Chapter 40

It's been a while since I've greeted you from the tent area. Winter is still going strong. I'm Herman, and I'm currently having breakfast. It's still quite cold this time of year, and normally one would stay at an inn to relax, but due to the whims of fate and opportunity, I find myself in the capital. So, we decided to go gathering, which is why I'm here in this square.

...What's the name of this square, I wonder? It's not the Church Square, as there's no church. Maybe it's the Adventurer's Square. That sounds about right, since it's mostly used by adventurers. But a lot of non-adventurers use it too, especially students from the Alchemy Academy and the noble school. I doubt the students from the Mage Academy use it much; they probably go to the magical realm. Hmm, maybe it's the Capital Gate Square. Since it's in the east, it could be the East Capital Gate Square. That sounds good. If there's an official name, I'll use that, but for now, let's go with East Capital Gate Square. I was just having breakfast, but looking around, I see two types of people: those who finish their meals quickly and head through the gate, and those who take their time. The former are probably going to the Adventurer's Guild to pick up quests, while the latter are likely going to gather materials in the sacred grounds. Since this is the capital, there are probably more adventurers who can read and write, so they might have to go deeper to find materials. It's my first time in the sacred grounds, but I think I'll go deeper instead of just sticking to the shallows.

Beck's Forest, from the outside, doesn't have the dense trees like York's Forest or Rail's Forest. The trees are sparse enough that you can see the sky. With this density, a lot of adventurers probably go deeper. How far in do I need to go? Maybe an hour will be enough. Well, I can just follow the other adventurers and gather. Basically, I'm gathering herbs, but it's tricky to tell them apart. In my previous life, most herbs were green, but in this world, they come in all sorts of unusual colors. The leaves, stems, and flowers can be completely different colors. For example, this Wind-Blown Grass has red leaves, green stems, and white flowers. Other characteristics include its height and narrow leaves. ...To be honest, it's hard to tell them apart just by description. I have to visualize the colors from the illustrations in the guidebook and then recognize them in real life. That's why gathering herbs is so tedious. Mushrooms are easier because they have distinctive shapes. A lot of non-material herbs grow here too. The ground is very colorful, not just green. If it were just green, it would be easier to spot unusual colors, but with so many colors, even camouflage doesn't matter, and they're all fun colors.

...But this is only in the sacred grounds. Normal grasslands are just full of green grass. It would be easier to spot red-leaved grass in a sea of green. This sacred ground is one of the less challenging ones. ...The magical realm has bonus monsters like Carbuncles, so it balances out. But the people here either lack the talent to go to the magical realm or have the talent but don't put in the effort. ...No, even if they just gather common materials, it's probably more profitable to fight goblins, so they might be the type who can't even handle goblins. The rest are adventurers who know about preservation bottles. Even if they're terrible at combat, adventurers who can properly preserve their materials can still make some money. ...But there aren't many of them this time of year. It's basically a season for staying at inns. The people here are probably the type who are overwhelmed by laziness. If it weren't for enthusiasts like me.

So, I'm gathering materials, but I'm doing it in a relatively shallow area. Probably about 10 minutes in. ...After this point, adventurers don't come anymore. I wonder if they're doing some kind of grass cutting. The alchemy guild in the capital must be busy. They have to evaluate materials from a field full of weeds. ...Apparently, even herbs with unusual colors have a bit of magic power, and it's possible to make magic stones from a field of weeds. ...But it's very inefficient, as Judy told me. Judy, who was a poor student, used to work part-time at the alchemy guild making magic stones.

The part-time job for making magic stones is paid by the piece, not by the hour. You get paid based on how many magic stones you make. Once you get better at manipulating magic, you can move on to making advanced potions, but at first, making magic stones is more efficient. You don't waste materials even if you fail, and the more you succeed, the more money you make. Plus, magic stones are one of the few things you can alchemize in bulk. You place a large amount of materials on a magic cloth embroidered with alchemy arrays and use magic manipulation to turn them into magic stones. However, magic stones made from common materials are of the lowest quality. In fact, materials that don't have enough magic power to make a stone on their own can only be turned into the lowest quality stones when mixed with other materials. High-value materials can be turned into a single magic stone, and the higher the value, the better the quality of the stone. ...Actually, it's more accurate to say that high-quality magic stones come from high-value materials. When mixing high-quality magic stones, they must be of different attributes; mixing stones of the same attribute will result in the lower quality being standardized. It's a bit strange, but that's why high-magic materials are important. One of the goals is to make high-quality, all-attribute magic stones for wands. They apparently give a bonus to magic manipulation when using alchemy. For example, the recovery amount of a magic recovery potion increases. Even using the same 10 magic mushrooms, the recovery amount can vary based on the number of stars and proficiency in magic manipulation. I wonder why it's designed that way. Maybe they couldn't make fixed-quality items.

