Chapter 24
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Please Give Me Some Mana Potion Ingredients
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Elisicia looked innocently at the black smoke rising from my Thunder Bolt and asked,
"Is it supposed to emit smoke like that?"
"No. These guys were only selling broken stuff."
When I explained the truth about Channel 4's exchange, Elisicia nodded.
"I kind of figured."
"You suspected?"
"Yeah. Every weapon we bought had something wrong with it."
Most of the weapons on Channel 4's exchange seemed to drop to half effectiveness or less if they weren't working properly.
You could tell just from the ones Elisicia bought, like the chainsword and the Thunder Bolt I was holding now.
'But these bastards put broken weapons up for sale.'
I briefly resented the people on Channel 4, but there was nothing I could do.
They preferred jelly over the food I uploaded, so no solutions came to mind right away.
'Anyway, I bought two Thunder Bolts for 3,000 points each.'
That meant I'd blown 6,000 points total.
Still, they'd be usable as blunt weapons, so I decided to keep them.
"So Channel 4 just lists busted weapons? What the hell kind of people do that?"
Rubyel immediately vented her frustration upon realizing the truth about Channel 4's exchange.
It made sense—she'd probably bought weapons from there too.
"Can't be helped. We already bought them."
"It's outrageous. They're profiting off the apocalypse for their own greed."
The main reason people from other channels bought Channel 4 weapons was to stop the end of the world.
Especially Channel 3, where they had to fight zombies, making Channel 4 weapons even more desperate needs.
'Channel 3 has Awakened, so they can probably handle zombies.'
Of course, not everyone had awakened abilities, so it had to be tough.
'Is there any way to supply them with working weapons?'
I thought about intact weapons from Channel 4, but it seemed impossible.
Channel 4 was a world facing doom from bugs too.
'In the end, no world has any leeway.'
Fortunately, Channel 2 was safer as long as you stayed in the labyrinth, maybe better off than others.
But you couldn't live in the labyrinth forever, so you'd have to venture to the surface eventually.
"Hee hee."
"...?"
In the meantime, I heard someone laughing and looked over to see Aila smiling happily in the corner.
But Elisicia, Rubyel, and Rian seemed to have an idea what it was about and didn't say anything despite looking at her.
"She must be checking the gallery reactions."
"People's reactions?"
"Yeah. She gets happy seeing people happy."
"Ah."
I understood immediately.
Aila loved helping people, so she was probably thrilled by the gallery responses.
'I uploaded a bunch of items to the exchange today.'
Among them, at Elisicia's recommendation, I'd even put up 30cm chicken skewers and beer.
The skewers and beer were for people hunting monsters, not just the first-floor survivors.
'Didn't expect Elisicia to think of them too.'
Maybe she was encouraging labyrinth hunting.
"Castaway."
Then Aila, who'd been happily scrolling through the gallery for a while, approached me and spoke.
I was flustered by how close she got—our shoulders almost touching, no sense of distance at all.
"Yes?"
"Do you know what the most beautiful thing in the world is?"
The most beautiful thing in the world?
"Not sure."
"It's people living their lives."
I pondered her answer and it somehow rang true.
But unrelated to that, I was curious why she was saying this now, so I played along.
"Haven't the first-floor people been living until now?"
"No. Until now, they were just dying slowly."
Aila responded firmly.
She said the people surviving day by day on the hero's rations were dying.
'In a way, she's not wrong.'
As I thought, Aila's voice continued.
"Now those people are truly living. All thanks to you, Castaway. It makes me so happy."
"Ah... That's great."
"From today, their lives will change a lot. Just imagining it gives me chills."
"..."
I couldn't respond to Aila's unfamiliar enthusiasm.
"So, Castaway. Let's keep helping people. I'll assist however I can."
"...Sure."
I gave a short reply and slowly averted my gaze to the gallery.
As expected, it was filled with talk about the items I'd uploaded that morning.
Beer!! From today, my goal is chicken skewers and beer!! [40]
Pickaxe is amazing lol Already made 3 points. [35]
Don't stop me. I'm tearing down all the labyrinth walls today. [37]
Looks like it was uploaded with the hero. [31]
So many item types today. Even weapons. [30]
Hardtack? Triangle kimbap? Snacks? Hot bars? Fruit? [25]
What's this? Why so many food types today? [42]
Definitely buzzing with energy.
'Aila must love seeing this.'
