NOVEL NEXT 1-7 Mount and Blade
Stahlia One Year Old, Fourth Month of 938
Presently, I was sat on the edge of my bed. That’s right, a bed. My dear mother and father had finally seen fit to replace my crib with a proper children’s bed after my first birthday. From the outside, it may appear as if I was staring into space, but I was in fact deep in thought studying a new entry on my status screen. This had all started a couple of months ago.
Second Month, 938
I was not making any progress with my self-defense plans; I had gotten quite good at my enhancement magic but had hit a wall. The limit of what I could do with my present mana capacity was completely insufficient. I was now able to maintain an enhancement of +5 for three seconds, but no matter how I spent my mana, that was seemingly my limit. I would need more mana in order to increase the effect or to extend the duration. I could also get a higher bonus by shortening the duration, or a longer duration by lowering the bonus, but I regarded both of those options as a fruitless endeavor. +5 was barely large enough to make a noticeable difference, and if I shortened the duration then I may as well not even have enhanced myself at all; once the enhancement ran out, I would be out of mana.
I needed to level up, but I still had not found a way to gain any experience. I suspected I would have to fight monsters to level up, but I could hardly go out and fight a monster with my body the way it was now. Even a lowly goblin, whose ability scores I remembered as being E across the board would likely be stronger than me in my present state since my own abilities were still only a tenth of their max value.
Thusly, out of boredom, I had asked my father for some seasoned preserved meat; I wanted to teach Stil to sit and lie down. My father refused, telling me that “Stawri do not need something as expensive as seasoned meat; they are perfectly content with raw scraps.” I had pouted and begged, doing my best “adorable daughter” impression but had not been able to make him change his mind. After some thought, I came up with a scheme. Jacqueline, our family’s maid seemed oddly attached to me. She didn’t talk much but she was always watching me with a pleasant smile on her face and would always quickly take care of me whenever some inconvenience befell me, and my mother was not around.
Additionally, she assisted my father in managing the household budget so she would be able to siphon a little bit of money if I managed to convince her that is. I approached Jacqueline with the same adorable daughter act that I had used on my father and posed the question of if she would get me some preserved meats.
“Jacqueline, do you think that maybe the next time you go out shopping, you could get me one or two strips of jerky?” I made sure to smile pleasantly and bat my eyelashes while tilting my head ever so slightly.
Jacqueline stopped chopping the potatoes on her cutting board and looked down at me quizzically, “…And what would you need something like that for? If you wanted a snack or treat, I would assume Master Fynn would be sure to indulge you.”
I frowned and puffed up my cheeks in a pout. “Father said I did not need any you see, it’s not for me, I want it for Stil!”
Jacqueline tilted her head to the side, “And why would you want to give something like that to a Stawri? I know you have taken quite a liking to him, and he seems to adore you in turn, but he would be most satisfied with his usual scraps of fish and fowl.”
I smiled, unlike my father, she wasn’t rejecting me outright; she wanted to know why I wanted something more extravagant, “I want to teach him tricks!” I announced with a grin.
Jacqueline looked at me confused before returning to her chopping, “Teaching a Watch-Stawri tricks would be a pointless endeavor, but I will see if I can manage something.” Taking that to mean the conversation was over, I thanked her and left the kitchen.
Sure enough, I did in fact receive some strips of jerky a few days later and promptly began teaching Stil to sit and lie down, out of sight of my father of course. Stil was a fairly intelligent animal as it turns out; he mastered sitting in a mere week and only took a few more days to learn to lie down. I had run out of treats by then though and, not wanting to chance Jacqueline getting in trouble, approached my father.
“Father, I would like to ask you if I could have some preserved meat for Stil.” He frowned and looked down at me.
“Stahlia, I have already told you. Stil does not need anything as fancy as that.” I returned his frown and commenced my demonstration.
“Stil, sit!” Stil promptly sat down and looked up at me expectantly. “Lie down!” Stil cocked his head; I usually rewarded him right away. I’m sorry Stil, I don’t have any treats right now! But if you do a good job, we can convince father! I glanced at my father; he was staring at Stil with wide eyes. One more ought to finish him. Containing my excitement, I gave Stil one more command. “Roll Over!”. Stil promptly rolled over and sat back up, eyeing me suspiciously. “You see father, Stil has learned how to perform and now he wants a treat to reward his efforts!”
My father was looking back and forth between me and Stil with wide eyes, “Stahlia, how did you get a Stawri to behave like a dog?”
