Chapter 46: How Much! Just Tell Me How Much! (4)
Chapter 46: How Much! Just Tell Me How Much! (4)
“I-I’m sorry! I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that! I… I think this is a bit much…!”
What?
Why was I being rejected?
“What’s the problem? Was the amount not enough?”
I pulled another 300 gold out of my inventory.
That made 900 gold total.
If I gave her this much every month, it would be 10,800 gold a year. Over the three years remaining in Fay’s Academy life, I was essentially offering a total of 32,400 gold in support.
It had cost me 20,000 gold just to win the bid for Carla. This should be more than enough.
“Ugh….”
Fay staggered as if the sight of the gold doubling in an instant had made her dizzy.
However, she managed to steady herself and shook her head again.
“I-it’s not a matter of the amount! …It’s amazing that you’re willing to pay me 900 gold a month, Junior… but I still don’t think this is right….”
“Don’t be like that and just be honest with me. How much do you need? Or is there something else you want besides money?”
“I’m telling you, it’s really not that kind of problem?!”
A sigh escaped me at Fay’s unexpectedly firm attitude.
Fine. It wasn’t like I was short on gold anyway.
“Whew… I guess I have no choice. 1,000 gold a month! You know being any greedier than this is overkill, right, Senior?”
“O-one thousand gold?! That’s terrifying! It’s too scary…! Just what on earth are you planning to make me do for a thousand gold a month?!”
What else? Synthesis, obviously.
I planned to have her make everything from various potions to the miscellaneous consumables needed for dungeon raids.
Even though Fay was currently scraping by in this tiny workshop, she should already be capable of producing high-grade potions at this stage.
Once she succeeded in alchemical casting—her original goal—through her private research, I planned to dump a massive amount of equipment orders on her as well.
The quality might be a bit lacking at first, but once her proficiency built up, she would start churning out artisan-grade equipment.
Artisan-grade gear wasn't something you could just buy with money, so even if I sponsored her for 1,000 gold a month, I’d make my money back and then some in no time.
And as she synthesized this and that, the moment she eventually touched the Truth of Alchemy…
At that point, I’d ask her to craft a staff embedded with the Philosopher’s Stone.
Essentially, you could say my plan was to have her handle the entire production line for the party I would lead.
But if Fay kept acting like this, the whole plan would go back to square one.
As I watched Fay trembling while clutching her own chest for some reason… something welled up inside me.
No, seriously. This was ridiculous.
Why did I have to have this struggle?
If you don’t take this money, you’re going to die!
Unable to bear the frustration of ‘more money’ not working, I grabbed Fay by the shoulders and shook her vigorously.
“How much! Just tell me how much it’ll take!”
“Ugeck!”
Fay swayed helplessly back and forth in my grip.
Her hair, which already looked like a mess of dog fur, became even more disheveled, and her breasts, which her arms couldn't quite cover, bounced dynamically.
But none of that mattered to me right now.
“How much will it take for you to become mine exclusively?!”
“M-money isn’t everything in the world, Junior…!”
What…? Money isn’t everything?
That can’t be right!
If that’s true, then what does that make me, who was trying to throw money around relying solely on my inventory balance!
Surrendering to the stubbornness rising from deep within, I turned to look at Carla beside me.
“Carla!”
“Hup! Yes, Master!”
Carla, who had been wearing a dazed, dreamy expression, hurriedly wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth.
She looked like someone who had been watching a gripping morning soap opera.
What the…?
No, that wasn't important right now.
“Do you also think money isn’t everything in the world? Really?!”
“Uh… well, yes. Money isn’t everything.”
I can’t believe this…!
To think even Carla, whom I trusted, would think that way!
A sense of betrayal and gloom brought a sting to my eyes for a brief moment.
But then, Carla added with a bright smile:
“Because you are my everything, Master! You can’t even compare gold to that!”
“C-Carla…!”
Overwhelmed with emotion, I unceremoniously tossed aside the Fay I had been shaking—“Gack!”—and began to ruffle Carla’s hair wildly.
“Who told you to say such pretty things! Huh! Who!”
“Hehe….”
“Give me your chin, too!”
“Right here!”
As I tickled her under the chin with utmost sincerity, Carla wore a look of pure bliss.
