Chapter 58

The explosive increase in page views is getting out of hand. The author is trembling.

I received an essay and I'm happy to introduce it.

https://ncode.syosetu.com/n4649ha/19/

Good morning from room 5-0601. It's April 5th today. I'm Herman. Well, the Dawn faction's class... I guess I'm doing it. There's a pile of dirt on the desk. I think it's just not in the box. It's a simple task to create a small structure using magic manipulation with a wand. I have a feeling it's going to be another boring class.

Three hours later, it was as expected. Manipulating dirt until my magic power ran out. But I could see a little growth. I could knead the dirt for about 1 hour and 10 minutes with magic. Before, I couldn't last an hour. ...Maybe it's because of the amount of dirt. Well, I feel good. Let's go to the next class right away.

I've arrived at room 4-0501. It's the familiar room with the open structure. This is Beck's knowledge of the forest's mystical creatures. I'm a bit interested since I don't know about them. This is the only normal class in the Mystic faction. Do you need to be an alchemist? Well, the class has started, everyone, listen up.

Three hours later, did you think I would have a thorough class? The talk about mystical creatures was over in 20 minutes. To summarize, its name is Galthearasalates, a bird-like hawk that is nocturnal. It's pure white, but the underside of its wings has black spots. It seems to enjoy eating whirlwind mushrooms. While it's active at night, no one has found its nest yet. However, it's very small, only about 10 cm in body length, and its wingspan is barely 30 cm. For a hawk, it could be a bit bigger, couldn't it? That's all the information I have. We spent 20 minutes on this.

The next 2 hours and 40 minutes were about Judy's research on the Marmateronov. It seems the Mystic faction is about to make a breakthrough and there are expectations for the young people who will come to the Mystic faction. I heard various things but let them pass. I might have lost consciousness at some point, but it was probably just my imagination. ...I was sleeping from the middle. The content was completely unproductive. I'll blame it on the strange fatigue from yesterday. Yesterday was just a grueling task of making things.

So, the next day, April 6th. I'm at room 6-0901. ...The Spirit faction is on its own path, the only faction underground. It was as expected. The room is still open, is the foundation okay? Well, it's probably reinforced with magic or has magic iron. The size is similar to the Life Creation faction. ...There's a goblin corpse on the alchemy array on the desk. So, the class starts. ...There are a lot of assistants here.

"Welcome to the Spirit faction lecture. Today, we will create zombies. I believe you have prepared goblin corpses, but a corpse without magic iron cannot be made into a zombie. If you have removed the magic iron, please speak up. The assistants have as many goblin corpses as possible. We will take 10 minutes, so if you need to replace one, raise your hand."

I can't see the teacher, but they have a very high-pitched voice. My past self would rudely call it a lolicon voice, but I'll ignore it. The announcement is very polite, which I appreciate. ...If only it wasn't underground. It seems some people have removed the magic iron. I didn't remove it, thinking I would do it in the Iron Welcome faction's lecture. The head is off, but that shouldn't be a problem.

"Since everyone has received it, let's proceed with the lecture. I will distribute dark attribute magic mushrooms. If you haven't received one, keep your hand raised. The assistants will distribute the magic mushrooms."

I raised my hand. ...After a while, a magic mushroom appeared in front of me, so I lowered my hand. We're using dark attribute magic mushrooms right away. This faction must be expensive. Undead are a source of labor and power that doesn't require much effort. They are also used in flour mills with grinders. It was a skeleton, not a zombie. ...Are zombies not very popular?

"Since everyone has received it, let's proceed with the lecture. There are two main types of undead: zombies with flesh and skeletons without flesh. Zombies are stronger and heavier, while skeletons are faster and lighter but not as strong. The biggest drawback of zombies is that they stop moving when all the flesh rots away. They don't turn into skeletons. Also, once a corpse has been made into a zombie, it cannot be reused as a skeleton. Remember this. In May, we will do zombie enhancement. The zombies you make today should last about a month if not overused. ...They should be fine if not overused. During the zombie enhancement, you will learn more about it. Zombie enhancement is about extending their lifespan. Even if a zombie is barely moving, you can still attend the class."

Unlike other lectures, I'm really receiving a lecture. ...I'm not being ignored, turned into a manufacturing machine, or listening to a boasting story. By the way, being ignored is in the Iron Welcome and Dawn factions, being a manufacturing machine is in the Eternal Light and Life Creation factions, and the boasting story is in the Mystic faction. Seriously, the Mystic faction doesn't do anything. I want to say, "Do the lecture instead of running away to fieldwork."

"Let's actually create a zombie. First, place the goblin corpse on the alchemy array and let the magic flow through it. Make sure the magic flows through the severed parts as well."

