The Black Iron Glory
Claude's request

Chapter 91

Claude's request

They were in a room measuring about 20 plus square meters with three double windows. The room was kept very clean, especially the white walls and the gray floor. In the middle of the room was a large, white, wooden table, which looked extremely sturdy that occupied a third of the room. On it there are various apparatuses of glass with various sizes. If Maria hadn't been by his side, Claude would have thought he found a chemical lab from a previous life.

Across the wall to the right of the room was a black wooden drawer that seemed to contain medicinal plants. There are several levels, each with a small label on it. There is also a 2-meter-long water bath in the left corner of the room laid out with thin white tiles. Claude noticed that there was a bronze faucet on top of the bathtub and it looked like Maria had spent enough in her lab to have access to the tap water there.

"Is this your lab, ma'am?" ask Claude.

"That's just part of it. The glass of the room was mainly used to concoct medicine. Sometimes, I also use it for some interesting experiments. There was another room inside and it was the most important for herbs. Since all the medicines we use must first be treated and refined beforehand, there is basically a basic alchemy formation inside the treatment room. Let's take a look. "

Maria walked to the end of the room at this time and opened the white wooden door.

Claude went to see. Other spaces share the layout and size of other rooms mostly, but it's much messier inside. There are machines and tools everywhere. Aside from iron and glass, most of the equipment was made of bronze. Some look as big as furniture and they make the room more like a garage.

"You come from the alchemy of magi. The earliest medicines were synthesized by magi through alchemy. However, most of them were given to nobles only and commoners were not allowed to enjoy such luxuries. If they fell ill, they would have to rely on picking herbs for direct consumption, not only inhibiting the effects of the medicine, but also slowing down and even worsening the disease.

"It was said that when the plague erupted, magi no were unable to create many medicines using their alchemy formations, either, so they had to teach the commoners to properly prepare the herbs before boiling them into medicine to save them. It was an important moment in the development of herbal medicine, the true beginning of our modern craft.

"In some ways, this branch of science is only possible as a result of the alchemy of magi. The earliest method to treat the disease came from the results of the magi alchemy experiment. Recipes of healing potions and antidotes of poison came from them as well.

"But part of the reason why the Magi didn't care about herbal medicine was largely because they never set their sights on the layman at first.

"What we really deserve respect are the herbalists who came before us. Even though they did not know magic, they tried their best to understand and experiment based on the occasional tidbit they received from magi to learn how to prepare and synthesize medicines, which they did, gradually perfecting the art of herbalism bit by bit over a long period of time.

"Although the medicines they made were not as perfect as those made using alchemy, and even though they did not know about alchemy formations, and their herbs only worked a tenth better, it was better, it was still a blessing for the general public as they finally had their own methods of treating the illness. They no longer need to fear being crippled by illness. "

Maria gave a brief introduction to the history of herbalism to Claude with pride. "What you see in this room here is the most advanced potion refinement center. This is the 'alchemical formation' we use by herbalists."

Maria is proud of her identity as a mid-level herbalist. He brought Claude and introduced him to each and every piece of equipment, telling him their names and uses. "This is a separation glass. It is used to separate the drug mixture by rotating it quickly. And this is the crusher that we use to powder mineral and herbal substances. Here, we have a boiling beaker .. medicine cabinet.. medicine cabinet... pipette ... slicer ... pressurized kettle .. and a distillation teapot that we use to dilute the mixture. "

"Mrs, how do most of your machines work?" Beneath those machines were many axles, so it seemed clear that they were not meant to be powered with human help. The crusher for example is about 80 centimeters in diameter and seems to require a lot of force to lift.

According to his understanding, steam power had yet to be discovered in this world. They mostly use hydropower and wind for their mechanical devices. For example, the kingdom's weapons factory in the prefectural capital, Baromiss, produces about 50 thousand weapons each year and employs up to 3,000 people. Most of their engines are water powered. Since the factory was located within the valley, they could use the waterfall to power their machines in weapons manufacturing.

"Open the window and look outside and you'll know" Maria said.

The biggest difference between this room and the previous one is that it only has one window. In the window glass there is paper blocking most of the incoming light. Maria had thrown the Luminous Pearl when she entered.

Maria pointed to the right wall and Claude opened the window to see a large water wheel mounted on the outside wall like water milling houses by the river. It relies on the flow of water to power the wheels, which move energy to the plant inside.

