After going through the poisoning attempts of a few more students, it was the empress's turn, and Sofia was not really looking forward to it.
"We meet again," the woman said, a polite smile on her face.
"Yes, how unexpected. Are you here to help with the poisoning? There are a lot of people waiting, as you can see," Sofia answered, trying not to sound too cold or frightened.
"Of course, yes. I am always willing to help a teacher. I just happened to hear about this stunt of yours while roaming the halls, and I have acquired quite a collection of exotic substances over the years. They hardly ever find a buyer, so this should be a golden opportunity to make some money back," the woman explained with a large smile as a row of small flasks appeared in front of her.
All loaded with magic.
The one on the far right has more mana than me, for fuck's sake!
"You should try the one on your left first and work your way up to the one on the right," Elizabeth explained. "Of course, these are all quite dangerous, but I assume you know what you're doing, do you not?" she asked with a suave voice.
Sofia pretended to laugh to defuse the tension a bit. “Ahah, of course I do…”
Only because I have a rune prepared…
I know soul-damaging poisons can be dangerous still, but I should be able to trust Mr. Scribe at least. I just have to identify all of these.
So, this first one...
[The wreckage]: A strong and very concentrated alcohol with a touch of magic. Legend says it was the ancestral treasure of the dwarves, who needed a way to get wasted on their ships without occupying half the cargo with barrels of beer, back when storage magic was yet to be discovered.
Safety ranking: Sufficiently safe.
Oh, so instead of item level and grade, I get safety rankings now? You've been taking a lot of liberties lately, Mr. Scribe, is that because I am no longer getting new skills and you’re getting bored? Either way, I like it, thanks.
Sofia picked up [The wreckage], gave a last look to Elizabeth who was standing in front of her, smiling ear to ear, and gulped down the contents. It was like drinking pure alcohol and pretty disgusting.
Ugh… so far so good… Counter isn't moving though…
“It looks like this one was a failure…” Sofia told the woman.
Elizabeth’s smile did not falter. “No worry, I'm sure the taste of such a delicate beverage was at least an invaluable experience. Please do try the next one, Teacher Vakaria.”
[Felroot extract]: Pungent extract of a felroot’s juices. It is commonly used to quell chronic pain, for those who can afford it. The usual recommended prescription for an adult is one drop.
Safety ranking: Satisfyingly safe.
So… is it safe to drink one drop or to drink the whole flask? Because there is a lot more than one drop in there, Mr. Scribe… Well, I still have the rune anyway.
Sofia drank the felroot extract and it immediately made her feel a bit dizzy. Her extremities, in particular, went a bit numb, but the sensation quickly disappeared as the number about Sofia's head went up.
“Not bad. It seems I owe you some money already,” Sofia commented.
“Please, Teacher, do not bother with counting. I will be taking all of this money, I am pretty sure. I will donate it to an orphanage in your name if you will let me.”
If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Such an innocent remark and not at all hinting that she knows about my past… It is no big secret that I am an orphan, though.
“That is so selfless of you, Miss Fraus. And I cannot help but wonder, what do you do for a living that you would disregard so much money, and that you would go around with so much poison at your disposal in the first place?”
Elizabeth answered with a polite laugh. “Why, that is quite the question. Although the specifics of my job are a bit tricky to encapsulate in a few words, I, over the years, have come to specialize in threat assessment and removal, if you will,” she explained as she leaned on the counter.
Sofia found it strange that she would admit to something like this with all the students around, but none of them seemed to react; they were all still just patiently waiting in line or walking by to go get their food. Sofia jumped in place a few times, which Elizabeth observed with a raised brow, but the students, again, did not react. Sofia knew enough about the eye-catching power of her feminine assets for this lack of reaction to be sufficient proof that something weird was going on.
“You’re preventing them from seeing or hearing this conversation, aren't you?” Sofia asked Elizabeth, eyeing the unresponsive students. “Is there still a need to be so roundabout about things when it’s like this, Empress Delivia?”
“So this is what you were doing, jumping in place?” Elizabeth asked with a chuckle. “I see, clever. They are all oblivious to what is happening here right now, yes. I just like to enjoy some privacy, and please, my friends call me Elizabeth.”
Your friends, uh. You sure have a special way to foster ‘friendship’. If you wanted to make a good impression, all you had to do was to gift me a skeleton, it’s not that hard… “Is that not a fake name?”
“Now, do not be ridiculous, Teacher Vakaria. If I am the one to approve of names in the empire, how can my name possibly be false?”
Right… I should get back to drinking…
[Unnamed mix]: There are so many different toxic substances mixed together in this vial, it is hard to tell what the effects are going to be exactly, but it is bound to be unpleasant. Safety ranking: Potentially painful product.
You know, Mr. Scribe, I’m sensing a pretty predictable pattern in the way you write these safety ranks. Did you add them only so you could play around with words?
“Have you tried these yourself?” Sofia asked Elizabeth, as she observed the brown goo she had identified as an ‘Unnamed mix’ in the flask she was holding.
“For the most part. The last two I have not touched. I suspect you will reach 100% with your quest or skill or whatever this is long before you get to these, however. But if you do not, the option is there, if you have the confidence to try them.”
“I see… What level are you at, by the way? What you did during my first class was impressive.”
“I have yet to attempt the last two trials. As for the party trick, it’s barely worth mentioning. Just see it as a very advanced mana sight. My class deals with any and all things vision related. But are you not going to drink? This one is a personal concoction of mine,” Elizabeth explained.
Sofia uncorked the flask and gave it a sniff; it smelled like rotten eggs and made her gag. “I know it is not my place to give you advice, but you might want to stay away from Alchemy in the future…” Pinching her nose, Sofia emptied the contents of the flask in one big gulp. Her vision instantly started to sway, and she became nauseous, having to use the counter as support not to fall over.
Oh shit… It’s been a while… since I last fell so sick.
Pareth stood up from his chair and walked over to pat Sofia’s back as she struggled to stay conscious. The effects lasted a few seconds before starting to fade. As the nausea disappeared and her vision calmed, her muscles started to cramp randomly, and Pareth had to support her to keep her stable.
“It won’t last long. Try to relax; that helps with the cramps,” the Empress suggested while sipping on a glass of orange-colored drink through a thin tube of hollow wood.
Where did… ugh. She even- argh- get that?
It took Sofia a good minute to recover, slumped on the counter. She felt it was worth the pain, though, as VPPV progressed quite a bit.
[Venerable physique of the primeval void] ♢ - Third step of the Light forging realm:
Third step: Your nerves and brain become light (59.8/100%).
Sofia had conflicting emotions as she looked up to see the Empress looking down at her while sipping on her cold drink with a snide smile.
“Do you find this funny?” Sofia asked, still weak from the poisoning.
“I do,” Elizabeth answered before taking another sip. “I was very wary of you and your link to the big four at first, but it is refreshing to see that you aren’t someone I need to get rid of after all. And even if I did, I feel like just leaving you to your own business will have the same result,” she added, looking at Sofia then at the row of flasks full of poison right next to her.
“So you think I’ll just die at some point in the near future is what you are getting at?”
I don’t know if I should be offended…
“Maybe not die,” Elizabeth denied, “but should one keep playing with fire, they will get burned.”
“Not to worry, Empress, I have been burned many times already. But look, I’m still standing.”
Sofia fought the lingering dizziness to regain her composure and grabbed the next flask of poison.
----------------------------------------