Once Raymond was sure no one was following him, he ducked into a secluded corner, removed his disguise, and returned to his townhouse at No. 26 Red Rose Street.
As he opened the door, he saw Arya carefully maintaining her bow and inspecting its string, an essential habit, as worn bowstrings were prone to snapping.
Seeing him return, Arya set her bow down. "Back already? How did today's batch go? Were you able to brew a few bottles?"
"Eight bottles," Raymond replied with a smile.
"Eight?" Arya's eyes sparkled. "That's quite a lot!"
"Yeah," Raymond nodded, handing over the cloth pouch filled with herbs.
As usual, Arya took it from him and opened it. She peered inside and smiled.
"Looks like it's easier to collect herbs now that the Black Wind Bandits are out of the picture," she remarked.
Raymond nodded and said, "Yeah, I'm surprised myself. It took less than half a day to gather all this."
Still, he doubted that the disappearance of the Black Wind Group was the only reason. Manik must've worked hard, too. Even with high prices, it wouldn't have been easy to buy so many herbs unless Manik really put in the effort. By this ti of day, most adventurers would assu the best-paying buyer had already swept up all the good herbs.
"I'll go clean these," Arya said, picking up the cloth bag and heading to the kitchen. She emptied the herbs into the sink, ran the water, and began rinsing.
She didn't mind the task at all. After being idle for so long, she didn't want to feel useless or entirely dependent on Raymond. Even if she'd once had no choice but to rely on him, now she wanted to contribute however she could.
Helping to clean the herbs was her way of easing Raymond's burden, especially since his potion-making was their main source of inco.
Raymond didn't go over to help, he knew Arya wouldn't let him. He understood her mindset and left her to it.
Fortunately, the process wasn't complicated. Soaking the herbs to make them float, then swishing them through the water a few tis was enough. There was no need to scrub every leaf. Any microbes or impurities would be removed during the refining process anyway. The cleaning was mostly to remove dirt and dust. A little gri didn't hurt, it might even be good for digestion.
Before long, Arya had finished rinsing all the herbs. She grabbed a kitchen knife and chopped them into smaller pieces to make them easier to fit into the potion flasks. She'd done this before and had no trouble dividing the ingredients into eight even portions.
"Raymond, I'm done!" she called, showing him the neatly arranged piles of herbs on the cutting board.
"Thanks for your help," Raymond said with a warm smile.
Arya grinned. "It's no trouble! We still owe Sylph and Lorene eight gold coins each. If it weren't for these potions you're making, who knows how long it would take to pay them back?"
Raymond gave a small, knowing smile.
The truth was, the rewards from Black Iron-level commissions were far too ager, at least for their team. That was partly because their strength had grown quickly. With their current gear, they could already take on Bronze-level jobs, so the lower-tier missions felt unrewarding.
On the bright side, their equipnt wouldn't need upgrading until they reached the Silver tier. That ant any new team mbers could join in on Bronze-level commissions without needing new gear, which saved ti and money.
Still, it would be a while before they officially advanced to Bronze-level adventurers. Once they did, they could start accepting easier Silver-level commissions without rushing to upgrade. Bronze-level jobs maxed out at ten gold coins in rewards. But even with five mbers in the party, it wouldn't take long for them to afford better equipnt, especially Lorene.
As for Raymond, his inco from potion-making alone would easily cover the costs of future upgrades. Plus, as a craftsman, he could create the equipnt himself and outsource the enchantnts.
Of course, Silver-tier gear typically ca with special effects, which required a second-tier Forging skill to apply. Raymond's Forging was still at Tier 1, and he needed three more skill points to upgrade it. But he wasn't in a hurry, by the ti they needed Silver-grade equipnt, he could just ask a skilled craftsman like the dwarf Greytor, who had already mastered Tier 2 Forging, to handle it.
Still, that was a problem for another day. Anything could change between now and then.
Soon after, Raymond and Arya brought the chopped herbs upstairs to the pharmacy.
This room had once been empty, but Raymond converted it into an alchemy space after realizing that his old potion lab; the utility room, was too cramped. Besides, he used that room every morning for training.
Now, the pharmacy was equipped with rows of shelves lined with glass vials and a long central worktable.
Raymond placed the cutting board with the eight herb portions onto the table. Then he walked over to the shelves and retrieved a line of glass potion bottles.
Arya stood nearby, watching him. She had seen him make Primary Magic Recovery Potions many tis by now, but she never grew tired of it.
Maybe she just enjoyed the process. Or maybe she liked picturing each finished potion as a silver coin, whispering to herself: Eight silver coins, eight silver coins...
Every vial he finished ant money in their hands, especially important now, when every coin mattered.
Raymond reached for the large water cup on the table, intending to pour water into the glass dicine tubes, but found it was empty.
