Chapter 11
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Preparing for the Final Exam
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As long as the results are good, that's all that matters. Exactly.
Through farming, I gathered a substantial amount of magic stones─
In terms of experience distribution, I instantly acquired the Mana Detection skill and wrapped up an overall spec boost.
I even discovered issues with my body that I hadn't known about.
Clang─!
Clang─!
Clang─!
Smash them, smash them all!
I'll destroy every last one of these thieving scraps sneaking my mana away!
Swinging my work hammer, I dismantle the hunter gear I had clumsily crafted in the past, piece by piece.
"Now, even I can see the mana threads."
The moment I returned to the dorm, dozens of mana threads revealed themselves.
I have to get this close to properly spot the mana threads, so it's no wonder the academy instructors hadn't noticed the anomalies in my body.
Now it's time to put an end to this.
Clang!
"Hoo."
About twenty-five pieces of junk.
I set down the hammer and let out a deep breath.
After smashing the heads off the scrap gear I'd stashed around the dorm room, my body felt noticeably lighter.
But why were there still mana threads left after cutting so many?
A few translucent mana threads, looking just like cable lines, stretched out long beyond the dorm room door.
'...Did I make something else?'
As I racked my brain trying to remember, a sudden memory surfaced.
Ah. Right.
"Fuck! I took commissions too!"
I smacked my forehead with my palm.
How could I have forgotten that!
It was simple.
The scholarship given to a dimwit trainee like me, branded a Straggler, was a pittance.
Of course, I had no choice but to hang out my shingle as a hunter and take commissions to make ends meet.
But look at my level—how was I supposed to land proper jobs?
The only gigs that came my way were shady ones. Only the locals in Nocturne Town and the occasional outsider trusted me with work.
From crude hunter gear passing as the real thing, to knockoff artifacts, and even further down the line, commissions for adult toys like onaholes and dildos.
I had a knack for mimicking appearances convincingly, so I'd taken on all sorts of odd jobs. Thinking back now, it was embarrassing enough to make my face burn...
Most of those items were probably smashed by now, but the remaining mana threads were holding onto about 10% of my mana, so yeah.
"Guess I have to recover them..."
I needed to visit Nocturne Town anyway to get mana elixirs for exam prep.
Nocturne.
Nocturne Town.
A place treated like an open secret in hunter society. If the academy was south of Tartaros, Nocturne Town was a massive black market district nestled in a labyrinth of alleys within the central metropolis.
Average daily foot traffic: 50,000 people.
Not just academy instructors—even the association, city police, and officials had practically given up on cracking down.
'It's where all those gray villains from games like Gray Shadow or Black Line hole up. In game stories, whenever something went wrong, half the time it traced back here.'
Above all, being a gray zone meant you could easily get your hands on all sorts of goods in Nocturne Town.
Rare materials banned by the association, illegally modded magic tools, even dark commissions like assassinations or hits.
If you had the money, anything was buyable.
'And conversely, you could sell anything too.'
Nocturne Town was divided into eight districts along the city center.
Auction houses, black magic district, intel guilds, casinos and arenas, and more. The first place I headed was the alchemist district.
'Mana threads will lead me to the locations, so I can worry about dildo retrieval later.'
What I needed from the alchemist district was one thing.
Mana elixirs, naturally.
I'd removed a lot of the mana threads suppressing me, but more was always better. The more mana I had now, the better.
The problem was money.
Mana elixirs were generally for mid-tier hunters and up—B-rank or higher by association standards.
The prices were insane; not something low-level hunters could touch.
But as I mentioned before, there was a way.
'The substitute recipe.'
Substitute recipe.
A beginner growth convenience patch introduced in the 2.0 update of Dominant Evil.
A recipe for low-grade elixirs that drastically cut the effects and costs of high-grade ones. In-game, it was called the "substitute recipe."
"Thirty goblin gallbladders."
"Two kegs of black beer, please."
"Two packs of frozen herb mix."
Orc hearts swapped for goblin gallbladders.
Holy water for black beer.
Natural essence for frozen herb mix.
Combining these motley materials via the substitute recipe yields low-grade mana elixir.
It looked like an absurd mix, but it was official per the game devs.
The manufacturing process was identical to standard elixirs; only the ingredients differed. I remembered the recipe crystal clear.
Of course, there were conditions.
First, possess Alchemy skill level 5.
Second, possess the Eccentric skill.
Only alchemists meeting both could brew via the substitute recipe.
And among the alchemists I knew, only one satisfied those picky requirements.
'Doris Finch.'
