It took nearly ten minutes of awkward, occasionally comedic maneuvering before Silva and Valeria finally wriggled free from beneath the bed.
They emerged, each flushed with mild embarrassment and irritation, their expressions marked by a rare blend of determination and frustration.
Silva, ever the composed maid, dusted herself off with precision, while Valeria muttered a few indignant complaints under her breath as she straightened her tunic, shooting occasional glances at the small slime now nestled contentedly in Eclipse's belongings.
Eclipse watched them with a half-smirk, crossing his arms as he leaned against the bedpost. "Took you both long enough."
They both glanced at him, momentarily looking like chagrined children caught doing something silly.
Silva, ever the professional, cleared her throat, brushing off some invisible dust from her sleeve as she launched into an update on everything he'd missed while he'd been recuperating.
"The headmistress has launched an investigation into the recent forest attack, Master," she began, her voice calm but with a hint of tension.
Eclipse gave a nod, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "That's hardly surprising. It's not every day someone sabotages the Academy's teleportation spell—and with the Academy heroes supposedly watching over everything."
He mulled this over, aware of the Academy's reputation and how seriously they guarded their image.
The failure to protect students during the trial was a blow to the administration, one they couldn't afford to take lightly.
If this is happening, then...
"Did they implement the new curfew?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.
Silva and Valeria exchanged confused glances, each of them looking equally puzzled. "New curfew?" Silva echoed, brow furrowing.
Eclipse hesitated, scratching the back of his neck. Right, he thought, recalling how the curfew had been imposed in the game to tighten Academy security after incidents like this one.
But this version of events was unfolding differently; maybe the curfew hadn't been announced yet.
"Never mind," he said, waving off their questions.
He needed to be more careful about blending what he remembered from the game with what was happening now.
Just as Silva and Valeria prepared to leave, Eclipse stopped them with a raised hand.
He listed off several items he wanted them to gather for him—a selection of alchemical supplies, including vials, flasks, a small mortar, and a handful of specific herbs.
The order was extensive, suggesting that he had more in mind than a simple potion or two.
Silva took the list without question, though her brow lifted slightly at the odd array of supplies.
With a nod, Silva and Valeria turned toward the door, casting a final, cautious glance at the small slime lounging amidst Eclipse's belongings.
The creature seemed to sense their attention, giving a slight jiggle, which only made Silva purse her lips in distaste.
Without another word, they left Eclipse to his work.
___________
Outside, both lady released a collective sigh of relief, their shoulders relaxing as the tension of the last hour dissipated.
They strolled through the Academy corridors, which buzzed with the chatter of students recovering from the recent trials.
Some bore fresh bandages, evidence of minor injuries, while others strode past looking smugly victorious.
Valeria glanced back over her shoulder with a bemused smile. "Honestly, I half-expected him to throw us out after the slime ate all his things."
"Yes… and he let us off without a punishment," Silva replied, her eyes narrowing in thought. "That alone is strange."
Valeria's curiosity piqued, and she raised an eyebrow. "Strange? You mean it's strange for him to be merciful?"
Silva shot her a quick, assessing glance. "You wouldn't know this, but Eclipse… has been acting differently lately. It's something I noticed even before the demon attack in the forest."
Valeria's eyes widened, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Wait—you think he's… possessed by a demon?" then she added with her narrowed thin eyebrow, "That somehow made him merciful?"
For a moment, the memory of her encounter with Eclipse in the Mist Forest resurfaced, how she'd mistaken him for some monstrous figure.
Silva shook her head, her face returning to its usual cool neutrality.
"No… his haughty demeanor, his disdain for commoners—that much is still very much intact," she muttered, half under her breath. "But it feels like something's shifted."
Valeria pursed her lips, the color a sharp cherry red in contrast to her otherwise pale face. "So, if it's not a demon, then what has changed?"
Silva's expression grew distant, a flicker of a memory flashing across her eyes.
She thought back to when Eclipse had brought Valeria to the Academy after the forest trial.
She remembered how weakened he had seemed, as if he were almost… relying on Valeria. Was it protection? Did he know something I didn't?
It gnawed at Silva, who prided herself on her keen observation.
Her mission was as clear as her loyalty to those who'd assigned it, but now questions clouded her mind.
If Eclipse truly suspected her, why would he keep her by his side, still in her role?
She couldn't ignore the possibility that he knew more than he let on.
