WIEDERGEBURT Chapter 4

I was putting books back in their place as usual when I first saw her. At the time, I had no idea who she was. I would always find her at a table on the second floor of the library, a book sitting on the table before her as she slowly flipped through its pages. The way her eyes sparkled as she read made me keep my tongue, not that I could have talked anyway. This girl whose beauty made me think she was of divine origin made me tongue-tied to begin with.

Time continued to pass, I kept working at the library, and this girl kept appearing to read day after day after day. She wouldn’t always come. I would later learn it was only on the days when the Spiritualist Academy didn’t have classes. However, whenever classes were not in session, I would find her at the same table as always.

The girl had come again.

I was putting away several books near her, doing my best to seem unobtrusive. She was engrossed in her book. As someone who frequently read myself, I knew how annoying it would be if someone interrupted me.

Despite not wanting to disturb the girl, I made the mistake of looking at what she was reading, which caused me to exclaim.

“That’s The Tale of Anderil!”

The girl’s entire body jerked as though startled, which caused me to realize my mistake. I opened my mouth to apologize. Just as I was getting ready to stutter out an apology, she turned around to look at me, and I could have sworn my heart had stopped beating. Having seen her from a distance, I had already known she was beautiful. However, looking at her from up close, her enchanting loveliness seemed to have been enhanced a hundred fold.

“Have you read The Tale of Anderil?” she asked, her voice laced with excitement.

Somehow, I was able to miraculously reclaim my voice. “Are you kidding? I’ve read it over ten times! A young man leaves his home village.”

Her eyes grew brighter as she said, “He journeys across the land.”

“Exploring ruins,” I added.

“Confronting danger,” she pressed on.

“All for the sake of quenching his undying thirst for adventure,” we finished together before smiling.

“I’m Kari,” she introduced herself. “Do you come here often?”

“I’m Eryk,” I greeted before rubbing the back of my neck and offering her an embarrassed smile, “and I kind of work here, so…”

“You do?” Her eyes suddenly gained a hungry glint that would have made me take a step back, but there was a bookshelf immediately behind me preventing it. “In that case, I hope you can recommend some new books to me. I’m almost out of reading material.”

I took a moment to consider her. She had pretty blue eyes, the fairest skin I’d ever seen, and hair that looked as if it had been spun from threads of gold. Her outfit was surprisingly plain. The simple purple gown had no adornments and went down to her feet, which were clad in a pair of basic sandals. For some reason, I imagined she’d look better in extravagant clothing like the stuff nobles wore.

“I don’t mind offering you suggestions at all,” I said with a slight smile.

“Thank you!” The girl looked happier than I felt my simple act of agreeing to her request warranted, but seeing such a refreshing and joyful look on this girl’s face caused my own mind to feel like it was shutting down. I was pretty sure I’d become a puddle of goo.

And that was the day I met Kari.

***

I got up early the next morning. Given the ruined state of those clothes I had worn during my trek through the forest between Nevaria and the Demon Beast Mountain Range, I needed to wash them down by the stream near my house.

Nevaria had a number of such streams, and all of them were connected through a series of channels and irrigation canals. It made washing clothes and getting water convenient. Well, that was what I assumed. If I was being honest, I didn’t think it was nearly as convenient as the waterways and sewers of Midgard. Being able to pull water directly from pipes built into a building was way more convenient, and that was to say nothing for the Runes that helped heat the water, but I was digressing.

While I washed my clothes in the stream, I thought about the dream I had. It was more than just a dream. It had also been a memory of the time before the Demon Beast Invasion.

Kari and I had met before in a manner that was eerily similar to how we met this time around. That made me wonder if the day I’d gone back in time to was coincidentally the day she and I first conversed with each other. Perhaps our lives were tied together by the red thread of fate? It was an amusing thought, and one that made me smile, but I also would admit that it was unrealistic.

Whatever happened to get me sent back to this time had nothing to do with fate.

While a part of me did wonder why I had a dream about the first time I met Kari, I didn’t believe it ultimately mattered. I was here, in the past, and I had a chance to change our future for the better. Nothing else mattered to me.

After washing my clothing and hanging them on a clothing line inside of my room, I got dressed in a clean pair of clothes, black pants and another white shirt, and left my room for the library.

I opened today.

