Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Tenth Fragment, Artemisia
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"Judah! What happened?!"
Jeanne, who had been outside, must have heard the commotion inside the shop. She flung the door open and rushed in. The bell hanging on the door shook wildly. The bickering couple fell silent at Jeanne's sudden entrance. Thinking Judah was fighting the shop owner, she looked flustered despite how forcefully she'd thrown the door open.
Thanks to her, the couple seemed to realize someone was watching and calmed down, stopping their argument. Jeanne cautiously gauged the mood as she approached Judah.
"Did I come in at a bad time?"
"No, your timing was perfect. I was just debating whether to step in or not."
The female shopkeeper left through the door at the back of the store, tears streaming down her face. The middle-aged man remained, letting out a sigh as he apologized.
"Sorry about that. You saw an ugly scene."
"No, it's fine. But it looks like something's going on with you."
"Indeed, a long story. Sigh— I want to confide in someone. If you have time, would you hear me out?"
This was the quest. Though Judah already knew the details, he put on an intrigued expression and nodded coolly.
"Mm. Thank you. No good place to talk inside, so shall we go out? ...It's stuffy in here anyway."
There was a simple bench outside where one could sit and rest. Judah and Jeanne sat on the bench, while he perched his rear on the edge of the flower bed next to it, where a large tree was planted. Being in a secluded corner, no one passed by, making it perfect for conversation. A cool breeze happened to blow through as well.
"Belated greetings. My name is Edsel. I'm a blacksmith and weapons dealer. That woman earlier is my wife."
"I'm Judah, and this is Jeanne. We're adventurers. Bronze rank, though."
"I'll be silver rank soon."
Jeanne spoke from the side as if seeking a correction, but Judah showed no reaction. Unless she actually became silver rank, she was still bronze like him. Edsel chuckled at the exchange, finding it amusing.
"Right, bronze and prospective silver. Few adventurers for a party. Usually, they band together in groups of four or five."
"No suitable companions. Haven't found anyone as skilled and trustworthy as Jeanne yet. And the two of us are plenty. Bronze rank or not, I'm confident in our abilities. This dagger you sold me? Earned it all from commissions."
It was a quest directly from the lord, not the guild, but this blacksmith wouldn't know that. Edsel looked somewhat surprised at Judah's words.
"Impressive. Doesn't seem like a lie, which makes it even more surprising."
Judah shrugged. A brief silence passed between them. Natural, since they weren't old acquaintances.
"Not sure where to start. Mm. I have a daughter and a son."
He gave an awkward smile and slowly began to open up.
"My daughter took after her mother, my son after me. ...Looking back now, we were truly happy. The kids caused some mischief, but they were well-mannered. We lived ordinary, happy lives. Even in this shabby-looking shop, handed down from my great-grandfather, word of mouth brought in plenty of customers, so money was never an issue. But then, one day, my daughter suddenly fell ill."
"Illness."
Jeanne murmured sympathetically. Edsel, in a motion unfit for his burly frame, hunched his shoulders and nodded gloomily.
"Yeah. An illness. A rare one at that. No matter how much she ate, her body wasted away, and she kept catching all sorts of minor ailments. At first, we didn't know. Thought she was just frail, so we got medicine and visited priests for treatment, but something was off. No matter how weak her constitution, how could she catch three or four illnesses in a single month? Suspicious, we went back to the temple, but the priest said there was nothing wrong."
It wasn't nothing. Mana deficiency syndrome—that was the name of the disease Judah had set when creating this quest. Just as blood flows through everyone's body, people inherently carry basic mana. Mana is used to cast magic or reinforce the body for advanced swordsmanship, but normally, it greatly bolsters immunity against diseases. With mana deficiency syndrome, however, the mana that should pool inside leaks out like from a hole in a dam. Immunity naturally drops, making one susceptible to illnesses, and eventually, multiple diseases strike at once, leading to death by complications.
"Couldn't trust the temple priests anymore. So I sought out famous magi and alchemists in Aslan. They examined my daughter and all said the same thing: her mana was leaking out."
He let out a long sigh.
"When I asked what to do, they said it was a first for them, they knew nothing, couldn't help. But they mentioned feeding her mana stones might work. Mana stones from mana beasts inherently contain mana, so it made sense. I bought mana stones from mana beast cores and fed them to her. Thankfully, it worked. The kid, who was gasping like she was dying, could move around like before the illnesses after eating one."
"That's fortunate."
Edsel snorted at Jeanne's words.
"Fortunate? Heh. I thought so too. Money was tight, but at least there was a way to keep her alive. But no. It was just a stopgap. The leakage increased, so she needed more and more mana stones, and it tormented her to consume them. Preparing them tormented us too. Our savings dwindled."
"......"
"Then my son overheard something and insisted on going to the land of magic, <Calypso>. Che... che, what was it."
"Chercerian."
Judah supplied in Edsel's place.
"The mana herb's name. Looks like he went to fetch it."
"!"
Edsel's eyes widened in shock at Judah's words. Ignoring the gaze, Judah stared at the ground, swinging his legs as he continued.
"No idea who told him, but your son got lucky. The illness your daughter's suffering is 'mana deficiency syndrome.' Mana depletion disrupts the body's balance. Chercerian is an essential herb for treating it. Calypso has always overflowed with mana, drawing magi to live there, so even rare mana herbs elsewhere are relatively findable there."
"My god. That illness has a name? Even skilled magi didn't know it?"
It had to be unknown. Few knew of this disease. It wasn't famous, and truly rare—only dragonkin or the tower masters of [Langrissa's Magic Tower] in Calypso might know the cure. Of course, Judah didn't know everything about this world, so there could be more who knew than he thought. Judah glanced at Jeanne beside him and continued nonchalantly.
"I just happened to know. You know Serenia Castle?"
"Of course. The only region where fragments still haven't been found... and adventurers and mercenaries flock there hoping for a fortune from ancient magitech empire relics."
"Right. I'm from there. The lord built a library for his subjects, full of old magitech empire books. I read it there, so it's reliable."
"Th-then! Do you know the cure too?"
Judah looked at Edsel. His eyes trembled.
"Yes. But I'm not sure if it'll fully cure her. Just from a book. If the book's accurate, it should work. Even if not a full cure, it'll improve her condition."
Edsel rose, stepped in front of Judah, knelt, and grabbed his hands tightly. He bowed his head.
"I beg you. Help us. I'll pay whatever you want. Need travel funds? I'll give more. Please, treat my daughter? I beg you! Please cure my daughter! Whatever you desire, it's yours!"
「Edsel's Plea.」
[Edsel, owner of a rundown weapons shop in Phloria's capital Aslan, pleads with you earnestly.]
[Make medicine for his daughter suffering from mana deficiency syndrome, and he'll regard you as his lifelong benefactor.]
[Of course, this won't build fame, and the reward may not match the effort.]
[But you've given him hope. Since you said you know the treatment, why not help him?]
[Who knows. By aiding Edsel, you might...]
Judah carefully read the quest details in the hologram window before it suddenly glitched, halting mid-sentence and vanishing. He was startled.
"We'll help. So please stand."
"?"
Jeanne, sitting beside him, answered in his place. What? Judah turned to look at her. Meeting his eyes, she gave a look that said, 'You were going to help anyway, right?' As the flustered Judah opened and closed his mouth, Edsel bit his lip hard and trembled.
"Th-thank you. Truly. Thank you!"
A new window appeared before him.
[Quest accepted.]
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