The bright afternoon sun warmed my back as I returned from the dungeon, gaze idly going from one shop to another while my thoughts buzzed with ideas like a restless beehive.
I couldn't wait to get home and start playing for real with my new Skill.
I'd gotten a glimpse last night with my distillation bullshit, even if it stopped working after a dozen tries, but that was just a parlor trick. It didn't matter that I couldn't do it anymore. It did the job, and Alchemy changed everything. Even if Miach decided to give away twice as many potions, it wouldn't matter anymore. We'd get so rich that we'd never have to worry about money again.
Covering a yawn, I stepped inside the Guild reception with a smile. Only a handful of adventurers milled around the hall, most of them busy talking to their advisors.
My smile widened as I spotted Misha at one of the employee desks behind the counter. She sat there with her head propped on a hand and expression utterly flat as she wrote listlessly in a thick tome.
Poor girl. Bureaucracy was hell, no matter the world. The least I could do for her was shake up the daily monotony a little.
Walking up to her section of the counter, I rested an arm on the smooth, cool surface, waving the other in greeting. "Hey Misha! Working hard, I see."
Her head swiveled up from her book, a bright smile lighting up her dreary face as she met my gaze. "Jack!" she exclaimed, an unmistakable note of delight in her tone. "I'll be right there!"
Glancing back at the tome, she quickly scribbled down a few more things on the page before putting away the quill, her chair scraping loudly on the floor as she abruptly sat up. Ignoring the looks from her nearby coworkers, she walked up the the counter, a spring in her step.
"Leaving early again?"
"Yeah, I have some work to do at the pharmacy. I think I'll be busy for the rest of the week."
"Oh?" she said, a curious glint in her eyes. "You mentioned studying potion-making a while back. How's it going?"
"I just had a breakthrough," I said, a flash of excitement stirring in my stomach at the reminder. "It's why I came to talk to you, in fact."
Misha let out an intrigued hum, lips quirking teasingly. "And here I thought you came to see me."
"Seeing you is always a treat." I flashed her a smirk, and her voice dropped an octave with another hum, low and appreciative.
"You flatterer." She leaned forward, elbows propped on the counter, smile widening as my eyes briefly darted to her bust. I'd bet that tight vest of hers was hiding some real treasure.
"It's the truth," I gestured a hand briefly at her, doubling down and playing it cool as she fluttered her lashes, biting lightly at her lip.
Her faintly sweet, floral scent filled my nose as I breathed in slowly, a pleasant shiver trailing up my spine. Few girls could match up to the Amazons, but Misha came pretty damn close.
Sadly, as tempting as it was, I didn't really have time for flirting right now. I had stuff to do, and mad science waited for no one.
"So, about that question…" I trailed off, ignoring the pang of regret in my chest as her smile dimmed. I'd make it up to her the next time.
"Sure," she said, her voice carrying a note of dismay. "What is it?"
"Do you have a list with all known monster drops and their use?"
Misha blinked at the request, a curious gleam in her eyes as she straightened herself. "We do, but I could just tell you."
"I appreciate it, but I want to have that written down. I'll need it for later."
"Well, we have a sort of catalogue for that, but it's not a single comprehensive list and it's divided by floors."
A little inconvenient but shouldn't be a problem.
"That's fine. I'd like one for the middle floors."
Misha's brows rose a fraction. "The middle floors? You've been an adventurer for less than two weeks, why are you worrying about that?" She looked me up and down, gaze lingering on my bloodstained armor.
Her concern was sweet, but I wasn't planning anything of the sort.
"I'm trying to come up with new potion recipes. I need to research potential materials I could use."
"Ah," she said, a hint of relief in her tone. "I see. Wait a second." She spun on her feet and made a beeline for the bookshelves at the back of the Guild Hall, riffling through a shelf. After a few moments, she fished out something and came back, dropping a handwritten leaflet on the counter.
"Here you go. A thousand valis."
I fought back an instinctive wince, but something must've shown on my face, because Misha flashed me a cheeky smile.
"Still want it?"
Huffing in amusement, I picked up the leaflet and flipped it open, skimming through the pages. My brows rose in surprise at the content. There were dozens of items listed on it, grouped by floors in ascending order, each of them with short descriptions and some even with sketches.
