Chương 103: Greatest(Cutest) Alchemist and the C- Grade

Inside, instead of immediately heading into my apartment, I knocked on Grandma's door. A little later, the locks clicked open and the door was opened a sliver. Grandma checked to see who it was through the gap before fully opening the door,"Oh, why hello there, darling. What brings you here today?" Grandma asked with a smile.

"Hi, Grandma!" I smiled, "Um…Do you accept hugs?" I asked.

"Pfft, of course, darling." Grandma replied and stepped out to hug me. It really did feel like a grandmotherly embrace, though, I also noticed that she was stronger than I expected.

"Hehe," I hugged her back.

"So, what brings you here today, darling?" Grandma asked again.

"Ah, there's no specific reason," I scratched the back of my head, "I just saw your door and wanted to greet you."

"You're even more adorable than my own children." Grandma laughed, "And it's good to see you too, Luna."

"Hello, Grandmother." Luna politely bowed. Despite how she acts when she's with me, Luna really is mature and polite. She doesn't look like the type of girl who would die to skeletons over and over again in games. For some reason, I felt chills run down my back after that thought.

"Why don't you two come on in? I'll make some tea." Grandma asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Grandma, we're a little busy today." I politely refused, "I'd love to visit again later though."

"I see, no worries." Grandma smiled, "It's just a shame though."

"A shame?" I asked.

"Indeed, I just finished baking a cake, haha."

"C-Cake?"

"Mhm, a chocolate cake. I picked one up at the supermarket a while ago and felt like making it today."

"A-Ah, w-well," I cleared my throat, "Actually, I've been wanting to talk to you again for a while now, Grandma. Are you still offering tea?"

"Oh?" Grandma showed me a teasing smile, "I wouldn't want to disturb you while you're busy, dear."

"No, no, no, I'm not busy at all, Grandma! I have absolutely nothing going on today whatsoever!" I hurriedly said.

"Is that right, dear?"

"Mhm! Mhm!" I nodded quickly, "Before cake, everything else can wait!"

"Haha, well, come on in then." Grandma smiled, holding open the door for us. …

"Mm!" I grinned, cheerfully chewing my cake. It's just so delicious!

"There's plenty more, eat slowly." Grandma said softly. Besides me, Luna was also eating her slice of cake. Though, she was cutting each bite she took with a knife; It's impressive how different she is when there's other people around.

"Thank you for the cake, Grandma!" I said after swallowing, my plate now only had crumbs left, "It's delicious!"

"Thank you, Grandmother." Luna chimed in.

"Haha, of course. I wouldn't be able to eat a whole cake alone in my old age anyways."

"You're still in your prime, Grandma!"

"Pfft, you don't have to flatter me. I'll get you another slice." Grandma chuckled, slicing into the cake. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

"It's the truth!" I said, licking my lips while eying the cake. She slid the slice of cake onto my plate and I immediately started digging in. …

"Oh right, Grandma," I started. We had just finished the cake and put the dishes in the sink. I ate four slices, Luna ate three, and Grandma ate one.

"What is it, darling?" Grandma asked, sipping her tea.

"I just wanted to let you know that, I'm planning on moving soon. My lease is about to end and we're buying a house." I replied.

"Oh, allow me to offer my congratulations," Grandma smiled, "That's great news. Buying a house so young is impressive."

"Hehe, thank you." I smiled.

"You two are buying it together?" She looked at both of us.

"That's right."

"Congratulations." Grandma said again, showing a knowing smile but didn't elaborate.

"So, within two months we'll probably be out of here." I said.

"Make sure you have an inspector check out the house before you commit to any purchases. You have to be careful when buying a house; I'll send you the contact information of a guy I trust."

"Oh, okay, thank you. That's good to know."

"And you also have to check the area around the house. Ask neighbors what's it's like living in the area, ask if there's any problems and such."

"Got it." I nodded.

"Also-" Grandma continued to explain house buying tips for over two hours. Honestly, I zoned out and began thinking of materials to use for Luna's buff potions instead. Luna, on the other hand, was listening intently from beginning to end and even asking questions about what to look for when buying a house. … Back home, I was jotting down some materials in my notebook. While I did so, Luna was checking out houses on some websites using Grandma's tips. Mm…

The issue I was having wasn't on trying to optimize the materials for cost-effectiveness. No, in fact, I couldn't care less about the price. Instead, I was trying to find the most effective material I could. Luna wanted C- grade potions. Well, she wanted a range of potions from D+ grade to C- grade, but, I wouldn't accept anything other than C- grade. If possible, I'd even create C+ grade potions for her, but, I'm not quite skilled enough for those yet. After another few minutes, I had a recipe.

I didn't know if it'd be considered C- grade or not, but, theoretically, I know it'd be more effective than the D+ grade potions I made. Heading to the kitchen, I purchased the materials and started to prep them. This would be my first time creating only a single potion in my cauldron, so, I was interested in how it'd differ from making batch potions. The first potion I was making was an agility potion.

One of the biggest differences in the materials in this recipe vs the previous one is the fact I was using a monster core as the main ingredient. To be specific, a speed-focused monster's core: A Red-Tipped Cheetah. Red-Tipped Cheetahs are pursuit predators, relying on their speed to hunt. Its core was a small imperfect red sphere that honestly kind of looked like a gumball. What would happen if I just popped it in my mouth and chewed…? I'm kind of curious.