Wait, dogs are a thing in this world? Why do we have a feather ball like Stil then? Regardless, I had to press my advantage, “It is simple Father; I gave him a command then pushed him into the position I wanted. I would then give him a treat. He very quickly learned that if he did what I wanted without being pushed, he would get a bigger treat!” My smile was so large it was honestly painful to hold but I persevered.
My father looked thoughtful for a moment before taking his plate off the table and placing it on the floor. Stil went over to the plate and sniffed it, before happily eating the remains of my father’s grilled salt fish.
“Alright Stahlia, I will instruct Jacqueline to budget accordingly to provide you an amount of meat for Stil. Do not exceed the amount you receive…” I was about to thank him before he continued. “…and I want to see what you are able to teach him at the end of every month, that was quite the spectacle.”
With my eye twitching slightly I thanked my father and quickly left the room with an excited Stil. I just wanted to entertain myself, but I somehow wound up getting a job that comes with monthly inspections from the upper management?!
In that manner, I continued to train Stil, showing off his progress periodically to my father. My father seemed to be quite entertained by the whole ordeal; On the nights when we were to conduct a review, he would always instruct Jacqueline to cook an extra portion of whatever fish or bird we were eating. This he would then give to Stil after the performance. When I showed off “Beg!” my father almost fell out of his chair from laughing. Of course, I didn’t spend every day playing with Stil; following my first birthday and true to their word, my parents would bring me out with them on errands at least once a week. I would be very careful about how I presented myself, limiting my communication to simple sentences such as a child my age should normally be capable of and learning as much as I could. In this manner, the days turned into weeks and then into months.
★★★★★★
Fifth Month, 0938
It had been some time since I started my training regimen with Stil when I inadvertently made an important discovery. I had just finished teaching Stil to “Shake” when I heard a “Ding!” echo inside my head. Accompanying the sound, a small line of text displayed itself at the bottom of my vision. Reading the text, I started to get excited.
“Talent Experience has reached the prerequisite amount. Acquired Talent [Monster Handling I]. Due to acquisition of [Monster Handling I], the lesser talent [Animal Handling I] has been sealed.”
I had acquired a new talent! I quickly retired to my room and opened the menu to see what I could learn. Reading over my menu entries, I was able to conclude that if I acquired a skill or talent without spending any Life Points, it would not consume an associated slot. Indeed, much like my skill slots, my talent slots displayed “1/1” despite now having Monster Handling I in addition to Prodigy I. As for how I had “reached the prerequisite amount” of “Talent Experience” I could only conclude that my having spent so much time training Stil had been earning me experience with an associated skill behind the scenes.
This was pretty big news, it meant I could expect to acquire skills and talents without having to spend Life Points on them. Speaking of which, it looked like I had gained more life points at some point, as well as fifty experience points for Prodigy I. Since I made a habit of checking my menu once a day before going to sleep, I knew that those gains had been made today. The only thing of any significance I had done today was to acquire the monster handling skill. Thusly I could conclude that at least one way of leveling Prodigy and gaining Life Points involved acquiring talents through training.
I opened the description of [Monster Handling I] to see what information I could glean from it.
“[Monster Handling I]: [Acquisition Effect]: Provides Effects of [Animal Handling V], Provides positive correction to interactions with bonded monsters. Provides a link to bonded monsters. Enables bonding with one additional monster. [Level Up Effect]: Enables bonding with one additional monster, Maximum rank of bonded monsters +1. [Acquisition Source]: Gain experience training monsters past threshold, Derives from [Animal Handling VI], Granted automatically by select Tier Three and above classes. Bonded Monsters: 1/1”
So that’s why Animal Handling got sealed; monster handling is the natural evolution of Animal Handling. It would probably be broken if I was allowed to double-dip and get the bonuses from both talents. As for the effects… “positive correction” probably means that the monster I have bonded with will be easier to command and train. I have no idea what “link” means… maybe I can get a sense of my monster’s condition? I tried focusing a mental picture of Stil but didn’t receive any information about him. Maybe Stil isn’t my “1/1” bonded monster, though I can’t think of any other monsters I’ve interacted with... Still, I was satisfied with the effects of the skill. I was sure it would prove useful to me, not to mention all the information about how this world’s systems worked.
★★★★★★
I sat up in bed with a jolt. I was gripped by a sense of concern and wariness. Looking around my room fearfully I couldn’t spot anything, so I laid down and tried to go back to sleep. When I closed my eyes, vague disjointed images flowed into my head. I got flashes of myself, and the feeling of a desire to protect. I also got a vague impression that something smelled wrong. I sat up again and looked around. Something was definitely wrong.