Just as he was about to go fill it himself, not wanting to trouble Arya again, she quickly stepped in and grabbed the cup ahead of him.
"I've got it! You just focus on making the Primary Mana Recovery Potions," she said cheerfully.
She seed unusually energetic as she dashed off with the empty glass, heading toward the second-floor bathroom to fetch fresh water. Raymond could only smile helplessly. Every ti he prepared to make potions, Arya always got excited.
Monts later, she returned, holding out the now-full cup. "Here you go!"
"Thanks," Raymond replied with a grin as he took it from her.
Carefully, he began pouring water into each of the eight glass tubes, stopping once the liquid reached halfway. Then, he picked up the herbs Arya had chopped and washed, placing each portion into a tube until all eight were filled.
Arya watched closely, even though she'd seen the process many tis before. Though she could have helped, she chose not to, she genuinely enjoyed observing him work. There was sothing satisfying about watching Raymond's focused expression as he prepared each potion with care.
As Raymond moved to the next step, he caught Arya staring intently at him, her expression both serious and endearing. He smiled at her.
"Hey, stop looking at like that and get on with the refining already!" Arya exclaid, flustered, her cheeks flushing red.
"Alright, alright," Raymond chuckled, turning his attention back to the table.
He held his hands above the first glass tube, his expression turning serious. With a low voice, he commanded, "Refine."
A soft, light-blue glow radiated from his hands. After a few seconds, the glow faded, and the water and herbs in the tube transford into a pale blue liquid, Primary Mana Recovery Potion.
Raymond picked up the tube and examined it. The potion was clear, perfectly refined. He nodded with satisfaction.
Since he began brewing these potions, Raymond had never once failed. He knew the two main causes of potion failure: poor-quality herbs, or improper technique that ruined the formula. But with care and precision, he avoided both.
Placing the completed bottle aside, he continued refining the others, one by one. In no ti, the last potion was done.
"You're amazing, Raymond!" Arya said with bright eyes as the final tube filled with the light-blue potion.
"All done," Raymond said as he rolled his shoulders. "Ti to rest. Don't forget, I'm teaching you close-combat skills tomorrow."
"Mm!" Arya's eyes lit up. "I'm looking forward to it. You better teach properly!"
"No worries," Raymond replied with a confident smile. "I haven't officially trained you yet, but with ten professions under my belt, I know all the strengths and weaknesses. I'm more than qualified."
"Hehe, that's perfect," Arya said happily.
With that, they went to their rooms to rest, preparing for the training ahead.
Raymond lay on his bed and opened his status panel:
---
Na: Raymond Kelton
Age: 15
Mana: 51.2 / 1151.2
Professions: Fighter, Warrior, Craftsman, Magician, Swordsman, Hunter, Pharmacist, Archer, Thief, Assassin
Skills:
Bone Crushing
Taunt (Upgradable)
Wind Slash
Camouflage
Forging (Upgradable)
Primary Mana Recovery Potion
Skill Points: 2
Skill Progress: 55%
---
Awakenable Profession:
Priest – Gratitude from 200 people required (Progress: 16/200)
---
Learnable Skills:
Po Jun Assault (Warrior) – 2 points
Fla Strike (Magician) – 3 points
Burning Fire (Magician) – 2 points
Spider Jump (Assassin/Archer) – 1 point
Dodge (Swordsman/Assassin) – 2 points
Instant Strike (Assassin/Thief) – 2 points
Guardian Shield (Warrior) – 5 points
Shield Strike (Warrior) – 1 point
Fireball (Magician) – 1 point
Ice Field (Magician, Upgradable) – 3 points
Ice Crystal Wall (Magician) – 3 points
Storm Fist (Magician) – 5 points
Eagle Eye (Archer/Hunter) – 1 point
Biological Perception (Hunter/Thief, Upgradable) – 1 point
Fatal Strike (Assassin/Rogue/Hunter) – 1 point
Wind Blade (Magician, Upgradable) – 1 point
Magic Cyclone (Magician) – 2 points
Earth Tremor (Warrior, Upgradable) – 3 points
Indestructible (Warrior) – 3 points
Locked Arrow (Archer) – 1 point
Piercing Hunt (Warrior) – 1 point
Wind-breaking Arrow (Archer/Hunter) – 3 points
Sprint (Thief) – 1 point
Wind Slash (Warrior/Swordsman) – 1 point
Charge (Warrior) – 1 point
Random Steal (Thief) – 3 points
Thunderstorm Spear (Warrior) – 5 points
Flowing Like Water (Warrior/Swordsman, Upgradable) – 3 points
Iron Elbow (Fighter) – 1 point
---
Upgradable Skills:
Taunt – Upgrade cost: 3 points
Forging – Upgrade cost: 3 points
---
Looking at the long list of skills, Raymond smiled to himself.
"So many options… what a pity I don't have enough skill points yet."
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