Chapter 77
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 77
“!”
For a moment, Ciel stood frozen, struggling to process the scene before her.
“Sir Roen!”
Snapping back to her senses, she rushed to Roen’s side, where he lay collapsed on the floor. With trembling hands, she immediately checked the pulse in his neck, his breathing, and the flow of his mana.
“…”
After a tense moment of examination, Ciel’s grim expression softened, and she let out a long sigh of relief.
Thankfully, his life isn’t in danger.
Compared to how dire it had looked, his condition wasn’t critical. His pulse and breathing were faster than usual, but there were no major abnormalities. However, judging by the pool of blood on the floor and the faint traces of it on his lips, he had been severely weakened by internal bleeding and a clash of energies within his body.
Furthermore, his mana flow was highly unstable, and his mana hole was completely empty, suggesting total mana exhaustion.
First aid was the priority.
“Wh-What happened?!”
Chloe, who had followed Ciel into the lab after hearing her urgent cry, saw Roen lying in a pool of blood and began to panic, pacing frantically.
“Eek, aaaah! The—The infirmary, the infirmary… No, should I call the Relief Knights? But they’ll be in their dorms since it’s evening?!”
Chloe looked ready to bolt outside and scream for help at any second. Ciel stopped her.
“Please be quiet. I will handle this myself. Do not inform anyone else.”
“H-Handle it yourself? Isn’t he in danger? We need to get him to the infirmary right away…”
“Shh.”
Ciel pressed a finger to her lips, silencing Chloe. Then, she lifted Roen into her arms and rose to her feet. She laid him gently on the bed in the sleeping quarters and unbuttoned his uniform jacket to help him breathe more easily.
Next, she retrieved the two potion vials and the mana crystal that had been lying next to Roen and examined them closely.
He must have kept these nearby to use in an emergency.
Click.
Ciel opened the recovery potion first and began to pour it into Roen’s mouth. The green liquid trickled from the vial and down his throat. Chloe, standing behind her, gasped in shock.
“You can’t pour liquid into an unconscious person’s mouth like that! He could choke!”
“I am aware of that,” Ciel replied calmly.
“Th-Then are you going to…?”
As Ciel leaned down, bringing her face close to Roen’s, Chloe yelped and covered her eyes with her hands. In situations like this, it was common to transfer the liquid from mouth to mouth.
N-No way!
Chloe’s imagination ran wild, but she couldn't help peeking through a small gap between her fingers. Of course, what Chloe was hoping for didn’t happen.
Fwoosh.
Ciel tilted the vial, filling Roen’s mouth with the recovery potion, then infused her hand with mana and gently guided the liquid down his throat.
Gulp.
His Adam’s apple bobbed, and a bright green light spread across his body. The recovery potion was taking effect, mending his weakened frame. After ensuring Roen had absorbed every drop, Ciel looked back at Chloe.
“…What exactly were you expecting?”
“N-Nothing at all!”
“…”
Ciel let out a small sigh and had Roen absorb the remaining blue potion as well. Given its faint chill, it was likely an ice-based potion. From this, she surmised that Roen must have ingested something fire-related before he collapsed. It seemed he had suffered minor burns inside his mouth.
Finally, she crushed the mana replenishment stone and sprinkled the powder over his body.
Fssshhh.
A blue light enveloped Roen. With this, his body was treated and his mana restored. Color returned to his face, and his expression grew peaceful. Ciel looked down at the sleeping man and finally released the breath she had been holding.
“This should be enough for now.”
“Is he really going to be okay? He lost so much blood.”
“…He did lose a significant amount, so he’ll be weak for a few days. Recovery potions don’t replenish lost blood.” Ciel glanced toward the lab and continued. “But the dark red blood on the floor was the bad blood from his system. Once he gets enough rest and new blood starts to circulate, he’ll be healthier than before.”
“Healthier… Well, that’s a relief.”
“You look a little disappointed, though.”
“N-Not at all!”
When Ciel narrowed her eyes, Chloe frantically shook her head. She found Roen’s overbearing attitude a bit grating, but he was currently her collaborator. Whether Roen had pulled strings or not, the number of malicious complaint letters she’d been receiving had dropped significantly.
Besides, she still hadn’t received the information he’d promised her about the Academy’s Seven Mysteries. Chloe didn’t want anything bad to happen to him either—she had to collect her payment for writing an article defending Verdandi in the face of public opposition!
Feeling awkward, Chloe tried to change the subject, gesturing to the empty potion vial.
“By the way, why did you use an expensive recovery potion instead of a divine power potion?”
“…”
At Chloe’s sharp question, Ciel’s expression hardened. She couldn’t tell if it was a reporter’s intuition or just a random thought. Ciel stared at her with piercing eyes for a moment before answering calmly.
“…It’s Sir Roen’s personal preference. He says divine power potions taste bad.”
“Ah. They do taste awful.”
Chloe pouted but nodded in understanding. If one had to describe the taste of a divine power potion, it was something like mint chocolate mixed into pine needle tea. To put it nicely, it was refreshing. To put it bluntly, it was a head-splitting disaster.
Of course, its effectiveness made it more cost-efficient than a regular recovery potion. Recovery potions, on the other hand, were pricey but came in various flavors. Was that green one melon soda flavored?
“In any case, Miss Chloe, I think it would be best for you to leave for today.”
