The Primal Hunter

Jake stepped through the gate as he appeared at the back wall of what looked like a massive lecture hall. The hall had nearly a hundred meters to the ceiling and a large stage down at the bottom where Jake saw a dwarf that he assumed was the teacher. He was currently talking to a few scalekins as he showed off a cauldron to them.

The rest of the hall was already pretty filled. Jake looked around and guessed there had to be at least a few thousand present already, with more coming every second from other gates opening up all around him. A brief scan revealed around half of those present to be scalekins of different variants, with the rest a mixture of all kinds of races.

Everyone was E or D-grades, too, with the majority in D-grade. Jake decided to just find somewhere vacant as he took a seat, very curious as to how a lesson in the Order of the Malefic Viper would function. He did see many others already had cauldrons out and were tinkering a bit with them.

About ten minutes later, right at the assigned time, the lesson began.

The dwarf down on the stage stood before everyone as he spread out his hands. “Welcome to the first lesson of Blaze it! I ain’t gonna waste your time with pleasantries but just get to the core of it. You all want to learn how to kill people using your cauldrons and Alchemical Flame, and I am happy to oblige!”

Instantly the very informal mood was set.

“Alchemical Flame is a cornerstone of alchemy that anyone who reaches E-grade as an alchemist possesses. We use it to control the temperature of the cauldron, salvage material, control concoctions, brewings, and so many other things. It is darn versatile, yet it has the weakness of being as useless as anything can get when it comes to killing things.

“Despite the name, the flame isn’t actually related to the fire affinity whatsoever. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t related to the concept of flames. Flames can come in many shapes and is more an expression of form, movement, and phenomena than anything else. A flame can be hot or cold, it can be corrosion incarnate or so full of life it can near-revive a damn Risen, but even then… it can’t kill for shit, and even if you have a flame full of vitality, you won’t be able to heal anyone with it. Because the Alchemical Flame is conceptually not made for combat, no matter how powerful it gets. Ah, but of course, we found ways around that, which is where combat cauldrons come in.”

The dwarf wished over a cauldron as it appeared before him.

“Ya see, I ain’t got shit talent in fire magic and never did, but I was pretty good at controlling my Alchemical Flame. This is why I began working the path of combat cauldrons. We spent so long honing our flames that some have even been able to integrate a Soulflame to make it even more powerful, so not using it for self-defense or killing is just a damn crime.

“It is also a way to address the oft-seen disparity in class and profession level of a creator, and an even better method for those who only have a profession. Now, the design of the cauldron will naturally depend on what kind of flame you-“

Jake sat back as he listened to the dwarf explain more about what one had to look for. He displayed a bit with his own cauldron as he activated it. An odd brown flame was emitted from the combat cauldron, and he had someone bring in a beast trapped in a cage.

The brown flame moved over, and the moment it touched the beast, it began turning to stone as it was petrified within seconds. The dwarf then displayed how the flame did nothing to the bars around the beast and explained how one would need to carefully make sure the type of flame deployed would work against different kinds of lifeforms.

It was all very intriguing, but Jake quickly began to realize none of this was truly something he needed. There was nothing about the flame itself, but instead, it was purely how one could create or commission cauldrons capable of changing the nature of the flame and then use the cauldron as a catalyst. There would also be later lessons about how one could make use of the inside of the cauldron itself to further empower the flames by mixing in poison or other ingredients.

The funniest part of it all was when the dwarf explained one other thing, though… how to use the cauldron as an actual weapon. How the flame could be used as a tether, and he displayed himself attacking with the cauldron telekinetically and how one could infuse the inside with flames and release it in surprise attacks. The flames inside would also be able to infuse the cauldron with certain properties if it was well-designed, such as if one had a cold flame, then the cauldron itself could give off an intense ice aura and give frost burn to any it hit.

So, to answer Jake’s question, yes, part of using combat cauldrons was to bonk people with them.

However, finding it entertaining was all it ultimately was to Jake. It was clear this was aimed at individuals who were truly pure alchemists to give them a fighting chance by using their alchemy skills in combat directly. It required a special cauldron to function. Even if the dwarf teacher did say it was technically possible to make magic circles or tattoos in later grades to fulfill the same function, the reality was that what Jake already had was far better.

Jake could just make an arcane flame at any point using mana, and if he wanted to actually focus on improving that, he could get something far better. He had already mentally checked out when the dwarf mentioned something that caught his attention.

“Now, let me be clear, it is possible to integrate a Soulflame with innate combat potential that can be directly used as a weapon without any auxiliary assistance. However, these Soulflames will inadvertently also be far less useful in the alchemical process, so they are heavily de-incentivized. The only ones who should ever consider getting them are alchemists who have chosen to pursue paths where the Alchemical Flame is no longer vital.

“Not to say there aren’t Soulflames able to do both, but good luck getting one of those, much less control them. Leave those to the seniors, eh?”

There it was again. Soulflame. He had seen it mentioned in the descriptions of the lesson from the A-grade dragon too, and here it was again. The thing is, Jake had no idea what a Soulflame was. Granted, he hadn’t looked it up either, but it seemed pretty important.

Either way, the rest of the long lesson continued as there were a lot of practical demonstrations. Jake was not that into it as while the dwarf was at a higher level than Jake, and his skills in using the Alchemical Flame were phenomenal, he was still weak for his level. Clearly, a very pure craftsman, which Jake was definitely not.

When the lesson was over, Jake left along with everyone else. He could have gone earlier, but he wanted to stay out of respect for the teacher and also to give Meira some time to check the lessons and decide.

Going through the gate back to his mansion was as easy as getting to the lesson. Honestly, it was almost too convenient. Jake could go to any lesson and straight back home easily at any point. This did mean Jake had no fucking idea where he was or went on any geographical or even spatial level. He would have no way back if the gate didn’t activate after a lesson.