“Hiee… just what kind of things do you have to go through to be trained like that…? W-was I about to end up like that too…?”
Fay muttered something from behind, but I couldn't hear her properly because I was too busy scratching Carla’s chin.
It probably wasn't anything important.
While I was cooling my overheated head by doting on Carla for a good while.
“Master, Master.”
The beaming Carla pulled her chin back and asked me.
“You can’t just suddenly say you’re going to sponsor her like that. You have to specify the terms clearly.”
“Huh? Didn’t I do that?”
“You only said she could use it however she wanted, but that she had to prioritize what you wanted.”
“That should be enough.”
“I’m saying it’s not enough.”
Carla shook her head, crossing her index fingers in an 'X' in front of her chest.
“Did you tell Miss Fay exactly what it is you want from her?”
“What else would I want from an alchemist besides synthesis?”
It wasn't like I could ask her to be the tank in a dungeon.
“Heh…? You wanted me to make things, not do things for you?”
Fay tilted her head with a blank expression.
What was she so puzzled about? Aren't they basically the same thing?
“Mmm. It seems you still haven't realized. Then, Master. What was the very first task you were going to commission from Miss Fay?”
“Crafting support-type potions for the upcoming dungeon practice. I have plenty of recovery types saved up, but I’m short on support types. If it were just me, it might be fine, but even with scrolls, there isn't enough for the whole party.”
“…Are you planning to do to the other party members what you did to me?”
“Well, the effect was good, wasn't it?”
As I shrugged, Carla instinctively stroked her own stomach with a look of disgust.
Hey! A speedrun requires that kind of sacrifice!
Fay, who had been listening to our conversation, cut in with a flustered voice.
“W-wait a second, Junior. You were planning to have me make potions…?”
“Yes. Potions are about the only thing you can make right now anyway, Senior. I heard that even freshmen in Class A go on dungeon practice after about a month, so I was going to use them then.”
“Not babies?”
“……?”
Doesn't failing at human synthesis lead to disaster in this world too?
That’s why the Philosopher’s Stone appears in H&A, but Homunculi don’t….
As I continued to tilt my head in confusion, I realized there was another way to make babies besides synthesis.
“Ah.”
Don't tell me she thought my sponsorship offer was that kind of… you know, the kind of 'sponsorship' people talked about in my previous life?
“No, exactly which part of it sounded like that?!”
“Hyah!”
When I accidentally shouted, Fay trembled like a frightened animal.
However, she soon squeezed out a look of courage and began to point out the reasons why she thought so, one by one.
“B-but Junior, you were trying to do p-puppy play with your maid in front of my workshop! Outside! In public!”
“Wasn't that misunderstanding cleared up? I only did that to quiet Carla down because she was telling me to reconsider since you might have a serious defect, Senior!”
“U-usually, don't people just persuade or order them to be quiet…? I-I see now that the maid is your slave, so you could have used an absolute command.”
“That’s true, but….”
I didn't want to use absolute commands on Carla if possible.
But explaining that felt a bit embarrassing, so I hesitated for a moment.
“See…! You just wanted to, u-uh, touch her butt! Pervert! You’re a pervert, Junior!”
“Urgh…! Even so, there’s no way I’d offer that kind of sponsorship to you, Senior!”
“Even though you were staring so intently at my chest…!”
“I couldn't help that! It’s instinct! Instinct! It’s not my fault, it’s your fault for being born with such ridiculously sexy breasts, Senior! I really came here because I needed your alchemy!”
I appealed my grievance with all my heart, but for some reason, Fay’s expression turned gloomy.
“You don't have to… tell those kinds of lies, Junior.”
“No, it’s not a lie….”
“I-I know… that I’m not good at talking… Just now, I was so happy because I thought you recognized my work that I just started blabbering… You didn't understand a single thing, did you?”
“Uh… well….”
It was true that I didn't understand what she was saying. Part of it was my lack of knowledge in alchemy… but more than anything, she was just rambling too much.
“More than that… you’re not the first person I’ve shown my research to… I’ve told other people too. B-but everyone said it was nonsense… and told me to stop wasting time and just make potions….”
There was a hint of moisture in Fay’s voice as she spoke.
