Chapter 15

Alkimas Workshop (1)

A metropolis is a symbol of congestion and diversity.

However, the avenue on which the carriage I was riding was advancing was filled only with a profound silence.

On both sides of the road, numerous soldiers and knights stood at intervals, swords drawn, and citizens watched.

A myriad of emotions could be seen on the faces passing by, but mostly they were tension and fear.

In the solemn and heavy atmosphere, I felt as if I had become a terrible tyrant.

'Is it because the throne has been vacant for so long?'

It was understandable that they would be anxious, given that it had been years since they had a new ruler.

A sovereign wields absolute power, and if a madman sits on such a throne, it would be no different from a living hell.

A typical example was the six sovereigns of the Tyrant or the eight sovereigns of the Black Sea Empress.

But their worries were all unnecessary.

I was too busy taking care of my own life to have the leisure to sit in the sovereign's palace and play emperor.

I had no intention of directly interfering and ruling this land. I planned to let it run as it had been.

'Once I resolve the issues that need to be resolved.'

The Alkimas Workshop, located in the city of Berkhorn.

Its owner, the alchemist Scarlet.

She was the problem I needed to resolve before leaving the sovereign's palace to find the Hidden Piece again.

More precisely, she was a talent I intended to recruit to my side, like Ashel.

My top priority was to enhance my abilities, but I also planned to take care of any talents I could along the way.

'At this time... they’re probably having trouble with the Valia Trading Company, right?'

While I was thinking about various things, the carriage soon arrived at the massive castle in the center of the city.

The procession of soldiers was incredibly long, stretching from the city entrance to the main gate of the sovereign's palace. It seemed like a waste of manpower.

After passing through the main gate, I got out of the carriage.

The two people who greeted me at the front were an elf in elegant attire and an old man with white hair, who looked like a butler.

The elf greeted me politely.

"Welcome, new master of Enrock. I am Vasslan, who has been acting as the sovereign of the 7th Sovereign Order."

Acting? I hadn’t known such a position existed.

It made sense that the throne wouldn’t have been left vacant for so long.

I expected him to give a tour and explanations of the castle, but his next words were surprising.

"I have been waiting to meet and greet the 7th Sovereign before returning to the Grand Sovereign Palace."

"Returning?"

"Yes, I am originally an administrative officer of the Grand Sovereign Palace. I was dispatched here on the orders of the Grand Sovereign to act as regent."

Ah, I see.

If he could take the place of the sovereign, he must have been a high-ranking official.

The old man beside him also introduced himself.

"I am Floto, the head butler of the castle."

The real guide was this one.

The acting sovereign left the castle immediately, and I entered the central hall of the castle under Floto’s guidance.

The interior was exactly as I had imagined.

A typical scene of a castle in a fantasy world: spacious, luxurious, and grand.

"A banquet has been prepared, Your Highness."

After a moment of thought, I nodded.

Originally, there would be no time to relax and play. But...

'A day or so should be fine.'

I wasn’t planning to leave the castle immediately, and it would be a waste to cancel the preparations that had already been made.

I also needed to observe the faces of the castle’s officials, so the banquet was an extension of my duties.

...Honestly, it was all an excuse, and as a human, I wanted to rest for a bit. I had worked hard to get here.

With the resolve to work hard again from tomorrow, I decided to enjoy a peaceful rest for the day.

***

A massive mansion located in the inner city of Berkhorn.

The building of the Valia Trading Company, which had a monopoly on the trade route from the northern border of Enrock to Berkhorn.

In the company’s main office, two men were sitting and talking.

"So, what’s the information on the new 7th Sovereign, brother?"

The man with a blindfold shook his head at the other man’s question.

He was Valia, the owner of the trading company.

"There’s not much to report. From what I’ve heard, he’s a complete outsider with a clear origin. And he’s human. Did you see his face in the procession?"

"I saw him from a distance. He looked quite pale."

"Bark, I’ve always told you to be careful with your words, even when no one is listening."

"Come on, there are only two of us here. Can’t we speak more freely?"

The blindfolded man grumbled.

"Well, anyway, isn’t this a good situation for us? Now that the stubborn alchemists have lost their shield. Heh heh."

Alkimas Workshop.

A venerable group of alchemists located in Berkhorn.

For a long time, they had been trying to extract its secrets, but the efforts had been in vain due to the vacancy in the 7th Sovereign Order.

The newly appointed acting sovereign over the past few years had strictly managed the city according to the rules.

