Chapter 90: The Alchemy Workshop

"Ah, my apologies, Wang Yu! I'm so sorry. That swamp monster has been making a mess and spraying its slime everywhere!" Elliot rushed out from behind an iron door, apologizing profusely to Wang Yu, who had caught a wrench tossed his way.

"Glug?" A creature that resembled a slime but was made of mud instead of translucent gel slithered out through the iron door.

It had overheard Elliot, and its tone carried a hint of grievance.

"Alright, alright, I know you're trying to help, you big slime. But seriously, can't you go help the road workers instead of causing trouble for me?"

Elliot rapped his forehead with a tool in exasperation. The talkative gnome seemed quite fed up with the rather unintelligent swamp monster.

"Glug?" The swamp monster emitted a faint earthy smell that wasn't particularly offensive. It slithered off, leaving no trace of mud behind.

"Why did it leave just like that? It was continuously pestering me before," Elliot said, scratching his bald gnome head in confusion.

"Did you previously tell it what to do?" Wang Yu asked.

"Probably not. So it was sticking around because I didn't give it a task?" Elliot mused. "Never mind that, Wang Yu. Your church is truly remarkable. Even a swamp monster has shown up here. Before I met this one, I thought swamp monsters were just mindless mud slimes."

Elliot belatedly realized he hadn't assigned the swamp monster Dada a specific task, which was why it had kept lingering around. But that wasn't important at the moment.

"Wang Yu, now that you've finally arrived, come take a look at the alchemy workshop I've prepared for Miss Avia! I poured all my effort into this in hopes that it'll meet her expectations."

Wang Yu turned to Avia. The excitement and curiosity in her eyes were obvious. She genuinely loved the craft of alchemy. When she noticed Wang Yu's gaze, she nodded enthusiastically with delight.

Elliot had built the alchemy workshop into the cliffside. Iron doors embedded in the rock face led to a spacious interior.

In fact, Elliot's identity as a merchant often overshadowed his gnome heritage. Most educated gnomes were masters of mechanical construction, and Elliot evidently possessed a high level of education and skill.

"Since the capital's shadow differs greatly from the surface, I didn't use the traditional small-scale structure that's commonplace aboveground. Instead, I referenced the alchemical factories of underground cities," Elliot explained as he led Wang Yu and Avia through the workshop.

The workshop's design heavily utilized the natural structure of the cliff. The excavated spaces only needed reinforcement, no additional construction.

Steel reinforcements and stone slabs lined the walls, making the primary structure of the workshop simple yet effective.

Mana crystal lamps embedded in the stone walls provided illumination, with embedded magical circuits ensuring a steady supply of magic throughout the workshop. The stone slabs, resembling bright white marble, gave the place a clean and professional look.

Walking through the pristine corridors illuminated by crystal lamps, Wang Yu felt as if he were strolling through a laboratory on Earth.

This alchemy workshop extensively utilized gnome technology. Elliot had hidden numerous mechanical constructs within the walls. The craftsmanship was so exquisite that the machinery operated smoothly without making any loud or grating noises.

"One key difference between underground city workshops and those aboveground is the use of pipelines. They're incredibly efficient for transporting large quantities of materials. I contacted an old client from the underground city to integrate this workshop into their pipeline network."

Avia, Wang Yu, and Elliot entered a spacious hall. The layout here was far more complex than the simple corridors outside, and an array of mechanical and alchemical equipment filled the space.

"Separators, cutting tables, magic isolators, extractors..." Avia murmured, naming all the equipment she saw as her eyes scanned the room. Her face was filled with amazement.

"There's a comprehensive set of instruments here, but don't they each require significant space?" she asked in surprise. In her mentor's alchemy workshop were numerous alchemical instruments that were elaborate and expensive.

However, those instruments required large magical formations to operate, making it difficult to house them in a small space. As a result, her mentor Weber Lanchester's laboratory was as large as an entire library.

Yet the instruments here seemed to fit into a much smaller space.

"Ah, Miss Avia, that's the difference between underground cities and the surface. I made some special modifications as well," Elliot replied with a hint of pride.

"Underground alchemists don't have the resources of their wealthy surface counterparts. They often aim for efficiency at the lowest possible cost. While this results in many subpar products, some have developed techniques beyond human standards—namely, gnome technology."

Elliot began explaining the technical details to Avia, who listened intently. The uniqueness of the workshop captivated her interest.

"Surface alchemists have a common problem—they rely too heavily on magic and magical formations. Many tasks that can be accomplished with simple machinery are overcomplicated by magic. Furthermore, to prevent magic interference, magical instruments cannot be miniaturized. Gnome technology can solve this problem.

"In addition, by integrating 'steam engines' into the workshop, a recent invention from the underground city, I was able to improve my designs further. Though these steam engines run on boiling water and have low efficiency, their mechanical design has greatly benefited my work."

Elliot provided a demonstration of the machinery, explaining that the workshop utilized steam power generated by a central boiler. Steam drove many of the devices within the workshop.

The fusion of advanced magical technology and budding steam technology created a mechanical marvel. Gnome engineering served as the foundation that allowed the two disparate fields to integrate seamlessly.

Mechanical structures replaced magic arrays and other magical technologies, while steam, a stable, non-magical energy source, replaced part of the mana expenditure. This integration enabled many alchemical tools to be compactly housed in the workshop.

