CH 121

Chapter 121 – +9

“T-this is! Is this the dragon’s lifeblood? It’s fresh blood, isn’t it?”

“This is that thing, isn’t it? These are fragments of the dragon’s scales!”

The blood and scale fragments that Grande shared with me were brought back to the research and development department, and the tension between the pharmacist and blacksmith was unbelievable. Yesterday’s mithril and magic sparkling stone shock had nothing to do with the pharmacist and blacksmith… No, the mithril had an impact on the blacksmith as well, though.

“The research and development department has been very busy since Kosuke’s return.”

“Isn’t it good to have something to do…? One bottle of lifeblood can be used for research by the pharmacist. And the fragments are yours to do with as you please.”

“””Hyahooo!”””

Two pharmacists and three blacksmiths jumped up and down, snatching up the materials on the table. Are you alright, pharmacist-san? Are you sure you’re not going to fall and spill the lifeblood? I won’t compensate for it, okay?

“The other bottle is for the alchemist and the mage to use. I mean, I want to use this blood to make a potion to heal Melty’s horn, you know?”

“Yes, that’s what I had in mind.”

My words were met with an immediate nod from Isla as if she knew what I was talking about.

“You’ve been planning for this all along? How did you know that dragon’s blood could be used to make regenerative medicine, Kosuke?”

“No, it was a natural process that we became friends. I thought that dragon’s blood could be used as a powerful regenerative medicine because… well, in the fictional stories of my former world, there were many depictions of dragon’s blood being used as an ingredient for such strong medicines.”

“I wonder. There should be no dragons in Kosuke’s world, right?”

I’ve been telling Isla a lot of stories about my original world as bedtime stories. Stories of various tools made with the science and technology of that world, myths and folktales of that world, similarities with the plants, animals, and creatures of this world, and creatures that exist only in fantasy and illusion.

I remember we talked about dragons soon after Isla and I started our relationship.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? A thin layer of skin may separate my world and this world.”

Maybe there are creatures like me who somehow blend in from there to here and from here to there. It may have been the origin of the mysterious folklore and myths around the world.

“Anyway, I’ll take care of the regenerative medicine. It’s not impossible to make it if we have fresh dragon blood. Fortunately, we have all the materials needed.”

It was a very convenient turn of events, but upon closer inspection, it was a natural reason. Originally, Erichburg was a major transportation hub, which meant that it was also a major base for trade in the south. Naturally, many things from all over the south would be concentrated here in Erichburg. In other words, as long as you have the money, you can get anything you need.

And the Liberation Army is putting a lot of effort into the research and development of new technology. I guess that’s where my presence has had a big impact. The crossbows, bombs, and bolt-action rifles I brought with me, as well as the golem communication device and golem-style ballista that the engineers of this world and I collaborated to create. It’s new technology like that that supports the armed forces of the Liberation Army, which is small in number.

Knowing this, both Sylphy and Melty must have plenty of money for their research and development projects. Fortunately, in addition to the mithril and gems that I have mined, some crops continue to be produced from the fields that can be harvested at an extraordinary rate. A field that I simply plowed into the ground can produce crops in two weeks. That’s twice a month. That should be plenty of money.

“What are you going to do with the other one?”

“It’s for my research. I might be able to make something out of it.”

Then I took out the mixing table and checked the recipe.

・Distilled Water – Ingredients: Drinking Water x 2

・Small Life Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Plants x 1, Drinking Water x 1

・Life Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Plants x 3, Distilled Water x1

・High Life Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Plants x 5, Distilled Water x 1, Alcohol x 1

・Magic Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Herbs x 3, Distilled Water x 1, Alcohol x 1, Magic Crystals x 1

・Poison Potion – Ingredients: Poisonous Plants x 1, Distilled Water x 1

・High Poison Potion – Ingredients: Poisonous Plants x 3, Distilled Water x 1, Alcohol x 1

・Cure Poison Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Plants x 1, Poisonous Plants x 1, Alcohol x 1

・Cure Disease Potion – Ingredients: Medicinal Plants x 5, Poisonous Plants x 2, Distilled Water x 1, Alcohol x 2

・Regenerative Potion – Ingredients: High Life Potion x 3, Cure Disease Potion x 1, Dragon’s Blood x 1

・Alcohol – Ingredients: Sake x 1

・Saltpeter – Material: Stable Manure x 1, Ashes x 1

・Gunpowder: Material: Saltpeter x 1, Sulfur x 1, Charcoal x 1

・Gunpowder – Material: Saltpeter x 1, Alcohol x 1, Fiber x 1

“Oh, I think I can make something that looks like regenerative medicine.”

“…Yeah.”

Isla looked at me with an eye that seemed to say, “I knew that.” Even if you are looking at me like that…?

I don’t know if this was registered because of the dragon’s blood or if it was because of the Item Creations when I thought, “Can I make that?” Anyway, let’s try to make it.

“Okay, let’s start crafting. Let’s see, twenty-four minutes, huh? That’s a long time.”

“Regenerative potion, it’ll take me three days and all night to make.”

“…..”

“Three days.”

“Even if you say that with such a face!”

Isla looked up at me with a cloudy eye. There’s no way around it about the crafting time. It’s not my decision to make.

“But you see, whether the finished product is what I want is… No, it’s more likely to be what I want. But it could be something else, like the regenerative potion that Isla and the others know about.”

