She forced herself to believe that they had only managed to make standard pills with an efficiency of about 60%. Vivian nodded to herself. She had to be right.

Since the number of players had considerably reduced in the semi-final, the time for the competition was shortened too.

One after another, all the contestants of the Literary match completed their own tests.

“Contestant No.1, Miss Barbara Herrera, has made a standard version of Concentration Pill with an efficacy of 89% of the perfect one.”

Mouths dropped open and eyes went wide after Mr. Gonzales’ words.

“What? Is that even possible? 89%?"

“If it reaches 90%, it will mutate and will be equivalent to the grade two standard version of the Attention Pill."

“Barbara almost turned a grade one pill to a grade two pill? Oh my God! She is amazing. Our family hasn’t seen such a person for decades, right?"

Even contestants were effusive in their praise for Barbara instead of bearing jealousy.

As a pill alchemist though, Vivian felt Like her stomach was being ripped out.

If Barbara's pill was 89% efficient, that meant hers was nothing.

She had no idea that this Barbara was so good. Vivian gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.

Barbara's stunning performance caused most of the participants in the literary competition to surrender in the face of her championship caliber.

Crafting a first-grade pill with nearly the same effectiveness as a second-grade one was an extraordinary feat that had been the subject of hearsay, never witnessed firsthand.

After a considerable amount of time, Vivian, too, successfully completed her own Concentration Pill.

Approaching Vivian, the judge brandished a specialized tool to test medicine efficacy and commenced the analysis of the Concentration Pill she had concocted.

Ding! With the resounding chime of the testing apparatus, the outcome was revealed.

“Vivian has produced a standard version of the Concentration Pill, exhibiting an efficacy level at 69% of perfection!" proclaimed the judge.

The verdict overwhelmed Vivian with disappointment and deflated her spirits.

The effectiveness of the Concentration Pill was measured at 69%, which was slightly higher than that of the preliminary round. It fell short of the anticipated 70% efficacy benchmark.

“Well, at least it has improved by 2 percentage points. It's better than no progress," she consoled herself by saying so.

However, Vivian sensed a modicum of advancement under Elton's guidance. In contrast, both Maria and Isla lacked mentors.

With only a single day separating the preliminary round from the semifinals, Vivian supposed they were unable to make any headway.

At that moment, the judge turned his attention to Isla, approaching her with an air of seriousness and superiority.