章 227: Part Thirty-Eight

Kyran, gripping his claymore with determination, looks over to Suzu with concern. "Suzu, are you okay?" he asks, his voice cautious yet focused, keeping his eyes on Oliver.

Lily, her head tilted inquisitively, bites her inner lip and taps her chin, voicing her confusion, "Why did you fall?"

Suzu, slowly getting back on her feet, is lost in thought. 'What happened? How did his potion go through my defense?' she ponders, trying to make sense of Oliver's unexpected maneuver.

Oliver, reveling in the chaos he has created, licks his lips with anticipation. "Ah~," he exclaims, spilling a potion over himself. The light green liquid glows ominously as it covers his body, and he slicks his now wet hair back with a sinister grin.

Without hesitation, Suzu commands, "Now." At her signal, she, Kyran, and Lily rush towards Oliver. Suzu conjures a water whip, a crude but effective weapon given the difficulty of creating objects from elements like fire without immense mana control. Kyran's claymore glows with an aura coating, while Lily follows close behind, ready to use her magic arts to attack Oliver from a flank.

Despite their incredible speed and coordination, Oliver's response is unnerving. His hazel eyes glow a faint green as he laughs maniacally, "Hmhmhmhahaha." His unexpected agility catches them off guard as he swiftly maneuvers behind Lily, his speed far exceeding their expectations.

Standing in front of a surprised Lily, Oliver holds up a potion. With a swift motion, he breaks it, releasing a sticky blue liquid that cascades down her body. As she stumbles backward, Kyran makes a swipe at Oliver with his claymore, but Oliver evades it with a fluid, almost supernatural dodge.

Lily, panicking at the bizarre sensation of the slime coating her, exclaims in alarm, "AH! What is this slime!?" She flails her arms childishly, trying to rid herself of the goo, but it clings stubbornly. In her mind, a wild thought surfaces, 'Am I transforming into a slime?'

Meanwhile, Thalia and her team, observing from a safer distance, are equally puzzled. Dax suggests, "I think she's turning into a slime." Thalia, however, has a different theory, "No, it looks more like she's becoming a fish." Rhea, joining the speculation, adds, "Actually, it seems like she might be melting." Gideon, intrigued, wonders aloud, "Will her skin turn blue?" All of them tap their chins in deep thought, trying to decipher the situation.

Rhea glances around, noting the stillness of the others. 'Best to wait this out. We don't want to engage while the others are up there,' she reasons silently.

Lily, overhearing their conversation, waves her body even more frantically, spreading the slime further. "Ah! Did you hear that, Suzu? I'm going to melt!" she cries out in distress.

Suzu, trying to maintain focus amid the chaos, responds calmly, "Stop jumping around like that. I don't think you'll melt, and if you do start melting, the professors will save you." She then redirects her attention to Oliver, her mind racing, 'I need to deal with him quickly.'

As Suzu prepares to engage, Oliver reaches for another potion, this one a vivid red. After pouring it over himself, he starts coughing up blood, a side effect of his self-experimentation. "Ugh... this needs some fine-tuning," he admits, as his body undergoes a dramatic transformation, muscles bulging and stature increasing.

Kyran watches in disbelief, questioning the fairness of the situation, 'Is this even allowed? It seems like a drug. Why aren't the professors stepping in?'

Suzu, her frustration mounting, coats two daggers in rapidly spinning water and hurls them at Oliver. But to her dismay, Oliver catches them effortlessly, breaking them with his newfound strength, only sustaining a minor cut.

"This has to be a cheat," Suzu mutters, annoyed at his apparent advantage.

Oliver, reveling in the moment, responds with a smirk, "A cheat?" He raises his hand, laughing maniacally, "Hmhmhmhahahaha!" He then declares proudly, "Every potion I've made is my own creation. Each one is the result of countless hours of meticulous calculations, endless sleepless nights, and numerous failed experiments." His words carry a tone of triumph, underlining the effort and dedication he has put into his alchemical endeavors.

