Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 445 Dangerous Potion

Ethan felt that the interview and investigation were not ideal.

According to Old Ba, what initially caught His attention about Mary was her fiery temper, which was full of contrasting attributes. If classified by profession, Mary would be a priest in the Papacy. In most people's stereotypes, priestesses are active on the front line of saving lives and are as gentle as angels. In the last quarter's statistics, more than 30% of young people in major cities of the Empire hoped that their future partner would be a priest of the Church of Life.

But Mary took a realistic approach.

Before the outbreak of the Scarlet Plague, she spent most of her time as a saint in the Vatican headquarters. Being in a clerical position, she could still control her temper. After the outbreak, Mary, like many others, put on chainmail and traveled between major cities with a meteor hammer in hand. Affected by negative emotions and having witnessed so much life and death, she completely let her temper run wild.

"Old Ba, you've really caused a lot of trouble!"

Ethan let out a long sigh.

He felt that Bazartos should bear at least 80% of the responsibility for this.

"She has simply come to see her own heart more clearly and is getting closer and closer to her most authentic self."

"What does Mary like? For example, gold and silver jewelry, or magic-patterned robes?"

"She liked to study alchemy."

"If anyone offended her, they would be captured and used as a test subject for drugs," Bazartos recalled.

Ethan fell silent once again.

"Mary, she must be a good person, right?"

He had to reconfirm the premise of this conversation, and now he finally understood why Old Bar was so fixated on Mary—her innate temper and her penchant for capturing people to test drugs were, in fact, a great limitation on Mary’s personal development due to her status as a saintess of the Church of Life.

Ethan felt that Saint Mary, who is still celebrated today, must have had some redeeming qualities in her character.

"This is the only thing I'm not entirely satisfied with about her."

Old Ba shook his head. "She is still bound by the rules and regulations of the Vatican and cannot give full play to her true talents. Although her alchemical potions may bring some negative effects to people, they are never fatal. On the contrary, as long as they can get through it, most of the users will benefit from them."

If Mary were to become His follower and a Scarlet Priestess, her alchemical talents would be fully realized. He could hardly imagine the extent to which Mary's abilities would advance the art of flesh and blood.

"No, you have to drink another cup as punishment!"

Another cup of beehive worm liquid was handed to Ethan. This time, Ethan was much more willing to drink it. After all, his tongue had been numb when he drank the first cup of beehive worm liquid. Now he could only feel some viscous liquid going down his throat, but he couldn't actually taste it at all.

"Why did you suddenly think of Mary? She's been dead for many years."

Human lifespan is ultimately too short; those interesting humans who were once watched over by Him are now nothing but skeletons.

Mary was no exception. After her death, her remains were transported back to the Cathedral of the Dawn Laurel in the far west of the Church of Life, where she was buried with the highest honors of the Vatican. She was 137 years old at the time.

Mary was born at the end of the Third Age, witnessed the outbreak and end of the Scarlet Plague, participated in the war against the Scarlet King, and finally died of old age.

"In fact, the Vatican has preserved fragments of her soul in some way, and she is now in the ruins of the far west... Wait, Old Ba, what are you doing?"

Ethan watched as the seven-eyed woman began packing her luggage right in front of him, and his eyelids twitched violently a few times.

Saint Mary, whose temper was as bad as Caesars, was already troublesome enough. If an Old God were to join them, would they be able to get by?

"When do you plan to leave?"

"Old Ba, think about the college, think about your students. Midterm exams are just around the corner. How can you abandon them at this time?"

Faced with Ethan's impassioned speech, the seven-eyed woman merely tilted her head in confusion. Then, her body split open from the middle, and the fleshy buds emerging from the crack writhed for a moment. A few seconds later, two identical seven-eyed women stood before Ethan.

At that moment, Ethan realized he was terribly wrong.

What made him think that an Old God couldn't teach at the academy while walking alongside him?
Upon closer examination, the Seven-Eyed Woman is merely a projection of Bazartos in this world; His true form is not here at all.

