The Half-Elf's Caution
The light tinkling of a bell rang out as Eloise and Chloe stepped through the shop door. The interior was quiet enough that the sound lingered for a moment. As they walked inside, the air felt strangely humid and heavy. The dusty atmosphere, thick with the scent of potent herbs and lit by dim lighting, created an eerily silent and damp mood.
Herbs of unknown varieties hung from hooks on every wall, cobwebs filled the corners, and countless potions and magical ingredients with indecipherable effects were scattered in disarray. Beakers holding herbs and unidentifiable creatures sat on shelves throughout the room, making it obvious to anyone that this was an alchemist’s lair.
“...Is this the right place?”
“Yes, sister. The shop is a bit dirty, but it’s said to be the longest-running store in this black market. That alone suggests the owner’s abilities are reliable.”
Chloe began looking around the shop again with clear interest. In one corner stood a massive black cauldron, inside which a liquid of mysterious and ominous color bubbled furiously, giving off a strange smell. Something spider-like crawled inside a bottle on one wall, and the musty, grassy scent of herbs tickled their noses. The whole place carried the atmosphere of a witch’s hut straight out of a fairy tale.
Eloise studied Chloe’s expression for a moment before moving toward the counter. Beyond the empty counter lay another space, hidden behind a beaded curtain. Drawing on her previous experience, Eloise lightly tapped the bell resting on the counter several times. Ding—ding— The clear ringing echoed through the shop, and soon movement stirred from inside. With a soft swish, the beaded curtain was drawn aside, revealing a figure.
“Hoo?”
“What… a customer?”
Chloe’s surprised voice mixed with the owner’s lazy, drawn-out tone and the cigarette smoke drifting from her mouth, suggesting the shopkeeper was hardly a diligent sort. Yet the owner’s appearance completely shattered that first impression.
“The shop owner… is a dark elf?”
“Half-elf, miss. One of my parents was a dark elf.”
The black-skinned elf scratched at her messy hair, took another drag from her cigarette, and answered. When she exhaled with a heavy puff, a thick cloud of smoke rolled out, prompting a small cough from Eloise.
“Oops, my bad.”
The elf quickly stubbed out her cigarette and settled into the chair behind the counter.
“Right, then. What brings you customers here?”
Eloise let out a small sigh and stated their business.
“So… you’re the customer who paid in advance last time?”
“That’s correct. The item was supposed to arrive today according to schedule.”
“Give me a moment. A few things came in earlier…”
Watching the owner disappear into the back once more, Eloise felt a flicker of anxiety. It can’t be that they don’t have the item, right? She had spent a considerable sum and had even brought Chloe all the way here; there had to be results.
Perhaps Lady Chloe will reward me generously…
Besides, if it was something Chloe herself had come to find, it meant the item wasn’t easily obtainable even by her family. How such a thing had found its way into the black market didn’t matter to her.
While she fidgeted with nervous energy, the shop owner soon returned. She carried a crudely designed box in her arms. As doubts about its storage condition surfaced, Eloise shot the owner a suspicious look.
“Don’t look at me like that. It’s not easy to store, so I keep it in a box with special measures.”
The elf’s response showed she had read Eloise’s doubtful gaze perfectly, making Eloise flinch.
“Here. So… what you’re looking for is Luna Spire? This is it, right?”
When the owner touched the mechanism on the box lid, a cheerful click released the lock. Hiss— Cool air rushed from the gap, easing the heavy atmosphere in the room.
Chloe and Eloise peered inside at the contents.
“Ah. Don’t touch it carelessly. It holds cold energy.”
“I know that much.”
As they examined the herb and felt the chill radiating from its roots, Chloe and Eloise met each other’s eyes and nodded at the same time.
“It seems to be what we’re looking for.”
“Whew…”
The knowledge that she had safely helped her filled Eloise with boundless joy. With this, she can recover again…
Relief bloomed in Chloe’s eyes as she gazed at the herb.
But the box was closed again almost immediately.
“Sorry, but after checking its condition, I can’t sell it.”
“…What do you mean?”
The owner’s sudden refusal to sell the item right before their eyes made irritation flicker across Chloe’s face. The owner gave a wry laugh and continued.
“Now, now. Calm down. It’s not what you’re thinking.”
“…Please explain.”
While soothing Chloe, Eloise asked in her stead.
“Well, it’s obvious, but you know how hard this is to get, right? I only obtained it by luck myself.”
“…Which is why I remember the price being set quite high. I paid that amount without any problem.”
“It’s not about the money. You’re planning to consume this to recover your mana circuits, aren’t you?”
At the owner’s words, Chloe hesitated before nodding. She had kept it secret from the other students, but a few weeks earlier she had pushed herself too far casting high-grade magic and suffered critical damage to her mana circuits.
Whether mage or knight, anyone striving to advance would eventually hit a wall. The ways to break through that wall and reach the next stage varied widely. The first method Chloe chose had been the standard approach—researching and practicing magic daily, pushing herself until exhaustion. Yet as time passed, impatience took root in her heart. No matter how much time and effort she invested, the wall refused to budge.
So recently Chloe had turned to a shortcut: borrowing the power of an elixir to smash through it. While it was a shortcut, it wasn’t illegal. It simply required enormous funds and valuable connections to obtain such precious elixirs.
Not all elixirs produced the same results. One potent enough to forcibly break through a stage was not only expensive but nearly impossible to acquire. Fortunately, as the daughter of a ducal house, she could satisfy both conditions. Of course, failure would carry considerable risk, but at the time Chloe saw no need to hesitate. Slow progress might have taken years, so she had rolled the dice.
It had been a gamble to overcome the wall, and it had ended in failure. Her mana circuits were left damaged, and even now she continued treatment by consuming elixirs secretly supplied by her family.
It was during this period that her loyal and adorable Eloise had cautiously offered advice. Rare elixirs frequently appeared in the academy’s black market, she said. Intrigued by the suggestion from Eloise—her closest confidante and pet among her many subordinates—Chloe had asked her to find suitable herbs or elixirs for her mana circuits.
As a result, Eloise had faithfully carried out the request. Thanks to her, they had obtained the precious herb known as Luna Spire.
Luna Spire grew only beneath moonlight, continuously absorbing the faint mana that descended from it and storing that power within. Its effects included rapid recovery of damaged circuits and helping the user sense the flow of mana with far greater clarity. A simple yet outstanding herb.
Yet despite that straightforward description, it was not something easily obtained.
Under the half-elf’s piercing gaze that seemed to look straight through her, Chloe finally nodded.
“Yes… I need that herb to heal my mana circuits. If you require more money, I’ll pay whatever—”
“Like I keep saying, it’s not about the money.”
The half-elf gave another wry laugh and scratched the back of her neck.
“This herb is exceptionally effective, but it’s also one of those with severe side effects if consumed improperly. Eat it raw and your mana circuits won’t be the only thing that suffers—your body won’t withstand the cold energy and will freeze solid. That’s why it can’t be taken immediately.”
“Then what should we do?”
“The answer’s simple. Separate the parts and process them into elixirs for safe consumption. And it just so happens this shop has an alchemist capable of manufacturing them?”
What Eloise had assumed was merely a list of precautions turned out to be self-promotion.
“In short, you’re saying it must be made into an elixir, and you want us to entrust the production to you?”
“Exactly. You consume it safely, and I receive a little extra for manufacturing the elixir.”
The figure she had imagined as a suspicious, witch-like being was simply an elf who loved money.