Emily swiftly jumped forward to explain.

"Wait, master Edon, don't be so quick to act! We might not have any left, but our friend here is the one that produced it in the first place!"

The old man's eyes opened wide and he swiftly turned his head to look at the young man he didn't even bother to notice before. "Him?" he asked doubtfully.

"Let me introduce you, this is Gerald, he is a young alchemist like yourself! His master is the one that came up with the potion formula, but he is the one that made the potion you tested."

Emily then turned to Gerald and introduced the old man, "This grumpy old man is one of our best alchemists, master Edon Ashbrew. He specializes in poisons, that's why I brought you to him."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir!" Gerald extended his hand with a smile.

The old man looked at him sideways, before reluctantly shaking his hand in return, "Hmm, likewise!"

After a few seconds of awkward silence, the alchemist broke the ice, "So, uh, do you have any more of that, uh, Potion of Focus?"

He was acting weirdly nervous for his age. Like a young girl before her crush, he didn't even dare to look Gerald straight in the eyes.

"I just so happen to have one! I just finished it this morning..." Gerald took a vial out of his pouch and showed it to the old man.

The latter swallowed hard and had a look of extreme desire on his face. He didn't even bother hiding it.

"I was hoping to get a few bottles of Warg anti-poison and apparently master Ashbrew was the right person to ask," Gerald said. "I could maybe gift you this potion as a sign of my goodwill..."

Swish!

After a single blink, the potion disappeared from Gerald's hand.

"Oh, it's the young friend Gerald!" the old man said cheerfully as he held the potion gently in his hands. "It's just some Warg's anti-poison, I have tons of it! Come, come! Let me show you my humble lab!"

The old man's character swiftly changed to an extremely warm and amicable one. He even invited Gerald to a cup of tea in his potion-brewing room.

Emilly saw she was not needed anymore so she quietly left.

Just like that Gerald received as much anti-poison as he could carry. He got two big bottles of it, enough for probably about fifty small vials.

They chatted for a while and the alchemist chugged the potion in the meantime. He became perceivably sharper and more alert.

Gerald couldn't help but pose a few questions, "Master Ashbrew, what are your thoughts about this potion? Do you have any opinions about it?"

"Opinions? Yes!" The man excitedly nodded and continued, "It's the best tonic for the mind I have ever tasted! Its usefulness can not be measured with money!"

He looked at Gerald and said seriously, "I'm an old man, and my mind is not as sharp as it once was… But when I drink this potion, it's like I travel back in time to my youth. And I noticed one more thing! After the potion's effect ends, a small part of its effect stays permanently!"

His hand with which he was holding the teacup was slightly trembling from excitement. "I have calculated the effects and if I could take the potion each day for one year straight, I should be able to return to the peak!" His last words were spoken with great vigor and conviction.

He gave Gerald a deep look full of expectation. "Maybe I could buy some from you...?"

"Really?" Gerald could hardly believe his words. "But even if that is so, I still have an agreement to supply sir Arthur with these potions… I couldn't possibly make them fast enough for such a big expenditure."

"Oh, is that so..." The alchemist seemed to lose some of his excitement at that moment.

"I'll have to speak to him about my salary then! Money isn't that important to me anymore, but getting my hands on more of that Potion of Focus is a must!" He was speaking to himself more than anything.

"I'll leave you to it then!" Gerald said his goodbyes and left.

He wasn't trying to establish any friendly relationship at the moment, as he didn't really know much about the old guy. Still, getting his hands on so much anti-poison for so cheap was great! At least he would be set for a while.

He returned to the mansion shortly after, and the butler warmly welcomed him as always. The three young ladies were nowhere to be found, probably exploring the city. But that was fine.

He was planning to take some time off to make some food.

Visiting the kitchen, Gerald ordered the maid there to leave and took the place over for himself.

Taking out a piece of raw Warg meat, he gave it a lick. Almost immediately after, he felt his tongue going numb, "It feemf thaf the tofsin is mush ftronger raw…"

The test had to be performed so he could observe the effects different preparations would produce.

Roasting the meat was not enough, he knew that much. But then again, it appeared that the neurotoxin was affected by heat somewhat as its potency decreased significantly.

Before doing anything else, though, he took a sip of the anti-poison to gauge its palatability.

Pfft!

It was bitter. Horribly bitter.

"Yuck!" He wiped his mouth after spitting out the anti-poison.

Gerald expected this result, but he was still taken aback by the potion's bitterness. "How on Earth am I going to incorporate this garbage into my food?"

He frowned deeply. "Wait, this is not Earth, so I should probably change the saying… Ah, my tongue is fine? This anti-poison is great!"

Not knowing what to do, he decided to just go with it and try a few different things.

He took one piece of meat and let it soak in the potion for an hour before washing it with salty water. Another was just left to marinate in wine and herbs for a few hours, while a few were just salted and placed outside to dry in the sun.

He took a few less desirable pieces of meat and bones and simply threw them in a copper pot with onions and salt. He was going to make a simple broth.

"Eh, cooking was never my strongest suit… Hopefully not too much will go to waste."

Taking the first piece, the one that was soaking in the anti-poison, he seasoned it, threw it on an iron pan with some butter, and let it get a nice brown crust on all sides, before taking it out.

Having a taste he commented, "The flavor is good, although I can still taste the bitterness… But it's not bad overall."

There was some tingling in his mouth, but it appeared that most of the toxins were neutralized.

In the following days, he tasted all of his creations, but the one he liked the most was the broth. Although the meat lost all flavor after simmering for more than half a day and he had to discard it, the liquid that remained had an absolutely divine taste.

"I wonder if I still get stronger from just drinking the broth?" He looked at the pot in contemplation.

"Eh, whatever…" In the end, he just shrugged his shoulders and decided not to think about it. The meat wasn't of that high a quality anyway. A little bit could be wasted.

What concerned him, however, was the growth on his chest…