Chương 14: The Science of the Void

Liora Valtain walked silently to the corner table, sitting down with the impeccable posture of a shadow combatant. Selene turned her face away, staring at the new assassin out of the corner of her eye with a visibly pouting expression. But before the fire mage could start an argument about tactics or personal space, the group's attention was drawn to the opposite counter of the tavern. The background chatter was cut short by a sharp, arrogant female voice.

"I've told you a hundred times that I am not splitting the coins from a purification potion with an inferior creature!" an adventurer in light armor snarled, shoving a small glass vial across the counter. Behind the leader, two other women from her party smirked with derision, looking with complete contempt at the girl with dark cat ears and a tail that twitched frantically from stress. It was Mireya Solen.

That party, composed entirely of women, had used the Neko's intellect to create their alchemical solutions and were now kicking her out of the team without paying a single copper for her labor.

"That elixir is worth at least this amount!" Mireya hissed, her small, closed paws trembling against the wood. Her feline eyes were sharp and intelligent, but they burned with a fury held back by the prejudice she endured.

"I calculated every single component! You can't just rob me!"

"We can and we will, alley cat," the leader of the all-female party sneered, her right hand resting subtly on the pommel of her dagger.

"Get out of our sight before we decide to test the edge of our iron on your demi-human neck." Mireya growled low, her sharp canine teeth on display. Her claws threatened to extend from her fingers out of sheer frustration and hatred, and she raised the glass vial, about to shatter it on the floor in rage so that no one could keep the product. Sitting at the corner table, Ren observed everything in silence. His strategist mind calculated the value of that piece in a millisecond.

He stood up with calm, discrete steps, crossing the tavern and intercepting the Neko's hand before the impact. With a smooth movement, he took the vial from her trembling fingers and, turning to the group of arrogant women, placed five shiny silver coins on the counter.

"I'll buy it," Ren said, his voice calm and firm. The party leader glared at the boy, but greed won out. She snatched the money quickly and signaled to her companions, leaving the place immediately. Mireya, however, froze in place. Her cat ears perked up in total shock as she stared at the lean human who had just paid the full, fair price for her product, defending her from those women. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Ren ignored the surrounding environment and held the vial up against the dim light of the tavern. He discreetly activated his mystical perception, and the molecular world opened before his eyes. He didn't just see a bluish liquid; he perceived the mathematical and surgical precision with which the energy flows of the herbs had been compressed and fused within that solution. There were no miscalculations here.

"This is the work of a genius," Ren commented, a corner smile creeping onto his face. He lowered the vial and looked directly into her feline eyes.

"You understand the properties of elements at a molecular level, don't you, Mireya Solen?" The Neko girl nearly jumped backward. Her ears flattened against the top of her head in utter surprise. No one in this medieval fantasy realm, not even her old party of women, had ever used a word like "molecular" or recognized the absurd intellect hidden behind her demi-human facade.

"How do you... who are you?" she stammered, her tail swishing from side to side, torn between deep suspicion and an overwhelming curiosity.

"I am someone who values mind and intellect over blood," Ren leaned slightly forward, narrowing the distance between them. He activated the charm of his flirtatious nature, sustaining a seductive, focused gaze that completely disarmed the Neko's antisocial defense.

"I am building an elite party. I have the necessary gold, and I can procure all the rare ingredients and minerals you need for your experiments. In exchange, I want you to be our technical support specialist and teach me the practical science of advanced Alchemy. What do you say? A partnership?"

Mireya looked at the coins the other women had taken, then at the vial in Ren's hands, and finally at the charismatic smile of this strange human who treated her with an intellectual respect she had never received in her life. Her cheeks, beneath her fine fur, suddenly grew warm.

"If you are lying about the rare ingredients... I will mix a paralyzing poison into your food while you sleep," she muttered, looking away with an eccentric shyness, yet she quickly gathered her belongings and hurried along right behind him. Ren returned to the corner table, bringing Mireya Solen's Alchemy to join Liora Valtain's Stealth and Selene's Fire. The red-haired mage huffed at the sight of another member, while Liora merely nodded in a polite, few-word greeting.

The initial harem was officially assembled on the Oakhaven board. The party was comprised purely of extraordinary women, and Ren pulled the strings from behind the scenes. Beneath his superficial jokes, his light smiles, and the charm he would employ over the coming days to keep them loyal, infatuated, and willing to share encounters and nights with him, Ren's chest remained entirely focused on the practical reality of his sixteen-year-old mind.

He stared into the bottom of his wooden mug, knowing that this new medieval fantasy world accepted no mistakes. The harem I always desired in the monotony of my sixteen years... it is now right before my eyes, Ren contemplated, his thoughts sharp and unyielding. They are talented, intelligent, and powerful. I will use affection and recognition to forge the strongest possible bonds with each of them and make them play across my board.

This world is dangerous, but with the right pieces under my command, we are going to rule Oakhaven.

"Welcome to the party," Ren smiled, raising his rustic mug to seal the beginning of the team.

"Tomorrow, our real training begins."