The Tower of Knowledge
Perhaps because the sun was still high, the city bustled with people.
"Wow, there are so many people."
Looks like it'll be fun to wander around.
"I guess it was just late yesterday after all."
We headed first for the commercial district. As expected of a commercial district—or whatever one ought to call it—the place was packed.
"Lots of merchants too."
With a city this large, there were plenty of people and a wide variety of goods. I scanned the stalls for anything that might prove useful for alchemy.
Just browsing the assortment was a feast for the eyes. And because we were dressed in a nun's habit and priest's robes, people treated us with remarkable kindness.
None of the more visible stalls held what I was looking for.
"This appears to be the apothecary Miss Julian was searching for."
"Really?"
At last the young master had found the shop we had come for.
Following him inside, a sharp herbal scent stabbed at my nose.
The old man who seemed to be the owner glanced at us, then lowered his head again. Customers had arrived, yet he showed no intention of attending to us.
"Well then, shall I buy some herbs…"
To demonstrate alchemy, an ointment would be the most straightforward choice.
"But what do you intend to use the herbs for?"
Come to think of it, I've never told the young master about alchemy.
"There's something I've been researching called alchemy. With it, you can make ointments from herbs."
"Ointments…"
"The ointments I gave the people—and you—yesterday were all made that way."
I grinned as I spoke.
"Is that so…"
The young master's expression brightened somehow. Ignoring that, I selected herbs effective for wound healing and gathered them up.
"Oh, this is here too."
It was the flower I had seen at the Nam household. Its juice possessed a paralyzing effect; I had once considered making a painkiller with it…
Seizing the chance, I took some of that as well.
"That flower…"
The young master seemed to be recalling some unpleasant memory.
"If you crush the flower thoroughly and extract the juice, it has a paralyzing effect."
I explained why I was buying it without a second thought. That did not appear to be the answer he had been hoping for…
Herbs and the paralyzing flower secured… Should I buy something with detoxifying properties next?
"Excuse me—do you have anything with detoxifying effects?"
No matter how many plant encyclopedias I had read or how many species I had memorized, I did not know everything.
The old man listened, then moved with deliberate sluggishness to show me a few herbs and roots.
"This one, if you decoct and drink it, works against insect venom. This one, if you simply chew and swallow it, works against plant poisons."
It was only natural that detoxifying herbs differed according to the nature of the toxin. Antidotes crafted through alchemy ignored such distinctions and worked on every poison.
But when compounding an antidote, would the same result appear even if the materials changed?
Mildly curious, I decided to buy detoxifying herbs of several kinds. And because I needed poison as a raw material for making antidotes, I asked about poisonous herbs as well.
"Poison? We don't deal in that sort of thing here."
Poison could become medicine if used properly, yet how many people ever used it that way? Far more often it was employed to kill.
That was why an ordinary apothecary would not stock it.
"Can't be helped. Then please just ring these up."
The old man eyed the selected items and roughly told us to pay one gold. The ordinary herbs would not have cost much, but the paralyzing flower and the detoxifying herbs were expensive. Such plants rarely grew wild and were usually cultivated for sale, or so I had heard.
"Here you are."
The young master produced a single gold coin. The old man tapped the goods with an air that said take them yourselves.
"Oh dear—we should have bought a basket first."
"Big sister probably bought one."
Thinking of my sister, who had not followed us into the apothecary, she was almost certainly shopping for something. The young master and I carefully gathered our purchases and stepped outside, where she was already waiting.
"Here."
My sister held a skewer in one hand and a basket in the other.
"As expected—she bought a basket."
"Yeah. I figured we'd need one."
The young master and I neatly arranged everything we were carrying into the basket.
"You bought skewers?"
"Mm. They're good."
She held them out toward the two of us.
"Th-thank you for the food."
The young master accepted his skewer with a faintly moved expression. I took one as well and bit into it.
It was a plain salt-grilled flavor. The young master's face looked slightly awkward.
Probably because the taste is so middling.
No matter how long we had traveled together and shared the same meals, would food like this ever suit a noble's palate?
Especially since the meat used for these skewers was scrap with no commercial value. Of course, for commoners like my sister and me, even this meat was something to be grateful for—but not for a noble tongue.
"It doesn't taste good, does it? You don't have to force yourself."
"That isn't it."
The moment the words left my mouth, the young master finished the remaining skewer in a single bite. Watching him force it down left me with the odd sensation that I was somehow bullying him.
"Shall we look around other places, then?"
"We should."
As expected of a great city, there was no shortage of sights.
"What's that tall tower over there?"
The tower stood in a corner of the city and rose to a considerable height. The temple nearby made it look less imposing than it truly was…
Yesterday I had only glimpsed it, and the temple had drawn my eye first, so it had not lingered in my memory.
"I know what that is."
"You do?"
"Yes. Besides the Order, Wizheim is home to one other famous organization."
"An organization?"
My sister showed little interest, but I was curious.
"The Magic Tower. It is also commonly called the Tower of Knowledge."
Ah—the place where all sorts of mages gather? The Master was probably affiliated with it as well.
"Yes. Every country has its own Magic Towers, but the one here is specifically known as the Tower of Knowledge."
While mages bound to a kingdom usually advanced toward combat, the Magic Tower that worked alongside the Metis Church was filled with scholars driven by a thirst for knowledge.
"Indeed—it's a place scholars would love."
