Chapter 212 - Chapter 211: Rumors of the Alchemist
The 1st Month of Wind, Saturday of the 3rd Week.
Today was scheduled for sparring practice at the Fifth Knights Order station, but Mika stopped by the Adventurer's Guild on a separate mission.
All of the designated requests he had been carrying were completed, and he came to report on them and convey his future plans.
Since Fee began helping him, the pace at which he completed requests had increased dramatically.
Because of that, he could have cleared everything out immediately if he had wanted to.
But he did not do that.
He deliberately slowed his pace to spend time on other things.
He decided to clear two or three requests after school, report on them one by one each week, and maintain a monthly pace.
There were, well, quite a few reasons for this.
A big part of it was that he did not want to be seen as someone who could complete requests too easily, but also because he intended to reduce the number of requests he accepted even further in the future.
Honestly, the purpose of earning money had vanished due to the creation of "Copper-type Rare Metal
To put it extremely, there was no longer any necessity for him to continue being an adventurer.
The very first purpose had been to earn money and send remittances home.
He had actually sent remittances like that, and he was able to clear the debts he had accumulated.
When he returned to his hometown, he started depositing a decent amount of money at home, so he had not actually sent remittances since then.
He had told them to contact him if they needed anything, though.
However, with the debt repayment gone, Amalia and Loretta's earnings were enough to live comfortably.
And Mika himself had assets more than sufficient.
He used "Copper-type Rare Metal
By selling just one of those, he could earn hundreds of millions.
He had completely replaced his slightly worn-out equipment and gathered even better items, but honestly, he was troubled because he had nowhere to spend the money.
There were roughly three major banks in the Kingdom, and he had opened accounts in each, depositing over ten billion Rats in each one.
He had already earned enough money to live a life of leisure for generations.
...Maybe I am the last generation, though.
With that, he could exclude the need to earn money and purely think about what he wanted to do now, and what he should do.
When he thought about it like that, he still thought, "I want to be an adventurer."
Even without unnecessary burdens, there was a part of him that simply admired the concept of being an adventurer.
In reality, he was already an adventurer, but he was far from the image of an adventurer he idealized.
Because he was bound to the Academy, he could not be free-spirited.
Well, even in such a state, he was able to genuinely think that he wanted to continue being an adventurer.
And then, "Copper-type Rare Metal
He had them conducting research, but the results were still far from sufficient.
After all, it was still in the research stage.
What was important was "what to do" using this material, and that part had not yet yielded sufficient results.
By the way, he had bought many Magic Bags and stuffed them full with "Copper-type Rare Metal
However, just as it becomes harder to make things in the order of copper, silver, and gold, the same tendency existed for rare metals.
So, he had made them for now, but regarding "Silver-type Rare Metal
Once the research on "Copper-type Rare Metal
Especially regarding "Gold-type Rare Metal
It was hard to get a substantial amount, so it took a little time just to make one ingot.
Also, recently he had been focusing on things that interested him personally.
What was [God's Miracle]?
What was a Curse?
However, there were no results at all on these.
Or rather, no one seemed to be researching such things; there was not even a single document.
He was searching by visiting second-hand bookstores, but with no leads, it had stopped at nothing more than his own thoughts and speculations in his head.
When Mika entered the Guild building, he gazed at the request bulletin board.
Since it was still a little early for the appointed time, he casually looked over recent requests to kill time.
"The request for the Saint's Great Secret Book is out again."
Apparently, there were people who had no sense of shame and were posting it again.
Moreover, three request sheets were posted side by side.
(How tedious. Is there some rumor that it was found somewhere again?)
Not even feeling like checking properly, Mika shrugged his shoulders and looked at other request sheets.
(Oh, a B-rank request discovered. ...Ah, but it's not a beast extermination? And the Seven Duchies Federation? That's a request from a very far place.)
Upon checking the details, it was a request to solve a series of disappearances.
Apparently, in the Seven Duchies Federation, disappearances had been somewhat common since long ago, but the number had surged in recent years.
Involvement of kidnapping organizations and human trafficking organizations was suspected, but there were no leads for now.
Families of the victims had been pooling money to post requests since about three years ago, but there was no sign of resolution, and the damage continued.
It was posted only at the Adventurer's Guilds and Bounty Hunter Guilds within the Seven Duchies Federation, but recently it had started calling out to adventurers in the Kingdom of Ektrem as well.
The remarks section noted that there were also increasing incidents of livestock being ravaged nearby.
However, the connection was unknown.
(Hmm... disappearance cases. I'd like to solve them if I could, but it's really too far. The only ending would be to go sightseeing and come back.)
