Chapter 7: A Factory of Failures
The moment Elliott Franrt returned home, he locked the door and emptied the bundle hanging from his shoulder onto the floor.
With a loud clatter, the contents spilled across the room.
The smell of mold and damp soil immediately filled the air.
Everything scattered across the floor looked miserable. There were roots so dry and twisted that they resembled tree bark, yellowed leaves that had lost nearly all their color, and mushrooms riddled with holes after insects had eaten away half their flesh.
To Elliott, however, they were nothing more than piles of valuable experience.
"Excellent."
A satisfied smile appeared on his face as he sat down in front of the Bronze Furnace.
Adept cultivation.
The overwhelming strength displayed by the Inner Initiates of the Azure Cloud Order remained deeply engraved in his mind.
The flash that had severed the enormous Arcane Beast's neck in a single strike. The cold killing intent that had crushed everyone nearby. Even the awe and envy that the crowd had directed toward them.
Power.
Dominion.
Supremacy.
Words capable of stirring the blood of any man circled through his thoughts.
To survive in this merciless world of Adepts, or perhaps even rise above people like them one day, he would need power of that level.
For now, however, it was nothing more than a distant dream.
'This is no time to indulge in useless fantasies.'
Reality was far less pleasant.
He was still a debtor whose organs might be harvested in two days.
Securing the basic means to survive came first.
Elliott pushed aside his distracting thoughts and pulled the largest pile of lowest-grade Bloodwort toward him.
He had only one goal.
He needed to raise his Blood-Staunching Powder skill, currently at Skilled with seven percent proficiency, to the next rank.
"Let's begin."
Flames roared to life beneath the furnace.
The factory of failures officially opened.
Elliott swept the ingredients into the furnace as though he were shoveling rubbish, paying no attention to flame control or proper preparation.
A sharp hiss came from inside.
[Alchemy failed!]
[The medicinal properties have vanished due to severe decay.]
[Trait, Infinite Proficiency, activated!]
[Proficiency greatly increased!]
[Proficiency greatly increased!]
"It works!"
A delighted laugh escaped Elliott.
Using rotten materials was far quicker and easier than working with normal ones.
He did not even bother scraping away the charred remains. He simply tossed another batch directly on top of them.
[Alchemy failed!]
[The chemical reaction failed due to foreign substances contaminating the mixture.]
[Trait, Infinite Proficiency, activated!]
The reasons for failure varied every time.
Some ingredients were rotten. Others burned because the flames were too strong. Some batches failed because ashes and debris had mixed into them.
None of it mattered.
Whatever the reason, the system cared only about the final result.
Failure.
As long as the attempt ended in failure, it rewarded him.
Elliott's hands moved faster.
Add the ingredients. Burn them. Check the result.
Add the ingredients. Burn them. Check the result.
[Insert materials] → [Heat at maximum intensity] → [Immediate carbonization] → [Failure confirmed]
It became a mechanical cycle, no different from working beside an endless assembly line.
His movements carried no emotion, but the proficiency numbers floating before his eyes continued to rise without pause.
Whenever exhaustion became unbearable, Elliott stretched out flat on the floor and rested for a while. As soon as he recovered, he rose like a corpse dragged back to life and returned to the furnace.
"Cough! Cough!"
Before long, the room was filled with such thick, acrid smoke that breathing became difficult.
Then a clear series of notifications rang out.
Ding!
Ding!
The sound was brighter and sharper than any notification he had heard before.
[Congratulations!]
[Blood-Staunching Powder proficiency has surpassed the critical threshold.]
[Rank increased: Skilled → Expert]
At that moment, Elliott's mind became clear.
A strange sensation spread through his entire body.
He could feel the precise temperature of the flames against his skin. Merely listening to the crackle of burning herbs allowed him to picture how their medicinal properties were reacting and merging inside the furnace.
"It worked."
Elliott clenched his fist.
Expert. The rank suggested complete familiarity with a particular field.
At the very least, when it came to Blood-Staunching Powder alone, he had reached a level comparable to the contracted Alchemists employed by large and respectable apothecaries.
'Now, let's make the real thing.'
Elliott pushed the practice materials aside.
He then retrieved the valuable ingredients he had kept hidden deep within his clothes.
A bundle of mid-grade Bloodwort and a portion of mid-grade Clear Water, both of which he had practically extorted from Shrank at the Hundred Herbs Apothecary.
Elliott steadied his breathing and placed the first ingredients into the furnace.
'Let's do this.'
Perhaps he was too tense.
Perhaps he had failed to adjust to the far purer medicinal properties of the new ingredients.
Before the herb could be properly refined, it crumbled apart.
It had been exposed to slightly too much heat.
[Alchemy failed!]
[Proficiency bonus acquired.]
The failure notification jolted Elliott awake as though cold water had been poured over his head.
He slowly released a breath.
"The system is only an aid."
He had become overconfident after reaching the Expert rank.
Advancing his skill did not mean a finished product would simply appear the moment he began working.
He still had to control the flames himself.
He still had to combine the medicinal properties himself.
The system could show him the correct path, but Elliott was still the one who had to walk it.
For a moment, he had forgotten that simple fact.
'Focus. Stay alert and remain calm.'
Elliott rubbed his face with both hands, then stared at the Bronze Furnace once more.