The Association Collapsed

Compat is the newly appointed president of the Pharmacist Association.

There should never have been an opportunity for him to take this position, as the presidency had long been monopolized by a few families who took turns holding the seat, enjoying the benefits quite comfortably.

However, the embezzlement of association funds was exposed. The culprits were two of the families who held the presidency; they had conspired together, and to monopolize the profits, they had left the third family out of the loop.

When the third family found out, they sought to sever ties and withdraw from the association, but the other two families, after throwing a scapegoat under the bus, adamantly opposed this withdrawal.

Then, many committee members who did not belong to these families began clamoring to quit. After a period of infighting where no one would yield to anyone else, they decided to determine the presidency through a vote.

Compat was born in the City of Apprentices, and both his parents were alchemists in the Pharmacist Association. Thanks to their dedication to the association, Compat inherited his father's seat on the committee.

In truth, he had no talent for spiritual power; he was neither an apprentice nor could he brew potions. When the election for president took place, he had filled in his own name in a daze.

Then, for reasons unknown, when it was announced that he had received the most votes, he didn't even react. The entire committee stared at him in astonishment, as if they had never expected him to be the one elected.

Life after being elected president was not easy. Everyone knew the association was doomed sooner or later, so after some advice from a friend, he decided to skim a little off the top and run.

It must be said that his appointment did have a chain reaction. The moment he took office, no one was optimistic about him, and alchemists from two academies immediately declared independence.

Under his friend's guidance, his proposal to layer the layout of Energy Potion production was finally passed, balancing the interests of all parties.

Coincidentally, the apprentice assessment this year increased the number of available spots, making many high-level apprentices restless.

Even after the price hike, Energy Potion remained in short supply, and the future of the association began to look bright.

Energy Potion was simply too popular, giving the association a momentum of revival.

That night, he thought for a long time and finally decided to let the Pharmacist Association pull through; that way, the value of his position as president would rise accordingly.

But what happened next made him think it was no wonder the association had fallen to such a state.

First, he wanted to expand the production of Energy Potion and had already reached an agreement with the alchemists, but a snag occurred in the coordination with the suppliers.

The person sent to coordinate with the suppliers couldn't find where the money had gone; the funds intended for purchasing materials had simply vanished.

This led the suppliers to angrily announce they would no longer cooperate with them, making the future of the Pharmacist Association uncertain once again.

At this point, there was really no hope left. With the source of materials cut off, even if they refined all their remaining stock into potions, they would still face the problem of finding new suppliers.

He thought the same, and had even started to loot the place, but he didn't expect the people below him to be even better at it than he was—materials were stolen during transport, and finished potions were stolen upon return.

He had to sort out the situation; if things continued like this, the association's money would be gone, and there would be nothing left for him to take.

Finally, just these past few days, something happened that he found unbelievable.

Nearly two hundred bottles of Energy Potion appeared in the Apprentice Market. It was absurd; it was almost equal to the entire output of the group of alchemists they were supporting.

These potions severely squeezed the market for Energy Potion, and because they were sold cheaper in the market than at the association, their own potions began to stagnate.

Basically, all medicinal materials transported to the City of Apprentices had to be registered by the association, and this year was no exception.

After he compared the ratio of materials to finished potions, he found that this ratio even exceeded the threshold of one bottle for every three sets of materials.

Could it be that the people in the market were all alchemist geniuses, each one stronger than the alchemists the association was supporting?

In the end, he could only attribute it to whether the market side had negotiated with the suppliers and received a new batch of materials, which was the only way so many potions could have been produced.

Today was his last day as president of the Pharmacist Association, and also the last day of the association's existence; after today, the association would cease to exist.

He lay in the nearly emptied president's office, looking out the window. He felt his biggest regret was that due to the stagnation of Energy Potion, the money he had managed to skim was far below his expectations.

A knocking sound came—bang, bang. He thought someone was knocking on the door, but when he turned his head, he realized the person was knocking on the wall; the door had long since been taken away to be sold because it still had some decorative value.

"Hey, Compat, how does it feel to be president?"

"Not great, my friend. Dealing with those people makes me feel like I'm in agony. Every order I give can't be executed, and making money has made me so tired."

"Don't say that. This is something every merchant must experience if you want your wealth to grow further."

"I don't want to anymore. I need to rest for a while."

"Fine, I have one more thing here that needs your help as president."

Compat took the several documents and, after a rough glance, realized they were applications for developing a plot of land for the Pharmacist Association, and even the money for the foundation had already been paid.

It was just that there probably wouldn't be any more money coming in later; after all, the association wouldn't exist, so where would the money come from?

"This is simple, just stamp it."

"Alright, thank you, friend."

This kind of thing was trivial to him; using his presidential authority to approve it didn't matter. Even if they eventually found two people buried underneath, they couldn't pin the responsibility on him.

Of course, unless a high-level apprentice or someone similar was buried underneath, that might be an issue—though apprentices weren't necessarily there, and apprentices who had joined a school were quite precious.

If something like that really happened, his friend wouldn't be able to run away either; they would all be dragged in for a thorough interrogation.

Richter walked to his residence, his face full of exhaustion, but his expression could not hide his joy. He had survived the assessment.

Although he was not good at handling interpersonal relationships, which led to him being "isolated and helpless" during the assessment, with everyone wanting to kick him while he was down.

However, relying on his hard work and a bit of luck, he finally took 46th place in this assessment and obtained a very interesting item.

"You've done everything I arranged, right?"

The apprentice in his studio nodded and spoke:

"I've checked, and that plot of land has indeed been requisitioned by the Pharmacist Association. Two members of the Construct School have already received their orders and will begin work on the site tomorrow."

"Very good. Did that apprentice receive the item?"

The apprentice nodded again, then spoke with hesitation:

"Big Brother, you only gave her a letter. Will she really go there just like you said?"

"What I wrote in the letter was, 'I know the secret behind your sudden transformation; come to XXX to find me.' I am sixty percent certain she will go. After all, if it were you, wouldn't you be tempted to go and see for yourself upon receiving such a note?"

"Of course, if she is cautious enough, then we will simply have to go to her instead."