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Chapter 4 Is this Magic?
After finishing my meal, I returned to my room.
First, I began gathering information.
I needed to learn more about how this world works, especially how to earn money.
Eris’s memories from before were too vague and unsettling.
My goal was clear.
To make my family wealthy and free to choose.
To be able to pay loyal servants like Mireille a fair wage.
And one more thing.
The words of the evil goddess were stuck in my head.
[Right now, the other world I’m managing is in a bit of a pinch because it’s under the control of the Demon King’s army. I was in the middle of quickly sending in several hero candidates. It’s like I got hit by a stray bullet. How unlucky, you know.]
Demon King… Hero…
It sounds like something out of a fairy tale, but as long as the goddess exists, it’s probably also true of this world.
One day, this country, this city, might be engulfed in war.
When that happens, powerless nobles like us will surely be the first to be discarded.
The “power” to protect ourselves and our families is also essential.
I unfolded several old books from my room.
Most of them were about noble history or heraldry, useless to me at the moment.
But among them, one book stood out.
[Introduction to Magic – Beginner’s Edition]
I turned the page and found a description of the power that forms the foundation of this world – “magic.”
The technique of converting the mana that fills the air with magical energy using the body’s magical organs and weaving it into phenomena through the power of will.
“… This is.”
I decided to try out the magic circulation method described in the book.
I sat cross-legged on my bed and slowly steadied my breathing.
And I focused my attention in the center of my body – just below my belly button.
At first, I felt nothing.
But I used the concentration I’d cultivated from studying in my previous life to sharpen my mind.
And then—a warm, pulsating sensation spread deep within my body.
This was…magic.
I consciously circulated small masses of heat throughout my body.
It was awkward at first, but with repeated practice, it became smoother.
It was a strange sensation, as if new blood had begun to flow.
“Magic…I really did it!”
I focused my attention on my fingertips, and faint particles of light twinkled like fireflies.
It was amazing that I could even do something like this…!
Unable to contain my excitement, I devoured other books.
History, geography, economics…I filled my limited library with knowledge, like a dry sponge soaking up water.
Then, in one ancient book, I came across a fateful passage.
The book’s title was “The Lost System of Technology: Alchemy.”
Written there was a technique for creating miracles using principles completely different from magic.
It was called “alchemy.”
Understanding the composition of all things, decomposing them, and reconstructing them.
A science that doesn’t release magical power as a phenomenon, but rather uses it as a catalyst to guide matter into its “ideal form.”
“… Reconstruct matter?”
If I could master this alchemy…
I could earn money.
But that’s not all.
Turning iron into gold, pebbles into jewels.
Even that might, in theory, be possible.
If I could do that, I could not only restore the Avent family’s finances, but I could even become the richest man in the country.
My heart was pounding.
–I had finally found it.
A ray of hope that would turn this shitty fate around.
“Okay, I’ve decided. I’m going to become an alchemist.”
However, that resolve quickly hits a wall with the book’s final sentence.
[–In addition, mastering advanced alchemy requires specialized knowledge, vast amounts of material, and precise equipment. Therefore, most aspiring alchemists typically study the foundations at the Royal Lapisford Academy’s Alchemy Department.]
I’d found the perfect method.
But before I could even get close, I once again found myself confronted with the dreaded wall known as “money”.
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