Bribes were of no use, and during the regency of the acting sovereign, all the covert operations in the workshop had to be withdrawn, and they could only watch and wait.

However, the situation changed with the arrival of the new sovereign.

They were the rulers at the highest level.

The power struggles and interests of those below were mere squabbles of insects to them, and they had little interest, as the previous 7th Sovereign had.

If the new 7th Sovereign wasn’t a madman like the Tyrant or the Black Sea Empress, the situation would turn in favor of the trading company.

"I need to visit the workshop tomorrow."

"Do you plan to apply pressure immediately?"

"The situation is in our favor, but we still don’t know what kind of person the 7th Sovereign is. The best course of action is to make them surrender as quickly as possible."

"That’s true. The head of the workshop and the elders must be in a panic right now, heh heh."

Valia and the blindfolded man looked at each other and smiled wickedly.

***

After enjoying the banquet, the next day.

I gathered my resolve and began the tasks I needed to do.

'They brought quite a lot.'

I looked down at the container filled with wriggling larvae.

The head butler had brought them at my command.

These larvae were to be used as experimental materials for a precise study of Instant Death.

"Let’s start."

I picked up a knife.

The purpose of the experiment was to determine how long after being expelled from the body the blood would still be effective for Instant Death.

The method was simple.

Drop blood on the larvae and activate Instant Death. Each time it succeeds, delay the activation time by 5 seconds.

After sacrificing dozens of larvae, I was able to complete the experiment.

'About 3 minutes, I guess.'

The experiment showed that Instant Death was effective for about 3 minutes after the blood had left the body.

It was a long time, but also a short time.

Regardless, the key point was that Instant Death could be activated using blood.

While thinking about how to apply it, the first thing that came to mind was the vampire’s blood magic.

If the ability to freely manipulate blood could synergize with Instant Death, it would be incredibly powerful.

'The problem is that I can’t change my race just for that.'

It’s usually impossible to change one’s innate race.

Even if it were possible, I still wanted to remain human.

A way to use blood magic without being a vampire.

There was one idea, but it was a method that involved considerable risk.

'Let’s put it off for now.'

I had gained new information, but there was still much I didn’t know.

For example, the range of targets to which Instant Death could be applied. Would it work on undead or spirits?

These were things I would need to verify when the opportunity arose.

Now, the next task was the Alkimas Workshop issue.

I said to Ashel, who was waiting outside the room.

"I need to go out for a while."

I decided to visit the workshop in person.

I was curious about how effective the potions in this world were and wanted to take a look.

***

Aria was an apprentice alchemist at the Alkimas Workshop.

Her morning duties involved manning the counter in the shop.

The workshop’s main source of income was from the city councils and adventurers in and around Berkhorn.

The city councils generally made bulk purchases and didn’t visit the shop directly.

And the adventurers weren’t yet in their active hours.

In short, there were few customers, so Aria was having a rather idle time.

"Ahem... sigh."

As Aria yawned, she caught sight of a customer entering the shop.

She quickly closed her mouth.

The customer was a young man and a woman who looked like a bodyguard. The man, in particular, was extremely handsome.

Aria thought she was getting a treat for her eyes that morning and greeted him brightly.

"Welcome!"

The man nodded silently and began to look around the displayed potions.

'Is he a young master from another city?'

She had never seen his face before, and his attitude suggested he was more interested in browsing than buying, so she assumed he was from another city.

After browsing the potions for quite a while, the man approached the counter.

"Are these all the potions on display?"

"These are all the mid-grade potions or lower. Premium potions are made to order, so we don’t have them in stock."

The man nodded and asked again.

"I want to buy the highest quality healing potion you have."

At this, Aria inwardly smiled.

It seemed this young master, who was unfamiliar with the market, didn’t know how expensive a premium Alkimas potion was.

"The highest quality healing potion is called 'Scarlet'."

"Isn’t that the name of the workshop owner?"

"Yes, it’s named after the workshop owner’s vision."

"How much is it?"

Aria decided to tease him a bit and answered with a bright smile.

"300 gold coins!"

300 gold coins was a sum that even a wealthy person would hesitate to spend lightly.

Aria expected him to be shocked and watched his face.

But he nodded without any change in expression.

"I’ll buy it."

"Excuse me?"

"If it’s made to order, how long will it take? Can I pay in advance?"

As he spoke, he took out a money bag filled with gold and platinum coins.

Aria, shocked, couldn’t close her gaping mouth and stammered.

"J-Just a moment! I’ll bring the workshop owner right away!"