Her gaze hardened as she turned to Valeria. "You're not hiding anything from me, are you?" she asked, her tone sharp and direct.
Valeria's eyes widened in innocent surprise, and she shook her head emphatically. "Me? Hide something from you? I've already told you everything. I'm not lying," she said with a small, nervous laugh, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her tunic.
Silva's gaze didn't soften.
"Good. Because if you are, I won't be honoring our deal."
The words hung heavily between them, each fully aware of what they meant.
Silva and Valeria had struck a secret agreement, one centered on Valeria's search for her missing sisters, which Eclipse still hadn't known about.
But Silva's patience had its limits, and Valeria knew better than to push her luck.
They continued down the Academy's grand courtyard, weaving through paths lined with statues of past heroes, their stone forms casting long shadows across the flagstone paths.
Towering trees framed the walkway, their branches heavy with leaves that rustled gently in the breeze, while ornamental fountains sparkled in the sunlight.
It was the Academy's heart, a place usually bustling with pride and camaraderie, yet today it felt more subdued, as if everyone sensed something looming beneath the surface.
Valeria stole a quick, uncertain glance at Silva. "So… how exactly are we supposed to go about this?"
Silva sighed, rolling her shoulders as though adjusting an unseen weight.
"First, we gather what Eclipse asked for. Then," she trailed off, her eyes scanning the nearby students and staff.
But Valeria, who didn't bother with the same careful attention to secrecy, continued without hesitation. "Then we look for my sisters?"
Silva's gaze hardened, her tone turning cold. "No. Then we sneak into the Academy's offices."
The mention of the Academy's offices made Valeria's pulse quicken.
More support, more updates. Promise.
The academy was shrouded in darkness, a heavy quiet settling over the grounds.
Only the soft glow of a few lamps illuminated the stone paths, and the occasional figure patrolled in the shadows, eyes sharp for any signs of mischief.
After the recent incidents, security had tightened, and students were warned to remain in their rooms.
But that didn't stop Silva and Valeria.
Cloaked in shadows, they navigated the labyrinthine halls of the academy with the grace and precision of seasoned thieves, slipping past patrols as they moved toward their target.
Silva paused beside Valeria, her expression cool but impressed. "Not bad for a thief."
Valeria grinned, a hint of pride glimmering in her eyes. "You're not bad yourself. Stealth seems to suit you."
They exchanged a fleeting look before continuing, their movements perfectly synchronized as they reached the door of the first teacher's office.
Silva listened for any signs of life, then carefully eased the door open, and they slipped inside.
The room was dimly lit by a single candle, casting long shadows across the polished wooden desk and shelves lined with ancient, dust-covered books.
Scrolls and manuscripts lay scattered, a few rare artifacts glinting in the candlelight.
Silva and Valeria moved carefully, their footsteps muffled against the thick carpet as they began their search.
Valeria opened a drawer, carefully rifling through neatly organized papers and pausing to examine a peculiar, jewel-encrusted relic.
She lifted it, admiring the craftsmanship, when Silva's voice cut through the quiet.
"Find anything?"
"Nothing… suspicious," Valeria muttered. "But this—" she held up the jeweled item, its intricate silver filigree gleaming in the light, "—is exquisite. Might be worth something."
Silva narrowed her eyes. "Put it back."
Valeria blinked, looking almost offended. "What?"
"We're here to find information, not to loot the place. This is the academy, not some den in the underground city," Silva said sharply.
Valeria flushed, casting one last longing look at the item before gently placing it back. "Fine. It's just an… Amulet of Vitalis."
Silva gave a curt nod and resumed her search, meticulously checking every corner of the room, but after a thorough inspection...
It was clear there was nothing of note.
"Another dead end," Valeria sighed.
The two slipped out, moving to the next office, and the one after that, finding nothing but more papers and a few minor magical trinkets.
As they continued, Valeria's gaze wandered to a window across the hall, catching sight of a faint light flickering in the distance.
She followed its glow to a familiar building on the academy grounds—Eclipse's quarters.
"What do you think he's up to?" Valeria asked, her curiosity piqued.
Silva, focused on her search, barely looked up. "Why does it matter?"
"It's just… he told me not to come by his room for a while, and then he goes and buys all these strange items. Do you think he's trying to become an alchemist?"
Silva shook her head with a scoff. "Impossible. No Warbringer would stoop to alchemy. His family prides itself on inner mana strength, relying on nothing but their innate abilities. They'd consider alchemy beneath them."