Work that day was awfully boring, but I’ll also admit I was quite restless. No matter how much busy work I did, some part of me couldn’t focus on anything I was doing. There was so much I wanted to do that day. I had to go shopping, and then I had to find a good training ground that was quiet and far from the main section of Nevaria. I wasn’t sure how long the shopping would take never mind finding a location where I could train without anybody stumbling upon me.

I did what I could to make the day pass swiftly. I put away books, dusted the shelves, and read when there was nothing else to do. Kari didn’t show up that day, but I knew she wouldn’t. The Spiritualist Academy had classes today.

While Kari didn’t show up, several other people did. Most of them were in their early to late teens. They were likely students at one of the lower-end schools. Education was compulsory in Nevaria ever since Empress Hilda came to power. Most students only took a basic three year course, which taught them reading, writing, and basic math. I helped some of these people when they had questions regarding books in the library, but most of them ignored me.

When Ms. Nadine finally came to relieve me, I couldn’t leave fast enough. I’m pretty sure I shocked my poor boss.

The first thing I wanted to do was buy a bathtub. It sounded like the least important item, but I would need that tub for part of my training.

Bathtubs were generally something used only by nobles and maybe a few well-off merchant families. Even in Midgard where baths were far more common, there weren’t that many people who had them outside of large sects, well-to-do individuals, and higher-end inns and bars. Having a bath in one’s home was considered a luxury that few could afford. Most people either wiped themselves down with a wet rag or bathed in a communal bathhouse.

There was a section of Nevaria called the Merchant’s District. While numerous streets had stall venders and the like, the Merchant’s District was the busiest. Not only did they have street vendors, but they also had a lot of shops, many of which catered to wealthier commoners like merchants and government officials.

All of the buildings were much wider in the Merchant’s District, and while it was called a district, it was really more of a town square… or maybe a circle would be more accurate. This section of the city was built around a wide, circular path made of stone. A large statue of Elandile Nevaria, the founder of the city-state of Nevaria, sat in the center.

I looked at the stern face of Elandile. The statue depicted a tall man with a wide, muscular build, a barrel-like chest, and a thick beard. He stood in a pose that made me think he was about to attack someone. The mighty axe in his hand was raised as if in preparation to bring it down upon the head of his enemies.

Shaking my head, I turned back to gazing at the variety of shops as I wove between the numerous groups of people walking alongside me.

All of the buildings here were wide and spacious. I assumed it was because they had a lot of goods to sell and needed space to showcase them. Some of the buildings were only one-story like the apothecary, but most of them were two. None of these buildings had windows. That made me pause for a moment, but then I vaguely recalled that windows were expensive in Nevaria because of how much time and effort glass took to make.

Maybe it was just me, but this place seemed a bit… behind the times.

I eventually found the place I was looking for. The shop was wide, two-stories, and the walls were made entirely of brick. Ceramic red tiles were used for the roofing. Again, there were no windows. However, there was a wooden sign hanging above the door that had the image of a bathtub. I could only assume this was the place.

Stepping inside, the first thing I noticed about this place was that it was larger on the inside than it appeared on the outside. Of course, this was because it was longer than it was wide. At a general estimation, I’d say from the front to the back, it was about 120 meters long. Filling most of the store were a variety of different types of bathtubs, but they had other appliances too. Most of them were bathing appliances.

No one was around to greet me. It looked like all of the people who worked there were already busy helping other people. That was fine. I had only come to buy a simple bathtub.

Wandering further inside, I began looking at the different types of tubs. There were a lot of options. Most of the tubs were made of wood, but there were a few that appeared to have been made of stone. One of them even looked like it could fit at least ten people. I imagined getting that out of this shop and into a house would be a pain. This was probably just a display to show off a model that would be made inside of the house.

A good deal of the tubs were shaped like a square. I wanted a round tub, and it didn’t need to be too big. Aside from not being able to fit a large tub in my room, I really only needed something that would let me soak my whole body in water.

“Excuse me, Ma’am. May I help you?” Someone finally came up to me. He was an older gentleman with graying hair and a goatee. His face was gaunt, and his eyebrows had strange curls at the ends. I was expecting them to wiggle any moment now.

“Did you just call me ‘ma’am’?” I asked with narrowed eyes.

The merchant paused, looked closer at me, and then blushed. “I apologize, Sir. I made a mistake.”

“Yes, you did.”

