Chapter 415: Pain That No One Cares About |
In the following days, Saul also slipped into a fulfilling and hectic routine.
There were indeed some component conflicts between the rejection-delaying potion and the Blue Water Soul potion, but Saul had no intention of modifying his own potion.
His potion’s ingredients had all been refined through trial and error—some of the materials couldn’t tolerate even the slightest deviation in measurement.
But having the mentors—who had all long since become True Wizards—casually alter their own formulas was just as difficult.
At the very least, it would be a blow to their pride.
To a wizard, you could look down on them as a person, but if you showed contempt for their research, then you'd better be prepared to become mortal enemies.
Naturally, Saul wasn’t going to openly defy the joint experimental results of several mentors. So, he simply and logically requested all the materials and research insights related to Blue Water Soul, intending to take them back and study them himself.
Of course, that was merely the surface-level excuse.
Once he returned to the second storeroom with the Blue Water Soul formula in hand, he immediately began comparing it with Senior Byron’s Grey Matter potion.
As a result, Senior Byron’s potion had weaker effects, but also significantly fewer side effects.
Saul had also attempted to absorb the soul energy from both the Grey Matter and Blue Water Soul potions—yet he had failed.
So it was pretty much confirmed that when Yura consumed the two potions in her abnormal state, it hadn’t been to replenish soul energy.
Saul also tried other methods to break down the Grey Matter and Blue Water Soul. But their cores were both sturdy and fragile.
Forcibly decomposing them would turn them into impurities, and fragments of evil thought.
It was unclear whether that was inherent to their composition, or if the potions had become corrupted.
Staring at the analysis in front of him, Saul leaned back, idly twirling the quill in his fingers. “Could what Yura consumed actually have been the evil thought within the Grey Matter and Blue Water Soul? But she’s a soul body—what would she gain from absorbing that?”
Saul couldn’t be sure whether there were other active components involved that he hadn’t yet discovered.
“If I really can’t figure it out, I might have to try it myself. Blue Water Soul is too toxic, so maybe I’ll start with the Grey Matter potion. At the very least, Senior Byron has been taking it for over half a year without any obvious issues.”
The diary hadn’t given any kind of warning about Saul ingesting the Grey Matter potion.
Clearly, it wasn’t life-threatening. Probably no long-term hazards either.
Most of today’s batch of Grey Matter solution had already been used up, so Saul decided to prepare a few more and test them on himself to directly experience the potion’s effects.
Naturally, he didn’t have enough raw materials on hand, but since he’d already received approval to study the compatibility between Blue Water Soul and the rejection-delaying potion, he could now openly and legitimately ask Mentors Rum and Kaz for more.
The next day, before the requested materials arrived, Saul went to find Keli to continue her adhesive experiments.
Adhesives would also be used in the resurrection experiment, so Saul naturally needed to confirm whether they would clash with his rejection-delaying potion.
And so, he boldly brought his own potion straight to Keli.
Sure enough, Keli was in Mentor Gudo’s lab.
She wasn’t sitting in a chair, but rather bent over the desk, elbows resting on the tabletop, head lowered as she stared intensely at her notes—like she could force the runes to bloom into something new with her gaze alone.
Saul walked into the lab holding a stack of materials and notebooks.
“What are you reading?” As he passed behind her, he glanced over her shoulder at the notes and saw that it was still research on reducing the harm adhesives did to soul bodies.
“Hit a bottleneck?” Saul placed his things on the lab table across from her.
“Not just that. My mentor shot me down too.”
“He didn’t like the subject you’re working on?”
Keli lifted her head, her stiff strands of hair clinking faintly against each other like metal chimes.
Irritated, she ran her hand through her hair, turning the golden locks soft again.
“He said I’m researching in the wrong direction. Everyone else is working on how to make adhesives stick better. I’m the only one trying to reduce how much they hurt.”
