After an nonstop three day baking binge, Benedictus Agnes, finds himself transported to another world. Unlike other heroes, he is suddenly sent to the Backend, a small town overlooking the sea. 
Dropped in the middle of nowhere, our hero only has one plan: get cooking!

Clyde's room…

After improving upon his plans, Clyde pulled out the Book of Dark magic, grinning. Learning a new skill felt addictive. Maybe he had a problem. Pfft, one might never know when said abilities would become useful. 
He wanted as many magic options available to him as possible to protect his child, especially with the stone-viper games running on full blast. At least the other "players" didn't have to participate—and even if they did, Dark and Tessa were on his side. 
He pulled a tube of Chapstick from his pocket, applying it. Even though anime logic protected his lips, he still couldn't shake the old habit. In fact, he bought the most expensive kind, using Ashfall money. If he got to taste delicious lips, why not the girls? 
The book before him didn't activate. 
 "What the hell?"

[Your aura of holy and purity suppresses the book greatly.]

"No, this is bullshit!" Clyde snapped. "I didn't forget the prompt that said I'm capable of learning all elements."

[To use this book, you must first learn Blood Ki. Good luck with that.]

System, come on, help me out here, Clyde thought.

[No.]

Clyde's eyes widened. Did the system just tell him no? He fumed, glaring at the useless book before him. Holy aura his ass. He was capable of learning it all. The young man didn't make it this far just to be stopped like this.
 "This book may contain one hell of a spell," Clyde thought aloud. "System, what's Blood Ki?"
No response. He'd just have to ask Maki. There was no way in hell he'd attempt to learn this on his own. Clyde had enough of charging headfirst into things, ignorant. What if Blood Ki had some kind of personality-changing effect? The young man didn't want the arrogance of the War Mode to return to him. Nor did he want to be the cause of…more people dying. Fuck.
He shook himself. Never again. Now's not the time for a guilt trip, Clyde, he thought. You did your best…right?
He warped the book back to his inventory, hopping up to go search for the purple-haired girl, when Noona popped into existence. 
I'm never going to get to Maki, Clyde thought. 
 "Clyde, we have a problem," Noona said. "It's pertaining to the dragon investigation."
He nodded.
 "What's up?" He almost asked about the Sherlock Holmes getup, but remember that Noona was simply being Noona. 
She placed her hand on Clyde's arm. A brief feeling of vertigo and blackness struck the young man before the duo were in the boardroom. The young man nearly stumbled over.
 "Clyde. Glad you could join us," Tear said. She patted the seat next to her. When he did, the succubus snuggled close, enticing the young man with her nice perfume. Tetra shot the pair a blank stare. Hinako looked a bit murderous. 
 "So, what's this about?" Clyde asked, quickly deterring any heat. Now wasn't the time for Team Stone to start going at each other's throats.
 "Here, take a look at this photo," Tear said, passing him her phone. "Natalia's slave fairy caught us a good glimpse of someone who followed a few of us all day. A dragon."
Clyde gazed at the picture of the orange-haired girl with skepticism. 
 "A dragon," Clyde deadpanned. "This girl?"
 "She's in her human form," Tear said, poking the young man's forehead. "They're able to shapeshift at will."
Clyde nodded, then clapped.
 "Damn that's fast." He grimaced. "Let's see if she'll talk with us. I doubt we'll get anywhere by trapping her."
 "Are you crazy?" Tetra said. "I don't know where you're from, but even my homeland don't take kindly to dragons. They're a divisive bunch—you may never know who is decent and who will backstab you. There are rumors some years ago, they went back on a peace agreement with the Kitsunes, attacking after centuries of peace."
Clyde's eyes widened.
 "You know about that, Tetra?"
Tetra shrugged.
 "It's a rumor, spoken in hushed conversations among some within the supernatural community. I can't confirm anything, since I wasn't there. I also never met a kitsune…other than Harumi. But you know, I'm not insensitive enough to ask a horrible question like that to her. She's so sweet."
Clyde sighed.
 "Tell me what you know about the rumor."
Tetra nodded.
 "It's best that I start from the beginning. You clearly don't know much about the kitsune-dragon conflict." She grabbed her mug from the table and took a sip. "Yuki is one fine brewer of coffee." 
Tetra looked Clyde in the eye and told him the situation. 
 Dragon and kitsune were natural enemies, seemingly destined to fight each other for an eternity. Their clashes often doomed everything around them, damaging Satovia, nature, and the survival of either species. The clan leaders of that time realized this and developed a treaty. A dragon and a kitsune married in their human forms to bind it. Centuries later, the largest dragon family in the world, the Soulless teamed up with some other clans to dishonor the peace treaty, under the command of someone who claimed to be the disciple of the Thousand Year Dragon. The Disciple supposedly led the charge against the kitsune, although some rumors stated he or she watched from afar. No one knew of any survivors. 
During Tetra's tale, an ability activated.

[Talent. Main character stuff: Brief glimpse into the past.]

The image was shown to him for maybe a second, but the carnage of people…of Harumi's family burned into his brain and made him sick. The talent activated a few more times, revealing two young girls, struggling to survive on their own. The older girl received a vision ten times worse than Clyde's—almost a real-time video. She was traumatized and refused to return to the nation. The young girl stayed. Fearing she'd be taken advantage of, the older girl doubled her work and constantly sent money to her sibling. 
However, no matter how much she tried, she could not convince her to leave the nation. The fires of revenge burned strong within the younger girl.
 "Do you know why they broke the peace?" Hinako asked. "The books of mythology always placed them as natural enemies, but nothing beyond that is mentioned. What is the Thousand Year Dragon?"
 "I was just getting into that," Tetra said softly, then gulped. "Every time I think of this rumor, I get nervous."
Clyde eyed her. Tetra smiled. "I'm glad you're here." She reached over and squeezed the young man's hand. 

[Your relationship with Tetra has increased to Friend, closer level 5 and still has Endearment. She will never forget the time you saved her amidst powerful enemies.]

Tetra's eyes hardened.
 "The Thousand Year Dragon or as some call it, The Thousand-Eyed Dragon, was the supposed god of all the serpent bastards. A creature of evil, according to some of my peoples' tomes. One of the original terrors of mankind, elf, and all species alike. It was so powerful that it took fifty gods to seal it. Yet…despite the seal, the rumors of it somehow killing the Nine-tailed fox, the Kitsune's deity, spread all over the place. That apparently served as some kind of sign for the Disciple to launch an assault which ultimately led to this day."
 "But that's impossible," Tear said. "The dragon god is sealed. So the question is, what really happened to the Nine-tails?"
 "Well, it's not like we can communicate with the heavens and ask to speak with the Nine-tails," Tetra said flatly. 
 "I do not believe the Nine-tailed fox is dead," Noona said, gathering all of their eyes. "I think…the torch has been passed on."
 "What do you mean by that?" Clyde asked.
Noona shrugged.
 "It's speculation. I have no evidence for my words. You may even call it a feeling." She smiled. "So let's not worry about the Nine-tails, she's a kind survivor."
Something about those words bugged Clyde, but now wasn't the time to worry about a missing deity. She certainly wasn't there when Harumi and Liru needed her the most. The young man's blood boiled with righteous fury. He stoked the anger in the back of his mind knowing damn well that his pink-haired fiancée still tackled each day with a smile.
 "Where does the Soulless family live?" Clyde asked. 
 "Clyde, you can't be," Tetra said. "You must keep in mind that they're dragons! And the new generation was not involved in the attack."
 "Relax," Clyde said. "I'm not going to stupidly charge in there to attempt genocide. I just want to know more about them." His voice darkened. "And who our enemies are."
 "The Soulless family are the owners of the Dragoon Corps," Tetra said. "You can find Dragoon stores and colleges all over the world. As for our enemies, my guess would be the elder dragons."
 "What are the chances that this Disciple is a Soulless?" Clyde asked.
 "I have no idea," Tetra said.
Clyde sighed.
 "I guess…the dragons are pretty much untouchable, until we have more information."
 "Sorry," Tetra said.
 "You have nothing to apologize for," Clyde said. "But, thank you for filling us in on the situation. Hinako, do you mind texting a summary of this to all Team Stone members, including Harumi. I'll send you any phone numbers you're missing."
 "I've got them all, well, except you, Noona."
Noona eagerly traded numbers with the professor. A prompt surprised the fuck out of Clyde.

[Quest completed. Investigate the Dragon threat. Reward: 4 million EXP. Alonian Chicken Soup Recipe.]




[Congratulations! You have reached level 124! Stats increased.]

[With an intellect now at 400, you can see recipe ranks.]


[CKP: 20
Recipes:
- Sweet-berry Alethian Soup recipe. Rank: C.
- Comforting soup recipe. Rank: D.
- Alonian Chicken Soup Recipe. Rank: C.]


This couldn't be it. No. System, what the hell, Clyde thought. No replied. Then a thought occurred to him. Maybe Asu, the lich could provide him with some insight. That is, if she wasn't pissed about being left behind. 
He tossed that idea to the side. Alice's mother would most likely have the best information, but contacting her was impossible. What about…his eyes widened. Naoko.

