Apothecary

Chapter 27: Potioncraft

"There are many ways to classify poisons, for example, the most common is by their origin and purpose."

Hibel held a branch from an unknown tree, snipped it with scissors, squeezed out the sap, and continued:

"Natural ones include plant toxins, like poisonous mushrooms, Dioscorea bulbifera, bitter almonds, ginkgo nuts, and so on..."

"Animal toxins, such as pufferfish, venomous snakes, spiders, etc."

"Then there are poisons extracted and refined artificially, the most common being the agents farmers use for weeding and pest control."

This was a laboratory within Adolf's manor, currently serving as a lecture hall for potioncraft.

Karl held a quill pen, nodding as he recorded, occasionally helping to prepare medicinal herbs.

"That habit of yours for taking notes is excellent."

Hibel picked up a glass bottle, gently shook the liquid inside, and praised him:

"My mentor once said, never put down your pen and ink; they are more useful than your brain."

A good memory is not as good as a poor pen.

There was a similar proverb here.

"Besides the classifications I just mentioned, I prefer another one."

Hibel continued:

"Classifying them by their toxic effects."

"They can be broadly divided into hemotoxins, neurotoxins, corrosive toxins, enzyme toxins... This way, antidotes can be formulated with greater specificity."

As she spoke, she handed over a test tube with half its contents filled with potion.

"Taste it."

"This is the Paralysis Toxin I've concocted. It can make a Knight Squire's body stiffen for a short period, rendering them unable to resist."

?

Karl's face turned pale:

"You really want me to taste it?"

"Of course," Hibel said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "To truly understand potion principles and combinations, there's no better way than experiencing it firsthand. Plus, trying more can increase your body's resistance to poisons."

"It will also make learning the Sorcery skill 'Poison Immunity' easier later on."

"Alright." Karl sighed helplessly, forcing down the unease in his heart, and took the poison, downing it in one gulp.

He had already tasted several kinds of potions these past few days. According to Hibel, this immersive experiential learning was the most efficient, a style she learned from her mentor, Adolf.

Within just a few breaths, Karl felt his breathing quicken, and his body began to stiffen.

"How is it?"

Hibel asked with a smile:

"Can you feel it taking effect?"

Karl's face flushed red, and he nodded with difficulty. At the same time, he staggered towards the workbench and began preparing a potion.

Not long after.

He drank the potion he had concocted, and only then did his body go limp. He slumped into his chair, gasping for air.

"Excellent!"

Hibel clapped her hands lightly.

"It seems you've fully grasped the knowledge taught in yesterday's class. You managed to prepare the potion without errors even while your body was paralyzed. I was planning to help you detoxify."

Karl was weak and exhausted, unable to respond.

After a period of interaction, he had come to understand Hibel's personality somewhat. At her core, Hibel was a young girl filled with curiosity about the world, but due to her upbringing, she was also very cautious of the outside. This often made her seem naive.

Upon first meeting, one might find her cold and distant, but once you got to know her, she was quite approachable. After all, she was just a girl around ten years old; how deep could her thoughts really be?

"Ring ring..."

The bell signaling the end of class rang.

Hibel stopped her actions, smiled, and extended her hand:

"We had three classes today, plus two potion recipes. That'll be twelve Gold Coins in total."

"Twelve?" Karl's face turned pale.

He was silent for a long time, unsure if it was because the poison in his body hadn't cleared yet, or if he was shocked by the number.

Knowledge has a price.

After stepping into the world of wizards, he finally had the deepest understanding of this.

Even for class, potion recipes required payment, and different recipes had different prices.

Moreover, Even the materials consumed in class had to be paid for out of his own pocket.

In short, money was needed everywhere.

Even though he had brought back many things from another world, the Gold Coins he exchanged were being consumed at a visible rate.

He could only sigh.

"I'll bring it in two days."

"That's fine too."

Thanks to his good credit from before, Hibel didn't mind him owing her money.

"Hibel."

The classroom door opened, and a beautiful woman walked in. "Your mentor sent a letter, mentioning something very important. Come take a look."

Karl stood up and bowed:

"Madam."

Catherine was Adolf's wife. In the Kingdom of Gondo, this name symbolized purity.

Unlike the elderly Adolf.

Catherine was not yet thirty, the prime of a woman's life, and she was extremely beautiful.

Among the many women Karl had met, when it came to eyebrows, perhaps only the captivating Madam Annie could compare.

"Karl."

Catherine nodded:

"Are you staying for dinner today?"

"No." Karl shook his head:

"It's too late to go back, and it won't be safe on the road."

"You can stay." Catherine smiled:

"There are many empty rooms in the manor."

"No need to trouble you." Karl still shook his head and refused.

"Then alright."

Catherine shrugged.

She was quite satisfied with Adolf's new disciple, as he had always been very respectful to her.

Unlike Tim.

He acted like a gentleman on the surface, but his eyes were lecherous, and he often peeked at her, making her very uncomfortable.

*

*

*

Back at his residence, Jenny had already prepared the meal.

Her cooking was getting better and better.

Karl didn't stand on ceremony. His rent included food and laundry, which was normal in the Kingdom of Gondo.

Bedroom.

Karl packed all the collected supplies, then headed with familiarity to the Divine Domain Fragment.

"Finally..."

"I got the potion recipe!"

These past few days, he had been learning potions with Hibel, partly to master the knowledge and partly for the recipe.

The potion recipe that used Necromancer Dust as the main ingredient, which could increase a Wizard Apprentice's Mental Power.

Light of Wisdom!

This was the name of the recipe.

Brewing potions required extremely strict adherence to the order of materials, timing, and proportions.

A single mistake could render the potion useless, or worse, cause it to explode, turning a restorative into a poison.

And precision, was precisely Karl's specialty.

Within the Divine Domain fragment, he could control his power without the slightest error, ensuring no mistakes occurred during preparation.

Furthermore, preparing within the Divine Domain fragment could minimize the influence of the external environment.

"Dilute the honey by 20%, add crushed Purple Lotus, and seven grams of top-quality crystal shards..."

Glassware, test tubes, oil lamps...

Various laboratory instruments were neatly arranged.

"Puff!"

A plume of black smoke erupted, signaling the failure of the experiment.

Karl remained unfazed.

Even though he had precise control over his power, he was still unfamiliar with the ratios for potion ingredients.

The chance of succeeding on the first try was extremely low.

Failure was inevitable.

He picked up his quill and recorded the experimental data.

"Attempt Two: Increase the weight of the crystal shards, delay adding the Necromancer Dust, record data."

"Puff!"

"Attempt Three: Process the Purple Lotus root..."

"Bang!"

A burst of flame erupted, shattering some of the glassware. Fortunately, Karl had prepared for this and bought replacements in advance.

"Attempt Thirty-Seven: Honey viscosity two, Necromancer Dust quantity seven..."

"Drip!"

As a few drops of liquid flowed into the test tube, Karl understood why this potion was called the Light of Wisdom.

The crystal, ground into powder, emitted a faint glow after dissolving.

Gently shaking the test tube, it shimmered like flowing light, exquisite and beautiful, captivating the observer.

"Hmm..."

"It must be the Necromancer Dust at work, giving the potion's glow its enchanting properties."

Setting down the test tube, Karl continued his experiments.

Soon.

"One portion of Necromancer Dust can be used to prepare two portions of Light of Wisdom, with other materials costing six Gold Pounds."

"Next..."

"Let's test its effects!"