Unbound-Chapter Nine Hundred And Ninety Two – 992

Three hours after arrival, Felix entered the Alchemical Lab without a word. The door opened on smooth, oiled hinges, and he came up short.

Kerys, right behind him, laughed quietly. "Yes, there have been some advancements.”

Felix looked over the Alchemical Lab, which had once been a wide-open floor with workstations set along the walls. They were nice setups too, equipped with potent tools, specialized basins, control hoods, and prep counters. Now, however, the room had…extended.

The shape, once a long rectangle, now opened up into a wide star shape. Each triangular pocket was fitted with a pristine workstation filled with busy alchemy apprentices and the Mana vapors the swelled around them were more potent than Felix was expecting. Wildest of all, however, wasn’t the space’s horizontal expansion, but it’s vertical. Not two, but four full stories soared above him, each one shaped the same as the first floor and absolutely bustling with alchemists.

“Where’d all these folks come from?”

“The interim Master has been recruiting heavily for weeks now.”

The Alchemy Master’s workstation once stood in the center of the chamber, but now it was gone, replaced instead by a cluster of opalescent columns. Hexagonal pillars of Fiendstone rose up in a thick bundle, glowing with rushing lights that danced through its translucent material. The pillars braced against one another, branching in a very intentional way that formed a set of wide stairs that spiraled up through the levels of the Lab. Felix stared up its length, eyeballing the distance.

"This place is incredible,” he muttered. “This all happened—”

“When you expanded your empire, yes. The influx of Authority activated patterns within the Crafting Halls that seemed to require a great deal of completed Quests and gathered significance. All of them have experienced a significant upgrade."

“Ah.” Felix brought up his Authority menu. A series of bonuses, archived within the segmented display, scrolled past his eyes.

Due To Expanding Your Empire Beyond Thirteen Territories, You Have Advanced Your Alchemical Laboratory By Two Tiers!

Harvest Yield Increased By 50%!

Brewing Success Increased By 35%!

Chance Of Additional Positive Effects Increased By 25%!

Increased Potency Of All Titrations!

The list went on and on, detailing obscure features of the Alchemical Lab, all the way down to the emergency suppression system. There were even new Quests, each with sizable rewards, that the interim Master was apparently handing out like candy.

“And all of the Crafting Halls are like this?”

“They are. From what I’ve heard, Master Kastos is quite pleased.”

“I bet.”

Felix took quick steps through the Lab, and all around him the alchemists froze in place. By the time he was at the base of the stairs, however, he was surrounded by a sea of prone crafters. He paid them little mind. Felix clambered up the hexagonal pillars, two at a time, rising level after level as he went up to what could only be described as his Master suite.

Vast open counters were filled with elaborate alembics, retorts, and swirling tubes made of prismatic glass. Liquids and solids alike bubbled in basins set over colored flames, and a few were held over crystals of ice that dropped fog from their sides like a dying exhaust. The space spread out around him much like the lower levels, only larger. It was still shaped like a thirty-point star, but now there were three other sections elevated from the main workspace. These were accessible at either end via a set of short stairs—these made by common stone—before those two connected to the highest level at the zenith.

There, presiding over a series of complicated looking tubs and a comically sized cauldron, was a tall woman with a severe expression. Her long hair was tied up into a bun and she bustled around the workstation with a speed born of long familiarity while a fleet of helpers attended to her every need.

"Dabins, titrate this. Sau, wash the dorelle seeds. Watch the temperature on that. Too cold and the mix will sour."

"Aenea," Felix said, loud enough that the woman jumped in surprise. "I’m impressed. Everyone looks like they’re doing excellent work here.”

“As have you, Emperor." The Master Alchemist gave him a bow. When she stood back up, her usual sour expression was instead something closer to joy. "I've never had such a fine facility to work in, and that was before all of this." She gestured around them. “What have you been accomplishing to make such vast changes?”

"Oh, you know," Felix said, "this and that.”

All of those notifications he’d briefly perused had popped up after his fight with the Echo and subsequent raising of Aeonis. Felix had glanced over them briefly before dismissing every single one. At the time, Vess had just gotten back from the jaws of death. He’d been…distracted.

Felix cleared his throat. “I sent word of what I needed. I had figured that the ingredients would simply be placed aside, but I don’t see them here."

"No, no. We have what you need, Emperor." Aenea gestured, and one of her assitants produced a satchel with a hard frame and heavy latch. The moment the latch was thrown open, Mana swirled, gathering above its rigid maw and the vials within. None were bigger than his pointer finger, but the glass was covered in dense sigaldry that nearly obscured the thick, colorful liquid within. Even the wax seals at the top radiated a palpable sense of power.

