Chapter 09 …
Alchemist (4)
The streets were crowded with people. He didn’t get lost. After passing through several times, the surroundings had started to feel familiar. He was beginning to shed his country bumpkin appearance.
He entered the alchemist’s house. Since he had visited yesterday, the man at the counter recognized Rael.
“What brings you here?”
“I’m here for work.”
“There’s no work.”
The man dismissed him curtly. His response was cold. Rael remembered how polite he had been with Dorian, which made this reaction feel even more striking. But this was probably the normal response.
Before the man could shoo him away, Rael placed his mercenary badge on the counter. The man paused. He seemed to be able to read.
“A mercenary badge?”
“Yes.”
“You’re a mercenary?”
Rael nodded. The man looked thoughtful. Rael also handed over the job request notice and mentioned he had come after seeing it on the board. It still seemed insufficient. Judging by the man’s attitude, if Rael had come straight here without going to the mercenary guild first, he probably would have been turned away.
“You said your master is conducting research, right?”
“How do you know that?”
“I overheard you talking when I came here last time. You said you were short-handed, right?”
“That’s true…”
“I’m good at gathering herbs. The herbs I brought yesterday—I collected all of them myself.”
“Really?”
“Let me show you. If you’re not satisfied, you can throw me out.”
The man stared at him. There was suspicion in his expression, as if testing whether Rael was lying.
The amount of herbs Rael had gathered on his way to the castle seemed quite substantial. Indeed, there were many herbs. If he hadn’t sensed the mana or its scent, he wouldn’t have collected even half of them.
“Can you read?”
“No.”
“What herbs do you know?”
“All the ones that were in my sack.”
“Basic level, then.”
The man nodded. Seeing his expression, Rael felt relieved. At least he wasn’t about to be thrown out.
“When do you want to start working?”
“Now is fine.”
“Then let’s go immediately. Get ready.”
The man’s name was Bilif.
He explained what needed to be done. The work was simple: every morning, Rael would climb the mountain with the alchemist’s apprentices and gather herbs.
Including Rael, there were four of them.
They said they would finish their breakfast and minor tasks before coming. In the meantime, Rael had nothing to do. His eyes wandered. He noticed a book on the counter.
It appeared to be a herbal manual. Following him might allow him to learn about herbs.
At the same time, he wished he could read. Maybe the herbal book contained explanations about the blue flower he had seen.
After a while, more people arrived. Each exuded the scent of herbs.
Two men and one girl. The girl didn’t even glance in his direction.
One of the men looked toward him.
“Who’s this?”
“The new recruit.”
“New recruit?”
The man’s expression twisted. It was as if a useless burden had arrived.
“Will it be okay?”
“We’ll see.”
“Doesn’t seem like it’s even worth looking at.”
The man sneered—blatant disregard.
Because of his age, he was underestimated wherever he went.
Rael restrained his anger, hiding his expression. It was a problem that would be solved once they climbed the mountain. No matter how skilled the apprentices were at gathering herbs, he didn’t think they would find more than him.
The group left the castle.
The guards didn’t stop them. They bowed a little too much, which made him feel somewhat intimidated. Even the guards seemed overwhelmed.
Bilif walked quickly, as if familiar with the route. Still, he didn’t seem very energetic. After only an hour of walking, he suggested taking a break.
“Rael.”
“Yes?”
“Before the sun sets, we’ll split up to gather herbs. Bring the ones you’ve identified so far.”
Bilif opened a book to show a picture. It was the herbal manual from the counter. Fortunately, he recognized all the herbs he pointed out. Perhaps he deliberately chose ones Rael already knew.
“Is there a quota?”
“Don’t come back empty-handed.”
His tone suggested he didn’t expect much.
Shortly after, the group scattered. Rael walked while surveying the surroundings. The task was the same for everyone.
It seemed there were no herbs nearby. Even sniffing around, he couldn’t sense any residual mana.
He took a slow, deep breath. The cold air filled his lungs, calming his mind. Closing his eyes, he sharpened his senses.
The more mentally settled he became, the more sensitive he was to mana. He sniffed again to detect it. The mana had various scents—sometimes like wild boar meat. Today it smelled like the herring he ate yesterday. Though the scents varied, they all smelled appetizing.
He walked toward the scent. Even though his senses were heightened, it was faint—he would have to walk a bit further.
“Found it.”