All this for a thousand valis? Worth it.
"Yeah. It's going to be very useful."
I grabbed a handful of coins from my pouch and handed some of them to Misha with a smile, shoving the rest inside a pocket. I had to stock up on potato puffs on my way back, too.
"Thank you for the purchase," Misha said, a smug quirk at the corner of her mouth as she stashed the money somewhere below the counter.
I shook my head with a smile at her antics. This must have turned into an inside joke between us by now.
I was about to close the leaflet when something caught my eye. Troll liver?
Common drop item from the trolls in the jungle floors. Slight healing properties. No specific use. Sold for five thousand. Low demand.
My brow creased in thought. Hmm… this sounded like it could be a useful ingredient.
"Say, Misha, how much troll liver does the Guild usually have in stock?"
The girl blinked a couple times, giving me an odd look. "I have no idea, but I don't think it ever sold out. I've heard the Demeter Familia buys it to enhance their fertilizer, but it doesn't seem to have any other uses. There are herbs with similar healing properties outside the dungeon, so the middle-floor troll liver doesn't really find much use."
A quiet hum escaped me as I tilted my head a fraction to the side. The blue papilio powder must have made this stuff even more redundant, but depending on how my new Skill worked…
A tiny smile settled on my lips. Yeah, I was keeping this in mind and buying a piece to test as soon as I had the money. It could be a dud, but if it wasn't? Orario might get to know a new type of healing potion.
"Why the troll liver, though?" Misha asked, a curious glint in her eyes.
"I'm thinking that maybe it could make a new type of healing potion."
Misha gave a low, thoughtful hum. "Aren't blue papilio wings much better for that kind of stuff?"
"Yeah," I nodded, smile widening. "But the fun thing about alchemy is that you never know what you might get from playing around with different ratios and reagents."
The girl pursed her lips, eyeing me skeptically. "If you say so. Just don't blow yourself up again, okay?"
"Don't worry your pretty head, Misha. I've got that E for Endurance," I told her with a smirk, her eyes briefly widening in surprise, before she leveled me a stern look.
"That's exactly why I worry, Jack."
__________________________________________
I stood before the workbench, a couple dozen little jars laid out in front of me like the world's weirdest-looking spice collection. Most of them were various sorts of herbs and roots, but reading each label revealed an unexpected amount of drop items. Well, parts of them, at least.
Blue papilio powder. Purple moth powder. Killer ant shell fragments. Minotaur horn shavings. And a few other things. Miach really went all out for this one, didn't he? I'd have to thank him later.
Sadly, nothing seemed to happen as I kept staring at the reagents. My Skill had some sort of active trigger, apparently. I breathed out a quiet sigh, nibbling at my bottom lip. For Welf it was smithing, so… for something called Alchemy, I'd go on a limb and say that I had to try brewing something.
The mad scientist method never failed, no matter the world.
My lips twitched in amusement. Those crazy little goblins had it right—
Wait.
My eyes flew wide.
The description said nothing about recipes, so maybe I could just rip off stuff from games? Hissatsu Waza had no problem with that, and Welf also ran his magic sword bullshit based off his imagination.
But what to make, tho—
A sudden thought left me slack jawed. Guardian elixirs.
Strength. Fortitude. Defense. Agility. Intellect.
Stat boosting potions. Power in a flask.
A smile slowly stretched on my lips. If that kind of stuff also worked here…
Forget the money, I'd make history like Fels and Crozzo.
I looked back at the glass jars, lips pursed. What could I use to make that, though?
I scratched at my head, brows furrowed. It had to be reagents with similar properties, right? Magic was funny like that.
I tapped a finger idly on the table, skimming over the ingredients. Hmm. Endurance?
Let's see…
Herbs that helped restore stamina? Made sense. A drop item from a tough monster? A minotaur? Horns should symbolize power and strength, and the hide should be for toughness and—No. A frown pulled at my face. Too expensive. Maybe another time.
Killer ant carapace, then? I nodded to myself. Yeah, that could work—
"Are you going to keep staring at the table like a weirdo, or are you going to do something?" Naaza broke the silence, a dainty eyebrow cocked inquisitively from her seat to my left.
"Patience, my dear Naaza." I flashed her a smile before grabbing one of the herb jars.