Suddenly, a bright flash came through my window. I cried out in surprise and rubbed at my eyes. When my vision was returned, I made my way over and pulled myself up carefully to look out the window. I had to clap my hands over my mouth to stop myself from screaming; Out in the street in front of our house, a figure clothed in a black full-body suit was dragging bodies into an alleyway. I ducked back down and curled up; I was shaking with fear. The images of myself and the urge to protect were still flashing through my mind. Belatedly, I realized they were probably being transmitted to me by Stil, across whatever link we had.
After what felt like hours, but was probably only a few minutes, The feelings I was receiving eased off. I was struck with the assurance that “the danger is gone”. I slowly stopped shaking and worked up the courage to peak out the window again. The street was now empty, there was no sign of the ninja look-alike that had been dragging bodies around. I slowly climbed back into my bed. Thank you, Stil! I thought to myself with genuine emotion. I was struck by a sense of joy and satisfaction; apparently, the “link” we had would communicate strong feelings rather than statuses or conditions. At least I know how it works now... I laughed bitterly; I was definitely not going to be able to get any more sleep tonight.
★★★★★★
Several days had passed since my trauma, my parents made no mention of the incident; rather, they seemed wholly unconcerned. My Father, I could understand hiding his emotions, but my mother would definitely fall faint and be insisting we protect me or something! Don’t tell me they have no idea what happened? I recalled how the ninja wannabe had been dragging the corpses into an alley. They must have somehow made all those bodies disappear… I can’t very well tell my parents what I saw, they would never believe me if I said one person had killed that many people right outside our house without making a sound. I need to find a way to protect myself.
I listed off my options. The first option, get a magic skill so I can cast magic other than my enhancement... Rejected. I have no idea how I could possibly get one without spending Life Points on it, and doing that requires me to level up. The second option is, Level Up to get stronger... Rejected; I can just imagine that conversation “Hey dad! I want to go kill monsters!” “What? No way, that’s too dangerous!” it would never work. The third option, get stronger by improving my equipment. This is the only one that could work. I had played dozens of RPGs and sunk hundreds of hours into them. All RPGs followed the same basic gameplay loop; Fight strong opponents, get stronger, fight even stronger opponents, get even stronger.
While there were some exceptions, the “get stronger” part usually had two methods. Method one, which was off-limits for me currently, was to level up and thus improve your base stats and ability. Method two was to improve your equipment. Presently, I had no equipment whatsoever. My children’s clothes did not give me any defensive bonuses, and my unarmed skill was nonexistent. This meant I would be able to strengthen myself if I could only get stronger.
New equipment was usually obtained from one of three sources, and these sources would influence the quality. The best equipment came from boss monsters or raid encounters. The middle tier of equipment would be awarded by an NPC upon finishing a quest, or from looting after a battle against normal enemies. The weakest equipment you always got at the start of a game came from shops and vendors. Of course, ability meant more than gear; Stahlia’s namesake had beaten the final boss using a middle-tier sword she had gotten by saving a wealthy traveling merchant from bandits. Still, I probably couldn’t even get this world’s equivalent of middle-tier equipment; who would give a quest to a one-year-old girl? That meant I would need to settle for something I could buy from a shop vendor.
Thankfully, I had already met this town’s blacksmith during an outing with my mother a few months ago. At the time I had looked at what he was selling and been fairly unimpressed; his shop only stocked iron and steel, and none of it had a magic enchantment. He was, by all accounts, the perfect example of a starting village smith. I had a problem though. Even if I was going to settle for an item from his shop, I would need money. I highly doubted my father would be willing to get me a weapon. In fact, I knew he would refuse.
I couldn’t even ask for money under the pretext of getting something else and then secretly use it for buying a weapon; even steel was prohibitively expensive. This kingdom enforced a strict and heavy tax on the sale of weapons as a way to keep them out of the hands of the lower classes. My status as a member of a fallen noble house meant that I was basically a commoner, so I would not be able to avoid that tax. A simple Steel Dagger I had seen in the smithy would cost 7,000 Draks. I had learned about the currency in use during one of my outings with my mother.
The coins most used were Drakas Small Silvers and Coppers, worth 100 and 10 Drak respectively. The name came directly from the name of the country; the Drakas Kingdom. There were also Drakas Small Coppers worth 1 Drak, Drakas Silvers worth 1,000 Drak, Drakas Small Golds worth 10,000 Drak, and Drakas Golds worth 100,000 Drak. My mother also told me there were larger denominations used for large transactions but pretty much only nobles or the kingdom itself would use them. When I asked what a Drak was worth my mother got a funny look and explained that each coin was actually made of iron and then coated in an amount of precious metal; a Drak was worth that much precious metal.
