Chapter 123 Synthesis Cauldron
――It had already been several weeks since I took refuge in the village of Rustu's people.
Just as Sieg-san and the others said, this village has an extremely powerful barrier, and thanks to that, I can live peaceful days without fear of monster attacks. However, my contact with the outside world is almost completely cut off――if I go outside the village to make contact, the possibility of being found by monsters increases, so I don't know what's happening in the royal capital or how the Heroes are doing.
The village is small, but there are many children, and it's full of energy. I heard that this village is where some of Rustu's people's children come to live until they reach a certain age. Even excluding the children, there are many relatively young villagers, and I don't feel any hostility like before.
――I'm teaching the children in this village how to synthesize. I couldn't just spend my days idly, so I offered to teach them as a way of repaying their kindness for taking me in.
Even without specialized synthesis equipment, as long as we have an environment where we can heat up herbs and pure water to brew medicine, synthesizing healing potions is possible. And fortunately, the village already makes healing potions regularly――probably as a precaution against unexpected attacks――so we have all the necessary materials and equipment.
"Laura-oneechan, how's it going?"
A boy with amber-colored eyes ran up to me, holding a healing potion in his hand. I took the potion from him and examined it in the light.
It's not cloudy, and it doesn't have a stimulating smell. I dipped my finger in it and licked it, and it doesn't taste bitter either. It's perfect.
"Yeah, it's perfect!"
The boy smiled happily when I praised him.
The children of Rustu's people are all excellent. They absorb knowledge like a sponge when I teach them, and they quickly put it into practice. It reminds me of my junior, Iris.
"Ah! Hey, you! Be careful, that's dangerous!"
I could hear Elvira scolding a kid from a distance. She's already like an older sister here. But she's not half-bad, and she's taking good care of them too.
In the midst of a lively synthesis meeting, a beautiful woman appeared. With her silver hair and red eyes, she was Gina-san, the leader of this village.
"Laura-sama, Elvira-sama. Sorry, but could you take care of the kids for me..."
"No need to apologize, it's nothing... They're all so quick to understand, it's amazing."
Gina-san smiled brightly, looking really happy. She seemed to be treating the kids in this village like her own.
"Now that lunch is ready, why don't we all eat together? The weather is great today, so let's..."
"Yes, please!"
We all nodded to the lunch invitation and headed outside together.
This village, which spread out like a forest, reminded me of Emme Village back home. But even though the buildings here were grand and the facilities were top-notch, just like the royal capital, there was something cozy about the scenery surrounded by trees and the close-knit community.
Following Gina-san, we arrived at a warm wooden table laden with food. The kids cheered and rushed over. Elvira was also pulled along by the kids and sat down on a bench.
I followed and sat down at the corner seat. Then, Marcedes-san, an elf woman with pale green hair, sat down across from me.
"Yes, Laura-chan."
"Thank you, Marcedes-san."
I took the sandwich Marcedes-san offered me and took a bite. It was somehow nostalgic, with a warm and comforting taste.
"It's so relaxing."
"Really. When was the last time we had it this easy?"
"Laura-chan has been busy as a trainee, after all."
I let out a wry smile at Marcedes-san's words, thinking "yeah, that's true".
I've been running non-stop since I became a Royal Alchemist trainee. On one hand, I think it's strange that I'm having such a peaceful daily life despite being so busy with work. On the other hand, I'm aware that I'm shouldering a heavy burden.
I wonder how Lukas and the others are doing. Is Arnold still worrying about Elvira? Is Kasper-san still making a sour face? Chelsea and Lina-senpai must be feeling the weight of my responsibilities even more than I do. And Iris and Basilio-san, are they not struggling at the Flaria branch?――
"...I wonder how my brother is doing."
Elvira muttered beside me, also worried about her brother.
But it wasn't me or Marcedes-san who responded to her words. Instead, it was Gina-san, who smiled calmly.
"Do you worry about him?"
"Gina-san?"
"I can't keep the connection for too long, but...Elvira-san, please take a look inside this."
Gina-san showed Elvira a shallow, pot-like vessel. When I peeked inside, I saw water filling the vessel.
