The sweet venom Chapter 24: 23

Read chapter 24 of The sweet venom by aspa201 on NovelPedia.

Helia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her brows furrowed as she leafed through a chemistry manual. The laboratory, bathed in a soft light, was filled with the scent of dried plants and magical reagents. Scattered notes, diagrams, and vials cluttered the tables, bearing witness to the long hours of work they had already spent together. The weeks that followed had been exhausting, and though Cédric Belmont had proven to be more serious than she had feared, he remained incredibly obstinate. He even seemed to take pleasure in contradicting each of her ideas. Yet, they had made considerable progress, despite the work being far more complex than she had initially imagined. They had begun by thoroughly analyzing the endocrine system of wild boars, a challenge in itself. The biology and unique properties of the mutated boars made the task arduous. From a young age, these creatures produced hormones in excessive quantities, rendering them aggressive, difficult to control, and causing their reproductive behavior to become even more frenzied. The objective was to identify substances capable of reducing these hormones while neutralizing the animals' heightened territorial instincts. But that was not all, they also had to find a way to lure the creatures toward a specific bait, which required manipulating olfactory and visual signals. In theory, it would have been possible to use other animals as live decoys by injecting them with endocrine disruptors, but this solution had a major drawback: amplification magic applied directly within a living being was unstable and difficult to sustain over long periods. Yet, such magic was essential for the bait to function. Its effectiveness diminished rapidly, significantly limiting its usefulness in large-scale hunting or capture scenarios. Thus, they also needed to design an artificial bait capable of emitting signals strong enough to rival a living lure. This type of work, combining chemistry, biology, and applied magic, was notoriously complicated. Not only did the substances have to be highly effective, but they also needed to be amplified by targeted magic, requiring precise calculations to maximize effects while minimizing energy costs. On top of that, they had to design the bait's physical form. This meant drawing inspiration from the anatomy of real animals and creating a synthetic polymer pouch that was porous enough to trap and gradually release the disruptive substances. When adding the challenges of production and field efficiency, the project quickly became a scientific puzzle. That day, Elyes, a colleague sent by the Mage Tower, was working with them for the first time. He was a man in his thirties, with delicate features and an innate elegance. His neatly tied black hair framed a calm face, accentuated by round glasses that occasionally slipped down his nose when he leaned forward to write. It was thanks to Cédric Belmont's family connections that they had been able to secure the assistance of a mage so swiftly. Normally, requesting aid from the Mage Tower took weeks, even months. Mages, both precious and rare in the Empire, were constantly in demand. Helia knew that the influence of House Belmont had played a crucial role in expediting the process. While most noble families, including her own, had their own personal mages, these individuals were typically specialized in fields directly beneficial to the aristocracy. They excelled in crafting enchanted artifacts, erecting protective barriers, and employing the latest magical technologies to optimize estate management and accounting. However, the project they were working on required the expertise of a high-level mage—one capable of manipulating forces well beyond common applications. Only the Mage Tower trained such individuals, making their involvement indispensable. The room was silent, save for the soft scratching of Elyes's quill as he jotted down observations in his notebook. The laboratory workspace they had been a