I knew it couldn’t be helped, that I had a very feminine appearance, but it was always annoying when someone mistook me for a girl. Part of the reason I couldn’t wait to begin training was so I could lose some of my feminine appearance. Once I gained a body that was more muscular and lost some of the baby fat softening my face, I wouldn’t be mistaken for a woman as often.

“I’m looking for a bath,” I began. “I want one that is preferably round. It doesn’t need to be large. However, it does need to be large enough that the water will come up to my shoulders when I sit in it.”

“Hmmm…” The man stroked his goatee while studying me, and I knew he was taking in my threadbare clothes. He probably assumed, rightly so, that I was of the peasant class. Even so, this man was either a consummate professional, or he knew better than to judge a book by its cover. A smile appeared on his face. “I believe I have what you are looking for. Please follow me.”

Walking past numerous large tubs, shelves covered in appliances, and other people, the man led me all the way to the back, where a single tub sat. This bathtub was very simple. It was a sturdy wooden tub that resembled a basin. It wasn’t round. It was oval. However, when I judged its size, I determined that it was wide enough for me to sit in if I extended my legs. The tub’s walls featured a U-shaped dip in the middle, and the two ends curved enough that a person could lean against it and relax.

“While we do not have any truly round tubs, this one should suit your needs well,” the merchant said. “It’s made of lacquered cedar. Not only is it comparatively ight and sturdy, but it’s well built. It was carved from one piece, so there are no seems. Water won’t leak out when you use it.”

I nodded while listening to his explanation. It wasn’t quite what I wanted, but I hadn’t seen anything resembling what I asked for inside this store. There were other shops that sold tubs. I was sure one would have exactly what I asked for. However, I had a lot that I needed to get done today, and I didn’t want to spend several hours buying a bathtub.

“How much?” I asked.

The merchant rubbed his hands together. “While this tub is well-crafted, it’s not very popular since most people prefer larger baths. The standard price for a tub is around 20,000 valis. However, given everything I just told you, I’ll sell this one for 12,000 valis.”

While the tub was important, I also needed to buy an alchemy set, ingredients for the pills I would need to refine, clothes for my training, and a map of Nevaria and the surrounding forest. I currently had 60,000 valis to my name thanks to the Spiritual Technique Scroll I sold to the Spiritualist Academy. This would bring me down to 48,000.

“Have you ever sold one of these tubs before?” I asked suddenly. The man winced, telling me everything I needed to know. It was hard to hide my grin. “How about you bring it down to 9,000 valis?”

The merchant frowned at me. “If I did that, my store won’t make any money.”

I shrugged. “If no one buys this, you will lose the money it cost to make in the first place.”

I could almost see the merchant’s thought process as he tried to figure out a counter argument to my haggling. He didn’t want to sell this at such a low price. However, it was also true that he hadn’t sold a single tub in this style before. If I didn’t buy it, chances were no one would buy it.

“I could always go somewhere else,” I added. “I’m sure there are other shops willing to give me a better deal.”

At those words, the merchant finally capitulated with a resigned smile. “Young sir would make a fine merchant. You have a deal.”

“Many thanks.” We shook hands to signify the deal was made, and I smiled as an idea suddenly came to me. “If you have people who can help me get this into my home, I would be willing to pay you an extra 3,000 valis.”

Which would bring it up to exactly what he wanted, but in exchange, I would also be getting help to get this tub inside of my room.

“A very good merchant indeed,” the man muttered with a chuckle.

***

Money exchanged hands, and the merchant had several large men help me carry the tub back to my room. One of those men hit on me. I’ll never forget the look on his face when I informed him that I wasn’t interested in him because I had a dick. I had this feeling his friends weren’t going to let him live it down either.

They managed to get the tub inside of my room. I had already paid the merchant for their services, so after thanking them, we all went our separate ways.

I still had a lot of shopping to do.

Since the biggest item I needed had been bought, I decided to buy a map next. It was the easiest item to get on my list.

The map store I entered was small. Covering the walls were numerous maps that varied in size, detail, and type. There were geographic maps, orientation maps, non-geographical spatial maps, topological maps, and general purpose maps.

An old man stood over a square table, not paying attention to anything around him as he used a quill to scratch at the surface of a large sheet of parchment. It looked like he was in the process of making a new map.

I ignored the man and looked over the maps currently displayed on the walls. What I needed was a map that would show me the locations of various natural features located in and around Nevaria. That meant a general purpose map.

