The Alchemist
What's the problem here?
Was this a different kind of gate from the one that had brought him from Belial to Earth? He hadn't created it himself, so there was no way to know for sure.
"Even a dragon couldn't pull this off..."
Back when he'd fought a freshly matured dragon that didn't know any better, the creature had fearlessly picked a fight and tried to freeze his mana.
And then it got the beating of its life.
Afterward, Karen had snitched to the ancient dragons he counted as friends, and the poor thing had taken a second round of punishment from them as well. A dragon that had only just come of age, slapped with a centuries-long grounding and sent crawling back to its nest covered in bruises. Pitiful, really.
"Which means whatever this is, it surpasses even that..."
Times like these, I miss that guy.
The Grand Mage he'd spent his last days in Belial thoroughly teasing — that friend might have known the answer. But he wasn't here now, so Karen would have to think it through and solve it himself.
Ah. That's right. The gods. That sensation... it felt familiar somehow.
Back in Belial, when he'd gone looking for a god to ask why people bent on destroying the world kept appearing, he'd come to in a white void. The atmosphere had been completely different, of course. His power had vanished then too, but it hadn't felt like it was being filthy stolen from him. If anything, it had been refreshing.
"Master?"
Samsaek called out, but Karen was too busy tracing back through that memory. The sensation of his power vanishing as he'd passed through the gate just now — that same helplessness.
"Sunbae-nim?"
Even as he thought, Karen's feet kept moving, following the combat team alongside Samsaek and Han Minjae. But the grim look on his face as he walked had both of them watching him with concern.
"Is it because this is your first gate? You don't need to worry at all! We've got S-Rank Hunter Lee Chaerin up ahead, and..."
Han Minjae kept talking beside him, but Karen was too absorbed in his thoughts. And then he reached a conclusion. Nothing had actually changed.
My power is mana, yes — but that's not all of it.
"They're all A-Rank Hunters too, so there's no chance of monsters reaching us back here. And even if they did, I'd protect you with my life!"
This kid never shut up, whether they were inside a gate or out of one.
"It's nothing. I just need to have a word with a god once this is over."
"...A god? You mean, like, the one up there?"
Han Minjae pointed a finger at the sky.
"Yeah, that god. When something happens that humans can't comprehend, there's only one being who can give you answers."
Finding out too late, the way he had in Belial — once was enough. Even if he couldn't solve it himself, he at least needed to know what he was dealing with.
"Master, something's off."
"What is?"
Come to think of it, Samsaek had been sniffing the air for a while now, and he was currently glaring with suspicion at Chaerin and the others walking at the head of the party.
"There's a faint scent I recognize."
"A scent?"
"A really faint, really appealing scent coming off of them. It's like... catnip and delicious food at the same time?"
The little guy claimed he couldn't remember, but Karen was certain he'd started as an actual cat before becoming a Spiritual Beast.
"Nobody's bringing catnip into a gate for no reason. Monster Pheromone, then?"
Monster Pheromone was exactly what it sounded like: a type of potion that emitted the scent of whatever food each monster found most delicious, drawing them in droves. In Belial, its use was strictly controlled except under specific circumstances.
Their mana potions are garbage, but they somehow managed to make something like this perfectly. Figures.
"So it works on Spiritual Beasts too."
"I usually keep my sense of smell turned off, but I switched it on just in case once we entered the gate, and something felt weird."
Well, having a sense of smell that good all the time would be exhausting... but it could be switched on and off?
Whatever. This little guy being weird isn't exactly news.
Karen had more or less given up on analyzing Samsaek. Of every living thing he'd encountered in over a hundred and sixty years, this one was the strangest — and not in the usual sense of the word.
"Can you tell who it's coming from?"
"Not exactly. The three of them have been walking together, so the scent's soaked into all of them."
"So we can't trust the scout hunter... Can you at least smell monsters coming from a distance?"
"Ah! That I cannot do."
"What are you talking about? Your nose is incredible."
"It is."
"Then why can't you smell them? That's just residual scent from before it was sealed. Even monsters specialized in smell can't pick that up at all?"
"Kku-ing, that one's a food smell, so I can. I'm not great at smelling things that aren't food."
His evolution as a Spiritual Beast seemed to have gone in a very strange direction... Maybe he hadn't started as a cat at all. Maybe he'd been a pig.