“If that’s what you’re interested in, there’s also a ‘me’ at Legendary Pictures in Beijing who’s in charge of things.”

The seven-eyed woman spoke calmly, as if such a petty trick was nothing to her.

Ethan fell silent, staring at the seven-eyed woman who had just completed her split, his mind racing with thoughts.

At this moment, what reason could possibly stop an old god who has made up his mind?

"...We expect to depart in three days."

"I'll wait for you at your doorstep then."

……

Late that night, Ethan returned home with a heavy heart. With Old Bar's volunteering to join him, the journey became even more unpredictable.

He mentally listed the dangers that might occur after he met Mary.

It is now certain that those who stood Mary up have been dealt with by military law. Even those who escaped execution have become Mary's "medicine potions," having to taste unknown potions far more dangerous than the original venom of the beehive worm every day.

Although not fatal, it can cause strange side effects such as "unbearable itching", "mental confusion" and "turning into an animal".

Although the Vatican claims that Mary was dedicated to researching a cure for the scarlet plague, who knows if there was any morbid curiosity involved?
When Ethan came to his senses, he found himself resting his head on something soft. He composed himself and saw Winter's ambiguous smile. He was resting his head on Winter's lap, and Winter was quietly looking down at him.

"Anything on your mind?"

Ethan felt a warmth in his heart.

At least, he's home now.

People say home is always your safe haven, especially since winter is always waiting for him at home.

As the long night stretched on, he slowly confided his worries to Winter, only to be met with a soft laugh from Winter. Her voice was gentle, like a gentle evening breeze, instantly putting people at ease and dispelling their guard and melancholy.

“There’s nothing to worry about. Have you forgotten? I’m also very skilled in alchemy.”

Winter said, "As long as you understand pharmacology, no matter what side effects the potion you drink causes, I can cure you."

Upon hearing this, Ethan's eyes lit up.

Upon closer reflection, Winter was also a master alchemist certified by the Alchemist Guild. However, her hobby was similar to Mary's, as she always liked to concoct potions of dubious origin.

Mary's potions have side effects on the human body, while Winter's potions can cause explosions. In other words, in the field of potions, they are unparalleled geniuses with equally matched talents.

Yes, as long as Winter is by his side, what does he have to worry about?

In the slightly warm atmosphere, Ethan completely let his guard down.

"You drank a lot of beehive worm undiluted liquid at Old Ba's place just now, didn't you? Is your tongue numb?"

Winter smiled and took out a small glass bottle filled with pink bubbles, then held it to Ethan's lips. The open bottle emitted a sweet aroma, like the taste of cherries mixed with candy and other fruits.

Ethan was surprised that Winter had been so thoughtful, even adjusting the taste of the potion.

As far as he knew, most alchemists were a group of madmen who were indifferent to the test subjects. They didn't care how unpalatable their potions were, and many alchemists even advocated the "purity" of potions, not allowing any impurities to be mixed in.

Putting all sorts of strange ingredients into a big pot to stew, even a fool would know it's impossible for it to taste good.

However, Winter is different; this potion with its altered flavor fully embodies her humanistic care.

Ethan was somewhat moved and drank the potion in the bottle in one gulp.

The taste wasn't as cloyingly sweet as he'd imagined; instead, it had a refreshing feel. The cool, refreshing liquid spread across his taste buds, reviving his tongue, which had become numb from the honeycomb worm liquid. "Sure enough, I feel much better!"

This time, Winter didn't respond; instead, she narrowed her eyes and smiled even more broadly.

The refreshing liquid washed the numbing sensation down Ethan's tongue, as if it had entered his veins and flowed throughout his body.

However, the next moment, he vaguely noticed something unusual.

His taste buds returned to normal, but the numbness was not completely dispelled by the potion as he had expected; instead, it accumulated.

A few seconds later, he found that he could not move his arms and legs.

Then some unexpected symptoms seemed to appear.

“Winter is coming…”

Ethan swallowed hard.

"Ok?"

"I can't move my arm. Is this a normal symptom of the potion?"

"It's probably because you've been lying in that position for too long."

