Chapter 43: The Witch’s Deadline Laboratory

[Task 40: Assist Leah with her stalled ancient magic research. Note: Essential item—Blood-Red Mint Essential Oil.]

After organizing his thoughts and closing his task system, Will looked up.

Knock, knock, knock.

Standing at the door of Leah’s laboratory, bathed in the golden hues of the setting sun, Will saw his shadow reflected on the door as he knocked three times.

“Come in already! I’m busy right now!”

“Got it!”

Will nodded and pushed the door open.

It was his first time visiting Leah’s lab, and it was just as messy as her office.

“It’s a mess… you, you, you—just find a place to sit for now. The competition is really complicated. Completing the core part isn’t enough; all the reagents for public demonstration need to be adjusted as well.”

Leah was clearly overwhelmed.

“No worries, I’ve brought everything you need. Just let me know when you’re ready.”

Will calmly walked in and grabbed a backless lab stool—surprisingly similar to the ones he’d seen in modern university chemistry labs.

“Alright, I’m working on this intermediate reagent, but it’s a bit unstable. Hold on…”

Leah focused intently on her test tube, tilting it left, then right, then slightly less, left again…

Right again.

And then—a huge tilt!

Boom.

It exploded.

Will jumped up from his stool in shock.

“Are you okay?!”

Cough, cough… “I’m fine, I’m fine…” Leah’s nose was now smeared with blue-green liquid, which she wiped off with her hand. “This stuff was already unstable. When you came in with the Blood-Red Mint Essential Oil, I… I got a bit flustered and lost control.”

“S-Sorry… Should I leave and come back later? Or maybe I should… uh, suck some blood again?”

“…Are you obsessed with my blood or something?”

“Honestly? It’s pretty sweet.”

Leah shot him a glare—if she weren’t holding a test tube, Will was sure her tiny fists would’ve been flying.

“No need. It’s good practice for me to get used to experimenting in an environment with Blood-Red Mint!”

Leah confidently placed her hands on her hips and tightened her grip on the test tube.

Hoo… ha…

She took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves and adapt to her accelerated heartbeat and heightened magical circuits.

Last night, lying in bed, she had thought about how to acclimate to the effects of the Blood-Red Mint Essential Oil. At the very least, she couldn’t… couldn’t look too euphoric during the competition, right?!

Her solution was to spend more time with Will over the next few days, gradually getting used to the effects. By the time of the competition, it should be much easier to handle.

And yet…

Her heart wouldn’t stop racing.

To adapt and successfully complete the experiment, she still had a long way to go.

This time, there was no explosion. A beautiful blue liquid glowed faintly in the test tube.

“How’s that?”

“Mm, this step was successful. There are still two or three more intermediate reagents to prepare.”

“So this competition is really that complicated?” Will had been too nervous to speak earlier. “I… I thought…”

For a moment, Will couldn’t find the right words to continue.

At home, at school, and in front of most people he knew, he played the role of someone with poor talent and average combat skills, devoted to research. But because he knew the original story’s plot, he had always been aware that his path would lead to dungeon exploration. While he had studied plenty of theory, he had never delved into actual research experiments or competitions—those weren’t part of his future plans.

“You thought magic research competitions were like your combat exams, where you just throw out a couple of spells and call it a day?”

Leah placed the test tube in a rack, leaned against the lab bench, and crossed her arms as she began to explain.

“That’s so shallow. Research competitions mostly involve large-scale magic, so participants need to recreate the entire process during the event. If the reagents can’t be completed within the time limit on-site, you also have to prepare multiple backups for the judges to inspect.”

As she spoke, she absentmindedly twirled her twin-tails.

Will noticed that, perhaps because she didn’t have any classes today and didn’t need to meet anyone, Leah’s golden twin-tails were tied lower than usual, resting on her shoulders. It gave her a slightly more mature, almost housewife-like appearance.

—No, no, no. A housewife with her height and appearance would be… very dangerous!

“So, time is tight. Some magic requires volunteers if the caster lacks the talent to perform it themselves. Volunteers also need to be prepped and approved in advance. But since I’m recreating ancient magic, only someone with witch blood can do it, so I have to handle it myself.”

Will nodded repeatedly.

None of this had been mentioned in the original story. The novel had focused more on dungeon adventures.

When you treated the novel’s world as a real one, it became richer and more detailed.

For example, today’s Leah was dressed in a lab coat. The petite Leah was practically swallowed by the oversized coat, and for once, she wasn’t wearing her usual large witch’s hat, revealing her full face.

She also seemed to have been sleeping in the lab, as she wasn’t wearing her usual heeled leather shoes. Instead, she had on flat, non-slip slippers, exposing her round, slightly pink heels.

Will felt like he was seeing a very casual, everyday side of Leah. It was quite refreshing.

Leah noticed Will’s gaze lingering on her ankles and heels.

Normally, she wouldn’t have picked up on such subtle details. But with the Blood-Red Mint Essential Oil nearby, she was hyper-aware of everything.

“Will… stop staring and come help.”

“Alright, alright. I was just waiting for instructions, Miss Leah.” Will pulled out the coin and the essential oil. This time, the coin wasn’t one of his forgeries—it was the real deal. “I’ve brought everything. What do you need me to do?”

Leah picked up the coin from the table.

She tapped it against the surface and even conducted a small magical charge through it.

Now…

She could confirm that this was an authentic witch’s coin!

“Stop staring. I didn’t trick you this time. You need this for your experiment, don’t you?”

“…Yes! Thank you!”

Leah was surprised at herself for being able to say “thank you” so openly.

It felt like…

In front of Will, words like these came naturally. She even found herself looking forward to some kind of reward from him for her honesty.

“Oh, good girl. That’s the spirit. But you’re not being bold enough.”

“Don’t push your luck!”

“For example, you could grab my head, smile, and say, ‘Thank you. How should I repay you—with my body or my lips?’…”

“Stop dreaming.” Leah’s face turned a little red as she placed her hands on her hips. “Just help me with the experiments. We need to run through the full process a few times.”

“No problem.”

“First, you need to explain this Blood-Red Mint Essential Oil to me. While it forcibly activates my magical circuits enough to trigger Warmth Amidst the Elements, it also seems to catalyze reactions. It’s an essential material.”

Will held up the small bottle and brought it closer to Leah.

He waved it in front of her.

Leah’s eyes followed the bottle as it moved.

“Pfft… I knew this stuff was irresistible to witches.”

“Stop laughing!”

“But Leah, you’re pretty cute like this. Hmm… your body seems more honest than your words…”

Once again, Leah saw her reflection in his eyes.

He… he really was paying attention to her.

After all, there was no one else in the lab.

“S-Stop saying things like that. If you have time, help me run more experiments!”