Vol.3 Ch.217 Rianna meets with Raiden, the Alchemist
The Queen painstakingly took twenty minutes to prepare herself before she made her way down to the Royal Courtyard. Her ten Royal guards were already assembled, standing at attention as she joined them. She intentionally decided not to tell anyone on the estate about her departure, wanting to ensure that her husband, King Cyndre, wouldn''t discover her absence when he eventually arrived at the estate. The incident with Rya was something she wished to keep from him, and her intended destination, the Crown Pharmacy, was to be a closely guarded secret. She feared that any disclosure of this information would undoubtedly lead to unwanted attention and potential leaks.
<span ss="aiText">"Let''s go. I want to get there before my husband arrives in Lomar," the Queen said as she got into a servant''s<span ss="userText">carriage. She wanted to go incognito<span ss="aiText"> and not have her status known to everyone.
<span ss="aiText">"As you wish, mydyship. It''s about a 30-minute ride from the estate to the Crown Pharmacy<span ss="aiText">.<span ss="userText"> Is there anything else<span ss="aiText"> you wish of us, mydy?" <span ss="editText">Lady Nelumbo<span ss="aiText"> asked.
<span ss="aiText">"No, just hurry and take me to the pharmacy. I need to speak with Raiden, and I want you all to stay in the carriage while I speak with him privately<span ss="userText">,"<span ss="aiText"> the Queen ordered, and the guards all nodded.
<span ss="aiText">"Very well, my Queen. <span ss="userText">Hopefully, he doesn''t have a fit, so we interrupt him<span ss="aiText">," the Lady guard said.
<span ss="aiText">"<span ss="userText">I can deal with him<span ss="aiText"> if he does," the Queen replied, and she crossed her arms.
<span ss="aiText">"Hahaha, indeed you can, my Queen. We are ready; let''s go," Nelumbo said before closing the door to the carriage, which<span ss="userText">had seven of her guards sitting inside with her.
<span ss="aiText">"Yah!" <span ss="userText">Lady Nelumbo pulled on the reins of the horse, and the carriage started to roll through the front gate.
''Now, I need to ask Raiden if any poison came out of me. Let''s hope this doesn''t backfire. Thest thing I need is a rumor spreading that I shit myself,'' the Queen thought, and she looked at her wrapped panties with worry. They were in her purse, and she hoped that Raiden would give her an answer.
The servant''s carriage rumbled through the bustling streets of the city, weaving past people engrossed in their daily activities. Vignt guards in the carriage kept a watchful eye on the passing buildings while Lady Nelumbo skillfully navigated through the throngs of people, ensuring a smooth journey to their destination.
Arriving at the Crown Pharmacy didn''t take too long. The building, a modest two-story brick structure, defied the grandeur implied by its name. However, it was renowned as the go-to destination for the Kingdom''s most potent potions and effective remedies. The catch? Affording their goods was no small feat. The pharmacy was exclusive, catering only to those with deep pockets. Walk-ins were a rarity; reservations were the norm. It was a ce that demanded wealth and stature, leaving the average noble out in the cold.
The Crown Pharmacy is infamous for offering the most luxurious and exclusive products in the entire kingdom.
<span ss="aiText">"We have arrived, my Queen," Lady Nelumbo stated, and Rianna looked out the window to see they had indeed arrived.
<span ss="userText">"Pull around to the back<span ss="aiText"> of the building," the Queen ordered.
<span ss="aiText">"Are you certain, mydyship? They will not wee us if we try to enter that way," Lady Nelumbo said.
"Absolutely! That''s an order. I refuse to be disturbed. Plus, we have no idea who from the nobility is present. Just do it," the Queen insisted, leaving Lady Nelumbo with no recourse but toply.
<span ss="aiText">"Yes, my Queen," Nelumbo agreed. She took the carriage around the back and pulled up to the loading area, where four security guards approached <span ss="userText">and stopped it.
<span ss="userText">"For the love of... Halt, what is your business here?<span ss="aiText"> We have no deliveries scheduled for today," the guard said.
<span ss="aiText">"We don''t have any deliveries, and we need to speak with Raiden. It''s an urgent matter," Lady Nelumbo told him.
