“There’s no way.”

The café owner answered with a smile, and Bella’s expression hardened.

“I’m not a Hunter or an Awakened—just an ordinary civilian. I can’t handle potions at all.”

She placed her hands on her hips.

“Besides, it’s against the law to use demonic-realm materials in food for ordinary people. Without mana, a single mistake could kill them. We’d never do something so dangerous here.”

“But when I drank it, it did feel like HP Recovery and Burn Salve mixed together…”

“Maybe it was just because you had a cool drink on a hot day. Anyway, we’re closed. Please leave.”

Her lips curved in a smile, but her eyes didn’t. The weight in her gaze was oppressive.

Bella began to retreat, unable to press further.

If there had been potion mixed in, she and every other alchemist in the Hunter Market would’ve sensed it immediately. No matter how it was disguised, the mana signature and efficacy of a potion couldn’t be hidden.

But Bella… she had instantly recognized not only the feel of a potion, but the exact types. Proof of her extraordinary talent.

Guess it’s time to give her a little push.

I looked at the café owner and spoke.

“Excuse me. Do you happen to know someone called the Demon Alchemist?”

For a moment, her eyes widened. Then she shook her head with a look of feigned puzzlement.

“No. Who’s that supposed to be? A Hunter’s nickname? I told you, I’m not a Hunter.”

“There’s a legend of a potion-maker who created most of the recipes we use today,” I continued, smiling faintly. “A master alchemist shrouded in myth. You’ve never heard of them?”

Her eyes narrowed.

“I said no. If you kids keep pestering me with nonsense, I’ll call the police.”

“Then what about the name… Lee Sohyang?”

Her shoulders twitched.

“…Can’t say I know them.”

“They say she has a very unusual ability. That she can place even the rarest herb on her tongue and instantly discern its properties and toxicity—”

I didn’t finish. The café owner stepped forward suddenly.

“Ah.”

Bella’s hand shot toward the inventory pouch at her back.

But the woman didn’t confront us. She simply dragged in the outside tables, then pulled the shutter down.

“Who are you.”

She glared at me, the shutter behind her.

“Nam Yein, first year, Gwangcheon Academy.”

My calm answer made her frown.

“Then how do you know the name Sohyang?”

“I found out by chance. But that isn’t the real question.”

I smiled.

“The real question is whether I’m a threat to you or not. Whether I mean you harm.”

Her expression didn’t shift, but her eyes stayed locked on me.

“Let me be clear. I don’t intend to harm you. I only brought my friend because she’s searching for a teacher.”

Her gaze slid to Bella.

“I heard her say earlier she can’t learn anything more at her academy.”

A sharp laugh escaped her lips.

Bella’s cheeks reddened.

“So we thought—the Demon Alchemist might be someone she could learn from.”

“Once more.” Her eyes bored into me. “How do you know I’m Sohyang?”

“Because, just as you have a special gift, I have a power of my own.”

Bella blinked wide eyes at me.

“How many people know?” the café owner asked coldly.

“Just me… and her.” I gestured at Bella.

“No one else. And I don’t intend to tell anyone else, either.”

“Why not?”

I met her gaze, my voice firm.

“Because if word got out and you were forced to close this café and disappear, I’d never get to drink these drinks again.”

For the first time, her composure cracked.

“…Really.”

“And as for why I brought her,” I added, “it’s because she’s clearly crazy about potions.”

“Wh–what?” Bella stared at me, startled.

“If the Demon Alchemist exists, then she’s the only one who could guide someone like this.”

The woman looked back at Bella.

“…Earlier, you said the drink felt like a mix of Recovery and Burn Salve.”

“Y-yes,” Bella stammered.

“But I didn’t add any potion. There was no mana signature. Then why did you feel that way?”

Inside, I smiled.

The Demon Alchemist was testing her. If Bella gave a worthy answer, she’d pass. If not… we’d both be silenced.

But I wasn’t worried. Bella was insane about potions.

“M-maybe…” Bella’s voice wavered at first, but her eyes sharpened.

“Maybe you distilled a potion first, then mixed a tiny amount into the drink. The mana was undetectable because you dissolved the distillate with a powder made from Blink Moth wings and Glass Golem cores…”

The woman’s eyes widened.

“…Why those two?”

“The Blink Moth wing has a subtle mana-suppressing effect. The Glass Golem core has no toxicity but amplifies the efficacy of certain materials.” Bella’s voice grew stronger.