Each map spread across the wall was done so at a height of about one meter above the ground. Below the map was a shelf that contained rolled up scrolls of varying sizes. My assumption was that they were different sizes of the same map. Following that theory, I searched out the map that contained the most details, grabbed a scroll that was small enough read while I walked, and went over to the old man.

He still hadn’t noticed me.

“I would like to buy this map,” I said.

The man finally stopped moving his quill, looked up at me, and then turned his head to look at the map in my hand. He wore a pair of large spectacles that looked more like magnifying glasses. They were specially made objects used by mapmakers when adding details into their maps.

“That map costs 500 valis,” he said in a tone that told me he wasn’t willing to negotiate.

I handed him the 500 valis. The man took it, then went back to what he was doing. With a shake of my head, I left the shop.

What a crotchety old coot.

***

Since I was already in the Merchant’s District, I went to a clothing store next. The shop I had entered looked like a combination of clothing shop and a seamstress’ paradise. While there were many premade clothes, they also had a lot of different fabrics. Leathers of various colors and hardness hung from the walls. Numerous types of silk sat folded on shelves. There was cotton, wool, and several other thick fabrics that were well-known for their durability. All of them were either hanging on displays or sitting in shelves and on top of tables.

Since what I wanted was to have custom made training clothes, I didn’t look at the premade clothing, and instead walked over to an older woman in her mid-thirties. She was currently taking the measurements of a woman who looked like she had just reached adulthood. The woman, more of a girl really, was standing topless as her measurements were taken. She wore nothing but loose-fitting panties tied together by strings.

“I’ll be with you in just a moment,” the woman said without turning around.

This lady must have some really good hearing to notice my presence without looking. Seeing that she was busy, I began looking at the fabrics around the store. I knew nothing of creating clothes, so I didn’t know what fabrics were good to use. Most of what I had worn before was dorogon hide, acromantula silk, and mythril armor.

Around five minutes after the woman had spoken to me, she finished taking the other young woman’s measurements. They spoke for a while before the younger woman got dressed and left. Then the older woman turned to me.

Large green eyes stared at my clothes as though they were an atrocity. I mean, they were, but it was still kind of rude. This woman’s russet-colored hair was tinted with streaks of gray. While she didn’t have many wrinkles, there were some crows feet around her eyes.

“I am going to take a guess and say you need new clothes,” the woman said, once more eying my outfit.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. “Yes, but what I’m looking for are custom-made clothes with a very specific design.”

“Oh?” The woman narrowed her eyes to peer at me. “Why don’t you tell me more about these clothes you want while I take your measurements? Come on, strip down.”

I removed my shirt, then slid my pants down. Like the girl, my undergarments were just two strips of fabric tied together by a string.

As I revealed my body to the woman, a startled squawk emitted from her mouth. I frowned when I saw her wide, round eyes. My frown deepened when I noticed her slight blush.

“Is there a problem?” I asked.

“No. There’s no problem.” The woman shook her head and recovered her wits. “Stand right here. I’ll take your measurements now.”

I walked to the spot she indicated and allowed her to use a knotted string to take measurements. She measured from my hips to my ankles, the circumference of my torso, the length of my arms, from shoulder to shoulder, the size of my chest, and so on. As she did all this, she conversed with me.

“Tell me about this clothing you want.”

Nodding, I described what I was looking for. “I want a vest, pants, and vambraces that are covered in pockets that are five by ten centimeters. The pockets should be as densely packed together as you can make them. This clothing also needs to be sturdy. The pockets should be capable of withstanding a lot of weight without tearing. I would also like vambraces to have the same pocket set-up.”

The woman was in front of me as I spoke, and the befuddled expression on her face amused me. She obviously had no idea why I was asking for this type of clothing. I guess no one had come to her with such an unusual request before.

“Well, I could certainly do that,” she admitted after a few moments. “It will take awhile for me to make clothing like that, though.”

“How long is awhile?”

The woman pondered my question for a moment. “Give me about… 30 days to make these. I have several other customers I need to make clothes for, and these will take time due to how unusual your request is.”

30 days was one and a half days short of half a month. While I was a bit depressed to know it would take so long for the clothes to be made, I also knew there were other, more important aspects of training that I needed to focus on before strengthening my body.

“That is fine.”

“I will also need you to make a half-payment up front.”

I hesitated before answering. “How much will this half payment be?”

