I Need Wives For My Gacha System
Chapter 72: Giving The Ingridents For The Shy Alchemist To Craft( - -72)

Chapter 72: Giving The Ingridents For The Shy Alchemist To Craft(Chapter-72)

Rex called out softly, "Elder Tia"

The moment her name escaped his lips, the girl’s head jerked up, her eyes widened in surprise. But the interesting thing was what happened afterwards. When she attempted to stand up quickly from the ground, she movements were too abrupt and careless as it her body collided with the piles of books around her which made them shift towards her.

She also slipped on one of the papers which was on the ground which made her fall along with the piles of books collapsing like dominos, one by one hitting the place she was at.

Ayana, who had been quietly observing, instinctively closed one eye in exasperation as the pile of books kept falling. The sound of them hitting the mountain of books where Tia was located was like a series of small thunderclaps.

Thud, thud, thud, each one louder than the previous one.

When it finally seemed like the last of the books had fallen there was one last loud sound, one last book tumbling from the top of the pile. It fell squarely on her head, contributing to the already absurd circumstance.

Slowly, her face flushed red as an apple. She had a book still perched on her head, looking funny Her hair, which had been carefully styled moments ago, was now in a tangled mess, and her glasses had shifted down her nose.

Her eyes teared up, not from pain but from embarrassment at what had happened. She looked up at Rex and Ayana. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to cover her dignity from the disaster that had just happened which made her look like a child who had been unfairly embarrassed.

Her voice was shy and gentle, and she spoke in a tiny squeak.

"I....I’m sorry... I wasn’t expecting... visitors..."

Her eyes were brimming with tears and darted rapidly between them. It was obvious that, in her mind, her pride had just been shattered. Rex blinked, unsure of whether to laugh or apologize.

Rex moved closer to Tia as he reached slowly to remove the book still perched atop her head. Tia winced, embarrassed, her cheeks burning with even more colour than before. He gently handed the book back to her.

"Don’t worry about it," he said, reassuring her with a smile. Tia looked up at him, her eyes puffy and watery.

"Thank you..." she whispered, sweeping her gaze around the tide of books spread before her.

"Would you mind waiting for a bit?"

"I... I need to tidy this up"

Ayana gave a short nod with a smile as she looked at the girl.

"We’ll wait in the living room, Tia"

"Take your time"

With a final glance at both of them, Tia nodded, her eyes filled with gratitude as she began to carefully pick up the scattered books, one by one.

After a short while, Rex and Ayana moved to the living room, settling in on a pair of comfortable chairs. It wasn’t long before the door to the living room opened again, and Tia, accompanied by her grandmother, stepped into the room.

Tia’s appearance had changed. A noticeable lump had formed on her forehead, as if she had been struck by something heavy. But it was definitely not from the books as when they left both Rex and Ayana didn’t see her get that much hurt by the books. Tia’s eyes were a little red from unshed tears, but her grandmother walked with her as if nothing had occurred her face as calm and peaceful as before.

Tia was still shy, her demeanor a mixture of embarrassment and hesitation. She stood just a little bit behind her grandmother, avoiding direct eye contact with Rex and Ayana. Her fingers fidgeted with the hem of her sleeves, betraying the nervousness she felt. They both sat around the table and her grandmother spoke first.

"Tia, this is the Baron Rex and Lady Ayana" she introduced, gesturing towards the two.

Tia gave out a small, barely audible word of

"Hello" before falling silent, clearly overwhelmed by the situation.

Her voice was quiet, as if she wasn’t entirely sure what to say. Her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, making her look even more adorable in her nervousness.

Her grandmother raised an eyebrow at her.

"Is that really it, Tia?"

"Introduce yourself properly."

Tia’s shoulders slumped as she sighed, and with a slight bow, she finally spoke again, this time with more clarity.

"I... I’m Tia," she said quietly,

"Head of the Alchemy Pavilion, Lord Baron"

Rex smiled reassuringly.

"There’s no need for formalities, Elder Tia, you can relax."

Tia’s head jerked up, a bit surprised from his easy going tone, and she hesitated before speaking again.

