Testing the cauldron

Mark took the train to return to his apartment since he had nothing else to do. He once more trained his <Minor Energy Manipulation>, but it didn't level up, but he could feel he was getting close to doing so.

As for his <Appraisal>, he tried to keep using it on any new item he saw, as in others he had already appraised. Unfortunately, the former list was getting smaller, while the latter seemed to help a bit, but not too much. It seemed like he couldn't keep using the Skill at the same Item repeatedly to level up his Skill, but if he used it when his Skill leveled up at an object he had appraised before at a lower Skill's level, it would be helpful.

The reason was that a new type of information was provided, like possible material used for the Item or the company it created.

He still hadn't checked the <Iron Cauldron> as there were people around, so he couldn't just get it out of his [Inventory]. So he talked with Truck-kun and told Mark that he would explain how it worked when they were alone.

Mark also wanted to check his bank account to see how much his wage was. He could either go to the bank or check it through its website. Since he never enjoyed waiting in the bank, and it was much more straightforward, he would just check it on the site.

'I should get a new phone to access things like that more manageable. '

Unfortunately, his phone with Truck-kun doesn't support apps or could access the Internet. So instead, there was an <Smart Phone Transformation>, and even if it cost only 1 <Truck Coin> and was D-Rank, Mark didn't think it was something either he or Truck-kun wanted to get. After all, Truck-kun wanted to return to its truck form, but unfortunately, that was a C-Rank <Upgrade>.

Mark arrived at the building, and he noticed another moving truck outside. Unfortunately, it wasn't the same as yesterday, and someone moved to his building as the main door was wide open.

As he got in, he quickly saw which apartment got occupied. It was the one across his, which had always been empty all the time he lived here. And he quickly found the person who seemed like it was its resident — Rube, the other Bellot company employee.

Rube noticed Mark, waved at him, and threw him another of his smiles and wings. Mark awkwardly waved back as he opened the door to his apartment. Rube looked busy with the move and had other things to take care of.

'Will only people working in that company start living here? '

Mark wasn't confident if Erinne was the one that would stay on the floor above him or if she was just in charge of making sure everything progressed smoothly with it. But this time, the truck differed from the ones of the Bellot's company, so maybe Rube moved here for another reason.

A reason popped into his mind, and he tried not to think about it further. Instead, he focused on discovering more about how making those potions worked, so he opened his [Inventory] and got the <Iron Cauldron> out.

It was large enough to get in it, but it wouldn't fit him entirely, even if he sat down. But, on the other hand, it would fit at least half of him.

"So, what is the next step?" Mark asked as he got his phone near his ear, so Truck-kun didn't need to speak loudly, just in case.

"Since you don't have the Skill yet, I will need to do the process. For now, just put all the <Spirit Cores> in it. "

Mark did as asked and put all 6 <Slime Cores> he had collected. He wondered how many potions he would get for them, especially since the cost was doubled.

"Is it double, though, if you are the one who will make it? "

"That restriction affects us both since I also don't have a related Skill. But at least I have knowledge of the subject to make it possible to make the Item at least. I may save some material to use for the next, but I don't know how many can be made with that low-quality items. "

Mark didn't find it weird, as it was true that <Slimes> weren't high-level. Compared to the average person, they were genuinely monstrous, but they were clearly at the bottom of the chain of creatures in <Dungeons>.

"How come we can use these for the recipe? Was it a coincidence, or was can use anything that comes from monsters? "

"Only parts that contain the life force of monsters can be used, as the potion allows the one who consumes it to restore some of theirs. With <Slimes>, their core is where all their life force resides, and even if they are currently dead, part of that life force still exists there. But it won't stay forever, so it is good we found a use for them that early. Of course, the greater the part and the life force in it, the greater the resulted Item, but for an ungraded item, I wouldn't expect too much. "

After finishing his description, Truck-kun started giving some instructions to Mark. The only thing Mark needed to do was to power the <Iron Cauldron> to heat. He couldn't use energy from an outside source, but he had to use his own.

He could use only three things: his SP, his HP, or his Trucki. Trucki wasn't an energy meant to empower something other than its user. As for using his HP, he didn't consider it a good idea, as if he wasn't careful, he could die. So, in the end, he would use his SP, which was easier since he was doing that when he had already used his Skills.

He focused similarly to how he did when he tried to use his <Minor Energy Manipulation> but didn't target an energy source. It took him a few moments to succeed, but he could feel his stamina leaving his body, and the cauldron was also getting warmer.

Mark wasn't touching it, but after a moment, it was heated enough to feel it even without touching it. It wasn't enough to damage him, of course, and he could feel it had stopped getting warmer. He needed o keep feeding it to keep the heat, though.

As for Truck-kun, Mark had put the phone in the <Iron Cauldron> at a space that was enough to hold it. Mark could hear some chant from the phone's speaker in a language he didn't recognize.

A liquid that looked like water started filling the <Iron Cauldron>, and after it was filled a bit lower than its tip, the liquid began to move like something was mixing it. A few seconds passed since the mix started, and something was thrown outside.

It landed next to Mark, and he soon saw that it was a vial. Even if it was made of glass, the vial didn't even crack from the impact on the floor. It looked similar to the icon for the <Small Healing Potion>; just, of course, he could see details the 2d small icon couldn't show.

It seemed like the cores were used up in less than ten minutes. In the end, they made two potions, meaning each used 3 <Slime Cores>.

The resulting amount disappointed Mark, but since it was the first time, maybe they could improve that in the future. They could use less for each potion if they fought stronger <Slimes> or other monsters and got similar parts.

He used his <Appraisal> Skill on the potions before getting them into his [Inventory] and noticed something different.

____________________

SMALL HEALING POTION

Rank: Unranked

Description: A potion of the lowest alchemical degree. Still enough to help rapid recovery in times of need.

Effect: +60HP

Note: The potion has no effect on people that their current HP is over 8% their Max HP

____________________

____________________

SMALL HEALING POTION

Rank: Unranked

Description: A potion of the lowest alchemical degree. Still enough to help rapid recovery in times of need.

Effect: +45HP

Note: The potion has no effect on people that their current HP is over 11% their Max HP

____________________

"As expected, the changes weren't much, but they seem to have their uses depending on how things go. Next time try to focus on not damaging their cores so they can be dropped. "

One had a bit better effect, but its limit was lower; on the other, it was the opposite. As Truck-kun said, it did not change its products much to make the Item much more helpful, but it showed the possibilities. For example, if he could combine the effects by increasing both the Max HP limit and the effect, it would boost the Item's worth.

Mark felt quite tired, so he opened his [Status] to check his SP. He was at 32/85, meaning he had spent more than half his SP on it.

So Mark put the two potions into his [Inventory] but put them into different slots since they had different effects. He could stack them, apparently but kept them separate just in case.

Ultimately, he moved to his PC to access his bank account and check his wage. When he logged into the site, the amount surprised him as he checked his transaction history to make sure that what he saw was true.

After all, he now had enough money to pay back the hospital, pay the rent he owed, and even get a truck similar to the one he had before. Of course, he wouldn't be able to buy one at the size of the one he drove this morning, but it still was something.

It was more than he thought he would earn, making him believe that something was wrong with this company. But he didn't mind, as he could use the money.

In the end, he took a nap to restore his SP. But before he could do so, his phone rang. He recognized a phone number on the screen, but it wasn't one in his current contracts.

It was a number belonging to his family and, more specifically, to his mother.