Memorize

Following Vivienne's words, it didn't take long to reach the lair. After leaving the passageway and crawling a little further in, another corridor appeared. It looked distinctly different from the ones I had seen so far. Passing through that corridor and venturing further inward, the alchemist's lair came into view.

The lair was filled with an array of fascinating sights: scattered documents and records, monster carcasses, liquids bubbling inside glass flasks emitting peculiar smoke. In one corner lay two large cocoons tightly wrapped in white threads. They seemed to be the two players captured earlier.

Vivienne gently set me down on the floor after asking me to wait for a moment. Since begging for her life, she had been cautious with every action. Soon after, she left me to explore the lair and began moving busily.

For some time, she rummaged through various places before starting to pile things up in front of me. It was enough to make me think, 'She's really working hard, even from an outsider's perspective.' Lastly, Vivienne dropped an old, square box with a thud. Watching her, I seriously wondered if she really intended to let me go.

Wiping the sweat from her face with one of her long legs, Vivienne cautiously glanced at me and began to speak. Considering her nature as a quick-tempered monster, I couldn't predict when she might lash out again. Steeling myself for any possibility, I listened to what she had to say.

"Phew~! That's everything. There's more stuff, but I doubt any of it will interest you. Anyway, I pulled out everything I thought might be useful by human standards. Hope you like it!"

Watching her giggle, I shook my head. For someone who was once a renowned alchemist, how had her intellect deteriorated this much? Then again, looking at our current dynamic—a monster handing over items willingly—it seemed like the roles were completely reversed. If I thought about it, I was basically an intruder or thief, and yet here she was, offering things up herself.

Well, nothing stands in the way of the will to survive. Accepting the oddity of the situation, I picked up the large leather pouch on the far left. It felt substantial, with bulges indicating it was packed full. The quantity seemed satisfactory. I untied the cord sealing the pouch, opened it, and peeked inside.

"This is… gemstones?"

"Yup! Humans generally like gemstones, don't they? I used to be human too, and back then, I adored shiny things. Anyway, I made sure to pick only the highest-quality ones. With just that pouch, you won't have to worry about food and shelter for a while. So? Do you like it?"

"Hmm."

Vivienne, seemingly unable to shake off her anxiety, kept glancing at my face even as she spoke. Her fervent explanations about the value of the gemstones only made me nod slowly. She wasn't wrong—there was no denying the sheer worth of the gems in the pouch.

Swallowing hard, I nodded again, my eyes fixed on the vibrant stones glistening inside the bag. Just a quick glance revealed a wealth of amethyst, aquamarine, diamond, emerald, ruby, opal, and topaz. Their vivid colors and gleaming surfaces made it clear these were top-quality gems.

In Hall Plain, gemstones were highly sought after—not just as decorative items but also as essential tools for mages. Their various properties provided significant advantages related to their craft. For a moment, the thought of Han-Byeol, the Secret Class Jewel Mage, crossed my mind. Given her reliance on gems for her spells, this pouch would've been an incredible boon for her.

But I quickly dismissed thoughts of Han-Byeol. In the end, she had turned her back on her opportunities. Though I could understand her reasoning, the disbandment of the Golden Lion Clan seemed inevitable if the future unfolded as I anticipated.

As a satisfied smile spread across my face, Vivienne's expression brightened in response.

"Not bad. Almost makes me feel guilty taking this."

"Ehehe. Oh, come on. Nothing's more precious than life. Besides, it's not like I have much use for them anyway."

Her desperation to cling to life was evident. Setting the gemstone pouch aside, I reached for another leather bag nearby. As I lifted it, a jangling sound confirmed my guess—gold coins. The pouch was just as full as the previous one. Peeking inside, the glint of pure gold coins greeted me.

"Hmmm. Gold coins, huh? Looks like about 200 gold. Is this all the gold you've got?"

Tossing the pouch lightly in my hands, I quickly gauged its weight and contents. While it wasn't a small amount, the brilliance of the gemstones from earlier set a high standard, making this feel a bit underwhelming.

Noticing my slight disappointment, Vivienne squirmed uneasily, her long legs fidgeting. Finally, she spoke in a subdued voice, her tone almost apologetic.

"S-sorry. It's exactly 204 gold, 27 silver, and 306 bronze. I just… never really cared much for gold. I still scraped together everything I could find, but… sniff. That's really all I have. I'm so sorry. If I had known, I'd have hoarded more. Please forgive me."

As Vivienne, on the verge of tears, let a single drop fall, I was caught off guard and hastily tried to console her.

"A-ah, no, it's fine! Really, it's fine. Come on now, don't cry. Lift your head, okay?"

A bizarre scene unfolded: a dungeon intruder comforting the dungeon's master, who was bowing her head and begging for forgiveness. Even in Hall Plain, this was an incredibly rare sight. Feeling like a petty thug shaking down someone, I wiped away a bead of sweat and continued to reassure her.

Hearing my words, Vivienne nodded slowly and wiped her tears with her legs. …No matter how many times I saw it, I just couldn't get used to it. After carefully setting the pouch beside the gemstones, Vivienne pointed decisively to another bag. This one was massive—several times the size of the others, almost a sack.

"T-this one! This one you'll definitely like!"

"Ah, yeah, yeah. Alright, let me take a look. Thanks, really."