[Quest. Dragon business, step 2. Go ask Naoko, the entity about the Soulless family and other dragon-related questions. This quest is mandatory and cannot be refused. Reward: unknown.]

[Quest.???. Visit the capital city of Terravon. This quest is mandatory and cannot be refused. Reward: unknown.]

Mandatory main story quests. It's been a while, Clyde thought. Why did the system want him to visit the capital city? Well, he was technically adventuring, so why not? 
[System alert! You must visit the capital city first thing tomorrow morning.]

Clyde revealed to his team about the sudden trip to the capital city without giving any details. As expected, they gave him skeptical looks.
 "Just a feeling," he said. "Anyway, it's getting late. I'll ask Naoko about some dragon things in the morning."
The crew nodded their agreements. He could see a full moon outside the large window, surrounded by a starry sky. 
Tomorrow, they had work to do. Clyde did an inventory and equipment check while on the way to his room. To his luck, he bumped into Maki down the hall and without Sophia around. 


Inventory:

$ 991,445,400
-Map of Lot City, Satovia. 
-Map of Libado Grasslands, Satovia.
-Map of Ashen City, Satovia.
-Map of Niyoto, Satovia.
-Map of Ring City, Satovia. 
-Smartphone.
-Key.
-Reminder for practice- note.  
- Zelt's printer. Level 1/25. 
- Deed to the Ashfall estates, treasures, etc. 
-Wind blade. (very rare) +16 to attack. Wind element.  
- Place of Power Core (item class: Relic) (item value: priceless)- establish a place of power. [Lot City House…] 
- Forger's hammer. Item class: very rare
- Exploding blowup doll. Item class: *One of a kind* Unsuspecting enemies will experience a nice surprise. Does dark deity damage.
- Root Tree seed. Item class: epic.
- Mysterious Harp. Item class: *One of a kind* this special harp is loved dearly by a special type of harpy called the Gandharva. Handing this to her will get you a *World Star Fragment* and another reward. 
-Breast enhancement potion x 2. Item class: bizarre. 
-World Map.  item class: *legendary*
- Universal dungeon key. Item value: well-above standard
- Holstaur breast milk.
- Potion of Sharpness. Item class: very rare.
-Goblin dust. Item class: meh. Item value: worthless. Maybe a crafting ingredient, maybe trash. 
- Book of Dark Magic. Item value: mysterious. [Requires Blood Ki to remove barrier.]
- Wind blade. Item class: very rare.  +16 to attack. Wind element.  

Plants and herbs:

- Uni-plant. This plant can be used in medicines and potions. An alchemist could make use of it.



Equipment:

-[Legendary Sword: Bloodlight +150 to attack. Solar element. Can fire raw magic from the weapon. Does magic damage.  Lv. 5]
[Clare upgrade: Be careful with swinging this magnificent weapon. It can slash a giant mountain in two with its ability: Flood Slash.]
[Clare upgrade: Flood Blast. You can fire an enormous about of solar magic, capable of vaporizing enemies. Does Intense solar damage. Change to blind at 4% Chance to mute at 11% Chance to roast every cell in someone's body at 1%]

- Executioner Staff of Merlin. Item class: *Legendary, One of a Kind*. Does Dragon and Volcanic damage. You may trigger its special attack: Balinor's Havoc, after filling the weapon's soul bar to 100%.]

-School uniform or casual clothes.

-School shoes or casual shoes.

- Necklace of Her Devotion. Item class: *One of a kind* This necklace was made with love. Unknown benefits. Has a 1% chance of triggering Enlightenment mode 1 during battle. All stats will increase by 100% during the mode. 
- silver dagger- +ice and earth damage. Item class: rare.
 - Bullet-proof vest armor set. Item class: very rare.  +250 to defense

--- Extra tags: Satire, Adult/Mature, Monster girl(Monster girl Encyclopedia kind), Fiction/Satire/comedy (I.E. Not to be taken seriously).

By the will of unknown deities, Clyde is swiped from Earth and tossed into an anime world. He’s the declared the Stone aka main character. One day, he must kill the Viper, the antagonist. Too bad things aren’t exactly as black and white as that. The Stone is something much more…
This world and its inhabitants are real. It’s another dimension with a lot to explore.

This is the story of a young man’s evolution from college boy of Earth to godhood and beyond. The challenges stand ahead of him:  demons, monster girls, crazy yanderes, even a girl with maxed charisma. He never thought he’d ever see a magical girl…

A story of comedy, action, and going from weak to completely unstoppable. He is the system disruptor…

In a world where tropes are present, anime girls falling in love so easily, and city-wide issues intertwining with the main mission, Clyde must level up power and his mentality, RPG-style. He can no longer be that earthling. He will learn… whether he likes it or not.

Someone who breaks systems…Feared by the gods…




~A lover of character development lover! 


Warning:
 Episode 7 and beyond contains and ramps a lot up on sexual content, including scenes. You have been warned.  This is not for the faintest of hearts! There are also monster girl quest references in here too. Once again, fair warning. Think about that before entering.
You now know what you're getting into...
[Recommended for those who know of the Monster Girl Encyclopedia] 
--Heads up: this develops into a Harem (and eventually they'll end up as his wives. If that's not your thing, this is your head's up.) 
 -----------------------------------------------
Written and edited by me with Persona as my inspiration!
*He goes from cautious to embracing! 
*Don't just stop somewhere in volume 1 (because we know the beginning doesn't count for a judgment). Binge it! Binge it! Binge it! 
***Author note: get in now before you're left behind. I'm planning to be around for a while xD.***
-------------------------------------------------
* Morning of Nov 25th 2018: 1 million views reached! 
-----------------------------------------------
NOTICE AS OF FEB 2019: Web novel hiatus indefinitely due to Amazon, people translating my shit and charging money for it, posting this on other sites without my permission. Please join discord and/or Facebook page for updates. Patreon will continue to get chapters as normal.

Thank you truly for understanding! This is my livelihood and I don't want to lose it. 
Please see discord's announcements for information on the Web novel's suspension.
------------------------------------------------
Volumes 1-14+ ongoing available on Amazon. Audible too!
ATS has found an editor as of Aug 26th. Be expecting the ebook versions to be fixed even more. See discord for more info. 
Volume 15 in session...
----------------------------------------------
*Advanced chapters and special bonuses:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/syr456 
--------------------------------------------------
My website is https://www.alvinJatwater.com
https://www.animetropesystem.net
--------------------------------------------------
**Discord channel:   [If you have questions or concerns, this is the best place to reach me]
https://discord.gg/t2qVaAR

"Are you ready, darling?" Mom asked.

I nodded my head as a response.

It was just a typical day and we were going out visiting my grandma since grandpa isn't there to keep her company anymore. 

Grandma's cooking was the best, and nothing can top that.

Mom and I are heading to her house.

I was looking at every houses that we passesd.

Each one of them are familiar.

Sometimes I could see two or three of my friends house that I met on the playground.

I was watching at the houses that we pass by. Until we arrived at Grandma's.

I ran out as fast as I could towards grandma.

"Well, if it isn't my granddaughter Astra!" she happily exclaimed.

"I bet you came here just to taste my cooking am I right, Honey?"

I chuckled.

"You know me too well, Granny."

Then my mom came closer to us bringing a basket with lots of fruits that we prepared this morning.

"Hi Mom," she greeted and kissed Granny's cheeks.

"Hey, Astrid." Granny beamed.

Then Granny looked at me.

"Now why won't we go inside now." Granny said as mom and I both followed Gramma inside her lovely cabin.

As we were walking, she asked.

"What would you like to eat? Tell me so that I could prepare the ingredients."

I looked at my mom and she smiled at me.

We talked about surprising granny about my cooking skills this morning.

Mom said that she'll let me borrow one of granny's cookbook and cook granny's favorite chicken soup, while both of mom and granny will go out for a nice walk.

I looked at Granny and smiled sweetly.

"How bout you cook later and you and mom go outside for a nice walk. Now isn't that great?" I exclaimed.

Granny stopped for a moment and looked at me.

"Are you sure, Astra?" She asked, pouting.

"Yes Grandma, Besides I'm still not yet hungry." I replied.

Grandma then gave ne a huge toothy grin.

"Okay, now. How bout we'll go on for a walk." the said while dragging mom toward the door.

"We have a lot to talk about." she whispered at my mom's ear but I could weirdly hear it.

Then after a few moments,I heard the door closed.

I look back and saw no signs of their presence.

I heaved a sigh and got to the kitchen swiftly.

As I was walking, looking for a cookbook at some if the kitchen's cabinets.

I heard a sound.

Meow.

Meow.

Meow.

I looked everywhere, and then my eyes landed on a black cat near the kitchen's window.

It was looking at me from outside.

I ran towards the window and opened it.

"Are you lost little kitty?" I asked but then realized that the cat was stray since there's no sign of collar around it.

I then ignored it but left the window open. I head back to the kitchen when suddenly I saw a glimpse of a cookbook near the dark hallway grandma forbids us to go.

Hmm. It wouldn't hurt to try and cook something so why not get the cookbook? 

I thought.

I then got the cookbook. There's a lot of dust covering the book but I still managed to wipe it off.