Kyran, brimming with resolve, turns to Suzu and asserts confidently, "Let me handle him, Suzu. I should be able to deal with him." In his mind, he rationalizes, 'No matter how many potions he uses, in the end, it's just muscle. He lacks any real techniques.' Grasping his claymore firmly, he pushes his long hair back and prepares to engage. Coating his legs in aura, he charges at Oliver with full speed, focused on his strategy: 'First, I need to get his pouch. That's where all his potions are.'

Oliver, caught slightly off guard, tries to dodge Kyran's attacks. While he manages to evade the fatal blows, he's continually cut by Kyran's swift and precise strikes. In a desperate move, Oliver throws a potion on the ground, forcing Kyran to retreat out of caution. Kyran, taking a moment to assess, comments, "Well, that's a start."

Oliver, however, is unfazed and smirks through his injuries. "That hurt," he says, retrieving another potion. Spilling it over himself, his wounds begin to heal rapidly, showcasing the versatility of his alchemical skills.

Meanwhile, Lily continues her frantic attempts to rid herself of the sticky substance. "Ah! Why is there still so much of this!?" she cries out, shaking her body vigorously. Despite her efforts, the liquid seems to multiply, now getting on both Suzu and Kyran, although they pay it little attention.

Suzu, analyzing the situation with a critical eye, realizes the key to defeating Oliver. 'To stop him, you have to be quick enough to prevent him from using his potions. His confidence suggests he's well-prepared,' she concludes. Turning to Thalia, she proposes, "Let's make a temporary truce until we defeat him."

Thalia, uncertain, leans in to confer with Rhea. "They want to make a truce. Should we trust them?" she whispers.

Dax interjects, "No way, they might accidentally turn us into slimes." His concern reflects the unpredictable nature of Oliver's potions.

Rhea, contemplating the alchemist's potential, offers her perspective, "He's an alchemist... If he's got the potions, he could attack physically and magically. He seems to be toying with us..." She decides, "We should fight alongside them. Don't worry; we won't melt."

Thalia, still hesitant but recognizing the necessity of the alliance, nods. "I just hope we don't turn into fish," she says extremely serious before addressing Suzu and her team. "Alright, we'll fight together. But if you attack us, we'll join his side."

Thalia sighs and hesitates before she starts casting a magic circle, her concentration palpable. Suzu, recognizing the need for cooperation, follows suit, creating her own magic circle to augment their efforts. Dax, Gideon, and Kyran rush towards Oliver with a determined charge, ready to engage in close combat.

Suzu, utilizing her magic, summons chains from the ground that swiftly entangle Oliver's legs, attempting to immobilize him. Despite their combined efforts, Oliver remains a formidable opponent. As they try to kick and slash at him, Oliver conjures a magic shield, deflecting their attacks. With a scoff, he remarks, "I know how to use magic, idiots."

In a strategic move, Oliver tosses a potion into the air. As Thalia unleashes a barrage of ice spikes, aiming to penetrate his defenses, the potion shatters, releasing a mist that rapidly envelops the area. The effect is immediate; everyone's balance is thrown off, and their movements become erratic.

Thalia, struggling to maintain control, clenches her teeth in frustration. Her ice magic becomes unstable, and the spikes crumble. "Dammit, what happened? All of a sudden, I can't control my magic," she curses, trying to grasp the sudden change.

Rhea, analyzing the situation, deduces the nature of Oliver's latest tactic. "The mist is disrupting our ability to control mana and aura," she explains. Turning to face Oliver, she elaborates, "You've created a potion that causes the energy within the mist to vibrate at a higher speed than normal, making it difficult for us to manipulate our energy."

Oliver, with a smug grin, acknowledges her observation. "That's right. It's only possible because of the dome. You'll find it difficult to use any magic now. Not that it matters anymore," he declares confidently.