――And then, when Gina-san gently placed her hand on the rim of the vessel, the water surface glowed. The brightness was dazzling, and I couldn't help but close my eyes. After a few seconds, I slowly opened them again. And then,
'Laura-sama?'
Diona's face was reflected on the water surface.
"Diona, can you see us?"
Ignoring our shocked reactions, Gina-san and Diona began conversing through the water surface. It was like watching a video call from a past life.
Elvira was the first to react.
"What is this?!"
"I don't know the mechanism either, but it's a communication tool left behind by our lord. It requires strong light power, so only a few can use it..."
(It's like an artifact...?)
I don't understand the principle, but it seems to be a phone-like device that runs on light power in this world. In other words, the Diona reflected on the water surface right now is the real deal, not a fake or an illusion
I couldn't help but peek at the water's surface, worried about her condition. Diona, whom I hadn't seen in a while, looked a bit tired, but she wasn't emaciated, and her complexion didn't seem bad, so I felt relieved.
'I heard what happened. Is everyone okay?'
"Thanks to you, we're fine. But we've caused you so much trouble..."
'It's not a problem at all! We haven't repaid Laura-sama yet, so please rely on us even more.'
I nodded, feeling a bit embarrassed by Diona's gentle smile. Now that things have come to this, I couldn't do anything about it. So, I had no choice but to accept her words.
――And then, Diona's gaze suddenly shifted away from me. Before I knew it, a face peeked out from behind her.
A boy with golden hair and blue eyes, slightly rounded in shape――Lukas. Just seeing his face made me feel a little relieved.
'Laura!'
"Lukas, long time no see"
'Are you okay?! Didn't you get hurt?!'
"I'm fine, just like this. Sorry for worrying you."
I waved my hand to calm down the flustered childhood friend, and Lukas let out a sigh of relief, then smiled, looking reassured.
'Yeah, I'm glad you're okay.'
I'm sure Lukas had heard that I was being protected in the village of Rustu's people, but it seemed like I had caused him a lot of unnecessary worry. In that sense, it was good that I was being protected in this village.
For some reason, I felt like he had grown a bit more mature. The boyishness was fading away, and I got the impression that he was more like a young man now.
"What's everyone doing now?"
'We're in Caen's town, but it seems like there's a cave where monsters appear. We're thinking of going there.'
A cave where monsters appear. Those words brought back memories of my "past life"――
(Ah, I remember that event, yeah, for sure.)
I remembered that a similar event was prepared in "Last Brave". In that cave, a spirit was said to reside, but it was sealed away by a monster, and the cave became the monster's stronghold. By defeating the boss of the cave, the spirit would revive and grant power to the Hero ―― that's how it went, if I recall correctly.
Yeah, the monsters in the cave, including the boss, would definitely use skills that inflict poison status abnormalities. I'm not sure if it's just like the game, but getting poisoned would be a real hassle. Thinking that, I casually suggested.
"Hey, be careful, okay? The inside of the cave is probably dirty, so it'd be better to bring some antidote grass or something, right?"
'Yeah, I'll do that. Laura, be careful too.'
I felt relieved seeing my childhood friend nod sincerely. If I could be of any help, that'd be great.
――And just as our conversation came to a close, another face appeared on the water's surface. A young man with black hair and black eyes. Elvira, who was sitting next to me, reflexively called out to him.
"Ah! Big brother!"
Arnold seemed to have confirmed Elvira's safety and let out a sigh of relief, his eyes relaxing slightly. Then, he asked.
'El, are you okay?'
"Yeah! Mel and Laura are with me, so I'm fine. Are you okay, big brother?"
'Yeah... don't bother, Ampère.'
He shook his head, avoiding the gaze directed at him.
"Don't mind it, please. Thanks to you, we're having a peaceful daily life, so please focus on your journey, Arnold-san."
Ah, Arnold nodded. His expression was a bit softer than his usual one.
I felt relieved seeing his face. Lukas and the others probably felt at ease too. Having this kind of communication method was definitely the right decision, staying in the village of Rustu's people.
