Chapter 60: Dark Demon's Dilemma
The first class of the afternoon.
Potions.
Professor Thompson spent the first thirty minutes of the class reviewing the preparation of the [Quick Mana Potion].
For the following hour, he taught the students how to brew the standard version of the [Mana Recovery Potion].
Virt and Robert, both visibly distracted, made several mistakes, leading to quite a few humorous moments.
Dark, on the other hand, completed his potion without any issues. After receiving Professor Thompson's permission, he began to patiently guide Diana, who was rather clumsy with her hands.
When it came to brewing potions, Diana wasn't even as skilled as the meticulous Rose.
Though she had immense patience, not all potions could be perfected through slow and careful work.
Most potions had strict time limits for their preparation.
If the time limit was exceeded, some of the processed ingredients would lose their effectiveness.
Professor Thompson, in principle, encouraged students to help each other.
Of course, if you couldn't brew the potion yourself and couldn't find a friend to help you, then there was nothing to be done.
While teaching Diana, Dark suddenly noticed that Emma, sitting in the front row, despite her look of disdain, had actually started helping the student next to her.
It seemed the weekend's ladies' tea party had a significant impact on her.
At the very least, she had learned how to interact with others.
...
After the potions class ended.
Dark didn't follow his usual routine of heading straight to the library. Instead, he lingered in the classroom for a while.
Only after seeing Virt and Robert head in the direction of the Knight Academy's tower did he, somewhat disappointed, make his way to the library.
Today, Professor Thompson had assigned an essay on the [Mana Recovery Potion], which would take at least an hour to complete.
After finding the necessary materials, Dark began writing his essay.
The difference between the [Mana Recovery Potion] and the [Quick Mana Potion] lay in the former's ability to restore mana steadily and in large quantities.
If these two potions were refined into magic cards, they could be used to create rechargeable magic cards similar to Emma's [Coin X3].
Dark incorporated his own ideas into the essay, and soon, a well-structured paper was completed.
At the same time, he began considering whether to add one or two rechargeable magic cards to his deck.
...
Meanwhile, in the Knight Academy's common room.
Virt and Robert, having just finished a game of magic chess, sat in prolonged silence before finally packing up the board.
On their way to the library, Robert couldn't help but ask, "Virt, are you really planning to stop using that flower card?"
Virt looked visibly dejected: "What else can I do? Professor Kazel made it clear that if I'm caught again, it won't just be a fifty-point deduction."
Robert glanced around and, seeing no one nearby, said, "But didn't it work perfectly fine this morning? As long as we don't use it around the professors, no ordinary student would notice. And besides, the lock on the card..."
"Speaking of the lock," Virt suddenly interjected, "I think Dark Demon is actually a pretty decent guy."
Robert was taken aback: "What do you mean?"
Virt: "Do you know who was in the office when I got scolded at noon?"
Robert: "Besides Professor Kazel, who else could it be?"
"Not just the professor," Virt sighed. "Dark was there too! If he hadn't been there, I definitely wouldn't have been able to handle the pressure from the professor. I think he must have gone to the office on purpose to act as a third party and ease the tension."
Robert was surprised: "Wait, Virt, why would you think that? Is Dark really that kind of person?"
Virt shook his head: "Don't say that. We don't really know him. Maybe the greeting we gave him this morning actually had some effect."
Robert: "But his favorability dropped!"
Virt: "Favorability fluctuates. It was just a momentary thing!"
Robert: "Shouldn't we check again? He's probably in the library."
Virt: "No, I won't use it again."
Robert: "But don't you want to know how much favorability Pandora has toward you?"
Virt: "I..."
...
Under Robert's questioning, Virt began to waver once more.
"Just one more time... as long as no one finds out..."
"I used it so many times this morning, and no one noticed."
"As long as I don't use it around the professors..."
Robert leaned in and whispered temptingly, "Just one more time!"
...
However, when Virt arrived at the library with great determination, he found that Pandora wasn't there today.
While he felt disappointed, he also breathed a sigh of relief.
But his obvious display of emotions made Robert realize that his friend had truly fallen into the depths of infatuation.
...
In the reading room.
After finishing his potions essay, Dark prepared to return to his dorm to check on the insect tree and the cat grass.
But just as he was about to pack up, he noticedVirt and Robert approaching.
"Excuse me, can we sit here?"
Virt pointed to the seat across from Dark.
A table could seat four people.
Usually, the ones who sat across from Dark were Diana and Rose.
Dark's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, but he still said, "Of course."
Virt and Robert then took their seats.
Virt took out his homework, intending to strike up a conversation with Dark to increase his favorability, but he noticed that Dark had already stood up.
His expression stiffened.
But Dark, of course, didn't stop because of this.
After Dark left.
Virt suddenly noticed that Emma was sitting diagonally across from him, making the situation even more awkward.
...
Meanwhile, Dark, who had left the library, headed straight back to his dorm.
After checking on the insect tree and the cat grass, he immediately began practicing the "Meditation Technique" as taught by Professor Kazel.
But as Professor Kazel had said, mastering the "Meditation Technique" required long-term, consistent practice.
The best approach was to practice for an hour before bed each night.
After half an hour of practice with no results, Dark took out the "Magic Spirit Crafting General Handbook" and began reading.
But after only a short while.
Dark put the book down and stood up.
Today, he felt unusually restless, as if there was something he had been meaning to do but hadn't gotten around to.
"Meow~"
The cat grass dragged its pot over and rubbed against his leg.
He looked down at the adorable cat grass, especially at the flower on its head that was about to bloom, and a glimmer of realization flashed in his eyes.
"That's right."
"I haven't absorbed today's portion of [Pride] yet."
"Just one drop might be enough to make this flower bloom!"
"But I've already used up this month's quota."
"If I absorb any more, I'll have to take on some risk."
"But just one more drop..."
Dark found himself in a dilemma similar to Virt's.
________________________________________
If you want more chapters, please consider supporting my page on Patreon. with 30 advanced chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/Leanzin