CHAPTER 114: ECLIPSE SERUM

’scritch-scritch’

Shaan didn’t stop pounding the umbraroot inside the stone mortar he held tightly in his hands. It sounded simple enough, but the root’s texture turned out to be surprisingly tough, forcing him to use extra effort to crush it into small fragments.

"Ah, I think this is fine enough," Shaan said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Dammit, I really didn’t expect crushing umbraroot to be this hard."

"Shaan, have you broken down the umbraroot yet?"

"Almost, Dr. Marshal," Shaan replied while grinding down the last piece of the root. "I just need to crush this final bit and I’ll be—"

He stopped for a moment as Dr. Marshal walked over to him, holding a small cylindrical tube filled with a dark, grayish liquid."Dr. Marshal, what is that liquid? Why does it look so dark... and strange?"

"This sticky fluid is the sap from a noctis tree. The longer it stays sealed in a closed container, the darker it becomes—and its effects grow even stronger compared to regular noctis sap."

"Oh... but is that okay, using an ingredient that’s been sitting around for so long, ruin the potion’s quality?"

"No, no. That’s actually a good thing."

"Huh?" Shaan furrowed his brow. "I don’t understand what you mean at all."

"Noctis sap contains a substance called tannin. This compound causes intoxication and hallucinations, and its effects grow stronger the longer the sap is stored. ’Is it just me, or does this whole potion-making process sound a lot like how wine is made?

’ Shaan paused for a moment. ’Ugh, forget it. I shouldn’t waste time thinking about stuff like that. I need to stay focused on finishing this potion.’

"Done. I’ve crushed all the umbraroot into tiny fragments, just like you asked," Shaan said, handing over the bowl filled with the powdered root. "I hope this is good enough."

"Ah, great." Dr. Marshal patted Shaan on the shoulder. "This will do. Now we need to mix all the umbraroot fragments into the noctis sap."

Dr. Marshal poured the crushed root into the sap and stirred it clockwise three times. Slowly, the liquid began to darken, and sediment started to collect at the bottom of the cylinder.

"Next, we need to add four drops of Lunawolf blood that’s already been mixed with Lunatherium extract," Dr. Marshal said, carefully reading the next part of the scroll. "Oh no—I think I forgot to grab that ingredient."

He smacked his forehead. "Shaan, hold this. I’ll go get it."

"Alright, Dr. Marshal."

Just a few seconds later, Dr. Marshal returned with a small glass bottle filled with a thick, deep red liquid. He picked up a glass dropper from the table and carefully added the liquid to the mixture.

"One... two... three... four..."

"Perfect." Dr. Marshal smiled in satisfaction. "Now that this is fully blended, we need to pour the mixture into a cucurbit so we can heat it in the Athanor."

"Cucurbit?" Shaan immediately raised an eyebrow. "What’s that? I’ve never heard of such a strange name."

"Hold on, I’ll show you," Dr. Marshal said, grabbing a small round container that sat beside his table. "This is a cucurbit. It’s a special container made from glass or pottery that can withstand the consistent heat from the Athanor."

"Oh, alright. I get it now."

"Great, now we just need to pour all of this into—"

"Uh, Dr. Marshal? What about the Verulene leaf powder—?"

"Oh damn, you’re right." Dr. Marshal slapped his forehead again. "I completely forgot about that ingredient. Two spoonfuls of Verulene leaf powder and two spoonfuls of fermented Veilshade mushroom powder."

’Jeez, good thing I reminded him about that.’ Shaan let out a long sigh. ’If I hadn’t, this whole potion would’ve failed, and we’d have to start over from scratch again, which would’ve taken way too much time.’

Dr. Marshal quickly grabbed the bottles containing Verulene leaf powder and fermented Veilshade mushroom powder from his supply shelf. He then picked up a tablespoon that happened to be nearby among the potions.

"Shaan, use this," Dr. Marshal said, handing Shaan a protective face mask. "The smell of Verulene leaf powder and Veilshade mushroom powder is powerful. It’s so powerful that anyone who inhales it could start hallucinating," Dr. Marshal explained. "That’s why we need to wear these masks, so we don’t get affected directly by the ingredients."

"I understand, Dr. Marshal." Shaan took the mask immediately and put it on. "Safe. The effects from those powders shouldn’t affect me now."

"Good," Dr. Marshal said, putting on his own mask to cover his face. "Now it’s time to get to work."

Slowly, Dr. Marshal opened the lids of both remaining ingredients and carefully measured each onto the spoon. He then mixed the two powders into the main potion and, with great care, placed the mixture into the Athanor before sealing it tightly.

"Now, we need to heat this mixture in the Athanor for a while until the smoke coming out turns white. That will signal that all the ingredients have fully mixed and heated perfectly."

"Alright, Dr. Marshal."

***

After waiting for a while, white smoke started rising from the Athanor. Noticing this, Dr. Marshal slowly turned off the Athanor and took out the mixture. The ingredients had completely blended, changing the color to a dark reddish-black, and none of the black sediment from before remained.

"Good. Now we just need to pour this potion into the glass bottle I prepared," Dr. Marshal said, picking up a glass bottle he had placed on the table. "Shaan, can you hold this bottle while I pour the potion in?"

"Yes, of course. That’s no problem," Shaan replied.

Carefully, Dr. Marshal poured all the potion into the bottle until it was full, then sealed it tightly. "Ah, finally," Dr. Marshal said, removing the mask from his face. "At least now—"

"Dr. Marshal? What’s wrong again this time?" Shaan frowned, noticing Dr. Marshal suddenly fall silent. "Isn’t the potion finished? Did we forget any ingredients?"

Dr. Marshal shook his head. "No, it’s not that. All the ingredients are correct, but I just remembered there’s one more thing we haven’t done yet. One very important step to make the potion work perfectly."