He could not take the time to settle down and tackle it seriously.
He would just hope that a skilled adventurer would solve it.
When the time came, he showed his face at the counter, was immediately led to the reception room, and Yunressa attended to him as usual.
Mika briefly conveyed his future plans.
"Well then, from now on, you don't need to stop accepting requests, right?"
"Yes. However, my side is also becoming busy with various things, so I cannot accept them as before. I think it will be a form where I come to the Guild when I have spare time."
"I understand. It's a pity, but it cannot be helped. You are a student at the Academy, Mika-kun. There is no need to think about which should take priority."
Hearing Mika's words, Yunressa said that.
(Sorry. I wasn't thinking about the Academy at all.)
Mika let out a dry laugh, "Ahaha..."
As a trend since he resumed accepting requests last time, requests for specifying and removing house curses had decreased significantly.
This was partly because there were fewer such properties in the Royal Capital, but fundamentally, there were limited people who wanted to pay to remove curses.
Until now, such requests were mostly for mansions, but unless it was a substantial piece of land or a building that could be reused, the sale price would not be high.
Even if cursed properties still existed, there were probably not that many people who wanted to remove the curse even at a loss.
Even knowing the curse could be removed, there were quite a few people who chose to leave it alone.
Thus, he indicated a rough policy to handle the entrusted curse removals about once a month as before, and the discussion ended.
He left the reception room.
And as he headed for the entrance, Kaerya was standing there.
No, she was not actually standing stiffly; she was holding a Battle Axe in both hands and striking a pose.
"Kaerya, what are you doing? If you pull out a Battle Axe like that in a place like this, you'll get scolded again?"
Mika called out to her, but Kaerya did not move an inch.
She just glanced at Mika with her eyes.
Then, she put more force into her pose.
What is this?
"I thought you were doing it again, but is it the young master?"
While looking at Kaerya at the entrance, Gaeras arrived.
It seemed he had been doing some procedures at the counter.
"Gaeras-san. What's wrong with Kaerya?"
When Mika pointed and asked, Gaeras smiled wryly.
"She is showing it off because she is happy."
Saying that, Gaeras kicked Kaerya.
"She is in the way and causing trouble for others. Put that away already."
Scolded by Gaeras, Kaerya just glanced at Mika again.
She still did not move.
Seeing such Kaerya, Gaeras let out a deep sigh, "Haaah..."
Gaeras whispered to Mika, and finally Mika understood the situation.
Mika nodded to Gaeras.
"Amazing. It looks cool."
When Mika said that while looking at Kaerya's new Battle Axe, Kaerya suddenly smiled brightly.
It seemed Kaerya had been striking a pose to show Mika the Battle Axe she had bought recently.
Like a child!
Since she was in the way, they moved outside a bit to have a standing conversation.
"Recently, good quality 'Copper-type Rare Metal
It seemed Kaerya's party had purchased "Copper-type Rare Metal
If you included production costs, wouldn't that be over fifty million Rats?
They must have mixed in impurities and lowered the ratio of "Copper-type Rare Metal
"Kaerya is the key to our party. Considering cost-effectiveness, it is the place where we should strengthen our combat power the most."
It seemed it was treated not as Kaerya's personal item, but as the party's property.
If the party were to disband, both of Kaerya's Battle Axes would be sold, and the money would be distributed.
Kaerya's weapons would be gone!
(Well, I suppose that means buying normal weapons with that money. She made a bold investment.)
Mika had never formed a party, so he did not know, but such judgments were quite common.
This was one of the reasons the party leader managed the party's purse.
Items that were too expensive for an individual could be recovered quickly if the party's overall capability was raised.
It seemed they often bought weapons and armor owned by the party based on such judgments.
Gaeras turned a somewhat serious face and looked at Mika.
"You must have heard it too, young master? The story about the 'Copper-type Rare Metal
Hearing that from Gaeras, Mika's heart skipped a beat.
Apparently, rumors were spreading that it was "Copper-type Rare Metal
"It started circulating rapidly after summer, right? And the amount put on the market is likely to reach several hundred kilograms. High purity stuff with nearly 70% purity? People are saying, 'No matter what, this is too much. The quality is too uniform' for a normal sale."
Whispers were beginning about the existence of an alchemist behind it.
Mika broke out in a slight sweat on his back.
(Well, the purpose of circulating 'Copper-type Rare Metal
The total number of "Copper-type Rare Metal
Over three hundred kilograms.
