Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 304

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Chapter Three Hundred and Four: Ehlertt Estate, Territorial Capital

“Welcome ba—hey.”

Thor shot Julius a sharp glare as he wedged himself between Thor and Karen, just as Thor ran over to greet her.

“What’s your problem? Don’t go cutting in between me and Sis.”

“…A younger brother. Can’t be helped, I suppose.”

After a long moment of deliberation, Julius stepped aside. Thor watched him go with a baffled squint, then threw his arms around Karen.

“I’m back! And welcome back, Thor!”

It was right before the New Year’s Festival when Karen’s group arrived back at the territorial capital. The roads were buried under great mounds of snow, and hauling the hunting festival spoils had proven such a struggle that, in the end, only the hunting festival participants went ahead, finally arriving in Ehlertt’s capital without the rest.

Thor, who had come out to welcome Karen at the Ehlertt Earldom’s manor, was dressed in the manner of a young nobleman. The rest of his companions were also dressed in noble-style clothing, all present and looking perfectly healthy. The clothes had probably been provided by the earl’s family, and everyone looked completely at ease in them.

“Sis! I’m gonna be the face of this year’s Ehlertt New Year’s Festival!”

“Which means—you cleared the thirtieth floor of the territorial capital dungeon!? Congratulations!”

“Heheh.”

The face of the New Year’s Festival—in other words, the person whose portrait would be displayed in the festival hall. The only feat grand enough to earn such an honor was the conquest of thirtieth floor, the very challenge Thor and his party had been undertaking. And clearing the thirtieth floor meant that they had fulfilled the requirements to be promoted to A-rank adventurers. It was one piece of good news after another.

As Thor grinned with bashful pride, Karen’s recently sharpened ears caught the murmurs of nobles gathered for the festival.

“To think we must look up to some outsider commoner adventurers.”

“Ehlertt’s honor has fallen low indeed.”

“If only it had been Lord Winfried’s portrait at least—”

Perhaps sensing Karen’s gaze, the nobles caught their breath and fell silent. When a whisper kept low enough that others should not hear it still reached someone’s ears, that usually meant the listener was almost always someone of greater standing.

She noticed that Thor, too, had turned to look in the same direction as Karen, his face unreadable. And then, apparently realizing that Karen had heard the same words he had, his eyes went wide as saucers.

“Sis, you heard that just now?”

“Hmph.”

Karen puffed out her chest with a smug air, and Thor was struck dumb.

“No way—! Hold on. Did any of you guys hear that?”

“You mean those nobles badmouthing us?”

“If you already know it was trash talk, that means you heard it too, Wanda?”

“I could tell it was trash talk just from the look on their faces. I didn’t actually hear it… But Ms. Karen did, didn’t she?”

“Wanda, your magical power’s S-rank, right?”

Hearing that, Karen’s eyes widened as well. After defeating the black dragon and ascending the steps upon realizing the hints toward how to make the Philosopher’s Stone, Karen hadn’t had her magical power measured since.

“Um—Julius, could you hear it?”

Noticing how casually Karen addressed Julius, Thor shot him a fierce look. But Julius didn’t spare Thor so much as a glance, and simply smiled at Karen.

“Yes, I heard it—it seems your magical power has risen above S-rank. Congratulations, Karen.”

“If I’m above S, then what are you?”

“I did have it measured once with a Double Rare measuring device. The needle pointed to the upper limit.”

“Ha—same as me then, Julius!”

Thor declared it like a challenge. Karen blinked, looking rather dazed.

“You all have so much magical power. That’s amazing.”

She had known her magical power was considerable, but it seemed she had easily surpassed S-rank. She had always known Julius was remarkable, but Karen was struck by the realization that the people around her were even more extraordinary than she had thought.

“No, the amazing one is you, Sis.”

“Exactly! You started at D-rank, didn’t you!? How did you climb all the way up there!? I’ve ascended the steps plenty of times myself, and my magical power barely went up by even one rank!”

“Huh!? Doesn’t magical power go up by one rank each time you ascend a step?”

“If it were that easy, nobody would struggle with it! What exactly did you do, Karen!?”

It was Julius who stepped in and drew Wanda back before she could lunge at Karen.

“Naturally, many things happened along the way. Karen has only just returned, and she is tired. Would it be all right if I took her to her room now?”

“Fair enough. Wanda, you back off.”

“Leader! You know how important magical power is to a mage, don’t you!?”

“Sure do. But it’s not more important than Sis, so—Julius, I’ll hold this one back, you take Sis with you.”

“Karen—!”

Karen was led away with Julius’s arm around her shoulders, and so she parted ways with a tearful Wanda.

“I’m not that tired, I have plenty of energy—I could explain everything to her.”

“Still, surely you’d prefer to rest. The bath should be ready for you by now.”

“A bath!”

At that, Karen’s eyes lit up entirely, and Julius let out a quiet chuckle.

“Word was sent ahead, so the preparations should already be complete.”