When the book was fully cleaned, I looked at it's cover.

It says

"fœrbïdėń ßpęłłbœœk"

I did not mind even there's a weird title outside so I opened the cookbook casually.

Then I finally found chicken soup recipe.

But weirdly it says here, the recipe needs pig blood.

I shrugged it off and starting preparing the ingredients.

Pig blood.
A pebble.
Chicken body.
Gasoline.
Candle.
Red ink.
Water.
A hair strand.

And while mixing it all recite the following

Ut ejus semper et gustare quod pulmenti, erit per factorem amare

My forehead knotted when I read those. I never saw granny once reciting while cooking.

But might as well give it a try.

Since I lack ingredients in the house, I made my own.

Since there's no Pig blood, I then replaced it with tomato juice.

Then I got a pebble from outside.

Grandma doesn't have a whole chicken body in the fridge so I replaced it with chichen legs and wings.

Since there is no gasoline in the house, I prepared oil.

And for the candle, I think that it would take more that an hour to cook the soup in it so Instead of a candle, I prepared the stove. 

For the red ink, I prepared food coloring.

Water and My hair strand is present.

I opened the stove and added tomato juice, cooking oil, a pebble, chicken, water and a hair strand.

I then mixed it after a minute, when it certainly is hot. 

I decided to recite the word from the cookbook out loud.

"U ejus semper et gustar quo punti, 
erit per factorem amare." I recited.

Nothing happens. Weird.

I was about to turn my back when suddenly the book shone then a man suddenly appeared.

He was sitting on the ground and was massaging his neck.

His black hair was long enough to cover his left eye.

He was wearing a black aviator jacket.

He have an olive white skin and his eyes are emerald green.

He was maybe on his 20's according to his appearance.

"How...." He ask.

"Huh?"

"H-how can you summon me?! The spell summoning me was supposed to be destroyed 2000 years ago!" He shouted.

"I don't know! You were supposed to be chicken soup!" I shouted back.

He then massaged his head and 
looked at me.

"Look kid, since you have summoned me. I'm going to grant you four wishes."

I looked at him grinning.

"Really?" I asked

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

"Well in that case—"

"Hey, not too fast kiddo. First of all, you must write your wish in a paper. And to be able to grant your wishes, you must offer me your soul." The Man said as he slumped over to ties his shoelace.

"Offer my what now?"

"You heard me right, your soul."

Then suddenly the door opened, and grandma and mom came in.

I looked at where the guy is but he's not there.

Was I hallucinating? 

"Darling! I thought you are cooking chicken soup! But that lemon meyer
fried Fritata is much more better!" Granny said as she pointed at my cooking.

I looked back at what I was cooking and saw this gorgeous looking meal that I didn't remember cooking earlier.

"Well, uh. Bon Appetit?"

—End of Part 1—

On the day where Astra met him, she didn’t know that it was fated. She was simply living her life normally but seems like destiny is playful and seems like they really are meant together.

"What did you do!?"

Reina's bellow echoed throughout the room and most certainly the halls of the entire Irelios library. 

"Ssh! Do you want to wake Master Sebastian?" Marco said fiercely. 

"I don't care about your master! You just ate my last chance!" 

Reina went over to Marco and tried to pry his mouth open. He swatted her away. 

"It's gone," he said. "But there is another way." 

"There is? What?"

'Yeah, what?' Marco asked himself. His eating of the Shaping Potion recipe was a purely spontaneous act. He wanted so badly to have Reina make him a Hero that he just...acted desperately. That recipe was the only bargaining chip he had. Now that he had eaten the only copy…

Wait. That was it! 

"I remember the recipe perfectly!" he exclaimed just as much to himself as to Reina.

She grabbed him and threw him against a nearby bookshelf. "No lies!" 

"It's not a lie! Look at...that book right there." He pointed to a book on Master Mace's bookshelf. It was another book of potions. "Choose any recipe from that book."

She flashed him a wary look, and then picked up the book. She flipped to a point about halfway through. "Rest Easy." 

Marco quickly responded. "One handful of the herb Melina's Embrace, a dash of Old Nanner's, and five river cloves. Mix together for an hour under mild heat. Its effect is to ease pain so that one can sleep." 

Reina looked at him for a moment, her eyes still stern, then flipped to a different page. "Hmph, Serpent's Taste."

"An illegal poison, whoever drinks it will become sick within minutes and die vomiting out everything inside them. Venom from the fang of a recently-killed Barren Lands serpent, nectar from a purple rose, and halfway through mixing, throw in Taster's Bane to make it odorless and tasteless." 

Reina nodded. "Fine. Last one. Shaping Potion." 

Marco gave her a weary look. "Nice try. But as you can see, I have memorized the recipes in all of these books. I am the one who copied them from the original scripts, after all. And before you ask, the originals were destroyed in the palace fire last year. The only place Master Mace's recipes exist now are in this library, and in my memory." 

So it was that the terms were set. Marco and Reina looked at one another from across the room, the dim light of the lantern casting long shadows on both of their faces. Each one summing the other up, planning their next move. Finally, Reina spoke.

"So that's your scheme, then. I become your Patron, make you a Hero, and in exchange you give me the recipe. What's to stop me from making you a Hero and then having you killed after I get what I want?" 

"Because I know that the Shaping Potion isn't a permanent potion. It requires another dose every few months. I will not give you the recipe. I will make the potion for you. And you will keep me employed as your faithful Hero forevermore because you need me to keep making it." 

Marco felt an instant pang of regret when he saw Reina's reaction. She looked utterly defeated, her eyes downcast as she weighed her options. When she looked back up at Marco, her expression was not one of a lady gazing upon her savior. Instead, her brown eyes burned with indignation. 

"You have a deal, Marco Flores. Let's go." 

"Go? Go where?" 

"To the palace, of course. You will make me the Shaping Potion and then we shall sleep. Tomorrow, I will bring you before the king to be named a Hero." 

****

It was a mixture of work, guilt, and excitement that kept Marco from sleeping that night.

The work began right away. He didn't even have time to enjoy the fact that he was finally entering the palace, as he was practically dragged in and shoved into a lab by Reina. 

Fortunately the Shaping Potion was actually a simple recipe. And Marco had received basic alchemy training at the Dyon Academy. The thing that stopped Shaping Potion from being sold in any old shop was that it required extremely rare ingredients. But since he was working in the royal palace, resources were not a problem. Every herb and liquid was available in abundance, and Marco grabbed handfuls upon handfuls. Most of it was to throw off Reina, who hovered over his shoulder and watched his every move. No doubt she was trying to guess the recipe from his actions. To account for this, Marco prepared a second dummy potion. When the time came for her to drink them, he simply gave her both. The dummy potion had no actual effect. But Reina downed them both, pointed Marco in the direction of a bedroom he could use, and went to her own room without so much as a thank you. 

And that was where the guilt came from. Marco knew he was taking advantage of Reina. He also knew that he was just abandoning his old life and the people that depended on him. Before going to his new bedroom, he found his way to the post tower and had owls deliver two letters. One to Sebastian, announcing his immediate resignation from the library. The second letter went to his parents, sharing news of his new job and promises to send money home when he had it. 

That gave him excitement. He knew his parents would ultimately be happy for him. They were always wary of his dreams of being a Hero, arguing that his path was to be a laborer like his father. But really they just wanted him to make money and raise his own family. Now that he had a Patron, he'd soon be swimming in gold. And once he gained a reputation, he would have no trouble finding a wife. 

First thing, however, was to meet the king. Become a real Hero. Then whatever happened in the past wouldn't matter. Marco the Coward, his selfish deal with Reina, all of it could be forgiven once he proved himself a noble and just Hero. When those thoughts came to mind, Marco was finally able to drift off into a short slumber. 

****

The next morning, servants woke him up right as the sun rose and practically pushed him into a tub. 

As he bathed, a servant cut his hair. His long, messy black mop was transformed into a short and stylish hairdo. Any facial stubble he had was shaven clean, leaving only a dashing mustache and goatee. After he put on the new clothes prepared for him, a smart red doublet and black pants tied with a black belt that had a huge buckle, he took the time to inspect himself in the mirror. 

Staring back was a neat, clean, and even handsome young man. He reminded himself of the way he looked when he saved the orphans in the past. Fresh-faced and ready to take on the world. It did wonders for his mood. Now the guilt and fatigue were gone, and only excitement remained. The old Marco was back! 

"Look at you," Reina exclaimed when he joined her in the palace hallway. "You can actually look decent. We might just make this work after all." 

Reina herself was a vision of elegance and beauty. Marco was actually taken aback. Sure he could tell that she was pretty when they first met. But her constant death threats and attitude didn't exactly give off that royal charm. Today, however, she seemed to effuse grace in an ornate red gown that matched his doublet. Her blonde hair practically gleamed as it flowed down her back, the top parts braided intricately. She looked exactly like the royals as Marco remembered them from parades he had watched as a child. Perfect gleaming smiles, untouchable as they sat above the commoners and passed them by. Only this time, the princess extended an arm to Marco. He took it and escorted her towards the throne room.  

