Kisha glanced up from her task, her eyes scanning the bubbling Goblin's Blood and Monster Blood in front of her. She was focused on weighing the ingredients precisely, making sure each was asured perfectly as she worked.
The large flasks, filled with simring concoctions, allowed her to observe the boiling process clearly, yet she was still multitasking with ease, moving from one step to the next.
When she needed spring water, she turned to the Spiritual Gatherer Crystal. With a gentle motion, she collected a large container of Spiritual Spring Water and poured it into the mixture.
The fla that swirled around her seed to respond, and she instinctively knew when to adjust the temperature, adding more fire essence when necessary and lowering it when the concoction required balance. It was as if the Silver Fla itself was guiding her, whispering the right actions at the right monts.
Since the Silver Fla had already developed a consciousness, Kisha could finally relax and let it take over the more delicate parts of the boiling process. It behaved much like her battle pets—attentive, responsive, and incredibly efficient.
With its help, the process beca almost effortless, and to her delight, her very first attempt at concocting the Stamina Booster was a complete success.
As the final vial settled into place, Kisha and Duke exchanged an enthusiastic high five, grinning from ear to ear. The first batch had yielded ten flawless bottles of Stamina Booster, and the sense of accomplishnt was overwhelming. Even 008 was practically buzzing with excitent, its tone celebratory, as if it too had taken part in the achievent.
"Host, it seems you also have a natural talent for alchemy—and with a success rate as high as your inscribing! We've hit the jackpot!" 008 exclaid with excitent. Kisha could easily imagine it bouncing around in her mind, tiny hands thrown up in celebration. The enthusiasm was infectious, and she couldn't help but smile.
Still, Kisha knew better than to shoulder everything on her own. If she wanted to maintain a steady potion supply for both of her bases, she'd need help. She made a ntal note to train soone to assist her with potion-making in the future.
That way, even if she got caught up with other responsibilities, the production wouldn't stop. As for how to set that up—well, that was a problem for later. For now, she focused on refining her skills, repeating the sa recipe again and again to build her proficiency.
And so she did. Kisha continued concocting more Stamina Boosters with growing confidence. After Duke assisted her two more tis, she gently insisted he return to his training.
She knew he was only staying to watch over her, putting his own progress on hold out of concern—but she couldn't let him sacrifice his goals for her.
When she finally sent him off, Duke looked at her with such reluctant eyes, it was as if she were abandoning a loyal puppy. Amused and touched, Kisha tiptoed to give him a quick kiss in reassurance.
But the big guy wasn't satisfied so easily. With a firm hand behind her head, he anchored her in place and deepened the kiss, his lips claiming hers with playful dominance. His tongue explored her mouth slowly and deliberately, savoring her as though he was trying to morize her taste.
Only when Kisha was breathless and flushed did Duke finally pull away, a devilish grin playing on his lips as he looked utterly smug and satisfied. Without another word, he turned and headed back to training, his steps so light it was as if he were floating on air.
But just before he got too far, he glanced over his shoulder and called out with a teasing grin, "Wifey, that was just a little interest. Tonight, I'm coming back to collect the capital."
And with that, he walked off, leaving Kisha stunned, her cheeks burning, heart racing, and completely unprepared for what he ant by "capital."
It took Kisha a mont to register what Duke ant—and when she did, her face turned scarlet. That kiss was just a tease, a small "interest" to tide him over.
The "capital" he ntioned?
That was her.
A full-course feast, later tonight.
She puffed out her cheeks in embarrassnt, unable to form a single retort. After all, it had been a while since they'd been intimate. Between endless responsibilities, battles, and back-to-back obligations, they barely had ti to breathe, let alone be alone together.
Still, seeing Duke walk off so smugly—clearly pleased with himself—made her heart flutter. Shyness bubbled up inside her... but so did anticipation. A tingling warmth spread through her chest, and her stomach flipped with a flutter of excitent she couldn't quite suppress.
"Oh my, my host is acting like a lovestruck girl," 008 teased, its voice laced with mischievous glee.
"Shut up," Kisha muttered weakly, the lack of bite in her voice making her sound more flustered than annoyed—which only made 008 chuckle harder.
Wanting to change the subject and silence her little system, Kisha quickly tossed out a distraction. "How much do you think we can sell this batch of Stamina Boosters for in the store?"
"Ooh! Testing the market, are we? Excellent! Give a mont to calculate the cost and check the current prices," 008 chirped, instantly vanishing to do its work.
Finally alone again, Kisha let out a soft sigh of relief. The teasing may have subsided, but she didn't have ti to dwell on her embarrassnt.
She turned back to her work, eyes focused and determined. Her current proficiency was still far from reaching interdiate, and with hundreds of ingredients still in her storage, she had no plans to stop—not until she improved.
Not long after, 008 reappeared. "Host, here's what I found: in the system mall, a single Stamina Booster is priced at 100 system points. Based on our calculations, the cost of the base ingredients is 90 system points per batch, and each batch yields 10 vials—so the base cost cos down to 9 system points per vial."
008 paused briefly before continuing with a note of excitent in its voice.
"Of course, most sellers price their potions at 100 points to account for failed attempts and labor costs. But you've been incredibly consistent. You've successfully completed 10 full batches with zero failures—that's 100 vials! If we sell them at the standard price, we'll bring in 10,000 system points. And the best part? We still have plenty of ingredients left!"
There was no hiding the lift in 008's tone, clearly thrilled by the profit margin and Kisha's impressive 80–90%, if not 100%, success rate in potion-making.
"Hmm... That's definitely a good deal," Kisha said thoughtfully. "But considering how many other systems are selling Stamina Boosters in various sales channels, we'd just be one among many. Our store isn't popular yet, and it's still relatively small, so it could easily go unnoticed."
She paused, a glint of cleverness in her eyes. "So instead of pricing it at the standard 100 system points, let's shake things up with a little promotional strategy—say, a 'buy one, get one free' offer. That way, when users search for Stamina Boosters in the system mall, ours will appear first, not only as the most affordable but also as the best-value option."
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