Chapter 35 …
Winterberg Castle, the Duke’s study.
“You’re here? Report.”
At Raoul’s indifferent command, the servant bowed deeply and replied.
“Yes, Your Grace! We’ve delivered this month’s food and daily necessities to the cabin as usual. We also check on the Duchess’s living conditions once a week.”
In truth, it was all a lie.
Just like last month, every bit of food and supplies had been siphoned off, and the servant hadn’t gone near the cabin even once.
By now, that vile woman would surely have starved to death, her corpse rotting away.
The servant planned to visit the cabin at the end of the month to collect the remains.
All he had to do was report to the Duke that the woman had eventually escaped. Or perhaps say she’d been torn apart by wild beasts in the forest, leaving nothing but bones.
He had no doubt the Duke would welcome such news, but cold sweat soaked his palms as he continued his lie.
“The Duchess’s life is… rather harsh, but she seems to be getting by.”
“Harsh, you say? I suppose so.”
Raoul let out a soft scoff and glanced sideways at the servant with his vivid blue eyes.
It was only a fleeting look, but the servant instinctively hunched his shoulders.
“You’ve done well. If there’s nothing else to report, you may leave.”
“Yes, my lord!”
After the servant left the study, Raoul pulled a letter from his drawer and read it again.
The sender was Balzac Leone.
He was an apothecary living in hiding in one of the villages of the Winterberg territory.
After a dungeon appeared in the domain, Raoul had hired him as the castle’s apothecary.
He had already personally confirmed the contents of this letter with Balzac.
A farmer couple who had suddenly appeared in the village one day, selling fruits and vegetables.
People who experienced mysterious effects after eating the produce they bought from them.
And, supposedly, the wife of that couple had hair the same pale emerald color as Muriel’s.
Hearing that story, Raoul had briefly felt suspicious…
‘Just a coincidence.’
He dismissed the doubt, thinking it couldn’t be true.
Weren’t those farmers said to be newlyweds? There was no way the wife could be Muriel. That woman was completely alone.
‘Still… I should probably go see it myself sometime.’
But for now, it was difficult to find the time. With the sudden appearance of a dungeon, there was a mountain of things demanding his attention.
A dungeon appearing in the territory and forming a hub city was something to welcome—but at the same time, it was a headache.
It wasn’t just adventurers dispatched from all over who flocked to a hub city.
Notorious criminals and swindlers also sniffed out the scent of money and crawled in like sewer rats.
The problems they would cause would be endless, so preparations had to be thorough.
‘I need to reinforce the troops defending the hub city… and increase patrols. I also need to finish building detention facilities for criminals within the month.’
Most important of all was clearing the dungeon.
In the past, Raoul had supported other territories where dungeons appeared, providing troops and supplies on several occasions.
Yet of the five lords he had helped, only two contacted him this time to offer assistance in return.
The remaining three were pretending not to notice, using poor conditions in their own territories as an excuse.
Even though in noble society, repaying help in kind was basic etiquette.
‘It’s possible Terni stirred things up.’
Duke Terni already seemed displeased by the fact that a dungeon had appeared in the Winterberg territory.
‘Willard Terni… that greedy old man must be having a hard time enduring the current situation.’
With a faintly cynical smile, Raoul straightened his clothes and rose from his seat.
It was 2 p.m.
Time to go inspect the knights’ training.
The three members of the Veratis Guild returned to the dungeon hub city.
Before they left, I made a few requests.
‘We’ll be visiting the Veratis Guild branch soon. When we meet again, you’ll give us a warm welcome, right?’
‘Ah, of course~!’
‘And… please tell the Guild Master about us too.’
‘Don’t worry. I know the Guild Master pretty well. I’m sure they’ll find it interesting and agree.’
We needed to visit the Veratis Guild branch in the dungeon hub city as soon as possible, but there was something I had to do before that.
Namely…
〈Let’s Become a Beginner Apothecary!〉 Quest ☆
You have finished reading Introduction to Pharmacology!
Now all that remains is hands-on practice.
Try making potions to increase your Pharmacology skill proficiency! (^^)9
Current Proficiency: 0 / 100
※ Each successful potion grants 5 proficiency points.
