Five Cycles Pill

Name: Five Cycles Pill(III)

Rank: Grade-Three

Usage: The user who consumes this pill permanently gains the passive skill «Superior Perception».

«Superior Perception»: Increases the user senses of sight and hearing by 100%. Increases the user senses of smelling, tasting, and touch by 30%.

Special Note: Consuming this pill more than once will not grant any additional effect(s). However, consuming a higher grade version of the pill will replace its effect(s).

If someone with excellent senses like Izroth consumed this item, then their awareness and reaction speed would rise tremendously.

Even if normal players were to consume such a pill, this pill would enable them to compete with others that were naturally above them in skill. If an entire guild consumed this pill, the advantages gained from were enough to leave other guilds in the dust.

However, this was all in theory. Izroth still had no idea on what actual cost of the ingredients he used to create the «Five Cycles Pill».

'I'll have to go back to the auction house and take a look after making up the time I've spent offline.'

The explosion of the «Bronze Cauldron» or any cauldron was extremely dangerous, especially in the middle of creating a pill. Luckily for he was in a safe zone and received no damage from such an explosion.

If this had been outside of a safe zone, then he may have had to use «Flickering Steps» to escape the explosion before it went off. It appeared that in order to create pills of higher grades, he would have to find a good cauldron.

Just as Izroth finished examining the «Five Cycles Pill», the doors to the room were swung open. Rigius and a group of twenty individuals trailed behind him as they all wore a light blue classic scholar robe with a badge on their chest.

The badges on their chest differentiated the grades each displayed by how much one progressed on the path of an «Apothecary». For example, Rigius had an I symbol on his badge, but nearly everyone behind him had an II and very few even had a III on their respective badges — the higher the number, the higher the grade.

All of the people who gathered there wore a gloomy expression on their face while some were furious, each holding themselves back. How could they not be upset? Their hard work was ruined by the explosion that originated from this location!

Though everyone was shocked by the level of damage done in this room, no one noticed a strong medicinal scent lingering in the air — the aftermath of a pill formed successfully.

When everyone saw what was left of the cauldron at the center of the room, they finally understood what happened as they all came to a similar conclusion.

The person behind all of this must have tried to mix-in foreign ingredients that were not a part of the provided materials. That was the only logical explanation they could come up with; how else would such a large explosion occur on the first floor?

Since Rigius was not only the one in charge of the first floor and guided Izroth to take the aptitude test, he was the main person to also be held responsible for such mishaps.

Izroth glanced over at the group of people that had gathered at the entrance into the room. As his eyes swept over all of them, he noticed that they were all NPC's.

'What a realistic reaction.'

According to the original owner of this body memories, such realistic emotions from NPC's was never done in other games before RML. He believed it to just be a natural thing for this world, but he failed to realize before just how much of an accomplishment it actually was.

"Rigius, you are in charge of this floor, so you must deal with this problem!" One of the apothecaries with an III badge spoke in a serious tone. He appeared to be near the end of his forties with a rigid face, black hair, gray eyes, a slightly messy beard, and a thin build.

"I shall get to the bottom of things at once, Senior Physing." Rigius spoke in a respectful and polite tone without any signs of displeasure. Not only was Physing a 3rd rank «Apothecary», but he was also a close friend of the current head of the «Apothecary» division within «Amaharpe».

...

Around 10 minutes ago...

Name: Yellow Roots(Reagent)

Rank: None

Usage: Yellow in color with the shape of a small tree root, this ingredient is often used to stimulate the natural senses. It gives off a slightly hot temperature when mixed with other wood-type ingredients.

Name: Charity Leaf(Reagent)

Rank: None

Usage: Despite its name, it is not an actual leaf but rather a type of dark green moss shaped like a leaf, hence its name charity leaf. This ingredient is often used naturally to treat small injuries, however, if heated to a certain degree it will raise the sensitivity of the skin.

Name: Oak Treant Powder(Reagent)

Rank: None

Usage: A dark red colored powder made from a special kind of oak treant. This ingredient allows for essences to travel throughout the body unhindered in a constant cycle until all of the essences is used up. It releases a very chilling aura when mixed with other wood-type ingredients.

Name: Isolated Water Droplet(Reagent)

Rank: None

Usage: A crystallized water droplet that acts as a purifying agent and cleanses natural impurities.

