Translator: Reflet

That day, the Adventurers' a.s.sociation was in an uproar from the early morning onward.

「First ya need to gather 'n separate Dulk branches 'n leaves, tearing the bark off them branches. Then ya mince the Age stems 'n Dulk leaves into fine pieces and and crush 'em till they look like this. Ratios matter here, so don't make the mistake of mixin' 'em. Whatcha need are only Aslin roots 'n Age stems, so dispose of anything else as ya see fit」

　Following Hiros.h.i.+'s instructions, Haruna and the other members had been facing off against the mountain of materials they had sc.r.a.ped up yesterday. Several potion makers had come to a.s.sist them in dividing up the materials.

「So everything other than the Aslin roots are just your everyday first-aid antidotes」

「That they are. That type of antidote has always been weak, but can still work against most poison because of its composition」

「Then what about this Aslin Root？」

「It works very well against miasmtype poison, but it's still a powerful medicine, so its regular effects as an antidote hafta be weakened. But if ya just mix 'n brew it then it'll lose some of its effectiveness against miasmtype poison, which is why there's a need to make some adjustments via alchemy」

　While answering questions from the youthful potion makers, he began skillfully processing the Aslin roots. Even though he had the largest amount of raw material, he was the quickest among any of them in processing the ingredients, displaying just how far apart their skill levels were.

「This is a processing method that has not been seen before. What exactly is it?」

「Right. Well, actually, as long as ya have rudimentary knowledge 'bout alchemy 'n enchantin' then it ain't difficult, so I encourage ya to study it when ya got the time. 'Course, I can tell ya whatcha needa know, but a little learnin' is a dangerous thing, so I recommend learnin' it from the proper individuals. And if ya properly learn it then it'll spread around」

「Understood」

　Smiling wryly at the facts that Hiros.h.i.+ was saying, the youthful potion makers showed their agreement.

「Azumkun, what do we do with this bark？」

「Just leave it after ya finish tearin' it off. Cause we need that 'n the roots for a bit of special processing」

「Roger. And then we just grind the leaves and stems, right？」

　Receiving instruction from Hiros.h.i.+, Haruna proceeded to begin grinding. While glancing at her doing that, he finished processing the roots and began working on the large amount of bark. He used magic to dry it, minced it, then grinded it, making it into powder and measuring the amount. Voices of admiration rang out as they watched the skilled process unfold.

「Where's the distilled water？」

「We have it prepared here」

「In that case, I'll do that work instead, so please do me a favor and prepare a hearth and cauldron」

「Understood」

　He gave instructions to Anne, earnestly grinding the thinly-minced leaves. The members who were not potion makers were taking at most fifteen minutes' worth of breaks, yet Hiros.h.i.+ was able to continuously do it faster than them without taking a single break. And of course he had an amount of work to do that was many times more than them. While true for any field, there was a hopeless gap between veterans and amateurs in skill level.

「Now that the preparation's over, just gotta brew it all together」

　While carefully measuring it, he began tossing the ingredients into the now-boiling distilled water. First he tossed in two cups of the grinded Age stems into the two-handled pot, stirring for ten seconds for them to mix. Afterwards, he mixed in the bark of the Dulk branches, stirring them again for about fifteen seconds. Once he confirmed that the color of the mixture had s.h.i.+fted, he tossed in simultaneously the grinded Dulk leaves and crushed dried Aslin roots as he softened the flame, pumping in magic while stirring it earnestly for about forty minutes. Gradually, the color began to change, and he removed the cauldron from the fire once it was a light blue hue.

「After that ya put the respective amounts in bottles and yer done」

　While absorbing away the heat via magic, he divided them into unused or washed two-handled pots for bottling and proclaimed it nearly finished.

「I'll help. How much should I put in？」

「A bit before the top. Ya don't hafta be super precise」

「Roger that」

　Just as Hiros.h.i.+ had instructed, they continuously filled the bottles using a ladle and funnel. As expected from Hiros.h.i.+ or the potion makers, despite directly pouring from the pots, nothing escaped the containers, flowing smoothly through. All of the guild members also put the lid on tight, sealing the bottles fairly well. Three hours after the procedure, around eleven o'clock, over three hundred antidotes had been completed.

「I think this is more 'n enough, but whadda bout you？」

「Yes. This should be good enough, even considering the amount of knights on campaign」

「Well, in terms of both ingredients and equipment, anything more 'n this is a bit too difficult, so if it doesn't last then I'd say give up」

「Understood. I will convey that」

　Once he had told Anne what was necessary, he moved to the a.s.sociation's store corner, looking for a pickaxe and hatchet he could use for excavation or harvest.

「I think I'll go with this 'n this for now？」

　This was only up until he began making them himself, so he merely selected whatever looked distinct enough. He followed up by using discretion to find a burly bag that could fit a lot of ore in it.

