Chapter 48: Understanding Potions.
Lady Hera was rather quick and decisive in her approach to teaching Edgar.
The first thing she did was order the soldiers outside to bring all the ingredients needed for practicing potion-making.
She also made one of them bring a board and chalk, which she placed in front of Edgar.
After getting ready, the lady drew in a deep breath, preparing herself.
Her silence gave Edgar the time to admire the girl.
She was wearing a long white dress embroidered with elegant silver patterns that flowed from her waist to the hem.
Unlike the conservative dresses she usually wore, this one had long fitted sleeves that accentuated her slender arms.
Her silky white hair had been loosely tied behind her back, allowing a few strands to frame her delicate face.
Even while writing, she looked strangely graceful.
’Focus...’ Edgar silently scolded himself.
Unfortunately... the teacher herself wasn’t making things any easier as she bent forward slightly to draw.
Hera finished drawing before turning around.
She immediately caught Edgar looking at her.
"..."
"..."
The two stared at each other for a second, both as silent as the wind.
A teasing smile slowly appeared on her lips.
"Edgar~~."
"Don’t say a word," Edgar quickly grumbled. "Just start."
The young lady giggled, which made her tense mind calm down a little.
"Okay," she said. "I never taught anyone before, so don’t laugh if I make a mistah--."
Hera bit her tongue while saying "mistake" and immediately glared at Edgar as though he were the one who had caused it.
’Just teach me, young lady...’
Hera quickly straightened her back and said,
"Alright! We will start with the most basic and the most important potion."
She pointed at the diagram on the blackboard.
"Healing Potions."
Edgar’s gaze shifted toward the board, which had three drawings on it.
One was labeled Positive Blood, which was shaped like a white bird.
The second was Neutral Catalyst, which was shaped like an ore.
The last was Herbal Essence, which was shaped like tree leaves.
Edgar had to admit, the drawings Hera had created were top-notch.
The lady walked forward and picked up a tube that had blood inside it.
She showed it to Edgar, bringing it closer to his face.
"This is the blood of a bird known as Caladrius," she said. "It’s the most basic positive blood that we use to create healing potions."
Edgar took the glass tube from her hand and carefully observed it.
The blood wasn’t red. Instead, it had a faint golden-white glow, almost as if tiny specks of light were drifting inside it.
’...It’s beautiful,’ Edgar thought to himself.
Hera continued while pacing around the room.
"If you remember, positive blood usually carries a brighter color, while negative blood tends to be much darker."
Edgar gently swirled the liquid in the tube.
"It doesn’t look like blood though."
"Because it’s refined."
She smiled and snatched the tube from his hand.
"After refinement, Nightmare blood changes its properties."
She placed the tube back on the table and said seriously, "Raw blood is filled with impurities."
She made a slicing gesture across her neck, which Edgar found rather cute.
"If you drink it, you die."
’Noted.’
The lady then showed him a silver-colored ore and said quietly, "This is Moonsteel Ore."
She placed it on the table with a soft clink. "Or... at least that’s what most people call it."
Edgar picked it up.
The ore wasn’t particularly large, yet it felt unexpectedly heavy.
Thin silver veins ran across its rough surface, emitting a faint glow whenever they caught the light.
"It doesn’t feel like anything special."
"It’s just the raw form of the ingredient," she said. "By itself, it’s practically useless."
She tapped the drawing labeled Neutral Catalyst.
"But after refinement, it becomes a Neutral Catalyst."
Edgar tilted his head. "So the ore isn’t the catalyst?"
"No."
She smiled approvingly. "The refined powder is."
Walking toward another table, Hera picked up a small crystal vial filled with shimmering silver dust.
She gave it to Edgar and said, "Its only job is to make sure the other two ingredients mix well."
Edgar looked at the lady. "So, it’s a negotiator?"
"You can say that," she replied. "It does do that."
Edgar frowned. "But why?"
Hera smiled as though she had been waiting for this question.
Picking up a bunch of leaves that had been placed to the side, she showed them to him.
"It’s because of this," she said emphatically.
"The Herbal Essence also has positive properties and repels the blood."
She then rubbed the leaves in her hand, and as if by magic, the leaves began releasing a large amount of green liquid.
"These are the three ingredients that make the most basic healing potion," she said smoothly. "And now we do the main thing."
The lady brought over a big container that looked like a cauldron Edgar had seen in Chinese dramas.
Under it was a stove-like object with a nozzle that released gas.
The lady quickly lit the fire beneath the container, and Edgar gave her a surprised look.
’So, we do have something that can work as stored fire, huh?’
Edgar began to wonder why he hadn’t seen anything like this before.
’Perhaps it’s not common, and only those who are wealthy have it.’
Lady Hera had stopped talking, and she was solely focused on making the potion.
The first thing she did was pour in the silver-colored liquid and heat it up for a while.
Without saying anything, she picked up the blood, poured it inside, and let it simmer for a while.
After a few minutes, she added the last ingredient, which was the liquid extracted from the leaves.
Once she was done, she picked up the lid and placed it over the cauldron.
After doing everything, she turned toward Edgar and said, "This is the whole process."
Pointing at the container, she continued, "We need to keep it on for at least ten minutes."
Edgar nodded and looked at her face, which was close to his.
Hera stared back without blinking.
An unexpected silence took over the room as they remained still.
Click!
The only movement came when the door to the room opened from the outside.