Chapter 78: Alchemy (2)

“Now, add the core of the shifting mantis to your mixture and stir clockwise a total of three times.” Professor Mia said, performing the action on her own workbench at the front of the class.

“The color should shift to a light blue as it dissolves,” she added, lifting her gaze from her cauldron. Her silver rimmed glasses were fogged up, prompting her to remove them and clean it with her robe.

Meanwhile, Michael looked as his own bubbling mixture as Lilly added the core and stirred clockwise. The contents shined a deep blue for a moment, looking as if it was going to settle—yet shortly after its color dulled, turning brown and viscous.

He let out a small sigh, shaking his head. They had followed the steps exactly how the professor had instructed, but clearly they had messed up along the way for whatever reason.

His gaze moved to Melody beside him whose cauldron was now glowing in the desired light blue color—her expression full of satisfaction.

Rudy was seated beside her looking bored. Whenever he had tried to help, the girl would always find a way to change the subject, preventing him from stepping in.

After the first few tries, he stopped bothering.

The two locked gazes, sharing an understanding look. “How’s yours going?” he asked, standing up and looking in the cauldron.

“Pretty good, the porridge should be ready in a few minutes,” Michael replied with a smirk.

“Ah, it looks great… Too bad I’m not hungry,” Rudy responded, flashing him a grin. “At least you got a chance to contribute to your… concoction.” He added, looking a little disappointed.

“Mmm, maybe we can partner up next class—if they’ll even let us use the cauldron’s again after wasting ingredients.” Michael said, muttering the last part.

Rudy nodded emphatically, “though it means we need to find a poor soul to pair with Melody…”

Michael looked around the class, trying to find the perfect scapegoat for his plan—someone who would happily partner with Melody, freeing up Rudy.

His gaze passed Braydon, considering the situation for a fraction of a second before quickly dismissing the idea. While he certainly fit the bill, Michael couldn’t stand the guy and neither could Melody.

He skipped past Randolph and Jakob, eventually deciding it was best not to invite any boys to be her partner.

“Oh yes, wonderful.” A voice spoke up from nearby, causing him to flinch. Michael turned to see professor Mia looking at the bubbling cauldron in front of Melody—wearing a pleased expression.

“Although it’s a little dull, it will make a satisfactory mana potion,” she nodded, raising her gaze—her glasses fogged up once more.

Professor Mia took them off to clean them once more, moving onto his and Lilly’s cauldron.

Lilly’s already pale complexion turned even more white, her nervousness evident. Compared to Melody’s complete mixture, theirs looked like sludge from the bottom of a marsh.

Sure enough, Professor Mia frowned deeply, placing her glasses back on her face as she inspected the contents. In less than a few moments, they fogged up again, but that appeared to be enough to give her assessment.

“A waste! An utter waste of time and precious ingredients!” she exclaimed, raising her fogged gaze to both Michael and Lilly behind the cauldron. “I told you to add a pinch of the stoneskin powder and stir five times counter-clockwise.”

“AND YOU DID IT FOUR TIMES!?” her voice rose to a high pitch—startling those nearby.

The squeal was enough to scare the daylights out of Michael who had not expected such a inflammatory reaction from someone who was meant to be a professor.

However Lilly began to cry, her hands shooting up to her face to cover it—but her sobs were audible in the silent room, even amongst the bubbling of cauldrons.

“Professor, I think you’re being a little harsh,” Michael spoke up, surprising even himself. He hadn’t intended to defend himself—or Lilly—but seeing her cry had compelled him to do so.

But surprisingly, the professor didn’t get angry.

“Ahem… You’re right,” she said, methodically taking off her glasses and wiping them with her robe once more, “I guess my expectations were too high for you bunch of incompetents.”

Without another word, she moved further down the row of benches, only briefly glancing at each cauldron. But each time she passed one, her expression grew even more terse—as if seeing the failures were physically hurting her.

Meanwhile, Michael reached out to Lilly, hesitating a moment before patting her shoulder, “don’t worry about it, it’s not the end of the world.” He said, trying to console her.

However, Lilly removed her hands slowly, flashing him a glare. “It’s all your fault… You were the one who stirred the cauldron after adding the stoneskin powder…”

Eh? This girl…

Michael was dumbstruck, not knowing how to respond. Sure, he had been the one who added the powder and stirred—but he was sure that he’d stirred it five times.

Or maybe it was four?

Lilly strode past Michael and Rudy, arriving next to Melody in the next moment—the trail of tears still visible on her face.

“Please let me be your partner from now on!” she pleaded, grabbing Melody’s hand with both of her own.

The physical touch caused the blue-haired girl to recoil, but the grip remained firm. She looked at Lilly for a few moments before letting out a sigh, “I’ll give you a chance, but if you mess up—my reaction will be even worse than the professor’s.”

Lilly nodded enthusiastically, “I’ll do my best, don’t you worry!”

Michael watched the scene with bemusement, not knowing whether to be offended or not. But before he could respond, Rudy leaned in and nudged him with a grin.

“Nice work man, I can’t believe you found another partner for her so quickly,” he said with awe. “Tell me the truth, did you mess up the concoction on purpose?”

Seeing Rudy’s expectant expression, Michael shook his head letting out a small sigh—not even wanting to dignify the question with a response.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep