Chapter 28

That day, all the residents of Golden Dawn Village had gathered in the square.

The dragon's head had already been stored in a spatial storage, so there was no visible change.

So, why were so many people gathered? It was because Kyle was about to visit the Viscount of Vale Road to report.

"Mr. Raidock, I'm counting on you to take care of the village."

"Sure, leave it to me."

"Thanks for being here, man."

"I've been well compensated, after all."

Raidock winked and tapped his sword.

This was a special sword crafted by Reifan using the powder from the dragon's crushed claws and hard mithril.

It was even more powerful than a regular hard mithril sword.

In fact, it could be considered a national treasure.

Incidentally, Alphard and Persia also received weapons made from the same materials, though with different designs.

A carriage was prepared, and Kyle and Mina, along with two guards, would take turns riding in it.

The luggage was stored in my spatial storage, so the other members would walk.

The group consisted of me, Reifan, Kyle, Mina, Alphard, Persia, and for some reason, Jitaro.

"Ugh... I don't want to stay in the village for a while."

"Ah, I get it, I get it."

Jitaro, who had been dumped by Soral, strongly requested to come along, so we ended up taking him with a wry smile.

Additionally, there was the adventurer party that would serve as our guards.

They were one of the parties that had distinguished themselves in the dragon hunt, so their skills were guaranteed.

"Ms. Seirra, it'll be tough, but please do your best."

"Yes! I'll do my best!"

Seirra, the widow and owner of the general store, responded with a mix of anxiety and determination.

Currently, her store was the only one handling potions, so it was very busy.

I had given her all the inventory I had, so she should be fine until we return. Probably.

"Sir Kyle, please, the permission to sell mithril!"

"I'll discuss it with my father, so please be patient."

"When the time comes, if you rely on this Akindo, I won't let you down."

"Hey! No cutting in line!"

"Sir Kyle! We can offer more..."

"I understand your feelings, but Sir Kyle is busy! Please submit your requests in writing!"

"Ah, Persia-san..."

"I know, I know. I just couldn't help it..."

"Hmm. I acknowledge your enthusiasm, but I've never dealt with such people before, so I'm not sure how to handle them."

"That's fine, I think."

"Really?"

When Persia gave the merchants a sharp look, they kept their distance, so it was sufficient.

"Mr. Craft!"

"Hm?"

"Thanks to you, we've made it this far! Please, don't stay behind at the viscount's!"

"Hehe. I have no intention of doing that."

I want to help Kyle.

I want to be there for that boy who endured so much unjustly.

"But..."

"Don't worry. We have a contract with the guild, after all."

"Right! That's right! Please take care of Sir Kyle!"

"Leave it to me."

I answered with confidence.

It goes without saying.

Because he's like a little brother to me. I'll help him.

If anyone tries to bully him, I'll beat them up!

"Everyone, are we ready to go?"

"Yep."

"Then... we're off!"

"Yay! Long live Sir Kyle! Long live Mr. Craft! Long live Sir Kyle!"

It was nice that the villagers sent us off with a cheer, but they didn't need to include my name.

And so, we set off for the Viscount of Vale Road.

— End of Chapter 1 —

...

...

...

Viscount Orthros Gandar von Vale Road stood silently with his arms crossed, facing a letter.

On his sturdy oak desk lay a report from his third son.

The documents and letter, delivered via the Adventurer's Guild yesterday, detailed an extraordinary history of development.

...

Orthros stood up and moved to the window.

Beyond the luxurious glass window, the land that was said to be impossible to develop should be visible.

He felt guilty for sending Kyle to such a dangerous place at the strong urging of his sons.

The succession struggle was primarily between his eldest son, Flattan, and his second son, Zaid.

In reality, he understood that it was impossible to make the physically weak Kyle the heir.

Of course, he was aware of his sons' schemes.

They probably wanted to send Kyle to the edge of the world, hoping he would die if he was lucky.

At the very least, if he returned with the failure of the development, it would be enough for his sons.

But...

There was a knock on the door.

"Father, may I come in?"

"Yes, come in."

Two people entered the room. One was Flattan, who resembled Orthros in his youth.

At thirty-three years old, he looked like he was in his mid-twenties.

This was because he regularly took the rejuvenation potion Amrita, thanks to the wealth from the business he managed. Flattan's business acumen made it impossible to complain.

The other was Zaid, the second son with sharp eyes, who resembled his mother, the second lady (current wife).

At twenty-nine, he looked his age.

However, his personality remained childlike.

"Father, you said you had something to discuss?"

"Yes, it's about Kyle."

"Kyle?"

Flattan raised an eyebrow in surprise, while Zaid wore a nasty smile.

"Here."

Orthros handed a summary of the contents to Flattan.

Flattan's brows furrowed as he read it.

