Farn's Subjugation, Goodbye Logan

Once everything had been tidied up.

It was already afternoon.

In the laboratory, Ian said to Farn, "Farn, please get me the materials for eight Lesser Sedative Potions and twelve Minor Hemostatic Potions."

The former was the formula for the basic potion he had newly acquired.

"Alright."

Farn nodded dully, as though he were still steeped in disappointment.

Ian naturally noticed, but he said nothing.

Before long, the twenty sets of materials were brought over.

"This is great!"

Standing before the experiment table, Ian felt a sense of satisfaction.

It was something he had not felt in the three months since coming to the Potions Department.

In Hal's laboratory, how could he have possibly obtained so many materials at once? Even Roger had never received such treatment.

After carefully studying the potion formula for a while longer.

"White willow bark, Focusflower..."

Following the procedure, Ian began processing the materials.

Meanwhile, Farn merely stood to one side and watched, expressionless.

He had once been Vivian's Servant Witch, so naturally he did not feel anything particularly special about it.

Once the materials had been processed, Ian began concocting the potion.

Twenty minutes later.

A plume of green smoke rose, and the concoction failed.

"Such clumsy technique!"

Farn's eyes flickered, and he only felt even more disheartened.

"Farn, come help me process the materials too."

After finishing one batch, Ian directly instructed Farn beside him.

Processing materials was helpful for learning beginner potions.

But how could it possibly compare to concocting them directly?

"Alright!"

Farn nodded and swiftly began processing the materials.

"As expected of Vivian's Servant Witch."

Watching his skillful handling of the materials, which was scarcely inferior to that of some experienced potionists, Ian was immediately taken aback.

Then he realized that not just anyone could become Vivian's Servant Witch.

Because of Vivian, he could be trusted.

His attitude was just a little too negative.

That could only be addressed slowly.

Very soon, all eight potions failed. Not a single one succeeded.

"Next time, I should be able to get the hang of it. Let's continue with the Minor Hemostatic Potion."

Ian shook his head, then turned his gaze to the materials for the Minor Hemostatic Potion.

The authority Vivian had granted him allowed for the loss of half the materials—half of their total value—so he would have to make up for the other half himself.

The Minor Hemostatic Potion was truly far too familiar to him.

Taking the materials Farn had already processed, a potion was successfully concocted in merely twelve or thirteen minutes!

"So fast?"

Farn looked at the hourglass on the experiment table beside him. One round had not even finished.

Under the same conditions, even Minister Vivian might not necessarily have been this fast.

"This..."

Farn blinked, feeling that something seemed a little off.

In the blink of an eye.

Half a day passed.

"Twenty sets of materials in total, and eleven Minor Hemostatic Potions succeeded."

Holding the potions in his hands, Farn's heart gave a rapid thump, and he felt somewhat stunned.

There were eight failed batches of Lesser Sedative Potion among them.

In other words, out of twelve sets of Minor Hemostatic Potion ingredients, eleven had succeeded—a success rate of over ninety percent!

Gulp.

His throat bobbed.

"Wizard Ian, I'll take the potions away for you."

Farn said.

"Alright."

Ian nodded, watching Shawn take away all the experimental residue and potions.

"What a pity I can't take them with me."

Ian felt a pang of regret.

For a potion maker, the ten Magic Stones issued each month were their wages. If they wanted more Magic Stones, they could only buy ingredients themselves and sell what they made.

They were not allowed to take away the materials provided by the School or the potions brewed from them, not even failed ones.

Everything had to be inspected.

Naturally, Ian could not take them.

If he got caught, the loss would outweigh the gain.

He believed Hal and Doug were still watching him. The moment he violated the rules, they would probably pounce on him like starving wolves.

"Being able to raise my potion proficiency for free is already enough."

Ian was still quite content.

If he had to raise his potion proficiency on his own, bringing a single potion to Master Level would cost at least one or two hundred Magic Stones.

That was simply not something he could accomplish.

Leaving the Potions Department.

Ian returned home.

He began studying Faint Glimmer. This sorcery also required time.

