34 Setting up the stage
Two months can go slow or too fast depending on what you're doing, for the Leigh family was the latter of the two. The Dahar family began pulling strings and making alliances with other families who didn't see the Leighs in good light. The cultivation market shifted further away from their favor as the sales from the Leigh Workshops, Alchemists, and Blacksmiths began to drop.
They got a hold of the farming market, though. The influx of gold was higher than ever, thanks to that. However, this endeavor wasn't enough in the long run, as the spirit stones don't come from here. The other families were thoroughly confused by this and tried to dig the answer for this shift of focus to no avail.
When Isaac and Dustin recovered their hearing, the experiments began. The first one was seeing how the plants reacted to being cultivated without the help of the spirit herbs compendium. The answer was that it was almost impossible. The usual herb manuals usually work one plant at a time, very carefully, so it wouldn't be cost-effective to raise hundreds of Rank 1 plants. And those that were Rank 1 already wouldn't grow or bear fruits without the concentration of elemental attuned spiritual energy.
It was a pleasant surprise to everyone but a welcomed one. The Leighs wouldn't have to worry about people stealing their seeds that much if others couldn't grow them in the first place.
Secrecy was still the strategy to go, though. Attracting unnecessary attention before the time was right was a constant fear. The solution was using the members of the secret corps to not only practice but guard the farms in, well, secret.
Then it was time for probing the market with the new products. Under the newly founded Spirit Guardian's company, the Leighs began selling jams and pickled vegetables made from unranked plants. They switched flavors every week and took note of the customers' comments about them. If it was too sweet, too sour, too spicy, they began adjusting the recipes to match a much broader audience. It didn't reflect the cultivator market at all but was a good starting point.
After the first month, the start line was set: Watermelon jam and pickled eggplants for the earth element. Strawberry jam and pickled peppers for the water element. And finally, Tomato paste and pickled pumpkin for fire element. The air element ended up being the trickiest element to work.
In the experiments, only cabbages and corn absorbed it. The other crops greedily ate fire, water, and earth, but the air got pushed to the sidelines. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but they couldn't pickle or jam corn or cabbages. Even if it was possible, Isaac didn't know how to. Thankfully, Isaac remembered a recipe that one of his aunts taught him decades ago.
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"Let's make bollos." He said to himself, holding a corn cob in his hand. He plucked one of the grains and ate it raw to test it. "I think it can work!"
"U-understood!" Marco was confused about the name but still went on with it.
First was peeling the corns, revealing the yellow grains underneath. Then, they used knives to shell them. When they had a good amount on a big bowl, Marco stepped forward and waved his hands.
An orange spiritual flame enveloped the grains inside the bowl. It then began to spin, grinding them until it formed a yellow paste. Isaac took some sugar and salt and mixed it with the paste, tasting for seasoning now and then. When he was happy with the mixture, he took a spoon and the discarded corn leaves.
"Watch closely. You'll need to do this in the future." Isaac spoke to Marco and some of the chefs that were watching the process nearby.
He scooped some of the paste, put it on one leaf, and wrapped it up with more leaves. Then, he tied it up with a thin rope used for meat. It resulted in a small cocoon that faintly smelled like corn. After repeating the process a couple of times, Isaac got the hang of it once more after years without making one.
On the side, Marco waved his hand and pointed at a pot with water. A stream of spiritual energy touched the water, bringing it to a boil in a matter of seconds. Isaac dropped the leafy cocoons inside and closed the lid.
Several minutes later, Marco picked them from the water with telekinesis and let them on the counter. One of the chefs came forward and waved his hands, producing a gentle breeze that cooled them off enough to be consumed. Isaac used a knife to cut open the leaves and reveal the interior. A steamy yellow bollo was inside. It had a somewhat pyramidal shape, with a small knob on one end. Isaac sliced it in several small chunks and took one for himself.
"Hmmm..." He tasted it with his eyes closed. Then, he sighed with emotion. "Just how i remember it...What a shame that we don't have some cheese or some suero."
"I'll take a piece, young master." Marco went forward and ate a chunk. "Hmmm...It's dry, like a corn cake without enough water." He waved his hands in the air for a moment while he thought. "I do feel the sweetness of the sugar, but it's faint. Maybe adding a bit more would help? And it needs a sauce."
"I know, we used to eat this with suero and cheese back there." Isaac nodded, throwing a piece towards Dustin. "Eating it by itself is good, but it's better accompanied."
Dustin ate the chunk in one gulp, nodding his head in agreement. When he swallowed, Marco passed him a glass of water. He greedily drank until he finished it and gasped for air. "It's very dry...but it's tasty!"
"I do have some concerns, young master," Marco spoke up when the other chefs tasted the bollos. "It has the flavor, but it's not very aesthetically pleasing."
"It's the only solution i know. The other is selling the corn directly." Isaac sighed and ate another piece. "Besides, people told me that drugs are very bitter. I prefer a bollo over something like that."
"That's...true." Marco nodded with an unsure expression.
"Look, keep doing experiments with the cabbages and the corn. You might come up with something." Isaac patted him on the arm.
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During this time, the boys didn't slack off. After the near-death experience, they began training with a renewed vigor. Time and time again, the world reminded Isaac that his luck was slowly running out, and he would have to endure the hardships that would come on his own. Duarte almost died because of this, and deep down, he knew that it won't be the only time something like that happened.
Getting used to kicking was hard for him but not impossible. With help from his mother, Wilson, and even Dustin, he began making that transition. It wasn't perfect, but he was moving forward.
Dustin, on the other hand, left him in the dust. The kid was natural when it came to hand-to-hand combat. As they approached Organ strengthening, their gap began to close. He didn't have as much experience as Isaac, but he made it up with his adaptability. And finally, two days before Duarte woke up, Dustin managed to throw Isaac to the ground with an uppercut.
The adrenaline and euphoria that overcame the boy were enough for him to breakthrough. Dustin felt like all of the muscles of his body cramped at the same time, freezing him in place. The pain that suffered every fiber of his being was unbearable, and he couldn't do anything about it. Just before passing out, a cooling sensation coursed through him, and his muscles relaxed once more. He dropped to the ground, gasping for air and feeling like he could crush a mountain with his tiny fist.
After exchanging his experience with Isaac, he saw his expression turning ugly and murmuring something under his breath. He knew that the older one was worried and not particularly jealous of him. Dustin smiled and listened to his ramblings about getting proper rest and continued training.
Isaac wasn't too far behind him. The morning that Duarte woke up, he broke through, groaning after experiencing his body wanting to kill him once more. The final hurdle now was reaching spiritual attunement before the year mark. With their speed, it would be barely enough.
When Duarte finally healed, the family reunited once more. Now setting up the shop and leave their mark was the objective. They'll have to compete with not only their rivals but with the alchemy guild itself. It was an uphill battle but a necessary one for the survival of the Leigh family.
