031 Elixir
Dunne Smith's ash-grey eyes met Klein's gaze without uttering a word for a full minute.
Under such silence and scrutiny, Klein didn't flinch or avert his eyes, but steadfastly returned the gaze.
"You should understand, once you ingest the elixir, there's no turning back," Dunne finally spoke, his voice low and devoid of emotion.
Klein smiled faintly in response, "I know, but I respect the voice within me."
Initially, the "Insomniac" didn't meet his needs, and the "Tarot Gathering" audience's descriptions were vague. Other extraordinary means might take time to access. Therefore, there was no need to wait. Similarly, the "Undertaker" was excluded, leaving only the options of the "Watcher" and the "Diviner."
Under the premise of equal danger in Sequence elixirs, without more information available, and given that both the "Watcher" and the "Diviner" met the requirements, whether Emperor Roselle randomly chose or regretted not selecting one of the "Apprentice," "Thief," or "Diviner," it was enough to tilt the balance of his inner scales.
Moreover, from his notes, it was clear that once one grasped the essence of "Digestion" and "Impersonation," one could minimize the negative effects of elixirs. As for the seductive whispers and illusory temptations that led to madness, even if one didn't become an extraordinary, they'd be exposed to them!
"Very well," Dunne Smith rose, donning his half-high black hat as he spoke, "Follow me underground."
Klein nodded appreciatively, offering a gentlemanly gesture.
Clack, clack, clack— their footsteps echoed in the quiet, spacious staircase and corridor.
Klein suddenly felt a bit nervous and found himself saying, "Captain, you've convinced me that consuming the elixir doesn't directly grant corresponding mystical knowledge; it only qualifies one to learn and master them. Where does the initial knowledge of mysticism come from? Is it painstakingly discovered and summarized by predecessors at the risk of their lives, or does it come from elsewhere?"
Each time he descended underground, he sensed the air was quite fresh, indicating excellent ventilation. However, occasionally, a gust of wind made one's heart tremble.
Dunne glanced at him, his gray eyes exceptionally profound in the dim light. He replied calmly, "Firstly, as you said, it's exploration, summarization, and improvement. Secondly, it's the grace of the gods. Thirdly, well, those unheard 'whispers' of danger aren't always meaningless gibberish. Occasionally, they do tell mysterious things. But as far as I know, those who listen to them for a long time invariably go mad or degenerate into monsters. Of course, we owe them thanks; the notes they left behind are a valuable asset in the field of mysticism."
Human guinea pigs? ...The coldness of the underground crept in, causing Klein to shiver involuntarily.
Will my "Transference Ceremony" for "Friendship Magic" always be accompanied by those insane and terrifying "whispers"? Will it bring about the same effects?
At the crossroads, Dunne didn't proceed towards "Chennis Gate" or turn towards the "Arsenal, Materials, and Library," but instead led Klein towards the left, closer to the Saint Celine Cathedral.
Halfway there, he paused, seemingly triggering something, and opened a secret door.
"This is the 'Alchemy Room' of our Night Watchman Squad. I'll have Old Neil fetch the formula and corresponding materials for the 'Diviner' elixir from Chennis Gate. You're lucky; the Goddess is watching over you. There should still be two sets of materials related to the 'Diviner.' Otherwise, you'd have to wait a long time." Dunne pointed to the room, saying, "Wait here and observe Old Neil's entire process of brewing the elixir. It's the most fundamental aspect of mysticism. Don't touch any items in there randomly; they're either dangerous, expensive, or both."
Here, Dunne added, as before:
"By the way, I forgot one thing," Dunne Smith said, turning back. "Your becoming an extraordinary is based on the need to deal with danger and search for notes. Merit is only part of it. Therefore, you cannot yet become a formal member of the team. You will continue as a civilian, with the corresponding salary and the tasks I previously assigned to you. However, you will also need to follow Old Neil to learn a lot of mystical knowledge. You can arrange your own time."
"Understood," Klein said, apart from some resentment about not receiving a raise, he fully agreed.
According to Dunne's explanation, after ingesting the elixir, there is still a process of learning and mastering. Directly becoming a formal member of the team and participating in tasks related to supernatural events, he really didn't know how to write the word "death."
Dunne turned his body and took two steps towards the crossroads, then turned back. "There's one more thing."
I knew it... Klein had become accustomed to the captain's similar "style."
"We've made some progress in our actions against the Mystic Society," Dunne said with his usual expression. "In the short term, they shouldn't dare to provoke us again. But don't be careless, because we can't confirm the importance of the Antigonus Family's notes to them temporarily. From our discoveries, they do indeed retain certain ancient customs, which can be confirmed to be related to the Solomon Empire and the fallen aristocracy of that time."
"I understand. Thank you, Captain," Klein sighed.
This was also one of the reasons he was unwilling to wait, seizing the opportunity to become an extraordinary!
Watching Dunne walk away, confirming that he wouldn't turn back to add anything else, Klein walked slowly into the alchemy room.
Here, long tables were arranged, with test tubes, pipettes, balances, and beakers on them, reminiscent of the chemistry labs he had seen in his past life, only more primitive and ancient.
In addition to these, there were also large iron pots, black wooden spoons, transparent crystal balls, and strange symbols of dark emblems everywhere, adding a mysterious touch to the surroundings.
Klein looked around with great interest, but refrained from touching anything randomly.
After a while, footsteps approached, and Old Neil entered, carrying a small silver box with intricate patterns. He was still wearing the classical black robe that didn't match the era, and a circular-edged felt hat of the same color.
"Kid, I didn't expect you to choose the 'Diviner,'" Old Neil said as he put down the silver box, glancing at Klein with slightly cloudy dark red eyes. "You're just as characterful as I was back then, not conforming to the norm. Well done. Light up these gas lamps in the alchemy room and close the secret door."
