I Refused To Be Reincarnated

As Adam tried manipulating the ingredients under Shepard's advice, Julius watched the process with a smile.

Gone was the time they struggled to find tier-one materials. With Shepard's backing, he didn't doubt his big brother would soon surpass Vikram, becoming a tier-five alchemist! After all, he knew better than the others how hard Adam trained his control to reach this level.

No matter what period he tried to remember, his brother strived day in and out without rest to improve. Thus, he was the best placed to say he was no genius.

Upon reaching this thought, he pondered, 'Or is he one? Not anyone can focus on a purpose for so many years.'

After pondering as he watched with glistening eyes how Adam injected mana into the legendary ingredient to localise the areas to avoid, he added, 'Maybe geniuses aren't only natural born? Can someone train to become or even surpass them?'

He fell into deep contemplation, musing about his idea. If hard work were enough, there would be many more mages, adepts, or arcanists. Thus, talent was an important factor, too. Yet, his big brother couldn't even gather mana by himself.

'Arun is right. Money is also strength,' he thought, understanding consuming potions at regular intervals after turning sixteen could create geniuses artificially. Realisation down upon him, the high-tiered population of rich and powerful noble families making sense.

Tugging his fingers around his chin, he left his mind to wander into a world of possibilities as Adam condensed mana to increase the potion's potency while it cooled down.

Drained after one hour of work, he gritted his teeth, determined to use everything to complete the liquid.

With a thought, a billowing sky-blue cape weaved itself from pure energy, draping his shoulders and billowing behind him.

"What's that?!" Asked Shepard in shock. He remembered mana surrounded the ghost under extreme emotions. However, it was small in quantitie. So, what was this almost solid cape?

"Just a trick to help me recover mana," Adam replied, hiding it came from the mana-gathering technique the arcanist had been so interested in.

Not wasting time and unwilling to be questioned, he focused on the mixture. Carefully, he identified the unblended residues, softening and seamlessly integrating them. A potent smell wafted from the liquid as he injected mana, making it resonate with the inherent magical properties of the potion.

Sweat covered his forehead as his energy reserves depleted rapidly, and the annoying burning sensation assaulted his circuits. Despite the pain, he continued, his face contorting into a defiant grimace.

Tense minutes passed as the liquid gradually brightened under Adam's efforts until it sparkled brightly, signalling the process' conclusion.

Exhausted by the effort, he plopped to the ground while Julius and Shepard examined the potion curiously.

"Did he do it?" The boy questioned, hope filling his heart.

With a swift movement, Shepard poured the liquid into a vial, sealing it before smiling. "Not only did he do it, the enhancement part is flawless!" He exclaimed, excited to confirm Vikram's assessment. No doubt was permitted in his mind. Adam was a potion genius.

Never had he heard about an apprentice successfully concocting tier-four potions, handling every step with great mastery.

"Good job, big bro!" Julius said, clapping his hands in celebration, genuinely happy and proud.

However, Shepard needed to satiate his curiosity, prompting him to ask, "How did you enhance the potion so well? I'm ashamed to say it is better than mine."

"I'm not sure," Adam started, taking deep breaths before explaining how he focused on the residues.

"By integrating the smallest residues, you ensured the liquid's perfect homogeneity!" Exclaimed the arcanist, his eyes glowing. Despite the tiring side of his disciple's meticulous approach, he acknowledged the better results.

"But how did you find the smaller ones?" He questioned again, eager to understand everything.

"Huh? A mix of mana scanning and instinct, I guess?" Adam answered, scratching his head. He just roughly knew where they were. The reason didn't really matter to him, as long as it worked.

Pondering the answer, Shepard wondered if instinct could play a role in their strict discipline. After all, alchemy was a scientific field. There were no places for luck or random occurrences. However, after sharing his thoughts, Adam's answer shocked him.

"Of course, luck exists in science. How do you think the first recipes appeared? People most likely randomly mixed things until achieving a result," the ghost said, vaguely remembering some medicines were developed thanks to luck or errors on earth.

"We don't have records about alchemy's development. But your words appear sound to me," Shepard said, a deep frown etched on his forehead. Since potion brewing was already well-established and millennia-old, he strictly followed common knowledge, using logic to research new fields. But what if luck could help him?

Reaching this question, he giggled, "Thank you for your opinion. It needs testing but is still valuable. Keep the potion you brewed as payment."

Stunned by the dean's calm acceptance, Adam smiled wryly. He knew Shepard was easygoing, but not that he sought and considered knowledge coming from much weaker people. Little did he know that if anyone else said identical words, the arcanist would have scoffed at him, calling him crazy or stupid.

"Recover for the rest of the afternoon," said Shepard, eager to study the question before adding, "We'll brew a potion every three days. If you succeed on the first try, I'll allow you to keep them."

After hearing Adam's agreement, Shepard immediately moved to the restricted third floor, leaving the duo alone.

"Want to spend some money on cores?" Asked Adam, knowing the boy wanted to catch back with his level.

"Yeah! I'll buy the best since I'm rich thanks to you!" Julius answered, his lips curling into an excited smile.

"You should also buy armor to protect yourself on our future expeditions," Adam advised, unwilling to see the boy hurt despite his powerful body and regenerative abilities.

With a nod, Julius walked to Alkemia Al-Nur's busy merchant street, eager to see his old employer and repay his kindness by buying his items.