Chapter 68: Present

We are going to the royal castle tomorrow. As expected, dusk is already approaching. If we go there now, I will not be able to say goodbye slowly.

“Father, how many people have died?”

I asked when I had finally settled down after putting my luggage away in my room. The place was the townhouse saloon overlooking the garden. Only my father and I were in the saloon. It seems that mother and my two brothers are accompanying Rosalia.

“Forty-three people in all. All of them had eaten at the same restaurant. It’s a famous restaurant frequented by many aristocrats. We had been there before.”

“So it was indiscriminate.”

“That’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

Apparently, father understood what I was trying to say. I think the old lady was targeted. He seems to be of the same opinion.

“Do you know who did it?”

“It seems it was an employee of that restaurant. He committed suicide after the crime, so we still don’t know what the purpose was. Did he have a grudge, or did someone ask him to do it?”

Father answered languidly. Does the average person have a poison against which the ordinary antidotes do not work? No, they don’t. That means someone is behind it. And father is aware of that, too.

Who could have done this, and for what purpose? A poison that has no antidote. The only thing that can nullify the poison may be the panacea I have in my possession at the moment.

“Have you found out anything about the poison that was used?”

“It seems that they are currently investigating. the Potions Guild in the Royal Capital is working on it, but since my mother has passed away. They’ve lost the most knowledgeable and skilled potions master in the country, and in spite of this situation, there is a conflict within the Potions Guild over who should take her place.”

Even at a time like this, they are only trying to benefit themselves? Maybe the Potions Guild doesn’t have much hope either. It will be some time before a new antidote is created.

I’m beginning to worry that the other party will take advantage of it and commit more crimes

“That’s right, there was something that my mother asked me to give to Julius. Just a moment, please.”

Saying this, father excused himself. Grandmother to me? Apparently, the old lady had been alive for some time after the poison had been passed around. It seems that the poison used this time was not immediately effective. If that’s the case, I would at least had time to take a remedy.

While I was thinking about that, father came back with a thick book. That book must be the one. It looked very old and tattered.

“Julius, take it. It is a present for you, who aspires to become a potion master.”

What he handed me was a recipe book of magic potions. probably the best-kept secret of all. Apparently, Grandmother had decided to entrust me with everything she had at the moment of her death.

From the way it was in tatters, it might have been passed down to me from her mentor.

“I will take good care of it.”

“You’d better keep quiet about that book for a while. There will be many potions masters who will want it.”

“I understand. I will.”

I stopped checking the inside at this point and returned to my room

It would be a bad idea to leave this book with the rest of my luggage. I didn’t want to do it, but I decided to keep it in subspace.

The magic to open subspace consumes a lot of physical strength and magical power. So I really don’t want to do it too much. Even in the game, I could only use it in safe places.

It’s convenient, but you can’t take out the items you put in the subspace when you need it. Basically, the skill was to store only items that were important but rarely used.

Before putting it away in the subspace, I decided to take a quick peek inside the book.

I flipped through the book. It seemed to contain instructions on how to make various magic potions, but they were all ones that I already knew. Moreover, many of the ingredients were the same, but the methods for making them were all bullshit. This is just a bunch of grotesque magic potions. I wondered if this was done on purpose.　There were many things that made me think, “Was this done on purpose?”

However, there were some things I gained. Some of the magic potions were unknown to me, and I also discovered some unknown materials. With these unknown materials, I might be able to make a new magic potion that no one knows about. I’m getting a little excited.

I’ll read more about it when I get back to Heine’s house. I used the “Subspace” skill. The next moment, I felt a jolt of strength leave my body and I fell to my knees. This is not something I can use in public. If someone saw me like this, they would be worried. Besides, there are too many gaps.

I carefully put away the old lady’s book and the elixir in the opened subspace, and immediately closed the subspace. Good, no one saw me.

By the time the servants came to call me to tell me that dinner was ready, I managed to walk properly. I wish I had at least an elementary stamina recovery potion, but I had used it all the other day when I was making the elixir.

I’ll have to steadily collect magic herbs again. The medicinal herb garden called “flower bed” may need to be expanded more. Would that be too conspicuous? What should I do?

Mother and Rosalia were already in the dining room. Perhaps spoiled by mother, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time, Rosalia was clinging to her tightly. I envy her. I want to hug her, too.

“Julius, you don’t look well. Come here.”

You’re very perceptive, Mother. I obeyed without hesitation so as not to arouse her suspicions that I was draining my strength and magic.

When I went to my mother’s side, she hugged me tightly. I felt the soft touch of my mother spread throughout my body.

“You are not the only one who is sad. We’re all in this together. So you, too, can be more indulgent without holding back.”

There seems to be a slight misunderstanding, but I am sure that I am sad because of the sudden loss of my grandfather and grandmother. I decided to let myself be pampered until everyone gathered in the dining room.

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