Anyway... so who is it?
Chaerin was definitely off the suspect list. This expedition was to save her own brother — there was no way she'd bring something like that along.
That left two suspects. Or three, counting the chatterbox walking right beside him?
I'll trust this one halfway. I've got work for him anyway.
If he hadn't known, it would be one thing. But now that he was paying attention, even with his mana reduced, a C-Rank was no threat at all.
"So monsters are going to swarm us soon? Should I say something now?"
"No. If this guy can only barely smell it, the monsters won't pick it up at all. And even if we catch them now, it wouldn't mean anything."
If they claimed they'd brought the Monster Pheromone for strategic use, there'd be nothing he could say. They might genuinely have packed it as an emergency measure.
But I can't just let it slide.
And besides, now that his mana had dropped below B-Rank, he needed to prepare regardless.
"You. Want to learn alchemy?"
Karen looked at Han Minjae as he said it. Minjae flinched under a gaze that felt like it was seeing straight through him.
"Pardon?"
The sudden question left Han Minjae looking thoroughly bewildered. It was what he'd wanted, but... this out of nowhere?
"...Of course I do!"
The answer came a beat late, but the volume passed. It was loud enough that the party up ahead glanced back to see if something had happened.
"Special lesson, gate edition. Samsaek, you too."
"Kku-ing!"
Samsaek, who'd been riding in the bag, shoved the glass cover open with a front paw and hopped down.
Wonder how the subspace is holding up.
He reached to open the subspace in his necklace, but it wouldn't open at all.
Figures...
He hadn't expected much. When he'd crossed over to Earth, every last item in it had vanished.
Then what about the Soul Subspace?
A crackling tear split the air as he reached out, and his arm slid through.
This one works.
From the textures his fingers found inside, the Soul Subspace was intact. That, at least, was a relief. The problem was that the Soul Subspace had limited storage and could only hold precious items, so there was nothing useful in it for the current situation.
"Then we'll have to source everything here. Han Minjae, you've got basic alchemy tools and harvesting equipment, right?"
"Of course."
Porters who packed supplies for a gate raid usually had no room for personal belongings, but Han Minjae was a C-Rank awakened with physical enhancement, which gave him the leeway.
"Class is in session. Both of you, go pick what I tell you to."
"Yes, sir!"
Han Minjae beamed, leaping for joy on the inside. If he actually jumped, Karen would probably grimace and maybe even change his mind.
I knew taking this porter job was the right call! Luck like this actually found me!
"You sure you can manage?"
Karen eyed the load Han Minjae was carrying. Could he even bend over with all that on his back?
"Sunbae-nim. I'm perfectly fine. This much weight is nothing."
Han Minjae bounced his shoulders with exaggerated confidence, insisting over and over that he was absolutely fine.
If I let this chance slip away, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.
He'd been expelled from the Association and spent a long time wandering like a beggar. Even then, he'd scraped by gathering herbs and running experiments, and he'd made it this far — only for Karen to appear right in front of him.
"Good. Samsaek, grab that red herb over there."
They couldn't fall too far behind the vanguard. And since he couldn't fully trust anyone, he had to keep watch even as he identified herbs to harvest.
"You — that plant with three leaves. Pick only the middle one. Don't touch the others. They spray poison."
"Sunbae-nim, why only the middle leaf?"
"That's the only real one. The other two are fakes, there to protect the plant. They don't do anything."
Every living thing instinctively possessed at least one means of protecting itself. A skunk's stench, a rose's thorns. But unlike on Earth, plants in Belial could actually kill you, which made things a bit more thrilling.
"You've got water in your pack, right? Drop it in there. Pull it out in twenty minutes — that's how long it takes for the toxicity to leach out."
"Next, one of the leaves hanging from that tree over there. Touch the branch and it'll bind you in an instant."
"Wow! That's amazing. I'll go right now!"
The kid ran just fine with that bulky, uncomfortable load on his back, a huge smile plastered across his face. Was learning something you loved really that enjoyable?
"I've got them."
"Good. Keep them stored properly."
"Yes! But Sunbae-nim, how did you learn all of this?"
"Experience. Books."
At first, books had been expensive and he hadn't even known how to read, so he'd learned everything the hard way. Later, once things got a little better, he'd had the luxury of actually reading.