"I'm not your dear anything," the dog-girl said flatly as I popped off the wooden cork.
"What do you mean? You are my dear captain."
The girl rolled her eyes in an exaggerated fashion, but I didn't miss that faint, briefest twitch at the corner of her lips. That falna-enhanced eyesight was a godsend in times like these. I'd bet it would've taken me another month or more to navigate the barren body language of my captain without this cheat code.
Taking a pinch of herb out of the jar, I dumped it in the small glass container atop the magic stone heater, then filled it halfway with water. I picked up the flask and looked at it closer, brows furrowing as nothing seemed to happen.
Hmm…
I tried focusing on the mixture, yet still nothing.
Brow creasing, I placed the container back on the heater and switched it on. I reached for another jar, taking some bits of dried root and dropping them in the glass. Then, I picked up the teaspoon from across the table and began stirring the leaf juice.
Maybe this classified as Alchemy enough for my Skill—
"You're wasting money again." Naaza's dry voice cut through my thoughts like a steel edge.
She was still worried about that? Did our talk from last night fly over her head?
"I need to figure out my Skill somehow. And we've managed to stay afloat for another month."
"It's still painful watching you do this."
Ah. So, it was just poverty-induced stinginess. I could relate to that.
"Just look at it as an investment. Once I figure out what I can do, we'll rake in the big money."
I should totally buy a cauldron or something with my next paycheck. Making potions by the cup would suck.
"Wonderful."
Ignoring the sass, I focused back on the heated mixture, but, just like before, nothing seemed different. No instinctive feeling abruptly popping up. No weird tickling at the back of my mind—
Wait. Mind. Magic potions. Magic.
I fought back the urge to slap my forehead. I was being stupid. Big stupid.
Continuing with the stirring, I closed my eyes and focused inwardly, then, just like those times before, I reached for that spring of energy deep within me, trying to coax and nudge it while picturing the concoction—
I breathed in sharply, eyes flying open as something shifted. Like a strange sixth sense painting a vague impression on a blank canvas at the back of my mind. It took me a while to decipher it, but it felt like something was branching out, as if telling me that I could go from this incomplete mixture down several different paths, of which, two had the same ingredient—
"By the way, we've run out of Blue Papilio Wings," Naaza spoke up again, the tapestry vanishing from my mind as she interrupted my focus. I already knew what came next, so it didn't matter. "Maybe you can do something about it before we have to buy them from the Guild."
My mouth twitched with a tiny grimace. No wonder she sounded so sour.
"Have you tried posting a quest for it?" I turned off the heater as the liquid started to boil and placed the spoon aside, quirking a brow at my captain.
"Three days ago."
Oof. Someone should've picked it up by now, unless…
"Are you paying enough for the reward?"
Naaza shrugged with all the enthusiasm of watching paint dry. "Probably not."
A quiet sigh escaped me as I picked up the Killer Ant jar and shook out a few pieces of red carapace.
This girl…
Dropping the shells inside the boiling liquid, I focused again on the mixture. That odd feeling returned, though the tapestry quickly changed, some branches vanishing until only three remained. I could stop it here, or tweak one little thing and make a potion that only increased defense. Likely a little more potent, too, for the trade-off.
Not what I wanted now, though. I'd look into it later.
I stirred the concoction some more, all the while nudging my Mind down that chosen branch, and then… the magic happened. The bubbling liquid began to cool, turning a deep violet color.
Neat.
"You're even making Mixing look weird." Naaza's voice carried a strange note as she spoke. I glanced her way, meeting the ghost of a frown on her lips.
Back with the snark, huh?
I opened my mouth, ready for another verbal spar, but then, a sudden thought gave me pause. Was she jealous?
"That's probably the Mystery." I shrugged. "The Skill itself is unfair anyway."
My captain let out a half amused, half disbelieving huff. "At least you're self-aware."
Smiling wryly, I picked up the flask by the rim, holding it up and admiring the purple juice. That was a magic potion, all right. I had no idea how it worked, but I knew that if I drank this stuff, it should do something to improve my toughness or defense or whatever.
Elixir of Endurance? Hmm… Fortitude? Yeah, that sounded better. And I was already ripping off the game. May as well go the full mile.
I brought the potion to my lips, ready to chug it down like a tequila shot, only to pause at the last moment, eyeing it closely for a few seconds, before setting it back on the table.
