CHAPTER 89: SERIOUSLY, HOW MANY MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS WERE MADE WITH NOT-SO-ETHICAL METHODS?
“By the way, Hibiki-cha – Hibiki, I’m amazed that you can recognize the plants.”
“Well, at least, there are some plants that look like the herbs I recognize. See, mugwort(yomogi) is here, and lemon-balm (seiyou yamahakka) … of course I don’t know if they’re exactly the same as the plants from back home, but… I recognize them. And actually, their names come out the same.”
…Nn?
“Names come out the same?”
I quickly scan the plants Hibiki-chan is holding with Analyze(iv), but nothing comes out other than
◤
Name: Mountainous Wild Grass
Type: Plant
Analysis: A type of wild grass commonly found in the Western Mountains.
Rarity: Common
◣
Regular Analyze is even less helpful.
◤
Type: Plant
Quantity: 4 lys
Origin: Nyl Mountain Range, South.
◣
… Un… That’s right, Lor said there was another skill, Identify, that merchants rely on in conjunction with Analyze. Such a tedious system.
But, um,
“What, does your Analyze tell you what these are?”
I ask Hibiki-chan.
Hibiki-chan shakes her head.
“My Analyze(ii) only gives information about what something’s made from, how old it is, and several other things, kind of like a stereotypical video-game readout.”
Fumufumu. A lot like mine, and Masaki and company. Although ours is Analyze(iv).
By the way, it seems like although we (me, Masaki, and the other gamers who came from Mourning Star) have a separate ability called “Status”, Hibiki-chan doesn’t have it.
The other girl who had been with her didn’t have it either.
Also, Analyze(ii) gives more detailed information than Analyze(iv), sometimes.
Seimei-san hypothesized that it’s due to the nature of our in-game tooltips. In Mourning Star the information is limited on purpose, since part of the gameplay is exploration. In Hibiki’s game, Archage something or other, the tooltips were detailed according to stats.
Ignoring whether or not there’s an Analyze(i), depending on whether this world’s original Analyze counts as 1 or 0, could it be that in Analyze(#) … # is an iteration of Analyze that’s modified according to a game interface.
Hibiki has Analyze(ii), and we have Analyze(iv) …
… right?
For a second, I feel a chaos of impatience, but I forcefully quell it.
Even if I want to find the people who have Analyze(iii), where should I start? Though people might say I’m an overly altruistic person, even I won’t try to catch delusions and smoke.
I can only hope with all my being that those people are safe, or if they are not, that they can make themselves a safe place. Aside from that, being aware of rumors and traveling to different places to hear more rumors… That is the best I can do.
“Instead of using Analyze(ii), I use a skill called
Ah, oops. Hibik-chan was saying something.
“
“In-game it helped you identify unknown potions, powders, salves, and poisons. Here … I guess it counts herbs and plants as unknown substances that can be analyzed. But it only shows me some plants, and some of the effects from consuming them. It doesn’t seem to go into details that I’d like … it kind of feels like a child’s guide, I guess.”
Hibiki-chan seems to feel a bit suspicious about her skill. At least it’s most likely reliable, even if it’s not detailed enough.
“I wonder… with how I’ve noticed magic ‘labels’ things, I wonder if it’s not something like identifying commonly used herbs and flowers that people in this world use, and the general knowledge about them.”
“Is that how it is… if I learn more, I wonder if it would add it automatically to the skill… No, I should try to learn it by memorizing, I think.”
So that’s why she’s been recording each plant, but leaving a large space behind each one. That thin, leather-bound journal-like book wasn’t that cheap, you know… maa, not that I have any problems with money.
I can’t help but say,
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“… These analyze/identify systems are all sort of half-assed, aren’t they.”
“… Yes.
Hibiki sounds a little uncertain, but I think that’s correct too.
“Yeah, it would be good to find someone to teach you. Orvowel… might know a little?”
To be honest, I wish Lor was here… His main interest might have been mana diseases, but he DID do some things related to consumable medicines, right? I think?
“Yeah…”
Hibiki starts thinking a bit and falls silent.
Un. It would be good if we could find a mentor for her at Ploids Labyrinth.
◇◇◇
We returned at around midday.
“Ragnall, we’re back-.”
I called as we entered the main hall of the Lonely Bear.
“Yo! It’s been dull as dirt here.”
You complain right off the bat? You could have come with us, jeez.
“I’m… going to wash up,”
Hibiki said timidly, dusting her hands a little to emphasize the dirt on them.
As she disappears down the hall, Ragnall leans in and whispers,
“So? How did it go?”
… That’s right! I was supposed to be counseling her – or something like that.
I avert my eyes quickly.
“Hey. You.”
Ragnall stares accusingly at me.
“M-maa, it’s something that I don’t think should be forced out without building some kind of trust between us first!”
“Don’t make things up!”
I might have been making it up, but it is actually kind of a reasonable response so I feel unreasonably insulted.
“C’mon, no one’s going to open up to someone they don’t have a close relationship with. I want her to be a little more open in general before I start asking about the sensitive stuff. You know, you can’t remove the rocks embedded in the ground without removing the dirt above it.”
