Chapter 33: This Human Is Terrifying
A strong aroma wafted over from the other side.
The crowd, who had just happily collected their pay and were ready to go home for dinner, instinctively slowed their steps.
The people eating were the soldiers selected for the lord's guard.
The bone broth, which had been simmering for hours, filled the air with a rich scent.
At a table where eight people gathered, plates of cod, which the villagers themselves could barely afford and usually sold, were laid out. Alongside them were slices of soft, fragrant white bread, making everyone's mouth water.
But the most mouth-watering sight was the plate of several pounds of meat, perfectly seared to a crisp exterior while tender inside, emitting an irresistible fragrance.
Many couldn't help but stop and stare. At that moment, Old John returned with Leon, and seeing the gathered crowd, he smiled to himself before coughing and speaking loudly:
"Leon, the lord places the utmost importance on his soldiers' well-being."
"There's plenty of bread and meat. If you perform well in training and battle, you might even get rewarded with the blood and meat of magical creatures..."
Feeling the intense gazes on him, Leon nodded stiffly.
"Well, we'll be following the lord for years to come, and with such treatment, what else could you want?"
Ralph's strategy, recently learned and executed, proved effective. Many villagers, upon returning home, counted their shiny coins and couldn't help but feel a little unsettled.
They wanted meat. They wanted to eat white bread. They wanted to keep those fat, tender cod for themselves.
As night fell, the crimson moon slowly appeared, casting its eerie red light across the land.
The moonlight's color was the same as the previous night, but it no longer carried the dreadful power of corruption and infection.
Many villagers, under the cover of darkness, snuck over to the old village chief's house.
Some people saw a group of soldiers escorting two trolls toward the center of the village, to the lord's manor.
Curious glances followed them, wondering what the mysterious lord had planned.
But soon, their thoughts drifted away as their yearning for a better life easily triumphed over curiosity.
After spending the day finalizing the next half-month's plans for Bay Village's development, Matthew finally had some time to focus on his talents and abilities.
He didn't need to rush increasing his Arcane level yet, as he didn't want to reduce the experience provided by weaker enemies.
After all, a large wave of experience would be available for harvest early next year.
Besides leveling as an Arcane Mage, what Matthew most desired now was to turn the theoretical knowledge in his mind into practical skills as quickly as possible.
Currently, Matthew's biggest problem was money—he needed a lot of it!
Combining these two issues, Matthew decided to turn to his side profession.
The representative of millions of players—West Continent's magical alchemist—was stepping onto the stage!
Inside his fully equipped lab, alchemical glassware was meticulously arranged on their stands.
This included beakers, measuring cylinders, test tubes, dropper bottles, flasks, and glass rods, all familiar tools from Earth.
There were also unique magical devices such as pure water generators, movement restrictors, explosion-proof barriers, liquid extractors, flame nozzles, and multifunctional experiment tables—all tools designed by mages.
Despite some unbalanced development in the Netheril Empire, when it came to research, they were serious and dedicated.
At the beginning of the game, many player-mages tried to produce some experimental tools to sell to wealthier enforcers.
But after investigating, they discovered that the mages had developed incredible and even inspiring tools for their experiments.
Looking at the vast array of tools, Matthew felt a sense of nostalgia. He carefully inspected each tool, ensuring that everything was in working order for the upcoming experiment.
He had to admit, Adamsmith had provided high-quality alchemical tools. It was clear he had put a lot of thought into this.
After inspecting the tools, Matthew moved on to the herbs he would need next.
Moonlight Flower, a basic magical plant, required 30 cycles of crimson moonlight to mature. Each plant was worth 8 silver coins on the market.
Its petals were pure white, and the purer they were, the higher the quality. When harvesting, care must be taken to avoid contaminating them with blood.
Bloodweed, a basic magical plant native to the Dark Forest, was worth 20 silver coins per plant on the market.
It had deep roots extending two meters into the ground, making it difficult to dig up. Harvesting it without damaging the roots was essential to preserving its potency.
Red Amber Leaf, an intermediate magical material, came from the leaves of the Red Amber Treant and was worth 10 silver coins per leaf on the market.
Red Amber Treants had a challenge level of 8+ and were located deep within the forest, making them better suited for trading.
The materials were well-preserved, and Matthew acknowledged that Adamsmith had some skill. The key would be to see how he applied it.
Just as Matthew finished inspecting the materials, the laboratory door opened, and the two trolls, having just finished their meal, were dragged in by soldiers.
Old John, leading the group, was extra careful as he walked past the various tools, wary of breaking anything.
Leon, however, felt a strange discomfort. Something about the central operation table in the lab filled him with an instinctive fear.
Matthew directed them to place the two trolls on the operating table, securing them with chains and manacles forged from pure mithril.
"Wait outside. I'll call you when it's time to take them away."
The two quickly retreated, leaving the two wide-eyed trolls struggling on the table, unaware of the severity of their situation.
Even before getting close, the stench from the trolls was overwhelming.
Matthew cast two Cleanse spells, causing the trolls to suddenly feel an unsettling chill across their bodies.
Click! Click! Click!
The trolls struggled with all their might, attempting to break free from the chains and manacles. An invisible force settled over them.
"Sleep!"
With their weak willpower, the trolls' struggles soon weakened, and after shaking their heads a bit, they slowly closed their eyes.
Who knew how much time had passed before a sharp, prickling pain jolted the trolls awake.
The two realized they were still on the operating table, seemingly unchanged.
Just as they were about to struggle again, they noticed something terrifying.
A long, thin metal needle was skewered diagonally into their thighs.
Bright red blood flowed through the hollow needle and dripped into a transparent glass container below.
In just a few breaths, several pounds of blood had already been drawn.
The trolls began to feel cold, their strength ebbing away along with their blood. Fear overtook them as they tried to escape.
But the harder they struggled, the faster the blood flowed, further weakening them.
The trolls had no idea what was happening. Their once-powerful regenerative abilities seemed to have failed, and their terrified roars came out as nothing more than silent screams.
"Tsk tsk, the trolls' vitality really is impressive. That extraordinary regeneration ability... it's enviable..."
Matthew approached, noticing that the trolls' health points had dropped to less than half. Over 2,000 milliliters of blood had been drawn from each. A human would have already died by now.
Using the Mage Hand, Matthew carefully removed the needles from their bodies. The tiny wounds quickly healed, and their depleted health points began to slowly recover.
"Mage Hand is really convenient. Too bad my level is still too low to modify it..."
Lost in thought, Matthew carried the 4,000 milliliters of collected blood over to another experiment table.
The two trolls, now weakened and exhausted, shivered as they looked at Matthew's back.
This human was terrifying!