Chapter 58: Alchemy, Trouble
Zeke headed to the Alchemy Room, located on the eighth floor of the academy. Since it was only a floor away, it only took him around a minute to find it. He stopped in front of a white door, intending to knock.
Creak.
But before he could raise his hand, the door opened, revealing a tall, long-haired man with black hair. The man had a refined air around him, surprising Zeke. His eyelashes were pretty, and his eyes were clean blue, like a refined piece of diamond.
It wasn’t very often one saw blue eyes in Red Land. But even more rare was a person who had the airs of a noble, especially in an academy located in the Underground, the rat dwellers of Ash City.
"..."
"..."
The two of them stared at each other for a while, a silent, thoughtful expression present on the man’s face. When Zeke was about to say something, the man’s expression moved, turning solemn.
Alarm bells immediately erupted in Zeke’s heart.
"Pardon my rudeness, I couldn’t help but find you... exquisite," The man suddenly said, staring down at him. He gave a gentle smile. "I am Victor Von Eswell. It’s a pleasure to meet you. May I ask your name?"
When Zeke heard the man’s name, he couldn’t help but freeze. If the alarm bells weren’t loud enough, now it was practically buzzing right next to his ears, making him almost deaf.
Victor Von Eswell was a third-year student.
He didn’t know a lot of third-year students, so the only way for him to know a name from one of them was if they were famous enough. The man in front of him was more than famous enough.
He was the second-strongest student in the third year, holding the 2nd position in the third-year leaderboard.
’Why did he suddenly ask for my name...’
Feeling anxious, Zeke tried to appear calm. He looked at Victor and bowed slightly, not showing any airs at all.
"So it’s Senior Victor. I’m... an insignificant person, please don’t mind me."
"Don’t joke around, junior. Anyone who can go into the Alchemy Room can’t be insignificant," Victor countered immediately. He put his hand over his chin, appearing thoughtful. "Are you afraid of me? I’m not sure what warrants such a reaction... There aren’t any odd rumors about me, are there?"
When he asked the last part, Victor’s expression turned solemn, as though he treated any rumors about him seriously. It didn’t seem like he was going to let Zeke away easily, if his reaction was anything to go by.
’A troublesome fellow...’
Zeke sighed inwardly. He shook his head and forced a smile. "Not at all, Senior Victor. I just don’t think it’s worth it for someone at your level to remember my name."
"Junior, you’re not well-versed in the art of flattery," Victor shook his head. He raised his brow. "You’re getting interesting and interesting the more I look at you... I didn’t know there was a first-year like you around, that’s strange."
"... Thank you, Senior." Zeke frankly didn’t know what to say. He showed the paper slip in his hand and bowed his head slightly. "I’m sorry, but I have to get a potion for my professor. She’s quite impatient, so I have to hurry."
"Is that so?"
Victor furrowed his brows, staring at the paper slip. He glanced at the name on the paper slip and couldn’t help but be surprised. Contrary to his expectations, Zeke was indeed holding a paper slip belonging to a professor.
’So he’s only here because of an order...?’
Looking at the awkward junior in front of him, Victor felt slight disappointment. The foundation was there; his eyes were splendid, his hair was neat and well-groomed, and his face was perfect.
He had the bearing and makings of a noble, but without strength, a noble only by appearance and name isn’t a true noble.
"That’s a pity."
Victor shook his head, stepping away. He gave one last look at Zeke before leaving, seemingly losing all of his interest. But still, the fact that he didn’t know this junior of his was strange.
He had the information of all students in the academy, and for someone he had no idea of to appear, it piqued his interest.
’I’ll look into it...’
Seeing him quickly leave, Zeke’s expression was complex. Although Victor seemingly lost interest in him, he knew that it was just going to be temporary. He didn’t know how or why, but he had a strong feeling that this wasn’t going to be the end of it.
’Troublesome...’
Zeke rubbed his temple quietly. But after a moment, he didn’t want to think about it anymore and entered the Alchemy Room, putting Victor to the back of his mind. He’ll deal with it when it comes.
When he stepped inside the room, he closed the door, observing the Alchemy Room’s interior.
The Alchemy Room was similar to any laboratory room. It was filled with specialized equipment and warning signs, just more high-end and specialized. Inside, Zeke only saw one person, and he couldn’t help but be startled when his eyes fell on them.
The person was a girl under five feet, with long, green hair extending to her small legs. She wore an oversized lab coat, completely concealing her figure, if there was any to begin with. Whenever she moved, the ends of her lab coat were dragged along with her, giving an impression of a child playing with science.
’No wonder Professor Cybele called her a kid, so she’s really a kid...’
Zeke thought, slightly amazed.
When the door closed, the green-haired girl turned around and glanced at him. Her eyes fluttered in surprise, unable to recognize him. "You’re new. What brings you here?"
She spoke in such a flat tone that it made her seem emotionless, yet some part of Zeke could sense her curiosity. He didn’t know why he felt that way, but he answered her honestly. "I’m Zeke Crimson. I want to take a potion. I brought a paper slip with me given by Professor Cybele."
When the girl heard the name of the professor, her eyes sharpened, muttering under her breath. "You’re sent by that evil, devious woman... what does she want now?"
"Please don’t misunderstand," Zeke couldn’t hear her words, but he was able to guess what she said from her expression alone. "I had a deal with Professor Cybele, so I’m here to collect a potion with her paper slip. This is not hers."
The green-haired girl seemed quite surprised, but she only gave out an "Oh".
"Crimson... was it?" The green-haired girl spoke, yawning loudly. "What potion do you want? Please make it quick. I want to sleep..."
Zeke answered quickly. "Do you have a list?"
The girl pointed to his left, causing him to turn.
Zeke saw a line of potions stretching over until the end of the Alchemy Room, each enclosed within a thick transparent glass. He swept his gaze over all of them and was surprised by the variety.
Each potion was a different type, which was startling when one understood how Alchemy worked. Alchemy was a profession exclusive only to those who awakened the Alchemist class or any variation of it.
Alchemists had the ability to transmute monster corpses and magical materials into concentrated substances, referred to as potions. Potions were the most coveted resource in the world, hence Alchemists were held in high regard wherever they went.
However, Alchemists were very rare. Even the most basic Alchemist class was rare as his Soul Swordsman class.
Yet even as a profession as rare as Alchemy, there were levels that distinguished Alchemists from each other. These levels were Junior Alchemist, Senior Alchemist, Master Alchemist, Grandmaster Alchemist, and Alchemy King.
Who and what decided these levels were decided by the Alchemy Association from Western Liberty, but from what Zeke knew, the ability to create more than twenty types of potions was at the level of a Senior Alchemist, a distinguished guest in any force.
Creating potions wasn’t a simple matter, even for an Alchemist. It required countless practice and experience to properly create even one type of potion. Usually, most Alchemists only reach Senior Alchemist status in their middle ages.
Unless one had a class that exceeded the normal Alchemist, this was the most common progression.
The variety of Alchemist-class starts from Green-quality up to Gold-quality.
’From the types of potions alone, there’s at least twenty-seven different types...’
Despite the girl’s appearance, her alchemy ability was at the level of a Senior Alchemist.
While the girl looked like a child, Zeke knew that she couldn’t be any less than sixteen. One can’t awaken a class unless they were sixteen years old or older. He couldn’t help but ask.
"Excuse me, but how old are you?"
The girl stared at him quietly, then answered.
"I’m 21 years old, why?"
Zeke was startled and blurted out his thoughts.
"You’re a Senior Alchemist at 21 years old?!"
"Hm?"
The green-haired girl tilted her head.
"... So what?"
