Axel paused for a moment, contemplating what to say next.

Before he left, he noticed Queen Wisteria's expression. Though she wore a smile, he could sense the fury boiling just beneath the surface. She had just discovered that one of her daughters had dared to involve herself with another woman's partner.

To put it in his terms, it was akin to sleeping with your brother's wife. There's no way that would be acceptable!

As such, Queen Wisteria's intentions were clear...

"I guess Nina's here to stay?" Axel concluded.

Nina remained silent, giving a subtle nod of agreement.

"Hmm..." Teruria mused, her gaze fixed on her elder sister as she narrowed her eyes. "Then... what's with her count, my dear husband? Two?"

"Ah, that..."

This time, it was Axel who felt awkward.

After all, only he and Teruria, among those present, could see the system's windows. That which included the passive abilities they had gained from merging the Settlement Management and Resident Management functions.

"I'll explain later; for now, let me introduce this one." Axel quickly shifted the topic.

His words made sense, though. And the girls, despite their curiosity, chose not to press the issue, turning their attention to the newcomer instead.

"She's Fenrir. Although she appears this way, she is actually a legendary figure, part of ancient tales. She's extremely powerful, so exercise caution when interacting with her."

At his prompting, Fenrir stepped forward, chest held high, and introduced herself proudly.

"I'm Fenrir! Since Master saved my life twice, I decided to offer him my life in return. If needed, I'll be his fangs, his shield, or even his mate. I'd gladly give my life for him. Pleased to meet you all!"

"M-Mate...?!"

Her words shocked everyone present.

Teruria, as if to verify, checked her window and gasped at what she saw.

"N-No way... 56?!"

She faltered, stumbling in place. Then, she began using her fingers to calculate, but quickly realized she didn't have enough digits for that. All she understood was that it was "too many," especially considering Axel had only been gone for about a week!

Axel scratched his head, pondering whether he could talk his way out of this predicament.

But realizing it would be futile, he slowly stepped back and made his escape. He could only let time fix things for him.

After all, he still had plenty of tasks to complete.

…

As the girls navigated their diplomatic discussions, Axel focused on a new challenge: creating upgraded potions and tonics.

Unlike recipes in the Crafting Tab, which he could start their auto-craft at any time, those in the Concoction Tab required him to create them manually first. This particular recipe appeared even more complex than the last.

After putting on a lab coat and all the personal protective equipment he had prepared, he stepped into the lab and took a deep breath.

"First, let's start with the upgraded Recovery and Mana Potions..."

He quickly processed the familiar ingredients, using Prapil Grass for the Recovery Potion and Sheik Grass for the Mana Potion, turning them into juices. Next, he turned his attention to the newly introduced components.

For the Recovery Potion, he needed to add Moon Flower as a healing effect booster, along with ground Mermaid's Scale for preservation.

Processing the Mermaid's Scale was straightforward; he simply needed to grind the scales into powder. However, the Moon Flower required drying before being boiled in a special mixture, with its essence collected in a condenser, drop by drop.

The same procedure was applied to the Mana Potion's enhancements.

This time, he had to boil away the Mandrake's Tears, leaving the "salt" behind to serve as a stabilizer, and he used the concentrated juice of Babul Fruit as the enhancer—gathered through boiling it moderately until it's thick.

The crafting process for the Recovery Potion took longer than he anticipated, reaching a total of three hours. After all, condensation is a time-consuming task.

The Mana Potion, on the other hand, did not take nearly as long; it required only one hour to complete a batch.

"Now, for the moment of truth...!"

With apprehension in his heart, Axel examined the two potions in his inventory and...

<Ultimate Recovery Potion Lv. Max>

<A product that even gods would envy. Legends say it is a figment of Mercury, the God of Medicine's imagination, brought to life. Capable of healing any injuries, both physical and spiritual, equivalent to 100,000 HP. If recovery overflows, it can grant a stack of HP to the user, up to 10 times their current maximum health, decaying over a period of one day. Crafted by the Unregistered Master Alchemist, Axel Walker.>

<Parameters: All Stats +100 (permanent) (one-off)>

<Material Cost: 1,599 Colts>

"..."

<Ultimate Mana Potion Lv. Max>

<A phantom potion, the first of its kind, an item that would undoubtedly attract the attention of even the gods. Capable of recovering up to 100,000 MP points. If recovery overflows, it can grant a stack of MP to the user, up to 10 times their current maximum MP, decaying over a period of one day. Created by the Unregistered Master Alchemist, Axel Walker.>

<Parameters: All Stats +100 (permanent) (one-off)>

<Material Cost: 4,923 Colts>

Axel read the descriptions of the two items and nearly decided to seal them away.

"What the hell?!" he exclaimed, unable to believe what he was seeing. "These things are suddenly mentioning gods!"

If these were items that even gods envied, it would be dangerous to sell them as they were! He wasn't prepared to challenge gods while still fearing raiders attacking!

However, the parameters of both items were incredibly enticing.

Adding a hundred points to all stats, even if just a one-time benefit, would greatly aid everyone. In short...

"These potions will be for personal use for now... At least until we can unlock Gleipnir and restore Fenrir to full strength."

When that happened, they shouldn't need to fear gods anymore—for a Devourer of Gods was with them.

The issue now was that he had produced a batch of six potions.

Fewer than before, but still a significant number. These items were even more of a hot potato than the Greater Potion versions he had created! If priced... he wondered if a quadrillion Colts would be enough for one.

Using this potion was like buying extra lives, after all.

After some contemplation, he decided how to proceed.

"I'll let the girls drink them for now!"

He already possessed A-level stats, so he didn't need them urgently.

Even if he did, he could easily craft another batch with just a bit of time.

The girls, however, were weaker. Their best stats barely reached a hundred at most; on average, they were around thirty.

Thus, gaining +200 to all stats would significantly enhance their abilities and increase their safety.

As for Princess Ethernina, the newcomer...

"I suppose I'll just make hers later, along with mine," Axel thought.

As the saying goes, first come, first served!

With that decision made, and after activating the auto-crafting for the two recipes, Axel began working on the next important recipe—the "normal" stat-increasing item for the entire universe, the tonics—keeping the best, the upgraded version of it, for last!

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