Chapter 2-15 : Meeting An Alchemist (part 3)
「Help each other…?」(Arcel)
「Yes. I want to do business with you.」(Kako)
Arcel’s eyes widened as if he had never expected I would say that.
「I can’t believe there’s a golden merchant who wants to work with me… I feel honored, but… For now, I can only make prototype magic weapons. I value my creations, but as you can see, none of them are decent. They’re not the kind of weapons that a noble lady like you would buy.」(Arcel)
He looked proud a moment ago when he showed me the flaming sword, but he suddenly belittled his own products.
I could tell that he wasn’t humbling because his voice tinged with frustration.
He values his work, but it seems that he feels dissatisfied because he still can’t make his ideal weapon yet.
「But, Arcel-san, even though they are prototypes, they’re still magic weapons. I bet they’re not cheap at all.」(Kako)
「Well, making each one of them cost quite a lot of money, of course. That’s why I told you I’m out of budget.」(Arcel)
「Right… Speaking of which, I was looking for an ancient magic weapon at first. I heard that ancient magic weapons are a lot superior to modern ones, but after seeing your magic weapons here, I realized that modern magic weapons have one thing that ancient ones don’t have, and that’s the customization.」(Kako)
「Indeed. Ancient magic weapons can’t be produced anymore. They can only be found in old ruins, dungeons, or graveyards, and you will never know what kind of magic or ability they have until you try them yourself. However, you can make modern magic weapons. You can just find an alchemist and custom-made a magic weapon with the ability you want.」(Arcel)
「Right? Sure ancient magic weapons are more powerful than modern ones, but I think customization is more important than that. With that point of view, I don’t think ancient magic weapons are superior to modern ones.」(Kako)
「Uhh, Lady Kako, I got your point, but power is not the only reason why ancient ones are superior. Ancient magic weapons have high mana efficiency. They can produce powerful output with only a small amount of mana. Even some of them don’t need mana one bit like the ones that have constant ability applied to them.」(Arcel)
「Constant ability?」(Kako)
「Yes. Meaning that the weapon’s ability stays active forever. Unfortunately, those kinds of items can only be made with the lost ancient magic technology.」(Arcel)
Weapons with abilities that stay active and don’t consume any mana, huh? That sounds incredible.
…Hm? Wait… I think I know that weapon ーNo. I HAVE a weapon like that!
That’s right! The dagger I got from Maitena-san!
It has lightweight magic applied to it. It stays as light as a feather even without consuming my mana.
Hold on… Does it mean that that dagger is an ancient weapon? Maitena-san didn’t say much about it, but Izack-san said that she got it when she became a knight, so it must be something like an item you get when you are promoted.
It might be an ancient weapon, but if my guess is true, then it might be a common one, not a rare one.
Well, even if it was a rare one, I don’t want to use it as a synthesis material, so I think I’ll stick to the plan.
Oh right, come to think of it, I have another constant-type ancient magic item.
Yes. My magic bag.
It continues to store my belongings and it doesn’t consume my mana when I put in or take out something from it.
I remember the peddler who sold it said that magic bags can’t be made anymore and can only be found in old ruins. (Ch 1-8 part 3)
Even though magic bags are ancient magic items, they’re definitely common-tier ones since many merchants have them. I wonder if magic bags were popular back in the ancient era. Still, they’re not cheap. If I remember correctly, the peddler said they normally cost twenty gold coins each.
「I see. Weapons with high mana efficiency and constant abilities, huh?」(Kako)
「Yes. We can’t make those kinds of weapons in the modern era, and even if there was a way to make them, it would be extremely difficult. I think that’s the biggest reason why ancient magic weapons are superior. Unlike those amazing weapons, modern magic weapons are weaker and have much poorer mana efficiency, like my weapons for example. They are overwhelmingly worse despite the high cost and high efforts I put into making them. They don’t sell well. I think the weapons made by apprentice blacksmiths sell better than mine… haha…」(Arcel)
Arcel laughed dryly.
Somehow, I understand his feelings. I can see why there are so many magic weapons lying around in this room.
They don’t sell, but he doesn’t want to throw them away because he’s spent so much time and effort on them.
「Say, Arcel-san, how much does each of your weapons cost?」(Kako)
「Well, their respective production costs vary, but I sell them for 35 gold coins each. I made about twenty of them, which means I have magic weapons worth around 700 gold coins here.」(Arcel)
「SEVEN HUNDRED GOLD COINS!?」(Sheila)
I was surprised, not because of the amount of money, but because Sheila suddenly stood up and shouted.