“Given the nature of what you want, I’ll have to use more fabric than normal. I’ll also need to work with a sturdier fabric to make it more durable. This is going to increase the cost.” The woman finally finished taking my measurements and stepped back. She stared at me for a moment before speaking again. “I’d say the grand total will be around 5,000 valis.”

“So I’ll need to pay 2,500 valis up front,” I said.

“Yes.”

“That’s fine,” I agreed.

Once I gave the woman her half-payment, I left the clothing store and traveled to the apothecary, which was located on the opposite side of the Merchant’s District. After entering I glanced left, then right. Tables, stands, and displays containing various alchemy ingredients sat around, waiting to be bought. Because of all these ingredients, this place had a strong and rotten scent that made my nose wrinkle. It made me think of sulfur.

A man sat behind a counter. He looked up when I walked in. A frown marred his face when he saw my appearance. I guess my lack of alchemist robes made him assume I was just some random idiot wandering into his shop.

I ignored the look as I walked up to the counter, pulled a scroll from my tunic, and set it on the wooden surface. The man eyed the scroll like he didn’t know what to make of it.

“I would like to buy the ingredients on this list,” I said in a tone that I hoped conveyed my seriousness.

The man’s frown grew wider, but he took the scroll anyway. It was only after he unfurled it and began reading the contents that his eyes slowly widened. He looked back at me, and then at the scroll. His eyes finally settled on me.

“You’re an alchemist?” he said slowly, as though he couldn’t believe his own words.

“I only know how to make a few things,” I admitted.

“We do have these ingredients,” the man told me after glancing at the scroll again. “Hold on while I get them all together for you.”

The man stood up from his seat and wandered into the back of the shop through a door. The storefront was basically just a display. It showed you what they had. However, the ingredients were all locked safely within the backroom, which was more suited toward containing ingredients that could spoil if left out for too long.

He came back with several bags, all of which he set on the table. Then he took out a scale and weights and used them to weigh each bag.

“So let’s see,” he mumbled to himself. “That’s 2,000 grams of purple grass, 1,000 grams of nirnroot shavings, another 2,000 grams of kalt root, and a jar of spirit essence.” After he finished measuring each ingredient, he placed them into their own bag, and set them in front of me. “I’m guessing you plan on creating some beauty products with these? I hear stuff like that is popular among noble women. Anyway, your total will come to 6,000 valis.”

Confusion permeating my mind as I paid the man and left the store with the bags of ingredients. As I wandered home, I thought about what that man had said.

The ingredients I had bought could indeed be used to create some beauty products, but that was not their only use. When mixed together and refined, they would create the alchemy pill I needed to increase my training speed. These pills were decently common and easy to make. However, that man didn’t seem to even realize that these ingredients could be used in that manner.

I felt like something was off, but I shook these disconcerting thoughts away. After I dropped these ingredients off at my room, I would have one more stop to make.

The Alchemist Association.

***

I stood in an empty courtyard that contained several large buildings. Very few people were present. In fact, I only counted around 45 in total, and at least five of those people were alchemists. The other 40 were women who appeared to be between the ages of 35 and 60.

The buildings looked like they had once been majestic. I could see the remnants of several dragon motifs etched into the stonework; the roof was decorated with ceramic tiles, a sign of influence; what’s more, there were two large dragon statues located by the entrance to what I assumed was the main hall. Even the doors, large contraptions painted red and studded with gold, spoke of the majesty this place had.

Or rather, it spoke of the majesty this place used to have.

The walls surrounding the Alchemist Association had long since faded, there were cracks running along the buildings themselves, the ceramic tiles looked old and worn, the dragon statues were similarly unkept, and the doors looked like they were in great need of repair. Derelict was the word I would have used to describe this place. It looked like this place had fallen on hard times.

As I looked at the alchemists standing behind their stalls as they tried to sell their medicinal pills, I could not help but notice the hopeless expressions they wore. The desperation hanging over this entire area was so dense I could almost see it manifesting as a physical cloud of gloom.

Wearing a confused frown, I walked up to one of the stall owners. The man perked up as I approached. He looked as befuddled as I felt.

“Are you here… to buy something?” he asked.

“I was wondering if I could get a basic alchemy set,” I said. My confusion mounted as I saw what he was selling: Basic beauty products. Most of them weren’t even pills, just standard creams, powders, and lotions.

“An alchemy set? Are you an alchemist?” The man looked at my threadbare clothing. Judging a person by their clothing was quite natural since a person’s status could often be determined by the clothes they wore. I didn’t let it bother me.

