“Uah, young master, I missed you so much!”
“Ugh…!”
The moment Lucius left his room in the morning, he was ambushed by Mira’s sudden appearance. She leapt toward him and hugged him so tightly that he felt his ribs were about to be crushed.
“I was so scared. His Excellency is a terrifying man. I thought poor little me was done for. Thank goodness the young master didn’t forget about me.”
She certainly… is energetic.
Lucius pushed Mira’s face away with considerable effort, forcing her to back off.
“Let’s go,” he said as he began walking.
Mira quickly followed him, walking at his side while casting a curious glance at him.
“Where are we going, young master?”
“To the city.”
His answer surprised Mira.
“Eh? I thought now that the young master has permission, you would go straight back to training.”
“It will still take some time for my body to fully recover.”
Then it’s best to take care of all my errands while that happens.
“Ah, about that, I heard from the other servants,” Mira said in a reproachful tone. “It seems that while I was away, you caused trouble again, young master. Honestly, you really are hopeless if I’m not around.”
Lucius smiled coldly but said nothing.
“So then, what are we going to do in the city?” Mira asked, curious.
I had forgotten how talkative she is.
“We’re going to visit the old man’s shop.”
Mira made a displeased expression.
“You mean the shop of that ill-mannered girl?”
Lucius remembered that Mira’s first interaction with Thalia had not gone very well, which was somewhat strange given Mira’s friendly and overly familiar personality.
Well, it doesn’t matter.
He had no intention of making the two become friends. As long as they didn’t kill each other—or rather, as long as they didn’t do it in front of him—it didn’t matter what one thought of the other.
Leaving the estate, the two headed straight for the old man’s shop. When they arrived, they found it as empty as always, with Thalia behind the counter reading a book and the old man nowhere in sight.
“Hm, Lucius.”
Thalia quickly recognized him and waved. Her gaze then shifted to Mira, and a look of displeasure appeared on the girl’s face.
“And you.”
Her eyes returned to Lucius.
“Is that girl glued to you? Do you have to take her everywhere you go?”
Thalia’s words hit their mark, making Mira stomp her foot in frustration as she shot an irritated glare at her.
“I have a name, you know?! And I’m not glued to the young master. Just so you know, so far—”
Lucius raised a hand, silencing Mira. Thalia mocked this, which only made Mira even angrier.
“Where is your grandfather?” Lucius asked.
Thalia made an annoyed expression. It seemed she still wanted to keep provoking Mira, and Lucius’s actions were getting in the way.
“He’s in the back.” The girl glanced toward the door behind the counter. “Grandpa! Lucius came to visit you!”
“I’m coming!”
The old man’s shout came from inside.
A few minutes later, the door opened and the old man came out—his appearance, to say the least, was peculiar.
His face was completely smudged with soot, parts of his already sparse hair were missing, and his beard was half burned.
What was he doing back there?
Though curious, Lucius refrained from asking any questions, as he had the impression that doing so would only prolong the conversation.
“You took your time coming, brat,” the old man said in his usual gruff tone.
Lucius shrugged.
“There were some obstacles over the past few days,” he said without offering further explanation.
Their relationship was not close enough for him to share details of his… family problems.
The old man grunted in dissatisfaction, but instead of pressing the matter, he waved his hand dismissively, saying it didn’t matter.
“Anyway, you came. Sit down, we need to talk,” he said, gesturing for Lucius to take a seat.
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Let’s see what this is about. And maybe…
Lucius sat down and gestured for the old man to speak. Instead, the old man turned his gaze to his granddaughter.
“Thalia, do your grandfather a favor and go to old Uber’s shop to buy some Dorian roots,” he said as he tossed a coin pouch to her.
Then he looked at Mira. “And you, girl, go with my granddaughter.”
“Eh? Why do I have to do that?”
“Why does she have to come along?”
The two girls spoke at the same time, wearing identical displeased expressions.
“Stop arguing!” the old man shouted. “It’s dangerous for a girl to walk alone around here. It’s better if one goes with the other.”
The explanation made sense, but it wasn’t enough to convince them. Mira, in particular, turned her gaze to Lucius with an expression that said, I only take orders from the young master.
“Just do what the old man said.”
Lucius’s words were like a knife to Mira’s heart. She slumped her shoulders in defeat before nodding.
“Ugh, fine!” Thalia said, stomping her foot on the floor.
She still cast a resentful glance at Mira, angry that the maid had given in so quickly.
Then, without even looking at each other, the two girls left, leaving only Lucius and the old man in the shop.
“So, what is this secret matter that you can’t even let your granddaughter hear?” Lucius asked.
The old man’s expression darkened, a complex look on his face. Instead of getting straight to the point, he went behind the counter and took two glass jars from a shelf on the wall. One contained the roots of some plant Lucius did not recognize, while the other was empty. With the knife at his waist, he began peeling the roots from the first jar and placing them into the second.
The old man’s hesitation made Lucius realize that this must be a sensitive subject, so he let him take his time.
If I rush him, I have the feeling this conversation will only drag on even longer.
But Lucius did not like waiting.
“The girl’s father—my son—was a brilliant alchemist,” the old man said after a long silence.
Since his back was turned, Lucius couldn’t see his expression, but judging by the bitterness in his voice, he assumed it wasn’t a pleasant one.