Doris Finch, one of the major shop NPCs in Dominant Evil—an alchemist.
I needed to visit her alchemy workshop...
"Hoo, stay calm."
I muttered to myself like a mantra.
But the Eccentric skill info still nagged at me. It meant she was literally off-the-wall. As someone way above my level, I needed to approach with extreme caution.
I left the bustling main street of the alchemist district and stepped into the dark, musty back alleys.
With every step, the stench of sewage, unidentified chemicals, and damp mold assaulted my nose. Narrow paths where even sunlight barely reached—par for the course.
"This is roughly the spot."
Dredging up game memories, I carefully picked my way past trash piles.
Soon, I arrived at the deepest part of the alley, before a ramshackle building on the verge of collapse. A small sign hung crookedly above the worn door—simple stone emblem shaped like the Philosopher's Stone, exuding subtle elegance.
This was it.
A faint, acrid workshop chemical smell seeped through the cracks.
Creeeak─
I cautiously pushed open the old wooden door and stepped inside. A thick, complex wave of chemical odors hit me—far worse than the outside stink.
It was a nose-numbing irritant.
At the source, amid cluttered lab equipment on the workbench, a woman stood with her back turned, utterly absorbed in her task.
Golden bob haircut swaying, glasses precariously perched on her nose bridge. In a black apron, she held a test tube, intently watching the contents change color.
Doris Finch—no doubt.
I swallowed dryly and opened my mouth as carefully as possible.
"Um..."
She didn't even twitch at my voice, as if she hadn't registered my presence at all. After hesitating, I raised my volume a bit.
"Ex... excuse me."
Only then did she slowly—irritation seeping through at the interruption of her profound research—turn her head. Sharp eyes behind thick lenses scanned me up and down like I was a bug.
"Whaaat might this beee~? Dawdling about, what's your business anywayyy~? I'm a busy bodyyy~?"
"Ah, yes."
Her voice drawled oddly. Nasal, languid to the point of limpness—like someone half-asleep or utterly apathetic. She peered at me slowly through her glasses, with feigned interest or annoyance.
I carefully proffered the material pouch—goblin gallbladders, black beer, frozen herbs starting to reek as they mixed.
"I, uh, came to have you brew a potion with these materials."
Doris didn't take the pouch; instead, she stepped closer, blatantly eyeing my clothes up and down. Her gaze missed nothing: cheap fabric, stains, frayed cuffs.
Then she suddenly sniffed the air around me.
"Hmmm~ Where might you be frooom~?"
She tilted her head, humming like a tune. Squinting at the scent, she declared with lazy certainty, as if unveiling cosmic truth.
"Ahaaa~! That musty, sticky smellll~ Means you rolled around near the red-light district quiiiite a biiiit~? Sniff sniff~ It's soaked in deeeplyyy~?"
"Pardon? No, that's not—there's no way."
"Heee~? You think sooo~? But sniff sniff, this scent caaan't lieee~? This is the concentrated aroma of the red-light district itseeeelf~ Sniff~"
Under her persistent grilling, I shut my mouth.
Because she wasn't lying, at least.
'...I mean, I kinda am from there.'
I hadn't mentioned it till now, but this poor academy trainee's body was indeed from the red-light district.
Kang Ihyeon, Paradise-born orphan.
It'd only been about six months since possession, but the original owner of this body had grown up in Nocturne Town's red-light district—Paradise—breathing its air and dreaming of academy admission.
After messing around with Instructor Clone, guessing my talent lay in "that field" rather than crafting was almost inevitable. A red-light kid suddenly awakening sexual skills?
In a way, it felt fated.
'Why else would freak skills like Growth Spurt and Virility pop up right when the lewd experiences started?'
No matter that skills come from experience—if sex alone spawned them, every guy would be a Virility Overlord.
Whatever. This original Kang Ihyeon body had grown up on the red-light fringes, peeking at risqué scenes over shoulders. No wonder the smell clung.
Doris smirked at my fluster, waving it off.
"Hng? No biggieee~ Thanks to my special skillll~? Hmm, your reaction's fun—wanna hear more? Stars say, play your cards right, something nice in a week~?"
"Pardon? Something nice?"
"Mm~ Lucky with the ladies. Might even lose it~ Still a virgin?"
"I, uh, have no idea what you're—"
"Tsk, time to man up, but playing oblivious~"
Doris murmured with a cryptic smile, like she'd seen the future.
But wasn't I here for an alchemy commission?
Listening to my horoscope felt weird.
"Anywayyy, bring that material bundle insideee~ Let's hear what you wanna make sloooowlyyy."
