Start of Volume 9.
Today, Mizera and I were invited to a certain room within the royal castle.
The invitation had come through Iris, who had contacted me first, and I gladly accepted, replying that I would bring Mizera along.
And so, here we were, surrounded by mountains of what could only be described as ‘garbage’, or rather, the heaps of failed experiments that had been abandoned after “important research”.
Amid this chaos, we were seated at a desk, enthusiastically discussing our respective alchemical results.
「The exterior is of utmost importance, deeesu!」
「Yeah, I get that. If the appearance doesn’t feel right, somehow the whole thing just doesn’t sit well.」
「Exactly deeesu! But those fools said things like, 『The performance is the same, isn’t it?』 I almost wanted to ‘kill them’, deeesu!」
Eliodart’s eyes gleamed sharply as he pulled out a rod-like object.
When I used Appraisal on it, it showed: ‘Eliodart’s Personal Compressed Elemental Rod’.
…A personal weapon? Does Eliodart ‘fight’?
「To release an incomplete product to the world is a shame that stains one’s lineage, yet so many fail to understand this, maaasu!」
「That’s because you always take so long after accepting a request, teacher. Even when I tell you repeatedly to start working on it soon, you never listen.」
「Alchemy is born from inspiration, deeesu! None of those requests were worth more than inspiration itself, deeesu!」
Ah, I can actually relate to that.
Still, if it’s a commissioned job, it should probably be done properly.
After all, that means someone ‘needs’ your work.
Then again, I get it, if the motivation isn’t there, it can’t be helped.
I’m the same way; if I’m not in the mood, I don’t want to work either, and honestly, it’s inefficient.
「They said it could be done anytime, didn’t they, deeesu?」
「That doesn’t mean you can leave it for one or two years, teacher… Right, Mizera-chan?」
「Eh, y-yes…」
「When the cleaning’s done, let’s have a girls’ alchemy talk, alright?」
「Of course. Though… will it ever be done?」
Mizera and Chess both sighed as they tidied up, glancing at the never-ending mountain of what Eliodart proudly called ‘failed works’.
When I first arrived, there had been ‘barely enough space to stand’, but apparently, that was after some cleaning, done entirely by Chess.
Eliodart, it seemed, wasn’t just bad at tidying; he was a complete hindrance to the process.
Chess told me he’d spent the entire morning agonizing over what to show me.
「Hey, want me to give you a hand?」
「No, please, just keep teacher occupied… that would help ‘far’ more.」
Chess-chan… she’s still so young, yet she already seems to have a hard life.
Compared to her, this old man… even though he’d been staring blankly a moment ago, the instant I turned my face toward him, he broke into a carefree smile.
「By the way, was it really alright to teach me the structure of that ‘vibrator’, deeesu?」
「Hm? Ah, you’ve shown me a lot too. Besides, you’d already figured most of it out, right? I just added some notes. I thought you might eventually refine it even further, Eliodart.」
「Oh… That may be true, but I’m actually more curious about what my friend will make next, maaasu. My field of expertise is ‘Attributes’, after all.」
「Attributes are your specialty?」
「Yeess. The application of attribute-infused magic stones, deeesu.」
Eliodart flicked his fingers, producing a small flame at his fingertip.
Ah, so he can use magic too.
And attribute-based magic stones, huh.
That air-purifying magic device also used water and wind stones, and even holy water. It’s a great example of attribute utilization.
「The deeper you research, the more fascinating it becomes, deeesu… Lately, I’ve been studying the connection between attributes and magic, so there’s still much to explore. It’s exciting, deeesu!」
「Magic, huh… sounds nice. I can’t use magic myself.」
「Really, deeesu!? That’s rare. You have no attribute affinity, deeesu?」
「No, I’ve got all of them except Light. But I have zero aptitude for magic itself. Well, technically, there’s ‘one’ kind I can use.」
「Ah, Space Magic, deeesu?」
「Huh? How do you know that?」
「I’m a researcher, deeesu. After seeing that scene during the martial arts tournament, I couldn’t resist looking into it, maaasu.」
「I see… makes sense.」
So, it’s known to some extent after all.
Still, the fact that no one has contacted me about it is probably thanks to Iris…
…Maybe I should stop by later and bring her some ice cream.
「Hmm… Attribute affinity but no magic aptitude, deeesu…」
「Yeah. I wanted to try regular magic too, but apparently, it’s impossible.」
「I see………………hmm!」
「Hm? What’s wrong? You okay?」
Muttering something under his breath, Eliodart pulled out a quill and parchment and started scribbling furiously.
No matter how many times I spoke to him or waved my hand in front of his face, he didn’t react at all.
「Ah, don’t mind him. He’s probably having one of those moments he calls ‘inspiration’. He’ll come back to his senses eventually if we just leave him be.」
「As expected of the disciple. You really know him inside out. Still, that’s some impressive focus.」
「Yes. When teacher’s concentrating, it’s extreme. You have to pull his ear and yell in his face for him to even notice.」
「Hahaha. That sounds like a real hassle.」
There’s no way he ‘wouldn’t’ notice if someone went that far.
Or rather, the fact that it ‘takes’ that much to get his attention either means he has incredible focus, or he’s just a bit off in the head.