I let the magic flow through the goblin. ...I don't know if it's because it's a corpse, but the magic doesn't flow easily. Well, it's just a matter of time. I don't forget to let the magic flow through the head.

"Next, let the magic from the dark attribute magic mushroom flow into the place where the magic iron is. Place the magic mushroom on the alchemy array and draw out the magic. To draw it out, first, let the magic flow into the magic mushroom. Then, draw it out. If you succeed, the magic mushroom will disappear, so use that as a reference. At this time, if the magic is already flowing through the corpse, you can cut it off."

I see, I think the magic has flowed through enough, so I'll cut it off and draw out the magic from the magic mushroom. I let the magic flow into the magic mushroom. When it's fully flowed through, I pull it out. ...The magic mushroom has disappeared.

"When letting the magic from the magic mushroom flow into the magic iron, at first, let the magic flow through the entire body. There should be a place where the magic flows more easily. That's the magic iron. For a goblin, it should be around the stomach."

I just need to let the magic flow through the corpse. ...Ah, there is indeed a place where the magic flows more easily. I'll gather it there. ...I feel like it's all gathered.

"After letting all the magic from the magic mushroom flow through, let your magic flow into the goblin again. This time, you don't need to let as much flow through. You should feel a connection. When you feel connected, command it to 'stand up straight.' You don't need to say it out loud, just think it. If you fail, talk to the assistants. They will tell you the reason."

I let my magic flow through again. ...Oh, I feel connected. "Stand up straight." The goblin lying on the alchemy array stood up. Oh, this is a zombie. I succeeded. I was a bit moved. It feels like I did the most alchemist-like thing so far.

"Those who succeeded, command it to 'standby.' It should bend its knees and curl up. Store it in the 'Extend Space.' That's the end of the lecture. Thank you for your hard work."

Oh, it's over within the time. Lectures are about an hour, right? There's a 3-hour slot, but it's probably just for the sake of it, and for the last day. Well, "standby," and the goblin curled up like in a physical education class. I stored it in the 'Extend Space' and that's it. ...Most students succeeded, but some failed. ...Is there really something they didn't understand from that explanation? ...Maybe it's hard for people who rely on their senses. Well, I succeeded, so I'm good. I left the classroom and basked in the sunlight. Today's sun feels refreshing. I have a sense of accomplishment from doing alchemy. Well, let's go back to my room and make something. I want to make something new.

So, I bought ingredients and started alchemy right away. ...I'm still a bit scared of handling materials, so I'll do alchemy with ingredients. But I feel like I can do it today. ...Magic mushrooms are in the ingredient category. They're mushrooms, and I have a lot. Let me introduce the materials I'll use today. First, eggs, sugar, flour, magic mushrooms, and the fat from the orc meat. I'll use these. There's no baking powder, which is convenient. Will it succeed? ...Even my past self, who was a food specialist, knows about baking powder. It's something that makes things rise. I know it's used to make things fluffy, but I don't know much more. There's nothing I can do about it.

Well, this might be closer to cooking than alchemy, but let's give it a try. If I can think of it, I'll try it. If it doesn't work, then it doesn't work. First, mix the eggs with sugar. ...I'm careful not to let the shell fall in. I'm a beginner at cooking. If it falls in, I can take it out with magic manipulation. Then, I put a lot of flour in. If it becomes dough, it's fine. I'll think about the amount as I make it. If there's too much flour, I can add more eggs and sugar. I'll mix the dough with magic manipulation. The dough wriggles in the stone bowl. ...I'll leave it at that. Then, I'll make small balls and place them on a tray. This time, I plan to throw them into the alchemy cauldron, not fill a frying pan.

Next, I'll shave the fat off the orc meat I bought. I'll grill the lean meat later. I want the oil, so I tried to separate it in the alchemy cauldron, but it didn't work. ...I'm disappointed. I think the dissection team of the adventurer guild works hard to get the orc oil for the nobles. It's a hassle even in small amounts. So, I'll put the fat and magic mushrooms into the alchemy cauldron. I'll let the magic flow through. I put the magic mushrooms in just in case. I thought this would succeed. I was taught that this feeling is important. When the magic has fully flowed through, I'll put the rolled dough in. The dough sinks. ...If it succeeds, it should float. If it doesn't float, it's a failure. I feel like it will succeed. I keep letting the magic flow through. ...Oh, it's floating. Good, it's a success so far. I put the floating dough on the tray and finished the alchemy.

...The donuts are done. Imagine them like sata andagi. Well, the problem is the taste. I'm doing this unconventional thing because there's not enough oil, but I think I can do it with normal frying without magic mushrooms. I wanted to try it and succeed with alchemy. Well, let's taste it. ...Yeah, it's a donut. There was a bit less sugar. ...Was it a mistake to be cheap because it was expensive? But I think it turned out well. It would be perfect as a snack. You can eat it with your hands. I'll put the rest in a storage jar and keep doing alchemy today.

