Chapter 67: Elixir (3)

Silence settled over the room. It was the kind of silence so thick and heavy that even death would seem noisy in comparison.

In that suffocating stillness, Yuren finally spoke in a low voice. “So, let me get this straight...”

His eyes, now cold and sharp, locked onto me. “You were practicing for a play? A play you’re going to perform for the kids at an orphanage where you volunteer on weekends?”

“Exactly,” I replied.

“And I’m supposed to believe that?” he asked.

“No, but it’s the truth! Right, Iris?” I turned to Iris with desperate eyes, pleading for backup.

Iris nodded frantically by my side. “Y-yes! That’s right! It was just a play. A play!”

Her face was so red it looked like it might burst if someone so much as poked it.

“

Hmph!

” Yuren narrowed his eyes, clearly not convinced, as he continued to stare at us. “But you two must be really close, huh? I mean, close enough for the Saintess herself to come all the way to this dorm room?”

He sounded more than a little displeased.

“Well, uh...” I struggled to come up with an excuse.

Iris beamed and jumped in to answer, “Of course we’re close. Dale and I get along really well. He even made me ramen the other day!”

“Ramen?” Yuren asked.

“It’s a popular dish from the Republic. And oh, you have no idea how good Dale is at cooking it. Anyone who hasn’t tried it is seriously missing out.”

The more Iris bragged, the stiffer Yuren’s expression became.

“He never made anything like that for me,” Yuren muttered under his breath, head hanging slightly.

“You said you’re friends with Dale, right?” Iris asked.

“

Ah!

Yes, that’s right, Saintess,” Yuren replied.

“Oh, come on. Just call me normally. We’re in the same year, aren’t we?”

“O-okay.”

“So, how did the two of you become friends?” Iris’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.

Yuren glanced at me before answering, “I approached Dale first. I wanted to spar with him.”

“You did?”

“I saw him sparring with Assistant Instructor Vincent once.”

Iris let out a soft gasp of understanding and nodded. Like a proud mom bragging about her kid, she said, “Well, Dale was amazing that day. He completely floored Assistant Instructor Vincent in a single blow, right? No one else had even come close to landing a hit on him before that!”

“Yeah. So, we sparred, and I guess we just naturally became friends after that,” Yuren said.

“Ohh, I’ve heard that happens a lot between Warrior Division cadets. They get to know each other through duels.”

“And, well, Dale’s personality makes it easy.”

“Oh, you noticed that too? He might not look like it, but he’s super kind and considerate once you get to know him.” Iris continued praising me.

“Oh, totally. He’s nothing like his first impression.”

Hey. What do you mean I don’t look like it?

I said in my mind.

“Anyway, I’m glad I got to meet one of Dale’s friends like this. Honestly, Dale doesn’t have that many friends, right?” Iris said.

I quickly corrected her. “H-hey! That’s not true! I have friends!”

“Oh, yeah? Other than Yuren?” she asked.

“Um, well... Jules, for example,” I replied.

Jules, for example. And Jules, for example. And Jules... Fuck!

I couldn’t come up with other names.

Iris patted my back as if to comfort me. “See?”

“

Hm!

” Yuren, who had been silently watching the exchange, narrowed his eyes. “Dale doesn’t have many friends? I don’t agree with that.”

Iris was shocked. “

Huh

?”

“I’ve never heard of this Jules person, but besides him and me, there’s another one, right?” he said.

Iris widened her eyes in surprise. “What? Dale has another friend?”

Yuren gave a small nod and raised his hand, pointing directly at Iris. “You.”

“Me?”

“I heard from Dale that you two aren’t dating or anything, right?” Yuren added.

Iris’s face flushed with obvious embarrassment. “Y-yeah, that’s... technically true.”

Yuren’s eyes glinted like a predator zeroing in on its prey. “Then doesn’t that just make you Dale’s friend?”

“Well, I guess!”

