Agnes's lecture was impressive. Her explanation of Alchemy, this ancient art, was both accessible and thought-provoking. Two hours passed in the blink of an eye, and when time was up, she left the classroom just as swiftly as she had entered.
"Alchemy… this stuff really aligns well with the Infinite Forge," Edwyn thought, rubbing his chin as he stared at the chalkboard.
Alchemy covered a wide range of topics. Most people knew it for potion-making and arcane artifact crafting.
Both required formulas and constant practice, meaning they burned through Mana Stones at an alarming rate. Spell models and reagent costs were no cheaper than potion recipes and herbs.
But for Edwyn, this wasn't a real problem.
He could extract techniques through the Infinite Forge to make up for the lack of hands-on training. Recipes and spell models could also be extracted directly.
And, according to Agnes, while alchemy was expensive, it was also profitable. The alchemy shop she ran in the commercial district earned her nearly a hundred Mana Stones per month.
And that's without her even managing it personally.
"There should be books on alchemy in the library. I'll go take a look."
As he left the classroom, Elia tried to pull him into a trip through the commercial district. The lively market seemed to have triggered some deep-seated shopping instinct in her blood.
"No thanks. I'm heading to the library," Edwyn said, waving goodbye.
Elia stomped her foot in frustration as she watched him walk away.
Back in the library, the sprite librarian Fiona didn't appear this time.
Edwyn scanned through his crystal orb for alchemy-related titles, and something odd caught his eye: a batch of books labeled "Unknown."
"Unknown? That's interesting."
He found the section, which already had a few students browsing.
"Excuse me, sir," he asked a young-looking apprentice, "what are these 'unknown' books?"
"Oh, you're a new student?" the apprentice asked, surprised. "These are notebooks left behind by Mages who died during the Mage Wars. They were all written in private ciphers. No one but the original authors can understand them."
She gestured around.
"We're all just trying our luck."
"Got it. Thanks for the info."
Edwyn's heart started pounding.
He had an idea. A bold one.
He picked up one of the notebooks. The symbols inside looked nothing like standard Mage script.
But instead of trying to decipher them, he activated the Infinite Forge.
[Material: Unknown Mage's Notebook]
[Extractable Information: Constitution-Enhancement Potion Recipe]
[Extraction Cost: 25 Spiritforce]
[Insufficient Spiritforce]
"Knew it! These ciphers can be extracted too!"
Trying to calm his excitement, Edwyn looked at the shelves again, and now, to him, they looked like a goldmine.
He put the notebook back but memorized the number. He didn't have enough Spiritforce to extract it just yet, but he would soon.
There had to be one he could afford.
[Extractable Information: 132 Failed Experiments]
[Extractable Information: 342 Diary Entries]
[Extractable Information: Mating Experiences with 32 Interdimensional Creatures]
…
As Edwyn kept scanning, his smile gradually faded into a blank stare.
"What the hell were these Mages thinking?"
He shoved the "mating experiences" notebook back into place and, ahem, took note of its number.
Not what you think. He was just… interested in the anatomical structure of interdimensional lifeforms. For science.
Eventually, he found one he could actually extract:
[Extractable Information: Bloodline Alchemy Recipe]
[Extraction Cost: 15 Spiritforce]
[Proceed with extraction?]
"No."
He tapped his orb against the book's ID. A white flash later, the orb displayed:
[Apprentice Edwyn has borrowed Book #n7891. Loan period: 3 days. This is a free-access title and may be recorded.]
"So free books can be copied. I bet the ones that require Mana Stones can't. Maybe they're cursed to prevent it?"
Edwyn didn't dwell on it. He wasn't the type to break rules.
Back in his room, he chose to extract the notebook. Another blackout followed, and when he came to, the sky outside had gone dark.
"Let's see what this bloodline alchemy stuff is all about."
He absorbed the glowing data, and was stunned by what he learned.
"You can fuse other creatures' bloodlines into your body to gain their powers. And not just one, you can combine multiple bloodlines for synergy effects greater than the sum of their parts."
Edwyn glanced at the note again, and suddenly remembered Saban, the powerful opponent he had killed.
That transformation… it was just like this. Could legendary knights actually be Mages, or Mage apprentices, using bloodline alchemy?
Heart racing, Edwyn pulled out Saban's bracers.
He compared the breathing pattern inscribed inside with the method described in the alchemy notebook. They matched almost perfectly.
In the book, this breathing method was used to awaken latent bloodline powers, the first step in bloodline alchemy.
Recalling the way Saban had breathed out mist during his transformation, Edwyn slapped his thigh.
"Knew it! Legendary knights aren't born, they're made. All those superhuman traits? Just bloodline alchemy."
The discovery thrilled him. He could barely contain himself as he grabbed the notebook and rushed back to the library.
Introduction to Alchemy
Ancient Alchemy
A Treatise on the Merits and Flaws of Bloodline Alchemy
One by one, he pulled out every relevant book he could find.
He had a vision now, a combat system built entirely around alchemy.
Mage techniques were varied and complex. If each one were a card in a deck, then his goal was to build a deck centered on alchemy as the core "ace card."
He just needed to prove that alchemy could handle the role.
As he poured over book after book, that belief solidified. Alchemy wasn't just wide-reaching, it had depth, too. It could absolutely serve as the cornerstone of a battle system.
Arcane artifacts, potions, bloodline rituals, magic arrays…
Alchemy didn't just touch everything, it empowered everything.
When Edwyn finished his stack of borrowed books, he let out a long breath.
The framework of a battle system centered on alchemy had taken shape in his mind. Now, he needed knowledge and experience to fill in the gaps.
But first, he had one more thing to do,
Find a teacher who could train him in alchemy.