Chapter 212: Chapter 200: A Traveling Guide
Roland could sense the powerful Spiritual Energy fluctuating within the Heartstealer’s blood, but his current knowledge was insufficient to control it.
At least, in all the ancient texts Bronson had carried, he couldn’t find a single method to convert it into his own Power.
But Vanessa, who stood before him, was completely different.
Although they had only met once and exchanged but a few words...
Roland’s hand unconsciously brushed against the pouch at his waist, which was filled with Protective Negative Energy Potions.
Anyone capable of refining such a Potion must possess Alchemy Skills far beyond the ordinary.
Rather than let the Heartstealer blood sit idly in his hands, it was better to let this Witch try her hand at it.
Besides...
Remembering the Ghosts he had slain in the fishing village, and how the blood had absorbed all of their memory-like fragments, Roland shuddered at the memory of its resulting unstable, restless state.
To him, this unknown substance was like an unstable bomb.
’Who knew when or where it might detonate and cause trouble?’
So, rather than carry this hidden danger with him, it was better to give it to the Witch before him and see if she could produce something useful from it.
Based on the current situation, although he still didn’t understand why the Witch’s attitude had suddenly changed, she wasn’t showing any malice for the time being. That much, Roland could tell.
Having made up his mind, Roland gave a slight nod. He reached into the pouch at his waist, and the next moment, the bottle containing the Heartstealer’s blood was placed on the table with a soft clink.
As if sensing the change in its environment, the moment the violet-black liquid left the pouch, it began to ripple slowly and restlessly, emitting waves of powerful yet uncontrolled Spiritual Energy.
"How marvelous..."
Vanessa murmured in admiration as she stared at the liquid in the bottle, which seemed to possess a life of its own. She then picked up the bottle to examine it closely.
The teasing look in her eyes faded, replaced by pure curiosity.
"Miss Vanessa..."
Looking at the Witch, who seemed to have already forgotten him and his companions, Roland gave a slight bow.
"Thank you for the Potion you provided. As for this Heartstealer blood..."
Vanessa paid no mind to the young man’s words, simply walking straight to the wooden table piled high with strange instruments.
But Roland didn’t stop.
"Whether or not you can refine it into the Potion you mentioned, please consider this a gift in return for your generosity. As for traveling together..."
Unless absolutely necessary, Roland truly did not want to travel with Vanessa.
’Bringing along a mysterious, unfathomable, and dangerous woman in this perilous land?’
’Heaven knows what unexpected disasters it might invite.’
Just as Roland was carefully choosing his words to politely refuse, Vanessa spoke.
The Witch, her back to him, spoke without looking up as she handled the Heartstealer’s blood with elegant and precise movements.
"Mr. Roland, I imagine... if you want to get out of this mist-shrouded land, you’ll be needing a guide, won’t you?"
She turned her head slightly, her violet eyes glancing at him as the corners of her lips curved into a slight smile.
"Your current location is merely the edge of the Land of Mist. You have yet to truly experience the dangers of this region. In fact..."
As she spoke, she poured the blood into a special crucible engraved with Runes, then added some kind of viscous, shimmering liquid.
Almost instantly, the violet-black blood, which had been writhing like a living creature, fell still, becoming as inert as any ordinary liquid.
Then, with a flick of her slender fingers, a cluster of ethereal blue Flame ignited out of thin air at the bottom of the crucible.
As the temperature rose, the liquid in the crucible began to roll and boil.
The Witch continued speaking, her voice clear and calm as she watched the rising steam.
"One of its most basic effects..."
"is that it makes you completely lose your bearings."
Vanessa’s words sent Roland into silence.
The polite refusal he had prepared died on his lips.
Because she wasn’t wrong.
In fact, on the way to the cabin with Mason, Roland had keenly perceived that as the mist thickened, the pervasive Magic Elements seemed to form an invisible barrier, dulling his much-prided Perception Power and rendering it useless.
What’s more, the Magic Power also seemed to interfere with his Perception, making it exceptionally difficult to discern his direction in the dense fog.
