049 Dekan’s Half-Sister
Having just finished learning, Dekan had a clear impression of every step in the process of making the antidote.
Mia was assisting Dekan on the side, preparing the necessary materials.
Much to Dekan’s surprise, Mia’s preparation was perfectly aligned with his preferences, making his work twice as efficient.
However, she seemed to always observe Dekan from close range whenever she had a free moment.
Even though Dekan was highly focused, Mia’s movements inadvertently distracted him.
The sense of danger from his heightened senses occasionally stimulated Dekan’s nerves.
The scent from earlier seemed to be more than just her natural fragrance; there was a trace of a special drug’s aroma.
It was similar to… the feeling of the sleeping gas he had created himself?
Though he was unsure of its effects, he knew it wouldn’t be good.
Dekan discreetly cast a purification spell on himself a few times.
…
“With such ease, it’s completed. Looks like we work well together.”
Mia said with a smile.
The two of them successfully produced the antidote in less than ten minutes of coordinated effort.
“Clean and efficient! Let’s call it a day.”
Dekan was tidying up the experiment table, clearly eager to leave.
“By the way, Dekan, I heard you’re a genius at card-making?”
Mia helped tidy up as she inquired.
“All flattery.”
Dekan responded indifferently.
Apparently, the news of his creation of an epic card during the third-level exam had spread quickly throughout the Capital City.
“Ho ho, I don’t know who’s flattering you, but you’ve made Princess Alice cry,” Mia teased.
“How did that news spread too?”
Dekan couldn’t help but give Mia a serious look.
He thought the butlers shouldn’t dare to speak out of turn, and Tricia wouldn’t announce Alice’s embarrassing moments publicly.
Mia seemed to perceive Dekan’s confusion and paused for a moment before speaking. “Alice lives next door to me. Yesterday, she came to me and cried for quite a while. Her eyes were all swollen.”
“…Hearing that from you does make me feel a bit remorseful.”
To be honest, that bumbling princess was actually a good person, at least straightforward.
She neither tried to make money off him nor intended for him to owe her any favors.
The main reason he couldn’t make money from her was due to her card-making issues.
Even if she successfully made the cards with those materials, there wouldn’t be much profit.
Unfortunately, at the time, seeing Alice’s expression, he couldn’t resist teasing her.
“Is Alice okay?”
“She’s fine, but I had to comfort her for quite a while. I told her not to mention this to her brother or the king; otherwise, you’d be in trouble, Dekan.”
“…That’s quite considerate of you. Thank you.”
“So, how will you thank me?”
“Spit it out. It’s not often I owe someone a favor.”
“That you lower your guard with me.”
“Only that’s impossible.”
“You’re too harsh. I’ve been very sincere with you.”
“Sincerity? I imagine Alice, even if she came to you crying, wouldn’t go into such detailed embarrassing stories.”
Dekan raised an eyebrow; he had always been suspicious that Mia was bluffing.
“Ah, caught in the act.”
Mia showed no signs of distress, tapping her lips lightly with her fingertip and smiling faintly.
“Hmph.”
Dekan decided to leave, grabbing his book and walking away without looking back.
Mia didn’t try to stop him but called out from behind, “Are you interested in poison-making?”
“Who in their right mind would indulge in concocting poison all day?”
Even though Dekan paused briefly, he continued walking away.
“Weren’t ‘Poisonous Art ①’ and ‘Poisonous Art ②’ borrowed by you?”
Mia’s voice, light and airy, echoed in the now quiet classroom.
Dekan finally stopped his steps to leave and turned to face Mia.
Mia picked up a book and waved it at him; it was ‘Poisonous Art ③’.
Dekan’s brows furrowed briefly before smoothing out, then he broke into a genuine smile.
Mia returned the smile warmly.
They seemed to have confirmed they were on the same page.
Why didn’t she say that sooner?
If you’re into poison-making, you’re family.
What’s the harm in a bit of teasing?
“Dekan: Want to research further?”
“Mia: No problem.”
The distance between them seemed to dissipate.
Like two like-minded researchers, they prepared equipment and exchanged ideas as they went along.
M: “Don’t you think it’s a shame to just produce antidotes with the toxins we’ve made?”
D: “Do you have another plan?”
M: “We can refine the poison by creating anti-antidotes to improve its effectiveness. This type of novel poison’s weak point is that it’s too easily neutralized. If we manage to improve it, it would be perfect.”
D: “I’m in agreement. I can analyze the toxins and incorporate their principles into my card-making along with poison magic.”
M: “Heh, I have some original poison magic and potion formulas, but I’m not good at making cards. Together, perhaps we could create some interesting cards.”
D: “Then what are we waiting for? We must achieve something today. No leaving before nightfall.”
…
The sky was slightly reddish, and the classroom for Alchemy was starting to feel somewhat dim.
The expansive classroom was almost empty except for them, enveloped in a somewhat thought-provoking ambiance.
However, both were fully engrossed in their work, completely oblivious to the peculiar atmosphere.
Once they got into their research mode, Mia was as serious as ever.
“Knock, knock!”
“You need to leave the classroom now.”
Only when an instructor from the Alchemy Department came and reminded them did they lift their heads, noticing the classroom had emptied.
Their stomachs were also starting to grumble.
Focusing on something they were interested in made them lose track of time, especially with a like-minded partner.
“Looks like today’s work is done.”
Dekan sighed in resignation, reluctantly putting down the vial in his hands.
The classroom and laboratory were about to be locked.
