[Island of Bones, Dwarven Mountains Surface, Level 0, Crimson Castle]
Janna Heartsteel.
Granddaughter of Elder Kayle, current leader of the Arcane faction.
Founder of the Crimson Clan.
Grade 4 Talent.
Body refinement genius.
She held many names and titles, but perhaps her strongest perk was her ambition and ability to see through people. However, when she read the report, she was completely taken aback. The author of the report was standing in front of her, a boy no less.
However, this boy showed potential that exceeded geniuses. Despite only having grade 2 talent, he had joined a team that was individually strong but lacked synergy. Despite being young, he knew at least three spells. Despite having no experience, he was accumulating military achievements with ease, as if he was born for war.
The Crimson Clan members were calling him the 'Wolf Nemesis', as he held the highest killing count of blue wolf mercenary. Perhaps his biggest achievement was the fact that their team had single-handedly killed three elite beginner rank acolytes, and became elite beginner rank acolytes themselves, turning a stalemate into a clear victory.
"Ask anything", Janna said with a smile, "Do you want wealth? A magical artefact perhaps? Or forbidden blood spells? As long as you say the word, I will grant it to you to the best of my ability"
Lewis stared at her eyes, as if he was trying to pry into her soul
'She was always beyond generous with her subordinates, which is why I ultimately decided to join the Crimson Clan again, even though I could have thrived in any other faction', Lewis thought with a smile
He then pondered.
'Asking for a forbidden spell would be a waste. I already know all the secrets of the crimson clan library, even the highest-grade knowledge she had gathered back when she was still a lone acolyte without a clan', Lewis analysed, 'A magical artefact would be nice, but there is no telling if there will be affinity between this artefact and my fighting style. She might even choose it for me, but she does not know the wide variety of spell I have in possession. Then...it leaves me this choice'
"I would like the recipe of the [Arcane Elixir] and notes on how to brew it. If possible, the notes have to come from a 0-star intermediate alchemist", Lewis asked
In his past life, he had learned that he had no special talent in alchemy. In several decades and immense wealth sacrifices, he had barely managed to learn two recipes: [Hemostasis Potion] and [Fire Skin Elixir], the former being the most popular and common potion of all, the latter being a potion that was not even created yet, but would prove incredibly valuable as the threat of fire ants grows. The potion provided slight resistance to heat, and it was the spread of this potion in his previous life that reduced the mortality rate of acolytes in the island of bones by 20%.
This was how dangerous fire ants were, and their natural ability to exhale fire in close combat.
The [Arcane Elixir] was different. Both hemostasis potion and the fire skin elixir were consumables that helped in battles or recovery. The arcane elixir, however, duplicated the effects of meditation. In other words, the arcane elixir could increase one's growth rate through meditation. This elixir was one of the reason why scions from grand magus families would almost always reach the intermediate rank, or even advanced rank even if they did not have genius-like talent.
Though the ingredients were expensive, as long as there were acolytes in the Magical Court and the Dalian Empire, there would be huge demand for such a heaven defying elixir. With the crimson clan's network of black markets and their forces, as long as he learned how to brew it, he would be able to make a fortune, even if he took years to learn it.
Of course, learning it by himself would take decades, but he planned to achieve it in two years. This was how much of a shortcut getting the notes of a powerful alchemist represented. Instead of going through years of trials and errors, he could take the insights of someone who went through this process and documented his failures and succeses.
Such shortcuts also happened to be the reason why the arcane faction had a monopoly over alchemy. Any alchemist who wanted to grow in this path would join them, and sign binding contracts that would prevent them from selling potions themselves. Anyone wanting to compete would have to compete with Elder Kayle, an expert 0-star alchemy master, and his army of alchemists he was personally teaching and guiding. In his previous life, Lewis estimated that the Arcane Faction leader had at least eight disciples, each one of them being at least a 0-star beginner alchemist. This was more than the whole Dalian Empire's population of alchemists.
Squinting, Janna questionned him: "The path of alchemy is not easy to walk. Many magus families ruined themselves trying to nurture a single alchemist. A lone acolyte seeking to become one, without the support of anyone, is an impossibility in itself. I would suggest you to change your mind"
Lewis nodded, fully knowing that her words were true. At the end of the day, if he did not have the resources to practice a recipe thousands of times, succesfully brewing just one elixir would be a pipe dream. If he was a regular acolyte with no experience, that is.
However, he could not count the number of concoctions he had brewed in his previous life, as he desperately tried to reimburse the losses he had suffered from learning those two recipes. Even though he never truly broke even, he had spent more hours in a laboratory than most alchemists in the Magical Court, the only exception being Elder Kayle, most likely.
Lewis revealed a couple of hemostasis potions, which he deemed failures but were not quite useless, in his pouch: "I have already learned the hemostasis potion. Though its quality is pretty bad, I did manage to successfully brew a couple of them"
Janna was surprised again, but nodded: "Since you already have some insights in the path of alchemy, then I will not stop your request. To achieve this, I cannot imagine how many magic crystals you have invested, and to have some successes at your age, I'd better not tell the arcane faction about you, else they will come after you regardless of your will. I will accept your request, under the condition that you hide this talent of yours and sell them through my channels. Of course, you have my words that I will buy them at a fair price"
Lewis could not hope for a better contract.
Nodding, he bid his farewell.
Janna sighed, unable to hide her excitement.
It seemed like the heavens favoured her, by sending Lewis.
Strong arcane knowledge, incredible leadership that turned Orianna and Jorg into full-fledged elite beginner rank acolytes, and now potential as an alchemist. It seemed like the Crimson clan was going to enter a golden era.
"Time to finish this war, I suppose", she thought, taking the one-meter-long great sword that was carefully sheathed. The magical artefact, crafted by Lord Ignis himself and enchanted by Elder Kayle in the past, was a true treasure that had been tailor made for her. Complementing her strength and agility, it allowed her to cut through most defensive spells with ease.
She had not stepped onto the battlefield yet, because of Darius Campbell, a famed warrior who had reached the intermediate acolyte realm like her. Any intermediate rank acolyte was either an elder of a major faction, a faction leader. She fell under the latter category, and usually, they would avoid infighting.
The reason was pretty simple. Most acolytes preferred growing stronger over conflict. Even if they had to yield some benefits, it was better than risking their life in battle. Janna and Darius were the same. They acted as deterrent to each other, fully knowing that if they stepped on the battlefield, many acolytes from both factions would die from the aftermath of their battle.
This was how powerful intermediate rank acolytes were. They could easily defeat tens of regular beginner rank acolytes.
Now that the tides of the war had shifted in their favour, Darius would either try to challenge her in a duel, betting his lifeline on it, or surrender.
But knowing the man's fighting spirit, Janna knew that her duel with Darius would put a term to the war. If she lost, the crimson clan would lose its leader, and the blue wolf mercenary might have a shot at winning. If she won, the rest of the blue wolf mercenaries would submit, and they might even be absorbed into the crimson clan, as the faction would be disbanded.
Janna could also call all her subordinates and surround the blue wolf mercenary settlement. However, this would result in many unnecessaries casualties.
Since there was an easier way forward, Janna was willing to take a risk.