System Change

Derek inwardly smiled and shook his head. The Void Beast seems to be the prime ingredient in anything that permanently increases stats. I also have the cheat that allows me to provide said ingredients. However, I need to get stronger before taking that chance again. In the few times I’ve seen Void Beasts, one was intelligent. With such odds, it would when, not if, I summoned one even stronger.

“What parts of the Void Beast did you use?” Derek asked.

Roman frowned. Recipes and formulas were precious treasures to Alchemists. It made sense that Roman would be hesitant to give Derek the exact ingredients.

“Don’t worry.” Derek said. “I’m not going to swear an oath, but rest assured, anything I learn will most likely benefit you.”

Roman let out a sigh. “I suppose you remember the Prince hunting a Void Beast a while ago?”

Derek nodded. He had heard about the Prince and his team hunting down a Void Beast that was wreaking havoc on some villages.

“Well, many formulas have interchangeable ingredients. Especially things like claws and teeth. If the formula calls for ground claws of a beast, you can usually experiment a little with the formula until you find an acceptable balance for a substitute ingredient.” Roman explained.

“I guess that makes sense. I’m not much of a crafter, so I will take your word.”

“Well… the Prince had a bunch of claws and teeth from his Void Beast, but nothing to use them on. He wasn’t in any need of any weapon that could be crafted with those ingredients, so he decided to try Alchemy. I’m known for my… experiments.” Roman said.

“Most Alchemists didn’t want to touch the ingredients for fear of letting the Prince down. Me… not so much. I’ve met the Prince, and he has a pretty decent character. He wouldn’t harm a crafter for failing an experiment.” The halfling explained. “Now, Void Beast parts do not appear on the mark almost ever. So, obviously, I volunteered for the project.” He flashed a smile. “I may have taken advantage of a loophole in our contract, which was quite loose, by using the remaining ingredients on a personally project after successfully creating the potion I was tasked with.”

“So, you changed a formula for the Prince, and succeeded easier than he would think, then took the remaining claws and teeth to experiment with your own projects. I guess the Prince thinks you used all the materials on his potion?” Derek asked.

Roman looked at his feet in embarrassment. “I did give him three potions. They were great potions, too. The loss of ingredients was more than acceptable to him. He even offered extra compensation for the potions, but I humbly rejected him.”

Derek snorted. “Yeah… humbly.”

After Roman’s explanation, Derek thought about some things. The claws, teeth, and hide of three Void Beasts are owed to me once Alanah’s people prep the beasts. The difference between the materials will be vast, though. The baby Void Beast’s materials won’t be nearly as good when it comes to providing those stats through Alchemy, but at the same time, the intelligent Void Beast materials may be too much to work with.

Still, it may be worth it to allow Roman to have some of the materials for his potion. Stella once told me that the extra stats the Void Beasts gave were more personal than the stats given by the Great System. I’m not sure what that means, but it couldn’t be bad. He thought. Maybe Roman could help Brandi with a recipe that uses the lesser ingredients.

“How common were the other ingredients you used?” Derek suddenly asked.

Roman tilted his head in thought before speaking. “Without the cost of the Void Beast Material… I could get the remaining ingredients for around 14,000 gold.”

“How much do you think you could sell one of those ‘Rainbow Potions’ for?” Derek asked.

“How much?” Roman scratched his chin. “It’s hard to put a price tag on something that gives permanent stat boosts… however, I know that the meals the Crown prepares only increase Strength, Intelligence, and Endurance, so the increase in Dexterity, and especially in Vitality would increase the price… even if it is just by five points.”

“So?” Derek asked.

Roman shrugged. “I don’t know… 60,000 gold per potion, more even. You could probably trade for some good stuff as well. It’s not like it matters. You can’t grow Void Beast claws and teeth, and you certainly can’t farm them. With the scarcity of Void Beasts and ways to gain permanent stats, you could probably sell the potions for well above what they are worth.”

