episode_0180

I was momentarily surprised that the princess had spent so much money at once, but I looked at the piece of iron in my hand, thinking that maybe it was a cheap purchase.

Even though no elixir was used, the fact that it was harder than the existing iron that was made using the elixir meant that it was a very useful item.

Even if it was made thinner using fewer pieces of iron, it was possible to create armor that boasted the same defensive power, and although sharpening the blade would be a little more difficult, it was possible to make blades that would last for a long time.

The impact of such advantages was by no means light. Even if you just think about the armor, the impact was enormous.

Although it has the same defense, it is thinner, so it is possible to preserve physical strength with lighter armor, and even if it is made with the same thickness as before, it can nullify the opponent’s weapon with stronger defense.

If you select and use armor according to the situation, you could see tremendous benefits.

Of course, it goes without saying that there would be a huge number of people looking for armor that would provide such benefits.

“At this level, His Majesty may no longer be against the princess practicing alchemy.”

“Do you really think that?”

“Don’t you remember that there was a time when I told you this? If I use alchemy, I can make it so Marquis Kurid can’t catch up with me.”

The princess nodded as if she remembered.

“Even if it’s just this, the Marquis of Kurid will never be able to catch up with me. No, not the Marquis of Kurid, but we might be able to get ahead of other countries. Maybe it will be ahead of the Kingdom of Fatale, also called the Kingdom of Iron or the Kingdom of Dwarves… … ?”

“Hwa, at that level, not only my brother but also my father might actually encourage me to practice alchemy… … !”

When I mentioned Partail Kingdom, a country that had made weapons for many warriors and a country of dwarves who could manipulate metal as they pleased, the princess’s face began to fill with happiness.

I smiled at the sight of the princess laughing like a person whose dream is to practice alchemy as much as she wants.

Since I was so into alchemy, I thought I could make something like this. It was clear that no decent person would be able to create this level of technology in just one or two months.

Anyway, after looking at the princess for a moment as if she was imagining herself practicing alchemy to her heart’s content in the future, she turned her gaze towards the piece of metal she was holding in her hand.

I really liked the fact that even without using the elixir, it was made harder than when using the elixir, but there was something strangely annoying about it.

No, more accurately, it was a situation that felt strangely heterogeneous. It’s hard to describe, but if I had to express it, it felt like it was in my hand but not in my hand.

“Hmm… … .”

But no matter how I looked at it, there was nothing particularly strange. What was created was an iron ingot mined from a mine and made into an ingot. The color felt slightly different, but that was only the difference in appearance due to the gloss or the surrounding light source.

Even when I lifted it above my head and looked around, there was no difference, and even when I brought it close enough to touch the bridge of my nose and looked around, I didn’t see anything strange.

“Viscount Steel? Why are you crying?”

However, as he looked around at the piece of iron and seemed to be worried, the princess, who had come out of her imagination, gave him a strange look. He also seemed worried, wondering if there was a problem with what he and the alchemists had worked hard to create.

“No, it’s not that big of a deal… … . There is a strange sense of heterogeneity.”

“A feeling of foreignness?”

“What can I say, it feels like it is strangely not there even though it is slightly in the palm of your hand?”

“Would you give it a try?”

He placed a piece of iron on the palm of the princess’s outstretched hand.

The princess holding the piece of iron examined it intently, just as I did. I even used a magic that I thought was one of the magic used in magnifying glasses to make the piece of iron look bigger and check it.

But he tilted his head as if he didn’t feel anything in particular.

“Not really… … I can’t feel anything, it’s strange.”

The princess said it was strange, but handed her a piece of metal as if to check it again. However, the piece of iron I caught again still felt foreign.

“Is it still the same?”

“Yes, I keep feeling a strange sense of heterogeneity.”

“Hmm, do you think this feeling of heterogeneity comes from something like the differences between me and Viscount Steele?”

“Differences… … ?”

The immediate thought that came to mind when thinking about the difference between me and the princess was gender. But that was nonsense. It wasn’t a living thing, and there was no reason for metal to react while dividing a human man and a woman.

“Mana and dark magic… … .”

“That’s right. That’s all that can be seriously considered in the current situation. Considering that other alchemists and researchers didn’t feel any sense of heterogeneity, it probably wasn’t about gender or the presence or absence of power.”

“Then I guess I should check it out.”

I decided to check right away because the iron lump might be causing an abnormal reaction to the black magic.

I don’t know if it was brought separately for research purposes, but there was an iron ingot made at a blacksmith’s shop in the corner, so it wasn’t difficult to compare.

He immediately grabbed two metal ingots and poured black magic into them.

“Ah, this is why it felt so different.”

And, at the same time as I poured in the black magic power, I was able to understand the identity of the strangeness felt in the iron lump.