Now that the sun was out and there was nothing to do but walk, Marco could finally take in the palace. The walls were towering and white, with many spots that opened up directly outside. These were not windows, for windows could close. These holes were always open, always drinking in the warm sunlight. It made the palace always feel fresh, warm, and welcoming. Or at least it did for the few hours Marco had spent in it. 

"Eyes forward," Reina commanded. "If you're going to sell yourself as a Hero, you have to look like you belong. That means no gazing around wide-eyed like a visiting commoner."  

Marco focused his gaze ahead as they reached the end of the hallway and turned a corner. Here was the central hall of the palace, where the open airiness gave way to regal flair. A great chandelier hung above the circular room that had yellow-armored guards stationed all around the walls. In between each pair of guards was a huge portrait of a previous king. There were many doors, but Marco and Reina stopped in front of the biggest of all. A behemoth of a door made out of solid gold. 

As they waited for a guard to go in and announce their arrival, Marco asked Reina, "Is there anything I should know before we go in?"

"Three things: follow my lead, do your best to sound intelligent, and your name is now Claude Virtue." 

"Wait, what?" 

The door opened, and Marco heard a loud voice shout: "Her Highness, the Second Princess Reina Irelios, and Claude Virtue!" 

Reina gave him a slight tug and they went forward. They followed a long yellow carpet that lead to the throne, where the king and many lords and ladies awaited them. All eyes were on Marco and Reina, but Marco couldn't be bothered with that.

"Who is Claude Virtue?" he whispered to her. 

Reina replied through her smile, "You. It's your new name."

"That's a stupid name." 

"It's better than Marco Flores, known coward and disgrace of the kingdom. We can discuss this later." 

By this point they were about halfway down the carpet. Marco could begin to make out the faces of the people that stared at them. He could almost sense their eyes boring into him, as if penetrating his mind to find out everything they could about this newcomer. 

"Reina, my daughter!" called the king. "It warms my heart to hear that you've finally chosen a Hero."

The king, like his palace, was big, sunny, and welcoming. He stood up from his throne and held his arms out to welcome his daughter. He was probably a foot taller than Marco, with a healthy brown beard and a very large frame that was packed tightly into golden armor with the kingdom's sun crest on his chest. But as Reina ran up to hug him, anything imposing about him seemed to melt away.

"Yes, father. I know I refused to name a Hero and partake in the game but this man…" she turned to Marco. "He presented me with something that I could not refuse." 

The king's gaze fell upon Marco. "You must be quite the man to change Reina's mind so. Do you know she's been eligible to take the throne for five years? Five years! And yet she refused to enter the contest with her brothers and sisters. Always said she abhorred conflict. But in this past year, she seems to have undergone a transformation of sorts. And now she brings you before me. How wonderful!" 

There was silence for a few moments until Marco noticed several gazes fixed upon him. Clearly he was meant to speak. 

He coughed before saying, "I am but a simple man, your highness. But...it was actually Princess Reina who has caused a transformation within me. Yes, she is quite inspiring. I look forward to doing great deeds in her name. And the kingdom's, of course." 

"Well said," The king gave Marco a curious look but nodded in approval. 

"Indeed," agreed Reina. But as Marco caught her eye, she looked unimpressed. "Well, father, I know you are busy so I shall not keep you. Shall we officially name Lord Virtue my Hero and be done with it?"

The king waved his hand. "No need to be in such a rush. I want to know more about your first Hero. Claude...Virtue was it?" 

Marco said nothing. 

"Lord Virtue!" Reina said loudly but sweetly. 

"Oh!" Marco jumped. "Yes, your highness?" 

"Where exactly do you hail from, my boy?" asked the king. 

Marco's heart was thumping, as if a hammer was perpetually striking his chest. This was where he had always wanted to be, amongst the nobility, being named a Hero. But if Reina had her way, it would be Claude Virtue that would be named a Hero. Then again, if he got to live his dream, did it really matter what he was called? 

"Your highness…" he began.

But before he could continue, a clear and haughty voice rang out. "Father, you called us here for something exciting, so why am I being subjected to this nobody and Reina's idle chit-chat?" 

Everyone turned to see the owner of the voice as he stepped forward. It was a handsome young man with blonde hair and sharp blue eyes like Reina's. He wore a yellow doublet and a small golden crown of his own.

"As the Second Prince of this land," the handsome youth said, "I picked my first Hero years ago. And many others after. Now we travel the land and achieve glory, something I would very much like to get back to. It's very cute that Reina has finally decided to join us, but I see no point in standing here pretending that I care. We all know that I'm going to win the throne anyway." 

"Ha!" 

Everyone turned around to face this other new voice, a beautiful young woman in a blue dress that looked like an older, more refined Reina. She spoke with a voice that sounded songlike.  

"You are quite the joker, little brother. But we all know whose name is the most renowned throughout our beloved kingdom. It is I, First Princess Julia!" 

The prince scoffed. "Renowned for the way you flirt maybe. But charming men alone cannot win a crown, my sister."

"Do you even know the meaning of charm?"

"Enough!" 

Gone was the sunny disposition that the king greeted Reina with. Replacing it was a ferocity that matched that of a roaring lion. "The battle for the throne is meant to be an honorable competition. You respect your opponents as much as you compete with them. They are, after all, still your blood! But since you cannot be bothered to put aside your petty squabbles, let us finish this. Lord Virtue, are you ready to be named Princess Reina's Hero?" 

All eyes in the room were all too happy to turn to Marco and away from the prince and princess. 

"I am, your highness. But, one thing." 

The king raised an eyebrow. "What would that be?" 

"I will become Princess Reina's hero, but not as Claude Virtue. My name is Marco Flores."

In a kingdom of monsters and magic, Marco Flores is just the peasant son of a peasant. When he gets his chance to be a great Hero, he screws it up by running away from the fight. But when he encounters a secretive princess, he just might get his second chance at glory. Problem is, he'll have to lie, cheat, and scheme just to hold onto it...

Updates: Starting out with 2-3 new chapters a week, more in the future. I unfortunately work a full time job otherwise I'd be one of those crazies that writes 15 chapters a week. So if you want more chapters than review and give stones and do all those other things to make Qidian-senpai notice me!

"Hey Gon! Come on in to the kitchen. Mary made us something to eat!" Yelled Leorio with his lips stained red.

"That explains the red hands, a bit, but what about all the hair on the floor?"

"Y-yeah I kind of messed up on that end, when I tightened the restraints on the other Kiriko I cut off some of their hair. So in order to make up for my mistake I ended up having to fix their hair. A-at least I tried?" Said Mary as her face turned red from embarrassment.

"Don't worry about it." Sad the woman from before. "Besides I like my hair a little bit shorter anyway!"

"If you're here where's your father?" Asked the Kiriko next to Gon.

"The other Kiriko is over there in the corner." Said Kurapika.

In the darkest corner of the cabin was the Kiriko sulking, it's nice yellow fur reduced down to where you could see bits of his skin poking through.

—————
Around 10 minutes later

"Hey Mary where did you get all the ingredients to make this?" Asked Gon, still shoveling food into his mouth.

"Ummm, I found the pantry, again I'm sorry about that." Mary said while bowing to the Kiriko.

"I'd like to know the recipe actually." Said the woman.

"O-okay the recipe is..."

After a nice meal. and the other Kiriko stopping his sulking in the corner, the four were escorted out of the cabin.

"It's been ages since anyone has been able to tell us apart." Said the Kiriko that didn't have its fur trimmed with a smile on its face to Gon. 

"It personally makes me happy, but, but, my fur, it took so long to grow..." 

"You see before Mary practiced her barber skills, the one we tried trapping together was the husband. Now that he's been shaved I guess people will be able to tell them apart more easily." Said Gon.

"Now on to more clear introductions. I'm their daughter." Said the woman from before.

"I'm their son." Said the previously injured man.

"And we're their parents." Said the two Kiriko in their beast forms.

"Well not that you don't already know, but we Kiriko are the navigators for the hunter exam. The venue location changes every year, and as a result it's difficult to find. So we guide those who come to us to the exam site." Said the shaven Kiriko.

"However, we don't help every candidate." began the woman.

"So we test the applicants to see if they're qualified enough to take the exam." Continued the man.

"Mary."

"Y-Yes."

"You were able to not only use the vaguest of hints to deduce my identity, but you were able to apprehend both my father and myself. Mary showed that she was both knowledgeable and powerful, which makes her more than worthy to take the exam. You pass." Said the woman.

"Way to go Mary." Congratulated Gon.

"T-Thanks."

"Leorio."

"Yes."

"You never realized my true identity. And even fought against the person who did, however you dressed my wounds faster and more thoroughly than a doctor would. Most importantly you continued to reassure me that my "wife" was safe."

"S-stop it it's embarrassing," Leorio said, pushing up his glasses.

"Your compassion makes you worthy to take the hunter exam. Thus you pass."

"R-Really?! Thank goodness..."

"You did it." Said Gon.

"Kurapika."

"Yes."

"You also demonstrated that you are very knowledgeable, by being able to discern my identity by my tattoo on my right arm, which means single for life. Therefore you also pass." Said the man.

"Way to go Kurapika!" Said Gon.

