Homecoming (3)
The young master's surprise visit hadn't changed my daily life in the slightest. That was only natural — we were commoner and noble, after all.
Besides, I had a goal of my own now.
I was going to make an ice bomb!
Having successfully created a Cooling Agent from the combination of Mystic Herb and Attunement Agent, this was a goal I could finally pursue!
"An ice bomb, you say?"
"Yes — basically an ice version of the Fram I made before!"
Sister Mary didn't bother asking what I planned to use it for.
"I see. So you intend to craft it using a method similar to Fram's, correct?"
"That's right. Though I'm not sure if I can even get coal around here…"
Gunpowder I could make if I put my mind to it. Sulfur was used as a medicinal ingredient, so a city like this would have it in stock.
Coal, however, was a different story. Blacksmiths used it from time to time, but charcoal was generally preferred — so whether any would be available was another matter entirely…
"Well then, shall we head out?"
I could have sent Priest Daniel on the errand, but today I decided to go myself.
I pulled out my outdoor clothes. Spring had drawn close enough that I figured I could manage without a heavy coat.
"You mean to go out yourself?"
Priest Daniel appeared, having somehow already caught wind of the news.
"Yes. Why?"
"To escort you, of course."
Ah, right. Come to think of it, Priest Daniel was stationed at my side as the Saintess's bodyguard, wasn't he? I mostly used him for odd jobs and errands, so it had completely slipped my mind.
"Then let's go."
Priest Daniel strapped his sword to his waist and took his place beside me.
An escort, huh… Well, this wasn't the first time I'd walked around with a man, so it wasn't awkward. How many times had I wandered about just like this with the young master?
We stopped by a few apothecaries and a blacksmith, picking up sulfur and coal. I planned to try combining Fram's formula with the Cooling Agent, but I wasn't sure whether to leave out the gunpowder or the coal — so I decided to attempt both.
No — attempting both was the right call.
Which was why we'd come shopping for materials.
"That's quite a load."
Buying this and that, I'd somehow filled both of Priest Daniel's hands to capacity.
"Hmm… is there anything else I should get…"
I considered picking up some wood, but that might be difficult. Maybe just charcoal instead?
"I feel like I should buy more Mystic Herb, too…"
I should have grabbed some when I bought the sulfur earlier. Stupid of me.
"Haha…"
Mm… Priest Daniel was looking pretty strained. Maybe we should head back for now?
"Let's head back for the moment. If we need anything else, we can always come buy it later."
"Understood."
I'd turned Priest Daniel — who'd volunteered as my escort — into a pack mule. But wasn't that exactly what they'd assigned him for? I was just putting him to good use.
When we returned to the old bookstore, The Master and Sister Mary were already at work on alchemy. Leaving the two of them to it, I set about organizing the goods we'd bought.
"You've returned?"
Sister Mary scurried over to my side as I sorted the materials and began helping.
"Yes. What were you two working on?"
"Well, The Master said the Cooling Agent seemed useful and wanted to take a few, so we made some extra."
"Ah…"
The Cooling Agent was a curious thing, true enough. I had no idea what The Master planned to use it for, but he was The Master — no need to worry about it.
"Well then, shall we start combining?"
"Yes. I'll assist you."
With Sister Mary's help, I began crafting the ice bomb.
Fram's formula was a combination of gunpowder, Attunement Agent, and coal.
First thing to consider: the Attunement Agent. Originally, I'd used Red Attunement Agent — fire attribute. So here? Blue Attunement Agent, surely.
I poured Blue Attunement Agent into the alchemy cauldron.
Next: the gunpowder.
It was the critical ingredient responsible for the bomb's explosion. Best to use it as-is for now, right? I added the pre-made gunpowder to the cauldron.
Last: the coal.
This, too, was a fire-attribute material tied to the explosion. For now, I'd try substituting the Cooling Agent in its place.
I measured out Cooling Agent in the same quantity the coal would have occupied.
"And now… combine."
I poured in Holy Power and stirred the contents vigorously. Unfortunately, the combination failed. The moment I infused it with Holy Power, I knew — this formula was a bust.
"Failure…"
The materials going into this were expensive enough that my hands nearly trembled.
But I gritted my teeth and moved on to the next attempt. Judging that the proportions weren't the issue, this time I replaced the gunpowder with Cooling Agent and left the coal as it was.
The result? Another failure.
"Ah…"
Two failures in a row left me a little disheartened.
"It's still all right."
Sister Mary, who had been making gunpowder beside me, offered encouragement. Right — trial and error was the important part!
I steeled myself and tried a variety of combinations. I swapped the Attunement Agent for Cooling Agent and mixed it with gunpowder and coal. Wondering if changing the Attunement Agent was the problem, I tried gunpowder with Red Attunement Agent and Cooling Agent, then Cooling Agent with Red Attunement Agent and coal.
The results?
All failures.
"Ugh, another failure."
After so many attempts, time had slipped away completely.
"Julian, we've run out of materials."
"What?"
"The gunpowder is all gone."
Ah, damn it… So we really were short on materials? Gunpowder stock was always low because the ingredients weren't easy to come by. Sulfur alone was a problem.
I'd also used a considerable amount of Red Attunement Agent. Ash powder was relatively easy to obtain, but burning through it this recklessly, I couldn't keep up with the consumption.
