Back in my room, I fell into a deep sleep quickly, which was a shame because I had thought of drinking alcohol first.
Now, I was training with a dummy at the back of the mansion around 4:00 AM. I threw my sword at the dummy, hitting its weak spots gracefully. One might think I was cheating my way to win against Peter, but I assure you, it was genuine effort. I clenched the wooden sword in a bushido-like stance and started hitting the dummy more violently.
In my past life, I liked kendo because it was more of a sport to me than a fighting style. Eventually, I did it more as a hobby and even reached the rank of 5-dan officially.
That's why, even though it's a martial art, I can handle the injustice fine. It was also thanks to Josephine's rigorous training that I won. If I didn't have the strength, I would have definitely lost, even with the skills. Josephine worked hard to get strong, but what she sorely lacked was "talent."
I gently gazed upon the calluses on my hands. They were undoubtedly the marks of hard work. If you look at this through Josephine's perspective, it looks more like a tragic backstory. She tried her best to get her family's attention and be recognized. She chased magic, trained in swordsmanship, learned artisanship. But they never gazed upon her.
"That's not really needed for me, though," I thought.
Although I'm not talented, I'm competent enough to deal with them. I held a magic stone in my hand, continuously imbuing it with mana until it pulverized into dust. In the novel, Adele used this technique to increase her mana, which required significant mana consumption. I wiped off the sweat with a towel and began recreating what she always drank.
In a flask, I mixed the magic stone powder with some healing potion. After thoroughly mixing, I added undiluted holy water and shook it well. Once done, it became a mana potion. This potion could restore a person's mana and was a monumental discovery for mages.
But there was more. If I ingested this daily, it would turn my blood into mana blood, exponentially increasing my mana reserves and power. The higher the purity, the higher the effectiveness.
"Jane, ready my breakfast in my room. I'll just go down for something quick."
"As you wish my lady."
'I have to know if the author's knowledge is true.'
I rushed to the far side of the mansion, where it was dusty. Josephine intentionally kept this area off-limits and secret from Jane. I entered an old library; its interior was very old and dirty. In a shelf near the chimney, I pulled a book, and a rear room door was revealed.
As I entered, there was another door whose passcode I clearly remember and revealed itself.
Adele had paused here in the novel, unable to find the secret even after Josephine's death.
It was her laboratory, adorned with all sorts of alchemical materials, books of dark origins, ritualistic items, and more.
It was eerie but I rummaged through the diary Josephine had made in a separate drawer. Most of it was sad. From my memories, I knew the contents were more or less the same:
"Please notice me, please look at my way..." I sighed in disbelief. Maybe she shouldn't have clung to them to the point of obsession.
"Found it." I said, relieved as I read through the journal entry.
[ Journal Entry #261 ]
It was said there was a legendary gem that could turn metal into gold called "The Philosopher's Stone."
It was the ultimate goal of alchemy. It could turn a mana-less person into an archmage and grant strength beyond the great hero Ashkart. Luckily, while rummaging through my ancestor's records, they had found the recipe for it!
But unluckily, it was vague to the point of being nearly useless.
"Mana potion? What the hell is that?" I muttered. Whoever thought of this probably just wanted to prank me. "I'll just think of other ways to get my family's attention."
—
Despite the vague instructions, the Philosopher's Stone really did exist, and Josephine had been close to creating it.
Adele monopolized the mana potion for herself and never shared it with anyone else. It was also the only ingredient Josephine needed to fully create the Philosopher's Stone. I
I had at least one more day before their meeting, and luckily for me, everything needed for the potion was abundant in this laboratory.