Sometimes, you know exactly what someone is thinking, but you can’t say anything because none of it has happened yet.
Under these circumstances, you can’t just go looking for trouble with them. And right now, Andre was exactly that kind of trouble.
Even though Krell knew Andre might retaliate against his family, he couldn’t stop him.
After all, it hadn’t happened yet. And since it hadn’t happened, there was no valid reason to intervene.
If he forced the issue, his image as a teacher would plummet in Andre’s eyes.
From then on, his role as Andre’s teacher would mean nothing, and he might even invite Andre’s retaliation himself.
It might sound impossible, but it was a genuine possibility.
Although he was the deputy dean of a branch institute, it was Andre’s other teacher, Radak, who gave him the biggest headache.
With a guy like Radak backing Andre, he couldn’t imagine what sort of things Andre might do with his support.
Radak had caused quite a bit of trouble back at the Main Institute.
That was precisely why Radak had been punished by his own teacher and sent to the Senbai Wizard World to guard the Wizard Inheritance Hall, in the hopes that books would wear away the ferocity in his heart.
’I can’t fight him, and I can’t reason with him. What a headache. A real headache.’
’Even though I’m his teacher, I haven’t given Andre anything besides a Meditation Technique.’
’You could say I haven’t fulfilled my duties as a teacher at all.’
’In this situation, getting Andre to listen to me is basically impossible.’
Krell’s head was pounding. He had never imagined that Andre would possess such immense Talent in Pharmacy.
And by the looks of it, his expertise in poisons far surpassed his skill with other Potions.
’Forget it. I shouldn’t get involved in this. I’m his teacher, but I’m also a member of the family. I’m caught in the middle. The only choice is to pull myself out of it; otherwise, I’ll just be stuck between a rock and a hard place.’
Krell pinched the bridge of his nose. After a moment of thought, he made a decision to stay out of it entirely.
If he ordered Andre to give up his thoughts of revenge now, given the current gap between them, Andre would surely agree.
But what about later? That was anyone’s guess.
There were thousands upon thousands of poisons. Who knew what kind Andre would use?
And this was precisely what was giving Krell such a headache.
Poisons, as a means of self-defense for Alchemists, were created from the very beginning to protect Alchemists themselves.
The wealth of Alchemists was well-known throughout the histories of all worlds.
Before the advent of poisons, many famous Alchemists in history had been robbed on multiple occasions.
Some were even killed after surrendering their fortunes.
Faced with this situation, some Alchemists began to practice defensive Witchcraft, while others turned their attention to Potions themselves—specifically, poisons.
The earliest poisons were simple, created by Alchemists to protect themselves and buy time to escape.
Poisons from this era were usually just failed Potion concoctions.
However, the deterrent effect of poisons from this period was not yet fully realized.
Most of these failed Potions were black or had a strange odor, making them difficult to get anyone to ingest.
Furthermore, the symptoms were mild. Even if ingested, most poisons only caused dizziness, vertigo, tinnitus, or headaches. More severe cases might lead to heart palpitations or chaotic Magic Power.
But as robbers who cultivated their physical bodies began to appear, Alchemists discovered that the effects of these primitive poisons were starting to weaken.
To counter this and change their precarious situation, Alchemists began to seek ways to increase and adjust the lethality of their poisons.
It was during this period that some infamous toxins were discovered by Alchemists, leaving a deep mark on the history of the Wizard World.
But even then, poisons had not yet reached their peak.
This was because poisons of that era still needed to be ingested to take effect.
To change this, Alchemists became frenzied, endlessly exploring new ways for poisons to be administered.
Later, many new methods of poison delivery were developed by Alchemists.
The most common were poisons that could be shattered on the ground, taking effect through scent alone, and contact poisons that could be smeared onto objects, killing a target through an unwitting touch.
Additionally, even more covert methods emerged, such as poison-based Witchcraft and Bloodline toxins. It was also around this time that the variety of poisons began to multiply.
Eventually, poisons even caused Alchemists to split into several different factions.
Some Alchemists single-mindedly pursued the ultimate lethality in their poisons, while others sought more insidious methods of killing.
It was at this point that Alchemists became known as people you did not want to provoke.
Because no one knew what kind of poisons the Alchemist they were robbing might have on hand.
They wouldn’t even know what kind of antidote to look for after being poisoned, or if they could be saved at all.
Even if these people were lucky enough to find an Alchemist and ask for an antidote, upon seeing their condition, the Alchemists would invariably refuse to help.
Helping them would only endanger their own future selves. As such incidents grew more and more common throughout the Wizard World, the reputation of poisons became ever greater.
And so, by relying on poisons, the Witchcraft they developed, and their unique Ladder of Truth, Alchemists seized control of their own destinies.
And now, Andre dared to bare his fangs right in front of him, making his intentions clear, all because he was relying on the poisons in his hands.
’Those fools. They pushed him this far... to the point where he dares to act like this right in front of me. The wounds must run deep.’
Krell sighed inwardly again and again. As he looked at Andre, the worry on his face deepened.
If it were anyone else, he would have slapped them dead long ago. But with Andre, he couldn’t—and wouldn’t—do it.
At this moment, he could clearly feel Radak’s gaze watching his every move.
In this situation, if he tried to do anything to Andre, Radak’s retribution would strike before he could even act.
Although he was a Thunder Element Mage, and the Path of Nature he cultivated made him considerably stronger than an ordinary Level 3 Wizard, compared to a monster like Radak, his own methods were still too one-dimensional.
’I’ll just let Andre, Selena, and the others handle this themselves.’
’Even if the ancestors object, in the face of a Red Sun Great Wizard, no matter how many opinions they have, they’ll have to swallow them.’
Krell reined in his thoughts. He looked at Andre and took a deep breath.