Ordinary adventurers, though those at the upper levels, could barely afford to buy one or two kilos of this "Copper-type Rare Metal
If they made a Battle Axe like Kaerya, they would need more, but normally that much was not necessary.
And if the purpose was to apply [Enchantment] to rings, the amount needed would be even less.
Thinking like that, it seemed that over a thousand people had gotten their hands on this "Copper-type Rare Metal
(Still, there are no complaints for now, are there?)
He had feared being told "This is different" or "It's fake" compared to natural "Copper-type Rare Metal
"But we bought it at the very last minute. It was dangerous."
"Last minute? Timing?"
He intended to circulate the portion used for research normally in the future.
For a while, he planned to supply it somewhat stably.
"It was a hoarding. It seems that since the beginning of this month, everything is being bought before it even hits the shelves anywhere. We managed to secure the material itself before last month, so we could give this to Kaerya."
It seemed that as soon as shops obtained it, everything was bought up.
"As soon as the shop obtained it? That's strange. What's going on?"
Mika asked that, but Gaeras looked reluctant to speak.
Mika reached into his Magic Bag and grabbed a handful of gold coins.
(...Gaeras has been telling me various interesting things for a while now.)
Mika carelessly handed over the gold coins, and Gaeras widened his eyes.
About twenty or so coins?
Well, it did not matter how many.
"W-Young master!?"
"I've been taught various things from before. This is just paying the tab. So, what about the hoarding?"
When Mika urged him to continue the story, Gaeras, though confused, put the coins into his own Magic Bag.
Then, his expression became that of a professional.
It seemed this was not a story that could be dismissed as small talk.
"Likely, it is the country."
"...The country?"
When Mika asked back, Gaeras nodded.
"It seems that wholesalers were ordered to hold onto whatever 'Copper-type Rare Metal
"So, it doesn't appear on the shelves and flows directly?"
"It seems they are also pressuring the wholesalers to take everything without flowing it into the market. For now, it seems that wholesalers under such pressure are stopping the original suppliers from shipping the actual goods..."
Mika almost clicked his tongue.
(...Following the Salvage of Magic Bags, now even 'Copper-type Rare Metal
Interfering with people's business.
Well, it did not matter if the buyer was the country, but Mika's purpose was to increase the number of adventurers equipping "Copper-type Rare Metal
If they hoarded it, this purpose could not be achieved.
(Should I flood the market...?)
He did not know how much budget the country had estimated, but he could flood them with tons or even tens of tons.
He did not think they would buy until bankruptcy, so letting them buy as they pleased until they gave up might be one option.
(But still. Honestly, the country buying up too much is a bit...)
An era where war was whispered about.
It was not incomprehensible that the country was buying up for military strengthening.
However, considering the history of this country, he hesitated to see it strengthened too much.
(They might get carried away and start saying 'We're going to conquer the continent'.)
Even that would be better if they were satisfied with conquering the continent.
If they went so far as to expand overseas...
(I might need to think about the distribution method and disposal method for this.)
Mika thought such things based on information from Gaeras.
■■■■■■
"You're a little late. Sorry."
After talking with Gaeras, Mika headed towards Modesse Forest.
Today he did not join the sparring practice; he actually had another matter to attend to.
A plain far from the forest, frankly, a place where no one ever came.
"Oh, just in time, it's starting."
Coming there were the Weapon and Armor Research Team from Oya-san's place, and the Magic Tool Research Team from Adelriese's place.
And Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa.
In their hands were weapons made of pure "Copper-type Rare Metal
Yaroibarov held a large Halberd.
It was a size that did not feel out of place even for the tall and sturdy Yaroibarov, making it ridiculous to compare it to a normal person's size.
Its length exceeded three meters.
He used twenty ingots of "Copper-type Rare Metal
Simply calculated, it was about five hundred kilograms.
Of course, no one could handle such a thing normally.
Naturally, there was a mechanism.
Not limited to "Copper-type Rare Metal
"Copper-type Rare Metal
Even if impurities were mixed in, if it contained 30% rare metal, it would be difficult to handle properly.
So, how to make it easier to handle?
The answer was extremely simple.
If it is too heavy, just make it light.
He incorporated such effects through [Enchantment].
By applying [Lightening] [Enchantment] to equipment that was too heavy for humans to handle, he made it easier to use.
In addition to this, there were quite a few drawbacks to using rare metals as they were.
First, they were soft.
And brittle.
In terms of hardness, there were plenty of metals harder than rare metals.
And toughness, meaning resilience, was lacking, so they chipped or broke easily.
Alloys changed characteristics, but high-purity rare metals showed these metallic properties plainly.
