65: Chapter 65 Treating the Strange Disease

"Snap!" The newly replaced table was smashed by He Xuan (the previous one had been sliced to pieces by Ryan Nephalem's claws). He slid to his knees and hugged Ryan Nephalem's thigh. "Brother, uh no, Dad—! Dad, our branch hasn't had an Alchemist in years. If you can get me one, you can pick whatever you want from the warehouse."

Ryan Nephalem gestured with his chin toward Mia. With a helpless expression, Mia took out her badge, which she had consulted the Paradise Lost System about beforehand—it didn't count as Paradise Lost equipment and could be brought out of the system world. "I'm not an Alchemist yet, just an apprentice. I only know one recipe, [Primary Recovery Potion EX], but the effect should be much better than the one you mentioned."

As she finished speaking, two streams of hot tears rolled down He Xuan's face. "Damn, my branch finally has a support profession. Next time we have a meeting, I'll make you bastards so jealous that you'll all have to call me Dad!"

After discussing things in the morning, the Alchemy equipment arrived by noon. There was also a large quantity of herbs from inside the Paradise Lost System that the Coordination Office had somehow acquired. After identifying the herbs one by one, Mia's [Herbalism Lv15] leveled up to [Herbalism Lv25].

Brewing the potions went smoothly. Mia's success rate was about 75%. Apart from shattering a few beakers, there were no other losses.

30 bottles of [Recovery Potion EX] were all completed by evening. Her [Alchemy] level reached Lv20. During the Alchemy process, she also learned two seemingly useless recipes: [Primary Mana Potion EX] and [Primary Healing Potion EX], as well as [Alchemy: Restore Durability] and [Alchemy: Refine].

Tuaner helped wipe the sweat from Mia's forehead, muttering as she did so. A succubus is valuable from head to toe (this sounded like praising a pig). She couldn't let He Xi drink a potion containing Mia's sweat; what if she fell in love with Mia after drinking it? Then Tuaner would have another rival...

Tuaner's muttering made her look exactly like an old witch brewing potions in a big cauldron in an old-fashioned cartoon. He Xi could only be the beautiful princess in the backstory who was poisoned by her.

Because He Xi was an Adventurer, her portion of the potion was a thickened version different from the others. When she drank the potion, Tuaner stared at her intently. Tuaner's expression changed exaggeratedly with every gulp she took, scaring He Xi so much that she nearly spat out the [Primary Recovery Potion EX] that her brother had begged everyone to get.

The widespread strange illness was quickly stamped out, and He Xi's condition visibly recovered within two days, though she had a strange expression on her face every time she met Mia and Tuaner at the branch. This made Tuaner treasure Mia even more. Every time they went out, they wore matching couple (or parent-child) outfits: OL uniform pencil skirts × 2, JK uniform schoolgirl outfits × 2, sporty tennis girl outfits × 2... The maintenance workers at the Coordination Office had been a bit overworked lately because many staff members had developed a new hobby: bumping into things for no reason.

During these days at the Coordination Office, Tuaner became a little expert at gathering information, getting along well with various administrative and field staff. After all, Tuaner was in charge of brewing the potions in the big cauldron, and whether to add more water or spit in it was entirely up to this young lady, right?

Mia learned from her that although the Coordination Office could smuggle some equipment and materials out of Paradise Lost, finished consumable items could not be transported out at all. She also suddenly remembered that when she went to the Alchemy room that day, there were very few Adventurers—no, to be precise, she hadn't met a single Adventurer.

Therefore, life skills were actually very scarce. It was just like Firing Pin; she didn't know what connections he had, but in Mia's impression, he seemed to live entirely within Paradise Lost.

She had He Xuan check the ID "Firing Pin," and the feedback received was that he was only active in Paradise Lost; not a single trace of him could be found in the real world. He Xuan did keep his promise and opened the branch's supply warehouse to the three of them. Aside from some herbs and Alchemy materials previously given to Mia, the branch was truly—poor!!

"Is this… all our branch's assets?" Mia looked at the sparse supplies in the warehouse, the corners of her mouth twitching.

In the corner of the warehouse were stacked a dozen empty wooden crates labeled "Extremely Dangerous," two compound bows with broken strings leaned against the wall, and a few training manuals titled "How to Become an Excellent Coordination Officer" were scattered on the floor.

"So those three pieces of equipment you gave us were the last of your branch's assets?" Tuaner was also shocked.

He Xuan's face turned red. "A few years ago, we were indeed the richest branch in the city... until headquarters discovered we had used public funds to buy a batch of demon-hunting bullets for routine live-fire practice..."

"So you experienced the process of going from filthy rich to having mice starve to death?" Tuaner kicked a pile of metal fragments on the floor with her toe. "And what are these?"

"Smuggled goods intercepted by the field team last month," Ryan Nephalem shrugged. "It's said to be a magic cannon some Adventurer tried to smuggle out, but it exploded during the teleportation."

Mia's eyes suddenly lit up. She bent down and picked up a piece of metal fragment glowing with blue light. "Wait, this... this is Mithril infused with magic! If it can be refined..."

Three days later, a brand-new notice was posted on the branch's bulletin board: [Limited Time Special] ✦ Repair Equipment - Limit 5 items per person/day ✦ Refine Magic Materials - 50% Service Fee ✦ Undertake Various Alchemy Research ※ Note: 70% of all earnings belong to the branch. At the bottom of the notice, Mia drew a crooked alchemy bottle pattern.

"Are you trying to use Mia as a slave laborer?" Tuaner grabbed He Xuan by the collar, glaring at him fiercely.

He Xuan raised his hands high. "Young lady, rest assured! We provide full logistical support!" He pointed to the newly installed massage chair and dessert cabinet in the office. "Look, a VIP work area specially prepared for Mia!"

That afternoon, a long line formed at the entrance of the branch. The first to arrive were a group of Adventurers with tattered equipment. When they saw Mia effortlessly repair weapons they considered family heirlooms until they looked brand new, the entire hall erupted in chaos.

"This is impossible! The last time I took my B-rank blue greatsword to an Alchemy Master for repairs, it took three days!"

"Holy crap! Is this girl cheating?"

"Beauty! Are you considering changing jobs? Our mercenary group offers excellent benefits!"

Ryan Nephalem silently moved to Mia's side, his fingers resting on the handle of his hammer, scanning the crowd coldly. The restless crowd immediately quieted down.

Tuaner appeared carrying a plate of freshly baked cookies. "My dear, it's time for afternoon tea~ ♬" As she spoke, she warned everyone staring at Mia with her gaze.

Just like that, Mia's studio made a name for itself in the underground world of Adventurers at an astonishing speed.

In less than a week, even Coordination Officers from other branches were sneaking over to wait in line. He Xuan counted money until his fingers cramped every day, and he even installed a shiny vault door for the warehouse—uh, although the things lying inside were almost all Mia's property already.

Ryan Nephalem leaned against the window and said indifferently, "It seems we're being watched." Everyone followed his gaze and saw a sneaky figure standing outside the branch's wall, though they didn't know when it had appeared.

Tuaner's fingernails instantly lengthened, and the fangs at the corners of her mouth began to grow. "It seems someone has set their sights on our little Alchemist~" Her tone was sickly sweet, but her eyes were like a beast that had targeted its prey...