"What, you're not going to drink it?" Came Naaza's dry voice, a flash of mirth dancing in her eyes.
Yes, yes, very funni.
"Maybe I should wait for Miach."
The dog-girl blinked, studying me for a moment as her eyebrows rose ever so slightly. "Who are you and what did you do to Jack?"
A snort escaped me as I placed the ingredient jars back in their pile. "Hey, I can learn from mistakes."
"Shocking."
I pushed a sigh through my nose, shaking my head. Blow yourself up one time…
I looked back at the workbench, a wave of excitement churning in my stomach at the prospect of more mad science. First attempt, a remarkable success. What next?
My lips pursed thoughtfully. Another stat boosting potion? Weapon oils? A flaming hammer could be fun. Or something purely cosmetic? Like that freaky Noggenfogger elixir—
I paused, eyes going wide as a thought shot through my mind like a thunderbolt.
Oh.
Oh.
A smile stretched on my lips. This was going to be epic.
"Stop grinning like that. It's creepy," Naaza spoke flatly with that impeccable pokerface of hers, though it did nothing to take the wind out of my sails. I looked her in the eye with the conviction of a man who had just found enlightenment, spreading my arms wide.
"Naaza, we're going to be filthy rich."
The penis enlargement pills could wait. Transmog tonics were the next big hit on the menu.
My captain rolled her eyes, tone dry as the desert. "That's what you keep saying since last night."
"And it needs to be said, because this Skill is crazy." If these worked…
I shook my head with an amused huff. We might end up richer than Freya.
Naaza arched a dainty brow, face as flat as ever, though I could see the faint glimmer of curiosity in her gaze. "Really? What did you figure out?"
"A way to make most gods throw money at us."
The dog-girl studied me for a moment, before letting out a quiet huff. "I'll believe you when I see it."
Oh, ye of so little faith. Always so skeptical. I'd try my best to make it work, just to see her reaction.
I reached for one of the jars, only to pause, hand hovering there for a second, before I pulled it back, mouth drawing a thin line. I had no idea where to begin with this one.
I obviously needed something to induce the transformation, then something to key it to a specific form… probably some DNA?
Hmm…
I turned to my captain with a smile, pointing a finger at her slightly frizzy locks. "Can I get a strand of your hair?"
Naaza blinked, an awkward moment passing as her blank stare bore straight into my soul. Then, her brows rose ever so slightly. "A what?" Came her utterly flat reply.
"A strand of your hair."
"No, I heard you perfectly," she said, leaning forward in her chair, eyes narrowed and judgmental. "But why would you need a strand of my hair? I'm not indulging your weird fetishes, just so you know."
I fought back the urge to roll my eyes. She was acting like I'd asked for her bathwater, not hair.
"It could be a potion reagent."
Her lips thinned, a skeptical look crossing her face. "A potion reagent? For what?"
I shrugged. "That's what I'm trying to find out." No spoilers. Especially not for grumpy dog-girls.
The staring contest went for a little longer, before Naaza leant back with a quiet huff. "I'll think about it."
I slumped over the table. Yeah, that was probably a no...
I thought that dog girls would be easier to understand, but Naaza was as complicated as any other woman.
__________________________________________
I stood by the worktable, stomach twisting in anticipation while Miach held the small glass vial before his face, inspecting the Elixir of Fortitude.
"There is a much higher concentration of magic in this potion than anything I've seen before," Miach finally spoke as he lowered the vial, eyes lingering on it for another moment before he met my gaze.
Well, it was in the name. Magic potion. Bullshit in a bottle.
"Is it safe to drink?"
"I didn't find anything harmful about it," he said, a soft smile coming to his face. "I'm glad that you waited for me to test this, Jack."
"Well," I gave a shrug, smiling sheepishly. "I did promise to be more careful." When I could help it, at least.
Miach chuckled, handing me the potion. "You seem eager to test it."
Boy, do I. "Let's see how it works."
I popped the cork, Miach watching in curiosity as I chugged the elixir in one gulp like a Jägerbomb shot, only to immediately pull a face. Ew. Bitter leaf juice. Maybe I should ask Naaza to share some of her cinnamon stash.
