Chapter 90: First Try [Slightly R18]

Chapter 90: Chapter 90: First Try [Slightly R18]

And once again Derrick looked around the room and marvelled at how completely Beth’s workspace had changed.

The quiet, minimalist room was now packed with sleek, modern alchemy apparatuses.

Intricate glass condensers, automated temperature regulators, and high-precision centrifugation units hummed softly on reinforced tables.

Unlike his own ancient, flame-ignited cauldron, her setup looked like a cutting-edge research laboratory straight out of a top-tier corporation.

She had not asked Derrick for the money but paid it all from the income he had given her for the first month.

She kept 10,000SC for herself and Ruth while spending the rest on her work.

"Look at this batch first," Beth said, pulling him towards the central counter.

She pointed to a metallic tray containing a dozen pale green pills.

"These were my first few starting attempts," she explained, pulling up a digital reader on a small tablet.

Sample A: Unranked Face rejuvenation Pill

Purity: 52%

Sample B: Unranked Beauty Pill

Purity: 58%

Derrick nodded slowly. "Are these your average product? You already have made big progress on your own..."

"That was just the lowest quality batch," Beth murmured, a competitive spark igniting deep within her hazel eyes.

"Last time I created something great with your help."

She gently shifted those pills aside and revealed a second glass case beneath a velvet cloth.

Inside rested thirty smooth, far denser pills that radiated a much cleaner, clearer light.

"This time I followed your instructions and tried to do it on my own," she said, her voice rising with restrained excitement. "Check these."

Derrick leaned in as the scanner ran over the second display.

Batch Average Purity: 60% - 66%

Over sixty percent across an entire batch.

Derrick was genuinely impressed. "Beth, this is—"

"Wait," she interrupted, stepping right in front of him.

She grabbed his forearm, pulling him close until her shoulder pressed against his chest.

Her face bloomed into a radiant, breathtaking smile, her eyes practically overflowing with pure pride and excitement.

"I kept the best one for last."

With delicate fingers, she reached into a tiny vacuum-sealed glass vial sitting on a raised stand in the very centre of the table.

She pulled out a single, perfectly rounded pill that glowed with a mesmerizing, crystal-clear sheen.

There were no visible impurities, no rough spots, and not a single micro-crack on its surface.

She placed it onto the main scanner plate.

The machine hummed for two seconds before flashing a bright gold prompt on the screen.

Peak Sample Analysis: Unranked Energy Pill

Purity: 71.8%

Derrick’s eyes widened as his deadpan composure shattered for a split second.

Seventy-one point eight percent... she managed to recreate that feat on her own. Unlike the cream we made the last time, the pill is much harder to create.

If the big corporate houses, the Pill Alchemists Guild, or the underground syndicates found out a girl in a home lab was pulling off these numbers, they would go to war just to claim her.

Her raw talent wasn’t just impressive. It was terrifying.

At this rate, stepping up to refine Tier 1 pills would be a walk in the park for her.

"Derrick..." Beth whispered, looking up at him with shining, eager eyes. "To be honest... I feel like I could probably create a Tier 1 pill right now if I tried. It just so natural now in terms of energy flow."

She paused, taking a deep breath and shaking her head with a firm, determined look.

"But I don’t want to rush it. I want to keep refining these unranked ones until I can consistently hit ninety percent purity first."

Derrick looked at the glowing pill on the scanner, then down at the blushing redhead standing right beside him.

"Beth... you have no idea how talented you are," Derrick said softly, a rare, genuine smile touching his lips.

"Alchemists spend their whole lives trying to hit numbers like these. You’re incredible."

Beth’s cheeks flushed a deeper shade of red, a shy, brilliant smile spreading across her face at his praise.

Derrick’s gaze drifted from the glowing gold text on the screen back down to Beth.

It was only then that he realized just how close she was standing.

Her shoulder was pressed firmly against his chest, and he could feel the faint warmth of her quickened breath brushing softly against his chin.

"It’s only because of you, Derrick," Beth murmured softly, her hazel eyes locked onto his.

"If you hadn’t found me... if you hadn’t given me a chance... I’d still be stuck in that small town, struggling to move an inch."

As the words hung in the quiet workspace, Beth also realized how close she was standing to him.

But instead of feeling shy or ashamed.

She felt bolder.

In a daze of strange intoxicated confidence, her hand reached out for Derrick’s.

She interlocked her fingers with his and tilted her head up slightly, staring at him with her big, dreamy, glassy eyes.

Derrick felt a sudden spike in his heart rate.

He had always known Beth was a remarkably beautiful girl, but her uncharacteristic boldness made her so hot and alluring.

At first he hesitated, his gaze dropping to her lips.

They were in business together, so it was inappropriate to do something like this.

But he had not realized how much pent-up frustration he had been building up all this time.

Derrick closed the remaining distance and brought his lips down onto hers.

Beth let out a soft, sharp gasp before her eyes closed tight, leaning into the kiss fervently.

Her arms reached up, her fingers moving through his dark hair, pulling him closer as if afraid he would slip away.

Derrick’s hands found their way to her waist, the warmth of her body seeping through the soft fabric of her sweater.

"Mnm~" Beth moaned in his mouth as he slipped his palms down over her curved hips.

His fingers sank into her firm flesh, tightly kneading it as their lips parted and met again. Beth herself pushed against his touch, feeling the warmth of his body.

The sloppy wet sound of their kiss echoed in the room as they continued.