Chapter 31

"As has been firmly established, the concoction of a pill is an intricate and potentially deadly process. One must be extremely precise in every step. A single mishap could cause an explosion or a burst of deadly gas. Yes, death is rare, but injury is common, as you've all experienced by now. But I believe all of you are ready to go a step further from the beginner pill. But first, someone describe to me the process of creating a single energy restoration pill without looking at your texts or notes and its use. How about you, Aurora? You're the newest addition to my class, so if you know it, so should everyone else," elder Vara said. Aurora stood up at the mention of her name and explained in a practice fashion,

"Yes, elder Vara. The energy restoration pill is the most straightforward pill for any alchemist to create and is thus the first pill we're taught. Its use is as its name suggests. It restores energy. To make it, you need only three ingredients. Spirit grass, brittle ardor rocks, and your own energy. First, turn the spirit grass into a paste using a mortar and pestle. Add a small amount of boiled water, and mix it well. Then grind the brittle ardor rocks into a fine powder, and mix it with the paste. Shape the resulting product into one or more pills. This part of the process is very easy and without danger.

"Next, you need to put the pill into your pill furnace. The heat can't be too low or too high. While it cooks, you must provide a steady but slow stream of energy. This is the most difficult part of the process. If you use too little heat, the pill won't take and will become trash. Too much heat, and it will crack. If you don't feed it enough energy, the pill will be too weak and not worth much. Those pills will be of the lowest grade. Feed too much energy, and the pill will explode, which will burn you quite painfully. You must use the exact right amount of heat and provide the perfect amount of energy to create a pill of the highest quality. The heat will metabolize the spirit grass and ardor rock paste as you feed it with energy, which turns your energy into one that can be ingested. Another effect of this is that the energy expands and becomes denser. Hence, the energy provided does not equal the energy gained from swallowing a pill. Depending on the alchemist's skill, a pill can even provide ten times as much energy as was fed into it. This allows a fighter to reach near peak condition in the middle of a battle."

Aurora explained the whole process with confidence, certain she had it right. She'd been studying alchemy for months now, and most of that time was spent on alchemical theory. The time spent on the practical aspects of alchemy was focused solely on the energy pill until now.

"That is right, Aurora. You explained it elegantly. I expect everyone here to have the same level of understanding as Aurora? If not, do speak up," Vara said, but no one spoke.

The class continued, and the disciples got to work on their second recipe. They would learn how to create a basic salve that could heal shallow wounds and bruises, another straightforward recipe.

When Aurora got home that afternoon, she went to the dining room, hoping to find a snack. There, she saw a most peculiar sight. The head servant of their household, Juna, was naked as the day she was born, bent over the table. Koren stood behind her, railing her. They both noticed Aurora enter, and Juna blushed while Koren just smiled and kept thrusting.

"You're doing Juna, now? Why would you resort to fucking the staff when you have four ladies perfectly willing to do it with you? I already told you I'll have sex with you whenever you want," Aurora said as she grabbed a few buns from the table.

"Well, you weren't around, were you? You were all in class, and I was in the mood. Juna was here," Koren retorted as he fucked Juna.

"Still… Juna, you know you don't have to do this, right? You're only obligated to serve us like a normal servant does."

Aurora took a bite out of her bun as she looked at the red-faced servant.

"No! It's my greatest honor to serve the master with my entire being! I've never been this fulfilled in my life!" Juna buried her face in the table as she felt the massive shaft go into her repeatedly.

"Well, if you say so. All the power to you, girl. Have fun."

Aurora left the two to finish their business in peace, satisfied with her two buns.

A few weeks passed, and the date for Vara and Mura Han's wedding finally arrived. Mura Han was one of the most important elders in the sect, making the wedding a major affair. All elders were invited, and the disciples who had a close relationship with the groom and bride, like Mura's two daughters and Aurora, were invited too.

The wedding was held on the first Sunday of June, which happened to be the first of June. Aurora had a good time hanging out with Giya and Miya, and the three girls got quite drunk from the free alcohol.

Vara wore a beautiful but revealing red and white dress, which was the tradition. Red represented the bride's power and sexuality, and white represented her purity. Seeing this person who was almost like a second mother to Aurora made her fantasize about when it would be her turn to wear such a dress. She fantasized about her and Koren, with Rose and the twins beside her. Maybe it would happen one day.

The day after the wedding, Vara and Mura left on their honeymoon, where they would stay for an entire month. It wouldn't matter too much for Aurora, though, because she would soon leave on her first mission for the Blossoming Rose sect. Aurora, Koren, Rose, Rila, and Sila would all go together. Five people were a good group for the task they had in mind.

The day before they were to leave on the mission, Aurora was approached by Juna while no one else was around.