The core was scentless, but, I had the odd feeling that it'd taste like candy? Either that or like a glass marble. Ignoring the impulse to just swallow it whole, I moved onto the other materials. Giant boar blood, it'll synergize well with the core. Red-Tipped Cheetahs commonly hunt giant boars for food, so they naturally have sort of a thing going in. At least, that's how I understand it. The penultimate material I bought were goldmary herbs.

This will purify most of the harmful substances that the first two materials carry. I cut the herbs in half and tied each half together with a butchers twine. Finally, the neutral liquid was, of course, sap. Honestly, I should just grow my own tree at this point; I wonder what tree has the sweetest sap? Heading to the cauldron, I first poured in a cup of sap. It was a little funny seeing how little liquid there was in this large cauldron.

Next, I turned the heat to low on the cauldron and stirred in the boar's blood. I let the properties naturally start to mix into the sap instead of forcefully drawing it in with my mana. After two minutes, I dropped the core into the liquid and moved my mana into the cauldron. My mana threaded into the sap and then surrounded the core. The core was filled to the brim with that was constantly circulating. Just from the mana alone, I could tell it focused on speed.

I couldn't easily thread my mana into it, the core was resisting. I pondered for a moment and looked for the gap in the circulation. There! I forced my mana inside of it; Once I did, the mana that was circulating in the core started to try and push me out. I wouldn't let it. Instead, I started to draw out the core's mana and imbue it into the sap. At the same time, I raised the heat and dropped in the goldmary herbs. For the taste, I added in a boatload of strawberry concentrate.

Since Luna loves the taste, I wanted to give her the most strawberry-taste I could. And, after just ten minutes since I started making the potion, it was done. The previously vibrant red core had become nothing but nutrients for the potion. It had dissolved once all the mana in it had drained.

"Mm…Looking good." I nodded, satisfied. I bottled the liquid and twirled it around, looking at the swishing red liquid. It looks like it should be a healing potion…

"Now! For the grand reveal!" [Sweet Cheetah Potion] Grade - C- Creator: Raccoon Manifest the speed of a red-tailed cheetah and run with the wind. Created by the '(genius!!!!)' and '(cutest!!!!)' alchemist, Raccoon for her '(cute!!!)' and '(adorable!!!)' girlfriend ElectricTypeMouse. Lasts for 45 Minutes. When pursuing a monster, gain an additional speed boost. * Your ability to sense blood will be heightened.

"…What the heck?" I looked at the description, a little baffled. I wasn't confused about the description part itself, that's exactly how I wanted it. What I was surprised about was the effects of the potion. I knew it'd generally boost your speed, but, I didn't know it'd have those additional effects like pursuit haste and blood sense. It was a welcome surprise for sure. But, besides that…

"WOO!" I cheered, happily hopping around the cauldron.

"I'm the bestest!! The best!!" I jumped with joy. I must've been too loud since Luna peeked out of the bedroom with a confused face. I saw her, ran over to her embraced her.

"I'm the bestest!" I said.

"Huh?" Luna was confused but hugged me back.

"Agree with me!"

"You're the bestest!" Luna readily did so.

"Kiss me!"

"W-wha…" Luna flinched before I heard an audible gulp, "M-Mwah." She pecked my cheek meekly.

"Hehe," I giggled, "Mwah!" I returned the kiss, but I didn't settle for a cheek kiss.

"Mm…" Luna let out.

"Hehe, look at this." I said, showing her the potion. Luna took it and checked the description.

"Sweet Cheetah Potion?" She said, then, I saw her face turn even more red as she presumably read the description.

"W-W-What's with this description!?" She exclaimed.

"What?" I tilted my head, "What's wrong with it? Is it inaccurate? I'm pretty sure the tower doesn't allow inaccurate descriptions."

"T-The adjectives! And you included too many details! W-What if my team asks me to show them the potion!?"

"Hm…Are you embarrassed to receive a gift from your girlfriend?" I asked.

"N-No!" She hurriedly shook her head, "But, your identity…"

"I don't care if you don't care~""Mm…" Luna gave up trying to retort.

"Hehe, so, are you satisfied with it?" I asked.

"Mhm," Luna nodded, "Very…But…The only thing is if I want to see the specifics, I'd have to bring it to an analyst."

"I can change the description if you really want me too…" I said sadly.

"No…It's okay. If you don't care about hiding your identity, there's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"Pfft, you're so cute. Mwah." I gave her cheek a kiss.

"Mm…"

"How's the house hunting going?" I asked.

"I'm still searching but I've found a few places for us to tour. We can check some of them out tomorrow if you're available."

"Of course." I nodded.

"Then, around afternoon?" Luna asked.

"That works." I stretched, "Hehe, then I'll keep working on your potions?"

"Okay, thank you." I smiled and tapped my cheek, offering it to her. She looked at me for a moment then understood a second later. Luna sucked in a sharp breath and leaned in. Just as she was about to reach my cheek, I turned my face and our lips touched instead. Her face turned even more red as I stepped back,"Hehe!" I giggled, heading to my cauldron.