Chapter 124: Stabbing Someone with a Soft Knife

Simone let out a cold snort and said, "Justice lies in the hearts of men. If you go too far, someone will naturally come to deal with you!"

"Hahaha..." To everyone's surprise, the distorted look on Magee’s face suddenly vanished. He let out a loud laugh and said, "Fine, very well. Since you’ve brought up the Council of Elders, I’ll give you some face and refrain from driving them away for now!"

Having said that, he ignored Simone and shouted to the six or seven people waiting there, "The number of examinees is now complete. Everyone, find an alchemy bench and prepare for the assessment!"

He proceeded as if nothing had happened, ordering everyone to prepare. Seeing those few still stunned, he barked, "Did you all hear me? Or do you not wish to take the exam?"

Although the group felt indignant, they were intimidated by his authority as the examining deacon and dared not argue. Each of them stood before an alchemy bench.

Led by Simone, Lawlin and Munro each paid the 5,000-gold-coin examination fee to the staff, and the three of them stood at three adjacent benches.

As he paid the fee, Lawlin couldn't help but sigh. Back in Posan Town, the fee for a mage’s test was only 100 gold coins; his father had even had to borrow 70 from his uncle to cover it, and his uncle had later come knocking over that small sum. Now, the fee was 5,000 gold coins all at once. Fortunately, the money he had earned over the past few years—from weight-loss potions, beauty elixirs, and his work at the Cervantes Alchemy Shop—was enough to cover it.

Lawlin didn't think the Alchemist Guild was being extortionate. He had learned from Cervantes that the guild provided all the materials for the exam, and the cost of three sets of five-star alchemy materials alone ran into the thousands, not to mention the facilities and personnel. Thus, 5,000 gold coins were quite reasonable.

Not a single person among the onlookers left. Although the two sides had ceased their confrontation and the exam seemed to be back on track, everyone could see that the tension hadn't dissipated in the slightest. On the contrary, there was an atmosphere of impending storm. These idle onlookers were convinced that there would be more drama to watch, so they remained rooted to the spot.

With so many people watching, those among the examinees who were less skilled in alchemy began to feel anxious, fearing that the pressure would cause them to perform poorly and waste their 5,000 gold coins.

Among the trio, Lawlin was the most relaxed; his alchemical skills were well-established, and passing this exam was a breeze. However, both Munro and Simone felt uneasy, as their potion-making skills had only recently reached the five-star level, and they lacked confidence.

Seeing that all ten candidates had chosen their spots, Magee gestured to a staff member. The staffer began distributing the exam questions and materials, moving from bench to bench and placing the prepared sets from his spatial ring onto the tables.

The ten examinees were all potion alchemists, so they were presented with magic crystal cores and medicinal herbs. Simone glanced at his assignment: "Successfully brew one insect-repellent potion."

He nodded to himself. The task was standard; given his skill, while brewing one successful potion out of three sets of materials would be challenging, it was certainly not impossible.

He then glanced at the assignments of Lawlin and Teacher Munro standing on either side of him. Upon seeing them, his anger flared. The two of them had been given the same task: "Successfully brew one body-tempering potion!"

Because there were hundreds or thousands of different alchemical potions, they had been categorized by strength since ancient times. Inevitably, some categorizations were ambiguous. The body-tempering potion was one such case; some considered it a mid-level five-star potion, while others classified it as a low-level five-star potion. Regardless, its difficulty was notoriously high.

The requirement to join the Alchemist Guild was the ability to brew a low-level five-star potion. The insect-repellent potion Simone received was exactly that. However, a body-tempering potion—which straddled the line between low and mid-level—was rarely used for assessments, as few newly minted five-star alchemists could successfully brew one.

Teacher Munro’s face turned ashen. When she saw the task, she realized it was Magee’s doing. Given her current skill level, success was impossible. She sighed inwardly; it seemed her long-held dream of participating in the Alchemy Convention would not come to pass.

The convention was held exclusively for the younger generation. By the time the next one arrived in ten years, she would be over the age limit. This was her only chance. She had poured years of sweat and countless sleepless nights into this, finally reaching the five-star level, only to have her hopes crushed by the scum that was Magee.

Simone could no longer hold back. "Magee, don't you think you're going too far!"

His shout caused a commotion. The onlookers, who had suspected the exam wouldn't proceed smoothly, craned their necks with great interest.

"Oh? What’s the matter?" Magee feigned ignorance and strolled over with his hands behind his back.

"Magee, why did you have them assigned a mid-level five-star body-tempering potion?" Simone demanded furiously.

Seeing the other’s livid expression, a glimmer of schadenfreude flashed in Magee’s eyes. He put on a look of utter surprise and said sarcastically, "Oh, Simone, for the son of Vice President Cervantes, you surely must know that the body-tempering potion is a low-level five-star potion, don't you?"

"It’s a low-level potion my foot! You are clearly abusing your power to settle a personal grudge!" Simone accused.

Magee sneered, "Simone, if you have the ability, go have Master Cervantes convene the Council of Elders and let them argue whether the body-tempering potion is low-level or mid-level!"

While he dared not touch Simone, he had no intention of letting Lawlin and Munro—who lacked any backing—off the hook. Having spent years in this position, he hadn't learned much real skill, but he had mastered the art of tormenting others. The trick he was using now would ensure he faced no punishment even if it reached the Council.

A soft blade that kills without drawing blood—that was what he had pursued for years.

"You—" Simone was left speechless.

Teacher Munro sighed and began packing her things, ready to leave. Many of the onlookers shook their heads; having offended the examining deacon, Munro and her companion were clearly finished.

Just then, Lawlin, who had remained silent until now, spoke up: "Deacon Magee, how about this? Let Teacher Munro off and let her brew a low-level five-star potion, and I will personally apply to brew two body-tempering potions instead. How does that sound?"