I have been stuck in a predicament for a month.
I was tricked by that braggart Crowley and almost formed a contract with him, but managed to just barely stop it thanks to my quick-wit. But my suffering didn’t end there, and her majesty has been pressing me fiercely.
As a result, I had to take the harsh measure of leaving my atelier. I destroyed my cauldron, broke all the glass windows, and smashed drawers and shelves.
Apparently this deception worked, and I managed to invite sympathy from the world.
People see me as someone who was attacked by an unknown assailant who destroyed my atelier, and the shock led me to flee the capital.
That was what the newspaper I read three weeks ago said.
The queen has been sending envoys to me, but I managed to send them all away.
Once I brought up the attack, none of them could speak that strongly to me.
The tragic great alchemist, Ruby. I enacted the perfect scenario.
Her majesty’s letters and the envoys’ visits have been getting less frequent, and my blunders are becoming more vague.
Now is the right time to look for a great exclusive mage.
After my failure last time, I have decided to not set my expectations too high, and settle for someone just a little better than Loyd.
Modesty is an important trait.
◆ ◆ ◆
Before I know it, two months have passed since I left the capital.
I have spent the last month running around Merzelia looking for a new exclusive mage, but I have been turned down by all of them.
“I can’t gather something this difficult.”
All of them said.
They would only gather the materials I asked if they were in Area Two or Area One.
I am exasperated by their incompetence.
At the same time, I feel like I have to reevaluate Loyd a little. He has gone up from incompetent mage to ‘fine I guess’.
He was always late in delivering materials, but he did look for them. He wasn’t excellent or anything, but he did do the bare minimum. That makes him a hundred times better than these mages that won’t even look for materials in Area Zero.
After being rejected so many times, I have no choice but to admit this.
I’m going to form a temporary contract with him until I find someone better.
I really don’t like that, but this is an option I have to consider.
In any case, I have to find him first. He didn’t go back to our hometown, so where did he go?
My only clue was that he was spotted in the port town of Melport. Apparently he was with a beautiful silver haired girl.
The beautiful girl sticks out to me a little, but if he was here, there’s a good chance he got on a boat.
But that’s kind of troubling.
The Kingdom of Merzelia is made up of two regions, the Island of Merzelia, and the western continent.
Our hometown, the capital, and the place where I am now are all on the island, and Loyd went to the western continent.
It would only take a couple of days, but I would have to use a ship if I were to go to the western continent.
Unfortunately, all ships are docked. The seas are rough, and the heavy rains and big tornadoes are turning it into a hellish vision.
And that has been going on for a couple of months.
Suffice to say, this is not a natural phenomenon. This is a disaster caused by the great water spirit.
People are calling it the wrath of Undine.
I leave the inn in the morning, and head straight to the adventurer guild. This has become a daily habit for me lately.
And of course, I’m here because of Undine. More specifically, because I put out a quest to hunt it.
I ask the receptionist how that quest is progressing, and she timidly bows a few times.
“I apologize, but no one has accepted your quest as of yet.”
That annoys me.
“I’m sick of hearing that. It’s been a month. You’re the adventurer guild, do something.”
“There is nothing that can be done. As I have told you before, we haven’t found adventurers that will hunt the Undine in the whole country, let alone this town.”
She says, looking like she’s about to cry.
“Enough excuses. The adventurer guild hunts monsters, right? Put together a suicide squad or something and get to it.”
My patience is at an end. Even with a reward of a thousand gold coins, I’m getting nothing.
These adventurers are nothing but failures, considering I’ve been waiting for a month.
“That is unreasonable… There is nothing we can do, if even the army has judged it to be impossible.”
“Impossible is a word for liars.”
“If it’s impossible, it’s impossible! Not to mention that Undine is in an Area Zero!”
Area Zero again? I’m so tired of hearing about things being impossible because of these Area Zero.
They keep complaining and not doing anything. Don’t you have any shame?
“How about you stop complaining and make a medicine or two to soothe Undine’s anger? Are you a genius alchemist or what?”
Says an adventurer all of a sudden, prompting all the others to voice their dissatisfaction too.
“Don’t be silly. Why must the person putting out the quest do that? It’s your job to take out monsters.”
I am taken aback for a moment, but quickly respond. But their anger just intensifies.
“You’re the one being stupid here. Every day you come here and trouble the poor receptionists with your nonsense!”
“You haven’t done any alchemy this whole month and keep making excuses!”
“You won’t even make simple potions without super expensive materials, and act all smug about it!”
“All you want is in Area Zero!”
I feel like we’ve switched topics from the Undine to bad-mouthing me.
“Are complete amateurs that don’t know the ‘al’ from alchemy going to lecture me?”
“The same goes to you. What do you know about an adventurer’s job? If you knew just a bit about us, you wouldn’t be talking about crazy things like going to talk Undine down.”
Everyone agrees.
“What unfortunate people. I can’t believe you are putting adventurers and alchemists on the same level.”
Adventurers are at the bottom. It’s something anyone can do, so they’re all ruffians who can learn nothing.
It’s so foolish to compare that to the noble occupation that is alchemy.
“What!?”
One adventurer tries to grab me, but is stopped by another.
“That’s enough, James. Just leave her.”
“Dealing with her is a waste of time.”
“True. That’s why Loyd left you.”
“Demanding materials no one can pick, idiot!”
They keep complaining, and I leave angry.
Just saying whatever they want despite being so useless. And I’m the one who left Loyd.
What a joke. Like I’d be abandoned by Loyd.
I knew they weren’t right in the head, but I didn’t expect them to be this incompetent and unable to follow simple logic.
I click my tongue, clench my fists while shaking with anger, and leave the adventurer guild behind me.
