Chương 41: Chapter 40

Staring at the two leaves on the table, I searched for a difference. They were both dark green and lobed with a faint white sheen around the edges. I counted each lobe and found they had the same number, even though the leaf on the left was slightly bigger. They were also both symmetrical. Reaching out a finger I touched each leaf gently, feeling the fuzziness within. A hint of aether but beyond that, nothing.

Minutes passed as I searched for the difference before pointing at the smaller leaf on the right in frustration.

"This one is smaller."

"Congratulations, you've proven you have eyes," Magatha replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm so thick I could've spread it on a piece of bread and eaten it.

"Use that head of yours that your mother is so proud of." I bit back a retort and considered what I knew about Magatha. If she said there was a difference between the leaves then there must be one. I had no way of telling if one had more flavour or something than the other. What I did have, was the ability to sense aether to a small extent. Something Magatha also had. Yet, instead of matching Aethersensing with Aether Manipulation to cast spells, the Hedge Witch had Aether Stability.

I remembered a while back mum had mentioned that plants filled with aether were almost always found in Dungeons. There were apparently a few exceptions. Magatha's garden was filled with plants that had a hint of aether to them. Aether Stability made a lot more sense if Magatha was imbuing the plants with aether herself. Which meant I needed to focus more on my aethersensing. Going back to the two leaves, I closed my eyes and focused on the feeling beneath my finger as I gently touched each leaf.

The fuzzy feeling of aether pressed against my skin was a constant but as I dragged my finger across the leaves I hit a dead patch. The fuzziness buzzed around the edges of my finger, but at the tip there was nothing. I did the same check with the other leaf but I could feel aether all across its surface. Doing a more thorough search of the first leaf I found two more dead spots.

"This leaf has spots on it with no aether!" I exclaimed.

"Well done," Magatha admitted from where she sat drinking tea and chatting with my mum.

"The first step to brewing is knowing what you're brewing with. Minor changes in the amount of aether can turn an exceptional brew into little more than sludge. More aether does not mean better just as less aether does not mean worse. Alchemy is about creating a balance in whatever you formulate that allows the catalyst to shine."

"If I complete the Path of Brewing will I get the Alchemy Advanced Attribute like you?" I asked. Magatha snorted in response.

"No, you'll be able to take the Brewing Advanced Attribute, which can be improved to the Alchemy Advanced Attribute. Now, get all the leaves out of that basket there and separate out all the ones with aether dead zones from the ones with a consistent spread of aether." For some, the task may have been a boring one. For me, it was a golden opportunity to advance my Path of Aethersensing. The day dragged on and I was pulled away to have lunch after I finished sorting the leaves.

After lunch, Magatha examined my performance.

"Good enough for someone without the Aethersensing Attribute," she commented as she gathered up the pile of leaves with dead spots and dumped them into a bucket. The remaining leaves were scooped into a bowl as she drew me back to the table with a mortar and pestle.

"This is called Bitterleaf. A boring name that some moron came up with because, as it sounds, it tastes bitter. If we brewed this into a tea, it would be good for only one thing. Cleaning out someone's stomach if they were a bit clogged up. What does that tell us?" I had a few ideas. Assuming that by clogged up she meant constipated, then my guess was that there was an oil in bitterleaf that the human body didn't easily digest. Of course, I couldn't say that, as what four year old would know such things.

"It means we shouldn't eat it?" I offered. My Path of Deception ticked up in the background.

"I just said we could drink it, under certain circumstances. What it means, though, is that your body isn't good at… turning it into shit…" Magatha paused as my mother softly snickered in the background.

"Which means that we can use it as a base. In alchemy, a base is something that is used to move something else into or around the body."

"Does that mean potions give you the shits?" I asked. My mother couldn't take it anymore, bursting into laughter. I smiled cheekily while Magatha rolled her eyes at the pair of us. It took almost a minute for mum to calm down.

"Children, the both of you. But yes, drinking too many potions can give you the runs. Mixing different types of potions can do that or worse. So, don't do that unless you know that they won't interact." I nodded along with a smile as we got to work with the leaves. First, I had to grind them up with a mortar and pestle which took another hour. When that was done, we needed to boil them. I had expected we would use the cauldron for that, but instead, it was just a metal pot.

Once it was done, we then whisked off the layer of oil floating on the top and moved that to a smaller glass bottle. There was still water in with the oil and we had to boil it out until there was a thin layer of faint yellow oil lingering in the bottom of the glassware. Finally, Magatha poured the oil into another bottle which was already filled with oil and marked with the words 'Bitterleaf Oil.' This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

The entire process had taken most of the afternoon and I was surprised to find that I had gained a couple of steps in my Path of Brewing as we walked home. Magatha had promised that next week, we would use the base I had helped make to brew my first potion. Knowing the Hedge Witch, I expected that it would be something like a bug repellent potion. That night I offered to brew tea for Gramps after dinner.