About two hours later.

He spent another hour studying the Guidance Technique.

After that, he took out the Sorcery Feather Victor had given him and tried to decipher the sorcery runes within.

By the time he had finished all of that, a full four hours had passed.

It was already afternoon.

"Time to meditate!"

Ian took a deep breath and began his meditation for the day.

By the time his meditation ended, another eight hours had passed. It was already midnight.

"There really isn't enough time!"

Ian sighed.

Although he had been freed, he had suddenly obtained a large number of sorceries, and all he felt was that time had become even tighter.

Yet he did not dare relax.

After all, whether it was Hal, Doug, or even the worsening environment outside, everything was telling him that he needed to grow stronger quickly.

"For now, I'll focus on potions and these advanced sorceries. Once I've learned them, I'll study the sorceries Layton gave me before and buy new ones."

Ian calculated it over.

Since both could raise his talent, it did not really matter whether he improved sorceries or potions.

He might as well madly improve the sorceries related to potion studies. After all, this opportunity might disappear at any time.

Besides, it could also increase his value in Vivian's eyes.

And earn him greater benefits.

"That's the plan."

Filled with fervent motivation, Ian even went to sleep later than usual.

In the blink of an eye.

Two days passed.

[Skill: Lesser Sedative Potion (Beginner 1/100)]

Seeing the skill appear on the panel, Ian's eyes lit up.

After two days of brewing, the skill had finally appeared.

Now he could focus on improving properly.

Farn, standing to one side, had flickering eyes and a heart full of doubt.

It took a full twenty to thirty batches of materials just to get started. This didn't feel like the work of a genius at all—his level was utterly average!

His mood sank once more.

After recording Ian's experimental materials, he slowly left.

Today, Ian had once again prepared eight batches of Lesser Sedative Potion and twelve batches of Minor Hemostatic Potion.

One of the former succeeded, while ten of the latter succeeded.

Another day passed.

Farn continued keeping count.

"Ten batches of Lesser Sedative Potion and ten batches of Minor Hemostatic Potion. One success for the former, ten for the latter."

"Eleven batches of Lesser Sedative Potion and nine batches of Minor Hemostatic Potion. Two successes for the former, eight for the latter."

"Materials: twelve batches, eight batches. Successes: three batches, seven batches."

As Farn recorded the data each day, he gradually realized something was off.

Seven days after the first successful preparation.

Farn looked at the ten bottles of Minor Energy Potion, five of which had succeeded, and lightly pressed his lips together.

When he looked at Ian, who was stretching his body, there was no longer any contempt or disappointment in his eyes.

Only certainty in his own bright future remained.

"Lord Ian." Farn hurried forward, his tone incomparably respectful.

"I'll take care of these. Starting tomorrow, whatever materials you need, tell me in advance. I'll definitely have them prepared for you ahead of time. I guarantee I won't waste a single second of your precious time!"

Ian raised his head and smiled.

An assistant who took the initiative was naturally the best kind.

At the same time, he calculated his current progress.

"Preparing potions for one day can basically raise my proficiency by fifty. Now that I've entered the proficient stage, I should reach Master Level in another week."

Ian took a deep breath.

Compared to his previous progress in the laboratory, this was absurdly fast.

After all, he only spent half a day at the Potions Department now.

Before, he had spent a full ten hours every day there, sometimes even more than ten hours.

Yet the results had been less than half as good as they were now.

And if he came to the Potions Department for half of every month, he could raise one proficiency to Master Level. He would also have time to study the Potions inheritance.

The Guidance Technique should also reach the beginner stage in a few more days.

"I'm finally on the right track!"

Ian took a deep breath and looked at Farn, who was proactively cleaning up.

"I'll be going first."

"Take care, sir. Leave the rest to me."

Farn flashed his teeth in a grin, reassuring Ian.

Ian's mood immediately brightened considerably, and he soon returned home.

But someone was standing at the door.

Golden hair, back turned toward him.

"Logan!"

Ian knew that silhouette far too well. Without the slightest hesitation, he called out the newcomer's name.