Percy asked.Thinking of something, Percy’s heart skipped a beat. But he didn’t show it. He wanted to pry some more information from his host first.

    Percy struggled to contain his excitement.

    This was getting better and better! Did these people have some sort of alchemy-based version of Phoebe’s Decree? If so, he  to get his hands on that, whatever it took!

    Enki confirmed, oblivious to Percy’s inner turmoil.

    Percy considered explaining that Phoebe’s Decree probably had a different purpose to what they used their version for, but he was more curious about something else.

    The boy appeared taken aback by Percy’s question. Almost insulted, even.

    Enki protested rather animatedly.

    Percy rolled his eyes.

    Enki tilted his head.

    he smiled bitterly.

    Hearing that, Percy felt his heart clench. It was only now he realized just how much he and his host had in common.

    Enki asked, some hope seeping into his voice.

    Like a needle’s stab, the boy’s question caused Percy to deflate a little. Sёar?h the Novёl?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    he said, trying to mask his embarrassment. he hurriedly added upon seeing Enki frown.

    The boy remained silent for a few moments, seemingly contemplating Percy’s words.

    he said.

    Though he seemed to catch himself a second later.

    Percy asked, a smile tugging at his lips.

    the boy asked.

    Percy exclaimed.

    The boy didn’t seem convinced, however.

    ‘I’ll have you know that, amongst my many, many talents, I am first and foremost a master alchemist. In fact, my main body is currently on the run from multiple gods back home – each of them eagerly yearning for my wisdom.’ ??NòВ??

    the boy asked.

    Percy scratched the back of their head.

    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    ***

    Apparently, Enki’s orphanage have a library. Even better, it contained a few books on alchemy. Though, seeing their condition, Percy wasn’t surprised his host hadn’t thought it possible to teach himself the basics. He held a stack of loose sheets, trying to rearrange them into the correct order. The blurred page numbers weren’t making his job easy.

    he groaned.

    For an entire world that seemed to survive by selling alchemical products to outsiders, their libraries were surprisingly poor. Even the Guild’s library had been in a better state.

    Then again, this might not be the fairest comparison. The Alchemists’ Guild was the central hub for all alchemists on Remior, whereas this was just some random library in an orphanage, in some remote town…

    Enki asked.

    Percy explained.

    The two remained silent in the library for several hours, as Percy tried to make sense of the alien books. Their pages weren’t made of paper, apparently, but some slightly oily pieces of parchment, crafted out of some creature’s skin.

    Every now and then, Enki grew hungry – or bored – or, probably, both – asking him to take a short break to grab a quick snack from his room. It was some kind of pink roe stored in a sealed bowl. It tasted quite nice too, its rich, salty flavour reminding Percy of a cross between crabsticks and eggs.

    In any case, despite the semi-frequent interruptions and the poor condition of his reading material, Percy did manage to piece together an overview of the locals’ alchemic ways.

    Their main product – the thing they exported to their trade partners – were some cultivation pills that didn’t differ much from the elixirs on Remior. They were made from some kind of amber pearls – a local ingredient rich in stable beast mana, not unlike the nectar the Starry Wasps produced.

    Percy grimaced.

    He had no idea how the lifespans and advancement speed of the natives compared to a human’s, but their potential seemed to be confined within the same range as theirs. In other words, Red-borns here could only ever make it to Yellow, Orange-borns to Blue and so on – just like on Remior. Suffice to say, it probably meant the pills weren’t much better than elixirs.

    However, that was not to say there was nothing to be gained here.

    What set the locals apart was precisely Ea’s Gift that Enki had mentioned. Percy assumed it was a Decree – – and it was the reason other races didn’t dare to touch Atlantis.

    Apparently, this Decree was a lot more proactive than Phoebe’s, directly affecting an alchemist’s ability, allowing them to greatly increase their alchemic yield. As for how exactly it achieved that, these books didn’t say, but Percy guessed it had something to do with the weird glowing eyes he’d seen on some of the natives earlier.

    He wasn’t a native, which should automatically disqualify him based on everything he’d read. Then again, he was currently inhabiting the body of a local, so maybe he could trick whatever mechanism was responsible for disseminating the Decree? At the very least, it had worked with the Moirais’, so it was worth a shot.

    Beyond that, there was also the question of whether this Decree could even stack with the one he already had. Would he have to carry two separate Statuses from now on, or could they merge?

    He shrugged.

    Luckily, the books hadn’t been useless on that front. Cross-referencing the gist of their contents with his own expertise, Percy had been able to discern a few important details about the locals’ branch of alchemy.

    Apparently, many of the central concepts carried over from one world to another, and even from one product to another. Whether he was brewing an elixir, a potion or a pill, and whether they were on Remior or Atlantis, similar techniques were involved.

    When brewing cleansing resources in particular, the so-called andwere paramount. The people of Atlantis referred to them as and had their own name for each of them, but Percy could tell they were functionally the same. After all, beast mana always had to be handled in the same manner.

    There was one Percy had chosen to translate as . It involved separating and condensing an ingredient’s properties, which was more relevant when brewing potions and potion-adjacent products, as other affinities weren’t as potent as beast mana, and needed to undergo this procedure to become useable.

    In fact, Percy was almost certain they had this back home too – it was probably the missing knowledge about potion-making that he’d never had the chance to study. And it was also the very thing he needed to master and teach Enki, if he wanted to get his hands on that Decree.

    the boy asked after noticing Percy had stopped reading for a while.

    Enki had tried not to sound too eager, but he’d done a poor job keeping his excitement from spilling through their bond.

    Percy said.

    Enki asked.

    The boy remained silent for a bit, seemingly considering it. Eventually, he spoke.

    Percy frowned, thinking this wasn’t going to work. Yet, his host rekindled his hope a moment later.