Although there was no lake next to the stone building, there was a large reservoir installed on the roof. There is a pipe extending from the tank and pointing towards the water wheel. As long as the valve on the tank is opened, water will flow along the pipe to the water wheel to move it. That will allow the engine axle to start moving and activate it.

"That's really genius. Who designed this?" claude said in admiration.

Maria's teeth showed through her smile. He happily replied, "That was all my idea. I have another lab like this in the capital. Initially, we used work horses to power the engines there by tightening the wheels to pull them. But then, we need one coachman to guard the horse during the whole process. Sometimes, the horses would rampage halfway and cause me to lose a lot of precious materials. After that, I came up with this water-powered solution. All I had to do was install the fittings on the roof and suck water onto the roof and supply it with water from the pipes. It's much more comfortable and I don't have to worry about horses going on strike again. "

"It's nothing. My achievements pale in comparison to the ancestors of herbalism," said Maria with a wave of her hand, "I am not humble. It's just the truth. These machine sets were similar to the foundation of an alchemy formation and they were made possible when the ancestors analyzed what the effects of an alchemy formation on that herb were and tried to recreate it with great difficulty with a tool that could used by ordinary folk, it allows future herbalists like us to be able to synthesize good medicine even without relying on alchemy formations. They are true greats. "

"Madam, I have a request that may sound excessive. Can you teach me herbalism?" claude asked with a serious expression.

"Do you want to be an herbalist?"

“Ya.” He's nodding.

Maria thought about it and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Claude, it's not that I don't want to teach you. I just don't have time. I will only stay in the Whitestag for another half a month and there is no way I can teach you much about the craft in such a short time. You have to go to school, right? You may not have time to study with me … "

"I can learn on my own, Madam," Claude begged, "I'm already in my third year of high school and I'll graduate in two months or so. Right now, classes are not causing me any problems and I can even leave by taking time off from school. Also, I'm not asking you to teach me one-to-one. I just want you to guide me on which books and materials on the subject I have to complete myself step by step . "

"If that's the case ..." He lowered his head in thought and nodded. "Follow me . "

Claude followed him to the outermost room where the niroz crocodile was placed.

"Look, Claude. The books on this shelf are all related to herbs. I'll allow you to come here to read these works for the next two weeks. You can come here as you like when you have time. I'll give you a test after those two weeks and if you don't pass it, it means you're not fit to be a Herbalist, so you better give up if that's the case, "said Maria while pointing to the large shelf on the wall.

Claude realized that he had been ignoring the shelf when he first entered the room because his attention was caught by the crocodile niros on the ground. Her back was also facing the shelf when she had tea with Maria, causing her to ignore her whereabouts.

"Ah, there are so many books here .. Can I read them?" Claude felt tense from excitement. Reading is his favorite entertainment.

"Yes. Do you like to read too?" Maria likes Claude. A normal person would feel their head hurt when looking at so many books, especially non-novel ones, which are common among the average person. Being asked to read so many books on herbs should have been a daunting task, yet Claude seemed like a child discovering his new toy. He stared at the shelf and couldn't wait to jump into the books.

"really. I've finished reading hundreds of books in my father's study, and there aren't many exciting new books in the bookstore in town. The books that go in are usually novels or inspirational biographies and they are too boring. I couldn't find a book I liked. "

"Most of the books I have here are from the imperial capital. This is my collection, in a sense. However, most of them are related to herbal medicine and only a few of them are related to history and geography. Because you love to read, you may come to visit as often as you can as long as you don't feel bored, "Sweet Mary.

"Thank you, Madam. Can I start now?" He was impatient.

"of course. Let me pour you some tea while reading."

At that moment, Rodan came and looked at Claude. He reported to his wife, "Mrs, the boar is here again. They're also pretty close to us, right across the slope there. You'll be able to see it as soon as it comes out."

"Oh, is that really so? Take me there, " said Maria.

He knew that it was not the time to read and had to do something about it. Part of the reason he was there was to hunt the boar. He followed Maria out of the building.

They stopped not far away. Claude looked at the direction Rodan was pointing at and saw a dozen wild boars running on the slope happily. There was ground tilled on the slope where some plants were planted and wild boars were jumping around there.

"Do you want to hire some hunters from the city to drive the boar away, ma'am?" ask Rodan.

"Let me clean it up. No need to call the hunter," Claude offered of his own accord.