“Okay, you’re DEFINITELY making that part up.”
Well, yeah.
“On the plus side, she’s opening up a little to me, so we’ll see.”
I said.
Ragnall sighs.
“Haa… but that means she’s still going to act like a timid rabbit around ME!”
… Hey.
“Oi. You better not be asking me to do all this just so you can make a move on her-!”
I stare accusingly at Ragnall, but he shakes his head immediately.
“Nonono, that’s not it at all. But it hurts when a cute girl avoids you like that, right?”
“Well, that’s true…”
“Hey, seriously, I’m not an idiot who would force himself on a girl, so don’t look at me like that.”
Yeah, okay, I’ll stop messing with you now.
I was just pretending to be upset to screw with him, but now that I think about it, Ragnall’s the type who’s a little sensitive to others’ negative feelings about him. It might be because of his part-demon heritage.
Although he’s okay with being hated and looked down on, surprisingly he really doesn’t like being feared, huh?
I shrug and say,
“I don’t think you have to worry about Hibiki being scared of you forever. She herself was talking about not wanting to stay unchanging now that she has the opportunity, so her over-cautious behavior should fade sooner or later.”
“Hmph. So you were just messing with me, huh?”
Well, yeah.
Several parties of adventurers and travelers came to the wayhouse in the afternoon.
While some of them stayed, most continued onwards, due to the weather.
It seems like there’s a chance of rain at nightfall, but there was also a good chance that a party could make it down the mountain by then. And there is another wayhouse at the bottom of the mountain where they could shelter through the rain.
Though, that wayhouse is considerably less comfortable than the Lonely Bear. It’s really nothing more than a shed to sleep away from the elements.
Orvowel got a surprising amount of business, but it seems that the next place to buy supplies would be a tiny village a little more than two days’ journey away.
And it seems that Orvowel’s selection of items is larger than what they would expect in that village.
Is that so… even though he’s not carrying that much stuff?
Maa, there are strongboxes with Storage cast on them, so there might be more stuff than I’m aware of him having.
They may be expensive, but since transporting goods is Orvowel’s livelihood, he bought the boxes as soon as he was able. Part of our escort job is to ensure that those 6 strongboxes don’t get stolen, not just what’s in them.
Anyway, with the coming rain and the possibility of accidents happening because of that rain while descending down the mountain, Orvowel was selling quite a few rations, bandages, and fire stones.
Numinor also sold some pelts treated with a rain-repelling sap, and also furs, for warmth.
Ragnall later told me that, since most people didn’t have magic storage and inventory skills, they would probably sell the pelts and furs at the village later to reduce weight.
When I asked if those spells were Dark-element based, he said,
“Come to think of it, that might be the case.”
Hm? Those spells are so rare that even the element needed to cast them through is unknown?
Hai, ok, I will keep Inventory a… I have little confidence in keeping it a complete secret, but I will be more aware of when and how I use it. Maybe.
Anyway, that’s how the day was spent, leisurely doing various things and seeing various people.
Well, Ragnall did say that this escort quest was considered a very laidback trip to the Ploids Labyrinth.
With no real reason to get there as soon as possible, this kind of trip is fine, too.
Later that night I secluded myself outside, a little ways away from everyone else.
I had decided to “report” in to certain people who are inclined to worry.
“… So that’s what’s going on.”
[“I see. Good work. That’s fine, I will ask Lor to let me translate his notes on compounding herbs and magic medicines and whatever he has. It will also let me learn the language.”]
“Eh… Seimei-san, you will be able to learn it so easily?”
[“It shouldn’t be a problem. Sei-chan knows English and Mandarin fluently, so this probably won’t be a big deal.”]
Eh……
Even though I’ve been struggling for two months and just barely memorized some basic words, like greetings and stuff…
Ah, I’m talking to Seimei-san and Masaki on group chat.
“Well, thanks for that. But I thought this world’s medical care wasn’t so good?”
[“Surgery and the knowledge of how the body works isn’t so great, naa~. Iyaa, desecration of the dead isn’t looked upon happily, here. There’s necromancy too, but it’s considered the work of demons and demi-demons. It isn’t Dark Magic, so I’m a bit relieved~.”]
Eh, so there’s necromancy too. But if using dead bodies is considered demonic, then I guess it can’t be helped that there was no progress in that.
Well, even in Japan you can’t just dig up a body. Although there are people who promise their bodies for science after they die for medical practice.
Come to think of it, I wonder how many medical breakthroughs were accomplished through unethical means…
Seimei-san continued.
[“But despite that, consumable and topological medicines HAVE been investigated. Obviously not to the degree of modern day pharmaceuticals, and I would consider it more wise-woman type knowledge, but that type of stuff exists. And things to combat mana imbalance-type diseases are even much more advanced than our world, haha!”]
“…Haha.”
So that’s how it is, is it?
It seems like Seimei-san’s goal isn’t just a dream, but he’ll have his work cut out for him.