LHAHS Chapter 362
The weekend morning should have been peaceful, but the second-year dorms were anything but.
A commotion had erupted, disrupting the usual tranquility, and the cause was none other than the wildfire rumor that had spread across the entire second-year class—Carl's so-called love potion.
At first, most students scoffed.
"A love potion? Seriously?"
"People are spreading nonsense now?"
Magic students, in particular, dismissed it outright. Potions were a branch of alchemy, and alchemy's history was deeply intertwined with magic.
For centuries, countless mages had devoted themselves to alchemy, and among them, many had attempted to create a love potion capable of bending someone's heart, but not a single one had ever succeeded.
However, what followed had been enough to shake even the skeptics.
"They say Carl used a recipe from an alchemical tome he got as a conquest reward from Dweno's world."
"A recipe from Dweno?"
"Wait… seriously?"
Not just anyone, but Dweno. A Great Hero who had forged countless divine relics and ultimately left behind the weapon that vanquished the primordial calamity.
Even with claims that this potion came from Dweno's own alchemical notes, most remained skeptical.
"I don't know… I just can't see something like that being in Dweno's Alchemy Book," Chloe muttered, shaking her head as she strolled through the dormitory district, her magic tome tucked under one arm.
Celia, walking beside her, nodded. "Yeah, same. I mean, the Divine Blacksmith making a love potion? That sounds ridiculous."
The two had planned a weekend outing to Lumeria City, chatting and laughing as they made their way out of the dormitory area… until an urgent voice rang out in the distance.
"Where did he go?!"
"He couldn't have gotten far! Find him!"
They turned to see a group of Noble dorm girls, eyes blazing as they searched for something—or someone.
Celia and Chloe exchanged glances before stopping a passing first-year they recognized.
"What's going on? What are you looking for?"
"Carl!" the girl answered without hesitation before rushing off.
Celia's expression turned odd. This many people are looking for Carl?
There was only one reason the Noble girls would be so desperate to track him down.
The love potion.
She had dismissed it as nonsense, but with this many people looking for Carl, she had to wonder. Chloe looked equally baffled when…
"Hey, if you got your hands on the love potion, who would you use it on?"
"W-What?! Why would you even ask that?"
"Come on! You've got someone you'd want to go on a date with, right? That's why you want the love potion, isn't it?"
Three girls walked past them, giggling excitedly.
"I'd go for… Duran, I think?"
"Knew it!"
"Yeah. I don't know, something about that arrogant attitude is kinda cool. What about you?"
"Abad! Just looking at him makes me happy!"
Celia's face twisted in sheer disbelief. "Are they blind? What's so great about that overgrown brute and that walking butter stick?"
As she struggled to comprehend their tastes, the last girl hesitated before speaking.
"Me? Um… maybe Leo? He still looks like a boy, but he acts so mature. He's really manly in his own way."
She laughed shyly, cheeks tinged with embarrassment.
Celia nodded. "Yeah, I can see that. Right, Chloe?"
She turned, only to flinch.
Chloe's expression was completely blank, her face as cold as ice.
"C-Chloe?"
She looked every bit the Ice Queen her nickname suggested.
"Celia, sorry, but let's cancel today's outing," Chloe said flatly.
"What?"
"As a magic student, I can't overlook this situation."
"O-Okay… Should I help?"
"Would you?" Chloe smiled—an unsettlingly sharp one. "We need to catch Carl and make sure he never makes anything like this again."
Rustle.
Hiding in the bushes, Carl let out a weak laugh. What the hell is this nightmare?
He was being chased—by the girls in his own year.
Of course, the reason was the love potion he had made, but still, this was the kind of experience he might never have again. Not that he had any intention of getting caught. If he did, they'd definitely wrest the love potion away from him.
Should I just throw it away? No, no, that'd be such a waste.
He had spent so much money on this.
I have to at least get my money's worth. His mind worked fast, calculating the pros and cons.
If I can just find Leo and get him to help…
"Carl, what are you doing here?"
"Urk?!"
A voice came from beside him, making Carl jolt violently.
"Ah! Found him!"
"There he is!"
"You got me caught!" Carl shouted and bolted.
"Stop right there! By order of the student council, you're under arrest for possession of illegal substances!" Eliana, her eyes blazing, joined the chase.
By now, even male students were in pursuit. Some wanted the love potion, while others, worried that the person they secretly liked might drink it, were trying to stop it from being used.
For various reasons, nearly the entire student body had their eyes locked on Carl, chasing after him with burning determination.
Naturally, as the weakest among the second-years, Carl was quickly cornered.
"Hey! Calm down! If a professor catches you all doing this, you're gonna be in big trouble!" he shouted desperately.
Wait! Why isn't the professor on duty stepping in despite all this noise? …Hold on. Today's duty professor is Professor Len, isn't it?
Carl had assumed a professor would eventually intervene, but when he remembered who was on duty, his face stiffened. Len was exactly the type of person who would treat this as nothing more than an amusing magical experiment.
The sharp glares of his fellow second-years bore into him. Carl gulped nervously.