The act didn't net me any more steps in my Path, but I figured if I did it a few times a day for the old man then it would add up. The following day, after breakfast with fresh tea brewed by yours truly, I sat in Gramps' office. My legs dangled over the edge of the seat kicking back and forth as we waited for Etta to arrive.

"Gramps, how many Advanced Attributes do you have?" I asked. After getting the same information from Magatha I thought it would be a good idea to compare with Gramps. I was planning to ask Mum later as well. The old codger gave me the side eye as he looked up from the tome in front of him. The dark woolen shirt he was wearing contrasted with his grey beard making him look a little like salt and pepper. I tried not to let myself get distracted as he opened his mouth.

"Why do you ask?"

"Magatha told me most of hers. She's got five. She let me know what four of them were! I wanted to know how many you had because you're further along your Class Paths than she is right?" I explained.

"I am. You can usually guess how far someone is along their Class Paths simply by their age. Magatha, unless she is exceptionally talented…"

"Like me!" I interjected. Gramps smiled.

"Yes, like you. Unless she was like you, then she would be somewhere around the fourth Tier of her Adept Class Path." Without more context I had no idea of figuring out exactly how long Class Paths were supposed to take to complete. So, rather than act like a little know it all, I just stared at the old codger with a blank and confused look on my face. My acting was clearly good enough to convey my thoughts on the matter to the old man.

"Basic Class Paths take between eight to ten years for most people. Another twenty for the Adept Class Path. Another thirty for the Advanced Class Path. Forty for the Elite Class Path. That's the human standard."

"What?! Doesn't that mean someone would need to live till they're over a hundred to complete all the Class Paths?!" Gramps shushed me and I realised I had stood up on my chair in my excitement. I sat back down and once I was settled he continued his explanation.

"It does, though that isn't all of the Class Paths. The final Class Path we know of is the Master Class Path. I would guess it takes fifty years to complete, though if anyone achieved it they're not telling the Adventurer's Society about it. Or maybe the Adventurer's Society isn't telling us. Do you understand what this means?" I did the math in my head. With my Talented Attribute I was already advancing at an increased rate of thirty percent.

If it took one-hundred-and-sixty years to complete the Class Paths then at my current rate I would manage it in one-hundred-and-twelve. Still too long. But, Gramps had mentioned that my Talented Attribute could be improved. There were also other ways to increase the speed of development.

"That I have a chance of reaching the Master Class Path?" I ventured in answer to his question. Gramps nodded.

"It's been done before. Anyone with a Master Class Path is known across the continent, perhaps even beyond. They are the greatest heroes and villains of our history. You would go down in the annals of history. Is that…" I interrupted him again.

"Do elves live longer than we do?" Gramps nodded, leaning toward me with his arms resting on his desk as he waited.

"Doesn't that mean they are more likely to reach Master Class Paths more easily than we are?"

"Somewhat," he agreed.

"They unlock their Class Paths later than we do though and they advance more slowly on all Paths. The inverse is true for those shorter lived, like orcs. They unlock their Class Path earlier and advance slightly more quickly. But on average they live shorter lives. The Myriad Paths is relatively balanced, Bastian. If it wasn't, then it would be easy for one race to simply dominate the others."

"What about Beastkin?"

"Earlier. Same as orcs, generally, with a few exceptions. Bearkin live slightly longer."

"And the Royal Family of Ajinar are Bearkin?" Gramps smiled again.

"Paying attention to your mothers lessons? You're a good lad, Bastian. And yes, they are. They rule Ajinar, despite Wolfkin and Catkin unlocking their Class Paths earlier. Though, in this case, it's not about Class Paths that give the Sevgi Family an advantage over their supposed peers. It's a bloodline."

"A bloodline? What's that?"

"A special Path that is carried through a family. In the Sevgi families case, the rumour is that it guarantees that they will unlock an additional Affinity slot along with the Blood Affinity. Makes them very hard to kill and incredibly capable physically. Coupled with their already increased strength and size from being Bearkin, they are probably the most formidable warriors to the east, matched only by some of the best orc warlords," Gramps mused.

"Do you have a bloodline?" I asked curiously. The old man laughed ruefully.

"No. They're not common, and even then, most of them aren't that strong. They might just give a few extra stats or marginally improve an Affinity. The powerful ones are rare and almost always carried in noble families." I thought about that for a moment. The question I had was about a chicken and an egg. Did those with bloodlines become nobility due to their increased capabilities, or were they named nobility because of their bloodlines. The answer, of course, hit me in the face.

"Is that because the nobility seek out people with bloodlines and marry them into their families?" Gramps did a double take before sighing.

"Bastian, you are too smart for your age. Don't let it get you in trouble." He looked away and muttered quietly, though I still heard the words.

"Even though I know you will." Etta chose that moment to burst into the room with a wide smile on her face and George right behind her.

"I unlocked my Status!" she shouted to the room.