“Want to join me?—just kidding—”

The offhand quip made Julius flush red. It was an expression Karen had never seen on him before, and she stared at him, puzzled.

“…Hm?”

“—I see. So that sort of thing would be permissible.”

Karen watched the side of Julius’s face as he turned away, his hand over his mouth, and felt the color slowly rising in her own cheeks as well.

“Um, uh, that was, you know, a joke—”

“I know. Without being married, such a thing… would be impossible to do. I know it would not be good for your reputation. And yet…”

Julius kept his face averted, cheeks red, and shot Karen a sidelong glare.

“You were the one who invited me, so I would like you to remember that after we’re married.”

The look Julius gave her was almost reproachful as Karen’s face went scarlet all the way down to her neck—something that hadn’t happened in quite some time—and yet Julius himself was unusually flushed as well.

Karen looked up at him and, face still burning, broke into a soft, melting smile.

Julius looked down at her, and his expression shifted into something like dissatisfaction—then he reached out and grabbed her loosened cheeks, squishing them back and forth.

Karen burst out laughing like a little child, and Julius, caught up in it, laughed along with her.

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Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 303

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Chapter Three Hundred and Three: Predictions and Answers (Gottfried’s POV)

“Is it all right to leave Miss Karen behind, Master Julius?”

Called by Julius, Gottfried stood apart from the procession of those returning from the hunting festival.

“I intend to keep this conversation brief.”

Ever since Karen had fallen asleep, Julius had allowed almost no one near and had taken care of her himself.

To be fair, he did borrow a woman’s hands, at least. However, he kept those he allowed close to a bare minimum, and as for men, he refused all visits except from Sieg.

The fact that Julius had entrusted Karen to someone else in order to summon him made Gottfried suppress his unease as he spoke:

“What matter could you possibly wish to discuss with me?”

“—Gottfried.”

Called by name by Julius, Gottfried straightened his posture.

“You don’t have excellent intuition—you’ve simply been noticing and pretending not to see, correct?”

“…Now, what exactly do you mean by that?”

“My father—you knew from before that Winfried had been making multiple women bear children and abandoning them in that dungeon.”

Since it wasn’t a question, Gottfried responded with silence.

“When I escaped from that dungeon, and you appeared at that place, it wasn’t some coincidence due to intuition, was it? Were you coming to check regularly? Or had you stationed surveillance—to confirm that I and my siblings, whom Winfried had abandoned, died properly? Certainly, if any of them had somehow survived and been set loose in the world, they might have posed a threat to Brother Helfried’s rule. Am I mistaken?”

Gazing at Gottfried, who remained silent with a tense expression, Julius spoke matter-of-factly.

“Please be at ease. Even if that were the truth, I have no intention of blaming you now. It’s something that doesn’t matter to me anymore. Just as I was an existence that didn’t matter to you back then.”

Julius’s expression as he said this was rather peaceful.

“Just as I no longer hesitate to cast aside others if it means staying with Karen, I’m sure you were the same. To protect your wife, you had no choice but to avoid involvement with Winfried.”

Gottfried swallowed his words and fell silent. Long ago, he had spoken up against Winfried’s methods. After that, Gottfried’s wife, who was his fiancée at the time, had been injured. Fortunately, it was a minor injury. It wasn’t the kind that would leave emotional scars either. However, Gottfried had been made to resolve never to openly oppose Winfried again.

After a moment, Julius smiled with satisfaction.

“At last, I’ve been able to see your face when I speak one of my deductions. So that’s the expression you make. Until now, I simply couldn’t ask.”

“…Since when have you held that suspicion?”

To Julius, who didn’t seek an answer, Gottfried asked something completely different instead of answering.

“Since the day I escaped from that dungeon, when you appeared before me.”

“Why are you able to ask now what you couldn’t ask until now…?”

When Gottfried asked, Julius said with a bright smile:

“Because I have Karen now.”

“—So that’s how it was. I understand your feelings. For me too, I have my wife, and everyone else simply doesn’t matter anymore. Still, even if they don’t matter, it would be wise to get along with others well enough that you can justify your actions to Miss Karen.”

“Speaking from experience? That’s golden advice. Thank you for the counsel, Gottfried.”

Julius, who until now had avoided calling Gottfried by anything other than his position title, as if being reserved, called Gottfried by name with a cheerful smile and expressed gratitude before leaving.

As Gottfried stared intently at his retreating figure, a presence suddenly appeared from behind him.

“Waugh!?”

“Julius was suddenly thrown into a dungeon. It was practically the same as being told that he would not be allowed to live unless he became strong.”

Paying no mind to Gottfried, who jumped back in shock, Karen, who was somehow behind Gottfried, continued:

“It means he’s been enduring all this time, thinking he had to be like a noble. So I think it’s fine if Julius acts a little selfish from now on.”

Even if not to Julius’s extent, Gottfried was a reasonably formidable fighter within the knight order. Yet he hadn’t noticed the approach of Karen, who wasn’t a combatant.