"Mistress, may I speak with you?" Juna asked. Aurora looked at her with raised eyebrows. It was not often that she was approached by a servant in this manner.

"Sure. Speak your mind." Juna took a deep breath. Whatever she wanted to say weighed heavily on her mind.

"I'm sorry, mistress!" She suddenly blurted out while going into a ninety-degree bow.

"What's going on? Why are you sorry? I don't recall you doing anything," Aurora said.

"Ah, well, mistress… As you know, master Koren has used me for pleasure when no one else was around. It has been my greatest honor to feel his touch so many times in the last few months. But… before him, I didn't have sex. Last time I had sex was eight years ago. Serving the sect has just been too demanding for me to have personal relationships."

"Okay. I'm not sure I follow where this conversation is going," Aurora said.

"I wasn't having sex, like, at all. So, I also didn't use birth control. And I'm still not using it. I guess it just slipped my mind."

"I understand. You're pregnant." Aurora said. Juna took another deep breath and nodded solemnly.

"Yes, mistress. It would be my pleasure to carry this child inside me until it is born, but I will refer to the mistress. I do not know what is supposed to be done when a mere servant like me is impregnated by a disciple. Much less a core disciple," Juna said.

"I think you should keep it if you want to, but perhaps it would be best to seek advice from an elder first. Elder Vara is on her honeymoon, so I will call elder Marina Han. She will know what to do," Aurora said. Aurora's phone appeared from the watch on her wrist, and she called Marina. Since Aurora was very close with the Han household, she'd long since traded numbers with the elders living there. She even had Mura Han's number, should she need it someday. She wouldn't dare call him for such trivial things as advice, though. He was too intimidating.

"Aurora dear, what brings you to my phone?" Marina's voice appeared from Aurora's phone.

"Hello, elder Marina. I have a slight dilemma here, and since elder Vara is away, I chose to call you for advice," Aurora said.

"I see, I see. Pray tell, what is troubling you?"

"You see, Koren has been having sex with our head maid, Juna, and now she's pregnant. We're unsure of what the sect's rules are in such matters. She would like to keep the baby if possible, and I'm sure Koren will accept responsibility."

"Oh, an unexpected pregnancy? How delightful! There's nothing wrong with a servant getting impregnated by a disciple, although things are a bit different. If it were an outer disciple who impregnated her, Juna would receive little support from the sect. It would be up to the disciple to pay her child support, as is required by law. Part of the disciple's contribution points would go to this. Things are different with core disciples, though. Core disciples are all very talented. Even if there is a much lower chance of the child inheriting the constitution required to join our sect, the sect is willing to take the risk to groom them. Juna will receive the same support in raising her child as you would, and the sect will pay her the child support, which she is due. She will also be permitted to live in your house after the birth, should she desire, although she will have her own room. This is so that the child may live with its father," elder Marina said.

"I see. Thank you very much, elder Marina. I will relay everything to Juna. Say hi to elder Hana for me. Goodbye, and thanks again."

Aurora explained everything Marina told her to Juna, who was ecstatic at all the support she would receive. Really, becoming the mother to a core disciple's child was a boon! One task of the servants would be to take care of any children the disciples might have, which meant her entire servant staff would help care for her newborn while she worked. And as if that wasn't enough, she would get money from it, too!

"Thank you so much for your help, mistress Aurora! I can't thank you enough. I promise I will care for my and the master's baby! I'm sure he or she will grow up to join the great sect one day," Juna said as she held and looked at her flat belly. Soon, that belly would grow big and round.

"No need to thank me. I think this is great! You know, one day, I wish to have a baby of my own with Koren, so your baby will probably be my baby's older brother or sister."

"Oh, yes, that's true! We will be like family, mistress!"

"Indeed. But I have one question. Have you really not had sex in eight years? And you weren't a virgin? How old are you?" Juna laughed at the question.

"I wasn't a virgin! And I'm twenty-eight. Last time I had sex was with my ex-boyfriend when I was twenty, but I decided to break up with him when I became a servant at the sect. I decided that I would dedicate my life to the sect, so I could earn money for my family. It also helped that my boyfriend was very abusive. He beat me when he was angry, and I'm sure the only reason he didn't rape me was that I was too scared to say no. But those experiences gave me the dedication I needed to truly give myself to the sect. It's that dedication that helped me become the head servant for you and the other mistresses and master."

"Damn, I thought you were like my age. You've aged well for a Body Tempering cultivator. I suppose it wouldn't make sense for a teenager or someone in their early twenties to become head of the serving staff."

"Thank you for the compliment, mistress. I'm lucky to have someone as kind as you as one of my mistresses," Juna said. The two talked for a short while longer before Aurora returned to packing her things for the trip.