Published at 16th of February 2024 2:21 pm

Chapter 21. Alchemist At Work

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“Not all gods and their minions are bad. Summoners are evidence of that. They don’t help us for free. The covenants and contracts are demanding, to say the least. However, they acknowledge that the gods and greater nature spirits were in the wrong. Our ruling powers want to eliminate their contribution from the history books. They want to say we humans are winning this war alone, but that’s just not true.” -Excerpt from unknown summoner’s journal. They perished protecting Greyrock from a godfall in 120 A.Y.

R.I.P.

Nox felt pleased about the developments of the past week. He, of course, didn't enjoy watching Viktor physically and verbally abuse his sister, but everything else was going his way. After much discussion, the proud Oakheart heir had agreed to pay Nox twenty gold for his concoctions. The potent regeneration potion and Trap Foam had left a positive impression.

Standard merchant practices dictated pricing culture. The Trade Empire measured the material cost and multiplied it by three for internal sales. When selling to any ally, they set the price at four times the material cost. The numbers accounted for energy, facilities, and labor costs. The Artisan’s name carried value, too, influencing the sale price. When trading outside the empire, transport and brokerage further inflated the numbers.

Nox didn't let such norms limit him. After all, he was no longer one of Queen Mercer's subjects, and no one appeared to know the brewing costs. The shops had set prices for the standard healing, mana, and stamina brews. Everything else cost far too much for Nox's liking, and samples had told him they were far inferior to the products from Golden Isles. It explained Professor Das's surprise when testing his mediocre brew. Nox guessed the city lacked decent sources of high-grade materials, too.

When selling to Stefann and his friends, Nox had implied a batch of Trap Foam cost him ten gold coins in materials. In reality, it was half of that. A batch didn't produce five vials but ten. No one could call Nox out on the price since only he had the recipe for the concoction.

Word of Nox's sale spread through the students of Intermediate Dungeon Studies after Stefan used his vial in the test. Only he and his young female companion passed. The rest were demoted to the Beginner course. No less than three parties approached him for a batch and put down fifteen gold each as an advance. He promised them delivery in a fortnight. They all planned to attempt low-tier rifts at the end of the semester's first month.

Nox and Lillin went shopping with a much higher budget than they expected. First, they invested in more glassware. After the first Advanced Alchemy class, Vys introduced Nox to the production department's glass producer. The man had combined a sand conjuration cantrip with heating, Shaping, and Manipulation planets to become a glass mage. He had several coin-hungry and ambitious assistants under him. Their products were inferior in quality, durability, and finish, but they charged half that of the campus stores. Fortunately, Nox didn't need high-quality glassware. They needed to be brittle, so a simple throw against a hard surface would be enough to shatter them. Meanwhile, concoctions meant for consumption required sturdier containers so that they could handle the manhandling of the injured. As long as rough traversal and the jostling of combat didn't break the vials, Nox didn't care.

A small bribe moved Nox up the order list, and another couple of coins ensured he'd get delivery the following morning when the artisans would collect the second half of the twelve gold. He didn't expect it so soon and didn't complain.

Next, Nox and Lillin began procurement with a budget of fifty gold. Ten went towards materials for Trap Foam. Five got them enough for two batches of Sandman's Smoke. Another twenty gold went towards health, stamina, and mana pills. Nox intended to win merit with the production department by selling them a third of the products at just three times the material cost. The rest he'd peddle to other students or send Lillin out into the city to do her rounds around apothecaries and potion shops. Nox expected her feminine wiles to fetch him a decent amount. They spent the last of their coin on ingredients for an assortment of empowering brews. The shops in and outside the university campus had few of them, and the prices appeared far too inflated. Nox failed to figure out whether it was an issue of material costs, skill, or a couple of alchemists monopolizing the market. He hoped to sell and give away his brews as samples to get an answer.

Finally, Nox dipped into money he had kept aside for his necessities and spent five gold on rare materials for himself. He didn’t know whether he’d have the energy to make and use the brew, and he was in no rush. However, it was one of those things he had blown off for too long, using cost and time as excuses.

After spending the remnants of their funds on additional cauldrons, cooling flasks, and cleaning supplies, Nox called it a day. The sun had already set, and his stomach rumbled. Lillin had punctuated their time between shops by snacking on food out of her long-term storage, but Nox was more than happy to wait. The walking, talking, and haggling had digested lunch, and he piled his tray high. While the duo ate, more students from Intermediate Dungeon Combat tracked them down for Trap Foam. When they returned to the apartment, Nox had an order for another batch.

It was tempting to go to bed. The early morning and busy afternoon had left Nox exhausted. However, he had too much to do a too little time. Once Firstday came, Nox’s days would be far too crowded. So, he did what he did best: alchemy.

Lillin rarely expressed the urgency of her biological needs except for hunger. When Nox put her to work washing the new equipment, she groaned and resisted at first. She only relented once he promised to take her out for a night around the city using their profits. It would have to wait until the upcoming delve, but the thought sufficiently placated her.

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Nox only worked on the time-consuming elements of brews, which had no risk of spoiling overnight. Mana, stamina, and health potions used the same base. Nox preferred using the same for his empowering brews, too. The latter required extra steps to make them compatible. However, it allowed the usage of multiple brews in quick succession without overloading on counter-toxins which also got toxic when consumed in excess.