She turned without more words, gesturing toward the workshop depths cluttered with gear.
No choice but to follow...
The back walls and spaces brimmed with human body models of all sizes—life-sized, smaller, larger, varied builds.
Male models with detailed muscles and veins, females with voluptuous curves.
A normal person might recoil at the eerie sight—like a mad scientist's lab.
But my eyes sparkled.
'Those...!'
Those exquisite body models.
If I got my hands on them, they'd be huge for Clone Creation!
To me with the skill, it was a treasure trove!
"Th-th-those...!"
"Mm?"
"Do you, um, sell those body models by any chance?"
"Those? Weeell~? Just some study aids I gathered~? Hng, you want 'em?"
She seemed indifferent at first, but my desperate gaze drew her signature lazy smile.
"Hmmm~ Whaddya thinkkk~? First, spill what you brought for me to make—that secret recipeee~? Gotta see the value first, riiiight~?"
Her eyes sharpened.
Had she seen through that I wasn't just here for brewing?
I swallowed and spoke calmly. To an alchemist—especially one as eccentric as her—no bait like a new recipe.
'Though it's years from public release.'
No big issue.
Low-grade mana elixir at best.
Tempting to rake in cash, but I'd have sold it ages ago if so.
'Problem is, my skill can't handle it yet. Sell carelessly, and villain groups come knocking first.'
Decision made.
Sell it here.
Doris Finch would ensure anonymity.
She wasn't the type to sell me out for money.
"...It's this."
She took the scroll with lazy reluctance at first.
Cheap-looking parchment, just a few lines. She twitched a brow, skimming it one-handed.
"Hmmm~ Goblin gallbladders, black beer, frozen herbs... what even iiis thiiiis...?"
She snatched my material pouch and dove in with practiced hands.
Hands flew.
Stirring with glass rods, transferring liquids, lighting alcohol lamps to heat... Her prior languor vanished; motions fluid, precise, flawless. Absorbed in alchemy, she was another person.
Moments later, an incredulous gasp escaped her. Glasses pushed up, eyes wide.
"This... actually wooorks~? No wayyy... Mimicking mana elixir effects with this idiotic combooo~?"
Doris alternated between flask and recipe, muttering. Initial apathy gone—eyes ablaze with excitement.
Why's she suddenly like this?
"Heehee... kehihihit! Incredibleee~! Mocking alchemy basics with such heresyyy~! Who dreamed up this madnessss~?"
She grabbed my shoulders hard, yelling in thrill. Grip choked me a bit.
"Heyyy~ you! Where'd you get thiiiis~? Spill iiit~! You? You did this?!"
"J-just coincidence..."
"Whatever! Anywayyy! You! I'll turn all this galljuice and junk into mana elixirs foor youuu~! Come back in three days! I'll be waiting neck-stretched~!"
Mania close to frenzy. I seized the opening for the main point.
"Then, uh, about those body models earlier..."
"Shut iiiitttt!"
She bellowed, killing intent thick. Excitement flipped to rage. I flinched back.
But her fury cooled instantly. Back to languid drawl, adjusting glasses.
"Hmmm~ That stuffff~? Jot your address here and gooo~. I'll pack 'em and send via familiarrr~."
"...Yes, ma'am."
Instinct screamed: prod her mood more, and I might not leave alive.
This woman was dangerous.
"See you in three days!"
I scribbled my dorm address on nearby parchment, slipped out cautiously, watching her, through the creaky door.
Creeeak, as it shut, a creepy laugh faintly trailed.
'Crazy bitch, what's her deal?'
Just low-grade mana elixir?
Hundreds needed to match standard efficiency—why obsess?
'Still, everything's lined up now.'
Straggler Reorganization Exam prep.
Vice Principal Kraus side, mock rift.
Seemed I'd found solutions.
'Now for the mana threads...'
They pointed to Nocturne Town, red-light district—Paradise.
Thinking it over, the items I'd sold there were clear.
'Definitely adult toys modeled after mine.'
Why sell those?
Sigh.
Honestly, as a possessor, can't say I never thought immaturely like "time to bail."
Family or not, to me they were just sexy big sis types from the district.
But to them, I was forever the bratty kiddo—no room for more. At best, they'd cackle at goofy dildos molded from my "thing," poking fun...
'They actually made it?'
'Heehee, look at that cute erection, poke poke, so funny...'
Facing those faces again? Zero desire to return to Paradise.
"Haa, later for that."
Handle the Straggler exam first, steel myself after.
Just 10%. Yeah, just 10%. That's fine.