Chronicle of the Returned King

Potion Making

“Hi darling, I haven’t seen you all day long, where have you been?” greeted Pandora as soon as she saw Alex who just finished patrolling around.

“Usual stuff, patrolling, supervising, you know, menial stuffs like that,” replied Alex, ignoring Pandora’s temptation. “Actually, I was looking for you as well,”

“Oh my, and what do you want from me? Something physical?” teased Pandora, escalating her seductive approach. “The sun is still high on the sky, don’t you want it a little bit later, in the evening perhaps?”

“No, quite the contrary. I want that physical stuff to be done here during the daylight. There’s still some space enough for you and me on the training ground. Salieri and Stella are already there too for the same reason,” explained Alex, still unaware of Pandora’s innuendo. “Come with me!”

“Goodness, how pushy and daring of you! I never thought you were into that kinky stuff!” responded Pandora. “And you told me Salieri and Stella were doing that too there? What an unlikely combination!”

Only after Pandora saw the Elf and the Bard ran, just then she realized what Alex meant by physical stuff.

“Oh, you mean this physical stuff, honey? Sorry, but I don’t think I was made for this,” refused Pandora. “Forget about the exhausting part, but don’t you find it strange for a spellcaster to exercise rigorously like that?”

“We can’t be too careful, Pan. You are our precious mage. If, God forbids, something happens to you, what will become of us?” persuaded Alex, hoping Pandora would fall for the same trick he used on Stella.

“Your concern is misplaced, darling,” chuckled Pandora. “I mean, nobody can come close to me unless I allow them to. Forget about hitting me, even anybody would have a hard time just to approach me. I am not some easy woman whom any man could pick up. Don’t you believe me when I said I’m yours and yours only?”

“I could conquer anybody from a safe distance, and you’re not an exception, my boy-toy,” continued Pandora while licking her lips seductively. Alex could only gulp seeing that.

“But I always find you hard to resist, Al. Even now,” said Pandora again. “I will obey what you tell me to do, and like I always said, nothing from me comes free. There should be a time when the situation turns around and YOU will obey what I tell you to do. This is a deal you can’t resist.”

“Ahem, mind your manner, Witch!” interrupted Helene who just finished her afternoon routine. “Stop assaulting Sir Hero like that!”

“Oof, a spark of jealousy, I suppose,” remarked Pandora. “Acting classy like that won’t favour you in the competition, dear Saintess,”

Alex just stood there while Pandora passed him by to join Salieri and Stella. Something about Pandora frightened her, but at the same time it also tickled his excitement. This must be the same thrill of hunters who hunted their prey, but the question here, who is the hunter and who is the hunted?

“Sir Hero, are you okay?” asked Helene, who looked worried to see Alex froze up pondering.

“Yeah, I’m cool. I just wonder how important basic physical training for everybody, whether they’re frontline fighters or backline supports,” explained Alex, trying to cover the fact that he was fantasizing about Pandora’s jiggling ass when she passed by. “After all, everybody is precious and we need them to reach for true ending!”

“Yes, Sir Hero. I share the same view with you regarding the importance of basic physical training,” agreed Helene. “So, if you’ll excuse me,”

Alex grabbed Helene’s arms to stop her from joining the physical exercise.

“For my cute Saintess, I have something else in store,” said Alex meaningfully. “If you would be so kind to accompany me,”

Though confused of what Alex meant, Helene innocently followed Alex’s steps. They made their way to Royal Alchemy Center.

“I realize we can’t rely on you forever. If you keep on healing and supporting us like what you’ve been doing up until now, it’s just a matter of time until you physically and mentally drained. So, I would love it if you could lead the alchemists here to make potions. Healing, mana, buff and de-buff, all of it,” explained Alex thoroughly. “Remember the demons’ remains back then? I arranged the unused parts to be sent here for your convenience.”

“But, are you sure? This kind of practice is shunned upon, one wrong move and we could be labelled as demon worshipper,” expressed Helene, voicing her concern.

“What kind of worshipper who sacrifices his god?” chuckled Alex. “Relax, you saw already the impact back in the village, right? You didn’t have lots of equipment there, but here you got all of the stuffs imaginable. I will be here until you get the hang of it.”

Alex wrote down the recipe for the main generic potions. He even took the time to supervise Helene who still struggled to create the mixture.

“You’re getting better,” praised Alex. “After this, you can take my role and teach the alchemists here what I taught you. Remember, wings are associated with speed, so you can mix it for Haste effect. Horns are usually good for offensive stats, liver works both ways, can be used for toxic and detox. Oh, and the heart. The heart is unique for being unpredictable, but it will increase the success rate of Elixir crafting.”

“That’s too much, Sir Hero. I’m afraid I would give the wrong information for the alchemists,” complained Helene.

“No big deal, cutie pie. Remember the recipes I wrote you, rely on that and you won’t be lost,” told Alex. “I even had the time to write you a poem on the last page.”

Feeling enough, Alex left the Alchemy Center and trusted the rest to Helene, who was still blushing red to know that Alex was that helplessly romantic.

All of those dramas made nobody realize that a certain individual was observing them carefully from his hiding place. It was our beloved Horat.

“Damn, I know that Zero got some screws loose, but I didn’t even think that he would stoop so low to the point of mutilating the demons,” mumbled Horat. “I bet potions made out of those are as poisonous as they look,”

“But hey, we can’t be too sure, right?” Horat continued his monologue, while concocting a devious plan.