Karen, who seemed to have simply appeared there, watched Julius’s departing back and murmured regretfully, as though nothing unusual had happened, "He seemed to be really looking forward to the award ceremony too. I wish I could have attended for him…”

“How in the world did you…!?”

“Ah, I tried using a technique to erase my presence. When I tried it against the black dragon, it didn’t notice, so I thought it might work against humans too.”

Karen casually stated something outrageous.

If one examined the black dragon’s remains, it had indeed been old, just as Julius said. However, even if old, it was an S-rank intelligent monster. Being intelligent meant it would have had experience accumulated with age as well. If she had outwitted that black dragon, it meant it would work even against S-rank adventurers.

What kind of skill was it?

With that ability, she could even serve as a decoy.

So, Karen being one of the party members in the black dragon subjugation wasn’t a lie or falsehood.

Gottfried was astonished by that fearsome ability.

“I was curious where Julius was going when he left me behind, so I followed him, and it ended up turning into eavesdropping. I apologize.”

“No, that’s fine, but—”

Julius’s possessiveness had become quite strong.

As Gottfried tried to advise that she should hurry back to Julius, who must think Karen was in the carriage, Karen said:

“If it’s not intuition, then how did you notice that Sir Alban and his knights were about to be falsely accused? There was some precursor, and because of that, you realized something would happen this time too, right?”

Was that really the question Julius’s fiancée chose to ask after hearing all of that?

Faced with a question that carried no blame whatsoever, Gottfried answered, somewhat taken aback:

“…It’s true that I’m slightly more perceptive than most people. There is a reason, but it’s difficult for others to understand even when explained. That seems to appear like intuition to others, and so even if I explained it to you, it would be difficult to understand—but essentially, Alban’s house has been under attack by someone for quite some time.”

“Under attack?”

“Yes. They themselves haven’t noticed, but I could see that someone was plotting the downfall of the Court Viscounty along with several other houses. However, the signs were so minor that those involved would likely dismiss them as insignificant if I explained. From the beginning, it was better received to simply claim it was intuition without giving reasons at all.”

“…What did the culprit want to accomplish by bringing down the Court Viscounty?”

“They want it.”

“Want it?”

Gottfried nodded to Karen, whose eyes widened.

“The Court Viscounty has produced many excellent blacksmiths. Long ago, their ancestor was an A-rank master craftsman. There would be many who would want to bring them down and absorb everything, including the techniques left by that master craftsman.”

Those who had scattered the white monster eggs—probably the Children of Dark Night—what did they want to gain by bringing down the Court Viscounty?

As Karen sank into the sea of thought, Julius, who had noticed Karen’s escape from where she was supposed to be sleeping in the carriage, returned.

“That man is obsessed with you right now. If he thinks you’re trying to escape from that obsession, you’ll have a terrible time.”

“Is that from personal experience?”

To Karen’s question, Gottfried cleared his throat and said:

“I won’t deny it.”

“But it’s all right.”

“On what grounds—”

“Karen!”

Seeing Julius arrive with a frantic expression, Gottfried suppressed his presence as much as possible, though not to Karen’s extent.

To Julius, who came at her with almost a grabbing momentum, Karen said with a smile:

“Did you come to get me? Thank you.”

When Karen extended her hand, saying that, Julius’s expression melted into a smile with just that.

“Let’s return to the carriage quickly. It’s cold here.”

“Okay.”

Karen, lifted up, also entrusted herself to Julius’s arms with a relieved expression.

Averting his eyes from the dazzling sight of the couple leaning into each other, Gottfried muttered quietly:

“It’s true that I noticed Winfried was doing something, but pretended not to see it. When I learned the children had been sacrificed, it was already too late—and when I went thinking I must save them next time, it was already too late. To say this now would be pointless.”

After muttering in a voice so small that even someone with vast amounts of magical power couldn’t notice, Gottfried looked in the direction where his own territory was.

“Since I notice things, I won’t do anything that I couldn’t justify to you if you found out about it. Well, it’s fundamentally impossible for me alone to deal with everything I’ve noticed, so the truth is I still pretend not to notice as much as possible and push the handling onto those around me.”

He made excuses to his wife, who wasn’t present. Feeling as if he could hear a scolding voice from somewhere, Gottfried shrugged his shoulders as he returned to the formation.

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Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 302

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Chapter Three Hundred and Two: Award Ceremony (Gottfried’s POV)

“The winner of this hunting festival is—Julius Ehlertt!”

The moment Helfried made the announcement, those from the Ehlertt territory who were present raised cheers of joy.

Gottfried watched the fervor from a location away from the crowd, together with Alban and other knights.

“I’m proud that Master Julius is from Ehlertt.”

“Indeed…! It is an honor to serve in the same Order of Knights as him…!”

Alban was openly crying tears of joy with his face buried in his arms without a care in the world. According to Julius’s information, the blame for the abnormal behavior of the monsters was supposed to be pinned on Alban. But Alban was happy all the same; that’s how special the black dragon—the monster that Julius had slain together with Licht—was to the locals.