A single counter-toxin to cover all the brews boiled in the next biggest cauldron. Mou received all credit for the creation. She had standardized it across all of the Trade Empire’s alchemist houses. It suffered from one downside. Using any brews that didn’t use the same brew or counter-toxin increased toxin build-up, incited nausea, and caused significant stomach issues with symptoms ranging from mild burning to diarrhea.

In the final cauldron—it came from the portable alchemy kit and was the smallest of the lot—Nox brewed the Trap Foam’s base. It required a long cook, and Nox left it to simmer before going to bed.

After the week Nox had, he wanted nothing more than to sleep in the following morning. His muscles ached following the last Intermediate Dungeon Combat class. His muscles ached from lactic acid build-up. When Nox entered the workshop, he missed his Artisan’s Arm more than ever. It reduced the strain on the body since he didn’t need to move hot or heavy cauldrons and flasks. A handful of students in Advanced Alchemy used them. Their movements were slow and stiff, unlike the device with his custom runework.

Lillin wasn’t up yet, and Nox didn’t have the patience to wait. Trap Foam needed the least time to complete, so Nox attacked the task first. It didn’t need a counter-toxin or preservative. As long as he kept the cooled concoction away from the air, it would be just fine. Nox processed the ingredients and dissolved them in several smaller flasks. He boiled them one at a time and used Crystallized Essence as soon as their energies were released.

He ground them to a fine powder, working gently not to destabilize the glass. Then he weighed them on the alchemy kit’s scales. Using perfect measurements reduced wastage, and Nox found himself with excess essences. He stored them in extra vials and stored them in a bandolier.

Lillin entered the workshop around the eighth bell, carrying breakfast. She handed Nox a breakfast sandwich containing mushrooms, fried eggs, bacon, and sausages before emptying her storage space of glass vials. They were still hot.

“This is half the delivery,” she said. “Their master caught them taking side jobs. The rest will have to wait until tomorrow.”

“We have enough for the trap foam, I reckon.”

“The delivery isn’t for another two weeks.”

“True, but I want to give the brew some time to age.”

Galvanizing Touch activated the essences, and they fizzed while combining. As soon as the mixture achieved the correct hue, Nox cast Slow. He used a spouted ladle and sterilized funnel to fill each vial to the brim. As soon as he moved onto a new container, Lillin stoppered the last. They washed each vial thoroughly, dried and moved them to an empty shelf. Then they thoroughly cleaned the work surface, removing all remnants of the Trap Foam. They’d have an unmanaged mess on their hands if the solution cooled and reacted to the air. The enclosed space would only make it worse.

Lillin cleaned the cauldron while Nox ate and prepared the essences for all the recovery brews. They separated the base into four batches. He turned the largest of them into healing potions. Nox made equal quantities of stamina and mana recovery brews. Finally, he mixed in relevant quantities of the counter-toxin. Instead of bottling them, he left them in the cooling flasks and sealed them for the aging process.

Finally, Nox worked on the empowering brews. He had to consume mana and stamina pills to keep going. Meanwhile, Lillin disappeared to fetch them a late lunch.

The buffing concoctions were the most challenging of Nox’s recipes. He had failed to procure exact ingredients and was forced to make substitutions. It took him all day to separate essences and extract them. He successfully completed Feline Grace and Sprinter’s High. However, Sniper’s Eye was a failure. Nox knew it was too inefficient and toxic to consume. The Sigil of Immunity would prevent the brew from killing him, but he’d still suffer a horrible stomach ache and then end up dealing with the consequences for days.

The work had him so occupied he ended up having lunch for dinner.

“You need to go to bed,” Lillin said when Nox started another brew.

“I need this,” Nox told her. “Things might get especially ugly in the rift if I don’t have any Shaping at all. We need this.”

“You’ve got me.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. Affectionate gestures of the kind felt alien coming from her. “No rift lord has a chance against us as long as I’m breathing.”

“That might be true, but I’m the only one in my class that’s not made any Shaping progress.”

“It’s the first week, Nox. You can’t expect to be at the top of every class straight away. Talk to the dean like Diya suggested.”

“Yes, but I need this, too. It’s been far too long since I last checked my sigils. Immunity already took matters into its own hands and made a decision for me. I can’t let Sigil of the Artisan do the same.”

“Fine.” Lillin sighed. “But I’m helping you.”

“Good. I don’t think I can pull this off without an Artisan Arm. I’m going to need you for this.”

“Spatial Lock?” Lillin asked.

Nox nodded. “We’re going to need a spatial lock.”

It was the fastest of Nox’s brew. However, it needed the most complicated spellform, and the materials were far more dangerous than anything Nox had used to date. Nox had consumed the concoction once before, but Mou had done the brewing.

Lillin conjured a gravity orb and used it to lift the volatile ingredients without touching them. Then she cast a second spell which locked the cracked, glowing sphere in place. It only moved when the spell-casting hand moved. Nox cracked it gently with a hammer and extracted the fiery nucleus within. Then he cast Crystallize Essence and worked swiftly, hoping he didn’t screw up the process.

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