Chapter 325 Another Trial



[Ace POV],

[Alchemist Lord[Active]],

*Ability to grasp anything fast from learning to crafting.

.....

If one were to view everything I've done over the past several hours from a different perspective, one might conclude that I had been involved in a learning process and that I was learning how to successfully create a rank 1 mana pill.

This was reasonable so why did I point it out?

The reason was straightforward and it was tied to the title I received from the primordial chronicle as a result of evolving with a unique job.

It wasn't immediately apparent, and perhaps that's because I took it at first to be a benefit of my job, but whenever I tried to make a rank 1 pill and failed, it always got easier the next time I tried.

This had nothing to do with the success rate offered by my job because I was just becoming better, but now that I think about it, I might say that my improvement has been rather rapid. However, considering how my comprehension had been in the past, this wasn't my own doing.

I recalled the first time I tried making pills. At the time, it was simply an unranked pill, but even then, it took me hours to even make a pill with the lowest purity. It wasn't until about a week later that I was able to increase the purity.

If one were to look at my progress with the rank 1 mana pill now, it would be much faster than when I was creating the unranked pill for the first time. This shouldn't be the case because rank 1 pills should be harder to create than unranked ones, so why was my progress with the rank 1 pill so much quicker than when I was creating the unranked pill?

Perhaps it can be said that this resulted from my prior experience making pills or from the fact that I knew more about some things and had more experience making pills than when I first started, but even then, there were still some things that were difficult to accomplish.

When I gave the situation more thought, I was able to distinguish why I felt different from how I typically do when my job is assisting me with my effects. I could tell that I was learning from my mistakes quickly and improving along with it.

The reason was that my job merely assisted me in concocting in line with what I was capable of producing at the time; it made no contribution to my comprehension's speedy improvement or development.

The title I received from the primordial chronicle as a result of evolving with a unique job is the only thing I have that comes close to doing this.

...…

[Alchemist Lord[Active]],

*Ability to grasp anything fast from learning to crafting.

.....

As I started to consider what my situation might be if it didn't have the title, I said to myself, "I knew the title wasn't going to be something simple." 

I turned to glance around and thought, "I may still be having trouble with just the extraction technique until now."

The basement lights were currently on, but they were just coming from the magical lambs since I didn't want to waste the energy that the crystal core I had placed within the magical structure to function was providing.

It was preferable to take control of the issue because I did not want to find myself having to leave the mansion anytime I needed to take a bath.

I mean, I could now finally take hot showers, but the energy usage of the magical structure I was in shouldn't matter anymore since I was confident that I could now obtain the crystal core of the minimal required creatures that I needed to kill in order for the magical mansion to always work.

Of course, I had to out to hunt for creatures first, and if that failed, I could try to see if I could purchase a suitable crystal core from a store.

I considered these odd thoughts as a diversion from alchemy and then went back to what I had been doing.

In addition to burning the leftover pill waste from earlier, I had used up all of the materials I had previously purchased from the store, necessitating a new purchase.

With this in mind, I summoned the Primordial Chronicle in my thoughts and moved quickly to the store area. I then quickly repeated what I had done at the beginning of all this and began gathering the ingredients for the rank 1 mana pill.

Naturally, it was pricey, but I chose to disregard this because I was confident I would succeed this time.

I was determined to make sure I at least made it to the end even if I failed this time.

********

Chris knew the risks of travelling through the forest alone but after he found out that Emma had finished her job requirements, he figured he also had to finish it and considering that it only remained a few monsters for him to kill before it was completed, Chris went to another part of the forest after managing to convince Emma. 

In the end, he was also able to complete his job requorement but when it was time for him to head back to Emma did he realise just how much time he took and the distance he had crossed.

It was currently close to night and as he was in an unfamiliar place, the reasonable thing for him to do was to look for a hideout and rest the night there before heading out in the morning to group back with Emma.

This much he knew from all the nights he had spent with Emma but Chris felt needed to reach group back with Emma before it truly became dark for a number of reasons.

For one, he was scared and apart from this, the thought of having to stay somewhere for the night alone was not something Chris was willing to really do.

As he walked, he felt a sudden chill in the air and the sound of rustling leaves. 

Seeing this and from all his experience in staying in unknown places with Emma, Chris quickened his pace, knowing that there was something nearby. 

Suddenly, he heard the sound of wolves howling in the distance. 

'Damn!' Chris hissed in annoyance and he knew he had to act fast.

'Why does it have to be now?' Chris thought as he drew his sword and scanned the area, searching for the source of the howls. 

The howls of the wolves seem to be everywhere so he knew that attempting to run now was potentially going to just make his encounter with the wolves faster.

He was aware of this so he forced himself to stay focused on his surroundings as the enemy was still unknown and it was only the voice that gave it out or rather, gave them out.

It didn't take long for the action to come to Chris though as he turned around and saw a pack of wolves approaching him from all sides. He counted at least eight of them and knew he was in serious trouble. 

Chris took a deep breath and focused his mind on his magic. He had trained with Emma whenever they had the chance to master the elements of fire and wind and knew that he might need them now to survive and fight.

He wasn't yet a master of course but if Ace was to see him using his elements now, it might be able to draw a really big expression from Ace based on Ace's standards of huge expression reactions.

Thankfully, the wolves were not too high levelled.

As the wolves closed in, Chris pointed his sword at them and focused his mind on the element of fire. A ball of flames erupted from the tip of his sword, scorching the ground and sending the wolves back. Chris took advantage of this moment and ran in the opposite direction. But the wolves were quick to recover and started chasing him once again.

Chris knew he couldn't rely on his fire magic alone. He took another deep breath and focused his mind on the element of wind. He raised his sword and pointed it towards the sky. Suddenly, a gust of wind swept through the area, knocking the wolves off their feet. Chris seized the opportunity and attacked with his sword, cutting down one of the wolves that had been knocked to the ground.

The pack of wolves grew angrier and more ferocious with each passing moment. 

Chris knew he had to do something drastic to survive. He pointed his sword at the remaining wolves and focused his mind on both fire and wind. A powerful vortex of fire and wind formed around him, burning and slashing at the wolves. The pack howled in pain as they tried to escape the inferno, but Chris continued to fight with all his might.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the pack of wolves retreated into the forest, defeated. 

Chris stood there, panting and sweating but he did not drop his sword because not far from him, a portal slowly materialised.