Sleepy Potion (Thanks to Gun Da for the Alliance Leader Support)

Sleepy Potion (Thanks to Gun Da for the Alliance Leader Support)

"Do any of you have a potion that can help restore Spiritual Power? Lend me one first."

Meditating on the spot was clearly unrealistic, so Ronan asked the people beside him whether they had any suitable potions.

Old Wells and the others shook their heads. Barry, the middle-aged wizard, said he could ask the wizards traveling with them.

Barry walked into the crowd, and Ronan watched as he went from person to person, asking each one.

Most of the responses were shakes of the head.

There were even faint complaints.

"Didn't we agree we'd pay the reward after reaching the town? Why are you asking for payment now?!"

By the time Barry returned with a helpless expression, the result was naturally nothing.

Ronan was not disappointed. He had only been trying his luck.

Potions that restored Spiritual Power cost almost as much as Spirit Concentration Potions. How could the low-level wizards living in the Treehouse Area possibly have them?

Even if they did, they might not be willing to take them out, though Ronan had specifically told Barry that he would pay for them rather than asking anyone to give them away for free.

"Forget it. Let's go."

Ronan had been ready to let it go and call everyone onward.

Unexpectedly, just as they were about to set off, a timid voice sounded beside him.

"D-Does it just need to be a potion that can restore Spiritual Power?"

Ronan froze and quickly turned toward the voice. To his surprise, it was Barry's son—the young Level Two Apprentice who stood before him without even daring to breathe too loudly.

"You have one? Take it out and let me see."

Ronan spoke quickly. He remembered Barry introducing his son earlier; his name was Sean.

"He has jack shit!"

Before Sean could speak, Barry became anxious first. He glared at Sean and shouted, "Have you ever even seen a Spirit Recovery Potion? Do you know how many Magic Stones one costs? How dare you spout nonsense like that?!"

"I definitely don't have a Spirit Recovery Potion, but I made one myself! The effect is about the same—"

Sean retorted indignantly, pulling four or five Potion Bottles directly from his waist pouch.

Ronan was rather surprised. Looking at Sean, he asked, "You're actually a potion maker?"

Sean smiled sheepishly, while Barry looked helpless. "What potion maker? He just messes around with potion books bought from street stalls whenever he has nothing better to do. I've never seen him put that much effort into meditation... sigh."

Ronan did not respond to Barry. He took the potion Sean handed over and examined it closely.

The inferior crystal bottle was filled with gray liquid, and the obvious black sediment inside made Ronan hesitate.

"Are you sure it restores Spiritual Power?"

Ronan looked at Sean.

Sean patted his chest and promised, "Of course. I've drunk it myself, more than once.

"One bottle can completely refill my Spiritual Power, it's just..."

Sean's voice grew hesitant at the end. "It has a tiny side effect."

It would have been strange if it had no side effects.

Ronan was not surprised in the slightest and asked Sean what the side effect was.

"It makes you sleepy. You'll get sleepy right after drinking it..."

Sleepy?

Ronan frowned. "How long do you usually sleep after taking it?"

"Half an hour."

Sean answered without hesitation, only for Barry beside him to smack him hard on the head. "You sleep for half an hour every time you drink it. What kind of Spiritual Power restoration potion is that? It's a knockout drug!"

Sean clutched his head and cried out, "That's why I named it the Sleepy Potion!"

"..."

Everyone present was rather speechless, but Ronan stared at the potion in his hand, lost in thought.

"Do you get sleepy for half an hour every time?"

"Not always. Sometimes it only lasts twenty minutes."

"Have only you ever drunk it?"

"Y-Yes."

As Sean spoke, he guiltily glanced at Barry beside him.

After asking Sean a few questions, Ronan thought for a moment, then directly unscrewed the bottle and poured a little into his mouth to taste it. Then he drained the entire bottle in one gulp.

The people beside him were shocked. It was already too late to stop him, so they could only stare wide-eyed at Ronan's reaction.

The potion took effect quickly.

Just as Sean had said, Ronan began to feel sleepy after only a short while.

A heavy drowsiness surged over him like a tide. He yawned again and again, his eyelids drooping uncontrollably.

Once, twice, three times... "Whoosh—"

Ronan suddenly woke up, as though he had taken a brief nap during a summer afternoon class. His entire body felt indescribably awake.

"How long was I asleep?"

Ronan asked the people around him. Old Wells took out a Brass Pocket Watch and checked it, then said hesitantly, "Half a minute? Maybe not even that."

"Tsk."

Ronan's eyes lit up, and delight appeared on his face.

Just as he had guessed, the side effect of the Sleepy Potion—making someone drowsy and fall asleep—really did vary from person to person.

The thin, slight Sean slept for half an hour, while Ronan, with his powerful physique, had only dozed off for half a minute after drinking a bottle.

As for the Spiritual Power restoration effect, it was indeed excellent. Ronan's Spiritual Power, which had been only half full, was now nearly replenished.

"Very good. This potion is very useful to me!"

Quite satisfied, Ronan patted Sean on the shoulder and casually took two Low-Level Magic Stones from his waist pouch, intending to buy all the Sleepy Potions Sean had brought out.

In truth, Sean's "Sleepy Potion" was not as miraculous as it appeared to others. Put simply, it used medicine to induce a state similar to deep sleep, thereby quickly replenishing one's energy.

It was completely incomparable to Spirit Recovery Potions, which could help restore Spiritual Power even while one was casting spells in battle.

But in their current circumstances, and for someone as physically strong as Ronan, it was unexpectedly well suited.

Ronan offered Sean a few words of encouragement, then called for everyone to continue onward.

The two Magic Stones he had given were forcibly returned by Barry, and Sean himself did not care about them at all.

Compared to that, being able to help Ronan and make those around him see him in a new light already made him extremely happy and excited.

There was clearly much more light in Sean's eyes. He became more confident as a whole, and even Barry's attitude toward his own son improved considerably.

The group advanced toward the town in a grand procession, and the journey was unexpectedly smooth.

Aside from occasionally encountering a few foolhardy wizards blocking the road, who would take one look at their numbers, turn pale, and immediately flee, there were basically no setbacks.

With only about ten minutes left before they completely left the forest, the group gradually began to stir.

Quite a few people gathered together as they walked, whispering among themselves. From time to time, they glanced at Ronan from the corners of their eyes. Some even drifted farther and farther away, sneaking about as though they would leave the group the next second and slip into the nearby woods. Ronan watched coldly, his face expressionless.

He had expected this to happen.

Once their lives seemed secure and their fear faded, some people would inevitably start begrudging the four Magic Stones they had paid for protection.

Why should we give him four Magic Stones when he didn't do anything? If I'd known we'd be so lucky and encounter no danger at all, I never would have agreed to pay any protection fee!

Ronan knew exactly what these people were thinking, but he could not be bothered to argue with them—and there was no way he could argue with all of them.

Barry, on the other hand, looked quite anxious beside him, repeatedly seeming as though he wanted to say something to Ronan but stopping himself.

After they walked a little farther, someone finally could not restrain themselves. They deliberately slowed their pace, or stealthily began edging toward the bushes at the side. Just as this temporary escape party was about to fall apart the next second, "Roar!"

An unusual beast's roar suddenly rang out from directly ahead, making everyone in the group shudder violently.

Thanks to Gun Da for the Alliance Leader support, thanks~