“For an ordinary person to safely ingest demonic materials, you’d need to erase both mana and trace toxins. Distilling the potion, then adding those two, could create a solution that an ordinary person could drink, with no mana signature, but still granting faint effects…”

As expected.

She hadn’t even hesitated. She must have been analyzing the drink in her head nonstop ever since that first sip.

“It’s wrong.”

“…Eh?”

“Like you said, Blink Moth wings suppress mana, and Glass Golem cores can enhance that effect. But they also enhance toxicity. The moth wings themselves carry a faint poison. So the result you described can’t exist.”

“That can’t beee… I’ve used Glass Golem cores in plenty of potions, and the toxicity never increased….”

“The level of toxin amplification is so small you wouldn’t detect it with reagents. Awakened wouldn’t feel it either. But ordinary people would. It could kill them.”

“…I seeee.”

Bella lowered her head, crestfallen.

“But you were very close.”

Her head snapped back up.

“The blend of Recovery and Burn Salve distilled—correct. Using the moth wing and Glass Golem core—also correct.”

Her eyes widened, sparkling.

“What’s your name?”

“B-Bella Ball.”

“Bella Ball. I’ll call you Bella.”

“Y-yes ma’am!”

“Bella. Do you truly want to be my disciple?”

“Of course I dooo! Absolutely!”

“Even if I teach you, you may never be able to use that knowledge in public.”

“I don’t care!”

She answered without hesitation, stepping closer.

“I want to make potions that have never existed before. To do that, I need knowledge I can’t get anywhere else. You’re the only one who can give me that. Teacher.”

She’s already calling her ‘teacher’ before she’s even accepted…

I almost laughed and looked away.

“I never said I would take you as a disciple.”

“Th-then what do I have to do for you to accept me?”

Instead of answering, Sohyang stepped behind the counter, her hands moving swiftly. Moments later, she slid a glass across.

It was the same non-alcoholic mojito Bella had drunk earlier.

“By tomorrow, bring me a drink with the exact same effect.”

“Whaaat?!” Bella yelped.

“If you succeed, I’ll take you. If not—then it ends there.”

“…Understood.” Bella clutched the glass tightly.

“Tomorrow, four o’clock sharp. One second late, and it’s void.”

Bella nodded furiously and hurried off, lifting the shutter herself before disappearing.

I was left alone with the Demon Alchemist.

I stepped toward the half-raised shutter.

“Then I’ll just—”

“Stay.”

Her voice stopped me. She lowered the shutter again, walking toward me.

“Why did you really bring that girl to me?”

“There’s no hidden reason. I just thought—an alchemist madly obsessed with potions and the Demon Alchemist would make a good match.”

“Don’t lie. Crystal, Forward, any corporation tied to item trade would pay fortunes for information about me. And you expect me to believe you came here for that?”

“I already told you. I don’t want this café to disappear. That’s worth more than money.”

She stared into my eyes, as if reading my soul, then sighed.

“…To think my identity would be exposed so easily. I never imagined it.”

“Really? Selling drinks infused with demonic materials in the middle of the Hunter Market… It almost feels like you wanted someone to eventually recognize you.”

Her eyes widened slightly.

“…Are you an alchemist too?”

“No. As I said, I’m from Gwangcheon. Just an ordinary Hunter candidate with nothing special.”

“Someone who can discern people’s identities calls himself ‘ordinary’? Don’t you think that’s a stretch?”

“Maybe.” I grinned.

She frowned faintly.

“…The Demon Alchemist is famous. But the name Sohyang is not. Yet you knew both, along with my ability. You saw my face and immediately knew.”

She gestured at her own features—looking no older than her twenties.

Of course, the real reason was my game knowledge and Lens of Lavzahi.

“If you really can uncover others’ secrets, then I have a request.”

She stopped before me.

“Give and take. If you don’t accept, I won’t take that girl as my disciple.”

That couldn’t happen. Bella had to become her disciple, or I’d lose what I needed.

But in the game, there’d never been such an event. Maybe it triggered because I claimed to have this ‘special power.’

“What’s the request?” I asked.

“Bring me an Awakened.”

“What kind?”

“Someone with a curse attribute ability.”

“……”

At once, an image surfaced in my mind—

A girl with black hair tied into twin tails.

(End of Chapter)

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