Chapter : 08
Back then, I spent a lot of time following real estate agents around, picking up all sorts of useful tips.
After considering every possible factor, I finally managed to find this place.
Most of the previous tenants had already moved out, leaving the building almost completely empty. It was tucked away in a secluded alley…
Whoooosh!
Sure, the neighborhood wasn’t exactly safe, and it was far from the city center, but the interior was spacious enough to install research equipment, and it had excellent natural lighting.
Whoooosh!
In other words, there couldn’t possibly be a better laboratory for me.
WHOOOOOSH!
“…Sigh. The wind keeps getting in.”
I really needed to replace these windows with double-pane ones as soon as possible.
After unpacking my belongings in the only room that was still in decent condition, I slowly walked through the house.
It had been a long time since my hands had felt this itchy to start working.
At the Magic Tower, I never had a chance to rest because I was always cleaning up after my professor.
But not anymore.
From now on, I could spend my time doing only the things I wanted to do.
Unable to suppress the excitement of a true researcher, I spread the blueprint for my prototype model across the workbench.
A satisfied smile crept onto my face.
“Hehe.”
The Magic Tower had rejected this idea over and over again, calling it unrealistic.
But I knew better.
This thing was going to be revolutionary.
Despite all my grand ambitions, the very first thing I did after moving in was…
…go shopping.
“Hmm… I really need to buy some clothes.”
Normally, I only wore the research robes provided by the Magic Tower, so I rarely had any reason to buy new clothes.
But after taking a look at my wardrobe…
The situation was terrible.
I slowly looked at my reflection in the mirror, dressed in my shabby old robe.
“This is seriously the only outfit I own for going outside?”
If I wanted to become a successful business owner, I couldn’t keep dressing like this.
Appearances mattered.
“I’ll have to make time to go shopping later.”
But before that, there was something much more important.
I needed to prepare the bargaining chip I’d use to negotiate with Heon.
“You could call it a negotiation… or, less generously, a mild form of blackmail.”
Although Heon was the young duke, he was practically treated like an old relic hidden away in the back rooms.
All because of the illness he suffered from.
In the original story, the very first thing he did after regressing was search for a cure for this disease before trying to save the world.
Which meant…
As someone who had read the novel, I knew everything.
I knew what disease he had.
I knew how to make the cure.
And I even knew how it was supposed to be taken.
I planned to use that knowledge as bait.
In exchange for curing him, I’d ask him to invest in my business…
Or, if things went horribly wrong and the world headed toward destruction, I could ask him to lend me a hand.
“Which means the most important thing right now is gathering the ingredients for the medicine!”
Humming happily, I left the house.
The temperature.
The humidity.
The fresh air.
Everything was absolutely perfect.
“So this is why everyone quits their jobs.”
“Miss, how much longer are you going to keep looking without buying anything?”
“Ah, just a moment.”
I was standing on the outskirts of the town marketplace.
More specifically, I was in a narrow alley packed with merchants selling herbs and various ores.
After wandering around for over ten minutes, one elderly merchant had finally begun losing his patience.
Holding the list of ingredients I’d prepared beforehand, I carefully compared every item in front of me.
“Hmmmmm…”
Unlike the Magic Tower, where refined ingredients and research equipment were everywhere…
Now I had to build everything from scratch.
Fortunately, this particular medicine could be made without any expensive equipment.
“Is this crystal ore really from the southern Unix Mountains?”
The merchant, clearly annoyed by all my questions, lazily nodded.
“One Selling.”
“Whoa. That’s practically a steal.”
“Perfect! I’ll take it.”
I immediately handed over the money and completed the purchase.
To anyone else, the stone in my hand looked like nothing more than a dull grayish-brown rock.
Unlike mana stones, it actually drained mana from the surrounding land, leaving the soil barren.
Its only recognized use was absorbing contaminated mana inside laboratories.
That was why it sold for next to nothing.
But…
I knew its true value.
“Under the right conditions, this stone can become an incredibly important medicine.”
After checking the money I had left in my pocket, I headed off again to gather the remaining ingredients.