As the realization dawns on them, the group notices that they are all covered in the same liquid that Lily has been frantically trying to shake off. The substance continues to spread uncontrollably over their bodies.

Thalia, her fears manifesting, falls to her knees in despair. "No, I don't want to be a fish," she cries out, her imagination running wild with the possibilities of what the potion could do to them.

Oliver, slightly taken aback by her reaction, raises an eyebrow in confusion. "What? Who said anything about turning into fish?"

Oliver, now in complete control of the situation, begins to reveal his true intentions. "I've carefully monitored students from different grades and realized that freshmen and sophomores tend to rely too much on magic or aura... Except for a couple of people," he muses aloud, a hint of analysis in his tone. He starts to pace, a look of contemplation on his face. "Now that you're all confused and your bodies are temporarily paralyzed due to the sudden, instantaneous energy shift, let me test some potions on you all. I don't really have volunteers in the academy, so this will be great."

His gaze scans the group, assessing who to experiment on first. 'I can't really choose since they'll be paralyzed for 10 more seconds at most.' With that, he begins throwing random potions from a separate pile at everyone, watching their reactions intently.

As the paralysis wears off, each individual gasps for air, their bodies reacting violently to the potions. Oliver, observing their reactions with keen interest, takes out his notepad and starts writing as he walks around them.

He notes Suzu's reaction first. 'Suzu is barfing nonstop, the potion is effective but it lacks depth.' Unsatisfied, he throws another potion at her, which instantly makes her tremble, her skin turning pale as she continues to vomit. 'Hmmm... It doesn't make them cold enough, I'll have to reevaluate this later. Though, combining them for more pain might be interesting,' he muses, noting down as he observes a tear falling from her eye.

Next, he turns his attention to Thalia, who is scratching herself frantically. "Ahh! Why doesn't it stop! Please make it stop!" she pleads between laughs and tears. Oliver observes her condition with a clinical detachment. 'I knew it would be effective. An unbearable itch with the added sensation of becoming temporarily extremely ticklish is a success,' he notes. He then pours another potion on her, which causes her to stop moving entirely, only tears streaming down her face. 'The added paralysis makes it even more unbearable,' he concludes, scribbling down his observations with a sense of accomplishment.

Oliver, meticulously recording the effects of his experimental potions, approaches Lily next. She is in a state of panic, falling and screaming, "I'm drowning, someone help me!" Her cries are filled with genuine fear, convinced she is dying.

Observing her reaction, Oliver notes internally, 'AC1-1-Alpha experimental liquid. Though I created it from scratch, it's quite useful. Its primary effect is purely sensory, giving the illusion of being watery. If a person is completely covered and temporarily blinded, they believe they're drowning. Its secondary effect is more useful, but for now, this demonstration suffices.'

He then moves on to Dax, who is writhing in pain, feeling cramps in every joint. 'Getting cramps from every little movement does indeed make them cry, but it lacks complexity,' Oliver contemplates. Deciding to enhance the effect, he pours another potion onto Dax, similar to the one used on Thalia. 'Combining these two potions can induce a near-death experience,' he writes down meticulously. Dax, overwhelmed by the intense pain, is promptly teleported out of the competition to receive medical attention.

Gideon, struggling to maintain his composure, is overwhelmed by an inexplicable urge to cry. Oliver, unimpressed with this reaction, concludes, 'The crying potion is ineffective and should be scrapped.' He quickly administers another potion to Gideon, who attempts to stand. As Gideon tries to coat himself in aura, he collapses to the ground, groaning in agony. 'The magic/aura pain potion is effective, though rather generic. It can be ignored, necessitating reevaluation,' Oliver records.

As he walks around, evaluating the effects of his potions, Oliver muses aloud, "Ugh, I need to create something more painful yet less dangerous." He taps his chin thoughtfully, considering the potential improvements he could make to his alchemical concoctions.