"You have fifty Health Elixirs, fifty Mana Elixirs, and fifty Stamina Elixirs. Each one is enough to bring you back from the brink, despite your monstrous maximums.”

Felix grunted, pleasantly surprised. His regeneration was normally so good that potions made little difference to him—except when they really mattered. Then, even the smallest healing could turn the tide, and if these could boost him more then all the better.

Unseen Beholder is level 145!

Information tumbled through him. It told him little else when it came to the written descriptions, but Felix’s sense of the Elixirs grew immensely. He could taste their potency on the air, each one a bright spot against his tongue and sinuses. His center rumbled, a dark sound that emanated from an abyss deep within his core. Felix reached out and snapped the satchel shut. The sigaldry along its stitched edge flared and the trembling Mana sealed itself away..

"This will be useful.”

“We’ve taken the liberty of creating as many as we can for the Legion. It will increase their survival rate by a factor of three, though we have to titrate many of our mixtures. The bonuses to this Lab are so strong that my less experienced alchemists struggle to make lower Tier potions. However, it had an opposite effect on these.” Aenea unveiled another set of vials, these in spherical canisters made of—

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Felix gasped. “Are these orichalcum?”

“They are. Your specifications were hard to match, but Lord Wendell was able to accurately elucidate his particular brand of power. Enough to make a few batches, at least.”

Felix turned one of the orbs over in his hand. The red-gold metal was banded with silver-green and silvered-red. Mithril and arcanite. He shook one gently and it sloshed inside.

Aenea blanched. “Don’t do that!”

He set it back down. “Sorry. You’ve tested them?”

The Master Alchemist swallowed, her face no less pale. “Once. It was more than enough to convince me of their effectiveness.”

Unseen Beholder.

Name: Stonebreakers

Type: Projectile (Bomb)

Lore: Conceived of by Emperor Felix Nevarre, First of his Name, these munitions were ultimately devised by Wendell Reyes and Aenea Ty’lel. Built over a charged monster core, each has been filled with the unique properties of Unbound Reyes’ attuned Mana. Air and heat Mana are kept separate within specialized chambers, and only when the crank is twisted and the seal broken does the mixing begin. Rare metals provide defense against casual breakage and produce a layer of shrapnel upon explosion.

Felix grinned. He’d had to approximate this same effect previously, but it had required him to link up sigaldry into an active net. That was next to useless on the battlefield. These however were closer to true grenades—at least as far as Felix understood. He’d left the real tinkering to the professionals.

Wendell’s explosions worked well against the Echo of Noctis. It stood to reason a weapon based around his Skills would put a dent in whatever Marzul threw at them. That was the hope, anyway.

He moved on. A number of alchemical mixtures were set out on the table alongside the bombs. Most of them were proof of concepts. Aenea went over them quickly, highlighting where they were effective and where they weren’t—Not all of Felix’s ideas were golden. The best of the bunch, however, were made with the help of his sister.

“How long was she in here?” he asked.

“No more than a half glass,” Aenea said, hands on her hips. “She was to the point and exceedingly capable. Her Mana was potent as well, and it filled our Domain Cores faster than anticipated.”

“How many will you be able to make?”

“More than enough for your army. Its design is simple and the material needs are cheap. The most expensive part is the Grandmaster Tier light Mana, and Lady Nevarre has offered to help us whenever the need arises.”

Felix blinked. “You’re not going to the frontlines, are you?”

“How else would we administer our aid?” Aenea scowled. “Don’t. You sound like my husband, the worrywart. We will be entrenched with the Menders and Inscriptionists.”

Felix lifted a hand, signaling his defeat. “It’s your choice.”

“Too true.” Aenea blew a burst of air through her nose. “Aside from various poultices and remedies for Status Conditions, we have accomplished the last task you set for us.”

She gestured, and another of her assistants set out a brace of bottles. They were bigger than the Elixirs, each perhaps as wide as two fingers

“They were far more difficult to refine, but we succeeded after a distressingly short period of time.”

“Why distressingly?” Karys asked.

“A work of such magnitude shouldn’t be so easy.” Aenea sighed. “Yet we have succeeded.”

The brace of bottles were bigger than the Elixirs, carved not of glass, but Fiendstone itself. Someone had even gotten clever and shaped them into a cylindrical version of Chimera. There were nine of them, each glowing all by themselves. Felix knew if he released the catch on their stone lids, they would blaze like the sun.