I pondered what to do next while looking at the current gallery reactions.
Channel 5.
"Yawn~"
The next day, Melani stretched lightly and opened her eyes.
She looked like a 10-year-old girl at a glance, rubbing her eyes with small hands before tidying her abundant hair.
"Hee hee hee."
She grinned at the chocolate and candy by her bed.
They spread sweet flavor in her mouth and lifted her mood.
"Ah. Mana potion."
Remembering the mana potion, Melani quickly dressed and headed outside.
Clank—
The sky outside was murky from the outer god's influence.
The entire continent had become a place where no life could survive.
"Mana potion~ Mana potion~"
The only safe spot was this forest where the witches gathered.
Melani popped chocolate into her mouth right away, savoring the sweetness as she walked.
"Lady Otil! Lady Otil!"
Thud thud thud—
Reaching her destination, Melani knocked on a house door, calling for the witch Otil.
Clank—
The door opened reluctantly to her knocks, but no one was behind it.
Melani, being a witch herself, took it for granted and entered, calling the witch's name again.
"Lady Otil! Lady Otil!"
"Sigh... Stop calling me."
At the same time, a witch soaked in exhaustion spoke weakly from a corner desk.
"Lady Otil! Didn't sleep again today?"
"Same as always."
She had short gray hair and prominent dark circles—Otil, the witch.
Otil sighed again at energetic Melani and asked her purpose.
"So? Why are you here? Delivery?"
"No. Please give me some mana potion ingredients."
"Mana potion ingredients? Why?"
"I want to try making mana potions."
Otil nodded at Melani's wish to make mana potions.
In this quiet forest, young witches had few amusements.
"Mana potion... Sure. Making them counts as play."
Thus, potion-making was a form of entertainment.
"Wait a sec. I'll gather the ingredients..."
Then Otil's senses picked up an unfamiliar scent.
Witches had innate talent for brewing, with heightened smell as a side effect.
"Hold on. What's that smell?"
"Huh? Huh? My, smell?"
"Something sweet."
Otil sharpened her focus, pushing aside her fatigue.
Under that piercing gaze, Melani flinched but pretended ignorance.
"F-Flower honey."
"No. Not that."
"Eek!"
Otil's eyes grew scarier as she approached.
Melani shivered and burst into tears.
"Waaah!"
Snap—
Otil snapped her fingers, sealing the sound from escaping.
"Crying first thing? You're an apprentice witch now—act mature."
"Waaah!"
"Fine, cry it out."
Otil let her wail unhurriedly.
Melani cried for 10 minutes before tiring and quieting down.
"Done crying?"
"Waa..."
"One more wail and I tell Lady Philote."
Philote was 540 years old, having raised Melani for 50 years.
She'd handled Melani's education too.
"L-Lady Philote?"
To Melani, Philote was scarier than the Archwitch.
"Still scheming. Fine, let's go to Lady Philote now."
Otil stood without hesitation and headed for the door.
Feeling the urgency, Melani grabbed Otil's hem with her tiny hands.
"Sob. I'll tell you."
"Spit it out."
Too young to handle cleverly—even by witch standards.
"Yesterday, from another channel..."
Finally, Melani spilled her story with Castaway.
Otil listened silently until the end.
"So he agreed to make mana potions."
"Show me the chocolate and candy you got."
"Ehh?!"
"Not taking them. Hurry up."
Melani pulled out the remaining chocolate and candy from her pockets.
Otil snatched them and inspected coldly.
"Good, no poison or curses. What were you thinking, eating handouts?"
"Castaway is a nice person."
"Castaway's human, right? Humans can't be trusted."
"No. He's really nice."
Sweet, tasty chocolate and candy.
Something this rare, given freely—Castaway must be good.
Melani argued that logic.
"Sigh."
Otil sighed yet again.
Melani was born right after the Archwitch's species extermination plan, ignorant of humans.
"Never trust humans. We're living like this because of them. Didn't Lady Philote tell you?"
"She said... they hunted witches one by one in the witch hunts."
"Right. Humans led those hunts. Why else would the Archwitch enact the extermination?"
Still, Melani held firm.
"He's really nice."
Otil looked at uncomprehending Melani with frustration.
Then she thought showing her human nature might be a good lesson.
"You say Castaway is absolutely good?"
"Yes."
"Fine. Let's check. See if he's really good like you say."
Otil declared confidently.