Valeria bit her lip, suppressing the information she had about Eclipse's recent behavior, remembering when he took that potion.
Her gaze drifted back to Silva. "Do you think… he knows about you?"
A slight twitch passed over Silva's face, but she kept her tone steady. "Of course not."
Valeria hesitated. "So… will you really go through with it? Will you… kill him?"
Silva's expression hardened. "I accepted this job, and I'll finish it. After we find your sister. That was our deal."
Valeria nodded, feeling a strange pang of sympathy for Eclipse.
The more she thought about it, the more she realized just how isolated he was.
No friends, barely any allies, and even his own maid seemed set on his demise.
She pushed the thoughts away, reminding herself of her own goal.
I need to find and save my sister.
They continued their search, each room revealing nothing but ordinary papers and a few trinkets.
Valeria's heart sank, but she couldn't shake the feeling that they were close, as if just one more step would reveal what they were looking for.
One of her informants had insisted that a teacher here at the academy had been seen with her sister.
She just had to find who.
_______
Meanwhile, Eclipse's...
Eclipse's room looked more like the laboratory of a mad scientist than the quarters of a noble.
Tables were littered with flasks, beakers, and an array of herbs and minerals.
He had transformed his once pristine space into a workshop filled with vials of bubbling liquids, scribbled notes, and strange, shimmering powders.
With a frown of concentration, Eclipse carefully added crushed silverroot to a flask, watching as it dissolved into the faintly glowing mixture.
He reached for another vial, pouring its contents drop by drop, muttering calculations under his breath.
Alright… if I'm not completely wrong, this should create a potion that allows one to see and manipulate mana...
The theoretical knowledge he had from the game filled him with confidence, though this was the first time he'd ever tried it in real life.
Now… let's just hope it doesn't blow up in my face.
As he finished adding the last ingredient, the potion in the flask turned a brilliant shade of blue, a faint light radiating from it.
"Mana Sense," a potion that would heighten a person's ability to observe and interact with mana in the environment.
Eclipse felt a sense of satisfaction—until he realized he still needed a test subject.
"Hey, slime, get over here," he called, his voice casual.
The slime oozed its way over, its jelly-like body quivering with excitement.
Since coming into Eclipse's service, it had managed to consume various potions and ingredients he'd left around, giving it an odd assortment of colors and faintly glowing patches.
Eclipse held the potion above the slime's head, eyeing it thoughtfully.
"If it doesn't kill you, that means it works. Besides, you're more sensitive to magic than humans. Let's see if this has any effect."
He explained to the slime, mostly to reassure himself, that it was actually safer to use the slime as a test subject.
Slimes had lower life force than humans but were much more sensitive to potion chaos, meaning they'd react immediately if something went wrong.
With that, he poured the potion over the slime's quivering body, watching for any sign of reaction.
He expected a brilliant light or at least some kind of shimmer. Instead, the slime simply sat there, looking as unimpressed as a slime could.
"Nothing? Seriously?" Eclipse sighed.
One possible reason crept into his mind: without the alchemist trait, his efforts might be doomed to fail, no matter how precise his methods were.
"Does this mean… I actually need to hire an alchemist?" he muttered, disgusted by the thought.
Not just any alchemist, though.
He would need someone skilled in dark mana alchemy, a forbidden branch capable of functioning without relying on the inner mana he lacked.
In the world of Aeloria, dark mana was forbidden for good reason.
Unlike the usual mana, which relied on the innate power within a person, dark mana functioned almost like an explosive fuel, an external power source that anyone could wield regardless of their own mana strength.
Normal potions depended on the user's mana to fully activate, but dark mana could bypass this, flooding the user's system with raw energy.
However, it was highly unstable, prone to corrupting both the user's body and soul if used recklessly.
Dark mana was effectively a double-edged sword—a potent power that came at a heavy price.
Eclipse shook his head, sinking onto his bed, exhausted.
He'd been feeling a persistent pain in his chest, subtle at first but now a sharp, unignorable ache.
He brought up his blue screen with a flick of his wrist, and there it was:
Status: Decay
The cause had to be the Draught potion he'd taken before.
He was slowly deteriorating, and only one person could reverse the effects—the alchemist behind the potion it seemed like.
And if anyone knew where that alchemist was, it would be Valeria.
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