Whoosh!
A sudden gust of wind blasted through.
Swish! Crack!
"Ugh?!"
A whip lashed out of nowhere, wrapping tightly around Carl's neck. Before he could react, a tremendous force yanked him high into the sky. By the time he regained his senses, he was on the back of a Wind Wyvern, soaring above Lumene.
"I-I'm alive!"
Seated on the wyvern with her legs crossed, idly filing her nails, Eliza glanced at him. "Because of your ridiculous potion, I haven't been able to sleep on this fine weekend morning," she snapped.
Carl met her gaze and sighed. "Sorry. I didn't expect things to get this out of hand. Anyway, thanks for saving me."
He exhaled, relieved.
Honestly, I'm safe with Eliza. She was too proud and aloof to want a love potion just to make a guy fall for her.
"A love potion, huh? So if I use this, the arrogant Leo Plov will worship me? How amusing," she mused.
"This isn't some kind of mind-control drug! And how is Leo arrogant? You're the arrogant one!"
"Hmph." Eliza scoffed at his remark, then smirked. "I need a test subject."
She narrowed her eyes at him, a mischievous glint in her gaze.
Carl's smile turned stiff. "Wait, no way… You're not thinking of making me drink it, right?"
"Consider it an honor to serve me."
"The hell it is?!"
Just as Carl panicked, a sharp, freezing sound rang out.
The Wind Wyvern opened its mouth and fired a breath attack.
Boom! Crack!
A highly compressed air blast shattered the massive ice spikes heading their way.
"Chloe Mueller," Eliza murmured.
"Chloe! You came to save me!" Carl flailed his arms excitedly.
Eliza smirked.
"Carl," Chloe said coldly.
"Uh?"
"I told you before, if you break school rules by making weird stuff, I won't let it slide."
"Hey! W-Wait a second!" Carl flinched at Chloe's dangerous tone.
"Sorry, but Carl Thomas has already promised to hand over the love potion to me," Eliza cut in.
"When did I ever do that?! Stop talking like you're a thug extorting protection money!"
"To make sure you never misuse Dweno's Alchemy Book again, I'll teach you a painful lesson."
A freezing chill spread. Chloe activated her magic, aiming to turn Carl into an ice statue.
Boom!
"Ugh?!"
"The dorm leader of Glory attacking a Noble student? Are you ready to deal with the consequences, Chloe Mueller?" Eliza grinned, her eyes gleaming with battle-hungry excitement.
"You still owe me from midterms. I'll settle that debt now."
"Can you both calm down?!" Carl screamed.
A powerful gust of wind howled between Chloe and Eliza.
The current snatched Carl from the wyvern's back, lifting him into the air.
Eliza's eyes twitched. "Pipi, follow."
At her command, the Wind Wyvern turned to chase after Carl, but before it could move, a barrier of ice formed.
"You're the one who picked this fight first," Chloe said, smiling coldly.
"Hmm." Eliza rested her chin on her hand. "This could be fun."
She, too, fully shifted into battle mode.
Boom! Crackle!
Mana and spiritual energy clashed violently in midair.
"I knew you'd get yourself into trouble someday," Chelsea sighed, gripping Carl by the collar.
"Chelsea! You really came to save me, right?!"
"Yeah. Just get rid of that ridiculous potion already or hand it over to the student council."
Her voice was indifferent, but Carl frowned. "You don't want it?"
"I do." Chelsea smiled faintly. "But I promised myself I'd reach my goals through my own effort. A fleeting, sweet dream might not be bad, but relying on something external makes it meaningless."
"The youngest one sounds like the most mature," Carl muttered, letting out a dry laugh.
He pulled out the potion bottle from his pocket. The golden liquid shimmered.
"I was planning to use this to make a name for myself and rake in a fortune… But this isn't my skill—it's Dweno's." He sighed bitterly. "I'll just get rid of it."
"Good call."
They were almost at the ground now.
Just as Chelsea smiled approvingly, though, a gust of wind blew.
"Oh, I dropped it."
"You—YOU IDIOT! How could you drop that?!"
"A love potion?"
Behind the Glory dormitory, Leo, fresh from his morning training, looked dumbfounded.
"Yeah, apparently it's a potion from Dweno's Alchemy Book," Celia explained, nodding.
"Here, Leo," Chen Xia said, handing him a cup of water with a smile.
"Thanks." Leo took it and clicked his tongue.
Dweno, you perverted bastard. Why the hell did you record something so stupid in your texts?
As he made a disgusted face, a tiny potion bottle fell from the sky.
Swoosh—Plop!
It landed right in his cup.
"What's that?"
"A potion bottle?"
Chen Xia and Celia blinked in confusion.
Leo, looking skeptical, fished the bottle out and uncorked it, bringing it close to his nose.
"Hey! Leo! Don't drink that!"
"Leo! Throw it away!"
Chelsea and Carl's frantic voices rang from above. Even Chloe and Eliza, who had been fighting midair, had drawn close enough to see what was happening.
Celia and Chen Xia's eyes widened.
And then… Leo smirked and downed the love potion.