Furthermore, the part-time job for making magic stones is great for training magic manipulation, not just for money. There are so many people in the capital who deliver common materials, so there's almost never a shortage. The more you do, the better you get at magic manipulation, and you also earn some money. It's perfect for students at the Alchemy Academy. I plan to participate too, more for the magic manipulation training than the money. ...First, I need to finish embroidering the alchemy array as soon as possible. It can be done with an alchemy cauldron, but an array that can hold a lot of materials is better for making magic stones. Liquids are always done in a cauldron, though.

Embroidering the alchemy array. I plan to make a proper one. So, I'll take the Yin-Yang School's class twice in my first year and get two sets of magic cloth and thread. I'll probably run out of thread halfway through, but the alchemy encyclopedia has proper embroidery thread. ...I wondered what it was for. Regular thread should be fine for embroidery, right? I didn't expect I'd have to embroider the alchemy array myself. ...I plan to take my time and embroider it over a year. I'll set aside my evenings for embroidery. When will I be able to use the proper one? ...I hope it's finished while I'm at the Alchemy Academy. Also, there are no embroidery hoops in this world, so it's tough to get the tension right. I'll probably use a stone table in the dorm as a weight. My past self said it's impossible to embroider without the fabric taut. ...Is that true? My past self never did embroidery, but he has the knowledge.

So, about the magic stones. Fortunately, I have a lot of materials. I plan to make wands with all attributes when I'm a third-year student. For light and dark attributes, the Full Moon Mushrooms are probably the best. I'll find out if I need to make one for each attribute or if one mushroom can cover both when I take the class. For the water attribute, I plan to use the water crystal from a Kelpie, so I'll work hard to defeat one. For the wind attribute, I'll make it from Tornado Grass, which I've already gathered today. For the earth attribute, I plan to use the fruit of the Royal Earth Herb, as it's the highest value for earth materials. For the fire attribute, I plan to use Foxfire Moss. I'm not sure if moss is better in quality or if it's just more abundant, but it's probably more expensive. That's my plan. The only thing left is the Kelpie. I'll team up with other alchemists or the Iron Welcome School's trainees for the fight. I want to defeat it by my second year. Let's work hard.

Gathering isn't going well, and I'm struggling to identify the herbs. The most valuable Tornado Grass is easy to spot. The leaves are curled like a tornado, so I immediately recognized it. Other herbs have distinctive colors, heights, or flower shapes. ...It's tough. It would be so much easier if all the other herbs were just green. But this is a sacred ground, so it's to be expected.

It's night, and I'm back at the tent. I think the first day went well. I got some decent results. I think I can gather twice as much once I get used to it, but for now, it's like this. ...Maybe I should check my materials at the alchemy guild. ...I'll do that. I'll leave the tent here and go to the alchemy guild tomorrow. ...It will take two days to go there, stay overnight, and come back. ...Can I make it a day trip if I run? I'll try to get up early and do a day trip tomorrow. I'll eat dinner quickly and prepare for tomorrow.

Morning, but it's quite early. The people who stick to the adventurer guild wake up around this time, even though they can't read. If they used a bit of that passion to learn to read and write... But I'm different, so I'll eat breakfast leisurely and run to the alchemy guild. I'll just go through a simple check at the East Gate and then dash. ...I'll only dash at the start, then jog the rest. I think it's a waste that the alchemy guild is so far away.

It's just before noon. I've arrived at the alchemy guild. ...At this rate, I should be able to make it back. I'm quite tired, though. Now, let's check the materials. ...I hope I didn't make any mistakes.

"Excuse me, can you check my materials?"

"Check? What do you mean?"

"Can you confirm if the materials match what's in the book about Beck's Forest?"

"Oh, you mean verification. Sure, it's easy."

"Then I'll take out one bottle at a time."

I took out nine bottles. I didn't make mistakes with the materials I gathered elsewhere, but just to be sure. Magic mushrooms are an exception. You can't get them wrong if you're aiming to be an alchemist.

"Okay, ...yes. I've confirmed. Everything is fine, and your preservation methods are perfect."

"That's great. I plan to keep gathering like this."

"You said you're planning to enter next year, right? The Yin-Yang School also does gathering, so it should be easier for you. It's good to work hard in advance. Collect materials thoroughly."

"Thank you very much."

So, I'm making a quick round trip. Let's get back to running. It's almost evening, and I'm back at the East Gate. I found out I can make a day trip, but I don't want to do it again. My legs are swollen. I went through a quick check with the guards and headed back to the tent. I'll eat dinner quickly and get ready for more gathering tomorrow. Now that the verification is done, let's gather a lot of materials.

Whether you found it interesting or not, any feedback would be appreciated. If you can point out any issues in your review, it would help me improve my writing.

...Probably.