Kays Translations

Chapter 93: Requesting Material Collection

After reporting Grandmother’s death to the Magic Pharmacists’ Guild, our carriage resumed its circuit through the territorial capital.

The guild had ingredients I wanted, but I couldn’t legally purchase them. My first thought was to collect them myself.

“Is something troubling you, Lord Julius?” Christopher asked.

“I was considering another material-collecting expedition.”

“Again? Would it not be better to ask the knights or adventurers?”

“You’re right.”

I didn’t need to gather everything personally. Adventurers routinely accepted collection requests, and the restrictions on guild purchases wouldn’t prevent me from commissioning them.

The problem was quality. Most adventurers lacked cultivation and transplanting skills, so living plants might be damaged or gathered carelessly.

Still, detailed instructions might compensate.

“Then I’ll ask the Adventurers’ Guild to collect what I need. I may include requests for rare materials as well.”

I had more money than opportunities to spend it. Paying local adventurers would also circulate wealth through the territorial capital.

My immediate requirements were cordyceps and poison-toad mucus. With those, I could make the antidiarrhoeal medicine Lionel had requested and an athlete’s-foot treatment that the knights almost certainly needed.

In the game, both had been simple delivery items. Here, they should function as genuine medicines.

We completed our inspection without finding any immediate problems. As Christopher had said, shops everywhere were selling great stacks of firewood.

Could the nearby forests withstand that level of annual consumption? Were new trees being planted to replace those cut down?

“Lionel, where does the territorial capital obtain most of its firewood?”

“From Mount Claire, not far from the city.”

“Could we inspect it?”

Lionel raised an eyebrow and considered the request.

“It should be possible, but no member of House Heine has personally inspected the mountain before. Arrangements may take some time.”

“Then perhaps I should arrive without warning and surprise them.”

Lionel laughed weakly before answering with complete seriousness.

“That would be rather too much of a prank, Lord Julius.”

Apparently not. Was Mount Claire dangerous, or was an unannounced visit simply improper? I would research the mountain later.

I knew surprisingly little about the geography of our own lands. My tutors taught national history and the geography of the kingdom as a whole, but I should also study the Heine Margraviate in detail.

After returning to the mansion, I immediately began drafting a request for the Adventurers’ Guild.

I had never written one, so I asked Lionel to show me the required format. He said servants normally handled such paperwork, but I wanted to learn.

Writing my own requests would allow me to commission confidential work and ask for materials no one else recognised.

I prepared two straightforward notices—one for cordyceps and another for poison-toad mucus—and sent them to the guild. Neither ingredient was especially rare, and both could be collected at this time of year. I expected quick results.

Then I would finally make potions again. Recently, I had produced far too many magic tools and stuffed toys. I needed to prove that I wasn’t becoming a professional toy maker.

“Before that, there’s one more thing.”

I took out leftover cloth and made a small apron for Mira. I produced three so they could be washed and rotated.

A servant soon announced dinner, and I carried the aprons to the dining room. Meals still felt rather lonely with only Rosalia, Mira, and me.

“Mira, come here.”

“Kyu?”

I fastened the apron around them. It was slightly large, but covered most of their chest. Although made quickly, it had enough frills to satisfy Rosalia.

“So cute! Mira looks like a stuffed toy.”

Mira already resembled a moving plush creature. The apron made the effect stronger.

I had worried they might resist wearing it, but they seemed delighted and repeatedly rubbed their face against my chest.

When Mira bit into a piece of fruit, juice splashed onto the apron instead of their fur.

Perfect.

Their face, however, was still sticky. Would I eventually have to make a full mask like a wrestler’s?

“Kyu?”

Mira tilted their head as though they had sensed my dangerous idea. I abandoned it and stroked their fur instead.

“Rosalia, I want to make a new magic tool,” I said during the meal. “This one should water plants automatically when a button is pressed. Will you help me think through the design?”

“Of course. We’ll need a magic circle that produces water first.”

This would be the beginning of Rosalia’s training as an independent magic-tool maker.

It wasn’t enough for her to reproduce completed designs from my blueprints. She needed to experience the full process: inspiration, prototype, failure, revision, and eventual success.

She also needed to learn that developing a useful magic tool wasn’t always easy.

This time, I would remain an adviser and let Rosalia lead.

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