When I returned home, I carefully laid every ingredient out on my workbench.
A strange smell rose from the ore.
Mmm.
I’d smelled this countless times while doing experiments.
I actually loved it.
“Let’s begin.”
First, I crushed the stone into tiny pieces before washing it thoroughly.
Then I placed it inside a distillation apparatus and slowly began boiling it.
Meanwhile, I chopped, steamed, and roasted the herbs I’d bought.
Absorbing the ore’s properties directly would be dangerous.
The herbs would reduce its side effects.
After a while, I combined the distilled extract with the herbal ingredients and began brewing the medicine.
Before long…
The liquid gradually turned a clear, brilliant blue.
“Oh! Success!”
The original novel had said that if the solution turned blue, it meant the medicine had been made correctly.
Thrilled that I’d succeeded on my very first attempt, I quickly poured the medicine into several small bottles.
This potion retained the mana-absorbing properties of the stone.
As a result, it was especially effective against illnesses caused by excessive mana.
The disease Heon currently suffered from was a congenital condition in which excessive mana gradually damaged his nervous system, causing him to lose sensation throughout his body.
Once he drank this potion, the mana that had accumulated inside him would slowly be absorbed and expelled over the course of several months.
In other words…
As long as he drank one bottle every day, the root cause of his illness would eventually disappear completely.
At this point in the original story, his illness hadn’t progressed very far yet.
But it wouldn’t be long before he realized just how serious it really was.
The pain caused by the mana pressing against his nerves would become unbearable.
“And when that happens… he won’t have any choice but to take my medicine.”
Hehehe.
A sly grin spread across my face as I quickly packed the bottles into my bag.
“Perfect. My bargaining chip is ready.”
Now…
It was time to meet Heon Leonard.
Heon spent another day quietly shut away inside his room, letting time pass.
The duke had visited him only moments earlier.
“How are you feeling?”
“Don’t push yourself.”
The same empty words as always.
Yet despite their expressions of concern, none of them truly believed that the illness which had recently appeared could actually be cured.
Heon slowly drew the sword hanging at his waist.
He had been feeling fine just a moment ago.
Then suddenly, a sharp pain shot through the back of his elbow.
“…Damn it.”
Clang!
The sword slipped from his weakening hand and crashed onto the floor.
No matter how hard he tried to tighten his grip…
His fingers simply wouldn’t obey him.
It felt as though all sensation was slowly disappearing from his fingertips.
Everything became dull.
Sometimes, his hands even trembled so violently that he completely lost control.
It was a truly bizarre illness.
Most of the time, he felt perfectly normal.
Then without warning…
Pain would strike.
Or parts of his body would suddenly go numb.
One day his legs would lose feeling.
Another day his arms would become too weak to lift.
It felt…
As though his own body no longer belonged to him.
He had searched throughout the Empire for someone who knew the cause of the disease.
But no one did.
Perhaps because of that…
The young man once praised as a swordsmanship prodigy had gradually been pushed into the background.
“So what if I’m talented?”
The words that always followed were the same.
“The problem is… his illness…”
There were even rumors that the duke should hurry and adopt another heir.
Trying to drive away the depression threatening to consume him once again, Heon shook his head.
“…Ha. Here we go again.”
He was quietly rubbing his gaunt face when—
Knock! Knock!
A servant hurriedly knocked on the door.
“Young Master. You have a visitor.”
Heon looked genuinely surprised.
“…Me?”
Ever since his illness had worsened, he hardly left the estate.
Who would come looking for him now?
“A young lady, sir. She says she’s a researcher from the Magic Tower. We’ve already verified her credentials.”
“A researcher from the Magic Tower…?”
His brows furrowed.
Why would someone from the Magic Tower come to see me?
He didn’t know anyone there.
Had his father perhaps contacted the Magic Tower in hopes of finding a cure for his only son’s illness?
Filled with questions, Heon nevertheless headed toward the reception room.
If she truly came from the Magic Tower…
At the very least, she wasn’t likely to be some quack or fraud.
