Death March To 9.5 Million Vali

As I only had around 11 days to come up with the 9.5 Million Vali it would take to secure myself a Level 4 companion, I promptly left the Ishtar Familia Estate with a light igniting in my eyes. Alas, it was a light of depression and melancholy as I would henceforth travel back over to Orario with the intention of buying things to make money. I needed to make every second count, so I couldn't afford going to the Dungeon.

Fortunately, my success rate for concocting Bad Quality products through alchemy had recently crossed 95%. The success rate for Mediocre Quality products had risen to about 50% while that of Good and above Quality was not worth mentioning. Buying herbs would be a bit pricey as one would expect, but if I holed myself up for days concocting, there was a slim chance I would be able to make the deadline. That slim chance would then rise to decent if my Delusional Inclination acted up and led to a growth spurt in my Alchemy-based skills.

So, with my will preemptively shielding me from thinking of how boring it would be concocting for days on end, I marched back to my home. When I returned to the ruined church, I became just the slightest bit happier to see Bell was training as I would momentarily request his help. I walked down to the basement and picked up my savings, withdrawing 500,000 or so Vali before heading back up.

"Oi Bell!" I called. When I got his attention, I said, "You mind helping me out? I'm going to start a death march after buying herbs. Care to help me carry the herbs back to the church?"

He seemed confused by the mention of a "death march," so I explained it to him and by the look on his face, he seemed to have understood that no small task was presented before me. With a solemn look on his face, he walked by my side until we reached Miach's Blue Pharmacy. There, I virtually bought out over ten varieties of herbs before feeling content in the quantity.

With Bell's help, we carried all the herbs I bought back home and after setting the things by my work station, Bell wished me good luck as someone would for a soldier heading out to battle. I entered seclusion, or the closest thing to it as there weren't really any walls separating my work station from the rest of the basement area, and like a crazed potion-making fiend, I churned out one potion after the other.

Focusing first on Health Potions as they were the easiest for me to make and also the ones with the widest selection of synergistic herbs, I couldn't tell you how many test tubes I'd filled with the red liquid characteristic of Health Potions. Time eluded me once more and this time, I came out of the experience knowing I had gone deeper than ever before, as it was my need to use the restroom that woke me from the potion-making death march. Worse was the myriad other needs my body finally started registering, namely the desperate need of food and a shower I urgently needed.

'Ahh!' I groaned internally as I got up and went to the bathroom. Relieving myself on the toilet, I couldn't help but wonder if It had been half a day since I started or a day and a half. After all, with the Gold Star Killer technique, my body was starting to become autonomous and soon I wouldn't have the need to relieve myself at all; I would simply become incapable of producing any waste. Though that was still a long way away as I would need to completely master the technique to the Organ Section, one could see my progress from how much my bodily functions had improved compared to the standard of a normal person.

Hurriedly, I finished my business in the bathroom, feeling much better after taking that shower. Then with little more than pocket change I ran through the nightscape of Orario and found my favorite restaurant. There I must have looked like some sort of crazed homeless person as I groaned in conjunction with my stomach, virtually begging for food; anything would do, I just wanted to eat, and fast…

Luckily the stable relationship I had built with Ryuu, the green-haired blue-eyed elf, I'd been contacting to make my daily lunches saved me from being rejected as she came and seated me to wait for a meal. With nothing better to do aside from cry at my lack of proactiveness, I looked at my Status to check what this bout of potion-making had done to my Skills and Parameters.

[Status

Name: Nathanial Keter

Level: 1

Power: A 815 (A 816)

Endurance: A 827 (A 845)

Dexterity: A 821 (A 823)

Agility: A 850 (A 852)

Magic: SS 1098 (SSS 1105)

Side Mission 3: Second Step In The Path Of Alchemy! (Complete)

Objective: Attain the rank of Journeyman Alchemist ✔

Reward:

Choice of:

1) Bottle Of Muscle Tempering Pills (5 Pill Pack) + Bottle of Bone Tempering Pills (3 Pill Pack)

2) Good Pill Concocting Furnace

3) Good Pill Brewing Station

New Mission Alert!

Side Mission 4: Third Step In The Path Of Alchemy!

Objective: Attain the rank of Adept Alchemist

Description: Practice, concoct and research your way to reach the third rank for Alchemists. You'll know you've made it when concocting "Good Quality" medicines becomes commonplace; to be specific you need an 80% success rate when concocting the aforementioned quality alchemical products...

Deadline: 3 Weeks

Skills

Name: Light Manipulation

Level: E → D

Effect: Allows the user to convert base Magic into Light Magic at a conversion factor of 1:7. First Iteration Incantations for Light Spells are now available.

Name: Light Flameling

Level: D → A

Effect: Light Flaming is just before the point of becoming a true flame, but for all intents and purposes it can be treated as one. Especially dangerous to Dark and Death-type entities, this level Flaming has a chance to increase the success rate and potency of Light and Life-type products that the user crafts whilst using it.

First Iteration Incantation: Mastery 0%

Name: Alchemy

Level: F → C

Effect: Practiced concoctions have a success rate and potency increase of 66%. Limited to Mediocre Quality pills, medicines, and potions.]