When Things Get Tough, Change Your Approach

"I'm very sorry. Grandma Lizzie has recently gone out of town to buy medicinal herbs, so she won't be back for a while," Nfirea said apologetically.

There were indeed many Pharmacists who wanted to speak with Grandma Lizzie, but she generally turned them down.

Although discussing and exchanging ideas with other Pharmacists could improve one's skills and broaden one's knowledge of medicinal herbs, Grandma Lizzie had been happy to do so when she was young.

But ever since her reputation had grown, she had come to hate these exchanges. The gap in their abilities meant that she was always the one sharing her knowledge, while Grandma Lizzie got nothing in return.

It wasn't that she got absolutely nothing out of it, but the experiences those Pharmacists treasured were things Grandma Lizzie had already learned long ago.

Still, it wasn't that Grandma Lizzie was selfish with her knowledge. It was simply more productive to spend her time doing research than wasting it.

Unless something special came up in the front room, Nfirea usually held down the fort. When Pharmacists like this came along, hoping to exchange ideas with Grandma Lizzie, he would simply turn them down tactfully.

But this time, Nfirea wasn't lying. Grandma Lizzie really wasn't there.

"Oh, that's all right. Since you call Lizzie your grandmother, I take it you must be Nfirea?" Hades asked. Brita had already told him a little about the potion workshop.

"That's right." Nfirea nodded, then said, "Why don't you come back in a few days, once Grandma has returned, Mr. Jimi?"

"Hmm..."

Hades didn't answer. He lowered his head and considered the situation.

There was no need to rush to learn how potions were made in the New World. That would be true if Nazarick didn't exist—or if the people of this world weren't so weak. In either case, he wouldn't need to hurry.

But the one advantage he had over Nazarick was his head start. If he didn't use it to do something, then once Momonga caught on, it would be much harder for him to get anything done.

From his conversation with Brita, he had learned that the forest he had been in was the Great Forest of Tob, and the nearest city was E-Rantel.

If he were Momonga, he wouldn't travel farther than necessary to reach another city. It might not be long before Momonga sent people here to gather information.

Hades suddenly realized that instead of doing nothing but hide, he could leave a hidden line of contact, just like the Magic Caster Guild. Maybe he could learn something about Nazarick and use it to prepare a countermeasure.

When things got tough, you had to change your approach. Hades had thought the New World had Tier Magic and was at least close to YGGDRASIL's level. He had decided to keep his identity completely hidden while secretly gathering a group of people, confident that he could take Nazarick down.

But now, he could only rely on himself. If he kept hiding, he would never get anything done. He might as well seize what little head start he had and make the first move.

He had planned to meet every change with stillness and let Momonga grow suspicious on his own, but this damned world hadn't given him that chance.

Once Momonga truly realized what this world was like, the possibilities would narrow considerably. If Hades did or produced anything that didn't belong in this world, Momonga wouldn't need to investigate. He would know exactly where to look.

And right now, Hades had an opportunity—whether he wanted to fish for information or make money.

"No need. There's a potion I need urgently. I just checked, and you don't have it here. I'm short on materials, so I was wondering if you could sell me some ingredients and let me use your equipment. I'd like to brew it here."

After a long silence, Hades asked Nfirea, who had been waiting nearby for his answer.

"Eh? What kind of potion do you need? We have a very complete selection," Nfirea said in surprise.

"I don't know what it's called. I developed it myself. I'll pay for whatever materials I use," Hades replied.

"Hmm..." Now it was Nfirea's turn to fall silent. Hades's words had piqued his interest. The Lizzie Workshop already stocked a comprehensive range of potions, yet there was still one they didn't have. If possible, he really wanted to know what it was.

Nfirea was intensely curious about potions. Although Grandma Lizzie had taught him a great deal, she had shared less and less with him in recent years. He longed to see something new.

"I don't mind lending you the equipment, but... could I watch?" Nfirea asked. Then he realized that might sound like he was making demands and hurriedly added, "If you'd rather I didn't, I'll still let you use it."

"Of course. I don't mind," Hades replied.

I want you to watch. You'll be selling the potions I make for me later.

He didn't care whether Nfirea might betray him someday. In fact, if Nfirea did betray him, Hades would be relieved.

To be cautious, Hades had changed his race to an elf with a crafting profession before coming to the Lizzie Workshop. He had removed the crafting divine-class item from his elf character, changed into more ordinary clothes, and altered his appearance with his disguise necklace.

This was the identity of Jimi the Pharmacist, entirely different from Mikiha the adventurer.

He was going to leave the bait at the Lizzie Workshop to draw Nazarick's attention while he waited nearby to reap the benefits.

There was some risk, but not much.

And if it worked, he could gain another stretch of time to make use of his head start.

Nfirea closed up the shop, locked the workshop's front door, and led Hades to a room in the back, without giving any thought to the possibility that Hades might be a bad person.

Hades could only shake his head at that. If it were up to him, he would have thrown the other man out already. He couldn't tell whether the kid was too innocent or simply too kind.

He was using Nfirea as bait, but if the plan went smoothly, Nfirea wouldn't get hurt. Well... probably.

The room behind the Lizzie Workshop was in complete disarray. A pungent stench hit them as soon as they entered. All sorts of plants were neatly sorted on a huge wooden rack against the wall.

In the middle of the room stood a massive wooden table, covered with all kinds of equipment that looked like chemistry supplies: round-bottom flasks, test tubes, beakers, alcohol lamps, and more.

Even more incredibly, a still taller than a person stood in the corner. A glass tube spiraled down from it, ending in a transparent cup.

"What kind of materials do you need, Mr. Jimi? Minerals? Or medicinal herbs?" Nfirea asked, sounding rather excited.

"Minerals," Hades replied.

In YGGDRASIL, there were many kinds of ingredients for making low-tier healing potions; they weren't limited to just one. Each material had its own properties.

The basic ingredient for low-tier potions was minerals. Adding other materials could give the finished potion extra benefits, though in a player's eyes, these effects were barely worth mentioning.

Hades didn't know whether the minerals used to make potions in the New World had the same effects as those in YGGDRASIL. If he couldn't use materials from the New World to make a low-tier potion, he would have to provide the bait himself.