Night came swiftly and Cabrera returned to check on the new members.
They arranged themselves before him, covered in sweat and bile of beasts, making all sorts of faces.
Cabrera gaze pervaded them.
"It seems you had a lovely day"
They stared straight on, exuding confidence.
Their temperaments had changed. Some had their self esteem boosted while others cowered, having come face to face with death.
He nodded. Many groups were missing at least one member, who were no doubt dead.
Now, they had an inkling of what they were meant to do here.
"Group leaders, present your catch"
The leaders came forward and brought out the corpse of the beast they hunted from their space rings.
All sorts of beasts lay dead as Cabrera inspected them.
For one, most beasts were skewered haphazardly, wasting good skin.
They would be sold for prices lower than usual.
'They have a long way to go' he concluded.
'But, it's definitely possible'
He could see it, thousands of workers killing beasts.
'This is a start'
Things were bound to pick up from here on out.
Working all day, the fence around the slums was starting to take shape.
It was to shield their actions from others.
The children were being attended to by a select few in an inconspicuous location.
A few could now write and speak fluently, a very worthy feat.
—-----------------------
In the castle, Ezra sat in his room with his vassals in front of him.
"What do you want from us?" asked Theron.
"I want you to be strong. Weak people can't survive in Orion. The question is, are you ready to become strong?"
"We are" said Johan.
"We'll see. Your training will begin as soon as your mentors arrive. At the same time, I'll be entering close door cultivation and seclusion training"
"For how long?"
"As long as possible. You are allowed to visit in six months to issue your challenge"
"On that note, your training continues for as long as I'm in seclusion. I am to be notified when you have a bloodline transfusion"
"Yes"
Like so the night passed, and two days flew by in a flash.
The third day saw the royal alchemists convene. It was time for the duel between Oleg and Bard.
—------------------------
Seven men sat at a round wooden table, all in white robes with their heads filled with gray and white hair indicating their ages beyond sixty.
These were the royal alchemists of Niton.
All eyes were on two people.
The Vice Head Alchemist, Sir Oleg, stood.
"Brothers, with the times of war upon us, the Empire needs us now more than ever. As such, I ask to challenge Sir Bard for his seat"
They nodded, three of them having been bought by Sir Oleg.
Bard stood.
"Doesn't anyone else have things to say?"
An alchemist raised his hand, but the rest kept their silence.
"Very well, I accept your challenge. However, upon winning, your seat as Vice Head will be nullified"
Oleg nodded dismissively.
Subsequently, the Grandmasters alighted the table, leaving the stage for the contestants.
With his face beaming with pride, Oleg brought out four vials from his space ring.
"Having worked tirelessly, I present you my newest creations"
He pointed to the first, a vial containing liquid of orange color.
"Here we have the Charlatan Mist. It releases a mist that covers the area with different scents, thereby disabling the ability of scent trackers.
"Observe" he said, finger snapping as Orlando appeared with a small cage in hand.
"Poisonous Earth Mole, D-rank"
Placing it on the ground, he dropped food in front of it.
"Ressau flesh, it emits one of the worst of odors"
"Cree!* The beast moved to eat it, but Oleg poured the potion on the food.
The beasts screeched, hurriedly backing away and moving about. It couldn't smell the food in front of it.
They nodded as he pointed to the other, this one transparent.
"I give you the Blood Boiling Potion. Now, this one is a little more interesting"
He took a dagger from Orlando, poured the potion on it, and stabbed the beast.
*CREE!*
It cried, hitting itself on the cage before falling limp a few seconds later.
Oleg took the beast out of the cage and proceeded to cut it in half.
"The potion sets one's blood aflame, literally boiling it. Made with cheap items, it'll bolster the effectiveness of lower ranking adventurers by a large amount"
They nodded, genuinely impressed. Some have concluded the result of the gathering.
Then turned their gaze to Bard, who looked unperturbed.
'Let's see you do better than this' thought Oleg, with his mind running wild.
Others looked on, wondering if there was a chance Bard had something better in store.
"Gentlemen, it is-"
Oleg interrupted.
"I believe we've had enough pleasantries, it'd be best for everyone if you get right to it"
Bard stared at him, before shaking his head.
He then waved his hand and, instantly, sixteen vials appeared.
'Huh?'
Oleg was taken aback, and so was everyone else. They quickly scrutinized the batch to realize they were two potions made aplenty.
Bard cleared his throat to get their attention. It was important to savor the moment.
Taking a high tone, he began his presentation, letting a thin smile slip on.
'Let's see you laugh now'
Bards pointed to the first, one of gray color.
"I present you the Hardening Potion"
A short sword appeared in his palm, which he snapped in two with little effort.
Putting the pieces together, he emptied the potion on the part where the pieces meet.
Using his mana to avoid splashes, he coated the blade.
The moment he let go, the potion started drying, prompting a layer of gray to cover the sword.
Other alchemists were surprised.
"Oh?"
"Hmm"
"Hardening…I see"
Then they noticed a problem.
'It became blunt'
The new layer made the weapon lose its luster, or so they thought.
With a swing, the sword split the table in two. The alchemists were forced to make reevaluations.
'Interesting. But how many metals does it work on?'
'Without spare weapon, this would be the next best thing'
But Bard wasn't done yet.
"Here we have the Body Cleansing Potion. It has the effect of washing away impurities, making it is indispensable for cultivation"
"Oh…"
The alchemists were astonished, but not so much.
'We already have those though'
Oleg was amused.
'That's it? I was worried for nothing'
Bard ignores their response.
"Does anyone care to volunteer?"
The alchemists gave each other knowing looks, before looking away.
'Who knows what sort of side effect it has? Someone else should do it'
'I'm not about to be someone else's experiment'
Bard saw the reaction and shrugged. These old farts were as miserable as always.
Eventually, one volunteered.
With a nod, Bard handed him the potion.
"Observe"
He looked nervous as he gulped it down with his eyes closed.
He licked his lips.
"It's a bit tasty" but then his stomach trembled.
He sat on the floor and took a lotus posture, with the alchemists watching eagerly.
Seconds later, he glowed blue, lighting up the room as they saw him excrete white and black liquids from his pores.
They nodded, it was of the expected quality.
But then, such potions already existed in other powers, which Notion imported.
Their question answered itself as their eyes popped.
A spectacle was in play.