In order to obtain my desired weapon, I would need seven Drakas Silvers. Our household income was about two Drakas Small Golds per month. Considering my father was the mayor of the village, that meant we were probably well off. Despite our apparent wealth, it would still take nearly half our monthly income to buy a single Steel Dagger. That tax is bullshit. No way commoners would be able to get ahold of weapons easily. My father is definitely not going to give me a Steel Dagger, no matter how adorable I make myself. I need a plan. I was going to have to somehow get the money myself. I spent the rest of the day coming up with a plan.
★★★★★★
The next day after dinner, I waited for my father to down his third glass of brandy before approaching him, “Father, I have a request!” I announced myself with a smile like I had done when I wanted the jerky for Stil.
Perhaps remembering how my last request had turned out, my father asked me what I wanted with a smile, “I want a dagger to protect myself with!” My dad was taken aback. Yea, that’s a big jump from “I want dog treats!” to “I want a weapon!”
“Stahlia, why do you feel the need to protect yourself?” At least I wasn’t being rejected outright, he was probably remembering how I had been successful with Stil and was willing to hear me out.
I put on a serious face, “I want a weapon in case the kidnappers come after me!” I heard a tray clatter and looked behind me; Jacqueline had apparently stumbled while bringing my father tea.
“I am terribly sorry; I seem to have tripped over my own foot… I will clean this right away and bring fresh tea!” Well, that had nothing to do with me, so I turned back to my father and waited for his response.
“Stahlia, you do not need to worry about that, no kidnappers are coming after you. Even if there were, the village watch and I are more than capable of protecting you.” So far, this conversation was proceeding exactly how I had envisioned it, so I went in for the kill.
“Father, I understand that it is not a justifiable expense, if I can get the money myself will you let me buy a dagger for myself?” My mother looked horrified at the thought, but my father chuckled.
“Sure sweety, if you can get the money, I will let you buy whatever you want with it. Just do not break any laws.” Exactly as planned. Making sure his intelligence stat was debuffed by alcohol was the right choice. No parent in their right mind would agree to let their one-and-a-half-year-old daughter become an entrepreneur for the express purpose of getting a weapon.
“Thank you, Father!” I beamed a smile at him and returned to my room.
When I got to my room, I found Jacqueline waiting for me with her hands on her hips and her lips pursed. “Alright Stahlia, out with it. What are you planning?” I tried to look confused.
“I am not planning anything Jacqueline; I simply intend to make money and get a dagger.” Jacqueline shook her head and sighed.
“Stahlia, I am not blind. You made sure your father was tipsy enough to impair his better judgment before asking him, and knowing you, you most certainly have a plan in mind to get the money already. Weapons are expensive and you are well aware of that, it’s not the kind of money a yearling can so easily get their hands on. In fact, it would normally be impossible, but I am sure you have a method in mind.” I hesitated; I was a bit put off at how cleanly I had been seen through. Jacqueline started tapping her foot waiting for my answer.
Making my decision, I came clean; Jacqueline had assisted me with the dried meat, and having an accomplice would greatly expedite things, “Well, I was planning to make a new type of medicine with alchemy, but it’s still going to be difficult to get my hands on the materials.”
Jacqueline sucked in her breath and brought a hand up to stroke her chin in thought, “Alchemy you say… Am I correct to assume you already have some idea of what you would need to make this medicine?”
I nodded, and Jacqueline gave me a conspiratorial smile while rubbing her hands together, “What do I need to acquire for you then?”
Well, she agreed to that a lot easier than I thought she would… Still, this beats my original plan. Indeed, I had originally intended to involve Jacqueline in my scheme, by asking her for one or two items periodically over the course of a month. My need was urgent, but I had not been able to think of a way to expedite this stage of the plan. If she was going to go all-in with me from the start, that would greatly aid my progress. I smiled and started listing things off while counting on my fingers. Jacqueline’s expression grew more serious as the list got longer and longer.
“Some of these items will be fairly expensive in their own right… still, it would be cheaper than buying the dagger outright. What exactly is this medicine for?” I couldn’t very well make her suspicious by saying it was a secret, so I decided to fill her in.
“When I met Mister Sven, he told me that the potion used to wake people up from the sleep ailment was very expensive and hard to make; this medicine will be a cheaper alternative without losing any of the effectiveness.” Jacqueline raised her eyebrows and asked me if I was sure it would work. I nodded emphatically and Jacqueline agreed to get me what I needed, after offering a parting warning.
