Ryan had never heard words sweeter than that. Leo's demeanor and words brought a smile to his face.
The walk back to Ryan's shop was fast-paced, and barely any words passed between the two—three if you counted the cart pusher. Leo was probably brooding over whatever was bugging him.
Ryan was content with the silence, gladdened that the lack of conversation helped them maintain a brisk pace back to the shop.
---
Once they got to the shop, it was a simple matter to unload the items, which was done with haste. Ryan was eager to both learn and get back to selling wares to customers. He was expecting Mr. Coman or a colleague to show up for their fee today.
Settling the cart pusher wasn't an issue, and within moments of getting back from the market, the duo—Ryan and Leo—were left staring at the ingredients they'd bought.
Leo seemed tense, and Ryan didn't know if it was because of what had transpired in the market or if he was just trying to figure out where to start.
"Well, anytime now," Ryan said gently, trying not to annoy the big man.
"Forgive me," Leo said, sighing as he ran a hand through his hair. "I need a moment to gather my thoughts."
"Sure, take your time," Ryan said with a smile.
Underneath, it was a different matter altogether. What did Leo mean by needing time to get his thoughts together? They'd basically just walked together for almost ten minutes in silence. Why hadn't he still gotten his thoughts straight?
Ryan often kept his face neutral, but his mind was impatient. He didn't have time to waste, after all.
"Okay," Leo said, finally breaking the silence. "Tell me what you usually do."
Finally, Ryan thought, going into the back to pick up the recipe book he'd used to start up. He offered it to Leo.
"What's that?" Leo said, eyeing the book skeptically.
Ryan almost rolled his eyes at the question.
"It's a recipe book," Ryan said. "The same one I use to brew my potions."
Leo seemed to eye the book some more before sighing and receiving it from Ryan. The big man flipped through the pages, just taking enough time to glance through each page's content before moving on to the next. Something that Ryan was grateful for.
"Hmmm," Leo said in a disappointing manner.
Oh boy, what else was this nitpicker going to find wrong today? Well, of course, Ryan had known that Leo would find something wrong with his method. That's why he preferred to give the big man the recipe book rather than bother saying it by mouth, where he'd probably have been interrupted by snorts—lots of those—or words.
"What?" Ryan asked, eager to move the conversation along to its inevitable path.
With a sigh, Leo dropped the book on Ryan's worn countertop.
"You really weren't joking when you said that you were doing the mere minimum," Leo said, pinching his nose. "This is the cheapest path to making minor health potions that I've ever seen."
Ryan had literally told him that hours ago, so he didn't know why Leo was acting all surprised and disappointed about it.
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"Well, that is what I'm going for, so I haven't seen any need to modify it—until now, that is," Ryan said.
"And that's the problem. This... book," Leo said as he slapped a hand on the recipe book, disdain evident on his face, "is nothing more than a farce."
Well, this is going to be good, Ryan thought, not bothering to even interject as he already knew that the big man loved the sound of his own voice. Ryan knew that he didn't even need to respond.
"This... thing is a direction on making... rat's piss that somehow manages to heal minor injuries," Leo said.
Ryan winced at the description. It was certainly a creative way to explain what the book did and what he'd been brewing for the past month.
"I think that we've already established that before," Ryan said.
"Yes, we have," Leo said as he eyed the book up and down. "The good part is that we'd only have to tweak a few parts to get much better outcomes."
Ryan listened intently, eager to hear how just the two ingredients that Leo had bought could change the taste of his potions.
"Okay, so what do I do?" Ryan asked.
"Simple. If what I've just read makes any sense, we just have to add the sentra and uncag before you put in your kleklin that acts as a catalyst," Leo explained.
Huh, it couldn't be that simple. After all the drubbing that he'd gotten from Leo over the last few hours, the advice the big man had was just to pour two other ingredients. Nothing else required. Ryan was almost disappointed at the steps if not for the fact that it was technically easy to learn, and he wouldn't have to stress himself a lot to learn it.
Without waiting for prompting, Ryan began to assemble his brewing equipment: the stirring rod, the pot, and the whole shebang. Much to the delight of Leo, who kept nodding in approval, which in turn raised Ryan's spirits. At least he was doing something right this time.
"Fantastic," Leo said as soon as Ryan finished assembling the equipment. "Now we begin."
So Ryan did. He began using the usual method that he always used. Stirring and adding ingredients at the time they were supposed to be. Making sure that the temperature was right.
"That's enough. Now wait," Leo said as he approached the brewing pot. "Watch carefully."
The liquid in the pot wasn't foaming or bubbling as the catalyst—the kleklin—hadn't been added yet.
Leo brought out the bags of uncag and sentra and began sprinkling them both into the boiling liquid. He made sure to do it at intervals.
"You see what I did?" Leo asked.
"Yep," Ryan replied.
"Do you have an idea why I did so?"
Talk about awkward. What was he supposed to say to that? Of course, he didn't have any idea why Leo had done what he'd just done. This was the first time that he was even hearing about both ingredients.
"No," Ryan said honestly.
"As expected," Leo said.
Leo hadn't said it with a mocking tone, and Ryan didn't think that that was Leo's intention—at least he hoped not—but those words, no matter how gently they were used, always sounded like a slight to whoever they were directed at.
"Do you know what happens if either ingredient doesn't dissolve properly?" Leo asked.
Well, that was an easy one. Even a starter alchemist would know the answer to that one, which is why he suspected that Leo had asked it.
"They form clumps," Ryan answered confidently.
"Exactly. Now pass me the kleklin," Leo said as he finished sprinkling the last of the contents of the two bags.
Ryan hurriedly passed the bag containing the kleklin. As he passed it over, he stared into the pot, and as expected, no serious reaction was occurring.
Leo scooted back a little as he readied himself to begin pouring in the kleklin, one hand holding the stirring rod.
Ryan had to give credit where credit was due. The step back was something that one only learned with experience, something that Ryan hadn't had when he'd brewed his first potion.
Leo began pouring in the kleklin even as he stirred, the big man keeping his body positioned away from the pot as far as possible. The liquid in the pot began to foam and boil violently as the kleklin did its job.
Soon enough, the bag was emptied of its contents, and Leo stepped away from the pot proper, allowing it to act out until it became calm. A sigh escaped the big man's mouth.
"So, where were we?" Leo said as he seemed to collect himself. "Do you know what happens if clumps are allowed to form?" Leo asked.
"Uhmm... no," Ryan said somewhat abashedly, uncomfortable at being caught uninformed on a matter in his own field.
"They show up as impurities in the end product. Instead of just liquid, your customers might end up drinking potions with clumps in them... very bad for business," Leo said matter-of-factly.
That was the end of the conversation as the pair waited for the potion to completely become still—an act that signaled the end of the process.
"It's ready," Leo said after a few minutes had passed, the pair staring at their work in progress from where they sat at the back. The bubbling had stopped.
Ryan jumped to his feet, ready to see his work, staring into the pot.