「Just so you know… you’re no different, you know, milord?」
「Eh?」
「When you start focusing, even if Shiro jumps onto your lap, or Renge clings to you, or Wendy-sama presses her chest against you, you don’t notice. Not even when Sorte shakes you or Aina brings you a drink.」
「Haaaah… so you’re one of those geniuses (in ‘that’ sense) too, huh…」
「Hey, don’t lump me in with Eliodart…」
Talking with Eliodart today made me certain, he really ‘is’ a genius.
The sheer number of his experiments, his unique perspectives, his adaptability, his endless curiosity, and above all, his unrestrained passion for alchemy.
It was as if he was born solely for the sake of alchemy. A man whose will and talent perfectly matched.
「I’m just a plain alchemist who happens to have knowledge from my old world, that’s all.」
「If that’s true, then perhaps your sense of inspiration differs. But being able to focus so deeply, that’s undeniably a gift from the heavens.」
「Yes. When you’re concentrating, milord, it feels like you’re somewhere far away… somewhere none of us can reach.」
「Even so, it’s not only geniuses who shape the world. We ordinary people just have to work hard enough to surpass them.」
「Though in my case, I grow slower than most ordinary people.」
「Oh, not at all! I’ve heard that you work extremely hard, Mizera-chan! Chess loves hardworking people! Let’s both do our best to surpass our masters someday! Of course, I won’t lose to you!」
Chess-chan dropped her cleaning tools, clasped Mizera’s hands tightly, and looked up at her with sparkling eyes.
Mizera, startled at first, smiled softly, squeezed her hands back, and gave a small nod.
Rivals… no, more like ‘alchemy friends’, maybe?
Either way, it’s a good thing, to have someone your age to compete with, to grow alongside, and to talk about shared passions.
As for me… it’s odd, but I’m glad I got to talk with Eliodart today.
It was fun. And the way he talked about alchemy, like an excited child, made it both educational and entertaining just to listen.
「Alright then. I’ll help with the cleanup too.」
「Oh, you don’t have to, you’re a guest… ah, wait, Mizera-chan’s a guest too! I just treated you like a friend without realizing, I’m so sorryyy!」
「It’s fine. I’d rather be treated like a friend than a guest, anyway.」
「Then, we’re friends too, right? Is there anything around here I shouldn’t see?」
「Ah, no, these are all failed creations, so it should be fine…」
「Then no problem. Still, we should probably sort them by category.」
Using ‘‘Input’’, I steadily stored one item after another into my magic space.
Then, with ‘‘Appraisal’’, I categorized them by type and sorted them into separate sections.
「Wha…!?」
「Hm? Oh hey, there’s some kind of invoice here, should I be worried?」
「Ehh!? L-let me see that! Uwaa… this one’s for payment! The due date? Tomorrow!? That’s cutting it so close, ahhh!」
In her panic, Chess-chan knocked over a pile and got buried under it, so Mizera and I rushed to pull her out.
She said she’d go take care of the payment once the cleaning was done, so we decided to leave around the same time.
On the way back, we stopped by Iris’s room, but she wasn’t there.
We figured we’d leave the ice cream with Ayame-san, but just as we were about to, the door suddenly burst open,
「I ‘knew’ there was ice cream here!」
, and Iris came charging into her room. That honestly scared the hell out of me.
※
「It’s done, deeesuu! …Oh? Where are you, my friend?」
Looking around, my friend was nowhere to be found, and the mountain of failed experiments had disappeared.
「…Your room just got cleaned, teacher. And the two of them already left. Also, it’s night now.」
「Ohhh… that’s a shame, deesu. I wanted my friend’s opinion on this…」
「This is… a blueprint? Wow, it’s packed with elemental magic stones, so intricate… The material cost alone will be huge, not to mention the processing. You’re not planning to make something crazy again, are you?」
「Yeeees!」
「…If you’re not careful, this could easily be converted into a weapon, you know, the kind you hate so much.」
Ohhh… so Chess can now read what a design will turn into just by looking at the blueprint, huh?
…Perhaps it’s about time I ‘seriously’ start teaching her alchemy, deesu.
「HAHAHA! This is a ‘personal’ project for my friend! Not for the kingdom, deesu! And besides, if the kingdom asked for it, I wouldn’t put in this much effort anyway, deeesuu!」
「…Haah. Well, I don’t mind as long as it’s for you personally. But please, never say that when others are around, okay?」
Ooh… Chess’s eyes are terrifying, deesu.
When she looks like that, it’s best to just obey quietly, something I’ve learned through experience, deesu.
「…teacher. Did you have fun today?」
「Yes! It was ‘very’, ‘very’ fun, deesu!」
「I’m glad to hear that. Let’s invite them again sometime.」
「Non non non! Next time ‘I’ll’ go to them, deesu! Once this prototype is complete, I’ll head to Einzheil myself!」
「Understood. Then I’ll bring out the necessary materials. Luckily, since we just cleaned, I can get them ready right away.」
Ohhh, that’s wonderful, deesu!
Before this passion cools down, I must begin crafting immediately, deesu!
And once it’s complete, my friend will be the first to try it, deesu!
-0-
AN: And so, Volume 9 begins!
By the way, the chapter titles don’t carry any deep meaning.
Now that more towns and people are appearing, I just wanted to make it easier to remember where each story takes place.
As for the names, they’re all chosen on instinct, whatever happens to pop into mind at the moment.
Some might sound Japanese, but there’s no real connection to places like Amatsukuni.
It’s purely coincidence… probably.
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