"Is this true?"

"I haven't confirmed it."

"Huh? What's going on?"

Zaid took the paper from Flatten and scanned it. His expression twisted with each line he read.

"What! What is this! This is a joke, right!?"

Zaid's anger was understandable.

The report detailed the expansion of the development village, the increase in residents, the growth in shops, and requests from various guilds to set up branches.

Even these details were hard to believe, but the text continued.

"Killed a dragon!? With just adventurers and villagers!? Nonsense! Impossible! Unbelievable!"

"I find it hard to believe as well."

Zaid was not the only one to express doubt; Flattan did as well.

"Kyle is serious. He wouldn't joke about something like this."

"But!"

"I understand. It's not an easy thing to believe."

"Then, I'll go to the site and—"

"No, he's supposed to report back here first."

Zaid swallowed his words.

"Is he that confident?"

"Seems so. He also sent this with the letter."

Orthros took out two small bottles.

"What are those?"

"According to legend, they are the all-curing elixir."

"Ha!?"

Even Flatten let out a surprised exclamation. The items were too sudden and unbelievable.

"Nonsense! That must be a fake!"

Zaid was also furious.

"Do either of you know anything about the elixir?"

"Just that it can cure any disease, from stories I've read."

"Same here."

"Hmm... Actually, I once asked the king about the elixir."

"The king?"

"Yes, the king said that the elixir is a topical ointment and tastes good when eaten."

"Huh?"

"Topical ointment... eaten?"

"And the medicine he sent was a topical ointment. I wonder where he learned such knowledge, even if it's a joke."

"..."

The two sons were speechless.

A normal reaction, indeed.

"Kyle apparently tried the medicine himself."

"By himself?"

"Yes. And the result... he is now healthy."

"Ha!?"

"Unbelievable..."

It was understandable for them to be shocked. As a viscount, he had tried various doctors and medicines to no avail.

If it could cure him, it meant... Without saying more, the two sons seemed to understand.

"Furthermore, there are other tributes that can't be described in the letter."

"If he really killed a dragon, the materials would be the tribute, but it's strange that he can't describe them."

"Hmph! He's just being dramatic!"

"Regardless, if this report is true, it's a big deal. Kyle is expected to arrive the day after tomorrow. Clear your schedules. Take one of the medicines each. You can investigate or use them as you see fit."

"Understood."

"Got it."

Flattan and Zaid bowed and left the room.

Orthros stood by the window again.

"What are you planning to bring, Kyle?"

His words, spoken to no one, dissolved into the room.

◆

When Zaid returned to his mansion, he shouted immediately.

"Call Javir! Urgently!"

"Javir-sama? She's in the middle of research..."

"Tell her we have an elixir!"

"Huh?"

"The all-curing elixir from legend! We need her to verify if it's real! She'll come out, even if she's a research fanatic!"

"Yes, sir!"

The servant rushed out.

After a while, a girl with a bad temper and a strong smell of herbs entered the room.

"Late, Javir!"

"Hehehe, I was in the middle of an exciting experiment."

"You're always like that! More importantly, this!"

"Hehe, it's the elixir... probably a fake..."

The girl, Javir, stopped dead in her tracks when she took the container.

She stood there silently, holding the container.

Zaid thought to himself.

When Flattan asked her to help create the rejuvenation potion Amrita, the experiment failed and went out of control.

The young genius, who had a very mature and alluring figure that he liked, suddenly became a lolicon.

She was older than him, but still young.

Since then, Javir's appearance had not changed at all.

Such a waste.

"Zaid-sama? Where did you get this?"

"I can't say! Is it real?"

"Please wait... 'Appraisal'"

The small bottle emitted a faint magical light.

Javir's hand holding it trembled slightly.

"Hey, Javir?"

"Un... unbelievable... This... is definitely the elixir! The real elixir!"

"What...?"

"Zaid-sama! Where did you get this!? Where did you find it!? In a dungeon!? Or...!"

"Calm down, Javir! I can't say more! But it will be clear the day after tomorrow!"

"Ah...! Ah!"

Javir held the bottle up once, then carefully embraced it, showing a strong resolve not to let it go.

Zaid chuckled and ordered.

"I'll leave it to you. You can investigate, but don't render it unusable."

"Yes! Leave it to me! With the real thing, I might be able to...!"

"Enough! Don't be so enthusiastic! Anyway, I'm counting on you!"

"Leave it all to me!"

Zaid straightened his collar and sighed.

"Always a research fanatic."

"Hehehe... I don't know where it was found, but I will definitely... definitely alchemize it! I will create the first alchemized elixir in human history!"

She let out a creepy laugh, unaware that it had been alchemized by Craft, an extraordinary individual.

End of Part 1

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I'll resume as soon as possible, so please stay tuned (´▽`)