Chapter 141: Dew of Love

Although the effect was not obvious at the beginning, as long as she was given enough time, this kind of talent could allow a person with mediocre aptitude to grow into a true powerhouse.

"You two continue working."

Madam Ellen waved her hand, signaling the two assistants to return to their posts, then turned to Luo En:

"Come, follow me to the backyard; let's have a good chat."

The backyard was still that quiet little world, with a few simple wooden chairs placed in the shade of an ancient oak tree.

Various rare medicinal herbs were planted in the corners, and the air was filled with a faint floral fragrance.

"Seeing the two of them, does it remind you of yourself back then?"

Madam Ellen asked with a smile, handing Luo En a cup of hot tea.

Luo En took the teacup and took a light sip.

The familiar taste made him feel very close: "There are some similarities, but they seem to be much more diligent in the shop than I was back then."

"Diligence is one aspect." Madam Ellen nodded, her gaze turning to the two busy figures in the shop:

"Fina is very smart and has a strong understanding of medicinal materials and formulas, but she is sometimes too cautious in her work and lacks the courage to break conventions."

She paused for a moment and added:

"Lilia is the opposite; she starts slower but is very diligent and good at innovation, not afraid of failure. Most importantly, she has rare perseverance and patience."

Luo En understood; this exactly matched his observation just now.

Madam Ellen's eyes flashed with a complex emotion:

"Actually, she has some similarities with you, doesn't she? Both have unexpected potential."

"To be honest, I didn't expect that you would find two new assistants just two months after I left."

Luo En did not pick up this topic, just joked half-jokingly: "Did I not perform well enough?"

"What nonsense are you talking about." Madam Ellen tapped his hand lightly:

"You have already graduated and have your own workshop and clients; you can't keep following this old woman to learn those basic knowledge."

She took a sip of tea, her eyes flashing with concern:

"Besides, I heard that you have been performing quite prominently in the candidate wizard sequence recently?"

"Not bad." Luo En said humbly, then briefly recounted his main experiences during this period.

Including entering various advanced courses, receiving special guidance from Soren and Yuni, and the improvement of his ranking in the candidate wizard sequence.

Madam Ellen listened quietly, her expression slightly complex:

"Your growth speed is indeed astonishing; it seems my eye for people back then was correct. However..."

Her tone suddenly became serious:

"The faster you grow, the more opportunities you have to be exposed to the eyes of those in high positions. Be extra careful, especially toward those who suddenly show abnormal concern for you."

Luo En felt a chill in his heart, knowing what Madam Ellen was referring to.

"I will be careful." Luo En nodded seriously in guarantee, then shifted the topic to other aspects.

The two talked a lot, from the research and development of new formulas to rumors about the Bloodline Altar, from changes in the internal forces of the school to the latest trends in the distant Crystal Spire.

Luo En found that although Madam Ellen lived in seclusion in this small herb shop, her understanding of the outside world was far more extensive and in-depth than he had imagined.

"It's getting late; I should go back."

Luo En looked at the sky and stood up to say goodbye:

"Next time you have time, you can come to my workshop to sit and see the development there."

"Hehe... I appreciate the kind offer, but these old bones of mine can't take the tossing."

Madam Ellen also stood up leaning on her cane, seemingly not having any other emotions because of her student's departure.

"By the way, that child Lilia seemed to have developed some interest in you after learning your identity. Perhaps she will take the initiative to come to you in a few days; if you lack a potion assistant, you can keep her directly."

She narrowed her deep green eyes slightly, her words implying something:

"You should have somewhat realized the wonderfulness of receiving 'Grace' by now; how about letting this child be your first personal student?"

"This... won't it affect your work here..."

Luo En was somewhat hesitant but also somewhat moved; just as he didn't know what to say, he found that Madam Ellen had already waved her hand and issued an order to evict the guest:

"Alright, that's all for now; if there's nothing else, hurry back."

On the other side, Lilia stood by the window of the herb shop, watching Luo En's departing back, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes.

She gently smoothed the non-existent folds on her apron, as if this could also smooth the waves in her heart.

From the conversation between Luo En and Madam Ellen just now, she had already learned that this young potionist's status was high, far beyond her imagination.

"Intermediate apprentice, professional potionist, candidate wizard sequence member..."

She counted silently in her heart; every title was as unreachable as a natural chasm.

"Lilia, come over and help me organize this batch of moonlight grass." Fina's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Okay, coming right away."

Lilia came back to her senses and walked quickly toward the workbench.

But the corner of her eye still drifted toward the door involuntarily, as if she could still see that figure that had already disappeared.

"Are you very interested in that Apprentice Luo En?"

Fina asked calmly while meticulously sorting the moonlight grass.

Lilia was slightly startled, then forced a smile:

"Just curious. After all, a genius like him... is rare in the school, right?"

"Indeed rare." Fina nodded, a glimmer of admiration flashing in her eyes:

"To be able to achieve such achievements in such a short time, he must have extraordinary talent and effort."

Lilia did not pick up the topic, just lowered her head and continued the work in her hands, but her mind had already begun to calculate something.

The next evening, when Fina left, Lilia stayed behind alone to organize the day's accounts and inventory.