Then I head to the center of town, and gracefully have lunch at a cafe.
It’s a fancy lunch today. A sandwich, scrambled eggs, and Earl Grey tea.
And a stylish young person can’t forget her newspaper. And so, I have mine open, as I look for interesting articles.
“Let’s see if something gets my mind off all the things irritating me lately.”
‘Shocking!! The truth behind the attack on the genius alchemist Lord Alchemia!’
What is this? I tilt my head as I see the big words written here.
Is this about me? Once I start reading it, my blood boils.
“What is this!? It’s all nonsense!”
I yell while smacking the newspaper on the ground.
People around me stare, but I don’t care, and step on it.
But that doesn’t ease my anger. I just want to go crazy like I did back in the atelier.
As for what I just read…
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Testimony number one – The mage known as Crow○ey
“Lord Alchemia? You really should not trust her.
I formed a contract to be her exclusive mage, but it was awful.
Do you know Fleur de Einsel? She wanted me to get it by the next day. I was so shocked, that I almost fell on the floor.
She also had a lot of bad things to say about my previous employer, leading me to wonder if she was doing well on a personal level.”
Testimony number two – The knight known as Isol○e Von Minefort
“I have never spoken to her directly, but I could see Loyd’s heart was deeply wounded when I first met him.
…Incompetent mage? Ah, those were all lies.
He was treated pretty poorly in his former workplace, but he honors dates, and takes down vicious monsters one after the other.
I have never seen such a great mage, and I am very glad he decided to join us.”
Testimony number three – The swordsman known as Black Raven from Rinin (*Name disclosed upon request)
“Leader! Are you watching?
Eh? A serious testimony? Ahem, excuse me.
I went to her atelier, but she suddenly started yelling about Loyd being incompetent, and destroyed her own cauldron.
Wha? No, I didn’t do it.
I was nervous watching that. I figured she was bad news. Someone I shouldn’t be involved with.
I’m an assassin but… Ah, I shouldn’t have said that. Let’s say my occupation means maybe I shouldn’t talk, but a chill ran down my spine when I watched her.
It’s amazing how Loyd managed to live with her. I’d be gone from her atelier in half a day.”
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The newspaper is all about bad-mouthing me.
It’s all just gossip without any credibility. I’m a virtuous person with a kind heart, that never power harassed my exclusive mage!
But just as I’m taking a sip of my tea to calm my anger, four knights suddenly enter the cafe. And they head straight towards my table to surround it.
“Eh? Eh?”
I let out those sounds because I have no idea what is going on.
“Lord Alchemia?”
“A-and who are you?”
I ask with my voice trembling.
“We were sent by the queen. I’m sure you are already aware, but she has been looking for you, and wants you to be escorted back to the capital.”
“This is not a request, it is an order. Please understand.”
The knights’ words send shivers down my spine.
What is going on…?
I glare at the newspaper that has my footprints. Is that why they’re here?
No, it doesn’t matter why. The problem is that they’re here now.
The knights surrounding my table feel different from the envoys that have reached me thus far.
It feels like there’s animosity towards me. Not too dissimilar from the adventurers earlier today.
I didn’t expect knights to come directly to me…
Even my keen eye didn’t see this development coming.
I haven’t found an exclusive mage yet. Actually, I’ve been so preoccupied with the quest, that I stopped looking.
This is also the worst time for a newspaper bad-mouthing me to be going around the country.
If I go back now, her majesty will definitely question me on it, and we will be right back to square one.
“H-hum, can I go to the bathroom first? I drank too much tea.”
“Sure. But can you leave your bag here?”
I’m shocked by what I hear.
“Do you think I will run away?”
“No, just in case. Also, her majesty ordered us to confiscate your bag with your transmuted items.”
“Kuh…! Everything I have is in there! I can’t hand it over to strangers!”
I declare.
The knights look troubled, but accept my demands, and let me go to the bathroom with my bag.
Kukuk, idiots.
I come here all the time, so I know this cafe has stalls with a window in the back, so I can get out from there.
I carry the bag on my back, and head to the lady’s bathroom.
But when I pass by a knight, he whispers.
“…Don’t run away.”
That makes me freeze. They really… Intend to capture me.
I shut myself in the bathroom, and get ready to escape through the window right away.
But there is unforeseen trouble.
“Guh! The window is too small for my bag!”
I have my personal fortune of ten thousand gold coins in my bag, plus the two thousand I got from Loyd.
It’s swollen like a squirrel with nuts in its mouth.
If only I had Loyd’s item box… That thought crosses my mind, but I quickly shake my head.
I can get through this without that useless man’s help.
It’s exactly because his item box was so useful that my bag lacks similar features.
He should be the one to carry my stuff. It’s his fault I got used to thinking that way.
We’re not going to make it out at the same time, so I’ll go first, and then pull the bag.
But it still doesn’t make it through, so I get annoyed and pull it as hard as I can, because the knights will notice it if I take too long.
“Ugugugu! Come ooooooon!”
I put my whole weight into it, and…
I hear the sound of the bag ripping, and metal coins hitting the floor.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!? My gold coins!?”
I scream, and then the bag makes it through the window and back to me. But it’s ripped on the side, and empty.
The knights appear in the entrance to this alley, and point at me.
“Hey, Lord Alchemia is over there!”
They all swarm the alley, and I rush to run the other way.
“Stop right there!”
“So those rumors really were true, or she wouldn’t be running!”
“You power harassing alchemist!”
“Isolte was right!”
I can only run as fast as I can through Melport while screaming.
The townspeople see me running from the knights, and point while laughing.
“Aaaaaaaaaah!”
From this day forward, I have become a wanted person throughout Merzelia.
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