Practical Alchemy

Sue made her way towards the large lecturing hall of the alchemist division. For the past couple of weeks, since she had been summoned to the hall, she practically lived there. She supervised the modifications on the cauldron and introduced her own equipment. This week she began testing and familiarizing herself with the cauldron and finally achieved success.

Nodding while greeting the scribe opening the door to the offices, she entered with a small smile. Those who worked in the lecture hall and amphitheater had long come to know about her amiable character. Sue walked past the offices of the lecturers and mages before knocking on the door to the largest office in the building.

"Come."

Sue pushed open the door on the firm command from within. The professional tone disappeared when she entered.

"Ah, greetings, greeting young Lady Sue. Come, come, have a seat."

Elder Shi stood up from a side seat and ushered the young girl to a chair. Council Mage Tarot raised his head and shot her a smile before burying himself in some scrolls. He left the conversation to Elder Shi at the side.

"We tested the cauldron again, last night when you left. With the markings, I believe even an apprentice could concoct a simple pill. After the demonstration today, we might usher in a new era in alchemy."

Elder Shi said while stroking his beard.

"Demonstration?"

"Ah, yes. I know we just sorted out the major problems but one of the teachers accidentally made a slip of the tongue when visiting the Alchemist Guild in the City. Today we might have a few more guests."

Elder Shi coughed as he looked away from the girl, clearly embarrassed.

A knock on the door interrupted them.

"Come."

Elder Shi said, happy for the interruption.

"Senior, they have arrived and are seated. Grandmaster Bing has also brought members of the Churches Union visiting from the Capital."

"That old coot probably wants to flaunt his skills again in front of a crowd. He'll use any chance he gets to rub our noses in the mud."

Elder Shi muttered while waving off the messenger. Council Mage Tarot sighed on creaking his bones into a stretch as he rubbed his neck.

"You can't blame him. He does hold the rank of a renowned Alchemist, respected even in the Capital. Back then, when Elder Deng modified the Heart-Star circulation pill by skimping on the Ironberry herbs by half, we felt we made a breakthrough in pill modification not seen in over a hundred years. Only Grandmaster Bing objected back then."

"He belongs to the faction that says mages should stick to magic and not dabble in spiritual mana used by an alchemist. Why should mages leave the production of their pills and supplements in the hands of outsiders?"

Elder Shi replied.

"Lady Sue, please don't take offense if the crowd today might voice some objections. As a young girl, those old men might want to eat you alive since they have not witnessed your skills. We have no choice but to have you conduct the demonstration today. If I had a few months of practice, I would have done it myself."

When Council Mage Tarot led them into the demonstration hall, Sue sucked in a deep breath. Nearly half the seats had been filled with all forms of old seniors. Clustered in small groups they sat or stood in the aisles while chattering and whispering about potions and herbs. Some of these recluses would only meet at a gathering such as this.

"Greetings, esteemed Seniors. Today we will demonstrate the steps in making a successful Blood-boosting Pill. Please save your questions for later. This is young lady Sue, who will assist us today while clarifying certain steps. Let's begin."

Council Mage Tarot stepped to the side of the podium while Sue made her way towards the preparation table. Frowning faces greeted her but with a Council Mage present the visitors had to stifle their objections. If the venue was not within the Tower and with the majority being mages and apprentices, then most likely she might have been kicked out in a vociferous manner.

The audience did have certain individuals whose reputation and standing allowed for objection without fear of the Tower.

"Haha, it has been a long time Mage Tarot but it seems that the Tower is struggling. I never would have imagined that I lived to see this day. I came to witness something new, not see a brat make mud cakes. If I wanted to see a girl, then I could stroll down and enter any kitchen. Hmph!"

Grandmaster Bing huffed while voicing the thoughts of the majority within the crowd.

"Grandmaster Bing is a Senior who is respected throughout the Empire. The Tower, however, would not seek to waste the time of its mages in trivial matters. This demonstration is geared towards our own Mages and Apprentices. Visitors can feel free to leave at any time."

Council Mage Tarot replied while gazing around the hall. He never invited these guests since this demonstration was for those in the Tower who taught or practiced alchemy. The statement quelled the mutterings and produced another huff from Grandmaster Bing who folded his arms while sitting back down with a flourish.

Sue cleared her throat and stood on the stage behind the preparation table. Although the hall had numerous eyes staring down at her, she remained unfazed. For the last week, most of the lecturers and senior alchemists in the workshop had been witnessing her concoct the pills while questioning her.

Chu had said on the journey to Limerock that they needed to crack open their shells. They should never fear a crowd but learn to use it to their advantage. Sue regularly cleaned and butcher raw meat while under the gaze of three drooling wolves. In comparison, when the shock of the large gathering died off, all she saw was a bunch of harmless old men.

Sue fell into the routine she had done over the last few days.

"One of the benefits during the preparation stage is the use of a scale. Since most of the ingredients used are dried or in small quantities, small weights need to be used."

"Humph, since when do alchemist need to weigh ingredients? Changing the number of ingredients is taboo."

"Ah, Grandmaster Bing is correct. For Senior who has experience in concocting, choosing the number of ingredients is a small matter. For an apprentice and a person unfamiliar with alchemy, however, weighing serves to decrease common mistakes."

Sue replied with a smile to the frowning alchemist while moving the scale to the forefront. She had recalled his name from the previous outburst.

"Take the ingredient calling for four stalks of dried Spotted Fern. The weight of four ferns differs due to drying, size, and length. By introducing a standard measurement, we narrow mistakes from this. If we weigh and measure the ingredients for a successful batch of pills, then reproducing that success becomes easier."