“Still, some of these materials you want are quite dangerous. Combustion Fruit, in particular, you could really injure yourself with that if you make a mistake.” I nodded to show I understood and asked Jacqueline if she would help me manufacture my sample product to which she agreed instantly. She was probably fishing for me to ask her that.
Over the next weeks, Jacqueline slowly collected the items I had asked her for. It took longer than I had expected given her ready cooperation, but apparently, some of what I needed was completely unheard of. I had to draw out basic schematics for the glassworker in the village. As for investment capital, Jacqueline actually used some of her savings for me. Talk about pressure! I really hope this works out properly otherwise I won’t be able to ask Jacqueline for any favors in the future! Eventually, we had gathered everything we needed for the first step.
We waited until after my parents had gone to bed and then Jacqueline slipped into my room with a bag; we were storing materials in her room on the first floor since my parents would come in my room for various reasons. Jacqueline set the bag on a table while I climbed up and stood on a chair so I would be able to see. “So Stahlia, what should I do first?”
I pointed at the Combustion Fruit, which was wrapped in a thick wool cloth to prevent it from making any sparks and igniting if it struck a hard surface, “Put the Combustion fruit underneath the jar and carefully cut it open to drain the flame gas.”
Combustion Fruit was the seed of a Flame Ent, a weak plant-type monster. They would lob the fruits at passersby as an attack method, as well as throw them as far as they could to scatter their offspring. Adventurers could gather the fruit to sell; they would explode if struck against a hard surface due to a spark being formed by a type of metal woven through the skin of the fruit. I had been told that the fruits were “Lighter than they look” and that the explosion was caused by “A flammable gas that fills the fruit.” Adventurers apparently used them like flashbangs. Because of the existence of magic in this world, the natural sciences were far behind those of Earth, but when I heard the description of the Combustion Fruit, I could only think of Hydrogen gas.
Hydrogen gas was what caused the Hindenburg to blow up in the 1900s back on Earth. It was much, much, lighter than air and highly flammable. For my plan, I would need a decent amount. Since it was lighter than air, it would rise up when freed from the fruit. We exploited this by holding a jar above the fruit; as the gas escaped it would be collected in the jar.
Jacqueline nodded and deftly pierced the skin of the fruit using a spike made from a rather squishy wood to avoid causing a spark and tightly sealed the jar after the fruit became heavy in her hand. I wasn’t sure about the seal being completely airtight, so I directed her to make sure we kept the jar completely upside down. Jacqueline asked me what was next. I indicated the next object on the table; a sack of air powder and a metal sphere with a bottleneck sprouting from one end.
The sphere had been the most expensive item. The sphere was made of steel with an incredibly thin coating of a special resin. The resin was a material that didn’t exist on Earth; it was the spit of a species of insect monster. It would harden when exposed to air; once hardened it was incredibly tough. The only way to remove it was using a special potion to dissolve it away. Monster parts sure are convenient, this wouldn’t be possible without them. Finally, the lid to the sphere was a screw-on valve so that once it was filled, we could carefully open it to regulate the speed at which it would drain.
“Fill the pressure chamber with Air Powder and screw in the cap as tightly as you can, then take it outside and put it in a fire to activate the Air Powder. Make sure we do it outside since I have no way of knowing if the pressure chamber will be able to hold in all of the air; it might explode.” Jacqueline stared at me.
“I thought the Combustion Fruit would be the most dangerous part of this, what do you mean it might explode?”
I really had no way of explaining pressure gradients and tensile strength to Jacqueline, that was knowledge I had acquired in my University Chemistry classes. I did my best to explain expanding air using altitude, but Jacqueline eventually waved me off and said she would take my word for it since “You clearly know what you are talking about, somehow.”
The Air Powder in question was another magical material unique to this world; when activated with heat, it would release air. I had initially thought it was just yeast since I discovered it in a bakery, but apparently, it was also used by adventurers when mountain climbing or diving. That meant that as opposed to releasing CO2 as Yeast did, Air Powder would literally release Air. I had conducted a small test with a candle and discovered that the Air Powder Air was not flammable, which meant it was not pure Oxygen. My hope was that it was an Oxygen-Nitrogen mix like regular air; I needed the Nitrogen.
Jacqueline again performed her task and then set aside the Sphere after screwing on the cap. “What is next?” I could tell she was getting a little bit excited.
“Well we have the H2 now, but we need to activate the Air Powder before we can extract N2, so we are stuck for tonight.” Jacqueline frowned disappointedly and packed up the bag, being extremely careful with the Hydrogen jar. Before bidding me goodnight and slipping out of my room.
