Chapter 42. Let's Find Out the Evaluation Assignment
The next lecture was Alchemy.
I wondered if we would be pulling weeds again, but this time the lecture was held inside the workshop.
Professor Cailin wrote a long list of ingredients on the chalkboard.
“Today is potion-making practice. What I’ve just written is the recipe for a Beginner Healing Potion, but just because you know this doesn’t mean it will be easy to make it perfectly right away.”
After explaining how to prepare the ingredients and the direction in which to infuse magic power, Professor Cailin handed out hourglasses one by one.
Radel, who had practiced many times with the Hayden-style Potion Brewing Method, knew how important time management was.
Alchemy was something you could fail with just a one-second difference.
It must be that difficult to succeed…….
Why is there only one set of ingredients?
Bang!
“Eek!”
A bang went off next to Radel, and he heard Inette’s short scream.
It meant she had failed at brewing the potion.
Bang! Bang!
It wasn't just Inette; other freshmen also seemed to have failed at brewing their potions, as bangs and smoke rose from here and there.
“Professor, could you give us some more ingredients?”
When the students who had failed asked, Professor Cailin smiled as if he had been waiting and rubbed his hands together.
“Of course, I can. In exchange for your labor, that is.”
“What?”
“The ingredients I initially handed out are all there is. If you need more ingredients, I'll give them to you based on the weight of the weeds you pull from the herb garden. Of course, you don’t think weeds have the same value as medicinal herbs, do you? Let’s see. I can probably give you one medicinal herb for about twenty weed roots.”
“What?!”
The freshmen were shocked, but Radel understood Professor Cailin’s words.
It wasn't like ingredients grew on trees.
No matter how basic a Beginner Healing Potion was, the cost would be considerable if he provided ingredients until everyone succeeded.
“You’d better go out and pull weeds quickly. Because I’ll only tell the alchemy evaluation assignment, which will be held during the freshman adaptation period, to those who have completed a Beginner Healing Potion.”
At Professor Cailin’s words, the freshmen, now in a hurry, rushed outside.
“Is this for real?”
“It is. Let’s go out.”
As Inette grumbled, Gusto replied calmly.
Since they had both failed, there was no other choice but to pull weeds.
Radel saw the two of them off.
It was because he hadn't made the Beginner Healing Potion yet.
“You guys go on ahead. I’ll be there soon.”
“Then I’ll watch you do it and go.”
Inette, predicting that Radel would fail soon anyway, sat down again.
However, Radel’s skill in swiftly preparing the ingredients and flipping the hourglass as soon as the cauldron boiled was reminiscent of a skilled alchemist.
“No way, is this your first time?”
“It is. If it’s the Prince, it’s possible.”
Inette was flabbergasted by Radel, and Gusto's answer also left her speechless, so she just shut her mouth.
Radel carefully poured in his magic power and stirred the cauldron.
Compared to the Hayden-style Potion Brewing Method, a Beginner Healing Potion was not that difficult.
‘This should be enough.’
The feeling was good.
Radel transferred the potion boiling in the cauldron into a prepared bottle.
“Hhmm, hmhmm.”
Professor Cailin was in such a good mood thinking about the cleanly managed herb garden that he was even humming.
No matter how many weeds you pulled, they just kept coming back.
So, there was no choice but to keep pulling them.
What was needed at times like this was labor.
It might be hard for the freshmen now, but the day would soon come when they would come to love the herb garden.
Then they would also learn the true joy of alchemy.
Thinking this, Radel approached Professor Cailin, who was pouring tea into an alchemy flask and drinking it.
“Don’t tell me you succeeded in making the potion?”
“Yes, Professor.”
“You did this all by yourself?”
“That’s right, Professor.”
Professor Cailin looked at the well-made Beginner Healing Potion, then glanced at Radel once more.
He had never dreamed that a student would succeed on the first try.
To think someone had already succeeded.
He had made a promise, so he had to tell him the evaluation assignment, but his comfortable stomach started to feel sour.
* * *
Radel unfolded the note Professor Cailin had given him.
On the note were the ingredients and brewing method for a Detoxification Potion, written in detail.
A Detoxification Potion?
He couldn't help but be surprised.
‘How did he know I was planning to use doping?’
It was a necessary potion for Radel, for whom detoxification magic didn't work due to his Status Effect Nullification trait.
He had been wondering how to get his hands on this.
Radel asked Professor Cailin.
“I have to find the ingredients myself, right?”
“Most of the things written there are in the garden. Pull some weeds and take them.”
“What about the rest?”
“You'll have to figure that out yourself.”
Radel nodded.
Just not having to wander around gathering medicinal herbs was a decent condition.
But as he looked over the ingredients, they seemed strangely familiar.
If he changed just a few things here, the recipe was the same as the Hayden-style Beginner Potion.
Come to think of it, what was the effect of the Hayden-style Beginner Potion?
According to Radel’s memory, it was only written as a beginner potion, and the effect was not stated.
‘I'll have to try making it again.’
Radel went out to pull weeds.
But things he hadn't seen before were flying above the herb garden.
They were flying golems.
Just then, Professor Cailin opened a window and shouted.
“You guys trying to secretly dig up medicinal herbs instead of weeds! If a golem catches you, your admission will be canceled immediately, so be aware!”
At those words, sounds of tongue-clicking could be heard from here and there.
“Tch.”
“Too bad.”