“E-even recently, I actually got that kind of sponsorship offer from a visitor… I refused, of course… but it made me feel like no one is interested in my research anymore… and that made me… hic.”
I could sense it instinctively.
This was it.
The inner thoughts Fay was unintentionally pouring out now. These feelings, which one would never normally confess to someone they just met.
This was likely the cause that led to Fay’s suicide.
“Whew….”
I couldn't just keep pushing blindly with 'Sponsorship anyway!' and 'More money anyway!' like I had been. I opened my mouth a bit more carefully.
“You’re right. To be honest, I didn't understand a single thing you said, Senior. I don't know much about alchemy to begin with.”
“T-then! Then… why did you say you’d sponsor me…? Tell me honestly… is it really not for that reason?”
Her attitude was bordering on desperate.
I closed my eyes for a moment, recalling when I first saw the ending of the Fay Route.
How a woman with zero self-esteem became the Great Alchemist known as the All-Powerful.
With the help of my Excellent Memory trait, I reflected on all those scenes once more.
Slowly lifting my eyelids, I spoke.
“Because it’s cool.”
“Huh…?”
“I don't know alchemy well… but I know its essence is change.”
In H&A, using alchemy involved synthesis in a mini-game format, so I knew almost nothing about realistic alchemy… but there was one thing I knew for sure.
Extract, refine, and change.
These three processes were the entirety of alchemy.
“In the past, the Philosopher’s Stone, said to have been created by the great alchemist Paracelsus, was an all-purpose substance that could change into anything and trigger any reaction.”
Paracelsus, the greatest alchemist of all time, who existed only in the game’s lore.
In this world, the first Great Alchemist who must have actually existed in the past claimed that the essence of alchemy lay in change.
Therefore, if the conditions were right, alchemy could become all-powerful.
“You say a completed weapon from the start is impossible? Then how are those weapons made in the first place? By melting iron, hammering it, and sharpening the blade? By carving wood, attaching catalysts, and casting spells?”
I paused for a moment and shook my head.
“Swords and staves are ultimately just made by ‘changing’ their respective materials through specific methods. I believe that as long as the materials and techniques support it, there is nothing alchemy cannot do. All-powerful alchemy. How cool is that?”
“B-but… do you really think I can do that…? It’s a bit embarrassing to say it myself… but I’m just barely maintaining my grades, and I’ve never achieved anything significant… That’s probably why I haven't received any interest or sponsorship until now….”
That was probably true. However, I knew.
I knew the fact that Fay would go beyond equipment synthesis and one day even synthesize the Philosopher’s Stone.
Of course, that path wouldn't be easy. The sub-quests in the Fay Route were quite difficult.
But.
As long as I remembered that illustration shining in brilliant gold.
I could say it with confidence.
“I believe in you.”
“…What?”
“I can’t go into details, but I believe you can do things even greater than that, Senior.”
“…….”
I held out my hand as if to shake on it to Fay, who was staring at me with a dazed expression.
“So, this is an investment. If you accept my sponsorship now, you will be mine exclusively for life, and you must prioritize the items I ask you to make. Even if you become a Great Alchemist.”
“Me… a Great Alchemist…?”
I nodded and declared to Fay, who was looking back and forth between my face and my hand as if she couldn't believe it.
“You can do it. Because I’ll make it so.”
“…….”
As if possessed, Fay grabbed my hand.
Holding that small hand firmly, I let the corners of my mouth curl up into a grin.
“Good choice. You’ll never regret it.”
“Yeah… I-I won’t let you down either. I won’t!”
Fay nodded vigorously, half-sobbing.
Was it because she was so spirited?
Boing, boing.
Her breasts, larger than her head, shook even more violently than her hair as she nodded.
My gaze instinctively drifted downward.
“…….”
“…….”
“Senior. By any chance….”
“T-this is off-limits no matter how much you sponsor…!”
Fay instinctively tried to hug herself and cover her chest with both arms, as she had done several times before.
But fortunately, we were currently in the middle of a handshake.
And a handshake isn't something that's undone just because one person lets go.
Squish.
“Oh.”
Jackpot.
I couldn't help but nod at the soft sensation enveloping my hand.
I see.
I think I know why Fay was able to create the Philosopher’s Stone.
The Truth was right here.