"No need for Elder, just... call me Tia."

She gave a small, nervous laugh, her hands wringing the edge of her sleeves.

"May I ask if there is something that you need, Lord Baron?" she asked, though her voice trembled slightly with uncertainty.

Ayana, sensing her unease, spoke up,

"It’s nothing big, Tia. We just need your help crafting a few pills for us."

At this, Tia blinked in surprise, her expression turning from uncertain to genuinely startled.

"A few pills?" she echoed, before her eyes flickered down to the ground.

"How many... how many pills are we talking about?"

Rex pulled out a list from his pocket, handing it to her. Tia’s eyes skimmed the list, and her expression shifted from confusion to outright disbelief.

"T...this many?" she stammered, her eyes wide in shock as she saw the number of items on the list as well as the resources sprawled on the table which Ayana put as soon as Rex gave her the list.

Her confidence wavered even further, and she bit her lip nervously.

"Baron Rex, I think you should find a more experienced alchemist for something like this" "I’m... I’m not sure I can.."

Before she could finish, her grandmother, who had been watching the exchange took a look at the list before saying.

"She’s always like this, so uncertain, even though she can handle it"

The old woman shook her head fondly.

"Don’t let her fool you. She’s more than capable"

Rex turned to Tia, his voice calm but firm.

"You’re the best alchemist in the city, Tia"

Tia froze, her heart skipping a beat at his compliment. She didn’t know how to respond at first, her face flushing deeply as she processed his words. Finally, she nodded quietly, her voice small but determined.

"I’ll... I’ll do my best."

As she looked down at the list again, her eyes caught sight of a particular item among the resources spawled on the table the Phantom Lotus that Ayana had brought with them.

"Wait," she murmured, lifting it up.

"This... This is the Phantom Lotus, right?"

"Lord, do you... want me to create the SoulShedding Pill with this?"

"Exactly"

"Can you craft it?"

Tia hesitated, a nervous laugh escaping her.

"I... I’m not entirely confident in making that pill yet," she admitted, her gaze dropping to the floor.

"It’s a very complex pill to refine and I just reached the Earth rank not too long ago"

"I’m not sure if I can get it right"

"We don’t need the whole flower... Just a few petals should be enough for a batch"

"I can attempt refining a batch see how it turns out"

"That way, even if something goes wrong, I won’t waste the entire Lotus."

"You can use up the entire lotus if you have to, even if you fail, I won’t blame you"

"I don’t really need the pill but it would be a good experience for you"

"I’ll do my best" she said, finally finding her confidence again.

"I’ll make sure the process goes well"

She looked very cute with how shy she was and how she the small confidence she had brewed up made her look.

Rex had already seen about her affection and loyalty and knew that she was to be trusted. Even though her affection was lower than what he would have expected her loyalty more than enough made up for it.

[Affection: 52]

[Loyalty: 83]

He also took a look at her talent for alchemy as well which was

[Alchemy Talent: Brown -> Yellow]

Her innate talent was brown yet she worked hard and improved herself which made her talent to yellow.

"We’ll leave the refining to you, Tia," he said.

"Take your time"

Ayana, who had been standing beside Rex, added,

"Don’t worry, there’s no rush"

"Do what you need to do."

Tia nodded, though she looked up briefly, her shy demeanour still intact.

"Thank you for your trust," she said, her voice soft but determined.

"I’ll make sure to handle everything carefully"

Rex smiled and turned toward the door, giving Tia one final glance before he and Ayana began to leave the room.

The grandmother, who had been observing the entire exchange from the side, stood as well and walked them to the entrance. The old lady’s expression had remained as calm and composed as ever. As Rex and Ayana stepped outside, the grandmother and granddaughter duo waved them off.

"Please take care, Lord Baron and Lady Ayana," the grandmother called out with a warm smile.

"We’ll handle the pills for you"

"And thank you for trusting Tia"

Tia stood a little behind her grandmother, still looking shy but offering a small, sincere wave. "Goodbye," she said softly, her voice almost a whisper.