Volume 2 – 5. Passive Purification
The following morning, Lucien made his way down from the third floor of Edric's house. As soon as he stepped into the living room, he spotted Seren seated by the table, her attention fixed on something in front of her.
“Good morning.”
His voice drew her eyes away from the shallow ceramic dish resting on the table.
“Good morning.”
She didn't smile, but the reserved expression she usually wore softened noticeably.
Lucien crossed the room and settled onto the sofa opposite her. Seren remained in the worn armchair, the ceramic dish still resting on the table between them.
“So?” he asked. “How did it turn out?”
“It did decrease.”
There was a faint note of surprise in her voice.
“Only by a very small amount, but I can tell it's lower than yesterday.”
Lucien leaned forward to examine the pale yellow liquid in the dish. To him, it looked identical to the day before.
“...Your eyes must be incredible if you can tell the difference.”
Seren shook her head lightly.
“It's simply something you develop after spending more than a decade as an alchemist.”
“So... just experience?”
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Lucien's mouth.
That, at least, was easy enough to believe.
Before becoming an accountant back on Earth, he had worked at the printing company where his father had once been employed before losing his life in a workplace accident. Professional printers could distinguish incredibly subtle differences in color balance, gradients, saturation, and ink density—things Lucien himself could barely notice no matter how hard he looked. From what he knew, most of the operators had spent decades in the trade, many having grown up around printing presses from childhood.
After enough years, certain skills simply became second nature, it seemed.
“The next step,” Seren said, drawing his attention back, “is probably to see whether distance matters. We should separate as much as possible and determine whether the passive reduction has a limited range... or no range at all.”
“I guess so.”
Lucien still remembered that Seren's Corruption had been around five percent yesterday.
Opening the System, he checked her status once more.
[Seren Aldrekvel]
Race: Human
Age: 23
Relationship Tier: Trusted
Speciality: Alchemy
Corruption: 4.86%
Passive Reduction: -3%/day (proximity)
Purification Efficiency: 50%
Mark Effects — Seren Aldrekvel
- +10% Corruption resistance
- Slow passive purification within 1km
- Secrecy Seal (permanent)
Mark Effects — Lucien Mordren
- Rudimentary alchemy knowledge
- +2 CP/day
***
From the numbers, it appeared the passive reduction wasn't a flat three percentage points per day. Instead, it reduced three percent of her current Corruption level each day—the same percentage-based mechanism the System used for purification through physical intimacy.
For obvious reasons, he couldn't explain that to her.
...Though I wonder when I'll finally be able to.
He dismissed the System window and looked back at Seren.
“By the way, where are Ava and Edric?”
He and Ava had shared the guest room the previous night and, well... done what they promised to do. By the time he'd woken up that morning, she'd already slipped out.
“I don't know where Ava is.”
A faint trace of exasperation crossed Seren's face.
“When I asked, she refused to give me a straight answer.”
Lucien couldn't help laughing.
“Yeah, that sounds like her.” He rested an elbow on the arm of the sofa. “What about Edric?”
“He had some business in the central Merchant Quarter.”
Lucien nodded, then fell silent for a moment as another thought from the previous day resurfaced.
“By the way,” he asked, “who knew your Corruption level was that high before I started purifying it?”
Seren looked slightly puzzled by the sudden change in topic.
“Not many,” she replied after a moment of thought. “My father, my Inferni alchemist friend, Isolde and her group... and I suppose the Corruption Registry Officers checked on me regularly.”
She paused.
Then her eyes widened as realization dawned on her.
“Ah...” She straightened slightly in her chair. “Now that I think about it, none of the Registry people have come to visit since then.”
Lucien stopped himself from sighing.
So that's why...
Because of his unusual ability and the advantages that came with his Inferni blood, he had never really considered how closely Vel'Sharim monitored ordinary citizens whose Corruption levels became dangerously high. Given how severe Seren's condition had been at the time, it wasn't unreasonable to assume someone had been watching the house. If those observers had noticed Lucien visiting shortly before her Corruption suddenly dropped...
The connection wasn't exactly difficult to make.
What a blunder.
Unfortunately, Lucien wasn't the sort of person who could instinctively tell when he was being watched. It was something he should have anticipated, but the thought simply hadn't crossed his mind at the time.
Razor's expression flashed through his thoughts.