「These garbage worth 700 gold coins!? Unbelievable!」(Sheila)
「Ga… Garbage…」(Arcel)
「Aa… IーI’m sorry! I didn’t mean that! I was just… shocked by that amount of money!」(Sheila)
「Haha… It’s alright. You’re not wrong. Products that don’t sell are garbage after all… Haha…」(Arcel)
「Ugh…」(Sheila)
Arcel didn’t mind it and just laughed it off awkwardly, but I could tell that Sheila felt bad for what she said.
She sat back on her seat and scratched her cheek with index finger apologetically.
Anyway… It costs 35 gold coins each, huh?
I remember the clerk of the magic item shop I visited earlier said that a modern magic weapon normally costs around 100 gold coins.
Arcel’s are much cheaper probably because of their poor quality, but that’s what I’m looking for! Cheap magic weapons regardless of the quality!
「700 gold coins. I see. Alright. Arcel-san, I will buy all of them for 800 gold coins. What do you say?」(Kako)
「…..Huh?」(Arcel)
「Hm?」(Kako)
He tilted his head and looked at me with a confused face.
「I… I’m sorry, Lady Kako, it seems like I’m so tired from working nonstop for a few days that I start hearing things… I thought you said you would buy all my weapons. Haha!」(Arcel)
「Uhh… I did say that.」(Kako)
「…..Eh? Eh? Really…?」(Arcel)
He still looked confused, so I cleared my throat and said it again out loud.
「Arcel-san, I will buy all these weapons for 800 gold coins!」(Kako)
「EEEEEEEEEHHHHHHー!?」(Arcel)
Arcel suddenly stood up and shouted just like Sheila.
「Are you reallyー Am I dreaming!? I can’t believe someone will buy all this garbage from me!」(Arcel)
He’s so surprised that he said ‘garbage’ himself…
This guy…
「Why are you so surprised? I told you I would do business with you, didn’t I?」(Kako)
「Yeah, but I thought you just wanted to make a custom-made magic weapon or something. Are you sure you want to buy all of them!? Moreover, you will pay 100 gold coins extra!?」(Arcel)
「Yup. You need money to continue your research, right?」(Kako)
「Oh, Lady Kako! You’re truly a godsend! ーNo. You’re the goddess herself!」(Arcel)
「Ahaha… You’re exaggerating…」(Kako)
A goddess, huh? Well, I have the same face as the goddess who sent me into this world, so he’s not wrong.
The common-tier ancient magic item that was sold at the magic item shop I visited earlier cost 800 gold coins too.
However, with the same amount of money, I can get multiple magic weapons of the same level if I merge all these weapons with my Synthesis Skill. That’s a bargain, I think.
I’m going to spend most of the money I have right now, but I can just sell some top-quality equipment or jewels to get my money back later.
I reached out my hand to my magic bag. I was about to take out my money, but Marqise suddenly whispered to me.
「Kako ojou-sama, remember, the daughters of a noble family don’t pay with their own money.」(Marqise)
「Aa…」(Kako)
I totally forgot about that…
It’s a bit of a hassle to pay the money back to Father every time I buy something, but I have to get used to it, I guess.
After whispering to my ears, Marqise raised his head and looked at Arcel.
「Arcel-dono, we will send a servant to hand the payment later.」(Marqise)
「Understood. But… Lady Kako, let me ask you one more time… Are you sure?」(Arcel)
Seems like he still can’t believe it.
「I’m one hundred percent sure. You don’t need to ask that again. Arcel-san, let me tell you. Lord Kushaq, my father, told me that we, nobles, have to support people with potential. Just consider it as my support to you.」(Kako)
「People with potential…」(Arcel)
I played a lot of alchemy-themed video games in my previous life, but I know little about actual alchemists, so I have no idea if he’s an excellent one or not, but one thing I know is that he’s not the type of person who easily gives up judging by these many weapons he made and how persistent he is in continuing his research even though he’s running out of budget.
He might become an outstanding successful alchemist someday. Who knows? It depends on his efforts, but for now, I feel like I want to support him.
「Lady Kako, you’re too kind. I promise you I will not waste this opportunity you’ve given me. Thank you.」(Arcel)
Saying that, he bowed deeply to me.
「You’re welcome. If you find anything in your research, please let me know.」(Kako)
「Of course. I will hand you my research results from now on if you want.」(Arcel)
「Please do. That would be great.」(Kako)
I made it clear to him that I was his sponsor.
Now I have a personal alchemist!
I’ve secured a way to get myself magic weapons!
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