Surviving as the Academy’s Weakest NPC-Chapter 155 : Chapter 155

Chapter : 155
"Is this luck for real?"
Even if it could go down to -99, how could I be this unlucky?
For a week, I led the two of them through a total of seven dungeons, and every single time, it was consistently! Nothing but trash items.
Trash items that wouldn't even fetch a decent price at the shop.
"Is this even possible?!"
I wasn't even hoping for good equipment.
I just didn't expect that even the staff with a strength stat, which had an 80% drop rate, wouldn't appear.
That was practically a bust! A staff plastered with the most useless strength stat for a mage was a trash item that got cursed out for even dropping from a Gate.
A hot-topic generator that would send any newbie who got it straight to the popular posts!!
But I thought it would be useful since I use some strength too, so I went to a place I could have skipped on purpose.
"Equipment doesn't drop that well from Gates anyway, so don't worry too much."
At Lucian's comfort, I almost felt a surge of anger from the depths of my gut.
No! I don't know about other dungeons, but this one had an 80% drop rate.
As I collapsed in tears, Zephyros nudged me with the tip of his foot.
"Who do you think you're kicking? Want a taste of an ice arrow?"
Training with Cecilia-sunbae during the day and raiding Gates at night, the only things that improved were my trash items and my magic skills.
My skills improved, so I can't say there were no gains, but it's still sad. No, my staff!!
"I don't mind you wailing, but aren't we a little short on time?"
Time was always short…
I had told Lerwon-sunbae, but our dungeon trips were a secret from everyone else.
And it was about time to go back. Which meant I couldn't just lie on the floor and wallow in sadness forever.
"I get it."
Grumbling, I used teleportation magic to return to the villa.
I was relieved to have returned safely before the morning sun rose today as well, but when I thought about the lack of any real achievements for a whole week, I felt sad again.
"Don't worry about it too much."
"How can I not worry?"
The difference between having equipment and not was like heaven and earth. If only I had a good harvest today, the future might have been a little easier...
"I need to find a staff craftsman."
"Is it that easy to find one just by looking?"
"I have my ways. But, there's a problem."
"What kind of problem?"
Now that things have come to this, I have no choice.
The reason I wanted to avoid that person if possible was, well...
"That person is a mage from the Golden."
The bombshell drops.
As soon as my words ended, both of their expressions instantly hardened and soured.
Yeah, I know. I know. But he's the only one that comes to mind right now, what can I do?
"For now, I'll consult with Lerwon-sunbae about this."
"If you have any sanity left in you, I trust you won't do something so crazy, okay?
Please, let's refrain from crazy acts, my friend."
"It's not a crazy act! Anyway, just leave it to me."
Leaving the two noisy people behind, I headed to Lerwon-sunbae's temporary laboratory set up in the villa.
As expected, Lerwon was still diligently making potions late into the night.
He was so focused that I didn't dare interrupt and just waited for the experiment to finish, when suddenly, a golden light burst out from inside the extractor.
I barely managed to cover my mouth to stop an exclamation from escaping, but the golden light in the extractor quickly faded with a loud pop!
"I thought it was a complete success..."
"Tell me about it."
Sunbae took off the mask-like thing covering his face and exhaled a hot breath.
"I just can't figure out what the one crucial ingredient is."
Sunbae began to explain his research progress, rattling off a list of alchemy ingredients I had never heard of before.
As he rattled on about ingredients and processes I was hearing for the first time in my life, to me who didn't know the first thing about alchemy, my head started to spin.
I... I really didn't need such a detailed explanation.
I laughed awkwardly and, feeling embarrassed, started looking at the ingredients.
As expected of a fantasy world.
There were quite a few strange things I had never seen before. Maybe looking around would be fun in its own way?
As I was quietly looking around, a hypothesis suddenly came to mind.
"You said you were missing one crucial ingredient, right?"
"I did?"
"What if you try adding the Golden Elixir as an ingredient itself?"
* * *
At Theo's unexpected suggestion, Lerwon blinked.
Now that he mentioned it...?
He had only ever thought of the Golden Elixir as a result, never that it could be an ingredient.
Lerwon's thinking was reasonable. To use the elixir, of which every single drop was precious, as an ingredient was unthinkable.
It should be unthinkable... but why did it sound so plau
sible? The corners of Lerwon's mouth twitched.
"There isn't much of the elixir left..."
"Then maybe we shouldn't try it?"
"No, I think it's worth a try."
Was that really okay? But Lerwon's eyes were sparkling, as if he had just found a breakthrough.
The Golden Elixir. What was believed to be only a legend first revealed its existence to the world, and countless alchemists tried all sorts of recipes to create it.