I was a bit tired the next morning and my mom felt my forehead with a concerned face. “Make sure you get to bed early Stahlia.” Of course, I fully intended to get to my room as quickly as possible, but the day was determined to pass as slowly as it possibly could. Finally, night arrived.
After my parents went to bed, Jacqueline entered my room and began to unpack. Before she had a chance to get too far I jumped up and put my shoes on. “We will want to do this part outside, just in case.” Jacqueline gave me a look.
“You were fine using the Combustion Fruit inside your room, but now you want to go outside? How dangerous exactly is the ‘pressure chamber’?”. I smiled mischievously.
“Was the pressure chamber cold when you got it out of the fire?” Her eyes narrowed.
“Extremely cold.” I clasped my hands behind my back and gave my best innocent smile.
“It is extremely dangerous then, don’t drop it; it very well might be able to level the house.” Jacqueline looked at the bag she was carrying warily and moved it out as far away from her body as she could.
We made our way out to the garden, and I had her remove another jar, this one was made of steel and had a hose connected to it. The hose was designed to screw onto the pressure chamber’s valve, “Jacqueline if you would, please connect the hose to the Pressure Chamber and open the valve the smallest amount you can; only open it until the hose starts to feel cold.”
Jacqueline did as I had asked, handling the pressure chamber very slowly. It seems my blasé attitude regarding the Combustion Fruit had paid off and by being cautious now, I had put the fear of God in her regarding the pressure chamber.
After a minute I told her to close the valve. Due to the laws of equal pressure, our metal jar had been filled with what was hopefully N2 gas. The way the process was supposed to work was very simple. The pressure chamber was filled to the brim with Air Powder. We then heated the pressure chamber to activate the air powder. This would cause it to release air under extreme pressure. As more and more air is released, the pressure would cause the air to liquify. Between Liquid Oxygen and Liquid Nitrogen, Liquid Nitrogen had a much lower boiling point. Releasing pressure by opening the valve, we would allow the Liquid Air to boil. This would release the Oxygen and Nitrogen into a gaseous state, which would flow down the hose and into the metal jar. It wouldn’t be a pure gas, but because Nitrogen boiled more easily the contents of the Jar should be mostly Nitrogen.
I began gathering some of the things, though my size meant I couldn’t carry much, “We can go back inside now.”
Jacqueline shook her head and said we should finish outside; now that she knew how dangerous the pressure chamber was, she did not want to bring it inside the house.
I shrugged, “Alright, it does not really make a difference where we finish up. Just connect the pressure valve lid onto the Hydrogen jar; remember to keep the jar inverted. Then, open the valve on the Nitrogen Cylinder so that the gas flows the other way.”
Jacqueline did as I instructed although her face was beginning to look wary. I imagine she probably only understood a little of what I was saying, as I was using the English names for the gases and devices we had constructed. This last step was a crapshoot in all honesty. The Haber-Brosch process worked best under extreme pressure, and I did not have access to air compressors in this world. Maybe there’s a magic spell that would make this easier, but I have no way of getting access to anything like that at the moment. After a few minutes, I figured the pressures would be equalized, so I had Jacqueline close both the valves and disconnect the Nitrogen cylinder. Now I would let the hydrogen jar sit for a few days and hopefully, enough of a bonding reaction would take place.
★★★★★★
A few days later, I decided it would have either worked or it wouldn’t have. I collected my assistant and had her open the jar just a tiny amount and then quickly shut it again so that if the reaction had worked, we wouldn’t lose the gas. While she was doing this, I leaned close to the lid and inhaled deeply through my nose. “It worked!” I exclaimed happily. “I was actually able to make Ammonia!”
Of course, this also meant I had just taken a huge whiff of Ammonia, while my body mass was likely less than ten kilos. Jacqueline caught me and made me sit down as I began to sway from side to side like the pendulum on a grandfather clock.
“I take it that whatever you just made smelled how you were expecting, but will it truly exhibit the effect you desire?” I grinned and clapped my hands together. I already knew it worked, given how I had just gagged myself and gotten woozy, but it seemed a proper demonstration was in order.
“We shall have to test it now will we not?” I asked Jacqueline to carry the jar and went downstairs; it was just after breakfast, as I had returned straight to my room after eating to check the ammonia. Entering the kitchen, I called out, “Mother, I have something to show you and Father!”