If this regenerative potion is the recipe that appeared in the item creation, then there is a very good chance that it is exactly what I want. The actual effect it has may be different from the regenerative potion, which is commonly known in this world.

“Anyway, make as many as you can, not just one. Without experimentation, I’m afraid we can’t use it.”

“Yes.”

Because of the Mass Production skill, if I make ten of them, I can save the cost of one, so I’ll cancel the crafting, get the number of High Life Potions I need, and then start the crafting again. By doing this, I can make ten items for the cost of nine. The crafting time is ten times as long, though.

“Ten of these will be ready in four hours.”

“Hmm, I’ll gather the experimental animals.”

“Experimental animals…”

Experiment, experiment, huh… The regenerative medicine experiment means cutting off the limbs of experimental animals and regenerating them… No, animal experiments are essential, aren’t they? Yeah. But I would rather not be there if possible!

After killing so many Holy Kingdom troops with bombs, guns, and crossbows, I don’t think it’s a new thing, but I don’t want to see it if possible. Isn’t that what humanity is all about?

“You can’t just suddenly make people drink it.”

“Yes, I know. It’s indispensable.”

Isla nodded. That’s right. I remember Isla telling me about these things so often when I was still in the Black Forest that it was like having calluses on my ears. Of course I remember it well.

“If the dragon’s blood is good enough… the next step is the magic sparkling stone.”

I took out the magic sparkling stones that I had mass-produced yesterday, not to say… mass-produced to some extent, from my inventory and laid them out on the table. There are twenty-three of them. If I used all of them to make a destructive weapon, wouldn’t it be able to destroy the Holy Kingdom? No, I won’t do that, and I won’t let that happen.

Should I proceed with the development of this weapon as a trump card…? No, I can’t. My abilities should be used in the direction of creation, not destruction. I can’t imagine a happy ending after all the destruction and killing.

It’s a powerful ability that should be used for development and prosperity.

“What does Kosuke do?”

“I’m going to try to use the magic sparkling stone on the granting workbench.”

“…For what?”

“Mithril pickaxe for now?”

The most frequently used items that I use are pickaxe, shovel, logging ax, and hoe. Weapons are used much less frequently than that. To be honest, it’s not often that I fight myself. I did fight in the last journey with Melty, though.

“Why the pickaxe…?”

“Well, I’m not much of a fighter, so why would I need a magic weapon?”

“Kosuke, you can’t call someone who can take down a bunch of wyverns a weak fighter.”

“No, it’s not me that’s strong; it’s the weapon.”

If I could shoot a wyvern with an assault rifle, anyone would be able to defeat it, as well. But, to be able to maintain a certain level of composure and perform perfect attack motions without any command action mistakes, I guess you could say I’m strong.

“But you know what? It’s not like I’m going to be taking the lead in a fight, right? It’s no use for me to have a powerful magic weapon that has been highly modified. If that is the case, it would be a hundred times better to give a useful boost to the tools that I use on a daily basis.”

Even if I made such a weapon, it would just end up in my inventory. Even if I were to make one, it would probably be a complete hobby item. Well, even the harvesting process is not always safe. I think it’s not really a waste of time to give it to a weapon that’s easy to use.

I’d like to experiment with infinite ammo enchantments on guns, though. If an assault rifle or light machine gun could have infinite ammo, it would be the most powerful… No, the barrel would heat up and become useless quickly. But it’s worth a try. Even if the effect is not an infinite number of bullets, for example, automatic repair or enhanced durability is also useful.

“Yeah… but the pickaxe and the magic sparkling stone…”

Isla seemed to be convinced by my words in theory, but emotionally she was not convinced. I don’t know what if she can understand it, but please just leave it at that.

“So, let’s try it.”

I set the mithril pickaxe and the magic sparkling stone on the enchantment column of the granting workbench and started the enchantment. The work time remains the same: three minutes. Is this constant and unaffected by skill?

With that in mind, I waited patiently for three minutes. While Isla was standing beside me, watching my movements, I finished enchanting the mithril pickaxe.

“It’s done.”

I took out the completed mithril pickaxe from the granting workbench.

“There’s a lot of magic power in there…”

“Uh, what’s this?”

Mithril Pickaxe +9 (Auto Repair, Efficiency Enhancement III, Luck III)

“What’s wrong?”

“It says +9. Auto Repair, Efficiency Enhancement III, and Luck III.”

The effects that are enchanted are random, but experiments have shown that to some extent, they are based on the use of the item they are made from. For example, if it’s a sword, there’s a good chance it will have a slashing enhancement, followed by a piercing enhancement. In some rare cases, it will also get enhanced blows. In contrast, a spear is more likely to have a piercing attack, followed by a striking attack. It’s not often that a slash is attached.

In the case of long spears, there is a high possibility that the striking enhancement will be prioritized over the piercing enhancement. If it’s a spear that also emphasizes slashing, such as Ms. Zamir’s Meteor, it might be able to get enhanced slashing, and if it’s a sword that emphasizes striking rather than cutting, it might be able to get striking enhanced more effectively.

I’ll have to do more research to find out.

“What does luck do?”

“I don’t know. Either it increases the amount of material that can be mined, or it increases the rate at which rare materials can be mined.”

I kind of understand the auto-repair and efficiency enhancement. But I really don’t know about luck.

“Let’s try the shovel and the ax.”

“Hmm, go ahead and do what you want.”

Now that I had Isla’s permission, I plunged my gathering tools into the granting table and reserved the enchantments. Now, what will happen?