“Second times the charm.”

There seemed to be nothing wrong with me today, no visits form demons, no corpses… let’s intentionally make it worse. Today I would steal some books.

“Why the fuck did I come back here?”

Never mind the whole thing about the pile of bodies nearby, there wasn’t even any servants. They didn’t really do much for me, but me doesn’t matter in a giant annex. Then again on the bright side… there was no bright side.

Anyway, enough feeling sad, I jumped out of bed.

Today I decided to leave the weapons behind. They were not going to be useful for breaking into a library. They were also fairly hefty pieces of dead weight.

I then gave one last look at myself in the mirror before setting off.

“Climbing time!”

Maybe climbing wasn’t such a great idea. I arrived outside the main building to find it still staffed. There was absolutely nothing normal about a woman climbing up a building and breaking in through a window.

On second thought I decided to wait for night. I wasn’t giving up on climbing in. there was no way I was being seen entering the manor through any door when mother was around. I might have also been feeling a bit whacky but that definitely didn’t hold sway over my decision making… definitely.

I took a absurdly long way around and eventually entered the shed. there I chucked on my own cloak and picked up the one that Mr Cedar lent. After however long I spent sweating and bashing around in it he probably wouldn’t want it back. The main reason I grabbed it was to have a spare that could remain in town.

Chucking on the mask I set out… but not before I looked for something to cover my hand. Hand bandaged I was ready to set out, except for the fact I was missing a sword.

I stayed in there resupplying for far longer than I wished to admit. Eventually however I did indeed leave.

When I got to town, I decided to check out Mr Cedar’s house first. knocking on the door gave me no response so I did the only logical thing.

I broke into Mr Cedar’s house, with a key, it wasn’t really breaking in.

Mr cedar nor Mark were home, so I decided to lock up and head elsewhere.

It wasn’t that unusual for them to be up at this hour considering the how many delays I experienced. The weird thing was that they managed to leave the house before I arrived. They didn’t really have much to do.

There were only two places I thought they could be, and I headed to the easiest one to check.

I knocked on the apothecary door, and surely enough a response came right out.

“Coming!”

It wasn’t Mr Cedar’s nor Mark’s though, but no matter, I waited anyway.

When the door creaked open, I was greeted by a short girl that seemed a little familiar.

“Hi, I’m may how may I help you? Oh wait, you are with the others aren’t you, come on in.”

Before I could even say anything I as pulled in by the cheerful girl.

When she finally set me free, I was before the two old men. One was carefully mixing something while the other was picking leaves off of a stalk.

Seeing them like this I offered a hand.

“Do you need help with anything?”

Mark decided to respond his eyes stayed fixed on the stalk he was holding as he plucked.

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“No, but you can give it a try if you want. The instructions are rather simple, it’s rather surprising that these ever left the west.”

“In that case do you have the time to talk about a pile of corpses?”

“WHAT?!”

After Mark tried to deafen me, I decided some context was in order.

“Out the back of the manor, there’s an old battlefield. Well, I think it’s a battlefield, there’s all sorts of broken armour and as I said before… corpses.”

I turned my head to look at may. She still held a smile, her eyes were wide, and she was probably losing it inside, but she was smiling.

Mark gave a response while Mr cedar just sighed while continuing to stir.

“Kiddo, you really have to stop doing things like this, now I have to buy a shovel.”

“I assume we are burying them then?”

“No, we’re going treasure hunting. Of course we are burying them!”

“In that case do you have anything else to add to the agenda.”

“Yes, go get your hand treated, I assume you got it from messing around since you suddenly appear with that and mention corpses.”

“You would be correct, but it should be fine.”

“How about this then, you get a turn at making something.”

“I know where this is going, but fine.”

“Also, while you are at it let May watch.”

I took another look at May. She was just standing there.

“They weren’t fresh corpses.”

“THAT’S WORSE!”

Mr Cedar let out a chuckle and I thought Mark was also content with May’s response.

I didn’t exactly know what I was doing so I couldn’t give her any pointers, but it seemed she would be nice to keep around. Now added to the team of old and yappy, old and loud, and young and quiet was young and naïve.

I found that amusing, but my amusement didn’t last long. Old and yappy stopped what he was doing to go and pull a scroll out from one of the cubbies.

“Nope, not this one.”

Mark then continued to riffle through what felt like every recipe we had until landing on the right one. After this he handed it to me.

“’ere you go.”

I took the scroll and opened it, not caring to give him thanks. The ingredients were simple, just two in fact.

“And they count this as something an apothecary should be making?”

“Read the processes, don’t think it’s easy or simple.”

I took a second look at the scroll and came to understand what he meant. Another thing I understood was why Mr Cedar was so focused on that bowl. For something that was just delt root and water I needed to grind it thrice, add water twice, filter it twice and heat it four times.

II walked over to a shelf with what I presumed to be ingredients. There were all sorts of weird looking fruits and roots, leaves and even bones. Perusing them I soon came across a large oblong shaped root.

Taking the root I looked at Mark before deciding that my question was dumb. Looking to the scroll I figured out what I needed, a mortar and pestle. I had no clue what that was, but thankfully there was an illustration.

Picking up the mortar and pestle I marvelled at the scroll. Compared to the books I “rescued” these scrolls could get a rock to make this medicine.

I ground the root, then heated it until it was dry stirring continuously. I then added water and ground it again, then I filtered the water out and heated it. then I did the same for a third fucking time before finally heating It for the last time.

What I was left with after hours of work was a tiny amount of a tacky amber substance. Looking to the instructions I saw that this was the correct colour… for this stage in the process.

“Mark, you do realise this is meant to be let dry for three days?”

“Oh, does it?”

“Yes, it does.”

Mark was still working away, but it seemed that Mr Cedar was doing everything that needed patience. Either Mark had less patience than I thought, or him breathing too hard would crack the bowl. I decided to believe the second option.

“Well, I guess we let it dry for three days, there should be something for your hand in my pouch. I think I left it over there somewhere.”

Mark didn’t even point to where he was pointing, and I just sighed. It was sad but I knew where he meant.

I looked around me a little and quickly found it. when I set down the tacky substance and went to look for it again May appeared before me.

“Hi.”

“AAAH!”

“Did you have to yell?”

“Why did you sneak up on me like that?”

“Oh, But I have been here the entire time.”

I could have been too absorbed in what I was doing, but I wasn’t buying that. I looked down at may, I then put my head back up and looked slightly to the side.

“Neat.”

“what’s neat?”

“Nothing.”

May just perfectly disappeared when I looked in the right direction. I hadn’t been consciously looking for her, so I just didn’t think she was there at all.

“You still want this?”

May offered up the pouch in her hand to me.

“Yes.”

I took the pouch and when I was undoing the bandage from the morning, I realised something. with this new and wonderful realisation, I pestered Mark once again.

“Is it really okay for me to be making that when I could have gotten dirt and blood in it?”

“No, but we aren’t going to be selling this stuff yet, are we?”

“But you wanted me to use it.”

“No.”

“Yes, you did.”

“Maybe.”

Mark really didn’t fit the name whippersnapper, even today he isn’t acting that young, he’s acting younger.

I took my frustration out on Mark’s wallet and applied the viscous green liquid liberally. Mark didn’t seem to care, but he might in the future. I then wrapped it in fresh bandages and added my old ones to the rubbish bucket.