Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 754

Jenny’s bar.

Since the agreement between the Magic Tower and the university, people have been flocking to the bar where Ban stays like crazy.

I heard that even those who aren’t interested in requests are visiting the bar, causing sales to explode.

Today, however, the members of the Antares Mercenary Group were directly blocking the path to the bar.

Most people quietly turned away at the sight of the mercenaries silently blocking the crowd with their personal equipment.

Occasionally, those who caught a whiff of something would peek around the bar, but they would quickly disappear after encountering the bird-headed giant guarding the front gate.

Regardless of what was happening inside, everyone was aware that they were likely to only suffer losses.

And amidst those mercenaries, a mage was walking with a cane.

As Lenok, guided by the mercenaries, entered the bar’s lobby and looked around, Jenny approached with quick steps.

“Ban, this way.”

“Jenny.”

Jenny immediately guided Lenok to the company building next to the bar.

“It seemed important, so I drew attention to the bar and moved the meeting place elsewhere.”

“…There was no need to bluff.”

She moved the mercenaries to draw attention to the bar, but the mage from the Sinclair Magic Tower was guided elsewhere.

Her attitude of prioritizing safety in case of an emergency was quite impressive.

Perhaps it wasn’t just because of the vague assumption that they were just Lenok’s acquaintances.

“She’s a very powerful mage. I only had a brief conversation with her, but…”

Jenny’s expression, as she guided him to the top floor of the building in the elevator, was slightly stiff.

“She felt very different from Tatiana or Felix. We might need to be careful.”

“……”

If she introduced herself as Aris Richelieu’s teacher, she must be a high-ranking mage who has attained at least the Saint-level [a very high rank in magic].

Yet, Jenny felt something different from the other superhuman beings of the same level, like Felix or Tatiana.

It was a rather vague piece of advice, but Lenok didn’t dismiss Jenny’s words.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Jenny’s insight and intuition, honed from working as a broker for a long time, could not be ignored.

Moreover, if Jenny, who had learned the basics of the Uroboros magic system, felt a sense of incongruity when looking at another mage, it wouldn’t be strange.

In fact, the possibility that the mage from the Sinclair Magic Tower who came here was not an ordinary person was very high.

Beep!!

The elevator doors opened, revealing a wide corridor with glass walls.

Jenny, who was holding the door of the office at the end of the corridor, gestured to Lenok.

She immediately opened the door and stepped back slightly.

Click!!

As he stepped through the open door, he saw someone tilting a teacup under the sunlight in the office.

A woman with neatly styled, faded platinum blonde hair. She had a pure white shawl draped over her shoulders.

“……”

A calm face that was impossible to read. A strange atmosphere that made it difficult to guess her age.

The way she quietly handled the cup while sitting sideways on the chair seemed a bit similar to some mage Lenok knew.

The woman glanced at Lenok, who appeared through the door, and quietly put down her teacup, asking.

“Kenroe? Judging by that ominous magic power, it must be you.”

“……”

“I’m Clarice Richelieu.”

She smiled without losing her composure, even at Lenok’s expressionless face.

“It’s an honor to meet a grandmaster who has transcended the ranks. Shall we sit down and talk?”

But Lenok did not answer Clarice’s words.

He simply stood there with his cane, staring intently into her eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, Lenok slowly nodded and muttered.

“I see why Jenny said that about you.”

“I haven’t even introduced myself yet-”

“Are you not human?”

“……”

Lenok, leaving Clarice in silence, stroked his chin and said.

“The flow and pattern of your magic power are different from any life form I know. It’s not that your physical structure is different from humans, but it seems like you’re not even a demi-human…”

Demi-humans similar to humans, such as beastmen or giants, tend to have somewhat unified magic power flows and patterns.

That’s because their essence is also bound in the same sense as humans in a broad category.

However, the magic power of Clarice Richelieu, who was sitting in front of Lenok, was completely different from that of such demi-humans.

Rather than being slightly off from the human race, it felt like she was constantly wearing a magic power flow that was impossible for a human body.

And Lenok knew what kind of life form possessed this kind of magic power.