“He graduated as the top of his class at the Imperial Academy,” the old man continued, “earning quite a reputation in the capital.”
His voice took on a harsher tone.
“He was stubborn,” he went on. “Too stubborn for his own good.”
The old man turned a questioning gaze toward Lucius.
“Tell me, boy. Do you know what neither magic nor divine power can fix?” he asked with a dry laugh.
Something that neither can heal…
Lucius pondered.
Magic was the reproduction of natural phenomena through gestures, symbols, or chants, using the mage’s mana as the bridge between the phenomenon and its representation. Although it was mostly used externally, it could also be used to heal injuries and illnesses.
Divine power, on the other hand, was an exclusive power of the God of Light, granted in part to his most devout priests, giving them the ability to cure diseases, make wounds disappear, eliminate plagues, and—so they said—even expel evil.
If we were speaking strictly of healing ability, divine power far surpassed magic, though it was not omnipotent either. The dead could not be brought back to life, and only the most powerful priests were capable of regenerating lost limbs.
No, there is something else that lies beyond the domain of both.
Lucius thought of something.
“You’re talking about… the human mind?” he asked.
“Exactly!” the old man nodded sharply. “Magic can create extraordinary things, and it’s also capable of immense destruction. Divine power can perform near-miracles. But neither can heal a disturbed mind, as you must have seen.”
Lucius nodded, already understanding where the old man was heading.
“And your son believed he could heal such people with alchemy.”
“That’s right.”
The old man set the jars aside and turned to face him.
“My son believed that through alchemy, it would be possible to do what neither magic nor divine power could.”
“And did he succeed?”
The old man shook his head.
“It was a failure.”
His gaze grew distant.
“And that brought consequences.”
Lucius finally felt that the old man was reaching the heart of the matter.
“The person who sponsored his research—a wealthy noble from the capital—was furious at my son’s failure.”
The old man clenched his fists.
“He thought my son was trying to deceive him, to swindle him out of his money. And so…”
His voice faltered, the next words coming out trembling.
“…So he had my son executed.”
Sadness gave way to rage.
“And as if that weren’t enough, that bastard made sure to drag my son’s name through the mud, defaming him throughout the capital.”
The old man slammed his fist against the counter.
“Because of what that bastard did, Thalia’s chances of entering the Imperial Academy are close to zero.”
So that’s it.
Lucius finally understood what the old man wanted.
“That’s why, boy, I need your help,” the old man said through clenched teeth. “I need you to use your family’s influence to secure a place for my granddaughter at the Academy.”
Just as I thought.
“And why is it so important for Thalia to attend the Academy?” Lucius asked. “You could very well teach her yourself. From what I’ve seen, she wouldn’t learn much more there than she would with you.”
A look of disdain appeared on the old man’s face.
“And you think I don’t know that?”
It was quickly replaced by bitterness.
“But do you think knowledge alone is enough?”
The old man gripped his wrist tightly.
“Look at me,” he said mockingly. “When it comes to herbs and potions, I dare say I’m one of the best alchemists in the Empire, yet here I am. In this world, if you don’t have the right connections, you won’t get very far, no matter how good you are.”
Lucius understood the old man’s reasoning, though he couldn’t agree with it. Yes, the old man was right that this was an unjust world—but only because he was looking down the wrong path, having lost sight of a fundamental truth. Still, that didn’t matter…
“And do you really think I’m capable of helping you with that?” Lucius asked, curious.
To him, it seemed the old man was placing an awful lot of faith in him.
“Hmph.”
The old man snorted disdainfully.
“You’re the eldest son of the Aster family, one of the five most powerful families in the Empire. If you can’t do this, then I have no one left to turn to but the imperial family.”
So he knew.
It wasn’t as if Lucius wore different clothes when visiting the old man than he did at home, so it was easy to tell he came from a good family. But there was a vast gap between that and concluding that he was a member of the Aster family—the family that governed this entire territory.
Sharp old man.
Lucius laughed inwardly.
“So, will you help me with this?” the old man asked with a gruff expression.
Funny that even knowing who I am, he still behaves this rudely.
Not that it particularly bothered Lucius. At this point, it would actually be strange if the old man acted any differently.
“Yes, I will,” Lucius said. “But there is a condition.”
The old man clicked his tongue.
“And what is it?”
He really is desperate.
If he weren’t, given the old man’s personality, Lucius would already be expecting to receive a few shouts for “demanding” something of him.
“I want the formula for your medicinal paste.”
The old man’s expression darkened.
“I figured it would be that.”
He said as he scratched his beard, muttering something to himself.
So, what will it be?
Lucius waited for the old man’s answer.
If I get this, I won’t have to depend on this old man’s fickle mood anymore, which is already a huge gain.
“Very well,” the old man said after several minutes of silent deliberation. “But I also have a condition.”
“And that is?”
The old man raised his index finger.
“You must not reveal the formula to anyone. Furthermore, you cannot distribute or sell it to others. Only you may use it. If you swear in the name of the God of Light that you will follow this condition, then I will—ugh—pass the formula on to you.”
That’s it?
Lucius replied immediately.
“I agree.”
The old man nodded, his expression both satisfied and dissatisfied at the same time.
“Then it’s a deal,” he said as he extended his hand.
“Then it’s a deal.”
Lucius shook the old man’s hand.