My throat feels a bit dry too.

"You'll feel better after drinking some water."

"...Don't you feel it's getting hotter and hotter?"

"The air conditioner is broken."

Shit!

They don't even have air conditioning in their house!

Ethan finally realized the danger was approaching, and the smiling Winter raised her icy hand to gently stroke his cheek, revealing her fangs at that moment, "Back in the royal city..."

At this point, she suddenly opened her slightly narrowed eyes, which were enveloped in a red glow under the bright moonlight.

"You gave a ride on your motorcycle to a woman I don't know, right? That's great, you've never let me ride on the back of your motorcycle before."

Ethan was about to explain when Winter pressed her index finger against his lips.

"Don't try to deny it, I saw it all."

..............................

Alchemists may be the most dangerous group of people in the world.

Ethan is serious.

"what happened to you?"

In the new cabinet, Ivy rested her chin on her hands. She had been observing Ethan for some time, and from the moment they met today, he seemed to have completely burned out, slumped on the sofa in her office like a retired old man, looking as if all his color had faded.

Even she could tell that Ethan was in a terrible state today.

If she remembered correctly, Ethan claimed he was going to meet Barzatos at the academy when he left yesterday. Could it be that these two good buddies ended up fighting on the academy's island over the question of Saint Mary's ownership?
You know, when Ethan blew up the God of Truth a few days ago, he didn't seem to be expending as much energy as he is now. She was really worried that after her lunch break she would suddenly receive information from the academy saying that an explosion had occurred last night, causing the entire island to sink into the sea.

"Ivy".

Ethan's voice was like a candle flickering in the wind.

"Ok?"

"I think we should establish detailed regulations for alchemists' use of potions, and strictly prohibit the use of potions with unknown effects on others."

This is... the last contribution he can make to this empire.

He didn't want anyone else to lose themselves in his wife's arms like he did, only to be given some unknown pink potion.

Let alone children, even a young man like him is almost unable to withstand it.

The clever Ivy immediately understood what was going on.

“If you keep showing off your relationship with Winter in front of me, I’m going to call her and have her come to my office to pick you up.”

As she spoke, Ivy reached for the telephone on her desk.

Ethan, in a final burst of energy, stretched out his right hand towards her from the sofa. "Stop!"

Do you know why I called you over today?

"Wait a minute, did I do something to offend you?"

Ivy's tone immediately alerted Ethan. After last night's experience, he suspected that he had developed post-traumatic stress disorder, but no matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn't figure out where he could have offended Ivy.

After all, he had been away on business for a while and hadn't even met Ivy.

"Could it be... that I know the secret recipe for Margherita pizza but haven't told you?"

Upon hearing this, Ivy's blond hair immediately stood up like probes.

"It's about the far west. Aren't you going there to find Mary?"

Ivy sighed, "You should know that it's the headquarters of the Church of Life, outside the territory and jurisdiction of the Empire."

"I have heard about it."

"Simply put, after Julius's downfall, many of his followers left the Empire for the far west, and the Papacy repeatedly expressed its dissatisfaction with our subsequent religious reforms within the Empire, believing that we were blaspheming the goddess of life."

On Ivy's desk was a thick stack of newspapers from the far west.

The new pope has excluded the priests who work in hospitals from the church, "and you are a thorn in their side. In the far west, you are practically indistinguishable from an incarnation of an evil god."

Of course, all the public boycotts are just empty words.

The new pope naturally wouldn't dare launch a holy war against the current empire.

However, the request for a friendly diplomatic visit was naturally impossible to obtain, and Ethan and his companions could only enter the far west as "smugglers."

"Your journey is fraught with peril. Once you reach the far west, I suggest you find a way to conceal your identities. I will arrange for someone to meet you there."

At this point, Ivy paused briefly, then suddenly remembered something and said with a serious expression, "Oh, right, there's one more thing."

She took a piece of parchment from the drawer and then pushed the quill pen toward Ethan.

"what?"

"Write down the secret recipe for Margherita pizza before you leave."

(End of this chapter)