Chapter 383: Chapter 383: Quick Enchantment, Becoming an Alchemist, Follower’s Compensation

At first, Lance didn’t recognize her. After all, the windproof goggles covered most of her face, revealing only a pointed chin.

But when she peered at him through the crack in the door, the pair of fox ears on her head twitched violently, which was how Lance caught on.

’Isn’t this the Mechanical Witch from the light rail yesterday, the one I stared at for ages because her panel changed?’

Lance sighed inwardly. ’Ostrara doesn’t seem that big, does it?’

To run into her like this. And she seemed to be that Mr. Baldwin’s student.

Thinking of this, Lance put on what he believed was a friendly smile, ready to say hello.

However, before he could speak, he saw the crack in the door begin to close, inch by inch, with excruciating slowness and caution.

She was clearly trying to bury her head in the sand and pretend nothing had just happened.

???

Lance was full of questions. ’What’s with this Fox Girl’s thought process?’

Seeing the door was about to close, he acted quickly, reaching out a hand to hold it in place.

Feeling the resistance from outside, Charloie panicked.

"My... my teacher isn’t home. You should come back another day."

She stammered through the crack, her voice trembling with nervousness.

At the same time, she used all her strength to push against the door, trying to keep this pervert out.

"Um, I asked the neighbors before I came. They said Mr. Baldwin has been home all day."

Lance sighed helplessly, applied a bit of force, and easily pushed the door open.

The moment the door opened, Charloie scrambled backward a few steps like a startled rabbit.

Her windproof goggles slipped down, hanging around her neck and revealing a small, beet-red face.

Her pair of fox ears shot up, the fine fur on them trembling wildly.

Seeing her state, Lance suddenly realized that social anxiety exists in the Otherworld, too.

"Don’t be nervous, just relax. I’m really not a bad person."

To show he was harmless, Lance spoke in the gentlest tone he could manage and held up his open hands, signaling he meant no harm.

He then took a tentative step forward, but Charloie jumped back a huge step, as if she’d been electrocuted.

"I’m really not a pervert. I have a letter of recommendation to study Alchemy with Mr. Baldwin. Um... could you please get him for me so I can explain in person?"

Lance tried to calm her down by talking, but the moment he shifted his feet slightly, she would retreat even faster, until her back was against the wall with nowhere left to go.

’I’m done for! What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?!’

Charloie stood pressed against the wall, her mind a complete mess.

’My sisters used to say that if you run into a pervert, it’s best to use a Charm Spell. With my racial advantage, I should be able to charm someone of a higher Tier and buy myself time to escape.’

’But I never learned any of those Spells!’

At this moment, the Mechanical Witch’s brain had practically short-circuited from nervousness.

In the midst of this awkward atmosphere, the sound of rapid footsteps came from the second floor, accompanied by an old man’s voice muttering to himself.

"No, that’s not right either."

The old man mumbled as he descended the stairs, "If a Legend is used as a medium to forge a temporary Treasure, there are no materials in the current Material Realm that can withstand such Power."

"Do I have to look for materials from the Star Realm? The experimental costs would be a bit too high."

The footsteps grew closer, and the old man reached the corner on the ground floor.

"If only a Legendary Alchemist can combine a Legend with Ordinary materials, then why not just create a complete, permanent Treasure from the start? What’s the point of temporary forging? That won’t work either."

The old man was completely immersed in his own academic world. He didn’t even glance at the two people by the wall, walking straight toward the bookshelf that took up an entire wall on the ground floor.

After skillfully pulling out a book, it wasn’t until he was turning to go back upstairs that he finally caught sight of Charloie, who was trapped in the corner.

This was Baldwin, the Level 13 Alchemist so highly praised by the old Chef.

From his appearance, he looked much older than the old Chef, Selas.

Baldwin stopped, looked at the red-faced, trembling Charloie, then at the black-haired young man opposite her.

The old man scratched his messy hair with the spine of the book, and an expression of sudden understanding dawned on his face.

"Oh, Little Charloie’s lover is here for a visit, is he?"

Baldwin greeted Lance very naturally, "A pleasure to meet you for the first time. Hello, hello."

Before either of them could react, the old man added with a straight face, "But you young people need to exercise some restraint. It’s best to take precautions, and don’t get fluids all over the floor. The cleaning puppet responsible for sweeping the ground floor broke the day before yesterday, and I haven’t had time to fix it."

’So this old guy is a total airhead. Where did his imagination even run off to?!’

"Stop, stop, stop! A misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!"

Lance held up both hands and retreated three steps, putting distance between himself and Charloie to stop the old man from continuing his outrageous words. "Mr. Baldwin, I was introduced by Mr. Selas to specifically learn Alchemy from you."

To prove his innocence, Lance quickly pulled the recommendation letter from his Imaginary Number Dark Grid, walked up to the old man, and stuffed the envelope into his hand.

Soon, with Lance’s explanation, the misunderstanding was finally cleared up.

They moved to the living room and sat on the sofa. After understanding the full story, Baldwin looked at Lance apologetically. "So that’s what happened. My apologies, young man."

The old man sighed, paying no mind to Charloie, who was already hiding in a corner. "This girl has lacked social experience since she was little. She doesn’t know how to greet strangers. The moment someone she doesn’t know gets a little too close, she reacts like this. She often makes a fool of herself outside."

