chapter_0053

Chapter 52 : A genius recognized by another genius

Only the gentle breeze swayed over the quiet plateau.

Arriving at the plateau with a table set with refreshments, I sipped my tea and asked Nella,

“I don’t see anything at all. There’s no sign of anything either. Are you sure this is the right place?”

“You know who I am, Master. I’ve only ever been wrong once in my life, so it’s fine. If my predictions are correct… a group of dragons should arrive on this plateau within 30 minutes.”

Nella answered my question with unwavering certainty.

Having never seen Nella make a mistake except that one time on the battlefield, I was sure that a group of dragons would indeed arrive within 30 minutes.

Until then, all we could do was pass the time and wait.

After all, Ruina and I weren’t here to fight dragons today, so I took this spare moment to review the battle techniques I had taught Ellia.

“Ellia, do you remember the dragon combat techniques I taught you?”

“Yes, I remember. First, since dragon eyes are valuable materials, you shouldn’t stab them directly. Instead, slice between the eye and eyelid to obscure their vision. Also, the scales on their back are hard to pierce, so aim for the ones on their front.”

“That’s right. If you stick to just those two rules, you can take down a dragon without damaging any valuable parts.”

“…I wonder how many people on this continent could actually do that so easily?”

Elia muttered in disbelief at my words.

To be fair, even a single dragon was a powerful creature that usually required at least ten top-tier mercenaries to take down.

But everyone here, except for Elia, was a seasoned warrior capable of facing a group of dragons head-on and coming out victorious.

Then, I suddenly realized I hadn’t asked something important, so I turned to Nella.

“By the way, Nella. How many dragons are in this group?”

Since Nella had given me this request, I hadn’t questioned whether it was within my ability to handle.

But now that Elia was involved, this was something I needed to know.

Without hesitation, Nella answered,

“There have been eight confirmed so far. There hasn’t been much change since the last observation, so it should still be eight.”

“So, Zenre said he would handle two of them, and you said you’d use one for your experiment. That means Elia only has to deal with five?”

“Yes, five should be easy enough for the young lady.”

I didn’t think it would be that easy, but I nodded at Nella’s words.

Nella had a habit of seeing the world through her own extreme standards, so to her, five dragons were probably nothing.

Still, while it wouldn’t be easy, I believed Elia could handle them if she got the hang of it.

Dragons were difficult to fight with magic or weak sword auras, but with Elia’s level of swordsmanship, the difficulty dropped significantly.

No matter how powerful dragons were, they were ultimately just low-intelligence monsters.

“Five dragons… quite the challenge for a first assignment.”

“It won’t be as hard as you think, so don’t worry too much.”

“Hmm… if you say so.”

Elia, who had only known dragons through old stories and rumors, seemed a bit anxious.

But I reassured her.

As long as one had the skill to fight them, dragons were nothing more than mana-dense creatures that dropped dragon hearts as loot.

After reviewing the dragon combat techniques, we passed the time with small talk.

Then suddenly—

“Let’s see… it should be around here. Ah, found it.”

Rustle— clink.

Nella pulled a mana-sealed flask from her robe and approached us.

Or more precisely, she approached Elia.

“Young lady, would you be willing to try this potion in today’s battle? The main reason I came here today is to test this potion.”

“A potion?”

Nella held out a flask filled with a thick, pomegranate-colored liquid.

I frowned at the sight of it, not having good memories of potions in general.

“What kind of potion is that? Just to be sure, it’s not anything weird, is it?”

Of course, Nella wasn’t insane enough to give Elia something dangerous.

If she was offering it to Elia, it had probably already undergone multiple clinical trials.

But even knowing that, I still had my doubts about potions in general, so I asked.

Nella answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Of course, it’s not anything weird. This is a potion I’ve been researching for the past few years. Originally, I wasn’t interested, but I suddenly found it intriguing.”

“Enough with the unnecessary details. What exactly does it do?”

“Hmm… in simple terms, it provides regeneration and physical enhancement.”

“…Regeneration and enhancement?”

A potion that boosts regeneration and strengthens the body.

As I processed her words, a certain memory flashed through my mind.

A potion with regeneration and physical enhancement properties—

Just hearing that, I couldn’t help but think of the demonic regeneration factor and berserker factor of the demons.

And as if reading my thoughts, Nella nodded and spoke.

“I’m pretty sure you’re thinking exactly what I expect, Master. This potion was derived from that.”

“…Are you serious? The thing I’m thinking of? The blood of those rioters the kingdom captured 12 years ago?”

“Yes. I told both the royal family and you back then, didn’t I? That their bodies contained a potion created by some utter lunatic who experimented on demon blood.”