To compensate for these drawbacks and gain strength that no one else had, he applied [Enchantment] relentlessly.
To put it simply, if the total amount of [Enchantment] that can be applied to equipment containing 30% rare metal is thirty, then about ten of that would be used for [Lightening], [Hardening], and [Toughness].
The remaining twenty would be chosen for [Enchantment] to increase sharpness, or to give it fire effects.
And what about pure rare metal?
First, the total amount of [Enchantment] that can be applied becomes quite large, around two hundred or two hundred thirty.
This was the greatest merit of high purity.
And since the effect of [Enchantment] increased, the amount used for [Lightening], [Hardening], [Toughness] could be the same ten or so.
It was incomparable to the 30% version in weight, but since the effects of [Lightening] etc. were also high, it seemed to be manageable to the same degree.
In other words, he could choose freely how to use the remaining 190 to 220 points.
However, today these were still prototypes.
They were testing if the basic set of [Lightening], [Hardening], and [Toughness] worked without problems, if [Lightening] should be increased further, or if [Toughness] should be strengthened.
Mika turned his gaze toward Ozendorwa.
What Ozendorwa held in his hand was a Sword.
It was close to a Longsword, but strictly speaking, it was a one-handed sword.
With that, you won't break your wrist, will you?
Today, these two would actually spar to verify the durability as weapons.
However, since there were things that could not be understood without fighting seriously, both would fight seriously.
By the way, Mika's participation in this verification was mandatory.
If someone who could use [Heal] was present, even if a leg was broken or an arm was severed, it could be healed.
However, he had told them to avoid vital points, as there was nothing he could do if the head was taken off.
Yeah, I said it properly, okay?
"Both of you, are you ready?"
When Mika called out, Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa nodded with very nice smiles.
It reminded one of fierce beasts finding prey and grinning.
Yaroibarov was understandable, but did Ozendorwa actually like such foolish plans?
"Okay, please begin."
When Mika called out, Yaroibarov immediately charged.
Since they were apart, he could follow with his eyes, but if they were actually facing each other, you wouldn't notice when they had approached.
The kind where you blink and they are there.
Ozendorwa did not panic at all, moved, and passed right by Yaroibarov's side.
Wow, is he striking Yaroibarov's gap?
Ozendorwa took the initiative.
He slashed mercilessly at Yaroibarov's back.
But Yaroibarov, while maintaining his posture perfectly, easily blocked the Sword with his Halberd.
Gaginn!
A heavy impact sound echoed.
Yaroibarov swung the Halberd down immediately, aiming for Ozendorwa's shoulder.
Ozendorwa dodged with a side step, but Yaroibarov swung the Halberd up again to pursue.
A double strike from above and below.
Basuzza Bashun!
The sound of splitting the air could be heard clearly up to here.
Ozendorwa easily avoided that and, in an instant, thrust at Yaroibarov's abdomen.
Well, as long as he didn't hit the heart, he wouldn't die instantly, but thrusts are bad, thrusts are.
Just in case, I'm waiting with five times enhancement.
So I can rush over anytime and use [Heal].
After that, the two continued to launch lethal strikes and consecutive attacks, calmly receiving or dodging them.
(Um... this is just a performance test, right? You haven't forgotten, have you?)
The defense and offense that made the onlookers nervous continued.
The members of the research team seemed to have no idea what was happening at all.
At times, they shrank their bodies at the impact sounds they could hear.
After sparring for about ten minutes,
"Okay, that's enough."
He called out.
Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa stopped abruptly in poses where they were about to launch attacks at each other.
Then, they made subtle expressions.
"Hey, monk. Don't stop at a good moment."
"Mika-kun. Isn't this a bit early?"
"Don't say childish things, come here quickly."
It's not a game, it is a game.
Seeing the two reluctantly coming over, the research team members let out a sigh of relief.
"Then, please check carefully if the blades are chipped or bent."
The Halberd and Sword used today were to be taken back to Oya-san's blacksmith and investigated thoroughly.
"How was the feel?"
Mika removed only his left gauntlet and equipped the bracelet given to him by Adelriese.
"Hmm. It's too light, a bit unreliable. I prefer it if I can feel a bit more weight."
"I had no particular problems. If I had to say, I would want to move the center of gravity a bit more towards the blade."
He conveyed such requests to the research team and would have them brush up for the finished product in the future.
"And, what are you doing, monk?"
"This?"
While Mika was checking the feel of the bracelet, Yaroibarov asked.
"It is my prototype."
Saying that, Mika stepped back a little and stamped his feet with power.
