Chapter 14: New Potion? – 2

Chapter 14: New Potion? – 2

The gateway connecting the capital and the outside.

A merchant with a servant easily passed through the checkpoint and went outside the capital.

Thanks to the good reputation he had built up over the years, the soldiers in charge of the checkpoint didn’t really suspect the merchant, and thanks to that, the merchant’s luggage only underwent a very formal inspection.

In the first place, it was luggage that had been waiting since yesterday afternoon, so they didn’t suspect anything in particular.

Of course, no matter how thoroughly the soldiers examined the luggage, they wouldn’t have realized that the luggage was all a disguise and was actually a means of transportation for only one person.

“…You can come out now.”

“Thank you. I’m in your debt. Tsk, I didn’t expect the Imperial Knights to move so suddenly.”

“Since you went to a public place like the market, it was only a matter of time before you were discovered.”

“That’s a shame. I wanted to talk a little more…”

Saying that, I recalled the memory of the day before.

A small girl who introduced herself as Lucia, and the potion that the girl made.

According to her, it seemed to be only in the initial stage, which meant that if Lucia’s potion was completed… the world might really be turned upside down.

At first, I thought it was a kind of unique magic, so when I heard Lucia say that she made the potion with her own unique skill, I lightly tried to confirm the truth of her words.

…And also to check what Lucia thinks of me right now.

‘I might not like being treated like a bad person or a suspicious person for no reason.’

Until now, I had not approached Lucia with the intention of harming her or forcing her to share my cause.

It was really pure interest and curiosity.

And somehow… it felt like I had a cute younger sister, so I kept going to see her.

However, when I asked Lucia specifically about the potion, her eyes revealed an anxiety that she couldn’t hide.

On the outside, she looked calm and the same as when we first met… well.

I could intuitively feel that she was avoiding me.

So, I just used search magic as a confirmation…

‘She resisted. Not with magical abilities, but with physical abilities.’

To be precise, it wasn’t so much that she resisted the magic on her own, but rather that something helped her…

But Lucia was the one who released the magic itself.

However… it wasn’t that she forcibly released the magic by using mana, but rather that her body reacted unconsciously first.

She didn’t seem to understand the situation properly.

“…Do you think a congenital magic resistance constitution really exists?”

“A magic resistance constitution? Hmm…”

To my question, the merchant who was with me, no, one of our ‘Public Relations Managers’ answered.

Among those who share our cause, they are the most knowledgeable about various information.

That’s why I was secretly expecting a definite answer, but…

“There are no cases that have been properly discovered yet, but there is a possibility that it exists.

In the first place, resistance to magic develops as physical abilities improve, so it is believed that there is a possibility that people are born with such abilities.”

“…Well, the great generals who have roamed the battlefield for decades can deflect even great magic with a single sword.”

“Mana permeates the body, giving them power that transcends humans. Therefore, there may be those who are born with mana permeating their bodies…”

However, I was no longer listening to his words.

In the first place, what he was saying was not something I was completely hearing for the first time.

‘The more I see her, the more curious I become. Lucia…’

Even when I first received the report, I assumed that she was, at best, someone who created new magic, and at worst, just a scammer.

But Lucia was not that kind of child.

Clearly, on the outside, she was a child with innocence, vivacity, and a bit of brazenness…

I could instinctively tell. That Lucia was also one of us on the inside.

People who have their own pain and loss only on the inside, in places that are not visible on the outside, and who are desperately trying to escape from it.

I was trying to eliminate the cause of that loss and wound itself. That’s why I’m doing this.

However… Lucia seemed to have chosen to try to forget the pain and live with a lively appearance, and to act that way.

It’s not that all of Lucia’s personality that is shown now is fake. However… there was a high possibility that she was deliberately exaggerating to some extent.

“It’s really a shame. I don’t plan on setting foot in the capital for a while.”