If one desired particular knowledge or books, one could request the Church's cooperation. It was also an excellent venue for having one's research results recognized.
The Church examined the scholars' work, acknowledged anything useful, credited the research and the contributions, and then used its own influence to spread the findings across the world.
Mutual benefit—working together with one heart.
"Yes. Though from the kingdom's perspective, it is enough to make them weep tears of blood."
He offered a bitter smile.
The reason needed no explanation. The kingdom itself operated Magic Towers and academies to gather scholars and mages.
But… if one were a scholar, which would one choose—the Church or the kingdom?
The kingdom offered various forms of support, yet one was expected to pursue research that suited the kingdom's tastes. Lack of results became a problem. If the research one wished to conduct happened to align with those tastes, fine—but if it was deemed useless?
No support.
The Church, however? Nothing of the sort. Once you declared you were researching, support was unconditional. Even if the final results proved disappointing, the experimental data generated along the way was still recognized as an achievement.
Because of that difference, many research-oriented scholars knocked on the Church's door…
"The kingdom does everything it can to hold onto them, but it is difficult."
At least the Church, in order to avoid open friction with the kingdom, sold beneficial knowledge to the crown at modest prices…
Whether the kingdom was satisfied with that arrangement was another matter entirely.
"It's quite a complicated story."
"In exchange, there are that many more combat-oriented mages."
Though the outflow of research types was severe, the funds that would have been poured into them were instead invested in combat specialists, allowing the kingdom to build a formidable force of its own.
"So there are pros and cons."
"Yes."
The Magic Tower… I should visit it once before we leave. I might even hear some interesting stories related to the Master.
Passing through the commercial district toward the Magic Tower, the character of the shops changed completely.
"There are a lot of magic-tool shops."
"There might be some interesting items the scholars have researched."
Interesting items, huh…
"Shall we go in and look?"
I hesitated over which shop to enter.
"In times like these, the largest one is the safest choice."
That might indeed be the most reasonable approach…
After a quick survey of the surroundings, we stepped into the biggest shop. As expected of so large a building, the fixtures were impressive. Glass display cases held plants and other specimens arranged with care; the whole effect was beautiful.
"This is proper."
Eyes shining, I examined the magic tools—everything from everyday conveniences to more specialized pieces.
"Wow, there are even magic tools with alarm magic attached."
From what I had experienced while traveling and serving as escort, alarm magic was extremely useful.
A magic tool for that very purpose… The mana-injection point and the activation mechanism were separated so that even ordinary people could use it, or so the description claimed.
"That one consumes so much mana that ordinary people cannot use it."
"I-is that so?"
The young master clearly knew the item.
Come to think of it, long-duration alarm magic did consume a considerable amount of power. Could someone without mana or holy power really operate it…?
"Knights can use it without difficulty, so knight orders employ it frequently—that is how I know of it."
Ah… knight orders must set up camp on expeditions, so of course it would be useful.
"Haha, you know it well."
The shop clerk answered with a smile. The first floor was stocked with magic tools commonly used as daily necessities, though their forms differed from the ones I knew.
The water-generating tool resembled a water bottle and produced water inside the vessel itself.
The stove tool was shaped like a pot so it could be used immediately, and so on.
"Practical designs."
The water-generating tool we used in the village was more like a funnel; when activated, water simply dripped from the lower opening.
Of course the funnel shape had its advantages—compact, easy to store, less prone to breakage…
"That pot stove is a little tempting…"
If I had that, I could perform alchemy anytime with nothing more than a pot, without needing to set up a separate stove. Of course it isn't without drawbacks…
"Buy?"
My sister eyed it and immediately moved to purchase one.
"No—we already have a stove."
She had already bought a stove earlier, insisting we needed it. Having to use a separate pot was a mild inconvenience, but there was no reason to own two of the same thing.
"That one looks practical, yet it is surprisingly inconvenient."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. The entire pot becomes hot, so even the portion in contact with the floor is affected by the heat."
I marveled at how thoroughly the young master seemed to know the item. As though his words were absolute truth, the clerk offered no protest and simply kept his mouth shut.
"Have you used it yourself?"
"Yes, well… I used one during my academy days."
He smiled and related the anecdote; I could not help laughing.
The academy divided students into courses according to their intended path, and the young master had been in the knight course. Young men aiming to become knights lived and trained together…
"Boys at that age are in their growth period… so no matter how much you eat, you are still hungry."
Growing bodies demanded a great deal of nutrition, and training burned through stamina, so they ate even more. I had experienced something similar myself, though as a commoner the very concept of eating until full had been rare.
"Because there was night training as well, we were often hungry."
Ah… that I can understand.
"So sometimes we made late-night snacks before sleeping."
Since everyone came from wealthy families, they brought useful magic tools into the dormitories, and stoves were among them…
"We used that pot-type tool to cook our snacks, which was fine—until the floor burned."
It never actually caught fire, but the scorched floor left them in an awkward position. Being wealthy, they simply resolved the matter with money…
"An interesting anecdote."
He seemed to regard the memory as embarrassing and cleared his throat.
"In any case, after using it then, I concluded that a stove with a proper form is best."
Even if the size was a bit larger, something that would not burn the floor was preferable.
"Interesting."
Besides those, there were also magic tools shaped like showerheads that produced hot water.
Plenty of decent items, yet nothing I particularly wished to buy.
I finished surveying the first floor and decided to head upstairs.