Alchemists do not need self-cultivation

"Wait! Fiona."

Hughes tried to stop the unsuspecting Fiona, but his voice failed to reach her ears as she wavered in her resolve.

Pushing open the blood-stained door, Fiona rushed into the president's office.

When the door opened, the sight before her left Fiona stunned.

Her father, the president of Farmania Corporation, lay on the ground with a small knife stuck in his back.

"Father……"

"He's still breathing."

Isaac walked in.

Judging from the wounds on the body, it is indeed as the surviving employees said, that they were all inflicted by the same person, and all were fatal wounds caused by slashing vital organs with a knife.

"Yo~"

A man in black walked in through the door next to the president's office.

The man held a thin-bladed knife in his right hand, stained with blood but conveying no malice.

With a casual wave of his left hand, the man with the knife spoke to Fiona, his tone carrying an inappropriate familiarity.

"You're too slow. Our mission is already complete."

Gazing at her father as he collapsed, Fiona let out a sound from her throat.

The man with the knife took out a small glass bottle from his pocket, which appeared to be a travel-sized perfume bottle. Upon seeing this, Fiona's expression instantly changed.

"You're this guy's daughter? So you're the one who created the 'mark'?"

Looking down at the president's corpse, the man with the knife asked Fiona.

"Well……"

"I'm so grateful to you. Thanks to this thing, I've finally experienced the highest level of happiness I've ever felt in my life!"

Hughes walked in at that moment and questioned the man in front of him, "You're the one who killed people here, aren't you? Are you from the Padek Merchant Guild?"

“…Padek Merchant Guild? Oh, you mean Boss Vance.”

The man with the knife answered casually, indicating that he was not a member of the Padek Chamber of Commerce, but merely a hitman hired in his own capacity.

"Is that 'remnant' you mentioned earlier the one in this bottle you're holding?" Isaac asked.

"You have a good eye~ Yes, the smell of this stuff can bring unparalleled joy to anyone who smells it. It can grant bliss that is immune to pain and sorrow."

After saying that, he sprayed the small bottle on his face a few times, revealing a blissful expression.

"No!!"

Fiona suddenly clutched her head and screamed.

"That thing was just a failed attempt! It was simply a poison that directly stimulated the limbic system of the brain, causing a large amount of brain substances to be secreted, driving people mad. It was just a failed product derived from the process of concocting 'Azure'!"

"Hey, how can you comment on something so wonderful like that? This is your work!"

The man's gaze, devoid of any human emotion, made Fiona gasp.

At that moment, a man appeared in the shadows of the documents rack inside the president's office.

The man with the knife was wearing the same black suit as the other man and was holding a thick, confidential file containing the perfume formula of the Famania company.

"Vans, have you found the item?" the man with the knife asked with a smile.

“Found it… By the way, what are you doing, North?” The man named Vance frowned and said, “Kill that woman quickly. It’s enough that only the Padek Merchant Guild knows about the ‘Remnants’ methods.”

"I just can't do anything with you."

The man with the knife, North, nodded and walked towards the group with the knife in his hand.

"...Isaac."

"Ok?"

“Leave him to me.” Hugh seemed to be suppressing his anger. “I’ll borrow the power of your Phantom Book.”

"Oh, that's perfect, I'd also like to see just how effective my writing really is."

Isaac smiled, showing no intention of making a move. Ignoring the two men in black in front of him, he stepped forward and tried to drag the seriously injured and fallen president back.

To be honest, Isaac didn't take those two guys seriously.

"Hey! Kid, aren't you being a little too arrogant?"

North felt underestimated when he saw Isaac walking towards him without any warning.

"You're not planning to run away even after seeing me..."

Swish!

Before he could finish speaking, a gust of wind rushed towards him.

North realized something was wrong and immediately stepped back, but Hugh's fist just grazed his face.

Before he could even get his footing, Hughie's next move was already upon him.