"Argh……"
Done. I was done! Looks like that was it for today.
"What will you do?"
"The sun's already about to set, so we should just call it a day."
It was a shame to have nothing to show for it. Would I need to find other water-attribute materials?
This was hard.
So hard!
I spent the next several days gathering materials.
When the temple sent money as "support," I nearly refused out of guilt — then I remembered the funds that had recently vanished and steeled myself to accept it.
"Ice bomb again today?"
"Yes. This time I even got hold of those expensive Bubble Stones."
I'd found them at a magic tool shop. A tiny thing no bigger than a thumb cost over fifteen gold.
Magic stones were generally expensive, but this one was even more so.
Still — if a Bubble Stone could make an ice bomb? The cost-performance ratio was so terrible I'd never be able to use it practically.
"Anyway, I've got to try combining them."
I attempted various combinations including the Bubble Stone, and every single one failed.
More materials vanishing into thin air. Thinking of the money spent acquiring them made my head swim.
"Urgh…"
"Julian, let's rest for today."
"Yes……"
With Sister Mary's help, I returned to my room, and the misery finally overwhelmed me. I closed my eyes on the bed and shut everything out. Too many failures — my head was killing me……
Had I been overcomplicating this?
The Bubble Stone? Maybe I never needed something that expensive.
Was the real mistake trying to use Fram's formula for an ice bomb in the first place?
Aaaargh!
I couldn't sleep. Intrusive thoughts kept flooding in, and sleep refused to come.
"Damn it…"
At times like this, the answer was to just find the formula cleanly and be done with it……
Where had I gone wrong?
I had no idea……
After fretting over it, I finally poured my troubles out to The Master.
"An ice bomb, you say…"
"I, uh, thought that if I could detonate the Cooling Agent, it might freeze everything around it…"
"Yes, the approach itself seems sound."
"R-really?"
"However — doesn't this Cooling Agent require a medium for its cooling effect to truly take hold?"
Ah… so The Master had been conducting his own experiments after taking some of the Cooling Agent for himself.
"That's right."
"Then wouldn't the bomb itself also need a medium?"
Huh?
Thinking about it, he was right. Fram's materials were gunpowder and coal.
No matter how you looked at it, neither of those could serve as a medium for the Cooling Agent.
The Bubble Stone? Same problem. The Attunement Agent's role was to bind materials together — it couldn't serve as the bomb's medium either.
"Th-that makes sense."
"As for the medium, water would likely be best."
"I agree."
Water and Cooling Agent would go in first. What else would be needed? Hmm… I figured the Attunement Agent should go in as well.
"Gunpowder would also seem advisable, for the explosion."
So gunpowder was necessary after all? But if water went in, wouldn't the gunpowder get wet and fail to explode? No — this was alchemy. The finished product might work differently.
What else would I need? Something to form the body of the bomb? What kind of substance? I had no idea.
"I'll try it right away!"
"Go on, then."
The Master smiled kindly. That was The Master for you.
His advice had been genuinely helpful, and it banished my restless thoughts in an instant. This was no time to sit around!
I headed straight for the alchemy station in the corner of the kitchen.
"Julian?"
Sister Mary was there, hard at work preparing dinner.
"Don't mind me — keep cooking."
Did I only have emergency gunpowder left? I'd originally set it aside as a secret weapon to amplify fire magic… but I'd use it!
I heard Sister Mary saying something, but I was so focused on what was in front of me that I didn't catch a word.
Water, Attunement Agent, gunpowder, Cooling Agent. I began combining the four ingredients.
Whisk, whisk — as signs of success began to appear, my heart soared. Of course! The Master's advice had been spot-on!
Thirty minutes passed, then about an hour. The contents of the pot had melted into a thick mixture, swirling together with a rainbow sheen.
By every measure, this looked like a success.
I couldn't wait to see the result.
A brilliant rainbow light bloomed inside the alchemy cauldron, and when it faded, a white — no, a sky-blue spherical object sat within.
"Success!"
I'd done it!!
I carefully put on gloves and picked up the contents. Even through the gloves, a faint chill seemed to seep through.
"Did it work?"
"Yes!"
Was this really a bomb? Should I test it myself? But where?
I couldn't contain the thrumming excitement in my chest.
"I'm going to go try it out!"
Before Sister Mary could stop me, I snatched up the finished product and bolted outside, heading for a deserted alley.
"Heh heh heh…"
Unable to hold back any longer, I began channeling Holy Power into the finished product.
As the Holy Power flowed in, white frost began forming around the sphere, and a cold aura radiated from my hand.
The moment I felt it reach the critical point, I hurled it toward a distant open lot.
Something like a spatial contraction rippled from the white sphere. What followed was a release of pure cold.
Crack!
A wave of chill blasted outward, and ice carpeted the ground where the finished product had landed. Anything nearby would have frozen solid just the same.
So it freezes whatever the cold touches…?
The feel of using it wasn't bad. The only problem was the chill that transferred to my hand during the power-infusion process.
"Well, either way — ice bomb complete…!"
What should I name it? "Ice Bomb" was too straightforward and uninspired…
Should I just use a term from the games I used to play?
Yeah. Let's go with that.
"The name is Lehern — that settles it!"
I was already familiar with it, and if I tried naming it myself, it'd end up something vague and ugly for sure. Yep! Lehern it was!