Name: Basic Binding Agent(Reagent)

Rank: None

Usage: A basic binding agent that holds together the ingredients in order to successfully form the pill itself.

When creating a pill, an «Apothecary» requires precise timing, a specific order for ingredients, and temperature to control the essence of each ingredient placed into the cauldron.

Izroth waited until the «Bronze Cauldron» temperature reached its highest point before pushing the «Two-Tailed Fox Fire Core» to its limits.

'This should be good here, now...'

As soon as the cauldron reached the highest temperature, the first ingredient Izroth threw in was the «Isolated Water Droplet». If any of the other apothecaries saw this they would faint from the amount of 'ignorance'.

The «Isolated Water Droplet» acted as a purifying and cleansing agent. If there was nothing inside the cauldron to purify, then why would one place it in first and risk wasting the ingredient?

However, Izroth's reason for putting it inside the cauldron first was to purify the flames itself! The «Five Cycles Pill» needed a very delicate balance in order to be successfully formed and this was the most important step in creating the «Five Cycles Pill».

If one missed when the «Bronze Cauldron» had reached its maximum temperature, then the entire pill would fail no matter the actions one took afterward.

'It's been quite a long time since the last time I've created any pills.'

In less than a single breath of time, Izroth immediately dropped the temperature of the «Bronze Cauldron» down to its lowest point before swiftly tossing in the «Yellow Roots».

After that, he waited for around five minutes before he increased the temperature of the cauldron back to its peak and sprinkled in the «Oak Treant Powder». Just as the chilly aura from the «Oak Treant Powder» was being released, it was suppressed by the temperature of the «Yellow Roots».

The reason Izroth lowered the temperature down to add the «Yellow Roots» in was due to its effect. If the temperature of the cauldron was lower, then naturally «Yellow Roots» would heat up at a slower pace.

This meant by the time Izroth increased the temperature back to its peak and add the «Oak Treant Powder» into the mix, heat would be released by the «Yellow Roots» suppressing the chilling effect of the «Oak Treant Powder» without a violent reaction.

As «Yellow Roots» finished fully suppressing the chilling effect from the «Oak Treant Powder», Izroth tossed in the «Charity Leaf» and then the «Basic Binding Agent».

He kept the cauldron at the hottest temperature as the cauldron's durability rapidly decreased, even after when the «Yellow Roots» reagent suppressed the «Oak Treant Powder».

The «Bronze Cauldron» began to shake violently, not able to withstand a constant peak level temperature as small cracks began to form in the «Two-Tailed Fox Fire Core».

A bright light began to emit from cauldron as Izroth began to receive a multitude of messages from the system. But before he even had time to check, the cauldron finally reached its limits and exploded.

...

Rigius approached Izroth with a solemn expression on his face.

"Would you mind explaining yourself?"

Although Rigius was upset at the moment, he tried his best to hide his displeasure but failed to do so completely.

"The cauldron exploded because it was simply too weak."

Izroth shook his head in disappointment at the durability of a magical item. While it was indeed his fault for pushing the cauldron beyond its limits, it was equal parts their fault for not providing a strong enough cauldron.

A D-ranked magical item was too weak? Is this some kind of joke? The group of people at the entrance stayed silent when they heard Izroth's response. All of the 1st and 2nd rank apothecaries found such an excuse to be full of arrogance.

However, when a few 3rd rank apothecaries heard what he said, they furrowed their brows and started to scrutinize the room down to the last detail.

A strong medicinal scent still filled the air hinted the conclusion of a successfully formed pill, but a grade-one or a grade-two pill could not be compared to such a powerful scent.

But that would mean... No, that was simply impossible.

They wouldn't even bother thinking such a thing was possible, even if everything pointed to the answer.

This was the aptitude test room and which the person inside was aiming to become an «Apothecary». If this were the case, then this person here failed to create a pill as it was his first time doing so.

Rigius let out a long sigh, "It's best if you tell the truth saving us the time of having to investigate," attempting to give Izroth chance to do what was right.

He did not question solely for Izroth's sake, but mainly for himself as well. If it was confirmed to not be the fault of Rigius, then he would not worry about any punishment or paying reimbursement charges.

Even if being an «Apothecary» paid well, the price of 2nd rank and 3rd rank pills were far from cheap.

