What Witch? This Alchemist is Breaking Bad!

Several days later, deep within the Arend Island Labyrinth, inside the temple, Weiss and Rena were each busy at their own workbench about ten meters apart. Leon stood behind Weiss and, while she was between preparing potions, brought up Mrs. Hesh’s recent condition.

“...From what you’ve described, her condition has indeed recovered very smoothly. However, it would still be best to examine her directly again. The cure was only theoretically possible to begin with, and since there’s no precedent, we still don’t know whether the disease might relapse after the medication is stopped. As for your suggestion of letting her work here, I’m generally in favor of it. The Blessing of Rebirth has tremendous practical value, but the final decision is still up to you,” Weiss replied.

“Have you settled in well after moving your work here?” Leon asked.

“The temple’s Mana is extremely abundant. It’s an ideal environment for researching Moilai’s Blessings and magical potion studies. Even the Church couldn’t provide research conditions this good. I’m very grateful that you and Miss Rena have allowed me to use this place on a long-term basis,” Weiss said.

After the struggle with the Earl ended, Leon had made sweeping adjustments to the layout of the Labyrinth Fortress in preparation for future territorial expansion and to defend against possible attacks or investigations.

Besides strengthening its defenses, he had also relocated the magical potion laboratory to an external base and established a new laboratory in a more convenient location outside, following the technical guidance provided by Weiss.

Going forward, he intended to greatly increase magical potion production to compete for business in other territories. Through the interrogations of Bishop Beckett and Ophelia, he had already gained a thorough understanding of the other Cadres and their clients.

Weiss had been permitted to reside permanently within the temple inside the Labyrinth to conduct magical potion research and Mana extraction. The exceptionally high-purity Mana she produced and her top-tier potion-making techniques had become the key to maintaining the competitive edge of Leon’s products. He had every reason to provide her with the finest possible research environment.

Furthermore, Weiss had agreed to teach Rena her techniques, and this arrangement also made it easier for Rena to receive her guidance.

“Weiss, could I ask you something about Blessings?” Leon asked.

“Go ahead.” Weiss temporarily put aside what she was working on.

“It’s about what you told me before regarding the conditions for advancing the Supreme God’s Blessing. After I killed the Earl, would that count as significantly changing the course of future history?” Leon asked.

“You... your Blessing advanced?” Weiss looked at Leon in surprise.

“No. It didn’t. But at the time, I felt something unusual. I can’t really explain it, but I’m certain of what I felt.” Leon shook his head.

After killing the Earl, he had indeed sensed signs that the Supreme God’s Blessing was surging.

However, after conducting several tests afterward, he found no obvious increase in its power. He still remained at the first-tier Time Acceleration Ability, with no noticeable breakthrough compared to before.

“I haven’t actually studied the Supreme God’s Blessing, so I can’t give you a definite answer. Whether killing Earl Foyle was enough to alter the course of history depends on how much influence his disappearance has on the world. To be honest, although the Earl held tremendous power, whether he himself could truly alter the course of history...” Weiss stopped midway through her sentence.

“I agree with that,” Leon nodded.

The Earl was indeed an influential figure in this era, but he himself had always been someone who valued balance. When the Witch Gathering had tried to persuade him to rebel against the Empire, he had remained unmoved. The most controversial thing he had done was supposedly supporting the Emperor’s Illegitimate Son in the imperial succession struggle, but even that had been primarily to ensure that the newly risen eastern nobles under his leadership possessed enough influence to compete against the old western aristocracy. Struggles over the imperial throne were nothing unusual throughout history.

“On that subject... I do have a theory,” Weiss suddenly said.

“Let’s hear it,” Leon replied.

“The Earl’s death may have been a turning point in the future, but not the decisive one. The truly critical turning point might not be that you killed the Earl, but rather a choice you’ll make after killing him—one that will drastically alter the future’s direction,” Weiss said.

“A choice I might make?” Leon folded his arms in thought. “So the one changing future history isn’t the Earl, but me after the Earl’s death?”

“It’s only a guess. Perhaps you could ask an Archbishop from the Church of the Prophet about the theoretical aspects?” Weiss suggested.

“About that...” Leon forced a bitter smile.

As far as this matter was concerned, the only person he could consult was Archbishop Miller.

And Archbishop Miller was still waiting for him to submit his research paper.

Still, since it concerned advancing his Blessing, Leon knew he had to gather as much information as possible. With the current crisis far from over, external advantages like resources, status, and connections were certainly important, but his own strength was even more so. Power held in his own hands was what he could rely on the most.

“By the way, you’ve been staying inside the Labyrinth this whole time. Have you noticed any growth in your Blessing’s power?” Leon shifted the topic to the Witch’s Blessing.

He, Rena, and Weiss had all completed sacrifices to Moilai and had each killed a Four Gods Blessed Transcendent of the same rank. Yet all three of their Witch’s Blessings still remained at the second tier. According to Weiss, advancing further required long-term absorption of the Labyrinth’s Mana, but Leon still had no idea how long that process actually took.