With a sweet smile, Yuren delivered the final blow. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m not the type to say ‘men and women can’t be friends’ or any of that outdated nonsense. I believe that men and women can have a completely platonic, sincere friendship. You know. Just like you and Dale.”

Silence descended once again. Yuren’s and Iris’s gazes met in the air, clashing like drawn swords.

“My, how interesting. I suppose we see things differently. Personally, I don’t believe a man and a woman can be just friends,” Iris replied.

“Really? That’s surprising. You and Dale look like perfect friends to me,” Yuren said.

“

Hohoho

.”

“

Hahaha

.”

The air between them was so sharp it felt like I would get cut just by standing too close.

What even is this? Why has the atmosphere suddenly turned into this? Aren’t they meeting for the first time today?

I started wondering if there was some backstory I didn’t know about, but as far as I remembered, Iris and Yuren hadn’t had much interaction at all during our cadet days. Yet, they looked like they wanted to tear each other apart.

While I was frozen in confusion, caught in the storm, the two of them turned to me.

“So, Dale, what do you think?” Yuren asked.

“Yeah, I’m curious too. Do you think men and women can be just friends?” Iris asked right after.

“H-huh? What do I think?” I muttered.

“There’s even a term for it now, right? ‘Girl-friend,’ a girl who’s just a friend. Isn’t that exactly the kind of relationship you have with Iris?”

Their eyes were laser-focused on my mouth, waiting for my response. A chill ran down my spine, and then a bolt of intuition struck me like lightning: If I answered, I was fucked. So, without any hesitation, I turned away, gripping the purified mana stone tightly in my hand.

I said, “Sorry! Just remembered! I had an appointment with Professor Bastion that I totally forgot about!”

“What?”

“W-wait! Dale?!”

“I really have to go! Let’s talk again later!”

Leaving the two of them in the room behind me, I dashed out of the dorm like I was running for my life and headed straight toward Professor Bastion’s lab.

***

At the very edge of Reynald Hero Academy’s vast campus, in a spot so secluded anyone could miss it entirely, stood a decrepit building, half-collapsed and forgotten. A rusted sign out front read “Soul Stigmata Magic Research Lab.”

The old door of the laboratory flew open with a loud crash. Seeing me huffing and catching my breath, Professor Bastion looked at me with a puzzled expression.

He asked, “Dale? Is something wrong?”

I steadied myself and shook my head. “No, nothing’s wrong. I just came straight from training, so I’m a bit winded.”

“

Hmm

.” Professor Bastion stroked his beard, clearly still skeptical.

I turned away from him and looked around the lab I hadn’t visited in quite a while. True to its rundown exterior, the lab looked like a haunted house from the inside, filled with scattered research notes, various reagents, and layers of dust clinging to every surface.

“Seriously? How long has it been since I last cleaned this place? It’s already a disaster again,” I said.

Professor Bastion averted his eyes, looking sheepish. “

Ah!

Haha!

I’ve been so busy with research lately, I haven’t had time to tidy up.”

Sighing deeply, I began cleaning the lab.

“It’s been a while since you’ve visited,” he said.

“I’ve been tied up with all sorts of things.”

“

Heh

, that’s right. The midterms just ended not long ago. How did you do on the exams?”

I couldn’t help but let out a groan the moment he brought up the exams.

“

Hm

?” Maybe he picked up on my odd reaction, Professor Bastion activated his Hero Watch and checked the midterm report. “Well, I’ll be damned! You got a zero?”

“There’s a reason for that.”

“

Hmph!

I don’t know what that reason is, but why would someone with your skills bomb the exam on purpose?”

If I had failed on purpose, I wouldn’t feel this bitter. I genuinely aimed to be first.

I didn’t have the luxury of explaining everything in detail. “Let’s save that story for another time.”

“So, what brings you to the lab today?”

“I came to ask you for a favor.” I pulled out a small pill about the size of two knuckles from inside my coat.

Professor Bastion scrutinized it. “This is...”

“It’s an elixir that enhances mana.”

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“Yes, I know that much. But isn’t this the elixir that was awarded last year to the top-performing cadet?”