“If he weren’t the fiancé of Miss Karen, to whom we owe a debt of gratitude, I would have pushed my sister on him as a fifth or even sixth wife.”

When someone muttered this, Alban’s shoulders slumped in dejection.

“Miss Karen would never look kindly on that.”

“From what I heard, Miss Karen refused to even allow Master Julius to take a wife of the lowest rank.”

“Hmm. They say common women are jealous, and it seems she is no exception. Though she doesn’t seem narrow-minded—”

“Watch your tongue when speaking of Miss Karen. She has become a benefactor to me personally as well. Depending on the case, you may have to duel with me.”

At Alban’s warning, the knights hastily straightened their postures.

The medallion the suspected culprit behind the monsters’ abnormal behavior had in his possession was made of scarletite alloy. Only an A-Rank blacksmith could work with such an alloy. Engraved upon such an item was the crest of the Court Viscounty—Alban’s family.

Since it was hard to believe that some A-rank blacksmith would go to the trouble of maliciously using their exceptional skills to forge the Court Viscounty’s crest, there was a high possibility that it was the very medallion created by the A-rank blacksmith founder who established the Court Viscounty.

It was a precious treasure of the family. Alban hadn’t even been aware that it had been stolen at some point. If such an item were found in the possession of someone believed to be the culprit, the Court Viscounty—and Alban—wouldn’t be able to escape suspicion.

Karen judged that this wasn’t done with the Court Viscounty’s involvement and extracted the incriminating medallion from the culprit’s possession.

Gottfried thought this was an overreach of authority, but he had no intention of blaming her. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have involved Karen from the start.

Julius would only approve of everything Karen did, and Helfried was soft with family. Therefore, Karen was now sleeping peacefully without being blamed for the crime of stealing evidence.

“Since we owe her a debt, rather than Miss Karen, we should get her a second or third husband—”

“Ahem.”

Gottfried cut off Alban’s words with a quick clearing of his throat.

Many had witnessed the light from heaven pouring down on the tent, but most misunderstood that the destination of that light was Julius.

However, Gottfried and the knights knew the truth. Therefore, Gottfried corrected Alban’s misunderstanding to avoid confusion:

“The one who’s jealous and narrow-minded is rather Master Julius, you lot. Even at this distance, he could probably hear. If you don’t want to make an enemy of the black dragon slayer, watch your words.”

“Master Julius is a noble, so his awareness must be different from that of the commoner Miss Karen.”

“He should understand the obligations and rights of the strong.”

“No—”

Gottfried tried to continue his words but fell silent and looked toward the award ceremony.

It wasn’t that he heard any sound that caught his attention.

Rather, he simply realized that everything had become eerily quiet.

It was so quiet that, by listening carefully, Gottfried could hear their voices all the way from where he stood.

“Julius, I have no intention of forcing you, of course.”

Helfried was restraining Julius.

Standing before Julius were the senior vassals of the Ehlertt Earldom and their noble daughters.

Even from afar, the young ladies looked on the verge of tears, while the vassals glared in reproach. It was obvious what had happened.

“It seems Master Julius has declined a marriage proposal.”

“In this place…”

Alban’s awkward expression stemmed from the fact that such an act was deeply insulting to the vassals and their daughters.

The marriage proposals were gestures of respect acknowledging Julius’s stature, while the offered young ladies should have added elegance to the celebratory mood.

If he had brushed them aside, it was only natural that the festive atmosphere had fallen silent as if water had been poured on it. If he wanted to decline, there were ways to gently refuse at a later date. Helfried also seemed to be warning Julius about this.

“However, as a member of the Ehlertt Earldom, you must show respect to the offers from vassals who pledge loyalty to us. At least considering it for a moment—”

“If I don’t even momentarily consider marriage to a woman other than Karen, can I not remain a member of the Ehlertt Earldom?”

Julius’s question was heard quite clearly across the distance. There was nothing strange in his tone. It was simply the voice of someone asking a question.

There was no agitation, no anger, no sarcasm.

It wasn’t even a threat.

Depending on the answer to that question, Julius was about to take some action.

It was just a simple question conveying only that—yet even from a distance, Helfried visibly caught his breath and denied Julius’s question:

“—No. For such a trifling matter, you would not cease to be a member of the Ehlertt Earldom. However, I will scold you later.”

“I see. Then, please scold me later, Brother Helfried.”

Julius said this as if relieved.

That relief seemed so genuine that even Gottfried felt a chill down his spine, so Helfried, though not showing it on his face, was probably breaking out in cold sweat.

Julius had probably considered leaving the Ehlertt Earldom. Not so much because he didn’t want to show respect to the senior vassals—but because he didn’t want to show even for an instant that he was interested, in order to protect the pride of the young girls standing before him.

“…Hmm. Miss Karen seems to be an exceptionally possessive woman.”

“Miss Karen is sleeping right now. That has nothing to do with her wishes. It’s Master Julius’s own will.”

