This chapter is the beginning of a new arc, "Season of New Beginnings" (from chapter 322 to ongoing). As of July 4, the ongoing chapter is chapter 343.
Section Eight: Season of New Beginnings
Chapter Three Hundred and Twenty-Two: Brief Greeting
“—And so, I’m Karen, the Rank B alchemist who has taken all of you in. Nice to meet you!”
“Excuse me! I have a question!”
The one who raised his hand with such enthusiasm was Michael Bell—the brother of Ottilie, the child who had been abandoned by Viscount Bell’s family for having no magical power.
At that moment, Karen was standing before the children in the annex of Earl Ehlertt’s mansion in the territorial capital. The children she had taken in all shared circumstances similar to her own. Until the manor in her Himmel territory was completed, she had been granted the use of the entire annex.
Furthermore, it was the Ehlertt family itself that was overseeing the construction of Baroness Himmel’s residence in the capital. At present, Karen was relying on the Ehlertt family for practically everything.
“What is it, Michael?”
“I heard from Teacher Harald that you are trying to raise us to become alchemists—but isn’t that impossible?”
“Michael, you’re being disrespectful toward Lady Karen.”
“But… sis… bro… sis…?”
“Goodness… when are you ever going to get used to this?”
Ottilie looked down at the blank-faced Michael, her expression like someone fighting off a headache. Every time Michael laid eyes on Ottilie in her knight’s attire, he seemed to short-circuit. Apparently, the sight of his sister dressed as a man was simply too much for him.
“Now, now, Lady Ottilie—it was a perfectly ordinary question, please don’t mind it.”
“If that is what you wish, I shall hold my tongue.”
Her tone was gentle as she said it, but her movements had the crisp, nimble quality Karen knew well from the knights of Ehlertt. Ottilie had been knighted just recently as a reward for her distinguished service at the hunting festival, and while she now served Karen as her personal knight, she apparently also took part in the training of the Ehlertt Order.
Her reason was simple—to stay together with the younger brother their parents had cast away. She had chosen to serve Karen—a woman of common birth—without a trace of contempt or bitterness.
“Now then, I imagine the rest of you have the same question as Michael, don’t you?”
When Karen asked that, every child fell silent, eyes cast downward, exchanging furtive glances. They didn’t know what Karen might do to them if they said the wrong thing—after all, she held the power of life and death over them. Their wariness was only natural.
Michael could speak up because he had his sister with him. And so Karen didn’t wait for the children to find their voices, and continued on her own:
“As you all already know, my apprentice Harald used to be just like you.”
She left the rest unsaid, but every child in the room drew a sharp breath.
“When we first met, Harald’s magical power was below F-rank—and yet he became an alchemist. Under my guidance. And not only that—he went on to produce potions that even an S-rank alchemist couldn’t make. It’s a dream worth chasing, isn’t it? And so I decided to go fishing for a second one.”
“Fish… ing?”
“In other words, I’m aiming to raise a second alchemist.”
Karen said it in a deliberately lighthearted tone—and then a second questioner spoke up.
“May I ask a question as well?”
“Of course. And you are…?”
“Mark. Lady Karen.”
A boy about the same age as Michael. A commoner, with no particular backing to speak of. Even so, Mark introduced himself in a halting but reasonably steady voice, and then asked his question:
“Why don’t you take on someone with more magical power as your apprentice? I know that Teacher Harald managed it. But wouldn’t someone with greater magical power find it easier?”
Karen’s eyes went wide, and she glanced over at Harald.
“How much have you explained to them?”
“That I originally had magical power below F-rank. That I became an alchemist after meeting you, Lady Karen. That there is a chance they could become as I am, if they follow your guidance—that is roughly all.”
Harald had apparently told them that learning from Karen might allow someone with little magical power to become an alchemist—but not the reason why.
Karen gave a nod and turned back to Mark.
“Then that’s a good question. The answer is that the materials I want you to work with are non-magical materials. My thinking is that non-magical materials are easier to handle for someone who truly understands what it means to have no magical power. That is to say—someone like all of you, with little magical power of your own.”
“…Understands?”
It was impossible to tell how much of Karen’s explanation Mark had truly understood. He repeated the word as if savoring its meaning, then lowered his head and fell silent. After that, no more questions came. The other children were far more timid than Mark, their faces nearly expressionless—it was impossible to tell what any of them was thinking. Even those who harbored dark feelings were not reckless enough to direct them at Karen. Children like Teresa were a rare exception. Most of them were simply frightened.
Karen deliberated for a moment over what to say to such children, and then spoke:
“…That said, I’m not expecting all of you to become alchemists. As Michael said—I’m well aware that would be asking too much.”
Another ripple of sharp, startled breaths passed through the room.
“More importantly… I’m so busy that I barely have any time to make my products myself! So I’d like all of you to help me with that. Honestly, that’s my main objective!”
The moment Karen said it, the tension in the room seemed to dissolve all at once, as if a collective “oh, is that all” had passed through the group. What lingered in the air was something closer to relief.
It seemed Karen had guessed correctly. In other words, most of the children there did not particularly dream of becoming alchemists. What had weighed on them far more was the fear that impossible demands might be placed on them.
I suppose that’s only natural, Karen thought to herself, suppressing a wry smile, before emphasizing her point once again:
“I’d be happy if some of you did turn out to become alchemists—but I’m not counting on it. All I need is for you to do the work. Just keep that in mind!”
If what Karen required of them was work that even children without magical power could manage, it would likely be little different from what most of them had been doing before—children in orphanages were always given various kinds of handwork, to prepare them for a working life one day.
Amid the relief—and the listless resignation that accompanied it—one child alone behaved with marked unease.
It was Michael.
“W-What am I going to do, I’ve never actually worked before!?”
Ottilie was eyeing him with a look that made plain she wanted to say something. But Michael, rattled as he was, didn’t seem to notice—though Mark, sitting beside him, caught Ottilie’s gaze first and flinched. Mark gave Michael a sharp elbow in the side, and when Michael finally registered his sister’s look, he nearly leapt out of his seat. He then launched into a frantic, flailing pantomime of begging forgiveness at her.
Not a word was spoken, and yet the sheer volume of his gestures was exhausting. Ottilie looked off into the distance.
Karen watched the whole sequence unfold and burst out laughing. Ottilie’s expressions whenever she dealt with Michael were more than expressive enough to make anyone like her.
Pretending she had not heard Michael’s rather loud muttering, Karen addressed everyone:
“You only need to get better at the work little by little.”
She had conveyed what needed conveying. For the sake of the children—still rigid with nerves, stiff as stone—Karen promptly left the room. Ottilie followed after her. Left behind were Harald, who would be supervising, and the children themselves.
As Karen’s footsteps faded into the distance, the children’s tension snapped like a thread, and the room began to stir with murmuring.
