Ch 10. Junior alchemist

"This is a big request, Keaton. I'm not looking to baby-sit your slaves." Cal spoke, looking back unconcernedly. 

"Can you do this for a friend?" Not one to take no for an answer, I pressed him. 

"Give me a good reason why I should. An actual reason." Cal replied, not giving me the time of day. He was always like this, he might do a favor, but he'd never do one for free. I had come with some ideas to pitch him on this front.

"You're working on new recipes. How do you think you'll be getting your ingredients?"

"From the guild. I can get whatever ingredients I like, and as many as I like." Cal replied simply. 

"That's my point, you need to advertise the ingredients of every potion you make. What's the point of inventing anything new if you give the recipe away for free. I'll be your personal procurer for alchemical goods, and all you need to do is keep Belle safe while I'm away, let Ashley look after her." I appealed to him as convincingly as I could muster. 

Cal leaned back, now considering my offer. 

"She can help out around the shop. I'd feel better leaving her here than keeping in locked up in an inn all day."

"Fine, fine. It's a good enough reason as any, I suppose. She can work here while you're out, but I do have some expectations for that idea of yours... come by later, I'll have something for you. "

I nodded, somewhat relieved that he accepted my proposal. This was probably the best option possible in this situation, and left me with much more peace of mind. 

Belle and I spent the day on the town, enjoying fancier foods, buying the miscellaneous things that she needed for chores, extending our stay at the inn, all funded in thanks to Cal's generous exchange rate on the slime cores. It turned out that what Cal had to give me was something of a reference guide he had cobbled together in a hurry, tearing out diagrams from various texts that detailed all the plants and monster parts he was interested in. I continued to visit Cal's shop for the next two days, Cal continuously adding to the small leather binder I now kept with me. Belle had learned she was going to be working there intermittently and was somewhat pleased with the arrangement, having the chance to now spend more time with her longtime friend Ashley. 

I had begun studying the pictures and descriptions in the tome, and sometime along the way noticed a new class available to me, alchemist. Whatever criteria the system was using to determine classes, it appears I had now met it. Equipping the class, the skill showed up as Identification, another passive that seemed to assist me in intuitively recognizing an item. Testing it out in Cal's shop, I had an easier time remembering the names of the various collections of herbs and monster parts, the names coming to me more naturally than without the skill. Ever since I learned I had the ability to change into classes as I pleased, I developed the habit of bringing a hand-mirror with me everywhere, tucking it into my belt for safekeeping. Cal didn't seem to pay my new habit much mind, ignoring my strange actions as I periodically took out the mirror and waved my hand towards the mirror as I adjusted my equipped classes.

Before long the promised day was upon me, when I would reunite with the other copper-plates and plan out a new expedition. I saw Belle off to the shop, before assembling at the guild entrance. The twins, Art and Sebast, still armed with their spears seemed to have acquired some better armor, now equipped in full leather like myself. The archers, Orion, and Kalm, both brought spears with them, along with their bows and quivers, seemingly more prepared for any melee encounters than last time. In comparison, I had done relatively little preparations for my gear. Still bringing just the short-sword and knife with me. I had spent too long learning to fight with a sword as a child to switch weapons so easily, I would see if I could acquire a related class and take that, the mirror secured to my belt showed that conviction.

We talked with Tammy first and checked the board for any requests. Apparently mud-men had been causing issues recently, and bounties were out for their cores beyond the normal sale value. Mud-men weren't actually men, but rather constructs made of mud in the shape of men. They were fairly similar to slimes in that they had cores, and like a slime injuring their core was the only true way to kill them. The rest of their body was just a prop they used to move around, and any external injuries inflicted would only be superficial.  They weren't considered extraordinarily dangerous, perhaps only slightly more than a slime, but here in the muddy winter season of Stromgar they were very common common to see. The rains of the past two days bringing life to the latent mana of the surrounding soil and gave birth to these annoyances... giving us a job to do. 

We headed out the gates, the same way we had gone before on our earlier expedition. The ground in the grassland surrounding the town still muddy from the rains. I led the formation with Art, and Sebast following to my sides and the archers close behind, all holding their spears. Normally the vanguard position was unpopular due to the increased risk in encounters, but given my hidden incentives for personally killing monsters, I happily volunteered myself for this role, much to the relief of the others. 

We looked for any movement across the grass as we walked, the cold morning a bit chillier due to the damp rains. 

Coming up to slime pond we trained at last time, I took out my mirror to readjust classes one last time. The group looking at me oddly, but saying nothing.