While saying this to Alban, Gottfried began to get a headache. He felt as if he were looking at his past self in a mirror.

Julius, who had moved to stand beside the black dragon’s corpse, spoke:

“I defeated the black dragon, but this black dragon was aged. This subjugation doesn’t necessarily indicate that my strength has reached that of Ehlertt’s great founder. However, it should serve as proof of my strength to some extent.”

Regardless of whether the black dragon was aged, there was no way Julius’s proof of strength could be dismissed as merely "to some extent.”

Everyone present was captivated by that proven strength, admired it, and believed it would be dedicated to Ehlertt.

“I offer my entire share of this prey I have won to Alchemist Karen. Therefore, this year’s hunting festival Queen is Karen, correct, Brother?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Good. Actually, I was just told by your secretary that since someone not present cannot be made the hunting festival Queen, I should dedicate my prey to another woman, and I was wondering what to do…”

Helfried’s face was visibly twitching.

Gottfried also considered what Julius would have done if he hadn’t obtained Helfried’s approval.

If told that the winner absolutely had to dedicate his prey to one of the women present, Julius might have stepped down from the winner’s seat and even disposed of the valuable material that was the black dragon—but Gottfried shook his head at this thought.

He wouldn’t have gone so far as to dispose of valuable materials that he could give to Karen.

—In the end, the problem led back to Karen, and Gottfried frowned.

“Unfortunately, Karen was injured as a party member in the black dragon subjugation and could not attend this occasion due to recuperation. I appreciate your consideration of this point, Brother.”

Most of those present probably didn’t believe Julius’s words that Karen was a subjugation member, but everyone behaved themselves and didn’t point it out.

“Not everyone present will participate in the New Year’s festival. So now, I’ll take this opportunity to inform everyone in advance. I plan to announce my engagement to Alchemist Karen at the New Year’s festival—therefore, I want to dedicate everything to her.”

When Julius said this and smiled happily, cheers rose again as if people had just remembered to do so.

It occasionally happened that those about to enter a love marriage became carried away and behaved rudely, so while his earlier breach of etiquette would likely leave a poor impression on the vassals and their daughters, it would not become a serious issue.

Dedicating one’s prey to the woman of one’s affections as a hunting festival participant was also a common practice.

The problem was that Julius’s words sounded as if he were declaring that he would dedicate to Karen, not Ehlertt, both the strength that defeated the black dragon and everything else.

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Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 301

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Chapter Three Hundred and One: Scope of Responsibility

“Karen, you’re awake.”

When Karen came to, she found herself in a carriage. She had apparently been sleeping comfortably, cradled in Julius’s arms.

The bird monster’s body was nowhere to be seen beside her. Her own body had been carefully cleaned, she had been changed into fresh clothes, and she was wrapped snugly in a warm blanket.

Karen’s first question was for Julius.

“The award ceremony for the hunting festival…?”

“It’s already over. Even while you were asleep, I dedicated all my prizes to you, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

From outside the carriage came Sepl’s muttered retort, "Seriously, that’s what she’s asking about?" followed by the sound of Urte smacking him.

Karen had ascended another step of the stairway. Her magical power had grown. And her hearing had sharpened along with it—enough that even the quiet voice Sepl had assumed she wouldn’t hear reached her ears.

Ignoring Sepl’s comment, Karen spoke to Julius:

“I’m not worried. I already know you wouldn’t dedicate your victory to anyone but me… I just wanted to be there with you.”

“Yes. I wanted to make you the Queen of the hunting festival before everyone’s eyes…”

The regret in Julius’s voice was genuine, and Karen stroked his arms around her as she nodded.

“Make me the Queen of the Hunting Festival next year.”

“Yes. Of course, Karen.”

Julius’s face immediately broke into a delighted smile as he nodded. When Karen’s expression grew faintly serious, Julius activated a magical tool fitted inside the carriage. A soundproofing device.

He must have understood immediately that what Karen was about to say was not for other ears. She smiled quietly at how quickly he had acted, and asked:

“So, the bird monster’s body—”

“I’ve had it stored away. I thought you might want it for alchemical experiments… but if it’s too painful, I’ll have it disposed of.”

“No. Thank you for keeping it. I didn’t know what effect burning or burying it might have, so I’m glad you kept it.”

In the case of the blackened, corrupted monster corpse, part of the dungeon where black sand—apparently made from its crushed remains—had been scattered became a zero-magical-power zone. No one knew what effect fragments of a monster’s body bleached pure white might have.

“The hunting festival is over, and we’re on our way back to the territorial capital now.”

“I see.”

“The abnormal monster behavior within the Ehlertt territory has settled. However, it seems there are several dungeons outside the territory where Great Collapse stampedes are still occurring.”

“…There must be white eggs in various places.”

And the monsters would continue pouring out of nearby dungeons and rampaging until those eggs were destroyed or hatched and died naturally. All according to the intentions of whoever had orchestrated it.