She rested her cheek on her palm. “But our experimental subject is the Tower Lady, right? Not some other creature or unconscious material. Doesn’t anyone care about how she feels?”
“Just look at these ingredients—we can already imagine how painful it must be to take these potions. And yet not a single person is thinking about how to reduce that pain. My grandmother used to say, ‘If life hurts this much, you might as well die.’ Back then I didn’t understand what kind of pain she was enduring, but now I know exactly what Lady Yura will go through once the experiments start.”
Keli let out a long, winding sigh. “Sucks that no one cares.”
It was the first time Saul had seen Keli this downcast. He quickly tapped his finger against the table, curling it like a hook. “Hey, hey. You mean I’m not a person, or you’re not?”
Keli snorted with laughter and suddenly remembered—they were working on reducing pain together.
Even though Gudo didn’t take her efforts seriously and kept trying to pull her into other projects.
She finally straightened up and tilted her little chin high. “Whether I’m a person is still up for debate, but you definitely aren’t!”
Saul rolled his eyes.
This girl couldn’t insult someone without dragging herself in too.
Saul spread out his notes, deciding to give her a little encouragement.
“About anesthetizing, I’ve got some notes here—”
“Keli, Master Gudo wants you.”
A Third Rank apprentice walked over, stopping about three meters away and calling out.
Keli whipped around with a snap, staring at him for two full seconds—until the apprentice involuntarily took half a step back.
“H-he wants you right away. I’m not lying,” the apprentice said nervously, then turned and quickly walked off.
Keli kept staring at his back until he vanished beyond the lab door.
“Look at you, scaring off Third Ranks now?” Saul chuckled.
Keli spun back around, her golden-copper eyes wide as she glared at Saul.
Not backing down, Saul immediately glared back.
Like two three-year-olds in a standoff, they kept the stare-off going for a whole minute.
Keli finally broke first, looking away and muttering, “So childish.”
She tossed a stack of notes at Saul.
“Watch these for me. Last time someone tried to peek at them, I caught him and taught him a lesson.”
“That guy just now? Impressive. Even Third Ranks don’t scare you,” Saul applauded silently.
“I’m almost Third Rank myself, okay? And that guy’s a theory-head—no practical skills at all. He’s been stuck inside the Tower under Master Gudo and hardly done any field work. Besides, I’ve got Alpha Toxin now. Most people don’t dare mess with me.”
There were plenty of theory-focused apprentices in the Tower. But making it to Third Rank meant you were at least top of your class.
Unfortunately, such theory prodigies didn’t stand a chance against a hands-on ace like Keli.
With that, Keli grabbed her satchel and dashed off.
She was fast—clearly delayed by the earlier stare-down with Saul.
Saul remembered that Gudo was notoriously impatient, and could only sigh before continuing his experiments.
From the mentors’ attitudes and Gorsa’s recent behavior, it was clear the final resurrection experiment was close at hand.
Would there be time to reduce the pain caused by the adhesive?
That might be why Gudor wasn’t optimistic about Keli focusing on that angle.
Even so, Saul was earnest in helping her research it. Even if it didn’t help this time, it might prove useful later.
Especially with the hypnotic effect on consciousness he was developing—if successful, wouldn’t it replicate the hallucinations caused by those eyes in the interlayer?
And if he took it further—could it reach the level of the Nightmare Butterfly?
After all, the Nightmare Butterfly had been created by a wizard as a new type of demonic creature!
But just as Saul began his experiment, Keli came storming back—clearly upset.
“What happened?” He asked the same question for the second time that day.
“My mentor asked, and Lady Yura said she doesn’t want to dull the pain. Said it would make her less sensitive to the potion’s effects. Then Mentor ordered me to stop this experiment and go work on enhancing the effects of a soul toxin instead.”
Keli’s face was expressionless as she spoke, her voice flat. Whether she was angry or just disappointed, it was hard to tell.
(End of Chapter)
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