The Huntsman Of Death:A Gamer's POV As Side Character

The potion in the cauldron slowly turned pale yellow and thickened, becoming sticky. Tim leaned over, inspecting it closely before grabbing a funnel and a small test tube.

"Lukas, hold the test tube steady," Tim instructed, handing it to me.

I did as he asked, gripping the tube carefully while he positioned the funnel over it. He then poured the sticky yellow liquid slowly, making sure not to spill a drop.

"Pour it in gently," he muttered to himself, his focus sharp.

Once the tube was filled, Tim corked it and held it up, examining the potion against the light. "There we go, a minor health potion. Not bad for a beginner's attempt."

I stared at the potion in my hand, skepticism creeping in. "How do you know it works? What if there's a problem?" I asked, making a slicing motion across my neck to emphasize the potential consequences.

Tim chuckled, clearly amused. "I get it, Lukas. Potions can be risky, but that's why they're tested before use. Back in ancient times, people used to test potions on creatures to see the effects. They'd make a batch, and if one vial worked, the rest were assumed to be fine."

His words made sense, but it still felt a little unsettling. "So, what do we do now?"

Tim reached into his bag and pulled out a small compass-like device. "Nowadays, we have tools to check potion quality. With this compass, you just put a drop of the potion on the needle. If the arrow points to orange, it's good. If it turns black, well, then it's bad."

I frowned, not entirely convinced. "And how accurate is that?"

Tim shrugged. "It's about 80% accurate. It uses a combination of runes and magic circles to simulate the potion's effects. But if you want something even better…" He pointed to a massive device at the corner of the room, etched with strange symbols. "That machine there can give a result with 99% accuracy."

I nodded, a little impressed by the technology but still nervous. "Alright, let's test it then."

Tim smiled. "Not yet. Let's wait and see how others are doing first."

We looked around the room. A few students had managed to create successful potions, most of them older students or people with prior alchemy experience. They were helping the rest of us figure things out.

"Since I have time, I should try to create one."

I felt a spark of excitement and rubbed my hands together, increasing the flames, and started to put things.

"Lukas take it slow.."

"I don't think it would be a problem as long as the order is correct"

BOOM!

A loud explosion shook the room, and everyone froze. Professor Jolberg's furious voice echoed over the chaos. "Which idiot blew something up this time?!"

Coughing, I turned toward the source of the smoke. A thick, black cloud lingered in the air, and a familiar figure emerged, covered in soot. It was me.

"Where did I go wrong?" I managed to ask, my voice hoarse from the smoke.

Professor Jolberg stomped over, glaring. "Wrong? You used sundew petals instead of moondew, that's what!"

"Huh? But they looked the same!" I protested, looking around for Tim.

That's when I noticed him lying on the floor, trying to stifle his laughter. He had ducked out of the way just in time, and now he was gasping for air lying below.

...

I shook my head, feeling a mix of embarrassment and frustration as I made my way back to my dorms.

"Alchemy is a lot harder than I thought.Especially for beginners like me who don't know how to recognize and identify herbs."

As I thought, I suddenly realized that even in my past life I didn't pay much attention to plants and flowers except for a handful of them.And even that I remembered because girls proposed to me with those.

While opening the door, I started to question myself,"Am I really that bad?"

Despondent, I walked in but paused feeling my sense pricked.

My eyes widened and my lips curled upwards.

"Finally!He is doing it."

.....

Ashton paced the room with his heart racing. He kept glancing at the old, worn book lying on the table. The room was silent except for the sound of his footsteps.

"What if this is some kind of evil ritual?" he thought, his stomach twisting with unease.

But then another thought crept in, one that he couldn't ignore. "But what if this helps me? What if it's the key to growing stronger?"

He stopped and stared at the book again. His hands trembled slightly as he tried to steady his breath. The decision wasn't easy, but deep down, he knew he couldn't walk away now.

"I'll do it," he whispered to himself, forcing the words out.

Ashton grabbed the Book of Celestial Guidance. It felt heavier than he expected, or maybe it was the weight of his nerves. He lit a white candle as the instructions said, its soft glow casting long shadows across the walls.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the book and started to read aloud:

"Stars above, reveal the door,

Guide me where secrets soar.

In the shadow's veil, the path does lie,

Open the way beneath the sky."

His voice shook at first, but he kept going, determined to see it through.

Then he placed his hand on the book, the leather cool against his palm, and whispered, "The stars guide me to the unseen."

The candle's flame flickered wildly, almost as if it were alive. Ashton froze, watching it grow brighter until it seemed too intense for the small room.

Something felt… different.

Like a call…

Before Ashton could take another step, a strange feeling washed over him. It was like his senses were fading, the room around him slipping away. His vision blurred, and a faint ringing filled his ears.

And then he felt it—a call.

It wasn't a sound or a voice exactly, but he could feel it deep in his mind, like something pulling at him, asking him to follow.

"Do you want to respond to the call?" The question wasn't spoken, but he felt it as clearly as if someone had said it aloud. Your journey continues with My Virtual Library Empire

His throat tightened. Fear surged through him, but curiosity pushed back harder. He swallowed, his heart pounding. "Yes," he whispered.

The moment he spoke, the world around him twisted. The light from the candle shattered into a thousand pieces, and everything spun out of control. Ashton couldn't tell up from down, and his stomach churned as if he were falling.

Finally, it stopped.

When Ashton opened his eyes, he was standing in a strange place. Blocks of black and white stretched endlessly in every direction, forming a strange, endless maze. The ground beneath his feet felt solid but strange, like it wasn't entirely real.

"What is this place?" he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

Before he could make sense of anything, a figure appeared out of nowhere.

It was a man—or at least, it looked like one—wearing a plain white mask. There was no sound, no warning, just the sudden presence of this silent stranger.

Ashton stumbled back, gasping for air. His heart thudded painfully in his chest.

The masked figure tilted its head, as if studying him. Then, in a calm voice, it spoke.

"Hello."