“Just as someone snuck a white egg into the Ehlertt hunting festival disguised as a merchant, there must be people doing the same in other places—and they’re probably running from the monsters while still carrying the eggs, trying to spread the damage as wide as possible.”

“But for what purpose?”

“I can tell they were trying to frame someone. However, what do they gain from doing that?”

Karen took out the medallion bearing the crest of House Court—Alban’s family—which she had put in her pocket. She had taken it away because leaving it in the pouch of the merchant’s body might have been used to frame someone again. There was no proof. But Karen had almost entirely come to the conclusion that those merchant-like individuals had nothing to do with Alban.

“—Oh, now that I think about it, I could barely sense any magical power from that merchant’s corpse.”

“Magical power does leave a body after death.”

“It was far less than from any of the other bodies. The bodies were arranged in order of death, from the back—but even the people who had died before that merchant had more presence than his body did.”

“Could it be that he had very little magical power even while alive?”

“I think you’re right, Julius. Yes… That’s probably it.”

Horst’s companions—most likely the Children of the Dark Night. They were trying to make the Philosopher’s Stone.

A stone that could transmute any metal into gold. An all-powerful stone that could make anything possible. Horst had been, in one sense, a social success. It was hard to believe he still desired gold at this point.

There had to be a wish that only the Philosopher’s Stone could fulfill.

“What kind of wish could those people be trying to grant with the Philosopher’s Stone…?”

“I’ve already passed on to Brother Helfried the information we’ve gathered, including the fact that destroying the white eggs will stop the monsters’ rampage. So you should rest, Karen.”

“Ordinary people can barely perceive those eggs, though—I wonder if they’ll be able to find them.”

Karen tried to sit up, and Julius pressed her gently back down with a smile.

“His Majesty has already issued a notice that a zero-magical-power zone was found in the royal capital dungeon. Every territory should have countermeasures in place by now. If a territory has failed to prepare for a known problem, that is the fault of its lord—so there is nothing you need to do, Karen.”

“It’s not just zero magical power, it’s actually negative—”

“Karen, you still look exhausted.”

Julius pinched her cheeks to quiet her, then drew her into his arms.

“I won’t let you out of here until you’re back to your usual self.”

She really was sleepy—the warmth spreading in slow, sweet waves from the earring at her ear, wrapped so thoroughly in his arms that there was no gap to slip through, toasty warm, Karen felt an irresistible drowsiness washing over her again.

“Goodnight, Karen. When you wake up, it will be time for the engagement announcement.”

Julius’s whisper dyed Karen’s half-sleeping mind a deep pink.

She drifted off in Julius’s arms with a contented smile.

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Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 300

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Chapter Three Hundred: The Goddess’s Stairway 2

“Karen… what is it you’re holding?”

At Julius’s question, Karen startled and looked at him.

“You can’t see it?”

“I can… see something, I think. But it’s blurry—I can’t quite focus on it…”

“I see. So it’s hard to focus on it. Maybe that’s why no one found it—it’s difficult for ordinary people to see.”

There had been a time when Julius was left behind by Karen. He hadn’t been able to follow her as she moved toward a zero-magical-power zone. But now Julius knew how to follow Karen wherever she went.

Karen’s expression shifted to one of alarm as the realization clicked.

“Julius, there’s absolutely no need to break your soul just to see it—it’s just an egg! A tiny egg! The kind that looks like a chick small enough to fit in your palm would hatch from it!”

“Is it dangerous?”

“I don’t think it’s dangerous.—But it’s wrong.”

“Wrong?”

“It feels like everything about it is wrong. Beyond having no magical power—it’s almost like it has negative magical power? It’s unnatural, impossible, and yet it’s here.”

The white egg was perfectly round and white and beautiful, and yet something about it was twisted, tangled, and deeply warped.

“A zero-magical-power zone just had no magical power—but this is different. It’s deeply unsettling, and somehow… I think I understand why monsters want to destroy it—”

At that moment, cutting Karen’s words short, a scream rang out from beyond the tent. A moment later, the guard knight came rushing inside.

“Monsters are attacking again—more of them than before! They appear to be heading this way! Both of you, please evacuate immediately!”

Outside the tent, screams broke out in waves. They were probably the voices of commoner merchants and servants with no means to protect themselves. Casualties might be mounting even as Karen stood here. She understood that the monsters were converging here because of this egg. Which meant she had to destroy it.

“Karen, this egg has to be killed, correct? Let me do it.”

“You can’t even see it clearly, Julius. Besides, I’ve defeated weak slimes before, and I’ve even wrung a chicken’s neck, so I’ll be fine.”

Still, this was different from fighting back against something that attacked her, or killing for food. This was her first time killing something for any other reason, and Karen swallowed.

It was different from ambushing a monster with magic or arrows. The shell containing the unborn creature looked so thin that even Karen could easily crush it.

“Karen?”

“I’m fine.”

Fortunately, her gloves prevented her from feeling anything. Karen took a deep breath and crushed the egg in her grip.

“—Pii.”

