Chapter 111

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Valletta ripped Reinhardt’s remaining clothes with her dagger. She was so bold that the people frowned as they watched.

Suddenly she stopped moving.

“Didn’t you hear my voice? I’m asking if there’s anything you can do to help now?”

Valletta’s gaze was cold as she stopped moving and turned her head away. Everyone held their breath at the sharp emotion in her eyes, which had always been sluggish and unraveling mindlessly. The atmosphere was just as dangerous as when she ordered the wind spirits earlier.

‘…… Is this really the same person?’

Now, her appearance was like looking at Reinhardt, who laughed and broke someone’s head.

Ceylon, who had been standing there in a daze, opened his mouth.

“There are few potions I’ve produced. However, they’re not as good as the alchemist’s potion.”

“As long as it stops the bleeding, it’ll be fine.”

“Then I’ll be back.”

After hearing the answer she wanted, Valletta’s gaze fell from them.

She took off Reinhardt’s jacket. It revealed pure white skin that was covered in blood. The torn wounds were full and swollen and hot. Blood was still trickling out. She was amazed that he had lasted in this state.

“Crazy b*tard.”

She spat out harsh language. She was annoyed that Reinhardt persisted in standing there and having a war of words with her. She knew he was a little crazy to begin with, but this was too much.

“I think it’d be better to take him to bed.”

“Are you going to stain the bed with blood? Let’s treat him first then move him.”

Valletta said as she tore at Reinhardt’s robe.

“Why are you tearing it?”

“I’m going to use it as a bandage.”

Quilt’s expression changed at her calm voice.

“If you need anything ….. just tell me and I’ll bring it to you.”

“Oh, yes. That’s right.”

Valletta murmured quietly, as if she remembered now.

“Then please.”

At the additional words, Quilt disappeared for a while, then appeared with the bandage and medical tools.

Along with him, Caspellius brought some cloths and hot water.

“Usually people try to ask for help from those around them when they are in trouble, but both my lord and Lady Valletta always take care of things on their own, don’t they?”

Hearing Quilt’s words, Valletta sighed as she wiped away Reinhardt’s blood with water. She didn’t know why she had to care for this man. But it was true that her heart skipped a beat for a moment.

“It’s a habit. It’s a very long habit and it doesn’t go away easily. I know it’s frustrating, but still, don’t think too much.”

She said as she wiped away the blood. As the blood disappeared, the wound which had turned bright blue was revealed.

Caspellius stood upright from behind as if he was a stone statue.

“……I think these wounds are quite old.”

Valletta swept through Reinhardt’s body when Quilt looked down at Reinhardt, who breathed heavily. Most of the wounds were healed, but there were quite a few places where traces were left.

“He has been through a lot in the mansion since long ago….”

Valletta’s eyebrows furrowed as she said it.

“I tried to use the potion to heal the big wounds but sometimes his body turned blue.”

“Did he endure it?”

“He tried to hold it in.”

On the day that Valletta was mistakenly locked in, Reinhardt had a similarly bad experience. Reinhardt was Valletta’s slave and servant. If she got into trouble, he was punished as well.

Sometimes it went too far. It was mostly the servants who punished the slave, but Reinhardt had many enemies. The attendants and male workers were more hostile towards him than the maids.

“I brought the potion, Miss Valletta. It’s the best one the manager of the control room just made. …….”

Valletta accepted the purple potion from Ceylon’s hand. It was the first time she had seen a wizard’s potion instead of an alchemist’s. She lifted the potion bottle into the air and examined it. 

‘It’s a mess.’

Valletta clicked her tongue inwardly. It looked like it was at best a low to mid grade potion. The color was also different from the basic recovery potion.

She opened the lid, sniffed it through her nose, then poured it onto Reinhardt’s shoulder.

“Don’t you usually feed half of it?”

“The quality is low so pouring it all in will only stop the bleeding.”

“That’s definitely true compared to the alchemist’s potion.”

Ceylon awkwardly responded to her cold words and closed his mouth. It was fortunate that the bleeding stopped. Valletta stood up and looked at Caspellius.

“Can’t you solve this?” (*she was talking about the choker on her neck)

“I don’t know much about alchemy.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a little rough. Reinhardt got rid of it before.”

“The amount of magic, knowledge, and talent the lord possesses knows no end. It’s not something we can do.”

Valletta clicked her tongue low at Caspellius’ decisive words. It was true that alchemy was not the same as magic. When he refused, Valletta pondered briefly.

‘If it’s the same as the seal that Elise showed me.. .’

‘It’s like the sealing formation Elyse-san showed us…’ ….’

With a little brainstorming, it didn’t seem too difficult to create a formula to unlock it. But there might be a faster way, but the world was heartless. Valletta sighed and got up from her seat.

“The blood has stopped, so please take him to the bed.”

Snorta poked its head out of her bag and crawled out. Then it came to Valletta’s feet.

“Waaa!”

At the cry, Valletta dropped her gaze and smiled thinly. She lightly ruffled Snorta’s hair.

“I’m sorry, I always forget.”

If it weren’t for this situation, she’d really like to rest.

“Miss Valletta, I apologize for the situation, but I have a few more questions to ask you about earlier….”

“Let’s take this off first.”

After cutting off Ceylon’s words, Valletta took out paper and pen from her bag and sat directly on the floor and started drawing something on the paper. She slowly drew an alchemical seal that she remembered, tracing her memory little by little.

“Was it like this?”

‘If I had known this would happen, I should have watched it properly then.’ Valletta searched her mind intently.

“Ugh….”