After all, this wasn’t a library; strict regulations were necessary due to the numerous stored reagents.
During the weekend when there were no instructors on duty, the place wouldn’t be open to students.
“But we’re just reaching the critical part of our research, aren’t we?”
Mia frowned.
Dekan: “Do you have any ideas?”
Mia: “Come to my place. I’ve turned my storage room into a pharmaceutical lab, and if you’ve nothing to do tonight, you can stay until the night.”
Dekan hesitated, asking: “Stay until night?”
Because Mia’s face always wore a smile, Dekan couldn’t discern her real intentions.
Mia countered: “If I don’t mind, why should you?”
Dekan: “…”
Mia: “How can our scientific spirit be abandoned halfway?”
Dekan: “Makes sense, let’s go!”
…
As the sky grew darker, the alchemy classroom was increasingly shadowy.
The spacious room had only the two of them remaining, imbued with an atmosphere prone to daydreaming.
Both were, however, completely absorbed in their work, unaware of the peculiar atmosphere.
“Knock, knock!”
“You need to leave the classroom now.”
It was only when a teacher from the alchemy department approached the door and reminded them that they glanced up and noticed the empty classroom.
Their stomachs were beginning to rumble.
Getting engrossed in interesting work was a surefire way to lose track of time, especially with a like-minded partner beside you.
“Guess we’ll have to call it a day.”
Dekan sighed, reluctantly putting down the test tube he still held in his hand.
The classroom and the lab would soon be locked.
This wasn’t a library; many solutions and substances were stored here, so the security regulations were quite strict.
On Saturday and Sunday, when no teachers were on duty, the area would not be open to students.
“But our research is at a crucial juncture, isn’t it?”
Mia furrowed her brow and questioned.
Dekan: “Do you have any ideas?”
Mia: “Come to my room. I’ve transformed my storage room into a potion lab. If you have time today, we can stay there all night.”
Dekan hesitated, asking cautiously, “All night?”
Mia’s smile remained evergreen, and Dekan couldn’t read her thoughts.
Mia countered, “I don’t mind; should you?”
Dekan: “…”
Mia: “Our scientific spirit can’t be abandoned halfway, right?”
Dekan: “You’re right; let’s go!”
…
Introduction to Publication
Up
Request
Thank you
………………………….
What’s going on? It won’t go through.
I see, the chapters need at least 100 characters to be posted, so it seems there’s no room for frivolousness. (Dog’s head for protection)
Though the three-word introduction may sound cool, there’s much I still want to say to everyone, and three words just won’t cut it.
First and foremost, I am deeply grateful for everyone’s support! Those reaching this point are like family to me, my siblings in all but blood!
This is my second book, truly the second book I’ve ever written as a human being. I’ve never ghostwritten, nor have I ever written thousands or even tens of thousands of words only to delete them. I’ve never posted a book unless it passed internal reviews—I value stability.
My first book was certainly very amateurish. Many parts now seem glaringly wrong when I look back—”How could I write like that?” “Oh no, writing like that invites criticism.” I hadn’t even established a clear writing style yet, which made the tone and plot feel highly discordant.
Back then, I was at the stage where I thought I was pretty good at writing. Gradually, I realized how poor my writing was. I got a lot of exposure, but that was only because I had too many flaws.
After confronting reality, I took a hard look at popular works, analyzed senior authors’ novels, and meticulously revised my drafts before starting this second book.
I originally didn’t set many expectations for this book, hoping it would merely improve on the last one. I imagined writing another million words or more to continue building my experience. Now, this book has nearly reached forty thousand collections—something I only dared dream of before. Truly, even my dreams were grounded in caution; one must stay stable, after all.
But please rest assured, success won’t cloud my judgment. I’m a steady kind of person, to the point that I don’t dare offer rewards, fearing I won’t be able to pay back, nor do I dare make bold promises. Failure won’t shake my disposition either; I completed my debut book despite having a mere five hundred first subscribers, and then barely over a hundred continued to the end.
At the same time, I’m genuinely fearful that I might fail to live up to everyone’s expectations and fall into a writer’s block. All I can do is think carefully every day, seek more inspiration, revise constantly, and strive to meet the support you’ve given me. I only want to bring more creativity and sweetness to the story. I would never rush the story unnecessarily; I’ve mended my ways (for safety).
Having written seventy thousand words for my previous book and over ten thousand for this one, totaling not even one hundred thousand words, I am yet severely lacking in experience. My writing, word choice, and other areas have much room for improvement.
The most crucial aspect to improve is pacing, a problem I can clearly sense myself. The gap between my work and those of senior authors isn’t just slight. Currently, my pacing control is more of a random affair. Adjusting this will take time, mainly due to a lack of experience and my not having fully grasped the nuances yet. I will contemplate this deeply, writing books while simultaneously reading more for learning, striving to give everyone a better reading experience.
This book is still my amateur work, and I look forward to your continued support as I grow!
Every one of your opinions and suggestions is precious to me. Even if I cannot adjust everything to meet the preferences of individual readers, I will seriously analyze and consider every suggestion and often find inspiration from them. None of your suggestions will be wasted. They will have value and contribute positively to this book.
If you have any opinions or suggestions about the new chapter, please don’t hesitate to share them. Even if I might not be able to correct the issues immediately, your feedback helps me recognize the problems and direction for improvement. I received quite a few valuable suggestions from the previous book, which ultimately helped me establish my own style.
I check the interlude posts every day; it’s one of my daily joys to browse through the back-end comments.
A special thank-you to Sister