I waited, brow creasing as I glanced down at my hands, giving them an experimental flex. Part of me expected that something should have happened by now, but that was kinda stupid. Enhanced toughness wouldn't have any obvious tells.
My eyes went to the pair of scissors on the workbench, then to Miach, thinking twice about my brilliant idea when his gaze narrowed ever so slightly.
Yeah, I was saving that one for last.
"Maybe something showed on the falna?" I said, Miach's expression softening. Did he really think that I was going to stab myself first option?
"Go on." Miach gestured at the chair with a smile, and I wasted no time. I pulled off my shirt and draped it over the backrest as I took a seat, waiting patiently.
Warm hands rested gently on my back, dancing light filling the corner of my vision as Miach did his thing. Suddenly, a sharp intake of air reached my ears.
"My goodness…" he said, voice close to a whisper, and my stomach did a flip. When I looked over my shoulder, Miach's wide eyes met my gaze. "This potion…" He gave a slow shake of the head.
Oh yeah, this was a big one.
"And you've gained high quality excelia too."
Saywhat.
<>
Jacob Brewer
Lv. 1
STR: F381 → E408
END: E426 → E457 (A800)
DEX: G279 → F303
AGI: F308 → F331
MAG: I15 → I18
"Magic"
"Skills"
[Rule of Cool]
Yours is an impossible existence. Inspire awe, and the world is willing to suspend its disbelief. Act to impress. Impress when you act. It Just Works.
[Hissatsu Waza]
Increased odds of achieving a Limit Off. Allows the user to unleash the entire power of a Limit Off as a single strike. Active trigger.
[Alchemy]
The user can create Magic Potions and alchemical effects. While practicing alchemy, the user gains the development abilities Mixing, Mystery, and Alchemy, depending on their level.
<>
Holy shit. Alchemy was so busted.
"This changes everything."
I looked up from the status paper, meeting Miach's wide, unblinking eyes. His gaze bored into me like a laser, lips pressed into a thin line.
"If you put these up for sale…"
There'd be no going back.
"We'll have a lot of eyes on us, but…" I shrugged, a small, self-assured smile working its way on my face. Such was the path of the Greatest Cool. "This potion could save a lot of rookies from dying on the higher floors." If they could afford it…
I had to think of a proper pricing plan. Maybe with special offers and stuff?
Miach's gaze softened, lips curling in a way that reminded me of my dad whenever he was proud of me. "That's kind of you, Jack."
A forlorn pang lodged in my chest. I'd left them behind, but they wouldn't want me to be sad. Life went on, and I had to make the best out of it.
"I mean, we're also going to make a lot of money, so there's that."
Miach shook his head with a quiet chuckle. "I suppose that's the compromise when it comes to you."
"I'd do it just for the cool factor." I flashed Miach a smile, drawing an amused look in return.
"I had a feeling you'd say that."
I was becoming predictable, huh?
"Still, it'll be a while until we can sell this stuff. I want to figure out these elixirs for all the attributes, and we'll need a lot of funds to keep up a steady production. For now, I think we need something cheaper to produce to increase our income."
__________________________________________
I walked down the crowded street, softly whistling a random tune, hands in my pockets. Those stat boosting elixirs were going to be a game-changer, especially when I could start making more potent versions.
I wasn't sure why it gave specifically three hundred forty-three stats, but who cared?
A funny looking juice that could potentially boost an attribute all the way into the triple S while lasting for a whole hour? No wonder I got some high quality excelia out of it. Part of me wanted to go right back home to try that minotaur horn and see what happened, but… maaaybe after I filled some of that empty piggy bank.
With the way Naaza kept looking at me last night, I might get shanked in my sleep if I wasted any more money before taking our Familia out of the red.
Still, I'd figured a lot about Alchemy from my experiments, so it was worth it.
Most ingredients had a broader effect, but they could get narrowed down to whatever I desired during the brewing process. The potency of the potions seemed to depend on the reagents, though likely also on my rank of Mixing and Mystery.
On the other hand, some ingredients only yielded an unexpectedly limited number of recipes, and it wouldn't take a genius to guess that I needed higher DAs to expand my brewing options. I couldn't confirm anything until I leveled up, but it made too much sense to not work like that.
