Published: August 2, 2025
Today, two chapters are posted simultaneously.
This is the second chapter.
The next day.
I visited the commercial guild at a time that was a bit late to be called morning.
“Welcome! What can I assist you with today?”
“I was told to come by Guild Master Griciela the other day…”
I had prepared since last night and made several of the medicines listed on the list.
I thought I might request a meeting with the Guild Master while selling the medicines.
“Well, well, Lord Takebayashi. Welcome to the commercial guild.”
A staff member who had assisted me several times before came out from the back and led me to the reception room.
It seemed they had already remembered my face.
“You come often. Today you’re here to sell medicines, right?”
The moment we made eye contact, half of today’s purpose was guessed.
“How did you know so well?”
“I asked you to do this after all. I expected you would respond accordingly. Also, I heard you went to the Adventurers’ Guild training. After that finished, you heard the message, and then you had time to make the medicines, so I had a rough idea. I predicted you’d come today or tomorrow.”
As usual, it was scary how well they could predict things.
But that wasn’t my only purpose today.
“There’s one more thing I’d like to consult about.”
“Oh? In that case, let’s quickly finish the medicine purchase first.”
“Please. ‘Item Box.’”
I had about 50 bottles of medicine that I’d made.
“I made what I could with the ingredients on hand. There are still some grell frog materials left.”
“You’ll make them if the materials are arranged?”
“As long as I can make them.”
The Guild Master, who was casually appraising the bottles, made a snorting sound.
“Was there medicine on that list you couldn’t make?”
“Although I know the formulas, there are medicines I’ve never actually made. This time, I also wanted the Guild Master to take a look for confirmation.”
“I see. I looked at some, and the quality is consistent, and their effects are fine. No complaints. I’ll have the staff gather materials for medicines low in stock. Could you bring those next time?”
“Understood.”
Once I agreed, she immediately called the staff and gave rapid instructions for medicine appraisal, storage, and preparation of rewards and materials. After the staff left,
“So? What else did you want to consult about besides the medicines?”
“Purum Diamond.”
As I uttered the word after being prompted, I felt her gaze sharpen.
“You know about it?”
“If you’ve been in this job long enough, yes. Do you have it?”
“It’s a family heirloom from my grandmother. She told me to sell it if I was ever short on money.”
I also explained that I was preparing formal wear.
“…I have to praise you for not taking it to some bad place and coming to me first. Do you have it now?”
I took a cloth-wrapped package out of the Item Box and quietly handed it over.
Inside was a single Purum Diamond, divided to about the size of a thumbnail.
Simply dividing and reshaping it hadn’t changed the appraisal results, so it should be fine, but…
The Guild Master opened the package, examined the gem as if licking it with her eyes, then used appraisal magic. She sighed in disbelief immediately after.
“Is it fake?”
“It’s real. How did you manage to have such a large Purum Jewel? The transparency is impressive. And it’s a diamond, colorless and beautiful… Though the cut is a bit disappointing, it’s quite a gem.”
On further inquiry, I learned that “Purum” is a term representing the grade of a gemstone, coming from an old word meaning “special.”
“In other words, this is top-grade.”
“It’s more than just high-grade. It’s ‘special.’ Listen, gemstones usually contain unwanted things like sand grains, tiny scratches, or cavities to some extent. That’s normal.”
Ah…
Her words reminded me. Indeed, natural gemstones end up with inclusions and cavities during their formation. The gemstones created by alchemy don’t have those…