"Okay," Klein suppressed his trembling and lit the gas lamps in the alchemy room one by one, allowing the dim light to reignite the space.
Click, click, click—the secret door closed. He turned and approached Old Neil, who had white hair and deep wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth. He saw the strange tree branches tied together by him brushing the large iron pot.
"The preparation of Sequence elixirs is very simple, at least for those below Sequence 7. It doesn't require special flames, additional ceremonies, or even incantations. It doesn't require the involvement of spirituality itself. You just need to follow the order on the formula, accurately add the materials one by one, and then stir," Old Neil said, smiling as his wrinkles seemed to bloom.
"Really?" Klein asked, quite surprised.
This sounded as simple as his "Transference Ceremony" for "Friendship Magic"...
Hiss, thinking about it was a bit terrifying...
"Perhaps this is the blessing of the gods. Praise the Goddess," Old Neil said, making a gesture of drawing a circle on his chest in a very irregular manner.
Then, he opened the silver box and took out a roll of ancient-looking parchment.
The yellow-brown parchment unfolded inch by inch, revealing the words on it. Klein glanced at it and found that it was written in the familiar Hermes script.
They were written with ink as red as blood, seemingly still retaining the feeling of flow, but apart from that, there was no other extraordinary feeling.
"'Diviner': 100 milliliters of distilled water + 13 drops of night jasmine juice + 7 gold mint leaves..." Klein silently read the contents of the formula, but the subsequent part was blocked by Old Neil's elbow, and he couldn't see it.
"Distilled water is water that has been repeatedly distilled. Fortunately, I made some before, so there's no need to waste time," Old Neil explained, deftly picking up a large glass bottle with graduations from the long table.
He opened the lid and casually poured about 100 milliliters of distilled water into the large iron pot.
Klein dared not ask, fearing to disturb Old Neil's preparation, after all, the potion he was about to concoct was meant for his own consumption.
"13 drops of night jasmine juice; this can be extracted and made into essential oil first," Old Neil said, taking out a brown bottle from the silver box and effortlessly dripping 13 drops into the large iron pot.
A faint and soothing fragrance filled the air, calming Klein's mood involuntarily.
"7 gold mint leaves..." Old Neil picked up a tin can with silver patterns, uncovered it, and casually picked out a few leaves, sprinkling them into the large iron pot. A fresh and invigorating aroma wafted in the air.
"4, 5, 6, 7, just right," Old Neil chuckled, glancing at the potion formula on the parchment, "3 drops of hemlock juice. You can't drink this stuff randomly. It will paralyze your whole body and stiffen you to death. In ancient times, it was the best choice for suicide."
I'm not that stupid... Klein silently retorted.
Old Neil changed the dropper and carefully dripped the hemlock juice into the large iron pot, mixing it with a strange aroma that kept one's mind clear.
"9 grams of dragon's blood herb powder." Old Neil calmly reached into the silver box and picked up a transparent test tube containing powder as dark as iron. He weighed 9 grams of the powder using items such as the beaker and the balance, casually pouring it into the large iron pot and stirring it twice with the black wooden spoon, making Klein's heart tremble a bit. He always felt it wasn't quite reliable.
"In fact, these previous materials are just auxiliary. Adding a little more or less won't affect the final result. Shall I add a little more?" Old Neil joked, "The remaining two are the key. Their quantities can be slightly less, but they must not deviate too much. Otherwise, your 'promotion' will fail. Their quantities must absolutely not be excessive, even a little, otherwise, after you ingest it, you'll have to go treat mental issues, or worse, die directly."
Klein immediately tensed up, watching as Old Neil took out a black glass bottle from the silver box.
"Lava octopus blood, 10 milliliters. This octopus belongs to the extraordinary species, exhibiting obvious mutations, covered with mysterious symbols. Its blood rapidly decomposes under sunlight, losing its uniqueness and must be preserved in opaque materials." Old Neil's tone became more serious as he swiftly and carefully extracted 10 milliliters of blood using a test tube.
The blood was as blue as the sky, occasionally bubbling with illusory foam, as if connecting to a spiritual world.
"Pour the blood from the test tube, leaving the residue on the walls. This is to prevent overdosing," Old Neil said in a low voice.
As the azure blood entered the iron pot and mixed with the previous liquids, a sizzling sound erupted, and the surrounding light took on a faint blue hue, giving Klein a strange sensation of familiarity and remoteness.
It seemed like an experience within the womb, elevating the soul.
"Finally, star crystal, 50 grams," Old Neil's voice sounded in Klein's ears, bringing him back to reality, and he looked back at the long table.
In the old man's hand was an extremely pure crystal, gelatinous in form, like jelly on Earth, lacking sufficient hardness. Under the faint blue light, it reflected specks of brilliance, as if hiding a dazzling starry sky within.
"This is the best material for making divination crystals... A bit less to account for errors," Old Neil said, weighing it with a silver knife engraved with patterns.
"Distilled water + night jasmine + gold mint leaves + hemlock juice + dragon's blood herb + lava octopus blood + star crystal = Diviner..." At this moment, Klein couldn't help but recall the formula once again.
With the preparations complete, Old Neil tossed several small pieces of "star crystal" into the large iron pot.
Hiss!
Illusory mist instantly emerged, shrouding the alchemy room in a haze.
In this mist, Klein seemed to see the starry sky and feel the gaze of some intangible presence.
After a few seconds, the mist subsided, and Old Neil scooped out the viscous dark blue liquid from the large iron pot with a black wooden spoon. They were peculiar in nature, sticking together without any separation, to the extent that there was no residue left in the black iron pot.
The dark blue liquid was poured into an opaque cup, and Old Neil pointed at it, saying:
"Here it is, your 'Diviner' potion."