The market finally came into view, stall after stall lining the wide street on both sides, people crowding every inch of the place. Evenings were crazy with all the returning adventurers popping out of the woodwork, but as long as nobody stepped on my toes, I wasn't going to complain. Much.
I wasn't exactly keen on asking Naaza again if she felt like donating hair for academic purposes, but that wasn't a problem. A cat-girl was fine, too. Better, even, for a first-time product. Well, probably not better than an elf, but I'd rather go naked inside the murder pit than ask a random elf on the street for some hair.
So, cat-girls. I just needed to find one and get the hair. I wasn't sure what else I might need for the tonic, but I'd cross that bridge when I got there.
As I made my way through the marketplace, a cat-guy at a vegetable stand caught my eye. It was a middle-aged man, with dark hair and a goatee, but I didn't have time to waste, and walking up to a dude for this kind of stuff meant less drama, anyway.
The hair should work the same, even if it was from a guy. It was still cat person DNA in the end.
I stopped in front of his stall, smiling politely. "Good day, friend."
The man perked up, looking me up and down curiously. "Hello. Need something?"
"I was wondering if I could buy a few strands of your hair. I'll pay you well."
The cat-guy blinked a few times in quick succession, staring at me like I was insane. Rude.
"You want to buy some of my hair?" he spoke after a moment, tone carrying an uncertain note.
"Yes. Is it for sale?"
So far, it was going well. He looked more confused than anything else, but overall, he seemed pretty chill about it.
"What do you even need it for?" Was he worried about weird voodoo stuff?
Smile widening, I gestured with a hand at him. "I'm hoping to create a new cosmetic, but I need hair from a cat person."
A skeptical look flashed across the man's face as he kept staring at me like I was a few French fries short of a happy meal. Then, he opened his mouth to say something, only to close it again, lips pursing.
"How much are you paying?"
A smile came to my face. Nice. Money solved a lot of problems even in fantasy land. "Two thousand for a few strands."
The shopkeeper's brows climbed up his forehead. "Only a few?"
"Yeah, like a dozen or so. Just pinch some hair and pull it out."
He still seemed reluctant, but when I grabbed a handful of coins from my pouch and held them up for him to see, the cat-man quickly pinched a tuft of hair at the back of his head and gave it a sharp yank.
"This enough?" he asked, showing me the short, dark strands in his palm as I smiled.
"Yeah, here's your money." I passed him the coins as he dumped the hair in my other hand.
Clenching his fist around the money, he eyed me strangely for a long moment, before finally cracking a smirk. "I thought you were just trying to pull my leg."
I shook my head, smiling back. "Nah, not today," I said, getting a snort from the man as he dumped his pay in a small hip bag.
"Good luck with whatever you're trying to do."
"Thanks, friend."
"Same." He let out an amused huff. "Feel free to come back if you need more hair."
I might.
I flashed the shopkeeper a smile and turned around, pulling out a small, glass jar from my pocket. I stashed the hair inside and covered it with a cork, ignoring the odd looks from some of the people milling around me as I took my leave.
Cat-person hair, acquired.
I had no clue what came next, though. Maybe a potato puff or ten would get the ideas flowing.
__________________________________________
I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand, skimming over the monster carcasses littering the ground, just to make sure they were properly dead. It never happened before, but you never knew in this place.
Rolling a kink out of my shoulders, I walked closer to the center of the room, taking a better look at the tall, quartz pillar that stood there like an obelisk. Clear, shimmering liquid slowly flowed from the softly glowing crystal-like tree sap, pooling into a large puddle at the base.
It was an interesting sight, if nothing else, but I've seen a bunch of cooler stuff on the surface to drop my jaw at a pillar or glowing crystal.
"I guess we should wait here for a while." Those stupid butterflies had better show up soon. We still had to murder the hell out of the ninth floor today, and it was already close to noon.
Crossing two floors was going to take at least half an hour, depending on how many—
"It takes at least four people to clean up a Pantry like this." Ravi spoke up from across the room with a grin, plopping himself down on a nearby protruding rock to catch his breath. "We make a crazy team, brudda."
I nodded along. "We have great synergy, but we're also a bit too strong for this floor."
"These monsters are no match for our quivering muscles." He flexed his left arm, the biceps bulging like a rock. "We should give the tenth floor a try one of these days."