“Ah… Yes, I understand.”
Chloe nodded obediently. With Roen unconscious, there was nothing more for her to do. It would be rude to linger in such a chaotic situation. She would have to be satisfied with getting a scoop.
As she prepared to leave, Chloe was already brainstorming a headline for the article she would write as soon as she got back to her dorm.
[Roen Collapses, Coughing Up Blood.]
Given the public’s current interest in him, it would surely get a massive number of views.
But… why did he collapse? Does he have a fatal illness?
Just as Chloe was jotting notes in her notebook, Ciel spoke in a warning tone.
“Ah, and please do not write an article about what happened today.”
“What? But…”
Chloe started to protest, but Ciel’s icy gaze silenced her.
“For the record, this is not a request. It’s a warning.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am.”
There was an unreadable weight and pressure in Ciel’s eyes. Chloe had no choice but to nod.
*
“Ugh.”
I slowly opened my eyes, a burning thirst clawing at my throat. A cup of water was sitting on the bedside table. I managed to sit up and gulped it down.
“Hah.”
After catching my breath, I looked around. I was in the sleeping quarters attached to the Student Council office. I had definitely passed out in the lab. Unless I had sleepwalked my way here, someone must have moved me.
My blood-soaked uniform had been replaced with comfortable casual clothes, and the searing pain in my gut had subsided. It seemed Ciel had found me and taken care of everything.
…I caused her a lot of trouble.
I’d have to repay her later. Maybe I’ll get her something nice for her birthday. I scratched my head and tried to get out of bed.
Whoa.
But as soon as my feet touched the ground, my legs gave out. I quickly grabbed the nearby table to steady myself before collapsing back onto the mattress.
My body is a mess.
I had coughed up a lot of blood, and the internal injuries on top of that had left me severely weakened. Add mana exhaustion to the mix, and it was a full suite of medical problems. I’d been getting better recently thanks to exercise and a better diet, but since Roen’s body was naturally frail, this was to be expected. I would need a few days of rest to fully recover.
The cause of my sudden collapse was likely mana exhaustion—a phenomenon where the complete depletion of mana leads to instant unconsciousness.
But I’m sure I had enough mana left.
I narrowed my eyes and checked my status window.
[Fireball – Bell Ludwig]
- Classification: Artificial Organ
- Grade: Rare
- Description: A magic orb containing Bell Ludwig’s Extreme Flame. It has been processed and absorbed into the body, where it is currently neutralizing the yin energy.
>
[Synchronization Rate: 4%]
[Converted Mana Total: 2]
The system description had changed slightly. Recalling what I’d seen before I passed out, I read the description again more carefully.
A synchronization rate of four percent.
Since I had just ingested the magic orb, the rate was low. My current total mana was 50, so a four percent synchronization rate explained the converted mana total of 2. In other words, when casting any magic outside of the ‘Alchemy’ school, I could only perform a magical act equivalent to a mere 2 points of mana.
And the price for using those 2 points was the instantaneous consumption of all my remaining mana. No wonder I passed out after firing a single Fire Bolt.
I gave a bitter smile.
…It’s useless for now.
It was great that I could now use magic other than alchemy, but the efficiency was far too low. The only way to improve it was to continuously synchronize Bell’s magic orb with my own mana through assimilation.
Of course… even if I raise the efficiency, it won’t be permanent.
Bell’s Extreme Flame may contain the primal, unquenchable flame, but it wasn’t an infinite power source. Once the magic orb exhausted its power, I would have to go through the troublesome process of receiving the Extreme Flame again, reprocessing it, and synchronizing it.
I had no desire to go through that again. I needed to find and consume an ‘elixir’ that could fundamentally cure my Severed Yin Meridians as soon as possible—something like a Red Dragon’s heart, Ifrit’s Divine Core, or a seed from the World Tree.
The problem was that none of them were easy to obtain. Curing the Severed Yin Meridians required an elixir of at least [Legendary] grade. I was currently having Alfredo, the butler of Panopticon’s western branch, and Lize search for leads, but they were proving difficult to track down.
I knew a few ways to acquire them, but given their grade, they wouldn’t be easy to get even if I went myself. Not to mention, I was tied to the academy.
In any case, this was a problem that time and money would eventually solve. Getting impatient wouldn’t make things happen any faster. All I could do was wait for information and prepare as much capital as possible.
Come to think of it.
The mention of a dragon heart reminded me of the task I had given Alfredo. I had received a message that a fragment of the Heart of the Mad Dragon Calvador—one of the baits to win over Professor Zimmer—had recently been discovered.
Sheika had also sent a letter saying things were proceeding smoothly, so it seemed it was time to reap the seeds I had sown. I should pay a visit to the underworld this weekend. It would be a good chance to see Lize’s face as well.
After resting in bed for a while to recover some energy, I slowly left the sleeping quarters.
It was just before dawn. The faint moonlight streamed through the window, bathing the Student Council office in a deep blue light.
And there…
“…”
Someone was sleeping uncomfortably on the sofa. Her breathing was soft and even. Her black hair, like obsidian, shimmered in the moonlight.
Ciel, who would normally have returned to her dorm, was still here, keeping watch.
“…”
I looked down at her sleeping form and let out a small sigh.
She’s going through all this trouble because of me.
I took a fresh blanket from the sleeping quarters and draped it over her. In the silence, the night deepened.