Chapter Index

    Episode 123. Penicillin Production Plant (1)

    ****

    Luciana was able to work happily for the first time in a long time. There was no one above her at the factory, and there was no professor ordering her to write a thesis.

    Luciana recently graduated from the Alchemy Department. The Imperial Family is recruiting alchemists to work for a new chemical company.

    Professor Wolfram sent Luciana away like that. Although she had a hard time at the end, she finished well and graduated. With the help of the Academy, she was able to get a job at the Imperial Chemical Company.

    It was a newly established company. A scientist with ties to the royal family had developed a new drug, and the company was set up to use it.

    I haven’t heard the details.

    It’s been a week since I started working at the Pallet factory.

    All that was needed was to make white powder as instructed above. The experiments to increase production had to be repeated several times, but it was not a particularly difficult task.

    The higher-ups called it process optimization.

    Luciana’s main job was to make a white powder and feed it to lab animals to see if it was safe. I heard it was used as a drug to kill bacteria, but I don’t know about that.

    “I guess I shouldn’t have come today.”

    Blue mold is a living organism.

    You have to check on him often because you never know when he might die, and you have to feed him regularly. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have come to work on weekends.

    Well, I also get weekend allowance.

    Today was the weekend, so there was nothing to do other than feeding the mold and checking if it was alive. I checked earlier… … .

    Suddenly.

    Luciana looked out the window at the sudden sound of wind. A black shadow passed over the building. Did something come to the factory?

    ‘What is that? Is that a dragon?’

    Outside the window, I saw two flying creatures landing in front of the factory. They were wyverns. In the distance, two people got off the wyverns.

    Someone just came riding a wyvern in front of the factory. Was it someone important? Luciana stood up and put on her tie.

    Who could it be?

    He may be an imperial official, a senior researcher, or a colleague. He must have been sent by the imperial family, as he arrived riding a wyvern knight.

    Anyway, I have to go and greet him. Luciana checked again to make sure her tie was tied properly, put on her jacket, and left the office.

    ****

    I didn’t go back to the academy right away.

    “Is Winia’s last name okay?”

    “It’ll be okay. There’ll be some medicine left, and the response method is well documented to this extent.”

    Istina tilted her head.

    “It’s scary. If there’s even a single particle of bacteria on our clothes or equipment, people could die because of us.”

    “That’s why I didn’t go straight to the academy.”

    I didn’t want anyone to get the Black Death at the academy. Of course, that was unlikely, but still. I didn’t want to go straight to the academy from a Black Death-infested area.

    I’m so anxious.

    As Hedwig ordered, the Wyvern Knights dropped us off at Pallet Village and left. Istina looked around the quiet village.

    “It’s a bit uneasy. I can’t go straight to the academy from the Black Death-infested area. I won’t be entering the capital for at least three days.”

    Palette. A small town on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital. And, it is home to the Empire’s first large-scale penicillin production facility. It was completed recently.

    Where the headquarters of the Imperial Chemical Company will be located.

    “Where is this?”

    “Where the penicillin factory is located.”

    There were only a few incubators, warehouses, and buildings, and not many employees. Construction was still underway on the other side of the site.

    Anyway, production has already started.

    “The factory is already finished?”

    “Are you making the medicine? We’re not making anything for sale yet… … . We’re still in the process optimization and animal testing stages.”

    “I didn’t know they were already making it. I thought it would take years to build a factory for penicillin and start mass production.”

    It didn’t take that long.

    “I’m going to quarantine outside the capital and see if penicillin is being made here. I’ll return to the academy later.”

    Last time, the government said they were recruiting alchemists, but I don’t know if they brought in the right ones.

    We’re going to meet the alchemists working here. I don’t know who’s working there.

    “What am I doing?”

    “Just find a suitable place and rest. You’ll be here for a few days anyway, so if you have work to do, you can just look at it later.”

    Istina nodded.

    “Oh my, thank you.”

    ****

    I walked into the facility and was met by a blue-haired alchemist waiting for me. A familiar face for some reason.

    “Hey!”

