NOVEL WEB Chapter 490: Preparing the Blood
"I've been waiting for years," he admitted with obvious amazement. "Nobody has been able to complete this acquisition. The Winter Beast's territory is considered effectively inaccessible to anyone below legendary rank."
His eyes studied Arthur with growing respect and curiosity. "Yet you managed to accomplish this in less than a day since accepting the mission. That's... extraordinary doesn't begin to describe such efficiency."
[Ding! You have completed the A-Level quest: Find the Pyro's Lotus inside The Grieving Hollow. Quest duration: None. Failure: Loss of reputation in Caldera.]
[Reward: Vire root(Epic-Rank)]
Arthur smiled imperceptibly, not because of the man's praise, but because he had completed the exchange. He had secured the physical enhancement herb that would prove crucial for Charlotte's recovery. The alchemist handed over his payment.
After taking the herb, Arthur did not linger in the shop. He left through the door without any pleasantries or extended conversation—he had far more important matters demanding his immediate attention, just as the alchemist undoubtedly had his own pressing concerns.
As Arthur walked through Caldera's bustling streets toward his next destination, he noticed something: it had been some time since he last felt the subtle presence of hidden people following his movements. The group that had been tracking his routes between the guild and academy had apparently ceased their surveillance operations.
Clearly, either their employer had decided Arthur was too dangerous to continue monitoring, or they had simply given up on gathering intelligence about his daily patterns because of his sudden teleportations.
...
Outside the room where Charlotte and Jasmine waited, Arthur paused before the door that separated him from his sister, his senses immediately detecting the occupants within. Charlotte's vital signs remained weak but stable, while Jasmine's presence radiated power.
Through their mystical connection, Arthur could sense Neko's continued vigilance beside Charlotte's bed. The primordial cat had maintained her protective positioning throughout his absence, her SSS-rank luck talent providing passive benefits that might have contributed to Charlotte's stability during his expedition.
Arthur's hand moved to the door handle, but he hesitated for a moment as the weight of what he was about to accomplish settled in his consciousness. The herbs in his dimensional storage represented more than medical supplies—they were hope, the possibility of restoration that had driven him through impossible challenges.
His spatial awareness detected no immediate threats within the room or the surrounding area. The mayor's building remained secure, its protective enchantments undisturbed by external interference. Everything was prepared for Charlotte's treatment to begin.
Arthur knocked on the door and was granted permission by Jasmine. He opened it with careful movement, ready to begin the most important healing process of his life.
...
Jasmine, who had already sensed Arthur's presence through her enhanced perception, smiled warmly as she watched him enter the room with the confident stride of someone who had accomplished the impossible.
"Arthur," she greeted with obvious relief, her golden-silver eyes immediately searching his expression for signs of success or failure. "How did your search go?"
Arthur's response was delivered with the casual tone of someone discussing routine business rather than legendary achievements that would reshape people's understanding of what was possible.
"I've acquired three epic-rank herbs and one legendary-rank specimen," he stated matter-of-factly while accessing his dimensional storage. "I've also collected the blood of numerous superior-rank beasts, coupled with samples from three different types of legendary-rank creatures. One of which was a Second Order Beast with domain abilities."
Jasmine's expression shifted from warm welcome to complete shock as Arthur's words registered in her mind. Her knowledge immediately recognised the astronomical value of what he was describing—resources that most alchemists and healers would never encounter in their entire lifetimes of practice.
"Arthur..." she whispered with obvious disbelief, her voice carrying the stunned tone of someone struggling to process information that exceeded all reasonable expectations. "Did you just say you obtained blood from a Second Order Beast?"
The knowledge she inherited from the queen of healing spoke about such creatures, but they were considered mythical compared to people below level 25. Second Order Beasts were entities that transcended normal classification systems, existing in realms of power that made them effectively unreachable to conventional approaches.
"And you accomplished all of this in...Less than a day?" Jasmine paused, her mind calculating the time that had passed since Arthur's departure.
Arthur nodded with composure, as if eliminating legendary second-order creatures and harvesting their essence as a first-order human was merely standard procedure rather than an unprecedented achievement that would make him famous across the world.
"It was hard, but I've managed to pull through," Arthur replied with casual understatement that made Jasmine's shock intensify further.
Jasmine's senses detected the subtle changes in Arthur's aura. His power had grown noticeably during his brief absence, suggesting combat encounters that had pushed his capabilities to new levels.
"Arthur," she said with growing amazement. "You are... unbelievable. Even with my recent power-ups, I don't have any confidence in defeating a second-order legendary rank beast, despite my versatility."
Her eyes studied his calm expression with the fascination of someone witnessing something that challenged fundamental assumptions about individual capability limits.
"Yet you speak of it like collecting flowers from a garden," she continued with obvious bewilderment.
Arthur's smile carried satisfaction as Jasmine prepared to begin Charlotte's treatment using resources that represented the pinnacle of magical medicine in Caldera—materials so rare and powerful that their successful acquisition would be remembered as legend by those who understood their true significance.
Jasmine carefully gathered all the items Arthur had provided, and she arranged them on the examination table. The epic-rank herbs radiated concentrated magical energy that made the air around them shimmer, while the legendary specimen seemed to pulse with power.
The blood samples from superior and legendary-rank creatures created a complex array of magical essences. The Second Order Beast blood, in particular, carried such potent energy that Jasmine handled it with reverent care.
"The process will take several hours. I need to integrate all of these medicinal components in the proper sequence to ensure maximum effectiveness."