I Became a Time-stopping Narrow-eyed Character

Chapter 24

Bubble bubble─!

A decoction boiling with intense heat.

Watching the purple liquid in the cauldron carefully, I followed the golden ratio formula in my head and threw in each ingredient one after another into the decoction.

Fwoosh! Pssh!

Each time something was added, the decoction in the cauldron showed a violent chemical reaction, and with a firm belief that it was almost complete, I poured everything in.

Crash!

At the moment when the cauldron shook as if struck by lightning, I looked at the dark red decoction inside and realized.

"Oh my god!"

This wasn't medicine; it was poison.

A deadly poison that wouldn't save the heroine's parents but would send them on an express train to the underworld.

If I poured this into the dying %I%Imoogi%N&, it might die instantly due to its potency.

"It seems I have the talent of a first-class assassin. To unintentionally create something like this."

Since it was such a dangerous talent, I was about to dispose of it immediately but hesitated.

Hmm, wouldn't feeding this bit by bit to %C%Kenichi%M& increase his poison resistance?

As I thought about it, I suddenly felt it would be a waste to throw it away.

"I should save this as a gift for Kenichi."

Who else would think of him as much as I do?

Feeling a sense of pride, I set aside the poison for my precious friend, Kenichi.

Then, I continued attempting to synthesize an antidote.

"Should I increase the ratio of the %I%Spiritual Herb%N& just a little?"

Crash─!

It exploded.

"Hmm, or should I pour in the magic water entirely......"

Boom!

A violent explosion occurred.

I didn't think I lacked talent in alchemy or pharmacology.

Failure is the mother of success, after all......

Boom! Boom! Boom!

How many failures did I go through with all these explosions?

"──Eureka!"

In a laboratory blackened as if struck by hundreds of lightning bolts, I finally completed it.

"With this!"

At last, I obtained a result that didn't explode.

Well, I'm not sure about its effectiveness yet, but I'll find out by testing it on someone.

Smiling pleasantly, I tucked the bubbling black antidote into my pocket.

***

Chirp chirp, went the sparrows on a morning.

A Western-style mansion, the kind where nobles might live, located a bit away from the center of %P%Tokyo%N&.

Though the garden was beautifully maintained daily and the servants worked busily, it was an undeniable noble's mansion, yet its young lady was not satisfied.

It wasn't because she lacked cute toys and dolls, nor because she needed snacks.

"So, Melissa. What are the results?"

It was because her parents, who used to buy her such things, had at some point become bedridden and unable to rise.

Moreover, they were far away from her, residing in England, the central hub of magic.

For the sake of prolonging their lives and finding new treatment methods.

Today was the day to hear the results, and the girl's grip on the receiver slowly loosened.

"......I see, it's not much use. No, I should be grateful that their condition hasn't worsened."

Though in truth, she wasn't grateful at all, %C%Eris Betelgeuse%F& forced a bitter smile as she spoke.

"Yes, I'll continue to rely on you."

She wrapped her true feelings in a kind voice and tone, directing them at the equally struggling person on the other end.

Click, clack.

Soon, the call ended, and Eris placed the receiver back on its stand and took a deep breath.

"......Sigh."

Eris closed her eyes tightly and thought.

Just how long would she have to rely on others?

If only she could fly to England and be by their side, she would feel at ease.

─It's a revelation of the stars, do not leave this place.

If only her damn teacher hadn't forbidden her from ever leaving Japan, she would've flown there long ago.

If he were an old man who could be dismissed as senile, she might've doubted him a little, but unfortunately, her teacher was a very vigorous Archmage.

......What did he say again? That a fateful meeting, an incident, would come, so she shouldn't leave this place?

"Sigh, when is that supposed to happen."

It wasn't some vague oracle, but damn fate, damn teacher, damn curse.......

She wanted to punch all of them, but among them, Eris hated the curse the most.

The damn curse that had taken her harmonious parents far away.

......Would there be bad news when she woke up in the morning?

Because she feared waking up every day.......

Eris Betelgeuse clenched her eyes shut, then suddenly scrunched her face, swept her hand over her face, and forced a smile.

"Hmph, let's go."

Recently, school had been difficult because of that lunatic, %C%Ichimaru Shiki%M&, but it was still manageable.