If the alchemist they sponsored could just figure out the recipe for the Golden Elixir, they could earn enough money to live in luxury for a lifetime!
People's thoughts tend to be similar, and when the Golden Elixir first appeared, there was a veritable boom in investing in alchemists.
Even most lower-ranking nobles had at least one alchemist they sponsored, and it was an era when even the imperial family sponsored alchemists on a large scale.
Thus, the discipline of alchemy blossomed.
Though it quickly died down with the appearance of a few fraudsters, thanks to it, all sorts of recipes were born.
Lerwon carefully checked a few reactions and wrote down the recipe.
At the sight of Lerwon instantly focusing, Theo quietly left the room.
It was unintentional, but it felt like he had given the answer to a question that had long been unsolved, so he didn't feel too bad.
"Ah!"
I forgot to ask about the connection.
Should I go back to the room and ask now? Theo hesitated for a moment, then decided to postpone it for later.
Well, it's not like now is the only chance. Deciding to ask when the opportunity arose later, Theo looked out the window where the sun was beginning to rise.
To think there are only two weeks of vacation left, how dreadful. And I haven't even properly enjoyed the vacation.
"Will I be able to make it in time?"
Could I even do it in the first place? Theo clenched and unclenched his fist in a vague sense of anxiety.
There were only about two weeks left until the semester started. Within that time, he had to become strong enough to face Iris.
Perhaps, that woman might have become a monster in Lerwon's place.
Theo swallowed the hypothesis that he couldn't bring himself to tell Lerwon.
* * *
"Master?"
At the voice calling her, Iris, who had been in a deep sleep, faintly opened her tightly closed eyes.
Lately, Iris had been sleeping a lot more.
It had been quite some time since Iris had stopped being at the forefront of the Golden.
However, no one denied the continued existence of the Master of Gold. The Golden was still strong and unshakable.
"I hate it, but I like it. I like it, but I hate it."
It's so strange.
A Golden that is perfectly fine without its master, that's not good.
"If you say so, I will correct it."
"This is not a problem that can be solved by correction, Mordegar."
She had no intention of being a foolish master who blamed her underlings for being too competent.
Since she had mercilessly culled the incompetent ones, it would be a problem if they were incompetent.
"Mordegar."
"Yes, Master."
"Isn't life so boring?"
Starting from the bottom, she had removed and killed those who stood in her way, clawing her way higher and higher.
Forty-some years since her birth. Iris, who was at the bottom, had reached a point where she could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Duke of Nevera, and had even put the emperor in great debt to her.
Endless greed was the driving force that moved Iris, and as a result, Iris had climbed to the highest point she could reach.
"But, this is the limit."
Iris could not ascend to the highest seat.
She did not have the precious blood of a hero, nor the blue blood of a noble. If anything, it would be black poison, perhaps?
"Command me to do anything."
"Can you kill Evan Lisitoel?"
At Iris's question, Mordegar's expression hardened.
Even Iris could not kill Evan Lisitoel.
If it was impossible for Iris, how could Mordegar, a mere servant, succeed?
It was impossible, even if he risked his life.
"It was a joke."
"Was it a joke?"
No, it wasn't a joke. She quite sincerely wished for Evan's death.
She wished for those eyes that were always arrogant and looked at everything with inorganic eyes to no longer hold anything.
It might be even better if he died a desperate death in front of her while struggling to protect his son.
If that happened, Theo Lisitoel would surely fall into despair.
Seeing those eyes dyed black with despair would be incredibly amusing.
"Shall I try?"
"If there was even a 1% chance, I would have ordered it."
But she doesn't order it.
That meant that the chance of Mordegar killing Evan, even by luck, was not even 1%.
Mordegar was a strong man, but he was no match for Evan.
Seeing his slightly downcast black eyes, Iris let out a laugh and stroked his head.
"Don't be disappointed. Even I only have about a 10% chance of killing Evan."
If Evan were to be killed by someone, it would surely be by his own disciple or son.
Evan, though he didn't seem like it, was a person who was weak to affection, and he had a certain affection for the disciples he taught as a professor, so if one aimed for that one moment, he would surely die.
That in itself would be an amusing death, but still...
"Killing Evan is my part."
When she entered the Academy at the age of sixteen with high hopes and saw Evan, the still young Iris wanted to kill him.
The sixteen-year-old Iris had achieved all the dreams she had wished for.
Except for one, the murder of Evan.
"So, it's only right to achieve the only remaining dream now, right? Evan."
As Iris muttered, her eyes glinted menacingly like a snake's.