“Have you figured out why that is?”

“The iron lump is filled with mana. To be exact, it’s the princess’s mana. Although it is at a weak level, it is filled with the owner’s mana, so it pushes out the dark magic. As I pushed away the dark magic that came naturally from my body, I felt a sense of alienation.”

I don’t know if it was because atoms were added to make it especially hard, but the iron block contained mana inside. Although it was only at a very weak level, it was at a level that pushed away the dark magic that was released without conscious awareness.

As I was pushing my energy away, it felt like it was not there even though it was in my hand. That was the essence of the feeling of heterogeneity.

In fact, its presence was clearly felt now that it was filled with dark magic.

“Yes? Then, why did other alchemists touch it? … .”

“Because it’s Mana, it feels natural because it’s the same type even though it has different owners. My dark magic is filled, so check it out for yourself.”

It was easier to understand by directly touching the iron ball filled with black magic than by talking about it. When I handed over the iron ball filled with black magic, the princess quickly took it with a curious expression.

“Oh my.”

The princess, holding a piece of iron in her palm, seemed to instantly understand what I said.

I don’t know if it was because I felt like it wasn’t there even though I could see it, but I blinked and held it in my hand and held it tightly.

“It’s fascinating. I didn’t infuse mana separately.”

“Probably… … . It seems like the mana that flows unconsciously from my body has seeped into me. Is this why they say it has become stronger? … .”

“Oh, that’s probably not true. We simply identified differences in the hardness of iron depending on the region and found ways to apply that. Researchers were in charge of everything from manufacturing to determining the degree of hardness.”

“… … Then, if you store mana or black magic, you can become even slightly stronger. Even if you are an ordinary person who has not learned how to manipulate mana, you should say that it is better because you have a little bit of mana.”

Although it is not a particularly special advantage for knight-level armament, the advantage was significant if soldier armor was made from this piece of iron. This means that even those who cannot use mana can see the effect, albeit to a small extent.

“Princess. Is this possible for mass production?”

“It’s not difficult. I guess we’re lucky, because Viscount Steele’s iron ore also has a small amount of those atoms. However, the problem is that most of it escapes while smelting iron. However, it is possible to reprocess and use what has gone out as waste. Or you can explore the mines. There is railroad ore, and I don’t think there’s any way that there won’t be ore because of those atoms.”

He nodded to the princess’s words and prayed for an ore rich in atoms that could make iron stronger. That too, among the mines I have.

Excluding the mine where mining first began, there were three places that had been mined for exploration purposes, so I hoped to be able to come out of those places.

“Then all you need is firewood and time. Time to reprocess scraps, time to find ore.”

“Firewood Flowers can be obtained through slave elves purchased by Viscount Steel, and it is also possible to increase the efficiency of Firewood Flowers through alchemy, so all you need is time, right? Shall we study how to reduce time using alchemy? Maybe finding ore isn’t possible with alchemy?”

Alchemy is the best! Alchemy is omnipotent! All you need is alchemy! He smiled and nodded at the sight of the princess who seemed to be saying this.

“Well, that’s why. Could you please provide a little more budget support? … Should I… … ?”

But even that great alchemy was helpless in the face of budget.

Because it was the magic tower of the alchemy school that had spent all its money to create an artifact so great that it could see atoms, contrary to what it confidently said, it was not possible to conduct research right away.

Of course, it was possible to provide research funds. No, rather, it was a situation that had to be done. If only these items were produced, it would be beneficial no matter how much support was provided.

“Then, shall we start by writing a contract?”

Moreover, if you provide research funds while writing a contract, you can exert that much influence on the Magic Tower, so there was no reason to hesitate. It was almost a necessary process if I were to monopolize the results of alchemy.

In the end, I went with the princess to the 8th floor where the school president’s office was located and signed a contract for additional support.

The princess, who had written a contract for research funding, held the contract dearly like a treasure. He loved it so much that even his face turned red to the point that anyone who saw him would think he had received a confession.

If things continued like this, it seemed like a situation where I would stroke the contract or even covet the contract that I would take with me. In the end, I decided to divert the princess’s attention.

“By the way, did you give a separate name to the atom that is said to make iron hard? Since not all iron is the same, I think it should be classified and called.”

“Ah, there is a name we call ourselves randomly. Erythronium means red metal. It is called so because it is red when extracted from the residue.”

The princess showed me tiny red particles and said that it was erythronium. I thought it was a pretty good name.

And, at the same time, they imagined quickly producing products containing erythronium and swallowing up the entire continent’s steel market.

“I hope spring comes quickly.”

That’s why I wanted spring to come quickly.

Of course, the much-awaited spring was not that far away.