"Yeah."

"And finally, Gon."

"Yes!"

"Your superhuman physical ability and perception makes you more than worthy to take the Hunter Exam. You pass."

"G-great job Gon!"

"Thanks!" He said with a smile on his face.

"All right! We will now take you to the exam site!" Said the four Kiriko.

"But how are you going to take us?" Asked Leorio.

"By flying of course."

The four Kiriko, in their beast forms suddenly changed their arms into long wings. Unfortunately for the Kiriko, two had to take Leorio at a time because of his weight. In the night sky one could see the faint silhouettes of beasts carry four people.

—————

It was already late into the morning when Mary and the others had arrived in Zaban City. The streets were busy with activity as many walked down and up them, looking at the items for sale and setting up their own shops. There were stalls with exquisite pottery, some with toys, of which Mary bought a wooden soldier, and some with produce. There were also some sketchy stalls per say, ones with cheap jewelry sold at a high price, some with deadly items such as poisons, and even a few clearly fraudulent fortune tellers. Because it was unnecessary only one of the four navigators accompanied them, it was the "injured" Kiriko in his human form that led them. He had led them to a tall and grand building, the stone pillars near the entrance holding up a building made of a beautifully carved stone exterior with windows that seemed to glimmer in the sunlight all over the building.

"So, this is the exam site... this is what draws..." began Leorio.

"Hunter applications from across the world." Finished Kurapika.

"My first shot at the Hunter Exam... This excitement... I wonder if this is what Dad felt, when he first arrived."

Before they could take a step Mary called out to them. "H-hey guys! It's over here!"

Unlike the grand building next to it, in front of them is what appeared to be an old tavern, a picture of a steak on the top of the building was the main eye catcher.

"Wait, is this a joke? Any way you look at it, it's just a restaurant!" Said Leorio. "You're not saying all Hunter Exam applicants are meant to assemble there?"

"That's it exactly." Said the navigator. "No one would expect the Hunter Exam, with its millions of candidates to be located, here right? At least that's what I thought too until meeting her." Said the navigator while pointing at Mary who was too busy trying to fit her toy soldier into a book.

"Hey Mary, what's that book for?" Asked Kurapika.

"It's something that's kept me alive for these past couple of years." Said Mary with a serious tone.

"O-okay." Said Leorio, surprised at her sudden shift from being happy to being serious in an instant.

Walking into the restaurant the were greeted by what seemed to be the head chef of the location. "Welcome!"

"Is the back room open?" Asked the navigator.

"What'll it be?" He asked.

"The steak combo that will make me see the light. For four."

In a serious tone the chef asked, "For four...eh? How do you want them?"

"Grilled over a low flame, until done."

"Got it. Please seat yourself in the back room."

After walking over to the back room the navigator spoke to them, "wait here."

"Wait? Where are the others?" Asked Leorio.

"I can't wait for the steak combo!" Gon said with an extreme amount of enthusiasm.

"Gon that was just a password to get us inside." Explained Kurapika.

"Oh man, so we don't get to eat?" Complained Gon.

"One in every ten thousand...That's the number of applicants who make it this far. You've done extremely well for first-timers. Well good luck." Said the navigator before finally leaving. 

A click sounded in the room before they felt they were being lowered somewhere.

"T-this is it guys! We finally made it!" Shouted Mary.

The story of “sweet” little girl who has some minor mental issues. (If you have a weak stomach or in general dislike gore move on from this novel)

Disclaimer: The fan fic will get more gruesome as time goes on (nen system helps with some more interesting deaths) but it will not be fully focused on just gore, there will be no romantic interest with the main character, people will be used for the sole purpose as being stepping stones for the mc, also the original four will all play their respective roles in the main character’s character/strength. Also other than the original characters/arcs I do not own anything. Cover picture is not mine either if requested by the owner I will remove it.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/308215168232340153/

The next day after his morning ablutions and breakfast, Magnus set aside the potions book. While the book was very interesting and no doubt very useful, the lack of plants and equipment to brew any of the recipes mentioned was like an itch he couldn't scratch. Not that he understood any of the recipes, but even if he did, he couldn't brew then now. Thus, he picked the pictograph book as it was more colorful than the other books.
He couldn't understand anything but he kept turning the pages in case something interesting comes up. His actions did yield some results after turning a few pages. This particular page didn't have much text but there were diagrams in the form of instructions that he could follow.
'Hmm, this looks like a stick of some sorts. This should be trimming the surface of the stick to make it even, I think. Then a drop of blood and draw this symbol onto the stick and immerse the stick in …elements? For how much time? Well it doesn't look very complicated. Even if something goes wrong, nothing bad should happen. Better than sitting like this with nothing else to do,' Magnus decided. He had always been an active boy and was itching to do something. The fact that he wanted to forget his recent run in with the hag only cemented his impulsiveness.
He searched outside in the vicinity of the cabin for a relatively straight stick. He found one underneath a tree. He smoothened the stick against a rock he found nearby. When he found it satisfactory, he pricked his finger with a thorn from the bushes nearby and drew the symbol as instructed from the book. For the element, he recognized only the symbols for fire and water from the book. So, he immersed the stick in a pot of water and waited. A successful attempt should cause the symbol he drew on the stick to glow. He waited and waited, but there was nothing. 'Maybe I did something wrong. Let me try with fire this time.' He repeated the same procedure as before, but now placed the stick in the fireplace with a low fire going. 'The good news is that the stick didn't catch fire, so I must be doing something right.' Yet, there was no glowing symbol. He decided to do something else while waiting for the sticks.
Magnus went back to the potion book and looked inside for any recipes he could make from the pages that he had read. After sometime, his eyes twinkled in recognition and he went to the pile of berries that he stored in the corner shelf. He took some purple berries and moved back to the opened book in the study. 'Yes, the traits match. Purple Cannabis, used in sedatives and pain killing potion. Let me see what else is required. Dog's Tail? I hope it's just a plant,' he hoped.
He checked on the sticks and seeing no change, he went out in search of a Dog's Tail. His basic herbology knowledge told him that most common medicinal plants were found under trees or near water bodies, so he searched there first. He had no luck. 'Ahh, shows what I know! I should have paid more attention to mum when she was teaching me,' Magus sighed resignedly. His parents taught him magical knowledge every weekend when they visited their aunt in Devon. But he only paid half of his attention as they never let him practice any of it. He never understood why they didn't let him practice.  He would probably be more inclined to study if he could apply his knowledge in reality. Despite being wizards, his parents rarely used or showed him magic. Only his great aunt Viola used more magic but they only visited her on few weekends. She made him study Greek whenever they visited so that took up most of his time. She was the reason he learned Greek in the first place, yet she didn't give him much of a magical education. He never understood what he would use Greek for when he lived in London, but he liked learning new things so it was bearable.
Just as he gave up and was returning to the cottage, his eyes caught some grass waving in the wind. The grass was probably kept out of view by the weeds surrounding it, but the wind moved the weeds away just a bit to give him a glance. Smiling to himself Magnus picked the two pieces of grass that were present and went inside the cabin. The remedy he was trying to make was the Pain Killing potion or something along those veins. It's hard to say with his feeble grasp of the language. The potion should remove pain from all over the body for a certain duration. 'Can't brew the potion here as there is no proper equipment. I am not going to the cauldron the hag used to cook me. So, I can only use the pot. I can just wash it off later. I should look around the stream for stones to use as a mortar and pestle.' Any other child in his position would have given up, but Magnus always liked to finish what he started. Besides, it was the first recipe in the book, so it should be the easiest right?
He took the sling bag with him this time to the stream and it proved to be good decision. The stone he found was not something he could carry easily despite its size and the bag came in handy. The book-sized stone went into the bag easily and it didn't even bulge. He found a smaller stone to be used as a pestle and he returned back. He washed the replacement mortar and pestle with water. There were two more ingredients that were required but he couldn't quite make out their names. He went outside the cottage and looked around in deep thought. He finally had an epiphany. 'The recipe was in the cottage, so the ingredients must be close-by, right?' he marveled at his deductive prowess.
He looked at the vegetation scattered around the cottage. As he concentrated, three of the plants started glowing in different colors. Two of them had a bright glow, while the last one had a dull glow. The dull one was another Dog's Tail, so he assumed that the remaining two should be the missing ingredients. He picked them and returned inside.
'Peel the Purple Cannabis first and set aside the skin. Crush the unskinned berry in the mortar. Add the rhizome of the Dog's Tail and add eh, some water. Mix with the pestle. Add some more water. And finally add the skin of the berry and thoroughly mix,' as he followed the process detailed in the book, he came across the part where he should add the other ingredients. He didn't clearly understand the details, so he crushed them and added them when required. 'I hope this works. Even if it fails, it shouldn't be too bad, right? Stir a bit and a successful salve should look silky black.' The brew glowed white for a moment and then turned silent without any bubbles or fumes. 'Uh, this one looks grey. At least it looks stable,' Magnus warily thought. Only now did he recall his mother's warnings on brewing potions. He slowly moved back from the pot and his hands reached for the sling bag with all the books.
When the brew started bubbling and made hissing noise, he was already half way through the door while chanting 'Shite' in his head. But his escape was hindered as he bumped into someone as soon as he tried to leave. Magnus bounced back in surprise and shouted, "Who? What? How did you come here?"
"Calm down child. One question at a time. Do not worry, you are in safe hands. As for me, I am called Mr. King," said the main in a calm and soothing voice that put Magnus at ease for some reason. Mr. King waved his hand at the bubbling pot and the concoction turned still. Once his heart stopped beating like a squirrel, Magnus observed the man in front of him. Mr. King was a tall, dark skinned man with broad shoulders. He was dressed in brown robes made out of some animal skin. He also had a staff in his had that was decorated with colorful feathers.
"Nice to meet you Mr. King. I am Magnus Webb. You could have knocked the door instead and saved a bloke a heart attack yes?" Magnus managed to reply.
"Ah I thought it must be you Mr. Webb. We have been looking for you. It's good that you are safe and sound. As for your other question, I wasn't sure what I would find, so I had to be quiet. Wouldn't you say it is more fun this way?" Mr. King replied with a calm smile at the end.
"Right. Why were you searching for me? Did my parents send you? Did you meet them per chance? Are they here?" Magnus asked excitedly. 
Mr. King gave a deep sigh and said, "There's a lot to talk young Webb. Come this way, we'll talk after we have some supper, yes?" 

