New Life As An Overpowered Mage With Infinite Classes

Chapter 35

Morning sunlight filtered through the gaps in the Black Mist Order canopy, dappling the winding path. Robb finished dressing and set off for the herb shop.

The memory of Lady Elena's stunning appearance the previous night still lingered in his mind.

Though reason told him it was only temporary, some part of him couldn't help hoping he might catch another glimpse of the beautiful pink-haired mage.

Pushing open the herb shop door, the familiar blend of herbal scents greeted him.

Robb's gaze immediately found the hunched figure behind the counter.

As expected, Lady Elena had returned to her usual aged appearance...

A face furrowed with wrinkles like a dried riverbed, a massive hooked nose above a thin, pursed mouth, white hair piled haphazardly behind her head, and age-spotted hands carefully inspecting a potion bottle's clarity.

Though he'd anticipated this, witnessing the dramatic contrast firsthand still sent a flash of unmistakable disappointment across Robb's face.

He was about to compose his expression, but judging from Lady Elena's reaction, he was a beat too late.

"What's this, disappointed to see me looking like this?" The old woman didn't look up, her hands never pausing, amusement threaded through her voice.

"Of course not." Robb answered quickly, suppressing a rueful internal laugh, his lack of conviction showing just a touch.

Lady Elena finally set down the bottle and fixed her gaze on the young apprentice. "Brat, your thoughts are written all over your face. Who do you think you're fooling?"

Robb shifted his eyes awkwardly. "My apologies. I meant no disrespect."

"Relax. I'm not going to get angry over something so trivial."

The old woman waved a hand, her voice carrying a rare note of softness.

"Yesterday's look is certainly more pleasing, I prefer it myself. But alas, the blade of time spares no one."

She rose, leaning on a staff carved with strange patterns, and slowly made her way to stand before Robb.

Those green eyes studied him at close range. "That said, appearances and true power are often inversely proportional. You'll come to understand this in time."

Robb could only nod in agreement.

"Well then, since the youth has energy to spare, I happen to have a load of work waiting."

Lady Elena chuckled twice, pointing toward a dim corner at the back of the shop. "That batch of newly arrived thornshade vine needs processing. Remove every last thorn and gall-node. Not one left behind."

Robb followed her gesture and saw a massive bundle of thick, silver-gray vines piled in the corner, bristling with dense thorns and irregular swellings.

Under the light, the thorn-tips glinted with a cold sheen.

"This..." He swallowed involuntarily, easily gauging that this was no ordinary task.

Even with his current skills, processing this mountain of thornshade vine would take the better part of a day.

The old woman caught his hesitation, a sly gleam in her eye. "What, too much work for you? Here's another piece of good news, the thorns contain trace toxins. Prolonged contact causes finger numbness, and if it accumulates, it can even temporarily dull your perception."

The corner of her mouth curved almost imperceptibly.

"Of course, if you find the work too arduous, you're welcome to sit here and admire this 'beautiful' face of mine all day. I wouldn't mind."

Robb scratched his head with some embarrassment, instantly grasping the nature of today's assignment, this was a small punishment.

Though somewhat indignant inside, he understood that Lady Elena, as his employer, had every right.

More importantly, he'd always been grateful for his position at the herb shop.

Access to so many rare materials and knowledge, plus Lady Elena's hands-on instruction, none of it was something he'd refuse lightly.

"I'll get right on the thornshade vine, Lady Elena." Robb nodded earnestly and walked toward the pile of hostile-looking vegetation.

From behind came Lady Elena's barely audible chuckle.

Processing thornshade vine was indeed as grueling as advertised.

Robb quickly understood why this counted as "punishment." The work demanded enormous patience, intense focus, and high technical precision.

Each vine required a specialized silver blade to carefully scrape away the surface thorns and gall-nodes. The slightest slip either damaged the vine, compromising its medicinal value, or jabbed thorns into skin.

Within the first half hour, his hands had accumulated seven or eight small wounds, while his processed pile remained pitifully small.

"Your technique is wrong. Too rough." Lady Elena materialized beside him, her tone equal parts reprimand and instruction. "Keep the blade at a thirty-degree angle. Follow the vine's grain, don't go against it."

She took the tool from his hand and, with almost unbelievable dexterity, traced a perfect line along the vine.

Thorns and gall-nodes were cleanly excised while the vine itself remained flawless.

Robb observed the process intently and quickly adjusted his approach.

He'd always been a keen learner, and Lady Elena's demonstration was immensely instructive.

[Herb Identification EXP +1]

As time passed, Robb's technique steadily improved.

He began reading the distribution patterns of the thorns, finding the most efficient processing order, even predicting which gall-nodes would need special attention next.

Then he made a curious discovery, these thornshade vines weren't randomly covered in thorns. They followed some subtle, hard-to-articulate pattern.

Stranger still, when he was fully absorbed in the work, he seemed to sense a faint but distinct energy pulse within the vine.

It was a life-rhythm utterly different from breathing techniques or meditation, yet equally cadenced.

"Interesting..." Robb murmured, completely immersed in the discovery.

He tried matching his movements to this natural rhythm and was surprised to find his efficiency climbing considerably.

It was as though the vine, on some level, "understood" and "cooperated" with his actions.

Just as Robb was deep in concentration, Lady Elena appeared beside him again, when had she moved?, and offered a cup of dark green, steaming liquid.

"Drink this. It'll counteract the toxin buildup." Her tone was matter-of-fact, but her eyes held a barely perceptible note of approval. "It seems you're better suited to this work than I expected."

Robb accepted the cup gratefully. After a quick check confirmed nothing unusual, he took a sip.

To his surprise, despite the sinister color, the liquid tasted remarkably sweet, like mint tea with honey. The numbness in his fingers vanished almost instantly.

"Thank you, Lady Elena." He offered sincere thanks, then returned to work.

Far faster than expected, Robb finished processing all the thornshade vine before evening.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and surveyed the neatly processed pile of silver-gray vines with a deep sense of accomplishment.

"Not bad at all." Lady Elena inspected the results, her voice betraying surprise.

"Much better than I anticipated. It seems you discovered the trick to processing thornshade vine?"

Robb didn't hide his finding. "I noticed the vine surface seems to follow a specific growth pattern. When my movements aligned with it, efficiency improved dramatically."

"Growth pattern?" Lady Elena's eyes lit with interest.

"Fascinating... Very few people can perceive the life-rhythms of supernatural plants. Your perception is truly remarkable."

She retrieved a small, pre-prepared pouch from beneath the counter. Hard objects clinked inside.

"Let me settle today's Mana Crystal Fragments, then. A bit more than usual, your labor today earned the extra."

Robb took the pouch and weighed it lightly. About five fragments, indeed considerably more than the usual two.

"Thank you for your generosity, Lady Elena." He pocketed the fragments and prepared to leave. "See you tomorrow."

"Wait, don't rush off." The old woman called after him, her tone carrying a faint note of concern.

"Are you heading to your apprentice certification next?"