Twelve years ago, at the request of King Arad, Nella investigated the corpses and blood of two rebels who had exploded inside the royal prison.

A few days later, the results confirmed what I had already suspected—

They had been injected with a potion derived from demon blood.

At the same time, Nella had evaluated the creator of that potion like this:

—”Wow, this girl is definitely insane. Who even thinks of researching demon blood like this? Just making this one potion must have cost enough human lives to populate a whole village.”

—”And the results… Honestly, I hate to admit it, but this girl is probably a greater genius in research and invention than I am. The problem is that she’s a complete psychopath.”

Even someone as talented as Nella—who could be called the embodiment of genius, much like Elia—acknowledged that the creator of this potion surpassed her in research and invention.

When I first heard her evaluation, I was surprised, even though I already knew of the man called “Chain.”

But that wasn’t the important part now.

The real issue was that the potion Nella was trying to give Elia was derived from the research on demon regeneration.

“Wait… Are you seriously telling me that a potion derived from demon blood research isn’t dangerous?”

If it were the fully completed demonic regeneration factor that Worst is using right now, I might not know, but what those two were using at that time was a prototype demonic regeneration factor.

Doesn’t it sound dangerous no matter how you look at it if they created it through research?

However, in response to my concerns, Nella shook her head and said,

“The medicine was developed through research, but its contents are composed purely of mana, so there’s no need to worry, Master. There isn’t a single drop of demonic blood mixed in, so you can just think of it as a highly effective magic potion…If I go a step further, you could call it a half-finished elixir.”

Elixir.

The mythical potion handled by the church, with only two bottles in existence on this continent.

A miraculous potion that, when consumed, heals any illness, injury, or physical defect.

Nella, who compared her medicine to such an elixir, continued her explanation without stopping there.

“The only difference from an elixir is that once completed, this one can provide the healing power of an elixir continuously for an hour. Additionally, it greatly enhances physical abilities. Of course, it’s not fully completed yet, so the effect is only about a quarter of what it should be…But doesn’t it still seem quite useful?”

“Huh… No, this isn’t something that can just be called ‘useful.’”

If completed, it would allow someone to continuously enjoy the healing effects of an elixir while also significantly enhancing their physical abilities?

It might not serve as a cure-all, but even that alone would make it more valuable than an elixir in combat situations.

Rather, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that another mythical potion had been created, separate from the elixir.

And with Nella repeatedly emphasizing its safety, saying that she had already conducted clinical trials on herself, my initial doubts faded, replaced by growing intrigue.

“So, I wanted to test this medicine on a young warrior in their healthiest state, and today, the young lady seems to be the perfect candidate. What do you think? Would you like to try it?”

“If it’s really that kind of medicine, I’d love to see its effects firsthand…Elia, what do you think?”

I was certainly curious about its effects myself, but since Elia would be the one consuming it, the decision was hers to make.

However, seeing the excited sparkle in Elia’s eyes, I chuckled and spoke.

“Aha, judging by your face, you want to try it too, don’t you, Elia?”

“Yes, Dad. Since it’s a potion made by the Tower Master, I trust that it’s safe just like she said…And more than anything, I’m really curious to see what it feels like to become stronger than I am now.”

“In that case, I have nothing more to say.”

Elia’s response was a firm approval.

Hearing our conversation, Nella smiled brightly and handed Elia a flask.

“Then, don’t hesitate—drink it right away, young lady.”

“Yes!”

Clink—

Elia took the flask from Nella, opened the lid without hesitation, and drank the potion in one gulp.

The crimson liquid passed through her lips, down her throat, and began to spread throughout her body.

Gulp—

“…Hoo.”

And the moment she finished drinking the potion—

A surge of energy, powerful enough to be felt on her skin, erupted from Elia’s body.

Rumble—

The sudden increase in physical strength, which she couldn’t yet control, sent an intense force washing over me, Ruina, Nella, and Zenre.

“Wow… This is beyond what I imagined.”

“If that’s how strong the unfinished version is…?”

“Huh… If the young lady’s aura has intensified this much… This is incredible.”

“Fufu, as expected, the younger and more talented the consumer, the stronger the effects seem to be. Thanks to this, one of my hypotheses has been proven.”

We all instinctively let out exclamations of awe at the overwhelming surge of power.

To think that an unfinished potion could already display such performance.

I could only wonder what it would be like once Nella completed her research and perfected it.

And as we stood there marveling at Elia and the potion’s effects—

Far in the distance, dragons began to appear in the sky above the plateau.

“Grrrrr…”

“Gwooooooh!!”

Flapping their wings frantically, dragons filled the sky as they flew toward us.