*****

Armed with the information about the Necklace of Warding I'd gotten from Vanessa, I rushed back to Master Clein's workshop.

When I arrived, Leon was nowhere to be seen—he must've gone out somewhere. Master Clein was by himself, working on something.

He had a complicated-looking book in one hand, so it was probably a task he didn't normally do.

Maybe he figured something out about Magic Equipment.

「What are you up to?」

「I'm prepping some specialized materials. It's pretty tedious work, and it looks like it'll take quite a while. Unless you're making a truly extraordinary item, you'd probably never use these in normal alchemy.」

「Oh, so there's a high chance these are the materials used for the Arrow of Banishing, then.」

「I don't know the exact details yet. However, I've narrowed down the potential ingredients. It's pure speculation at this point, but I'm certain I'm on the right track.」

The various materials lined up on the desk weren't the kind of stuff we ever saw during our day-to-day work.

Some of them looked incredibly expensive. Where on earth did he manage to source all of this in such a short amount of time?

「Wait a sec... isn't this the material Leon got as a bonus from Obaba-sama?」

「Exactly. I find it hard to believe Obaba would dump an impossible task on us just for kicks. Working under the assumption that we already had the necessary ingredients on hand, the components needed for the Arrow of Banishing became clear.」

It was true that Obaba-sama loved an entertaining situation, but she didn't genuinely enjoy causing trouble or being a nuisance to people.

She just liked playing spectator to people's reactions and loved teasing them.

「Knowing her personality, she'd want to amuse herself by watching us agonizing over the problem, even though the hints to solve it are right under our noses. She's probably snacking on sweets right now, imagining how ridiculous we look.」

Ugh. Hearing him put it that way made me feel like my recent visit to her shop—only to get kicked out—was basically just serving her up the ultimate comedy routine on a silver platter.

Since I'd even brought her chestnut manju, she was probably stuffing her face with it at this exact moment, thinking...

『Heh-heh-heh! They're still tripping up on the absolute basics!』

...and rolling around laughing.

「Hearing it laid out like that, Obaba-sama really has a nasty streak, doesn't she?」

「That's hardly news. Everyone knows it.」

It felt a bit harsh, but considering she ran a total rip-off business, I figured she had it coming.

Just remembering how she treated the King was enough to make a noble girl like me lose her mind. It was totally unthinkable.

「But we got these materials before we even went out on the investigation. If your theory is right, Master Clein, does that mean Obaba-sama knew all along that things would turn out like this?」

「At the very least, an alchemist of her caliber would have easily deduced that the abnormal monster breeding was caused by Ancient Alchemy. And I bet having you craft the countermeasure was part of her plan all along, Mia.」

「...Thinking about how we've just been dancing in the palm of her hand completely kills my motivation. It makes me want to stubbornly do the opposite just to spite her.」

「Don't be like that. Obaba has been through a lot more hardship than you think. Besides, she wields enough power to actively defy His Majesty the King himself.」

「So you're saying she's basically on equal footing with the King...! How strange. Suddenly, I'm bursting with motivation!」

「Don't get motivated just by raw political power. You're as mercenary as always.」

Just as I was getting pumped up now that my career path as an alchemist was taking shape, the workshop door swung open. Leon walked in, carrying a massive bundle that he could barely fit in his arms.

He dropped the load onto the desk with a heavy thud, revealing a pile crammed full of slightly faded, ancient-looking books.

「I brought over the research notes from when Lady Vanessa made the Necklace of Warding. Since we're trying to nullify magical effects, I figured the core mechanics might turn out to be pretty similar.」

(T-This is perfect...! If I can get a better handle on the dual deployment of Formation and Enchantment, I'll be one huge step closer to finishing the Magic Equipment!)

「You read my mind! There was actually something I wanted to look into. The vibe is totally different from when I make EX-Potions, so my dual field deployment hasn't been clicking.」

「Well, they're completely different skills, so the way the mana flows probably changes too. Why don't we review the absolute fundamentals?」

「Yes, please! Keep the foundation-building for Magic Equipment in mind while you look through them.」

「Got it. Leave it to me!」

Watching Leon instantly dive into the books while Master Clein painstakingly prepped the complex materials, a warm feeling washed over me. I could really tell how much they trusted me.

That was exactly why I had to successfully craft this Magic Equipment, no matter what.

For my own sake, for the sake of the kingdom, and to live up to their expectations. And of course, to fulfill the lingering regret that Vanessa had passed on to me.

Whether I could find the ultimate answer or not... it was all up to me now.

「I'm going to test right now whether I genuinely have what it takes to make Magic Equipment.」

*****

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