I still have more ingredients I bought. Which one should I use? ...I'll use tomatoes. What goes well with this? ... ... ...I'll use this. Tomatoes, the orc meat I took the fat from, onions, magic mushrooms, and fast life grass. This is good. I thought I needed to put in magic mushrooms because tomatoes and onions alone didn't seem to work. Then, I thought of putting in the orc meat, but I saw a future of failure. I felt that fast life grass was somehow necessary for success, so this is the recipe. ...It feels like meat sauce. I need to think about the order of putting them in.

...I think I can put them all in at once. But the orc meat would be better as minced meat? ...In the image of meat sauce, it's minced meat. I'll make it minced meat. ...Is it the talent of a swordsman? Because it's a knife? ...Well, it's good that mincing is easier. I make minced meat with two-handed throwing knives. The cutting board is a bit expensive, but wouldn't a stone cutting board be bad? I thought the knife might chip, so I bought a wooden one. ...Well, even if it's expensive, it's a silver coin. The prices in this world are really messed up, so I can't convert them. The cutting board is more expensive than the meat.

I made minced meat and put 5 tomatoes, 10 onions, all the minced orc meat, 10 magic mushrooms, and 100 fast life grass into the alchemy cauldron. ...I put them in roughly according to the amount of meat. I didn't even peel the onions, but it seemed fine, so I put them in as they were. I poured in plenty of magic while mixing. This feels right. Why did I think I needed to put in fast life grass? ...I mixed for about 10 minutes. The mixing became a bit lighter and then suddenly heavier. I think it's probably fine now. I put in as many storage jars as I could. ...Two and a half, I think. I didn't measure the amount of minced meat, so I can't say. The taste is like meat sauce with a bit of fruit juice as a secret ingredient. It became a sweet meat sauce. This is good. ...I feel like it would go well with cheese. It might not go well with pasta. ...By the standards of my past self. But I've never seen cheese. There's no milk for sale in the ingredient section, so is there something else that would go well?

...Beans. I bought them as seeds. If there are beans, I can make soy milk, right? ...I think it's probably fine. If I soak them in water and squeeze, it should work. Can I do it with alchemy? ...I think I can use water flow grass. It's an attribute material, but it's cheap, so I'll try it. It would be nice if I could use a grinder with a mill. I should be able to make soy milk without doing this. ...I think so, but since it's bean juice, if I soak it in water, it should become soy milk. Well, I can do it, so it's fine. I put two bags of beans into the alchemy cauldron. I added two storage jars of water. Then, I put in one water flow grass. ...I think this will succeed. If it fails, some kind of dark matter will appear, which is easy to recognize. There's a lot of it in the garbage, so I think everyone fails a lot. The mixing became heavier, but I still feel like it's not done. I think I mixed for about 20 minutes. I felt a different texture. Is it done? I scooped it into a storage jar, and a white liquid was completed. I tasted a bit, hmm, it tastes like beans. It seems like soy milk. I got two storage jars. ...What's this? There's still something in it. I scooped it with a storage jar. ...Is it pulp? It's rare for something to remain. The skin and other things usually disappear with alchemy. What's this? My past self's knowledge is biased. I've never heard of pulp remaining. ...I got one storage jar. It might be useful for something, so I'll keep it.

Why did I make soy milk? ...Ah, I was looking for something that would go well with the meat sauce. I thought of cheese. ...Cheese from soy milk. Can it be done? It's like a relative of milk, but there's a wall between plant-based and animal-based... Well, I think it can be done. I think it can be done, but what should I mix in? ...I think I need magic mushrooms, so I'll keep them. Fast life grass, a universal material, might also work, so I'll keep it. ...I think mica mushrooms might work. ...I think I can make something with this, but I don't know if it will be cheese. If I don't know, I'll just try it. I'll put all the materials in. ...What will I get? A heavy feeling came to my hands. It feels like it's forming a lump. ...After mixing for 5 minutes, I think it's done. I think it's powdered cheese. I put it in a storage jar. It's exactly one jar. It tastes like cheese, but it's powdery. This might go well with the meat sauce? ...I want an oven. Tomato sauce and cheese on a slice pan. Isn't it luxurious? I think it would be delicious, but I don't have an oven to bake bread. ...Should I bring bread for dinner without eating it? No, there's no oven.

I ended up in a quandary because I made things on a whim.

Whether it was interesting or not, it doesn't matter.

I would be grateful if you could leave a review.

If you could point out something in your comments, I think I can reflect it in my writing.

...Probably.