His gaze seemed to ask, “How did someone at the bottom of the class end up with something like this?”

“A friend gave it to me as a gift,” I replied.

“A friend?” Professor Bastion tilted his head, but then his eyes widened in realization. “Don’t tell me... You mean that friend is Yuren Helios?”

“That’s right. Yuren.”

“

Hah!

” Professor Bastion let out a baffled laugh, completely dumbfounded. “The top and bottom of the class are friends...”

“Is there a school rule that says friendships are based on academic ranking?”

“

Heh heh!

No, of course not. I was just surprised. To be honest, it’s not the kind of pairing you’d expect to see.”

“Well, you’re not wrong.”

Even if the Helios family’s prestige had somewhat faded in recent years, no one would deny they were still one of the top three noble houses in the Empire. Yuren was raised as an elite in that noble household. Whereas, I grew up in a Republic orphanage, without even knowing my parents’ names. Even without our top-and-bottom class rankings, we weren’t exactly a natural fit.

“But don’t worry.” Professor Bastion reassured me.

“About what?”

“You can still become my assistant regardless of your background or grades, as long as I recommend you!”

“Still clinging to that idea, huh.”

“Anyway, let’s talk about that another time.” I placed the elixir on the table, then took out something else I had kept safely in my pouch, a mana stone.

“This is... a mana stone?”

“Yes.”

Without even touching it, Professor Bastion immediately identified the mana stone’s quality. “

Hoh!

This mana density and purity... It’s high-grade, no, top-tier, easily.”

He really was the descendant of the Great Sage. Even skilled appraisers rarely identified the grade of a mana stone by appearance alone, without channeling magic into it.

“I’d like you to combine this mana stone with the elixir to amplify its existing effects,” I said.

“You mean the mana-enhancing effects?”

“Yes.”

“

Hmmm!

” Professor Bastion stroked his beard as he studied the items laid out on the table. After a short silence, he slowly nodded. “All right. I’ll give it a try.”

“If you need compensation...”

“No, no need for payment.” He caressed the items, swallowing hard. “A chance to mix such a high-grade elixir with a top-tier mana stone? Even royal court alchemists rarely get that opportunity.”

His eyes gleamed like stars as he let out a delighted chuckle. All mages were the same. Even in my past life, Senior Sophia used to get that same look in her eyes whenever she found rare magic materials.

“Hehehe. Well then, it’s time I showed off my skills after a long while,” he said.

Jayden Bastion, a descendant of the Great Sage Julius Bastion, one of the Great Five Heroes from five hundred years ago, was about to get serious.

***

Three days after I had left the elixir to Professor Bastion, I received a message from him and returned to his lab. When I opened the lab door, I was greeted by the sight of Professor Bastion with dark circles under his eyes and an eerie smile on his face.

“

Hah!

Hah!

It’s done.

Hehehe

. It’s finished,” he said.

“Don’t tell me you haven’t slept a wink in three days?”

“

Hehehe

. How could I possibly sleep in the middle of such a glorious task?”

That only made my resolve grow stronger; I would never become Professor Bastion’s assistant.

Etching that vow deep into my heart, I accepted the elixir he held out. It glowed with a soft blue light. Even at a glance, it radiated an extraordinary aura.

“

Ugh!

I’ll be off to get some sleep now.” As if the fatigue from three sleepless nights hit him all at once, Professor Bastion shuffled straight back into his lab the moment he handed me the elixir.

Holding the elixir, I returned to my dorm room. I placed the elixir on my palm and tried to calm my pounding heart. “

Whew!

”

From what I could recall, I had never held anything this powerful, even in my past life—an elixir awarded only to the top student, a mana stone purified with the power of the Saintess of the Holy Empire as well as the Seven Eyes, and the magic alchemy of the Great Sage’s descendant binding the two together.

Even I, someone who had returned from the future, had no way of predicting what kind of result this combination would bring.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out.” I lifted the elixir from my palm and swallowed it in one gulp.