Chapter 67

The Failure Alchemist of the Royal Capital

Gift to the Spirit King [ 2 ] #

Alright! It’s my turn first!
I enter my atelier’s laboratory and psych myself up.
I’m fully equipped with an apron and gloves for alloy making!

I put mithril and a “stone of luck” in the alchemy pot and grip the stirring stick tightly. “Become a metal that can make everyone happy with a wonderful smile…!” I close my eyes and offer a prayer for a while. And then, snap! I open my eyes!

“Alright! Let’s begin!”

With magical power, I stir vigorously…!

As I continue to stir while thinking that, it took longer than silver for the pot to heat up, but the mithril finally began to melt and started to stir in the alchemy pot. “Let’s do it together…!”

…Yes, it’s just melted and mixed together. Let’s do it together more!

… Yes, one more step! Show me the potential you have hidden…!
And then I turn the stirring stick once more.

“Yahoo! I’ve done it! I’ve even brought out the potential of the material, it’s perfect!” I put my hands on my hips in a sense of achievement. I’m a little excited and my breathing is rough, my cheeks are also flushed.

I remove the cork from the alchemy pot and pour the still-hot liquid alloy into the ingot mold, then wait quietly for a few days.

◆

Two weeks after giving the ingot to Riin, she came to visit my atelier with the finished product in hand.

“Hey, Daisy! I finished it, so I came to deliver it!”
She says this as she rings the doorbell and enters the atelier.

“Well then, let’s see it on the second floor! I’ll bring some drinks, so go ahead and sit down!”
Today, it’s plum fruit water. I put two glasses of the chilled liquid on a tray and head to the second floor.
When we arrive at the dining room on the second floor, we place the glasses on the table and sit facing each other.
We both take a sip of the drink to quench our thirst. The sharp coldness and sweet sourness of the plum clear our mouths.

“Phew. And so, I made it like this.”
There are two rings with different stones. They use more metal than ours and have a thicker design.
“It’s for men, so I made it a little thicker even though it’s a set.”
I pick up the ring with the green stone. It’s made of a different material, but the color of the metal is almost the same, and the design of the engraved vines is the same. It’s a perfect match for my middle finger ring, and I’m completely satisfied with how it turned out.

“Shall we call them?”
“Sure! On the count of three!”
“Spirit King~!”
We call out in unison, and the room is enveloped in green and golden light.
“Daisy!”
“Riin!”
Then, the Spirit Kings appear before us. Both of them have their hands raised halfway up, leaving a space the width of our bodies and trembling there. Um, I want to hug them, but I’m hesitant, maybe?

I place the matching rings I’m holding on my palm and show them to the Spirit Kings.
“This is a ring that I made with the intention of giving it to the Spirit Kings as a present. Would you accept it?”
I say this, and I direct my gaze to the green Spirit King from the ring. The Spirit King looks down at me with a very happy smile.
“Of course, I’ll accept it, Daisy. It’s such a happy thing for us, the givers, to receive a gift from our beloved child. Would you put the ring on me?”
I nod and take the left hand offered by the Spirit King.
“If it’s a set, it’s best to match on the same middle finger, right?”
I say this and slip the ring onto the Spirit King’s smooth middle finger.
“Thank you, Daisy.”
The Spirit King’s lips touch my temple gently, and I feel the warmth of the Spirit King through my hair.
After the affectionate kiss, we place our left hands side by side to confirm that we have matching rings.

When I glance up, I see that Riin and the Earth Spirit King are also holding hands and doing the same thing, so our eyes meet, and we all laugh together a little shyly.

We were surrounded by a slightly happy atmosphere.

After settling the production costs of the ring and pendant with Riin, including the materials and labor costs I used for the alloy, Riin left the atelier. The remaining items were these three. Today, Kachua, who was checking the accounting, should be taking a meal break on the terrace of the bakery.

The pendant is called the “Pendant of Fortune” and is classified as a luxury decorative item. It has the power to bring good luck and repel misfortune. If any calamity were to befall the owner, the pendant would mysteriously guide them towards evasive action. The feeling behind it is “I want to make you happy!” The pendant top is a small oval shape, with a thickness of about the first joint of a little finger, and has a cute design of a shooting star and crescent moon carved on it. The round fixture on top of the pendant is slightly larger, and while it currently has a chain attached to it, it can be removed and arranged as a choker or bracelet. The design was inspired by the shooting star from the “Pendant of Fortune”. It would look good on both males and females around our age!

“Daisy! I want to give a present to Mina, Marcus, and Kachua!” I called out to the three who were in the bakery.

Mina and Marcus blinked their eyes in surprise. “Um, we are just servants, so there’s no need for you to be so considerate…”

“That’s right, Lady Daisy. We are paid more than enough, so we don’t deserve such treatment,” Marcus said with a slightly troubled expression.

“This is the ‘Pendant of Fortune’, which repels disaster. If anything happens while I ask you to run errands or take care of things for me, I’ll be in trouble. So, please wear it for me,” I explained to them.

“M-Meena is so lucky!” Mina was moved to tears and gratefully accepted the pendant, putting it around her neck.

“And me, too…is it okay?” Marcus asked.

“What are you saying? You’re also my precious friend,” I replied, handing him the pendant. He put it on with a slightly embarrassed expression, and his ears turned slightly red.

“And Kachua, you helped me start the atelier, and the business has been going well since then! The ‘Pendant of Fortune’ has the power to bring good luck, so it should bring good results to the business you’re trying to do! Please accept it!” I said, offering her the last pendant.

“I’m not a full-time employee, so I can’t accept it…I should pay for something like this…” Kachua began to say, but I interrupted her.

“You’re my friend and comrade! What’s wrong with giving a present to a friend?” I pushed the pendant onto her chest.

“F-friend…? Oh, um, thank you very much,” Kachua said, blushing and turning away slightly. “Friend…friend, right, we’re friends. Is this…is this the first time?” she murmured to herself.

Actually, Kachua had been somewhat of a shut-in due to her physical disability, so she didn’t have many friends her age. She was taken aback by my overt declaration of friendship, but this should put her mind at ease.