Baldwin tried to get Lance to sympathize with the girl. "It’s not easy for her, really. Not only can she not interact with people, but she’s also broke. She can’t even afford to buy Alchemy Materials most of the time. Every month, she has to shamelessly borrow money from me, her teacher, just to scrape by on black bread."

"She doesn’t have any friends at school either. Other students often gossip about her behind her back, and she comes running to me, an old man, to cry about it. But when she’s outside, she pretends everything is fine, even though she can’t take it anymore."

"So, her life is already miserable enough. Please don’t hold her earlier behavior against her."

Baldwin’s intention was to make Lance pity the girl and not dwell on the unpleasantness of a moment ago.

But every one of those sincere words was like a sharp knife, stabbing viciously into Charloie’s heart.

Socially anxious, dirt poor, living on borrowed money, no friends, putting on a brave face...

Every word was a critical hit.

Lance looked toward the corner of the living room, feeling a bit awkward. The Fox Girl was already pressing her forehead against the wall, tracing circles on the floor with a listless finger, her eyes vacant. Her whole being seemed to have turned gray.

"It’s alright, Mr. Baldwin. I don’t mind at all."

Lance wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

’This master and apprentice pair both score a zero when it comes to social graces!’

With the misunderstanding cleared up, Baldwin turned the topic to the field of Alchemy:

"Selas specifically asked me to teach you the unique Alchemy technique that I published in the Journal of Truth back in the day."

Hearing this, Lance’s spirits lifted.

’The old Chef is a true bro!’

’Not only did he give me a recommendation letter, he even asked the guy to teach me his secret technique.’

"It’s actually a practical Alchemy technique for rapid Enchantment."

Baldwin explained to Lance, "Its core principle is using a Technique to forcibly apply a temporary Enchantment to equipment in a very short amount of time."

’Rapid Enchantment?’

This made Lance’s eyes light up.

If that was combined with an Alchemist’s [Ether Compensation], it would mean being able to instantly apply temporary buffs to equipment during combat.

This ability was a match made in heaven for his "Heart Intent Martial Structure"!

In future battles, he could totally use this technique to specifically change the attribute damage of his martial structure based on the enemy’s weaknesses.

"I want to learn it!"

Lance didn’t hesitate for a second.

Seeing his craft so quickly appreciated by the young man before him, Baldwin smiled happily.

"Good eye! But before you can learn it, you must first take on a Profession related to Alchemy."

Baldwin offered a suggestion:

"My own specialty is Magical Blacksmith. If you’re willing, I can guide you through the process of acquiring this Profession."

Lance had heard the old Chef mention the "Magical Blacksmith" Profession before. This Mr. Baldwin was a great authority in the fields of weapon forging and Enchantment.

However, Lance immediately recalled what had been triggered at [Cyan Moon’s Return Home] last night.

He had to consider the task of creating the Concealing Potion. If he chose Magical Blacksmith, although he would gain greater bonuses for equipment, his ability to craft Potions would likely be limited. It lacked a certain versatility.

Thinking of this, Lance shook his head and explained his needs to Baldwin.

Baldwin looked quite surprised after hearing him out.

"You want to pursue both Magical Forging and Pharmacy? It’s not impossible. In that case, the most suitable option for you is actually the basic Profession, [Alchemist]."

Lance had always thought Alchemist was a general term for a group of people, just like Blacksmith or Chef.

Baldwin saw what Lance was thinking and explained:

"It does exist as a Profession. It’s just that as Knowledge developed over time, it branched out into all sorts of specialized Rare Professions."

"Its greatest feature is its comprehensiveness, but its drawback is just as obvious: it has no particular specialty. Success depends purely on individual Talent, and it requires the most learning."

"Alright, I’ll choose Alchemist then."

Undeterred by the difficulty, Lance made his choice directly.

Baldwin nodded in appreciation and also revealed some of the Profession’s benefits. "That’s good too. Specializing too early means you’re willingly giving up broader possibilities."

"Besides, there’s a rumor in Alchemist circles that only those who persist on the purest path of the Alchemist and reach the very pinnacle are qualified to touch the position of ’Philosopher’."

Lance knew that word. It represented the highest achievement for an Alchemist.

But that wasn’t something a Little Karami like him, who hadn’t even reached the Excellence Tier, could hope for.

After deciding on the direction for his Profession, Baldwin began to explain in detail the requirements for becoming an Alchemist.

As the old man spoke, a notification popped up on Lance’s panel.

[Key Information Detected: Alchemist Profession Requirements]

...

[Skill Requirements: Two Manufacturing Skills at Level 3 (Skilled), Ether Material Analysis at Level 3 (Skilled), Alchemy Form Transformation at Level 3 (Skilled), three material science Knowledges at Level 4 (Mastery)]

Looking at the densely packed list of requirements, Lance felt his scalp tingle.

’These requirements are terrifying!’

’Just the basic Skills that need tons of practice to level up... there’s no way to get them to the Skilled Level quickly!’

But, in the very next moment.

Lance’s title ability, [Hundred Crafts Convergence], quietly began to take effect.

[Detecting host is acquiring a sub-Profession...]

[Searching follower skill library. Compensation mechanism activated!]

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