"Yup, open it quick! Hehe."

Vivienne started to untie the pouch herself but stopped when she glanced at her legs, then pouted. Pushing the pouch toward me instead, she let me handle it. Intrigued by her confidence, I eagerly untied the bag and checked its contents.

Inside were numerous glass bottles, each containing liquids of varying colors. They seemed to be potions she had crafted herself. Looking at the neatly arranged potions, I immediately activated The Third Eye to analyze their properties.

While I was silently examining the contents, Vivienne cleared her throat loudly to draw my attention.

"Ahem! You see those potions? Well, uh, let me tell you what kinds there are…"

"Hmm, some high-grade healing potions… no top-grade ones, though. A shame. Mana recovery potions… Oh, poison. That could be useful. Antidotes—makes sense to pair those with poison. Oh? This is an explosive potion. Not bad. And… huh? What's this 'Love Potion' doing here?"

As I murmured observations based on The Third Eye's analysis, Vivienne's words suddenly halted mid-sentence. Feeling a peculiar stare, I glanced up to find her looking at me with an utterly dumbfounded expression.

Why was she staring at me like that? Still, the collection of useful potions had brightened my mood significantly. With a gentle tone, I addressed her.

"Why?"

"Are you, by any chance, an alchemist? I thought you were a swordsman."

"Huh? No, I'm not an alchemist. Why do you ask?"

"Ah… no, it's just… never mind. Nothing at all."

Vivienne shut her eyes tightly, as if she was embarrassed, and I tilted my head in confusion. Ah… could it be that she felt deflated because I had jumped ahead and analyzed her potions before she could proudly explain them? Feeling a little guilty, I smacked my lips and lightly patted one of her legs in encouragement.

Then, I took a moment to mentally tally up the three pouches she had given me.

The gold coins were of little consequence since I had already brought along a spare 1,000 gold. The gemstone pouch and the potions, on the other hand, were absolute treasures. The gemstones could be saved to either recruit a talented mage or be used to forge powerful weapons later. As for the potions, their value was self-explanatory—they would be endlessly useful in Hall Plain.

With a satisfied grin, I turned my attention to the final offering: a worn-out box. Unlike the previous pouches, its distinct form piqued my curiosity and raised my expectations.

As I pulled the box closer, Vivienne's eyes sparkled with pride. While a faint trace of anxiety lingered on her face, the dominant emotion seemed to be confidence. After briefly meeting her gaze, I opened the box without hesitation.

Inside was a single, worn book.

『Congratulations. You have discovered a Rare Class item. By reading this book, you can acquire the class: Chimera Alchemist.』

A message floated before me. Before I could fully process it, another message followed in quick succession.

『The Chimera Alchemist is considered an advanced tier of the mage class. This class allows the creation of chimeras and, when combined with summoning circles, can summon beings from other dimensions. If there is a player proficient in magical circles or summoning techniques, it is recommended that they inherit this class.』

『Currently, Kim Su-Hyun's class is the top-tier Secret Class, Sword Specialist, of the swordsman branch. While you can acquire this class, analysis of your unique, special, and potential abilities indicates that the efficiency will drop by 30%. However, your Magic stat of 96 points will partially offset this, reducing the penalty to 20%. Nevertheless, it is not recommended to acquire this class.』

"Wow…"

Vivienne, noticing my reaction, chimed in proudly, "That book contains the essence of my alchemy—from when I was an alchemist to everything I learned after becoming… well, like this. Any mage would drool over it!"

"..."

"Um… don't you like it?"

As I gazed blankly into the air, Vivienne tentatively spoke in a small voice. Snapping out of my thoughts, I shook my head quickly and, with trembling hands, picked up the book. It felt surreal. In my first round, I had scoured endlessly for Rare and Secret Classes, only to come up empty-handed. And now, they were surfacing left and right. A strange mix of emptiness and exhilaration flooded through me.

The Chimera Alchemist class hadn't appeared during my first round. From what I recalled, the dungeon master hadn't been subdued, allowing them to escape with this very book. I couldn't say for sure until I examined its contents, but just the fact that it was a Rare Class made it a jackpot. The frustration and exhaustion from my struggles melted away, replaced by a growing sense of triumph. My voice was vibrant with excitement as I finally spoke.

"No, I like it. More than the gemstones, more than the potions—this book is my favorite. A book containing the essence of an alchemist? This is going to be incredibly useful."

"Re-really? Hehe, you're such a strange male. Hehehe. Liking it that much…"

Vivienne twisted her body shyly, clearly pleased that her life's work and achievements were being recognized. Amused by her reaction, I chuckled softly and carefully stowed the book away. I resolved then and there: no matter what else I had to leave behind, this book was coming with me. Not that I planned on leaving anything behind, of course.

Watching me pack the book, Vivienne's voice turned sweet and hopeful as she asked, "So… you're satisfied, right? You're going to let me live, right?"

I was about to reflexively reply, 'Yes,' but I stopped myself. To be honest, I didn't really feel like killing her anymore. She had given me more than enough. Still… there was a nagging thought in the back of my mind that I might be able to squeeze out just a bit more.

After mulling it over for a moment, inspiration struck, and I snapped my fingers with a loud snap! It came to me—there was one more thing I could ask for.

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