"Whether you choose to believe my words or not, what I said is the truth."

If Rigius chose not to accept that as the truth, then there was nothing else to be said about the matter. They could investigate all day and would see that he was being truthful.

Rigius frowned at Izroth's response trying to unsuccessfully convince Izroth to come clean, "Look, you will only need to pay for the destroyed cauldron. As for reimbursing-"

"Inconceivable...!" Physing eyes widened as he walked towards the direction of Izroth and Rigius. He was not being idle from when he arrived in the room. After being in the room for a few moments, he could feel a powerful aura lingering in the atmosphere.

At first, it was extremely difficult to sense even for a 3rd rank «Apothecary» like himself mainly because the aura from the destroyed «Bronze Cauldron» still lingering around as a magical item that had been recently destroyed was bound to leave behind dense energy within its surroundings.

But as Physing reached the center of the room where now only pieces of the «Bronze Cauldron» remained, he was convinced that pill had successfully formed here. This was not a cause for surprise as anyone with some talent for being an «Apothecary» could create a simple grade-one pill.

What was startling about this specific event was that the residue lingering in the atmosphere surrounding the broken «Bronze Cauldron», did not belong to that of a grade-one or grade-two but rather belonged to that of a grade-three pill!

What made the matter even more baffling was that the «Bronze Cauldron» was only capable of creating pills at grade-two or below. However, Physing possessed a large amount of experience as a result of being an «Apothecary» for decades and confirmed that this residue belonged to a grade-three pill.

Rigius stayed silent as the rules of the apothecaries were very strict, especially when it came to seniority.

Age was not counted since all that mattered in this organization was for one's skill that corresponded to one's «Apothecary» rank. The level of skill one possessed superseded the amount of time one invested in the profession.

Physing turned to observe Izroth from head to toe, "Young man, can you show me the pill you've created? Do not worry about this silly cheap cauldron or the cost of damages, I will handle it personally."

When the group before the door listened to the words of Physing, they were all confused. However, in order to become an «Apothecary» one must possess a good sense of judgment.

This meant that even though they were all furious by having their pill crafting interrupted, they must still be able to think with a clear mind.

A clear mind was one of the most important traits of becoming an «Apothecary». If you failed to keep a clear mind while creating a pill, then you were bound to fail.

Izroth didn't mind showing the «Five Cycles Pill» to Physing. He still wanted to have «Apothecary» as his profession, so his pill would be judged sooner or later.

Also, Izroth was pleased with how he was not senselessly persecuted. In a fit of anger, many were often blinded by the truth. However, it appeared that this was not the case for Rigius and Physing. Although Izroth could see the displeasure on Rigius face, he was still treated well.

Izroth nodded his head, "I have no problem showing you." He removed one of the «Five Cycles Pill» from his inventory and held it outward in his hand for Physing to see.

As soon as Izroth removed the pill from his inventory, the powerful medicinal smell floated by Physing.

"Incredible...! This is a grade-three pill!" The more Physing examined the «Five Cycles Pill», the more he was amazed by it.

Even though he was a 3rd rank «Apothecary», creating pills at the rank of grade-three was still incredibly challenging even for him. For the young man before him to have created a grade-three pill while taking the aptitude test, he could only be a genius!

The crowd of apothecaries that gathered thought that they had misheard wrong. A grade-three pill? But it shouldn't be possible for a cauldron like the «Bronze Cauldron» to handle the creation process of the pill.

Suddenly realization struck everyone within the room, including Rigius whose mouth was open from disbelief. The young man was telling the truth without a hint of arrogance earlier. The cauldron such as a magical item like the «Bronze Cauldron» would be unable to manage the creation of a grade-three pill and exploded as a result.

Instead of anger, the surrounding apothecaries began to feel amazed. For some of them, making a grade-two pill was challenging enough.

"This is incredible! I've never seen a grade-three pill like this before! What is the name of the pill called and how did you create it? What effect does it have? This is not one of the ten pill recipes so how do you have previous experience as an «Apothecary»?" Physing began to barrage Izroth with questions.

Izroth gave a helpless smile as he was bombarded with questions by Physing. He simply wanted to obtain a profession before resuming his grind to level up. This wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he first came here.

'Maybe it would've just been easier to pay for the damages.'.