「Speaking of which, ain't there a place that lends out tools fer forgin' and whatnot？」

「And if there isn't？」

「Well then I'd have no choice but to make makes.h.i.+ft ones and step it up a bit at a time……」

「But that'll take us longer……」

「Ain't nothin' we can do 'bout that. Either way, if we need good equipment then eventually we gotta procure decent weapons 'n tools」

　She sighed at Hiros.h.i.+'s words. In this case, procuring proper equipment meant using a workshop and making the equipment yourself. So basically they would have to quickly get out of the inn and search for a wide-enough building. Or they would have to buy just that much land, gather resources, and build it themselves.

「Excuse me～」

「Yeees?」

　The woman in charge of the store, Myuzzel, rushed over to the counter in a big fuss when she heard Hiros.h.i.+'s voice.

「So this is all I want」

「All right. Please wait a moment, okay?」

　She started calculating it on some blackboard. It wasn't like it was a flat fee, and all she had to do was add the prices, so why was she throwing multiplication in there？

「Pickaxe and hatchet along with two bags in total will be sixty-five Chrones」

「Why so cheap？」

「We entrusted you with a rather sudden job, so think of it as a little service. As for the reward, we are currently in the middle of negotiations with the country, so please come again another day」

「Got it. Guess I'll gladly take the discount」

　Of course there was more to this, but it also wasn't anything to be on guard about. He had already stood out too much yesterday and today, so of course people would have their eyes on him. So there at least shouldn't be an issue with taking the merit.

「So I have a question」

「Okay, go ahead」

「Is there anyplace near here where you can get iron ore and whatnot?」

「Ore, you say……」

　Myuzzel thought to herself a bit when Haruna asked that.

「Right, so I hear you can find a little bit midway up Mt. Renne up north in the cliffside area～」

「A little bit？」

「Yes. No doubt you can find some, but apparently the quality and ma.s.s are nothing special, so it never really made it as a mine～」

　When Myuzzel said that, the two of them thought a bit.

「So why ore？」

「Well, it's nothing important, but we were thinking we might get cheaper equipment if we brought along the ingredients. Also, according to Azumkun, there seem to be alchemy or enchantments that you can use ore for, so we thought if we gathered them, it would be a good first step to becoming independent」

「Ahh, I see. I was under the impression that you intended to procure the armaments yourself as well」

　The two of them couldn't keep complete poker faces after Myuzzel had said that. Her smile was now a little different, and they realized their slip-up, but it was too late. However, this much was to be expected of a member of the Adventurers' a.s.sociation, no matter how unsuspecting they seemed to be.

「Well actually, though it is rare to see anyone of Azumsan's capacity, it isn't all that unusual to see some adventurers who to a certain degree make their own potions or armaments～. There are even those amongst the potion makers who have become adventurers in order to gather ingredients themselves or those who are learning how to forge in pursuit of easier-to-use tools」

「What are you getting at？」

「There are things related to forging in the a.s.sociation's equipment, so if necessary, please do let them know」

「……Understood」

　They were after all two young high schoolers. Even if they had more than enough battle prowess, they were not sly enough to outwit an adult in this fas.h.i.+on. Hiros.h.i.+ and Haruna realized it was futile to hide things from the Adventurers' a.s.sociation, so they gave up.

「Around here」

　Upon reaching the area they had been told about, Hiros.h.i.+ mumbled as they looked up at the cliff. It was the sort of mountain where normally only hunters or people in search of ingredients for potions would come, and there was almost no trace of what you would call a path, so the two of them had ended up having to walk endlessly along the animal trail. Since they both had higher-than-average resistance than regular people, they did not sustain any injuries from branches or thorns, but Haruna's clothing was frayed here and there, still desperately ripping a branch off from the tips of her hair.

　There had certainly not been small issues like this in the game, so even inevitable things like this were enough to convey that this was reality, and that was enough to overwhelm them. There were of course elements in which clothing could get dirty, but not to the point where sleeves or cuffs would loosen. Of course, this did happen from time to time in battle with destruction, but they would never end up catching onto tree branches or anything like that. It was deeply frustrating.

「I guess it's to be expected that in a place they say doesn't even have any promising prospects, there wouldn't be any proper trails……」

「Well yeah」

「Come to think of it, I've seen you sweeping around with that hatchet. Have you been gathering potion ingredients？」

「Somethin' like that. Well not just potions, but there are also things that can be used fer alchemy or as catalysts fer processing clothing」

　Hiros.h.i.+ said as he gazed up at the cliff. He seemed to have immediately begun excavation. To put it bluntly, Haruna had no clue as to what area had ore, but doubtless, the eyes of a craftsman were different.

「So you found some？」

「It's nothin' special, but I bet if we purify it then we can use it」

　That unreliable response was all that returned to her when she had inquired from Hiros.h.i.+ as he was beginning to dig into the cliff with his pickaxe. With that being said, he had a fine smile on his face and she found herself astonished that such a loser could make a face like that.