Deals in Dust and Mana

After consuming the potion, Adam felt reborn, his tiredness forgotten as he felt energy brimming in him.

He focused on himself and noticed the mana coursing through his body increased in quantity and travelled faster toward his heart.

He also instinctively felt he could better control and use it to perform basic tasks. 

"Hahaha, I survived! I knew I could become the best alchemist if I decided to!" He exclaimed, his smile broadening until it reached his ears as his eyes glowed in relief. Thankfully, the potion proved well brewed.

"I hope my soul totally recovered. If not, that I'm out of danger at least." He said in anticipation, his heart brimming with expectations.

"Status."

Name: Adam

Talent: Unlocked at thirteen

Class: N/A

LVL (Level): 1

Exp: 5/20

HP (health point): 9/9

Vitality: 0.9

Strength: 1.2

Agility: 1.4

Intelligence: 16

Free attribute points: 3

Items: Grimoire Lingua, Beastbane Dagger

Skills:

Note: Soul is heavily damaged. What are you trying to prove with so much intelligence?

"Yes!." As he read the first half of the note, he couldn't help but raise his hands in triumph and exclaim.

Then, scratched his head in confusion as he read the second part.

"What so much intelligence? I only have one point, right?" He grumbled before checking his stats, widening his eyes at the numbers.

"Drinking the potion boosted my intelligence by fifteen points!?" He felt shocked at first, then thrilled.

Not only did the potion heal his soul, but it also made him save the equivalent of six levels' worth of points!

That discovery made him feel less conflicted about investing his future points in other stats and trying the all-rounded approach.

Name: Adam

Talent: Unlocked at thirteen

Class: N/A

LVL (Level): 1

Exp: 5/20

HP (health point): 14/14

Vitality: 1.4

Strength: 1.7

Agility: 1.9

Intelligence: 16 

Free attribute points: 0

As his stats improved, he felt his body change subtly, amazed by how mysterious the process was.

He clenched his fist and tensed his muscles, noticing they were more powerful. Additionally, his reaction time shortened, and he felt more energetic.

Then, he sat on his bed, eagerness covering his features as he outstretched his right hand. Using his experience during the brewing process as a guide, he expelled mana before trying to give it a shape.

However, things proved harder than he initially thought as the energy dissipated rapidly after leaving his body. Worse, its intangible nature refused to be molded.

"I won't give up!" He said, encouraging himself and imagining how he could finally communicate without the baby if he succeeded.

With eyes full of determination, he spent the night training restlessly until the baby's cries echoed in his apartment, forcing him out of the dream place.

******

As he opened his eyes in the familiarly dusty room, he realised the vial of ghostly elixir of ethereal energy was gone and cemented his speculation that items taken to the dream place disappeared entirely from the waking world.

Then, he nursed the baby as he reviewed his night of training.

'I'll need a lot of practice to control mana the way I want,' he thought, smiling wryly while gazing at the room with discomfort.

Before his appearance, Alina's daily life could be summarized in three words: work, baby, and sleep. He understood she had no time or energy to spend on cleaning when an idea crossed his mind.

Swiftly acting on it, he extended his palms towards the ground and ejected short bursts of pure but uncontrolled mana.

In reaction, dust rose from the ground, leaving two clean spots in the room.

'I'll soon become the best cleaner using mana!' He thought half-jokingly before using the baby's hand to open the window and pushing the room's dust outside.

After a dozen minutes of work, he grinned in the middle of the cleaned living room before hearing Alina's footsteps.

As she walked out of her room with tired eyes and unkempt hair, she immediately picked up her baby and fed him, missing the room's new look.

Then, moving like a robot, she swiftly brushed her hair, ate an apple and left the house, carrying her son.

Thirty minutes later, she entered the apothecary's shop and walked to the counter.

"Good morning, elder." She said, smiling brightly before asking, "Do you know how to care for babies?" She was a little scared to let him alone in the shop. What if his curiosity led him to the cauldron, and he burned himself? She needed the apothecary to reassure her before leaving.

"I raised two daughters." He answered, his tone carrying hints of nostalgia before he reassured the worried woman.

With a nod of understanding, she kissed the baby's forehead and left to work.

As her figure vanished in the village's street, the old man glared at the baby suspiciously, causing Adam to laugh, amused by the situation.

'Look at this old fox trying to confirm if I'm still here,' he thought, smiling mischievously, 'Look all you want, hahaha.'

Using his new cleaning trick, he blew mana at the old man's face, ruffling his white hair and beard and causing him to pale in fright.

"Ahhh! I'm sorry for my disrespect, sir ghost." He hurriedly apologised before curiosity took over. He needed to know if his dream had been entirely achieved or if the potion had ended up flawed.

"So, tell me, how was the potion? Was it a success?" He asked, his hands trembling in excitement as the morning sun illuminated his old face.

Then, under Adam's astounded expression, he took out a small pot filled with ashes from below his counter as if he had prepared it beforehand.

Despite the potential dangers and horrible threats, he was genuinely happy and excited to have brewed something way out of his league.

'What a potion nerd.' Adam thought before dipping the baby's finger in the ash and write. "The brewing was successful. By the way, do you want to strike another deal with me?"

"No. I only want you to leave my descendants in peace." His face darkened, unwilling to strike anything with this devil.

"That's sad. I wanted to offer you to concoct more potions from that forbidden book of yours..." Adam directly hit his weak spot, and it was super effective.

His eyes sparkled with excitement as he asked, "Really? What do you want in exchange?" 

"Take care of the baby seriously, and let me read your books. Get new ones related to magic, alchemy, or supernatural things if you can, too."