Magnus Webb undergoes a tragedy right as he enters the wizarding world. In his quest for revenge he becomes involved in a conspiracy that’s centuries in the making. As if all of this isn’t confusing enough, why is this Dark Lord guy always interfering with his plans? 


The story has a slow start and will pick up as it goes on. The 'system' elements aren't heavy here. The content will get mature as the story progresses. 
PS: I don't possess the rights to Harry Potter and English isn't my native language.

I was proud as I headed back to my quarters. This young devil lord was now an Orchid Alchemist, and it only took 1 night! Three more ranks to go and I would be out of this trial.
I wonder how my lovable kitten and my perverted ghost are doing? Hopefully, they aren't getting into too much trouble with me away.
If Soulless knew what Jax was doing with his banner, he would cough up blood. He'd be proud of Jurrath's domination of those pitiful halflings though.
I woke up the next day feeling refreshed. My mind was clear, and I now had a logical goal to chase. I opened up 'Alchemy of The Lost Ones' and read over the chapter of drug concocting.
Drug concocting or compounding is the art of creating a customized preparation of a medicine. You can produce your drugs in various forms; pills, capsules, potions, ointments, suppositories, lozenges, ect. Most alchemists choose one form to specialize in their drug concoctions, due in part to the necessity of keeping costs down and profits up.
Most times this will be proper, unless you get a client that can't take pills, for example, like the elderly or children. Some have trouble with a specific form of a drug, and in order to give them a form they can take, we have to customize it. They may even have allergies to certain additives or excipients are common in the market medication.
For new alchemists, I suggest only learning the common form of pills and potions until reaching the rank of Violet Alchemist. A finished product like a pill can only look one way, no matter who creates it, but two people can make a potion, and they won't look the same. This is a part of alchemical elegance.
This elegance is important to clients who are not getting the solution they need from the one size fits all market solution. With personalization you can change the market product adding your own flavors or even changing the way the drug is administered. We can customize everything for a specific client.
The additional effort for these customized solutions is not worth the time at lower alchemy grades, but once you reach the higher levels of alchemy and when one pill from you can sell for cities, it is an important skill to develop.
Nothing leads to an Alchemist's renowned more than giving clients customized solutions. I once was hired by a newly crowned king that was having trouble in the bedroom. Nothing he took on the market would get him up. I solved his issue with a cherry-flavored supplement I customized just for him.
He was so proud he banned all other solutions in the kingdom, that cherry flavored supplement became the only solution for ed sold within the kingdom's borders. I made quite the pretty penny by selling the recipe to the local alchemists. At face value, there was nothing essentially special about my supplement.
I used common ingredients for ed to craft it, however I customized it with a rare herb that was useful in granting vigor to that king. This was during the start of my alchemical journey. The renown I gained in that kingdom made me have a lengthy line of prospective clients querying me for customized solutions to their needs.
Do your research, studying your herb lore. Herb lore is essential for any alchemist that wants to pass the divide of Grape to Indigo Alchemist. Concocting is one of the best ways to practice herb lore as you are adding herbal supplements to already completed pill-cores.
After reading over 'Alchemy of the Lost Ones' I had a much better understanding of the value of concocting. I was thankful I had such a concise guide to learn alchemy from. By flipping through the pages of 'Alchemy of the Lost Ones' I could find the answers to almost all of my questions.
'Alchemy of the Lost Ones' was a true treasure, it even had concise addendum's on herb lore until Tier-5 in the back. It was the only instruction I would need to complete this trial, as long as I studied the pages of this book diligently I would pass this trial.
Though it did not define your Alchemist rank, mastering the skill of concocting is what separated Alchemists within the same rank. I would need to spend my future days going over herb lore before beginning my crafting or concocting.
I spent the following two hours studying Tier-1 herb lore before heading back to the alchemy lab. It was a lot to take in, with blacksmithing I only needed to know the properties of the metal I was working with at the time. You usually had a clear goal when making a weapon, then sourced the metals that could fulfill your aims.
With Alchemy though, knowing your herb lore changed your prowess when concocting. You needed to know your herbs in and out so you could handle them better. Customizing should be an early option when concocting my pills, not a last resort.
I looked over the recipe to 'Qi-Gathering Pill', it was the basic recipe that everyone knew. You would take your cultivation assistance pill-core and turn it into a slurry, then change it into a crumbly dough. After drying that dough, you would have a powder that you could add excipients to before forming the pills.
The most common excipient for this pill was Tier-1 beast blood, to strengthen the performance of the pill. And a stabilization herb such as Barberry to ensure the beast's blood didn't overpower the medication. Fowigano was often added as an extra protection to ensure the pills would not cause cultivation deviation.
I wouldn't do anything fancy with this crafting, I ordered the excipients I needed on a one day loan with my Aphalla. Luckily Apalla had the option to get materials on loan for crafting, if you were planning to sell completed products the same day. Otherwise I would have had to form basic potions with my pill-cores, which would sell for far less than the corresponding pills.
After crafting the pills I sold them off to a nice profit, I now had 200 phallic points. I then spent the 200 phallic points to grab the excipients I needed for the rest of my pill crafting.
I was quite surprised that the Satyrs had such a brilliant system in place. Being able to source all these ingredients was nothing short of monumental. In the Xertzul Abyss I would have to head to a major city to find a herb shop which I could source such a varied amount of ingredients.
I spent the next week transforming all my pill cores into their corresponding pills for resell. When I was finished I had 1200 phallic points to my name. My Aphalla was now erect & proper, as it should be. Alchemy was truly a profitable profession!
~~~
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Suffering oppression, Soulless forsakes his devil clan. With his Soul Eyes, he carves his own mark in the brutal Abyss. Through hook or crook, nothing will stop the young devil lord! Tune in every day for his shameless actions and his cruelty. Enjoy… The Rise of a Devil! 

Novel Discord: https://discord.gg/52yGSsv

"What does the Pudding Club do?" Daniel asked.

It had to be something related to Jack's death and Felix's near death. It sounded innocuous but there had to be something strange about it for Felix to have concealed the notebook in his pillow rather keeping it somewhere more open.

"They eat pudding," his father stated simply. "One member chooses one to eat, someone makes it for the next meeting, they eat it and they all discuss and evaluate it. Then it repeats with a different member. That's the normal part of it at least. I know that the inner sect was for something completely different and much less innocent. I wasn't aware of it though."

The normal operations of the Pudding Club sounded like something Daniel would actually enjoy being a part of. The recipes in the hidden notebook had to be the ones that were critically analysed at the meetings. 

"I appreciate the information," Daniel said. "I have to revise now. Bye."

He put the phone down and sighed in satisfaction. He had gained a new pair of boots, the promise of future chocolate and most importantly, identification of the secret society. It was a shame his father hadn't known much about the inner sect. 

Should he join the Pudding Club? It was wouldn't be unnatural if he did because he did like his desserts. It wasn't like his father would find out. He looked through the recipe book again and his stomach rumbled when he saw the drawings of all the puddings. Due to Felix's fall the previous night and his meeting with Sunny, he hadn't yet had a chance to sample any of the desserts in the canteen.

His mind flashed back to his tour of Kingston Royal Academy given by Liam. He had said the desserts were good. Was that referring to the Pudding Club rather than the actual canteen? Then again desserts and pudding weren't quite the same thing.

He started to consider Liam as a potential murder suspect. Liam and Christopher had joined him a few minutes after he'd found Felix and seen the person on the roof. Had Liam had enough time to run down, encounter Christopher who'd said he'd seen something and then discover Felix's unconscious body in the space of a few minutes? Liam hadn't seemed too out of breath.

It seemed that he would have to test the times. The other prefects had turned up later so they also could have been on the roof. There was of course, the potential that it was not the prefects, that it was someone else he hadn't come into contact with yet. 

What he needed to do next is to find out who was in the Pudding Club. If the prefects were members, they were even more likely to be the ones on the roof.

He also needed to keep an eye on the cat situation. Their disappearance was disconcerting mostly because it meant that someone had seen him in the canteen and used that time to enter his room and remove the cats.

His heart skipped a beat when he realised that his clandestine meeting with Sunny might have also been witnessed as well. Hopefully if anyone had seen it, they would have assumed it was of the romantic nature.

***

The bright sunlight shining through the curtains was what woke Daniel up the next morning. He peered out the window to see if it was still snowing and was cheered to find that it wasn't, although there was still a thick layer of snow on the ground.