"Hide!"
Karen, Samsaek, and Minjae were in the middle of gathering when Lisa's low, urgent voice rang out from up ahead.
"Sunbae-nim. This way."
Han Minjae, who had experience with the Ellinia Gate, quickly guided them into a dense thicket.
A deep, rolling drone filled the air. Not long after they'd hidden, the sound of something like a massive aircraft approached from the distance, growing steadily closer.
"Fairy swarm."
Two antennae sprouting from their heads, two pairs of wings etched with gorgeous butterfly-like patterns, bodies the size of a human head — Fairies.
"There's. So. Many!"
Samsaek wasn't exaggerating. There were so many Fairies that the beating of their wings drowned out the person standing right next to you. He'd practically shouted it into Karen's ear. Not that it was useful information right now — why was this little guy announcing the obvious at a time like this?
Karen finally understood why you absolutely needed a scout hunter in Ellinia. Without the warning, they would have been spotted before they could hide properly.
Once the Fairies had all passed, everyone emerged from hiding, brushing themselves off.
"We might as well take a break while we're at it."
At Chaerin's order, everyone set down their packs.
"So what were you doing back there?"
Lee Jeong asked, stretching as he looked at Karen.
"Teaching my junior while we're on the move. Picking some herbs while we're at it."
"Huh? And that's allowed?"
Lee Jeong glanced at Chaerin, who nodded. If any other porter or party member had done the same, they would have been chewed out for lacking tension — but Chaerin trusted Karen.
He wouldn't do it without a good reason.
"Karen, your heart's just as pretty as your face. A senior looking out for his junior like that — it's impressive."
Lisa's eyes curved in a smile as she looked at him.
"Well... if Chaerin says it's fine, I've got no complaints. Just don't get in the way."
"Come on, you're being so picky."
Lee Jeong, still clearly unimpressed, grumbled a leftover remark for good measure.
He's been hostile from the start.
But the reason was understandable enough. He'd probably never seen anyone bring a cat into a gate before. Even accounting for that, though, he was unusually fussy... not that Karen particularly cared what the man thought.
Lee Jeong, who'd been difficult from the moment they met. Lisa, who for some reason seemed to have taken a liking to him. He still had no idea who was carrying the pheromone.
"Bring me what you've gathered."
Thinking more about it wasn't going to produce an answer. He'd set that aside for now and do what needed doing.
At Karen's instruction, Samsaek and Minjae laid out the herbs they'd collected. A sizable pile accumulated in front of him.
"Here are the tools."
Han Minjae pulled from his pack a collection of long empty potion bottles, a water flask, a mortar and pestle, and a sharp knife.
"Mix the red herb we picked earlier with this leaf. Ratio of one to five."
He poured a little water into the mortar, added the herbs, then coated the mortar in mana and pounded until the mixture was nearly liquid.
"Good lord... I thought you were D-Rank? And you're infusing mana into it?"
As Lisa said, the entire party was staring at Karen's mortar in astonishment. The layer of mana coating it was extremely thin, of course, but even that was an extraordinary talent.
"High mana sensitivity, but a low maximum capacity, I'd guess."
Lee Jeong offered a sharp analysis befitting an A-Rank Hunter. Infusing an object with mana was naturally easier the more you had. But with D-Rank mana? He'd heard it was theoretically possible, but seeing it in person was something else.
"Must've put in a hell of a lot of work."
The way Lee Jeong looked at Karen shifted, just a little. Honestly, the pretty-boy looks had given him a bad first impression. A man ought to be solid and muscular, shouldn't he?
Ahem. Still don't like him, though.
"Water."
Karen, for his part, was completely absorbed in his work, oblivious to whatever was happening around him. He added the crushed herbs to the mortar and poured the water Han Minjae handed him until the vessel was half full.
"Knife."
He infused the knife with mana as well, then stirred, carefully regulating the amount until the mixture took on the distinctive color of the potion he was making.
It looked easy, but matching the force and depth of each stir to the shifting color was delicate, precise work.
Not much time. Need to work fast.
He didn't actually need to put mana into the mortar or the knife. But using it with precision sped things up considerably. Properly, you'd need a specialized stirring rod and a custom-made cauldron rather than a mortar — but it wasn't as if those were lying around here, so this would have to do.
"Is it okay to just... do it like that?"