Jake walked back towards the laboratory, where he found Meira already awaiting his return. She bowed when she saw him, as he took the initiative to speak first.

“Did you choose the five most interesting ones?” he asked.

“Yes!” she said as she went over to him. She knelt down as she held up five pieces of paper like they were the holy grail. Jake groaned internally at how she acted but took the papers nevertheless. He looked them over quickly and was in two minds about it.

The first one she had picked was called Concocting For Beginners: Tricks and Methods For Novice Alchemists. Which was, for all intents and purposes, a damn good choice. The second one was, however, not as good:

Etiquette & How To Identify the Ideal Master.

It was a lesson about how one could get the best teacher and how to act properly around them. Jake had not even skimmed it before handing Meria the paper before, but it was really some weird shit. It included details of how one should endear themselves to a more powerful alchemist to learn from them and even included tips and tricks on some unsavory stuff to gain favor, aiming specifically at males and females going for a master of the opposite gender. How the hell Meira thought this qualified as “interesting” was above him.

Actually… it was kind of interesting, but not in a good way.

The third lesson was about the importance of finding a path in alchemy and what you were good at. Jake also agreed on that one as a good choice. In fact, it was the best of all the options. It was more a philosophy lesson and workshop to realize what you truly desired and practical tests to see what one was talented at.

The fourth was about gardening. A bit boring, but Jake could see it make sense. Finally, the fifth one was a bit… well… Jake understood, kinda, but that didn’t mean he agreed on a lesson named “Walking In the Divine Shadow of the Malefic One: Power Through Devotion.”

Jake had taken his time as he looked them over. He then regarded her and asked. “Can you explain your reason behind why you think these are interesting?”

He had chosen the word interesting very purposefully. He had not said required or even useful, just interesting.

“I chose the first one because it touches on essential subjects an alchemist of the Order will no doubt need down the line, and it can help create a strong foundation.“

She had clearly expected this as she explained herself. Jake agreed on the first one, but he did notice one issue. Meira had misunderstood who it was supposed to be interesting for. She maybe had the assumption this was for some subordinate of Jake or something, and while she wasn’t entirely wrong, she was off by a good margin.

“And why is it interesting?” Jake asked clarifyingly.

“Fundamental knowledge is naturally essential for an alchemist starting out, and with the Order’s focus on toxins, it an ideal choice,” Meira explained.

She still doesn’t get it, Jake sighed. She simply didn’t seem to get what interesting meant. She kept talking about the usefulness and not why something was interesting. Jake would have said it was interesting because concocting more effectively would allow him to make better poisons that would then allow him to hunt stronger prey. It would expand his horizon of game.

“Let me ask you this, why would you want to learn to concoct poison better?” Jake asked. “And in this case, “you” does refer to you in particular. Why would Meira want to take this lesson?”

This question seemed to effectively stunlock her as she failed to answer for a good five seconds. She finally spoke after half a dozen seconds with confusion: “I am not sure this one understands the assignment? If it is wished of me to learn concoction, I will naturally do my best to-“

“No,” Jake interrupted. He waved his hand as he sent the five papers with lessons on them back on the pile on the alchemy table with the others. “Take the lessons again and look them over. Choose five you think are interesting. Not that you think will be interesting for an alchemist of the Order. Choose five and explain why they are interesting to you. You have three days to pick them, and you can come to ask me questions in the meantime if there is something you are unsure about, okay?”

Meira looked even more perplexed, if not downright scared, especially after he had interrupted her. She quickly bowed after he was done talking. “I apologize that I failed my task and will accept any p-“

“I never said you failed or that you did anything wrong, just for you to do it again in a different way,” Jake interrupted her again. “Now, is there anything you don’t understand?”

She was silent for a while, clearly hesitant to ask before she finally built up the courage. “If I may… this one fails to comprehend why her insight will have any meaning or value in identifying lessons?”

Jake felt a bit happy as she finally had the guts to question something. Sadly for her, this was not a question she would get a straight answer for, at least not yet.

“You will understand in time; just know I have my reasons,” Jake said.

Which seemed to be a perfectly adequate explanation for her as she nodded and bowed in acknowledgment. She went over to pick up all the papers but looked a bit lost as Jake quickly knew why.

“The western residence.”

She looked at him questioningly as if expecting an order.

“From now on, the western residence is yours to use as your personal living space. Go there and fulfill your task, alright?” Jake asked, knowing she would naturally agree, even if she didn’t seem comfortable. Jake could kind of get why.

Each of the residences was their own mansions full of luxury, and she probably didn’t feel like it was right for her to get one. But it wasn’t like Jake had other people who needed them, and if he was honest, he didn’t want her shadowing him all the time or hanging around outside whatever room he was trying to chill in.

It may not matter for others, but with Jake’s Sphere of Perception, it was just distracting and unsettling.

She luckily didn’t try to argue this point but just picked up all the papers. She bowed one final time as she spoke. “Simply call this one if there are any tasks to be done, and I will come immediately.”

“I will call you. In three days. Now go and look them over and truly consider the choices as if you were choosing the path of a close friend, a relative, or even yourself,” Jake once more clarified.

Meira bowed one last time as she left, finally giving Jake some alone time as he did what any young, healthy male would do when alone.

He picked up the spatial satchel of neurotoxic material and began making a stew in his cauldron using the Alchemical Flame to heat it up as he played with it a bit with inspiration courtesy of the lesson earlier. At the same time, he also began looking over the books Meria had brought as he decided to get some light reading and poison eating in before it was time for his second lesson on the Alchemical Flame.

But this time, it would be with dragons.

Or, well, at least one dragon.