn't been modified, I couldn't have done this."
During the process, Allen realized the changes in his modified eyes. His pupils could dilate to magnify materials like a microscope. Focusing his thoughts on the scalpel, his mind would occasionally provide intuitions, correcting his path.
The most crucial part was that both the dilation and the intuition were under his control, not from the witcher's bestiary. This complete control was intoxicating.
He carefully moved the eerily beautiful drowner heart into the large beaker, using the scalpel to touch the four sections at their center, where the magical energy converged.
As magic flowed from his body into the heart, dark purple flesh glowed blue, and the heart came to life.
"Thump... thump..."
The heart beat.
"Whoosh~"
The sound of flowing water echoed as the heart, after the second beat, turned into a clear blue liquid, splashing into the beaker. Pale blue droplets splashed, then settled.
Allen looked down to find he had five portions of essence.
One heart yielding five portions of essence?
Damn you, witcher's bestiary!
Allen cursed internally.
"Ah!"
"How... how did you do that?"
Mary's exclamation came from behind, making Allen turn.
Mary's mouth hung open, tightly gripping the basket of materials, her face a mix of surprise, envy, jealousy, and even some defeat.
Seeing her emotions laid bare, Allen felt a secret satisfaction but maintained a calm and indifferent demeanor, saying: "Want to learn?"
"I can teach you!"
Mary puffed out her cheeks, seeming tempted, but ultimately turned away with a huff, sitting back down.
"I'd like to learn. Can you teach me?"
The mixed scent of oranges and cardamom wafted over as the sorceress approached. Allen's unique potion-making techniques always intrigued her. The idea of making the killer whale potion without magic was novel but could only be called peculiar. However, this time, using just magical carving and infusion to transform solid flesh into clear liquid potions...
After watching him, she felt like she was touching the essence of alchemy.
"Of course."
Allen, taken aback by her genuine expression, quickly agreed.
"This potion-making technique is very precious. Do you have any requirements?" the sorceress asked with a smile. Allen shook his head, about to refuse.
Seeing his reluctance, she insisted: "Equivalent exchange is a basic principle of alchemy."
"Name a request!"
Though her reasoning didn't quite hold—after all, Allen had already taken many materials from the alchemy room and received nearly a month's worth of lessons from her for free—seeing her persistence, Allen didn't argue.
After a moment's thought, he remembered the "Rite of the Flesh Giant."
"Ms. Vera, do you know ritual magic?"
The sorceress nodded slightly, saying: "I know a bit about rituals, though I'm not an expert."
"So you're sure you want to exchange this knowledge for the potion-making technique?"
"For its value, I could teach you some advanced potion recipes?"
"Or I could give you some very suitable magical artifacts."
"Or..."
She paused, then continued: "Some spells suited for you."
---------
"Gulp~"
Allen swallowed, struggling internally before choosing ritual magic.
"I've decided, let's exchange for ritual knowledge."
One shouldn't be too greedy. Compared to those recipes or artifacts, the impression he left on the sorceress was more important.
As for spells? Aren't witchers limited to signs?
Decision made, Allen stopped overthinking. The sorceress nodded in agreement, though a hint of regret flickered in her eyes. They scheduled the ritual lessons for after dinner each day.
Allen picked another drowner king heart from the basket, ready to demonstrate again. Then he remembered something, looking back. Sure enough.
Mary was staring at him eagerly.
Her hesitant expression was both pitiful and amusing.
"Want to learn?"
"Yes!" Mary's eyes lit up instantly.
Allen smiled and said, "Come over then, let's learn together."
Mary quickly stood, stepping over to Allen.
"Equivalent exchange."
A cool voice echoed in her mind.
Mary froze. The sorceress stood on Allen's other side, expressionless, watching her. Seeing this, Mary felt both wronged and scared.
She looked at Allen's gentle smile, almost tearful, and said: "Eq... equivalent exchange is the basic principle of alchemy."
"What... do I have to pay?"
......
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98. New Monster.
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100. Pyramid.