He discovered a flower blooming near a tree. It was one of the herbs Bilif had pointed out. There were more of the same nearby. He gathered them all into his sack.
Sniff, sniff.
Another scent caught his attention. Drawn as if by magic, he followed it. He thought that if he followed delicious scents, valuable herbs would appear. With that thought, his steps grew lighter.
By sunset, his sack was partially filled. Though he moved quickly, it still felt insufficient. Slightly dissatisfied, he turned back. It was time to regroup. He returned to the meeting spot.
The others had gathered. The mood wasn’t particularly good. Rael approached Bilif, feeling awkward even though he had done nothing wrong.
“What’s wrong?”
“The harvest today was poor.”
“Couldn’t you see the herbs?”
“Don’t even ask. Some came back empty-handed. If we go back like this, the master will be angry. I’m thinking we might need to gather a bit more.”
There was a reason for his slump. Rael had expected the apprentices to be better, but they struggled with gathering herbs. At least they seemed human enough.
At the same time, he wondered how many herbs the alchemist would need. If what he brought wasn’t enough, he might have to search for herbs even at night. That was absolutely unacceptable.
“How many do you need?”
“A little more than usual.”
“Hmm.”
“How much did you bring?”
“Take a look.”
Bilif opened the sack. His voice rose slightly.
“You gathered all of this?”
“Is this enough?”
“You won’t get scolded by the master with this.”
Bilif smiled. The apprentices who had approached now smiled too, as if nothing had happened—even the one who had ignored him earlier.
The alchemist’s apprentices couldn’t sense mana. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have wandered searching for herbs.
Rael could both see and smell mana. More than the fact he had gathered many herbs, he felt proud to have accomplished something others couldn’t. A smile came naturally.
“Good work. Haha.”
They descended the mountain.
On the way back, the mood was cheerful. They talked all the way to the alchemist’s house, sometimes including Rael. Though the conversation was trivial, it felt good. He felt acknowledged and accepted by the group. Bilif asked if he would climb the mountain again tomorrow, and Rael nodded.
They arrived at the alchemist’s house. The entrance had a lock. Bilif opened it with a key—it seemed almost magical.
Locks were expensive. In the village, unless it was a valuable item, few bought locks, and everyone used simple bolts since there was no blacksmith.
Even in the castle, locks were rare. During the past few days, Rael hadn’t seen a single building with one.
The alchemist seemed to have a promising profession. Watching him spend money like water to purchase herbs confirmed this. Rael found himself a little envious of Bilif, who probably also ate well.
Curious, he asked if the meals included gold flakes. The thought came from hearing that wealthy nobles sometimes sprinkle gold on their food.
Bilif laughed, almost to tears. He rarely smiled. The unexpected humor softened the atmosphere. It seemed as though he had deliberately joked.
Rael was genuinely curious, but unfortunately didn’t get an answer. It was disappointing.
That day, he received coins as payment.
They were the same type of coins Dorian had given—silver coins.
He also received a few copper coins. The calculation was precise. He didn’t know the exact value, but it seemed sufficient. Even if there were errors, it didn’t matter—there was more than enough money.
Before leaving, Bilif stopped him. He seemed to have something to say.
It was nothing important—just asking if Rael could come again tomorrow. Rael hesitated briefly. Apparently, his pause was interpreted as refusal.
Bilif rambled on about the benefits of working, but Rael barely listened. The situation was amusing.
Earlier today, Bilif had seemed desperate to get rid of him. Now, he was practically pleading.
Only after nodding was Rael released.
If he earned like this every day, he wouldn’t have to worry about food.
That morning, he had been concerned about reducing meal costs. It had been a needless worry. Now, with a stable routine of eating and sleeping, a desire to learn new things surged.
He wanted to learn to read.
Even today, he had to ask others to read for him, which wasn’t ideal. He couldn’t tell if they were correct or mistaken.
Most importantly, to gain knowledge, he had to understand writing. He needed a foundation for magic. For now, he could follow along in his dreams, but he didn’t know when he might fall behind.
In fact, the gap was already gradually widening. The elderly master had laid a bait. Hearing about new magic, Rael in his dream had been studying books day and night. Impatience crept in.
At that moment, a shout came from inside the alchemist’s house.
It was coming from within.
The elderly master was scolding someone. Bilif asked for a moment and went into the inner room.
Rael stood in front of the counter, deep in thought. Perhaps it was because he had brought too few herbs. He regretted not bringing more.
