The Association is truly doomed

"Where did you find so many alchemists?"

Celine looked at the twenty-six Energy Potions on the table and asked, somewhat surprised.

Elan replied slowly:

"It might be that the alchemist I recruited is really putting in the work. Although she told me she had many friends asking her to help sell them, I can't help but wonder if there's another possibility."

"Perhaps the alchemist I recruited is a once-in-a-millennium talent capable of achieving a fifty percent success rate with Energy Potions, which is why she provided me with so many in such a short time."

"She might just be claiming to have many friends and helping them sell their stock to avoid drawing unwanted attention..."

Celine rolled her eyes and said:

"What are you talking about? How could such a thing happen? If that were true, the head of the Alchemy School would definitely be on their knees begging that alchemist to join."

"That kind of success rate is pure fantasy. If you ask me, your previous theory about her moonlighting as a middleman is far more reasonable."

Elan chuckled, took a sip of water, and continued:

"Alright, enough idle chatter. How are things at the Association? Are they still holding up?"

Celine also took a sip of fruit wine before answering:

"I can only say the situation is not optimistic—at least, not for the Association."

"They've had more conflicts with the alchemists brewing the Energy Potions recently. Several of them have stopped brewing altogether, causing the production of Energy Potions to drop again."

"Oh? What happened this time?"

"The commissioner sent to liaise with them was a bit greedy. He privately held back some of the recovered Energy Potions, disguising them as failed batches."

"He secretly sold these potions to high-ranking apprentices he knew to make a profit..."

Elan stopped smiling and tapped the table, saying:

"The Association is still the same as ever. When I was preparing for my assessment, I also had to deal with those commissioners selling goods on the side."

"Back then, the Pharmacist Association would prepare a mountain of materials for every assessment, claiming it would ensure there was no shortage of potions."

"But the result was always the same. My junior brother attempted his formal mage promotion assessment three times, and he said every single time there was a shortage, forcing him to scramble everywhere to buy supplies. It disgusted him to no end."

Elan continued:

"By the way, there is one more thing. A commissioner at the Association somehow got his hands on a massive batch of materials."

Celine's eyes lit up as she spoke:

"Oh, another batch of materials? It seems the Association isn't destined to perish just yet!"

Elan shook his head.

"It's not that they aren't destined to perish; it's that they've been bled dry once again."

"Tell me about it."

"You and I both know that the Association's former material suppliers have been cutting quotas to Loderis because they saw the mess the Association was in and lost faith in its future."

"Now that the Association can barely purchase materials in bulk, this particular batch has become exceptionally precious."

"That commissioner's plan was to sell this batch back to the Association to make a killing."

Celine caught the crux of the matter, perked up her ears, and asked:

"Then how did the Association find out?"

"The Association only discovered the issue with that specific batch. It is said that during an inspection, they found the unique material identification tags from the Association's own internal warehouse."

"The seller ran off quickly, leaving behind only the inspection samples, but most of the goods are still there."

"However, these goods still need to be offloaded; if they just sit there, they're nothing but weeds."

"So, he approached me, and I contacted my alchemist. Coincidentally, she had been complaining about the rising cost of materials at the Association, so she ended up buying over a hundred portions..."

Celine finished her glass of fruit wine, grabbed a new one, and asked:

"What about the Association? Did they find out which warehouse this batch came from?"

"No. The Association wanted to audit all their warehouses, and the newly appointed Association President even boasted: 'As long as we clear out the warehouses, we'll surely find another thousand portions of materials...'"

Celine couldn't help but laugh out loud, saying:

"I suspect that in the end, he won't even be able to clear out a single warehouse. You have to realize that over all these years, many things have become dead accounts..."

"Exactly. The warehouse audit he wanted to push was completely rejected by the committee members, and the matter was left unsettled."

Celine sighed at this:

"Perhaps if we don't intervene, the Association will just die on its own..."

"But the Association isn't dead yet..."

The two looked at each other, both feeling a sense of helplessness. There was no helping it; Energy Potions were simply too profitable.

No, it was that those high-ranking apprentices were too wealthy. Even with the Association being so chaotic, the money from those apprentices was what kept the entire organization afloat.

If the Association's crisis had happened two months earlier, it would have likely perished long ago.

"What would I want with these materials? I'm not an alchemist!" Richter said to the gorgeously dressed man with clear dissatisfaction.

"Hey, Richter, don't be like that. This batch of goods is top-tier stuff. You know as well as I do that Energy Potions are a necessity for apprentices like you."

"Just imagine you're holding a scalpel, struck by a brilliant idea that could very well be the prototype for a new spell, only to be overcome by exhaustion."

"You know that if you fall asleep like that, your inspiration will likely vanish into thin air. But with a bottle of Energy Potion right then..."

"Enough. I didn't come to you to chat about this. If you keep going, I'll..."

The man fell silent at once. He had heard of Richter's reputation—a madman among high-level apprentices. Since reaching that rank, he had not only secretly killed several other apprentices but had also claimed the lives of at least a hundred others.

If not for the protection of the Transmutation School and the immense potential he had displayed, he would have likely been sanctioned long ago.

"Fine then, what do you want with me? Let's get this straight: I won't help you smuggle any more corpses inside. You'll have to leave Cuilan Academy yourself if you want that..."

Richter's face darkened as he cut the man off.

"I cannot leave Cuilan Academy before the assessment, and that is not the matter I need you to handle."

The man was puzzled. If it wasn't about smuggling corpses, then why had Richter sought him out?

His dealings with Richter had been limited to transporting bodies. The only reason he had brought it up just now was to squeeze more money out of him for the next shipment.

He knew Richter's situation; the man was practically a pariah. If he were to step outside now and get spotted, he would likely never make it back.

Furthermore, if Richter failed to secure a high ranking in this upcoming assessment—merely passing wouldn't be enough—the Transmutation School would no longer offer him protection.

"I am talking about what happens after the assessment. I am interested in a certain apprentice, and I require a secure environment."

The man was still confused, but he caught the drift and asked, "But what if you don't make it back from the assessment..."

He left the rest of the sentence unsaid: what would happen if there was no money to pay him?

"I will pay you in full right now. Just do as I say."

Since the payment was upfront, there was no problem.

"On the night your assessment concludes, the wasteland to the south of Cuilan Academy will likely be claimed by the Pharmacist Association. By the next day, Magic Artisans will turn all that soil into mud and pour the foundations. Everything will be buried beneath it..."