Volume 2 Chapter 24 As Expected, the Genius Was Different
The next day, Lene and I visited Lord Reichner's mansion and recounted the events of 5 years ago to him and His Excellency, Duke Hoffman.
His Excellency replied, "I understand the situation, but as I am not an Inquisitor of the Holy Office, I cannot make a judgment."
Instead, he offered to request the dispatch of an Inquisitor from the Royal Capital of Staudinger.
We had intended to travel to the Royal Capital ourselves, but due to the Stampede incident and the need for Lene's abilities, it seems they will wait for the Inquisitor's investigation before deciding on any penalties.
So, we found ourselves returning to our daily routine of handling various requests, but then we received another request from His Excellency regarding the Stampede incident.
"A high-quality 'Magic Stone of Diamond'... hmm."
I pondered the task at hand.
Well, I do have high-quality 'Magic Stones of Diamond,' but creating something beyond that requires some serious skill.
I wonder if my current cutting technique is up to the task.
"Master, what do you think of this?"
As I was deep in thought, a magic stone was smoothly presented to me.
It was the 'Magic Stone of Luminous' I had tasked Belle with creating.
It's a basic magic stone that even beginners can't fail at, and it's useful even with slightly rough cutting, so I have her practice making them.
"Hmm... Wow, you've improved a lot, haven't you?"
"Really? Thank you, Master! It's all thanks to your teachings!"
Belle expressed her joy with her whole body.
Her lynx-like ears and tail stood up straight.
No, honestly, it was quite well done.
While it still didn't quite reach the level of my masterful skills, the way the magic stone glimmered in the light was proof of her talent.
It was clear that Belle was not clumsy at all.
"No, no, seriously, you did an amazing job! To think you could get this far in just ten days or so──when I started, I certainly wasn't this good. Have you found the trick to it?"
"Yes! Once I focused on the refraction of light, I started to get the hang of it! But it's not just about increasing the number of facets!"
"Oh, you've already reached that level, huh?"
I couldn't help but be impressed by her rapid progress.
After all, I had been yelled at by my Gemcutter master countless times before I reached that point.
What an incredible disciple she was.
I'm glad I picked her up.
Semi-transparent ores like magic stones and jewels have a characteristic where they slightly change the direction of light when it enters at an angle.
That's the phenomenon known as light refraction.
Conversely, they also have the characteristic of reflecting light, of course.
When the angle of light entering is small, it becomes easier to reflect, bouncing the light that has entered the ore back out through the opposite facet, resulting in what is commonly referred to as a "shining" state.
Since the refractive index of light varies with each ore, the skill of a Gemcutter lies in how well and beautifully they can polish it down to the millimeter, or even beyond.
Moreover, as the magic stone increases in brilliance, its power also grows.
That's why cutting techniques become so important.
"I'm back! I had SuzSuz set up a barrier."
"Oh, great job, you 3! Thank you!"
Lene, Minori, and Suzu returned after setting up a barrier against Dark Mages.
They marked the surrounding trees and infused them with Magic Power, creating a barrier to repel those with the power of the Evil God.
By the way, if a Dark Mage tries to forcibly tear down this barrier, a sort of counter-curse will activate, potentially putting their life in danger.
As expected from Suzu, she left no stone unturned.
"We managed to set it up over quite a large area. Now we can live peacefully around the house."
"Well done! I'm proud of you!"
While giving a satisfying head pat to the expressionless yet content-looking Suzu, Minori chimed in with, "Me too, me too!"
Since Minori was also on Bodyguard duty, I didn't hold back and patted her head just as mercilessly.
The sisters squealed in delight, their laughter ringing out joyfully.
"Speaking of which, Master. You seemed troubled about something earlier. Is something wrong?"
"Huh? Ah... It's about the item requested by... His Excellency Duke Hoffman."
After I was done ruffling the girls' hair, Belle, who had been staring intently at the magic stone she created, asked me about it. I scratched my head vigorously and replied that I was worried about how to create a high-quality <Magic Stone of Diamond>.
"If it's you, Master, surely you can make it in a flash, right?"
"No way! I'm still far from perfect. When it comes to making the finest quality, the calculations and the precision cutting required are intense..."
I replied to my carefree apprentice with a mix of disbelief and amusement.
It surely requires terrifyingly meticulous calculations and techniques.
Really, when it comes to demands this high, it's too heavy of a burden for me.
"What's wrong with settling for ordinary quality? ...Ah, I get it, it's that, huh?"
Minori noticed something and glanced briefly at Belle before finding a solution on her own.
I still hadn't told her about the stampede.
Then, I noticed Lene mumbling to herself while staring at the ceiling.
Is she alright?
"Lene, what's wrong?"
"...Um, does it have to be the <Magic Stone of Diamond>?"
"...Yeah, anything else won't work."
I couldn't help but let my shoulders droop in exhaustion.
What was this elf even saying?
The item we need is a <Magic Stone of Diamond>.
No matter how high the quality, delivering a different magic stone wouldn't do!
"Ah, no, that's not what I meant... I thought, if we had a magic stone with effects equal to that of the <Magic Stone of Diamond>, but even greater power, it should be fine."
"...Well, if such a magic stone exists, I'd like to know about it too."
Lene's suggestions were nothing but figments of her imagination.
If such a magic stone existed, I would have already created it.
In my confusion, she asked with a giggle, "Did you forget?"
Forgotten... what?
I had no memory of such a magic stone.
"When we created the <Magic Stone of Featherweight>, we made the materials for the magic stone through Alchemy, right?"
"......No way!"
Realization struck me, and I shouted out in shock.
So that's what it was!
"If we apply that technique, we could create materials for a magic stone greater than the <Magic Stone of Diamond>! I already have an image of the materials in mind!"
The genius Alchemist before me declared this with her chest puffed out confidently.
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