Chaerin couldn't bring herself to interrupt Karen's concentration, so she asked Han Minjae, the junior alchemist, instead.
"I couldn't even dream of it. But isn't that how it is?"
"How what is?"
"You know — in martial arts novels, a true master beats a real sword with a tree branch. It's the same thing."
"That's so cool."
Chaerin murmured it too quietly for anyone else to hear.
Everyone's eyes were locked on every move Karen made.
It's beautiful.
Every step of the process unfolded without hesitation or obstruction, perfect and clean. In what felt like an instant, the potions were done.
"Your alchemy is as impressive as your face. I had no idea being an alchemist could look this cool."
"Hmph. An alchemist's still just an alchemist."
Good. That's exactly how they should think.
Karen had demonstrated the crafting so openly precisely to make them drop their guard. As he'd heard from Han Minjae, hunters' opinion of alchemists was about as low as it could get.
"Don't you think you're being a little harsh toward Sunbae-nim?"
Karen had deliberately stayed quiet, but the kid beside him bristled instead.
"Hey, hey. Drop it."
"But—"
A sharp clap cut through the air.
"All right, let's get moving again."
Chaerin clapped once to draw everyone's attention, then gave the order. The party packed up at her instruction and started toward their destination once more.
This wasn't a situation where Chaerin could take anyone's side. Even a minor dispute could become the spark for a much bigger problem.
"Sniff... to show such generosity and composure even after being insulted like that... Sunbae-nim, I could die now without a single regret. You are a god."
"Pfft... Master, generous? This human doesn't know a thing."
Samsaek shook his head even as Han Minjae wiped his tears and gazed at Karen.
What's with this kid now.
Han Minjae's look had already been a little intense. Now he'd become a zealous believer with a god standing right in front of him.
"Enough. Go pick those. We've still got a ways, so we won't be able to make a lot of potions with the time we have, but let's produce as many as we can."
Chameleon Potion, Slime Potion, Shadow Potion. It had been a long time since he'd made any of these.
"Kku-ing, I've heard this somewhere."
"Heard what?"
"Excessive potions are actually good for the body."
"Oh, whoever said that is a wise alchemist."
"It's from a game. Famous line from the MapleStory potion shop."
"...Stop talking nonsense and go pick those too."
Karen sent the two of them off and approached a tree — the kind he'd warned Han Minjae about, the one whose branches would bind you. He wrapped the potion bottles he'd just made in cloth and held them against the branches. The limbs snatched the bottles in an instant.
"That's it."
This tree killed birds that landed on it by grabbing them with its branches. But it also used those birds as bait, so it only applied enough pressure to keep them from flying away. Wrapping the potions in cloth would help them withstand the impact. He attached every bottle to the branches, then quickly sliced off the tips.
I learned this one the hard way, getting stranded in a forest.
Once severed from the tree, the dead branches lost their strength at the touch of human body heat, and naturally released the potions. Now he just needed to tie them to himself with some cord or similar, and he'd have a natural Potion Belt sourced straight from the wild. For an alchemist, a Potion Belt was no different from a scabbard for a swordsman.
Come to think of it, I have been taking it pretty easy.
An alchemist walking around without a Potion Belt. That said it all.
"Wow... that's incredible, Sunbae-nim. How do you just make something like this on the spot?"
Han Minjae, back from gathering herbs, stared at Karen's Potion Belt in awe.
"If you got dropped into another world with no supplies and no abilities, you'd figure it out too. If you didn't, you'd die."
"Haha. Sunbae-nim, your jokes are excellent too. Even your sense of humor is perfect."
Well, it had been hard, but it had made his skills grow fast. He'd also been ridiculously lucky, of course.
"Got anything like a light coat?"
"Of course."
It was a forest, so the nights would be cold — extra clothing was essential. Karen shrugged on the coat Han Minjae pulled from his pack.
"The belt isn't showing, is it?"
"No, it's perfect."
"Good. Oh — grab that golden insect too. That one's actually important."
Lucky. Even in a forest, those aren't easy to find. That just saved us some time.
In a way, that insect could be considered the key to this entire expedition.
"Yes, sir!"
Han Minjae ran off, and Karen gently ran a finger along the potion bottles at his side.
The amount of mana in his body? Important, of course. But it wasn't everything.
His essence hadn't changed.