※ A great success grants a higher number of points.
Success Reward: 5,000 coins
Failure Penalty: None
That’s right.
No sooner had I finished Introduction to Pharmacology than the system threw a quest at me—and the reward was a whopping 5,000 coins.
Up until now, I hadn’t been able to save any coins because I’d spent them on daily necessities. If I earned 5,000 coins in one go, I’d be able to open the hidden shop immediately.
As soon as I accepted the quest, the “Pharmacology” skill appeared. It was still level 1.
Based on my guess, it seemed I’d need to fill proficiency to 100 to level it up.
“All right, let’s get started.”
I opened my inventory and laid out the materials I’d collected so far on the table.
There wasn’t a proper workspace, so I had no choice but to use the storage room temporarily.
“Muriel, is there anything I can help with?”
“Nope, nothing.”
“Master! If you need Nini, just say the word!”
“Thanks.”
As expected, Rician and Ninabel were hovering nearby.
They were the type who couldn’t rest unless they interfered in everything I did, so I’d gotten used to it by now.
‘Let’s start with the most basic recovery potion.’
The system didn’t provide potion recipes.
In other words, I had to rely solely on the knowledge I gained from Introduction to Pharmacology.
Luckily, I didn’t have a bad memory, so I remembered most of the methods described in the book.
Only after reading it did I truly understand why apothecaries were so rare.
There were thousands of herbs and poisonous plants in this world, and an apothecary had to remember all of them and know how to use them properly.
Herbal knowledge was incredibly complex. For example, some poisonous plants looked almost identical to medicinal herbs—use them incorrectly, and you could kill someone.
Some herbs could be used medicinally in their leaves, stems, and roots, but their flowers were highly toxic and required extreme caution.
Accurately measuring herbs for potions was also critical. With certain herbs, even a 0.1-gram error could turn medicine into poison.
‘The ingredients for a low-grade recovery potion are… Softleaf Feathergrass, Blue Umbrella Mushroom, and a monster core of D-rank or higher.’
For Softleaf Feathergrass, the stem and leaves are separated and used, while the root is crushed to extract its juice.
The cap of the Blue Umbrella Mushroom is finely chopped, but the stem is added whole.
And the monster core of D-rank or higher…
‘Use one with high transparency, about the size of a child’s fist.’
A core that perfectly matched those conditions caught my eye. I quickly picked it up, washed it clean with water, and placed it into the pot first.
Step by step, I continued the process, and before I knew it, an hour had passed.
“Ugh…”
I pressed both hands against my stiff lower back and stretched lightly.
Rician and Ninabel were sitting quietly in a corner, watching me.
“Master! If your back hurts, should Nini give you a massage?”
“Hmm… no, later. I still have a lot to do.”
“Hang in there, Master…!”
Encouraged by the spirits, I focused once more on potion-making.
A brazier stood beside the table, and inside the heated pot atop it, the ingredients bubbled away.
Something… smelled like herbal medicine. The kind of scent you’d often catch in the lobby of an oriental clinic.
Could potions possibly taste like herbal medicine?
‘I’ll try drinking it once it’s done.’
For about forty minutes, I carefully adjusted the heat while brewing the potion.
That wasn’t all I had to pay attention to. Just as the mixture began to thicken, I had to add an exact amount of water, and every five minutes I had to pour in the extracted juice from the Softleaf Feathergrass root.
‘Wow… this consumes an insane amount of mental energy…’
The fatigue was no joke since I had to stay fully focused the entire time.
My stamina was dropping rapidly too—it seemed being an apothecary required a healthy body as well.
‘Ha… I want to get stronger soon too…!’
Just as I made that wish inwardly, the potion was finally completed.
Ding!
Low-Grade Recovery Potion successfully crafted! (So-so success)
Quality: ☆☆☆
Effectiveness: ☆☆
Taste: ☆
〈Although the taste is lacking, the potion’s effects are quite good for a first attempt!〉
Pharmacology Skill Proficiency: 5 / 100
For my first attempt, this was a pretty decent result.
But the taste… only one star?
‘Is it really that bad…?’
