Chapter 93 Exploring
"Hmm, still no mention of holy water..."
――It was a holiday. I was at the library, aimlessly flipping through books that caught my eye, hoping to find information about the "holy water" of this world. But after hours of searching, my concentration started to wane.
I stretched my stiff shoulders and slumped back in my chair, trying to relax. And just then...
"Laura!"
A familiar voice rang out in my ears.
I turned to see Iris, as expected. She approached me with a smile and sat down in the next seat.
Curious about what I was reading, she peeked at the book in my hand. I couldn't help but ask her,
"Hey Iris, do you know what holy water is?"
Iris tilted her head after a few seconds.
"Holy water?"
"Yeah, the holy water that monsters hate."
I had a faint hope that it might be a legend passed down among the Rustu people, but Iris blinked repeatedly and shook her head in the opposite direction than before. Her reaction suggested that she had no idea what I was talking about.
But then, she crossed her arms as if pondering something and suddenly stood up with a determined look.
"Hey! Why don't we just mix everything that monsters hate? Like poisonous herbs and The Drinking Water of the Spirits?"
――Iris's suggestion was something I had never thought of before. I had never synthesized poison and The Drinking Water of the Spirits, and I had never even considered it.
Poison is an item that deals damage, while The Drinking Water of the Spirits is an item that heals damage. It seemed like mixing the 2 would cancel out each other's effects, but it's too early to say for sure without actually trying it.
I closed the book in my hand and mumbled,
"...Let's give it a try."
Iris smiled happily at my words. She took my hand and we stood up from our chairs.
I put back the books that I had piled up on the desk and left the library with Iris. As I looked at the small back of the girl who was pulling my hand, I could feel the corners of my mouth rising.
Iris's boldness was something I didn't have, but it was something I needed. Even though I was in the position of a senior who taught her, I realized that I had a lot to learn from her and Basilio-san.
* * *
Iris and I were on our way to the herb garden in the castle to pick poisonous herbs. Then, I saw a familiar man walking from the other side of the corridor.
Tall and slender, with navy blue hair. That man is... Basilio-san.
"Oh, Basilio!"
"Hello, Laura-san, Iris-san. Where are you going?"
"We're going to make holy water!"
The unfamiliar word "holy water" made Basilio-san tilt his head like Iris did earlier.
"Holy water?"
"Holy water that monsters hate!"
"Are you making water?"
Basilio-san's calm question made me feel a little embarrassed. It was indeed strange to synthesize something called "holy water".
I chuckled and added to Iris's words.
"We're thinking of ways to fight monsters... so we decided to mix everything that monsters hate, and we're going to pick some poisonous herbs for now"
"Let's go too, Basilio!"
Iris connected her free hand to Basilio-san's hand. And then, without much resistance, Basilio-san smiled and said, "I'll join you."
The 3 of us, Iris, Basilio-san, and I, walked to the herb garden holding hands. We might have looked like close siblings to an outsider.
"Alright, let's just pick some poisonous herbs at random"
As soon as I suggested that, Iris nodded forcefully, and Basilio-san nodded gently. I nodded back at them, and the 3 of us sat down near the poisonous herbs and started looking around.
Carefully wearing gloves, I picked the poisonous plants one by one, making sure not to touch them with my bare skin. Just then, I picked up a certain poisonous plant.
"That plant's roots can also produce a strong poison when boiled. The roots are less viscous than the leaves, making them easier to mix with other ingredients."
Basilio-san explained smoothly, looking at my hands. Impressed by his explanation, which I had never heard before,
"I never knew that. You're very knowledgeable."
I looked up at Basilio-san. Then he gasped and smiled, lowering the corners of his eyebrows. It was a somewhat awkward smile.
"Ah... Actually, when I kept failing the Royal Alchemist's exam, I thought about going down a different path without telling my mother."
When I heard Basilio-san's words, I remembered his mother bowing to me on the day the results were announced. Basilio-san had said that being a Royal Alchemist was his mother's dream.
Although Basilio-san finally passed the exam on his last try, he must have had many days of suffering, failing the exam over and over again.
"At that time, I thought there was a profession called an alchemist who specializes in healing potions, but there wasn't one for poisons. I thought that if I could master poisons, which have less competition, I could make a living somehow..."
I nodded in agreement to Basilio-san's words. There is a profession called an alchemist in this world, but there is no such thing as a poison master.
Although poisonous plants are technically part of an alchemist's work, they are rarely needed because fighting monsters is the job of swordsmen and magicians. In fact, I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't read as much about poisonous plants as I have about medicinal herbs, so my knowledge is still insufficient.
"I'm not very strong either, so all I can do is study,"
Basilio-san looked down dejectedly, but I instinctively shook my head and said, "No!"
It probably took him a long time to pass the exam, which is one of the biggest reasons why he seems to have no confidence in himself. He probably has read a lot more books than the others and has a strong foundation of knowledge. He should be more confident in himself.
"I'm really relieved! I'm a novice when it comes to poisons, so please teach me everything you know."
When I asked for his guidance, Basilio-san smiled shyly but happily.
――Now, after picking all the different types of poisonous herbs, it's time for synthesis. We quickly went back to our synthesis room and started preparing to make the poison.
Protective masks, gloves, and the poisonous herbs we collected, as well as The Drinking Water of the Spirits, would be used for the synthesis.
Iris and Basilio-san both had experience synthesizing poisons, but we started from the basics and taught them how to wear masks properly. We were ready to face the synthesis table when all was set.
At that moment, I realized something.
(We can't drink the poison ourselves to test its effectiveness, right?)
――Since it contains poison, unlike healing potions, we can't test it on ourselves. Of course, I had no intention of trying the potion we were making on the demon king, but I hadn't even thought about how to test the effectiveness of the prototypes we made.
I stared down at the poisonous herbs I had picked and pondered to myself.
Even if we were to use it on a monster, we would need to be prepared to defeat it in another way in case the poison didn't work at all. That means we might need help from the Knight Order ―― I clenched my fist, knowing that I needed to take action soon.
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