RNP Chapter 303 Mandrake
Chapter 303 Mandrake
Chapter 303 Mandrake
Mr. Rand was a capable man; even his walk had a brisk pace.
He was the leader of an alchemy syndicate and apprehended François at the scene of a murder.
Mr. Rand said that the green potion was an alchemical potion he made himself, called "Deep Kiss".
The drug works by altering the properties of the blood, preventing the body from absorbing oxygen and creating an effect similar to suffocation.
Inhaling this poison will immediately cause suffocation and fainting.
Furthermore, if the volatile substances of the drug cannot be neutralized within two minutes, the user will die from lack of oxygen.
However, this potion is not suitable as an assassination tool. According to Rand, the volatile substances are unstable and can be neutralized by many things.
For example, the thick smoke from burning firewood.
But François hadn't taken any precautions, yet he was able to ignore the toxicity of the alchemical potion. Rand was very curious about this, so he forcibly brought François back to his Deathstroke Alchemy Group.
Later, Rand pressed François on why he was immune to the toxin, but François said he didn't know either.
It wasn't until Rand asked if François was also an alchemist that François admitted he had learned some basic alchemical knowledge.
Rand then set some alchemical questions for François to answer.
Aaron had explained all of this to him, and François answered easily.
Rand then explained the reason to François: the extraordinary abilities possessed by alchemists are actually the ability to resist the extraordinary.
Alchemists are resistant to many supernatural beings, and since François is also an alchemist, he is immune to the toxicity of alchemical potions.
François suddenly realized, while Rand was very interested in François and asked him if he wanted to join the Deathstroke Alchemy Guild.
François only asked one question: Where is the dormitory?
Therefore, François is currently staying in the Deathstroke Alchemist's underground laboratory. François is afraid to face problems alone, and if there is anyone he is willing to rely on, he will definitely cling to that person's leg and never let go.
However, François is somewhat conflicted this time, unsure whether his decision is the right one.
Alchemy is dangerous!
Both "Elementary Alchemy" and Aaron's admonitions emphasized this point to François.
Does this mean that François is trapped in a place where he will never find peace?
But the members of the Funeral Alchemy Guild all looked fierce and menacing, so François really didn't dare to easily suggest leaving.
Fortunately, they didn't trust François either, and only gave him some delivery and cleaning work.
François was pleased with the situation and took on the main responsibility for the alchemy group's meals.
In this way, he can leave the laboratory for a longer period of time under the pretext of purchasing ingredients.
At least for the time being, no one has caused François any trouble because of this, so he hopes that this situation can continue.
Moreover, he also receives a salary.
The Funeral Alchemy Guild is an organization where alchemists can learn and comprehend together.
However, in order to prevent the alchemists in the team from being distracted by things other than alchemy, the organization will solve the alchemists' financial problems.
The alchemy group's source of income is naturally the sale of alchemy potions.
Therefore, occasionally someone will come to inquire about orders for Lande Alchemy.
François was always required to serve guests at those times, since other alchemists were unwilling to waste their time on those smelly people.
However, François never complained about it; on the contrary, he felt lucky because of it.
Right now, François is using a specially made brush to clean a special glass vessel with a long and curved neck.
The bluish-purple grime at the bottom of the bottle was much more stubborn than François had imagined.
Left with no other choice, he poured in some cleaning agent.
This alchemical potion was made by the Funeral Alchemy Guild themselves. Based on the alchemical instructions here, they found the optimal mixing ratio and order for this alchemical potion.
The bottle in François's hand is more than twice as effective as the same kind of medicine.
François had no doubt that it would easily eliminate any stubborn stains.
However, there is a risk that contact with certain sensitive and potent agents could potentially result in an explosion.
François might actually be considered an alchemist who has never made medicine, as he is able to resist many of the side effects of alchemical potions.
However, his physical body did not receive any enhancement.
If an explosion occurs, being torn apart could be a serious problem!
Therefore, François would never use it unless absolutely necessary.
François carefully cleaned the strange artifact's blood, which had already been mixed with cleaning agents.
François finally breathed a sigh of relief after rinsing the inside of the bottle thoroughly with clean water.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead; this seemed to be the last thing to wash.
