章 44: That's a Possibility

Lian looked back as they continued their journey. "Why do you want to know?"

"Have you heard about Star Apothecaries?" Joani asked back.

Lian and Carol's mouths twitched in response. "You obviously know that Blan was a Star Apothecary. That said, I know about them. What, are you going to take me as a disciple like Blan as well? Hahaha!"

Joani immediately shook his head, replying, "Me? Take you in as a disciple? Don't be ridiculous. I don't want to die. Could it be that Blan offered you to be his disciple?"

Hearing that, Lian's interest was piqued. "That's true. Although it matters no more. Blan is dead. I thought you had seen I could use more elements and had the same idea."

Joani was the one laughing after that. "Hahaha! Ouch... my injuries." He then controlled himself a little before continuing. "I just wanted to let you know that Blan had no intention of taking you as a disciple at all. Instead, he would probably use you as a sacrifice."

"Sa... crifice?" Both Carol and Lian were taken aback. "What do you mean by that?"

"The blood of a multi-element user is very, very valuable, you know?" Joani explained. "Well, you would only know such a thing if you mingled with the apothecaries. Those other friends of yours most likely didn't know of it."

Lian didn't expect that. He genuinely thought that Blan wanted him to help when he went to the next city. Well, Joani could be lying. But then again, the same went for Blan since Joani mentioned others outside the circle of apothecaries wouldn't know of it normally. At the moment, it was hard to tell which one of them was lying.

However, Carol found something that didn't make sense. "Wait, you apothecaries can use more than one element, right? Doesn't that make your blood very valuable as well?"

Joani looked at Carol with a confused expression after that. "We can use more elements? Who told you that?"

Lian and Carol felt somewhat at a loss as they hesitantly replied, "Err... Blan told us."

Joani laughed once again. "Hahaha! Of course he did! What a good way of convincing a clueless multi-element user. Hahahaha! That's hilarious!"

"I thought you guys needed to be proficient in more than one element to be good at creating medicines," Carol mentioned.

Joani shook his head again, clarifying, "There is no such thing. How many types of herbs do you think we deal with? They have many elements, you know? If such a thing was true, doesn't that mean we would need to be good at all elements? Poison, Fire, Lightning, Water, Wind, Wood, Ice, Earth, Light, Darkness, yadda yadda yadda. I believe Blan at least told you about the existence of as many elemental herbs as there are affinities for humans, no?"

Lian couldn't help but nod in response. He did talk a lot with Blan, so Blan mentioned the many different elemental types of herbs. Yet, Blan had never mentioned the details.

Joani continued, "In the end, an apothecary is more than just being able to control the medicinal elements of the medicine he's trying to create. Since pretty much everyone only has a single affinity and might be able to use a second or a third element if they try very hard, it wouldn't be of much use for our job. There are just too many elements."

Joani couldn't help but smile as he added, "However, there is one thing that can help a lot with the control of the elements in the medicines."

"A multi-element user's blood?" Lian and Carol asked at the same time.

Joani was happy they understood. "Correct. Well, I'll be honest. The fact that you can use many elements would definitely help you as an apothecary. But this thing about apothecaries needing to use more than one element is nothing more than bullshit. If you have enough control of your Star Energy, you can certainly become an apothecary. Of course, learning the recipes for the medicines is a completely different story. Everyone in our circle keeps their recipes a secret and would rather die than let it leak out."

Lian wouldn't just believe Joani, though. "And why exactly would you tell me that? Wouldn't it be better if you had kept quiet and then come after me after we arrive in the city?"

"Now then, why would I tell you that indeed?" Joani asked back. "Perhaps I just like you."

Lian narrowed his eyes, replying, "Who is telling bullshit now? There's no way you like me."

Carol agreed with Lian. "He wanted to leave you off to die back in the core region. I don't see how you could get a liking for him either. Or could it be that you're gay?"

"What does gay mean?" Joani asked, puzzled. That was a word from Earth, after all.

"Errr... a man who loves another man?" Carol added.

Joani's face turned dark after hearing that. "I like women very much, thank you."

"Don't change the topic." Lian didn't relent. "What's the reason behind your warning? I don't think I've used more than one element in front of another apothecary except for you."

Joani nodded. "Sigh... why would you doubt I simply like you? Or, to be more specific, I like the two of you. You are two complete anomalies in this world. I was supposed to have been killed when you found me by none other than yourselves. Leaving me behind would already be considered a huge commitment. Even enslaved people from other worlds wouldn't have hesitated as their own worlds weren't much different than ours. Well, let's put it this way. I find you funny to watch."

Lian and Carol once again didn't know whether they should trust him or not. Well, they thought it was better not to just in case. "If we get the chance, we will check if your words are true. If that's really the case, then saving you wasn't a waste of our time."

Joani took the chance to offer. "I would never take you as a disciple since I would only be inviting trouble to my side. However, how about I introduce you to another apothecary crazy enough to take a multi-element user as a disciple?"

"Or perhaps you would be selling me instead," Lian added.

"That's definitely a possibility." Joani didn't deny nor confirm that.