My mother smiled and asked me to wait while she got my father. While she was fetching him, I called out to the last participant in my experiment. “Stil, heel! Good boy, Sit.” Stil trotted over and sat down next to him. Jacqueline gave him a small piece of jerky; everyone in our home had taken to always carrying a few pieces. Stil remained sitting next to me even after getting his treat, ever since I had gotten [Monster Handling I] he had been noticeably more obedient, he seemed able to sense that I wasn’t done with him yet.
My parents arrived and my mother prompted me. “Alright Stahlia, I see you have Stil, did you finish teaching him a new trick?” I nodded.
“Exactly mother! This one took a while to get right, but he has finally mastered it! Stil, Mount!” Stil first stood up from his sitting position, then bent all four of his knees to lower his body down towards the ground. I promptly hiked up my skirt and swung my leg over his back.
“Yip Yip!” Stil stood up and, while I held on by squeezing my knees, he set off and did a lap around the kitchen. My father stared at the sight in shock and my mother, predictably, fainted on the spot. I could also see Jacqueline with a hand cupped over her mouth trying not to laugh; I hadn’t shown her this yet either.
My father recovered and rushed to my mother’s side while chiding me, “Stahlia, look what you did! Your poor Mother’s heart!”
I expressed my completely heartfelt apologies, “I am ever so sorry Father, I was simply so excited to show the progress of Stil’s training…” Jacqueline briefly lost control and snorted loudly. “…Thankfully, I have actually finished my money-making project! It should be able to recover mother.”
My father looked at me suspiciously as I indicated for Jacqueline to use the ammonia on my mother. Upon catching the smell of ammonia, my mother shot straight up and looked around. My father watched in shock and looked at me questioningly, “Father, I have created a substance I call ‘Ammonia’ it is made using readily available materials and can cure people who have fainted in mere moments, as you have just seen. I was informed by Mister Sven that the common cure for faintness is extremely expensive and spoils quickly. I intend to sell Sven the means of production of my Ammonia and use that money to buy my dagger.”
My father seemed at a loss for words, while my mother was staring off into the distance. After a full minute, my father simply murmured “I see.”
Jacqueline stepped in as I began to worry my father would not allow me, “Master Fynn, the young lady is being entirely truthful, in fact, I personally assisted her in the production of this ‘Ammonia’ and the process is entirely safe…”
You liar! You know full well how dangerous it actually was. You still won’t go within ten meters of the Pressure Chamber! My internal thoughts aside, I was careful not to betray myself on my face and waited for Jacqueline to finish.
“…Beyond merely selling the manufacturing rights, I think it would be in my lady’s best interest if we could leverage her invention to secure Sven as an alchemy tutor. As I have watched her this past month, I think I may have stumbled across her special class. My Lord, have you ever heard of the “Alchemy Prodigy” talent?” My father’s eyes went wide, a perfect mirror of my own.
Well, I suppose she was bound to arrive at some conclusion after all that. Surprising how close she got to my real Talent though.
My father for his part appeared to be going over a great deal in his head, “Very well, I will send for Sven. We should discuss this in our home rather than his shop.” My mother looked like she was about to protest, but my Father waved her to be quiet, “Rosalie my love, you must admit that Stahlia’s invention will alter the balance of power, and to come up with it at her age, she could only be an alchemy prodigy. We should arrange for her to get as much practice as she can, it is our duty as her parents.” My mother grudgingly accepted and my father issued Sven a dinner invitation.
★★★★★★
That evening, as we sat around the table, the air was heavy. My mother was keeping her peace, but it was clear for all to see that she was not thrilled. My father was eating silently, occasionally looking at either me or Sven. Sven looked so nervous that I doubt he tasted his food at all. Jacqueline was her normal self, standing off to the side and occasionally refilling someone’s drink. As for myself, I hadn’t a care in the world. I ate my food with gusto.
As we wrapped up, my father finally broke the silence, “Sven, I have a business proposal for you.”
Sven swallowed nervously and sat up straight, “A-ah, Is that so? What can I do for you Mayor Fynn?”
My father looked at me before continuing, making sure to pick his words carefully, “My daughter. As you are already aware she is somewhat advanced for her age.” Sven glanced at me and nodded anxiously, “Recently, I set her a task. She wanted to buy something rather expensive, and we lacked the means. She extracted a promise from me, if she could acquire the money herself, I would let her make the purchase.”
When my father paused, Sven hesitatingly asked, “And where do I come in sir?
My Father nodded and continued, “You see, my daughter has managed to betray everyone’s expectations. She used alchemy to develop a new drug, using only commonly available materials. She has made a drug that can cure faintness out of goods acquired at general purveyors. I would like to sell you this recipe.”