<span ss="userText">"Really... You and everyone else,dy. Now, I suggest you leave here before we do<span ss="aiText"> something drastic," the guard threatened, and the other guards drew their swords.
Lady Nelumbo was about to say something when she heard the Queen''s special knocking from inside the carriage.
<span ss="userText">"We''ll leave if you speak to my boss<span ss="aiText">," Nelumbo stated.
The guard''s voice boomed, "Who the hell are you, and why should we listen to you?" Nelumbo confidently knocked on the carriage door, and it opened slightly.
The guard nced at Nelumbo, who was seated in the driver''s seat, and she gestured to him to take a look inside. Despite his skepticism, he peered into the carriage and was astonished to find the Queen herself sitting within.
<span ss="aiText">"Q-Queen Ria<span ss="userText">n—"
Rianna cut him off with amanding voice, "Don''t speak! And listen..."
<span ss="aiText">"Y-Yes, <span ss="editText">of course<span ss="aiText">," the guard responded while waiting to hear what the Queen had to say.
"I urgently need to speak with Raiden," the Queen dered.
The guard''s eyes widened in panic, "But he''s in the middle of brewing an important potion right now."
"I''m calling in a favor, and I will amodate him... somand your men to stand down and let me see him," the Queen ordered, and the guard had no choice but to obey.
<span ss="aiText">"Alright, my Que<span ss="userText">—"
"Ahem!" Lady Nelumbo cleared her throat loudly, causing the guard to turn towards her. After a moment, he grasped the significance of her gesture and realized that the information was meant to be kept secret.
<span ss="aiText">"Right, my Lady... They''re clear to pass!" the guard said, and the rest of the guards stood at attention and backed off.
"Excellent," Rianna said confidently as she firmly shut the carriage door. With a swift tug on the reins, Nelumbo urged the horses forward, quickly veiling them from the prying eyes of the bustling crowd.
<span ss="aiText">"We''ll wait out here," Nelumbo said, and the carriage stopped right outside the building''s rear entrance.
<span ss="aiText">"Very good," the guard said, opening the door for the cloaked Queen. "Pleasee inside,<span ss="aiText">Mdy."
"I will. Let''s hurry and get this over with. I need to return before nightfall," the Queen said, and she followed the guard inside the building.
<span ss="userText">
<span ss="userText">***
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Raiden, the renowned figure in the alchemist world, was widely respected for his unparalleled knowledge and expertise. His reputation, however, faced a formidable challenge from Lucas, a mysterious alchemist who emerged two decades prior and had since established himself in the kingdom''s capital. Fueled by a relentless drive to outshine his rival, Raiden became somewhat aloof, showing minimal patience for those who dared to disturb him while engrossed in his work.
His reputation for rudeness preceded him, and the Queen dreaded their uing meeting. However, she knew it was her only opportunity to uncover the truth about the mysterious mucus.
<span ss="aiText">"This is Master Raiden''s work area, my Lady," the guard informed the Queen.
"Alright, thank you. You may go," the Queen said dismissively. The guard hesitated for a moment, torn between duty and the fear of displeasing the Queen, before reluctantly exiting the room.
<span ss="aiText">"Yes, my Lady. I pray to the Goddess that Raiden is in a good mood today," the guard said before leaving the Queen alone.
"I hope so as well," the Queen whispered to herself as she fixed her gaze on the door, mustering up the courage to open it.
In a chaotic room filled with scattered papers and books, Raiden stood, the mastermind behind Crown Pharmacy''s sess. As he carefully poured a mysterious liquid into a bubbling cauldron, his intense focus and precision revealed the dedicated craftsmanship that made his business one of the most prosperous in the entire kingdom.
As the door swung open, he almost let the instrument slip from his grasp.
"What the hell?! I''m not finished yet. Come backter," Raiden said without even bothering to turn around.
<span ss="aiText">"I can''t. I need your assistance," the Queen said with a firm voice.
Raiden''s body tensed, and time seemed to stand still as the sound of that voice reached his ears. He recognized it immediately, and a heavy sigh escaped his lips as he carefully set an eyedropper back on his desk.
