Chapter 26 - 26 Joan The Alchemist

I and Patricia were sitting at the fountain just outside the Great Hall when I playful dipped my hand inside the water and felt the coldness of the water fountain. "I wonder how they could make the water shoot up from the centre here and let the water drop down from that bowl that catches all the water and then it trickles down from its sides into this part here. There's no electricity or steam-powered mechanism to work these pumps. This town is really a bit mysterious." I thought to myself.

"Trish... You won't mind me calling you that, right? It sounds better than Pat because it's short for a Patrick. Hah Hah Hah..." actually I'm trying to act like a cool cat in front of her, and see if this NPC is really a heartless and emotionless person.

"Trish sounds nice to me, I like it. Nearly everyone calls me Pat and you are the only one that called me Trish, I like it... Actually, I loved it when you call me that." Patricia answered with a twinkle in her eye, most probably because someone had shone a torch in her directions and her pupils caught the reflection. How the hell people would have a twinkle in their eyes?!?!

"Throw a hook, line and sinker and I got a bug whale coming ashore." I thought as flashed her award-winning grin, as sponsored by Pepsodent.

"How would you like me to call you then? Au? Audi? Aude? Mars?" she asked as she too smiled with the piece of salad still stuck within her front teeth.

"Au sounds like you knee hits against the edge of a table, Audi sounds like a car, Aude sounds like a Bruneian addressing the other party, Mars sounds like the 3rd planet from the sun. Just call me by name full name and I normally address myself as 'Yours Truly' as I was used to be called 'Your Excellency', 'Your Lordship', 'Young Master', 'Senior', 'Gov'ner' and so on. With so many honorifics, it would be hard to track, just like my interface, attributes and stats. Hah Hah Hah... "

"Oh, alright Audemars. I thought you wished to be called something else. Hehehe. How was your 2nd day after waking up from your deep sleep?"

"I'm still getting used to it, Trish. Furthermore, I wanted to ask you something, when I meet Pointus and Joan tomorrow, and if they agree on what I would be proposing to them, would you like to be my partner?"

"YES...I'D LOVE TO BE YOUR PARTNER, TILL DEATH DO US PART... " Patricia shrieked in joy and she kind of whipped in joy as she accidentally had scooped the water from the fountain and splashed it on me as she raised her hands in the air triumphantly.

Err... A small sentence that had gone misunderstood again... Haiyooo...

"Trish... Err... It is not what I meant by that kind of partner. It is only 2 days only, right. I can't put a finger on my emotions right now. The only thing right now is to grind those goblins, sell it to NoOne, the merchant who is there with tons of credits to buy all those stuff from adventurers and once I had collected the 100k, then I could peacefully out the idea to work."

"What I meant was a business partner, if the plan goes through." I continue and I can sense her feeling being dampened like as if water had been thrown into a fireplace and all was left was the spluttering and blubbering of fire, smoke and Ash around. I took her hand and placed on my lap and gave it a squeeze and said, "Thank you, Trish. I hadn't had the chance to thank you for taking care of me while I was unconscious for the whole 6 months. I am sure you were anticipating me to wake up and grab you in my arms, right?"

I sincerely said as she took her free hand and but in her fingernail when she discovered that there is a piece of salad stuck there in her teeth and she looked at me in horror. I nodded my head and she suddenly stood up and gave me a few beatings on my back with her closed fist and ran back inside. Before she enters the house, she smiled and flashed her teeth at me minus the cabbage.

"Haish... Girls will always be girls. They could be NPC or humans alike...they do have feelings after all.

....

"I'm off to meet Joan the Alchemist... Be right back before lunch then. Cheers everyone and thanks for the breakfast, Trish." I said as I left the Great Hall and turned left towards the path that leads me past Blake the Blacksmith and Pointus the Herbalist cum Pharmacist.

"Who is Trish? Why does he call you Trish instead of Pat? Who are you? What did you do to Patricia? Where is my little sister? Tell me, are you a Shapeshifter? Tell me or I'd Swear I drive my family heirloom sword into your vile body...SPEAK...WHERE IS MY SISTER?!?!?!"

"Haiya Prius. I'm still your sister lah. Audemars... He suddenly acted cute and mushy towards me. He called my middle name, no... The pronunciation of my name, instead of Pat, he called me Trish or Trisha... But I prefer he called me Trish, if he called me Trisha, I would expect a hand-drawn Rickshaw to pass by instead."

"Eh...i tot you wanted people to address you as Pat instead if your full name? Why change...? Ahaaaaa... You have your heart fluttering for him ya? 6 months tending to him in his bed without him realising what you did ya? You little devil sister you... Hah hah hah."

"That's what you think brother. After what happened at the orphanage and what he had told us about his past life, I think I would be partnering with him throughout my life."

"Eeehhhhhh....???!!!??? Partnering with him all your life? Did he propose to you last night or something? It's only been two days and I think what he said was true, that half of his brain cells were fried like Char Kway Teow...."

"Not that kind of partner, not yet I suppose. But a business partner. He's now going to have a discussion with Joan and see how it worked out. Whatever it is, I am sure I would be able to work out somethings for him."

"Whatever it is, you are my little sister and the only family I had. I don't want anyone to hurt you or your feelings, you got that? I really thought you are not my sister when he mentioned you by Trish... Pheww... I thought I was in the wrong series in the wrong novel." Prius finally settled down on the chair and raised his mug of frothy grog that came in the form of a pet bottle called A&W Root beer.

....

"Hello, Miss Joan. Hi, my name is Audemars and I am a fellow Alchemist like you." I greeted the alchemist who was wearing steampunk goggles and a dark coloured leather apron and was handling some liquids with her light green coloured heavy work leather gloves that looked like some bright dishwashing gloves.

"Don't you move an inch, stay where you are. Wait until I move this volatile liquid into the side to let it rest for a while." Joan remarked as she hissed the instructions at me.

I was struck by her words 'volatile' and I'd be ready to cover myself with my Nipple Buckler when I sense it is going to blow up any second. I was stuck in a half step motion just like a Gold Mime with my hands outstretched and nothing moved except for my eyeballs, my Adam's apple and my heartbeat.

Elsewhere in the marketplace, everything, humans, chicken, birds and even cats and dogs were in their own frozen, or bullet time state. No one dared to move or even breathe...!!! Damn... If it is not real then its A-W-E-S-O-M-E...

"Alright... It is done. What did you say your name was? She walked towards me with her steam pink googles and as she removed one of the pink bright green dishwashing gloves, her elbow brushed a sealed test tube from its holder and toppled off the counter.

I saw it from the corner of my eye and caught it before it hits the ground with my left hand. Joan saw what I did and remarked, "You really got good reflexes there, young man. If that test tube fell, this whole store would be blown into smithereens." she said casually as she took the tube from my hands and replaced it back in the test tube holder.

"Oh. My. God... This whole god damn place is a land mine. I shouldn't be touching anything at all and once I had my say, I'd get the hell out of this place as far as I can...!!!" I thought as my eyes scanned for any other stuff that can be easily knocked over and at last, I was standing by the door.

"Don't be afraid, you had cheated death once, it won't hurt to cheat death an umpteenth time... Hah Hah Hah... Yes, you mention your name is Audemars right? The young man who had awaken from his comatose 3 days ago." she said and by saying that, it seems that I had a poster on my chest indicating that I had indeed awakened from my comatose of 6 months. Geezzz... Really, these walls do have ears, eyes and mouth...!!