…
At the end of the long, curved corridor stood a slightly larger dark brown door.
The "mature-looking" apprentice leading the way stopped in front of it and knocked three times with great care.
In the silence, the sound of knocking felt especially abrupt.
"Mage Seda, Gao De is here."
As soon as the words fell, the tightly shut door opened on its own.
"He may enter alone."
A low, unpleasant voice drifted out from inside the room.
The guiding apprentice answered respectfully, "Yes," and quietly retreated.
Gao De turned his gaze toward the doorway. The room beyond was dimly lit, making it impossible to clearly see what lay inside, yet the oppressive atmosphere was unmistakably real, as if some dangerous beast lurked within, ready to devour him whole at any moment.
After a moment's hesitation, Gao De still strode inside.
The instant he crossed the threshold, the door silently closed behind him.
At first, his vision blurred, then gradually adjusted to the dim yellow light.
What Gao De saw was a long wooden table, scattered with parchment and a few simple tools: a balance for weighing, a grinder for crushing medicinal powder, and a wooden rack holding many slender glass tubes resembling test tubes…
To the left of the table stood a large bookshelf, neatly lined with volumes.
Near the right side of the table sat a crucible, beneath which was a complicated heating apparatus.
Gao De's gaze swept quickly through the room before finally settling behind the long table.
There stood a high-backed chair, occupied by a man who was not especially tall, sitting with his back toward Gao De.
Gao De knew clearly—
this was Mage Seda.
"Mage Seda."
Gao De bowed slightly, inclining the upper half of his body by about fifteen degrees before straightening again.
He had no idea what the etiquette of this world was, so he could only borrow the most common Western-style bow to express respect.
At the sound of his voice, Mage Seda turned around.
It was Gao De's first time seeing Seda's true face, and inwardly he was startled.
From the back, Seda did not look particularly remarkable. He was short, yes, but otherwise normal enough.
From the front, however, what met the eye was a face drained of vitality, gray and lifeless, as though he had already reached the end of his years.
"Cough, cough…" Mage Seda coughed twice, then spoke weakly.
"So, you're here, my good apprentice."
"I heard you woke up."
A strange excitement appeared on his withered face.
"Tell me—how do you feel now?"
He stared fixedly at Gao De, and deep in his eyes flashed both anxiety and expectation.
Seda's question was exactly what Gao De had anticipated. On the way here, he had already prepared his answer.
"Compared to before I drank the potion… it doesn't seem like anything has changed," Gao De said, shaking his head, then added with deliberate hesitation, "…other than being unconscious for a while."
"No change?" At those words, Seda's expression darkened instantly, and his tone turned sharp.
"How could there be no change? Either you die, or…"
He stopped himself, his face twisting faintly.
"…but it absolutely should not be no change."
Seeing Seda react like that, Gao De felt his heart skip.
A sense of unease rose within him.
But it wasn't because he feared Seda might realize this body had changed owners.
To Seda, apprentices like them were nothing but consumables. He had no reason to pay attention to their habits or personalities, let alone notice any subtle difference.
"Come here!" Seda suddenly barked.
Gao De immediately put on a frightened expression and hurried forward, stopping only once his body was close to the long table.
He lowered his head slightly, not daring to meet Seda's eyes.
Seda stared at him without expression for a long while, saying nothing.
Gao De knew Seda was in a foul mood, so he wisely kept silent and still, waiting for the other man to speak first.
A long time passed.
Still Seda said nothing.
The atmosphere turned strange. Gao De felt increasingly uneasy, and his eyes lifted just a little.
"If you want to look, then look. Sneaking glances like that—what, do you have a guilty conscience?" Seda's gloomy voice rang out at once.
Gao De's gaze froze. Then he raised his head, let his eyes circle Seda's face for an instant, and quickly lowered them again.
Seda gave him a false smile, watching the timid Gao De, and his eyes darkened.
The next moment, Gao De suddenly felt a force shove him forward from behind.
He was already standing close to the table, so the push tilted his upper body ahead.
Then, as if Seda had anticipated this all along, he reached out with his right hand and clamped it around Gao De's neck like a vice.
Seda's grip was not especially strong.
And yet the pain it brought Gao De was indescribable.
It was so intense that he nearly blacked out, while nausea surged in his stomach and made him want to vomit.
It felt as though Seda's palm had sprouted sharp spikes that pierced into his neck, bored into his bones, and churned through his marrow.
Of course, Seda's hand had not actually grown spikes.
Gao De understood.
This was the effect of a spell.
"M-Mage… I…" he said in a trembling voice.
"After taking the potion, do you truly feel that your body has undergone no changes at all?" Seda repeated the question from earlier.
"Y-yes…" Gao De answered with difficulty, enduring the intense pain.
Seda frowned deeply.
"That is indeed the truth."
After a brief pause, his voice returned to calmness. He loosened his grip and let Gao De go.
"I suppose you wouldn't dare lie to me. You may leave."
"Y-yes…" Freed from the agony, Gao De's body was still trembling slightly. He hastily answered in a shaking voice, then stumbled out of the room as if fleeing for his life.
The large room was left with only Mage Seda once more.
His withered face lay hidden in shadow, unreadable. No one could know what he was thinking.
"…Hah."
A long time later, Seda finally let out a heavy breath, venting the frustration in his heart. In the sealed room, the sound of his muttering rose softly.
"At least this time, the apprentice who tested the potion survived. That proves my direction was correct. Adding sagegrass really can neutralize the conflict between the other medicinal ingredients…"
"But there is still a problem. Why is there no medicinal effect? Is it because the sagegrass also neutralized the spiritual property of the spirit-bone powder?"
Seda truly did not suspect Gao De of lying.
In his lofty view, these apprentices were nothing but insects he could crush with one hand. He simply did not believe such "ants" were capable of tricking him.
And even if they dared—
what could they possibly do?
Before spells, all scheming and petty tricks were futile.
Just moments ago, he had cast the cantrip Interrogation on Gao De.
Interrogation (Necromancy, 0th Circle)
Touch the target, and through strange pain caused by magical power, threaten them while questioning them.
The target may choose not to answer truthfully, but the threat of pain will allow you to detect when they are lying.
The spell had proven that Gao De was not lying.
"I'll replace the ten-year sagegrass with five-year sagegrass and try again!"
At that thought, Seda gritted his teeth and finally made up his mind.
The reason he had to grit his teeth was because the potion's main ingredient, spirit-bone powder, was extremely expensive even for him.
And spirit-bone powder was not a conventional material. Even with money, it could not always be bought. One had to wait for it to appear.
The batch he had purchased last time was already exhausted.
There was only one herb shop in the city that regularly stocked small amounts of spirit-bone powder, and Seda had long since bought out all of it.
That shop only restocked once a month, and now it was merely the second day of the month.
Which meant there was still nearly an entire month before the next shipment arrived.
"A month… all I can do is wait…"
"My time is running short…"
"I must break through as quickly as possible…"
"I must advance to become a First-Circle Mage!"