The Pikachu Tress had felt the same.
Along the way, she had quietly told Roland that she suspected Mason was leading them in circles.
Although the cabin had appeared before them not long after, this only served to confirm that Roland’s feeling had not been mistaken.
As for how Mason could find his way in the mist, Roland hadn’t asked, but he suspected...
...it had something to do with the experiments the Witch had performed on him.
For a moment, the room fell silent, the only sound being the hissing of the boiling Heartstealer blood in the crucible.
After a long while, Roland shook his head slightly and met the Witch’s deep, violet eyes.
"You’re right, Miss Vanessa. I do need a guide. In that case..."
His voice was steady and direct.
"What price must I pay for this?"
"Price?"
Vanessa’s gaze remained on the changing liquid in the crucible. She raised a finger to tap her chin, tilted her head, and a faint, subtle smile played on her lips.
"Didn’t I just say, Mr. Roland? Just taking me with you is enough."
She turned around, her tone carrying a hint of deliberate frailty.
"After all, this region is so dangerous. A weak woman like me... with no way to protect myself, wouldn’t dare wander the mist alone. So if we run into any trouble on the road..."
She looked at Roland, her eyes full of innocence.
"...I’ll naturally have to rely on you to solve it."
"’Weak woman...’"
Hearing her description of herself, the corner of Roland’s mouth twitched involuntarily.
Although Vanessa had yet to reveal her true strength, the beast-like, writhing vines outside were enough to prove that this Witch was anything but simple.
But since she had put it that way, Roland had no intention of calling her out on it and simply gave a slight nod.
"In that case, Miss Vanessa, please allow us to return to our temporary lodgings first to retrieve some necessary food and water. We will then return to rendezvous with you."
"Food? Water? There’s no need for that..."
Vanessa said, turning to open a cabinet against the wall.
The cabinet was packed tightly with slender-necked bottles filled with a pale green liquid.
"This Potion..."
She picked up a bottle.
"Drinking just one bottle of this is enough to satisfy an adult’s nutritional and hydration needs for several days. I’ll tentatively call it... a Concentrated Nutrient Potion. Mason..."
Before Roland could voice his question, she tossed a bottle to the young nobleman who had been watching silently from the side.
"Drink it."
Vanessa’s gaze shifted to Roland, a teasing smile on her lips.
"So our dear Mr. Roland doesn’t think... I’m trying to poison him."
Her words had barely faded when the violently boiling Heartstealer blood in the crucible suddenly calmed.
Although the ethereal blue Flame was still Burning at the bottom of the crucible, even scorching its edges to a faint red, the liquid within seemed to have lost all its vitality, returning to a deathly stillness.
The next moment, a wisp of pale violet mist silently rose from the surface of the blood.
The mist diffused into the air, and with it spread a pure and intense fluctuation of Spiritual Energy.
It was completely different from the restless aura before, containing not a single trace of impurity.
"It’s done..."
A satisfied smile curved Vanessa’s lips.
With a tap of her finger, the ethereal blue Flame was instantly extinguished.
Her gaze fell upon the liquid in the crucible, which had lost its inky blackness and taken on a mysterious violet hue, and she nodded lightly.
This strange transformation naturally caught Roland’s attention as well.
’What... did she just do?’
Roland frowned, replaying Vanessa’s Alchemy process in his mind.
Thanks to his [Basic Alchemy] Skill, he was no amateur when it came to Alchemy.
But Vanessa’s methods were completely different from any theory he knew.
There were no strict steps, no precise timing, and no fine-tuning of the heat.
She simply added the ingredients and lit the Flame.
The only thing that could be called unusual was that ethereal blue Flame that had ignited out of thin air.
The whole process seemed simple to the point of being casual, and yet...
Roland took a deep breath.
The air was filled with the unique, fresh aroma that only the purest of Potions could emit.
He slowly shook his head, able only to attribute the incredible result to her mastery of Alchemy, which was far beyond anything he could have imagined.