From his peculiar way of speaking to his expressions, there wasn't a single thing she liked about him.

Like his shady appearance, he knew an awful lot about strange things.

'......He was oddly strong too.'

Recalling the fight with him the other day, Eris suddenly shuddered.

He was an enigma in many ways.

But as a Mage pursuing truth, she couldn't just sit idly by.

"......Today, I must get to the bottom of it."

She planned to ask about everything she couldn't yesterday, down to the smallest detail.

His identity, the source of his abilities, how he knew what would happen.

Even through personal connections, no one knew much about the chaos in Japan's Tokyo.

But how did he know? Ichimaru Shiki was certainly someone with secrets.

Yes, today she planned to ask everything!

Huffing and puffing, Eris moved her short legs diligently and finally arrived at the First-year Class A classroom.

"Ahaha! What a wonderful morning!"

"......."

Seeing the man grinning as usual made her frown involuntarily, but %C%Eris Betelgeuse%F& mustered her patience and approached him.

"Hey."

"Hahaha! Miss Eris, why are you calling me?!"

"......Ugh."

For some reason, %C%Ichimaru Shiki%M& showed an even more sinister smile today.

As if he had been waiting for her to speak to him, he responded immediately.

She felt that talking to him here and now would be mentally exhausting.

Turning her gaze away from the sparkling, smiling Shiki, Eris frowned and said.

"......You, meet me behind the school after class!"

"Hahaha! As you command!"

"Eris suddenly wanted to go back home."

***

Hahaha, this is excellent news.

"For %C%Eris Betelgeuse%F& to approach and speak to him first, it seemed her affection for him had grown."

Indeed, genuine feelings always transcend all barriers and are directly conveyed to the soul.

Now, all that's left is to give her the elixir.

'Perfect.'

No way, she's not falling for me, right?

I haven't conducted clinical trials, but since it's made by a genius like me, it's bound to be effective.

When would be the best time to give her the antidote? Should I wait until she gets really annoyed and then hand it over?

As I wasted time with such useless thoughts, school classes quickly came to an end.

"Shiki, are you going straight home?"

"Hahaha, Kenichi. I've already taken two days off, so don't you think I should train today?"

"......Ugh."

The day before yesterday was a holiday, and last night I couldn't hang out with Kenichi because I was busy making the antidote.

So today, I must make time for him.

After spending a little time with Eris, I decided I'd immediately hang out with Kenichi.

"......Hmm?"

I wondered if there was something in the shoe cabinet, and a pure white letter came out.

"Oh my, isn't this a love letter?"

"......No way."

Upon seeing it, Hotaru exclaimed with excitement, while Sento and Kenichi shook their heads as if it was absurd.

"Hmm."

Although I found their vehement denial annoying, considering they weren't even the ones involved, I also secretly thought there was no way it was a love letter.

To be honest, who would send a love letter to a guy with this kind of tone?

I just instinctively sensed it.

[ Please come to the back of Building A after school today. ]

"Hahaha, so it was Miss Eris after all! There was no need to leave a letter!"

Even as I shouted that, I was slightly disappointed.

"......What's this, a duel arena?"

Judging from Eris's recent attitude, even Hotaru seemed to have given up on expecting anything from our relationship.

"At least no victims have appeared."

Kenichi nodded with a smug expression, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Hmm, maybe someday I really should help him build poison resistance.

With a firm resolve in my heart, I smiled brightly and told them.

"Then I'll be back shortly!"

***

Should I immediately stop time and mess things up?

Or should I hand over the elixir?

With an excited heart over which option to choose, I ran to the location written in the letter, only to find that the blonde brat, Eris Betelgeuse, wasn't there.

Behind Building A, only a female student nervously waiting for me could be seen.

She had been staring at the ground, but when she noticed my presence, she quickly raised her head and smiled bashfully.

"......Ah, hello, Ichimaru-kun."

For one, the arrogant brat, Eris Betelgeuse, didn't know how to use such a shy tone.

On the first day of high school, I had helped a female student, Sawako, who tripped on the stairs.

Apparently, she had stopped being Eris's minion and had completely stolen the prior appointment with her big, sparkling eyes as she shyly looked up at me.

"Could you spare a moment of your time?"