It was unlikely that the freshmen, exhausted from labor, wouldn't have thought of such a thing. Those golems, which seemed to be like surveillance drones, flew around ceaselessly, guarding the herb garden.
Radel also thought it was a shame for a moment, then approached Inette and Gusto. He wasn't confident enough to move his hands quickly while avoiding the eyes of the flying golems scattered everywhere.
It was time for diligent labor again.
* * *
For the first time, Radel looked forward to a lecture.
It was because the next class was Cryptozoology.
To obtain the animal-based ingredients listed in the Detoxification Potion recipe, knowledge of cryptozoology was essential.
He wanted to get everything he could find in the mountains.
“Almond! I need to talk to you.”
Radel spotted Armandy and called out cheerfully.
Since it was Cryptozoology class, he thought it would be good for the team members to attend the class together and discuss things.
Armandy, called by his alias, was startled and then rushed over.
“What are you doing, calling me that in front of people?”
“Didn't you ask me to call you Almond last time?”
“That's not it…….”
Armandy sighed.
While undercover, he had to erase his presence, and being close to royalty was by no means a good thing.
If he stood out, carrying out his mission would become difficult, and if other agents from the Ability Management Bureau saw him, he would be in a perfect position to be reprimanded.
“Then what should I do? We’re on the same team.”
Radel was oblivious to Armandy's concerns and remained composed.
It was just like the crazy prince who only thought of himself.
“Listen. During the alchemy lecture earlier……”
Armandy was a little surprised to hear from Radel that he had received the Detoxification Potion recipe.
He himself had not yet completed the Beginner Healing Potion. But that was because he had intentionally failed to match the level of the other freshmen.
But what was wrong with this academy, it didn't just give ingredients to students. Even among the masters of the Mage Tower, notorious for being strict, he had never seen one who treated their disciples like this.
Armandy wasn't used to pulling weeds, so he was rejected by Professor Cailin several times. When he was told that the condition of the pulled weeds was not good, he wondered if the professor was a scammer, not a teacher.
Did it make sense for the condition of weeds to be important, when they weren't even medicinal herbs?
The alchemy professor was clearly trying his best not to give out ingredients by making absurd complaints.
In the end, he ran out of ingredients and couldn't complete it today.
This was the situation even for a skilled magician like Armandy.
Since he had said he would only tell those who had completed the Beginner Healing Potion, most of the freshmen who had never encountered alchemy before would not know the evaluation assignment.
The three of them agreed that completing the Detoxification Potion was the first priority.
While they were discussing how to obtain the ingredients, the Cryptozoology professor, Donton Murr, appeared riding a wyvern.
“I bet you’ve been waiting for me, fledglings! Shall we have another fun hike today? Haha!”
At his words, the expressions of the freshmen soured.
When they thought of Cryptozoology, they usually imagined they would have a chance to tame magical beasts or befriend cute and pretty mythical creatures.
They never thought they would spend the entire lecture climbing mountains, searching for magical beast droppings or tracks.
“I heard there were some fledglings who collapsed trying to catch a Swamp Serpent! Why do you think that is?”
When Professor Donton asked, the freshmen answered.
“Because the Swamp Serpent has high magic resistance.”
“I heard the poison spread faster than expected, so their health depleted quickly.”
Professor Donton shook his head firmly and shouted.
“Wrong. The answer is because they're weak! The weak have no right to survive in front of a magical beast!”
They had hoped for even a small hint about a strategy for the Swamp Serpent, but it was, of course, a long shot.
Professor Donton pounded his chest and laughed heartily.
“Haha! You all look terrified already! Good, then let’s do things a little differently today!”
Was a proper lecture finally starting?
A hint of anticipation appeared on the freshmen's faces.
Professor Donton led the freshmen and skillfully climbed the mountain.
“Until now, you might have been bored focusing on things like magical beast footprints or tracks.”
As Professor Donton opened his mouth, the freshmen also began to get their hopes up.
Maybe today they could meet a unicorn or some small fairies?
“But today will be different!”
Professor Donton shouted excitedly and guided the freshmen.
“Look! Today, we have the carcass of a magical beast!”
The place he excitedly pointed to had the bones of a magical beast scattered around.
The expressions of the freshmen, who had been even slightly hopeful, darkened in an instant.
“You must be amazed! A sight like this is hard to come by! Haha!”
The freshmen, who couldn't bring themselves to get close to the magical beast’s carcass where insects had gathered, stood as far away as possible to listen to the lecture.
But Radel felt like a light had turned on in his head upon seeing the insects and small animals.
Blue corpse beetle, house snail, and even a poison frog.
All the ingredients for the Detoxification Potion were gathered here.
He had been wondering how to get them, but it seemed he could make dozens of Detoxification Potions just by catching the insects here.
“Gusto, Almond! I found it.”
Armandy's face turned pale at the mention of insects being ingredients, but Radel didn't care.
That was all money!
Outside the academy, he would have to buy them all with money.
And even inside the academy, there was no way to get them even if he had money.
In the end, how would the freshmen who needed to make Detoxification Potions later obtain them?
Radel's heart pounded at the thought that selling the insects would be quite profitable.
This was Radel, who had received the Emperor's entrance gift as money.
He had quite a lot of money, though he had no use for it, but the more money, the better.
Radel, who had experienced the world of capitalism, knew very well how much a lot of money could enrich one's life.
Radel couldn't hide the smile spreading across his face.