Dann! Dann! Dann!
He stamped over and over again.
Dann! Zun! Zun!
Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa watched with puzzled faces, wondering what he was doing.
"Are you applying some [Enchantment] to that bracelet?"
"Yes, I added [Durability Increase]."
"[Durability Increase]?"
Answering Ozendorwa's question, Mika continued to stamp on the ground.
Zun! Zun! Zushin! Dosin!
The sound of stamping clearly became strange, and Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa made twisted faces.
"Ai! It hurts! It's gone. Kuu~..."
The bone on the top of his foot, probably, had broken.
His ankle seemed messed up, and his knees were under considerable strain.
Mika cast [Heal] and healed the fractures and other various injuries.
"Oi, oi, monk. What are you doing?"
"Hm? What? I said it's a durability test."
Yaroibarov asked with a panicked expression, but Mika answered as if it was nothing.
With this feeling, if setting a safety margin, twenty times might be the limit?
The fracture was at about thirty times, but for safety, twenty times would be good.
"Can you two stand a little apart over there?"
Mika pointed to a position slightly away from the research team.
Though suspicious, the two did as told.
"From now on, I will move away there first, and then I will tackle rolling you two."
"Rolling?"
Mika said it lightly, and Yaroibarov twitched his temples.
"Try it if you can."
"Yes, I'm going."
Saying that, Mika moved away once.
In an instant.
He moved a distance of nearly one hundred meters.
"I'm going!"
Not knowing if they could hear, Mika raised both hands and waved.
Then, he charged in one breath.
"Hu!!!"
First, Yaroibarov.
He was surprised to see Mika appear in an instant, but his reflexes were still sharp enough to raise his hand.
Mika brushed that hand aside and cut both legs together.
A bit forcefully, both legs.
He immediately turned to Ozendorwa, but Ozendorwa was trying to create distance.
However, he closed that distance in an instant, cut his legs, and grabbed his arms.
Then, he pinned Ozendorwa down so he could not straighten his posture.
At that moment, a shockwave went out slightly around them.
Probably when he ran from a distance.
Regarding the shockwave, it was just a sudden gust of wind.
"Hmm, whether it exceeded the speed of sound or not... No, probably not that far."
Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa rolled on the ground, looking up blankly.
The research team, surprised by the sudden gust of wind, looked at Mika wondering what was happening.
"Mika-kun... What did you do?"
"Eh?"
Ozendorwa called out to Mika, who was lost in thought.
"Didn't you say the effect of the bracelet was [Durability]?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Then, this movement...?"
Though surprised, Ozendorwa slowly got up.
Yaroibarov was still blinking his eyes.
"[Physical Enhancement]. It was raised to twenty times."
"N, twenty!?"
Ozendorwa was speechless.
Mika had kept [Physical Enhancement] to five times so far.
The reason was that his body could not handle more than that.
Even with five times enhancement, the burden was great, causing sprains and joint pain.
So, he usually did not enhance that much, and if he did, he healed it immediately with [Heal].
"Thanks to [Durability Enhancement] being [Enchanted] onto the bracelet, the upper limit for [Physical Enhancement] has increased. If I raise it to thirty times, I will fracture just by stepping strongly, so for now, twenty times."
Yes, Mika said with a smile.
In games, maxing out durability is one of the optimal solutions.
Such characters have high vitality and defense, making them hard to kill.
They were the so-called tank characters.
However, such characters often sacrificed parameters like attack and speed...
([Physical Enhancement], seriously useful.)
It completely covers the weaknesses of a tank.
And he can even use magic.
A broken character.
The birth of Balance Breaker Mika.
"If you enhance it that much, your magical power will run out in no time!"
"Yes, that might be true."
He muttered in his heart, "Normally."
He originally used magical power to the brink of exhaustion from magical power depletion to manifest [Physical Enhancement].
The magical power consumed constantly was not that much even with twenty times enhancement.
Of course, this was based on Mika's standards.
And the consumed magical power was naturally recovered immediately with [Absorb].
Mika reached out his hand to the fallen Yaroibarov and helped him up.
(Even though it was play, I overwhelmed Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa.)
It was a bit of a surprise attack, but they were not the kind to be defeated just by being surprised.
The fact that he succeeded in knocking down those two was the biggest achievement.
"It's good, Adelriese-san. Please proceed with research in this direction."
"!!!"
"!!!"
"!!!"
Hearing Mika's reply, Adelriese smiled, but everyone else was stunned.
(This is still a prototype test, right? What are you saying?)
Mika tilted his head, removed the bracelet, and returned it to Adelriese.