Back to the Basement

I really wanted to go!

I really wanted to see if there were any other good things in that basement.

I wanted to see if Albert could drop some more Gold Coin for me, so I could inherit even more of his legacy.

But I couldn't go.

At least, not right now.

The potion was still brewing in the cauldron.

It was a little past one in the afternoon. I only had to wait until a little past four, when the brew would be done, and then I could go. I just had to hang on a little longer—it was only about three hours.

So, after taking a deep breath and forcing herself to calm down, Lan Qingyou went back to the cauldron and continued stirring the bubbling potion.

She seemed to have calmed down, but the corners of Lan Qingyou's mouth, which showed no sign of relaxing, gave her away.

Still, although she was lost in thought while the potion brewed, she wasn't just daydreaming.

For example, she was thinking about the Appraisal Glasses perched on her nose.

The glasses only revealed the most basic information, and couldn't hold a candle to the Small Screen, but there was no denying they were useful—extremely useful!

And judging by the two appraisal results for the mortar just now, the glasses seemed to focus more on basic details.

For example, the materials used to make the mortar.

For an alchemist like Lan Qingyou, they could be a tremendous help.

Three hours wasn't long, but Lan Qingyou spent them in agony.

Ding-a-ling-a-ling—

The moment the alarm clock on the table rang, Lan Qingyou swiftly switched off the alchemy arrays beneath all five pots. Then, under Steel Wool's astonished gaze, she grabbed the Medicine Bag and Moonlight Stone Dagger from the Water Bucket and rushed out of the shelter, eager to reach Albert's Basement.

It was a little past four in the afternoon, leaving just over two hours until nightfall at seven.

For someone who needed to search for things, time was tight.

And so.

Lan Qingyou had been here three times already, so she found Albert's Basement without trouble and immediately began a thorough search.

Her eyes, behind the glasses, swept back and forth across the basement. Then she spotted an item with a useful description.

It was a somewhat old wooden stick, a little over a meter long and covered in moss.

At least, that's what it looked like to Lan Qingyou.

But the Appraisal Glasses saw it differently.

[Wooden Stirring Rod (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Description: A stirring rod made from a branch of the World Tree.]

A stirring rod?

Like the stone rod she'd ordered from Li Huai.

Albert, Albert. Should I call you bold, or selfless?

The World Tree.

It was mentioned in some of the books she'd read outside of class.

The details weren't very clear, but she knew it was a sacred treasure to the entire High Elf people, revered as their "Mother Tree."

And yet Albert had used something like that as a stirring rod for his alchemy.

She had to admit, this went beyond everything she knew about the world.

Though it wasn't as if she knew all that much about the world to begin with.

Just then, Lan Qingyou remembered a passage from Albert's Alchemy Handbook.

[Magic Power, materials, money, stamina, spirit—the alchemist's everything exists for alchemy. And alchemy will surely reward you for this devotion. Remember, alchemy is omnipotent! —by Albert]

All right, all right. So this was what you meant by devotion?

I'm in love.

After picking up the stirring rod, Lan Qingyou resumed her search, even using it to do a little digging.

After half an hour of work, she had two more things in her hands.

One was a pair of iron rods about forty centimeters long, along with a hollow, curved piece of iron. The other was a glass jar containing several irregular, transparent, hexagonal crystals, wider at the top and narrower at the bottom.

[Damaged Thorium Compass (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Butterfly Pupa (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Description: Unknown.]

Although she didn't know the exact properties of either item, the fact that they could be appraised meant they were definitely above E-rank.

Better to hang on to them, just in case.

After what amounted to digging the place three feet deep to find these three things, Lan Qingyou climbed out of the basement, thoroughly satisfied.

Seeing that it was still early, she put on the glasses and wandered around the area.

Her reasoning was simple.

Albert had owned all these things, so he certainly wasn't just some nobody.

And if someone like him had chosen to build his home and workshop in a place like this, there had to be something worthwhile about the area.

There was still time before dark.

It couldn't hurt to search and look around a little more.

Especially in places covered by Vines, bushes, and weeds.

After all, Albert's house had been covered by the same sort of overgrowth. If she hadn't had a sudden flash of inspiration back then, she might never have found it.

Sure enough.

While randomly swinging the stirring rod to clear the way, she found a stone well hidden beneath a thick layer of Vines.

After pulling away the Vines, Lan Qingyou could clearly see the wooden lid covering the well.

Unfortunately, it had rotted away until only part of its frame remained.

Floating in the air, Lan Qingyou leaned over and peered into the well. She saw a pool of clear water.

But according to the Appraisal Glasses, this water seemed to have a story behind it.

[Spring Water (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Description: It seems to be suitable for direct use as an alchemical base.]

Huh!?

It could be used directly as a base?

As a novice alchemist, Lan Qingyou knew exactly what a base was.

Simply put, it was Mana Water that had to be neutralized with her own Magic Power every time. And this well water could be used directly?

No wonder Albert had settled here.

For an alchemist, having water that could be used straight away was incredibly convenient.

Lan Qingyou wanted it, but unfortunately, her shelter wasn't nearby.

A little disappointed, she pulled back and prepared to search somewhere else. But just then, another description appeared in the frame of her glasses.

[Water Element Essence (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Description: The purest collection of Water Element energy, born from the prolonged intermingling of Water Element Magic Power.]

Wow, Elemental Essence? It sounded like a treasure!

Without a second thought, Lan Qingyou floated down into the well.

The well was shallow, only about fifty centimeters deep, but even that was quite dangerous for someone in Lan Qingyou's condition.

She sat down in the water, which reached her neck.

Feeling the water's bitter cold, she fished out a transparent, water-ball-shaped Water Element Essence from the bottom of the well.

There were plenty more of these little water balls at the bottom.

After admiring them for a moment, Lan Qingyou quickly gathered up every Water Element Essence in the well.

[Unknown (Unknown)]

[Function: Unknown.]

[Description: Unknown.]

Just as Lan Qingyou had collected all the Water Element Essence covering the bottom of the well, another window popped up in her glasses.

Those three instances of "Unknown" left her completely dumbfounded.