Or rather, the way she had sidestepped every direct question with little more than You'll figure it out if you dig deep enough yourself.
Remembering it only worsened his mood.
Across the table, Seren studied his face with growing concern.
“D-Does that mean...” she asked carefully, “someone already knows?”
Lucien met her gaze and answered honestly.
“Yes.”
A faint crease formed between Seren's brows.
“Who?” she asked, then immediately reconsidered. “No... judging from the flow of the conversation, is it someone from the central Merchant Quarter? The Councils?” She hesitated. “If that's the case... are you even allowed to tell me this?”
“Well, yes to the last question.” Lucien rubbed the back of his neck. “As for the first... I can't say for certain whether the Merchant Quarter itself is directly involved, but I'm fairly sure that's where the information originated.”
The Twilight Covenant was undoubtedly influential, but he found it hard to believe the organization possessed enough political leverage to operate entirely independently. Without at least some degree of cooperation—or tacit approval—from the city's major powers, an organization like that probably wouldn't have lasted very long.
“Then... who knows?”
“One of my employers.”
Razor had explicitly permitted him to share this much with Edric's family. More importantly, she knew Seren and Edric were already bound by Sýnthesis’s contract and couldn't reveal anything about Lucien's ability even if they wanted to. If anything, she had seemed to expect him to tell them sooner or later, knowing they would eventually realize the information had leaked regardless.
“Don't worry,” Lucien said, offering a reassuring smile. “This won't put either of you in danger.”
Instead of relaxing, Seren fixed him with a sharp look.
“But what about you?”
“Well...”
Lucien trailed off.
“What are they asking you to do?”
He shook his head apologetically.
“I'm afraid I can't tell you that.” After a brief pause, he added, “But it's nothing impossible, and... to be honest, it's something I probably would've done eventually even without them asking.”
Seren lowered her gaze, clearly unconvinced.
After a moment, Seren looked back up at him. Though concern still lingered in her eyes, her expression had settled into quiet determination.
“Then try to rely on me whenever you need to.”
Lucien smiled and gave a small nod.
“I will.”
A comfortable silence followed before he deliberately steered the conversation in a lighter direction.
“By the way, is there anything you need while I'm in the Riverfork Region?”
He had mentioned the trip the previous day.
Seren nodded, her gaze growing thoughtful.
“You said you inherited some rudimentary knowledge of my alchemy, correct?”
“Yeah.” He leaned back slightly. “I was actually thinking about putting it to the test.”
“In that case, start by following my instructions.” She rested a finger lightly against the table as she listed the ingredients one by one. “Try to gather three things: Dew-Drop Orchid, Sun-Bleached Lichen, and Weeping Pine Resin. We'll begin with the fundamentals—basic extraction techniques.”
Lucien fell silent for a moment and consciously reached for the knowledge the System had granted him.
It was an odd sensation.
Everything related to Seren's expertise seemed to have been stored in a separate corner of his mind. Unless he deliberately reached for it, the knowledge remained dormant, as if it belonged to someone else.
The instant he did, however, the names became completely familiar.
He could picture each ingredient in remarkable detail—what it looked like, where it usually grew, the proper way to harvest and preserve it, and the alchemical preparations in which it was most commonly used.
“...I see.” He nodded slowly. “That sounds like a good place to start.”
Seren regarded him curiously.
“Do you know how to perform basic extractions?”
“I can prepare decoctions, infusions, and poultices.”
Decoctions involved boiling tougher materials to extract their properties. Infusions relied on soaking ingredients in hot water, while poultices required crushing fresh plants into a medicinal paste. More advanced procedures—distillation, refinement, or brewing stable long-term potions—still lay beyond the knowledge he had inherited.
Seren gave a small, satisfied nod.
“At least you know what those terms mean.”
Lucien let out a quiet chuckle.
“You thought I was bluffing?”
“Not exactly.” A faint smile softened her usually composed expression. “You simply haven't shown much evidence that you actually know anything about alchemy.”
“I suppose that's fair.”
Before either of them could continue, a knock sounded from the front door downstairs.
Seren glanced toward the stairway, listening for a moment before looking back at him.
“It sounds like Sylphie and Kira are here.”
She rose from her chair, smoothing the front of her clothes absentmindedly.
“You should get going.”
Her gaze lingered on him for a brief moment.
“And... take care of yourself.”
Lucien smiled and stood as well.
“I will.”