Chapter 20

"Should I mix this in?"

"Yeah, please."

To make the alchemical cauldron, you need mithril, iron, copper, and a special oil for cauldron making that is created through alchemy. It seems that this oil needs to be mixed in when creating the alloy.

According to the knowledge provided by the alchemist's emblem, the proportions of the alloy and the amount of alchemical drugs to mix are known, but the skill to forge the cauldron is not.

When I told Reifan the required size of the cauldron, for some reason, he started piling up a huge amount of clay.

"It's not crafting, Craft-kun. What we're doing now is casting."

"…I don't really understand the difference."

"Forging is making something by hammering and striking. Casting is making a mold out of clay or soil and pouring the metal into it. Just remember that."

"I see."

"When it comes to handling metal, dwarves are better at forging, and gnomes are better at casting, but in reality, it's probably just a matter of preference."

"Wow."

When I asked Reifan to make the alchemical cauldron, he brought in high-quality clay from somewhere and made a huge mold as tall as a person in the workshop.

It seems that the cauldron will be made by pouring the melted metal into this mold. It's quite educational.

"Yeah, something like this. The decorations are up to you, right?"

"Yeah, basically, as long as it's a cauldron, it should be fine."

"My hands are itching! I can't wait to decorate it!"

For a craftsman, decoration is where they show their skill.

Unless specifically requested by the client, applying beautiful decorations is almost a craftsman's instinct.

I was looking forward to seeing what kind of decorations Reifan would add to this alchemical cauldron.

◆

A few days later.

"It's done! Craft-kun!"

"Wow."

When it was time to remove the clay and take out the solidified cauldron, I was not allowed to watch.

It seems I had to wait until it was completed.

Excited, I went to the workshop, and there sat a huge metal cauldron that could fit two adults.

It was mainly made of mithril, but instead of green, it had a deep, purplish hue.

The decorations were magnificent, making it a first-class work of art on its own.

It was a masterpiece that showed Reifan's dedication.

"How is it?"

"This is... beyond my imagination. Even though I don't know much about art, I can see that this is something truly wonderful. Thank you, Reifan."

"Hehehe, I just made it because it was needed."

In a way, just this alone made the trip to get the mithril worthwhile.

Reifan's hard work is proof that my abilities are recognized.

I've never had my efforts rewarded before.

So.

"I need to work hard."

In the expanded guild hall's alchemy room.

At the center, the artistic alchemical cauldron.

It looks like we'll be working together for a long time.

When I gently touched the alchemical cauldron,

aｗroｇｗｈｔｇｕｅｒｉｏｇｗｓｅ：ｒｌｊ；ｇｈａｅｏｒｅｓａｅｒｉｊｅｉｅｌ；；!?

"!!?"

Suddenly, knowledge flowed through the emblem.

"Craft-kun?"

"U-um, when I touched the cauldron, some alchemical cauldron-related knowledge suddenly came to me..."

"Oh, that's it."

"Do you know what it is?"

"Yeah. When I made a special anvil for the first time, the same thing happened."

"Wow."

When I had the mage emblem, this didn't happen.

It might be a unique phenomenon of the crafting emblem.

...Or it could be that the previous emblem just didn't have a good affinity, so this phenomenon didn't occur.

"There are some new items you can make with the alchemical cauldron that could be good timing."

"What, what?"

"Mithril-specialized hard forging oil."

"Wh-what's that? Sounds amazing!!"

It's called hard mithril.

So.

I immediately asked Reifan to make some products using hard mithril.

With the completion of the hard mithril anvil and hammer, the range of products Reifan could make expanded, and he was quite excited.

Yeah, it's good to be an alchemist.

◆

"Wh-what... What kind of equipment is that? Is it mithril...?"

"Are you new to this village?"

"Yeah, buy us a drink and tell us a bit about it. We heard the economy here is booming."

"Economy? You bet. Not only are there plenty of jobs, like monster hunting and construction, but if you achieve a certain level of merit in this village, you get special permission from the noble in charge to buy mithril equipment."

"Really? ...I admire that, but mithril is out of reach for me..."

"There are also more affordable weapons like knives."

"Could I buy those in about half a year?"

"Moreover, the mithril in this village is of much higher quality than regular mithril."

"What?"

"Apparently, a skilled blacksmith named Reifan and an alchemist named Craft are working together, and most of the products they sell are of 'premium' quality. The potions are even 'legendary'."

"Wh-what? No way!"

"Seriously. Plus, the adventurer's guild sells these to adventurers who take on village jobs at a price slightly higher than 'normal' quality."

"Is that true? I can hardly believe it!"

"I was skeptical at first too. But after a few days in this village, you'll see. By the way, if you buy a house in this village, you get free breakfast and lunch... with legendary stamina potions."

"No way..."

"This is no joke."

"Wow... Golden Dawn Village is amazing..."

"So, the party you saw is the best in the village. The leader is a swordsman named Raidock. It's a good idea to greet him later."

"I will."

"Mithril equipment is also quite a bargain these days. Considering the quality, it's almost unbelievable."

"Are there people reselling it?"

"The noble prohibits that when granting permission."

"Of course."

"If you contribute enough to the village, you get permission to buy it. I'm almost there myself."

"Wow, that's great."

"Yeah, I'm saving up with my friends right now. There's plenty of work."

"Alright, we'll put in some effort in this village for a while too!"

"Sure thing. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

"Thanks, I will."

Every day, such conversations take place at the adventurer's guild and the tavern.

Raidock and his party switched to hard mithril equipment, which became a form of advertising, attracting more adventurers to the village.

More parties decided to make this village their base, and their combat strength steadily increased.

One day, I decided to ask Raidock to take on a job.

"So? What's this special job?"

"The content is a survey request."

"A survey, huh. The reward is quite high. It's not just a regular survey, is it?"

"No. I need you to investigate this area."

I spread out a simple map borrowed from the adventurer's guild and pointed to a location, causing one of Raidock's eyebrows to rise.

"I see, quite a dangerous area."

"Right. You're the only ones I can ask to do this."

"So, what do you need us to investigate?"

"I need you to find this herb."

I showed him an illustration of the flower from the production guild's records.

"The Ambrosia flower... a legendary herb."

"Right. And the place where it grows... there's a dragon."

"..."

"You don't need to fight it. Just confirm if the herb exists."

"If we can, I think we can collect a little bit."

"Getting a sample would be great. But we need a considerable amount. It's a bit difficult to collect enough without attracting the monster's attention."

"I understand. Got it."

"Will you take the job?"

"Of course."

We shook hands firmly.

Thus, we began to move for the grand plan.

I've been a bit under the weather and might not be able to update for 2-3 days.

I apologize in advance.

Ambrosia is a completely different thing from any real-world counterpart. Yes.