“It seems that would be safer. And if you really want, I can go again…”

“No, it’s okay. It might not be bad to look forward to how much she’ll have changed by the next time we meet.”

Saying that, she looked at the gateway leading to the capital, the city behind it, and the castle behind that.

It was the first time in my life that the capital of the Empire looked so pretty.

***

After meeting Elena and running away, I went straight home.

I had already sold all the things I had to sell anyway, and I was too scared to stay in the market any longer.

And it was really lucky that I witnessed Elena, who seemed to be heading out of the city, in that fleeting moment.

Elena leaving the city meant that she wouldn’t be back in that city for a while.

For some reason, it wasn’t properly stated, but Elena didn’t stay in one city for very long.

The novel only described that she always left after a few days.

Anyway! So Elena left, and I was so exhausted that I ate something roughly as soon as I got home and fell asleep, so what am I doing now?

I was reading the new potion manufacturing method carefully!

“…But there are some ingredients that weren’t included in the materials I received at first?”

*That’s right? In the first place, I only gave you really basic materials.*

“Is this also included in that damn ‘resurrection cost’? Come to think of it, you kept making me curious, but why aren’t you saying anything about that again?”

*…I got scolded. I brought up that story even though it hasn’t been a week yet. As soon as I said it, my boss told me to pretend to leave work early and come right away…*

“Oh…”

I coughed a few times for no reason in the suddenly somber atmosphere, and whistled a few times while looking elsewhere.

No, I thought she just threw it and left work early… but she was dragged away to be scolded.

Anyway, the important point is that there are 3 newly unlocked potions, but considering that I have to procure the ingredients myself, I can only make about one type of new potion today.

“Potions that each contain the effects of basic ice, fire, and lightning magic…”

*…Personally, I recommend the ‘Ice Potion’. It’s useful in many ways.*

“In what ways?”

*Ice magic itself is a magic that applies a powerful deceleration. Doesn’t it seem like the most suitable magic for you, who doesn’t seem to have a smooth life ahead?

It’s useful when running away, and it’s also useful when chasing.*

“…I’m so grateful for the recommendation, but did you really have to add that my life won’t be peaceful?”

*Well, I’m trying to cheer you up like this.*

Saying that, the system sends emoticons that make me angry.

…It was proof that I had become quite close to the system even during those few days.

I’m a little… pissed off though.

“So what are the ingredients for making that new potion?”

*…It’s written there, isn’t it? Can’t you read?*

“No! Logically, if I write ‘Ice Lizard Scale’ like this, how am I supposed to know what that is?!”

*It’s just the scales of a species called ‘Ice Lizard’. By the way, it’s a pretty common guy that comes out even in the nearby forest.*

Saying that, the system told me that if I went a little further into the forest where I caught the ‘stupid birds’ last time, ‘Ice Lizards’ would also come out.

…It was obvious that I was supposed to go hunting.

“…But can I catch them again with this crappy potion bottle?”

*Probably? Shouldn’t you just use mana and throw it?*

“…How do you use mana again?”

*It’s a problem that can’t be explained. Maybe you’ll know on your own? In the first place, I’ve never used it either.

I just know it theoretically. What do you expect from an existence without a body?*

I was so touched by the system’s kindness in answering even what I didn’t ask that I cleared the message the system was sending from my sight.

And, I quietly started packing the potion bottles made of thin glass.

“Hey, put this in the inventory.”

…I couldn’t see the system’s answer, but seeing that the potion bottle had disappeared from my hand, it seemed that it had been moved well to the inventory provided by the system by default.

It was a surprisingly convenient function.

“Then I’ll leave, so guide me well on your own.”

Ah, by the way, the system’s message window was still out of my sight.

…It was obvious that the system had made many attempts during the 10 minutes it took for me to calm down and see the system’s message window again.

‘I have to organize the ranks by doing this kind of thing from time to time.’

Of course, the system had no way of knowing what I was thinking.