    She’s a graduate student in the Department of Alchemy I saw at the Academy. I think her name was Luciana.

    I see you got a job here. As soon as you saw me, you screamed like you saw a ghost.

    I’m so happy though.

    “Why.”

    Luciana must have been embarrassed because she was startled when she saw me earlier… … After hesitating for a moment, she cleared her throat and began to speak again.

    “I’m sorry.”

    “Yeah. Was your name Lucia?”

    “Oh, yes. That’s right, Luciana. So, what brings you here, Professor?”

    Luciana stuttered a little. I guess you still don’t know who the representative is here?

    When the Imperial Chemical Company is launched, I will be the nominal representative. Of course, the management will be directly managed by the Imperial Government. I had no intention of directly managing the company anyway.

    “This is my facility.”

    “Ah… … ?”

    Luciana opened her eyes wide.

    “Follow me. Let’s talk.”

    “Oh, yes.”

    Luciana looked trembling. No, if this is her real reaction, then she’s stupid. Did she get a job without even knowing who the CEO was?

    ****

    It was a cruel irony. To say it was cruel would be an exaggeration, but it wasn’t necessarily a cruel irony.

    Luciana sighed inwardly.

    I should have noticed it sooner. The research on making the potion that Professor Wolfram’s lab rejected, as I glanced at it in passing at the Academy.

    Professor Asterix was the first to suggest to the Alchemy Department that they create a potion, but he eventually left the research due to friction with Professor Wolfram.

    I was thinking to myself that the medicine I’m making this time is similar to that research.

    I didn’t know the same person was pushing for it. If I had known, I would have thought about it more. Who can I blame? It’s my own fault for lacking insight.

    To be honest… … I ran away from the Academy to avoid people like Professor Asterix, but what if the professor follows me?

    This is foul play. I don’t know who fouled what, but it’s definitely foul play. Luciana thought to herself.

    I should have found out what kind of research it was and who the CEO was before applying to the company. I couldn’t just accept the offer because it was from the royal family.

    “Teacher Luciana.”

    Professor Asterix poured black tea for Luciana, who was sitting blankly in the company office. Only then did Luciana come to her senses.

    “Oh, thank you.”

    Professor Asterix took a sip of tea.

    “I’ve heard many times that Miss Luciana is a skilled alchemist. Has she achieved anything since she came here? Are there any results yet?”

    There were achievements.

    Already in this factory warehouse there was a considerable quantity of penicillin, piled up in bricks, although it had not yet been made into tablets.

    “Oh, penicillin is being produced smoothly. You don’t have to worry.”

    “There aren’t many people in the facility.”

    Professor Asterix looked around.

    “I’m the only one working on the weekend. I just came to check on the cultivation.”

    “Aha.”

    Although the working hours weren’t long, it was a bit difficult to come in every day and check the culture medium. Mold is also a living organism.

    “Because blue mold is also a living organism, I am worried that it might starve or die. I am coming as often as possible to check the culture solution.”

    “How much medicine are you making?”

    “Well, right now the result is like a white brick, but I don’t know how much it will be if I make it into a pill shape. Since there aren’t many people, I’m making ten bricks a day.”

    Professor Asterix scratched his head. Did he misspeak? Luciana looked around anxiously. There was nothing.

    “Why are you like that?”

    “No. Teacher Luciana is an alchemist by name. The unit for measuring medicine is bricks?”

    Luciana shook her head.

    “Ah… … . Sorry. Looking at it again, it looks like one brick weighs about 1 kilogram.”

    I made a slip of the tongue. Making medicine is a scientific problem that needs to be solved. You can’t just call it a brick.

    “Okay. Can you increase production?”

    “It seems possible.”

    “The target production volume is 30,000 per day. As Ms. Luciana said, we will need 30 bricks containing penicillin per day.”

    It wasn’t impossible to make 30 penicillin bricks a day. We’re a bit short on manpower right now, but it’s possible, if we just bring in more people.

    “Okay.”

    “Can I go see the production process now?”

    Luciana nodded.

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