A cry came from inside her closed hand, and with a sharp intake of breath, Karen opened her palm. In her hand lay the broken eggshell and a tiny, tiny monster hatchling.

It was a hatchling of some kind of pure white monster. A small bird-type monster, wrapped in fluffy white down. Whether the hatchling was sturdy or Karen’s grip had simply been too weak, it showed no visible injuries.

The chick opened its pure-white eyes wide and tried to chirp again. Its white beak opened, its white tongue trembled—but no sound emerged, and it went still in Karen’s palm.

Tears spilled from Karen’s eyes.

“Karen, are you all right? Perhaps if you had left it to me after all—”

“No. These tears aren’t because killing it was painful.”

Julius stared in surprise. Karen wept as she gently cupped the hatchling in both hands.

“What’s heartbreaking is that it was made to hatch at all…!”

“Made to hatch is heartbreaking…?”

“It’s a monster, but it has no magical power. That’s impossible for a monster—it shouldn’t even be able to exist. Yes, even the black dragon said the egg had no magical power, so I knew that from the start—but this little one must have been in so much pain.”

For something that should not exist, this world was a cruelly painful place. Surely this hatchling had suffered from the very moment it was laid as an egg—far more than Karen, who, for example, would have appeared on the fiftieth floor without a shred of magical power. Because it was far too wrong as a monster.

“I should have gotten here sooner.”

Karen held the hatchling to her chest—the pitiful hatchling that had only been able to die once its shell was broken. Julius gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Whatever it is you have come to understand, you have done nothing wrong. Isn’t that right?”

Karen nodded with tears still in her eyes. She could feel the magical power beginning to surge within her body clearly now. The black dragon had, through its own intent, forced upon Karen an understanding of the truth of monsters—and she was on the verge of ascending a step. But it felt different from all the times she had ascended before.

“Ugh.”

“Karen, what’s wrong?”

Julius supported Karen as she bent double, pressing her hand to her mouth.

“…I feel… sick, maybe. This is different from all the other times I’ve ascended.”

“If this is not a curse, what is it?”

“Yeah, honestly, maybe this is the black dragon’s revenge on humans?”

Julius ground his back teeth as Karen went pale.

“…Why did it have to be you, Karen? It could have let me understand instead.”

“I think… understanding the absence of magical power was necessary. Maybe it couldn’t make you understand that… which is why it said I would be able to find it.”

Assaulted by a nausea that resembled euphoria but was nothing like it—more like being drunk—Karen’s head began to spin.

“No matter what grudge it held against humans, to do this to you after you offered to help—”

“It’s all right, Julius.”

“Karen, you are far too kind-hearted.”

Julius fixed her with sharp eyes.

“I love your gentleness, Karen. But I cannot accept the way you sacrifice yourself for others—even for monsters. If at least it were for your own sake—”

“It is for my sake, Julius.”

Karen smiled despite the cold sweat breaking across her skin. Julius looked down at her with an expression of complete surprise.

“Karen…?”

“Thanks to this, I’ve figured something out. I’d been half-aware of it for a while, actually. Whoever ruined Weiss… that baby pegasus and this little bird… they’re trying to create the Philosopher’s Stone.”

By blackening monsters into decay, or by purifying all of their magical power until they were bleached pure white. The process was somehow similar to what Karen had learned about making the Philosopher’s Stone in her previous life.

Tormented by nausea that felt like the worst hangover imaginable, drenched in cold sweat, she set aside the suffering of her body, and her tearful eyes lit up with brilliant light.

“But the method is wrong!”

The air itself trembled, as if in answer to Karen’s understanding.

“It’s wrong—and the understanding the black dragon gave me made me realize it…!”

Particles of rainbow-colored light poured down from the sky, passing through the tent and showering down onto Karen. Immediately, her pain began to ease—as if the black dragon’s curse were being painted over by the goddess’s blessing.

A band of light pierced through the tent like a stairway sent down by the goddess for a soul in need of salvation. So that the small bird resting in Karen’s hands could reach the stairway, Karen gently raised her hands.

“I’m sorry. And thank you… You helped me understand. Even as a B-rank alchemist, no matter how much I researched, I couldn’t figure it out—but now I have a glimpse of how to make the Philosopher’s Stone—”

When the particles of light touched it, the little bird monster hatchling seemed to take on a peaceful expression, as though its pain had eased, and Karen felt a wave of relief and smiled—then collapsed where she stood.

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Alchemist Karen No Longer Compromises, Chapter 299

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Chapter Two Hundred and Ninety-Nine: The Goddess’s Stairway

“Master Julius, the anti-monster defensive line is over in that direction—”

“I have something to attend to. Wait a while.”

“Yes, sir!”

Watched by puzzled knights who had no idea what was happening, Karen and Julius moved in a single direction. Julius carried Karen in his arms and headed where she pointed.

“Karen, what exactly are you sensing?”

“Magical power, I think.”

“Magical power?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but… there’s something over there that I can’t stop thinking about. I think the monsters are heading toward it.”