"It's amazing," Avia marveled. Her understanding of alchemy went far beyond the majority of her peers. Given Wang Yu's knowledge of Earth's technologies, she readily grasped the significance of the innovations before her.

"Right? I didn't expect it to go this smoothly. I just wanted to give it a try," Elliott said, unaware of the profound implications of his work. He simply reveled in Avia's approval. Indeed, this gnome truly was an accomplished engineer. Holo didn't call him 'Master Elliot' for no reason.

"And these machines form the core of the workshop. The rest is just a little personal touch. I hope you'll like it," Elliott said as he pulled a lever.

The workshop began to hum and vibrate slightly. Wang Yu felt the ground beneath him moving. It seemed the entire workshop was ascending, as if they were in an elevator.

Truly, gnome technology was extraordinary—Wang Yu had already realized the brilliance of gnome machinery after seeing the Nightblades' lighthouse.

The elevator-like technology, originally designed for large-scale structures, was easily able to accommodate this relatively modest alchemy workshop.

After a while, the vibrations ceased, and the workshop stabilized again. Elliot opened a small hatch in the ceiling and climbed up, with Wang Yu and Avia following close behind.

Upon ascending, Wang Yu and Avia were amazed to discover that the small room above the hatch was none other than Wang Yu's cabin. By now, however, it had undergone a complete transformation.

A newly built bar counter, orderly shelves, pristine display cases, and various tasteful decorations—likely acquired at low cost—filled the space. The cabin now looked like a fully equipped alchemy shop.

"Not bad, but wasn't this the Nightblades' hideout? Is it really okay to remodel it like this?" Wang Yu scanned the cabin, now entirely converted into an alchemy shop. Personally, he was very pleased. Who wouldn't appreciate such a design?

After thinking it over, he decided it wasn't an issue. The cabin was originally meant for him, a member of the Nightblades, as a place to rest and recover.

Turning it into an alchemy shop didn't conflict with that purpose. As long as he used it as a base, it would be fine. Besides, the fully equipped alchemy workshop provided more functionality than before.

"What do you think, Avia?" Wang Yu turned to the young woman, intending to ask about her opinion, only to find her already excitedly perched behind the bar counter.

Normally poised and graceful, Avia was now far more excited than usual. She sat behind the counter like a shop owner, her excitement and anticipation written all over her face.

It was rare to see Avia in such a state. She clearly loved alchemy, and that fact alone made the construction of the alchemy shop and workshop worthwhile.

After all, the workshop had been quite a significant expense. While the cost of hiring a master craftsman was waived thanks to Elliot, the materials still consumed a large amount of money.

The funds provided by the Professor were now completely used up, as had much of Wang Yu's savings and the reward from the Abyssal Gate incident. But as long as Avia was happy, it was worth it.

Wang Yu could tell that Avia had always been working hard for his sake. Though he had no experience in matters like this and wasn't sure how to respond to Avia, he could at least stick to the simple principle of treating those who were kind to him kindly in return.

He hoped that Avia could find and pursue what she loved, rather than being influenced or led astray by him. It seemed that the alchemy workshop was truly what Avia wanted—and that was enough.

Suddenly, there were a few knocks on the door. With his ripples, Wang Yu identified the visitor as the orc Emmon, with a chest in his arms.

Wang Yu opened the door and welcomed Emmon in.

"Mr. Wang Yu, I'd like to give this to you as a token of my gratitude," Emmon said, placing the box on the floor in front of Wang Yu.

"Me? Gratitude?" Wang Yu pointed at himself, puzzled. He couldn't recall doing anything to warrant such a gesture from Emmon.

"Yes, Mr. Wang Yu! The Church of Nightfall has shown me the possibility of coexistence among different races and harmony between different social classes. You've given me hope that spreading this ideal might be possible.

"This hope is the greatest gift I could receive. For an idealist like me, this hope has been an enormous encouragement—now I know what I need to strive for."

Wang Yu opened his mouth but didn't know what to say. He had a deep impression of Emmon, this orc with unexpectedly lofty ideals.

He hadn't expected the Church of Nightfall to have such a profound impact on Emmon. As someone from Earth, Wang Yu understood well that Emmon's dream was entirely impractical. Peaceful coexistence between humans and other races, and the erasure of class divides—such a utopia seemed far-fetched at best.

"Then, good luck," Wang Yu finally said after some thought. He was aware of Emmon's stubbornness; even if Wang Yu tried to dissuade him, the orc wouldn't give up on his dream. In that case, it was better to encourage him—it wasn't a bad aspiration, after all.

"Yes, I'll keep working hard. Please accept this gift, Mr. Wang Yu. As far as I know, you don't have a suitable set of armor for yourself just yet."

"That's right." Wang Yu nodded. That was true—up until now, owing to various circumstances, he had never owned a set of armor.

As a knight, Wang Yu was rather poorly outfitted, especially when compared to Edward and his heavy plate armor. He resembled a ranger more than a knight, despite the fact that he fought on the frontlines.

"I know that your willpower is exceptionally strong, Mr. Wang Yu, so I thought you might be able to handle this set of armor. It doesn't have a name—our boss likes to call it the ‘Nameless Demon Armor.'"

Under Elliot's pained gaze, Emmon opened the chest to reveal an exceptionally peculiar suit of armor.