LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 13: - Curses and the Curse-Removal Potion
I spent about five minutes calming down Anneliese and giving her some water.
“How are you feeling? Are you in pain?” I asked.
“I’m fine. I apologize for losing my composure,” Anneliese replied.
“That’s okay, but what happened? You seemed to get upset when you saw this potion,” I said, referring to the colorless, transparent liquid she had been staring at.
Anneliese continued to gaze at the liquid and took a deep breath before speaking. “I believe it’s a curse removal potion.”
“A curse removal potion…” I repeated. I used my Detailed Appraisal on the potion to get all the available information.
**Detailed Appraisal Result**
**Curse Removal Potion:** A potion capable of removing any curse. It has a very bitter and sour taste. It cannot be found outside the dungeon, and no one outside the dungeon can produce it. It has been auctioned for as much as 130 million Grils.
I understood that it held significant value. The fact that Anneliese got so excited about it might be because she knew its worth. With this potion, one could become incredibly wealthy. However, I realized that Anneliese was still my slave, so even if she obtained this potion, it would ultimately belong to me. Her level of excitement seemed a bit excessive for someone in her situation.
I had a thought. Could it be…
I suddenly realized that I had never used Detailed Appraisal on Anneliese before. I knew only a few basic facts about her. I hadn’t thought too deeply about her because I assumed we would part ways soon.
“I see… I think I understand now,” I said.
The Detailed Appraisal revealed that Anneliese was under a curse. I had asked for all the available information, including her three sizes, but the curse information was a result of my own request, so I decided not to dwell on it too much.
Anneliese sat down on the floor, leaning against the wall, looking weak. In this state, she truly resembled an old witch, but she was actually only 18 years old.
She had been cursed to age 300 years. If she were a regular human, she would have died instantly from the curse, but being a half-elf, she had managed to survive. She had been researching how to create a curse removal potion on her own, but when she left her house to get food, it had exploded due to a magic mishap. The details might differ slightly in expression, but it sounded like a magical accident.
Afterward, she had been reduced to a criminal slave, passed to me through Golteo’s store.
“Anneliese, you can use this,” I said, holding out the curse removal potion.
Sometimes, I felt like I was too kind for my own good. I had been treated horribly in high school because of it. But none of that mattered now; Anneliese was in front of me.
In front of me was a woman suffering from a curse, and in my hand, I held a potion that could remove that curse. What was there to hesitate about?
“I can tell that you’re cursed, even without using Detailed Appraisal,” I assured her.
“But… that’s a very valuable curse removal potion,” Anneliese hesitated.
“You wanted it, right? You were trying to make one yourself,” I pointed out.
“Why would you…?” Anneliese began, clearly surprised.
“My appraisal told me,” I said with a smile. It was, in fact, a Detailed Appraisal.
“But even so… I can’t repay you with this potion,” Anneliese replied.
“Anneliese doesn’t have anything valuable, and I know that better than anyone else. I’m not demanding it from you, so don’t worry,” I said.
“But…”
She seemed indecisive.
“If you don’t want it, that’s fine. You could sell it and become very wealthy,” I said, teasingly taking the curse removal potion back.
“I want it! I want it, please! Let me use it!” Anneliese suddenly exclaimed, grabbing my arm with surprising strength. If she wanted it, she could have just said so from the beginning. (Laughs)
“Alright, be honest. It’s going to taste terrible, so drink it in one go,” I said.
“Y-yes,” Anneliese replied.
She opened the cork of the potion bottle, hesitated for a moment, and then finally drank the curse removal potion in one gulp.
“You drank it pretty smoothly,” I commented.
“Ohh… It’s… terrible…” Anneliese gasped, clearly struggling with the potion’s taste. It seemed like it was incredibly bitter and sour.
Watching Anneliese struggle with the awful taste, I noticed her body beginning to emit a faint light. Was this the effect of the curse removal potion?
The light gradually grew brighter until Anneliese was completely enveloped in it.
“Ohhh… Oh?!” I exclaimed.
When the light subsided, there stood before me a girl more beautiful than anything I had ever seen. She even surpassed the elven escort leader, Ruenesa, from Golteo’s caravan in terms of sheer beauty.
Could this be Anneliese’s true appearance?
Her skin was as fair as alabaster, without a single wrinkle.
Her facial features were strikingly perfect, with each part being ideal in its own right, harmoniously arranged to create an exquisite whole.
Her waist-length white hair had transformed into a golden hue that seemed to radiate even in the dim dungeon.
Her previously drooping eyelids had opened wide, revealing emerald green eyes that gazed upon me.
“Are you really Anneliese?” I asked.
“I am… Anneliese,” she replied, her voice sounding much younger. Her voice, clear and melodious, was incredibly pleasant to the ears. If she whispered in this voice into someone’s ear, they would undoubtedly shiver with delight.
“Can you stand?” I asked, extending my hand.
Anneliese took my hand, her grip surprisingly light.
“My body feels so light,” she said.
“It’s because the curse has been lifted. Anneliese is young now. It’s hard to believe you were an old woman,” I said.
“My curse has been lifted. Thank you so much, Master. I intend to spend my life repaying this favor,” Anneliese said with gratitude.
“You don’t have to be so formal. Just like before, teach me the knowledge I lack,” I said.
Tears streamed down Anneliese’s face. She was truly happy. I held her trembling body and gently stroked her back.
At times like this, I couldn’t help but notice how soft her body was. I won’t specify where, but it was incredibly prominent. When she was an old woman, I had carried her, but at that time, I had only felt stiffness…
“Thank you so much. Thanks to you, I’ve regained my composure,” Anneliese said, wiping away her tears.
It was natural for her eyes to be swollen after shedding so many tears. However, even now, Anneliese’s beauty showed no signs of fading.
“Let’s head back for today. Anneliese, you need some time to gather your thoughts,” I suggested.
“I’m fine now, thanks to you. I’ve regained the will to live, Master. From now on, I’ll work my hardest for your sake,” Anneliese said with a determined look in her eyes. And she looked incredibly cute.
Oh no, being around such a cute girl was making my heart race. I could use my position to do all sorts of lewd things, but I absolutely wouldn’t. I had to make that decision; otherwise, my hands might end up where they shouldn’t be on Anneliese’s body.
“Alright, understood. Shall we continue?” I suggested.
“Yes,” Anneliese replied.
As I tried to return to the original passage, Anneliese grabbed my arm.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“In your appraisal, you didn’t just determine the curse, but you also found out that I was trying to make the curse removal potion. While I understand that you have Appraisal-type skills, it’s not just Appraisal. Please tell me the name of that skill,” she said, getting closer and closer. Her beauty was otherworldly, and it felt like her pale skin was about to envelop my field of vision.
“Anneliese is quite clever,” I commented.
“Please don’t evade the question,” she said.
“I’m not evading. I really thought that. Alright, I’ll tell you, but can you back up a bit? If you stay so close, my restraint might reach its limit,” I said.
“Huh? Restraint?” Anneliese looked puzzled.
Her chest was pressing against me. It was quite substantial in size.
“I-I apologize!?,” she exclaimed.
“No, it’s not rude at all. In fact, it’s quite welcome,” I said.
“S-So rude… to be welcome…” Anneliese stammered.
She looked so adorable as she fidgeted. The contrast between this incredibly cute Anneliese and the old woman from before was astonishing. People can really change when they transform.