This was work she had volunteered for, specifically to have time alone.

She sat behind the counter and opened a small, exquisite notebook, on which all kinds of information she had inquired about were recorded densely:

The location of Luo En's workshop, daily activity patterns, known achievements and abilities... every item was written extremely detailed.

"One year ago... came to the Black Fog Jungle from the Kingdom... sixth-grade star spiritual power qualification... became an intermediate apprentice in less than half a year... is Madam Ellen's only private student..."

Lilia recited the contents of the notebook, a certain determined light flashing in her eyes.

She closed the notebook, walked to the small well in the backyard, and filled a basin of water to wash up.

The water surface reflected her exquisite and moving face:

High bridge of the nose, clear eyes, lips as soft as flower petals, every part was as perfect as if carefully carved.

Lilia looked at herself in the water expressionlessly, and her memory involuntarily returned to the distant past.

A small territory on the southwestern border, the ancient castle of Baron Visor.

An accidental encounter between a beautiful maid and the lord, the birth and growth of an illegitimate daughter...

"Little bitch, do you know why you can live until now?"

The cold voice of the Baroness still echoed in her ears to this day:

"It's all because of that face of yours that is exactly the same as your bitch mother. If it weren't for the master thinking of her, you would have been thrown into the moat to feed the fish with that bitch long ago."

Because of this growth environment, Lilia learned from childhood how to please everyone who might be helpful to her, and learned how to survive in the cracks.

When she was fifteen, she overheard the conversation between her stepmother and elder sister in the corner of the castle.

Upon learning that the Baron had already agreed to send her as a "gift" to a lustful old noble in a neighboring country, she was almost desperate to the point of wanting to escape directly.

Fortunately, heaven does not cut off all paths; the annual wizard "seed selection" gave her a chance to escape her family.

Although the result of the spiritual power test was not excellent, it at least gave her a chance to become a candidate apprentice.

However, the cruel reality soon made her realize that ordinary people without strong talent were equally struggling here.

Just when she was almost about to give up hope, she met Fina: a girl with outstanding family background and talent.

Lilia used various means she had learned from childhood to please Fina and became her best friend here.

And after Fina successfully gained Madam Ellen's favor, she cleverly let herself stay in the herb shop as well.

And all of this was just to avoid that intermediate apprentice who had been eyeing her: Aug Cain, a guy who took pleasure in collecting beautiful female slaves.

"I will never become his plaything." Lilia looked at her reflection in the water, her eyes firm and cold.

She knew that Cain had already had three female slaves, and their endings were all extremely miserable without exception:

Either disposed of at will after being played with, or died painfully in bizarre experiments.

After washing up, Lilia returned to her dormitory and took out a flat wooden box from the bottom of her suitcase.

Opening the box, inside was a set of exquisite dresses and cosmetics; this was a precious relic left by her mother.

"Luo En Ralf..."

She whispered this name: "Genius of the candidate wizard sequence, Madam Ellen's proud student, professional potionist..."

After observation and inquiry, Lilia had already determined that Luo En was the best backer she could find at present.

He was powerful enough to protect her from Cain's harassment;

His personality was still quite gentle, and it was never heard that he deliberately made things difficult for others;

Most importantly, it was said that he had not had any intimate relationship with any opposite sex here, which was a huge advantage for Lilia.

She had already found out the exact location of Luo En's workshop and had even secretly observed it several times.

Tomorrow, she would take the risk to go and request to become his assistant or... any role he needed.

"Compared to being a plaything for that Cain, becoming Luo En's... at least he looks like a normal person."

Lilia whispered to herself with a wry smile, but a trace of determination flashed in her eyes.

In this cruel extraordinary world, relying on the strong was the only way for the weak to survive.

The next morning, just as the sky was getting light, Lilia asked Madam Ellen for leave, lying that she had to go back to take care of a sick roommate.

She returned to her residence and carefully washed and dressed up.

First, she bathed her whole body with special petal dew, making her skin emit a faint fragrance;

Then she changed into that treasured dress: a well-tailored light blue long dress, which was elegant and just right to outline her graceful figure;

Finally, a little light makeup, just right to emphasize the contours of her eyes and lips.

The girl in the mirror was stunningly beautiful, with both the innocence of a young girl and the mature charm brought by her makeup.

Lilia practiced several expressions in front of the mirror, ensuring she looked both humble and self-respecting.

"Final preparation..." she took out a small bottle from the bottom of the cabinet, inside was a pale pink liquid:

"Dew of Love," a mild and harmless micro-effect magic potion that could enhance charm.

She carefully dropped one drop on her neck and wrist each.

The liquid quickly penetrated the skin, emitting a subtle fragrance that was hard to resist, which was said to be able to evoke the instinctive protective desire and good feelings of the opposite sex.

Everything was ready, Lilia took a deep breath and walked out of the room.

Today would be the turning point of her destiny.

Luo En was standing in the center of the workshop's training ground, carefully feeling the elemental energy flowing in his body.

The intensive training in the recent period made him more proficient in controlling light and fire elements, almost to the point of doing whatever he wanted.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 142 =====