The Devil's Cage

"Am I really wrong?"

Kieran eventually shook his head, facing his own self-doubt.

It was not because he was too stubborn to admit he was wrong. It was just that he could not dismiss his suspicions about Fenkes before his doubts had been cleared.

However, that did not stop him from searching for Fenkes and taking in the teenagers.

Kieran found a private investigator through Schmidt and paid them to aid him in his search for Fenkes.

The private investigator was willing to help with sufficient payment.

Two minds were always better than one, especially when it came to finding Fenkes.

Kieran could not deny that there was strength in numbers.

His combat abilities might be on a different level than those of a private investigator, but a private investigator would be better than him at finding people, considering that was their job.

If Fenkes had left behind any obvious clues, Kieran would have been able to locate him through his [Tracking], but Fenkes hadn’t.

Kieran had to find him the traditional way.

Fortunately, he did not need to do all the work himself.

The private investigator was trustworthy, as they had been introduced by Schmidt.

He trusted them both in terms of ability and character, so all he had to do was wait.

The crucible before Kieran was holding all his attention.

The fire from the alcohol burner was heating the crucible, and the lard inside it was melting because of the burning heat.

When the lard melted to a gelatinous form, Kieran placed the hibiscus grind and sandalwood powder inside and mixed them.

He carefully added the ingredients, controlling the fire beneath the crucible to adjust the heat. He had to finish this step before the lard melted completely.

It was not an easy feat, as it required countless experience with experiments.

In fact, this was Kieran’s fifth try at making the calming balm. The last four times, he had failed at this exact step.

Either the plant powder had not been not mixed evenly, or it had failed to be infused into the lard before it had melted completely.

Another mistake had been the change of temperature caused by the alcohol burner.

The ingredients Simones had given him were almost finished, but Kieran thought he might able to try two more times with the remaining ingredients.

He could get more from Simones if he asked, but it would not be polite of him, and he did not want to.

If he did, he would automatically owe Simones another favor.

Therefore, Kieran was extra carefully during his fifth try.

He delicately poured the last bit of powder from the wooden dish into the fat and mixed them evenly. The mixture melted completely.

The liquid whitish-yellow fat turned purple in an instant.

"Success!"

Kieran was delighted as he watched the transformation, but he did not get carried away by this minor success.

He carefully turned off the burner and waited for the liquid to coagulate.

He remained beside the crucible the whole time, watching the transformation process.

When the mixture had coagulated completely and become a purple semi-solid balm, Kieran realized he had successfully made calming balm for the first time in his life.

[Acquired Item: Calming Balm]

[Name: Calming Balm]

[Type: Medicine]

[Rarity: Excellent]

[Attributes: Rub it evenly on the temple and forehead to freshen one’s mind in a short time, It has a minor healing effect against the Fear Debuff.]

[Prerequisites: None]

[Remarks: This is a big portion of a student-level craft. Other than its ability to be used repeatedly, there is nothing special about it. It's the most common of common products!]

...

After making his first calming balm, Kieran quickly received another piece of good news.

[Brewed your first potion, Gained a large amount of experience in Potionology...]

[Potionology Basic Experience has reached the level limit…]

[Level up!]

[Skill Learned: Potionology (Basic)]

[Name: Potionology (Basic)]

[Related Attributes: None]

[Skill Type: Ancillary]

[Effects: You have the knowledge to turn hundreds of plant stems and several animal parts into potions!]

[Consumes: Nothing]

[Prerequisites: None]

[Remarks: Although you only know how to make a calming balm, for a student, you pass!]

[Note: You have acquired this skill through learning, not through a Skill Book. Therefore, you cannot upgrade it with Points and Skill Points. If you want to level it up, you will need to continue learning or acquire a Skill Book!]

...

Kieran smirked when he saw his skills window. Potionology was available and it had a tag. It said, "Mastered: Calming Balm" next to it.

After almost three weeks of learning, he had finally gotten what he wanted.

All his effort and studying had paid off.

Being able to achieve his temporary goal was an amazing feeling, but even though he was satisfied, he did not allow himself to be blinded by that minor achievement.

He knew what he had to do next.

"Only Alchemy and Astrology to go!"

As Kieran thought about the remaining prerequisite skills, he covered the [Calming Balm] with preservative wrapper tightly.

He had Simones’s lessons to thank for his achievement.

‘Although it might look odd, its effect is good! It sure beats the traditional way!’

It was what Simones had explained to him when Kieran had watched him make the potion during the demonstration.

Kieran had made no comments about the traditional way. He still hated the limitations of what he was learning, but using preservative wrapper was agreeable. At least it was convenient.

Kieran took the [Calming Balm] to 2nd Black Street. He needed it to ease the suffering of the teenagers, and he wanted to share his success with Simones.

After Simones had taught Kieran how to make the [Calming Balm] himself, he had been spending most of his time taking care of the teenagers next door.

Kieran could tell that Simones had also done some research on magic repulsion.

If that was not the case, he would never have asked Kieran to make the [Calming Balm].

Simoned had created the [Calming Balm] through a lot of trials and errors.

Kieran had been surprised and reassured at the same time when he’d heard about that.

He had been surprised by Simones’ Potionology attainments and reassured by Simones and Nikorei’s friendship. As expected, Simones was unique in his own way.

"Welcome! Wow, you did better than I expected! I thought it would take you at least two weeks to successfully make a [Calming Balm]!" Simones said with a wide smile when he stood up from his reading chair.

It was a genuine, authentic smile.

"It's the result of my extreme talent and your effective teaching!" Kieran praised with a minor sense of mockery.

"Of course!"

Simones accepted the compliment without a second thought before waving at Kieran to come closer.

When Kieran went up to him, Simones showed him a page from the book he had been reading.

There was a piece of writing on it.

It read, "Boller smells fishy!"