Derek mimicked the halfling by rubbing his chin. Finally, he spoke. “I have a deal with the Crown.” He said, grabbing Roman’s attention. “What if I could get you the claws and teeth from three Void Beasts? How many potions could you create with that? How hard would it be to come up with the other ingredients? What is your success rate in creating the potion?”

Roman’s eyes shined at Derek’s statement. “I had heard that the Crown plans on having another Void Beast meal auction in the near future. There were also rumors that someone had pulled a Void Beast out in the middle of one of their restaurants, but you know how rumors are.”

Derek smiled. “Yeah, I probably should have been more subtle than that.”

“So, it was you! And your really did that?” Roman said.

Derek shrugged. “Yeah.”

Roman shook his head. “You are something.” He was giddy with excitement. “If you can get me the materials from three beasts… hmm… I could make at least five potions… nine if luck favors me.”

If that was the case, Derek wouldn’t have to worry about rent for a long time. He was still promised 18% of the profit from the Crown’s auction, but he had no clue when that was happening. He believed that if he requested the materials from Stella, he would have them soon. Before, there was no rush, but after chatting with Roman, he may need to talk with her.

“How long does it take to make one of those potions?” Derek asked.

Roman shrugged. “Eight hours or so. The more I make, the easier it will become.”

“Okay, so, I’ll get you the materials of the three beasts. One of the beast’s materials may not be up to par with the other sets. Those sets of claws and teeth will probably be more suited for lesser potions. If that’s the case, will you help Brandi make use of them? I know it would reduce the number of potions a great deal, but I think the ingredients from the strongest beast will make up for that.”

Roman frowned. “I would rather not give such a priceless formula away.”

Derek shook his head. “Oh, I’m not talking about that. I was thinking you could help her create new potions, like the ones you made for the Prince. It should be good for her level and experience.”

Roman nodded. “I can do that, but I want to use the set to try the Potion of Physical Permanence first.”

Derek agreed with his suggestion. “Is that what it’s called? The Potion of Physical Permanence? Talk about alliteration.”

“I’ll give her some formulas I’ve come up with for beginner Alchemists to make up for her loss if the material proves useless. Since I’ve never made those potions, she’ll be recognized as the creator by the Great System and given the extra experience.” Roman said.

Derek nodded. “That’s great. If you want to just do that, then go ahead. That should be worth more than just a couple attempts of creating something with the Void Beast materials.”

“Very much so.” Roman said.

“Speaking of experience, what did you get for creating that potion?” Derek asked.

Roman’s smile was wider than ever as he answered. “I got a whole level’s worth of XP for it, and an Award that lessens the instability of my potions while brewing by 5%.”

Derek’s eyes widened at that. “I didn’t expect that.”

“Neither did I.” Roman replied. “But that’s what you get when you create something amazing that nobody else has done before.”

“I guess so.” Derek nodded.

“Hypothetically.” Roman said. “If you were able to get the materials for me, how would we split the potions?”

Derek smiled. “I’ve been thinking about that.” He said. “I want the two best potions, then we can split the profit of the rest 50/50, after taking the cost of the ingredients out, of course. Also, I may be able to get more materials later, and I we could continue with that deal. What do you think?”

The halfling alchemist nodded. “That’s… acceptable. The experience I should gain with each success and failure should still be good because of how rare the potion is. So, I’ll still be gaining more than just the profit. We will still need to talk about the split if someone wants to offer a trade. The value of the item traded may be different to the both of us.”

Derek nodded. “Agreed. Also, we will jack the prices up in the beginning just to see what we can get out of them.”

Roman’s teeth shined through his grin. “Oh, that was a given.” He agreed. “But, like I said. This all hinges on whether you can provide the materials or not.”

“Trust me, you don’t have to worry about that. The only problem is how soon I can gather them, not if.” He answered.

Roman stepped forward with his hand out. When Derek took it, he spoke. “Very well, I’m looking forward to doing business with you.”

“As am I.”

A light cough from the side of the room caught both of their attention. “Are the two of you finished now? I would like to get back to my office so I can document what I’ve seen today.” Freia interrupted.

Roman rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. They had completely ignored the third person in the room. “Of course… you’re dismissed.”

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