But his work wasn't over yet; an alchemist treated François like a servant, ordering him around like that:
"Hey, Fatty, get me fifty grams of mandrake."
Fifty grams, or about two ounces, is a unit of measurement that François has not yet fully adapted to in the Far East.
Whatever the problem was, François had to calculate it for a while each time, but unfortunately, his math wasn't very good.
Mandrake is actually the name of a leafy, thick-rooted ginseng plant, including greenish-purple leaves and thick, baby-like roots.
But the alchemist named Michael probably wanted the leaves of the mandrake.
If he wants the root, he will say "mandrake," but if he wants the whole mandrake, he will not add "gram" but will give the specific number.
François immediately weighed out fifty grams of mandrake leaves from the herbal materials shelf and handed them over.
He noticed that there was a thin, light white stripe on the vein of the mandrake leaf.
"Hey! Fatty, hurry up!"
Michael urged impatiently, and François hurried a few steps.
The alchemist Carlo, standing nearby, seemed unable to bear it any longer and spoke up in rebuke:
"He's already helped you by getting it for you, why are you being so rude to him? If you're not satisfied, go get it yourself. He's an alchemist too."
Why should I serve you?
Michael rolled his eyes at Carlo: "An alchemist? Ha! Have you ever seen him refine any gold? What right does someone who can't alchemy have to call himself an alchemist?"
Carlo retorted, "Unless it's alchemical soil, it simply cannot remain in a laboratory for long. Don't you know that?"
"Are you insulting alchemists? When did alchemists abandon their pursuit of knowledge and technology?!"
Upon hearing this, Carlo's face showed anger, and he opened his lips as if he was about to argue.
Upon seeing this, François quickly handed the mandrake to Michael.
He immediately reassured Carlo, "Scholar Carlo, it's alright, I enjoy doing these things."
"Scholar" is a respectful title that alchemists like to hear, and this was the first thing François learned in the Funeral Alchemy Guild.
Carlo looked at François with a disappointed expression, then turned away angrily to continue preparing the potion.
François breathed a sigh of relief; if the two of them had argued because of him, he would have been caught in the middle.
He is not good at socializing, but he is very good at reading people's expressions.
In the past, when his adoptive parents argued, he would stay far away. But if the issue of the argument involved him, and François did not intervene, he would be ignored by both of them for a long time.
Therefore, François understood that even if one wanted to be a parasite who only depended on others, one must master the appropriate skills in order to secure a comfortable living space for oneself.
François continued cleaning the instruments in the laboratory and obeying the commands of various alchemists.
Sometime later, Rand returned to the laboratory.
He held a bottle of pale yellow medicine in a test tube in his hand, raised it to his brow and squinted at it.
Then he put his hand into the iron cage next to him, grabbed a mouse, and held it in his palm.
Using the tips of his thumb and forefinger, he pried open the mouse's teeth and poured the medicine inside.
The mouse screamed in agony, a sound that sent shivers down François's spine.
After a long time, the rat's skin turned red and disgusting holes appeared, from which thick white smoke spewed out.
François was about to vomit.
But Rand acted as if nothing had happened, casually tossing the rat's carcass into the waste bin:
"how long?"
"Twelve minutes and forty-nine seconds."
"Thirteen minutes! Almost ten times slower!" Rand's voice was filled with rage. "The guests were discovered as a result, and to avoid imprisonment, they lost several gold coins! This has severely damaged the reputation of the Funeral Alchemy Guild!"
Michael shrugged: "This isn't a problem with the base liquid. I performed each step meticulously; there were absolutely no mistakes."
Upon hearing this, Carlo slammed his hands on the table in anger:
"What do you mean? Are you saying there's something wrong with the trigger I prepared?!"
"Hard to say,"
Michael turned his head to the side, curling his lip indifferently.
"Scholar Carlo, your pursuit of efficiency has led to a lack of precision in your operations, a fact well-known within the Deathstroke Alchemy Guild."
"you--"
Carlo suddenly stood up, causing his chair to fall to the ground with a "thud".
But in the end, he didn't utter a single word of rebuttal.
Clearly, the yellow potion was created by Carlo and Michael in collaboration.