“Are you being too impatient? The higher a Blessing advances, the greater the gap between each tier. Taking Moilai’s Blessing as an example, advancing from the first tier to the second can take anywhere from two to five years, assuming one has long-term exposure to the Labyrinth’s Mana. The exact duration varies from person to person. Reaching the third tier usually requires more than ten years of accumulation. We only happened to open the door to that higher limit. That doesn’t mean we’ll immediately reach that level,” Weiss explained in the tone of a teacher.

“More than ten years?” Leon asked in astonishment.

“And that’s under relatively ideal conditions. Many Great Witches spent even longer growing stronger. Not every Labyrinth possesses Mana of this quality,” Weiss explained.

“Then...” Leon secretly glanced toward Rena in the distance.

At that very moment, Rena also happened to glance over at them, seemingly paying close attention to their conversation.

Their eyes met.

Rena immediately frowned and turned her face away.

Leon could only sigh helplessly.

Their relationship had become somewhat strained over the past few days.

He had found an opportunity to discuss obtaining a noble title through marriage with Rena.

The result was almost exactly what he had expected.

Rena got angry.

She clearly understood that the moment Leon brought it up himself, it meant he was seriously considering it, and that was something she simply couldn’t accept.

Leon had tried explaining the pros and cons to her, but Rena neither argued nor refuted him. She merely responded with things like, “Then do whatever you want,” before sulking in silence.

She understood the reasoning perfectly well.

But whether she could emotionally accept it was another matter entirely.

Leon turned back to Weiss and lowered his voice slightly before continuing his earlier question.

“Is there any kind of ritual that can speed up the process?”

Weiss had said that advancing from the first-tier Witch’s Blessing to the second tier required two to five years.

Yet he and Rena had actually advanced almost immediately after they first explored the Arend Island Labyrinth.

Clearly, that had to be connected with the ritual they had performed in that hidden chamber.

Afterward, Leon had even repeated every step of the ritual with Rena, but they hadn’t advanced again like before. It seemed that progressing from the second tier to the third could never be as easy as it had been previously.

If possible, he still wanted an expert’s opinion to confirm his suspicions.

“What ritual?” Weiss blinked in confusion.

“Someone once told me that temples like this, within the Earth Mother Goddess faith of the Ailanders, were used to conduct certain... special rituals. I was wondering if you knew anything about them,” Leon asked cautiously.

“Ah...” Weiss finally realized Leon was referring to the life-procreation rituals commonly practiced in the Earth Mother Goddess faith that worshipped Moilai in ancient Ailander civilization. Her expression immediately became somewhat awkward. “I... have heard of them. But I’ve never actually studied them in depth, so... I’m afraid I can’t answer your question.”

Weiss considered herself a proper scholar.

If discussing sexual matters purely from an academic standpoint, she believed she could remain perfectly composed.

Yet, for some reason, hearing Leon bring up the topic made her cheeks grow warm, and she instinctively wanted to avoid it.

She knew perfectly well that Leon was simply asking an honest question without any hidden implications.

Yet she couldn’t stop herself from imagining all sorts of unnecessary things.

Suddenly, she realized something.

She looked toward Rena in the distance, then back at Leon. She started to ask something but hesitated.

“What is it?” Leon asked when he noticed her hesitation.

“N-No, it’s nothing.” Weiss awkwardly changed the subject and busied herself with the potions on her workbench as though trying to cover up her reaction.

Leon asking that question had made a possibility occur to her.

Leon and Rena were lovers, and they had spent plenty of time together inside this temple.

Could they have already... tried it?

The thought suddenly made her heart sink.

Her hand trembled, and she nearly knocked over one of the bottles before catching it just in time.

That was close!

Weiss quickly steadied all the bottles and silently criticized herself for losing concentration.

Such a basic mistake was absolutely unacceptable for a researcher like her!

“Uh... Am I distracting you by standing here?” Leon asked.

Before Weiss could answer, Rena looked over from the distance and said irritably, “Exactly! You don’t even work here. If you keep asking questions nonstop, of course you’re going to distract people!”

The atmosphere instantly dropped below freezing.

Weiss looked back and forth between the two of them in confusion.

She had already sensed that something felt off between Leon and Rena over the past two days.

Just now had been another example.

Leon had been chatting with her here, while Rena had deliberately stayed as far away as possible.

“Rena...” Leon let out a long breath, hoping to take advantage of the fact that Rena had finally spoken to continue their earlier discussion.

“I’m working. I’m not chatting with you. Get out!” Rena replied angrily.

“May I ask something?” Weiss hesitated before finally being unable to hold back anymore. “What exactly has been going on between the two of you lately?”

This temple was basically used by her and Rena, while Leon only came in occasionally.

If things continued like this, even her research environment would be affected.

“Well...” Leon wondered how to brush the matter aside.

There was really no need for Weiss to know about it.

At that moment, Rena noticed Weiss’s curious expression, pointed at Leon, and abruptly blurted out,

“This man wants to marry someone else!”

“What?” Weiss’s eyes flew wide open as she stared at Leon in complete shock. “You’re getting married? To whom?”