――It was when we were reporting our current situations to Lukas, Arnold, and Diona. I thought I heard a woman's voice from a distance, and then a tea-haired girl peeked out from behind Diona. Ah, I thought, but in an instant, the girl was grabbed by the scruff of her neck by a strong-looking man. However, the girl clung tightly to Diona and resisted the man, shouting towards us.
'Laura, long time no see'
――The one waving her hand towards us with a fluttering motion was undoubtedly Marta, the Treasure Hunter who had helped me in Flaria. And the man grasping her neck was,
'Hey, Marta! Don't stick your nose into the precious reunion!'
Vake, the commander of the Savila Knight Order and the leader of our Hero's journey. The appearance of the 2 of them suddenly made the atmosphere lively.
Marta glared at me with a sullen face.
'Laura, you're the Hero's childhood friend, huh!? I'm so surprised!'
"Ahaha, Marta-san, I'm glad we could reunite safely."
Marta puffed out her chest, saying "I'm a skilled Treasure Hunter, after all!" Arnold let out an obvious sigh at her words.
'She was attacked by monsters while searching for treasure, and I saved her.'
'I almost got burned to death, you know?'
'I just saved you, so be grateful.'
'What's with this guy's attitude!'
As I watched Marta and Arnold's lighthearted conversation, I felt a strange sense of wonder. Marta, a formal member of the "Last Brave" party, and Arnold, a bit of a weirdo, were traveling together? It seemed like fun. Indeed, having a mood-maker like Marta in the party was a good thing.
As I gazed at Marta, who was being scolded by Arnold, Vake let out a wry smile.
'Sorry for the noise, young lady.'
"No, it's fine. I'm just happy."
'If anything happens, don't hesitate to rely on Olivelle or the Knight Order. I'll make sure to lend a hand.'
"Excuse me, thank you."
I think I'm really lucky to have people around me who care. Everyone's busy, but they're still willing to lend a hand. It's a really heartwarming story.
At the very least, I'd like to return the favor somehow, but it's tough since I'm completely cut off from the outside world in this village――
"Ah, that's right. Why don't we send the healing potion Laura-san and the others made?"
"Huh?"
Gina-san, who had been quietly watching our conversation, suddenly said something unexpected.
We made a healing potion, but how are we supposed to send it? Are we supposed to load it onto a carriage and transport it? But if we do that, there's a high chance of monsters finding out, and... I tilted my head in confusion, but Gina suddenly pulled out a container for the healing potion and pushed it into the water. Then,
"Look, like this...."
The container slowly sank into the water. Since the container was shallow, I thought it would hit the bottom soon, but even when the container was fully submerged, I didn't hear the sound of it hitting the bottom. And finally, the healing potion was completely submerged in water.
This is weird. The container should be shorter than the depth of the water, but it didn't hit the bottom and just sank completely. Where did the container disappear to? I stared intently, wondering...
'Whoa, the healing potion arrived!'
I looked at the water's surface in surprise at Lukas's shocked voice. Then I saw that the healing potion, which had been in Gina-san's hand just a moment ago, was now in Lukas's hand.
The healing potion moved through this vessel. I can't believe it has the ability to teleport objects, it's a real out-of-place artifact. ――But I've seen this scene before.
(This is... a synthesis cauldron!)
During my journey, I tossed the materials I gathered into the cauldron, and after a certain amount of time passed, the synthesized healing potion would be delivered to Hero ―― all thanks to the "Last Brave" staff's thoughtful creation, the synthesis cauldron itself. Who would have thought that such a convenient tool existed in this world too?
Although I don't understand the principles behind this mysterious artifact, as long as there's someone who can wield the power of light, I can send the healing potion I made to Lukas and the others. Even if I'm hiding here, I can still be of use.
I suppressed my excitement and slowly opened my mouth.
"If you need me to make any healing potions or anything, just let me know. We've got plenty of time, so I can lend a hand."
'Thanks, Laura.'
Lukas smiled happily and nodded in appreciation.
My past life's memories might come in handy during battles with monsters. And with this synthesis cauldron ―― no, I mean, this tool, I can deliver healing potions to Lukas and the others. That was incredibly joyful for me.
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