François guessed that Carlo might be held responsible for the accident.
He discovered that the yellow medicine was in a test tube, meaning it had just been prepared.
Could it be that Michael and Carlo were just preparing the base solution and the inducing agent respectively?
If that's the case...
François did not want to get involved in disputes that did not concern him.
However, Carlo had previously spoken up for François.
He remembers who is good to him.
An idea suddenly popped into his head—to say a few words for Carlo.
After adjusting his mindset and mustering his courage, François stepped forward:
"Well, Sir Rand—I think this accident wasn't Carlo's fault."
Upon hearing this, a look of surprise immediately appeared on Carlo's angry face.
Rand did the same, squinting at François, seemingly surprised that François would interrupt at this moment.
Only Michael, with a fierce expression, cursed François loudly:
"Hey! Fatty! What do you mean by that?! Aren't you saying this is my responsibility?! You're not even an alchemist, what right do you have to interfere in alchemy discussions?! Shut your mouth and go wash your bottles."
François lowered his head in fear and unconsciously took a step back.
However, Rand smiled and walked toward François:
"Tell me your thoughts."
Anxiety instantly flashed across Michael's face:
"Captain, how can you believe him? He doesn't know anything about alchemy!"
"Listen, it won't take long," Rand said coldly, glancing at Michael. "Or are you feeling guilty?"
Upon hearing this, Michael, though still clearly unconvinced, merely pursed his lips without uttering a single word.
Rand turned to François again: "Speak."
François swallowed hard and stammered:
"The ratio of base liquid to base solution is incorrect."
Michael immediately stood up and roared, "Stop talking nonsense! Do you even know what the recipe is? How dare you say such things!"
François felt he was about to pee, but he still mustered up the courage to say:
"I...I don't know, but—but...but, shouldn't mandrake have been added?"
"So what?"
"You added too little."
Upon hearing this, Michael's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he raised his fist, striding towards François.
However, Rand suddenly said:
"Wait, Maester Michael."
"But! Commander—you don't actually believe this fat, uneducated bastard, do you?"
"Talk is cheap," Rand smiled. "Alchemists only believe in observation, don't they?"
"You mean—"
"..-.Um,""
Rand nodded and turned to François.
"So, how much do you want to put in?"
Upon hearing this, François immediately knew that the opportunity to clear Carlo's name was right in front of him.
He closed his eyes and, with his brain, which wasn't good at arithmetic, frantically tried to calculate.
After a moment, he said a number:
"One hundred and fifty... no, one hundred and thirty grams!"
Upon hearing this number, Michael immediately burst into mockery:
"Ha! Adding so much will definitely ruin the medicinal properties, rendering the alchemical elixir completely ineffective!"
But nobody paid him any attention.
Rand turned to Carlo: "You prepare the inducing agent, I'll prepare the base fluid."
Carlo nodded, and the two began to concoct the medicine according to the recipe François had given them.
During this process, Michael crossed his arms and looked François up and down with a mocking gaze.
François could only look away in fear.
After a while, the new medicine was prepared.
Rand grabbed another rat and forced the medicine into its mouth.
Four minutes later, the rat's skin began to smoke, and it quickly died.
At this moment, not only Carlo, but also Rand was dumbfounded.
Michael was utterly dumbfounded, collapsing into his chair in despair, muttering to himself:
"How is that possible—"
Rand ignored Michael and walked up to François instead:
How did you know?
Aaron said that "Elementary Alchemy" is a very basic book, but it is large and thick, making it quite cumbersome.
The reason for this is that the above contains detailed records of various alchemical materials, and even illustrations.
This includes, but is not limited to, names, features, effects, attributes—and features when materials are abnormal.
Mandrake appears to be an extremely common herbal alchemy material, mentioned very early in "Basic Alchemy" and occupying two full pages.
Therefore, François knew it very well.
According to the book:
"The white lines on those mandrakes indicate poor development, and their medicinal efficacy is only 35% to 40% of that of normal medicine."
After François finished speaking, he intently observed Rand's reaction.
Commander Rand wore a strange smile, giving François's face a meaningful look, as if...
Thinking about a complete stranger