Kays Translations

Chapter 160: Giovanni Madras

　Waiting for me in the room was an elderly man with grayish-blue hair. He had a stubble beard, which I wondered if was a result of sloppiness or if it was for fashion.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Julius-dono!　My kindred-spirit.”

　He said that and hugged me. The dark green robe he was wearing seemed to be of a very high quality, and was soft and fluffy to the touch. He seemed to be a very good-looking man full of life.

“Giovanni-sama, please calm down. Julius-sama is in trouble.”

“Um, I’m Julius Heine, and I will be with you for a while.”

“What do you mean “for a while”? You can stay with us forever”

“Giovanni-sama.”

　The cold voice and cold gaze pierce Giovanni-sama. Seeing this, he seemed to regain his composure and let go of me with a single cough.

“Thank you very much for coming. My name is Giovanni Madras, and I am the head of the Royal Potions division. I have been looking forward to meeting you, Julius-dono.”

“I, too, have been looking forward to meeting you.”

　Yes, social etiquette is important. There is nothing good to be gained by picking a fight. It is many times more profitable to be nice and build  good relations.

“Julius-dono is well known here as a ‘selfless person.'”

　He said this happily. A selfless person …… just now, It hurts my heart because I’ve been very calculative.*

　It seems that people really think so here. The person who guided me here is nodding with the same look on his face.

　Apparently, the fact that I disclosed the process of making the panacea to the public without monopolizing the process has been well-received. And grandma who is supposed to have developed the panacea must have made quite a name for herself. I wonder if grandma is going to have a delicate look on her face in the afterlife.

“It makes sense that Margaret-sama kept the recipe for the elixir a secret. There is no magic potion that is as difficult to make as this one. She must have been trying to find an easier way to make it.”

　He is nodding his head. Well, I guess I’ll have to find another recipe. With the current combination of materials, the current method should be the easiest. I’m looking forward to the unknown materials in this world.

“I heard that you have failed quite a bit, but in what areas have you failed?”

“It is failing at various stages of the process, not at any particular stage. We are having a hard time taking any action. ……Julius-dono, the grandson of Margaret-sama, who created the elixir at his age, might be able to tell us something. So, I asked His Majesty the King to invite you here.”

“I see.”

　Giovanni-sama looks apologetic. It feels as if I am scolding him. If other people saw this kind of scene, I’m sure it would probably cause some strange rumors.

“I don’t know how much I can do, but I will do my best to help.”

“I knew you would say that, Julius-dono. Thank you very much.”

　I am not lying. If I don’t manage to increase the success rate of creating elixirs here, I won’t be able to calmly devote myself to creating magic potions in the capital. If I am entirely relied upon to create the elixir, the value of my existence will increase. If that happens, it will cause a lot of trouble.

　After we finished greeting each other, they gave me a tour of the facility. It is called the Royal Court Magic Potions Division, and apparently there are only 15 people in that position in total. All the magic potions made here are owned by the royal family and are to be used for the benefit of the royal family. In other words, since they are not selling their products to outsiders, they seem to be able to make ends meet with this number of people.

　Wherever we went, I received an enthusiastic welcome. It seems that they not only create magic potions, but also conduct research on magic potions. However, it seems that developing new magic potions is not an easy task, and they have not had much success.

　The “how to make a panacea” that was introduced was so groundbreaking that it broadened the view of magic potions, as if they were looking down on the world from above the clouds. That’s a very big exaggeration. ……

“Finally, the greeting rounds are over.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

　The servant picked up on the soliloquy that had come out unintentionally. I returned to the first guest room I was shown to, but it seems that brother Alex has not yet returned.

　I was so welcomed in the morning that I got tired from it. But I suppose I’ll have to deal with a different kind of exhaustion in the afternoon. I would have to worry more than I did in the morning. I wish I could just go home.

　While I was drinking tea and taking a breather, brother Alex came back.

“How was it, Julius?”

“I received an enthusiastic welcome.”

“I’m sure you did. For a while, it seemed like the royal palace magic potionists and apothecary were excitedly doing something late into the night.”

　The brother smiles bitterly. There must have been complaints. I think it would be like that if I saw how welcoming they were. 

　Immediately after my brother returned, we were called to lunch. I thought I was going to eat here, but apparently not. My brother seemed to know and left the room without paying any attention to me.

“Brother, did you and Daniela-sama talk about what to do for lunch?”

“Well, yes, we did. Where to eat and with whom?”

　He was not very articulate. Maybe  Maybe he was thinking about when to have me and Chloe meet with each other. And apparently they decided to have us meet at the lunch table. I don’t know if I’ll be able to taste the food.

　The castle servants took us further into the royal palace. This place is already reserved for the royal family only. I have been here before, but this space has a unique atmosphere.

　We saw a room that looked like a dining room. A number of servants were coming and going there.

　My hands are starting to sweat. What the hell am I going to tell Chloe?　What am I supposed to do?　What is the right thing to do?

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