Chapter 8
Back then, I’d followed around a real estate agent and picked up all sorts of useful tips.
After all that careful consideration, the place I finally managed to find was right here.
Now it’s a nearly empty building that everyone’s left behind, located in a secluded back alley, but…
Whoosh—!
Though the security isn’t great and it’s quite remote, the interior is plenty spacious enough to install research equipment, and the lighting is good, so…
Whoooosh!
Therefore, there’s no better laboratory for me than this…
WOOOOOSH!
“Ugh, the wind keeps getting in.”
I really need to replace these windows with double-glazed ones as soon as possible.
After unpacking in the only room that was in decent shape, I slowly looked around the house.
It’d been a long time since I’d felt this itch in my hands.
At the Magic Tower, I couldn’t even rest properly because I was too busy running errands for my professor, but not anymore.
From now on, I can spend my time however I want, doing only the things I want to do.
Unable to suppress the surging instincts of a researcher, I pulled out the prototype model blueprints and spread them on the workbench.
Then I let out a pleased chuckle.
“Hehe.”
It was an idea that had constantly been rejected at the Magic Tower as being unrealistic, but deep down, I was certain.
This is going to be a huge hit!
However, contrary to my bold resolve, the very first thing I did after moving in was…
Go out.
‘Hmm, I really need to buy some clothes.’
Normally, I only wore the research uniforms provided by the Magic Tower, so I rarely had reason to buy clothes.
But looking at the state of my wardrobe now, the situation was dire.
I slowly scanned my reflection in the mirror—dressed in a shabby robe.
‘So this is my only set of outdoor clothes.’
If I want to become a successful businesswoman, I can’t keep wearing something this shabby. Appearance matters a great deal too.
‘I’ll have to make time to go shopping next chance I get.’
But for now, there was something more urgent.
Namely, producing the negotiation card I’d use to make my proposal to Heon.
‘To put it nicely, it’s a negotiation. To put it bluntly, it’s bordering on blackmail.’
Though Heon was a young duke, he was currently treated like an old man stuck in the back room.
All because of the illness he suffered from.
That’s why, in the original story, right after his regression, he goes searching for a cure for this disease in order to save the world.
Which means—as a reader—I know exactly what illness he has, how to make the cure, and even how to administer it.
I planned to use this as leverage to propose a conditional deal to Heon.
In exchange for curing him, I could ask him to invest in my business… or, if things went wrong and the world faced destruction, I could ask him to lend a hand.
‘So right now, the most important thing is the ingredients to make the medicine!’
And so, humming cheerfully, I left the house.
Ah, this temperature, this humidity, this air.
Absolutely flawless. No wonder everyone keeps talking about quitting their jobs!
“Miss, how much longer are you going to just stand there looking?”
“Oh, just a moment.”
Right now, I was at the outskirts of the town market.
Specifically, in a narrow alley crowded with merchants selling medicinal herbs and various ores.
After I’d been loitering for over ten minutes, an elderly merchant started to get a little annoyed.
I pulled out my prepared shopping list and carefully compared the products in front of me.
“Hmmmm.”
Unlike the Magic Tower, which was overflowing with research equipment and refined materials, now I had to start from scratch.
But fortunately, this medicine could be made easily without any expensive equipment.
“Excuse me, is this crystal stone harvested near the southern Unyx Mountain range?”
The merchant, apparently finding me bothersome, gave a half-hearted nod and said it would cost just 1 Seling.
‘Oh, this is a total steal!’
“Okay! I’ll take it. Here you go.”
I handed over the cash and quickly completed the transaction.
Of course, what I held in my hand now looked like nothing more than a dull, grayish-brown lump of rock.
Unlike mana stones, this caused mana depletion and actually killed the earth—its only use being to absorb contaminated mana in a laboratory setting.
That’s why it was being sold so cheaply.
But I knew this stone’s “true value.”
‘Under the right conditions, this stone can become an important medicine too.’
After checking the remaining money in my pocket once more, I set off again to find the rest of the ingredients.
As soon as I got home, I laid out all the ingredients I’d brought on the workbench one by one.
The peculiar smell wafting from the ores.
Ah, I’ve smelled this a lot during experiments. I love it.
“Let’s begin.”
First, I crushed the stone into small pieces and washed them in water. Then I put them in a distiller and started boiling them slowly.
Meanwhile, I minced, steamed, and roasted the herbs I’d brought.
This was to mitigate the side effects with the herbs, since absorbing the ore’s properties directly would be dangerous.
After a while, I added the distilled extract and the herbal components and began brewing the medicine.
Before long, the liquid started to emit a clear blue glow.
“Oh, success!”
In the original story, it said that if the solution turned blue, it was made correctly.
Delighted to have succeeded on the first try, I quickly divided the solution into small vials.
This potion retained the mana-absorbing properties of the stone, making it especially effective against mana-induced illnesses.
The disease Heon currently suffered from was a congenital condition where excess mana damaged his nerves, causing him to gradually lose sensation.
If Heon drank this potion, the mana accumulated in his body over the months would slowly be absorbed and expelled outward.
In other words, if he took one vial every day, he could completely eliminate the root cause of the illness!
Since this is still early in the original story, his condition probably isn’t too severe yet, but soon Heon will start feeling the seriousness of it.
The pain of the accumulated mana pressing down on his nerves must be considerable.
‘When that time comes, he’ll have no choice but to take my medicine.’
Hehehe.
Letting out a sly laugh, I quickly tucked the vials into my bag.
“Great. That wraps up the negotiation prep.”
Now it was time to go meet Heon Leonardo.
Heon was cooped up in his room again today, quietly killing time.
Just a little while ago, the Duke had visited his room.
Are you feeling any better? Don’t overdo it… The usual platitudes.
But none of those who claimed to worry about him actually believed that this illness, which had struck not long ago, would be easily cured.
Heon slowly drew the sword strapped to his waist.
Just moments ago, he’d been fine, but suddenly a sharp tingling shot through the back of his elbow.
“Damn it…”
Clang.
The sword he’d barely managed to grip clattered to the floor with a sharp ring.
He tried to clench his hand, but his body wouldn’t obey.
Everything was growing dull, as if sensation was fading from his fingertips.
Sometimes, tremors would come that he couldn’t control.
It was a strange illness.
He’d be perfectly fine normally, then suddenly pain would strike or his senses would go numb.
One day his legs would go numb, another day his arms would lose strength.
It felt as if his own body was no longer his.
He’d scoured every corner of the empire to find a cure, yet no one knew the cause of the illness.
Perhaps that’s why—he, who had once drawn more attention than anyone for his brilliant swordsmanship talent, had gradually been pushed to the sidelines.
“What good is talent alone?”
The words that followed were always the same.
“The problem is the illness…”
Word even spread that they might have to hastily adopt a new heir because of it.
Shaking his head to dispel the rising gloom, Heon sighed.
“Ha, here we go again.”
Just as he was quietly wiping his gaunt face, his attendant urgently knocked on the door and delivered a message.
“Young master. A guest has come to see you.”
Heon’s expression turned puzzled.
“…For me?”
Who would come looking for him, when he’d barely even stepped outside in recent times?
“It’s a woman. She says she’s a researcher affiliated with the Magic Tower. I’ve verified her credentials as well.”
“A Magic Tower researcher…?”
He frowned slightly at the unexpected identity of his guest.
Why would the Magic Tower send someone to see him?
He didn’t have any acquaintances there. Could his father have contacted them regarding his only son’s illness?
Despite his doubts, Heon obediently made his way to the reception room at the news of a visitor.
After all, if she was from the Magic Tower, at least she likely wasn’t a quack or some swindler