“Monsters that have a separate main body and operate a separate mental body for communication sometimes use this method.”

Transcendent beings like Jintun or Pyunram. Or monsters with extraordinary talents like the masterminds of the Machine City.

How many life forms that are not human but can naturally use this method exist on this continent?

“If it’s a life form that is not human and has a separate main body-”

Lenok asked.

“Are you one of the long-lived species residing in Kundara?”

“……”

Clarice, who had been looking at Lenok with a surprised expression, slowly nodded.

“There was a reason why Aris praised you so highly. Even among grand mages, only a very few have such vast knowledge.”

“……”

“I’ve lived quite a bit longer than ordinary humans. If you’re curious, shall we start the story from there?”

“No. Let’s hear the business first.”

Lenok shook his head and replied.

“I’m very busy right now. I need to see if it’s worth my time to make time for Sinclair.”

The appearance of Clarice, who uses the same surname as Aris Richelieu.

A visit from a Sinclair Magic Tower official who had been silent until now.

But Lenok had no intention of being swayed by their visit and making a losing deal.

What Lenok felt personally indebted to was only Aris Richelieu’s matter.

It was only about her, who had taken in Evan, whose identity was unclear, into her laboratory and supported him in every way.

Unless Aris herself was directly involved, he had no intention of helping her teacher.

Especially if she came here because of the magic tower Lenok had built.

“I understand. I heard that the Balkan is very noisy these days. It’s all because of the new magic tower you built, right?”

But Clarice nodded as if she expected it, looking at Lenok.

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to ask for an alliance or a cooperative project with the magic tower. In the first place, according to what I heard from Aris-”

Clarice’s smile seemed to deepen for a moment.

“She said that you’re not someone who can be swayed in that way.”

“……”

Lenok shook his head at those words and slowly closed the door.

As he leaned against the opposite side of Clarice, Clarice picked up a teacup and said with a pleasant expression.

“Ah, this tea is very delicious. Would you please tell your partner later that they are very skilled?”

“Is it about Aris Richelieu?”

Lenok asked, looking at Clarice, who had closed her mouth.

“How much do you know? No, that’s the wrong question.”

Lenok lightly stroked his chin, pondered, and said.

“How much do you need to know?”

“……”

At that moment, Clarice’s complexion, which had been smiling all the time, seemed to darken slightly.

Just by the corners of her mouth, which had been drawing a faint arc, falling, her impression changed in an instant.

The aura of a mage who had maintained her power for a long time, exuding a neat and strict atmosphere.

“The mages of Sinclair have a long-standing custom of passing on their surname to their disciples.”

Clarice said, looking at the half-empty teacup without a word.

“It is the longest-maintained rule of magic on this continent. It is a means of proving that the only people that selfish mages can think of as not being outsiders are their disciples.”

“……”

“I don’t know everything about what Aris is trying to do.”

Clarice raised her gaze.

“All I can do is offer encouragement and advice to that wish. If even indifference is part of consideration, I, as a poor teacher, must be able to endure it.”

“So, you want to say that you came all the way here without knowing the situation?”

“I don’t know what kind of being you are.”

Clarice replied.

“Except that you are a person whose identity and purpose are unpredictable, I haven’t heard anything from Aris.”

“……”

“However, I only know that Aris is holed up in the magic tower, focusing on research even after giving up her professorship, because of you.”

Clarice’s eyes, looking at Lenok, shone strongly.

“Kenroe. Are you someone who is worth exchanging for the remaining time of my beloved disciple?”

Silence flowed.

Because Lenok immediately understood the meaning of what Clarice was saying.

He knew that the reason Aris Richelieu declared a sabbatical and returned to the magic tower was not for her own sake.

Perhaps that action itself might be deeply related to Lenok.

But Aris, could she have known Lenok’s secret since then-

“You’re misunderstanding something.”

Lenok’s expression changed to an infinitely cold one as he realized that.

“Do you think I would need the time of a mere Saint-level mage?”

“……”

“It seems like you’re planning something strange, so it would be better to go back and make it clear.”

Lenok, who had slightly raised his magic power and tapped the table with his index finger, said.

