For a moment, Seraphine was speechless. She then let out a deep breath, a breath she did not know she was holding. She stepped closer, her gaze fixed intently on the pill.
"Impossible," she whispered. "Our most skilled alchemists have tried and failed to refine it to this level. How did you...?"
She lifted her head up to look at Liam's calm and smiling face. There was not an ounce of nervousness. She opened her mouth again to demand answers but she quickly stopped herself glancing at the pill again.
This time she was not talking to a nobody. This time she was not talking to a mere awakener. This time she was talking to someone who had taken a significant step toward the great dao of alchemy. Such a grandmaster would be celebrated no matter which family or guild they joined. Such a young talent would be treated with veneration no matter which world or sector they decided to reside in. Seraphine gasped unknowingly. She needed to handle this with the utmost care. Someone like him could become the cornerstone of an entire realm! Tristan's fate can change because of him!
She carefully closed the box containing the Devil's Ice Pill and tried to gather her thoughts at the same time. Everything needed to go perfectly. Even one wrong word could destroy the once in an eternity chance that had willingly stepped at their doorstep.
Seraphine's mind raced as she hurriedly plotted each and every move she was about to make to perfection. The things that they can offer, the advantages the other party might be interested in, there was also the issue of his background. Everything needed to be perfectly analyzed. Everything needed to-
Right at this moment, the door burst open and a young man barged in with a crazed look on his face. Naturally, the young man was none other than the famed sword palace elder Tristan. However, at this moment there wasn't any indication that he held such a dignified position. The man looked as if he had woken up from a sort of long slumber and his eyes were saucer shaped, glued onto the pill box. To add to the effects, he was visibly panting as he stared at the pill box as if it was his long lost beloved and the two lovers couldn't wait to reunite.
Liam and Seraphine exchanged a glance, both momentarily stunned by Elder Tristan's abrupt entrance. Liam was speechless. Seraphine was speechless. There went all of her plans, right down the drain. The atmosphere in the room shifted from one of calculated negotiation to unexpected chaos.
"Elder Tristan," Seraphine began cautiously, attempting to mask her frustration. "I wasn't expecting you so soon."
Tristan ignored her, his eyes locked onto the ornate box in Seraphine's hands. "Is that a Devil's Ice Pill?"
Seraphine tightened her grip on the box. She prayed that the man would get her hint and snap out of it this instant. "We were just discussing it. Dante here has—"
But Tristan was already striding toward them. "Let me see it!" he insisted, reaching out with a trembling hand. Not bothering if his actions were rude or informal, he simply grabbed the item and opened the box. Immediately a dazed look appeared on his face. The sight of the small pill made him freeze and the medicinal aroma wafting out gave him goosebumps.
And so he did not stop with that.
Without wasting a single second or caring about any repercussions, he directly picked up the pill and placed it in his mouth.
"NO!" Seraphine mouthed but her words were lost in the mana burst that transpired following the pill consumption. Tristan's body had already disappeared, leaving behind an empty pill box and two stunned beings.
Seraphine stood rooted to the spot, her face ashen as she stared at the empty space where Tristan had been just moments before. The ornate pill box lay open in her trembling hands, its precious contents gone. The weight of the situation pressed down on her like a crushing force.
This disrespect! Which grandmaster would tolerate such an obvious humiliation! Her mind spun. How was she going to recover from this? Won't they have to offer so much more now? Could this relationship even be salvaged!
Seraphine's face flushed with a mix of frustration and embarrassment. "This cultivation nutcase! You maniac!" she exclaimed, her voice echoing in the suddenly quiet room.
Liam awkwardly cleared his throat, reminding her that he was still present. "Perhaps we should—"
She spun around to face him, eyes wide. "I am so sorry, Grandmaster Dante. Tristan's actions were completely out of line."
He offered a reassuring smile. "It's alright."
Seraphine sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Even so, his behavior was unacceptable. Please understand that this is always how he acts. The man forgets heaven and earth when it comes to training his sword aura and cultivating his dao. He really did not mean any disrespect."
Liam smiled and tried to reassure her but the woman proceeded to waste several minutes repeatedly apologizing to him. He sighed inwardly waiting for the good part to start. Things couldn't have worked out better for him. Now the reward would be even better.
Well, the reward was just a small bonus. The actual thing he was after would only happen when Tristan returns from his cultivation session and requires more pills from him.
Meanwhile, Seraphine continued to explain how an injury caused the famed sword palace elder to take a step back, and he was currently in a frenzy to recover to his former glory, Liam was silently plotting in his mind about how to approach the problem.
No matter how he thought about it, he did not see any problem in actually telling the truth. They had obtained an ancient mysterious axe which kidnapped his friend to some strange hidden world. It's not like he had the weapon with him for them to covet it. Both Derek and the weapon disappeared together.
Liam let out a sigh as he patiently waited. After a long time, he was finally here. He was just a step away from figuring out how to bring Derek back.