The titles of the large sections of chapters have also been added. Chapters 1-31 are called "Ehlertt Family's Request" and chapters 32-54 called "F-rank Alchemist".
Section Two: F-rank Alchemist
Chapter Thirty-two: A Local Baptism
Karen pulled a black hooded cloak over her head, like a denizen of the shadows, and skulked along the edge of the shopping district. However, this was Karen’s hometown, to which she had returned after a long absence. The shopping district was connected to a residential area built for adventurers, and the people here had known Karen since she was a child.
Even after Karen’s father disappeared in a dungeon when she was twelve, the community looked after them, allowing the two children to somehow manage on their own.
So, fooling the aunties was utterly impossible.
“Oh my, if it isn’t little Karen!?”
“Oh, um, hehe… yes, it’s me.”
“We were so worried when we hadn’t seen you around lately! Have you been well?”
“Yes, I’m doing fine.”
“We heard Lyos broke up with you. You poor dear. But what can you expect, being F-rank and all…”
This. This was what Karen had to endure every single time she encountered one of the neighborhood ladies. Karen had just come to buy ingredients for dinner. Now that she’d been spotted, all she could do was stare into the distance and wait for the storm to pass.
“Ah, hahaha… yes, you’re right…”
Though it happened over a month ago, it was apparently still hot gossip among the local ladies. They spoke of it as if it happened yesterday, offering sympathy while picking at old wounds.
“I heard you’ve been crying your eyes out? You poor thing. Haven’t you lost some weight?”
“Not at all. I wasn’t crying, I was just working. If anything, I’ve gained weight from eating well!”
“You don’t have to put on a brave face, Karen dear. Whether you’re F-rank or he’s a knight, heartbreak is heartbreak.”
Nobody would believe her even if she told the truth. Due to confidentiality, she couldn’t reveal what kind of work she’d been doing. If Karen were to mention that she might have married a certain famous nobleman of renowned beauty through her work, the aunties would worry she’d lost her mind from grief.
“I know someone I could introduce you to, Karen dear. He’s my cousin. He’s forty-five, but he’s a D-rank adventurer. His previous wife passed away… Would you like to meet him?”
“No thank you.”
When Karen hastily declined, the lady put her hand to her cheek and sighed deeply.
“I suppose your standards are too high after Lyos. But you can’t be too picky, Karen dear.”
Everyone she met tried to arrange these terrifying marriage proposals. What made it worse was that they weren’t doing it out of spite but out of kindness, which made Karen want to burst into tears.
If a Great Collapse Stampede were to occur in this town, non-combatants would flee to nearby towns. However, as an F-rank, Karen wouldn’t be allowed inside. In that case, she might die. For an F-rank like Karen to be allowed into town, she needed to become part of the family of someone with useful abilities in some field.
Marriage would make her family. Wanting to ensure Karen wouldn’t be left helpless in an emergency, the ladies were each reaching out to their acquaintances, finding people willing to marry even an F-rank like her. Of course, the likelihood of finding a decent person willing to marry an F-rank was low. Karen couldn’t stop her smile from twitching at the genuine goodwill of the aunties pushing such candidates.
“Actually, I might be able to reach E-rank soon… so I’ll be fine!”
“But Karen dear, your magical power is D-rank, right? E-rank alchemist is impossible. Maybe if you were an adventurer…”
“I’ll be fine! Really! Totally fine!”
Though she said this, just yesterday Karen had failed in her practice of making fifty minor healing potions in a day, which was necessary to become an E-rank alchemist. She only managed thirty-two bottles. She was still eighteen bottles short.
But Karen believed this was just because she was tired from being constantly on edge during her commission work. She strongly believed things would be different after resting for a week to recover her magical power. She had to believe it.
Besides, Karen also had the option of submitting a potentially new potion recipe to the Alchemists’ Guild—a promotion through merit.
Karen hadn’t even known that non-magical ingredient potions existed before, so while she wasn’t sure if it was new, considering how Sieg’s request had been left untouched until she accepted it, there was a very high chance that at least the fever-reducing potion was a new type.
If this was accepted, E-rank would be certain. She might even make a D-rank—a double promotion.
“You’re not just saying this because you don’t want to marry an older man, are you…? Lately, something strange has been happening with the dungeon. I’ve heard people say they’ve seen weak monsters appearing inside town. Just between us, of course.”
The auntie’s stern face loomed as she pressed closer. She was speaking out of concern, wanting to save Karen’s life. Though they weren’t related by blood, this was surely parental love.
If she gave in to those warm feelings and compromised, it would be disastrous. As Karen held back a scream while breaking into a cold sweat, she heard someone calling her name.
“Is that you there, Karen?”
That voice was far from being a rescue.
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