Unseen Beholder.

Name: Essence Draught Of Atlantes, Lord Of Groves (Pure)

Type: Essence Draught

Lore: An alchemical distillation of a powerful Spirit Fruit from the Atlantes Anima, bolstered by the accumulated power of a Spirit Tree Grove. Unlike its lesser version, this draught can only be imbibed by someone at Grandmaster Tier or higher, and then only if their core remains unattuned to any specific element.

“The Spirit Fruits are quite different to how they have been in the past. Potency is up and so is toxicity. We are unsure as to why the Fruit has grown more powerful, but several among the Chanters speak of the Tree’s roots reaching new depths.” Aenea pursed her lips. “I find that unsatisfactory. How is it drawing in new power? The Lore says it uses its Grove, but that is likewise insufficient for me.”

“The Grove is through the Shadowgate network,” Felix said after a moment. “The other Spirit Trees I’ve planted across the Territories are all connected here, and that is what seems to be powering it all.”

“That is…fascinating.” Aenea made a few notes on a slate with a piece of chalk. “Through the roots, then?” When Felix nodded she added another note. “Hm. Well, regardless, we’ve seen excellent results in the specialized Essence Draughts, but these nine pure ones are works of art. If it weren't for the lab bonuses, I do not know that we would actually be able to produce them."

A faint creaking came to Felix's ears, and he noticed in certain places across the walls, pale roots clung to the stone, exposed just slightly. Felix smiled.

Yes, he sent towards the questing roots. I appreciate all of your efforts, too.

A pleased image rolled through him, that of leaves unfurling in the sun, and calm waters soaking deep-set roots. Felix immediately understood. We grow strong together.

“Well, I approve of all of this. These Essence Draughts in particular are remarkable," Karys said, poking through them. "Your next step is Paragon, and in order to reach those vaunted heights, you will need all the help you can find. These should do nicely to step across the threshold. Have you progressed with your Core Manifestation?"

Aenea cleared her throat. "If you would excuse me, sir."

"Oh, sure," Felix nodded, and the Master Alchemist stepped away, quickly snapping orders to her people to get to work as the Adept Tier alchemical assistants scattered, leaving an empty ring around Karys and Felix.

"It seems she was concerned that people would listen in," Karys said. “A kind woman.”

Felix didn't know if he'd agree with that, but she certainly seemed to respect him more, and he didn’t mind it. "To answer your question, no, I haven't progressed with my Core Manifestation, but Pit and I, we have some ideas.”

“Your Companion?" Karys tapped his faceguard, where a chain would be were he Human. "I see. The bond you carry is strong enough that it must be intrinsic to your Manifestation. Is that why you've displayed difficulty with properly establishing it? Despite all this time?"

"I think so. I've been using some version of this Core Manifestation since before I was Master Tier. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong, or where things are going wild, but I wanted to have—" he paused, shaking his head—"I wanted to have Knowledge delve me and figure out more, but—”

“You would be incapacitated for days, if not longer. Absolutely not, my Lord.”

“I had the same thought." Felix shrugged. "Best I can do is work with Pit and figure it out, but the Beast is eager." He tapped his chest. "If I can convince it to actually be helpful, then we might get somewhere."

"Good luck with that," Karys' voice was flat. He didn't have many positive words about the primordial living in Felix's core space, especially after its display in Levantier. "It may be a Cardinal Beast, or at least pieces of one, but I do not know that it has your best interests at heart."

“I am almost positive it doesn't. The Beast isn't my ally, but I'll make use of him."

A ghostly touch danced across Felix’s Authority—Karys’ too, apparently. The two of them traded glances before looking over the Fiendstone edge far below. A young woman in dark robes stood just inside the white stone doorway. The hem of her garments were covered in inscriptions, but it was the air around her that gave her identity away. A faint duet of strings laid over a rapid tattoo.

“Chanter Apprentice,” Karys said stiffly. “A messenger.”

The girl looked up and locked eyes with Felix. She jerked back and the nervous harmonies around her intensified into outright panic. “My-my Lord Emperor! I-I come asking for an audience!”

Felix leaned over the edge. “For who?”

“La-lady Mauvim. Primus of the Cantus Sodalus.” The girl swallowed. “She wishes to speak, if you’d allow it.”

Felix raised an eyebrow. Mauvim, being polite? Asking permission?

“Sure. Let her in.”

He hadn’t spoken to her since he’d left to save Vess.

Let’s see where this goes.