"Good idea. Maybe in a few days or so." I had to figure out that cat-girl tonic first. I'd take a few more days of slower growth if it meant helping my Familia. The murder pit wasn't running anywhere, and I still had a year and a half until the expected apocalypse. Alchemy should scale with prep time, so building up the funds for it now was a wise move.
"Ain't gonna loot these, brotha?"
I glanced back at Ravi to see him kneeling next to a killer ant corpse, prying open the carapace with his bare hands like a gorilla.
"After I check this out," I said, pointing with a thumb at the glowing pillar.
Ravi hummed in agreement, continuing his harvesting as I focused back on the clear, shimmering liquid. Monsters ate this stuff. A natural product of the dungeon. No way that it wouldn't trigger something with Alchemy. And even if it didn't, I was going to try it anyway.
Rummaging through my bag, I fished out the empty glass flask that I always kept on me and uncorked it. A sample should be enough for now. I could even put a quest for it later. Nobody else used this pantry sap. They didn't even bother naming it.
Brow furrowed, I watched the quartz for a while, following the drops of liquid as they trickled down here and there. Noticing a pattern, I propped the jar below the pillar in a way that it would keep collecting some of the falling drops.
And now, more waiting. Wonderfu—
"What'cha doing with that, brudda? I can give you some water if you're thirsty," Ravi said as he walked over to another carcass. I had a feeling he was just cracking a joke, but his inflection sometimes made it hard to tell.
I shrugged, turning around to face him. "I want to see if I can make some potion with it."
"Ahhh," he said, mouth opening in realization, only to abruptly pause, glancing at the sap-collecting jar. "Don't you need Mixing for that?"
"Already have it from a Skill."
Ravi's brows climbed up his forehead. "A new one?"
"Yeah. Now I can help with the Familia business without needing level two."
I could've made some excuse, but this was Ravi. I had his measure by now, and he was as bro as they came. And besides, Skills that gave conditional Developmental Abilities were fairly common, so I wasn't too speshul in that regard.
Ravi let out a low, impressed whistle. "That's awesome," he said, and even though he sounded happy, there was a faint longing in his words. "I wish I could get Skills like that, too, brother."
I paused, looking at him for a moment, a complicated smile coming to my face. Being truthful came with its own issues, it seemed. I could understand why he felt like this, but I wasn't going to let my companion start doubting himself.
"The falna reacts to your emotions and desire," I said, giving him a reassuring smile. "Stay true to your passion and keep giving your all, and you'll get your Skill, brother."
Ravi had paused from his harvesting, watching me intently as silence filled the room. Something flickered across his face, and then he nodded firmly, a faint smile tugging at his mouth.
"Thank you, bruddah."
Neither of us said anything else. It wasn't needed. The renewed fire in his eyes spoke enough.
We lapsed into companionable silence, and I went back to watching the sap dripping inside the jar. Part of me wondered if the jar would fill before the butterflies showed up, but it probably wouldn't matter. I was hoping to get at least half a dozen wings from this stunt, and that might take an hour if we were particularly unlucky.
"You said your Familia runs a pharmacy, right?" Ravi spoke up after a while, drawing my attention.
"Yeah."
Did he need something? I'd give him a discount, maybe even some free samples.
"What's it called?"
"The Blue Pharmacy. Interested in checking it out?"
"For sure, brudda." He nodded, flashing me a smirk. "You got me curious with all this talk about potions."
"I haven't made anything new yet."
"That's fine. I can still grab some of the regular stuff, y'know?"
Good thing I'd talked to Naaza about cutting the potions. She'd been playing with fire enough as it was.
"Sure. But where have you been getting your potions? Dian Cecht?"
Ravi shrugged with a hand, the other buried deep in monster guts. "No idea. Modaka gives us potions when we need 'em, and I haven't asked him where he buys 'em."
Modaka? I tried to put a face to that name but came up short. The only people I remembered with the Elephant Man were that hot redhead Amazon, the captain, and Hashana. Still, it was pretty cool of Ganesha to hand out stuff like that to the rookies, even if they were probably just basic bitch potions.
Maybe I could take a page out of his book and apply it to our business. It should help us get more customers. There was no point in selling potions if nobody bought them.
__________________________________________
You can support me at patreon.com/alexanderbishop and read advanced chapters