What does it mean to exchange Aris Richelieu’s remaining time for Lenok?

At least Lenok had no intention of increasing his given time in that way.

That’s not the answer Lenok wants.

That’s not the right way for Lenok to think about existence.

Regardless of right or wrong, if two people’s time has to be twisted for one, it would be better to push them away.

At that moment, when Lenok was about to raise his magic power and press down on Clarice, thinking that way.

“You don’t have to mislead me with harsh words. I have no intention of leaving Aris until she collapses.”

Clarice smiled and reached into her arms.

“If the conclusion you came to after giving a long lecture about the relationship between a teacher and a disciple is just that, I wouldn’t have come to see you.”

“…That’s a ridiculous answer.”

Lenok replied with an expressionless face.

“So, are you going to say that you were just testing my reaction?”

Kugugugugu…!!

This time, Lenok’s annoyed thoughts strongly pressed down on Clarice’s shoulders.

Clarice’s complexion changed slightly at the unusual pressure.

It was a reaction as if she hadn’t expected the intensity of the thought to be materialized to this extent.

“It seems you misunderstood the meaning of my words. What I meant by the remaining time was…”

But Clarice calmly endured the pressure and slowly placed an object she had taken out of her arms on the table.

“It was about the time Aris spent working on making this object.”

Thud!

Two small vials, about the size of a finger.

A transparent golden liquid filled them.

The concentration of magic power swirling within was so intense that even Lenok couldn’t immediately guess its use and identity.

Only then could Lenok grasp the true meaning of what Clarice had been saying so far.

Lenok and Aris’s relationship. Her attitude of indirectly asking about the two people who seemed to have no connection at all.

The elixir that Aris Richelieu had created herself. From the beginning, Clarice had come to see Lenok directly to deliver this.

“The power that Aris obtained after her research has a value that cannot be compared to anything else.”

Clarice said, slowly pushing the vials towards the silent Lenok.

“It hasn’t been made public yet, but I’m trying to prepare for the aftermath as much as possible from now on.”

“……”

“This elixir is the result of Aris’s repeated trial and error to embody her enlightenment and inspiration in a material form.”

“Trial and error…”

Lenok slowly picked up the vial and looked at the golden liquid swirling inside.

A beautiful spiral vortex that seemed to clear the mind and open up magic power just by looking at it.

Did she put the mysteries of the water-based unique magic that Aris uses here?

Even that familiar shape now reminds him of memories from an old library.

Clarice quietly said, looking at Lenok.

“She asked me to use one for herself and one for others.”

“……”

Lenok smiled bitterly as soon as he heard those words.

Because that message reminded him of the Aris he remembered.

He was drawn to her goodness, which thought of others more than herself, and that’s why he tried to stay away.

He should have left before there were more things he couldn’t do than things he could do in her lab.

The lingering attachment that he couldn’t cut off was still lingering around Lenok.

How much time and effort Aris, who had no knowledge of pharmaceuticals, had invested to create and deliver this kind of thing.

It was hard to recall because her image seemed so clear even though she wasn’t in front of him.

“You should know that such things are not important.”

Lenok muttered.

“I…”

As Lenok tightened his grip on the vial without a word, Clarice slowly rose from her seat.

“That’s all I was asked to do.”

Clarice said, looking down at Lenok with a calm gaze.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I wish you good luck.”

“……”

“Aris also knows that, so she’s trying so desperately to help you.”

Clarice, who was about to leave the room, said as if she had just remembered, holding the doorknob.

“I’m planning to meet some old acquaintances near the Balkan for a few days. If you have anything you want to tell me-”

“I’ll assign someone to you.”

Lenok replied, bowing his head.

“If you need help, come and talk to me directly.”

“It doesn’t have to be that much…”

Clarice said that, then sighed as if in trouble and nodded.

“Okay. I’ll do that.”

“One more thing.”

Lenok put the vial in his arms and raised his gaze.

“What did Aris Richelieu call this thing?”

“She said she took the name from old world literature. It has a somewhat ambiguous meaning, but that child called it this.”

Clarice said.

“Elixir.”