Volume 4 Chapter 3 I'm Ignoring the High-Ranking Nobles
"...No recorded discoveries within the country, huh..."
Ten days after hearing Mr. Thor's request, the reply from His Excellency Prime Minister Schnorr coldly stated just that.
Well, the Romanov Empire is mostly frozen tundra──land that stays icy year-round.
The flora and fauna there must be nothing like what we have here.
"Ryuuji, how'd it go?"
"No luck. They said it doesn't exist here."
"That's too bad..."
My wife and I slump our shoulders in disappointment.
It's a rare plant──doubt it's being exported outside the empire.
So then──
"Do we go pick it...? Or send someone else?"
But I've heard tensions are high between the northern Goldmont Kingdom and the Romanov Empire right now.
It's almost summer, so travel *might* be possible──but I'd hate to get stuck there.
And I can't ask anyone else to risk it.
There's also the Guant Kingdom to the northwest, between us and Romanov Empire... but they keep warring with us.
Even during ceasefires, stepping foot there isn't an option.
"Even if we go pick it, won't it wither before we can bring it back and make a magic stone?"
"...Right."
Lene's perfectly reasonable point leaves me with no choice but to hang my head.
Of course──it's a *plant*.
"Well, it's valuable too──might not even be allowed to take it out of the country. Guess we'll have to try the other method."
I haven't just been waiting around for His Excellency the Prime Minister's reply these past ten days.
We've got a solid backup plan if we can't get our hands on 'Eurika'.
"Another method, you say... a 'Refined Magic Stone'?"
"That's right."
As Lene places her hand on her chin and asks, I nod.
It's times like these when I'm really grateful for my wife's skills as an alchemist.
A 'Refined Magic Stone' is a magic stone made from alchemy materials.
"If we can make a 'Refined Magic Stone' with the same or better effects than a 'Magic Stone of Key', it should be more than enough for the job."
"Well, yeah, but──"
"But?"
Lene seems apologetic as she lets her long ears droop.
I bet she already has a recipe in mind for the materials to make an equally powerful 'Refined Magic Stone'.
So, is there some other issue?
"...To make that 'Refined Magic Stone', we need materials that require either 'Eurika' or plants with similar properties."
"......I see."
I sighed at Lene's explanation.
It seems there really is no such thing as a perfect plan.
However, if it's something with the same properties as 'Eurika', a moss that grows in permafrost, we won't find it unless we step into similar terrain.
There are places in the Beistein Kingdom that are cold year-round, but those are high-altitude areas, and it's a different story from permafrost.
While Lene and I were talking about our next move, we heard Mariana's voice saying "I'm home" from the entrance, so we decided to go to the hallway to greet her.
"...Huh? Lord Reichner?"
We were surprised to see someone other than Mariana at the entrance when we went to the hallway.
It turned out that our second daughter had brought Lord Reichner with her.
"Hey, Count Huntwerker. Hello."
"Please don't call me that..."
"Haha, just kidding."
Lord Reichner chuckled in response to my sincere plea.
Of course, I understand that you wouldn't say something unpleasant about this gentleman.
"Maria, you've done well to welcome Lord Reichner. That's great."
"Ehehe~"
After petting Mariana for doing a good job, she closed her eyes happily.
Ah, so cute.
Angels really do exist.
And she's my daughter, too.
"...Ryuuji, is it about time?"
It was only after continuing to pet Mariana for about 3 minutes that I remembered Lord Reichner, who had been left at the entrance.
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