A foot, accompanied by a gust of air, slammed into his stomach, sending him flying and crashing into the wall.

"you……"

Bang!

Before he could finish speaking, Hugh had already leaped into the air, drawing an arc in the air before his heel struck North's head like a battle axe, slamming his head into the ground.

Chapter 1034: The True Power of the Illusory Book

Hughie's kick slammed into North's head, driving his skull hard into the ground.

The tiled floor cracked instantly from the powerful impact, and blood began to flow from North's forehead.

Even if he doesn't die from this attack, he'll likely never be able to get up again.

Has she already fainted?

Hugh removed his foot and looked at Isaac, who was already treating the company president, and asked, "How is the president doing?"

"The injuries were quite serious, but he survived."

"That's good."

“Keep an eye on what’s behind us,” Isaac said. “That guy’s still up.”

"What!?"

Hughes turned around abruptly, only to find that North, who should have been lying on the ground, had suddenly disappeared, leaving only a pool of blood on the ground.

Suddenly, a dark figure appeared in his blind spot, a blade flashing as it stabbed towards Hugh's head.

clang!

Hugh drew his pistol and used the barrel to catch the blade that pierced at an almost imperceptible speed. The impact of the violent collision caused the gun to spark fiercely.

"You've got some skills, huh!"

North had a huge wound on his forehead that was constantly gushing blood, and his eyes were bloodshot from the pain, making him look particularly ferocious.

"How is that possible? He shouldn't be able to get up with such severe injuries..."

"I'm so sorry, I can't even feel any pain!"

With tremendous force, North forced Hugh back two steps, then took out the perfume bottle from before and sprayed it twice around his nose.

"Ah~ this tastes so wonderful..."

"What exactly is this bottle of stuff...?"

“This is ‘Remnant,’ a failed experiment I made while researching ‘Azure,’” Fiona explained. “It’s highly addictive and produces feelings of euphoria and reduces pain.”

“So this guy’s on performance-enhancing drugs,” Isaac said. “Hughie, just break his arms and legs.”

"...I'll give it a try."

As he spoke, North's blade struck again.

After the fireworks flashed, his blade was once again blocked by Hugh.

Judging from the strength and reaction speed North displayed, his physical abilities far surpass those of ordinary people.

Judging from the reaction just now, it seems that the sense of pain has almost been numbed. The symptoms are very similar to those of a drug addict. The cause may be "residue".

The forbidden fragrance, which directly affects the limbic system of the brain through the sense of smell—a brain substance secreted in large quantities due to the 'Remnant' effect—grants North what can be described as abnormal combat abilities. His violent personality and emotional detachment are probably side effects of the Remnant.

If it were the current North, it would be understandable that he could easily slaughter more than a dozen people with just a small knife.

The knife attacked Hugh with incredible speed, but Hugh used his agility to dodge all the attacks and kept retaliating when he had an opening.

Although North is strong, he is no match for Hugh, who possesses the Book of Illusions.

"Damn it, it's just like a mudfish."

After Hugh dodged his thrust, he tried to attack again, but Hugh suddenly grabbed his wrist.

Hugh grabbed North's wrist with one hand and struck him in the elbow with the other.

Click!

North's knife fell to the ground, and his right hand hung limply due to the broken bones in his joint.

"Hey! North! Are you even capable of this?!"

Vance, who had been watching the show from the sidelines, finally got anxious.

Originally, it was thought that North would be able to easily defeat two seemingly weak men and a woman, and would be able to finish them off in less than a minute. However, the current situation is that North has been seriously injured by Hugh, and his dominant arm has been dislocated.

"Noisy!"

With his only remaining hand, he quickly reached for the perfume bottle and crushed it with the strength of his palm.

Hugh sensed something was wrong and rushed forward to subdue him.

Snapped!

North slapped his hand, which had been cut by shards of glass, against his face, his cheeks completely covered in perfume.

Bloodshot eyes completely stained red, and North roared as he lunged at Hugh.