Julius looked at the swirling currents of magical power churning in Karen’s eyes as she lay in his arms, and narrowed his own.

“I see. The black dragon may have used its own life to raise your step on the Stairway—so that you would be able to find something.”

“You mean a monster decided how I ascend the step?”

“That is how I sometimes feel about it. Though I wouldn’t say so in front of a priest.”

Karen frowned at something ominous in that, and Julius smiled to reassure her.

“The idea that a monster might be interfering with the goddess’s designs is something priests simply cannot accept. To them, monsters are nothing more than beasts used as instruments of divine trial. They also take poorly to the notion that some monsters possess enough intelligence for meaningful conversation, even though it is simply a fact.”

Karen pressed her lips tightly together. She had no intention of making enemies of the temples, so it seemed wise not to mention her negotiations with the pegasus or the black dragon outside trusted company.

“The Bloodline Blessing—some say it carries even the hatred of the monsters that were defeated—and yet it is still framed as nothing but a divine blessing.”

Julius gave a self-deprecating smile.

“If this dreadful power that runs through the bloodline were not steeped in monsters’ hatred, what else could it be?”

“I don’t think monsters hate the people who defeated them, though?”

Karen hadn’t noticed Julius’s twisted smile and said it plainly, as one might state a simple fact.

“Monsters seem to want to die for some reason. Not just to die, either—they seem to want to die properly. It’s strange, isn’t it? But when I think of it as just how monsters are, it makes a kind of sense. They don’t feel like they hate people. They don’t seem to enjoy killing. And yet they attack even when they’re not hungry… I think they attack people because they want to die, because they want to be defeated. That’s what dying properly means to them.”

A smile had spread across Karen’s face as she talked. Different from wild beasts, different from hungry predators—they were frightening creatures who attacked people for some other reason entirely. Deepening her understanding of such creatures fascinated her endlessly.

Julius looked down at her animated expression and asked:

“If monsters feel no hatred, then why would a powerful monster leave behind a blessing that persists for generations?”

“Maybe it’s their way of saying—thank you for finishing me off?”

Karen said it with eyes that shone with gratitude, as though she had stepped inside the mind of a monster herself. Julius let out a soft laugh.

“If you say so, then I’m sure that’s true.”

“Oh—I was being rather offhand about it, so please don’t take it too seriously.”

Until now, Julius had been certain that someone harbored hatred toward him. That was why he had believed himself to be suffering—and that escaping that suffering required relentless, desperate effort without the slightest lapse. But if Karen said so, then no one hated Julius at all. Whether or not it was true, Julius had decided to believe it—and in the shelter of his arms, Karen flustered for a moment before looking somewhat repentant.

“I’m a B-rank alchemist now, so I really should try not to say offhand things so often… oh.”

The moment Karen gave a small cry of realization, Julius stopped walking.

“Is it somewhere around here, Karen?”

“Yes.”

Driven by curiosity, Karen wanted to get down from Julius’s arms. He lowered her slowly, as though reluctant to let go.

A number of tents stood in a row. These were tents left behind when people had fled at the news that a Great Collapse might be coming. A few people had trickled back and returned to some of them. One or two had guards posted outside. Karen walked toward one of those tents.

An Ehlertt knight stood watch before the one Karen approached.

“Master Julius—and Lady Karen. What brings you here?”

“Please let us in.”

“But this place is—”

“It is on behalf of the Ehlertt Earldom. Let her through.”

The knight who had moved to block Karen’s entry gave Julius a puzzled look, but stepped aside. Karen went in, and Julius followed—and immediately frowned.

“…A morgue, is it? Are you all right, Karen?”

“I’m fine. It’s cold enough that nothing has started to rot at least…”

She answered in a somewhat absent tone and drifted forward into the tent. The bodies of the commoners who had died during the hunting festival lay in a row. Karen stopped in front of one of them and crouched down, studying it intently.

Probably a commoner merchant of some kind. The clothing was prosperous-looking—but on closer inspection, the hands were rough in a way that didn’t match the outfit at all. After a moment, Karen rummaged through the pouch at the corpse’s waist.

From the pouch she withdrew a red medallion and a white egg, small enough to fit in her palm. Aside from the faint glow it gave off, it looked almost exactly like a chicken’s egg from her previous life.

“That medallion—is it a scarletite alloy? May I see it?”

Karen nodded and handed the red medallion to Julius.

“—A hammer and a sword. The crest of House Court, the viscount’s family.”

“House Court?”

“The family crest of the man who commanded the third unit that dove into the dungeon with you.”

“Sir Alban’s unit?—Ah, I see. It’s evidence planted to frame him.”

Now that she thought about it, he had mentioned being targeted with false accusations more than once. Karen understood, and promptly lost all interest in the medallion.

Every bit of her attention had turned to the egg.

The Translator’s Note

As there is no plural form in Japanese, it is sometimes difficult to translate certain parts. It became clear from this chapter that there were several commoners who had died, not just one.

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