No one had crept into his room in the middle of the night and he'd actually slept. His aim for the morning was to find Mr Collings and express an interest in clubs. If all went to plan, he would be told about the Pudding Club and Mr Collings should mention some of the members which would give him some starting points for investigation. 

The plan changed when he walked into another boy emerging from the room next door. The boy had a smattering of freckles across his pale face, big glasses, ginger hair and a cheerful smile. He looked to be the happiest pupil Daniel had seen so far.

"You must be the new person," he said cheerfully. "I'm Alvin. I arrived earlier this morning in case you're wondering why we've never met."

His admission actually answered two of Daniel's questions. Firstly, why he'd never heard anyone next door, his room was the first one in this section so he only had one neighbour and why Alvin was so cheerful; he had no idea about Felix.

"I see," Daniel smiled weakly. "Are you going to breakfast?"

Alvin grinned. "Second breakfast. I ate before I got here so it's second."

Daniel nodded approvingly. He was keen to try out the waffles he'd sighted the previous morning.

"Let's go together," he suggested. 

Alvin appeared to be the last person that would be involved with the prefects and the secret society so he could be a good source of information. Alvin disappeared into his room momentarily to grab a coat and scarf and they left the building together.

"How would you rate the food here?" he asked to start off on a simple topic.

"Pretty good since Ben's only allowed to serve the food and clean up now. There were some food poisoning cases when he first came here to work."

That sounded very plausible to Daniel based on what he'd seen of Ben.

"I know what you mean. How are the desserts? I haven't tried any yet?" 

The answer to this question would be interesting.

"The choice is limited," Alvin admitted. "The ones that are available are nice, but you get bored with them."

It did make sense to Daniel. If you had to eat three times a day in the same place with a limited menu for several years straight you would eventually grow tired of the menu. That had to be the main reason for the Pudding Club to exist and flourish.

"The dessert menu hasn't changed for years," Alvin continued on. "I'm a member of a club that's devoted to pudding. That's where I get my fix."

It really was fortunate that he'd met Alvin. He really did hope that he wasn't a member of the inner circle as well. Alvin was the friendliest pupil he'd met and seemed too nice to be mixed up in anything dodgy. He reminded himself that appearances could be deceiving and busied his mind by working out how to use Alvin to his advantage.

"That sounds cool," Daniel commented. "What sort of pudding?"

"We've had apple crumble, banoffee pie, rice pudding- a real variety. Back when it used to be every member's duty to make the pudding, someone just put jelly and ice cream together. The rules tightened up after that. Felix is a member and he's been making the puddings for the past couple of years."

That was something that Daniel had been hoping to hear. He had been relatively sure that Felix had been a member because of the recipe book, but confirmation had been needed in case Felix had simply liked writing down pudding recipes.

They had reached the canteen by this point and they both wiped their shoes on the mat to shake off the snow. Daniel locked gazes with Ben and deeply hoped that Ben wouldn't say anything in front of Alvin. He shouldn't because he could directly contact Sunny now and Ben wasn't needed as a middleman.

Daniel's attention was instantly diverted back to Alvin when he made an important comment.

"There was something strange about him at one of the most recent meetings. He made black pudding which was odd. It's not something you would eat after a meal, it's more of a breakfast item," Alvin told him.

The inclusion of black pudding had been strange to Daniel when he'd first gone through the notebook. Now that he knew the the recipes had actually been used, it was even more of an anomaly. Had it been to make a point?

"Where did he get the blood from?" Daniel asked.

Alvin shrugged as he picked up a plate.

"Who knows? I would prefer not to know myself."

It appeared that Alvin was the type of person that shut out things that would intrude on their desire for everything to be normal and happy. What else was he trying to avoid?

Daniel knew he was going to have to tell Alvin about Felix being in a coma. Taking into account that they lived next door to each other and were in the same club, his reaction would be interesting.

He waited until they were seated at a table that was comfortably warm to broach the subject. 

"You probably haven't heard about Felix yet, he fell off the roof and now he's in a coma," he said with deliberately wide eyes.

Alvin dropped his slice of toast and his mouth dropped open.

"Really? It doesn't feel like that really could happen...even after the last accident," he murmured and perked up again. "He should be fine, it's Felix."

Daniel wasn't sure how to proceed. Alvin was still in denial about the true state of Kingston Royal Academy. He didn't want to pull him out of his false impression, but he wanted information and it wasn't healthy to pretend Kingston Royal Academy was a happy place to stay..

"There's a low chance of him waking up," he lied. "I've heard about Jack's murder as well."

Alvin squirmed in his seat and looked around nervously.

"...It was an accident..." he muttered. "I know he was acting strangely before that night, but it wasn't a murder."

His new friend looked very ill at ease and looked like he wanted to run away so Daniel didn't continue the pressure and smiled widely instead. He had obtained some useful information from him anyway.

"I must have misunderstood it. There's lots of gossip here. I don't know anything about Jack so I wasn't sure what happened."

"Okay," Alvin said and resumed eating his toast. "I overreacted myself."

Daniel raised an eyebrow and started on his own breakfast before it could get cold. He'd probably gone overboard with the jam by most people's standards but it was just right for him. Alvin recovered his usual carefree persona once he'd finished eating and was talking nineteen to the dozen again.

"You shouldn't let Jack's accident put you off here. It's a beautiful building, the teachers aren't lazy, everyone's motivated, you can trust the prefects to keep order."

Daniel managed to not spit out his tea when he heard that line. It was a close call though. His theory about Alvin living in denial was right. Even Christopher didn't trust the prefects. 

"Sure, it's cold and in the middle of nowhere, but you'll get used to it."

"Do you have any advice on staying warm?" Daniel asked, he couldn't take much more of Alvin's delusions.

"Heat packs," was the reply. "I might have some spare that I can give to you. It's going to be  quite a wait for the designated trip to the town so you won't be able to get any yourself."

One of the reasons for Daniel being secretly glad that he'd missed the admission period for Kingston Royal Academy all those years ago was the most major restriction placed on the pupils. They were not allowed to leave the school grounds except for one day every half term where they were escorted into the town by the teachers. Although it wasn't like there was much in the surrounding area to warrant being allowed off the grounds. It was just a road and grass.

After they had finished Alvin offered to look for his spare heat packs and they walked back to the dorm together. Daniel awkwardly stood in the doorway of Alvin's room as he hurriedly searched through the mess on his side of the room. Eventually Alvin emerged triumphantly with two fleece wrapped heat packs. 

"I've found some. The best time to use them is English because that's the coldest classroom," he explained.

"Thank you," Daniel replied. "I'm going to revise now."

He opened the door to his room and found someone else in his room waiting for him. The person turned to face him and he saw it was a serious looking Liam.

Why was he in his room? Daniel's heart sped up. The recipe book was in his coat pocket. Surely Liam wasn't going to search him?

"I wanted to talk to you," the Scarlet Wren house prefect said. "Close the door."

Daniel thinks he has it hard going through school again at a snobby all boys academy in the middle of nowhere.

Instead his first day ends with his roommate bleeding out into the snow right in front of him.

His boring second life just got interesting and dangerous.

as i walked toward the exit, i began to arrange my bag. I've learnt hunter's skill book such as rapid shot, dual shot ,and haste. 2 damage skill and 1 movement skill.the skill was categorized to be quite common but it's just oerfect for my current level. skill could also be learned  by paying a specific NPC according to your class.I also got some bronze grade hunter's equipment :gloves, boots, leather armour.

suddenly,I felt the compass move and a notification popped out

~Tring~
'there are treasure chest around. quickly find it'
then, i took out the compass and follow the lead. finally, she found a treasure chest covered by trees. 'it's a bronze chest.i wonder what is inside.' then, she aligned the necklace to the chest lock. after a second, it opened. she reached out her hand and took out everything. there are 2 thing inside and some gold and silver. a bracelet and a skill book, gathering.the skill book allow me to harvest herbs and crops.after i've learned it , i'll start gathering plants along the road to town.i've also worn the bracelet, it's stats was quite good.
 i started practice my gathering skill with nearby herbs. what's amazing is my maps function is improved because of the skill. i can now locate plants nearby me in a certain range.i pick them up and put them into my inventory. sometimes i failed, but my success rate was improving.

after picking the 'n' plants..
~Tring~
'congrats... you're gathering skill has level up to basic level. you could harvest any plant preserving it in 'good quality'. the more you harvest, the quicker you level up this skill to fill your skill exp bar so you could harvest higher quality plants in better condition.'

'hmm..,I can't always find treasure all the time as the system said i need luck to find it as treasure are treasure after all,finding a side activities was good too.well, let's continue to collect variety of plants. But what should i do with them later? should i learn alchemy or maybe cooking?oh well, i will learn it if i'm lucky to pass by an opportunity.'
