"So... How can we help her?"

Qasim couldn’t help but ask after seeing Valen staring silently at Levia’s unconscious body.

Valen finally looked away from her.

"I know someone who should be able to fully cure her."

Qasim’s eyes lit up.

"A doctor?"

Valen simply smiled.

"You’ll see."

...

The team made a quick stop at their own Black Seed base before heading outside the city.

It was Qasim’s first time properly seeing the place he now lived in.

Wide streets stretched in every direction. Stone buildings lined both sides of the roads while merchants loudly advertised their goods. Carriages constantly moved between districts, and the number of people surprised him.

"So... this is only one city..."

Back on Earth, he had seen large cities through pictures and videos, but experiencing one in person felt completely different.

Unfortunately, his amazement didn’t last long.

The moment they entered another city, his previous excitement completely disappeared.

Compared to this place...

Their own city looked ordinary.

The streets were much wider, decorated with colorful flowers and elegant statues. Large fountains stood at every major intersection while expensive-looking stores displayed goods Qasim had never seen before.

People from different races casually walked together.

The entire city felt alive.

Valen noticed the boy looking around.

"Beautiful, isn’t it?"

Qasim nodded without taking his eyes off the scenery.

"It is..."

Valen smiled before starting another one of his lessons.

"The kingdom is divided into four levels."

"At the very top is the Capital."

"Then come the Three Great Cities."

"After that are the Standard Cities."

"And finally... villages."

"Our base is located in one of the Standard Cities."

"It’s called Cerys."

"It ranks third among all the Standard Cities in terms of wealth and future potential."

He then pointed toward the busy streets outside.

"And this city..."

"...is Bida."

"One of the Three Great Cities."

Qasim quietly listened while admiring everything outside the carriage.

It really was beautiful.

Not long afterward, they stopped in front of a familiar-looking building.

TaskJam.

Qasim blinked.

"So... this is another Black Seed base?"

Valen nodded.

"Exactly."

"So we’re meeting another Black Seed team?"

"You catch on quickly."

"Does that mean..."

Qasim looked toward the building.

"...we’re going to meet some kind of supernatural doctor?"

Valen only smiled.

"I told you."

"You’ll see."

...

After confirming their identities, the receptionist politely bowed.

"Welcome."

"Team Two is currently underground."

Doran adjusted Levia’s unconscious body before following Valen toward the hidden elevator.

A few moments later...

The doors opened.

The underground headquarters looked noticeably different from Team Four’s.

The air carried a strange mixture of herbs and chemicals.

Shelves filled with colorful bottles covered almost every wall.

Before Qasim could look around further—

A woman’s voice echoed through the hallway.

"So..."

"You finally decided to pay us a visit, huh?"

Everyone turned.

A beautiful short, young looking woman slowly approached them.

She had short crimson hair, matching her red eyes, and wore a long elegant robe decorated with silver patterns. Small potion bottles hung from the leather belt around her waist, gently clinking as she walked.

Valen grinned.

"Ah, Aurora! Looking beautiful as ever."

"Hard to believe you’re already in your sixties."

Aurora frowned.

"...Why are you telling me public information?"

Then...

She noticed Qasim.

Silence.

A dark smile slowly appeared on her face.

"Oh..."

"So that’s your game."

She looked back at Valen.

"You wanted to immediately expose my secret to your newest member."

"Well played, kid."

"Well played."

Valen simply laughed.

"I have no idea what you’re talking about~"

Aurora rolled her eyes before looking at the unconscious Levia.

The smile immediately disappeared.

"What happened?"

Valen’s expression also became serious.

He quickly explained everything about the mission, the poison, and the strange scientist.

Aurora listened without interrupting once.

When he finally finished, she nodded.

"I’ll help."

"Levia is like a little sister to me."

She turned toward another room.

"Hey boys...Come help me."

Two men immediately hurried over.

Aurora looked back at Team Four.

"The rest of you wait outside."

She paused for a second.

"Valen."

"You can come."

Without another word, the four disappeared deeper into the laboratory.

...

Silence filled the waiting room.

Qasim looked around before finally asking,

"So..."

"Is everyone in Team Two an alchemist?"

"Yeah."

Doran answered shortly.

"And Aurora is the leader?"

"Yeah."

"...Is she really over sixty?"

"...Yeah."

Silence returned.

...

Almost an hour later...

The laboratory door finally opened.

Valen walked out first.

A relieved smile rested on his face.

"She’s stable."

"The poison has been completely removed."

"She only needs some rest now."

Qasim let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

Aurora walked out behind him while holding a thick glass bottle.

Inside floated a disgusting mixture of green, red, and black liquid.

She gently shook it.

"This..."

"...was inside her body."

"I’ve honestly never seen anything this revolting before."

Valen stared at the bottle.

"Can you analyze it?"

"Maybe we’ll find something that leads us to whoever created it."

Aurora nodded.

"I’ll start immediately."

As she was about to leave...

She noticed Qasim.

The boy was staring at the bottle with sparkling eyes.

His hands were practically twitching from excitement.

Aurora blinked.

"...Is the kid alright?"

Valen chuckled.

"He’s probably just curious about Alchemy."

"Oh?"

Aurora looked at Qasim again.

"Have you chosen your power path yet?"

Valen answered before the boy could.

"He hasn’t even taken the first step."

Aurora’s eyebrows immediately rose.

"You recruited a completely normal child into Black Seed?"

"Do you know how many rules that breaks?"

Valen laughed lightly.

"He’s anything but normal."

"He already learned Magic."

"And now he’s showing interest in the other power systems."

Aurora looked back toward Qasim with clear interest.

"So..."

"You’re sending him to the trial soon?"

"That’s the plan."

Valen rubbed the back of his head.

"I’m just worried his interest in every power system will become a problem later."

Aurora smiled.

"Let the boy try."

"Everyone learns where their limits are only after failing."

Valen quietly thought about her words.

Meanwhile...

Aurora slowly walked toward Qasim.

Her voice became noticeably gentler.

"So..."

"Are you interested in Alchemy?"

Qasim immediately nodded.

"Very much!"

A small smile appeared on Aurora’s face.

"Would you like me to teach you what Alchemy truly is?"

Qasim’s answer came without a second of hesitation.

"Yes, please!"

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