A few times a groan escaped her lips, but the pen kept going.

None of them could take their eyes off of Valletta’s movements. Then, after quite a while, she blinked at the formula, which had been restored to some extent.

“Ha…”

With a low exclamation, she soon took out another paper and wrote something down. Unlike earlier, Valletta moved her pen quickly, and in less than an hour, she had created a release formation while sitting on the floor.

Not only Quilt and Ceylon, but even Caspellius, who had little change in expression, had to hold his tongue at the situation.

Valletta repeatedly trimmed and erased some places with her pen, and soon put the paper with the formation in front of the three people watching from behind.

“Can you engrave this on the choker?”

“Yes, it’s not hard.”

Ceylon waved his magic wand and chanted something. Then the formation she had drawn came out of the paper and attached itself perfectly to Valletta’s choker. Her lips flinched as she felt the formation moving.

‘Is that a sticker ……?’

It would be very convenient to have such a technology.

After her formation moved, she bent down and picked up the dagger that was lying on the floor and gently scratched her fingertips. She had a bit more trouble gouging out the wound she had made earlier again.

‘Zenith activated the alchemy with just blood.’

This meant that the alchemist’s blood also contained a certain amount of magic power. Alchemy always required a price and the alchemist’s magic power.

‘That is if the prediction is correct. ….’

Valletta, who had been watching with a numb stare at the blood reappearing from her fingertip, pressed her finger hard in the middle of the seal of the choker to bury the blood.

Click.

The blood seemed to permeate the seal, and soon she heard the locking device loosening.The sweaty, suffocating leather choker fell off and she finally felt a little cooler. She lightly rubbed her neck. Valletta narrowed her forehead with a hot gaze that seemed to pierce her face. She turned her head to where the three people were standing.

“Why is that?”

“….. It’s nothing.”

“Excuse me, where did you make this potion? I see you have some kind of herb. I’ll make it.”

“That’s the 82nd floor, where we grow and study herbs and plants, and do general potion production and management.”

“……The 82nd floor?”

Somehow that was a very familiar number. Valletta opened her eyes wider and burst into a low laughter. She remembered walking down the stairs when she first came to the Magic Tower. She remembered the wind blowing softly and the small garden inside the magic tower.

“Isn’t there a kid this big there? A little boy with light green hair and eyes of the same color.”

“That’s….”

Ceylon’s voice became strange.

“He’s not someone you can call it like that….it’s the manager who looks like that….”

“Oh, I’ll go to the 82nd floor then. Caspellius.”

She held out her hand naturally.

Caspellius flinched and held Valletta’s hand carefully.

As if he had been waiting for her, their vision flipped.

‘Ah, it feels different.’

It felt like quite some time had passed since she arrived. She had been out and about a lot, but it shouldn’t have been that long as far as the day was concerned.

She stepped out and the tightly closed door opened. The 82nd floor was still a field. The air was crisp and fresh, and all sides were filled with the smell of grass and herbs. She stepped inside, looking around at the lush interior.

“What is it? Do you need more potions?”

“Oh, little one. Long time no see.”

“Oh, isn’t that the unlucky Sokor?”

“Did you think so?”

Valletta laughed at the fierce hostility as if she was familiar with it.

The boy’s green eyes narrowed. The appearance was young, so it didn’t seem too hostile.

Valletta looked at the still blue sky and white clouds and smiled.

When the boy saw her, he snickered lowly and turned his head away.

“Mr. Wirence.”

Caspellius called out the boy’s name as he stepped forward as if to stop Wirence. The boy’s green eyes came up to his waist.

“Wirence?”

The name and appearance did not match at all. You’d think he would be quite old just by hearing his name.

“This is the famous Sokor of the lord.”

When Caspellius stopped him, Wirence recited a low chant.

“The lord’s Sokor?”

“Didn’t you know? No, you didn’t know?”

You didn’t know…..?

Valletta’s eyes widened at once. She just heard a tone that didn’t suit the boy at all. Valletta narrowed her eyes and Wirence coughed and raised his head brazenly.

“So, the lord’s Sokor, what’s going on?”

“Oh, there is something I need.”

“What do you need?”

“Well, do you have a remedy sentinel, a floss sentinel, Rigor root and Dandelion flowers? If possible, I need the buds.”

“You’re Sokor, you’re going to make a healing potion. And it’s a stupid one, with poisonous herbs mixed in.”

With a tone of disregard, Valletta smiled gingerly and went further inside.

“What I’m trying to make is a potion, because I’m an alchemist.”

“You can’t just walk in! And since when was the lord’s Sokor an alchemist? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Since …… you were born? And I’m Valletta. I’m not that guy’s Sokor.”

Valletta slowly followed the field with her eyes as she paced. There was a greater variety of grasses growing there  than she had expected. It seemed as if they had planted seeds and then let them grow wild. No insects, warm sunshine, water, and lots of nutrients, though, so there would be no reason for them not to grow.

“Oh, here it is. I’m going to use this. Little one.”

“Oh, I already gave you a potion.”

Valletta laughed lowly.

Unfortunately, it was not enough to heal Reinhardt’s wounds.

It was the first time she had seen a magic potion. It was strange, but it was not unique or surprising.

“Thanks to it, the bleeding has already stopped.”

Wirence’s eyes hardened. Valletta didn’t say the last words, but he understood her hidden words.

“So you’re saying my potion didn’t help?”

The way he spoke changed drastically. His mood became harsher. There was a hint of pride and frustration in his steely eyes. Looking into those green eyes, Valletta said, “hmmm”

“I’m not good at this……”

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