<span ss="userText">"Great... Of all the times<span ss="aiText"> you decide to show up, it''s the worst possible moment. Your timing is terrible, as always," Raiden muttered as he looked at the Queen standing by the entrance to hisboratory.
<span ss="aiText">"Oh shut up, you old bastard. You''ll bepensated," the Queen said<span ss="userText"> with a re.
<span ss="userText">"Compensation can''t hold back that bastard in the capital from overtaking<span ss="aiText"> me<span ss="userText">,"<span ss="aiText"> Raidenined.
<span ss="aiText">"<span ss="editText">So I should go to Lucas'' Emporium instead?<span ss="aiText">" the Queen suggested, and she removed her cloak and hung it up.
<span ss="aiText">"N-no... That asshole doesn''t know anything about potions," Raiden stated, and he looked back at her.
<span ss="aiText">"Then do me this favor, and I''ll consider <span ss="userText">us even<span ss="aiText">," the Queen demanded.
"Tch... Making a deal with royalty was a mistake," Raiden grumbled as he paced around theb, clearing a spot for the Queen to settle in.
<span ss="aiText">"Excuse me?" the Queen questioned.
<span ss="aiText">"I''m joking. Please take a seat," Raiden said.
The Queen gracefully made her way over and settled into a rustic wooden chair.
<span ss="aiText">"You know I''m busy. So why are you here? Does the King have a new recipe he wants me to brew?" Raiden asked impatiently.
<span ss="aiText">"No, King Cyndre is still in the capital... This visit is personal, and it shouldn''t leave this room," the Queen answered.
Raiden squinted and furrowed his brow, his gaze intense as he processed and absorbed the information.
"Looking for something personal, are you? A secret potion that not even the King can know about?" Raiden inquired with a smile.
<span ss="aiText">"No, and I will have your head if you mention this to anyone. I don''t need this information leaving this ce for<span ss="editText"> my enemies to use against me, understand<span ss="aiText">," the Queen told him.
Raiden''s curiosity was piqued. It was unusual for the Queen to visit this ce, and she was known for her directness. Whatever the reason for her visit, it had to be of great significance.
<span ss="userText">"Fine... My lips are sealed," Raiden said as he locked the door to theboratory.
<span ss="userText">"Thank you. I need you to tell me if this substance is harmful to the human body. It appeared in my tea this morning, and I wiped it out with this cloth<span ss="userText">," Rianna lied<span ss="aiText">.
Raiden''s gaze bore into her, and he sensed her deception. Yet, he dared not defy royalty with further inquiry.
<span ss="aiText">"Hand it over, and I will look it over," Raiden requested, and Rianna took the cloth out of her <span ss="editText">purse <span ss="aiText">and handed it to him.
He arched his eyebrow in a mixture of intrigue and skepticism as his gaze lingered on the peculiar yellowish-brown substances. His eyes then shifted back to meet the steady, unwavering gaze of the Queen.
"Where did thise from?" Raiden asked, and the Queen kept up her royal facade.<span ss="editText"> There was no way in hell she would<span ss="undoDeletionText"> disclose the <span ss="aiText"><span ss="retryDeletionText"><span ss="undoDeletionText">events that led her here.
"Like I said, I found it in a teacup. I was about to drink a cup of tea, and this substance was in the tea leaf," the Queen answered.
"I see..." Raiden said as he strode purposefully to another part of hisboratory. The room was filled with ss tubes, each one emptied into a small container.
He carefully ced the piece of fabric, which held a yellowish-brown substance, into the empty container that looked like an Erlenmeyer sk. Then, he picked up a ss beaker filled with a transparent liquid. Slowly and steadily, he poured the liquid into the Erlenmeyer sk until it reached the halfway mark. After ensuring that the amount was just right, Raiden sealed the sk with a snug-fitting rubber stopper.
<span ss="editText">"Brace yourself," Raiden uttered with a hint of anticipation. The fabric with<span ss="undoDeletionText"> the yellowish-brown substance<span ss="editText"> was submerged into<span ss="undoDeletionText"> the clear liquid<span ss="undoDeletionText">, causing the once transparent sk to be ha<span ss="undoDeletionText">zy as the<span ss="aiText"><span ss="retryDeletionText"><span ss="undoDeletionText"> solution reacted to the foreign material.