“I know a little about refining, but nothing too extravagant,” I said.

“We do sell alchemy sets,” the man admitted with a sigh. “You’ll need to head into that shop over there to buy one.”

The man pointed toward one of the smaller buildings. It was one-story, square, and didn’t look larger than maybe 50 square meters. It was made mostly of wood. However, its foundation was made of stone.

“Thank you.”

I bowed to the man before turning around and heading toward the building, but I didn’t miss the destitute expression he wore when I did. This made me frown even more.

The inside of this shop didn’t have much. Several displays showcased a number of ingredients just like the apothecary had, and there were a number of tables showing off the different alchemy sets. However, outside of that and the table near the back, this place was very barren.

A young man who looked a few years older than me stood beside the table, his shoulder-length red hair containing hints of orange. He had brown eyes and a pale face. His clothing wasn’t as bad off as mine. The silk pants and red wool tunic were nice enough that he could have passed for someone from a decently successful merchant family, but even from this distance, I could tell that his clothing was in rough shape. He’d probably been wearing those clothes for a long time without getting them repaired.

“I’d like to buy a basic alchemy set,” I said.

“An alchemy set, huh? Well, you’ve come to the right place. That’s about all we have to sell these days.” The man wore a wry smile as he turned around. There were a number of cubby holes built into the wall behind him. Each one contained a box that had latches on the side. He went to one, pulled it out, and came back to set the box on the table. After undoing the latches, he opened it and revealed the alchemy set. “This what you want?”

I glanced at the alchemy set. Sitting inside were two 150 milliliter beakers, two 250 milliliter beakers, one 500 milliliter beaker, three 100 milliliter flasks, two 250 milliliter flasks, one 500 milliliter flask, a 500 milliliter measuring cylinder, two evaporating dishes, two stirring rods, a 250 milliliter wash bottle, a mortar and pestle, and a cauldron. Each object was set inside of its own indentation so it wouldn’t get jostled, and the items were all in good condition.

“This looks good.” I nodded and looked at the man. “How much?”

“24,000 valis,” he replied.

That was a fairly steep price. A basic set like this would only cost 12,000 valis in Midgard, but I had already begun to suspect that something was wrong from what that man at the apothecary said and how gloomy the people of the Alchemist Association seemed.

Given what I had seen so far, I didn’t argue and just handed him 24,000 valis, though I did frown when the young man stared at the platinum coins I was using with wide, shocked eyes. I guess seeing someone with such basic clothing using platinum coins was a shock.

“Do you mind if I ask why the Alchemist Association is so empty?” I asked as the young man counted each coin.

“What do you mean? Isn’t it obviously because alchemy has fallen on hard times?” The young man’s words contained both dispiritedness and sarcasm. “Ever since the great conflagration over a hundred years ago, many of our alchemy formulas were lost.” He sighed and shook his head. “Now all we can do is create basic beauty products and a few minor healing creams for burns and cuts. No one needs alchemy anymore. After all, why use a healing salve to heal yourself when there are Spiritual Water Techniques that work even better?”

“I suppose,” I said, not letting this young man know how shocked I was.

“It looks like this is the correct amount,” he said after counting all of it. “Congratulations, you are now the proud owner of a basic alchemy set… for all the good that will do you.”

While his sarcasm was a little annoying, I didn’t think he was trying to be rude. Like the man outside, this young man seemed to have given up hope.

I thanked him, picked up the alchemy set, and began walking away. As I walked down the stairs, doing so slowly so I wouldn’t fall and break anything, I thought about what I had just learned.

It was true that with Spiritual Techniques, healing someone’s physical injuries were a simple matter. However, alchemy had never been about healing physical injuries so much as spiritual ones. There were many diseases and ailments that couldn’t be cured with Spiritual Techniques. In fact, there were many problems that Spiritual Techniques would make worse. Alchemy had been created for the purposes of fixing those problems that Spiritual Techniques could not heal. This was common knowledge in Midgard. However, it seemed as if Nevaria lacked this common knowledge that I had been taking for granted.

Dispelling those thoughts, I continued traveling home. This knowledge I had unwittingly picked up wouldn’t benefit me right now. Perhaps I could do something about the Alchemist Association’s problem in the future, but for the moment, the most important thing I could do was train and grow stronger. I could figure out the benefits to introducing the true value of alchemy at a later date.