Kays Translations

Chapter 192: One Heart, One Mind

　Today, I’m finally going to teach everyone in the Royal Magic Potions Division how to make a panacea. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits, and their eyes were even more intense than usual.

“Then I will teach you how to make a panacea.”

“Thank you.”

　Of the materials, there were only three doses of “world tree leaves” and “dragon’s blood” left. Or should I say, there were enough for three batches. And the quality of both of them was not very good. No, I I’d say it was the worst. Even though they were rotten, they were still not that bad. Otherwise, I would have thrown them away.

“The quality of the ingredients is poor, but if we all work together we should be able to make it without problems.”

“Are we all going to work together to make it?”

“Yes, that’s right. In order to make a panacea, we have to work together for three days.”

　Everyone in the room was speechless. My statement must have been unexpected. Some were confused.

　In case you’re wondering, let me ask you something.

"By the way, when you made the panacea before, how did you make it? I believe the instructions said to 'heat it for three days while applying pressure using magic'."

“That's the thing, when the magic ran out, we'd end the day, and the next day we'd heat it up and add pressure.”

“I see.”

　I’m amazed that you were able to complete it that way. That should produce a large number of failures. If the heat and pressure are completely removed, the solution will separate in the process. If that happens, they will never blend together again. Of course, if that happens, it will be a product.

“It is natural that it will fail when you tried to make it like that. We will combine everyone's strength to create one panacea. Let's work together with that intention in mind. Don’t worry, I am sure you will all be able to accomplish this.”

　I smiled at them, and their expressions softened as if they were relieved.

　The servants who would normally write down this situation in a notepad are not in this room. Since we are making a secret elixir, the best-kept secret, outsiders are not allowed to enter the room.

　The panacea can remove all poisons. For that reason, it is extremely valuable. You could call it this country’s trump card. There is even a possibility that a war could break out over the search for this recipe.

　Therefore, we must be very careful in handling it. That is why I entrusted it to the state. Of course, only a few people know that I am involved.

"Then I'll divide you into teams. You'll be divided into three teams, so please work together and take turns managing the creation process."

　Announce the team division. I’ve tried to make sure that the strength within the teams is as equal as possible. If it is still not stable, I will chip in.

　Lets start with the teams greeting each other.  Besides their abilities, I hope they have a relationship on good terms, not bad ones.

　After greeting each other, the work begins. I want to get it to a state where we only need to control the pressure and temperature in the morning. We had also prepare advanced recovery potions and strong antidotes that in advance. Although both are of poor quality, they can be used as materials without any problems.

　Once we are able to make the panacea without any problems, the next step is to improve the quality. The materials for the advanced recovery potion and the strong antidote must also be changed to better ones.

　We put the advanced recovery potion into a special pot that is made to withstand pressure. Heat it up and then gradually mix in the strong antidote.

　That’s the first hurdle. If the amount is too much, it will clump together. If that happens, you will have to forcefully dissolve it. The mixture must simmer over a high flame. When that happens, it becomes extremely bitter and astringent. I hate to even imagine it.

“Don’t rush, just take your time! Please switch to the next person before your arm gets tired. Please plan on spending about two hours doing it.”

“Two hours!”

“Yes. In the meantime, dry the leaves of the world tree. It’s the drying process that concentrates the nutrients.”

　Not all of them, but I asked because some of them had the ‘drying’ skills. It makes what is already dry even more completely dry.

　Two hours have passed since we started the work. All the teams seem to have broken through the first hurdle without any problems. The experience they have gained so far has been put to good use, hasn’t it? The teacher is happy.

“So far so good. Now please crush the leaves of the world tree in a mortar and pestle. Please make sure to grind them thoroughly until they become powder. In the meantime, turn off the heat and add the dragon's blood. Mix it in while stirring.”

　The dragon’s blood was added, and an unpleasant aroma flooded out of the pot. The quality is so bad, it can’t be helped. Let’s just think about completing the panacea successfully. I turn a blind eye to everything else.

　Once thoroughly mixed, add the powdered World Tree leaves. I could smell the concentrated scent of the forest. Coupled with the unpleasant aroma, the smell of the compounding room is the worst. But this is what we have to endure.

“When the mixture is thoroughly mixed, turn on the fire. The heat should be just right, just below the boiling point. At the same time, use magic to gradually apply pressure. Keep the solution in the pot so that it turns seven different colors. Then, just keep it that way for three days and three nights. When the solution begins to glow, it is ready.”

　I looked around the pots and checked how they were doing. I provide guidance to those teams that weren’t applying enough pressure or teams that were using too much heat. Each time, one of the team members would write down my detailed instructions on a notepad.

“Did you have to put in such a small amount of strong antidote? No wonder so many small lumps formed.”

“I didn’t know it could be this dry. The one I used  last time wasn’t dry enough at all.”

　It seems that there were already some improvements made even up to this point. It seems that it was not enough just to write, in words only, “Put it in slowly so that clumps do not form,” or “Dry it until dry and grind to powder.” When writing down the recipe for a magic potion on paper, it is necessary to write down the instructions in as much detail as possible.

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