while she walk past a lake, she heard an old man voice,
'sigh.. my darling why do you not want me to catch you. i've waited for years for you. '
'gosh... is he a pervert?! i should get out here fast.but wait.. from what he said, there's another person there. is the girl being force?! she got a bad luck. should i save her? but i'm still weak,what if the pervert is very strong?sigh... i should see the situation first .'then, she slowly tip toed there.she hide behind a tree near the old man. When she peek, her mouth twitch. who would have it was an old man fishing for fish.
'sigh.. what a misleading word.everyone would have though he was a pervert it's not me who was overthinking.'
suddenly the old man's fishing rod got pulled. ' oh.. finally my darling came. my darling don't push me again. this old bone can't afford it.'
'sigh... old man could you use more appropriate word? it really could  cause people imagination to run wild.'
'ah..  please don't try to run a way. sigh.. I hope a have 6 arms to pull this rod.it's just to heavy.'
after hearing the old man words, I felt a little pity. should I help him? well, at least his not a pervert. so I guess nothing will go wrong.'
then, she went forward.
'mister, I just heard that you need help. how can I help you?'
'Ah.. thank goodness. my plea must have been heard by the moon goddess and she had sent you hear for me. quick! help me pull this rod with all your strength. then I grab it and pulled together. 
after a while, the fish was finally pulled. 'my darling, finally you've come to my arm.do you know how long I've wanted for this?' as the fisherman continue whispering sweet word to the fish. ,I could feel my mouth twitch fiercely.'sigh.. this old man taste is really something.'
after who knows how long, the fisherman finally realized there was somebody else around .' cough.. thank yoj young lad. you've help me achieve what I wish for years. now I could leave this world in peace. for your help ,I'll teach you how to fish.'
~Tring~
'Fisherman Nicoz wanted to teach you fishing skill to repay your kindness for helping him catch his lifelong goal.' 
'Fishing? that's unexpected.with this skill, I could it eat fish in game from now on.' then I chose 'yes'.
'good lad, here is my gift for you. I hope you could put it to good use.' then, he continue fishing.
---------------------------
Nikoz's Fishing rod(Bronze)/grow type
Nikoz is a grandmaster fisherman who had passion for fishing more than his life. To upgrade the fishing rod, you must catch certain fishes. this fishing rod also increases your chances on catching fish and fished out precious item.'
---------------------------
after saying goodbye, i checked the time. 'Gosh
... i've already been in the forest for almost two hours and i have just gone halfway from the exit. i mustn't waste my time anymore.' then, i hurriedly run.
30 minutes later later...
'Finally, i have arrive. Sigh.. my experience in the forest really isn't counted to be pleasant. next time, i'll go with some people. talk about people,my brother should have arrived. let's try giving him a  call. the pod is connected to our phone after all.
~Tring~
"Hello, Jun. where are you now?"
"Hi, Bai. why do you call me? do you need any help?"
"Nah, i'm fine.i have just come out of the elven forest as i've stuck there for 3 hours."
"it's good that you're fine. but you need to level up quickly as you're left behind for a week from the game started.Do you want me to help you? you didn't really have much experience with this game afterall."
"Nope, i'm fine on my own. oh!,what city are you staying right now ?"
"well,after leaving the beginner town, me and my friends had been staying on Sodram city for a while now. why? do you want to stay here too? it's a quite a nice place."
"Sodram city huh... i'll think about. Bye"
"Bye"
'I'll add him as friend first'
~Tring~
'Black Hell have accepted your friend request'
'Good!now let's buy some supplies first. if something like the incident in the forest happen again, i'll surely die.'
Then , she went to the nearest shop.it's called Fatimah's shop.
upon entering, a middle aged woman greet me.
"Hello young lady.feel free to walk around and see if there is anything you're interested in. you could call me if you need my help. if you're done, just go to the cashier.please take your time. "
while she was walking around, here eyes darted everywhere.
Beside selling consumable ,it also sold weapon, accessory, table ware,night goggle, and even vending machine.in short, there are many things modeled from actual things for convenient in game.

after paying for the things I thought would be useful, I went around the town. maybe there were something interesting.
getting out of the store, she checked the map.
'Let's see. the nearest shop was a cake shop. I really want to try how cake is like in this game.' 
Zelie's dessert cafe was a 2 story building. its decoration was very cute and majority of girls also like to eat sweet which made lots of female players interested to come. But reality is cruel, it's too expensive for poor people to afford the cake while the wealthy players didn't care about some sweets.poor players could only stand outside of the shop.so until now  nobody had ever buy the cake.
while Bai Tian in her encounter with the monster horde had miraculously acquired lots of money,so she didn't have the same fate as them. 
When she get inside, many girls shocked while others began to mock her as if they will see another person made fun of themselves. girls tend to group with men and act coquettish just to level up together with them or completing quest so they don't really have much money.
Bai Tian don't care about them and casually walked into the shop.
'Hi miss, i'm Zelie. welcome to my shop. What cake would you like to buy?'
"Hi Zelie. could recommend me some of your shop's speciality?"
'sure. if you want something sweet and sour , you can try this caramel lime cake.while if you want something chocolaty, you  can try this triple layer chocolate cake . take your pick?'
"then I'll take one each. how much is it?"
'here's the cake . it's all 10 silver.'
I went to a random table and seat. both of the cake really look appetizing. when I take a bite at the caramel lime cake, a refreshing sweet and sour flavor washed pass my mouth. a pure bliss expression was shown on my face.then I also took a bite at the triple layers chocolate cake. the bitter sweet filling was just very stimulating.
'so delicious. I should buy some for Jun. I'll give it to him after i left the beginner town'
"excuse me . could you wrap 2 more of this for me?"
Zelie revealed a shock expression ,'really?! do you like cake that much? I've never encounter anybody who spent  a lot of money in dessert like you. look at other people outside. countless people had come and go but nobody buy any.you're the first.'
"well. I'm actually quite interested in dessert and I like to try different sweets."
Zelie's eyes shone she grabbed  my hand and said,' that's great! I've finally found my sweet lover buddy. hey! are you interested in making sweets?'
~Tring~
'Zelie had asked you if you wanted to learned  dessert making'
'Wow... you can learn this
too?! it seems like to trigger this, you need to spent some money on buying sweets.nobody will waste money like me.
I select 'yes'.
'Great! follow me to the back. let me teach you some basic recipe. 
3 recipe was taught to me: red velvet cake , apple pie, peanut butter macaroons.
the baking session is quite simple. you only need concentration and artistic mind. the harder the recipe, the more you need to work hard. practice make perfect after all.
---------------------------
red velvet cake 
rating :☆☆
Effect :Max HP +200,
              Max MP +50
apple pie
rating :☆☆
Effect : stamina +20,
              intelligence + 20
peanut butter macaroon
rating :☆☆☆
Effect :Strength +30,
              Speed +30
---------------------------
after finish baking, I've found that every cake gave different temporary bonus stats. like red velvet gave you  max HP +200 max MP+50, while apple pie gave you strength +30 and speed+30 , etc. the higher the material quality , the higher the stats and quality.
'it seems like I also need to learn how to farm and have my own house where i can raise my plants and animals, I also need to learn how to cook too.it would be fun.'
~Tring~ 
'you're dessert making skill have level up to basic level. continue making dessert to level up your skill'.

' hmm.. I should try collecting more recipes.'

after saying goodbye to Zelie,
I went to a nearby restaurant. to trigger the learning quest, all you need to do was talk to the restaurant manager who seem to be very busy.after I talk to him, he said that the kitchen is lack of man power.then, I'll offer my help. that's where the  quest start.he gave me the cooking skill and  a spicy pork ribs recipe . then , I started to cook according to the instructions written. the food gives bonus stats just like dessert. after finished,I went back to meet the manager.
'thank you, young elf.you've just save me and this restaurant from chaos.  you're very talented.'
then, he gave me some exp and money.
~Tring~ 
'you're cooking skill have level up to basic level. continue cooking to level up your skill'.

after learning, I went out of the restaurant and go to the gardening shop to buy common seeds,like rice,vegetables,etc.
' I think it's enough for now. let's go leveling up and try our new skills as well as earn some money to buy my future house.' then, i went back to the forest. but only in the rear this time.

ning bai tian:

An 18 years old girl from a wealthy family that supported their descendants to be independant.
She always topped her class and receive countless admiration.
One day, her twin older brother bought her something she always thought as unnecessary, a gaming pod. From then on, her life felt as if she found something meaningful to pursue.

In the game, life skill players were looked down because majority of player thought they were weak.
"life skill player are weak? Then don't bother to come to us to buy 'trash' from the one you disdained."
she gather all talented life skill player all over the game and built the very first life skill empire. 
They became stronger that nobody dare to look down on them.
Some player even said, "you will feel your life is very fulfilling if you could just take one item from the life skill empire's storage room that was more precious than any guild' possesion."

Let's Begin Our Journey!!!

nice recipe book

very nice book

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