Sven laughed uproariously before trailing off when he realized my father was not joking, “Y-your serious sir? I do apologize, but that’s impossible. Something like that would alter the balance of power in the kingdom. To do something like that at her age she would have to b-”
My father cut him off, “She would have to be an alchemy prodigy, yes, the thought had crossed my mind. We have not had her dedication yet of course, but based on my own witness of the effects of her remedy there is no doubt in my mind. That brings me to the second point. In exchange for a discount on the recipe, my wife and I would like to employ you to instruct our daughter. You would be doing this in secret of course, but since you are already aware of her abnormality and have thus far kept your silence, it is my belief that we can trust you.”
Sven was entirely quiet now, to overcome by events to speak his thoughts on the subject. My mother, who had remained silent until then finally spoke up, “I just cannot accept this. Fynn, you may be my husband, but Stahlia is not even two years of age yet. I cannot allow my daughter to travel the city unaccompanied to what essentially would constitute a job!”
My father gave her a stern look I had never seen from him before, “Rosalie, you would question me?” His voice was calm but somehow caused a chill to run down my spine. Jacqueline smoothly stepped in to offer her own opinion, before things got out of hand.
“My Lord, if I may?” My father glanced at her and nodded after a moment, “My Lord. Lady Rosalie does have a point, Miss Stahlia is much too young to travel the city unaccompanied. To that end, I would profess to offer a compromise; limit Stahlia to only working one day a week; on that day, I shall escort her to ensure her safety.”
My father mulled over the suggestion and turned to Sven, “What do you think? Is that acceptable to you?”
Sven appeared deep in thought, he was watching Jacqueline closely before he nodded slowly, “Aye, if it be good with you then I can agree to those terms.”
My mother spoke up again, apparently still dissatisfied, “I am her mother, I could not ask that of you Jacqueline, I will take her myself!”
Jacqueline shook her head, “No Lady Rosalie, you are the mayor’s wife and a mother of his child, while I am but a single woman and a maid. Imagine the differences in people’s opinions should they witness the two of us making frequent visits to Sven’s shop?”
My mother opened and closed her mouth repeatedly before turning bright red, announcing that Jacqueline would make a fine escort for me and excusing herself. Internally I found the situation hilarious, but externally I opted to ask my father “Is mother ill father?” with an innocent and inquisitive expression. My comment seemed to have broken the tension as intended, and Sven began to negotiate payment with my father.
Eventually, they settled on a Drakas Gold Coin as immediate payment, a signed contract of naming Sven my alchemy instructor, and an arrangement for profit sharing between my father and the Alchemist’s Guild to be discussed at a later date once the Guild had assessed the recipe. The profit-sharing was being done in my father’s name as I was not of age, but he assured me I would have access to the money from it the next time I had an “insane request”. I smiled and thanked him.
Since I couldn’t go to the blacksmith’s myself, I entrusted Jacqueline with the money I had received. She took out the amount she had invested, refusing outright to take any return on the investment, and promptly placed the order for a dagger for me. A week later, she presented me with my first weapon. The dagger had cost 7,000 Drak, and I gave my father the remaining money. Telling him to consider it my thanks for putting up with my often-troublesome escapades.
Thus, I acquired access to a teacher. I was honestly quite excited to begin learning alchemy. I imagined that it would be quite useful; if all else failed I would have a fallback profession with which to support myself and knowing how to produce alchemical substances was always an incredibly helpful side profession in RPGs that allowed for that sort of thing. I set out to get a weapon, but I wound up achieving a pseudo apprenticeship in a useful trade as well. Pretty good for a year-old babe.
★★★★★★
My nightly escapades with Jacqueline did not stop after the development of Ammonia. The night after she presented me with the dagger she came to my room and had me get dressed before taking me out to the garden. Once arrived she produced a straw bale and coolly informed me that “Having a weapon is useless if you do not know how to use it.”
I very quickly ran into an issue, however; the dagger was heavy! Given my own lack of size, the Dagger was closer to a great sword as far as my tiny arms were concerned. I persevered with it, however, progress was incredibly slow.
Eventually, I developed a technique where I would magically enhance myself for just a moment in order to perform a move. But my mana was limited, so I was only able to fight for a scant few minutes, even if I economized as much as possible. Jacqueline was impressed by my progress, and asked me how I was managing to perform the forms I was being taught despite my lack of strength.
When I told her I was “using mana to improve my muscles for an instant before attacking” she got a distant look on her eyes and murmured something about “blood magic” I couldn’t catch the entirety of. Then she instructed me to keep this discovery a secret, it was apparently an exceedingly rare technique and would be very difficult to explain to anyone who asked.