"<span ss="editText">What are you doing<span ss="editText">?" R<span ss="editText">ianna asked as she witnessed<span ss="aiText"> the reaction.
"Testing your sample, my Lady... See here?... The clear liquid has a special attribute that can iste harmful materials. And once I start boiling it, the liquid will go through these ss tubes, and depending on how quickly the materials cool off will determine what type of chemicals are in this substance. One of those five empty vials over there will separate out the chemicalposition, and I can analyze it," Raiden carefully exins the process as he attaches a ss tube to the rubber stopper already in ce on the container. He then focuses his mana into a magical instrument resembling a hotte, causing it to glow with vibrant energy.
Rianna <span ss="editText"><span ss="undoDeletionText">observed that the <span ss="undoDeletionText">single tube <span ss="undoDeletionText">connected to the sk <span ss="undoDeletionText">started to branch out into several smaller tubes, leading into the five vials that Raiden had mentioned earlier.
"Wait, I''m a little confused about how the substances are going to move through the ss tubes. It''s hard to imagine how this setup will actually separate out the different chemicals into separate vials," the Queen inquired, watching as the hot te began to glow and heat up the ss.
<span ss="userText">"It''s simple, my Lady. Poisons tend to retain heat for a little longer than other<span ss="aiText"> materials. This is because poisons are more vtile. In this case, I''ve set the heat source to <span ss="editText">10<span ss="aiText">0 degrees centigrade, a temperature that is ideal for heating up the poison. Once it reaches a boil, the vapor will rise up and be sucked into the tubes, where it will cool off. And depending on the speed at which it cools off will depend on the separation into the vials," Raiden exined as he carefully adjusted the heat source<span ss="editText">. "So if there is anything that is poisonous within that <span ss="userText">substance<span ss="editText">,<span ss="userText"> then it will be collected in that fourth vial," he added, and he pointed to the vial in question.
<span ss="aiText">"I see. That makes a lot of sense. Well done, Raiden," the Queen praised.
<span ss="aiText">"It''s my job, after all," Raiden replied<span ss="editText"> as he watched the vapor<span ss="aiText"> rise up from the sk. The Queen was intrigued as she saw the vapor moving from the sk through the tubes<span ss="editText"> until it began to turn into liquid droplets<span ss="aiText"><span ss="retryDeletionText"><span ss="undoDeletionText">, which were slowly dripping down into the vials.
<span ss="aiText">Rianna nodded and waited patiently as the liquid moved through the tubes.
<span ss="userText">"What gets collected in the fifth<span ss="aiText"> vial?" Rianna asked, and Raiden continued to stare at the sk.
<span ss="aiText">"That will co<span ss="editText">llect <span ss="userText">sediment..." Raiden answered, but the Queen had a confused<span ss="aiText"> expression.
<span ss="aiText">"Sediment?" Rianna asked.
<span ss="aiText">Raiden smiled at the Queen, "It''s the leftover solid remains of whatever we ce into this device.<span ss="editText"> Solids retain heat for<span ss="aiText"> a much <span ss="userText">longer period<span ss="aiText"> than liquids, <span ss="userText">and it will go<span ss="aiText"> in thest vial," he exined.
"Ah... I understand," the Queen remarked, her gaze fixed on the mesmerizing sight of the amber-hued mixture coursing through the ss tubes. The liquid embarked on a captivating transformation, gradually splitting into an array of vibrant hues, each fluid stream flowing at its own unique pace.
<span ss="editText"><span ss="undoDeletionText">"This is truly an exceptional device,"<span ss="aiText"> the Queenmented, which made <span ss="editText">Raiden <span ss="undoDeletionText">beamed with pride.
<span ss="editText">"My old mentor taught me how to build it... It needs to be just precise<span ss="aiText"> enough for the liquids and gases to separate from each other. If not, you''ll have a mess on your hands," Raiden stated.
He was on the verge of boasting about his extraordinary potion-making abilities when the fourth vial began to fill with a strange substance, leaving both of them utterly astonished. This confirmation solidified the presence of poison in the substance. The liquid had taken on a vivid neon yellowish-green hue. If Rya or Quinus had been present, they might have mistaken it for antifreeze.