"Are you okay? What happened to you? How did you get a 3rd-stage herb? And how did you raise your level so suddenly?"

Vicente faced several questions from his master as he entered Benson's estate and saw the white-haired old man again after several days without seeing each other.

Vicente laughed bitterly at the situation and his master's agitation, seeing that Benson didn't know whether to be excited or worried about his situation.

He already knew everything that had happened in the battle that afternoon and how Benson had joined the soldiers of the Mazzanti family to fight against the Viscount and the Commander.

Waiting for Benson to catch his breath, Vicente began to answer. "Master, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern. Before taming the basilisk in The Rocky Gorge, I found and harvested that herb.

Unfortunately, one of the army groups passed by where the herb was, so I couldn't hide my possession of it. Otherwise, I wouldn't have taken so many risks.

Because of the witnesses to what happened in The Rocky Gorge, I was in a situation where I could either lose the herb or use the most important part of it to gain new allies.

I chose the second alternative, which led me to direct some of the enemies out of Millfall while my men stayed behind to give Liam Young a chance to absorb the herb's pentagram."

"Liam Young? Abel's disciple?"

Vicente nodded his head positively. "Yes. I was able to bring him into my family because of the herb. Not only that, I've just made a deal with Abel Thomas because of it."

"Oh? That's good for you. I didn't know this young Liam before, but from what I've found out in the last few hours, he seems to be quite promising. At under 18 years old, he's already about to reach level 3 of the 2nd stage. His future is bright, especially considering who his master is." Benson said, understanding that the value of this 2nd stage alchemist lay in his potential.

Considering this alone, Benson could tell that Vicente's move had been right!

The value of an alchemist like Liam was not small. Alchemy was one of the most important paths of magical specialization in this world, as it was necessary for virtually every type of being.

Having an alchemist with the potential to reach the 3rd stage or even beyond was as valuable as having influence with various Mages and even Sovereigns!

Why, you might ask? Simply because a single alchemist could provide RELEVANT resources for several Mages. So, any 3rd stage alchemist would be very relevant to practically all the Mages in a given region!

Having someone young and with the potential to become such an important influence in the province or even the kingdom was not as easy as it might seem at first.

Having Liam in the family was more important than having Bart!

Vicente smiled in agreement. "Because of the value I see in Liam, I took the risk and lured 8 Mages and 2 Acolytes to The Vile Altar. I've been taking care of them for the last few days, so I couldn't join the local battle. Because of this trip, I raised my level so suddenly."

"Eight Mages?" Benson's eyes widened at this information while he ignored the rest.

Opportunities for advancement abounded in this vast world. As long as one dared to venture out, had a bit of luck, and persevered long enough, it was not inconceivable to obtain special treasures and natural resources.

But an Acolyte who had to deal with 8 Mages was something to look forward to!

"Yes, that's right," Vicente confirmed. "Besides the local Mages who decided to hunt me down, old problems also came after me. Fortunately, I could use my enemies against each other and come out on top."

Vicente didn't want to say any more than was necessary for Benson to understand his situation. He didn't need to create another witness to his actions, let alone compromise another person connected to him.

But Benson at least deserved to know why Vice had been absent from the previous confrontation. The old blacksmith had not only been Vicente's master but had also helped the Mazzanti family when he had no obligation to do so!

Moreover, Benson already knew Cesar's true identity, which could hurt Vice more than anything else. So Vicente had no reason to hide these recent events from his master.

"So that was it... You're really good at fighting, Vice. You know how to use your fighting power, but don't neglect strategy. That's good. That way, your chances of falling are smaller." Benson said with a smile, breathing more calmly now that he understood the situation better.

Taking a few steps away from his student, now calmer than before, Benson thought about the whole situation and asked. "What are you going to do now? Those behind the men you fought at The Vile Altar won't stop. They'll try to make trouble for you."

"I know. For now, I've done all I can. So all I can do is continue to improve my family's forces." Vicente looked around his master's forge. "As fast as my progress is, I won't make much progress until these problems catch up with me.

I won't be able to use magical resources to increase my mana base for the next 6 months, and my cultivation isn't as fast as my enemies. So, I think the only way to strengthen myself is to forge.

I'll help my men with the resources I have, and in the meantime, I'll try to upgrade my weapons and carry out our plans for it." He pointed at the robotic armor.

An exuberant smile broke out on Benson's face, for this was what he most wanted to do.

With Vicente having reached the end of 2nd stage, all that remained was for the young man to improve his knowledge of forging so that he could try some of the things Benson had prepared.

Benson then said. "You are right. You have days or weeks to deal with those behind these magicians. Raising your level more than a little in that time is impossible. Only by forging can you raise the full strength of your family!

Haha, all right, let this old man help you. Vicente, with your talent and determination, I can make you learn enough to start working with the robotic armor in a few days."

"Please, show me the way." Vicente smiled as he made a gesture of gratitude.