Sue proved her theory by using different stalks of the same herb.

"What is that piece of iron sticking out from the cauldron?"

"This little one has recently learned that alchemist specializes in using mana to regulate the heat of their cauldron. Unfortunately, I and many new apprentices don't possess this ability or still need practice. This strip consists of a thin piece of iron and copper, riveted together. When the cauldron is heated, the strip bends and causes the needle at the end to point to a different place on the nearby plate."

Sue explained while she monitored the temperature in the cauldron. After Dyna had encountered this problem at the farm, Chu had made Dareck make a simple bimetallic strip for her to use. The reason Dyna and Sue could concoct pills in the first place, was because they substituted science in place of mana.

"Why are you weighing that purple salt? Everyone here knows the recipe calls for a pinch, hmph!"

"Senior, your pinch of purple salt and mine would vary. Alchemy is not about cooking to please everyone's taste but to please the requirements of the pill alone. When I started concocting, that is what I felt."

"Hmph!"

Grandmaster Bing harrumphed loudly. The smile and gentle, polite way in which the freckled teen answered him threw him off.

"Nobody here grinds dried herbs..."

"Senior, without spiritual power, ground ingredients tend to react faster..."

With the ingredients in the cauldron and her only work consisting of focusing on the heat and adding charcoal when necessary, she answered the questions of the now curious Alchemists. At first, the interrogators tried to find fault and ended with harrumphs and snorts but then they gradually changed.

Now she had Seniors like Grandmaster Bing hovering around the cauldron while inquiring on certain steps. These old men might have a problem with her age, but their love of alchemy steamrolled over that issue.

"Young Lady Sue, may I find out more about this heat measuring device?"

Men who high-ranking nobles would have to make appointments while bringing expensive gifts now hovered around her politely asking questions.

"Each pill requires its own time to form as the ingredients mix and simmer together. I am using an hourglass made for the Blood-boosting pellet. A great tool that can be used is the clock. This avoids mixup at different times and is also fairly accurate. The only drawback in creating pills without mana is that only one pill at a time can be made."

Alchemists turned mana into spiritual energy which not only served to help regulate the temperature but assisted in creating pills. High tier pills even required spiritual energy as an ingredient. Pills made for Hounds fell among the low tier bracket and could be produced with some effort. If not for the modifications done, then Sue would have less of a success than a new apprentice.

When the last grains of sand flowed down the hourglass, Sue gave the honor to Grandmaster Bing. The old man deftly removed the lid of the cauldron and then slapped its side. A faint pink pellet rose up and fell lightly into a small jade box.

No matter the lecture and the discussions during the pill making process. If the end result did not meet the criteria then all this was for naught. The crowd surrounding the final product consisted of powerhouses like Grandmaster Bing, Elder Shi, and Mage Tarot to name a few.

Sue had to make way as these old men sniffed and viewed the internals of the cauldron to the pill itself. The jade box soon found its way around the hall for viewing by the rest of the spectators. Some of them would have liked to surround the stage during the process but the lineup prevented apprentices from even daring to think about it.

"Amazing! This pill can be ranked as a low, medium-grade product."

"Young lady Sue said the success rate for this is eight or nine out of ten. Can you believe it?"

"Do you know what this means? Pills that do not require spiritual power can now be made by apprentices. By implementing this, Senior Alchemists can now focus on those difficult and time-consuming pills."

"Think about it. Using that indicator for heat, you can have lines of cauldrons constantly manufacturing pills. There would be no shortage of low tier pills."

All the wrinkled faces turned towards the stage for a different reason. Sue suddenly felt goosebumps on her arms. These old men were no fools. The only way the Tower would allow such a young female to conduct a lecture boiled down to one reason.

This young girl possessed all the knowledge in this new process.

A genius creator who modified the alchemical landscape...

"Did the Tower intend to keep this all to themselves?"

The fawning and poaching began...

"Young lady Sue, you have to visit the Alchemist Guild in Limerock. I dare say we can provide many more ingredients and recipes than the Tower."

"When lady Sue finds the time, she can drop by the Churches Union. The Healers would love to take her around."

"Heroes gather in the Capital. This humble priest asks if young lady Sue might be willing to travel there?"

"Priest Holt, you trying to poach talent from my Alchemist Guild? Don't forget you're a guest at my guild."

"Hey, old geezer. How can you be so shameless? Since when did this young lady belong to your alchemist guild?"

***

Sue sat eating a bowl of hot soup and bread under the large candle chandelier. Since the sun had set long ago, Elder Shi ordered the cooks to send over a hot meal for her. Nearby on the stage, a group of senior alchemist chattered away. The lecture hall was now vacant except for these powerhouses.

"Introducing the standard measurements, modifying the cauldrons and already incorporating the new clock invention. Any one of these reasons could open a new world for alchemy."

"The most difficult part is the implementation if done correctly not only would it lower the cost of producing normal level pills but also free senior alchemist from such a task."

"One problem we have is that alchemists have little time to concoct spiritual pills. It is high time alchemists begin to focus on pills requiring mana. That is where true alchemy lies."

Grandmaster Bing stroked his beard while lost in thought.

"This pill should have no long-term side effects since the ingredients have remained the same. The main problem is the bones from the purple fox. Pills requiring rare ingredients cannot be labeled as common. If only we could substitute it but alchemists who dabble in formula modification are rare."

The words caused Sue who was eating nearby to choke. As the faces turned towards her, she placed her hand over her mouth and coughed.

"There is one person I know, who uses a substitute..."

****